Literary Criticism & Collections Books - Page 5

The Wind in the Willows

Kenneth Grahame

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 131 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Complex 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This was a very interesting book. As I read it I felt like Toad was a `Prodigal Son', who came back only far enough to receive acceptance, then returned to his bad habits till he was in trouble again.

It reminded me much of myself, playing at being Christian before really giving Christ all areas of my life. Like Toad I would repent, but then not really change.

Rat was wise and resourceful, Mole was tender and caring and awe-full like a child yet also very wise. Badger is like a wise mature old mentor or guide, sent to give direction, and lead one to find one's own purpose in life.

Yet the mix of Animal and Human society just did not make sense to me. It felt like a badly planned Narnia novel. It did not explain how the animal and human worlds came to interact and share a language or culture.

But over all it was a fun read even if dry in some spots.

(First written as Journal Reading Notes in 1999.)

Editorial Review:

The escapades of four animal friends who live along a river in the English countryside--Toad, Mole, Rat, and Badger.

The Tempest (Macmillan shakespeare)

William Shakespeare

By: Nelson Thornes Ltd Amazon Marketplace: 7 new & used starting at $0.39

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 38 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Excellent activity based edition 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

The Tempest is rightly regarded as being one of the Bard's greatest works, containing some of his deepest thoughts on the nature of power and the relationship between rational man as controller of nature, and the animal man always to be at the mercy of the passions both of himself, others, and the world around him. In fact, this play could be thought of as representing Shakespeare's final and definitive statement on topics that he had explored throughout his cannon. But profound as the philosophy is, and despite the beauty of the poetry and the many magical elements contained within the play, the fact is that as far as the average attention lacking teenager is concerned, not a lot happens. This is why this Cambridge schools edition scores over most others. It is almost entirely activity focused, the expressed aim being to 'bring the play to life'. With at least one suggested activity beside each page of Shakespeare's text (as well as a decent amount of background notes and interpretation), every teacher armed with this book should be able to enthuse his charges with the very real relevance of this play to the world which we have bequeathed them.

Editorial Review:

The widely acclaimed Oxford School Shakespeare series offers students the perfect introduction to Shakespeare's plays. THE TEMPEST, probably written around 1611, dramatizes Prospero's plight to escape banishment to a lonely island by his brother Antonio.

Crossing to Safety

Wallace Stegner

List Price: $25.00 By: Random House Amazon Marketplace: 35 new & used starting at $0.56

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 111 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Fabulous! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Beautifully written, provocative, and enduring. Hated for it to end. Wanted to reread it immediately.

No pain, no gain 3 out of 5 stars.
1 of 3 people found this review helpful.

`How do you make a book that anyone will read out of lives as quiet as these?' asks the author of his own characters, about two thirds through Crossing to Safety; that seems to be the challenge Stegner set himself.

The novel, running from the 1930s to the 70s, revolves around the friendship between two couples, the Langs and the Morgans, in which the men are both literature professors. The Langs are rich and endowed with extended families and the Morgans are self-made and orphans. They all lead full lives in which they remain by-and-large happily married.

Stegner is erudite, and he obviously loves the places he describes, from Madison, Wisconsin to Florence and including the secluded lakeside spot in New England where much of the book is set. But it is difficult to identify with characters whose lives are so uneventful. From the beginning, one of the protagonists is dying, but because the story is told from the perspective of the old Larry Morgan, that only comes out as looking back on a life well spent. The characters barely struggle, and when they do, Stegner chooses to skirt around their conflicts. The reader is left to enjoy his detailed and moody descriptions, his poetic quotes, and the contrasts between the depression and post-war eras: pleasant because the book is well written, but not very exciting.

`You don't,' would be my answer to Stegner's question. Judging from other reviews, obviously, I've come to the wrong conclusion.

Editorial Review:

Called a “magnificently crafted story . . . brimming with wisdom” by Howard Frank Mosher in The Washington Post Book World, Crossing to Safety has, since its publication in 1987, established itself as one of the greatest and most cherished American novels of the twentieth century. Tracing the lives, loves, and aspirations of two couples who move between Vermont and Wisconsin, it is a work of quiet majesty, deep compassion, and powerful insight into the alchemy of friendship and marriage.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Tennessee Williams's the Glass Menagerie (Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations)

List Price: $45.00 By: Chelsea House Publications Amazon Marketplace: 3 new & used starting at $49.51

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 127 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

TOO FRAGILE TO SURVIVE? 3 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Tennessee Williams' play in seven scenes continues to fascinate
audiences and readers a half a century after its Chicago premiere.
Based loosely on autobiographical memories of his southern boyhood GLASS MENAGERIE strikes a responsive chord because most people can relate to conflict within a family unit. The three main characters strive to follow their private dreams--no matter how unrealistic they are. Mother and children seek both to escape their drab existence in a honeycomb of Chicago tenements, while concealing their frustration and despair from
each other. They scorn to seek solace or encouragement at home.

A former Southern belle, Mrs. Wingfield desperately wants social success for her daughter; her visions of jonquils and gentleman callers are pathetic attempts to relive her own youth through her socially-stunted daughter. Amanda, overzealous to control her son better than she did her long-gone traveling husband, merely succeeds in alienating Tom, a warehouse worker with dreams of writing poetry and/or joining the merchant marine.

Slightly crippled Laura ("sister" as Amanda calls her) fails at everything she touches, including most recently a typing course at a business college. Seeking escape and unconditional acceptance with her collection of glass animals Laura is excessively shy, terrified of all new social interactions. She seems doomed to early spinsterhood--incapable of providing for herself in the world.

Amanda's scheme to marry off her daughter hinges on the success of luring suitors to their modest apartment. Pressed into providing a gentleman caller Tom invites Jim O'Connor, an affable coworker. In fact both Wingfield siblings knew the former athlete in high school. Despite resistance from Laura, who refuses to cooperate in any social con game, the two young people seem to hit it off when left alone--until Jim drops a bombshell. Dreams are shattered like the glass unicorn, as Amanda despairs because she has two children who are not normal. How will either of the Wingfield offspring escape and find the freedom which their father coveted more than domestic duties? Williams' stage version deliberately blends typical stage business with a cinematic style acquired during his years in Hollywood. Audiences are reminded of the
the question of social survival and the painful fragility of tortured individuals bonded by genetic hostility.

Editorial Review:

Harold Bloom?s introduction suggests Tennessee Williams is the most literary of American dramatists. Examine The Glass Menagerie with some of the best criticism written about it, including ?Catastrophe without Violence,? ?The Southern Gentlewoman,? and ?Celebration of a Certain Courage.?

The title, Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie, part of Chelsea House Publishers’ Modern Critical Interpretations series, presents the most important 20th-century criticism on Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie through extracts of critical essays by well-known literary critics. This collection of criticism also features a short biography on Tennessee Williams, a chronology of the author’s life, and an introductory essay written by Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities, Yale University.

Fantastic Mr. Fox: A Play (Puffin Story Books)

Roald Dahl

List Price: $12.40 By: Puffin Books Amazon Marketplace: 19 new & used starting at $1.98

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 82 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

little too violent 1 out of 5 stars.
2 of 9 people found this review helpful.

when the young foxes fearfully ask their daddy, the fantastic mr fox, how will we die? will there be dogs? I decided it was not for my 3 year olds. he's clever allright but this is probably a tale best told ( edited by you) and not read.

It is my favorite book! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I am 9 years old and enjoyed this book. I especially like how it is written and the story line. It is full of fantastic mystery all the way up until the last sentence. There ae three adults who are trying to kill a fox who is eating some of the food from their farms. The adventure is all about Mr. Fox trying to get away from the farmers and still trying to feed his family and friends. It was fun to live the life of each character from the adults to the foxes, moles, rabbits and all the other animals. If you like mystery and adventure you will love this book.

Editorial Review:

This is a short dramatization - perfect for schools - of Dahl's immensely popular story for younger readers in which clever Mr Fox outwits the three nasty farmers: Boggis. Bunce and Bean. With staging advice on props, lighting etc at the end of the book.

A Child's Garden of Verses

Robert Louis Stevenson

Amazon Price: $14.27 List Price: $20.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Amazon Marketplace: 38 new & used starting at $11.77

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 31 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

classic! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book brought back memories of my childhood which I can now pass down to my grandchildren.

Better then expected! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

A Child's Garden of VersesI had this book of poems as a child and loved it dearly. I recently purchased this newer (artwork) version of my favorite book, and WOW was I surprised. The artwork was beautiful and added greatly to the beautiful verses. I am sure that not only the baby that I gifted this to, but his parents will love the book (and artwork) as much as I still love mine. Thank You.

A Child's Garden of Verses 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I received this book from a friend at Christmas when I was a child. I always loved it. I sent a copy to my great granddaughters 8th birthday last year with a couple of other story books and she said she loved all of them.

A Child's Garden of Verses 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This is an excellent book of poetry for children. Many, many years ago when I was about nine years old, my great aunt (a school teacher) sent this book to me as a gift. Even though I am now in my 60's, I still have some of the poems memorized. I found such enjoyment in this book that I recently purchased it for my nine-year-old granddaughter.

Editorial Review:

In this well-known collection of poems, master poet Robert Louis Stevenson captures all the joy and magic of childhood. Tasha Tudor's signature watercolors pay tribute to a simpler time in the past, while celebrating both children and nature. Full-color illustrations.

Sigmund Freud's: The Interpretation of Dreams (Modern Critical Interpretations)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 37 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

The First step in the Discovery of the Machinery of the Mind 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 5 people found this review helpful.

Freud believed that every dream would reveal itself as a psychological structure, full of latent significance, often beyond the accessibility of normal consciousness. It was in fact belief in this assumption about a hidden psychological structure that eventually led to the discovery of the unconscious and to the later mapping of the architecture of the mind.

The discovery of the unconscious had monumental ripples across the intellectual landscape, especially in psychology and the aesthetic arts. It opened the gateways to the complexity of the mind and made it respectable to speak of the mind's hidden dimensions and their effects on both normal and abnormal psychological functioning.

Here using subjects, with now famous pseudonyms, Feud describes how their "dream-content," and the overt images of their dreams are in fact but the coded residue of latent thoughts and unresolved subconscious processing: Indeed, how they are little more than symbolic representations of deeply hidden ideas, feeling, and conflicts in these cases mostly of a sexual nature that have been unconsciously repressed, compressed, or suppressed beneath consciousness.

The book demonstrates how dream content is deciphered under proper psychoanalytic techniques and conditions, and what those techniques and conditions should be. When the techniques are applied properly, the blocked content is gradually recovered, examined and made manifest to the patient under clinical control. The goal of the analysis is to allow this "recovery process" and the exposure to the patient of the blocked items - that is exposure to "what lies beneath consciousness" -- to give the patient relief from psychological stress, tension, and conflicts.

Although many of Freud's theories have since come under careful scrutiny and sometimes withering criticism, "The Interpretation of Dreams" has remained one of his more enduing of his works. Because it is so cleanly written, as is true of all of Freud's works, and because it is Freud:

Five Stars

Editorial Review:

This edition of Modern Critical Interpretations brings together some of the best commentaries available in English on Sigmund Freud's The Interpretation of Dreams. The criticisms reflect the approaches of many disciplines to Freud: philosophy, psychoanalysis, sociology, history, and literary criticism.

The title, Sigmund Freud’s The Interpretation of Dreams, part of Chelsea House Publishers’ Modern Critical Interpretations series, presents the most important 20th-century criticism on Sigmund Freud’s The Interpretation of Dreams through extracts of critical essays by well-known literary critics. This collection of criticism also features a short biography on Sigmund Freud, a chronology of the author’s life, and an introductory essay written by Harold Bloom, Sterling Professor of the Humanities, Yale University.

33 Things Every Girl Should Know: Stories, Songs, poems, and Smart Talk by 33 Extraordinary Women

Tonya Bolden

Amazon Price: $10.40 List Price: $13.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Crown Books for Young Readers Amazon Marketplace: 94 new & used starting at $0.01

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 7 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Hillary Clinton names "33 Things..." in July speech 5 out of 5 stars.
30 of 38 people found this review helpful.

This July at the 150th anniversary of the first women's rights convention in Seneca Falls, New York, First Lady Hillary Clinton mentioned "33 Things Every Girl Should Know" in her speech before 15,000 people. Two hours after the speech, "33 Things..." was flying off the shelf at a book signing at the Women's Rights National Historical Park. My 13 year old daughter, Elizabeth Jenkins-Sahlin, an author of one chapter called "Get Involved!", autographed 205 books. The books ran out before her writing hand tired. She is the great, great, great granddaughter of Elizabeth Cady Stanton, early founder of the women's movement. There is no question this chapter and this book empowers girls. Oh, by the way, Elizabeth says, "Even my 50 year old dad likes the book."

Editorial Review:

Natalie Merchant. Sigourney Weaver. Tabitha Soren. Wendy Wasserstein.

Rebecca Lobo. Lauren Hutton. Anita Roddick. Lynda Barry. These are among the

thirty-three extraordinary women who lend their diverse voices to this

outstanding collection of stories, songs, poems, comics, and essays that will

give every adolescent girl reason to feel hopeful about making the transition

from girlhood to womanhood. Dealing with subjects like popularity, success,

communication with boys, speaking one's mind, and body image, here is a book

that offers help and inspiration to girls as they struggle to find a portrayal

of womanhood they can call their own. 33 Things Every Girl Should Know is an

empowering and inspirational gift book that every girl will want to own, to

share with friends, and to use as a springboard to self-knowledge,

self-acceptance, and self-esteem.

The Canterbury Tales (MAXNotes Literature Guides)

Sarah Ray Voelker

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Total reviews: 84 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Not the complete Canterbury Tales 3 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Please note: The Bantam version (translated by Hieatt) only contains the most popular of the Tales. (Use the "Inside this Book" feature to check the table of contents, as I, alas, did not.) The facing page translation is just what I was looking for, but really wanted the complete set.

Editorial Review:

MAXnotes offer a fresh look at masterpieces of literature, presented in a lively and interesting fashion. Written by literary experts who currently teach the subject, MAXnotes will enhance your understanding and enjoyment of the work. MAXnotes are designed to stimulate independ ent thought about the literary work by raising various issues and thought-provoking ideas and questions. MAXnotes cover the essentials of what one should know about each work, including an overall summary, character lists, an explanation and discussion of the plot, the work's historical context, illustrations to convey the mood of the work, and a biography of the author. Each chapter is individually summarized and analyzed, and has study questions and answers.

The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery (Viking Kestrel Picture Books)

Graeme Base

By: Penguin Books Australia Ltd Amazon Marketplace: 2 new & used starting at $36.49

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 59 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Worth every penny! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I'm a freshman in college and I still love this book. My third grade class room had a set but we were NOT allowed to open the pages in the back! The entire class spent lots of time pouring over the sumptuous pictures and trying to spot each and every hidden...well, I won't give it away. I came across the book in a bookstore recently and bought it immediately because I had such fond memories. Do yourself or your kid a huge favor and buy it!

This is for Kids and Adults 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

The story is about Horace the elephant who has decided to celebrate his eleventh birthday, with 10 of his friends in the eleventh month (November) on the eleventh day. After all have arrived the eleven characters participate in eleven games in anticipation of a birthday feast at the eleventh hour of the day. Thus the title of the book - The Eleventh Hour. The day is filled with musical activities, indoor/outdoor games, board games, cards, party games and more. The eleventh hour arrives disappointing the guests with the unexpected disappearance of their birthday feast. Apparently a theft perpetrated by one of the invited guests. Horace saves the day by serving healthy whole wheat sandwiches to all and the birthday cake remains because it had been stored away from the feast. With everyone enjoying the birthday cake, the story closes with a happy ending.

However, this is where one story ends and other mysteries begin. On each page of the book there are puzzles to be solved and clues to lead a more intrepid reader along the trail to the thief of the birthday feast.