2 comments about Sea Creatures Tattoos.

1. My three-year old boy got this as a birthday present. Once he saw it demonstrated on "daddy's" stomach (i.e., one temporary tattoo applied), he wanted one. We add one new tattoo each five days or so, just as the previous one wears out. He loves them, is learning the names of sea creatures and giggles like crazy when asked to show off his "lobster" or his "nautilus". I'm here to buy another copy!



2. There are ten fascinating tattoos of sea creatures in this little book. There's an ultra-colorful blue crab, a stately nautilus, a sprawling octopus, a graceful zebra lionfish, a lovely little blue spotted stingray, an ephemeral sea nettle, a tiny anemone, a sturdy northern sea star, a spiky northern lobster, and a whelk shell.

2 comments about Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles: Prima Official Game Guide (Prima Official Game Guides).

1. Great guide, it includes all your needs, from fully detailed maps to the descriptions of every enemy in the game. It also includes hints to how to beat any boss in the game.



2. It's good giudance to unlock the armo and the new stages. The price is cheaper than in store a lot.

1 comments about The Times Jumbo Cryptic Crossword Book 7: 50 Challenging Cryptic Crosswords (Times Jumbo Cryptic Crossword).

1. I'm a crossword fanatic and was turned on to cryptic or "British" crosswords a few years ago. They add a new twist to the concept, which is enjoyable, and adds a great deal more challenge, however, not enough of them are published in the States. Most come from England and some of the references in the clues are rather obscure, answers usually in British slang or referring to British persons. I have had to cheat a lot (look at the answers), and sometimes I still can't figure out how the clue refers to that particular answer. I'd try one of the Mensa cryptic crossword books (they have 2 now), or the one published by the New Yorker magazine. It's nice to have a challenge, but when its too hard, its just frustrating. I don't think I will buy another edition by this publisher.

2 comments about Storming A Castle: National Geographic Maze Adventures.

1. I purchased this for my grandson for Christmas, he is 7 and has Autism, and he fell in love with it. My daughter also thought it would be fun for her also. This is a big hit. Great gift idea for the grandchildren or your children.



2. I bought up a bunch of different puzzle books to do after recovering from foot surgery. I wanted to keep my brain active and not just by reading. I went for things that are different and interesting.
   
   This book is so much fun getting thru the castle. The artwork is very intricate. The quality is very high and as you would expect from National Geographic it is educational and fun at the same time.
   
   It is fun and makes you think as you learn history of the middle ages. The answers are given in the back so be carefull not to peek and ruin the fun.
   
   Great for anyone 5-95

5 comments about 2201 Fascinating Facts: 2 Vols. in One.

1. When I read this book years ago, I found the information therein just as the title states: fascinating. But upon further perusing of this work, I began to notice incorrect information presented as fact. For example, the deer botfly does NOT fly at the stated high speed; that fanciful notion came from a quote by etymologist Charles H. T. Townsend. His absurd estimation was proven false by Irving Langmuir.

   I've also found information in this book that contradicts "facts" elsewhere in the book. And the statistics cited from years ago are often out of date and inaccurate. I recommend this title only if you are willing to verify some of its information against other sources and have a keen ability to distinguish between fact and fascinating fiction -- however plausible it might seem.




2. I enjoyed reading this book although I wish they had one more up to date. I learned a lot of fascinating facts.



3. This was one of the cutest books I had ever read. It was educational and quite interesting. It was full of those things that you are curious about but too embarrassed to ask. I have really enjoyed it and have recommended it to several people.



4. This book is very interesting, I rate this book very high for anyone interested in events and triva.



5. Fun facts, but some well known facts. I did not buy this book for well known facts. Worth buying at a low price.

5 comments about Winning Chess Openings (Winning Chess - Everyman Chess).

1. The author has selected openings where brief analysis is provided, some of the concepts that are important in the specific opening and then provided variations. Memorizing lines is not what a beginner should be doing. It is better to "understand" the ideas behind the openings - yes this book doesn't say "memorize openings" per say, but it that is what the actions of this book seem to call for.
   
   Personally I feel that a beginner should be looking for "non" mechanical openings that contain a variety of both tactical and to a lesser degree positional concepts for learning purposes. The type of tactics that you will encounter at a beginning level in the openings you are using is important. I like the idea of getter a general survey type of opening book that has a good concentration of the ideas (like "Understanding the Chess Openings") along with a book that covers opening tactics (like one of a variety of Chess Trap books) is the way for a beginner to find the right openings and to gain an understanding of what they entail. You need a good variety of openings to be shown for you to get a fair grasp of what you might like - and this book falls short in this area.



2. I never really got good at chess until I started focusing first on a simple e4 e5 with the relative strength of second moves and then relative strength of third moves and looked at it as a tree with branches in every direction. It makes sense not to go on to d4 d5 until you have explored e4 e5 out at least 10 moves out in each popular direction.
   
   Yasser Seirawan uses a very logical arrangement of the classic games to take you down the branches of each possible move so that memorization is easy. Most importantly, he tells you WHY a certain move was made. He keeps returning you to the "main line" after he shows you the branches off to the side.
   
   I wish I had this book about 10 years ago when I was playing in competition. I have bought a lot of chess books but I think this was money well spent. I think I will buy others in the series.



3. If you seriously know nothing about the opening then this book will probably help you some. However, if you already have gathered all the basic concepts (which seem to be mentioned in pretty much every chess book ever made) then this book is a waste of money. Even for the complete beginner, I reccomend the recent books Openings for White/Black Explained by Lev Alburt, Roman D., etc., which can serve as both an introduction and a full course.
   
   I thought this book would give me a repertoir, so I would know some actual openings. However, the coverage of any one opening is so minimal you definitely dont know enough to actually play it in anysort of competetive way. To repeat: this book will not teach you to play openings competetively, it is only an introduction. Seirawan briefly covers classical openings and then covers in slightly more depth his "opening solution" which is the Kings Indian Defense versus d4, the Pirc versus e4, and the Kings Indian Attack as White. First off, I found I do not enjoy playing any of those openings at all. What is the advantage of being able to play the same 5+ moves at the start of every game? Then what after that? Well these openings are not devoid of theory and once you reach the end of the first 5 moves you have just as much work to do as with any other opening; you have just delayed the inevidable conflict for the center--which means a slower, longer, duller game. Secondly, if you do like these openings you will still have to buy more books that actually cover them!
   
   I would reccommend, even if you are a beginner, to buy the Openings Explained for White / Black by Lev Alburt, Roman D. Besides full coverage of the openings in the repertoir book, it also briefly covers some other traditional openings (just like winning chess openings). If you want an introduction you have one in the first chapter; if you want to really LEARN an opening then you have that too. Or if you already have an idea what openings your want to play then DEFINITELY don't get this book, instead get some thorough books on that/those openings.



4. What's the point of an opening book? There are two possibilities: 1)Build a reperotoire; or 2)Teach you how to play a specific opening. Seirawan's book tries to fill both categories, but spreads itself too thin and ends up being frutstrating.
   
   The structure of WCO is just like MCO, NCO, and all the other "CO"s: it systematically presents opening after opening, giving various explanations and lines. Seirawan's book is geared to much lower rating levels than more complicated books like Modern Chess Openings, but it doesn't cover enough CONCRETE ground to be of any practical use to any rating.
   
   The best example I can find is in the section on Alekhine's Defence. Yasser (or "Yaz" as he's known here in Seattle) gives only a single line for the opening: 1.e4 Nf6 2.e5 Nd5 3.d4 d6 4.c4 Nb6 5.ed cd 6.Be3 Nc6 7.Nc3 g6 8.c5! and white apparently has a sizeable advantage. This isn't well supported by theory, and there are many other lines black can opt for (5...ed, 6...g6, 6...N6d7 etc.) that have better results. It's almost as if the author is unwilling to engage in a discussion of the more critical lines.
   
   It may be argued that there is a lot of textual explanation for the openings. Yes, there is, but it doesn't mean anything if you don't know what moves to play. There is little concrete basis for how to play in the openings, so you will inevitably find yourself struggling as soon as you get to the 6th move in an opening Yaz discusses.
   
   I'll spare it the harsh "sub 3-star" rating because Seirawan's style is very engaging and fun to read. Even given the "chessic" inadequacies of the book, it's still very fun to read, and Yasser is self-depricating and funny when he writes (his style is similar to David Norwood's).
   
   In 272 pages, Seirawan manages only a vague definition of each opening. The book doesn't, as many reviews claim, give you a reperotoire for white or black, because there simply aren't enough variations to look at. If you want to pick out an opening for white or black, thumb through WCO. Otherwise, pick up something more specific. You could get the same value from a much smaller, cheaper text.



5. It is not so clear exactly what this book is trying to do. It tries to set itself up as an "Modern Chess Openings" or "Nunn's Chess Openings" when listing variations but fails by being far to sparse to be of any use. It tries to provide some ideas of what is happening in the opening like "Understanding the chess Openings", "Winning Chess Traps for Juniors" or "Ideas Behind the Openings" but yet it is far to sparse with the ideas. The mix and match, trying to do cover all of these in one book is off base. Not enough ideas for the beginner or intermediate level player, Not enough lines/variations to be of any use to an intermediate or advanced player. I think three stars is rather generous, as perhaps the just beyond beginner or just under intermediate range of player might find some small benefit to this book. Some of the "Winning Chess" series books are very well done. This is one of the few books in the series that is at the bottom end.

5 comments about Expert Card Technique: Close-Up Table Magic.

1. This book is comprehensive in scope-it covers about all of the basic techniques the card worker needs to know. It goes far beyond this, however. All techniques taught are described in *excruciating* detail so as to leave nothing to the imagination. It also includes ongoing words of advice on and entire chapters devoted to the _real_ secrets of magic: misdirection and presentation. As if all this were not MORE than sufficient to recommend the book, it's written in a very witty, eloquent, and entertaining style that makes it a joy to simply read. But wait! There's more! Please find enclosed numerous card effects worthy of the most discriminating audiences at less than the cost of your favorite magic dealer's Trick O' the Day. With regard to my own experience I've read this book near to tatters and have annotated nearly every other page-I got my money's worth and so will you.



2. I am not sure who this book is written by.

   It's an encyclopedia, of card handling.

   There is no connection from one chapter to the next and unless you are an english major, you will simply be very very frustrated trying to understand what to do and how.

   This book is not for beginner but rather someone who has a very good grasp of handling cards and would like to know more than he already knows.

   This book is like an english dictionary, you being a foreigner who knows half a dozen words. You'll find yourself trying to decrypt half the instructions. Do you have the time and patience for it? I sure didn't. You'll find this to be mysterious text that might become clear to you some day, unless you already know how to do half the material in it to begin with.




3. I consider this book the next step after reading the great Royal Road to Card Magic. I did not like some tricks, but, the really important part of the book is, as it is stated in the title, is the technique showed. Recommended.



4. This is a great book loaded with great material, however some of the material is false. For instance, the Faro Shuffle section is all entirely wrong. It is thought by some that this was done on purpose, and if so it is entirely unethical of the authors. Regardless, this book has a plethora of fantastic material, and I highly recommend it.



5. Won't appeal to the DVD generation of magicians.
   It is densely written in the style of times gone by.
   If you can get past this (i.e can read, and can interpret instructions that are written, instead of being spoonfed)you will have all the moves you could ever need.

5 comments about Video Poker: Optimum Play.

1. The book has really good information. The problem is that is painfully boring to slog through. I have noticed an improvement in my VP playing. I am playing longer and not losing as much still in search of that magical royal.

   It took me over 2 weeks to get through this book and it is only 200 pages.




2. This is an excellent book. It details the steps necessary to become an expert player, a professional player of Video Poker.
   
   Optimal play is NOT perfect play. Mastering a trade is not easy. Discipline and practice are the watch words of all good Video Poker players.



3. I strongly suggest any fledgling video poker player read this manual to learn the basics of the odds and strategies necessary to conquer the casino video poker machines. An excellent basic, introductory text, Paymar also sells video poker training software and strategy cards that are a must for the budding or even serious player. I contribute much of my success at the game to the precepts in this book.



4. Paymar's book is pretty much the definitive handbook for video poker play today. He discusses every factor involved in beating theoretically beatable games, and at least stretching your dollars and getting the most out of your play in the rest.
   
   Dan disects each of the most popular games in detail, as well as multiple variations of each, and some of the older machines you might still run across. Each is subjected to computer payback and play analysis, and this runs to quite some length (and strictly speaking is not necessary reading). He streamlines all of this information into shorter hand flowcharts on how to play each hand to maximum potential, something which comes as quite a relief after going through his exhaustive and detailed optimum play discussion.
   
   Further, he delves into just what the stats mean. If a game is technically beatable over the long run, what does that tell the player? Well, it means frankly a full-time career of playing video poker, all day every day for months, at almost unbelieveable speed and rapidity and of course with perfect unerring accuracy. It is not easy or simple, and I can't even imagine that it would be fun. Moreover, one's potential edge in even the very best game, with the best payback, is so microscopic, that the fluctuations in the player's bankroll, even with only slight statistical blips, are huge. Don't even think of playing full time at a quarter machine with less than $50,000 to start. His advice in this area is depressing but honest and frankly about the most important stuff in the book.
   
   If the only thing this book does is to show the reader how to shop for a 'good' game and refuse to play short-pay ripoff games, it will be well worth the money. If your play improves as well, that's a bonus. Regular video poker players will benefit by reading this book.



5. I was very impressed with the amount of good info packed into this book.

5 comments about Earn $30,000 per Month Playing Online Poker: A Step-By-Step Guide to Single Table Tournaments.

1. Excellent practical advice on winning single table tournaments.
   I wanted to find some guidance of a step by step format that would increase my winning ratio and show me errors that I was making.
   Knowledge is inexpensive. Ignorance is costly.
   This book is great value.



2. Like most of the rest, I was thoroughly underwhelmed by this book.
   
   A couple of points:
   
   A) The title is a get rich quick scheme. Why was I so stupid? Don't be stupid like me.
   
   B) The book (like others about internet poker) recommends playing multiple games at the same time (up to 8). Fine, but do we need a few pages explaining why two monitors are better than one to accomplish this? Really?
   
   C) The book assumes that you are a top notch SNG player. If you are, you very well make $30,000 a month beating up on Donkeys using their system. If you aren't (hi Mom!), you won't make any money any how. And you certainly won't make more money from this book.
   
   D) I forget the exact amount, but you need to spend $$$ up front (something like $1500) on software in order to do what the book says. Anyone want to lay odds that the author is somehow connected to the websites selling the software you "need."
   
   E) Be sure to buy my book, "How to make $45,000 a month playing poker in your underwear." It will be on Amazon shortly.



3. Man, there sure is a lot of information on sit-n-gos out there now. And I've bought all the books on the subject. Some are better than others, but each has its own useful tidbits.
   This book, while a thin one, does give a lot of info on how to play the bubble in sit-n-gos. Since that is the most important part of a sit-n-go, that was very helpful to me. I also learned about the SnG Power Tools software from this book, which has helped me also. It's pretty expensive at $80, but helps a lot when deciding which hands to push all-in with on the bubble. But, you ask, what if you're trying to decide to call an all-in on the bubble? Which hands do you call with? Well, you can set up SnG Power Tools for that too.
   I realize that this is supposed to be a review on the book, rather than on the software explained within. But the software has helped me a lot, and I found out about it because of this book, so I have to mention it. And the book was a whole lot cheaper than the software!



4. this book was a total waste of money, i bought 3 other poker books at the same time.
   
   this book is like a brochure, had no in depth ideas, was a basic outline of online sit and goes. i would greatly recommend you stay away from this book, and would recommend moshmans sit'n go stragegy book 100 times better book



5. Probably should have been a bonus gift as an ebook. Not much information was useable.

4 comments about Secrets of Sarlona (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying, Eberron Supplement).

1. It is a very good book if you are running a campaign in Eberron on, or at least heavily involving the continent of Sarlona. Other than that It has very little use.
   
   A few new prestige classes, feats, and weapons are the most it offers.



2. I think this is an excelent product. I like the ideas that the dreaming dark present as villians and this book expands on those ideas. Both in how they would be used, and how to use those who would oppose them. I also appricate the inclusion of new quori that can be used with empty vessels to make enlightened. Finally I am a huge fan of psionics and many rule books include very little additional material on psionics, so I am excited about the additional psionic content in Secrets of Sarlona.



3. For anyone interested in psionics canon in Eberron, I'd highly recommend this book. There are a lot of NPCs and political information as well as some weapons and feats that may prove useful. It seems a little bit of a throw-back to forgotten realms style regional modules.
   
   Downsides for me was that the material was very vague or limited, geographically, but fairly detailed politically. For example, they'll spend a tiny paragraph for a whole region that is leaking chaos into Eberron in Adar and has a lot of fantasy potential, then spend 5 pages talking about a political group that really, after reading it, isn't very interesting or have clear goals or themes.
   
   For crunch, the PrCs and quori-related stuff seems a little tame...a lot more flavor than bang. Enough of the artwork is mediocre to remove it from the list of strengths.
   
   I think I would have liked the book to be...bigger. There is a lot of material to cover and a lot of it gets short treatment or no treatment at all, but still a good book especially if you are interested in non-Khorvaire Eberron, as I am.



4. Secrets of Sarlona was a pretty good read. From the many different countries and cultures, to the cult-like infulences the Inspired have on the people on the gigantic country of Rierdra. Not only that, but for a book this size, it goes into some key details about each culture (like "a day in the life" thing), important NPCs, new Psionic powers,interesting feats that work with and against psionics, and new weapons.
   
   My only dissapointments were the lack of info on ALL the Quori, instead only giving me three castes, and merely mentioning two others. and a lack of new monsters, overall; only a small number of them.
   
   But I digress. Secrets of Sarlona was a good read, and an interesting adaptation to the Eberron world.
   
   Now to get my hands on Secrets of Xen'Drik.