1 comments about Professional Care of the Racehorse, Revised Edition: A Guide to Grooming, Feeding, and Handling the Equine Athlete.

1. Any owning or racing a horse will quickly come to consider PROFESSIONAL CARE OF THE RACEHORSE a 'Bible' of information - or will have to learn the same information the harder way, through the school of hard knocks. From grooming and basic training to understanding injuries and basic care of the feet, here under one cover is everything you need to know to keep your racehorse in top performing condition. Black and white photos and diagrams throughout add illustration wherever needed. A 'must' reference for racehorse owners.

5 comments about Bookcases.

1. In general I like almost all the books and magazines that I own from Taunton press (such as Fine Woodworking, Fine Homebuilding, and some of their other books). In general the their writers are adept at what they do and their editing and illustrations are well done.

   This book is no exception. Unlike several of the reviews I have read, I didn't find any glaring errors in any of the plans (I built the maple plywood bookshelf and adapted the beech bookshelf for my own needs). I find the designs and illustrations to be useful. I plan on building the cherry Shaker-style book shelf in the near future (it should be easy enought to adapt to hold my DVD collection).

   Of course you will need some good power tools to complete these projects, especailly a good table saw (although I built the maple bookshelf mostly with my circular saw and a good edge guide), a biscuit joiner, jointer and a router. But this is pretty standard fare for any woodworking project.




2. Bookcases are a reviewer's friend. Or rather, they are until they take over the house. Eventually you realize that you have more invested in cheap assemble-it-yourself furniture than you do in that Volvo in the garage. If you have pretensions at being handy, there will come a time when you start dreaming of nifty cabinets and lawyers bookcases - all make in that shop in the basement. And that's the time to reach for Niall Barrett's book.

   Think there's nothing to it? Barrett starts right out with a bit of bookcase theory. Finally you will understand why those shelves keep sagging and how to keep it from happening. The author's style is straightforward, right to-the-point, but it is clear from the beginning that Barrett loves making bookcases, and loves what goes in them as well.

   Eleven designs are presented, from a simple, short bookcase to and exotic formal sideboard bookcase. Other than the sideboard, which is a bit over designed for my tastes I found all of the bookcases attractive, graceful, and functional. Barrett pays most of his attention one the details of building with only elementary suggestions about finishing.

   As has been mentioned earlier, he uses shop tools to simplify the work. Although there is no reason that some of the simpler designs couldn't be done with basic hand tools or handyman's power tools. Probably a router and a good rotary saw (small table saw or hand tool) are minimum requirements.




3. ... on the one hand, all the projects are beautiful, will inspire you to want to try them, and will probably appeal to an advanced woodworker.
   
   On the other hand, the title is simply, "Bookcases," rather than "Advanced Bookcases," and none of the projects as I recall were within the level of someone like myself with a simple table saw and simple router, and no biscuit joiner. Even for someone with a biscuit joiner, the author acknowledged that some of the joinery was a bit tricky.
   
   With that said, I did learn some wonderful stuff in the introduction, where Barrett notes two things: 1 -- To always plan your bookcase project by measuring what you are going to put in it, and what it weighs, and 2 -- To always sleep overnight on your plan before doing the cutting.
   
   Voila, he is so correct. I ended up not making any bookcases at all, but installing Rubbermaid wall-mounted white melamine shelves.
   
   I test-fitted all my shelves before attaching them permanently to the standards, moving tall books with tall books and short books with short books, and all the super-high world atlases on one spot.
   
   I made sure to sleep overnight on any design questions involving fitting the wall-mounted shelves around ducts or doorways, or figuring out where to make short, well-supported spans for heavy books. It all came out great, so that is an unintended consequence of Niall Barrett's book. The introduction really is quite good on how to plan a way to store a library, and has nice photos of various fasteners and standards.
   
   Check this book out and maybe use it to plan something simpler -- that's my advice.



4. Hello, Mr. Barrett and his team have knocked themselves out to train and educate people like me on both the asthetics and craftmanship of high quality bookcases. I am a professional instructional designer who graduated from a top three graduate program in the field (FSU) and I recognize how important it is for the subject matter expert (Mr. Barrett) to logically convey his or her teaching objectives to the reader in ways that the reader will hold fast to and generate good work from. IOW, I know I can follow the instructions while referencing the excellent exploded diagrams and produce handsome bookcases to hold and display my beloved books. My own goal and the instructional goal of Mr. Barrett and his team match cracker jackerly. Thanks for your hard work.



5. this book details 11 different bookcases: simple short, simple tall, shaker-style wall shelf, standing v-shelf, country colonial, trapezoidal, shaker-style with doors, arts and crafts, barrister, formal sideboard, and step-back bookcase. All nice-looking and well detailed. Most using solid wood, some using a little plywood. for me though not any plans for large free standing bookcases. i ended up designing and building my own 8-foot by 3-foot units with paneled sides and locking doors out of solid teak using very simple construction. this book needed some more fancy designs with dimensions i used.

5 comments about How To Play Card Combinations (Devyn Press Bridge Library).

1. On first reading Mike Lawrence's book on card combinations, I was disappointed. In fact, the book only deals with how to play seven particular suit combinations (one chapter on each). The obvious disappointment is that, even after having fully mastered the book, one will ostensibly only have mastered seven suit combinations!

   Yet, on further consideration, any disappointment was mitigated by two realisations:
   1) At least one will have mastered seven suit combinations; that is, be able to play them perfectly in any of a number of situations - no trumps contracts, suit contracts, contracts where entries to dummy are at issue etc.
   2) One expects that the logical discussion employed to analyse these particular hands can be gradually applied to other suit combinations.

   The title "humbling concept" applies here, as Mr. Lawrence's book makes it clear how difficult a task it is to become a master of bridge. Let us say there are 200 suit combinations which actually are of interest. Then one would need to read almost 30 books of this size (227 pages) to master the topic thoroughly.

   In conclusion, I suspect that if it were possible to discuss all (or even most) suit combinations thoroughly in one book, Mr. Lawrence might have written such a book. Instead, one should respect his decision to concentrate on seven suit combinations, and we can perhaps hope for other books to follow.




2. The title of this book misleads. One gets the idea that this book will attempt to show players the best a priori plays of the dozens (hundreds?) of key card combinations in bridge. Instead, we receive an in-depth analysis of 7 specific situations. Admittedly, most of these combinations will arise frequently, and Lawrence analyzes them effectively and thoroughly in various contexts. However, I was hoping to see a method to analyze generic combinations at the table quickly, one that would have use in more than only a few specific situations.
   
   Great analysis by Lawrence, a la "Play Bridge with Mike Lawrence", but not what I was looking for in a book with this title.



3. This is *NOT* a book on how to play a single suit in isolation.
   Its a book on how to play a bunch of common combinations, based on what you know about the entire hand.
   Its filled with gathering clues and applying Logic to figure out whether to lead to the K or J in KJx in dummy.
   
   For a book ONLY about suit combinations, try Klingers Card Play Made Easy.
   
   
   I think the reviewer who only rated the book a 3 is way off the mark. Its a great book, and he is basing his lower rating on the fact that the book was on a somewhat different topic than he expected.
   Thats like me saying Kit Woolseys "MatchPoints" isn't so good becaus eit covers things other than MP, like hand evaluation, etc.
   
   This is a great book. Sout of like the sequel to "How to Read Your Opponents Cards"



4. Start with Mike Lawrences "How to Read Your Opponents Cards". Get comfortable with the concepts he presents. Then try this. The book presents a set of chapters each featuring a common combination, such as KJx.
   
   The reader will need to place cards based on the defenders bidding (or lack of it), and whats been played (and wahts not been played).
   
   The book really is about deduction and counting, not how to play a suit to maximize the number of tricks. Don't let that stop you from buying and reading it, its well worth the time and money.



5. All about placing unseen cards, and what Terence Reese called 2nd degree assumptions. If you liked How to Read your opponenets cards, you will like this. More of the same, just a step more advanced.

3 comments about Official Nintendo The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask Player's Strategy Guide.

1. I've liked Nintendo guides because they seem to have good insight and great mapmakers. The downside is they sometimes rely a little too heavy on the maps. Yet overall a great guide.
   
   Pros
   +Very colorful
   +Great Maps
   +No spoilers
   +Concise the dungeon walkthrough, it is easy to follow you just navigate from number to number on the map and then read the paragraph it correlates to.
   +Tells you all the movements for Link
   +List all the items and which mask's can use them
   +Gives you hints on how to survive
   +Good fairy guide with screenshots
   +Side quests are incorporated right into the walkthrough.
   +Bomber notebook guide (includes a graph of the times available, list of the requirements and rewards, and a walkthrough with screenshots)
   +Masks Guide (Tells who to get it from and were they are, also a walkthrough with screenshots)
   +Pieces of Heart Guide (A screen shot and paragraph on how to get it)
   +Bottles and Upgrade Guide (Paragraph with screenshots on how to get the bottles and upgrades)
   +Majora's Mysteries, which is a section of fun things to do
   
   
   Cons
   -Choppy walkthrough, it just highlights the key and difficult points in the game and expects you to get there on your own
   -Expects you to use the map to navigate from point to point
   -The dungeon walkthrough can seem too concise in a little under five instances, which aren't difficult to figure out, i.e. you'll need a key to enter and you'll need to find it on your own
   -No Bestiary
   -A little thin
   
   Overall its a great guide. I would definitively pick this guide up if you buy The Legend of Zelda Collectors Edition or decide to go retro and pick up and N64 and LOZ:MM.



2. Thank you for responding back. I've been looking for a Player's Guide in this game because it gets confusing for awhile. So, I don't mind cheating, which is my best bet in most games. I found what I've been looking for.



3. Never get lost in this game again. With this players guide you will find everything and never get stuck in the game again.

2 comments about GURPS Fantasy.

1. GUPRS players have long known that its sourcebooks are treasure troves of information and GURPS Fantasy is no exception. It is skillfully crafted to help you either build your own fanasy world or adapt an existing one.
   
   GURPS Fantasy is logically broke down into sections beginning with the level and type of fantasy you want. It then by chapter does in how the supernatural can work, how magic and tecnology interreact and even how magic can replace technology, explores using history as a template, goes into the use of localities from isolated hamlets all the way to cities and empires, the different forms, types, and systems of magic, and finally storylines.
   
   The final chapter brings it all together but in a different form from the old magical psudo-Middle Ages Europe familar to many people. Instead we are treated to Roma Arcana - a Roman empire filled with magic both archane and divine.
   
   Even if you do not play GURPS, GURPS Fantasy will provide some insights to things your campaign may be lacking and provide a breath of fresh air because it goes into things often missed in other Fantasy worldbuilder books.



2. I love GURPS... the "anything you want do, you may do" RPG game. This book is a must for those who like fantasy campaigns!

3 comments about The New York Times Sunday Crossword Omnibus Volume 7: 200 World-Famous Sunday Puzzles from the Pages of The New York Times.

1. This version and all NY times Crossword Books published by
   ST MARTIN'S GRIFFIN are poorly done copies of books earlier done by RANDOM HOUSE. These books are cheaper but the quality is much poorer. The Type face is not as bold and paper quality is poor (pages tear easily with erasures). Also the title of each puzzle is lacking making solving extremely difficult where duoble letter squares are used or the spelling of answers is related to the title clue.



2. Noting the other review, I do agree somewhat with the "materials and construction" complaint, but these delightful Sunday treats remain wonderfully literate, urbane, witty challenges. Now that the AMA has noted the therapeutic value of crosswords at warding off various age-related cognitive difficulties, I say bring on more and better puzzle anthologies for the masses!



3. I have been enjoying NY Times Sunday Crosswords for years edited by others. But these, edited by Will Shortz, I find loaded with rarely if never used words. I have had two years of college, one at U of C at Berkeley, majoring in English and Literature. I love the English language as well as other languages and how they relate to each other.
   
   These puzzles are not fun because the words are not fair.

No comments about Game Development Essentials: Gameplay Mechanics.

3 comments about Super Crossword Collection (Spiral Crosswords).

1. I bought this book as a gift for my 82 year old friend. He's in and out of the VA hospital, and I thought the smaller size and the spiral bound would be great for travel. He fell in love with it and completed 98% of the puzzles. He gave it to me to finish. Not being one for puzzles, I have to use dictionaries. He does not. He also has dementia.



2. I was given this book as a gift last Christmaas. I have finished all the puzzles and enjoyed the book very much. I especially like the spiral binding and the handy size. Great to take to the beach which I did many times. I am searching for another so I can enjoy the puzzles this year.



3. I love the size, shape, sturdiness, texture of paper, level of difficulty, and especially the spiral binding. I am frustrated trying to find more copies. I wish to give some as gifts and need another for myself, but am having difficulty locating them. There are so many crossword puzzle books in the world and this one is the best. From a graduate level and professional degreed educator!

5 comments about Card Control: Practical Methods and Forty Original Card Experiments.

1. This book by Arthur Buckley is amazing.

   It has loads of fantastic card sleights, whilst they do need a lot of practice it is worthwhile, as once you have them in your fingers they will never be forgotten.

   All of these slieghts are extremely useful. The book is divided into different sections of tricks.

   There are tricks for close up and for stage although some may need some imagination to update them, also there is a special section on crooked gambling.

   All in all a good book with lots of photographs of Buckleys hands, he was a great card worker.

   Buy it if you already know all the basics of card magic well.




2. I've yet to see a bad review for this book, and there's a reason. This book is terrific. There is however one issue to be addressed. This book is hard!!! Definitely not for beginners, it has some of what I believe are the greatest but hardest card manipulations out there. I definitely recommend it however to the serious card magic enthusiast. There are enough valuable ideas in here to last you a lifetime.



3. If you've mastered Hugard and Braue's stuff, if you can do 60 classic passes per minute, if you have all the time in the world to devote to card sleight of hand, then this is the book for you! Seriously, this is a truly excellent book. Buckley's sleights, though not for the faint of heart, are superb. (He must've been one heckuva cardician!) This is a serious, serious card magic book. But if you are serious yourself, you'll get it. Of course, you'll overlook the antiquated prose and Buckley's tremendous ego throughout. (When you read this material you'll forgive Buckley's self-congratulatory tone.) This is a splendid work for those who want to be the best...



4. When I unexpectedly came across a picture of Buckley on the first page of the book, and after hearing the other reviews of how difficult and advanced the techniques in the book were, I couldn't believe my eyes. I was surprised to see the face of a handsome teenager, of which my previous impression was COMPLETELY the opposite to the one I held in my hands. And this guy was a professional card magician at the age of 18, and able to do tricks infront of hundreds of people on-stage in 1908!

   I have a feeling that this guy's mystery and skill probably gained him significant success with girls his age. The mysterious effects of these difficult to execute sleights are priceless and dazzling beyond belief. If a 3 columns card trick can make girls believe in magic.. then Buckley's stuff probably knocked their socks off... literally! Believe me, this guy would be able to blow David Blaine out of the water and make him look like Bob Longe.

   That being said and out of the way, the book itself is amazing. There are very clearcut photos of Buckley's hands and very impressive card tricks, or as he calls them in the fourth section, "Card Experiments". Best of all, this book isn't like most others where the authors seem to purposely be vague (S.W. Erdnase) and not give the best descriptions. Mr. Buckley gives you every detail and is your friend throughout the book, showing you exactly how everything is done without any confusion.

   And there is SO much different good stuff in here, that you'll probably never need another book for advanced materials.

   It is a great book and a great reference to help you on your way to card excellence and showmanship. You will not be disappointed with this purchase.




5. Pretty good book with a variety of unique card sleights (palming, manipulating cards in the deck, etc.). These sleights are the 'real work', so it will take a little perseverance. Many of these utility sleights are ones that you ought to know if you want to be a card sleight-of-hand worker.

   The instructions are generally clear, but sometimes a detail here and there gets a little confusing. There's a fair number of photos showing how to do many of the sleights.

   Sometimes a sleight is a little more complicated than it needs to be. My recommendation is to follow the author's steps in slow-motion with a deck of cards in hand. After you are familiar with the overall effect, you can make adjustments based on what your comfortable with. There may also be other newer methods for learning these sleights if you want to invest in newer card sleight instruction (such as the Daryl Encyclopedia of Card Sleights videos, etc.).

   Right now, I'm working on the side steal sleight. He gives a T. Nelson Downs version which has some merit, but it is much more complicated than necessary. The author's own version is a little more do-able. But even the author's method becomes a little too fidgety, so I've made minor modifications to make it work well for me. I start in slow-motion, counting through the substeps to keep pace while I do the move (1..2..3..4). Then I repeat it until I can bring it up to full speed.

   If you want to learn sleights for cheap, try this book. You may have to pick and choose through the sleights, and there may be better methods to perform some of these sleights now, but it's not bad for under $10.

1 comments about Better Rebidding with Bergen (Points Schmoints Series).

1. I like all the examples, its a lot more useful than "here is a rule, go follow it".
   
   Fun to read, clear, concise.
   
   I like most of Marty Bergens books, but a few are filled with too much "filler" and you end up paying $7 for what other books would cover in 30 pages.
   
   This is a great books for EVERYONE below expert.