5 comments about Billiards, Revised and Updated: The Official Rules and Records Book.

1. I have learned to play more than just straight 8-ball. This book has the rules for tons of other fun and easy games, including pictures.



2. What's the point in selling an outdated copy? I'm looking for the latest version 2000 or 2001. So many rules have changed since 1998 that the copy your selling is almost useless to those of us that are billiard buffs and take the game seriously.



3. WOW! I WISH I HAD THIS BOOK ON THANKSGIVING - IT SURE WOULD HAVE SAVED SOME TIME AND EVERYONE WOULD HAVE GOTTEN A CHANCE TO PLAY. YOU KNOW, THERE'S ALWAYS THAT ONE PERSON THAT SAYS, "YOU CAN'T DO THAT' OR 'POOL HASN'T BEEN PLAYED LIKE THAT IN YEARS", AND THEN -- WELL, I DON'T HAVE TO TELL YOU



4. Every bar, tavern, club and hall with a pool table (in the US) should have a copy of this on-hand. The horrendous inconsistence and outright ridiculousness of most local and house "rules", not to mention individual "rules", has made a sorry mess of recreational American pocket billiards. I can only hope that the REAL games of 8-ball, 9-ball, etc., become better known to amateur players over time, and that the bogus, corrupt, yokel variants of these games finally die off some day.



5. My boyfriend wanted a book on the rules of different pool games because him and his buddies had many different rules to play various games. So I bought him this and they got to see who was right and who was wrong. It was the perfect gift for pool players. Very GOOD!

No comments about Advanced Techniques of Dressage: German National Equestrian Federation (German National Equestrian Federation's Complete Riding and) (German National Equestrian Federation's Complete Riding and).

1 comments about The Never-Bored Kid Book, Ages 6-7.

1. I purchased this book for my 5 year old home schooled son who wants to do crafts all the time. Of course Mom doesn't always have the time for another craft so this book has been great. The projects are easy and take very little if any instruction from Mom. The projects also help reinforce things he is learning during school time such as spelling, matching, using scissors, following directions, etc.
   
   The book gives a list of needed items in the front cover such as glue, tape, scissors, etc. Occasionally the book calls for yarn or other items not listed in the front but they are usually items that are easy to find around the house.
   
   I have put together a plastic box with a lid which I added glue sticks, kid scissors, tape, crayons, paper and a few craft books including The Never-Bored Kid Book Ages 4-5, I Can Draw Animals and I Can Draw People (The two latter are by Usborne). I added a few more books but his favorite is the Never-Bored Kid Book. Then the I Can Draw books. He has access to this box and can use it any time.
   
   I put together a similar box as stated above for my niece for her 8th birthday and I included The Never-Bored Kid Book, Ages 7-8.
   
   I will definitely buy the next book in the seres for my son when he is ready. This book has been great.

1 comments about The New York Times Quicker and Easier Crossword Puzzles.

1. Sections of this review is almost verbatim of my review of "Quick and Easy Crossword Puzzles" by Will Shortz since the books are so similar. I did not find these puzzles significantly easier than the other version but rather about the same with respect to difficulty. This collection is fun and enjoyable for the novice or casual crossword-puzzler because of the accomplishment by completing 3/4 to 9/10 of each puzzle, with a few being slightly more difficult than most in the collection.
   
   "First off, I will say that I casually do crosswords. I do the New York Times most Mondays and some Tuesdays as they easier than their mid- to late-week counterparts. The New York Times crossword puzzles get increasingly more difficult each day starting on Monday. I am not a super solver, but enjoy working through these puzzles and ones from other newspapers when able.
   
   "This collection has crosswords that were originally printed on both Mondays and Tuesdays of the New York Times. The puzzles were just challenging enough for my skill level and knowledge level, but easy enough that I could make considerable progress on the puzzles. I found this book a great way to pass some time while on breaks at work or while watching reruns on television. There are 130 puzzles in this collection so needless to say this book can keep you busy for quite some time. I recommend this book for people who enjoy the thrill of solving crossword puzzles while still being challenged some. These puzzles are not difficult, but they are not a piece of cake, either. Hard-core solvers will probably not find much enjoyment in these puzzles."
   
   Reference: J.Stoner, Amazon.com review of "Quick and Easy Crossword Puzzles" by Will Shortz, posted on January 1, 2006.
   
   By now I think it is time for me to start looking for a book like "Moderately-Paced and Average-Challenge Crossword Puzzles."

2 comments about Fantastic Flight.

1. Do you have any idea how much fun paper airplanes are? How much fun they can be? Sure, everybody knows how to make your basic paper rocket. I take my nephew Devon to OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science and Industry) all the time, because I have a good friend who works there and we get in for free. They have this exhibit where kids make paper airplanes and toss them into a wind machine to see how well they fly. I have always failed miserably at this.
   
   Not Anymore.
   
   Devon and I took this book along with us on our last outing to OMSI. Of course, we'd practiced with a lot of the planes in the book. When we got there we weren't only pros, we were ringers. We really impressed the folks.
   
   And we had a lot of fun doing it.
   
   This is a book that cries out to be used and abused with a child. Mine already shows signs of wear as it's made many of the kids on my block happy and made me sort of the local paper rocket mama. My grandad's even made a plane or two (or three or four) from this book. He particularly likes the Looper. Devon's fave is the Dart and I sort of lean to Phoenix Lock, lotta steps in that one, but it's pretty doggone neat.
   
   If you've got a kid in your life between the ages of two to ninety-two, then this is the book for you.
   
   Oh yes, you might also want to check out John Collins first paper airplane book The Gliding Flight, too.
   
   Review submitted by Captain Katie Osborne



2. I've had The Gliding Flight since I was young, so when I found out that the author had a second book of paper airplanes, I bought it immediately.
   
   Fantastic Flight doesn't quite contain as many consistently unique and quality planes of The Gliding Flight, it makes up for it with its stellar planes, my favorite being the Super Canard, which never fails to wow with its looks and its flight.
   
   Definitely worth buying.

5 comments about All Flesh Must Be Eaten: Revised Edition (Afmbe).

1. WotC may have D&D and White Wolf has the vampires, but when it comes to wipping out hordes of the walking dead then you need this book and Eden has it.
   
   All Flesh Must Be Eaten (AFMBE) is the premire Zombie roleplaying game. Everything you need to know is here and it uses the fantastic Unisystem game system so beginners can play it fast and pros still enjoy it. Plus it is 100% compatible with all of Eden's games like "WitchCraft", "Armageddon", "Ghosts of Albion" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". With the d20 conversion guide in back, it is also compatible with tons of d20 games.
   
   Don't wait, get this game before the dead arise and zombies are out.
   
   You'll thank me.



2. For the most part, this is a solid RPG. It serves up exactly what you asked for, and is unflinching in it's blatant homage to zombie flicks of the past four decades. Many thumbs up. However, I have to point out that the book has a story scenerio that is tasteless and could have been left out of the book. This is the "P.H.A.D.E to Black" storyline, which exploits HIV in a way that is truly pointless. Have a little heart and respect for the real world and get rid of this for future editions, guys.



3. Just as promised, a role playing set up for zombie invasions. I found the phase virus (modeled after aids) and the "green" products that raised the dead particularly entertaining.



4. ALL FLESH MUST BE EATEN (AFMBE) is just a great title. In today's competitive RPG market, a game needs something to grab your attention. For me, it was the "must". Not "will", or "can", or "maybe", but MUST BE EATEN. I like the imperative-ness of that statement.
   
   As you might guess, AFMBE is about zombies and zombie worlds (I guess you might think it is about cannibals or some vegan nightmare, but no, it's zombies). Part RPG and part zombie-fic, AFMBE immerses you in a world where the dead have taken control. Unlike in D&D, zombies are more resilient than the player characters are, so surviving a zombie outbreak is no small thing. A point of clarification - fantasy zombies tend to be of the Haitian variety (as the AFMBE explains) - corpses raised from the dead to do their master's bidding. George Romero zombies, OTOH, generally carry some sort of infection that is spread by saliva and blood. Kind of like a cross between rabies and Ebola; and that spells "good times" for your players.
   
   AFMBE is at its heart a very simple game, because there's really only 4 things in a deadworld (where zombies are rising from the grave) live people, dead people, guns, and food. If you're really hard core, throw in the weather and make it 5. There's just not a lot else to be said, so AFMBE goes for light on the mechanics and heavy on the atmosphere. After all, if there's nothing more to your gaming needs than enemies who come in waves and don't dodge shotgun blasts, computer software will fill your needs more efficiently (and hey, who doesn't like that sort of thing)?
   
   AFMBE starts all its chapters with a little zombiefic. Good job setting the mood, nothing I was sorry to spend my life reading. The first chapter opens with "what are zombies" As I mentioned above, you will think of zombie very differently if you read Haitian voodoo or George Romero. AFMBE explains different sources of the zombie mythology and where you can go for your own sources. The second chapter starts with you - making your character. The system is Unisystem, which reminds me a lot of the oriignal Deadlands. It has a lot in common with White Wolf's Storyteller system, or at least more than it has with D&D. A character has attributes, skills, merits, and flaws. You have so many points to spend on your character, or you can choose from archetypes (the cheerleader, the jock, the drifter, etc.) who have points distributed and pre-made personalities. The latter option allows for greater simulation of being in a zombie movie; everybody has their role to play. Plus, it gives you an idea of what good chararcters look like.
   
   Next comes a section on other parts of Unisystem than character generation. Things like fighting, running, effects of poisons, falling, drowning, the usual. Unisystem has a target difficulty that you have to achieve with the best die in your pool; so you get to roll a lot of dice, but only the high score keeps. The next section covers weapons (after all, you can't run away from the zombies forever). It mainly discusses different kinds of weapons and their relative strengths (for instance, you could find a chair leg anywhere, while a gun is very powerful and has rapid reload, but a sword never runs out of ammo...) as well as the dice pool for each weapon.
   
   Having covered people and weapons, the only thing left to explore in the world is zombies (food can be left to your Zombie Master's discretion...). You want your zombies to have different qualities depending on what kind of game you want to run. If you want monster horror, you might want fast zombies with low cunning. On the other hand, if you want a lot of group infighting your zombies should be slow and stupid (but inexorable and in mass quantities). If you want a mystery game, you could have zombies you can't transmit the infection, but everything that dies eventually rises. So the characters might be looking for a cure or just trying to escape the local area. The zombies in AFMBE have different point levels attached to levels of powers (cunning, speed, strength, infectiousness) and the total point level of your zombies should give an idea of how much challenge your characters are facing. There are certainly some interesting variations on the standard zombie.
   
   Where I think AFMBE really shines is the inclusion of "deadworlds", where zombies are overrunning the world. There are some very creative scenarios for the characters to be stuck in. This also provides a broader usefulness to AFMBE. I'm not sure I want to convince my gaming group to give Unisystem a try, but we could run D20 characters, World of Darkness characters, or any other system in one of the deadworlds provided and using custom zombies with powers from the tables to choose from. It makes a nice zombie supplement for any gaming system.



5. NOTE: This review is intended for those with some general RPG knowledge. I'm not sure how useful it will be for the rest, but I hope it's not too jargon-y.
   
   This is Eden Studio's biggest surviving game line, if you'll pardon the pun.
   
   This main rulebook gives an overview of how to build characters, build adversaries, blow up adversaries, and some example campaign worlds.
   
   Notice how I haven't mentioned Zombies yet? Well, that's because while AFMBE is tailored toward Zombie play, it doesn't have to be about Zombie play. The Zombie creation rules in the back have been used to build almost any critter you can imagine, from Fantasy Orcs and Goblins to Sci-Fi Cyborgs and Aliens to just plain old men in black.
   
   This diversity is one of the places where AFMBE shines. It's sourcebooks, while also zombie flavored, are more about their source than about the Zoms (save Atlas of the Walking Dead, obviously). That's why I think this is the core game of Eden's line, despite it's specific inclination toward the undead shamblers.
   
   The System is very simple for the most part, and slips out of sight during play. Most rolls are a simple d10+Attribute+Skill vs a target number of 9. It's quick and dull, so one's mind keeps on the game rather than the system. This may turn off some people hoping for a flashy new type of game system. AFMBE doesn't take any chances, it uses what works.
   
   There are a few variants, of course: AFMBE presents the ability to go randomless and not roll any dice for a game, which could enhance the mood, or could make play dull (depends on the group's needs, really). It also has a 20 page d20 system conversion appendix (I don't know the quality of it, I don't play d20).
   
   The game includes some ready made characters, ready made campaign worlds, and ready made zombies. Honestly, as is the game is mostly useful for one-shots and "Night of the Living Dead" type scenerios with a definite beginning, middle, and end game. For longer term play, one couldn't do better than to buy the One of the Living supplement for AFMBE which details post (zombie) apocalypse campaigns. This missing info is why I'm taking a star off the book, which is otherwise complete.
   
   AFMBE has supplements for the genres: Kung Fu Action, Westerns, Pulp, Professional Wrestling, Post Apocalypse, Fantasy, and soon to be Sci-Fi.

5 comments about From Sun Tzu to Xbox: War and Video Games.

1. I had bought this book in the hopes that it would explore some of the fascinating and complex links in out society between war and games, espically in video games. I was greatly disappointed in the content of this book. Mr. Halter seems to imply throughout the book that the "Video Game Generation" simply will not amount to much due to time spent during the formative years playing vidoe games. He touches little on the complex social networks that have arisen on the internet and over such services as XBOX live, and merely seems to repeat his belife that the United States Army is manipulating an entire generation through it's sponsorship of a video game. In more than a few instances in this book, he seems to imply the tech savy youth of today are bound for failure due to their passion for and lifelong interaction with, video games. This book ends up being more like a manifesto against video games than it does an objective analysis of conflict and it's presence in our society through the guise of video games. I do not recomend it as either an assessment of the video game generation, nor of the interactions and connections between society and conflict. In fact, I don't reccomend it at all.



2. This is a clear-headed and fascinating account of the many complex links between war and video games, some of which I knew something about (America's Army for example) and others I'd never heard about (like the Institute for Creative Technology at the USC, where the Army develops videogames for training). Halter approaches the subject matter with a wry but even-handed manner, and he makes clear that he's an avid game player himself, unlike many political journalists who have taken on similar subjects. He begins in ancient civilizations, runs us through the ways games were used in Victorian times for strategy, and reveals how military needs funded the early hacker culture where video games were invented. About half the book is about the post-9/11 era, however, and the part I knew least about is his final chapter dealing with games about war made by activists and artists. All in all it is a thoroughly entertaining read, and a sharp analysis of the way in which the experience of real war and conflict have seeped into our popular culture for reasons that aren't always obvious.



3. As a professional in the Modeling and Simulation field I see this book as a great analysis of the mistaken belief that because you can play video games you can fight a war and take on complex social problems. Video games are made for entertainment to satisfy the need for humans to play. If you put the psychology of real human beings into video games, you will not have fun game. Mr. Halter's book give great insight into the problems that have to be overcome to create a "realistic" environment for the training of future soldiers, and what we have so far are not even close. The day we can have a kid walk from the video arcade to a M1 Abrams tank and fight effectively we will have reached our goal. . .but, is that where we want to be?



4. I picked up Halter's book almost by accident. Although I'm a military historian and wargamer I've never been interested in the video game genre. I was just about to put the book back on the shelf when I realized the book isn't really about video games per se but about how computer wargames have been shaped by war and how computer wargames fit into our culture.
   
   Halter argues that from the beginning of the computer age, when primarily military money was used to fund computer research and development, to the present there has been an almost symbiotic relationship between computer games and war. One, in turn, fed the other as experience in war led to more realistic computer games which allowed computer wargames (or simulations, if you prefer) to increase the realism of training. At the same time the knowledge created by the military-industrial complex (to which Halter adds academia) spilled into the entertainment industry. This in turn developed more realistic animation and interactive capabilities that went back into the military's training simulation programs.
   
   The book is easy to read, as you'd expect from a journalist, and certainly causes you to think a bit differently about the development of the computer and the entertainment industry as it relates to wargames. The only (small) issues I had was that its focus on the military aspect of computer R&D does not allow a consideration of NASA's impact on computer development. The other issue was that, as a journalist and not an academic, it is not well foot-noted or sourced so you can't go to the sources to verify or validate the information he uses to support his argument.
   
   Having said that, Halter certainly presents an interesting and thought-provoking argument and commentary on the relationship between society and the military as it's connected via computer wargames. I wouldn't want to use it as a source for an academic paper, but it certainly presents a thesis that makes for interesting reading.



5. Mr. Halter's richly informative and highly entertaining exploration of the complex relationship between war and gaming technology sucks you in and doesn't let go until the very last page. War buffs and game enthusiasts alike will find themselves engrossed in this book, but even those of us who approach it with far more limited knowledge will be delighted by the journey into the workings of our own country's war machine.

5 comments about The New York Times Sunday Crossword Omnibus- vol 6.

1. I'm pretty good at word puzzles but these books by the NY Times are continually able to stump me. I keep doing them because they increase my vocabulary enormously. I always keep a dictionary close by, and disect each clue after I have completed the puzzles. NEVER have I done a whole puzzle without aid! This keeps me humble!



2. Two hundred New York Times Sunday crosswords at a nickel apiece is a great deal. The book is loaded with the work of well-known as well as less well-known constructors. Most of the puzzles are quite challenging and interesting to work and there is an ample number of humorous concepts included in the batch.
   The drawback to the book - i.e., the "price" we pay for the publisher's generosity - is the lack of perforation and/or distance between the working areas and the binding. Having to write around curves on the top couple of lines across is a bit irksome.
   Yet, all in all, this book is a true bargain and well worth the cost and the minor inconvenience.



3. Exciting crossword puzzles, as ever. However, the numbers in the grid itself are so poorly printed (cheap paper or ink) that misreading an entry is not uncommon. I prefer to speind time thinking of an answer, not staring closely at the puzzle to be certain what number is in a given square. There are plenty of preferable alternative puzzle sources for those who, like me, would rather pay more for an adequately printed product.



4. This collection has what it takes to keep me happy. The book itself is a well made soft-bound type where the pages don't come out, but I don't have much trouble with them. I just fold the thing over and work on either side. You can use either pencil or pen, but pencil can get blurry... The puzzles are long enough to occupy my mind for a few hours each. The clues are mostly solveable with a fair amount of thinking and puzzling. I have to peek sometimes. I like this kind of action over a set that either has me in the back half the time or I'm never in the back and can get the puzzle done in under an hour. The time frame's pretty current, so you have to know your current history along with the stuff from the last decade, which is good, in my book- tripped me up a few times already.. All-in-all, I'd say it's standard fare for this particular line. If you've never tried these puzzles, give them a whirl. They give good value for your money. If you do them in pencil, they erase well, so you can replay the book a few times before it wears out. When I started this type of puzzle, I needed a dictionary a lot, but rarely do now, having learned how to constructively solve and get the maximum type of enjoyment these books offer.



5. When ever the NY Times Sunday Omnibus (200) becomes available I buy it. Since I am a shut-in the crossword puzzle is one of my routines. Thank-you for keeping my mind alert and my time a learning experience. The book was inexpensive and easy to buy through Amazon.com. The page paper is of a good stock and doesn't dry out my hands as rougher stock does. The size is also comfortable whether I am in bed or not. I love that these puzzles have a title to think about and how the title fits to the clues. Ah, I do love my NY Times Sunday Omnibus (200) crossword puzzle book.

5 comments about Speed to Spare: Beyer Speed Figures Uncovered (Elements of Handicapping).

1. Andrew Beyer must be the best thing to come out of the Washington Post since Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein....hey, who says politics and horse racing aren't analogous??

   Seriously though, Cardello has done a superb job of taking the figs and giving Joe (or Jane) Horseplayer what he desparately needs in 21st Century wagering...a concise guide in how to cull the figures in the PP's, establish a pattern, and, perhaps most importantly, begin with eliminating the losers.

   OK, OK, I know, easier said than done. But this book should definitely be on every handicapper's reading list. Well, only those who wish to take more currency from the mutuel windows than they push through them.




2. Joe Cardello, Speed to Spare (DRF Press, 200?)
   
   Speed to Spare is not a book you read; it is a book you devour. Horseplayers who use the Beyer Speed Figures published in the Daily Racing Form who do not yet own a copy of this book, pick it up immediately (after all, it costs only eight win bets after tax). Read it. When you're done, read it again. Follow along, both in the book's examples and in random races you pick from your Racing Form. You will learn more about speed figure handicapping in an afternoon than you have learned since DRF started publishing the Beyer Speed Figures. Guaranteed.
   
   This is a must-read for horseplayers, from the professional bettor to the casual fan. **** ½



3. In preparing to bet the Kentucky Derby and other races this year I read Andrew Beyer's fantastic book "Beyer on Speed" and this book. These books go together like ham and eggs. After devouring the information in Speed to Spare I, like any eager handicapper, was looking forward to applying some of the tips in this book. One way this book made me think "different" is how it helps you spot the potential favorite that may be ripe for a fall which can result in a big pay-off. I went to a track in Michigan that was simulcasting races at Santa Anita (in March, 2005) and WHAM! - I hit a trifecta using the information found in this wonderful book; for the first time in my life found myself at the IRS window with a payoff of over $3,000.00! The presentation of information in this book is easy-to-follow and the actual examples really help the "part-time" handicapper that only spends a limited amount of time at a racetrack each year. I salute Joe Cardello's book and urge anyone interested in using Beyer figures to enhance their trip to the track to buy and read this book. You will not be disappointed.



4. Of the DRF peperback series on the elements of handicapping, this is clearly the best work. Cardello really gets in depth on how to weed out value in form cycles by using the Beyer figures. His real life example of how to find "hidden" lines in the past performances are explained in a way that most anyone can understand how he approaches the neverending quest for winners. Clearly he is an expert in handicapping and not just a fan writing a book to fill space on the shelf. Strongly recommended for novices looking to inject a little value by using readily available information in the form, as well as, more experienced handicappers who may be missing out on more opportunities to cash in.



5. This is a wonderful book for learning to intelligently use Beyer Speed Figures in your handicapping. Cardello gives a helpful background on the statistics of Beyer speed figures, especially his own statistics on Beyers calculated for turf races. Even more important, he provides example after example (from dirt, turf, sprint, and route races). Gradually you begin to understand how to apply Beyers and how they can improve your chances of winning. There is no 'formula' for using Beyers. He teaches you the 'art' of using Beyers through his examples. I read this quickly and it has already helped me. I plan to read it over and over again until his way of applying Beyers becomes second nature to me. Of course, I expect my understanding and application of these principles to be modified and improved with personal experience.

5 comments about Cdb!.

1. smart! adorable! unexpected! (the book, not my kids...)
   This book really has us rolling in laughter. My sons (ages 4 and 6) and I have been playing with an electronic toy: push a letter and the thing says the letter's name. We had been using it to make word sounds -- pressing U R A Q T for "you are a cutie" and so forth. When I saw this book I just had to get it. It is amazingly clever -- and to think it was written in 1968. It's fresh, not at all dated. My sons are very good readers for their respective ages, but it is definitely appropriate for them. I had to explain a phrase or two (they didn't know the word "ecstacy" when they saw X-T-C) but otherwise it was totally on their level. I still crack up reading it, and I've read it at least ten times. The watercolor illustrations are perfect. Stieg conveys a lot of emotion and expression with just a few brush strokes. When a boy sees someone with a lollipop and tells him "I N-V U," you can see the envy.
   I won't mind if my kids want to read this one again and again. I M N X-T-C 2!



2. This book is as intriguing and entertaining was it was 25+ years ago when I read it to my children. As an educator, I discovered this book to be a source of entertainment and challenge to my children as well as a wonderful tool to help my students as they struggle with reading skills. I recently purchased it again for my grandchildren since my copy was misplaced over the years...and they love it as their mother when she was their age.
   Buy it and use...it will help dust off the gray matter and delay alzehemier. :)



3. I ordered this since my sister received it and thought it was a great book. Unfortunately, this copy does not come with the answers. Look for the hard cover version, that has the answers in the back.



4. CDB! (Stories to Go!)
   
   I was very excited to find this book for my grandbaby. We had great fun with it when her aunts were small. Who would have thought back then that William Stieg invented 'text speak'. I even stumped my youngest daughter with NQ!



5. I have always chuckled at this book, ever since I helped in my children's school library 20 years ago. William Steig has such a clever way of putting letters together and illustrating what he is trying to say. It is interesting to children of all ages.