Product Description
Dancing with Butterflies uses the alternating voices of four very different women whose lives interconnect through a common passion for their Mexican heritage and a dance company called Alegría. Yesenia, who founded Alegría with her husband, Eduardo, sabotages her own efforts to remain a vital, vibrant woman when she travels back and forth across the Mexican border for cheap plastic surgery. Elena, grief stricken by the death of her only child and the end of her marriage, finds herself falling dangerously in love with one of her underage students. Elena's sister, Adriana, wears the wounds of abandonment by a dys-functional family and becomes unable to discern love from abuse. Soledad, the sweet-tempered illegal immigrant who designs costumes for Alegría, finds herself stuck back in Mexico, where she returns to see her dying grandmother.

Reyna Grande has brought these fictional characters so convincingly to life that readers will imagine they know them. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Lovely title, couldn't get into the book...
At first glance, this book has the elements to be wonderful: a lovely title, intriguing storyline, four female characters whose lives intertwine....Unfortunately, unlike the other reviewers, I just couldn't get into the book or feel sympathy with the characters.

A MAJESTIC DANCE
Reyna's first novel, Across a Hundred Mountains (2006), won substantial critical acclaim, resulting in her winning El Premio Aztlan Literary Award (2006) and an American Book Award (2007). Her second novel, Dancing with Butterflies (2009), has also received wide praise and promises to become another literary pick for college course reading lists. It was selected by Las Comadres Book Club for January 2010, and it won a 2010 International Latino Book Award in its Best Women's Issues category.

In Dancing with Butterflies, four very different women, whose commonality is their affiliation with a folklorico dancing company, take turns narrating their lives. The women--Yesenia, Elena, Adriana, and Soledad--represent different generations with distinct challenges: a poignant struggle with middle age and its theft of vigor and beauty (Yesenia); the immense loneliness of widowhood and difficulty of fighting sexual temptation (Elena); the woundedness of growing up ignored and unloved (Adriana); and the sadness of severing cultural and familial roots for the sake of economic survival in a foreign land (Soledad).

Though Reyna's characters are distinct from one another in their talents, goals, and needs, collectively they represent the suffering that surfaces in everyday life as we tackle demons we don't always know we carry inside us. Reyna also underscores the interconnectedness of our lives, the webs that join us to one another to bring us solace, to heighten our pain, or to remind us that, for better or worse, all humanity is one.

Reyna's language sweeps us from wherever we are while reading her book. We suddenly find ourselves on the edge of the stage as the swift, fluttering movements of butterflies, in all their color and grace, are recalled in the movements of folklorico dancers. Reyna writes: "Your feet seem to float over the floor as you twirl and twirl around and around before jumping into the arms of your partner....The stage is a flurry of dancers whirling and stomping. The audience breaks into a rhythmic clapping as they follow the lively song in 2/4 beat." The fluidity and beauty of this iconic dance ultimately contrasts with the starkness and gracelessness of issues that litter our day and force our attention away from the grander things in life, away from love, serenity, confidence, and hope.

Reyna Grande is just getting started in making a memorable mark in our literary world. She is currently at work on a memoir. Both of her books can be purchased at your favorite bookstore or through amazon.com. Visit Reyna's website at [...].

[Thelma T. Reyna is author of THE HEAVENS WEEP FOR US AND OTHER STORIES (2009). Read her websites at [...] and at [...].]

So much to love, but neat ending leaves me unsatisfied
I've taken a couple weeks to let this novel settle because I felt unsure about my final assessment. The novel follows multiple female characters (each in first person) over a several month time period, all connected by a folklorico group, all going through a personal crisis, all pulled between their past and present.This novel is laden with rich descriptions of the dances and interesting insights into the varying relationships we have with our cultural heritage. There are elements of this novel that are beautiful and well-done, and I think that the narrative arc of the novel will satisfy many readers.However, without spoiling the end too much, it is the neatness and rightness of the ending that keeps me from raving about this book more. Life is as messy as described in parts of this book, but never as neat as the ending it gives us.

That said, I think this would be a wonderful book club selection.It provides a variety of discussion starters: domestic violence, forms grieving takes, immigration, plastic surgery.In fact, as I begin to list them, I think of all the conversations this book starts and how I would like to continue them with someone else who has read this book!

A really great read!
This book was chosen for my book club because we so enjoyed the author's previous one, Across a Hundred Mountains. This book was not a disappointment. It was wonderful. Ms. Grande is able to give the reader a real feel for her characters and brings them wonderfully to life. She has a knack for weaving complex stories together (as she did in her previous novel). The story is told through the lives of four unique women who are connected through a Folklorico dance company in Los Angeles.

I didn't know too much about Folklorico dance before, but came away with a great appreciation of this art form. Anyone associated with dance and theater can relate to the trials and tribulations of the characters. Those of us that aren't, gain a deeper understanding of what it takes to be a performer and the passion behind the desire.

Great book book club choice. Highly recommend.

Masterful
A masterful depiction of women whose search for love and happiness is thwarted by their profound lack of self-knowledge. ... Read more

Product Description

Fun and facts for children from one of the most trusted names in learning: the Smithsonian Institution.

Customer Reviews (3)

Beautiful Butterflies
This board book has beautiful butterfy pictures, but it suffers from rather esoteric vocabulary for a tot. Each of the half dozen or so different butterflies is described with its proper name, but beyond monarch, no board book enthusiast preschooler is going to remember a specific name. Well, maybe a future Smithsonian scientist :) There is no story, just descriptors and scientific names.

Great for little butterfly lovers
Our two-year old son loves butterflies and really enjoys this book, which presents close-up color photos of 6 butterflies and their full names. I find it a bit dull and think the information could be provided in a more fun way, but can't argue with the fact that our toddler really likes it the way it is.

My Butterfly Book
My son liked My Bug Book so much that we decided to buy this book too. It has beautiful, closeup photos and simple text describing seven kinds of butterflies. It's great for helping young nature lovers learn their colors. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (18)

A great yoga book for our family
This is an amazing book.I have recently introduced yoga to my children ( 2 & 4) and they just love this book, as do I.The photos are great and there are many different routines that you can adjust to your families skill level.I have really enjoyed practicing them with my children too!

Super Great delivery time !
Very quick delivery,
beautiful condition
beautiul material

thank you !

Fly Like a Butterflly
Brilliantly photographed.The sheer joy of yoga shows on all of the little faces.I plan to use it as a teaching tool and hope my little yogis find joy in my classes.
Namaste

My 3 year old LOVES this
This book is great! I like to do a lot of fun things with my kids and this book helps me to "instruct" the under 3 crowd in my house. The kids love it and everyone laughs when we do it! A definite must buy!

Easy Breezy Fun Yoga Book
Out of three Children Yoga books I bought off of Amazon, this was far the best! it gave me a lot of ideas to work with and was able to build up a lot of lessons to teach the children.Children love the chanting meditaions and acting like the animals in the jungle story. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (15)

To Be Specific
Ok, let's get down to specifics.

On page 89, the sheriff blushes when 14-year-old Sarah Frank's aunt says, "Some of her clothes are gone." Since Sarah is not present, I haven't a clue what he's blushing about. But the aunt is offended, and makes a fist, demanding that the sheriff "tell me what happened to Sarah RIGHT NOW!" The sheriff, not one to mince words (since he doesn't know), shrugs. Forgetting she offered to "pop him" if he doesn't tell her right now, the aunt asks if he thinks Sarah has run away. When the sheriff agrees, he "waits for her to say it." And "it" turns out to be "You've gotta find her." Since that is what the sheriff, whom Sarah recently hit on the head with a baseball bat, is trying to do, he naturally thinks, "It's times like this when I hate this damn job!" I know just how he feels.

On page 106, otherwise sane and respectable FBI agent Lila Mae McTeague "pointed a pointy fingernail" which is apparently slathered in her lipstick, Crimson Passion. What has she been doing in that carseat? This is immediately before she and Charlie are interrupted by a police car that barrels into a parking lot so the policeman can careen into a saloon and Charlie and Lila can argue for a page about whether they should go inside and give the guy backup. And it's right after Doss indulges in one of his fits of florid description, explaining that Big Lizard Ridge is "a sinuous torso" its "knobby spine" "armored with jagged plates" while "its wrinkled grey hide bristled with thick, close-cropped hair," like "the fossilized corpse of a prehistoric lizard." With hair. And a buzz cut. As you can see, Lila's pointed pointy passionate crimson finger is like a slice of thin white bread stuck between two slabs of bologna. So I can see how someone would forget about it.

Sometimes you just gotta whack out those paragraphs. Here are six on page 195:
Blip.
Long pause.
Blip.
Shorter pause.
Blippity-blip.
Blippity-blip-blip.
Me again. Well, it ain't Poe's "The Bells," but it sure is perkin'.

One key to filling 220+ pages is to never say in one word what you can tart up in eleven, so when the sun comes up, it's not the "sun," it's the "distant, fiery nuclear furnace at the center of our solar system." Don't get me wrong, I like descriptive writing, but generally it's intended to tell you something you didn't know or give you a new perspective. If "distant, fiery nuclear furnace at the center of our solar system" does either, you should have paid more attention in fourth grade science class.

Pages 240-241 contain a 1.5-page gag that depends on believing someone could be so stupid that he didn't know the difference bet between a cataract and a Cadillac. And that an optimist doesn't necessarily do glasses. A page and a half. And no, it's doesn't get funnier and funnier. Quite the contrary. But these are the jokes, folks, and if you don't know, depend on someone in the story to tell you: "These are the jokes, folks. Get it? 'Jokes, folks'?"

On page 257, a lawyer calls his secretary into the room for urgent business, but when she walks in, he is struck -- as he always is -- by her uncanny resemblance to Johnnie Cash (I think this is another one of those jokes, folks) so he sets aside his emergency to strum an air guitar and hum "I Walk the Line" for an unspecified interval. We are left to wonder if the secretary ignores this because she hasn't a clue what he's doing or because she's gotten accustomed to being insulted like this "two or three times a week." You'll be happy to know this is a villian; not that being a "hero" would stop him. I have a distant recollection that one semi-hero-ee (as one of Doss' fans might say) person, seeing Sarah in rags, "leers" at a 14-year-old girl. Soooo? Men are like that, okaaaaay?

The entirety of page 278 is Daisy reciting, with ringing phone punctuation, the entirety of an old gospel hymn (Daisy is a Catholic; the hymn is "In the Garden," a camp revival tune), pointedly ignoring "him." We are never told who "him" was.

Early in the novel, somebody picks up a drunk by the neck and shakes him till his boots fall off. Improbable as that may seem (try it at home), it turns out to be A CLUE!!! Later in the novel, we are offered as proof of a wealthy bad guy's refined tastes, his preference for Arturo Fuente Curlyheads (a cigar). While it is true that Arturo Fuente's name is on some fine cigars, ranging in price from $7 to $25 apiece, the Curlyhead happens to be a $2 cheapo that no cigar fancier would bother with. Way to do your research.

Nearly everyone in the book turns out to be the bad guy (it's almost like dominoes), and the last one standing is finished off by a geriatric dog and a "man-killing horse." But not before the baddies have managed to murder a beloved continuing character, whose murder is dismissed by all concerned as "too bad."

A couple days after the murder, Sarah expresses remorse for the BCC's death -- which she caused with an indiscreet phone call. Charlie Moon's reaction is to shrug. No big deal. This is the same Charlie Moon who has hysterics whenever some woman he's been in love with for five minutes jilts him. Those BBCs: Easy come, easy go. The new record for ec,eg, BTW, is held by the bereft husband in Three Sisters, next on the hit list. He is madly in love with his wife, Sister III, who is either the oldest or the youngest, depending on which page you read, but whenher sisters come up in a phone conversation with her, he thinks, "I'll spend the night with either of them!" Is he serious? Two days later he is hitting on both of his beloved (No, REALLY!) wife's sisters after listening to his beloved wife (I mean it, "beloved" -- it means something special in Dossland, I think) being eaten on the phone by a bear with lips. I didn't make up the lips, either.

Toward the end of the book, this week's eternal love apparently turns down Charlie's offer of marriage and he walks back to Daisy (who is watching from too far away to hear) and reports this to her by answering her questions with titles of Hank Williams Sr. songs, beginning with a mindless argument over the plot of "Kaw-liga." Couple of pages.

In other words, new day, same old Dossalalia.

I'll shut up when people stop suggesting that Doss is "the new Tony Hillerman." Come on, even Doss has the good sense to say No.

Stone Butterfly
This is, as usual, a good James D. Doss read. Aunt Daisy is up to her usual antics and the young Sarah is a very strong character, struggling to stay ahead of the law and those who would do her harm.

Charlie Moon, the tall Native American land owner and detective, is the constant, of course. He's sexy, always hungry, sometimes childish and ever on the money.If his buddy, Chief of Police Scott Parrish, can't do it, Charlie will help him or do it himself! And he will definitely take care of this predicament just as we know he's going to. It's just the way he does it that makes it surprising and keeps you reading.

Doss makes the rugged Colorado terrain come alive and you can see pictures in your mind as you read.

A good book to relax with. full of adventure and James D. Doss' singular form of comic entertainment. I like the whole package.

Stone Butterfly Review.
This is another in the entertaining Charlie moon mysteries.The series and characters grow with each new book.

Super Duper with a slow start..
This was my first Charlie Moon Mystery and although it started out just a tad bit slow; I thoroughly could NOT put it down until I finished!

Aunt Daisy could have been fashioned from my grandmother!I love these books!

Blood of Dreams
Ten Charlies Moon stories and John Doss still keeps the high pitch that made us fans from his first book. During my librarian days I always put John's books in the Kentucky collection, he is one of our finest writers no matter where he lives.
Charlie Moon has moved to full-time ranching, but Aunt Daisy has other plans for his time after she has a nightmare. Charlie has to cross state lines to follow her bidding when Sarah Frank, an Ute-Papago orphan disappears with a valuable heirloom and is suspected of murder. Aunt Daisy has other plans for the child. Both Charlie and Aunt Daisy are vivid characters crafted by a master.
New to the series, get to reading and discover why the old-timers and Publisher's Weekly put James D. Doss as one of the best.
Nash Black, author of SINS OF THE FATHERS and TRAVELERS. ... Read more

Product Description
Renowned illustrator Alan Aldridge introduced the fantastical world of the Butterfly Ball in this breathtaking modern classic. It is now available in a lavish new edition, complete with nature notes by Richard Fitter on each creature and an introduction to the life and work of Alan Aldridge. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast
This copy of "The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast"is exactly what I was looking for, as it brings back childhood memories of my time in front of the television.

The supplier was good at keeping contact and packaged it well so that it arrived safely and unharmed.

The Butterfly Ball and the Grasshopper's Feast
One of most beautiful books in the world. My daughter is studying fine arts and son is in second grade. Both of them enjoyed the book however for different reason. Highly recommmended. Excellent gift.

Best Children's Book Ever
I had a copy of this book when I was a child, I had it memorized by the time I was 7 years old and the incredible, detailed, colorful plates stayed with me and sparked my imagination for years to come. I lost my copy somewhere along the way and did finally find a replacement, which I am pleased to share with my son - it is the perfect book to introduce children to the concept of poetry and to allow them to hear the rhythms of language.

Why is this book not available anymore???
This book made an enormous impression on me as a child. The pictures are magical, beautiful, and incredibly detailed. I often spent hours gazing longingly at the illustrations and dreaming I was a part of them, wading through frog's waterlogged house, drinking ale with the newts, playing cricket with the snails and butterflies, keeping out of the way of the hornet and the wasp, and generally living it up at the feast and the ball. The final picture of the sleepy insects going home by the light of the friendly firefly always gave me good dreams if I looked at it right before bedtime!

What I'm trying to say is that the picturs and accompanying verses in this book awoke a rich level of magic and imagination in me. I almost hate to think how I would have turned out without having been exposed to The Butterfly Ball in my formative years!

Now that my family is expanding I realised that it is time for me to pass this wonderful book on to the children and spread the magic. Alas I can't find it anywhere!!! I find it tragic that such a beautiful work of art is not available to today's children. Please oh please will whoever has the power of decision over the future of this book kindly return it to the bookshelves where it belongs?

Stunning illustrations
I had this book as a child, along with the record.The illustrations were fresh in my mind after 20+ years.It is a joy to share with young readers. ... Read more

Product Description
It is easy to forget that this planet with its abundance of life is truly a unique treasure in the universe. But this is exactly what an old, world-wise monarch butterfly has learned. Now he wants to pass his wisdom along to a young caterpillar.

Through exquisite artwork and engaging storytelling, artist/author Schim Schimmel takes us on the old monarch's year-long journey as he encounters some of earth's most amazing animals. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

What a great story ......
What a wonderful book. I bought this for my 6 year old daughter who loves animals and it was a huge hit. She loves to read it but LOVES the illustrations even more.
It's a very touching story about the life of a Monarch butterfly and the many places it will visit during it's lifetime. I didn't know much about the author / artist Schim Schimmel when I purchaed it. What a pleasant surprise to find his art and even more books on the internet and read about his work with the Jane Goodall association.
I would recommend this to anyone looking for a book for a child or just an art lover.

Beautiful illustrations and message
Young Caterpillar is just about to go to sleep before his metamorphosis. But before he does, Old Monarch visits him after a year's journey around the world, and shares the secret of Earth's treasure.

In his travels around the planet, Old Monarch has seen all the wondrous sights of Africa, Antarctica, the oceans, and the forests. He visits gorillas, dolphins, penguins, and snow leopards. And he's constantly awed by the beauty of this amazing treasure he's found.So now he wants to let Young Caterpillar in on this secret, just as he overheard father lion tell his son.

In this beautiful book, Schim Schimmel has once again created a masterpiece in color, with bright, vibrant and stunning animal pictures to delight the reader. This timeless message of treasuring the earth's beauty comes alive in his magnificent illustrations, reminding us that only we can save this planet before it's too late. The Butterfly's Treasure belongs in every nature lover's collection.

Reviewer: Alice Berger

The Butterfly's Treasure is a literary and artistic treasure
The Butterfly's Treasure by Schim Schimmel is one of the most beautiful, awe-inspiring books I have ever seen. The vibrant colors on the cover alone inspire dreams of far-away places. Each turn of the page reveals another jaw-dropping, inspirational view of some of the world's most majestic creatures and places. As I read this book to my class of 3-6 year-olds, I was moved by their exclamations as they saw each painting.

The story itself is just as inspiring as the artwork. Young Caterpillar is the last of this season's monarchs. He meets Old Monarch, who is the last of last season's monarchs. Old Monarch wishes to impart his wisdom upon the young caterpillar, and proceeds to tell him of his travels around the world over the last year to find treasure. Old Monarch encounters some of the greatest creatures around the world, including brown bears, polar bears, seals, elephants, lions, gorillas, tigers, snow leopards, penguins, dolphins, and wolves. He finds them in the most beautiful locations around the world. Young Caterpillar realizes that the whole world is a treasure to cherish, and after becoming an adult monarch, sets off to seek it for himself.

Following the reading of the story, I went around the circle and asked the children to tell me what some treasures were. A few mentioned jewels and pirate's gold. But even at their young ages, most were able to identify that animals, people, and nature were things to be treasured. This is testimony that Schim Schimmel's message is easily conveyed to even the youngest reader.

Schim Schimmel is the artist/author for three other books that have garnered international attention for their artistry and message: Dear Children of the Earth -- A Letter From Home, Children of the Earth...Remember, and The Family of the Earth. All of these titles are perennial favorites in my classroom and those of my colleagues. The Butterfly's Treasure will earn a place of honor next to them on the shelf. I'm already eagerly anticipating his next work!

Andrea Coventry is a reviewer for [...].

Aimed at children age 5-10, and lovers of the planet everywhere
"Butterfly's Treasure" by author and illustrator Schim Schimmel is an exquisitely illustrated children's fable about a magic Monarch butterfly's enchanted journey. The oldest of last year's butterflies, or "Monarch" decides to tell a tale of his quest for treasure and magical journey to the youngest of the caterpillars, and the last to go to sleep. What follows is a beautiful series of wondrous images of a vast variety of living creatures all over the globe we call earth. At the end, as young caterpillar is preparing to go to sleep, he asks "...Old Monarch, you never told me where you found your treasure." Old Monarch answers, "...This entire world is your treasure, and all its living creatures are its jewels." As young Caterpillar thinks about this and prepares to sleep in his cocoon, the words sink into his dreams. "This world is your treasure..." "Butterfly's Treasure" is a beautiful book that carries a powerful message of global harmony and species interdependence. It is aimed at children age 5-10, and lovers of the planet everywhere. ... Read more

Product Description
Kojima's friendly attitude and upbeat, playful innocence help to guarantee his status as a well-liked boy. But the brooding Nakahara is the exact opposite!A shy wallflower, he seems aloof and is constantly alone...until Kojima suddenly steps into his dark, painful world. Watch as a brand-new friendship slowly grows from a fragile bond to a forceful partnership between two distinct and special souls. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

A Friendship That Turns Into Love Beautifully
This is probably the earliest yaoi story from Takanaga Hinako that June brought over which launched her status as one of the most popular BL mangaka in the US and rightly so!I am so glad that June has decided to reprint the whole 3 volumes into a single omnibus.The omnibus is solely June's initiative (no such omnibus exist in Japan) and June did an awesome job of it!I love the 3 2-pages color insets that come in the volume, the printing quite clear, binding tight & it is so convenient to be able to read the whole story in one book.

The story is about a bright high school senior named Kojima who diligently seek to befriend Nakahara, his reserved classmate who was considered as an outcast because he always kept alone.It is so heart warming to see all the efforts the kind hearted Kojima did to break Nakahara's reserve & bring him into the social circle of their school friends.No one could have made a better friend than Kojima who stood steadfastly by Nakahara despite being exposed to all his family troubles: unrealistic expectations from demanding parents, an uncaring father & a mentally unstable mother.Nakahara could not help but fall in love with someone as cute, kind & sweet with Kojima who showed him what a normal, harmonious family life can be and alleviate his loneliness.However, while Nakahara is quick to recognize his love for his little savior, Kojima is less sure & much slower to realize he might feel the same way about Nakahara - if it is possible for a friendship to turn into emotional & physical love between two boys.

I love the characters development in this story & the sweet, easy yet absorbing way the stories unfold.This book is a must read for any fan newly initiated into the Yaoi genre!I personally feel it should be staple in the collection of any Yaoi fan girl out there who demands a good story accompanying a great art.

If You're Going to Read Yaoi
If you're going to read yaoi, it might as well be "Little Butterfly," because it is one of the best I've read. Most yaoi titles are primarily concerned with getting the two characters into bed, which leaves little room for plot or any real emotional depth. But while "Little Butterfly" does indeed earn it's 18+ rating on the cover, it's lets the reader take their time with getting to know the two characters and it is a real treat to watch them. The series follows them from their senior class trip to their high school graduation, so the reader is only with them for a short time. But it is a crucial period for the two, with plenty of plot and (OMG) obstacles for them to overcome. "Little Butterfly" is definitely a great read for yaoi fans looking for a little bit more from their series.

Intriguing yet too short
There are so many things I want to say about this but I wouldn't want to spoil it for you. The book is very thick but its a fast reader. the story starts out with Kojima Yuki, a peppy guy who tries to engage conversation with the loner Nakahara Atsushi.Basically from there, its a really good story and I wont spoil anything but it's definitely worth adding to your collection. Personally, I don't think it was long enough. But it put a smile on my face throughout the book and the artwork is beautiful. ... Read more

Product Description
In masterful prose, the author of SURRENDER tells a quiet but powerful tale about the shifting bonds and psychological perils of adolescence.

Plum Coyle is on the edge of adolescence. Her fourteenth birthday is approaching, when her old life and her old body will fall away, and she will become graceful, powerful, and at ease. The strength of the objects she stores in a briefcase under her bed —a crystal lamb, a yoyo, an antique watch, a coin —will make sure of it. Over the next couple of weeks, Plum’s life will change. Her beautiful neighbor Maureen will begin to show Plum how she might fly. The older brothers she adores will court catastrophe in worlds that she barely knows exist. And her friends, her worst enemies, will tease and test, smelling weakness. They will try to lead her on and take her down. BUTTERFLY is a gripping, disquieting, beautifully observed coming-of-age novel by an acclaimed author at the top of her form. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

delves deep into the emotional lives of its characters, showing readers surprising reserves of strength
Thirteen-year-old Ariella Coyle, known as Plum, is unhappy with her changing body, her spotty face, and her feeling that her friends are growing up faster (and more successfully) than she is: "She has always been more mocked, more misunderstood, more sidelined." As the youngest child, Plum views her two older brothers as both role models and total mysteries. She's convinced, though, that her upcoming 14th birthday is going to change everything, that it's going to mark the start of a new, brighter beginning.

Sonya Hartnett perfectly captures the conflicting feelings that mark the confusing territory between childhood and adulthood: "She's stricken with sudden nostalgia for the life she's been so eager to pack away, she wishes there was some way of being everything at once --- grown and sure and clever, young and protected and new."

Alienated by her family, confused and sometimes overlooked by her school friends, Plum finds a new friend in an unusual place. Next-door neighbor Maureen Wilks is in her 30s and the mother of a young child. She is gorgeous, confident, easy and comfortable in her own skin --- everything Plum is not. Maureen's sudden interest in Plum might seem odd and suspicious to readers, but Plum --- who is in many ways young for her age --- is flattered by the attention from the beautiful older woman. Prompted by Maureen, Plum starts asking to be called by a different name, Aria, and begins to try to redesign herself into a different sort of girl.

As Plum's birthday slumber party approaches, complicated undercurrents come to the surface. Harnett's story, which starts out focusing solely on Plum, broadens to include the perspectives of Plum's family members and of Maureen herself, slowly transforming the novel into something both broader and sadder. Plum imagines that her growing up will consist of a physical transformation, of emerging into the world a beautiful, strong butterfly. But, as she learns about the secrets and betrayals that surround her, as she gains new courage and uncovers her own strengths, it's clear that her metamorphosis will be both more subtle and more profound.

As with Hartnett's previous books, BUTTERFLY, with its lyrical language, mature themes and focus on adult characters, is best suited for mature readers. Although it lacks the fiery intensity of earlier novels such as SURRENDER, BUTTERFLY nonetheless delves deep --- sometimes painfully so --- into the emotional lives of its characters, showing readers surprising reserves of strength, unexpected cruelty, and the resilience of youth. In the end, Plum can embrace the place where she stands, on the border of adulthood, because being in that place means that she still has time. Maureen, on the other hand, feels the opportunity for transformation slipping away: "Routes close, options shrivel, and it all happens without fanfare, simply day following day --- until, suddenly, life is no longer pliable, and becomes like a frieze on a nursery wall, the same thing over and over." Plum might feel young and powerless, but she still has the power to choose --- and change.

--- Reviewed by Norah Piehl

The story of an Ugly Duckling who never quite reaches her Swan
I usually don't talk about book covers here except for my end of the year best and worst covers video. However Butterfly has such an amazing cover I can't pass up the chance to speak about it. The window, the light it seems so uplifting. I think it mirrors Plum's transition perfectly.

I really enjoyed Plum's story. What little girl hasn't felt a bit of low self esteem during what I like to call the awkward years. Plum believes that when she turns fourteen her body full of baby fat will fall away and she will go from the ugly duckling straight into swan-hood over night. She tries to diet by not eating her lunch which was the idea of her neighbor Maureen who is older, more sophisticated and ethereally beautiful.

This is just the first advice Maureen gives to Plum. Maureen takes hold of Plum and starts deciding bits of her life. Who her friends should be, what she should eat, what she should wear. I began to wonder what the woman was doing and when Hartnett let the proverbial cat out of the bag I had no clue it was coming.

The reader knows what is going on just a bit before our protagonist and I quite liked it that way. Gauging how Plum will react to a situation is very hard. I had a bit of a hard time holding to the story at some points just because of all the Australian references that I couldn't grasp immediately.

The ending of the book left me wondering what in the heck actually happened and what the point was? I am so conflicted, I loved Plum, I loved her world, I was enamored with the writing but I just don't understand what happened or why. Maybe I am not meant to. Maybe there is a bigger picture that is just going straight over my proverbial head.

If you like Beth Kephart you will like Butterfly.

Its Not Easy Finding Your Wings!
Plum is a fruit sitting unripened on the vine, she is round and awkward and unattractive. Aria is a song, beautiful and stylish, with the potential for fame and stardom. But Ariella Coyle is a butterfly.

Plum has always felt out of place, her family is not like other families, her house is not like other houses, and she is not like other girls. Plum is at that age where change is everywhere, she is growing up, no longer a child but still is treated like one. Nothing is under her control, her friends, her family, her body. It's not easy turning fourteen.

Plum has trouble fitting in, she is unsure of herself and her place in the world, in other words she is a teenager. Plum, however, has a secret weapon; hidden deep under her bed Plum has stored her most sacred possessions that are able to give her strength and courage. There is also the 'sister' she never had, a secret friend just over the fence.

But what is left for Plum when her world comes crashing down, and her secret possessions under the bed are no longer there for her, her secret friend a friend no more?

Butterfly is the story of growing up and learning that life is messy. Life is change. There are traumas and teasing and lies, but there is also understanding and selfless acts of love. This is a charming story of family, friends and life, which speaks to everyone who is about to turn fourteen, or anyone who has ever been fourteen. A greatly enjoyable book that has something for everyone. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

It's okay
It's okay for the money, though too much gibberish in the beginning. Information went way over my head. Keep it more simple next time.

ks Review of Florida Butterfly Gardening: etc.
Excellent book.I knew what I was getting as I had seen a copy already.Excellent pictures and great verbiage to back it up.Really helps in understanding the topic.

Florida Butterflys
This is the best book I have purchased for butterfys. It has great pictures of the butterflys as well as the caterpillars.
It gives you all the information needed to get your own butterfly garden set up.

When they say complete they mean it
I am just starting butterfly gardening and I found so much helpful information.On the other hand, my sister has been butterfly gardening for years, and still found the book helpful.It makes identification of butterflies and caterpillars easy and has many lavish illustrations of both the butterflies and the plants that attract them.

Great Book!
I have had this book for a year and I am always pulling it back out to help purchase butterfly plants and to ID catipillers and butterflys.Lots of excellent pictures of every stage of each Florida butterfly.Excellent lists of plants, both host and nectar.Great pictures of the plants.The only thing I have found missing is any info on when to expect the butterfly's in your garden. ... Read more

Product Description
Gold foil, gloss highlights, and embossing light up this lovely Butterflies journal. A special feature: a foldover flap that closes with a magnet to secure your writings. Makes a great personal diary—no need to worry about a lock or keep track of a key.

• Foldover panel with magnetic closure protects your journal pages
• 160 lightly-lined opaque pages
• Creamy-smooth acid-free archival paper takes pen and pencil beautifully
• 6-1/4'' wide x 8-1/4'' high
• Hardcover journal lies flat for ease of use

... Read more

Customer Reviews (11)

Journal
Works perfectly for what I needed...need something to write in when I can't talk & the magnetic shut is great & works for what I needed it for.

Very Pretty Journal
Very Pretty Journal, nice portable size but not super tiny.Seems just right for me.

What I Wanted
This was great for what I wanted. I was looking for a journal that was pretty.

That's what this is. A journal that is pretty. Nothing else. The design is bold, not as faded as it looks on the screen. The page holder comes in handy, for just keeping it locked.

The only thing I didn't appreciate about this journal, is that when I recieved it, there was a large dent on the side of it. Other then that, the size and shape was perfect.

Small but pretty
I love the print of this, but I find it to be too small for a journal. I use it for something else.

Nice, but not too functional
Pretty cover, but the lines on the paper are pretty faint--unless you're in a brightly lit area, they're very hard to see.If you like lined paper, as I do, this probably isn't for you. ... Read more

Product Description

Heartbreaking, poetic, and intensely personal, Butterfly Boy is a unique coming out and coming-of-age story of a first-generation Chicano who trades one life for another, only to discover that history and memory are not exchangeable or forgettable. 

Growing up among poor migrant Mexican farmworkers, Rigoberto González also faces the pressure of coming-of-age as a gay man in a culture that prizes machismo. Losing his mother when he is twelve, González must then confront his father’s abandonment and an abiding sense of cultural estrangement, both from his adopted home in the United States and from a Mexican birthright. His only sense of connection gets forged in a violent relationship with an older man. By finding his calling as a writer, and by revisiting the relationship with his father during a trip to Mexico, González finally claims his identity at the intersection of race, class, and sexuality. The result is a leap of faith that every reader who ever felt like an outsider will immediately recognize.

Customer Reviews (4)

expected more
It was a good memoir of life being a child of migrant workers, but I wanted to hear more about growing up as a gay man in a macho culture.There was some - mostly the family trying to ignore it or not acknowledge that part of him.Interesting how some of the other migrant workers reacted though.

Angry, Passionate, and Ironic
Gonzalez, Rigoberto. "Butterfly Boy" Memories of a Chicano Mariposa", University of Wisconsin Press, 2006.

Angry, Passionate. And Ironic

Amos Lassen

I have finally gotten around to reading Rigoberto Gonzalez's "Butterfly Boy". It is one of the most moving books I have ever read. We follow a young Chicano as he matures into accepting himself as a gay male and Gonzalez writes about in eloquent beautiful language and with candor. It is enough for one to be gay; homosexuality automatically comes with minority status but to be gay and poor and Chicano is another story altogether. This is not an easy subject to write about but to write about in such exquisite prose makes this book very special. Subtitled "Memories of a Chicano Mariposa", we learn that "mariposa" not only means butterfly but also "faggot". Like other gay coming of age stories, Gonzalez describes the trials of being an effeminate kid with a high voice who enjoys putting on girl's clothing. We also read about how he found homosexual themes in classic literature and his feelings of validation when he read E.M.Forster and Herman Melville. With that rapture also comes sadness when he discovers that he is different from others and the emotions of tears and smiles and anger and acceptance face each other off all through the memoirs. Gonzalez tells this story is prose that is poetic and the story is intense and heartfelt. Gonzalez compromises nothing and he tells it like it is. It is very difficult to write about the sexual orientation of a young person because it is so personal that it is hard to convey. Gonzalez manages to do so with beautiful tenderness.
Gonzales not only faced the issue of being gay--he also had to face near-poverty, illiteracy, and abuse. Above these there was love; he loved himself and who he was. The Chicano culture puts great emphasis on machismo and this made self-acceptance that more difficult. Feeling alone in the world, the only sense of connection that Gonzalez had came from a violent relationship with an older man. His mother died when he was twelve and his father had abandoned the family. When Gonzalez found his voice as a writer and also attempted to reconcile with his father, he was finally able to accept himself, claim his identity and bring together the issues of sexuality, race and class. This is a must read and should be on everyone's list. I don't understand why it took me so long to read it.

Engaging: You Will Finish This Gripping Memoir Quicker than You Received It
Years ago Rigoberto Gonzalez did a reading at the University of California, Riverside, his alma mater and the approximate locale where he met the "older lover" who abused him. Someone in the audience asked him why he felt he could write a memoir so young? Rigoberto, then in his early thirties, answered, "Because I write about another time that is no longer my life."

BUTTERFLY BOY: MEMORIES OF A CHICANO MARIPOSA speaks to us about cruelties we do not want to confront: physical and sexual abuse among gay men, child sexual abuse, continuing cycles of abuse, poverty among immigrant farmworkers, family abuse linked to socioeconomic conditions, and inequality in secondary and higher education. These are some of the issues most of us have lived, our "dirty little secrets," but very little of us admit to.I praise Rigoberto Gonzalez for his courage to bring this out to light.

Without a doubt, BUTTERFLY BOY is an example of taking risks with one's writing.Each scene is more heart-breaking than the last, and addictive.Addictive not in the sadistic sense, but because Gonzalez weaves a narrative that pulls you in, and its unsentimentality and your empathy that won't let you go. His prose is poetic and never dramatic. A read you won't be able to put down.

This book will become a classic in Chicano/a and ethnic literature. Worth the buy at any price.

Nothing can be more true than when Gonzalez said that he writes about a life no longer lived. He is an accomplished, award-winning writer and a leading figure in Chicano letters, movers and shakers. He is currently a professor in creative wrting at Queens College in New York. It's hard to believe he went through all the events he writes about, plus more I can't imagine, and still become as successful as he is now. Considering his up-bringing and where he's arrived, I hope this book falls into the hands of those who face similar adversities and have shrinking hope.

Memoir travels maze of sex, family and self-acceptance
What makes a writer?

This seemingly simple question can elicit many complex answers and even more questions. Case in point: Rigoberto González's poetic and heartbreaking memoir, "Butterfly Boy: Memories of a Chicano Mariposa" (The University of Wisconsin Press, $24.95 hardcover).

González is an award-winning author of poetry, fiction and children's books. He is also a book critic contributing regularly to the El Paso Times.

How did González, the son of migrant farmworkers whose first language was Spanish, become González the writer? Answers begin to emerge from his painful assertion of himself as a gay man in a culture steeped in machismo.

González tells of his journey into adulthood and a life of literature in a nonlinear fashion, moving back and forth from childhood to adulthood, Mexico to the United States, self-loathing to self-revelatory empowerment.

The book begins in Riverside, Calif., in 1990. González, as a college student at the Riverside campus of the University of California, has fallen in love with an older man who, as symbolized by painful yet beautiful "butterfly" marks he places upon González, brings both tenderness and brutality to the relationship. The unnamed lover cheats on González and doesn't hesitate to beat him up to establish his superiority over his young man. At times, González believes he deserves such brutality.

Other times, he is grateful to have escaped the oppressiveness of his family and its legacy of dropping out of high school to work in the fields. The escape comes in the form of literature. A sometimes-callous, sometimes-tender teacher named Dolly lends the young González a poetry book and works with him to subjugate his accent. And the fire is lit: "I became a closet reader at first, taking my book with me to the back of the landlord's house or into my parents' room, where I would mouth the syllables softly, creating my own muted music."

González then suffers the death of his mother when he is only 12. Compounding this loss, he is shipped off to live with his tyrannical grandfather. His own father -- who abuses alcohol and carouses with women --eventually starts another family, further alienating González. Again, books prove to be González's salvation, eventually leading to his surreptitious and successful application to college.

González remains closeted in both his sexuality and intellect, realizing that neither facet of his identity would be understood or appreciated by his family.

In the midst of scenes from his college life in Riverside and his adolescent exploration of sex and literature, González recounts a long and agonizing bus trip with his father. He leaves Riverside and travels to Indio, where his father lives, so they can begin their journey "into México, into the state of Michoacán, into the town of Zacapu, where my father was born, where my mother was raised, and where I grew up." This passage home takes on a special aura because González will turn 20 while there. Throughout the trip, González longs for his lover while seething with an almost uncontrollable anger toward his father. Throughout, he wonders if this trip was a mistake or a necessary part of becoming an adult.

What makes a writer? Obviously, talent is a necessary ingredient. And in the case of González, add to the mix hard work and a burning desire to be heard. Ultimately, it is a mysterious alchemy.

In any case, "Butterfly Boy" is a potent and poetic coming-of-age story about one man's acceptance of himself. There's no mystery in that.

[This review first appeared in the El Paso Times.]
... Read more

Product Description
This field guide offers a comprehensive display of all the magnificent butterflies of the western region, stretching from the plains of middle America to the Pacific coast, and from southwestern Canada all the way to the Hawaiian islands.

Jeffrey Glassberg's acclaimed Butterflies Through Binoculars series has essentially revolutionized the way we view butterflies. Featuring an extensive array of photographs, this new volume offers expert guidance in locating, identifying, and enjoying all the butterflies of the West. In fact, together with its companion volume Butterflies Through Binoculars: The East, every type of butterfly from the continental United States is described and, in most cases, photographed. As a complement to its outstanding instruction in spotting both rare and common butterfly species, the volume also includes range maps, advice on food plants, wing areas, flight times, and a host of other butterfly facts. Moreover, each stunning photograph contains identification marks, shown clearly for ease in positive identification.

From butterfly biology to butterfly conservation, this useful and practical field guide provides all the necessary information to make your butterfly experience a success. Whether you are a butterfly enthusiast, a birder, a conservationist, or a nature lover in general, this guide is the ideal accompaniment to your search for western butterflies. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

Kindle edition is only black & white - shameful!
As an entomologist & educator, I use this book frequently to show people our local butterflies. Imagine my disappointment when I purchased it (and related titles) only to find that is is black and white! I looked forward to using it on my Apple iPad (via the Kindle app) but with only black & white photos it is useless. Plus, there are black blotches scattered about some of the pages - was this book simply scanned and turned into a Kindle version? Amazon has done a tremendous disservice with the poor quality of this product. A shame.

The very Best of the Best
There's not much that I can add to the current Amazon reviews for this butterfly book.It is far and away the very best book on western butterflies that exists, or
probably ever will exist!Basically, it is a tour de force, and a phenomenal and beautiful resource.

Kindle For PC: Contains Black and White Photos
Color photos are important for a field guide to identify butterflies.Still, a nice source of written information.

IDs plus habitat and food plants
This book shows male and female, top surface and bottom surface of the wings, through photographs of butterflies in their natural habitat.It shows ranges, flight seasons, and gives caterpillar food plants.It does not deal with caterpillar IDs but is excellent for butterfly identification.

Heaping more praise...
Having just purchased "Butterfly Photographer's Handbook" and finding it a bad choice, I ended up posting a two-star review and recommending this book instead.

I can only agree 100 percent with the other positive remarks I see here: I haven't found a better source for identification help. I also work with native plant IDs, and photos are not good for that because there's too much confusing detail; I expected illustrated butterfly books to also be the better way. Totally wrong! Kaufman is a good general work, and Peterson's is less wonderful. Glassberg is the one you want. ... Read more

Product Description
Sweet, simple rhyming text and an interactive finger puppet combine for hours of delightful play! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Wonderful
This is my favorite infant series. I have all of the insects and although they are similar each one hold my son's attention. The simple rhymes are written well enough that I don't mind reading them over and over again.

Great for infants and toddlers!
My daughter received this book when she was 9 mos. old.She is now 14 mos old and we own 6 of them.She loves the animals and now she has them figured out and moves the puppets herself.The story line is simple, sweet, and it rhymes.

Charming little gem for the youngest "readers"
This is a charming little book, poetic and visually arresting.My newborn daughter is enchanted by the puppet and its colorful backdrops, and I like reading the simple rhyming lines of a caterpillar who becomes, well, a butterfly.Predictable, yes, but unusually well-written for a boardbook.

Bad story line
I wouldn't recommend this book. I bought it for my son who is obsessed with butterflys and when I opened it, it looked really cute. But the story itself is a bit weird and doens't hold his or my interest. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (16)

Saintliness is not all it's cracked up to be
On the surface, Agnes and Honey are as different as night and day. Inside of the commune walls of Mount Blessing, these two best friends are going through typical teenage rivalry. Honey, an orphaned child who lives with the physically and mentally challenged gardener Winky, is a wild child who chafes at the restrictions she is forced to live under. Her best friend, the pious Agnes, is determined to become a saint and continually chastises Honey for her rebellious behavior.

The one thing that both the girls agree on is Nana Pete, Agnes' paternal grandmother. She lives in the "real world" that is "dangerous to the Mount Blessing way of life," but she is allowed to visit her family at the compound. It is during one of these such visits that Nana Pete discovers Honey, along with other believers, are being physically punished in the Regulation Room by their leader Emmanuel. While this is abhorrent to Nana Pete, it is not until Agnes' little brother Benny is seriously injured and denied adequate medical attention that Nana Pete spirits all three children away. What ensues can only be described as miraculous for all involved.

A truly captivating read, Galante looks at the secretive and mysterious nature of commune living. While the abuse is what media reports like to focus on, there are other aspects that often go unnoticed. This book covers all of these aspects and more. Exploratory and enchanting, this book is a must read!

Interesting
I think I'll just get straight to the point for this review: I really liked this book. I didn't love it, but I didn't just like it. I liked it a lot.

My favorite thing about the book is that the POV alternated from Honey to Agnes. The girls are so different in their beliefs; Agnes is dedicated to trying to be a saint and has been brainwashed by Emmaunuel, the cult leader, while Honey thinks the teachings at the commune are stupid and ridiculous and that Emmaunel is insane. Agnes did not want to leave the commune for fear of what would happen when she got back, but Honey wanted nothing more than to get out. It was nice to see things from both their prospectives and see how all the events affected them and what they believed in.

My only complaint: I was still wondering what happened to the other Believers at the end. The book only told me what happened to Agnes, Honey, Benny (Agnes's brother), Agnes's parents, and a couple other people. I wanted more.

Life in a Commune Gone Wrong
It's a good thing business was slow at work while I was reading this book - I couldn't put it down. Galante shares a glimpse into the world of a conservative religious commune with the clarity born of personal experience; the remarkable thing is that she keeps opinion out of the narrative, presenting the story without preaching to the reader. The book's chapters alternate between Agnes' and Honey's points-of-view, giving the reader two very different sets of emotions and personalities, and two different private struggles.

This novel is a great find for young adults, highlighting the importance of friendships, honesty, and most importantly standing up for oneself. Galante's writing is crisp and unadorned, perfect for this kind of storytelling. I highly recommend this book, and look forward to reading more from Galante in the future!

A decent debut but not spectacular
The blogosphere has been hopping about this book. This novel is a Young Adult novel and a debut novel by Cecilia Galante. And foiund that I was happy that I got it out of the library and didn't purchase it.

Agnes and Honey are the two main characters of the novel - the chapters alternate between their viewpoints.They are 14 year old girls who have grown up together in a religious commune in Connecticut called Mount Blessing. Mount Blessing is led by a man and a woman - Emmanuel and Veronica - who maintain control over their followers through the use of brainwashing and, mainly, through the use of physical abuse in the "Regulation Room." Emmanuel is worshipped and held to be only a step below Jesus in everything he does. Every child, including Agnes and Honey, are taken from their families at the age of 6 months and moved to the nursery where they live until they are 7 years old, when they are allowed to return to the familial home. Except for Honey - Honey doesn't know who her father is and her mother left the commune three weeks after giving birth. The Bible of The Believers is a book called The Saint's Way, which Agnes follows to the word, sometimes starving herself. Agnes loves the commune and its way of life. But Honey despises it and wants to leave. When Agnes' grandmother comes to visit, Honey sees it as a way out.When Agnes' littlebrother, Benny, suffers a serious accident causes Emmanuel's "miracles" to nearly kill the young boy, Agnes' grandmother whisks them away.As the quartet travels away from the commune, secrets are shared and discovered and they all learn things about themselves.

I thought that the dual voice narrative was very effectively used here.Galante did a masterful job in conveying the story through the different viewpoints.However, those viewpoints are often stereotypes, so much so that I could almost predict what each character was going to do and say, pretty much through the end of the book.While the characters were developed, the changes that they encountered and the growth they experienced where very much predictable and that was disappointing to me.

I appreciated that the novel was touching and seemingly heartfelt. There wasn't any preaching or proselytizing or in your face conversion tactics, which was much appreciated. I also appreciated that Ms. Galante was trying to tackle a few topics that are pretty weighty - child abuse, religion, family - but I felt like she only grazed the surface of each of the themes.I would have preferred that she focus on one or two of the topics, instead of four or five, and flesh them out more thoroughly.

Richie's Picks: THE PATRON SAINT OF BUTTERFLIES
Psychological definition of "Cult" [from Wikipedia]
"Studies of the psychological aspects of cults focus on the individual person, and factors relating to the choice to become involved as well as the subsequent effects on individuals. Under one view, an important factor is coercive persuasion which suppresses the ability of people to reason, think critically, and make choices in their own best interest.

"Studies of religious, political, and other cults have identified a number of key steps in this type of coercive persuasion:

1. People are put in physically or emotionally distressing situations;
2. Their problems are reduced to one simple explanation, which is repeatedly emphasized;
3. They receive unconditional love, acceptance, and attention from a charismatic leader;
4. They get a new identity based on the group;
5. They are subject to entrapment (isolation from friends, relatives, and the mainstream culture) and their access to information is severely controlled."

Honey -- "'Why're you walking funny?' Winky asks. 'You hurt yourself?'
"For an eighth of a second, I wonder what would happen if I broke down and told Winky what Emmanuel and Veronica did to me this morning. But I dismiss the thought just as quickly. What good would telling Winky do? It's not like he'd be able to do anything about it. I don't even know if he could comprehend the details. And, oddly enough, the Regulation Room has been Mount Blessing's dirty little secret for so long that talking about it would feel really weird. I mean, even Agnes and I barely talk about it."

There are plenty of online resources and opinions regarding what cults are and why people become involved in them. But there don't seem to be easy or definitive answers as to why a particular person finds him or herself drawn into such a extreme situation.

Agnes and Honey, the two fourteen year-old alternating narrators of THE PATRON SAINT OF BUTTERFLIES, have had no choice about being a part of Mount Blessing, the religious cult and commune outside of Fairfield Connecticut that is under the control of founder Emmanuel and his "second in command" Veronica. Agnes, her little brother Benny, and Honey were all born at Mount Blessing and have literally never ventured beyond shouting range of the cult's buildings. Honey is the daughter of a single mom who ran away and inexplicably left her three week-old daughter behind at Mount Blessing; Agnes and Benny are the offspring of Believers. As with all children born there, the three spent their early years being raised in a community nursery away from parental influence. Now Agnes and Benny share their parents' quarters while Honey lives in the loft of the Milk house, home to the mysterious, outward seemingly mentally challenged Winky Martin.

Agnes is obsessed with living the life of a saint; Honey with getting away from Mount Blessing; Winky with maintaining the large butterfly garden that Honey adores and with watching Yankees games on the funky, contraband, black and white portable television he keeps hidden from all but Honey.

Agnes -- "Emmanuel never punishes us unless we really deserve it. Honey may not think so, but kissing a boy -- with your tongue no less -- is definitely a sin. A carnal one, too, if you want to get really technical about it, which is one of the worst kinds."

Shortly after the two lifelong friends are severely beaten by Emmanuel in the Regulation Room for Honey's "carnal" transgression with a peer, Agnes and Benny's paternal grandmother Nana Pete arrives from Texas for an unexpected visit and gets a drift of the brutal punishment system that has previously been unknown to her. THE PATRON SAINT OF BUTTERFLIES is the suspenseful story of what happens next.

"Your mind is not dirty so don't let no one wash your brain" -- Inka Inka

That the author spent her own childhood in a religious commune adds an incredible degree of authenticity to this thriller of a story. But it is not just in such drastic circumstances that individuals willingly give over their freedom of choice to charismatic figures and/or authority figures. THE PATRON SAINT OF BUTTERFLIES is a significant middle school read that leaves you thinking about thinking for yourself.

... Read more

Product Description
From the black-and-white stripes of a Zebra Swallowtail to the pale jade of a Malachite, coloring your own field guide is the most enjoyable way to learn about butterflies. Each drawing is accompanied by a brief description that educates as it entertains. Place the new color stickers next to the drawings for a visual reference while coloring. Coloring the drawings helps reinforce the color, image, and shape of each butterfly, improving your memory and perception while offering a pleasant and easy way to learn. Fun for adults as well as children, beginning and experienced naturalists alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Butterfly line drawings
These are line drawings that not only could be colored but can be traced and modified for use as other crafting templates.

Peterson's Butterflies
This is for the person who likes to color and learn something at the same time.Each butterfly is described in detail and all illustrations appear in the covers in full color.Colored pencil artists will enjoy blending their colors to come up with the range of hues found in these butterflies.

If your children love nature, you have to buy this!
Beautiful color pictures on the front cover and a chance to read about and color the butterflies on the inside.You should buy a set of colored penciles for this color book.Your child can identify the butterflies by the picture on the cover and learn more about them in the book.A real nature guide, not your run of the mill coloring book.Buy the series and you can sneak in an education on nature while your child is having fun. ... Read more

Product Description
With the help of her grandfather, a little girl makes a house for a larva and watches it develop before setting it free. And when the girl grows old, the butterflies come back to return her kindness. Full color. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

Beautiful!
My granddaughter loves it!We had visited the Butterfly House in our area together so this book had special meaning for both of us.

WELL DONE CHILDREN'S BOOK.A PURE JOY TO READ AND VIEW.
What a beautiful story.A little girl finds and saves a tiny "worm" from a hungry Jay.She takes the caterpillar to her grandfather, who then helps her build a butterfly box.They decorate it together, and eventually, when the butterfly breaks out of its cocoon and becomes a beautiful butterfly, they let it go back into the wild, their garden.

This is rather a simple story at first glance.The art work by Greg Shed can only be described as "delicious." Soft colors, well blended and mellow, along with very accurate details of flowers and wildlife, make this book a treasure to view.Like so many children's books, the pictures can be enjoyed, even without reading the words.

Now as to the text is this particular book.I found it absolutely delightful.More prose that anything else, it not only precisely informs as to how to raise a butterfly, but it very well illustrates the love between the grandfather and granddaughter.Now I am not as sophisticated as those folks who write for Publisher's Weekly, who's almost incoherent review seemed to feel the syntax was a bit "treacly."I found nothing overly sweet or cloying what-so-ever.I do hope I never become so sophisticated either.How boring!I suppose that lines such as "How strange to think my grandpa once was young like me. " We would have been best friends if I'd been there back then," I said.My grandpa smiled."It worked out anyhow, we're best friends now," was a bit over the top for them.

Anyway, when the little girl grows up, she lives in the same house her grandpa did.Her garden is just as beautiful and is filled with butterflies each year.She, an old woman now, feels the butterflies have told generation after generation of other butterflies how she saved one of their own, years ago, ergo, that is why the older lady now has more butterflies in her garden than anyone else in the area.

The book concludes with detailed instructions on how to raise butterflies, how to build a butterfly house and what to do after they have "hatched."

I liked this work.The kids I read it to liked it and I do highly recommend it.
Butterfly House
D. Blankenship

Butterly House:A Review by Ms. Carter's Class
Butterfly House is a story about a girl, her grandpa, and a butterfly.The girl saves a larva from a jay and puts it in a jar, and then a box.When the butterfly hatches, she has to let it go.But when she grows older, every spring the painted ladies come to visit her.
This book would be good for read-alouds at school, because it's a good story and kids can learn about nature and kindness.It would be especially good for kids who like butterflies.But it might not be good for kids over eight years old.Also, some kids might not find the characters exciting.

Happy Teacher
I was very happy with this book.I loved it and so did my class. I plan to use it for many years to come.

Butterfly House
This book is about a girl who saves a caterpillar
from a hungry blue jay. The girl keeps the caterpilar until it is a butterfly. My favorite part is when they make the caterpillar's little house. I LOVE the illustrations.I'd recommend this book to people who like butterflies. ... Read more

Product Description
This treasury of dazzling butterfly illustrations—accurately portrayed in a wide array of colors and sizes—offers illustrators, graphic artists, and craftspeople a glorious variety of eye-catching design options. The 388 finely rendered images are perfect for adding a graceful touch to poster art, fabrics, stationery, newsletters, catalogs, and many other projects. Disk contains all items in book.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Fills all your butterfly clipart needs!
Victorian clipart: I liked this volume better than the bird illustrations CD-ROM.The butterflies resemble 'scientific' artwork of the period.The illustrations look great on envelopes, letters, CD jewelbox labels, youfind a use.The color pics seem to print faster than Dover's B&W ones,too. As with the other Dover CD-ROMS, you can pull the images off the diskwithout installing them on your HD. ... Read more

Product Description
Beginning her journey in a backyard on Aster Way, Monarch Butterfly flies across the United States and down to Mexico to spend the winter. Includes a glossary of key plant and animal terms. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

This is the best!
I've picked up a lot of children's books about Monarch Butterflies but this is by far the best.The scientific facts are skillfully woven into the story.The words are almost poetic, and the color illustrations are lifelike and breathtaking.The children will learn what flowers Monarchs are attracted to, how they journey to Mexico, what happens when they get there, and how the circle of life continues as the Monarch's offspring makes its way back north. ... Read more

Product Description
With illustrations by Paul Julien Meylan ... Read more

Product Description
DK presents an exciting new look for some classic Ultimate Sticker Books, along with four brand-new titles about the plants and animals in your own backyard. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Butterflies and more Butterflies
This was such a delightful book of butterfly stickers. Very colorful and lots of great information. My granddaughter is thrilled.

Great educational and fun sticker book
My daughter, age 5, has enjoyed learning about butterflies and the fun of finding the 'right' place for the stickers that match the categories presented.

Children's Book
Gorgeous, illustrative stickers are included in this activity book. It should be said that it is also informative, and not merely a sticker book. It would make a good gift for a child.

Butterfly Heaven
The Purple Spotted Swallowtail is an exquisite butterfly. An entire garden filled with just those butterflies would be heaven.

The Smooth Emerald moth like butterfly seems to have almost velvet wings and the Cloudless Sulphur is shocking yellow.

The stickers can be removed and used on letters or can be placed on the eight pages in the best space available. The stickers can be stuck down and then peeled off again. So, you can use the stickers more than once. These would be wonderful to decorate a project for school.

If you choose to use this book as a teaching tool, the Habitats of each butterfly and the reasons for camouflage are briefly discussed. The life cycle of butterflies and moths are explained and a sticker is there for each stage.

You might want to plant some flowers that will attract these gorgeous creatures. I did find a few butterflies in my garden. One nearly flew into me, guess I need to get out there more so they know I exist. ;>

A lovely book children and even adults will enjoy. >i<

~The Rebecca Review

A really great primer on butterflies and moths!
My children love this book (even my six-year old) and so do I! It is not meant to be a complete atlas of butterflies and moths, but explains in straightforward terms many features of the lives and behaviors of thesebeautiful insects. The quality of content and production is what we havecome to expect from DK Publishing! It is the perfect companion to an atlasof regional butterflies. Although the content is geared for the adult andolder student, younger children will love to have the informationinterpreted for them. My six year old stands in the butterfly garden, thisbook open in her hands, waiting to spot a butterfly familiar from itspages. ... Read more