Easter Books

IF you value Irish history, this book will take you into the modern turning point in Ireland. It is a fact filled (if not a tad dry) historical telling of one of the island country's defining moments.
Prepare to tune out distraction and let yourself get absorbed. It is a serious read, and if you are of Irish heritage, requisite.

TIM PAT COOGAN'S BOOK IS THE BEST BOOK ABOUT THE UPRISING FROM A FACTUAL AND ANALYTICAL BASIS. THIS IS THE BOOK TO START WITH. THAT SAID, LET US DRAW SOME LESSONS FROM THIS KEY STRUGGLE OF EUROPEON HISTORY AND LOOK AT A KEY LEADER.

A word. They tell a story about James Connolly that just before the start of action in Easter, 1916 he told the members of the Irish Citizen's Army (almost exclusively workers, by the way) that if the uprising was successful to keep their guns handy. More work with them might be necessary against the nationalist allies of the moment organized as the Irish Volunteers. The Volunteers were mainly a petty bourgeois formation and had no intention of fighting for a Socialist Republic. True story or not, I think that gives a pretty good example of the strategy and tactics to be used in colonial and third world struggles by the working class. Would that the Chinese Communists in the 1920's and other colonial and third world liberation fighters since then had paid heed to that strategic concept.

A word on the Easter Uprising. The easy part of analyzing the Uprising is the knowledge, in retrospect, that it was not widely supported by people in Ireland and militarily defeated by the British forces send in main force to crush it and therefore doomed to failure. Still easier is to criticize the strategy and tactics of the action and of the various actors, particularly in underestimating the British Empire's frenzy to crush any opposition to its main task of victory in World War I. Although, I think that would be a point in the uprising's favor under the theory that England's (or fill in the blank) woes were Ireland's (or fill in the blank) opportunities. The hard part is to draw any positive lessons of that national liberation experience for the future. If nothing else remember this though, and unfortunately the Irish national liberation fighters (and other national liberation fighters later, including later Irish revolutionaries) failed to take this into account in their military calculations, the British (or fill in the blank) were entirely committed to defeating the uprising including burning that colonial country to the ground if need be in order to maintain control. In the final analysis, it was not their metropolitan homeland, so the hell with it. Needless to say, British Labor's position was almost a carbon copy of His Imperial Majesty's. Labor leader Arthur Henderson could barely contain himself when informed that James Connolly had been executed. That should, even today, make every British militant blush with shame. Unfortunately, the demand for British militants and others today is the same as then- All British Troops Out of Ireland.

In various readings I have come across a theory that the Uprising was the first socialist revolution in Europe, predating the Bolshevik Revolution by over a year. Unfortunately, there is little truth to that idea. Of the Uprising's leaders, only James Connolly was devoted to the socialist cause. Moreover, while the Irish Volunteers and the Irish Citizen Army were prototypical models for urban- led national liberation forces such organizations, as we have witnessed in later history, are not inherently socialistic. The dominant mood among the leadership was in favor of political independence and/or fighting for a return to a separate traditional Irish cultural hegemony. Let poets rule the land. As outlined in the famous Proclamation of the Republic posted on the General Post Office in Dublin, Easter Monday, 1916 the goal of the leadership appeared to be something on the order of a society like those fought for in the European Revolutions of 1848, a left bourgeois republic. Some formation on the order of the Paris Commune of 1871 or the Soviet Commune of 1917 did not figure in the political calculations at that time.

As noted above, James Connolly clearly was skeptical of his erstwhile comrades on the subject of the nature of the future state and apparently was prepared for an ensuing class struggle following the establishment of a republic. That does not mean that revolutionary socialists could not support such an uprising. On the contrary, Lenin, who was an admirer of Connolly for his anti-war stance in World War I, and Trotsky stoutly defended the uprising against those who derided the Easter Rising for involving bourgeois elements. Participation by bourgeois and petty bourgeois elements is in the nature of a national liberation struggle. The key, which must be learned by militants today is who leads the national liberation struggle and on what program. As both Lenin and Trotsky made clear later in their own revolutionary experiences in Russia revolutionary socialists have to lead other disaffected elements of society to overthrow the existing order. There is no other way in a heterogeneous class-divided society. Moreover, in Ireland, the anti-imperialist nature of the action against British imperialism during wartime on the socialist principle that the defeat of your own imperialist overlord, as a way to open the road to the struggle merited support on that basis. Chocky Ar La.

This book is a to the point informative guide to the events leading up to and during the Insurection. It is non partison for the most part and also talks about modern develpments on events in Ireland. I think this is a great book for anyone who wants a basic knowledge of the Easter Rebellion.

As early as September, 1914, the supreme council of the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB) had decided that an insurrection would take place in Ireland while Britain was preoccupied fighting Germany. Easter Monday, April 24, 1916, was the chosen day for the planned rebellion, which would involve slightly less than 2,000 IRB members and militia, including about 100 women from the Cumann na mBan (women's branch) of the Irish Volunteers. These brave women served as nurses, couriers, and secretaries. Although many other areas of Ireland were supposed to take part in the rebellion, lack of communication between the Irish leaders resulted in the insurrection being largely confined to Dublin.

In the Dublin area, 2,500 British soldiers were stationed, but within 48 hours they were reinforced by 2,000 troops from England who landed at Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) harbour. Also, there were 9,500 armed members of the Royal Irish Constabulary (R.I.C.) that were available. Against these odds, the Irish rebels never stood a chance, and on Saturday, April 29, the rebel leaders held a council of war and decided to surrender unconditionally.

It is estimated that during the week of fighting, the rebels lost about 1,350 people killed or wounded, while aprox. 1,214 civilians were killed or wounded. The official British army casualty list gave a total of 516 officers and men killed, wounded, or missing. 16 leaders of the rebellion were court-martialled and executed by the British. During and immediately after the Easter Rising, the Irish population was largely against the rebels, because many Irish men were serving in the British army in France and thus the rebels were viewed as traitors. But the public opinion drastically shifted in favor of the rebels following the executions.

Michael Collins, who survived the rebellion, said afterwards,"It appeared at the time of the surrender to have failed, but that valiant effort and the martyrdoms that followed it finally awoke the sleeping spirit of Ireland." Padraic Pearse, one of the top leaders of the Irish rebels, said at his court-martial,"We seem to have lost. We have not lost. To refuse to fight would have been to lose. To fight is to win."

This gripping book tells the story of the tragic Easter Rising like no other, and Tim Pat Coogan has proved himself to be one of the best writers on Ireland's "Troubled Times". This book is an absolute must for anyone interested in Irish history!

Not the same-old, same-old wordy, dry and painful Coogan we've come to know and expect. Concise, succinct and absolutely brilliant. Some of his very finest work details the events surrounding the events of the 1916 rising. This is really a must read and in the current hard cover addition a must-have for any serious student/collector of the troubles. An investment that will no doubt pay dividends.

Like Christmas being commercialized.....so has Easter. This is such a great way to give the Easter bunny a place in the True and wonderful gift Easter gives the World.

This book is excellent in content, however it is a boardbook, which was not in the description. I bought it to use with a group of preschoolers, which was kind of hard to do because the pictures are so small, it being a boardbook, not a picture book for sharing with a class. The content is appropriate for preschool, and the primary grades and is EXCELLENT.

What a terrific story! This book truly encompasses all the "fun" Easter traditions of egg hunts and baskets of chocolatey treats, etc., while finishing with an enthusiastic and upbeat description of the true meaning of the season - Jesus and His love for us! It would have been *perfect* if the darling illustrations had included a boy more prominently...even so, my 2 boys loved it!

I was introduced to this book last week and I am very glad I was. It is a wonderful book that is all about Easter. Easter eggs, Easter candy, Easter animals, Easter clothes, Easter Sunday at church,Easter everything. It says that all these things are fun and OK, But the best thing about Easter is JESUS. We have Easter because of Jesus. Jesus died for our sins, But He did not stay dead. He rose on the first Easter. He did this because He loves you and me. What a wonderful message for kids (and adults). This would be a great book to read anytime of the year. Not just at Easter.

This book helps recount my favorite things about Easter growing up, but concludes with what I have come to realize is truly the BEST thing about Easter. Each page of the story builds in excitement as it describes the FUN things we should like about Easter (dyeing and hunting for eggs, candy, animals, springtime, dressing up, and going to church on Easter Sunday) but, repeatedly indicates that these things aren't the BEST thing about Easter. "The very BEST THING about Easter is... Jesus... God's own Son!" The story of God's planned death and resurrection of Jesus are described simply and summarized nicely: Because Jesus loves us. I highly recommend this book for teaching the "true meaning" of Easter to children, whether it be your own family, or a group of children at church, Bible classes or an Easter egg hunt. The pictures are sweet, and the way handwritten words are interspersed throughout the story help build the excitement and fun. It is written from the perspective of a little girl telling the story.

This is probably going to sound strange, but there is a sweetness to Monica Wellington's simple book that makes me feel as if it were written and illustrated with an abundance of care and love - which makes it that much easier for me to lovingly read and share the book with my baby.

Bunny's Rainbow Day goes from a brilliant dawn to perhaps an afternoon shower and ends, of course, with a rainbow. The cut-out illustrations on each two-page spread are bright and bold, friendly with a touch of funky. Each illustration repeats four elements - a white bunny, rainbow-colored bird, blue butterfly, and red lad bug - which lend themselves for pointing games ("Where's the butterfly?" or "Show me the bunny.") The sparse words are full of imagery ("morning sparkles") and alliteration "plip plop splash") that have a fun, gentle cadence.

My one complaint, and it's a minor one, is that the pages are too long for my baby to hold the book easily (which she likes doing). I imagine she'll outgrow this problem before too long, though.

My daughter loved this book. We started reading it to her when she was about 6 months old. The combination of bright colors, distinctive pictures, cute animals and rhythmic words ensured that this was a hit with her. She would demand that we read this book to her multiple times a day. As she got older, we found that the book was good for "can you point to the bunny" and "who is that" type games. Now that my daughter is 2 1/2, she has pretty much outgrown the book--she wants books with more of a story. However, if you have a small child between the ages of 6 months and 2 years, I would strongly recommend this book for you.

My year-old son and I loved Bunny's First Snowflake. We have read that sooo many times and I went looking for more in the series. Amazon was out of print for Rainbow Day, but I bought from one of their resellers, with great results.

This book is cleverly written, just like Snowflake, the text is suggestive of sounds... woosh, rustle, etc. I'd say I like the illustrations in Snowflake a teensy bit better, but Rainbow day has lots more bright colors and action.

Recommend highly!

Our 11 month old loves this book. The bold colors and rhythmic text are appealing both to her and to her parents! We read to her several times a day, so it's great to find a book that we can stand to read over and over again...

My daughter loves this book! The bright colors and animals keep her attention! Excellent for infants and toddlers!

As I read Charity's reward I was reminded of where I had grown up and the ways of small towns in the foothills of east tennessee. I enjoyed the storyline and found it easy to follow.
Many of the characters in this book define what small communities of the era are all about. I think whoever reads this novel will ultimately find rememberances of their own family, present and past. I recommend this read to anyone who is interested in family, reminicing, and southern charm.

Mr. Blaylock has managed to capture & describe what is was like to grow up in the old South. He uses very clear and understandable vocabulary to accomplish this journey. You will understand the "Clanish" nature of small rural communities & their most human natures. From the kind, caring Will to the Outsider Elizabeth you will come to know each character personally. While reading Charity's Reward you will swear Mr. Blaylock came to your hometown to chose his characters. Each is very real & believable.

A thought provoking book that encourages you to look at life choices and the consequences they have. A sort of mixture of a Francine River's book meets Barbara Kingsolver's The Poison Wood Bible. I picked it up and didn't put it down until I closed the last page.

Charity's Reward is a wanderful story. I started reading it and couldn't put it down until I finished it the same day. I felt like I was right there with the characters in the story and there were so many different personalities that you got a little of everything in it. It is definitley a great book that everyone should read.

I LOVED it! Once you begin, be prepared to read until it's completed since you won't be able to put it down. I enjoyed it more than any book I have read in a long time. I laughed, cried, gasped in surprise, sighed with relief, a full range of emotions. This novel is very character driven. They seem to come alive with the story. In addition, the author beautifully describes the Tennessee mountains. Charity's Reward is a well-written, entertaining story. I highly recommend it.

Festive Ukrainian Cooking has easy to follow recipes. While all of our grandmothers had their own variations, this is a good starting point to get back to our beginnings.

If you enjoy Ukrainian food, this is the book to get. Most repipes use easy-to-get ingridients. The meals pleased many a Ukrainian homesick for native food.

Looking for a modern version of your grandmother's ethnic meals? This one will help you carry on the tradition of the meals she once made for you. A definite must have.

For any Ukrainian food/holiday tradition enthusiast tired of struggling through encoded recipes from "babtsia," this is the book for you!!! It provides simple recipes and introductions to the mysterious art of Ukrainian cooking -- "borshcht kvas," "pravdyviy hryby," et. al. -- as well as modern versions of the old traditions. Makes a traditional Ukrainian Christmas a reality.

Used to drive me crazy when my mother cooked Ukrainian foods and never had a recipe. Well, with this book all that has changed. I use it for those recipes where "a little of this and a little of that and then you mix it together" mean little to me. Also has excellent explanations of the different holidays and foods appropriate for the holiday.

These are excellent meditations for Lent. I felt called to action and reflection in real and meaningful ways.

In "Living Lent," Episcopalian priest Barbara Cawthorne Crafton draws texts from the Episcopal church hymnal, using them as the basis for a series of reflections around Lent. Although some of the reflections deal with somber topics, they are not depressing, rather they invite the reader to ponder, think about and work through serious issues. She also has a great sense of humor.

This is a great Lenten resource: rather than being self-focused, it broadened my perspective and helped me put my own sins and difficulties into context. The only thing is, now I am sad, because I have read all of her books! I hope she writes more soon.

Barbara Cawthorne Crafton has written this series of meditations based on Lenten hymns from the Episcopal Church Hymnal with a delicate touch and even a sense of whimsy. I enjoyed this book for the past two Lenten seasons and intend to continue using it for years to come.

Living Lent is a wonderful guide through the "forty days." Ms. Crafton uses personal stories, stories of parishioners, and of the world in a manner that ties the modern world to Christ. Her lessons are often subtle, but very powerful. I have bought this as a gift as well.

Barbara Cawthorne Crafton takes the poetic words of hymns and reflects on them during each of the forty days of Lent. Each one of these verses begins the daily reading; however, her reflections on the words of the hymns are related to her everyday experiences to which each one of us can easily relate. You find yourself nodding in agreement as she verbalizes so many of the things we've been thinking for so long. It's the kind of book that provides you with a short reading you can handle in the morning before work and find yourself thinking about for the rest of the day.

I haven't given this to my granddaughters yet, will at Easter time. But the book is cute, something they will enjoy the night before Easter.

A bright happy book! Fun to find other objects in the story after reading the whole book. Would definitly recommend this book. Looking forward to purchasing other The Night Before books!

A charming Easter tale sure to delight young and old alike. Children will love looking for the eggs hidden in the pictures and listening to the rhythmic language; adults will smile at the new and original twists on this Easter time take-off of the well-loved Twas the Night Before Christmas. The perfect Easter basket gift!

I ordered this book for my grandson for Easter. I also have "The Night Before Thanksgiving". Since my 5-year old grandson liked that one so much, I decided to order the Easter version. The "story" is similar to "The Night Before Christmas".

My son received this as an Easter Gift for his first Easter, and we are still reading it three Easters later. He loves to hear it, and I love to read it to him. This makes a great addition to your Easter Basket!

These essays or articles are engrossing reading for the insight they provide into the mind of one of the most fascinating revolutionary leaders in modern history. Thought of by many during his time and even now as a 'terrorist' or gunman, these writings reveal Collins to be a thoughtful, intelligent leader with a far-ranging interest in all aspects of the present and future of his country. Had he lived it seems very clear that the quality of his mind and the compassionate concern he had for his people would have made him as formidible a leader in peacetime as he was in war. His death was Ireland's great loss but he left an impressive legacy.

"Of all the words/ Of tongue or pen/ the saddest are these/ 'It might have been'/". Such go the words of a poet that I cannot identify. But they adequately encapsulate the emotions intended to be evoked by this finely-edited collection of various writings by Michael Collins, the Irish patriot, hero, and martyr (or traitor depending on one's perspective) who led his country's successful war of independence betwen 1919 and 1921. Assassinated during the Irish Civil War of 1922-1923 because of his role in setting up an Irish government not sufficently independent of Britain nor sufficiently encompassing the whole island to satisfy many of his former comrades in the struggle, he never got to be tested as a peacetime leader. Path To Freedom allows us to see the man through his own writings where he emerges as far more than a warrior. Keenly interested in economics and culture, well-informed and articulate on virtually every issue of state, foreign or domestic, Collins' legacy to the reader is to make him/her wonder what would the history of Ireland (North and South) be like -- even the history of Europe itself in the time of a coming Depression and Age of Dictators -- had Collins survived. The renowned modern Irish scholar-journalist Tim Pat Coogan provides a good introduction which is mostly lifted verbatim from his earlier biography of Collins.

It is difficult to top a book on Michael Collins composed primarily of his own words. After all, what better way to peek into his brilliant mind than by reading his words? This book was indeed published to coincide with the release of Neil Jordan's film in 1996, ostensibly to give curious moviegoers a way to better understand Collins before or after viewing the biopic. Tim Pat Coogan's foreword to the book is excellent and shows him in his usual top form. The book's chapters are "Advance and Use Our Liberties," "Alternative to the Treaty," "The Proof of Success," "Four Historic Years," "Collapse of the Terror," "Partition Act's Failure," "Why Britain Sought Irish Peace," "Distinctive Culture," "Building up Ireland," and "Freedom within Grasp." This book sheds light on how articulate, well read, historically aware and insightful Collins actually was. It is too often thought that Collins was a country bumpkin whose knowledge of anything beyond 'murder and mayhem' was quite limited. This simply isn't the case and it becomes apparent almost immediately into the book that Collins was a more than capable thinker. Collins discusses Ireland's tumultuous history, the accomplishments of the Easter Rising, the political events of 1914-1918, the many aspects of British rule, the potential resources of Ireland, and the work of Sinn Féin.

If you are looking for a traditional biography on Collins, this is probably not the right selection for you. _Michael Collins: The Man Who Made Ireland_, the book Tim Pat Coogan excerpted his foreword from, would be a much better fit for that need. If you are already basically familiar with the life and times of Collins, this book will give you a much richer sense of how his mind worked.

Tim Pat Coogan's account of the life of Michael Collins is full of information. The time and people come alive, and you are left knowing a lot more then you started with. This is the definitive biography of Mick.

Michael Collins own words provide a clear and insightful look at life in Ireland circa 1921, delving into the social conditions and circumstance that led to the infamous Black and Tan War. This book helped me see that enormous importance of the independence movement of the time, how Ireland was not even recognized as its own country, and what it meant to finally achieve that status. I could not picture a world without a free, seperate Ireland, its amazing to me that this was the case up until well into this century. Micheal Colins here is addressing the people directly, so you get a head-on view of the realities of the times without a lot of historical or sociological analysis. Thats good, because its better to encounter his words personally, to understand the case he is making in all its simplicity: The Irish people are, now and forever, Free!

My 9 year old granddaughter cried when she finished the book. Not because it was sad but because her " favorite book EVER " ended. Can there be a better review ?
I am a little sad too, because we have to wait till September for the next Penina book. But, Ahh, the anticipation.

Penina Levine is one of only two Jewish sixth graders in Mrs. Anderson's class in public school. The class has been given an assignment to write letters "from the Easter Bunny" to kindergarten kids in the nearby Holy Family School. Penina strongly believes she should not write the letter because she is Jewish and Easter is a Christian holiday. She doesn't tell her parents about the assignment because she feels they don't listen to her and favor her younger sister, Mimsy. She does tell her grandmother however, when they are preparing the meal for the Passover Seder. Her grandmother says she is like a hard-boiled egg because when you boil it, it gets hard, just like the Jews: "When the heat is on, we don't turn to mush-- we get tougher." Her grandmother is proud of her for sticking up for her religion and not writing the letter. Eventually Penina tells her parents about the assignment and they tell the principal, who then talks to the class about diversity. Mrs. Anderson, Penina's teacher, apologizes and Penina and her family invite her to a Shabbat dinner. The story moves along briskly and Penina is an appealing and feisty Jewish character with much humor. The various black and while line drawings complement the text. For ages 9 -12.

The girl is spunky, truthful, hardheaded, true to her beliefs and most importantly, very believable. Although written for maybe 8-11 year olds, Penina is very much beloved by my 6 year old, a self described "agnostic" and myself a tripped off the religion wagon ex-Catholic with a Jewish father. It is a great book for helping my daughter explore her Jewish heritage and a great starting point to discuss religion, faith, beliefs, traditions, and how much she dislikes dealing with her little sister. It has a wonderful "conversation starter" in my house. Penina Levine is a real find.

Tenacious sixth-grader Penina struggles to retain her beliefs, trust in adults, and humor while going through what seems like unfair obstacles in the course of growing up. Will an impossible assignment, troublesome younger sister, unsympathetic parents, tricky friend, and attending a school where her heritage is in the minority, weaken her or give her strength? Is telling the TRUTH and self-control always better than just DARING to pay for the consequences of one's actions?
Rebecca O'Connell manages to have all readers experience with Penina the joys and struggles of one's heritage in this flowing story. It is not until the reader of any background has finished enjoying the book that they realize the wealth of information they've gleaned not only about the Jewish culture, but the unique beauty of their own as well.
As a school librarian I recommend this must-have library book to students who want to laugh at the important daily issues of grouping up, as well as to students and teachers interested in diversity. This is one of the few young adult books that lovingly DARES to be sensitive to such major topics.

You don't have to be Jewish to appreciate the wit and wisdom of Penina. Rebecca O'Connell's book taps in to the frustration we all have felt when an authority figure (in this case, a teacher with a fixation on the Easter bunny) disregards our most diligent efforts to be understood. Start with a Passover feast, add an annoying younger sister, an empathetic friend, and a rich seasoning of humor...and you have the recipe for a rewarding reading experience.

When I purchased this book for my child, I never dreamed that I had purchased such a wonderful treasure. What a wonderful book. It helped give my child a reminder that no matter where she is or where she will be in the future someone is there who loves her. When I read the book, I also had tears of joy for such a wonderful story. Don't miss this book. It's story is so appealing. It gives your child an understanding of Easter. It also has a audio tape that comes free with the book. The authors of this book have told a story that will go with your child to adulthood. It truely is a classic .

One of the most enjoyable children's books that I have purchased for my children. As I read the book, it was as meaningful for me, the parent, as it was my child. This is a book that will become a classic.

What a joy this book is! My children, including my teenagers, were enthralled with the story, it's meaning and the lovely illustrations. It reminds me so much of the 'picture books' of my childhood. Dale Smith is an incredible children's author, as proven by his other books, Over is Not Up and Night Time at the Zoo. His illistrators are of the finest quality. The collaboration with Pat Day-Bivins makes this a great book for all ages. What a message! We will enjoy this book for years to come.

My first impression was what a lovely book! Then to discover that the story led me into another one with which I was very familiar and loved. I felt comfortable with this and was able, through the small rabbit, to become a part of the story. I also found that the rabbit family exhibited strength in their loyality to one another. In this time of broken families becoming more the norm, I loved enforcing family bonds to my grandchildren through this delightful and beautiful story. Both the story and the lovely paintings will be enjoyed in our home for years to come!

The story told in this children's book will become the story told at Easter as to how the Easter Bunny and the true meaning of Easter are now one. I purchased this book for my grandchildren. I have read many children's book but none compare to this book. I am an artist and the illustrations are beautiful. Each picture looks like the original oil painting. In fact I had to touch the page to make sure it was not canvas. The story is beautiful and gives children and adults a story they will never forget. When I received my book, I could not believe the quality of the book. It truely is a coffee table book. In my family, this book will be passed down to other generations. It truely is a classic. I cannot recommend it enough to all families.