Laughing Allegra: The Inspiring Story of a Mother's Struggle and Triumph Raising a Daughter with Learning Disabilities

Book Description

The remarkable honest and inspiring story about the

struggle and triumph of raising a child with learning

disabilities will be an encouragement to any parent in this

situation, and instructional for those who seek to understand

how to better help both these children and their families.

Customer Reviews:

Laughing Allegra .......2007-09-16

Excellent and true story about a family dealing with their beloved daughter and a major learning disabilty.

Laughing Allegra: The Inspiring Story of a Mother's Struggle and Triump Raising a Daughter with Learning Disabilities, By Anne F.......2007-01-05

I purchased this book many times, it is one that I keep in my car. I use it to help teachers, friends and family members understand my children and others like them. It has helped me understand why I feel the frustration when my kids "don't get it" or need extra guidance in different situations or in the public school system. It is a book that I give to their teachers in hope that they will take the time to read it. As I read this book for the first time, I highlighted many sentences, example - page 17 - quote "She was so funny and effervescent and her behavior was so far frm being considered " a problem" that my mother gave up all attempts at discipline or even expressions of disapproval".... I can remember so many times my kids - acting out -- but in a way that was just "their way" they are so full of expressions and life.

most important - page 39 - There is more then enough heartace involved in coming to terms with the fact that your child is disabled. .... this is the truth, but with this book it helped me come to terms with it and I am trying to help others. Please take the time to read this book it will help you, empower you and your child. You are the voice for your child, you are their confidant. You need to read this book....another wonderful book is Legacy of the Blue Heron, Living with Learning Disabilities by Harry Sylvester.

If you have a special needs child, this is the book to read........2006-03-29

I have read many books out there, and this is the best one that I have found. This book is much better than Dana Buchman's book called "A Special Education" in which she constantly refers to her daughter's mild mental retardation as a "learning difference". In this book, the author is honest and tells it like it is.... she does not sugar coat it like Buchman's book. In Buckman's book, she talked too much about herself instead of her daughter. The only negative part of Anne Ford's book is that she constantly talked about the private schools refusing to let her child attend, but if she had picked a public school, it is the law that they would have to allow her child to attend. Most regular private schools would not have the resources that her child would require. For instance, speech therapist, occupation therapist, physical therapist are not necessarily found in private schools, but public schools would have these resources because they are required by law to teach all children. Anne Ford did note this in her book. Finally, here are some quotes from Anne Ford's book that might be helpful...

"a learning disability affects a person's ability to interpret what they see and hear or their ability to link information from different parts of the brain, because their brain is 'wired' a little differently. These differences can show up as specific difficulties with spoken and written language, with coordination, self-control, or with paying attention. People can have learning disabilities in reading, writing, math, and processing information."

"Most children with LD can read words, but comprehension may be another matter entirely."

"Children with LD can and do succeed in school."

"Adults with LD can and do succeed in the workplace."

"LD can be treated successfully, and children with LD can go on to live happy, normal lives."

In conclusion, I highly recommend this book to all parents who have special needs children, and the teachers who teaches them.

A wonderful book.......2005-07-07

This is a wonderful book for any parent, written in an honest, unvarnished manner. Very insightful..... with lessons on supporting, loving, and accepting one's child no matter that the child's reality differs from the parents' dream.

I'm surprised... (minor spoiler).......2005-03-15

that all those schools turned Allegra down, her being from the prominent family she's from! Maybe the schools weren't really right for her, but I guess I assumed some would have done cartwheels (and made some adjustments) for the privilege of having a Ford in their school.

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Pretty poorly written, but the only one
Thompson as Careerist
Well tried
The Only Game in Town
Good for fans - otherwise, get the albums

Richard Thompson: The Biography
Patrick Humphries
Manufacturer: Schirmer Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0028647521

Amazon.com

After 30 years of recording and performing, Richard Thompson remains the nightmare of every marketing department: he is an obvious genius who simply can't be slipped past the radar of the mainstream audience. Thompson himself seems nonplussed. He continues to write marvelously mordant songs, and to wring his own brand of Celtic angst from the electric guitar. Meanwhile, the journalist Patrick Humphries has taken on the Boswell role, taping hours of interviews and running down all the requisite sources. The result is this lively Life of Thompson, which includes an airtight discography and some goofy photos that only a fearless man would allow to be published.

Book Description

Category: Music / Rock n Roll / BiographyThe first biography of the great singer-songwriter For such a monumentally talented singer, songwriter, and guitarist, Richard Thompson has lived a remarkably undocumented life . . . until now. Written with Thompsons full cooperation, this biography reveals the stories behind the lyrics of one of the most critically acclaimed musicians recording today. Thompson has a large and devoted fan club; a tribute album featuring REM, Los Lobos, and Bonnie Raitt; an album listed on Rolling Stones Top 10 of the 1980s; a critically acclaimed new album (1996s you? me? us?) and 1996 United States tour; and now, finally, a biography.Patrick Humphries has written a number of books on folk-rock music, including biographies of Simon & Garfunkel and of Bob Dylan.

Customer Reviews:

Pretty poorly written, but the only one.......2006-10-12

This book rates down there with Chris Murphy's Miles To Go as one of the most amatuerishly writen biographies I have read. Most of the other readers' reviews here, and especially the Kirkus review, touch on my frustrations, but I think they are being FAR too polite. Yes, it's the only bio of this musical genius, so I guess the intention was good. But unfortunately, the author apparantly thinks that HE is part of the story! There are lots and lots of personal opinions, recollections, critiques that have no place in a bio purporting to tell the life story of its subject. The admittedly good interviews often were strung back to back without editing, then followed by a passage by the author retelling the same facts just discussed by the subjects. The ramblings and redundancies became so tedious to me that I was not only tempted to put it down, but throw it at the wall. Only my love for Richard Thompson prompted me to plow through it.
OK, I admit that the pictures are worth having, but you will probably learn as much from the booklets included in the 2 excellent RT box sets. And you will have the pleasure of listening to Richard's wonderful music.
It IS the only available RT bio, and a lot of work went into it. If you're a fan you're going to buy it anyway, and you probably will be glad to have a copy. The intentions were noble, so I'm raising my rating to 2 stars. :o)

Thompson as Careerist.......2006-09-24

Humphries concentrates on the history of Thompson's recording career. That involves him in a double reduction: life and work are largely reduced to career, and career is largely reduced to recording career. The result is woefully narrow; the book could have been called GENIUS AS MARGINALITY: PROBLEMS IN THE MARKETING OF RICHARD THOMPSON. To make matters worse, Humphries has a weak grasp of the difference between achievement and reception: the reader who wants to know which albums to buy will find that she is only told which ones have been well-received.

(Clive Gregson: "I don't believe that Richard has ever really been that bothered about making records. It's not the real thing for him.")

Yet there are interesting quotes here, both from the articulate Thompson and from his perceptive wives, friends, colleagues, and critics. Their voices made the book a pleasure to read.

Well tried.......2004-12-24

I've read this. I think it's unremarkable. I'm not sure that's Humphries' fault - or anybody else's for that matter.

Humphries is quite obviously a Thompson fan. Mostly he makes a fair fist of remaining objective about Thompson's work, though he does get on the soapbox from time to time to air his own views.

The real problem with this book is that there's no real revelation. Some people might be surprised to know that RT is fond of scrabble, cricket and gardening (the anoraks amongst his fans knew all that already), but that's about it really.

The real problem - and it's not really the author's fault - is that Thompson, apart from his music, is a very ordinary person. English post-war middle class upbringing, two marriages, one divorce, one religious conversion (which hasn't coloured his work in the long run). Still touring hard in his middle age but there's no sex and drugs, no groupies, just a bit of scrabble at the back of the bus. Where's the best seller in that?

So full marks to Humphries for trying and full marks to the very private Thompson for agreeing to go along with it all, but unless you're a Thompson completist save the cash and buy the CDs instead. That is where all the truly remarkable things about Richard Thompson are to be found.

The Only Game in Town.......2001-08-25

This book is worthwhile simply because it is the only one out on the subject. But there are few revelations, it merely conslidates information that has appeared in articles and interviews over the years. The interviews are rewarding, but should have been edited for coherence and attribution. The writing is trite, hackneyed, and the author too frequently inserts himself and his very biased opinions into the story. And a number of factual blunders calls all the apparent research into question. Disappointing, sometimes apalling, but the only game in town.

Good for fans - otherwise, get the albums.......2001-02-28

If you're reading this it's probably because you are a Richard Thompson fan. And if you are a real fan, you should get this because: 1) There are no other Richard Thompson biographies (books) 2) It has good reference material in the appendices (although inevitably it's out of date) 3) No one's going to get rich off of writing a Richard Thompson bio, and we should support whoever makes the effort, espcially when it's not THAT expensive 4) You will find out something(s) you didn't know [Afghanistan & "Shoot Out the Lights"; scrabble; "Walking on the Wire" was before the breakup] 5) This book looks like it might be going out of print. Get it while you can. HOWEVER: A good biography makes the person come alive; it succeeds as a story on its own. This doesn't make it on that level. (Yeah, it does have an index [required] but the index didn't have Pentangle, mentioned several times in the text...) SO there's my Caveat Emptor. The passersby could bypass this with no worry; but if you're a fan....

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Richard Weaver is a bastion of conservatism.
Gnome in Chicago
A Neglected Father of Modern Conservatism

Southern Essays of Richard M. Weaver
Richard M. Weaver
Manufacturer: Liberty Fund
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0865970580

Customer Reviews:

Richard Weaver is a bastion of conservatism........2003-06-23

In short, if you are a friend of the South, or would like to read the words of a man who can explain the conservative axiology, this book is for you. The contents are essential for anyone seeking a neoclassical education. For me, reading Richard Weaver's Southern Essays brings together the final sentences of Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily."

"Then we noticed that in the second pillow was the indentation of a head. One of us lifted something from it, and leaning forward, that faint and invisible dust dry and acrid in the nostrils, we saw a long strand of iron-gray hair."

The book is a monument to Lee and Jackson. Anyone who wants to understand Picket's charge needs to read this excellent book.

Gnome in Chicago.......2002-05-21

As this posthumous collection of essays suggests, Weaver felt most at home writing about the old South, which was his birthplace, the topic of his dissertation, and the subject for which he reserved his highest praise.

To Weaver the evils of the world were rooted in modernism, industrialism, materialism, and nationalism, all of which he blamed on Union victory. At one point Weaver even asserted that total war -- war unrestrained by chivalry or other ethical restraints -- was a northern custom which had led to the rise of National Socialism in Germany.

The stark line Weaver drew between South and North, with divergent and logical worldviews ascribed to each, was for him the line between good and evil. In reducing every issue to either-or, Weaver oversimplified his subjects, so that his essays resemble legal arguments: Haynes v. Webster, Thoreau v. Randolph, Lee v. Sherman, Emerson v. Warren. In each case, Weaver's preference is obvious.

I found the strongest essays to be in section one, about southern literature and the Agrarian writers. Here are many useful and profound insights that time has not diminished. When Weaver leaves his specialty, however, his comments are less persuasive, amounting to sweeping sociological observations and cheerleading for the old South.

The converse of Weaver's feeling at home in an imagined South is feeling alienated in an imagined North. Although he spent most of his career teaching literature at the University of Chicago, he isolated himself from the city both physically and intellectually. Perhaps if Weaver had made more effort to adapt, he would have left us a richer legacy, one less marked by decline and defeat.

I admire Weaver's work a great deal. He should be praised for showing, from a conservative perspective, the limitations of capitalism, industrialism, and modernism, limitations which are more often the outcry of the radical left and dismissed as anti American. He would have been wise to consider also the limitations of the old South. I am less willing to blame today's discontents on Union victory. In Weaver's rigid arguments, moreover, there is little to be learned about the vital American principles of acceptance, pluralism, and compromise.

Sometimes it is difficult to sort out the contradictions in Weaver's work, but I prefer to keep in mind his comments from Ideas Have Consequences: Piety accepts the right of others to exist, and it affirms an objective order, not created by man, that is independent of the human ego.

A Neglected Father of Modern Conservatism.......1999-10-28

This is a marvelous book, and a marvelous collection of essays, written by a clear and conscientious southern conservative. Richard Weaver was heir to the Southern Agrarian tradition of protest and opposition to the directions modern American society and politics was taking, particularly in the New Deal and post WW II eras. Writers like John Crowe Ransom, Donald Davidson, Allan Tate, Caroline Gordon and Robert Penn Warren, were caustic critics of modernity, of the decline in community, and a sense of the common good. Weaver, an english professor who might better be described as an intellectual, lived, learned, and worked in this tradition. Of all the essays in this collection, all of which are well written and thoughtful, two stand out in my mind. His essay on 'Lee the Philosopher' captures the pragmatic and common-sense spirit of southern political and social thought. Southerners felt little need for abstract theorizing, or great theoretical and philosophical models. Simple, everyday ideas, the ideals of common sense and everyday life, were more than enough for the down-to-earth farmers and planters of the American South. Weaver does a brilliant job of portraying Genl Lee as the epitome of the southern ideal of both gentlemanly duty and social thought. The second wonderful piece is 'The Two Types of American Individualism'. Weaver contrasts the individualism of a character like John Randolph of Roanoke, a fixture on the Virginia political scene in the early 1800's, with the individualism of Thoreau (and by implication the North). Randolph was a supreme example of an eccentric indivdual. He had bouts of insanity throughout his like, fought duels, appeared on the floor of Congress with his hunting dogs, jug of hard cider and his slave attendant, and refused to toe the party line. Yet, when the needs of his community demanded, or the society in which he lived was threatened, he was willing- even eager- to rally to the cause and defend it, despite his personal believes and misgivings. Weaver felt that Thoreau, on the other hand, with is notions of civil disobedience and voluntary taxation, put the individual ahead of the community, and would refuse to defend anything that was not justified according to his principles and beliefs. This was recipe for chaos and disorder, and disintegration. Weaver leaves no doubt as to which he preferes. The division between community and tradition, and individual liberty is a fault line that continues to run through American political and social ideas. Weaver, in powerfully defending tradition and community, has been one of the men shaping current political discourse, particularly among the social conservatives and in the religious right. He deserves to be read.

Richard The Lionheart: The Mighty Crusader

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Fine Military Biography
Crusader Rex
Richard as a Crusader and Commander
The gist of the Third Crusade

Richard The Lionheart: The Mighty Crusader
David Miller
Manufacturer: Phoenix Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0753818809

Book Description

New in paper
In a biography as compelling and controversial as its subject, Richard I of England, comes bursting to vivid life. Richard's personality was as imposing as his legend, and his far-ranging adventures make fascinating reading. Travel with Richard through a lifetime dedicated to chivalric warfare, from his campaigns in France to his fearsome battles with the Muslim hero Saladin for control of the Holy Land. A commander who led from the front, Richard the Lionheart devised tactically brilliant military operations that are among the finest examples of the early use of combined arms--and are discussed in detail here. An extensive collection of maps, diagrams, and illustrations, as well as a special section featuring Richard in his own words, enhance the story of his dramatic life.

Customer Reviews:

Fine Military Biography.......2007-06-23

An interesting and informative read, examining Richard from a personal and politico-military perspective but also looking at the history and logistics of the Third Crusade. My only complaint is the rather naive view of the 'Saracen' army that is presented here.

Crusader Rex.......2006-08-07

I would like to recommend this book, to anyone with an interest in the Crusades, Richard I, or combat leadership in general.
I found that the focus on Richard's militay exploits to be excellent, and leaves the extraneous accusations of his activities for a reader to find else where if they're so inclined.
I noted one date in the book that lead me to some issue and that was the reference after the battle of Hattin, the movement to and fall of Jerusalem on July 4th, 1187. If memory serves me, the battle was on July 4th, and the Holy city fell months later.
Still all in all a great book, and a shining example for combat leaders to never ask their charges to do anything more than they would do themselves.

Richard as a Crusader and Commander.......2006-05-08

In this short book, we have an excellent study of military career of Richard the Lionheart during the Third Crusade. The entire book is basically geared toward that campaign where Richard squared off with Saladin. It pretty clear that Richard the Lionheart, may have been bad King of England but he proves to be a very able commander in battles and campaign. His ability to see the long term stratgic problems set him apart from many of his fellow European commanders. The author studied not only Richard's military efforts but his diplomatic effots as well. It bit ironic that Richard probably got along personally with his enemies better then he did with his allies, many who turned against him during the campaign and after.

The book is short (only 215 pages), well written and nicely researched. The author wasn't too judgmental on Richard, choosing to look at him from the historical contemporary point of view instead of the more present politically correct perception which many modern historians falls into that trap. The book proves to be very readable because its not cluttered with overwhelming amount of information. There seem to be enough in the book to present the author's case on Richard very nicely.

The book come recommended to anyone who got a close interest in the Crusades and the life of King Richard I, the Lionheart of England.

Overall, a pretty interesting book that wasted no pages in bringing the reader right into the Third Crusade.

The gist of the Third Crusade.......2005-05-23

This is the first book of Miller I have read and I was very impressed by the clarity of the text and the factual analysis. The author gives a brief but very useful introduction to the history of the previous two crusades (before Richard I set foot on the Holy Land) and then goes to the adventourous campaign of the English king, covering the lightning conquest Cyprus, the conclusion of the siege of Acre in just four weeks, the march toward Jaffa, the battle of Arsuf and of course the two failed attempts to conquer Jerusalem. The book contains also chapters on the the logistics behind Richard's moves, the sea war and the lessons Richard learned studying Vegetius' "De Re Militaris". The text is not condensed and very easy to read, featuring only 30 lines per page and the book contains some 15 black and white photographs (two of them maps)in a special section.

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Richard Thompson: Strange Affair
Patrick Humphries
Manufacturer: London Bridge (T)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Alberta Lifestyles: A Celebration of Central Alberta Writers

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Alberta Lifestyles: A Celebration of Central Alberta Writers
Phyllis Athley , Sam Cole , Joan Crate , Shelagh Dell , Terri L. Frank , Karyll Gray , Larry LaClare , Stewart Liddell , John C. MacAulay , Sharron Murphy , Michael Neil , Brenda Neufeld , Loretta Richter , Philip E. Rowe , Ann Roy-Poulsen , Lynn Sampson , Sharen Sayers , Sharon South , Christopher Sullivan , Karen Thompson , Dave White , and Richard Woollat
Manufacturer: Writers' Ink
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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The Biography of a Grizzly and Lobo
Ernest Thompson Seton
Manufacturer: A Whitman Book/ Western Publishing Company Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NPTDM8

Diary Of Richard Cocks V1: Cape-Merchant In The English Factory In Japan, 1615-1622

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Diary Of Richard Cocks V1: Cape-Merchant In The English Factory In Japan, 1615-1622
Richard Cocks
Manufacturer: Kessinger Publishing, LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1432530151

Book Description

This scarce antiquarian book is included in our special Legacy Reprint Series. In the interest of creating a more extensive selection of rare historical book reprints, we have chosen to reproduce this title even though it may possibly have occasional imperfections such as missing and blurred pages, missing text, poor pictures, markings, dark backgrounds and other reproduction issues beyond our control. Because this work is culturally important, we have made it available as a part of our commitment to protecting, preserving and promoting the world's literature.

I Don't Feel Old: The Experience of Later Life

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I Don't Feel Old: The Experience of Later Life
Paul Richard Thompson
Manufacturer: Oxford Univ Pr (Sd)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0192861301

Lewis Thompson, Journals of an Integral Poet, Volume One 1932-1944

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Lewis Thompson, Journals of an Integral Poet, Volume One 1932-1944

Manufacturer: Fourth Lloyd Productions
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0971780617

Book Description

Volume One of Lewis Thompson's journals takes us into the everyday world of India's sub-continent in the 1930's and 40's through the prism of a fierce spiritual aspirant and intellect. "The whole in this atmosphere," he writes, "suggests a superhuman discipline and dignity, a passion, a sensuality, for what is prior to Being and Non-being-astringent like the taste of iron." We share his meetings with Sri Aurobindo, Sri Ramana Maharshi, J. Krishnamurti, Anandamayi Ma and Sri Krishna Menon.. We experience his attempts to integrate a Western heritage-Christ, Blake, Yeats, Rimbaud, Pascal-with the exigencies of Indian gnosis. We marvel at his self-invented writing yoga, whose bold vocabulary juxtaposes many levels of consciousness - waking, dreaming, visionary, bhakti yoga, jnana yoga, tantra and vedanta. This is a jewel of a book for those interested in "the power which consecrates us beyond ourselves". For the intimate context these journals provide, this book is a must for readers of Thompson's aphorisms (Mirror to the Light) and poetry (Black Sun). Edited with an introduction and commentary by Richard Lannoy. Foreword by Dr. Harry Oldmeadow, LaTrobe University.

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