Product Description
FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. A new series introduces 13-year-old Samantha, who returns home to her family's ranch two years after she left to recover from a fall off her beloved mustang, Blackie, who has been missing since that day. On one moonlit night, a mysterious mustang comes t ... Read more

Customer Reviews (58)

The Wild One
I just finished this book. It was better than I thought it would be! I guess it was because it was the first book, but I think this was the best in the series. I didn't miss Jen, and Slocum was so annoying. I thought Jake's idea to slow Slocum down was funny. I hope I find some more Phantom Stallion favorites soon.

Every Girl's Dream
The Phantom Stallion is the perfect series for young girls to learn about family, frienship, belonging and selfishness. Sam is a young girl who is injured while riding her young horse. Although she is sent to live with her aunt while she recovers, she never forgets Blackie, and always wonders what happend to him.
Each book in the series is continous so that the reader grows with Sam and the Phantom as they meet a new horse that needs their help, while increasing the bond they share with each other.
Add a stern yet loving Dad, a kindly grandma, and a new step-mother that loves wild horses as much as Sam, not to mention two best friends, Jen and Jake, her own horse Ace and border collie Blaze, Sam is a character you want to hang around with to see what happens next, especially if it foists the series "bad guys", Linc and his daugher, Rachel Slocum.
The memories you share with the characters from past books is like those you share with your own family.And the horses in each book teach valuable lessons every girl should know.

awesome book!
this is a must read book for all horse lovers! i have already read the series and trust me, it gets so umch better!!

The Wild One
Sam just came back from San Francisco
after two years. She fell of her colt blackie
and she got a concussion. Blackie was never found.
But Sam is sure a wild stallion every one calls
the phantom (because he's a gray) is her Blackie all
grown up. Especially when he shows up at the ranch.
pretty amazing scenes. Really good.

Great read for horsecrazy girls!
I really loved the Phantom Stallion books, and I recommend you start with the first one so you can follow the series. It's a great story, and hard to put down. My mom and I read it together and she thought the writing was great. I liked it because it really tells a lot about how Samantha loves horses and gets over her fear of them after a fall.

I read three more books in the series after this one and will read more. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Product Description
FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. When he accidentally kills a Manchu, a 15-year-old Chinese boy is sent to America to join his father, an uncle, and other Chinese people working to build a tunnel for the transcontinental railroad through the Sierra Nevada mountains in 1867. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (48)

Quite Fair
Dragon's Gate seems to be quite the marvelous book to read. I always favored the Chinese culture, and it was pleasing to learn more about it. Though I didn't really understand half of it. It didn't seem to get through my head when it was mentioned Otter was adopted by a new woman, who was married to Squeaky, but had feelings for another man, his father. I wasn't exactly sure whether his adopted father was Squeaky or not, which threw me off course slightly. However, the book was very enjoyable. It was somewhat humorous, since Braid seems to be a gurgler when someone says something wrong. It was strange though, how they called America 'The Golden Mountain.' I was somewhat confused more than half the time, but I was able to understand the story. It was exciting when he acctually had the chance to visit 'The Golden Mountain,' as well. Out of all events, I liked three the most. I adored how Braid continued to clear his throat and gurgle while Otter's friend carried on with speaking. It was amazing to learn that a special drug, opium, was sold in China after the Opium War, causing several addicts spending their money, resulting to poverty. What I truly liked the most though was the fact that Otter's father had worse English than Otter, when his father had been working on 'The Golden Mountain' for years. Iwould definately recommend this book to those who enjoy historical fiction, at ages ten and up.

Discovery and Adventure in the Dragon's Gate
The Chinese culture has always been fascinated by dragons.They have many sculptures, drawings and stories about dragons.The book Dragon Keeper is no exception.It is about a slave girl who befriends a dragon and goes out on a quest to get to a mystical place called Ocean.

The story starts with a lowly slave girl living on a mountain in the far borders of the Han Empire (which was the ruling force back then in China.)The girl lives with the Imperial Dragon Keeper, her master, Lan.It was Lan's job to take care of the imperial dragons, but he got lazy and the slave girl took his job and took care of the beasts.Then, when one of the two last dragons die, the girl feels remorse and starts to take better care of the last one.Then, one day, the girl is forced to escape with the dragon, when an evil dragon hunter finds her and the dragon out.

During the long journey to Ocean, the girl learns her name, befriends people (who turn into her enemies), and fights villains. The book was very enjoyable because of its excitement when you didn't know what was going to happen next. The riddles sometimes go unsolved in the book, which I really didn't like, but if you do solve them it makes you want to read it more. Over all, the book was pretty good, and if you like dragons or the Chinese culture, you should get the book. Dragon Keeper had many mysteries and surprises around every corner, so stay close to the dragons, but keep away from the tigers.

worst book i have ever read!
This book is officialy the most boring and worst book that i have ever read. I didnt find any part of this book exciting or good. The whole thing was boring. I had to read this book for school with a group of 5 or 6 other people. Every single person in the group hated the book. I hated this book.

Dragon's Gate: A Timeless Read

This book may not be at a high school reading level, but it does give good insight into the lacking of humanity on the Americans part and the amazing compassion within the characters, such as Otter. Dragon's Gate was written in such a way that makes the characters relatable, making it easier to find a quality or a feeling within them that becomes more personal to the reader. The authors' way of personifying objects such as the Tiger (the mountain in which all T'ang men blame for their misery) truly sucks a bookworm in, making us wonder what terrible event will occur next. It's not so much action packed, but rather a whirlwind of personal, physical, and emotional demons.

From Otter's struggle to America onward to his struggle to fit in among the more experienced T'ang men, to discovering the "truth" about his legendary Uncle Foxfire and to battling, at long last, to get back home, this story truly is a complete adventure within a few chapters. Although the book is only over a time period of 4 years, within those years, the characters change dramatically, learning more about themselves and others, once again entrancing the reader just to see how they end up. I highly recommend this book to all of those who are interested in historical fiction. Laurence Yep beyond doubt gives us a look into others' perspectives, showing us that there truly is a story behind every landmark now in the United States, and sometimes, it was made and forged on the backs of others, at times even by force.

Highlights about the Book
Reading Dragon's Gate was a delight. There are not many books that tell you a story in that way and in that perspective using powerful words and characterizations. I really liked the book for many reasons, but there is one main one. The author wrote the book in the Chinese people's perspective- a teenage boy to be specific. The book really shows you the hardships, dangers, and torture these people went through as if you were living it with them. The book grabs you and once you start reading it, you won't stop until you have read it until the end. I would really urge book lovers to read Dragon's Gate because it tells you a lot about how in reality, the Chinese were doing all the work and suffering while the Americans took all the credit and glory for it. It demonstrates how Chinese and Americans were not considered or treated equal, and that Americans were better than them. This book shows you how the Chinese struggled for years to finally get their rights or even part of them. This story is sad, adventurous, drives anger through you because of the mistreatment, but also gives you pride in what you believe. However, not every book is perfect. I think the author sometimes wrote things that didn't have to be written or described, which made the story a bit boring. I even didn't like the ending because it was fast and didn't give you what you were expecting after having read the whole book in excitement. ... Read more

Product Description
THIS EDITION IS INTENDED FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. The murder of a cowboy sends a vigilante group on a frenzied hunt to track down the killer. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (52)

Loved Book.But I Hate Modern Library
I loved this book.However Modern Library manages to fully spoil the plot in the second sentence of a four sentence synopsis on the back cover.If you don't want to know aspects of the resolution that Walter Van Tilburg Clark leaves unrevealed until page 210 of a 241 page book, buy another edition - or at least avoid the cover.From now on, I will do my best to avoid anything with the Modern Library logo.

Great, Classic American Novel
I recently reread The Ox-Bow Incident after a hiatus of 30 years and was astounded by how good I found it.At the granular level of English prose, this novel is sparely, tightly, yet eloquently written.70 years after publication and I didn't find a single word that I would blue-pencil or a false emotional note that makes me wince.This book could and should be studied by readers of almost all ages (let's say 15-95) for its economy and expressiveness.

It is a gripping story, simple in narrative line yet rich and complex in moral viewpoints.The concepts of justice and action, group dynamics and individual conscience, appearance and reality, that are explored in this novel are eternal and, in this sturdy and robust version, well-preserved. The incidents develop in natural yet surprising ways and, even after finishing, you are compelled to start reading again, to see how the author accomplished his effects.The book is simultaneously highly realistic as a portrayal of how people act under the stress of uncertainty and urgency yet clear and basic, like a fable.Its strength reminds me of Antigone.

If the measure of a classic is how well it stands up to time, then this book deserves to join the ranks of the great novels in the English language.

A Thinking Man's Western
This book is definitely not in the same mold as the adventures of Louis L'Amour or Max Brand. Rather than being bombarded with lots of gun-play action, the reader is drawn into the very real drama of the machinations of mob rule and it's outcome. The author also shows how easy it is for vigilantes to draw in people by appealing to their sense of justice or their desire for excitement.

Art Croft is not, in anyway, concerned with the report of murdering rustlers but joins the posse of vigilantes simply because he has nothing better to do. Evidently, that is reason enough to join a pack of enraged fools hunt down and murder three innocent men, all the while having doubts about the justification of the act and not having the guts to say anything against it.

Other reviews, I've read, focus on the mob and it's ebb and flow of emotion. For me, I focused on Croft's inability to speak out against what was happening, although he had clearly realised the injustice of what was happening. Since the book was written in the 1940s, during World War Two, the author is stressing that the enemy of the world is not the German, but a German political party. Croft symbolises the German people's apathy towards the actions of the Nazis. Rather than speak out and, probably, end up joining the three innocent men, Croft stays silent and "looks the other way".

This book is a true classic.

I didn't appreciate it years ago
Nearly twenty-five years ago, this book was on my "required summer reading list" when I was a student transitioning from ninth grade into tenth.I vividly remember loathing the experience of slowly plowing through this book.Even the old version of the cover, with the yellow background and dangling noose, brought back the memories of spending nearly an entire summer loathing this novel.Ever since then the title held a place in my memory as the single most boring, painful reading experience of my life.

Fast forward twenty-five years, and the other day I found myself with a few spare minutes in the local library, looking over authors like Dickens, Steinbeck, and Melville, and my mind wandered back to required reading lists.I had remembered the title THE OX-BOW INCIDENT, but not the author, but after a quick search "Walter Van Tilburg Clark" flashed across the screen, and I again cringed at the recollection of that name.I went to the shelf out of morbid curiosity, and the paperback was jutting out.I picked it up, read the first page and thought, "I'm going to give this another try.There must be some reason it was on my reading list."

I read it in three days, staying up until 1:30 in the morning last night to get to the end.How can a book can go from being one of the worst reading experience of one's life to being one of the most enjoyable?I am convinced more than ever that some books should never be on required reading lists, but should rather be discovered and enjoyed when you're at a place in life where you can appreciate them.Enjoying this once-hated book so much all these years later has made me want to go back to the other books from those days and give some of them another chance.(Maybe THE JUNGLE won't be so dull now that my primary focus isn't trying to impress girls.Maybe THE GREAT GATSBY is worth another look.Will BILLY BUDD hold my interest, I wonder?)

This review says more about me than about the book, but if there is anyone out there who, like me, was forced to read classic literature before they were ready for it, don't be afraid to go back to even your most hated high school reading experience and give it one more try.THE OX-BOW INCIDENT is a great novel.There's a sentence I could never have imagined writing even one week ago.

An American classic and a classic Western
THE OX-BOW INCIDENT is a classic tale.It also is a classic Western, and because the Western is so central to American culture, THE OX-BOW INCIDENT surely is more important -- more "classic", if you will -- for Americans than for others.To be sure, at times the writing is somewhat dated, but that "flaw" is negligible.The cast of characters (at least 20) is very finely drawn, with only one (the uncouth town drunk Monty Smith) tending overly towards a stock portrayal.By and large, the psychology underlying the characters is astute.And there is some very fine writing of scenes, especially the one a quarter into the novel of the weather changing and the storm coming on.But the reason to read the novel, even if you have seen the movie, is for the story.It was powerfully presented in the movie, but is even more powerfully presented in the book.

My one and only complaint or reservation has to do with the last chapter.It is superfluous.I suppose that the two additional deaths contained in that chapter and Davies' "confession" tend to make the book more of a Greek tragedy, but that's not really necessary:this is a quintessential American tragedy, and it doesn't need any retribution or retrospective moralizing.

An aside on the subject of lynching, which is at the dramatic center of the book.Like the Western, lynching is a peculiarly American phenomenon.It is a blot on our history, but one we should remember, not repress.The best book documenting the horrors of lynching in America -- a book that should be much more widely known and circulated -- is "Without Sanctuary: Lynching Photography in America." ... Read more

Product Description
A step-by-step guide on how to set up your own library of state related books and other materials.Includes tips on using the Dewey Decimal System, creating card catalogs, budgeting and acquiring materials + gives resources for books, art, music, rare books, technology, autographs, etc.Excellent classroom activity.Free teacher's guide gives specific suggestions and instructions on how to get max educational value from this book.Hey, if it's your library, you won't have to pay any late return fees! ... Read more