I really enjoyed this book. It's essentially a series of anecdotes about a fur trader in Canada in the late 19th century. It's an easy read, well-written, and helps you understand what life would have been like back then. Recommended especially for anyone interested in Canadian history.

A series of interesting historical anecdotes from the author and her friends about being the wife of an RCMP officer, mostly in small-town Saskatchewan. Easy read.

I've tried about 15 recipes out of this book and they've all turned out great. Nice variety of recipes, good instructions, large font is easy to read while cooking. She includes notes for each recipe - sometimes a bit of history, or suggested substitutions. I love cooking and would recommend this book.

I have been doing yoga for years and got this dvd because I enjoyed some of Denise's other dvds.

The yoga workout is a good one, but I don't recommend it for beginners because I don't think she spends enough time explaining proper form. Some poses are quite complicated and can take months to learn to do properly - for example, downward-facing dog. You're not doing it correctly just because you can feel it in your hamstrings - it's actually a complex whole-body stretch which is wonderful, once you learn how to do it. Unfortunately, watching this dvd won't get you there.

However, if you're already familiar with yoga, you will enjoy the workout. The pilates workout is also good, but I tend to use her "Pilates for Every Body" dvd instead.

I am a fit person who has been running and doing yoga for a few years but wanted to mix things up by trying aerobics for the first time.

I really enjoy this dvd because it gives you several options (2 cardio workouts, 3 upper body, 3 lower body, abs, & stretch). You can choose a pre-programmed workout or customize one yourself.

This was important to me because as a runner I have very strong legs so I immediately jumped to the high intensity lower body. However, my upper body is not developed so I started out on the low intensity and have now worked my way up to the moderate intensity version.

The cardio/aerobic routines are fun - she has a positive and enthusiastic attitude which keeps you going. She mixes up different styles (traditional sport, yoga, pilates, etc) to keep it interesting. I prefer the low intensity cardio, just because I think it's more fun.

One of the most important factors for getting into shape is variety & surprise: you have to keep your muscles guessing in order to make them work, and you have to vary intensity to burn fat most efficiently. This dvd gives you the chance to do these things.

I would highly recommend this dvd for people of all fitness levels.

I'm a beginner in the design world, and I really liked this book. The authors overview the fundamentals of design, but there is very little text. Instead, the content is comprised mostly of visuals which illustrate the concepts the authors are presenting. Some of the visuals have accompanying text which explains why they were included, others don't. I think the best way to benefit from this book it to work through it, really examining the variety of pictures.

I've been working with Photoshop for a few years now, but I was self-taught. When I got CS, I decided to work through a course book to catch up on anything I was missing.

I did not get as much out of this book as I hoped. It really is aimed at the newbie who wants to create & edit projects ASAP, with little explanation surronding the tools they're using.

For example, you're directed to go to a tool in the Filter menu, check off these two boxes and enter 70% here, then click ok. There's little explanation for why you'd want to check those boxes, or why you'd enter 70 and not 38.

I think this is a good beginner's course, especially for someone who will take the time to go beyond what's presented in the book, and play with the tools to figure out what they do.

I studied in French a few years ago, but haven't used it in quite a while. I picked up this book for a refresher, and have found it to be an excellent review of grammer. The exercises are practical, and the subject matter is relevant (IOW things you might actually hear and say).

The book does touch on some vocabulary, but it is assumed that you already have a basic understanding of French.

I would highly recommend this book for anyone who has already studied French, and wants to brush up their grammer skills. Not for the beginner or someone who wants to focus on vocabulary.