Book Description
Nobody "owns" a cat. You may feed it, pay for its vet bills, pet it, and talk to it every day, but that cat is your friend, not your possession. The cat's independent nature and self-respecting attitude are what set it apart from other pets, and when one is your friend, you know that friendship is deep and true. In this delightful tribute to the friendship of cats—and people—wonderful full-color photographs are paired with insightful quotations on the meaning of friendship and loyalty.
Customer Reviews:
Critic of Chinese Blue and White Porcelain.......2001-12-15
I purchased this book to get a better understanding of Chinese Blue and White Porcelain. It totally fulfilled this requirement.
This book is very helpful for a beginning or mature collector. It is simple to understand and easy to read. There are many pictures and very detailed pictures of markings on the bottom of your objects.
Also, if you find a topic not addressed in the book you can email Duncan and he will assist you in resolving your issue.
The bottom line is that this book is "Brilliant".
Book Description
Chinese blue and white porcelain has made a unique contribution to the history of ceramic technology. Throughout its development from the beginning of the fourteenth century, through its technical originality and artistic brilliance, it has continued to captivate and inspire the entire world.
This richly illustrated book traces the history and evolution of blue and white in China, first during the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368), when the Mongols ruled all of Asia, creating an environment in which blue and white could travel swiftly as far as the Mediterranean. In the fifteenth century the Chinese became enamoured of their own product, while at the same time the Ming potters were susceptible to ideas from the Islamic world and commercial and aesthetic pressures during the colonial period of European expansion. From the sixteenth century onwards, passion for collecting became a major influence on the concept of chinoiserie.
Finally John Carswell shows how the combined efforts of scholars, collectors and archaeologists have illuminated how, why and when blue and white developed and has made such a major impact on world civilization. The stunning illustrations are from museums and private collections around the world and include some never before published.
Important Note: The book also includes a very special unpublished material from a mysterious fourteenth century shipwreck in the Red Sea. Seen by only a handful of experts, the findings from this shipwreck are very important for art history and are published here for the first time. Full details with line drawings and complete mini-catalogue of this material are given in the book.
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Blue and White China: Origins/Western Influences
Rosalind Fischell
Manufacturer: Little Brown & Co (T)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 General
| Sculpture
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Arts & Photography
| Subjects
| Books
China
| Ancient
| History
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Antiques & Collectibles
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
Pottery & Ceramics
| Crafts & Hobbies
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0316283495 |
Product Description
A photo guide to identification of antique porcelain china. Text in English and Chinese
Customer Reviews:
A Plethora of Gardening Ideas.......2001-12-13
The reader is offered a plethora of gardening ideas through attractive and plentiful photographs. Numerous garden types, garden designs, structural elements, and plant life are discussed in this book. However, by covering such an extensive variety of garden topics, the reader never gains an in depth appreciation of each particular garden style. This book will provide a complete overview to gardeners uncertain with which particular garden style they wish to pursue. Once the selection is made the reader would be better rewarded with purchasing a garden book dedicated to the chosen garden style.
A must have for the photos alone!.......2000-07-18
Sunset, the bible of west coast gardening, finally comes east and it is well worth the wait.
As the owner of a home on a desolate, windswept acre, I have bought over a dozen landscape books and magazines looking for inspiration. I could have saved alot of time and money and just bought this one.
So well written you could sit down and read it straight through. And so well organized and indexed you can use it for quick reference.
It covers everything from planning to installation. Includes many sample plans with plant lists. But the best thing about this book is the PHOTOGRAPHY. The photos are stunning and plentiful. Most photos are refered to in detail in either the main text or a side bar and the photos actually pertain to the topic (which is most unusual for this type of book)!
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Sunset Northeastern landscaping book
Manufacturer: Sunset Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Landscape
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Gardening & Horticulture
| Home & Garden
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0376035196 |
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Urban Symbolism (Studies in Human Society, Vol 8)
Manufacturer: Brill Academic Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Interior Design
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Interior Design
| Home & Garden
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| Books
General
| Anthropology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
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General
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
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General
| Sociology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
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Rural
| Sociology
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| Nonfiction
| Subjects
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Urban
| Sociology
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| Nonfiction
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Communities
| Sociology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
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All Titles
| Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007
| Stores
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ASIN: 9004098550 |
Book Description
This volume deals with a hitherto largely neglected aspect of cities, namely the symbolic and ritual structure in which the urban community is rooted. This fascinating facet is explored in a combined effort by social anthropologists, sociologists, historians and philologists for cities like Jakarta, Padang, Bangkok, Beijing, Tokyo, Baghdad, Kathmandu, Lucknow, Francistown, Vitoria and Buenos Aires. Three perspectives on the study of symbolism in the urban arena are developed, namely the material, cultural and structural point of view. This results in a series of new concepts for comparative use and provides lively descriptions suffused by rich detail of the social processes by which urban symbols and rituals are constituted.
Book Description
Sufi City: Urban Design and Archetypes in Touba is a geographical study of the modern Muslim holy city of Touba in Senegal, capital of the Mouride Sufi order. Touba was founded in 1887 by a Sufi shaykh in a moment of mystic illumination. Since the death of the founder in 1927, the Mouride order has designed and built the entire city. Touba is named for Tûbâ, the "Tree of Paradise" of Islamic tradition. This archetypal tree articulates Islamic conceptions of righteous life on earth, divine judgment, and access to the Hereafter; the city of Touba actualizes this spiritual construct. Important aspects of its configuration, such as the vertical and horizontal alignment of its monumental central shrine complex, its radiating avenues and encircling ring roads, and the actual trees that mark its landscape relate directly to the archetypal tree of Sufi theosophy. The relationship between the spiritual archetype and its earthly actualization as a city is explained by recourse to Sufi methodology. The book employs a semiotic analysis of urban form, cartography, hermeneutics, field investigation and analysis of satellite imagery in order to relate contemporary urban design issues to overarching metaphysical concepts. Sufi City also explores the history of urban networks in Senegal since the emergence of autonomous Muslim towns in the seventeenth century. Finally, the layout of Senegal's modern Sufi cities is related to the monumental palaver trees that marked that country's historic settlements. Eric S. Ross is a cultural and urban geographer who holds a degree in Islamic Studies. Since 1998 he has been assistant professor of Geography at Al Akhawayn University in Ifrane, Morocco. Apart from research on Sufi orders and Muslim towns in Senegal, he has studied cultural tourism and urban planning in Morocco.
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Meaning in the Urban Environment (Research in Planning and Design, 5)
Martin Krampen
Manufacturer: Pion
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Sociology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Urban
| Sociology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
Communities
| Sociology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0850860679 |
Book Description
In recent years, the Confederate flag has become as much a news item as a Civil War relic. Intense public debates have erupted over Confederate flags flying atop state capitols, being incorporated into state flags, waving from dormitory windows, or adorning the T-shirts and jeans of public school children. To some, this piece of cloth is a symbol of white supremacy and enduring racial injustice; to others, it represents a rich Southern heritage and an essential link to a glorious past. Polarizing Americans, these "flag wars" reveal the profound--and still unhealed--schisms that have plagued the country since the Civil War.
The Confederate Battle Flag is the first comprehensive history of this contested symbol. Transcending conventional partisanship, John Coski reveals the flag's origins as one of many banners unfurled on the battlefields of the Civil War. He shows how it emerged as the preeminent representation of the Confederacy and was transformed into a cultural icon from Reconstruction on, becoming an aggressively racist symbol only after World War II and during the Civil Rights movement. We gain unique insight into the fine line between the flag's use as a historical emblem and as an invocation of the Confederate nation and all it stood for. Pursuing the flag's conflicting meanings, Coski suggests how this provocative artifact, which has been viewed with pride, fear, anger, nostalgia, and disgust, might ultimately provide Americans with the common ground of a shared and complex history.
Customer Reviews:
The Confederate Battle Flag: Controversial and Colorful symbol of the Lost Cause .......2006-06-14
The confederate battle flag is "an enigma wrapped in a riddle"
to historians. Was it:
a. A southern symbol of brave warriors fighting and dying to
protect their southland against the federal government; preserve
states right and slavery?
b. A pernicious symbol of racism and hatred of African-Americans?
c. A historical flag from American history that deserves a place in museums and sites but has no place flying over the
state house in such states as Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and
South Carolina.
d. A divisive and ugly symbol of segregation which needs to be
furled since it assaults our African-American citizens.
e. A symbol of such far right groups as the KKK and Citizens
Councils which needs to be folded and put in history's attic
The fine historian John Coski from the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond, Va. shows us in this scholarly, detailed and objective look at the confederate battleflag and the other flags of the Confederate States of America that this
flag is and has been all of the above. The Confederate Flag will:
a. Always be a part of the American scene-love it or hate it.
b. Ambiguous in its meaning to different people who remember
their ancestors who fought for Dixie or remember the bad old days of chattel slavery.
c. He looks at heritage groups such as the Daughters of the Confederacy and the Sons of Confederate Veterans as well as
black groups which oppose the flag.
As the ancestor of men who died for the Confederacy and were buried in confederate draped splendor I can clearly see both
sides of the issue. Unfortunately I conclude that the flag is a
symbol of racism and opppression and should be used only in a
historical context to remember the Confederate soldiers' brave
sacrifice. US Grant once said of the Confederacy, "Never did so
many good men die for so bad a cause (the perpetuation of slavery)."
Not everyone will agree with my personal view but this is a
book which should be read by all interested Americans black or
white or yellow or brown. We need to work together as Americans
free of prejudice and hatred to maximize our many freedoms.
Coski has done an excellent job of research; he understands
the flag flap controversies with expertise.
Balanced and Informative.......2006-03-31
This gives a detailed history of the confederate flag(s) and its use for a variety of purposes in its long history. It truly means many things to many people--history and heritage and in equal measure oppression and ostracism. Both are right. The author does not take sides but allows each side to understand how others' perceeptions are shaped. Superb
Flag-Studies Journal Editor weighs in.......2006-02-04
John Coski's significant achievement: he has managed to bring a historian's neutral perspective to an otherwise highly-charged controversy. He begins with the flag's initial design (it was an alternative design for the first Confederate national flag, actually proposed by the design committee's chair, William Porcher Miles) and with its use in battle (adopted in late 1861 at the urging of General Beauregard who observed that the national flag resembled the Union's flag too closely, causing confusion on the battlefield). Coski then lays the groundwork for the flag's initial post-war significance as a memorial marker and a historical honor among Confederate heritage groups. With superbly-documented detail, he traces the flag's use by the (second) Ku Klux Klan in the 1920s, by southerners in the US Armed forces during the Second World War, by "Dixiecrats" in the 1948 presidential campaign, by southern college students starting in the late 1940s, by those caught up in the "flag craze" of 1951, by pro-segregationist/anti-civil rights activists in the 1950s, and through the frictions of the past 50 years.
He shows how the flag "became an aggressively racist symbol only after World War II and the Civil Rights movement", and explores with great sensitivity how the flag has two conflicting but potentially overlapping meanings for its users: one, as a symbol of the Confederacy-a historical icon, and second, as a symbol for a major (alleged) principle underlying the Confederacy, the racism that justified slavery. Whether advanced simply as "a symbol of our heritage" by proud Southerners, or as an assertion of a "redneck" political/cultural position, the confusion over these meanings fans the flames of the "flag wars" that still rage in our American public discourse.
The text reflects intensive research and provides superb footnotes. It was delightful to see an article from NAVA's scholarly journal Raven (which I edit) cited in the text, quoting author Rosalind Urbach Ross describing the Confederate Battle Flag as "the second American flag", and to read the excellent treatment of the Georgia state flag adopted in 2003 (for which NAVA member Ed Jackson won the Vexillonnaire Award for his role in its design, and during which the Georgia General Assembly members referred to NAVA's flag-design guidebook Good Flag, Bad Flag).
In a fascinating irony, the Southern hereditary organizations, Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) and United Daughters of the Confederacy (UDC), have long fought to restrict the use of Confederate flags to events and sites directly tied to Civil War heritage (such as cemeteries and monuments), decrying its misuse by "slack-jawed teenagers": this has put them in the difficult position of defending the flag itself against attacks (for example, supporting the right to wear the flag on a T-shirt), yet advocating for its more-limited use (for example, opposing the wearing of the flag on a T-shirt).
The author serves as historian and library director at the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia. His evenhanded approach demonstrates a triumph of professionalism over regionalism, and results in a solid and informative treatment of an important contemporary issue in flag usage.
Edward B. Kaye
Editor, Raven, A Journal of Vexillology
North American Vexillological Association
A History of the Confederate Battle Flag (Period).......2005-11-22
First a disclaimer, Dr. John Coski was my professor for the 2nd half of American history (1866 to present) and an assistant for America in Vietnam. His scholarship and ability to describe the tapestry of American history is on par with the finest of American historians and in this volume, he tackles a subject that most would avoid like the plague. If you can force yourself to read the lower # of stars reviews, the reviewers either have an axe to grind (would you expect the national NAACP not to use the battle flag as a recruiting device?) or wish to tell a story from local history (if done as chapters, Virginia would have 93 for it's counties and 38 for it's cities, North Carolina 100 counties, etc. That would not necessarily be history but folklore and open to interpretation) or as my compatriot from Maryland, an attack on Lincoln's unconstitutionality. None of which are the subject of the book. Granted, there are times in the text that I cheered for Coski to hit them harder but his comment regarding that was to bring up length - the book could easily be 1,000 pages and still some points of view would be left out. It would then not appeal to the majority of readers and be relegated to the ivory towers of acedemia. That would be a shame.
Coski has attempted to bring a tremendously emotional subject to the widest audience possible and I feel he succeeds. I have recommended the book to my own SCV camp as well as the executive director of my state's NAACP. That is the breadth of appeal of this work. Do I think everyone will agree with his conclusions? Of course not, but he gives a solid grounding in the post Late Unpleasantness history of the flag and reminds its supporters that their own organizations (the UDC) warned of allowing such widespread abuse of the flag would be a problem in the future.
So don't expect partisanship in this book. It is a history - just the facts. However, those facts are placed in context - both Southern and American - and if that makes you uncomfortable, then maybe a serious history is not for you. The Confederate Battle Flag is solidly researched, well-written and timely. John Coski deserves the highest praise for enduring the slings and arrows of those who would only wish to read something in support of their own position. I am not convinced that many historians would bear that in order to reveal the truth of American history. It is $20.00 very well spent if you want to understand a part of the modern South. Enjoy the prose.
Perspective Over Passion.......2005-10-24
Coski's strong research goes beyond "Heritage Not Hate" to support the notion that we should consider the motives behind those who display the Confederate Battle Flag rather than reduce its meaning to our own prejudice. The history of the flag is emersed in the blood of some 200,000 Confederate soldiers who died in its service. While some certainly fought to preserve the institution of salvery most rallied to defense of their home, their state, their commrads. In the 1960s, the Southern heritage of the flag was lost as it became a symbol of segregation and hatred. More recently, the battle flag has become associated with the "bubba" stereotype of country, stock car racing, gun racks and the Dukes of Hazard County. Others expand upon the latter to adopt the flag as a metaphore for "thumbing one's nose" at authority, a synonym for independence, a modern version of "Don't Tread On Me." The point of Coski's excellent book is this: Perhaps it is time for more dispassionate consideration of the flag. That we look at it as a tool in education rather than a pariah of political correctness. Whereas the use of the Swaskita evokes universal convulsion, the Stars & Bars suggest reasonable purpose on both sides of the question.
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Architecture and Power: The Town Hall and the English Urban Community c. 1500-1640
Robert Tittler
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
British
| International
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
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General
| Building Types & Styles
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
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General
| History & Periods
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| Professional & Technical
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General
| Europe
| History
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| England
| Europe
| History
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Tudor & Stuart
| England
| Europe
| History
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General
| Ireland
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General
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Social History
| Historical Study
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Social Work
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General
| Sociology
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Urban
| Sociology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
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ASIN: 019820230X |
Book Description
The town hall in early modern England was the seat of civic government and the architectural embodiment of power, authority, and legitimacy in the community. Robert Tittler's imaginatively conceived and wide-ranging study, based on extensive research in local records, explores the town hall and its role in civic culture and urban life. The multi-disciplinary approach of Architecture and Power generates architectural, anthropological, literary, and historical insights into politics and society in England's provincial towns in the sixteenth and early seventeenth century. Professor Tittler explores the connection between the boom in town hall building in this period and the cultural and political evolution of the provincial urban community. From the function of decorations and furnishings to the political activities and self-image of the urban elite, every aspect of the town hall and its place in civic culture is rigorously examined. This is a fascinating and scholarly contribution to the urban history of England.
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The Architecture of the Museum: Symbolic Structures, Urban Contexts (Critical Perspectives in Art History)
Manufacturer: Manchester University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
Museums
| Building Types & Styles
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Building Types & Styles
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
| Subjects
| Books
Museum Studies & Museology
| Social Sciences
| Nonfiction
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 0719056101 |
Book Description
Every city has at least one, and great cities often have more. From the Louvre to the Bilbao Guggenheim, the museum has had a long-standing relationship with the city. This ground-breaking volume examines the meaning of museum architecture in the urban environment, considering important issues such as forms of civic representation, urban regeneration, cultural tourism and the museumification of the city itself. Bringing together an international group of distinguished scholars from a range of disciplines, this volume bridges the gap between museum studies and traditional architectural history. The contributors explore the conceptual architectural frameworks that govern the museum's diverse symbolic structures and focus attention on the complex ways in which museums function in the city. Ranging from the 17th century to the present day, the detailed and thoroughly researched case studies are drawn from Great Britain, continental Europe, South America and Australia.
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City Images And Urban Regeneration (The European City in Transition, Bd. 3)
Manufacturer: Morehouse Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Architecture
| Professional & Technical
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Urban & Land Use Planning
| Architecture
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General
| Popular Economics
| Business & Investing
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General
| Europe
| History
| Subjects
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General
| Urban Planning & Development
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ASIN: 0820464155 |
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Die Anfange der Kirche in Deutschland: Von der Spatantike bis zur fruhfrankischen Zeit (Kohlhammer Urban-Taschenbucher)
Ernst Dassmann
Manufacturer: Verlag W. Kohlhammer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Perfect Paperback
General
| Church History
| Christianity
| Religion & Spirituality
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General
| Germany
| Europe
| History
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German
| Foreign Language Nonfiction
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History
| German
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| Specialty Stores
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Nonfiction
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Religion & Spirituality
| German
| Foreign Language Books
| Specialty Stores
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All German Books
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ASIN: 3170117343 |
Books:
- New Choices in Natural Healing for Dogs & Cats: Over 1,000 At-Home Remedies for Your Pet's Problems (New Choices)
- New Guide to Cat Breeds (Illustrated Encyclopedias)
- Nose to Nose: A Memoir of Healing
- Old English Sheepdog (Kennel Club Dog Breed Series)
- One Tiny Turtle: Read and Wonder
- Parakeet Handbook, The (Barron's Pet Handbooks)
- Pierre Brichard's Book of Cichlids and All the Other Fishes of Lake Tanganyika
- Potbellied Pig Behavior and Training: A Complete Guide for Solving Behavioral Problems in Vietnamese Potbellied Pigs, Revised Edition
- Pygmy Goats: Management & Veterinary Care
- Rats: Complete Care Guide
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