Book Description
In 1987 Frank and Deborah Popper proposed a bold solution to the decline of America's Great Plains: create a vast nature preserve by returning 139,000 square miles in ten states to prairie and reintroducing the buffalo that once roamed there. In Where the Buffalo Roam, Anne Matthews follows the Poppers from Montana to Texas as they try to sell their idea called the Buffalo Commons; in the process, she introduces us to the people who love these arid windswept lands.
This edition includes a new foreword by environmental historian Donald Worster. Matthews's new afterword describes how with growing support from Native Americans and private groups like the Nature Conservancy, the Poppers' dream of a Buffalo Commons is becoming a reality.
"An admirably crafted book, as poignant and entertaining as it is informative."—Seattle Times
"A priceless piece of Americana."—The Boston Globe
"Matthew's delightful account of the Poppers, their proposal and the controversy surrounding it does focus new attention on the region and its problems."—The Philadelphia Inquirer
"Bright, active, effective journalism. . . . An extremely savvy overlook of the dilemmas of the Great Plains."—Wallace Stegner
Customer Reviews:
Raises some good points but rambles, not enough information .......2005-06-09
Originally written by the author in 1992, She spent a year following the Poppers and their efforts to get people to see how the Great Plains states are dying. They are actually running out of water and losing population.
There are a lot of pages about their travels, speaking engagements with often hostile crowds,hostile press (not all western) and some sections dealing with the science of what is happening to the land out there. You also get a fair amount of history, some people always saw the Plains as land that shouldn't be developed as eastern land had been (it wasn't suitable for such useage).
I'd have liked more science and more detail on the Buffalo commons concept, it's an interesting idea but I don't see it becoming a national policy. The new forward and afterword deal with changes in the situation since the original publication but don't convince me that it has much chance of really happening.
An interesting view of the West.......2003-12-09
This book is typical of a piece that evolves from a New York Times Magazine article: full of narrative, a bit rammbling at times and a bit on the lite side. Matthews gives some snippets of ecological and historical analysis, but ultimately this is not an analytical book. It is very readable, however, and raises awareness to the ecologic and economic crises of the Great Plains. The piece details two Rutgers academics, the Poppers, who are promoting the notion of a "Buffalo Commons," a plan that involves the federal government buying out the most marginal of Great Plains land to turn into a giant reserve for bison, shortgrass and Indians. The book details much of the angry Western reaction to the plan. It also shows large sections of the West in near ruin, in desperate need of a new, sustainable solution, as current attempts to exploit the arid West by argiculture is producing only dust storms, a depleted aquifier and busted-out farm communities.
The Dilemma on the Great Plains.......2000-06-25
This book held my constant attention from the first time I picked it up. Ms. Matthews gives a very even-handed account of what I call "The Dilemma on the Great Plains." She thoughtfully explains the Buffalo Commons plan for the restoration of the plains. She introduces Frank and Deborah Popper, New Jersey academics from Rutgers University, who came up with the Buffalo Commons plan. I was riveted because I once lived in South Dakota, near the Montana and Wyoming borders and could empathize with the issue. The Poppers came up with the Buffalo Commons idea in the late 1980s as a way to "save" the plains. It has been very controversial, to say the least. The plains way of life and the emotions of the issue are handled brilliantly by Ms. Matthews. I was able to see both sides throughout the book. This issue has an importance to our nation. Read this book to know the issues about the decline in our Great Plains.
Book Description
Field a winning fastpitch softball team year after year with the knowledge and insights of a coaching legend! Coaching Fastpitch Softball Successfully provides the guidance and technical expertise you need in order to build and maintain a competitive team, covering every facet of leading a squad on the field and developing a program off of it.
Hall of Fame coach Kathy Veroni, who has won more than 1,250 fastpitch games in her career, and pitching expert Roanna Brazier share their insights and experiences in this authoritative, comprehensive guide to coaching fastpitch softball. From developing a coaching philosophy and planning for the season to teaching the skills and tactics of the game, you will find proven formulas for success within these pages.
With practice and conditioning plans, administrative forms, sample scouting charts, tactics for dozens of game situations, and more than 130 drills, Coaching Fastpitch Softball Successfully is the most complete resource available for aspiring and experienced coaches alike. Take advantage of the authors' expertise to gain a winning edge over your competition.
Customer Reviews:
The Definitive Handbook for High School Fastpitch Coaches.......2003-03-25
I have coached for over ten years now and have found this book to be the most comprehensive, theoretically sound, user friendly coaching handbook on the market. Veroni has organized the information most effectively using charts and diagrams in addition to her commentary. This is THE book to purchase for both the beginning or experienced high school coach.
For Youth Softball - Good Reference.......2001-12-07
This book is comprehensive and is aimed at the coach of a team consisting of younger or much younger players. Kathy Veroni sounds like a tough, fair, and thorough coach. Imagine driving a group of late-arriving players 10 miles out of town and telling then to jog back to practice. No wonder West Illinois U has a great softball team.
However, as a captain of a mens' fastpitch softball team, with players who play once a week, this book did not help me much. The drills were just too involved and required a much higher commitment and lower physical strength than I have from the guys on my team. It's like using a college-level calculus text when all you want to learn is high school algebra.
Having said that, the big plus of this book is the VERY EXTENSIVE list of both defensive and offensive drills. This section of the book makes the purchase price worthwhile.
Great for High School Coaching.......2001-11-03
This is a very well laid out book and easy to follow. I would highly recommend this book for coaching high school or college age girls. Might be a little deep for younger athetes but could be adapted. Many drills are included in this book, and I found the philosophies especially interesting. Brought out a lot of simple points I had never thought of before.
Super Info-.......2001-10-22
Great Book! Gave mine to a friend and am ordering another. If you love your Coach, buy him or her this book.
Excellent Softball Book For Coaches of 12 & U and Up........2000-09-25
The book is a little more advanced than what I needed right now coaching 8 & U coach pitch softball, but it does a great job of showing you the direction your coaching should be going as the kids get older. That in turn has influenced how I teach these young girls. Many of the fine drills in this book are too advancd for my age group, but I was able to simplify them a little to make them easier for 7-8 year olds. If your coaching 6-10 year old kids and can only buy one book, this may not be the one. But it is a great book to have in your coaching library. The best I have seen, my kids just are not quite ready for it yet.
Book Description
Coach Girls for Success on and off the Field
Coaching girls' softball can be a wonderful experience. Witness the intensity of a batter connecting with a ball, a runner digging for home, or a fielder making a great catch, and you can't help but be inspired. The effort, pride, and enjoyment on players' faces are great rewards for parents and the sign of a good coach—the type of coach you want to be. So how can you get there?
Perfect for coaches of girls up to age 13, Coaching Girls' Softball includes everything you need to be an outstanding coach and mentor to your team. Whether you are a seasoned coach looking to fine-tune your skills or a rookie looking to take the field running, you'll discover techniques for success that are tailored specifically to the needs of girls, including:
·Drills and strategies for coaches new to the world of coaching softball
·Tips on what girls want and need from their softball experience
·Practical suggestions on how to motivate in a positive and encouraging way
·Advice for helping girls deal with their changing bodies
·And much more!
Now you can be a coaching winner and help bring out the best in your players, both on the field and in the game of life.
Customer Reviews:
Very helpful.......2007-05-13
This book had everything I needed as a first year softball coach. It's easy to follow with many helpful hints. There are many topics especially the emotional side of working with girls that I had not even thought about.
If Your'e A New Coach.......2007-03-26
This book has been very helpful to me, a new Little League coach. It is a very comprehensive publication to say the least. Before you get to the stuff you were probably buying this book for (i.e. drills, strategies, teaching)it delves into the things you probably didn't even consider (i.e. psychological/medical issues, motivating, discipline and dealing with parents). It has tips and suggestions all over the place for you to ponder. Plenty of illustrations and diagrams.of proper techniques for defense/defense, pitching/batting. A very useful tool.
A Good Guide for a New Coach.......2004-03-26
Thank You. I'm a father of two daughters (5 and 7) who has never coached before. Although I've played on a softball team at work, and am somewhat familiar with the game, I never actually played little league when I was a kid. With so few coaches however, one of my neighbors asked me to help her coach.
I was a little nervous about giving these girls any bad information. At this level you should just be reviewing the basics, but since I was never actually formally taught what the basics are, I didn't want to miss anything. I also didn't want to teach them something that might have the potential of hurting them by accident. After reading this book however I feel much better. It covered a lot of the things I might have overlooked, and gave me the confidence I'll need to get in front of these kids and parents and not embarrass myself.
The book was straightforward and easy to read (I got through it in about two days which was good for me.) I'd highly recommend it.
Outstanding Read.......2003-12-02
Kathy Strahan has done an excellant job at presenting all aspects of coaching in a very easy to understand approach.
Following her instruction would make any new and even seasoned caoch better.
Excellent Guide For Coaching Youth Softball.......2002-06-16
Kathy Strahan's book is one of the most recent, well-constructed guides for coaching softball to young girls. The book provides a detailed compilation of drills, skills, strategies, and other information designed to assist the coach through the process of developing the players' social, psychological, emotional, and physical abilities. It is categorized in a systematic progression which explores the characteristics of an effective leader, responsibilities of a youth coach, important issues within the sport, and how to plan and teach the basic fundamentals of the game. Some of the topics addressed within these categories include information regarding safety, liability, decision making, communication, teaching methods, motivation, dealing with parents, sportsmanship, and much more! Major points of information are synthesized into creative and insightful coaching tips, which can be easily referenced throughout the text. The author also provides sample practice plans, line-up sheets, game strategies, evaluation worksheets, and goal setting plans. Ultimately, this book will guide you toward becoming the coach that every community, league, school, and parent wants for their children!
Book Description
In Coaching Baseball Successfully, Coach Andy Lopez shows you how to build your own championship baseball team. He includes nuts-and-bolts information about how to
• plan for the season and prepare for practices,
• teach both offensive and defensive techniques and tactics to players,
• prepare for games and handle various game situations,
• evaluate your players and your program, and
• use 36 drills to develop players' bunting, baserunning, hitting, and defensive skills.
Lopez also explains how to develop a baseball coaching philosophy, communicate on and off the field, and motivate players to be their best.
Customer Reviews:
Get it and learn how to manage "a coach's life".......2000-09-04
Coaching is like creating its own jigsaw : a lot of books will only show you how to shape a certain kind of pieces. This book will help you to define the entire picture and then refine it in many different pieces. It will provide you with datas that should be applied and confronted in real life, not only read and understood. Other coaching books usually give skills and drills. This fields are fast-covered here. Even if Andy Lopez has chosen to emphasize the development of a good pitching staff, his chapter gives insufficient direction, poor skills advices, no tools to evaluate pitchers progression... I don't recommend this book to players who are searching for new drills and new techniques. I recommend it to young coaches who doesn't know where they should be headed, and where they should bring their players.
Good on organization, not very specific on skills.......2000-01-03
I would recommend this book to aspiring coaches. I'm not sure that it will be very helpful to long time coaches. It certainly helped me get started. It teaches you how to build your own program, organize yourself and practices, how to coach games, scout, recruit and about various baseball skills. I think Mr. Lopez should have focused on how to build a program and organization in general, since his material on these areas is great. However the coverage of mechanics, skills and drills doesn't go very deep and is too general. Also of course this book is geared towards US College and High School coaches, so some sections (how to deal with administrators, recruit players, get funds) aren't always completely applicable for coaches in other situations (like me, coaching an adult team in Germany).
Coaches, get this book!.......1999-10-29
I have been a coach on the college and high school level for 6 years now. I have also been a college player and had many pro tryouts. This book has given me a different outlook on how to go about my business in a more structured and professional manner. After reading it, you will see why Andy's teams have always been top notch.
This book is an excellent guide to teaching baseball........1999-06-10
The approach that Coach Lopez has to baseball is unique and could benefit experienced or young coaches at any level. I recommend this book to all players and coaches who love to learn and teach baseball.
This book covers fully the building of a baseball program.......1999-03-23
Lopez, an extremely successful highschool and college coach, touches all the bases on how to build a successful upper calibre baseball program. Though basic enough for the laymen coach to benifit from, Lopez shares with the reader his personal insight on how he created a winning program at both the high school and college levels.
Book Description
Build a winning baseball program both on the field and off! In Coaching Baseball Successfully, one of the nation's top high school coaches, Mike Curran, shares his expertise on all aspects of coaching. From establishing a coaching philosophy to player development to in-game decision making, this is the approach that has made his program a perennial powerhouse on the national scene.
Coaching Baseball Successfully covers it all:
- Off-season planning
- Evaluating your players
- Choosing and utilizing your coaching staff
- Motivating your team
- Communicating on and off the field
- Organizing productive practices
- Hitting, pitching, and baserunning skills
- Infield and outfield defensive skills
- Offensive and defensive strategies
- Scouting and game preparation
- In-game decision making
With dozens of drills, practice plans, and advice for handling off-the-field challenges, Coaching Baseball Successfully is the most comprehensive resource available for novice and experienced coaches alike; it's your blueprint for building a championship-caliber baseball team.
Book Description
Here's just the thing for anyone who's every said, "I wish I could become a writer," but hasn't the foggiest notion of how to begin. This smart new kit provides step-by-step direction and inspiration for potential writers. Included is Scott Edelstein's superb paperback, 30 Steps to Becoming a Writer, which takes the reader methodically through the process of getting thoughts on paper. Once the steps have been completed, it's time for Edelstein's miniature book, Get Published in 6 Months or Less. As a bonus feature, best-selling author Natalie Goldberg contributes a card deck, which offers 52 quick lessons and jumpstarts for overcoming writer's block and unleashing one's creativity. This unique combination of the practical and the inspirational makes The Complete Writer's Kit a program of real value to anyone with the urge to become a writer.
Customer Reviews:
Great for begining writers!.......2007-08-24
I purchased this book set because of the Natalie Goldberg connection, and since I wrote a thesis on her works, I like to keep up with her publications. Her card set is fun - but really if you want inspiration, copies of Wild Mind and Writing Down the Bones is a better choice.
If you are new to the writing/publishing business, this is a well written book, with some good advise. If you are an old hand, you may find this too simple.
However, if you are a giving a gift to a new writer, the packaging of the kit makes a great gift.
Excellent!.......2005-12-03
I had the earlier version, "30 Steps to Becoming a Writer - And Getting Published." The book has been updated in some spots (like where he discusses computers), and some chapters reshuffled.
It's my absolute favorite book on writing, particularly the chapter titled "Forget the Have-To's." He rightly points out that writers can really only tell you what has worked for *them* as individuals but it often comes out to beginners as absolutes such as "You must write every day." "You must have a specific place to write." And so on. I keep a copy of that chapter right over my PC.
Among other tips, he suggests various ways to use a writer's notebook, if you choose to, and discusses setting goals that work for you.
The kit includes a deck of cards with quotes by Natalie Goldberg. If you've read "Writing Down The Bones," they won't be new to you, but the cards are a useful pocket-sized reminder. If you haven't read her books, it's a nice addition. There's also a mini-book that is basically the book's main points on publication distilled to a portable format.
All in all, this book changed my perspective on writing, and got me writing again after a long, dry spell.
Customer Reviews:
A bit quirky.......2007-07-08
It starts out promising, but Mr. Edelstein soon lost me when he suggests that we trespass upon someone else's property, find an empty room and crawl around in it. The point is not lost (regarding his discussion on observation), but the "assignment" is a bit strange. I would prefer to do things that will not get me arrested or committed. The advice throughout, however, will probably be effective or helpful for some, but not for me personally.
Great For Beginning Writers!.......2003-09-18
This is a perfect start for anybody who has any interest whatsoever in writing no matter how devoted they are to it. The book takes you step by step towards whatever goal(s) you set for yourself in an easy to understand format that you can customize to your own individual style. A must read!
Great resource for the beginner........1999-11-30
This is another great guide for the beginning writer. From getting started to editing and polishing your writing, the author covers pertinent topics most helpful for those wanting to know how to take their writing to the next level.
A good book for those who desire to learn HOW to write.......1999-07-25
I felt the on-line description of this book was quite misleading, however I do not blame the author. The title clearly states that its purpose includes HOW to become a writer. However, from the description, as well as the other on-line review, I personally believed its main intent was actually getting your work published. Unfortunately, too much of it dealt with the mechanics of writing...in great detail. For those of us who already have material "ready to go," there was simply not enough information. In several matters, including query letters, Edelstein merely refers the reader to other books. Thus, if you want to learn HOW to write (from step one) this is the book for you. If you're struggling to get published (that would be me) another book might be more appropriate.
Read this book, and go from wanna-be to published........1997-05-11
Scott Edelstein takes away the mystery and gives
the necessary tools to get published. I went from
a couple of years of knocking my head against the
proverbial brick wall to being published hundreds
of times, all because of this book. It's as
simple as reading it and doing it. Within a few
months of applying my newfound knowledge I had
my own weekly newspaper column. He gets specific,
none of the generalities most other "how-to" write
books use, and it makes the difference. I'm proof.
Books:
- Wild About Horses: Our Timeless Passion for the Horse
- Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio Nine (Wildlife Photographer of the Year Volume 9)
- Wildlife: The World's Top Photographers and the stories behind their greatest images (World's Top Photographers)
- Yaqui Deer Songs, Maso Bwikam: A Native American Poetry (Sun Tracks)
- You Belong in a Zoo!: Tales from a Lifetime Spent with Cobras, Crocs, and Other Extraordinary Creatures
- A Distant Prayer: Miracles of the 49th Combat Mission
- A Fearsome Day
- A Field Guide to the Pine Barrens of New Jersey : Its Flora Fauna Ecology and Historic Sites
- A Laboratory Textbook Of Anatomy And Physiology: CAT Version
- Acoustic Communication in Insects and Anurans
Books Index
Books Home
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General
| Real Estate
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
| Books
Bring Back the Buffalo!: A Sustainable Future for America's Great Plains
American Bison: A Natural History (Organisms and Environments, 6)
Down to Earth: Nature's Role in American History
The Destruction of the Bison: An Environmental History, 17501920 (Studies in Environment and History)
Grassland: The History, Biology, Politics and Promise of the American Prairie
