A Rose Odyssey by J. H. Nicholas, 1937 if I remember correctly. Roses, Jack Harkness, 1977, Dent Publishing. Rose Growing Complete, 1970s, E.B. LeGrice, the paperback one, not the 1965 hardback. The Makers of Heavenly Roses, Jack Harkness. For a REAL romp, not just for the knowledge it imparts, but also because it was written by THE most opinionated curmudgeon ever, Hennessey on Roses, Roy Hennessey. As a condition of selling you his roses, you had to promise NOT to cut the roots! The dedication he wrote to his long-suffering wife says it all! Lots of valuable information, historical information and absolutely hysterical in his "absolutes"! Papa Floribunda, the Gene Boerner Story My Life in Roses, by Herb Swim. 1920s through early 1940s ARS Annuals. Full of lovely articles written by rose luminaries of the day, many of whom you have heard of, some you haven't. Wonderful historical information about people, gardens and varieties you can still find from specialty sources. All of which impart a great deal of good, practical information, tremendous historical information and a lovely level of "the romance of the rose". I loved them all. Kim

"Roses", Jack Harkness. Scientist, poet, romantic who "spoke roses". The book gives personal experience with many dozens of varieties and explains why they were milestones in their days. "Rose Growing Complete", Edward LeGrice, the paperback edition, not the earlier hardback as the later paperback contains so much more information. Includes "150 years of British Seedling Roses" and the history of the Royal National Rose Society. Both of these authors were fine gentlemen who were highly respected as people, business people, breeders and rose producers. It shows in their writing. Two men whom I would have loved to have met in person. And two breeders whose roses taught me much and brought me much pleasure. "Roses: From Dreams to Reality", Herb Swim. A very interesting look into the mind of one of America's most successful rose breeders. "Papa Floribunda: The Gene Boerner Story". Interesting look into the man who created the "modern floribunda", which contains historic information about a number of roses; J&P and personalities surrounding them. "A Rose Odyssey", Dr. J.H. Nicholas. A "round the world" rose adventure in 1937, just prior to the outbreak of WWII, written by one of the more knowledgeable, experienced and observant rose men of the Century. "Hennessey on Roses", Roy Hennessey. The author had OPINIONS! He was engaged in open warfare with the ARS. He authored a rose column in the local paper which also ran the ARS rebuttal to each edition. He was a conspiracy theorist on MANY subjects. Ralph Moore's first experience with him was as he was "profanely" throwing Robert Pyle (Conard-Pyle; Star Roses) off his property. Mr. Moore said, "Letters from Roy arrived SMOKING", though he reported Hennessey always treated him well. Much of his "rose theology" may have been appropriate for his time and location, but not for many of ours. But, who could resist a book whose dedication reads (click on the image to enlarge).. to which I would respectfully add, Mrs. Hennessey was a long-suffering saint! Kim

Annie, I've got to agree. I enjoyed some of Moby Dick, but didn't find it to be a page-turner. In fact, I preferred the Wishbone version my kids had when they were younger (hanging my head in disgrace!). As many of you ladies who have suggested Austen, I have to say that both my DDs had Austen assigned in Lit class and hated it. Broke my heart, because I loved them and read them again and again as an undergrad. I don't know why, but my girls don't even like the movie versions. I thought for sure that Du Maurier would succeed where Austen had failed with DD2, only to find that she didn't care for Rebecca or Jamaica Inn, either. I can't fathom it. I was passionate about Nectar in a Sieve and Things Fall Apart as a young adult, and neither of my girls cared for them, even though they read non-fiction on the same topics greedily. As happy as I am when one of my girls loves a book that I loved, too, it makes me sad when they don't. I spent so many happy hours with British novels and by and large, they flop with my daughters. I won't give up trying, though!

Hmm, I've never thought of using wood fibers. I usually use peat moss. My local Lowes doesn't have any fibers, like fiberglass to add unless you cut up insulation or something like that, which I won't be trying. I may try the liquid stuff sold in big box stores. I wish I could find a recipe for the Elmer's glue version. By "liquid stuff" I mean polymers. I have made pieces that have cracked before, so my curing must've been bad, or not long enough. They were kinda thick though. I want to make a trough of medium size, maybe 16 inches by 25 inches and at least 8 inches deep. This is approximate size. I know that I would likely make a block those demensions and carve out the insides after it sets up. So what would you do different?