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Down-to-Earth Bookstore
Complete listing of books without cover images
See end of file for information on ordering.
 
Down-to-Earth Books has been operating, both as a publishing house and a bookstore, since the mid-seventies. Our particular emphasis has always been on the implications of various models of education, social customs and attitudes upon family and community - and especially on children.
 
Our bookstore online offers works by many authors who have thought deeply about these issues and who speak in the tongue of real experience. We add to the list from time to time, and welcome comment and/or suggestions for additional titles. See the alternative education book page for additional books on that subject, and the reviews page for reviews of many of them.
 
(Click on the titles below for brief reviews or praise)  
Children
 
THE BEEJUM BOOK, by Alice O. Howell. This book lists for $24.95. This is a glorious, delightful book with great value for both children and adults by a woman who has learned life's greatest lesson - happiness! We sell it for $17.95 plus $2 shipping!
THE BIRD OF IMAGINING Drawings by Children from New York City Public Schools, by Richard Lewis. $10.95
CHILDREN'S PAST LIVES: How Past Life Memories Affect Your Child by Carol Bowman; Bantam Books, 1998 356 pp. $12.95, reviewed by Ellen Becker.
JESSICA DRAGONETTE'S FIERY BREATH, by Mary Leue - Jessica's adoration of her grand fire-breathing father gets her in big trouble! $9.95
LIVING BY WONDER, The Imaginative Life of Childhood, by Richard Lewis, $18.95 $2 shipping
 
 Education
 
ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS, the reissued, updated version of Jonathan Kozol's original book,Free Schools (see Free Schools below to read a chapter on the teaching of reading).
CHANGING LIVES, by Jane Day: Interviews with graduates of the Community School in Camden, Maine. $18.95, reviewed by Mary Leue
CHALLENGING THE GIANT; The Best of SKOLE, the Journal of Alternative Education, volumes I-IV $14.95 each, plus shipping $2.00 (pb, 500+ pages each volume), or $50.00 for all four plus shipping and handling $5.00). Click here for additional reviews of volumes 1 & 2 by Claudia Berman, and Vols. 3 & 4 by Emanuel Pariser.
CHILDREN'S RIGHTS AND POWER, Charging Up for a New Century, by Mary John, Professor Emerita and former Deputy Vice Chancellor and Dean of the Faculty of Education at the University of Exeter, UK.
DESCHOOLING OUR LIVES, edited by Matt Hern, foreword by Ivan llich; $16.
FIELD DAY, Getting Society out of School, by Matt Hern; $16.
FREE SCHOOLS, FREE PEOPLE, by Ron Miller, president of the Foundation for Educational Renewal and editor of Educational Freedom for a Democratic Society: A Critique of National Standards, Goals and Curriculum.
A FREE RANGE CHILDHOOD, Self-Regulation at Summerhill School , by Matthew Appleton $18.95 plus postage.
FREE SCHOOLS, by Jonathan Kozol - the definitive work on assessing both the early free schools and the later alternative schools
GROWING UP DEMOCRATIC, by Jerry Mintz, accounts of Jerry's important work in democratizing schools by giving students an authentic voice in governance and curriculum, a new anthology. $10.95
HOW LIKE AN ANGEL CAME I DOWN, Conversations with Children on the Gospels, by A. Bronson Alcott, edited by Alice Howell. $19.95, reviewed by Mary Leue. 
A LIFE IN SCHOOL, What the Teacher Learned, by Jane Tompkins, professor of literature at Duke University and a leader in the field of academic research into the art of teaching; paperback, $9.95
THE LIVES OF CHILDREN, the Story of the First Street School, by George Dennison - "A classic! " - A.S. Neill .$12.95 plus $2 shipping.
MAKING IT UP AS WE GO ALONG, The Story of the Albany Free School, by Chris Mercogliano, $18.00 plus $2.00 shipping. Foreword by Joseph Chilton Pearce. Reviewed by Herb Kohl, Joseph Chilton Pearce and David Ruentzel, Teacher magazine.  
MAY YOU NEVER STOP DANCING, A Professor's Letters to his Daughter, by John D. Lawry, St. Mary's Press Christian Brothers Pub., Winona, MN, $13.95 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Mary Leue ..
METAPHYSICAL FOUNDATIONS FOR A THEORY OF VALUE IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD, by William Hendrichs Leue, PhD. $19.95
MY LIFE AS A TRAVELING HOMESCHOOLER, by Jenifer Goldman, a clear-eyed account by an almost eleven-year-old who travceled with her uncle Jerry Mintz throughout the US - and even into Canada, visiting schools. $12.95.
NO HOMEWORK AND RECESS ALL DAY, Freedom and Democracy in Education, by Jerry Mintz, paperback attending conferences, enjoying life as she learned. Well worth reading. $12.95.  ck. $10.95
NO MASTER HIGH OR LOW - Libertarian Education and Schooling 1890-1990, by John Shotton, Libertarian Education (LibEd), UK, publisher, 1997, paperback, $17.00 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Robin Martin.
REAL EDUCATION, Varieties of Freedom, by David Gribble, Libertarian Education, UK, publisher, 1998, paperback, $17.00 plus $3 shipping, reviewed by Robin Martin.
REAL SCHOOLS - IN THEIR OWN W0RDS - edited by Mary M. Leue. This is an account of 27 different schools, 24 of them in the US.with accompanying essays by members of each of them - or, in a couple of cases, parents of children in them - taken from SKOLE, The Journal of Alternative Education. Valuable for parents looking at educational alternatives or student teachers, struggling to learn about what is possible in the field. $16.95 plus shipping. $16.95
REAL TEACHERS; REAL TEACHING - IN THEIR OWN WORDS - edited by Mary M. Leue. Compendium volume to Real Schools. Contents, articles by 38 different teachers, organized as: teaching as a celebration of life, 8 examples; defining the problems with schools, 12; proposed solutions 6; teaching young children 5; teaching elementary-school age children. 8; teaching high school-age students. 5. teaching college-age students. 4; teaching and learning at home. An absolute must for someone struggling to provide good education for their child(ren) - or for someone equally determined to decide for himself what constitutes really good teaching - and how to find it! This volume offers a wide variety of teaching styles and criteria by which to understand, to choose. $16.95 plus shipping. $16.95
THE SCHOOL AROUND US - Twenty-five Years, by Claudia Berman. The story of the Kennebunk, Maine school of that name. $18.95 plus $2 shipping. See also Claudia's review of volumes I and II of Challenging the Giant.
SCHOOL DROPOUTS - The Tragedy of America's Under-Educated Youth, by Carlos Bonilla and Jana L. Brazda. $29.95  
SCHOOLING FOR HUMANITY - When Big Brother Isn't Watching, by David O. Solmitz. Introduction by Kathleen Kesson, Goddard College Director of Teacher Education, $29.95
SHINE IN YOUR OWN WAY, Inspiration for Parents of Failing Kids, by Nancy Gill - essays reflecting over two decades of this brilliant, inspired teacher's work with kids of all ages. $18.95 plus $2 shipping.
SKOLE, THE JOURNAL OF ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION, Mary M. Leue, editor. Past issues available, $4 each, plus $2 shipping, reviewed by John Potter. Down-to-Earth Books has been operating, both as a publishing house and a bookstore, since the mid-seventies. Our particular emphasis has always been on the implications of various models of education, social customs and attitudes upon family and community - and especially on children. Click here for John Potter's review. SUMMERHILL SCHOOL - A New View of Childhood, by A.S. Neill, a new edition by Albert Lamb, $12.95, reviewed by Chris Mercogliano (Note: this cover is from the English edition - the copy I sell is actually the US edition - but this one is prettier, so I'm using it).
TEACHING THE RESTLESS - One School's Remarkable No-Ritalin Approach to Helping Children Learn and Succeed, by Chris Mercogliano, $25.
UNDERGROUND HISTORY OF EDUCATION, by John Taylor Gatto. Oversize paperback, 412 pages, lavishly illustrated. $30 plus $3 shipping - and worth every nickel! Reviewed by Mary Leue
WHAT ARE SCHOOLS FOR? - Holistic Education in American Culture, by Ron Miller. $18.95
 
Environment
 
A YEAR AT BROOK HOLLOW FARM, Where Geese Become Swans, by Julia Ryan Meservy. A book of moving, insightful essays written by a loving woman who has chosen to become part of a farming family - detailing a year of her and their life on a working western Massachusetts farm and her magical experiences there. Originally published as separate stories in the Ashfield News. $12.00
FROM THE FRYER TO THE FUEL TANK, by Joshua Tickell $29.95, plus $2 shipping
THE HERMIT'S HANDBOOK, by Jack Barry, a sensitive and very moving journal of an adventurous year spent by the author completing and living in a beautifully crafted house he had built in the treetops overlooking a beaver pond in the hills of western Massachusetts. $14.95 plus $2 shipping.
YELLOW BRAND BIODIESEL (video)- produced by Jory Hearst and Lauren Jorgensen and narrated by Tom Leue,this video tape includes the origins of biodiesel fuel, the history of Tom's production of biodiesel, a guided tour of the plant and an explanation of how the fuel is made. Click on the tape image (above left) if you wish to view the factory online. $25 plus shipping $2.
WHO'S COUNTING? (video) Marilyn Waring on Sex. Lies and Global Economics - Bullfrog Films - A great video with both humor and truth from Marilyn, who became a pioneering MP in Australia in order to have an impact on what needs to happen on our troubled earth! - $20 plus $2 shipping.
 
 
Personal Expressions
 
 
CROSSING THE POND, by Phyllis Loomis - an engaging and informative account of her job as cook and crew member of a small sailboat on a voyage to cross the Atlantic Ocean - along with three young men and the young owner - undertaken by her at age 79. $12.00 plus shipping.
THE FLYING BIRD BRINGS THE MESSAGE, Lessons from Life, by Mary Leue. $12.95 plue $2 shipping.
HUNGER OF MEMORY, the Education of Richard Rodriguez, by Richard Rodriguez
INDIA JOURNAL, a Pilgrimage toward the Self, $14.95 plus $2 shipping.
LOOKING FOR ONE'S SHADOW AT NOON. Volume 1 - Looking for the Self in Family and Society, $8.95 plus $2 shipping. Both volumes $15 plue $3 shipping.
LOOKING FOR ONE'S SHADOW AT NOON, Volume 2, Finding the Self in School and Community $8.95 plus $2 shipping. Both volumes $15 plue $3 shipping.
RUSHING TO EVA, a Pilgrimage in Search of the Great Mother, by Mary Leue. $14.95 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Ann Mossop.
TRYING TO GET IT RIGHT THIS TIME, Confessions of a Survivor of a Large Family, by Mary M. Leue - a fascinating glimpse of a world that is no more, in three volumes: volume I, $10.95 (when published, all three will sell for $30 plus shipping).
TRYING TO GET IT RIGHT THIS TIME, Confessions of a Survivor of a Large Family, by Mary M. Leue, volume II, $10.95.
Poetry
 
THE WORLD'S GOIN' TO END AT LOONCHTIME: Poems of the Free School Community, volume one. $10.95 plus shipping.
SONGS OF AN EARTH FAMILY:  Peems of the Free School Community, volume two. $10.95 plus $2 shipping. Read the introduction.
Spirit
....
CHILDREN'S PAST LIVES: How Past Life Memories Affect Your Child by Carol Bowman; Bantam Books, 1998 356 pp. $12.95, reviewed by Ellen Becker.
THE DAISY SUTRA, Conversations with my Dog, by Helen Weaver - an unforgettable love story about the timelessness of the relationship between a woman and her dog. $18.95, reviewed by Mary Leue. See also Helen's website, http://www.daisysutra.com
THE FIFTH GOSPEL, by Professor Fida Hassnain and Rabbi Dahan Levi - the first version of Search (below) - has many sources and quotations not found in the more recent study of the life of Jesus after the crucifixion. $16.95 - $5 shipping and handling.
METAPHYSICAL FOUNDATIONS FOR A THEORY OF VALUE IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD, by William Hendrichs Leue, PhD. $19.95
PAST LIVES THERAPY, by Morris Netherton, Ph.D. and Nancy Shiffrin: A renowned psychologist shows how your present problems and anxieties are the result of what has happened to you in your past incarnations, stretching back centuries.
SAVING THE SAVIOR, by Abubakr Salahuddin, Jammu Press. $14.00.
A SEARCH FOR THE HISTORICAL JESUS - From Apocryphal, Buddhist, Islamic and Sanskrit Sources by Professor Fida Hassnain, $25.00 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Chris Mercogliano - a new edition by Down-to-Earth Books authorized by the author - plus $2 shipping and handling.
THE GODDESS WITHIN, A Guide to the Eternal Myths that Shape Women's Lives, Jennifer Barker Woolger and Roger Woolger, Ballantine Books, 1989, $16.95, plus $3 shipping
 OTHER LIVES, OTHER SELVES, A Jungian Psychotherapist Discovers Past Lives, by Roger Woolger, PhD. Doubleday, 1987. pb. $18.95 plus $2 shipping.
 
Views of a Better World
(Click on the images for excerpts from the text, or the titles in red below for brief reviews or praise)
 
 
BEING AN OUTRAGEOUS OLDER WOMAN, by Ruth Harriet Jacobs - Ruth is a lifelong teacher of creative writing and women's advocate. Click here for a page of her books, including an order form. HEALING ISRAEL/PALESTINE, A Path to Peace and Reconciliation, by Rabbi Michael Lerner, Tikkun Books, $16.95.
LIMBO, Blue Collar Roots, White Collar Dreams, by Alfred Lubrano, a commentator for NPR's Weekend Edition since 1992. $20 plus $2 shipping.
TWO PERCENT SOLUTION, Fixing America's Problems in Ways Liberals and Conservatives Can Love, by Matthew Miller
Down-to-Earth Books as Publisher
(Click on the images for excerpts from the text, or the titles in red below for brief reviews or praise)
 
CHALLENGING THE GIANT; The Best of SKOLE, the Journal of Alternative Education, volumes I-IV $14.95 each, plus shipping $2.00 (pb, 500+ pages each volume), or $40.00 for all four plus shipping and handling $5.00). Click here for additional reviews of volumes 1 & 2 by Claudia Berman, and Vols. 3 & 4 by Emanuel Pariser.
THE FIFTH GOSPEL, by Professor Fida Hassnain - the first version of Search (below) - has many sources and quotations not found in the more recent study of the life of Jesus after the crucifixion. $16.50 THE THE FLYING BIRD BRINGS THE MESSAGE, Lessons from Life, by Mary Leue. $12.95 plue $2 shipping.
GROWING UP DEMOCRATIC, by Jerry Mintz, accounts of Jerry's important work in democratizing schools by giving students an authentic voice in governance and curriculum, a new anthology. $10.95
THE HERMIT'S HANDBOOK, by Jack Barry, a sensitive and very moving journal of a year spent by the author completing and living in a beautifully crafted house he had built in a tree over a swamp in the hills of western Massachusetts.$14.95.
INDIA JOURNAL, a Pilgrimage toward the Self, $14.95 plus $2 shipping.
JESSICA DRAGONETTE'S FIERY BREATH, by Mary Leue - Jessica's adoration of her grand fire-breathing father gets her in big trouble! $9.95
LOOKING FOR ONE'S SHADOW AT NOON. Volume 1 - Looking for the Self in Family and Society, $8.95 plus $2 shipping. Both volumes $15 plue $3 shipping.
LOOKING FOR ONE'S SHADOW AT NOON, Volume 2, Finding the Self in School and Community $8.95 plus $2 shipping. Both volumes $15 plue $3 shipping.
METAPHYSICAL FOUNDATIONS FOR A THEORY OF VALUE IN THE PHILOSOPHY OF ALFRED NORTH WHITEHEAD, by William Hendrichs Leue, PhD. $19.95
REAL SCHOOLS - IN THEIR OWN W0RDS - edited by Mary M. Leue: Down-to-Earth Books, Ashfield, MA. This is an account of 27 different schools, 24 of them in the US., three abroad, with accompanying essays by members of each of them - or, in a couple of cases, parents of children in them - taken from SKOLE, The Journal of Alternative Education. Valuable for parents looking at educational alternatives or student teachers, struggling to learn about what is possible in the field. $16.95 plus shipping.
SKOLE, THE JOURNAL OF ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION, Mary M. Leue, editor. Past issues available, $4 each, plus $2 shipping, reviewed by John Potter. Down-to-Earth Books has been operating, both as a publishing house and a bookstore, since the mid-seventies. Our particular emphasis has always been on the implications of various models of education, social customs and attitudes upon family and community - and especially on children. Click here for John Potter's review.  
RUSHING TO EVA, a Pilgrimage in Search of the Great Mother, by Mary Leue. $14.95 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Ann Mossop.
A SEARCH FOR THE HISTORICAL JESUS - From Apocryphal, Buddhist, Islamic and Sanskrit Sources by Professor Fida Hassnain, $16.50 plus $2 shipping, rreviewed by Chris Mercogliano - a new edition by Down-to-Earth Books authorized by the author
SONGS OF AN EARTH FAMILY, poems of the Free School community, volume two. $10.95 plus $2 shipping. Read the introduction.
SKOLE, THE JOURNAL OF ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION, Mary M. Leue, editor. Past issues available, $4 each, plus $2 shipping, reviewed by John Potter. Down-to-Earth Books has been operating, both as a publishing house and a bookstore, since the mid-seventies. Our particular emphasis has always been on the implications of various models of education, social customs and attitudes upon family and community - and especially on children. Click here for John Potter's review.  
TRYING TO GET IT RIGHT THIS TIME, Confessions of a Survivor of a Large Family, by Mary M. Leue - a fascinating glimpse of a world that is no more, in three volumes: volume I, $10.95 (when published, all three will sell for $30 plus shipping).
TRYING TO GET IT RIGHT THIS TIME , Confessions of a Survivor of a Large Family, by Mary M. Leue, volume II, $10.95.
THE WORLD'S GOIN' TO END AT LOONCHTIME, poems of the Free School Community, volume one. $10.95 plus shipping.
 
Stories For Very Small Children
by Phyllis Loomis
 
AMY AND GOGO - a small child and her grandmother spend the day together $8.95
THE DRAGON - a new and exciting kite for David to fly $8.95
DAVID'S KITE, by Phyllis Loomis - more kite stories $8.95
HOW ABOUT FLYING KITES? - a delightful children's story about a boy and his grandmother $8.95
ITS-GOT-TO-BE - a story for very small children - all about ducklings - and one special duckling $8.95
Videos and DVDs
 
WHO'S COUNTING? Marilyn Waring on Sex. Lies and Global Economics - Bullfrog Films - A great video with both humor and truth from Marilyn, who became a pioneering MP in Australia in order to have an impact on what needs to happen on our troubled earth! - $10 plus $2 shipping.
THE WALDORF PROMISE - a beautifully-put-together essay on the most human face of education you'll ever see! This is an account of the teachers, children, classrooms, educators, the purpose and philosophy of the training - but especially the actual classrooms and the sweetness of the connections between teacher and children - this is a story you won't easily forget, especially in hard educational times like these for kids and families! If you are a teacher, or hope to become one, click here for a special scholarship offer to train at one of the Steiner colleges in the US. $20.00 plus $2 shipping.
THE WALDORF PROMISE Two - New Hope for At-risk Youth. This is the second in a new Waldorf Educational Series by Landfall Productions, and fills in the gaps not covered by the DVD. With these two media, you have all you need to start a summer teacher training program in your own educational system or school. But send someone to Rudolph Steiner College first to take the hands-on training they offer! Then she/he can train the others. P.S., don't forget the scholarship! $25 plus shipping.
YELLOW BRAND BIODIESEL - produced by Jory Hearst and Lauren Jorgensen and narrated by Tom Leue,this video tape includes the origins of biodiesel fuel, the history of Tom's production of biodiesel, a guided tour of the plant and an explanation of how the fuel is made. Click on the tape image (above left) if you wish to view the fact ory online. $10 plus shipping $2.
............................. 
 
 Back issues of previous Down-to-Earth Periodicals

*SKOLE, the Journal of Alternative Education, Mary M. Leue, editor. fourteen years of quarterly publication 1985-1999 - reviewed by John Potter, longtime Head of The New School of Northern Virginia, for many years a well-respected and successful alternative school. Past issues available, $4 each, plus $2 shipping.

 
Having completed its ninth miraculous year, the JFL - The Journal for Living, a Quarterly for Empowering Families (formerly the Journal of Family Life) was finally forced by indebtedness to stop publication in 2003. Nominated for the Utne Reader's 1995 Alternative Press Award for New Titles, a review by Utne's Andrea Martin in that same year said in part:
 
...In this era of so-called family values, misplaced religious ideals, and misused statistics, people involved with the Albany, New York, Free School have come forward with a magazine offering an outlook that is both truer and richer. The Free School people have been walking their talk of respect for and faith in human nature since the 1970's, and they offer companionship and support to all who treasure family life as an opportunity for authenticity and growth...

 

To order from Down-to-Earth Books:
 
Shipping and handling costs $2 for the first book, $1 for each additional book. If you order by phone or e-mail, please be sure to include your mailing address and a daytime telephone number in case we need to contact you. We do not have credit card capability. Thanks for your patience!
 
Overseas postage is more than the listed amount. Write for details of specific costs via varying methods and speed of arrival. Payment is by international money order or Western Union. We do not have credit card capability. Thanks for your patience!
 
 Contact Down-to-Earth Books
c/o Mary Leue
P.O. Box 488, Ashfield, MA 01330
(413) 628-0227
 
Or

Write to me at maryskole@aol.com