Welcome to the twenty-fifth issue of the Literacy Materials Bulletin. In this edition you will find reviews of three non-fiction and four fiction titles, one student self-help guide, one professional resource book, and two excellent videos. This issue also includes an important evaluation survey which we hope you will complete and FAX back to the Literacy BC office. The information that you share with us is essential for maintaining the high quality publication you have come to expect from the LMB.

As I begin my first year as the editor of the Literacy Materials Bulletin, I think back to the original purpose of this publication. Our purpose is to provide reliable information about the best materials currently available to practitioners and others who are interested in the literacy field. It is amazing to me how the range of resources has grown. I can recount one incident about 15 years ago, when a potential student arrived at our office carrying a copy of "Our New Friends and Neighbors." You may recall these controlled vocabulary readers from the early 60's that had Dick, Jane, Sally, and their faithful pet Spot as the main characters. He explained that he wanted to be able to read this book because he believed this was the best way to learn. I keep that book as reminder of how far we have come.

Thankfully, those days are long behind us, and now we are almost at the opposite extreme. There are so many potential resources that it is often difficult to make good choices. Assisting in that process is, of course, the role of the Literacy Materials Bulletin. As a committee we have the luxury of field-testing and choosing from at least 40 to 50 resources each year. At our annual meeting and throughout the year we preview at least 100 different books, videos and other resources. All of this results in the 24 reviews that you see in the spring and fall editions of the Bulletin.

Working on the Literacy Materials Bulletin is a most enjoyable part of my week. I have received tremendous cooperation and support from all the committee members as well as our coordinator, May Chan, at the Literacy BC office in Vancouver. I hope you will enjoy reading this Bulletin as much as we enjoyed putting it together for you.