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As you begin to read chapter one, this book will become a page-turner. The amazingly woven detail gives life to this story of over fifty years ago. Author Taylor Branch documents how M. L. King, Jr. walked into the storm of what was to become the Civil Rights Movement, and was then sucked into its vortex. As a "boomer" I was alive during parts of this, growing up in the Midwest. I remember some headlines and TV scenes, but reading the minutiae of what was behind those headlines was like unto discovering a mother's diary. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

The best single book on the civil rights movement I have ever read. Parting the Waters is partly a wonderful, complicated biography of Martin Luther King, Jr. However, it is also a history of the early years of the entire civil rights movement. King, SCLC, and SNCC are described in great detail and their efforts are set against a background of federal reluctance to intervene in the South. Inspiring and detailed.

I am about halfway through this book. Even though I have not finished yet I feel compelled to comment on it. I believe it is extremely important for African Americans of my generation to get a more complete understanding of the civil rights movement. So far this book has opening my eyes and changed the way I view our African American experience.

What is best about this read is it flows like a history book. I give much credit to Mr. Branch for simply telling the story and not adding too much of his own commentary and opinion. That is one of my pet peeves with many of our `writers' today. They want to impose their opinions and biased interpretations. We do not need opinions. We need to educate ourselves with facts and draw our own conclusions. Okay, I will get off the soapbox.

Anyway I highly recommend this book. It is a very long read, but if you seek a deeper understanding of the African American experience this is a great start. Many of the issues we face today can be interpreted more accurately by getting a more complete account of our past.

By most accounts, Branch's three volume history of the Civil Rights Movement is the authoritative account of Dr. King's life. But beyond the facts and history, this particular volume is an example of masterful storytelling. I read this book during my morning and evening commutes, stuffed between strangers on the train. Branch transported me to another time and place, at times on the brink of tears. Branch devoted decades of his life to crafting this story. His efforts leave us with an honest and beautifully told story - one of our nation's most inspiring and tragic.

This is the first of a trilogy of books on the civil rights struggle in the USA as centered around the Reverend Martin Luther King Junior. Covering the 1950s and early 1960s, this book lays the groundwork for many of the pivotal events that would take the civil rights movement onto the international stage and eventually legend. All the key characters of this movement would enter the stage of history here... Bayard Rustin, the gay, pacifist communist, would play a key role in organizing the March on D.C. LBJ, the master of the Senate, and then vice president would come to realize the need of the Civil Rights Act, as segregation was intertwined with poverty and to defeat one, he needed to defeat the other. Malcolm X would rise in the Nation of Islam, paving a path to glory and his eventual death. And the central character that bound them together; the Reverend Dr. King himself, would change history by trying to tie together the lunch counter sit-ins, freedom rides, marches, and legal debates into one cogent movement.

All of this and much, much more is laid out in careful, chronological detail by Taylor Branch. Backing every word, every name, and every date with citations to court documents, newspaper records, first-hand interviews and countless other sources, the author brings this period to life, vividly with raw emotion. This book lays bare the soul of America at this time, from the inner politics in the White House and courthouses throughout the South, to pressrooms, jails, and public squares. We, the reader, see how the Civil Rights movement ground forth one city, one law, one riot at a time. Incredible! Highly worth the time to read thru from cover to cover.

This book is one of the best books about the fire service I have ever read. I hung onto each and every word. It was though I was there sometimes.

During the tumultuous period of the 60s when author Dennis Smith wrote Report From Engine Company 82, the book was a cry for help from exhausted, frustrated men. Men who cleaned up in the aftermath of other exhausted and frustrated inhabitants of a society stretched to the breaking point.

As I type this, a younger firefighter in a comfortable, air-conditioned fire station among a population that by-and-large respects my profession, it's easy to forget the sacrifice of our past brothers who unceasingly fought fires, city hall and the population they served, until they had forged the modern fire service.

It's an important book for new firefighters to learn how the iron men of old did the job. And for the general reader it's a testament to both a volatile period in our nation's history, and to the timeless strength and courage by which good men have always worked to keep back the chaos of barbarism and destruction.

I spent 10 years in the fire service in both engine and truck companys. While I have many memories and stories to tell, the author, Dennis Smith, sums up the life of a fire fighter in an urban environment about as well as can be possibly told. Trying to balance the unpleasantries and sadness against the satisfaction of saving a life or helping a family overcome one of life's most agonizing moments is very well portrayed in this book. This is what a fire fighter's life is about folks. There is no other book that I can remember that tells it any better than this. If you're thinking of a career in a big city fire department or for that matter, if you're even thinking of becoming a volunteer fire fighter this book is a must!

I first read this book 20+ years ago, when I was under 20 years of age myself but streetwise from being the "wheels" (with a driver's license and a car) for various escapades all over Chicago in my raucous, hard-partying and utterly politically incorrect youth. Many aspects of "Report From Engine Co. 82" stuck with me through the years, and I've re-read it several times. Now I'm 40 and an ER RN in a Chicago hospital where we see more than our share of the extraordinarily dysfunctional lives of the people who live in poverty in the neighborhoods that surround our hospital -- the type of job and environment Smith portrays so well in "Report From Engine Co. 82."

"Report From Engine Co. 82." tells truths about the nearly inescapable poverty and illiteracy of people scraping by in lives that are marginalized in every possible way because they don't -- can't -- really care for themselves appropriately because they don't even know how. Poverty isn't what it used to be -- but it's still as screwed up as it was in Smith's first book. Most of our ER visits aren't really emergencies, just as most of the calls Company 82 responded to weren't emergencies, either. Nowadays, people call 911; when "Report" was written, that 911 system didn't exist yet. But not much has changed since then, in terms of what the firefighters/paramedics respond to and bring to the ER.

Most of the "emergencies" he sees are not emergencies. The non-emergencies, combined with the real emergencies, portray the dangerous and unthinking way poor people live through a combination of lack of resources, lack of experience with the "straight" world, lack of common sense, and minute-by-minute survival thinking. Most of these emergencies and non-emergencies are easily prevented -- if people had common sense, proper parenting, and a normal instinct for self-preservation.

These qualities, however, are surprisingly hard to come by in poverty, and this is what Smith dramatizes. The heroin overdoses. The stupid kids doing stupid things because they are constantly left unattended and to their own devices. Kids who shoot themselves in the thigh or foot -- or worse -- "playing" with guns. Fires that kill children because space heaters provide the heat slumlords refuse to provide in their code-violating buildings. The incipient hatred and distrust poor minority neighborhoods have of the white emergency personnel and firefighters who respond to their calls. The huge cultural gaps that make true communication and understanding so difficult -- even when you're both the same race and both speaking English.

What Smith accurately portrays is the way poverty-stricken people "live in the now" -- people whose entire lives are spent with no real financial or material stability or security. These are people for whom the concept of saving money for the future is impossible, either as a concept or a reality. People for whom making an appointment days or weeks in the future, and actually remembering to get to the appointment, is nearly impossible. Their main mode of thought is: what do I need to do now, what do I want to do now, what do I need or want to do in the next five minutes. This inability to think about and plan for the future is endemic, as is the inability to prioritize that which really matters -- one suspects because most of these people realize on some level they have no future that truly matters to the rest of society, and they're incapable of living as the rest of the "straight" world lives because they never have, didn't grow up with it, and don't know the language of living that life, let alone the mindset.

These are the people and children who have no insurance, no health care, no glasses when their vision is bad, no braces or dental care when their teeth are bad; who never use birth control (to prevent pregnancy OR to prevent disease transmission). People who don't understand why it's inappropriate to come to the ER with an upper respiratory infection and get pissed off when they wait hours for care while higher priority, higher-acuity patients (in respiratory distress, cardiac arrest, heart attacks, asthma attacks, and overdose, etc.) are taken before they are.

Conversely, these are also the people who shun health care until they are so sick they can no longer avoid it, and discover they have cancer... Cancer that could have been prevented or at least treated, often saving their lives, had they ever had regular health care -- but who are now consigned to an inevitable death they will blame on the healthcare providers who couldn't save them because they were at a stage beyond saving or treating in any way other than palliative.

Smith's New York is NOT the New York of Sex And The City. This is the New York of the infants whose welfare mothers don't immunize them, but have the latest, most expensive coats and boots because conspicuous consumption is how they live: you show how much money you have by wearing all that your money has bought you (rather than doing the far less glamorous but sensible things more responsible people, whose children were WANTED rather than accidental, do). The New York of the kids having kids who have kids, all of whom have never known proper parenting, nutrition, or health care. The overdoses. The children who come in with accidental poisonings or burns from household chemicals because no one was watching them. The attempted suicides with anything and everything -- cold medicine, knives, guns, illegal drugs. The kids raised by siblings because the parent is completely incapable, if they're even around, with or without the additional problems of substance use/abuse, addiction, or domestic abuse. The families which are largely single-parent families -- and where the parental figure may be an elder sibling, aunt or cousin who cares more for the children than their biological parent(s) does or is capable of doing.

This is also the world of the terrified illegal immigrants who wait so long to call for help because they're afraid of INS (now ICE) and deportation; by the time they do, they're often too sick to save. The penniless old people whose pensions don't cover their living expenses and who don't call for help because they're terrified of being discharged from the hospital to a nursing home and losing what little autonomy and material security they have left. The fractured families (with utterly dysfunctional dynamics) who interfere with the paramedics' jobs -- as well as the tight-knit families who are rich only in love for one another. The people who refuse help they desperately need because they fear and distrust the paramedics and firemen trying to help them, and because their healthcare illiteracy is such that they have no idea what is necessary to save their lives, and so refuse or avoid medical treatment that could stop problems in stages when they're still treatable. The mothers who speak no English, who superstitiously fear that emergency treatment will kill their children, yet who are so desperate to save their babies, they don't know what else to do, because all home remedies have now failed. The endless numbers of people who let their prescriptions run out or try to save money by taking less than the prescribed doses and then have severe health problems that wouldn't happen if they bought and took their meds as prescribed -- but who, for multiple reasons, can't and/or don't. The people who beg not to be brought to the hospital because "people DIE in the hospital" -- people who don't understand that their neighbors and family members who died in the hospital, died because they waited far too long to call for help, and were therefore were beyond saving when they finally got to a hospital.

Anyone who works in public service as a fireman, cop, nurse, social worker, or psych intake worker in a big city -- and in poverty-stricken, crime- and drug-infested suburbs and rural communities -- can relate to Smith's book. For everyone who majored in something else, this book opens a door and exposes the lives of people you don't even know exist, people you don't acknowledge when you're forced to share a bus or train with them during rush hour (or who you intentionally avoid by driving in your own car, despite the expense of gas, insurance, and time spent on the commute): the people who don't work, or the people who work wage-slave jobs like janitor, maid, fast-food worker, security guard, who can barely pay their bills or care for their children with what little they make -- or who blow it all on liquor and/or drugs and/or gambling (or all three) to escape the miserable hopelessness of their lives. The kids who have the latest "stuff" -- whether it's the shiny ten speed bicycles Smith writes about, or today's video games and cell phone/mp3 player/cameras -- but whose parents can't or won't give them what they really need: breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a stable environment from which to emerge every day to deal with the life-endangering risks of walking to and attending public schools that do little more than babysit and warehouse kids whose futures include teen pregnancy (and the late-term, life-threatening miscarriages that go with total lack of prenatal care, with or without drug use), repeated incarceration, and shorter-than-average lifespans due to the daily likelihood of violence in their communities and their lives.

Smith's portrayal of this kind of poverty is not pretty but it is not unsympathetic -- there are glimpses of beauty and hope, mostly in the young women and children who haven't yet been ruined by their surroundings. Smith tempers it all with a matter-of-fact acceptance that although it is his job to care for these people, he may never really understand them because he's now too removed from that life, and he takes on faith that they possess human qualities they often fail to demonstrate. But some do show their humanity, and those are the people he does it for.

Smith does an excellent job of portraying the paradox that the job of these firefighters and paramedics is to help and save these people, which by its nature includes finding them WORTH helping and saving, at the same time as they move and live as far away from these neighborhoods and the associated poverty, crime and drug problems as they possibly can. This is not merely a racial difference. There are plenty of black and Latino paramedics, cops, firefighters, nurses and doctors who straddle the gulf (some might say 'minefield') between their class and the class of the people they help, in circumstances that are at best trying and at worst nearly impossible to help them transcend for any sustained length of time.

Smith portrays the sympathetic detachment required to know that this is what you do, all day, every day you work, with only the hope that one or two out of ten people will actually genuinely and sincerely thank you for what you do or have done for them -- which is that elusive reward you get, one that can make it all seem worth it when it happens -- and to hope that when you show up and give this of yourself on every shift, there might be one kid or teen who sees what you're doing, who still has enough time ahead of them to see this glimpse into another world... A world it is just *barely* possible for them to enter given enough determination, education, mentoring and drive, and sadly also given enough instinct to discard much of what they learn in their families about how they THINK the world works, versus how the world REALLY works for the more educated and better-off people who run it.

The fact that Smith can show all this without denigrating an entire class of people -- does, in fact, portray them with humanity and the grace one occasionally sees in these circumstances -- is because he also recognizes that he is not that far removed from the kind of poverty he sees on the job (he grew up poor, too). He recognizes and accepts that he is that kid who admired firemen as a boy and saw a different world -- he is that kid who made the leap to the next class up, to the working class and blue collar as opposed to poverty-stricken. He understands the dysfunction -- the drinking, the drugs, the abuse -- that occurs in the neighborhoods Co. 82 responds to because it occurred in his neighborhood, his family, his poverty, while he was growing up.

This understanding that few "get out" -- and that he was one of the lucky few -- underscores with sympathy his otherwise stark portrayal of the job of a NYC fireman in the 70s when NYC was not a desirable place to live and people did their best to escape "the city" as soon as their financial circumstances permitted it.

The uncensored version of this book (which is the one I've read multiple times) also shows the bizarre split someone who works as a fireman/paramedic, nurse, or doctor must negotiate within themselves -- the intimate knowledge you have of the bodies of the people you must save, which is merely part of your job but which you can't really talk about to any family member or lover who isn't in one of these fields. I don't mean merely intimacy with people's genitals -- though there is that, such as the way the Smith describes heroin overdoses getting icebags put under their testicles (negative stimulus, designed to bring unresponsive, unconscious people back to responsiveness and consciousness). I mean the intimacy of seeing people stripped of their modesty and dignity, voluntarily (prostitutes) or involuntarily (the terribly sick), whose personal space and body integrity you must necessarily invade, often in less-than-respectful or diplomatic ways because there is no time for those niceties when someone is dying and you're trying to save them. People who don't work in these fields can never really understand how you can be unaffected by the nudity, exposure and/or intimate knowledge you have of these total strangers, and the disinterest or casual attitude with which you greet what would shock most everyone else.

And, of course, you're not unaffected by this knowledge. Sometimes you're disturbed, or someone or something sticks in your mind -- the things you've seen or had to do -- and is recalled in inappropriate moments with your loved ones. You're not unaffected, you're just emotionally calloused or you compartmentalize it, in order to repeatedly perpetrate and endure this violation of the boundaries between strangers and its inherent power imbalance: you, as the emergency personnel, never have to reveal any of these intimacies to your patients... but they must necessarily, willingly or not, reveal them to you. This includes the mentally ill and the hopelessly drug-addled or dopesick (or both, combined) -- sometimes the most disturbing intimacy of all: the insides of their heads and their distorted, sometimes frighteningly unhinged, perceptions of the world around them.

Before anyone decides to dedicate their lives to becoming a firefighter, they would be wise to start their research here. Some 30+ years after it was first published, this book still shows remarkable insight into the lives, struggles, and emotions of a professional firefighter. When I started on the road to becoming a firefighter, being a volunteer and reading Dennis Smith books asserted in my mind that my life would be wasted doing anything else. For others, this may convince you that the job is not for you. It isn't for everyone. Either way, this is a very enjoyable read and worth the time and money for anyone, not just firemen and wannabe's.

This was a wonderful book! Having myself been to Addis Ababa recently (July 07) with my daughter to pick up her adopted Ethiopian baby boy (4 months old), you can just imagine how this story of one woman's love for so many orphans resonated with me. The book is a quick read -- something interesting in every chapter. The author intertwined Haregewoin's up and down story with bits of Ethiopian history and the unwinding spread and theories of HIV-AIDs plus added her own experience with H. and the adoption her own Ethiopian children -- which made the reader come away with a true cultural experience. H. is truly a "Mother Theresa" figure and an inspiration to all women. Thank you, Melissa, for introducing us to her. I really enjoyed having the photos of many of the children and their adoptive families to relate to. I will be sure that my daughter reads this book and I have suggested it to my book club in Boulder, CO which will read it in the fall. -- Gayle Weiss

I like what the story is about, however the book has so much detail it is hard to get through the first chapters.

I found the book There Is No Me Without You throughly enjoyable. I learned so much about the AIDS/HIV epedemic in Africa, how it's spread, the devastation of many African countries, the deplorable track record of the major drug companies in denying access of proven AIDS/HIV drugs, and the terrible tragedy of the millions of orphans now without parents. I also appreciated being able to follow the life of one woman who made a difference and how it came to be the Ethiopian orphans are now being adopted around the world. This book touched me personally. Just before Christmas our daughter and son-in-law traveled to Ethiopia and adopted two babies. These two precious children are deeply loved by their new parents, their three older siblings, and us--their grandparents.

There should be another Lady added to the Mother Theresa's of the world!

Haregewoin Teferra, an Ethiopian who has helped many orphaned children. Children who have been left behind because parents either died or left to have a chance at life! This books shares the struggles of Mother Teferra who had a wonderful life with her family to a helping those children with AIDS and with no homes.

My wife was reading this at the same time I was reading Dave Eggers' fantastic novel What is the What. We were supposed to trade when we finished, but she couldn't read this book without wanting to tell me about each chapter.

I finally read it a year later and am sorry I spent the previous year with just my wife's summary. Greene is a great writer --she mixes great storytelling with a reporter's eye for research and information. The book itself, based on any description of it, should be intensely depressing to read, but, because of Greene, I think, is actually very life affirming and energizing.

I think it would be hard to read this book and not feel a certain, almost painful, overflowing love for the world. It's absolutely great.

I've ready many books on how to get the life you want but by far this is the best yet. Easy to read, there's little exercises to do to get you thinking and she even provides ideas for making more. Brilliant. If you know you're not living your best life, then this book will really get you going in the right direction with motivation. Get it!!!

Does it seem strange to anyone that all of the 26 reviews for this book sound exactly the same? Almost like the same person wrote all of the reviews.......or coached others on how to write them.....hmmm...

If you feel that you work to hard and earn to little, this book is for you. Jennifer White shows you how to be more effective in whatever you do. When you become more effective--you will start earning more money-because your more effective, more valuable. Jennifer is one of the top coaches in the nation and it's not for no reason. Her methods are sound. Proven. They Work. Highly recommended.

Zev Saftlas, Author of Motivation That Works: How to Get Motivated and Stay Motivated

I have read a lot of books on how to be successful--from these books I learned it takes hard work to make money. But what about life? Having a balanced life yet still making lots of money seems impossible--from all the reading I had so far.

Then when I pick up this tape I was really suspicious. After I listened to the 1st tape, I absolutely LOVE it! Absolutely fantastic! I found myself talking this to myself (happily): Paraphrase: Do what you'are best at (your "brilliance") and "Laser day/support day/free day" building momentum theory, 80/20 focus phylosophy (this is not new, but it's nice to hear it from a different person again in a different way of explanation), delegate, duplicate, saying no (I said no to a meeting that does not let me focus on my brilliance--yes, I'm so happy!!!), when is enough for adding value(talking about a sincere wise phylosophy!!), free up space and time to focus on your brilliance, write journal. All in all, it confirms my own beliefs that when you have a life besides work you can sustain your brilliance better than overly working. I haven't finished the tape now, I'm on Innovation now. She said most of people think they are not innovative. But you are, everybody are. If you think you are, you are! Using a new way of doing things better, that's innovative! You don't have a dead soul...

Some of the suggestions are not new, a few examples are not that convincing, yet, those are so minor!!! Nobody or no book/tape is perfect--this tape are exceptional!

Jennifer White's book is not for wimps and losers.

A self-help book written by one of the finest success coaches in the country, "Work Less, Make More" is an innovative tool to help self-driven, highly motivated individuals who are probably already successful do more and do better - to pull themselves out of a stalled rut, perhaps; to work more effectively; to make a quantum leap to a higher level of success; and clearly, to make a substantially higher level of income while working at a physically less demanding level.

Jennifer White's focus is on results and the premise, while difficult to envision, is achievable for those who are willing to make a paradigm shift in their outlook on what constitutes success, to undergo a sea change in their relationships with their family, their friends, their customers and their constituents.

This book is NOT for those that are unwilling to subject themselves to an intense level of scrutiny and, for a significant period of time, to pull themselves a long way out of previous comfort zones and to instill in themselves new habits.

My personal opinion is that this book is most likely to be successful for those individuals that are to a significant extent self-employed, self-driven, highly motivated and worrying with the realization that their career needs a lift. For those that qualify and are willing to change, Jennifer White's perscription will help you to become more deeply fulfilled and earn substantially higher financial rewards without driving yourself to an ulcer, without insulating yourself from your family and friends and without contemplating an early grave.

And isn't that what we all want, after all!

Paul Weiss

I had not heard of James Thurber (I'm not from Northern America :)) until one of my friends on a study abroad program brought this book to our apartment and we started reading it out loud to each other. I loved it so much that I've read it three times already. Thurber's playing with the language is so amazing, cute and fascinating that it makes you speak "his way" after you read the book. :) And all his ideas are wonderful! This all makes the book one of a kind, really.

read it, lest you end up being slit from your guzzle to your zatch! a book for all ages, and any age. Fairy stories with a twist of Thurber.

I really do like this book. I like fairy tales, especially the kind like Ella Enchanted and Fairest by Gail Carson Levine. In the pictures the wicked duke looks so hilarilously silly! The prince is handsome and the princess pretty, of course! The Golux's hat is indeed indescribable and the woman Hagga cries jewels instead of tears. He! He! He!

The Thirteen Clocks, by James Thurber, is a perfect book. The only way it could be better would be by being longer. The story is classic in its simplicity, so elemental that anyone can easily find a way inside. The big setting - a castle - the big players - a Prince, Princess, and wicked Duke (very wicked) - the big themes - courage, redemption, selfless sacrifice, and just a whiff of magic. Best of all, the big problem - time is frozen. Our enterprising Prince must do the impossible to win the hand of Princess Saralinda. This is road-tested material but Thurber breathes new life into it, making it fresh and irresistible. The musicality of his language is delightful, there is so much joy and play in the words, they giggle and dance like water gliding over stones in a stream. His rogue's gallery of secondary characters is just too good; each is slightly more improbable and splendidly cracked than the last. Most of all, this story ends exactly as it should, the resolution is not forced, it's simply correct. The Thirteen Clocks is a slice of heaven that can be enjoyed by anyone able to read. Thurber, it turns out, really was as good as he claimed. This lasting jewel proves it.

Watch out for the Todal

James Thurber's The Thirteen Clocks is a delightful tale for people of all ages. I was first introduced to this seemingly conventional story at age five when my father read it to me as a pleasant bedtime story. It was not until I could read for myself that I began to notice what sets this story apart from so many other children's stories--its characters and great dialogue. Even re-reading it now, as a college student, I immensely enjoy its refreshing humor. Thurber uses a simple storyline, poetic devices, and clever characterization to make The Thirteen Clocks enjoyable to any and all ears.

The Thirteen Clocks is enjoyable for kids of all ages (meaning grown-ups as well) because it follows the basic and familiar "prince saves princess" storyline. Prince Zorn of Zorna must win the hand of Princess Saralinda by bringing back a thousand jewels to her uncle in "six and sixty days" (32). Though it seems that six and sixty days are not ample time for him to complete such a task, Zorn of Zorna miraculously succeeds. This follows the plot of most classic fairy tales I can think of (excluding Rumplestiltzkin and Beauty & the Beast). There are so many prince-princess stories because every child (and deep down, every adult, too) wants to be a prince or princess. There is something appealing to human nature about glory, fame, wealth, beauty, and general happiness, all of which are presented as direct benefits of being royalty. Also, everyone loves a happy ending where justice is served--the good guys win and the bad guys suffer. The Thirteen Clocks does indeed include a happy ending of this nature. Not only is the story simple enough, but it is also relatively short (my copy is seventy pages with fairly large text) and includes pictures. Bedtime stories are, by nature, short stories. When parents concede to read just "one more bedtime story," they do not want it to take all night. Furthermore, it is simply easier to understand a story when you sit down and read the entire thing at once. Children admittedly have short attention spans. The rest of us adults do too, but we pretend to have a more mature mind, especially when it comes to paying attention. The Thirteen Clocks appeals to everyone, young and old because it is a familiar and somewhat simple tale.

All audiences can also appreciate The Thirteen Clocks for its musical language as seen by the poetic devices of rhyme and rhythm. In the beginning of the story, Prince Zorn of Zorna disguises himself as a minstrel and sings of various things whose mention are forbidden by the evil Duke. A villager tells the Prince that one of the Duke's spies will "die because to name your sins, he'll have to mention mittens. I leave at once for other lands, since I have mentioned mittens...You'll never live to wed his niece. You'll only die to feed his geese" (17). The rhyme combined with the absolute hilarity of this statement amuses the reader and is rhythmically pleasing. Smaller children may not catch or understand the substance of this passage completely, but they will enjoy hearing the rhyme scheme (AAABB) and rhythm pattern (8-7, 8-7). Literary enthusiasts will take note and admire the patterns evident in Thurber's writing. Another great example of Thurber's amusing and rhyming style is, "'It's odd,' the Golux muttered to himself. 'I could have sworn that she had died. This is the only time my stomach ever lied'" (54). Here again, Thurber amuses his audience by using this constant pattern of rhyme and rhythm. Humans love to find patterns--it brings sense and order to the sometimes chaotic world we live in. By creating this literary and somewhat musical pattern, Thurber's tale appeals to both the young and old.

The Thirteen Clocks is appealing because its characters, the likes of which have never been seen before in literature, add excitement and flavor to this familiar story. There are three truly out-of-the ordinary characters--the Golux, who is "always on hand when people are in peril" (18), Hagga, the weeper of jewels; and the unpleasant Todal. Of these, the Todal is the most outrageous character. The Todal is "made of lip," "looks like a blob of gulp," and "smells of old, unopened rooms" (36, 29). This creature is "waiting for the Duke to fail in some endeavour such as setting you a task that you can do" and is "an agent of the devil, sent to punish evil-doers for having done less evil than they should" (29, 30). There is no monster as quirky, interesting, and terrifying as the Todal in real life or in a book. By presenting his readers with such bizarre characters, Thurber appeals to their sense of humor, as well as to their sense of terror. The creativity and flair for language possessed by Thurber are most obvious in the descriptions of his characters. This sets his tale apart from others with similar, but seemingly less lively stories. More than anything else, The Thirteen Clocks is enjoyable because of its uniqueness in characterization.

This truly wonderful and shockingly good fairy tale is full of enough excitement and goodness to be appropriate for a bedtime story. Yet Thurber's true talent lies in his creative and imaginative abilities which allow for readers and listeners alike to enjoy this book. It is set apart from other fairy tales by its clever use of words and unparalleled characters. Buy this book (though I would suggest the hardcover edition with colored illustrations) or run to your local library before the Todal gulps you!

This book has been Good for my soul. It presents examples of daily trials we face and offers ways that we can respond in peaceful ways. There is balance in this book.

I was raised Baptist. This book was recommended by a Catholic friend who had been given the book by a Catholic priest.

The reading of this book takes me to a place where I am in my best spiritual state.

This is early Thich Nhat Hanh at his freshest. Compelling stories of coming to see the world from a more awakened perspective are mixed with very accessible instructions for mindfulness meditations. Anyone of Buddhist inclination will profit from visiting or revisiting this book, and if you want to introduce someone else (or yourself) to Buddhist thought and practice in an inviting way, you could scarcely do better than this. (The other "best first book" which stands up to repeated readings is Shunryu Suzuki's Zen Mind Beginner's Mind. Both are likely to become your lifetime companions.)

The demands of a job and daily life seem to keep us from spirituality and peace. The Book: Being Peace, offers that pause in life to reflect and renew. This is a very good read.

Thich Nhat Hanh is a beautiful being, writing in very simple words and from the heart, and showing us how to be at Peace, in Peace, so as to create Peace in our World. Good book. Likely to be re-red many times.

I like this authors books that is why I bought this one on a friends recommendation. I struggled through it but dont find it easy to read or understand and I usually like this guys books. I found it choppy, hard to follow and I didnt find it peaceful reading. A few nuggets here but didnt work for me this time.

This is a re-read from my youth and I am glad that it has been reissued. I love all of Engdahl's work and I only wish that she would write more after her long dry period. A well-writte intelligent and charming female protagonist learns and grows within a setting much like early (good) Andre Norton- reminiscent of Ice Crown, in fact.

This is an interesting book. I like the three different voices she uses to narrate the three different worlds, and the way the most advanced world, being the most self-aware, is done in first person.

Interesting questions are raised and about truth, right/wrong, etc. I do not agree with everything the author seems to believe, but this book would be a good springboard for discussion of questions like, "What is truth?" and "What/who is God?" and "Is there anything beyond what we can see and study with traditional science?"

There are a lot of other interesting questions that can be pondered that the book raises but does not answer. For instance, was Alana's father exploiting her young heart and propensity to fall in love in order to save the world of Andrecia and, if so, is that a morally defensible thing?

Not the absolute best book I have ever read, but worth reading, and probably worth reading more than once.

Having read Sylvia Engdahl's excellent novel, The Far Side of Evil, several years ago, I approached this book with a positive outlook that it would be just as thought-provoking and well told. I wasn't disappointed, though this novel is indeed different in tone.

The Enchantress of the title is Elana, whose exact age is never given but can be assumed to be in her late teens or early twenties. Elana, looking for adventure and real life experience, stows away on board a starship that is sent to Andrecia, a medieval planet that is currently being colonized by a more advanced society. Once her presence is known, her father and boyfriend decide that Elana can indeed help with the plan to oust the invaders, which will allow Andrecia to continue to develop at its own pace. Elana becomes the "Enchantress"; she befriends two locals who are off to fight the "Dragon" (a massive rock-chewing machine), and helps them by awakening their own skills so that their quest will be successful. In the process, Elana finds herself falling for the local known as Georgyn, and in her inexperience, putting them both in grave danger.

This book moves seamlessly between points of view, which gives it a much more universal feel than had we only known Elana's side of the story. When Georyn's voice takes over, the story almost becomes a fairy tale; indeed, that is how he sees Elana and the invaders who have come to his world. Elana is, of course, young and inexperienced but desperate to do the right thing; and Jarel is the lone voice of the invaders, unsure of his world's plans but unable to do anything to stop them.

I enjoyed this novel but did feel that at times it was a bit on the fantastic side. I felt the plans Elana's father made to dupe the invaders weren't necessarily believable, but I was able to keep in mind that this is indeed a fantasy. Elana could be infuriating in her lack of knowledge and her headstrong ways, and her poor boyfriend Evrek is relegated to the background while Elana forges ahead with a relationship with Georyn. Overall, however, this is a well-written novel and Engdahl has a gift for telling a tale that will pull you in from the first pages. Over thirty years since its debut, this thought-provoking novel holds up well and is just as relevant today. Recommended for lovers of fantasy.

When Elana's mission gets put in jeopardy she faces a lifetime of torture and imprisonment. Will she be able to save herself and the mission? Elana, the Enchantress, and her father were agents of the Federations Anthropological Center and it was their assignment to stop the Imperials from taking over the planet Andrecia. They led Georyn, a woodcutter's son, to believe that a stone was the source of his new magical powers; however, the truth was that they had taught him telekinesis and he wasn't even aware of it. Georyn was supposed to use his "magic" to defeat the dragon (a mechanical weapon used the Imperials). Elana and Georyn were on their way to the Imperials camp when natives captured them. The natives took them to the Imperials camp where they were locked in barracks. The Imperials planned to send them to a research center to be studied. Elana persuaded one of the guards, Jarel, to help them and he let Georyn out of his cell when no one was paying attention. When it appeared that the dragon was going to defeat Georyn, Elana decided to sacrifice herself to try to end the whole ordeal. As she ran and laid in front of the dragon, a flood of courage surged through Georyn. He used his magic powers to save her, stop the dragon, and scare away the Imperials. Georyn went to the king to announce that the dragon had been killed and to get his reward. He decided to explore the rest of the planet he lived on while he had the chance. Elana left Andrecia after accomplishing her goal and traveled back to her own planet. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone and everyone who enjoys reading a great book.
This book is written with loads of details. Georyn was the youngest of four sons born to a poor woodcutter, who lived on the planet Andrecia. Elana was a young woman in the First Phase of her training to be an agent. Jarel was an Imperial medic who was determined to prove that his civilization was not right in trying to colonize Andrecia.
Even though this is a science fiction book some of the things in it are realistic to our own world. The cool, green, peaceful planet, Andrecia is the third planet of a medium sized yellow sun. The Federation tried to prevent weaker nations from being taken over by stronger nations. Some types of people tend to be better at some things than others.
This book will stretch the reader's imagination. The Imperials used a huge machine that resembled a dragon to clear an area on Andrecia for the colony they were planning to establish. Georyn was taught telekinesis on a subconscious level, therefore he didn't even know about it. The Federation was an organization meant to save weak planets from the more powerful ones trying to colonize.
I recommend this book to everyone. It is a great read. It is very imaginative but some of the elements of the book seem somewhat realistic. Even if you are not a big fan of science fiction books this is a story that everyone should read.
~V. Newberry

Please keep in mind that I really liked this book. "Enchantress" is well written and enjoyable. That being said, I could not entirely enjoy the story because I had a problem with the heroine. I know this probably says more about me than her but...

The heroine, as thoughtful and insightful as she is, is a bit of a hypocrite. She "suffers" enormously with guilt about even the smallest of lies she is forced to tell her "poor primitive" lover.

On the other hand she only feels a twinge of condescending pity for her fiancé whom she has been more-or-less betraying by concealing her "forbidden love" for the "primitive" for most the book.

And when it comes to lying to her father and sneaking around behind his back; forget about it! She doesn't even hesitate a second and even takes a certain pleasure in it, even when, inevitably, her "disobedience" endangers entire civilizations.

There are only four main characters in this book. The heroine, her male father, her male fiancé, and her male lover. I found myself many times wishing she had a mother, sister, or best friend to whack her upside the head and tell her to stop acting so ridiculous.

The one woman who COULD and WOULD have set her straight was killed as the book opened. (Actually there WAS one other female in the book; a practically-unconscious sacrifice victim being "delivered to the dragon.")

Anyway enough about my problems. If you didn't even notice the things I had issues with, (and you probably didn't) "Enchantress" is a good read.

I borrowed a friends copy of this audio book and was so impressed I had to get my own copy. Truly a gem and wonderful resource giving a tremendous amount of insight to intuition and spirituality

This is by far one of the best purchase I have ever made. Carolyn does an excellent job at explaning the 7 charkras. Truly amazing cd series. Highly recommended.

Carolyn Myss is brilliant, entertaining, witty, sarcastic, irrational, and high-handed at any given time. She admits that she teaches rather than heals because she isn't good at one on one. But she is a gifted teacher. Listening to the CDs the third time I still gained more information and have since shared them with friends of like mind. If you're drawn to increasing your knowledge of the spiritual journey, this is a great set of CDs to listen to. She offers several interesting theorys, some believable, some not, but still entertaining.

If you are feeling open and you'd like to "wake-up" today - I HIGHLY recommend this audiobook. You can thank Caroline Myss for her insight into the non-material presence in this life and with shining wisdom, bringing it quickly to the material world. This is a wonderful spiritual and scientific lecture series, not to mention a very exciting journey to listen to (even if you never enact her beliefs into your life). It has helped me profoundly with balancing my energy and I did not have to be a mystic to get it. She is a very good teacher.

This audio book is easily listened to in 9 hours, while driving in rush hour traffic on your way to work, but be forewarned that Caroline Myss is not joking around when she embodies the teacher's archetype. What was once a mundane rush hour drive will turn into a vibrant interaction of the energy paradigm. She will teach you and if you are at all a skeptic like I was (esp. about Chakras and unseen mysteries), thinking that you've got the world materialistically figured out, and your reality beat, then you are in for a sharp and exciting surprise. You may find yourself sliding down the rabbit hole of "Who am I? and "Why am I doing this?" and "What is the purpose of my life?" and "Where am I, now?"

These types of awareness-based questions are implied throughout her tales and experiences with anatomy of our body's energy systems. Thankfully, with insight, clarity and precision, Dr. Myss explains exactly what we are made of and it is very reassuring to know that when we do start to ask these questions of a deeper nature, there are guides like Caroline Myss who are brave enough to teach the stuff.

If you think that you might benefit from "therapy", listen to this program. A large part of the effort of therapy is getting an individual to open to themselves, to see themselves as they really are, as a precursor to making changes in their life. Caroline Myss' recordings of "Energy Anatomy" and "Advanced Energy Anatomy" open the door to that introspection, giving you a framework in which to see your past life, and present actions. True, you may not agree with everything she says. But I guarantee you will find yourself nodding in agreement over and over again, at the insightful ways she presents the workings of human minds and emotions. And you will find Caroline Myss offering you answers to many of the questions you've asked yourself ("Why do I do this?" "Why did I do that?") over the years. I'm not recommending you forego therapy, if you really need it. Professional therapy can be very valuable. But I am saying that Caroline's recordings are a terrific way of getting in touch with yourself, and seeing yourself clearly (maybe for the first time), regardless of whether you want to pursue professional counseling, or not. And because (as Caroline says) the mind and emotions are prime determinants of the health of the body, this is an excellent series for anyone interested in taking good care of their body, and creating the best health possible for a vibrant and very happy life. "Energy Anatomy" offers a new way of looking at yourself, at others, and at the world around you, and this program may be the best thing you try this year.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book even more than the first (Fablehaven). My youngest son wants to be a writer so I'm always on the lookout for books like this one that are imaginative and well written in order to inspire him; the story is so well told that you just keep turning pages!

This second book to Fablehaven (The Rise of the Evening Star) is even better than the first! and the first book is pretty darn good! We have not read the third book yet but you can bet that as soon as it arrives we will devour it with the same enthusiasm as with the first two books! I highly recommend the Fablehaven stories to young and old.

The communication between Kendra and Seth is so well done that you could believe they are flesh and blood siblings instead of fictional characters. Sometimes authors fail to research the previous information from the first story so it melds with the future books, but Brandon Mull apparently knows the story he is telling so well that I didn't find any disconnects or irregularities in the flow of the plot or characters from one book to another. These stories are humorous, intriguing and enchanting!

I have found that Mull has written another book titled "The Candy Shop Wars" which I'm going to check out after I finish this review. Kudos to Brandon Mull for what looks like a very successful young adult fantasy fiction series!

This is a follow up to the first one. We found it very enjoyable and great fun as we traveled with the children into Fablehaven once again. Great book! Fantastic series.

I love Fablehaven, but I can't understand why people compare it to Harry Potter? It is not HARRY POTTER, the plot is completely different. Fablehaven is it's OWN book. I don't want to know how it compares because ,in actuality, it doesn't, they're two separate novels. Also, why do people give whole synopses on a book some people haven't even read yet? It totally gives away the whole STORY... Thanks, thanks a lot. I won't have to read the book now, I'll just read peoples reviews on it. I digress: I love Fablehaven, it's really imaginative and kids will adore this book! The dialog is wonderful. If you like fantastical creatures and magic and such this book is great for you. I thought it was just going to be a stupid children's book when I read the first page but it turned out great. I couldn't put it down! I can't wait to read the other books.

Great series that my 10 year old son loved! Couldn't put them down. Can't wait for the 3rd book to come out.

When Kendra realizes that the new boy in her class is really a monster, she and her brother are soon approached by a mysterious stranger that claims to know their grandfather and a way to get rid of the monster. When he asks the children's help for a dangerous mission, can they trust him? And back at Fablehaven, Seth and Kendra's grandparents have hired three individuals to hunt down an artifact hidden on the grounds. The evil Society of the Evening Star has begun to hunt down the magical artifacts as well. And if the society gets to all of them first, the result would be catastrophic.

It is unusual when a sequel is better than the first. But Mull has managed to create an even more exciting and fantastic story than the first Fablehaven book. More danger, more suspense, more mysteries, and more fabulous characters. I have to say that I'm enjoying the Fablehaven series just as much as Harry Potter! The children and the choices they make are believable. The suspense kept me on the edge of my seat with the danger continuously escalating. The characters and creatures are incredibly vivid. And the illustrations are wonderful. This was simply one of the best books for youth that I've ever read.

Philip Gulley serves as the pastor of a small Quaker church. He was asked to write something for the church newsletter which he did, little suspecting that some of his writing would end up in the hands of Paul Harvey who read it on his radio show. This book is a compilation of the essays that Gulley wrote for his church newsletter. They contain his observations of life summed up in chapters such as "My Cup Runneth Over, and So Does My Toilet" which I'm sure many readers can identify with. His wry humor is evident throughout the book as is the genuine compassion he has for other people.

This book is such a sweet and precious treasure you will never tire of the simple, down-home stories.

Just a nice book to have around. Quick little stories to warm the heart.

I have read these stories to our church Prayer Breakfast group, as devotionals, over a series of many months. We all enjoy them immensely. The style is easy, engaging and the messages are timeless. I have gone on to present Philip Gulley's other works to the group, but this is still my favorite. Others have borrowed this book from time to time. Philip is getting to be a Presbyterian favorite. Imagine that!

Terrific book. Wonderful, warm, pratical, short stories. Excellent examples of how to treat others. Full of love, respect and fortitude. Have mentioned the book to many of my children as a wonderful source of positive examples as to the approach to life. Made certain to give a copy to my daughter. Each story takes less than 5 minutes to read but were so meaniful I still remember many of them.