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I bought this book on the recommendation of my Medical Terminology teacher. We were discussing neurological diseases and when we got to Parkinson's Disease (PD) she mentioned that she had read his book and how much she enjoyed it. So I got it. I was not a huge "Family Ties" fan but I have paid attention to Michael J. Fox's career especially of late since his disclosure of having PD. In the last few years he has been on a show here and there as a guest. He was on Boston Legal and I thought he was superb! You could clearly see that the camera did not stay on him very long but his acting was top-notch nonetheless.

That said, his book is written with extreme openness, heart and humor. He has such a wonderful outlook on life especially in the wake of learning he has PD. He writes from a place that we wish more stars would be able to go - the very sincerest depth of his being - so much so that I found myself in tears a few times as I read. He writes as if he were telling you, the reader, the story in person. He is himself more in this book than I've ever seen him in an interview on TV. This is a very true, revealing, heart-warming story that definitely gives the definition of what it takes to be considered a Lucky Man today. I highly recommend the book.

Michael J. Fox opens his 2002 memoir in late 1990, in the moment he first notices the pinky-finger tremor that leads, a year later at age 30, to a diagnosis of Young Onset Parkinson's Disease (PD).

Then he backs up for a hundred pages to describe his growing-up years in Canada and rising-star experiences in Hollywood -- including an interesting theory of "celebrity" (that it is a gone-haywire extension of the suspension of disbelief/emotional connection that are required of an audience during a performance). He devotes chapters to his PD diagnosis and treatment (including his concealment of it) and to his descent into career and personal crisis. Though it seems PD would top his list of problems then, he notices it doesn't even make the list which includes alcoholism. Fox finishes by describing his redemption, his "coming out" about PD, and his work toward PD research.

The memoir's structure and writing exceeded my expectations and I wondered about a ghostwriter -- until I read Fox's acknowledgements, where he mentions the writing of it and thanks his writing-mentor brother-in-law ... Michael ("Omnivore's Dilemma") Pollan! Lucky Man is an informative, engaging, and insightful memoir.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. Would it be just about Michael J Fox's life or would it center too much on his Parkinson's disease. I'm not usually big on reading celebrity autobiographies and memoirs.
This one is definitely worth reading! Mr. Fox shares his story with humor and humility and a wonderful honesty. He speaks honestly about his struggles with Parkinson's and trying to hide it in order to continue working. He also speaks honestly about his personal struggles with alcohol and depression. But the struggles don't dominate the book. There are many fun anecdotes about his years growing up in Canada and about the world of acting.
In the end, what made the biggest impression on me was his gratitude. Gratitude for the life he was able to have as an actor, for his family, and ultimately, even for the disease that changed his life.
This is a book that I would recommend for anyone who is interested in celebrity biographies. And I would especially recommend it for anyone who has Parkinson's disease or has a family member or friend who has this disease. When you have a disease such as this, it can be difficult to articulate to others just what it is you go through without sounding sorry for yourself.
Now when I need to explain this to someone, I can just hand them this book and say, "READ IT. NOW."
Thanks, Mr. Fox!!

Absolutely loved this book. I couldn't put this book down. I actually thought it might be a bit depressing but it wasn't. Michael J. Fox is such an inspiration. There are parts of this book that will make you laugh out loud. It is also a book I will read again and again.

It is humbling to read about someones journey back to reality. Michael had a huge career and was living his dream when he was diagnosed with Parkinsons and soon realized how much he had to be thankful about.

Man, so glad I got this book. I pondered buying it for a few weeks as it sat in my cart and then I couldn't ignore the reviews any longer. I bought and am so glad I did. It's a page turner. Thought I wouldn't like the format being diary entries and all but found it just as engaging if not more than any book I've ever enjoyed. This book made me laugh and cry and want to know more every step of the way. It never dragged and was highly fascinating because the writing felt true to what the early pioneers must have gone through. I found myself thinking of those scenarios a lot and having much more respect for anyone that made that trek. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to get lost in a novel.

A VERY COMPELLING NOVEL FROM THIS FIRST-TIME AUTHOR. I CAN'T WAIT TO READ SARAH'S QUILT.

Thank you for the wonderful, endearing tale of Sarah Agnes Prine. I can't stop thinking about her and have just joyfully began Sarah's Quilt. The picture Ms. Turner paints of the Arizona Territory is terrifying and authentic.

This book was so much fun to read, It was exciting and adventurous. I couldn't wait to get a few minutes to keep reading it. The love story is great as well.

These is My Words is definitely my favorite book from the last few years. It starts out with 18 year old Sarah Prine traveling across the country with her family in 1881. As you can imagine, it's hard and stressful on all of the family. We see Sarah through the trip, the settling down with her family in the Arizona Territory, and starting her life in the harshness of the time.

The book is written as Sarah's diary. As she grows older, so does her writing. Sarah Prine is such an engaging character - very strong and brave even though she doesn't always want to be strong. She falls in love, works hard on her ranch, and survives. It sounds like it could be a very depressing book, and I suppose there are books written about this time that are depressing. But throughout the book I was rooting for Sarah, shared in her triumphs and cried with her in the sadness. And I was inspired by her.

I believe you will fall in love with Sarah as I did. After you've read this book, you will want to read more about Sarah in the next two books in the series. And you won't be disappointed.

A review from my teenage daughter:

"A Ring of Endless Light" is one of my favorite books!

I've read it five times since I first found it at the library last summer, and since then, I have also read "A Wrinkle in Time," "The Moon by Night,"and "An Acceptable Time".

What I really like about it is the characters. They are so interesting!

The movie, on the other hand, was nowhere near as good as the book. (Characters they left out: John, Leo, Grace, Binnie, Nancy Rodney, Jeb Nuttley, and probably somebody else, too...) And after I read the book, I was rather upset with the Disney Channel.

Although this is a wonderful novel, I would not recommend it to anyone under the age of thirteen because of some mature content.

Lastly, I want to include my frequent rant ( more of a whine, really) about that Zachary Gray person: I never understood why Ms. L'Engle kept putting him in her books. He never changes, and he's just as much of a jerk in "An Acceptable Time" as he was in this book. I don't know what Vicky sees in him. He kept saying that he "needed her" but she can't be his psychologist; Earth to Vicky, Earth to Vicky! Not a good reason to go out with him!

As always, Madeleine L'Engle delivers a stunning piece of fiction with `A Ring of Endless Light.' Although the main character, Vicky Austin, gives off a distinctive mary-sue air, the book (especially the guys!) are very enjoyable. Pieces of poetry found in this book are beautiful and elegant; they alone would be cause enough to read the book. `A Ring of Endless Light' also offers the reader an insight into the emotions and thoughts of a teenage girl in a fantastical setting. I would recommend this book for ages 13 and up. If you enjoyed this book, I would recommend Tiger Eyes by Judy Blume, Father Figure by Richard Peck and With You and Without You by Ann Martin as well as the rest of L'Engle's books.

Once again, Madeleine L'Engle has constructed a masterpiece. All her books are superb, but this one stands out to me as my absolute favorite. I understand its a Disney Channel movie now as well. I remember reading this book when I was about middle school aged and thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact, I took notes. There are several wonderful quotes that are worth remembering, and I think by the end I was left with some 10 pages of notes. I was a bit of a nerd as a kid, I guess. Still have all the papers filed away somewhere. Also memorized one of the poems to recite in my english class in about 7th grade. Fantastic book. I need to read it again.

In Madeline L'Enlgle's A Ring of Endless Light, 15-year old Vicky goes out to visit her sick grandfather to spend some time with him. During her stay, an old family friend, Commander Rodney, dies because he was trying to save another person from dying. On top of this, three young men are trying to get her adornment. Leo, Commander Rodney' son, is the nervous and puppy like young man who needs Vicky's attention. Although he may be nice, Vicky just wants to be his friend. Adam, a young man working at the marine biology center, confuses Vicky because he likes her, but pushes her away at the same time. Zachary, the rich, young man Commander Rodney died saving, wants Vicky back and claims that he needs her. Even though she has to deal with her love life, she has to help her grandfather, and other family members. During this vacation, she learns a lot about herself, death, life, her friends and family.

I really liked this book because it is very insightful. It gives me a lot of insight about living life. I want to live my lifelike Vicky and think like her because she lives her life to her fullest poetical and is moral, unlike me. She put phrases and lessons to heart and has a way of putting things into the right words. I liked how the author also wrote about death because I know that everyone is confused about tins subject. Some people firmly believe in one thing while other people are confused and wobbling. I remember what the Madeline L'engle writes about death whenever I come across one because her words sooth and help the soul.

I dislike the fact that the characters are a bit to perfect. The Austins are a bit like robots. There is the housewife mom that loves her husband and doesn't seem to have any arguments are all with him. The father is a strong man that supports his whole family. The oldest brother, like his father, is strong and smart. The youngest sister is beautiful and smart. The youngest brother is cute and innocent. Although Vicky seems more human than her family, she is still robotic. She always tries her hardest and it seems that everyone is drawn to her. Everyone trusts her with his or her secrets and everyone in the story has a longing to be with her. She is the person that people always want to be.

My favorite part of the book is hard to decide, but I think that my favorite part is when Vicky goes and visits the dolphins. I think that this is really interesting because Vicky learns that she can communicate with dolphins. In the beginning, she is really scared, but then she realizes that there is nothing to be afraid of. Soon, she feels comfortable with Basil. She can play with the dolphin and communicate freely. Even though people can't communicate with dolphins, Vicky can because her mind is somewhat childish, open, and free. I think that this is my favorite part because Vicky's relationship with Basil is much like my relationship with my friends. When I first made my friends, we were scared and shy, but once we knew each other, we had a lot of fun. When I am with my friends, I become childish, open and free, just like Vicky.

I loved this book and I would recommend it to girls from the ages 10 and up. This was a good story to connect to your life or the lives of the people around you. The things that happen to Vicky in A Ring of Endless Light might happen or may have happened to the reader. Therefore the plot of the story is believable. I would like to read another story by this author because I loved how thorough she was when describing Vicky's thoughts and feelings. When she was explaining how Vicky was seeing only darkness after a friend died in her arms, she painted a very vivid picture in my head. I thought that a Ring of Endless Light was truly a great book.

I bought this for my son who really does not read much. He completed the book and the study lessons. He really enjoyed it.

What an inspiration Coach Tony Dungy is and this book was one I could not put down.

As a Steeler fan who is old enough to remember Dungy as a part of the Steel Curtain defense (but not as large as I remembered!), as a Christian husband and father, and as a Patriots hater who cheers for any team against New England, I had three reasons to look forward to this book, and it was even better than I expected.

Dungy's writing, with assistance by a co-author, reads as mild and humble as his (lets face it) nerdy appearance. Despite, or because of, this to-the-core character, Dungy has succeeded at the cutthroat business of professional football at the highest level. Remember, neither of the teams he has coached had any history of winning before his tenure, and he essentially won a Super Bowl with each team (Chucky Gruden won with Tony's players after Dungy was fired, and you can see what kind of success Chucky has had since!).

One of the amazing aspects of Dungy's book is how wide spread his deep-rooted Christianity was amongst the "nasty" 70s Steelers--Dungy, Dirt Winston, Mel Blount, and Donnie Shell not alone made for one of the hardest-hitting defensive backfields in NFL history, but apparently one of its most mature and consistent Bible studies as well. It is encouraging to read about NFL players and coaches who focus on family and faith, not contracts and crime sprees.

Dungy never sounds boastful or arrogant about his faith, usually demonstrating his life lessons from his own mistakes. My tears spotted the pages of the chapter when Dungy talked about his son's suicide and the rest of the way it was hard for me, and for Dungy as well, to focus on football. As he says in a later chapter, never confuse your goals (winning a Super Bowl) with your purpose (glorifying God).

I needed reminding. Thanks, Tony!

This book is fantastic - I couldn't put it down! I have been a big fan of Tony since he was the coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, because of his presence on the football field. This book is an honest and inspiring account of Tony's life and the trials and successes he has encountered. Thank you Tony for a great read.

The autobiography, "Quiet Strength," of Tony Dungy is appropriately subtitled "The Principles, Practices, and Priorities of a Winning Life." Dungy recounts his life from its beginnings to the present as the Coach of the world champion Indianapolis Colts. A man of proactive faith, Dungy has been able to climb many mountains, from being one of the first black quarterbacks in NCAA college football to one of the first black head coaches in the National Football League.

"Quiet Strength" details key formative relationships, those that helped him to become what he is today. They include his mother, The Most Athletic Dungy, who supported in him in a number of sports; his father who taught him what was most important - not the accolades and memories of success, but the way you respond when opportunities are denied; his high school assistant principal, Mr. Rockquemore, who took a great interest in him and Dungy claims things would have been different if he had not; and his first pro coach, Chuck Noll, who taught him how to win in the NFL and how to maintain family-career balance.

Dungy always viewed his work in football as a means to do something more as a servant of God. When he was fired as the head coach of Tampa Bay, the firing itself was not the cause of shock, but rather, the thought that God was allowing this great experiment of using him as a head coach in the NFL to end. He wondered, what's next? How will God use him, whether in the NFL or not.

I am grateful that Dungy went on from Tampa to win the Super Bowl as coach of Indianapolis. More than becoming the first African-American to win a Super Bowl, this extraordinary achievement provided an excellent platform from which to tell this great story.

Dungy's story is inspirational, challenging, and encouraging - reminding us about what really is important in a world driven by the love of material success. He shows that one can live their Christian faith in the workplace and succeed - even in the demanding fish bowl atmosphere of the NFL. He is a living testimony of one man's faith in God.

"Do you your best and let God do the rest."

This book was kind of slow but did have enough interesting characteristics to keep me reading. Not at all a bad book but just not anything that made me want to get the second in the series.

Being a fan of the Myst series since it's original launch in the early 1990's, I can say that this book lives of to the expectations that Myst/Uru fans have come to appreciate. It's easy to read, flows well, has a great underlying story. After reading, you are able to understand and appreciate the island of Myst and Riven so much more. It's an easy book to read, which makes it great for both young and old. Though the book is around 400 pages, it flies by and as always, I was sad to finish it, but there are two more sequels to entertain the Myst fan in all of us.

The Myst series was such a wonderful series, after I found out they made a book about the history of Myst, I basically thought that it would be horrible. Grave mistake. This is one of the best books I have ever read. It couldn't get any better.
The creators of Myst even helped make it, and they knew what they were making. The horrible thing is that these books were discontinued.
Even if they were discontinued, it is not a reason not to buy them. They are all wonderful books and I suggest you get all of them.

It really seems only fitting that a video game about books would have a series of books published in its name. For some reason when such books were first coming out I was sort of skeptical about their quality. I truly am glad I overcame this and decided to pick up the Myst books. I was an early enough adopter to be able to get all the hardcover texts and they are all beautifully designed. It's strange that a lot of books don't adopt this kind of method, because it really is eye catching and I'm glad the makers of Myst picked up on that. In terms of binding, it technically is rather cheaply done to support the mass market interest in this series. Rather than have a truly older styled binding, they have the typical style with embossed paper wrapped over the hard cover. The paper is of excellent quality and is embossed in sections, which adds a tinge of making it feel artificially handmade. I've had mine for many years now and there is barely any wear on it. However, when one inspects the design you can tell it is merely paper glued over the normal hardcover pressing and it is merely there for aesthetic appeal. The books in the game have a very old styled feel, which they should since they're all handmade books, but the makers wanted to keep that atmosphere alive with printing these books. Despite my inspection of the edition, I must say it was a great marketing idea and wish more publishers would do this rather than just adopt the typical dust jacket. That being said, the current editions more readily available to readers are the regular paperback and now the collected edition which was recently printed.

I wasn't sure what to really expect from this book when I first got it. I had beaten the game "Myst" and the game was pretty well written. However, the game had a lot of unknown elements in its story, and I'm sad to report that "The Book of Atrus" doesn't fill in all the gaps. It certainly fills in quite a bit, but not everything. This book acts as both a prequel to "Myst" and a bridge to "Riven". It's an interesting story in that regard because it tells about Atrus' childhood and goes into why the age of Riven is in dire need of our help!

At the end of Myst we find Atrus sitting at a desk in a deep cavern in place known as D'ni. We are transported there with him once we escape the island of Myst, but we are never told why he is there; just that he needs to make a decision concerning his sons. This is all well and good, but there are so many holes and questions, thus the novelization seeks to explain them. At one time Atrus lived with his grandmother, Ana, in a desert region. "The Book of Atrus" goes into detail about his life and learning there. It's almost an ideal childhood until one day his father, Gehn, returns and seeks to take him back to D'ni. See they are from a race of people who lived underground until they were all of a sudden destroyed. Ana, Gehn, and Atrus are the only decedents we are made aware of from this great society. So when Gehn was old enough he returned to the world of D'ni in search of its secrets, to see if he could find it and possibly rebuild it. Needless to say he sort of succeeded.

Gehn understands how to write in the books and knows the secret D'ni language to make different ages to create portal links between his world and others. However, he does not wield this power intelligently, but he doesn't want the knowledge to die with him, so he seeks out his son. He teaches Atrus everything, but Atrus has a keener mind for creating ages. Most of Gehn's worlds are unstable and if a world has inhabitants Gehn insists on be treated as a God. Needless to say Atrus' kindly nature has the better of him and he seeks to change this.

In this we get to see the bridge to Riven's story line. Riven had been an age linked to by Gehn, but the world was vastly unstable. So he and Atrus sought to fix it if they could. Gehn, being the overbearing man that he is, did not think most of Atrus' ideas were good ones. However, one thing would change Atrus' life forever when he got to Riven, he met Catherine there. Yes, the girl he references frequently in the first "Myst" game. Eventually she would bear his two sons Sirrus and Akenar, so as you can tell, I knew Atrus would succeed even during reading this, so I don't feel I am giving anything away. The book doesn't go into detail about the two sons growing up, so you never really know how everything started with them. Anyway, there is a solution to Atrus' problem, but I'll let the readers find that out for themselves. When we get to "Riven", the video game, there are further complications based around this story... I'll leave these mysteries to be discovered for yourself.

I don't feel I am spoiling very much of the book because it is riveting in itself. Most people who read this will undoubtedly have played the video games and already know the stories' outcomes before reading this. As any Myst player knows the interesting factor is in the details, I have left every part of these out. The book is a fascinating page turner and I really couldn't put it down at all. This book leaves a lot more mystery to the reader in the end and left us looking forward to the follow up text, "The Book of Ti'ana." I especially recommend this to any Myst fan who wants to delve deeper into the story line and world of Myst. I don't think many people would pick up Myst if they didn't already enjoy reading books to find out what new worlds they would be brought to. In that spirit these books are clearly written!

I read this book when I was younger and only remember great things. Looking back on it now I can tell that the writing isn't exactly scholarly, but that doens't matter, Myst is a fun adventure story that all kids and teens should enjoy. And no, I'm not a big fan of fantasy myself, but I had no trouble getting drawn in.

I was determined to finish this book just to count the number of times Georgia Durante mentioned how beautiful she was. It was a million plus. You get the drift. This little lady couldn't get over herself. Her poor daughter Toni took the brunt of her mother's bad, bad choices and paid the price. There was claptrap galore, from her inane, juvenile musings to the stupefying way she portrayed herself as a hapless victim. And the verbatim dialog? How could anyone possibly remember exact conversations from three decades ago? Come on!!

Georgia Durante should just have named her book, "All About Me". At least it would have been an honest if not vacuous biography by just another celebretard who managed to sleep her way to the top of the heap.

The author keeps you turning pages with an incredible life, as fast as the company she keeps. I enjoyed this read, the author's no nonsense delivery, the woman's perspective, and the story told straight and true. If there are embellishments, you wouldn't know it as it's told. An excellent memoir.

Having lived in Rochester all my life, I recognized a lot of the names that Georgia wrote about, even remember her as the Kodak Summer Girl.
Excellent read

I have recommended Georgia Durante's The Company She Keeps to many of my clients who are recovering from being sexually, physically, or psychologically abused. Ms. Durante's story, her courage, and her subsequent success in a field dominated by men serves as a wonderful source of encouragement and inspiration. It is the true story of a very remarkable person who had many things to overcome, including not being taken seriously because she is so physically beautiful. When you read this book, you learn her inner beauty and strength.

Larry M. Raskin, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychologist
Louisville, Kentucky

This is a brave book. I can't imagine going through some of the things the author went through and not have a heart attack from fear! My sister loved the book too!

To get the most enjoyment from this beautiful book, buy the original Katherine Woods translation.

This is a wonderful story and a great book I was able to share with my students. The only drawback with the book is that the pages are not in color, but the extremely low price allowed me to purchase the books for my students out of my own pocket.

Katherine Woods' translation is the only English-language version of The Little Prince which captures the beauty, simplicity, clarity, and profundity of the Antoine de St. Exupery's classic, penned in French.

(The newer translation is appallingly horrid and bland, mistaken, and frankly perplexing.)

This is really not a children's book, although older children will appreciate it.

Don't measure the value by the thickness of the book. De St. Exupery, himself a WWI pilot, writes with a great economy yet produces here the most beautiful poetry with a delightful playfulness and childlike innocence -- a fresh vision which thus sees clearly and does not obscure the profound.

Mr. Fred Rogers used to quote from de St. Exupery, whose image and illustrations once graced the 20-franc note (in the days before the euro).

There simply is no other work like this one. It is an exceptionally rare treasure, a masterpiece.

Be sure to read Katherine Woods' translation. Read it privately, when you have time to savor each word. And keep a box of tissues nearby.

The Little Prince has often been heralded as a youthful book, required reading in elementary and high schools alike. In delivering it this way I think The Little Prince is missed by the only audience that is likely to truly appreciate it, that is adults. It is not an uncommon misconception that this is a children's book. Indeed, I keep the pictures stored on my computer, and am often asked where they came from. I reply that they are from one of my favourite books, and without fail the response is along the lines of, 'I don't mean to be rude but is that a children's book?'. 'No', I explain, 'it is not'.

The Little Prince is most needed, I think, by adults. It is easy to be caught up in, as De Saint-Exupery describes it, 'matters of consequence' and forget that it is not these matters which bring meaning to life. By pointing out the futility of professions practised endlessly and in isolation of other people, it becomes clear that the Little Prince, with his rose, is the only character with a life of consequence.

This book is beautifully written and translated by Katherine Woods. It speaks volumes through its simple tale, strange though it seems that matters such as these only become clear when they are somewhat removed from reality. Matters such as love, innocence, imagination and priorities. The Little Prince is a gentle and stirring reminder to never forget to see the boa constrictor from the hat.

I was an adult when i read this book, and i really appreciated the lessons in life that Saint-Exupery shares through the Little Prince.

A great book, full of beautiful illustrations, easy to read, while fun and sad at the same time.

I personally read it as if Exupery is sharing with us the conversations he has with his own inner child, in the image of the Little Prince. That is why the Little Prince would ask many questions, but rarely answer the ones he was asked. Like all our inner children he's been hidden inside and kept silent for a long long time, and now that he was given his chance, he will speak. And we better listen, for he is an integral part of our psyche, who will take us through the most unbelievable adventures.

well any book that makes me cry I consider to be pretty good, and this book had me crying. It's a sad story, but it's beautifully written.

This book was one of the, if not the, saddest books I have ever read. The characters and plot are very deep, and the book keeps you hooked all the way to the end. I cried. a lot. Very sad, but highly recommended.

I think this was a very good book. It teaches morals about how to deal with life. Not just normal day stuff a girls goes through, that along with having cancer. It shows how important it is to have a best friend, and what it is like to be a good one. I like how is portrays the two young girls life, it makes it so you can relate to them more. I like how it changed the side of the story, from Sam and Julie. It showed how hard it is to have cancer, but than also how hard it is to have your best friend go through it also. It takes the negatives of the book (cancer) into a positive impact on life. Too live your life with not regrets and to live life to the fullest. It is a very touching book. I almost cried. This book seems similar to the books by Lurlene McDaniel. I suggest this book to anyone who likes sad, life changing stories, who is also about 12 or older due to bad language. Even with that to though, it shows what the girls lives were like and gave more emotion to what was happening in there lives. This is definitely a must read and to add it to you collection, or school library!

I liked this book a lot the first time I read it, but not so much the second time. When I read it the first time, I didn't know what was going to happen so it was a surprise. However, when I read it the second time I knew what was going to happen, so it was kind of boring. I did like it a lot though because it was a really sad book and I love sad books.
Sammy and Julie were the best of friends. They loved to go to parties together, they loved to dance together, and they loved to all around spend time together. They are in the middle of a dance class when Julie all of a sudden feels really sharp pains in her hip and back. Her mother has to take her to the hospital but they are no help at all. Julie goes through 13 different doctors before she even knows whats wrong with her. She then finds out she has a really bad cancer and it is spreading very fast. Julie has to drop out of school and dance class just to recover. Sammy is really upset that she can't see or talk to Julie! Julie gets worse and worse over time until one day she goes into a coma. Shortly after Sammy gets a call from Julie's mom and rushes over to say good-bye. Shortly after Julie slips away!
I recommend this book to teenagers that love sad books like me. This book is really sad!

This book made me cry! I think everyone should read this book. It is touching, upsetting, and happy. language is beautiful. Note: for children under 10, has lots of bad words.LOVED IT!

Worth the buy and read. Significantly better and richer than the movie. There's good reason for the solidly high ratings given to this book.

I was delighted by the reading of such a good novel packed with a lot of suspense and actions.
Bob Lee Swagger (also called Bob the Nailer) was a top sniper in the Vietnam war. Stephen Hunter inspired by the biography of Carlos Hathcock depicts a brave man, alone, who looks like Rambo (from "First Blood" by David Morrell). In every book of the saga, we learn to respect Bob Lee Swagger. "Point of Impact" was made into a very good film titled "Shooter". Here the hero comes from Iraq and not Vietnam.
Have a nice time.

Shooter Movie Versus Point of Impact Book:
The Bob Lee Swagger story lines in the book and the movie are different in character building, action, and political satire. Very understandable, screen productions can rarely replicate a book.

Although I hesitate to "spill the beans" on the movie or the book, but the movie is so entertaining that I watch it over and over and the Point of Impact book is one of the few books worth reading over and over again (sorry Clancy, Koontz, Coontz, and Ludman).

Shooter Movie:
The movie from director Antoine Fuqua takes the world after 9/11 (El Salvador is not of much interest, but oil is) and he pumps oceans of well oiled political satire, which is at its very best: "there are only have and have-nots (Iraq ref)", "I didn't much like the President before him", "I still have the shovel (JFK ref)," "its just human weakness, and you can't kill that with a gun," "Exactly!...Bang!"

Although the Shooter movie character building could have used another half-hour or more, the character-action building of the movie (if there is such a thing) was superb. Anyway, more time on character building would have put the brakes on the movie. It was one lightning action sequence after another that not even a Die Hard or a Tom Clancy movie could match or even top (and I loved the Hunt for Red October, the Sum of All Fears, Bourne Trilogy, and so on).

The movie plot deviations from the book were very well thought out and made the movie rip and roar through one satisfying scene after another. The long distance shot at the Presidential podium was superior to the book and did a very credible job of integrating Nick Memphis's role and his timely flow throughout the movie.

Antoine Fuqua exploits what I define as the Al Qaeda mind-set (AQMS), which is the same brain dysfunction that people everywhere are wired into, but just use different means that cause different results: the church killing Islamic people and women centuries ago, and raping boys in this century, web video murders/suicide bombers of today's Islamic Terrorists, the previous decades of killing by the KKK, Hitler's killing of more than 6 million Jews...the never ending human carnage, no matter what millennium, from the beginning of testosterone beings or until the end of testosterone beings...I doubt that Homo Sapiens will ever change.

AQMS applies to political character assassinations in DC, where multi-millions (billions this year) are spent by political candidates attempting to destroy the reputation of all other candidates, Congressmen writing bad checks not so long ago, paying for sex, and sucking soft money at the expense of all American citizens.

AQMS applies to Enron and many others, to Mortgage banks and their infamous ARMS (the Fed is now rewarding them at our expense, with proper spin), and the Medical establishment in the movie "Sicko" by Michael Moore. It is one-sided negative-news from the media, harping on one murder after another. It is the negative consumption syndrome of the general common-denominator population that tunes in for all the sick TV shows (most of them), puts up with depraved commercials (especially those commercials that depict greed, drugs, new car decadence, and people being hurt)...almost nothing positive in the news, ever. Most AQMS folks probably never heard of and never tuned to the commercial-free Arts channel (there is some hope for Homo Sapiens even though we may yet kill the planet Earth).

Even if everyone on the Earth knew about the overwhelming genetic evidence (The Journey of Man, by Spencer Wells) that makes every person on the Earth (without exception) a child of the Bushmen of Africa, the world today would probably be the same and nothing would change. Denial is incurable, unbeatable, and an unstoppable plague on our planet.

Denial is about "No input, Stephanie...Number 5 is alive" and making it all up as he/she goes, "Short Circuit" or not: from ridiculous royalty delusions of Kings/Queens, back to Hitler's despicable Arian race, to Religions that murder people, and on and on.

Denial at the individual level is just smoke and mirrors, devoid of reality, and founded upon "What's in it for me," but more precisely "It's mine all mine!" Denial is the mother of all that is wrong with the human race.

Compared to the book, I found Antoine Fuqua's version more satisfying. Swagger being pulled down the river by a barge was a lot more believable than the book's Swagger holding onto a log for 18 hours, with two bullet wounds. It is a more believable for the sniper action on the Glacier and in its ending when Bob Lee Swagger (not his lawyer) demonstrated why the gun would not shoot. The icing on the cake was when Swagger fired his last shot into the most corrupt and well deserving Senator's head. What followed was even more explosive.

Point of Impact Book:

Stephen Hunter illuminates the world before 9/11 (El Salvador was of interest, it just after the first Gulf war) where he guns genocide and greed into political satire, which is very good but not as satisfying as the movie's one-liners which underscore greed, corruption, and other negative attributes of us Homo spaiens (means wise men, yeah, right)!

There is not much I can say about the book that can top several hundred other reviewers. However, I wished that the book had been twice as long. It was a terrific read. Hunter "the psychology nailer" knows political infighting of Government agencies.

Hunter's character building of Bob Lee Swagger was superb, starting with cutting off Tim's antlers the day before deer season to letting Dr. Dobbler cop out at the end.

For me, the book was a physiological thriller that was absolutely on target. Stephen Hunter's grasp on how the mind works was well orchestrated by the evil psychiatrist, Dr. Dobbler. Hunter's technical prose on weapons was no less impressive than Clancy at his best (I read most of Clancy's books). Hunter's prose matched the five senses Dean Koontz can conjure up, including the sixth sense (I read most of Koontz's books).

However, the book's version about Swagger's woman being an actual nurse and not a third grade teacher (where is a teacher going to get antibiotics or surgical skills for deep wounds?) made significantly more sense. The movie left out the need for antibiotics, the book was right on target for gangrene candidate wounds.

The book's version about Swagger's hilltop battle was good, but not as totally satisfying as the Movie's shootout with 24 child killers that got their just dues from Swagger and Nick. The book did not have a nasty nemesis inside the VA cabin commit suicide, a child and woman killer that deserved to die. This shooter's suicide stayed within his evil character, denying Swagger the satisfaction of killing him. And even rubbing it in with "They've got your woman...Bang!"

The movie changed Colonel Shreck's name to Colonel Isaac Johnson. The title of the movie "Shrek" kept popping up in my mind every time I read the Colonel's name in the book. I was glad that the movie changed it to Johnson.

Unlike the movie (probably no sequel is planned), the Bob Lee Swagger books are a trilogy. Thank you, Stephen Hunter, I've got two more Swagger books to savor, "Time to Hunt" and "Black Light!" And after I'm done with these, there are books about Bob Lee Swaggar's father, plus other great books by Stephen Hunter.

Arguably the best book I've read in 2007. The movie follows the main story line, although a decade or two behind. The movie was great, the book was better. It was full of action/suspense from cover to cover. I was impressed with Hunter's writing and will definitely get the second book.

POINT OF IMPACT is the first novel I've read by Stephen Hunter, the Pulitzer-prize winning film critic for THE WASHINGTON POST. It's a very solid read, esepcially if you're a gun officiado.

This novel in many ways reminds me of the Jack Reacher novels by Lee Child. Bob Lee Swagger, the hero of this novel, is a veteran of the Vietnam War who is also the ultimate loner and tough guy. Swagger finds himself framed for a murder he doesn't commit, and is forced to go on the lam. The rest of the book deals with his efforts to prove his innocence, and take vengenance on the powerful people who set him up.

Hunter is a good writer, and he knows how to write an excellent action scene. Some of the gun fights in POINT OF IMPACT are really impressive. Like most action novels, the plot is unbelievable and much of the characterization is two-dimensional. Hunter also throws in far too much technical information about guns and ballistics -- I personally found all this data rather dry and unncessary to the storyline. Still, after a slow start, this novel becomes quite exciting to read, and Hunter knows how to tell a compelling story with heroes you can root for.

Overall, POINT OF IMPACT is a really good action novel, and I look forward to reading more of Hunter's work.

When I read this book I laughed, I cried, and reflected to my own experiences. Clay Aiken has so much wit and is a wonderful story teller.
I would recommend this book for anyone but especially kids that get picked on at school, as Clay was. His childhood was filled with pain but he chose to rise above it all. From his biological father to his step-father,
he had always gotten the short end of the stick and wondered what it would take to be loved. Wonderful, inspirational reading.

I recently finished his book in just a few hours. Excellent! The book reveals his life as a child, facts about his biological dad and his step dad, and his lovely mother. Many chapters actually moved me to tears. This man is humble, extremely talented and gifted.
A definite Must Read! You will enjoy the trip down memory lane with Clay.

This book is truly a masterpiece! I read this book because I am a Clay Aiken fan, and I thought, 'Hey, a book by Clay Aiken, this should be cool.' I would recommend this book for anyone! Even if you aren't a fan of Clay, this is still an inspiring book. Let's just say: I laughed, I cried, it moved me!" I'm ordering the book and the audio cds. This is one of those books that you read front to back, then open it right back up and read it again!

Clay Aiken is one of the few celebrities I look up to. He has devoted fans because people see him as a friend or a brother. He is a very kind, humorous, and generous man. I am glad I read this book.

I don't really like to write reviews, but I couldn't resist this one. Let me just start by saying I wasn't a fan of Clay when he was on Idol. I guess I was a bit young to really appreciate his talent. Well I've rediscovered him and have become a HUGE FAN. I can call myself a claymate.

Anyway, this book is great. I finished it in a day. I couldn't put the book down, not even for a minute. From the very beginning Clay opened himself up and showed that he's vulnerable. He says that he wants people to realize what you see is what you get when it pertains to him. You can't help but cry when things are rough, and smile when he sees the light at the end of the tunnel.

This may be a spoiler, but one of the many things that really stood out for me was when he was talking about his stepdad. When his stepdad died, you can tell at that time, Clay felt incomplete, not knowing whether he was loved by him or not. Then he remembered a story his mom told him; his mom said, a friend of his dad had visited him and he was talking about his brother Brett and how he knew he would turn out to be a great man. Then his stepdad said, "my other son is going to be a famous singer one day because he has the most beautiful voice."

That part of the book really touched me bc I felt like he got his closure and he knows his stepdad really loved him.

Anyway, I don't mean to go on and on, but this is a great book and is a page turner. You can't help but love Clay more and I'm sure people who read this book can relate to him in so many levels.