Audio Books

I am a clinical therapist and use this book to inspire adolescent and young adult women in their journey! This entire trilogy is priceless for anyone who is interested in being blessed by watching another soul "unfold" and take flight! I love hearing about Oriah's metamorphasis... i can see her "grow up" throughout her trilogy! Watching her go full circle in her discoveries touches my heart and inspires my soul. She is human and she is courageous enough to share her story. I recommend you read all three... The Invitation, The Dance and The Call. Thank you Oriah!

Within the pages of this beautiful little book, the reader finds magic, truth, beauty and healing.

As an author, Chinese Medicine & Healthy Weight Management, and healer, I recommend this book highly to my patients and friends, as well as to you.

Words themselves can become acts of beauty that awaken and strengthen our commitment to living our soul's desires. ~Oriah Mountain Dreamer

Oriah Mountain Dreamer blends daily existence with spiritual insight. She survived a violent marriage, chronic fatigue and living almost next door to her ex husband when he remarried. Her life is a study in patience, emotional turmoil resolved and survival of the most open heart.

The start of the book contains a poem and then each chapter is an expanded vision of the elements contained in a part of the poem. After the poem, Oriah dives right into a retelling of her life, the conflicts she has experienced and how as a spiritual teacher, she too struggles to maintain emotional equilibrium. There is a subtle comfort in knowing that if Oriah can survive her life, then we can too.

This is the beauty mingled with the various stunning insights Oriah has while trying to unburden her heart and pull us out on the dance floor of life. She loves to read and a number of the books she mentioned where books I had just recently read. She quotes Rainer Maria Rilke and Rumi. She discusses Daniel Ladinsky's translations of Hafiz. Her "headed for home" comments made me think of Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet.

Throughout this work Oriah focuses on connecting, serenity, joy, an authentic lifestyle, living with passion, retaining energy and focus, being honest and finding happiness within the complex. She also provides meditations on worthiness, surrender, slowing down and letting go.

This is not a five-step or a ten-step program, it is more an unfolding of experience through an exploration of Oriah's life experience. She has struggled, she has survived. She also knows there are no quick fixes and that many self-help programs are no match for real-life situations. Sometimes there is no easy way out of the pain and you have to endure heartache to learn your greatest lessons.

"Take me to the places on the earth that teach you how to dance,
the places where you can risk letting the world break your heart,
and I will take you to the places where the earth beneath my feet
and the stars overhead make my heart whole again and again."
~ Oriah Mountain Dreamer

What did I love most about this book? The section where she talks about her ultimate fantasy of reading in bed with the man she loves. Yes, this book is mostly about Oriah, or the people she has met throughout her life, but the way she draws on her inner wisdom is by experiencing life and dancing with difficulty.

~The Rebecca Review
Author of Seasoned with Love: A collection of
best-loved recipes inspired by over 40 cultures

The Dance is a great book. I enjoyed it from the first page to the last. Oriah is not just a writer; she is an artist, with a new perspective on life, and on events. Her thoughts flow smoothly, as if you were reading something you wrote, or something you already knew to be true. I am going to say it again, she is an artist.

Some parts of the book, you won't help but read out loud to someone you care for. I did that with my mother, and some other times with a friend of mine. Both of them want to borrow the book.

This book will help you dream, and here I will quote something from the author, as she wrote "To dream is to create the stories of how we live our lives, and these are the stories our children's children will remember. I write with as much honesty and frankness as I can, because I want to offer stories of being present with what is. I recite poetry when I speak, because I want offer beauty and the power of art to remind us of who and what we are. I share personal stories, because I want to cocreate a story of intimacy and cultivate our capacity for compassion in dealing with out human failings. I tell love stories because I want to learn how to love well." (p151)

I will buy The Call, and I know it will be as good as the Invitation and The Dance. And hopefully one day in the future I will make it to one of Oriah's retreats.

Several years ago I listened to the audio version of this book and I thought at the time that it was a nice diversion, but just typical New-Age feel-good stuff. Now in my 50s, when I listened to it again recently I was stunned by how powerfully honest the author is and how her poetic honesty brought strength and character to her message. This is not a "how to . . ." book. It is more likely to impact the reader who is a mature spiritual seeker (Christian or otherwise) who feels bogged down by mundane daily living and, like many spiritual seekers, tripped up by trying to DO before really knowing how to BE. That is no small distinction. This book addresses real issues like chronic illness, divorce, raising children, mid-life love, finances and regret all from a practical perspective that helps the reader assess where she is and where she hopes, someday, to be. Mountain Dreamer doesn't give formulas or pat answers--she even amusingly describes hearing a motivational speaker who's message sounds good, but doesn't ring true in any lasting, practical sense. The book is about both inner and outer balance, cutting yourself some slack while still holding yourself to standards of character that have meaning for you personally, and about offering the reader an opportunity to stop for a time and check his own spiritual development against his dreams. Her passage describing meeting a "significant other" thirty years after a teenage crush, and the clarity he was able to bring to her regarding how essentially true to her young self she had remained is priceless. The reader can find peace and hope merely by acknowledging having faced the issues discussed, and being willing to ask how they mattered.

I received this book in brand new condition and quick shipping. I am satisfied yet again with my experience ordering from Amazon!

Thanks

The book is excellent reading both for kids as well as grown-ups.
The language keeps the balance as few books do - not condescending, but appropriate for children

The youthful adventures of the ever-sensible Frog and his seemingly naïve companion Toad demonstrate important qualities of lasting friendship. This dynamic duo cleans a house, flies a kite, shares ghost stories, celebrates a birthday gift, and even discovers benefits to being alone on occasion. In each of the five vignettes there is a unique balance between the elements of repetition and surprise. Also remarkable about this book is Lobel's one-of-a-kind illustrations. Each green and brown image brilliantly depicts action which serves as a cue for early readers. The simplicity of the drawings allows readers to focus on the text while enjoying the illustrations. In addition to the close match of images to words, the large print, short chapters, and overall themes of the book lend themselves to younger children ages five to eight. While Frog and Toad have many dissimilar characteristics, their differences do not get in the way of their close friendship and their love for each other. Lobel's masterpiece leaves children with several new lessons while remaining exceptionally entertaining.

I've bought several of the Frog and Toad books for my grandson (who is now six) and we loved them all, this one included. They are delightful and refreshing. There is a lesson in every book, and my grandson never loses interest in hearing the stories. One of the characters is a pessimist, the other an optimist, and I think this causes children to really think about life, and consider looking at life as the glass being half FULL! Frog and Toad really rock!

My daughter's nursery is decked out in Frogs, so the discovery of these books made them books we had to consider. They are fun and the illustrations are grest. At eleven months she is too young to read them herself, but we read them to her - and she enjoys them. The stories are simple with a central theme - do good for others, treat your friends with respect, help your firends when they need help, laugh, and aporach life with adventure. These are great virtues to instill in young minds. If the books were made in cardboard stock, Teah would be even more happy with them - as it is she frequently grabs one of them when it's time for her bedtime story - and great bedtime stories they are. By the time she starts to read she will know the stories by heart, but that's ok - fond memeories of bedtime stories like these should help her build a lifelong interest in reading on her own.

Beautiful story about how a family deals with the loss of someone they love. Excellent writing and character development, I was sucked in from the first chapter and was crying by the end of the book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that has lost someone close to them.

Thank you for this wonderful, wonderful book. I wanted to stop reading it because I was afraid I'd be too sad but I couldn't stop once I'd started.

Dear Readers --- If you want to spend a few days curled up with a book that may change your life, then "Dear Zoe" is, hands down, the paramount choice. Have a full box of Kleenex nearby, though; I became a human waterfall while reading this book, empathizing with this young girl and her pain. I saw so much of my ownself in her, even though it has been decades since I was that age. Yet, I too went through the soul-shifting lifechange that was 9/11. I know my worldview will never again be the same after that day. I can distinctly recall thinking that was the beginning of the end of the world, and I spent the whole day on the phone gathering my husband and girls to come home so we could die together. God, how quickly we forget! I/we lost an innocence, a groundedness that day. We took so much for granted. This book reminded me, however, that one terrible occurrence, such as the death of a loved one, can shift one's world in much the same way. Additionally, my husband and I have raised three daughters, and I saw so much of each of my own girls in these three. A note for the author: Mr. Beard, you somehow managed to insert yourself into the psyche of a 15-year-old girl and you were right-on with frightening precision. I felt my own past exposed and I don't know how you did it, but seeing you do it was redeeming. Kudos to you and yours for tapping into and laying bare for us, the readers, the angst of a teenage girl! Lastly, I do not often buy books to keep; I usually read from the library. However, this is one book I will buy to keep on my shelf and to loan out to loved ones, with the only request being that it come back to me so that the cycle can continue.

"Maybe 'Z' is the shape of everyone's life," writes Philip Beard. "You're going along in what feels like a straight line, headed for one horizon, the only one as far as you know, and then something happens..."

But my zigs and zags were few in Philip Beard's slim novel, "Dear Zoe." On this level of writing, it's smooth sailing. Beard is a skilled writer, and his style is seamless enough that he accomplishes the very difficult writer's task - not only of crossing genders in this first person narrative by a female, but with the voice of a very young female - all of 15 years old. And he does it convincingly.

So convincingly, in fact, that I felt myself as reader engage as I should, that is, to lose awareness of self and surroundings, soon immersed completely into the storyline and characters. "Dear Zoe" is a letter, written across time, from one sister to another. Zoe, however, will never read this letter. Zoe is gone, killed in a car accident, and this letter is, perhaps, how older sister Tess copes with her loss, her grief, even her guilt.

This extended letter is about Tess but also about her extended family. It is family like any: not without its dysfunctions, not without its baggage and broken places, with elaborate wounds and still healing scars. When a member of a family unexpectedly dies, everyone grieves, each in his or her own way and own pace, and it can at times meld a family together, at others rip apart. Beard portrays all of this messy and zigzagging process, but without any melodrama, always sensing when to draw the appropriate line.

Then comes the true test. Nearing end, the storyline veers into an event in American history that is almost impossible to mention without imploding into melodrama. When I realized the backdrop this author was setting up for his story, I nearly winced, but, wait, what's this? Oh, my. Beard makes it work. Work so well, in fact, that he accomplishes the individualizing of something nationally, even internationally shared, and brings it down to one heart, one life, one experience, felt by one person at a time. This personal tragedy is of a size, immense and miniscule at once, that each reader will be able to absorb and comprehend, and through comprehending the miniscule, the immense suddenly gains full impact. Just as numbers that trail off into endless zero's at some point become incomprehensible, so perhaps we as human beings cannot truly comprehend tragedy unless it happens one soul at a time, passed gently on from one hand into the next.

Having accomplished this feat, the author, and "Dear Zoe," has earned my highest recommendation.

On September 11th, 2001, nearly 3,000 people lost their lives in numerous acts of terrorism against the United States. Even now, five years later, people still ask the question, "Where were you on 9/11?" I remember watching, on that fateful day, news coverage that left me horrified, aghast, and haunted. Where was I on 9/11? At work, on a day that started out like any other and quickly turned into one that no one will ever forget.

If you asked Tess DeNunzio, the fifteen-year-old girl at the center of DEAR ZOE, where she was on 9/11, she'll be quick to tell you that she was at home with her younger half-sister, Zoe, waiting for the school bus like any other day. Except for that one moment, when she let her gaze wander elsewhere, and Zoe ran into the street, into the path of an oncoming car. For Tess and her family, 9/11 is a day they'll never forget.

DEAR ZOE is Tess's letter to Zoe, her way of healing from her sister's death and coming to terms with the changes that have taken place in her extended family. This isn't a story about September 11th, 2001, in the ways that most of us have come to view that day. As Tess puts it, "...just like all the people who go to New York and cry over the rubble. I want to tell them all to go home. I want to tell them to go home and hold their children or their lovers or their parents. I want to tell them that they are using that place as an excuse to be sad and afraid when there will be reason enough for that in their own lives if they just wait."

According to recent facts, nearly 150,000 people die every day. That's about 1.8 people every second. And yet no one seems to remember the other 147,000 people that died on 9/11. That includes myself. Until reading DEAR ZOE, I had never stopped to consider that there were other people around the world who were grieving for lost loved ones who had
nothing to do with an act of terror.

Thanks to Mr. Beard, I now have a new way of looking at that day in history. I also have the story of Tess and Zoe, which will stay with me for much longer than it took for me to read the book. Love, loss, regret, and forgiveness mingle within the pages of DEAR ZOE to form a story that, quite possibly, you'll remember even five years later.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"

I got the boxed set of four when I was around 8 or 9. At the time, my mom thought I thought I should read them when I'm a little older. So when i was 11 I read the first two. I liked them a lot. Well, my birthday was a few days ago. It's been awhile sinc ei've read the Elsie books cause I just lost intrest. For my birthday I recieved the Oringinal Elsie Book 1. I personally think I'll the oringinals a lot better, especially since now i'm a lot older. But if you're still a little young, but want to read the Elsie books, tehse one's are better for you. Their dialouge's a lot easier to understand, bigger print, bigger book, etc. But if you're older, read the oringinals.

Elsie's Endless Wait is an inspiring book about an 8-year-old girl who has a stronger faith in God than most adults. She withstands harsh criticisms from her family. "What is the meaning of this, you little good-for-nothing?" She waits faithfully for her father, who has been away for years, to come home, never losing hope. "How I wish he would come home." Elsie's Endless Wait inspired me to be a stronger Christian, because of a little girl who has faith enough to move a mountain. I absolutely could not put this book down. I recommend it to every girl.

This is one of the best books I have ever read. I was reading it to my girls and after I finished their chapter for the night I took it into my room and read the whole thing. I did not want to put it down. Of course I finished it for my girls and they just love it too. They always ask for me to read more! I highly recommend this book. I'm going to be purchasing the whole set as soon as I can! I want this book to be a part of our collection!

This book is about an eight year old girl named Elsie Dinsmore. Her mom passed away right after she was born. Her dad couldn't handle the pain so he moved away. Horace (Elsie's father) left Elsie to be taken care of at his parent's home. There Elsie is faced with many problems. Elsie turns her problems to God and he helps her through them. All Elsie wants is for her dad to come home. She wonders, will he come home, will he love her? I love how in this book Elsie looks to god amongst all her problems, and how He always helps her through. This is the best book that I have ever read. There is not one single thing in this book that I didn't like. This book is the first of eight books in the Elsie Dinsmore Series, A Life of Faith. I plan to read the next seven of these books. This book reminds me a lot of the Bible. It is all about God and it tells true things about what God does for you. This is a great book for girls thirteen and older. But I bet boys could enjoy this book as well. This is the best book that I have ever read and I hope you get a chance to read it.

This book is about a young girl named Elsie Dinsmore. If you like christian books, and books that go back in time; this book is for you. Elsie is a young girl, about 8 years old. She lives with her grandma, grandpa, aunts, and uncles. She lives with them because her mother dies when she was a little girl, and her father is away in Europe on business. Her grandparents think it was a mistake that she was even born, and neither of them trat her very well. Her aunts and uncles also arn't very nice to her. Read this book to find out how Elsie deal with all her troubles and how God has helped her through everything. This is the first book in the series. It was so good I can't wait to read the next.

What i liked about this book: I am really into all the christian books, and this one really shows you how God can help you through anything and everything. This is one of those books that you just don't want to put down. I also like how it goes back in time. It doesn't happen n present day.

There is nothing about this book that I didn't like. All round i though this was a really great book!

The Erotic Mind is a wonderful book full of helpful exercises and ideas. I would recommend it to anyone interested in erotic growth.

I bought this book after reading all the reviews and couldn't NOT write my own. After reading this I felt NORMAL and wonderful about who I am sexually. All the old messages from childhood, all my inhibitions and fears all of a sudden became secondary and unimportant next to my emerging comfortableness with my own fantasies and preferences. I suddenly began remembering all sorts of childhood experiences that have led me to be who I am today and with that recognition I feel (I know it sounds cliche) liberated. But just ask my boyfriend! I shared a lot of this book with him, read to him sections and since he is so understanding and a willing participant in our ongoing evolution of sex, we were both able to confide in each other our deepest secrets. Now I realize how really normal I am and not as odd as I thought and it has boosted my confidence to try new things.

I would tell anyone grappling with their sexuality or that of a loved one's to go out and get the book immediately! It definitely spiced up our life!

This is simply a wonderful book that explores the parodoxes of human mating. It is well organized, easy to follow and contains a wealth of fascinating information.

Jack Morin centers his discussion around what he calls the "erotic equation." This is that attraction plus obstacles equals excitement. He then goes on to explain how lust and romantic love operate as well the dynamics of what he calls emotional aphrodisiacs. These are emotional states that could lead to the transformation of an emotion into sexual feelings. Some of these are obvious, but others such as anxiety or guilt are less obvious until you read Morin's detailed explantions.

I also think this book is useful for those who are trying to understand some the dynamics underlying infidelity. If you have interests along those lines, I also recommend "The Evolution of Desire" by David Buss and "Private Lies" by Frank Pittman.

Unfortunately, many of the other books I've found that deal with the erotic imagination or motivation for sexual behavior are sorely lacking in depth or treat the topic in an overly academic, clinical or arm's length manner. This book has a lot of meat and is written in a style that makes the concepts accessible to everyone, not just professionals working in this field.

I loved this book. I thought some of my turn-ons and bedroom behaviors were strange....maybe even abnormal, but Dr. Morin opens new ways of approaching your own thoughts.

I found that the answers, for what I thought were strange behaviors, were inside of me the whole time, they just needed to be explored. Now I love myself even more for understanding myself in a much deeeper level.

If you have had even one sexual thought (that's everybody who is reading this)...you need a copy of this book. All sexual orientations, male and female alike, can find something in this book that will make you think that Dr. Morin is speaking directly to you.

This book is like a discovery that I'd been searching for myself. It didn't come out of left field for me- I've often asked myself why I could feel frustrated when I didn't know what I wanted. The discouragement from not having an answer to that question was enormous, and it wasn't just a question I'd ask myself of sex, but of many aspects of my life.

That is why this book is great, because Dr. Morin challenges you to appreciate the impact that your erotic life and dilemmas have on your whole life. Feelings you may have buried in fear or shame turn out to be real messages about who you are. I recommend this book for anyone who feels they've had a complicated sexual adjustment, which I suspect is everyone who has gone through puberty. If you are ready to be compassionate towards yourself, this book can help to change your life.

There's not much more to to add to the glowing reviews already here. I just wanted to say that the kids go crazy for Fireman Small. I like that he is such a sweet caring firefighter who goes out of his way to help everyone. I love any book that instills compassion in its readers. We love Fireman Small!!!

My 2 1/2 year old son absolutely loves this book..the illustrations are lovely, and it is so much fun to read with him. He has already remembered all the words, and fills in most of the gaps as we read it together. He is crazy about fire engines and firemen. I can't recommend this book enough.

My 2-year old follows this story pretty well (it has a repetitive-type storyline) and caught on quickly to the page turn cues (siren). He loves all the sound effects throughout the story. The illustrations are eye catching as well and help tell the story for a child that doesn't read yet. The price is reasonable considering how hard these cassette read-along are to find!

This is a sweet story with a nice flow and repetition. My 2 1/2 year old son has immediately begun pretending to be Fireman Small saving the kitty and the baby bunny. I will definitely look into other books by this author.

I picked this up thinking that it would be another good fireman book for my fireman-obsessed five-year-old. It certainly is that, but the flow and the structure also make it an excellent help-your-child-to-fall-asleep story. The basic plot is that Fireman Small is very tired and keeps trying to go to bed, but each time he does some new emergency happens that forces him to get up one more time. When he's done with the last one, everybody thanks him for all his help and he oh-so-happily drifts off to sleep. I usually read him several stories at bedtime, but I like to make sure that this is the last one; by the time we're through with it he's usually nodding off.

One small problem; Wong seems to have a unique sense of rhythm, which makes this harder to read aloud then you might expect; it took me a couple of readings before I felt that I had gotten it completely right. With practice, though, it flows beautifully.

I have used Graceful Passages in many ways. It is an excellent education tool to address the "Elepahnt in the Room" for those who have not dealt with end of life issues. It is an excellent support tool for those who grieve. Graceful passages embraces diversity of different faith practices in the messages that it uses to teach.

You can listen to the powerful words and beautiful music over and over and over....May God bless You..always

Graceful Passages is a book and CD with wonderfully spiritual passages from many different cultures and beliefs. Men and Women, each on their own differnt journey help me understand the different paths we are all on and that as birth is the beginning, death is the end - but of only this life as we now know it. And that is OK. It is not to be feared as in western society. It is normal and natural and being prepared, and understanding it, guides us to making decisions about our death that are thoughtful, purposeful and with meaning. I have given this gift with love to friends who are in their dying process and it has been received well. I highly recommend listening to the words quietly and and allow the compassion to come through to your heart.

While I think this would benefit anyone, it is most meaningful at the end of life. I brought it to my grandmother when she finally admitted she was dying - she fought off leukemia and pnemonia for years. She lay on the couch and I on the love seat as we listened and tears streamed down our faces. I will never forget that day. This CD helps create a ritual of death, a significant send off. It is the variety of perspectives that is so appealing as well as the poignant manner in which they are presented.

Love the music on the cds and the words and picutes in the book. Highly recommend for anyone at any time!

This is one of the best books I have read - a wonderful book of community and belonging

In his Port William novels, Wendell Berry has built a community of nostalgia and gentleness that provides an opportunity to redirect our attention, for at least a time, from the day's most discouraging headlines. Enough of modern society trickles into the edges of Hannah Coulter's story, however, that we are reminded she may very well be our own contemporary.

This is the story of a woman widowed twice, who has never had extreme wealth but who seems to have learned contentedness in most situations and to be quietly resigned to the rest. Is she an idealized and not fully real character? Probably, but that could also be said of some of the many angst-drenched lead characters in other contemporary fiction, and I admit I find someone like this far more interesting.

The difference in her world from that of so many of the rest of us is summed up by another Port William resident's summary of what has happened to her children who have moved on to Ohio, California, and beyond.

"Andy said, 'You're worried because they've left the membership,' and he smiled...They've gone over from the world of membership to the world of organization. Nathan would say the world of employment.'...One of the attractions of moving away into the world of employment, i think, is being disconnected and free, unbothered by membership.It is a life of beginnings without memories, but it is a life too that ends without being remembered. The life of membership with all its cumbers is traded away for the life of employment that makes itself free by forgetting you clean as a whistle when you are not of any more use. When they get to retirement age, [my children] will be cast out of place and out of mind like worn-out replaceable parts, to be alone at the last maybe and soon forgotten.

"'But the membership,' Andy said, 'keeps the memories even of horses and mules and milk cows and dogs.'"

And that is the magic of Berry's writing; his telling of stories of those who are still *members* of a community helps keep their memories alive and reminds us of our own need to find our own community within our own spaces.

I don't always agree with Berry. Sometimes I agree with his dianoses but wonder what practical solution there is for the problems he notices. But one thing I must say is that he is able to beautifully capture the pathos and wonder of human community. Quite simply this is a beautiful meditation on life and relationship. If you do not come away longing for or at least pondering community and what it means you may want to check you pulse. His descriptions of married life are sublime.
A few random questions I have as I read the Port William novels:
-What would happen if an Italian immigrant moved to Port William? Would they be welcome?
-What is evil? Would you ever want to just kick someone out because they were so bad?
-Should I just let the effect of the novel wash over me or should I respond to a larger message?

Wendell Berry is one of the finest, most thoughtful writers in America today. I count on every one of his books -- novels, short stories, essays, and poetry -- to be thought provoking and superbly written. "Hannah Coulter" was absolutely up to his high standard.

ok.. I read this a year ago and loved it! It is elegantly written and soulful and kind. BUT after reading Wallace Stegner's 'Crossing to Safety'..and re-reading a chapter of 'Hannah Coulter', I'm afraid this book falls downward into a whole other category of writing. In my mind, 'Hannah Coulter' lacks humor..detail.. and the complexities of marriage. While Berry doesn't sugarcoat or gloss over his characters, he doesn't go into as much depth as I'd like, leaving me wondering and frustrated as to what's really going on inside Hannah, Nathan, and all the other folks of Port William. There just must be a whole lot more than 'everything's fine' in bucolic Port William..

The beauty of Stegner's book is that he manages to write 300 some odd pages on 'very quiet lives' and I truly hated for the book to end. With 'Hannah', I was left wanting more, not at just the end, but throughout the entire read.

This is a great book. Its a dense read, every word is important, so don't think you can just read it in a single afternoon

I really appreciate the no nonsense easy to read style. It's a bit much to read straight through -- I like focusing on a couple pages at a time and marinating in them. A great handbook for those with questions about who and what they are.

Hard reading at first, but then it flows. There is profound wisdom inside this book, with its deceptively simple title. I'm about to read it for the second time to try to better absorb it. It really teaches you about the adult - the human- you want to be.

I found this book helpful over 6 years ago when I first read it. I just finished reading it again (for the third time); the author's thoughts and understanding of life-issues (loneliness, relationships, self-esteem, adulthood, happiness) remain as helpful and relevant now as before. The way he contrasts "anger" (a natural feeling) from "drama" (an avoidance of true feeling); his exposition on "neurotic guilt"; and the paragraphs that lead up to "If people really knew me, they would not like me" illuminates one's understanding of oneself and others. Author Richo (Ph.D, psychology) makes clear the many areas of our life that we have responsibility for. The book contains helpful tables (checklists, kind of)that can be used (when viewing things or responding to stimulus) to develop better attitudes and habits. This book (like Nathaniel Branden - "Six Pillars of Self Esteem") does help one understand happiness in adulthood and also give insights into how to help our children grow into successful adulthood. Another book (Bernstein : Emotional Vampires: Dealing With People Who Drain You Dry) is also very useful.

It is one of the more, if not the most, impactful books I have read.

I have recommended this book to many friends and have purchased it as gift for some. Every one who read it has expressed tremendous gratitude for the wisdom they have gained. It has helped me grow and mature in ways that I did not expect

I am grateful that it was recommended to me

I bought this book for a friend who wanted to get into pharmaceutical sales, but she had no outside sales experience. She read the book cover to cover, referenced it daily, and in 3 months, she had her dream job. Thank you Tom!

If you are even remotely thinking of breaking into the pharmaceutical or medical sales industry - BUY THIS BOOK!! Because of this book I just got hired with Johnson & Johnson as a pharmaceutical sales rep. I had no prior experience in this industry and I beat out 3 other qualified candidates because I followed Tom's advice to a T. I highly recommend this book if you are seeking a job in the pharma or medical sales industry. It is an extremely difficult task to get hired in this industry but once you do you will be so proud of yourself and on your way to a fulfilling life-long career.

Pharmaceutical sales can be an intimidating industry. Tom Ruff's knowledge will point you in the right direction towards success.

A great book for those looking for interview and planning ideas trying to get into the field

It is so important for job seekers to get advice from people actually working in their desired industry. If you are interested in a career in pharmaceutical sales, Tom Ruff is the ideal advisor. Tom is the founder of Tom Ruff Company, a recruiting company specializing in the pharmaceutical industry. His book provides a true insider's guide to the entire process of finding and winning a job in this popular and competitive field.

What I particularly like about Tom's book are the many tips that only someone in the pharma industry would know. He shares lists of common interview questions, big mistakes to avoid, inside info on the largest pharma companies (and the differences between them) and sample resumes and email messages that will help readers stand out from the crowd.

This book is a must-read for anyone seeking a job in pharma sales--or even those who are thinking about doing so.

Lindsey Pollak
Author, "Getting from College to Career: 90 Things to Do Before You Join the Real World"