J Books

I have a small greenhouse and sell organic heirloom tomato plants. This book is my tomato bible! I am growing many of the plants she lists. Some I already knew about, some will be new this year, based on the information in this book. In addition, this book contains the simplest and clearest instructions I have found for saving seeds.

Her pictures - well, they are REAL! What a concept! Instead of pictures of these pristine tomatoes that were probably airbrushed, the pictures of her cherry tomatoes show a little crack here and there, and she unabashedly shows scarring and other blemishes. She shows top views, bottom views, and each picture shows a cut tomato so one can see the flesh. For a tomato grower like me, this is great information.

Her descriptions are frank, and since I was already growing some of these tomatoes myself, I know they are honest. You ever notice how the descriptions of the tomatoes in the catalogs imply that EVERY tomato is the BEST tomato? Dr. Male tells it like it is! In fact, she describes some of them having some faults, but has listed them for other reasons. (We agree - Amish Paste? Ho-hum. But historically significant and in spite of its faults, a very popular tomato.)

If you are a tomato aficionado, then you must add this book to your library! I will have a copy at my booth at the farmers market - and I bet it will be dog-eared by the end of the tomato season! I may have to buy another!

I love thumbing through this book. I buy most of my seeds from Seed Savers Exchange so it is especially fun because several of the varieties I was already growing, are featured in this book. Plus I have been inspired to try a few more. Well laid out. Beautiful book.

Wonderful book written by Dr Carolyn Male. If you don't own or have not read this book, then you really are found lacking in life!

Enjoyed the book enough to buy another to give to my tomato-growing son. Also hooked me to the point of buying three other tomato books from Amazon. The author posts regularly on various tomato websites. Great photographs. For the price that Amazon sells this book - you cannot go wrong.

I received this book as a gift, after my small 4-plant tomato plot fared disastrously last summer. 1 of the 4 plants produced decent tomatoes, while the rest died unceremoniously. This year, following the recommendations in this book, my 4 plants are all doing great, and I already have little tomatoes-to-be on 3 of the 4. For that reason alone I would recommend this book. I wish some of the planting and tending suggestions were a little clearer; you have to piece some of them together for yourself. Nevertheless, just two of the express recommendations on their own have made a world of difference for me.

The photographs and descriptions of the different heirloom varieties are fantastic, and will inspire you to pick out some different and unusual tomatoes for your garden. You don't have to be a tomato fanatic to enjoy and learn from this book.

I love this book there's so many good charecter's (I like lowie the most in this book!!!!!!!!!!) and I love the theme park
so good bye for now

Alright, I know YJK is supposed to be for the younger set, but I'm 15 and really do enjoy them. They shed new light on the characters of Jacen and Jaina, who, until YJK came along, were portrayed as bratty wonder children who kept getting kidnapped and escaping by dumb luck. OK, on to the actual book, sorry to ramble. This is the second in the Under Black Sun trilogy, which will be the last of the YJK books, at least for the time being. The kids are invited by Lando to spend time on Cloud City, bringing Anja Gallandro along. When she was introduced, I immediately understood the significance, since I have read the original Han Solo adventures back from 1979 and 1980. They arrive to find Lando's partner murdered by agents of Czethros, the Black Sun operative controlling Anja and out to get the YJK. Through a series of discoveries and things, the kids find out about Black Sun's involvement through several parties, most notably Figrin D'an and the Modal Nodes, who were supposed to be playing on CC. Concluding a bunch of near-death mishaps, the kids are reunited on Cloud City, but Anja is suffering Spice withdrawl, and the preview of Crisis at Crystal Reef indicates that she's really losing it. It's interesting that something that's a young adult book would deal with something like drug addiction, but it's well written and thoughtful. This is a good read for fans of the series, and even for you older folks looking for a nice light read.

Trouble on cloud city is an awesome continuation of the young Jedi Knights books. The way Kevin and Rebecca describe the character's feelings is what truly makes this book come alive. It brings out all of the subtle emotions that Tenel Ka feels towards Jacen and lets us know that deep down she really cares for him. This book is a must have and an excellent action packed read.

Well, I have to say that this was the best Young Jedi Knights book to come along in a while. Oh, but don't get me wrong, they're all good, but a few definitly stand above the others. Namely, Lightsabers, Jedi Under Siege, Jedi Bounty, and The Emperor's plague. And now Trouble on Cloud City has joined the ranks of the great. In this book, Lando askes Jacen, Jaina, Lowie, Tenel Ka, Anja, and Em Teedee to come with him to Cloud City to help supervise a new amusement park he is building there. When they get there however, they find that Lando's partner has been murdered, and they set out to find who did it. Anja knows of course, or at least guesses that her master Czethros is at work and she struggles on many moral points concerning her new friends, and her growing adiction to Andris Spice. Actually, in this book I found myself softening a bit towards Anja, who I previously hated. I still don't like her nearly as much as the other characters, but I began to realize that she is a victim is her own right, since it isn't her fault she was mislead and used and duped into Andris. Also, this book focused a lot on Tenel Ka, who is my favorite character in the series, and allowed us to get inside her, and see her thoughts and feelings in a way that has not been done since the masterpiece of Lightsabers. Her reaction when Jacen fell of Cloud City was heartbreaking, and I'll confess, that the scene where they all thought that they would never see him again almost had me in tears, and I never, EVER cry over books or movies or anything. I liked how this book let us see how much Tenel Ka truly cares about Jacen. Speaking of Jacen, his crush on Anja seems to have ended, which may in fact be what opened me up to her a bit, since I was always adamently against that. Anyway, I would recommend this series to any Star Wars fan, no matter what their age, even though they are generaly geared towards the 10-15 set. Also, this book would have a stronger effect on you and generally make more sense if you have read the previous twelve first, though if that is to much work, it is at least reccomeded that you read the one before it.

These are great books! This book is great for begginers. The story is great, the plot is great, it's very intriging. The book is about Jason, Jaina, and Tenel Ka, and Lobaca. Lando Calorisian is inviting the Young Jedi Knights to his Resort on Cloud City. The kids will come as long as they can bring their friend Anga Gilrado. But what they will find out is... You'll just have to read the book. It's a great book as a gift. It's a must for all Star Wars fans.

I would strongly recommend each person in India to read this amazing story about a person who is passionate about technology, knowledge and patriotic along with, how one can go forward only with "Indian" in mind and can bring almost a biggest scientific evolution, Believe in Team work, worship work and people working on it. This can be compared with all great personalities in the world. Thanks to author who simplified the scientic complications in simple language, never felt boring anyhwere.

One of the best autobiograpy I have read so far. No Indian has contributed more than Dr. Abdul Kalam in making the India a self-reliant nation and nuclear power.

I would recommend atleast every Indian to read this autobiography and be proud of him.

I am halfway through reading the Urdu translation of this book (and just ordered the English version so I could read it in author's own words). As a part-time PhD student at a leading U.S. university who have recently experienced the unexplainable satisfaction one can achieve by doing research, and manager of a large technology team, I can testify by heart that Dr. Kalam shared his deep, and true experiences with his readers.

You will learn that merit is the most powerful thing in the world. If combined with optimism, and strong believe in God (or whatever you believe in), a nobody from a minority can uncover his or her full potential and break all barriers, even in a narrow-minded society like India.

You will learn that human mind can do wonders. And that one should not take anything for granted.

You will learn that leadership is all about trust, and about allowing your people to work freely and to achieve goals their way. You will understand that one does not become an extraordinary manager by being "hard" or by micro-managing his or her team.

You will also read various words of wisdom that only a true scientist (who have "been there"....) can share. And (hopefully) understand why one should not lose heart because of failures.

You will learn interesting facts about the relationship between research and development, and how they strengthen each other. You will also learn the difference between ideal and rational decisions (for an example, see the last paragraph of part 7).

To summarize, its an autobiography of an extraordinary achiever, and a must read for anyone who would like more reasons on believe on himself or herself, or to become a great manager.

This book sums up how APJ Abdul Kalam went through various stages
in his life starting from his childhood in Rameswaram to the stage prior to
his ascent to Rashtrapathi Bhavan in Delhi.
It depicts various projects he was associated with in the areas of aeronautics,
space research and defence development like Hovercraft Nandi, RATO, SLV and
Missile program and both the agonizing moments and the ecstatic moments
he went through in that process.

It conveys the message how a person's patriotic commitment to the development of
indigenous technology motivates a person to spend long hours and sustain hurdles,
despite being perturbed by the deaths of close family members one by one.

It proves the point that how motivating mentors/managers/leaders like
Dr.Vikram Sarabhai and Dr.Brahm Prakash can mold a young engineer like APJ
into a highly accomplished technocrat and make him bounce back to action
with a redoubled enthusiasm after heart-breaking personal and career setbacks.

It talks about how APJ was an effective project manager who projected his team
members more to the higher hierarchy than himself.

It mentions his elder sister's love toward him who mortgaged her gold ornaments
to pay for his admission to Madras Institute of Technology(MIT) which is so
typical for any middle-class Indian.

The following consoling words by Swami Sivananda to APJ after he fails in his
first job interview in Indian Air Force are notable:
" Accept your destiny and go ahead with your life. You are not destined to become
an Air Force pilot. What you are destined to become is not revealed now
but it is predetermined. Forget this failure, as it was essential
to lead you to your destined path. Search instead, for the true purpose of
your existence. Become one with yourself, my son !
Surrender yourself to the wish of God"

Those words proved right as his life progressed.

Credit goes to Arun Tiwari who asked APJ about his memoirs
and helped him in coming out with this book.

This is a book worth gifting to any child or youth ( 12 and above ) to make them
gain a good perspective on the evolution of India into a technological power.

I picked up a book in Dhaka recently entitled, "Wings of Fire' by Abdul Kalam. It is a fascinating book which unfortunately I didn't see in the UK.

It is about the biography of Abdul Kalam, who headed the Indian Space, Missile and Nuclear Programme, thus transforming India from a dependent nation to a technology superpower. He talks about the hardships he encountered and how he overcame them. He also draws valubale lessons from his father and his mentors as well as a deep faith in God, that enabled him to carry out his work and build up a home grown space and missile programme.

It has a lot of good suggestions on goal-setting, teamwork, managerial techniques, creating visions and dealing with set-backs. It is a lesson for all Muslims and anyone from the third world. The book is both readable and inspirational.

Hasan Ali Imam

Oh man, my dad bought this book at the university when I was a teenager and the book was (and I think probably still is) a complete scream. I laughed all the way through. I remember it talking about pot made you laid back, mellow etc but then it went on to clarify that the Hell's angels were not laid back and mellow, in the purest sense of the word. However, imagine how mean they'd be if they were NOT smoking pot? and went on to paint a really awful scenario - can't remember all the details.

In any case, it was very educational and really took the edge off my teenage curiosity. As a result, I never did really want to try the stuff out. I smelled it all the time around me and observed the people who were users and decided I didn't want to go that way.

So this has been 30 years ago and at some point in time, before I went to college, the book "disappeared" from my bedroom. Neither parent would admit to disposing of it but both looked guilty... but hey, now this book is worth $41.50 and I bet that is ten times the price that dad originally paid for it in the mid-70's. Pretty good investment, if I still had it! Heh!

This is my favorite book and my prized possession. Not only is it informative in a variety of ways - it is, as the title informs you, a Handbook for Marijuana Users - it is also deftly written in a lighthearted, goofy, tongue-in-cheek style that epitomizes late 60s and early 70s humor. While the sections on legality and availability are now incredibly out-of-date, the amount of fairly accurate information and the sly, good-natured sense of humor more than make up for its dated nature.

This book was brilliant. It's funny, cute, and very informative. A must read for anyone who is, knows, or has even seen a stoner. Absolutly hilarious!

I discovered this book at the library of the Catholic elementary school I went to around 1973. Yep, apparently the nun in charge of buying books was browsing the bestseller list and assumed from the title that it was a childrens' book. Ha haaaaw!! Rick D. and I checked it out in turns and loved it. Of course its content was soon discovered and it was removed from the library (no doubt incinerated), but Rick and I did a joint order (heh heh) to Pocket Books and got each of ourselves a copy. I haven't laid eyes on this title for nearly twenty years, but I can still quote it at length. Like the part that warns you not to get *too* good at rolling joints, because you'll end up sitting in the corner rolling your stupid joints while everyone is going down to the lake for skinny dipping. Or the intro, where the authors say they don't smoke grass and never have, everything in the book is based on what their friend "Ernie Lundquist" told them. Or that nothing is bad when you're stoned, except getting arrested, and even *that's* a learning experience. Or that the results of using a "steamboat" (their term for a big glass waterless bong) would make "even the mighty Zeus shake his head in disbelief." Or referring to the things you will do stoned and not get bored or feel silly, like picking lint off your dog or watching The Flying Nun. I actually think of this book often, after all this time. Highly recommended, even if you've never had a puff in your life (which is, looking back on the effects grass had on my life, my recommendation).

The LP by the same title is also hard to find, but worth looking for as well. I noticed that laughdome.com currently carries the CD.

Many reviews have been written about this book, so you already know that it is a great read. I just wanted to add that this is one of those books that you keep and pick up again many years later and then loving share with your son or daughter on a boring rainy afternoon.

What a wonderful literary adventure is Little Big Man. This is a genuine American saga as told by a genuine historical novelist, Thomas Burger. While this is a work of fiction, Burger allows the reader the impression that it is a true story. The source of this story is one lovable, sagely old man, Jack Crabb. Crabb, interviewed by the author in his wheelchair in a nursing home, at age 111; delivers a recollection worthy of a raconteur of royal proportions. Each of Jack's adventures and misadventures, childhood through manhood, are told with uncanny wit and wisdom; in the unrefined nuances of a wise old geezer who has literally seen it all.

Jack's story begins at age 10 when heading west with his family in a wagon train. Jack's dad is fascinated with the Mormon faith's concept of multiple wives. So, it is for Salt Lake City they are headed. Furthermore, Dad believes, as do the Mormons, that American natives are a lost tribe of Israel and therefore speak Hebrew! When the wagon train is stopped by a band of Cheyenne, a failure to communicate of titanic proportions ensues, directly resulting in Jack and his sister being kidnapped by the Cheyenne. Thus begins Jack's life as a Cheyenne Indian, "Little Big Man". Six years later, during a losing battle with the 12th Calvary, Jack abandons the tribe, deciding it is better to be white than dead.

Jack specialized in the art and craft of coincidence. At age 17, he was taught the quick-draw by none other than Wild Bill Hickok. Later, he had the distinction of facing down Wyatt Earp, yelling, "Draw, you belch you". Jack called Wyatt "belch" because he said his name sounded like one.

At age 18, he joined the Calvary, serving under General Custer at the fateful battle of Little Big Horn. Owing to his acumen as an erstwhile redskin, Crabb was the only survivor.

Aside from the plethora of twists of fate and fancy, this heartwarming story is replete with trivial, yet fascinating facts of the lives of American Indians during the most tumultuous era of their history. These facts will paint the "redskins" for you, as for me, in a very sympathetic light.

The lives, loves and lore of Jack Crabb, Little Big Man; deserves a conspicuous place in every one's library of classic American literature.

I was pretty much hooked by the narrator's first words: "I'm a white man and never forget it" (followed by "but I was brought up by Cheyenne from the age of ten"). A few paragraphs later: "I never suspected it at the time, being just a young boy, but I realize now that my Pa was a lunatic," and I was a complete goner.

Little Big Man is an extremely humorous novel of the American west, wonderfully narrated in a breezy, informal style, peppered with humorous colloquialisms and directness, reminiscent of Huckleberry Finn, by the 111 year old Jack Crabb, a (so he claims) surviver (and the sole survivor) of Custer's last stand.

But it's also touching and heartbreaking at times, and with tension as he rides with Custer to the Little Big Horn.

As Crabb recounts his life, moving between the white man's world and that of the Indians, stopping at many stations along the way in the kaleidescopic West, we are often given a detailed pictured of what various aspects of life were like back then. From what it's like eating dog in the tepee to Hickcock's advice on gunfighting, to the traveling snake oil salesman and his occupational risks.

In this way also it's much like the Last of the Mohicans, giving an inside view, hopefully a researched, accurate one, of the frontier to those of us safely and comfortably ensconced at home in greater civilization.

Definitely high in the echelon of American novels I've read.

I got this book as an Easter present from my parents when I was [...], back in the late 1970's, so the book was at least 15 years old then. I think I had not long before seen the film with Dustin Hoffman. I'd always had a fascination with American Indians as they were known then and at that time was just about beginning to read/ see more than what I had been exposed to through John Wayne style westerns - about the same time one of my uncles bought me 'Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee'.

The book is - as usual- far more broader in its scope than the film, although the film is excellent too. It begins with an amateur researcher tracking down a survivor of the Battle of the Little Big Horn. The 111 year old survivor begins the story in 1852 when as a ten year old boy he (Jack Crabb)and his elder sister end up living with a small group of Cheyenne who have killed his father and the other men on their wagon train during a drunken mistake. The elder sister runs away the first night leaving the young Jack with in his own words "newly joined a pack of barbarians".

The book takes the reader through Jacks life up to the age of 34 in 1876 when indeed he survives the Battle of the Little Big Horn (Custers Last Stand) - saved by a complex relationship to a Cheyenne playmate from his youth. Throughout the intervening years between 1852 and 1876 Jack oscillates between living with the Cheyenne and frontier society. Often feeling fundamentally 'white' when among the Cheyenne, and feeling fundamentally 'Cheyenne' when among the whites.

The book is laced with great humour, great characterisations (Caroline Crabb, Old Lodge Skins, Little Horse, Younger Bear, Lavender, Reverend Pendrake, Sunshine, Allardyce. T. Meriweather and Botts for example) and moments of pure reflections upon the great and most mundane things all of us encounter within our lives. I especially liked the fact that the whole book is written in the vernacular of the American frontier. That and the historical accuracy of the book are testament to the research Thomas Berger put into the work.

Read it and hopefully you'll love it as much as I did.

111-year-old Jack Crabb relates part of his life story, from the time he was kidnapped and raised by the Cheyenne to the time he was the only white survivor at Custer's Last Stand. Berger writes with great wit and authority. To my mind it's one of the best novels of the last half of the 20th century. If you saw the movie with Dustin Hoffman, be assured that the book is just as good, even better. In terms of the western genre (which really is an unfair way to categorize this novel), it is on a par with Larry McMurtry's LONESOME DOVE, another one of the great novels of the last century.

My child is 3 1/2 and loves this book, as do I. While she's not into the CD YET, she loves sitting w/me and exploring the poems which are neither too complex or too simple. There are classics and more modern works and they've done a wonderful job finding an assortment that represent various ways that poetry is used in other literary works (ex. excerpts from Macbeth and "Lord of the Rings"). I'm not a poetry expert, so I love that there are poets and writers of whom I recognize such as Robert Frost, Nikki Giovanni, Sylvia Plath, Edgar Allen Poe and that it introduces me and my child to others who I don't recognize. A great way to introduce poetry to your kids.

This book is fantastic. I've used it in the classroom with first, third, fourth and sixth graders -- because of the high quality of the poetry, it holds up to the scrutiny of middle schoolers and keeps the attention of six year olds. Hearing the poets read their own work gives the children an introduction to reading their own poetry out loud.
We use many of these poems as writing prompts for our own poetry in the classroom. The resulting poems are exiting, high-quality pieces the children and parents treasure. I would also recommend the Kenneth Koch-edited books "Rose, Where did you Get That Red? Teaching Great Poetry to Young Children" and "Talking to the Sun". The former gives lesson ideas, while the latter is a beautiful anthology of poetry paired with great works of art from the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

My 5-year old daughter LOVES this book. She listens to this CD over-and-over again. A lot of the poems are fun to read aloud, too. My daughter was a fan of Shel Silverstein -- but, this collection is a fun way to inspire an interest in a variety of poetry...I highly recommend this book.

Poetry speaks to children indeed. Although this book is actually meant for younger age lkie my 7-year old sister, my two older brothers (11 and 12) seem to also enjoy it, especially the CD recording. I highly recommend Poetry Speaks to all kids in the age group from five to ten. For slightly older kids I highly recommend Why Some Cats are Rascals, Book 2 - a collection of touching stories from the world of cats.

Poetry Speaks to Children includes poems from authors like J.R.R. Tolkien (author of Lord of The Rings), Robert Frost and many more. This book is fun and comes with a CD with poems read by the poets themselves. There are a few spots that may not be appropriate for your children (Tolkien refers to beer in his poem/song sung by one of the hobbits in LOTR), but overall the book is fun and can help your child find an appreciation for poetry.

I bought this book soon after the original television program was first broadcast and it's one I re-read often -- it remains one of my favorites. Although it is a very faithful (almost word-for-word and image-for-image) presentation of the material in the series, to have the information in a book to read at one's own pace (instead of being forced to absorb information at the pace of the television production), to carefully consider what Dr. Bronowski says, and to see what (if anything) it means to the reader makes the book an almost indispensable companion to the series.

As has been pointed out in earlier reviews, the high impact of this book (and of the television series) is the passion Dr. Bronowski brings to the material, how it's clear he truly believed that it is necessary for everyone to understand how the development of society is the product of generations of people pursuing knowledge ("science"), and that this understanding is critical to the future of civilization...the scientific imagination, standing always at the edge of the unknown and unsure, versus absolutism and dogma.

Now that the television series has been attractively remastered and is now available to the general public, the book has an even greater utility. The captions on the DVDs are very poorly done, to the extent that some of the errors make significant changes in Dr. Bronowski's statements and points. It's clear that whoever prepared the captions did not refer to the shooting script OR TO THIS BOOK! In other words, the book is important to correct errors in the captions. If one needs the captions this book is a valuable resource to ensure the viewer gets the correct words and, therefore, understands what Dr. Bronowski is presenting.

This series has been available on DVD for about 2 years or so from Ambrose Video. The price is high.

Previous reviews don't do Bronowski justice. He began as a mathematician; but after being sent to Hiroshima, as part of a team studying the aftereffects of the nuclear blast, he switched to biology. He was warm and articulate. A poet himself, he was one of the few people who truly understood the English poet William Blake, although (unlike most of his writing) his essays about Blake could use some explaining themselves. He was a highly moral man and did two original things you don't see many others even attempting: He saw the "doing" of science as an act every bit as creative as composing a symphony or writing a poem -- and he explained it in that way -- and he sought a structure for rationalizing morality and ethical behavior that did not rely upon religious precepts. The Ascent of Man is a very personal work, and it says so in its subtitle. It pretty much echos word for word what Jacob Bronowski spoke extemporaneously as he was sent around the world to the places he needed to be in order to explain the ideas he needed to express as he filmed his material for public television. Ironically, I said that very badly: I meant that HE could explain very complex notions with terrific elegance and simplicity. Period. By the way, the process of making the series for TV must have taken a toll, as JB died not long after completing the necessary travels. The Ascent of Man is all excellent but has many especially moving moments. Only one example occurred when JB walked fully clothed and shod into a pond at Auschwitz in acknowledgment of family and friends and fellow countrymen whose ashes were dumped there by fascists who laid claim to a handle on absolute certainty. Read this topnotch book, then find more by him. And if you're thirsty for more, try a little Loren Eisely as well. The accomplishments of humankind as explained by thoughtful scientists can prove wonderfully exhiliarating.

If you're looking for a book that will show you how man made it from day 1 to the present, while encomapssing ALL disciplines and not science alone, you've found the right book! It's is incredible how simply and interestengly Mr. Bronowski has accomplished such a feat. You won't be able to put it down!

This is one of the first, and one of the better, history of science sorts of series. If you enjoy history and science, then its worth watching. But the program, and to a lesser extent the book, in my mind suffer from a serious flaw: namely; that the author can not seem to divorce himself from his own religious views, which intrude at a number of times in the program. How can I take someone seriously who is speaking about archeological history, while at the same time speculating about the Biblical conquest of Jericho? There is a disconnect here that leaves you wondering. One can always quibble about what major scientific advances are noteworthy, and different authors have seized upon various individuals; but we have in this series nothing out of the ordinary. Looking at "Cosmos" or "The Day the Universe Changed" is much more fulfilling, from an intellectual standpoint, but its still worth purchasing and enjoying.

The first chapter of "The Cross Centered Life" is titled "Restating the Obvious". At first glance, that would seem to be a fitting description for the whole book, and a mature believer might be tempted to write it off as Christianity 101. The subtitle for the first chapter, though, is "the most important truth is the easiest to forget". Although Pastor C.J. Mahaney does not go into a great deal of depth in this short work, EVERY believer can truly benefit from his passionate encouragement to constantly maintain the cross as the focal point of our Christian lives.

Mahaney reminds us that the cross is the centerpiece of the believer's existence, and illustrates how keeping our focus on our justification through Jesus' death and resurrection keeps us from trying to earn His approval (through legalism). If we try to evaluate our Christian lives by our feelings and continue to feel condemned even after we have confessed and forsaken our sin, he writes, these are symptoms that show we have taken our eyes off the cross and have failed to remember what Christ's work means to us.

The book includes several practical suggestions on how to be constantly mindful of the cross each day. It also contains a good basic summary of the practical difference between justification and sanctification, which makes it a helpful resource for new believers.

What prevents me from giving the book five stars is the failure to point out that the cross means far more than simply the forgiveness of sin. It's a place of surrender and a place to die -- death to self, death to the old life, death to sin. It's also only half of the gospel, the other half being the Resurrection. Romans 6:4 (NKJV)tells us "that just as Christ was raised from the dead...even so we also should walk in newness of life."

Despite this omission, "The Cross Centered Life" is an excellent work, and deserves to be read by every Christian.

When we walk into our rooms we turn on the lights. Do you ever stop with a jaw-dropping awe for the ability to see so clearly? Imagine bringing anyone from the past centuries into our modern-day world. They would revel and be continually astonished as they walk into rooms where light is of no scarcity, literally a fingertip away. It has been pointed out that familiarity often breeds contempt. In other words, the more we are familiar with something, the easier is it for that something to be taken for granted or even despised. We see it all the time when kids get a new toy or person finally buys a new house.

When it comes down the gospel, how easy is it for many of us, over time, to lose the passion or awe we one had? How easy it is for us to take the cross for granted as if it weren't of utmost importance. This occurs when we become sidetracked by other things and we lose sight of the "main thing," the gospel. Mahaney, who pastored Covenant Life Church for 27 years (which is now pastored by Joshua Harris since 2004), now leads Sovereign Grace Ministries (a church-planting organization with over 60 churches in 6 countries). In November of 2006, I had the privilege of meeting Mahaney, very briefly, in Washington, D.C. at the annual Evangelical Theological Society conference and was able to thank him in person for his unwavering commitment to the centrality of the gospel and his example as a man who is sold out for its bold proclamation (and for this book of which I now write). This book deals with our keeping the cross the main thing.

Book Structure:

"Sometimes the most obvious truths are the ones we need to be reminded of the most" (p.15). Mahaney begins by restating the obvious and foundational truths of the gospel that are so easy to lose sight of. He then moves to address certain things that often take the place of the gospel in our lives, mainly concentrating on three (legalism, condemnation, and subjectivism) where he then devotes a chapter to each of them. In the chapter on legalism, he defines and contrasts justification (being declared righteous) and sanctification (being made righteous) very succinctly. To conclude, he makes the point that the key to a cross centered life is to have cross centered days. To put this in practical perspective, he presents five ways in which he has stoked the passion in his life for the gospel: 1. Memorize the gospel; 2. Pray the gospel; 3. Sing the gospel; 4. Review how the gospel has changed you; and 5. Study the gospel. Mahaney then finishes it off with a final plea and passionate exhortation to never move on from the centrality and sufficiency of the gospel despite the difficulties of life, knowing what we have, we are press forward never losing sight of the cross.

Notable Quotes:

* "We're never `more saved' or `more loved' by God. Our work is motivated by the grace God has poured in our lives" (p.34).
* "The Christian who desires to live a cross centered life will regularly face his own depravity and the seriousness of personal sin, squarely and unflinchingly. It's a reality. But the reality of the death and resurrection of Jesus for the forgiveness of sin is even greater. . . .So admit you're the worst sinner you know. Admit you're unworthy and deserve to be condemned. But don't stop there! Move on to rejoicing in the Savior who came to save the worst of sinners. Lay down the luggage of condemnation and kneel down in worship at the feet of Him who bore your sins. Cry tears of amazement" (pp.42,44)
* "Never be content with your current grasp of the gospel. The gospel is life-permeating, world-altering, universe-changing truth. It has more facets than any diamond. Its depth man will never exhaust" (p. 67).
* "I'm a Christian because God showed me mercy, not because I was worthy or wanting to be saved. No, I wasn't searching for God. I was stoned" (p.72).
* "I don't know what tomorrow holds, but I do know this: Because of the cross I'll be doing much better than I deserve. That's why, for the rest of my life, I want to move deeper into the wonderful mystery of God's love for me" (p. 85).

Conclusion:

This book is an easy read for anyone. It is not meant to be a deep theological dissertation on the cross, but rather a simplistic and coming back to the basics of our faith. It is in its simplicity where this book has its greatest strength: everything flows out of the cross of Christ. Simple, yet utterly profound.

We must never lose sight of the gospel regardless of how long we have been saved. The gospel will never be too old, because it is in the cross where we received grace and where we'll continually supply our hope.

With a heart full of gratitude, I recommend this book for both new and old believer alike. I trust that your passion for the gospel would be rekindled, as has mine, in reading this book whose author is the first to admit that he is a detestable and wretched man. We are all in the same boat. That's why the cross shines ever brighter in light of our sin.

God has once again given Mahaney the gift to properly exhort the Christian to do everything in life in view of the Cross of Christ. If your not a Cross Eyed Christian, you may not be a Christian at all. This book will help develop the Cross-Eyed mentality we all need to live out the profession of our lips.

This book is a great, short read. Mahaney understands and lives the cross-centered life. As Tim Keller says, the gospel is not the 'a,b,c's' of the Christian life, but the 'a-z' of the Christian life. Mahaney knows this. Get this book!

This book offers a challenge to all Christians that we should keep our minds constantly reflecting on the reality of Christ's sacrifice on the cross and the implications of this greatest of all gifts for not only ourselves but all of humanity. There is much to be gained from this corrective to our natural tendencies to spend our energies focusing on so many less important things and forgetting the most important thing.

As others have suggested, "The Cross Centered Life" is not meant to be a major theological treatise. It is short and digestible, though I would not call it an easy read. While Mahaney does include some interesting stories, he is careful not to waste space. Instead, he keeps coming back to his main point, the cross.

My gripe about this book centers around Chapter 5, in which he is critical that our emotions get in the way of what should be our focus on the cross. I was glad that on page 48, he was careful to acknowledge that our emotions are a gift from God. But the rest of the chapter seems to contradict this suggestion, as he goes on to illustrate how untrustworthy our emotions are.

A few months ago, I would have fully supported Mahaney's critique of human emotion. Ultimately, it sounds very spiritual to suggest that we need to allow our brains to always trump our emotions. But I recently read Peter Scazzero's "Emotionally Healthy Spirituality," and he suggests with great clarity and conviction that it is to our profound spiritual detriment if we discard or try to ignore our emotions. Instead, our emotions are one set of data that God has given us to help us navigate through life. The trick is not to abolish feeling but to figure out what to do with our feelings. And this is where I think Mahaney is missing something.

He offers a story in which he screamed and banged his chair on the floor in frustration after accidentally destroying his computer. He then calls this sin. Really? I would suggest that it is not sinful to react in verbal and moderate physical frustration when something terrible happens to us. I think it is just part of how we were created. To stay there is problematic, but I think we do a disservice to who we are as humans if we try to live essentially emotion-free.

Ultimately, my quibble is relatively minor, though the book is so short that this one issue left my impression of the entire book as less favorable. It's a good book worth reading, but it could have been much better had Mahaney approached Chapter 5 from a different perspective.

I loved this book a kid and bought it for my own children. Each of the three joined my enthusiasm for our dear friend, Dominic.

My son is in the Army and now has a son of his own. I used to read "Dominic" at bedtime, until I knew the story by heart. If I tried to skip a line or a paragraph, my son would interrupt and tell me I had missed a part! Recently, he asked if I would get the book for my grandson. Now my son is reading to his son. I love it! Christina

Throughout my life, I'd always remembered the "first book I ever read" as about some dog who played the piccolo and traveled around with his possessions in a sack on a stick. I remembered it so fondly, like one of those few, golden memories you hold onto from childhood, when you still believed in the tooth faerie and unicorns.

I never remembered the title, though, and the book had long since disappeared from my parent's house. One day I did an extensive Google search with only the words "dog," "piccolo" and "traveler" and managed to stumble across William Steig's website.

I just bought myself a new copy of "the first book I ever read" and can't wait to read it again. It really is a book that has stayed with me my entire life. I just found it astonishing that so many other people wrote the exact same thing in their reviews. How can it be that one book has been the "first book" for so many people? I don't know, but I do know that if you can let it be your kid's first book, they will cherish it forever. I sure did.

I bought this book for my 7 year old because his name is also Dominic. I read it to him each night before bed. He really liked it. Dominic (the dog) is a very witty dog who gets through many different adventures. I actually enjoyed reading this book to my son. This book is positive and definitely gets kids to use their imaginations!

This was the first "real book" I remember reading as a little boy. I suppose I was about 6 or 7. I read and re-read Dominic many times and loved it more each time. I suppose it has be something like 35 years since I first read this book and I still remember it fondly. How many things can you say that about?

Dragon Sword and Wind Child is one of my favorite novels. What's to like? Saya is a village girl in Toyoashihara (sort of a mystical/magical Japan), a land split by the war between the Gods that created the land: The God of Light and the Goddess of Darkness (and Death). Saya has been raised to love the Light and is shocked when strange people start proclaiming that she is one of the Goddess of Darkness's people, reborn again and again to wage her battle against the children of the Light. This revelation is complicated when Prince Tsukishiro, one half of the children of the Light, comes to Saya's village, trying to woo her to the side of the Light by enlisting her as a handmaiden in his palace.

You've heard this story before, right? Honestly, I normally hate this sort of plot set up and the reluctant heroine type. However, Saya is unique to me because her reactions are understandable and even relatable; you see how she subtlely changes and how she makes her decisions and her mental conflicts. As for the plot? Not all is as it seems. Once Saya comes to the palace, she doesn't particularly fit in the whole court atmosphere and furthermore warrior Princess Teruhi is determined to catch Saya collaborating with the Darkness. Prince Tsukishiro isn't much of a help, as it seems this situation has all been played out before in Saya's previous lives (that she has no memory of), and he's still in love with Saya's last incarnation, who killed herself in the palace pond. And the Palace of Light has many sinister secrets... (The novel continues for much longer, not only through Saya's revelations, her final choice in alliances, but also to the final conclusion to the war that has engulfed the land for as long as it as existed.)

Another interesting part of this book is that it's not your usual elves, fairies, etc. Noriko Ogiwara, influenced by Western writers, used Japanese mythology to create this world. The implications of this are just obvious by the summary of the book above. This isn't Good vs. Evil, Dark v. Light of your normal fantasy epic. The issues the characters have to deal with in this book are immortality, mortality, reincarnation along with loyalty and empathy. Are we cursed to repeat the same mistakes over and over through our lifetimes? Does immortality create an lack of empathy? What is sacrificed during war, what is gained, and is it worth it?

I had worn out checking out the library copy all the time, so I was thrilled this classic finally has gone back into print. The deft translation by Cathy Hirano is still intact, except that mentions to Saya's stone has been changed to "magatama". I somewhat miss the old cover, but some interesting drawings have been added to the chapter title pages. I have heard that there are two more books in the series (about what I don't know, as the book pretty much covers all the bases and closes all plotlines), and I'm hoping the other two will finally be translated for English audiences. And I lied earlier. This is pretty much my favorite book (Tied with Dark Lord of Derkhom by Diana Wynne Jones). And I cry and laugh every time I read it.

SPOILERS
The insertion of Chihaya completely changes the landscape of the book. And amazingly, it doesn't feel random and unwarranted. Like Chihaya's the other main character, he's just been missing. The romance parts of the book are perhaps its weakest point, but understandable, and really do drive the plot.

I first read this book when I was a child. I loved it. I checked it out of my schools library so many times they let me just keep it till the end of the school year. The story line and the people themselves are so hard to put down. The mythology in the book made me look into the shinto myths. I would recommend this book to anyone. I am twenty six now and still love this book!!

Noriko Ogiwara creates riddles which seem unavoidable. And they are. However, like the words of any oracle, they are open to *very* interesting and unexpected interpretations.

Don't debate. Buy this book! Thank yourself later.

I am so happy that the book was brought back in print by Viz. I have been waiting for this book for a really long time. After I saw it on an English book of literature I wanted to have it. But when I learned that it was out of print and that it was on Amazon for more than $3oo dollars I was devastated, and I hoped that some day it would be back in print. I had to settle for the copies that were on my public library. But I really wanted to have my very own copy as well as the sequels of the book. So I remained patient and waited and finally it was brought back. I cannot wait to get my copy and hopefully I will also see the sequels also translated. But in the mean time I will enjoy this book first.

this book is amazing and i loved it! i read it in junior high, too, and i wish it would be back in print. i definitely cannot buy it for $200! this book is amazing with its details and dialogue and interesting adventures that happen! and the innocent mind of chihaya is definitely attractive and also his unknown power over the dragon sword is so alluring. this historical fairytale is the best i've ever read! it keeps you reading and your heart thumping in anxiety over what will occur next.