Works Books

I have always been a museum addict. If the Metropolitan Museum of Art would let me place a cot somewhere, I would probably take up housekeeping. So, it was extremely rewarding to read this story of how so much of the stolen art from WW2 was found, protected, recovered and finally returned to rightful owners. These "Monuments Men" should all have received medals. The world owes much to them for making so many artistic marvels again available.

The illustrations are quite good. Many are available in other sources but so many, at least for me, were viewed here for the first time. The attempts to protect many objects - e.g., St. Marks in Venice - were also interesting. When I visited there a few years ago I was very appreciative.

Mr. Edsel is to be commended.

Excellent book with many historical pictures and historical comments of the war's effect on the art of many countries.

This book shows and tells another side of war. It is the story told in picture of Hitler and his Nazi thugs pillaging Europe and stealing priceless art objects, painting, statures, books, even ancient scrolls then hiding them in caves and bunkers in Germany. What I loved about this book were the photos of US Army units rescuing those stolen art treasures then returned them to the towns, churches and cities. The author has done an exemplary job of finding photos and stories which has made this an important work. Photos I've never seen and story I have never heard about. I think this book needs to be in every high school library in the country. Students need to be shown how our American Army worked to recover all this lost art. His book made me proud to have serviced in the US army.

Thank you for writing this book

I was really surprised by this book. I thought it was going to contain more text but it's really all about the art and the people who rescued it. The result is a very impressive, easily readable 'coffee table' style book that's beautiful and informative. Teachers should grab this up for the classroom and it also would make a great gift for anyone interested in WWII and it's aftermath. I can't say enough about the photos and the story they tell. Bravo!

This is one of the most fascinating books i have ever read. The period images are amazing, just the photo of italian masons bricking up Michaelangelo's iconic David is worth the purchase. After reading this book I was stunned that so few art treasures were destroyed. I had no idea that much of the treasures at the National Gallery of Art in D.C. was stored at Biltmore because of its remote setting. I was also blown away to see the images of workman removing winged victory from the Louvre, I just had no idea all of this went on leading up to the war and during the war. The German pillaging of the great European art treasures is disgusting of course, especially the art they looted from the weathy Jewry like the Rothchilds and others, some of which even to this day are trying to get back art work that is rightly theirs. I highly recommend this great book to anyone interested in art, history, art history, or frankly has an inquisive mind. I want to thank the authors for a job well done.

I bought this book and I'm so glad I did! I'm using it every day, speaking God's Word for my life and the positive changes are really remarkable. This is the most useful book I've ever seen by Joyce Meyer and I just can't say enough about it. I'd rate it 10 stars if that were possible. Besides the content itself, this is a really well-made book, very sturdy and small enough to take along in my purse.

Many times when people are praying, they are just speaking to God about their problems. This is faithless prayer and God cannot change anything in your life when you don't ask with faith. God already knows about the situation and think about it this way...God says His Word will never go void, but that He watches over His Word to bring it to pass. When you speak God's Word over situations in your life, situations are guaranteed to improve. Speaking God's Word has caused my faith to grow enormously.

The book is broken down into different topics like courage, health, depression, finance and so many more. Get this book and start using it today!!! God will bless you like never before. Also get "God's Master Plan For Your Life" by Gloria Copeland. It's awesome! I pray that God begins to bless you in every area of your life as you put this foundational principle to work!

This book is excellent. It has many Bible scriptures on several subjects, any of which you may be dealing with at a particular time. Often, the scriptures are written in the first person so that that you can personalize them and make them daily confessions. For those of us that believe that speaking God's word is necessary, and is the essence of prayer, this book gives us quick access to spiritual nuggets in every imaginable area. It is a "God send," literally.

An easy and powerful way of learning to speak God's Word. Many applicable topics to choose from covering a multitude of circumstances. Joyce Meyer comes through again.

This is exactly the book I was looking for! Received promptly and just as described! Highly recommend!

Sometimes we struggle with life events that mere words cannot help. This books shows you how to pray God's word back to him for whatever you are facing. And if friends and relatives are ill or facing crises, this little book will help you pray for their specific needs using the power of God's word!

..is how much FUN it is to read. This man wrote with such clarity and wit, I wish I had known about him much sooner, like in high school!

This is the ultimate apologetics guide. Or the ultimate personal spiritual guide. Read it even if you think you understand Catholicism. Among other things you will realize why God cannot be anything but a Trinity.

You may think you know your faith but you will still learn from Frank Sheed. He teaches: why we study theology, the Trinity,the nature of man, the sin of our origin,redemption,grace,virtue,gifts, Eucharist and Mass and so much more. He goes deeper than any teacher I ever had even at classses at seminary adult education classes. Give this book your full attention, take your time; take notes too. Make this book your New Year's resolution to learn more about your faith. You will not regret it.

I would strongly recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn more about the Catholic faith. It had answers to everything you would have a question about!

This is the best of class in Roman Catholic theology introductions. It provides a systematic overview providing the big-picture view one might miss short of reading the entire catechism. A good, solid, sound introduction that will be ideal for RCIA students and long-time Catholics alike. Included is a solid introduction providing the reasons to study theology and the rewards that come with it. Beginning with the seemingly simple assertion that God is spirit, Mr. Sheed carries us through the implications of that assertion through to the doctrines of the last things giving us all we need to form a coherent and solid foundation on which to build further. Indispensible and still the best of its kind.

I wish every catholic would read this book. I think that not only would they understand their faith better, they would be able to explain it better AND be more motivated to live it. Simple, simple, simple little short read with HUGE substance. Nothing has helped me grasp the trinity, heaven, grace, original sin, etc. like this book. It is my favorite of all favorite books--EVER!

This is living the pilgrim religion yesterday and today. It's the story of a Russian peasant's search for the secrets of prayer. The real die hards fast until Thanksgiving. This should be required reading for college students.

This is a story about a pilgrim traveling throughout Russia looking for the ultimate prayer life. It is a very touching and emotional story. It is a wonderful story. It is a MUST READ for all christians, and should be read to and by children of all ages. This is a book which should replace many of the books children read today. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED...A REAL PAGE TURNER. EXCELLENT.

In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul writes "Pray without ceasing," (1 Thes 5:17) and in his letter to the Ephesians, he writes "Pray at all times in the Spirit." (Eph 6:18) What does it mean to pray at all times without ceasing? Can it be done? These are the questions asked by the pilgrim, the main character of The Way of the Pilgrim and The Pilgrim Continues his Way, two books written in the late nineteenth century by an anonymous Russian Christian. The pilgrim character tells of his journeys through Russia as he seeks to learn to pray unceasingly.

Through the telling of his tale, the pilgrim shares much about prayer. The focus of prayer is The Jesus Prayer, and the goal for the pilgrim is to continually pray this prayer from his heart. The writer introduces lessons on prayer and the Christian life through other characters such as priests, wise teachers called "starets" and other Christian travelers who share their stories of faith. The pilgrim carries two books with him that are his sole possessions on the earth and his treasures. These are The Bible and a book of Eastern Church Fathers called The Philokalia. The narrator references both books to provide lessons on prayer.

His journey reveals what he learns about prayer. Through the book, the narrator reveals several lessons about prayer for reflection and practice. The main theme is ceaseless prayer.

An older teacher shares with the pilgrim that, as Paul writes to the Romans, "we know not what we should pray for as we ought." (Rom 8:26) The teacher advises that the perfection of prayer is not within our power, but we can pray often and always. The teacher then shares The Jesus Prayer with the pilgrim,

"The continuous interior prayer of Jesus is a constant uninterrupted calling upon the name of Jesus with the lips, in the spirit, in the heart, while forming a mental picture of His constant presence, and the imploring of His grace, during every occupation, at all times, in all places, even during sleep. The appeal is couched in these terms, `Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.'" (Pilgrim 9)

The pilgrim begins by practicing saying the above prayer thousands of times a day. With much effort and by the rejection of other thoughts and doubts, he develops the habit of saying it continually. He first says it with his lips and mind. Later in the book a teacher shares with him the expanded form of the Jesus Prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner."(Pilgrim 135) His teacher explains that in this form of the prayer, the entire Gospel and way to salvation is represented.

Through his interactions with others and his reading, the pilgrim continues to learn about The Jesus Prayer and its effects. He shares the following,

"What the Gospel is, that the prayer of Jesus is also, for the Divine Name of Jesus Christ holds in itself the whole gospel truth. The holy Fathers say that the prayer of Jesus is a summary of the Gospels."(Pilgrim 27)

This explains why the prayer so effective for those who pray it in combating their spiritual enemies and producing the fruits of the Spirit in their heart.

The author emphasizes that God's grace drives prayer and rewards prayer. He urges those he speaks with to make attempts at prayer and ask God to help them. He does not belittle even the feeblest attempts at prayer. For the author, every intention of ours and every movement of ours toward God are valuable to God. He summarizes his thoughts,

"The love of God gives grace a thousand fold more than human actions deserve. If you give Him the merest mite, He will pay you back with gold. If you but purpose to go to the Father, He will come out to meet you. You say but a word, short and unfeeling--`Receive me, have mercy on me'--and He falls on your neck and kisses you. That is what the love of the heavenly Father is like toward us, unworthy as we are." (Pilgrim 117)

This is an important spiritual value for the pilgrim that he tries to practice and teach. God gives us grace to come to Him, and when we come, he pours out more grace upon us.

The Way of the Pilgrim and The Pilgrim Continues His Way summarize the Bible's lesson on prayer. The author illustrates that prayer leads us to Christ and the Father and is itself inspired and initiated by the Holy Spirit within us. The author has included many scriptures about prayer. He shows systematically how the New Testament encourages prayer. He offers a lesson on how prayer empowers us to do good works, so that the term, "Pray and do and think what you will" is reasonable and sensible for the Christian who prays sincerely.

The book offers a way of life that is hidden in Christ through a continual praying from the heart to Christ. The author shows how it is possible and beneficial to pray continually as prescribed by Scripture.

This book was recommended to me by a friend and after reading the sample pages here I felt that I had to have it. The book greatly gave strength to my faith in Christ and I know it has helped many others as well. In fact, this book, as previously mentioned, does deserve more than 5 stars. Reading it through it was like placing myself in the pilgrim's steps and traveling with him throughout the East.

A very simple and easy to read book that gives a powerful message!! A must read for anyone who loves spiritual books..

This book probably presents every scenario you can think of if you want to protect your estate. Reading this book will provide you with intelligent questions while you discuss your estate planning with your attorney.

The book is not only informative, but also entertaining and easy to read. No legaleez to wade through. I highly recommend it.

I felt the book was easy to read. Not one to be read in one sitting, however. I have done extensive estate planning, will preparation, and will updates. However, this book presented some options that I am considering. It also showed me a couple of loopholes that I thought I had closed, that I probably don't. Well worth the money and time to read. I expect to go back to this book several times. I will be taking it with me to an attorney appointment.

Estate planning is so important if you don't want your son in law running off with half your estate in the event of your kid's divorce. This book was a great asset to me ... and a real eyeopener as to what can happen at the reading of your will if you haven't equalized everything. the author even gives you his phone number that readers can call and ask questions free. The book is so good I bought 4 extra copies for friends.

Only estate book I've seen written in an easy-to-read, mini-case-study format. Very practical and thought-provoking advice. Tends to focus on little worst-case scenarios in an attempt to get people to plan properly for all the things that can go wrong in an estate.

For what it's worth, I thought the book was generally best-suited for estates with $100,000 to about $2,000,000 in assets. Don't get me wrong, there's something in here for all estate sizes - especially for people just starting the process of developing a plan. However, don't buy this book looking for technical discussions of advanced tax-minimizing strategies. If you or your clients have estates over this $2MM mark, this book can be a great thought-provoker, but some of the advice isn't really suitable for larger estates.

I have several estate planning books...the "how to" type and they are great. This is the book you need to read before you start filling in the blanks. I wish my parents had read this book. It would have saved my family relationships. This book gives you the basic information you need before drawing up your trust. Protect your beneficiaries and prevent family conflict by reading this book!

This book held my interest and gave me good insite in and about the drug dealers in Hong Kong. I strongly recommend it.

The first time I read this book was in 2001, and it made a tremendous inpact on me. It's about an English woman in her early twenties being called to go to Hong Kong and start working among the drug addicts in the so called "Walled City". A couple of years later she met someone telling her about the importance of speaking in tongues, and she started praying in tongues 15 minutes each day. She had been talking to people in the "Walled City" about Jesus from the time she got there, but after 6 weeks of praying in tongues each day, the people she was talking to started believing what she was saying and received Jesus. She also saw that there was no way the drug addicts were able to get off drugs, if they didn't imediately started praying in tongues. "Each had his fascinating story and all without exception came off heroin without pain and trauma." This book is not only a story about what happened to Jackie Pullinger, but also a great teaching about the power source we have on the inside of us. Before she started praying in the Spirit she said: "Lord, I don't know how to pray, or whom to pray for. Will You pray through me - and will you lead me to the people who want You?" All of us who are baptized in the Spirit and received the gift of speaking in tongues can say the same thing and then start using what He has given us. We have "dynamite" on the inside. Let it "explode" each day, and people around us will want to have what we have!

I LOVE this book so much because it is one woman's testimony of what GOD did & is doing with her-through her.
HIS HOLY WORD IS TRUE!
HE IS With Us, and just as HE did with the first Disciples of JESUS,
THE HOLY SPIRIT still works with those who preach the Gospel with signs and wonders following, confirming THE WORD.
I must confess, I don't have the book now - I gave it to my daughter.
I actually came in search for another copy for myself.
:) Well, for me until I give it away again. :)

My wife and I could not put this book down as we read it together. It is filled with excitement as the author battles against opium and drug abuse as well as every other kind of demonic evil. In every case, she wins the battle for the souls, minds, bodies and spirits of men and women in Hong Kong. There is one victory after another as men and women are set free by the power of God's Holy Spirit. We highly recommend this book for those seeking release from drugs, alcohol and demonic bondage.
Sincerely, Rev. Richard and Holly Lang

The testimony of Jackie Pullinger, and her life among the poor and addicted in Hong Kong. This is a reality to be in touch with.

A great help. Full of factual information and practical tips from parents who've "been there." It's a valuable resource for those of us who have a child who has been diagnosed with leukemia.

I was loaned the 2nd Edition in the hospital after our son was diagnosed with ALL. This book is so valuable to the family to help you learn and weather through all the processes you could face during this difficult time. I knew I had to have my own copy and bought a second copy of the 3rd edition to share with other families through the hospital. Many other members of our family intend to buy their own copies of the book as well.

If you are hungry for information, buy this book. It calmed my nerves and made me a better team member in my son's fight against cancer.

Our Son was diagnosed in April of 2006 with ALL Leukemia. Trying to understand all of the terms, meds and schedules is hard enough. This book is written by a Mom with the help of her Doctor's expertise. It puts very scary helpless feelings in laymen's terms. This Mom goes into detail on how to comfort and successfully treat your child. She gives you her experiences on what works and what doesn't and what to expect. It is also an up- to- date book, whereas many books were written years ago. As a Mom who has gone thru 7+ months of this diagnosis, I wish someone would have given me this book the moment our Son was diagnosed. It's great for the whole family to read as well.

As a grandparent of a recently diagnosed 3 year old with ALL leukemia I have found this book an important resource for me to understand the treatment for this terrible disease. The descriptions of the types of chemo used and its side-effects have been particulalry valuable during the early months since the diagnosis. The book is comprehensive with all aspects of the disease and is full of anecdotal and suggestions for coping with this disease at all phases of treatment. It also offers lists of available resources to be accessed. I highly recommend this book for parents, family members and caregivers.

I have been a survivor of ALL Leukemia for 23 years now, and really wish there were books like this then. But now is when all these books are coming out, I am trying to find a book or information on how long term survivors can cope with the long term issues we face.

Topics like planning for college, buying a home, saving for retirement. These are issues my mother addressed with me, and now it is too late to start addressing these issues for me. For others it is not to late. We are surviving longer, and this is a new arena for the doctors and social workers need to address.

This was the text for my college Shakespeare classes over 20 years ago (different edition of course) I still have it and still use it. A wonderful book for students and those who want not only the complete works but some well written and authoritative information about Shakespeare and the world in which he lived and wrote.

The texts of the plays are well foot-noted and the type is easy on the eyes. Well worth the investment.

If you can't afford the Oxford Edition of Shakespeare's complete works than this is the next best edition you can find.

While reading reviews of this edition elsewhere on the Web, I came across this review by David Allen White, professor of English @ the U.S. Naval Academy and editor (with Charles Boyce) of Shakespeare A to Z:

"Re-writing Shakespeare is nothing new. The Nahum Tate version of King Lear--with the happy ending--held the stage for nearly a century and a half. The great actors of the romantic age, Kean and Booth and Macready, not only spotlighted the heroes in the tragedies but felt free to beef up their roles. Directors began more than 50 years ago to monkey with the historical settings of the play, often with imaginative and instructive results. Scholars, critics, and directors have ridden various hobbyhorses through the plays for years, introducing us to Freudian Hamlets and Marxist King Lears and feminist Tamings of the Shrew.

"Recent Shakespeare production and scholarship, however, add a perverse twist to this long tradition. We no longer care what the Bard actually wrote. Years of deconstructionist theorizing have taught us that words are needy and we, readers or actors or scholars, have the right, indeed the obligation, to give them the gift of meaning--our meaning, the more bizarre the better.

"For the 23 years that I've taught Shakespeare at the United States Naval Academy, I have always used the same text, The Complete Works of Shakespeare, edited by David Bevington of the University of Chicago. Professor Bevington is an old-school scholar with a distinguished career. The book he edited had many advantages: large print, full character names before each speech, specific indications of settings, modernized spellings, solid introductions that connected the plays to the students' experience of love and politics, morality and order, passion and faith, and comprehensive but not overwhelming notes. Every few years a new edition would appear, and I would open it with interest and a little apprehension. But the changes would be minor--thinner paper (approaching the substance of tissue, a malady afflicting many recent books), hints here and there of encroaching academic perversity in the notes--nothing sufficient to make me seek another text. The 4th edition's introduction to The Tempest caused me to swallow hard: We learn there that Prospero's authority "is problematic to us because he seems so patriarchal, colonialist, even sexist and racist in his arrogating to himself the right and responsibility to control others in the name of Western and Christian values." But this is an imperfect world, and I soldiered on.

"Notified that a 5th Edition would appear this fall, I took time to examine it closely. Many of the introductions remain the same; but new editors and commentators have significantly altered others. Despite the myth of progress that reigns in all the disciplines of modern academia, "new" is often far from "improved." Apparently, Professor Bevington has either ignored the changes or allowed the young scholar-colts to have a romp. In some of the new introductory essays, especially under the guise of new brief histories of stage performance, questionable judgment, to put it mildly, has crept in. For example, the introduction to Othello ends with the following observation:

'In another recent development, Emilia has stood out in several productions as the raissoneur and heroic figure in the play, speaking as she does on behalf of maltreated women, urging Desdemona to stand up for her rights. One recent Chicago production went so far as to rewrite the ending: Othello and Iago both survive unpunished for what they have done, while Desdemona and Emilia lie dead as their innocent victims. This deliberate and provocative overstatement might seem extreme to some viewers, but unquestionably did signal the direction of recent performance history of the profoundly disturbing play.'

"It may be time to stop buying tickets to that great play.

"The current obsession in academia is "queer theory," and the homoerotic is everywhere, not just in Shakespeare studies. But this particular perversity fills the introductions to the new Bevington, especially the introductions to the comedies. Compare the following passages, the first from the introduction to As You Like It in the 4th Edition, essentially a carry-over from earlier editions:

'Rosalind's disguise name, Ganymede, taken from Jove's amorous cupbearer, has homoerotic connotations that are easily misinterpreted today. Shakespeare delicately acknowledges the suggestion, to be sure, both in Phoebe's pursuit of a young lady (but really a boy actor) in male attire, and in Orlando's courtship of "Ganymede" as though addressed to Rosalind. Yet this innocent titillation, found also in Shakespeare's source, is not meant to hint at homosexual attraction as we understand it. On the contrary, the point is that Orlando can speak frankly and personally to "Ganymede" as to a perfect friend, one to whom he can relate in platonically spiritual terms without the distracting note of sexual interest.'

"These are eminently sane and sensible remarks. Now from the Introduction to As You Like It in the 5th Edition:

'Rosalind's disguise name, Ganymede, has connotations that suggest ways in which human sexuality can be partly understood as socially constructed. If Rosalind in disguise as Ganymede wins the affection and eventually the love of Orlando, while her father and the others are equally taken in by the disguise, are maleness and femaleness chiefly matters of sartorial convention and superficial appearance? When Phoebe falls in love with Ganymede, is not her infatuation a way of showing that the roles of the sexes can be put on and off? Theatrically, the device of having a young male actor play Rosalind who then disguises him/herself as a young man adds to the witty confusion of sexual identities by introducing homoerotic possibilities. Not only can the roles of the sexes be put on and off, sexual desire itself is unstable...'

"This is ideology masquerading as interpretation.

"To be sure, the range of possible interpretations of Shakespeare's work is wide, for he encompasses all of humanity and tells profound and mysterious truths about human life. Such inexhaustible expansiveness invites discussion and dispute and differences. At the end of the Introduction to Richard II in this volume, for example, there is a brief but superb account of various interpretations of that rich role by leading actors. Professor Charles Forker of Indiana University provides that account; another old-school scholar, he knows more about that play than any other living soul. Too many of the revised introductions, however, are more interested in advancing the latest academic-political orthodoxy than in discovering and illuminating the natural and conventional moral order so abundantly on display in Shakespeare's works. Nothing is more orthodox--still--among contemporary literary critics than the alleged truth that there is no truth, that all interpretations are valid except the author's own.

"Thus Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream can be presented as "the denizen of a drug culture, with the love potion as the weed he gleefully distributes. The experience of the forest becomes a drug-induced 'high,' for audiences as for the actors. The fairies, sometimes played by adult and hairy males, can exhibit a streak of cruelty." And, indeed, in a recent production at the Shakespeare Theater in Washington, D.C., the fairies were hairy males who carried something like miners' lights. So much for lightness and charm and magic. This same Dream introduction gives the game away in words that are echoed in many of the other essays: "These modern interpretations are arguably neither more nor less 'true' to Shakespeare's text than earlier or more 'traditional' versions. What they do demonstrate is the play's remarkable permeability and openness to differing views."

"The new Bevington retails for $90; in good conscience, I cannot ask students to fork over such a sum of cash for a book that is now rife with nonsense. So next fall I'll assign The Riverside Shakespeare, which fortunately is still in its 2nd edition. I fervently hope it is not soon updated.

"Of course, the Bevington volume has come to reflect the universities it serves, where young students pay small fortunes to be taught that there is no enduring meaning or beauty to be found in the poetry of Shakespeare, no tradition worth preserving, no "truth" other than personal whim and innovative foolery. If the price of the new Bevington is petty theft, the tuitions charged by these institutions have become, at least for the study of the humanities, highway robbery.

"I know a father who gave his son the equivalent of a year's tuition and told the lad to go to Europe, to travel, to observe, to learn for as long as the money would hold out. The young man came back after two-and-a-half years, mature and educated, and instantly found a good job. The time has come for imaginative, alternative learning. I talked recently with a very intelligent young woman who loves literature; she is completing her sophomore year at Yale, where she had hoped to pursue an English Literature major. She informed me with sorrow that she was abandoning that plan. Her reason was quite simple: she had already sat through too many classes where lunacy prevailed. She mentioned the possibility of looking at traditional Catholic convents. Could this be the first refreshing drop of a wave of the future? It would not be the first time that civilization was preserved in the convents and the monasteries. Nymph, in thy orisons, be all of Academia's sins remembered."

(Allen, David White, "An Unweeded Garden," The Claremont Institute, http://claremont.org/publications/crb/id.959/article_detail.asp [originally published March 22, 2004])

I guess it's safe to say that, based on his review, Professor Allen'd give this edition 1 star...right?

I purchased this book as a birthday present for a graduating high school student who is a big fan of Shakespeare.
This volume has a lot to offer to both students and casual readers. In addition to very readable text of all the plays and sonnets, the fifth edition provides historical and literary context, including drawings and photos, as well as insightful essays on each of the plays. The essays include background, plot summaries and discussion of major themes and would be very useful to anyone seeing a play, especially for the first time. The helpful glossary is extensive, so the reader doesn't have to look up unfamiliar words or feel intimidated by the language. Professor Bevington's fifth edition of the Complete Works is a gem, authoritative and attractive. The birthday girl thinks so, too-- she gives it an A+.

This is truly a great book. Not only does it contain all of Shakespeare's works but it also has an enormous amount of information. There's a little bit on his life and a bit more about the theater during his time. There are also some great drawings in the beginning of the book.

I was skeptical about this being a five star book. I am way too busy to think about the tedious creative activities for my kids. This is such a great book. She makes so many valid points and suggestions. I wish I could live up to the bar she has set. Its just not me. But I can still learn alot from her and use many of her ideas to help create a more creative family. I felt like a girlfriend was telling me about what she did with her kids. She seems so real and its a delightful book to read.

I absolutely loved this book and am currently rereading it. It is full of so many wonderful, simple ideas for children and families. I like the idea of simplicity and less is more. It has been a very inspirational book for me and we have already put into practice several of the ideas from the book!

I read this book pretty much cover to cover the day I got it. Amanda obviously loves being a Mom and her passion for creating shines through while reading this book. The craft projects she provides instructions for are not groundbreaking but they are great starting points to get you thinking. I really enjoyed the last two sections in the book that focused more on how to make the most out of the time you spend with your family. She has some great suggestions for family traditions and exploring nature with your children.

I recently ordered this book and love it. It has some great projects to do with your kids, I especially love the nighttime bag--it's a bag you put your kids p.j's in and a book to have ready each evening. I'm working on mine right now and am going to do a little hand embroidery on the front of each--from the Aunt Martha's iron on embroidery patterns to personalize them. The ideas are fun for little ones and older ones alike--there are so many neat and easy activities for them to do...mine span from 2yrs. to 6 so that is important. I also love the section about celebrating little things like when a child learns to ride without training wheels etc. I am still going through this book and can't wait to try more of the ideas with my kids!

I have enjoyed this book. I would recommend it to families of all ages

A life changing and life enhancing book. Speaks to the deeper considerations for what our right livelihood is, how it affects others, and how to discover it. I just bought it as a gift to a thoughtful young man considering what to do with his work life - now that he just finished his first job.

David's work has inspired me in very practical ways and it is truly a read for those who yearn for purpose in their lives. My constant discovery of my "firm persuasion" helps me both at work and at home and dealing with the insanity of 9/11. It is easily one of the top 50 books in my business library and I quote from it regularly when I teach managers and leaders!

One of the best books I've read that describes the nature of work and the human condition. Whyte captures so beautifully the emotions I feel as an independent consultant who spent time inside some large organizations. These days I feel that need to be "part of something", and just as strongly feel the need to use my own voice and find my own way should I go back inside an organization. Whyte describes this tension of wanting to be a part and wanting to express who you are inside an organzation brilliantly. I can't imagine anyone who hasn't struggled with these fundamental questions. It was affirming to know that my conflicts with those desires are not unusual.

I always enjoy reading Whyte's work. Few writers have equaled his command of the English language and his story-telling ability. The book evokes a great deal of empathy as many modern day workers struggle to find personal meanings to work/employment. Whyte provides a personal insight into how one may purposefully stay true to oneself. The reading is relatively lighter than most of his poetic works and is very enjoyable and thought provoking. If one doesn't like the content, he/she will at least enjoy the author's mastery in writing, especially his transitions from one point to another. Whyte is one of the few authors that can weave together difficult concepts with artistic cohesiveness and elegance. Highly recommend it.

I was "moved" and inspired by this book which was a gift from a respected Executive Coach. This books assists all that want to deepen their connection to their life's work or find out what their life's work is. The author states that far too many people trudge through a mediocre work life - scrambling through day-to-day "busyness" towards exhaustion. Rather he encourages more time for self-reflection and analysis. While many most often want to get away from work - it's where many spend the majority of their time, and it's where many spend much of it wishing they were somewhere else, doing something else. Many overlook how work can actually be our greatest opportunity for discovery and growth - and author explains how. The Chapters include the following:

1) Setting out with firm persuasion
2) A stranger at the door
3) From Powerlessness to participation
4) Ambition, Horizon and Arrival
5) A short Sea Crossing
6) From Exhaustion to Wholeheartedness
7) Arrival and Authenticity
8) When the real you wants out
9) Escaping the Prison of Time and Work
10) A voyage through the hours of the day