Works Books

When I was a happy and healthy 39 years old, I abruptly became the first cancer patient I'd known, with a stage III colorectal cancer. Once diagnosed, I put together the best medical team I could. Then I found myself with many equally crucial needs for help as I entered the strange and uniquely personal terrain of my cancer experiences. How will I get through this? What does this cancer mean for my life? Journey Through Cancer provided excellent questions, stories, and tools that helped strengthen and enrich my ability to navigate through cancer. I found Journey Through Cancer at the library, and it was the sole book I found that understood that cancer patients need more than prescriptions for treatment, diet and attitude. Journey Through Cancer coaches readers through a process of discovering their own best responses to the unique impacts of cancer on our lives. For cancer patients and their loved ones, this is a must-read book.

My father is recovering from his second brain surgery in two months, and will soon begin adjuvant radiation and/or chemotherapy. I've been looking for information for him on what he can do to help the healing process from the inside. I recently checked this book out from my local library along with five others. I returned the other four, and haven't put this one down.

Brimming with inspiring stories of actual patients, facts on cancer types and treatments, overviews of alternative therapies, and many references to other books, tapes and organizations which may help you on the "journey through cancer." I know our family will be referring to this book often, throughout the journey, wherever it leads.

I have been a person with cancer since June 1998. I am one who wants answers to questions about my health all the time. Mild depression sets in when I don't get it. "The Journey through Cancer" is definitely a journey through life as Dr. Geffen states. Take one day at a time. Don't fill yourself with questions and grab for answers. His "gameplan" enables a person with cancer to deal with cancer with less anxiety and makes us more in touch with reality. How I wish there were more Dr. Geffens in this world full of cancer whose compassionate nature and an open-minded understanding about various treatments will make it easier for a patient to relate with their physician.

I highly recomend this book to any person with cancer and their families. For truly understanding what we go through physically, emotionally and spritually will make the steps through healing an easier and less stressful one. It will definitely bring about a more loving and compassionate relationship between the patient and the members of the family. Knowing about cancer isn't enough. How we accept and deal with it contribute far more to healing than all medical practices combined.

My most wonderful gift? Dr. Geffen and I communicate regularly by e-mail. I was so happy to receive a reply to my congratulatory message and through his mail, I can definitely experience his compassionate spirit. Thank you Dr. Geffen.

I have been a person with cancer since June 1998. I am one who wants answers to questions about my health all the time. Mild depression sets in when I don't get it. "The Journey through Cancer" is definitely a journey through life as Dr. Geffen states. Take one day at a time. Don't fill yourself with questions and grab for answers. His "gameplan" enables a person with cancer to deal with cancer with less anxiety and makes us more in touch with reality. How I wish there were more Dr. Geffens in this world full of cancer whose compassionate nature and an open-minded understanding about various treatments will make it easier for a patient to relate with their physician.

I highly recomend this book to any person with cancer and their families. For truly understanding what we go through physically, emotionally and spritually will make the steps through healing an easier and less stressful one. It will definitely bring about a more loving and compassionate relationship between the patient and the members of the family. Knowing about cancer isn't enough. How we accept and deal with it contribute far more to healing than all medical practices combined.

My most wonderful gift? Dr. Geffen and I communicate regularly by e-mail. I was so happy to receive a reply to my congratulatory message and through his mail, I can definitely experience his compassionate spirit. Thank you Dr. Geffen.

Dr. Geffen's book, A Journey through Cancer, was a revelation to me, because it showed me how MY participation in the healing process was vital to the outcome of the cancerous condition that had arisen in my body. Good as the doctors and nurses were, I soon discovered that they were most willing to treat my symptoms, that is the outer reality, but there was no inclination whatsoever to address the inner reality,that is the spiritual and emotional aspects of the patient. In most oncology centers, as far as I can see, the holistic approach is practically unknown, to all intents and purposes.

Dr. Geffen explains the basics of the disease and the treatments in very clear terms, so that we are aware of the various processes. These explanations were very helpful to me when asking questions of the doctors and nurses.

I learned from Dr.Geffen that true healing can only come from within ourselves, once we have been able to overcome our fears and denials, once we have reversed our tendencies to repress and withhold, and to view, or feel, that treatments are ordeals to be borne, instead of envisaging our whole being as coming into action in tandem with the treatments. In "The Hound of Heaven", the poet Francis Thomson says: "Fear wist not to evade as Love wist to pursue" - in order to heal, our goal should be to replace fear with love, and Dr.Geffen illustrates this in a singularly illuminating way.

One of Dr.Geffen's most compelling concepts is that of transformation: we are not at war, we are not trying to kill or destroy anything, our wish is to bring harmony throughout our bodies. There is intelligence in all our cells, and our wish is to make all of them aware of their inherent power for wellbeing and joy.

A Journey through Cancer is a masterpiece of a rare order: it is imbued with knowledge, kindness, understanding, and above all it shows that the path of healing, and eventually of being, is through consciousness.

This book is such a comfort for anyone who has lost a loved one. I'd recommend it to anyone grieving and their close friends and relatives. The theology and prayer in this book is uplifting.

I have not lost a child. In fact, I'm not a parent. So, admittedly, much of the power of this book, as expressed by other reviewers, is simply lost on me. I cannot empathize with the author's experience in any way.

However, I am still glad to have read this compact book. Though one reviewer suggests that it is too academic, it is no such thing. Intelligently written? Yes. Academic? No. Instead, it is a strikingly authentic expression of the pain and suffering that the author experienced immediately after and further past the event of losing his 25-year-old son to a mountain climbing accident.

The greatest asset of this book is the author's brutal honesty. All Christians would do well to follow his example of opening our emotional landscape for God and others to see, rather than somehow trying to stuff our most "unChristian" feelings behind some facade of strength. When things hurt, I am confident that God allows His people to hurt. In fact, Wolterstorff suggests that God hurts with us.

This book is not filled with Christians platitudes, so spiritual sounding but ultimately so silly, that we often offer to each other to try to help with despair. Instead, it sits in that grief, analyzes that grief, admits the brokenness, and still reaches for the comforting hand of a loving God. Especially for those who have lost a child but even for any Christian who wants to learn how to honestly grieve, I recommend this book as worthwhile.

My son died from injuries suffered in a fall while serving in the Peace Corps in Zambia in 2005. This book has put words to many of my own feelings. It is raw and heart wrenching. I have quoted many of the passages in this book. I highly recommend it for any grieving parent. We have a copy in our Compassionate Friends library, where it will serve as a comfort to many others.

Having lost our son last year, this book was recommended to us. You think you understand what a loss means, but you really don't until you are there. This book identified so many emotions I have been through and touched my heart at the love and compassion shared. If you know anyone who has lost a child, read this book and then you will have a better understanding to walk with them through this journey of grief.

This book was recommended to me by a wonderful lady by the name of Mary who owns a bookstore in Sandwich, MA on the Cape. I was curious as to how it would fare due to how thin it was but I began reading it immediately. I could NOT put it down. I read it in one sitting as it's very easy to read due to it's journal style. Nicholas Wolterstorff is a master at writing about all the feelings one goes through after a loss. Feelings that leave you scratching your head and wondering how you arrived at them and yet mange to still function as part of society. Feelings that leave you numb and wounded from the heavy burden and pain. Feelings that if you wanted to capture you would struggle to form concise sentences from the sheer overwhelming nature of them. Nicholas manages all of the above and more. He will touch you with his heart-wrenching understanding of grief. I cried, I nodded my head, I marveled at just how much my pain was not only recognized but acknowledged and validated. My pain is still with me, you will never be rid of it nor should you want to be (a notion mentioned in the book) but I have a feeling of peace more so than before I read it. This peace I think comes from not being alone in my pain. And while I wouldn't wish the loss of a child on anyone, I'm so blessed to have had the chance to read Lament for a Son because it has allowed me to feel part of a community of mourners. A community where I am allowed to suffer and grieve, but also clearly be aware of why I suffer and that is because I LOVE. Sadly in the real world we are made to feel we must 'get over' our loss and as a result are outcast in society. Through his words Nicholas Wolterstorff shows just how much of a force death and grief affect the loved ones left on earth. This book is a gift for those in pain from loss and is also a gift for those who want to help family or friends but don't know what to say. My son was stillborn and while this loss is diffeent from losing a 25 year old child, it is still a loss that has forever changed me. Lament for a Son has helped me in my grief, and I hope it helps your pain too.

This book should be considered required reading for anyone designing and developing sites.

Most of the websites online do not follow the practices outlined in this book and would be better off if they did.

The book is filled with clear examples and shows bad content and then the ways to improve it.

Great book!

From the moment I started reading this well-constructed, excellently researched book, I couldn't put it down and wanted to know more. The pages are reader-friendly, and lots of good examples make all the author's advice come to life on the page. "Letting Go of the Words" clarifies so many gray areas of writing for the web. I highly recommend this book to anyone who ever has to write anything that will appear on the web, and also to designers who are responsble for setting up websites. Once you read this book, you won't be able to look at any website in the same way again.

This is one of the best books you can buy if you creating a website, looking for ideas on how to make your site better or just need simple easy to implement ideas. Ginny has created an easy way to focus on your "audience" make any site practicle with simple solutions. Tips and trick that any one can do without functionality. This is a best value!

This book is an absolute must read for anyone who develops websites. Ginny Redish provides great examples of web pages and how the visitor is affected by the arrangement of the content. I love the way she presents a website user and allows you to "think" like a visitor.

I'm a big fan of technical communication texts. This book is exceptional, and stands apart from others in many ways:

- Many technical communication texts repeat the same rote guidelines. Although this book does not ignore the "classic" rules (e.g., "Write in inverted pyramid style"; "Use space effectively"), many of the rules are unexpected or even contrarian (e.g., "Use a sans-serif font"; "Long lists are o.k. for familiar items"). All rules are backed by examples that demonstrate their effectiveness.
- The book provides clear examples of real-world Web content, including many "before" and "after" images that demonstrate the book's principles.
- The production of the book is excellent. The color printing and rich layout help to make the book attractive and approachable.

Although the focus of this book is Web communication, the rules, principles, and guidelines are relevant to any form of written communication. The number of examples and diversity of the book's guidelines make this an ideal text for technical communicators and Web content developers of all levels of experience and proficiency.

Read this book while its still available! Its language is so simple yet it touches you with a ferocity thats unthinkable!
I could relate to every charecter and that was the most freaky part!

The charecters in this book are rich and full of life. The plot is very engaging and what more can one say about a book thats so beautiful it makes you weep with joy!

Bravo Leavitt and the rest of you read it!

While not as good as his short stories, and awkward and somewhat amateurish in a few places, this is a good, strong first novel. Ideally I would give this one a 3.5, but since that's not an option, I'll err on the side of generosity. This novel explores coming out, family dynamics, and the selfish yuppie attitudes of the 80s.

Author David Leavit writes a brillant novel that I had a hard time putting down. While Phillip is confronting his changing relationship with his lover, Elliot, his father Owen is finally, confronting his homosexuality. Highly recommended. Each character is richly developed and textured, they feel like real people that you know. While the film is good, it uses London as a backdrop rather than the book's all-to-real-modern-urban life set in New York and in the transistion looses something.

I read this book for a class, and enjoyed it much more than I ever expected, especially in retrospect. I think it takes a little time to really get into, especially because Leavitt jumps back and forth between the three main characters and storylines, but once you get into the rhythm of the story, you are drawn in. Leavitt does a great character study of Owen, Rose, and Philip, and by the end of the novel, I felt like I knew them. Leavitt has an accessible wrting style, but the book itself is very literary and complex. For a first novel, especially, I think it's exceptional.

Fair warning: I'm going to reference the end, or rather lack of ending in this review.

Leavitt is noted for his short stories, so it isn't much of a surprise that "The Lost Language of Cranes" is a short story padded into a novel that in sort of an ironic twist winds up being too short, ending before any of the issues put forth are resolved.

The gist of the story is that Owen and Rose have been married for 27 years, but now they're facing a crisis. Their Manhattan apartment is going co-op forcing them to either buy or move, a predicament I think few outside of New York City really understand. At the same time, Owen has been disappearing for long stretches of some days, especially Sundays. We soon learn he's going to certain X-rated theaters for a little homosexual hanky-panky. Owen is homosexual--always has been--but is trying to keep it from Rose and his son Philip. Although it turns out Philip is also gay, but has been keeping it from Mom and Dad. He gets involved in a serious relationship with Eliot, adopted son of a writer Philip admired. Before long, Philip is "coming out" to his parents, which inadvertantly causes Owen to come out. Mayhem ensues.

When I mentioned this book is padded, in particular is the sidebar story of Eliot's roommate Jerene. She came out to her adopted parents years ago and they soon disowned her. Since then she's been working on a never-ending dissertation until she decides to say the heck with it and work first as a bouncer at a lesbian club and then as a counselor on a gay helpline, which Owen later calls. While her life may serve as comparison or contrast to Philip and Owen, it doesn't contribute a whole lot to the story of Philip, Owen, and Rose.

Most of the writing is good, but some of the dialogue is clumsy. My belief is if anyone in a book or movie says, "I feel..." without being in the presence of a therapist, it's a red flag for poor dialogue. It's not natural for people to say, "I feel like..." in my experience. At other times the characters spouted dialogue that seemed too melodramatic. But with a first novel you can't expect absolute perfection.

Now what really annoyed me about the book is the lack of a decent ending. The book ends with Philip and Owen being outed, but everything is up in the air. We don't know what's going to happen between Owen and Rose; will they stay together? Eliot breaks up with Philip, who soon is spending a lot of time with his friend Brad; are they going to become serious? Not even the issue of the apartment, mentioned so prominently throughout the book is resolved. What good is an ending that doesn't end anything? It feels arbitrary to me. Maybe with a little less padding there would have been more space to focus on more important issues.

Except for some insights into the gay nightlife scene of 1980s New York City, I didn't think this book told me a lot I didn't already know. Mostly I thought it was a bland novel, but a worthy first effort.

The publisher and the curator of this book have created something very special for those of us who follow the fiber arts world. The featured artists selected represent what is really happening right now and that is what makes this publication so special. It is wonderful to read about and see images from fiber artists that helped start this revolution and especially wonderful to see what they are creating NOW. With the amount of fiber artits there are in this world, it must have been very difficult to wack down the list to those included in this book. Espcially wonderful to see more than one image and to read their comments about their own work and how it's impacted the art world.

Whether or not you're a quilter you would find it hard not to find inspiration in the pages of this book. Page after page of the most incredible quilts await you in this 400-page book. The photographs are clean, clear and placed on pages with no background clutter to detract the reader's eye. This is a book to be savored one page at a time and one that you'll find yourself picking up and flipping through over and over again. A must have for any fiber artists library.

Martha Sielman has put together a book documenting and celebrating 40 quilt makers and their art with beautiful photography, an insightful intro for each artist by Sielman, and commentary from the artist. Every page is a visual treat. A book of this type of art was long overdue, and this volume is everything one interested in quilt art (or any textile art) could hope for. Bravo!

There is so much eye candy in this book that I ran the risk of diabetic shock just browsing it! This is an amazing collection of fiber art, a plethora of inspiration and a joy to own. I would give it a 7 star rating if there were one. It's a "must have" in every fiber artist book collection! Bravo Martha!

Reviewed by:
Normajean Brevik
[...]

I highly recommend this book for your quilt library whether you create or just admire fine art quilts. The artists selected are varied and talented. The format allows the reader to follow the growth of each artist over a period of years. The photos are wonderful and inspiring. When my quilting friends saw this book, they rushed to order it.

great product, great price and i really like. a great way to get the book on a student stipend.

As both doctor and founder of a EchoScribe Inc, a leading internet based medical transcription company, (www.echoscribe.com) I must recomend Stedmans as the dictionary that all physicians must own. There is also the PDA version that is also a good carry. It not only provides a quick reference, but in writing medical letters, and transcribing documents, this book is a "medical must have."

I am a transcriber and Stedman's Medical Dictionary is necessary for my work. It is invaluable. I also love the illustrations for clarification.

This medical dictionary provides simple definitions on key
terminology in the field of medicine. Some simple definitions
include the following:
- antigen involves the immune response
- a virus is incapable of growth beyond living cells
- bacterium multiply by cellular division

The volume contains the human anatomy in full color pictures.
For instance, the following parts are depicted:
- skull
- head and neck
- musculature
- cerebral hemispheres
- disc anatomy
- heart anatomy
- classic fractures and radiography depicting the events
- foot joints i.e. interphalangeal joint, tarsometa tarsal
joint, ankle joint

This medical dictionary is perfect for the science student
in your house. In addition, the book will complement the
existing personal library of medicinal acquisitions.

A great resource, I recommend the CD version for saving a lot of time and effort ... only if you can have a computer on while you're studying.

i orignially purchased this book as a resource for a paper i was doing on tuscany, but when i received it and began to browse through it, i sat down and read the entire thing from cover to cover. the photography was magnificent; the information was just the right amount without going on and on; the entire product was stunning. i wanted to run to the internet and book the next flight to tuscany!

This is the best for someone wanting to visit interesting places in Italy. It is not only well arranged and written, but it helped so much in trip planning. I highly recommend this to anyone traveling on their own to Italy.

Since I love Italy as a place to visit, this book is great to own.

Yes, the photos are nice, but how many coffee table books with pretty Tuscan villages, cypress trees, and silvery olive leaves shimmering in the wind do we need?

Someone who reviewed this book suggested bringing it along on a Tuscan trip; if you put this large and heavy book in your luggage, you will have to leave the toothpaste, underwear, and a number of other things at home, particularly now that some airlines are apparently toying with the notion of lowering weight allowances and charging for the excess.

The text in most instances is not particularly helpful. There are quite a few books on Tuscany that do a much better job. And I was truly surprised to see the town of San Quirico d'Orcia included in the list of "most beautiful villages". I happen to know San Quirico and because it is off the usual beaten tourist path, it retains an "Italianness" that has been lost by, for example, Greve in Chianti, where one would be hard-pressed to find an Italian in that town's lovely main square on a Saturday afternoon. But San Quirico could never be called "beautiful", by any stretch of the imagination.

Despite my reservations about this book, it would probably be a welcome present for a friend who has recently returned from the grand tour of Tuscany and it will, at least for a while, have a prominent place on this friend's coffee table.

Great service and beautiful pictures of Tuscany but somewhat dissapointed at the lack of an organized route map for efficient traveling to the various villages.

I want to congratulate Amelia Davis on creating a book that is different from all of the other MS books. Her book reaches into the lives of people living with MS and shares some of the feelings that caregivers and friends experience as well.

This is a wonderfully unique look at the amazing people who are challeged by this disease and how they live extraordinary lives in spite of it. Amelia's photography is a window into this world, her work is "present" and revealing of who people are.

Davis reaches the inner soul of the reader--regardless of whether or not you have MS. Her photographs capture the essence of the folks who share their stories. I was touched and inspired by this book!

Ameila Davis is a documentary photographer, diagnosed with MS in 1998.

Though titled "My Story", this book is really "their stories". In this book, she uses her trained eye to illustrate 32 essays personally portraying the lives of men and women with Multiple Sclerosis.

They range from 17 to 70, across a spectrum of ethnicities, genders, occupations, socio-economic backgrounds and family circumstances.

Through her book, Amelia captures the unique approach each person has used to frame their chronic disease with, not only a positive attitude, but with a positive approach to life.

She also includes the caregivers ... those frequently forgotten in the struggle with MS and all chronic disease.

Her essays help others to see, through the stories of real people, the different possible treatments and therapies and the techniques for coping (such as exercise, yoga, creative activities and competitive sports).

Her photographs capture the people behind these essays, putting a real face, a personal face, on what is often discussed in impersonal, clinical terms. You don't just read their story; you are drawn into a human connection with them.

This is a book to buy and read. And it is also a book to buy and display, a coffee table book.

Discussing MS with friends and family can be difficult. Chronic disease can create a "distance", a separation. This book can help to bridge that gap.

As someone picks up this book to browse and becomes captured by the photographs, it can crack the door to an open conversation about MS, about what it means and about how lives continue after diagnosis.

I happen to have MS and one of the problems of having a little understood illness is the distance it creates in one's personal relationships. Even with friends and family.

I now have a copy of "My Story" on my coffee table and I'm truly amazed by the number of people who, because of the presence of the book, are finally able to speak and ask questions about MS . They glance through the book and suddenly a dialog window opens.

The photos are superb, respectful and celebratory at the same time and every person's essay is different. I highly recommend the book.

I was fortunate to have been photographed by Amelia Davis in her new book about Multiple Sclerosis. Amelia traveled all over the country interviewing physically challenged individuals and their care givers. In doing so, she composed an enlightening yet very touching collection of stories, all through the eye of her camera. Her choice of black and white photos added another dimension and increased the already dramatic content. I was very skeptical that photos could capture the anguish I sometimes feel or capture the love and concern my care givers provide but I am now a believer! Her artistic eye caught the underlying emotions and all while we quietly talked and laughed among ourselves.

Many of Amelia's photographs portray some of the more difficult aspects of the disease, how many young people have learned to live with what is often a chronic illness. Her photographs also show how indiscriminate MS really is and how, like myself, you too could walk up one morning numb and tingling from head to toe. For me, the most healing aspect of the book was how others handled their emotional difficulties. Early on, I felt as if I was being punished for mishandling something in my past. I felt lonely and isolated due to my new differences. However, like many of the other biographies, I too have learned that 'attitude is everything' and that you alone are capable of taking the 'limits' out of limitations.

The book's addition of the often forgotten care giver was an extremely refreshing aspect of her book. I always thank my husband for having made the decision to stay but so little credit is given to these unselfish individuals. It is easy to take others for granted until your welfare is suddenly out of your control.

I gave Amelia a five star rating not because I was included in her book but because her photographs speak for themselves! Even if you are not faced with a chronic illness, the biographies will touch you with their uncensored frankness. Amelia walked in and out of my life but her pictures captured a fleeting glance, pose or emotion that explains to others the essence of that particular moment in time...

Great work, Amelia!!!

Well done Norman J Hyne, what an excellent edition. You explain how this complex industy works in very easy to understand chapters and supporting diagrams. Well worth the price.

I was looking for a book giving a comprehensive overview ofthe petroleum industry Upstream processes.

I found it. This is a great book with a practical sense and the figures and tables needed to build Your own frame of information.

If You need a practical understanding of the industry to build a business case, or figure out Oil Co needs. This is where to start

Very well written and formatted for those of us with very little or no previous oil and gas related experience. Covers all the bases and allows the reader to see how prospects are identified and analyzed and the hydrocarbons recovered and marketed. Recommended for all those wanting to learn more about the industry.

This is the best book available if you want to understand the petroleum industry without all of the techy details (or the engineering that comes with it). An excellent overview & reference.

I am a graduate geologist and I found this book ideal in my circumstances as an introduction before I got some petroleum work experience.It is very well written ,even a layperson could get a good appreciation for the wide encompassing subject matter.It is not aimed at specialists or those with a lot of experience in the petroleum geoscience.However, it is one of the best text books I have read.

Excellent book for all catholic it reminds you why you are and also is good for those who just became catholic.

Thomas Howard's work was instrumental in my conversion from evangelical protestantism to Roman Catholicism. He is consistently Chestertonian and Lewisian. He presents the protestant concerns with more rhetorical flourish than they normally do. On Being Catholic is no exception and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Among the new breed of Catholic apologists, none are as rewarding to read as Thomas Howard. Raised in a prominent Evangelical family, his move first to Anglicanism and then to Rome caused him some personal trials as he lost both friends and employment because of his beliefs. Despite this, he has remained grateful for the lessons of the faith he received in his former ecclesial homes and sees his path as one of completion and not repudiation of what went before.

In On Being Catholic, Howard outlines his reasons for joining the Catholic Church with a humble passion that is the hallmark of his writing. This humility is important to Howard - he is adamant that it is not his place to reinvent the faith of the Church to his own liking. We are not to reinvent the faith with every generation so to make it easier to digest for contemporary sensibilities but faithfully follow, preserve, and pass on the truths that have been handed over to us.

Howard begins by making note of the inherent religious nature of man. As much as militant atheists may have in the past harped (and continue to do so) about their way being the wave of the future, kyries continue to be sung, prayers made in a thousand tongues, and coversions made in countless places around the globe. Atheism is ultimately a dead end and the question for the believing Christian remains of how we are to worship God. That is, what do we do when we enter the God's presence? For Howard, the answer is as simple: We do what Christians have done for two millennia - we join together in the liturgy to hear the Word. We baptize believers. We break bread, and drink from the cup. In both Word and Sacrament, we do as Christ himself has commanded.

Howard contends the Church finds its purpose in its liturgiy under the authority of a bishop and ultimately the Bishop of Rome. There may be different rites but the same basic outline is followed by all. No one may worship another way as a matter of personal preference. The Catholic Church is not, Howard claims, arrogant to insist others commit to her way of doing things. If one believes what the Catholic Church teaches, then it is as simple as truth and error. On the Catholic side, there is no record of any type of worship common to modern Evangelicalism prior to the last few centuries. All Christians with a history back to the early Church also worships using one of the historic liturgies. This is true for the Eastern Orthodox and other Eastern Churches as well as those who follow Rome.

Howard emphasizes how the liturgy affects the Catholic view of the act of corporate worship. Unlike most of Protestantism, it is not just a gathering of fellow Christians but a participation in the re-presentation of the one the one true sacrifice at Calvary. When a Catholic goes to Mass, it is the union of all the Church throughout time as the veil between this world and the heavenly realms is opened. The Eucharist becomes the real body and blood of Christ for the Church to feed upon and it is in this great mystery that the Church is made one throughout time and space. The Mass itself may be seen as a "diagram of glory" where the "work of the people" is to participate in this great mystery. Hence, attendance at Mass for the Catholic is never just "going to church".

Turning then to salvation, Howard points out that Catholic teaching differs greatly in the understanding of what it means to be saved. For the Catholic, being saved by the Gospel of Jesus Christ is not a moment but a process that begins with their baptism continues throughout their life in the Church. He further points out the simple "sinners' prayer" salvation common to much of contemporary Evangelicalism is a recent innovation. Catholicism and the early Church held to a higher standard of commitment than one might deduce from watching a televangelist.

The alien nature of Catholicism to modern sensibilities continues even in so intimate an area as prayer. In Catholicism, prayer is not merely an intellectual or emotional activity but one that incorporates all the senses. Thus the artwork, the music, the incense, and the requests for the intercession of Mary and the Saints can leave most Protestants more than a little uneasy. Yet all of this is part of the great fabric of the Catholic faith and follows from the understanding granted to the Church throughout history.

All of this is integrated, the author adds, into the importance of the physical in Catholic theology. We are not disembodied creatures and the dualism where the physical is seen as bad and the spiritual as good within Evangelicalism is completely foreign to Catholic thought. Christ took on our flesh and we are to be redeemed body and soul to serve Him. Thus what we do with our bodies does have consequences - not because our flesh is to be disdained but because we are to use it in accordance with God's plan for mankind. It is this embracing of the physical and making it holy that separated true Christianity from its gnostic competitors and allows Catholics today to embrace the mystery of Christ dying on a cross or the hidden wonder of an obscure young woman giving birth to a child in an obsure village.

The Catholic is one, Howard emphasizes, who lives within the tradition of the Church. For many Protestants, tradition is a dirty word that conjures up visions of prelates and priests coming between the "simple truths of Scripture" and the humble peasant. Only the peasant has rarely been humble and the myriad of interpretations on important issues underscores that Scripture is often not quite as perspicuous as some would like to imagine. In this cafeteria like atmosphere of doctrinal innovation, the consistency of Catholic tradition through the centuries is a guard against the chronic individualism common elsewhere.

In submitting oneself to the Catholic tradition and its demands on one's conscience, many suppose this is a surrender of one's freedom. Howard rejects this inference and claims that in becoming part of Christ's Church one finds a greater freedom than in the fleeting pleasures that the world associates with freedom. The mystery of the Church - including its discipline - opens our minds and hearts to a greater union with Christ in which we can experience true freedom and joy.

Howard finishes the book by examning a symbol associated closely with Catholicism that places many Protestants on edge: the crucifix. Again it is the Catholic embracing of the physical - even physical suffering - that allows this image of Christ suffering on the cross to hold such a central place in Catholic devotion. It gives comfort to many who suffer to be reminded that suffering is not always purposeless. This making visible the very physicalness of our salvation is in line with the entire sacramental view of the Church that is the core of Catholicism.

It would be a mistake to see this as a contentious book designed to make debating points in the endless squabbles along the Catholic/Protestant apologetics divide. It would also not be in keeping with Howard's generally charitable demeanor to engage in such argumentation. But do not mistake this charitableness for timidity or lack of conviction. In many ways, On Being Catholic is among the best books in defending Catholicism because instead of attacking Protestantism's weaknesses it focuses on Catholicism's strengths. There are certainly points where I believe Howard was a little too assured of the historicity of the papacy, but the overall power of the presentation and its understanding of the importance of the Sacramental life within historic Christianity ranks it among the most important popular Catholic books in recent memory.

This book meaningfully explores and probes the "good tidings" of the Catholic church, measuring its teachings and concepts against preconceptions and objections by both non-Christians and, especially, non-Catholic Christians. Howard looks at a variety of topics moving from the general to the specific, from the question of whether man is essentially a religious being, through discussions of typical Christian subjects like the Gospels and evangelism, to considerations of particularly Catholic doctrines such as the Church's view of Mary and understanding of human freedom. Probably because he is a converted evangelical himself, Howard tends to be at his best contrasting Catholic and Prostestant views; the chapter which considers whether or not Catholics are "saved," for instance, is one of the book's best. He also excels in his treatments of Church tradition and prayer. A late chapter on "Hiddenness," primarily about gender, is probably the book's weakest mainly because Howard seems too tentative.

Reviewers like to compare Howard to C. S. Lewis; I don't wholeheartedly agree. There is the same tendency to work with apt analogy, of course. And Howard also works "in dialogue" as did Lewis, anticipating and answering objections as he goes. It's appealing and familiar, to be sure. But Howard tends to gush more than Lewis and a lot of his discussions get away from him. Lewis's voice is calm, solid, and reassuring in its peculiarly British sobriety. Howard's voice, on the other hand, bears the weight of much learning and enthusiasm. He's excitable and sometimes overwrought, like a old fashioned preacher. Consider his liberal peppering of the text with Latin phrases, something Lewis (a classics professor) certainly could have done but didn't rely on so much. All this is not to say Howard is less worthy, only that his style is perhaps not so accessible as Lewis's to a wide variety of reader.

Of course this is a nitpick, offered here only because of the common comparison to Lewis. In general, the book is fine, rewarding reading for both the committed Catholic or the curious non-Catholic. For the most part Howard manages to be open-minded and conservative at the same time, not an easy trick.

As a convert to Catholicism I had already been introduced to Mr. Howard's work in his book "Lead Kindly Light" and had been very impressed with how well he told not only his story of conversion but mine as well. Because of that experience I couldn't wait to get started on this book once I had it but I have to admit that I was a little disappointed in this one. It may be that the other book was just so good that I expected too much of this book, it may have been that the author seemed to delight in using big and sometimes archaic words, or it may have been that this book was a little deeper than the other one but whatever the reason I found this book to be a little dry in comparison to "Lead Kindly Light."

That being said, I would still say that this is one of the better books on the subject of what it means to be Catholic. Having been raised an evangelical Protestant this author is very aware of the horrible misconceptions that many Protestants have about the Catholic Church and is also very aware of the kind of questions that evangelical Protestants sometimes ask Catholics and he takes these questions and answers them in a clear and concise way. He points out that many of the questions Catholics are asked don't resonate at all with them because the question is based on something that is just not part of their belief system. To help clear up these misunderstandings he takes the time to explain to the Catholic reader the background of questions like, "Are you saved?" and then explains to the Protestant reader why they may get a blank stare if they ask this question of a Catholic.

Throughout the book Mr. Howard takes great pains to get to the very essence of what it means to be Catholic and takes on some major issues that divide Catholics and Protestants. He takes on the arguments over tradition, which was never hard for me to grasp as I journeyed home to the Catholic faith and he also takes on the veneration of the Blessed Virgin, which took a while for me to grasp. Everyone I suppose has different hang ups as they make or consider making this move and the author has done an excellent job of tackling most of the things that are most likely to be sticking points. As a side note since grasping the devotion to Mary I have become as devoted to our Blessed Mother as any cradle Catholic.

One significant positive that I found in this book is that the author, with the sensibilities of a former Protestant, backs everything he asserts with scripture. The Church Fathers are liberally quoted as is the Catechism but even the most dedicated disciple of the doctrine of scripture alone will find every one of Mr. Howard's points to be clearly documented by scripture. Curious Protestants will find that this book answers a lot of their questions and devout Catholics will find that this book brings home the truly glorious experience that it is to be Catholic. I would especially recommend this book to any Protestant who is curious about the Catholic faith of a close relative and to any non-Catholic who is married to or about to marry a Catholic.