O Books

This book goes a long way in explaining why there was so much written about the Wild West and why so much embellishment took place.Throughout history there has been all kinds of spins put on the people involved and what really occurred.Why would anyone expect anything different during the expansion of the West,particularly after the Civil War? In dramatic times of history,be it the Wild West,WW2,Crime in Chicago etc.people are craving for an understanding of events as well entertainment,and that is what we are given by the writers and the media.
Personally,I enjoy both the factual as well as the fictional
aspect of these times.
One character who often appears in books is Ned Buntline.He was a real person by the name of Edward Zane Carroll Judson,and this book does a pretty good job of telling us who he was and some of the things he did.Somebody must have written a book on him;it would be a good read.

This book was a welcome source of information on the Carson & Miller families whose genealogy I have been researching. Michael Wallace did an excellent job of getting his historical facts straight and offered some additional resources for my search for family history.

The easy style presented an engrossing story of a family moving through history from the 1850's to the 1930's and adjusting (not always easily) to the changing moores of society.

My father was a cousin of the Miller Bros. and told us children stories of his childhood in Oklahoma and attending the shows at the 101. My sister & I recently visited the old 101 ranch site and were sad to see that little is left. The Miller house in Winfield, Kansas is still standing in beautiful condition and is a private residence.

Michael Wallace is an excellent storyteller. The book gave life to my genealogy and made me feel in touch with the characters and the times. Anyone with an interest in western history would enjoy this story of a dynamic family who helped shape our images of the old west.

One terrific book -- a majestic recreation of the figures that helped define the old west and western entertainment.

Readers lacking a sense of irony may be dismayed to discover that the Real Wild West was only loosely hitched to reality. Spurred by the imaginations of Charles Miller and his three sons, our perception of what is the west sports the distinct brand of the 101. Take heart, though, because on the Miller Brothers' 101, the west was most certainly wild.

Possibly outlaws and certainly mavericks, the Millers rounded up some legendary talent to work their ranch and perform in their touring shows. The 101 herd of entertainers included Geronimo, Will Rogers, champion cowgirl Lucille Mulhall, Annie Oakley rival Princess Wenona, and such film legends as Tom Mix, Buck Jones, Ken Maynard, Yakima Canutt and Hoot Gibson. Black cowboy, Bill Pickett, famed for inventing the rodeo event steer wrestling spent a long career at the 101, and Buffalo Bill Cody spent his final year with the outfit.

While tooling a longstanding image of the west with their Wild West productions, the Millers also saddled up to motion pictures, oil production and an outstanding crop and livestock operation. Their story is a rodeo itself, made all the more interesting by the hints that white hats did not cover the heads of all of the 101 cowboys and cowgirls.

When the last little doggie was wrangled on the 101, the Miller Brothers' legacy did not ride off into the sunset, but continues to stampede through the dreams of would-be cowpokes everywhere. I'm not a regular patron of movie theatres, but I cannot wait until this saga makes it to the big screen!

If you like history and the stories of the old west, buy this book. I really enjoyed it.

The latest book by Gaetano Vivo, takes you on a magical journey through real stories of his students and clients.
How fascinating reading and be inspired with joy, harmony and brotherhood.
Thank you once again
Vicky

Beautiful and easy book,for every one to read and appreciate. The stories are enchanting and really let you discover the beauty and the love for the Universal Energy and Unconditional Love. Highly Reccomended.

"Reiki is Love" is one of those rare books that allows one to fully understand the effects of Reiki in our lives. Through real testimonials told by the author, Gaetano Vivo, the reader feels present. Many of stories may be familiar, but the overwhelming positive results are what surprise us.
This treasure trove of true stories is full of revelations, acknowledgments, peace and love. A "must" read for those who want to know more about Reiki, become a Reiki master, or just be inspired.

Francesca Manisco
Ship Shape Organizers

fascinating book about how reiki can reach the hearts of so many people in a such profound level.

Well Done

Carl, Sydney, Australia

Exploring the world of Reiki through this master is true enlightenment...this read has touched the lives of many and will continue to bless so many more.

For nearly 30 years I have carried this book with me virtually everywhere. No, it's not "an easy read" - but it is worth buying (owning)and treasuring - if only for the FOURTH LETTER (to a German Friend)- it is the most moving argument/declaration for humanity and choosing it that I have ever seen anywhere.

Some (like Sartre?) might call it a "rationalization". But even those who have resigned themselves to the religions of cynicism and despair - could find a remnant of fight and even "goodness" (yikes!) inside themselves. Camus' words remind us that resignation and the inevitable indifference and inhumanity that follow are the ultimate betrayals of life.

While there is nothing "cheerful" or even optimistic about these writings - you'd have to be cold-blooded, heartless and completely beyond repair or redemption not to be inspired by the wistful aspirations that Camus exudes from his admittedly battered heart and soul.

I disagree with the reviewer (who did praise this precious book) Sartre is smart - but so is Camus - and Camus exudes the humanity that Sartre can't even see or imagine.

Sartre would tell us that we always have the freedom to at least rattle our chains (at least theoretically) - but Camus has the power to inspire us to want to.

"I step onto the podium only when forced to by the pressure of circumstances and by my conception of my function as a writer." (p. 132) From the circumstances of Fascist Spain and Nazi occupied France, to the circumstances of the Hungarian and Algerian struggles for freedom, Camus' essays demand involvement, require action in the face of hopelessness. He never offers a moment's peace for couch-potato complacency. "Freedom is not made up principally of privileges; it is made up especially of duties." (p. 96)

To read these essays is to step into the world of a man who said to Christians "I share with you the same revulsion from evil. But I do not share your hope, and I continue to struggle against this universe in which children suffer and die." (p. 71) And "Perhaps we cannot prevent this world from being a world in which children are tortured. But we can reduce the number of tortured children." (p. 73)

Camus is recalled to the podium, in a day when children are tortured and die in Chiapas while most turn a blind eye and complain that sitcoms just aren't what they used to be. These essays, possibly his most accessible work, demand an active response from the modern reader. Our struggle today, although not against Nazi minions, still must echo his "There are means that cannot be excused. I should like to be able to love my country and still love justice." (p. 5) [See Jamal's Live from Death Row and Peltier's Prison Writings, elsewhere on Amazon.]

Camus is outspoken about capital punishment, too. "It is obviously no less repulsive than the crime, and this new murder, far from making amends for the harm done to the social body, adds a new blot to the first one." (p. 176) His "Reflections on the Guillotine" is the longest essay in book. He views capital punishment, even in "free" societies, as an act of totalitarianism.

Camus proclaims the call to justice and the struggle for freedom found in the Old Testament, especially in the minor prophets. But he does so in a modern context, where God is silent and man is the maker of his own destiny. Although he sees no messianic age, he proclims the hope that by continuous effort evil can be diminished and freedom and justice may become more prevalent.

Five stars for courage, five stars for clarity, five stars for consistency. After the abortion of democracy on December 9, 2000, every freedom and justice seeking American needs to read this book.

(If you would like to respond to this review, click on the "about me" link above & send me email. Thanks!)

This collection of essays is the most brilliant one of Camus' diverse smaller non-fiction writings. The bulk of this book concerns his journalistic writings on the Algerian Revolution, Soviet Union etc. Through these essays, you understand the pain of Camus. Camus' ethics doesn't agree to mindless violence for the sake of power. He makes an impassioned plea for tolerance and humanitarian solutions to the problems of war and peace.

Camus is not necessarily logical or politically correct. His stand on the issue of independence of Algeria is a compromised position between French imperialism and Algerian aspirations for freedom during that period. However, in his passion for diagnozing the problems of his time and addressing them, he hits upon a lot of interesting insights and arguments.

Particularly brilliant for both its analysis and its conclusion is Camus' landmark long essay 'Reflections on the Guillotine' which occupies a fair part of the book. In this essay, Camus systematically demolishes all legal or quasi-moral justifications for capital punishment and answers the third aspect of the question - Whether human life is worth taking?

In his 'The Myth of Sisyphus', he had argued against self-murder. In 'The Rebel', he argued against murder and genocide. In this essay, he argues against legalized murder. But unlike his earlier works where he offered weak arguments after a brilliant analysis, here he hits the mark by demolishing the justifications for capital punishment, totally. This particular essay deserves to be considered a classic in the philosophy of law and justice.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. It has provided me with the strongest, most clear-headed confidence in the face of unrelenting hypocrisy and struggle. Camus was on the side of the angels for all of the conflicts of his time, a time that saw the darkest face of humanity. His arguments for compassion and justice are utterly transfixing and revelatory, and written with a clarity and insight that are simply breath-taking.

I challenge anyone that supports the death penalty to read "Reflections on the Guillotine" and walk away with their arguments intact. In this piece Camus utterly demolishes every argument for state-sanctioned murder while defending the right to live with dignity, a right that can easily encompass the self-defense by combat necessitated by circumstance.

Camus was a moral, intellectual, and physical hero, and reading these essays one is almost overcome by his sense of humilty, justice, and compassion. His writing is so crystalline, it's almost jolting. This is a powerful tonic for all those that despair of creating a place for the best qualities of the human race in times of utter darkness. A must-read.

Camus' essays are obviously more difficult to read than hisstories, and quite possibly more difficult to read than his philosophical investigations as well. Should they be read? Of course. In them, he speaks of similar topics (i.e. what to do in the face of absurditiy, human moral dilemmas, etc.) as he does in the other books, though in a more precise, more direct fashion. His views on the death penalty shaped my own almost completely.

What you get in this book are coherent arguments by a coherent, nuainced thinker. Is Sartre smarter than Camus? Camus knew enough to fear most -isms and -ologies where Sartre did not... (not that I recommend ignoring Sartre either! )

For dark and terrifying atmosphere there is no better mystery writer than O'Connell. This story of a man caring for his son in a coma revolves around a fantasy comic book and the nature of consciousness.

This is a strange book--a roller-coaster ride through a fun house, up and down, in and out of the light. I certainly will keep you off-balance. We have 4 basic threads woven together. First, the pharmacist Sweeney and his comatose son Danny, newly-arrived at the Peck Clinic in O'Connell's decaying city Quinsigamond. Second, and not as extensive as the other threads, is Peck himself, his daughter, and his pet salamander. Third is Buzz Cote's biker gang The Abominations, including Nadia Rey, who works at the clinic. Fourth is a comic-book (using the term loosely, since it's unlike any comic most of us will ever read) world of Limbo, Gehanna, and circus freaks. Danny was/is[??] a huge fan of Limbo, as are the Abominations.

Initially, everything seems rather straightforward and distinct, but Clotho weaves these threads together so that the distinctions begin to blur, and then blur in a major way indeed. You'll find that by the end of the book, things are very different from what you thought they were, and you may have a hard time trying to separate reality (such as there is) from fantasy. But you'll also find that the ending seems to make perfect sense, in a bizarre and convoluted way.

O'Connell is able to draw a picture of a fascinating world. It's a very different world--unsettling, disturbing, jugular. It's strong and effective writing, and it resembles some sort of odd underground comic without pictures. Powerful stuff!

I guess if I went into this book expecting Kafka, Eco or Chabon I was setting myself up to be disappointed.

A good gothic effort, O'Connell took a large risk writing a medical thriller that attempts to be more interesting than a simple Robin Cook medical whodunit.

If 5 stars were Kafka, 4 stars were Pynchon/Chabon/Eco, I'd give this book 3.5 stars for aim and execution. Not perfect or timeless, but definitely working for a longer tail than most easy to categorize novels out there. I'd rather read a novel that aims for the back of the moon, than a pot boiler that settles for easy escapism.

O'Connell's work deserves more attention, so I guess that puts him in good company.

April 15-28, 2008

Here is the heart of "The Resurrectionist" by Jack O'Connell (page references are to the Algonquin hardbound edition):

"...he understood that the universe, the fabric of reality, was composed of nothing more than particles of longing, a kind of quantum desire for absolute connection. Dr. Peck understood that, from moment to moment, we are profoundly asleep and, so, profoundly alone. ...He knew that every arousal he achieved would bring him closer to answers that had more to do with the nature of consciousness than of coma." (143)

"...this was what he lived for: that instant of pure, galloping potential, that feeling of downrushing epiphany. ...But calling forth fresh thought was, like summoning demons, a precarious process. And, for Dr. Peck, it required an instinctual blending of the right amounts of whimsy, research, fatigue, daydream, alcohol, and stress. It also required the right environment.... Finally, the summoning required a marriage of humility and patience that could allow the idea to reveal itself in its own manner and time. The idea, it must be understood, is always in charge." (145-146)

"...the calling to medicine -- at least the kind of visionary medicine to which he aspired -- was more than a vocation; it was destiny. And as such, it called for a radical lifestyle. Doctors, like monks, were forever at risk of infiltration by the domestic world. He concluded... that they should be solitary, if not entirely celibate, creatures. ...set apart." (146-147)

As in his earlier work, "Word Made Flesh," O'Connell has staked his claim on the phenomenon of creativity and developed a glossus of images to convey his theories and exasperations. He begins Word with the closely observed vivisection of a man, a reverse process of the title, in which we watch a mind (such as it was), and instincts and feelings (such as they were) deftly divested of their mortal envelope, their "jacket" of flesh. From there, somehow, inexorably and beautifully, we are led to apples, and you know what they stand for.

In "The Resurrectionist," we're given a boy in a coma, his grieving father whose wife -- the boy's mother -- died six months after the boy's "incident." We're given a creepy private hospital in O'Connell's perturbingly passé Quinsigamond (Worcester), Massachusetts, said hospital staffed by incestuous strangers in a suffocating atmosphere of endless waiting.

Time is made of glass here. There's motion, but it takes years to make a single ripple. It might all be a metaphor for the giant brain we famously use only ten percent of, a brain that is "from moment to moment... profoundly asleep and, so, profoundly alone."

The chief creep, Dr. Peck, is chasing "arousal" of his comatose patients, seeking that one brilliant insight -- his own arousal -- like a deep-sea diver in the murk of our still primitive sciences of mind and thought. O'Connell's work is rich with wry and mordant humor, and he has his questing doctor literally using a diver's torch to examine the film of the sleeping boy's brain.

Interleaved with all this are slices of a comic-book saga, Limbo, that frames out into a sort of Carnivàle with a twisted trot (i.e., student guide), linking the Limbo circus freaks to the characters at the Peck Clinic. It works because of two qualities in Mr. O'Connell's fiction.

There is the sort of honesty that seems larger than the work that contains it, as if it were a billowing mantle or a prophetic migraine, and it wouldn't surprise me to hear Mr. O'Connell borrow Stravinsky's famous line about being the "vessel through which [these stories] passed."

(Since I wrote these words, I heard Mr. O'Connell speak about the creative process, and he said it's both craft and inspiration, hard work and mystical, galvanizing energy.)

The second quality is the emotional and psychological credentials Mr. O'Connell gives his characters. Sweeney, the sleeping boy's father, has an anger problem. He acts out, violently and sometimes ludicrously (there again is Mr. O'Connell's IQ-crunching humor). Dr. Alice Peck, creepy Dr. Peck's daughter and clinical associate, kisses the boy on his forehead and ruffles his downy hair with the back of her fingers, saying it's "like silk. I love it at this age." And she's "crazy for kids."

There are hard caroms off a crooked wall, too, like the bikers (the mind's id locked in vampiric coitus with the ego's daylight tyrannies?) and an old guy at an ancient pre-mall-era "Mart" who cooks burgers and hates life. There's Romeo the janitor and Nurse Nadia Rey at the clinic -- no relation (ha!) to Nadja the lobster girl in Limbo.

And lying curled on their sides or flat on their backs, intubated, hands locked by shrunken tendons in the classic "pugilistic" pose, their heads shaved bald or carefully coiffed, there are -- centrally and forever -- the sleepers, locked in the mysteries rippling under human consciousness, marine beings waiting for Dr. Peck's flashing, lancing light.

This is a novel that makes the reader think and puzzle and mull, and every strange and beautiful thing in it exerts a Mariner-like hold on the mind. Mr. O'Connell's stories hit the ramp on two wheels and crown the curve at escape velocity. Just go with `em.

For those readers who appreciate fine writing and wholly unique, original stories, Jack O'Connell's novels are the literary equivalent of oxygen.

With four excellent novels previous to THE RESURRECTIONIST, it baffles me that O'Connell is not a steady fixture on the bestseller list. His plots operate on a multitude of levels: if you're looking for a fast-paced, provoking thriller O'Connell is your guy; if you want to read a complex yarn replete with unexpected twists and turns and complexities he's very much your guy; if your cup of tea is thrillers that must come mixed with intelligence O'Connell always delivers.

O'Connell puts masters like Lehane, Connelly, and Crais to shame.

With THE RESURRECTIONIST, O'Connell has surpassed his own standard of excellence, and given us a mesmerizing, impossible-to-put-down novel that transcends reality and redefines noir.

Simply put, the book tells the story of a father and son newly arrived at the forbidding Peck Clinic, a neurology institute that seems designed in part by CIA mind control geeks and renegade physicians bent on rewriting the mind's secret codes. Danny, the son, a coma victim, is locked in a world all his own; his father, Sweeney, a pharmacist, wants Danny to return to his conscious state. But Danny dwells in Limbo, a comic book-like place peopled with enough rare and bizarre characters to rival Katherine Dunn's GEEK LOVE. With psychotic bikers circling the story like blood hungry vultures and vivacious neurologists tempting Sweeney, THE RESURRECTIONIST is like no other book I can think of--- O'Connell has handed us another modern masterpiece of suspense and intelligence. Read this book as quickly as you can get your hands on a copy!

I just absolutely LOVED,this book!! Constance O'Banyon is one of my ALL-TIME FAVORITE AUTHORS!! I have not been disappointed yet by her.Ms. O'Banyon knows how to write about love and relationships, she is one of the best authors out-there today:o)

Since I met Saber in TEXAS PROUD, I already knew her by the time she showed up in RIDE THE WIND. Reese is such a wonderful hero--he didn't feel like he was good enough for Saber, but she proved to him that he was. I liked her brother, Noble, entering the book, since we learned his story in Texas Proud. I loved both books and I didn't want them to end. ...

A most devoted fan!!!

This is a sequel to Texas Proud. It great to see Noble Vincentes sister expanded on. I thnik anyone who reads this will not be disappointed.

Constance O'Banyon must be the best kept secret in the Romance Novel industry. I don't see to many review on her or much said, but she must be the best author I have ever read. I have read all of her novels and everyone of them have been wonderful. She has a great way of bringing you into the moment. She discribes the places she writes about with such clarity and all of the characters are very interesting. In all of her books she gets you from the very fist page.

Nobel and Rachel's story (texas Proud) begins this 2 bk series and is very enjoyable. Ride the Wind continues the life of these wonderful characters with his sister Saber and Reese. Reese is an ace tracker but a loner and struggling to keep his ranch. Saber is the little rich girl who is supposed to marry his friend Matthew. When Saber is abducted Matt asks Reese to use his tracking skills to get her back. Their relationship remains innocent enough despite attraction because Reese is ever aware that Saber belongs to his best friend. Saber is delightful. She is bubbly and independent and her energy bounces off the page. You can't have a gloomy day while reading about Saber. It's an easy book to read in one sitting although you hate to see it end so soon........enjoy.

This is the best book yet by Constance. I have read this book three times and it just keeps getting better. The hero, Reese is the type of man any woman dreams about. Sabre is the woman many dream of becoming. She stood by her man and allowed him to learn to trust and more than anything to love. I highly recommended this book.

Fast-moving and holds your attention at every page, the ending made me melancholy and hopeful at once.

Kristina O'Donnelly again shows her miracle in the breath-taking novel 'The Scorpion Child'. I blame myself why I havent read this novel before. She blends her attractive imagination with politic reality. In the Scorpion Child, Ms O'Donnelly gives pure objective reflections on Turkish-Armenian Conflict. In such an era which we alltogether fight against terrorism in the world, the Scorpion Child gives the reader invaluable insights.

Having read The Horseman, which is the prequel to The Scorpion Child, I could not wait to read The Scorpion Child! This one is shorter, a fast read, yet just as exciting as The Horseman, and the characters, from Ariadne to Daniel, to Burhan, are hard to forget. I enjoyed the time I spent in their world. Now, I am planning to fly to exotic Istanbul, Turkey, just to feel, see, and touch the beguiling locales featured in this novel! P.S: I saw the other reviewer mention reincarnation, and how he began to wonder about it. Interestingly, this is how I feel, too, my logic says reincarnation is a pipe-dream, and yet... do we really know everything about how God's design for us, works?

Civil unrest continues in Turkey despite military rule. Burham Bey survived the attempts of Anika Alkibiades to recreate the Byzantine Empire, but the plots she set in motion continue and Turkey is torn by terrorists from the right, left, and Armenian separatists. Meanwhile, Burhan's estranged wife, Ariadne is back in New York after deserting Burhan due to a long-past affair and the son that resulted from that affair (as well as her reaction to the death of her own son, killed by terrorists).

Ariadne, now a successful author, meets and falls for a handsome American actor who is fighting his own battles against alcoholism and a problem staying faithful to any one woman. Ariadne's most recent book is a novel about past-lives and although David is a skeptic, he begins to receive hints that he and Ariadne once shared a sort of relationship in an earlier life--a relationship in which he was a priest/confessor.

Although she swears she has left Burhan forever, Ariadne remains drawn to him and is torn between the two men she loves. But in the larger context of Turkey's problems, the love triangle is doomed to explode. When their daughter, Leyla, vanishes into the international terrorist movement and a terrorist tracks Ariadne down to New York and attacks her in her apartment, Ariadne flees to Turkey and to Burhan. But the results of her affair with David remain, even as Ariadne and Burhan attempt to restore their damaged relationship.

Author Kristina O'Donnelly delivers a compelling story of personal growth and suffering. The story of DEFY ETERNITY: THE SCORPION CHILD is even more topical in the post-9/11 world than when O'Donnelly wrote it, and her message of the world being one people is certainly welcome.

Some readers (including me) may be troubled by O'Donnelly's arguments that Armenian Genocide of World War I was exagerated. Arguments about the actual events during this tragedy do not, however, detract from O'Donnelly's message that terrorist tactics are ultimately destructive of civilization.

DEFY ETERNITY: THE SCORPION CHILD is an emotionally moving story as the major characters of O'Donnelly's LANDS OF THE MORNING series age and suffer the consequences of their mistakes--and even of their victories. Readers who started with THE HORSEMAN and CLARION OF MIDNIGHT will definitely want to add this one to their to-be-read list. Although each book in the series stands alone, I found that DEFY ETERNITY: THE SCORPION CHILD in particular benefited from having read the earlier novels.

If you enjoy a novel with complex characters, plenty of action, and a strong thematic position, DEFY ETERNITY: THE SCORPION CHILD and, indeed, the entire LANDS OF THE MORNING series will be a welcome treat.

Passion, passion and more passion, but what else are you to expect from a Scorpio?!....its sting is nearly fatal! "The Scorpion Child" will make you wish to run away to exoticism, Constantinople and romance. This Scorpio heroine keeps her head cool among a maze of love, political and kharma intrigues, while everybody else is thrown into turmoil under her intense gaze and velvety touch. Like a real Scorpio, "The Scorpion Child" is fascinated by life and death issues, spirituality and passionately interested in sex, it has always an hypnotic appeal on Scorpio!....(be sure you have your sweetheart at hand while reading!).
One more time Kristina O'Donnelly masters the plot and romance while bringing us some invaluable insights, in this case about the Armenian-Turkish conflict. "The Scorpion Child" will give you an inlook at what a terrorist mind can be made of as well.

This cookbook contains recipes that are easy to follow and delicious. I would highly recommend the Blackberry Ginger Cobbler. It is a great investment for anyone who enjoys cooking.

This book is beautifully written and presented, with wonderful prose, and a seasonal arrangement with every recipe needed for a complete, tasty meal. We prepared the Roast Pork Loin with Apple Horseradish Sauce -- our guests couldn't get enough! With this book you will not only get to know Chef Matt O'Neill, a great teacher and person, but you will also keep your family and guests coming back for more!

Matthew gave this book to me himself while I was visiting my good friend Lyrna in Bloomington, Indiana. His generosity and charm (not to mention his Irish brogue) won me over immediately. After eating a delicious breakfast at his restaurant, The Runcible Spoon, I spent the afternoon noting recipes I wanted to try once I returned to Atlanta. I resolved to cook from this book at least once a month and in keeping with the seasonal organization. In January I cooked the Orange and Cranberry Bread which was fabulous. This book provides delicious recipes that are simple enough for even the most novice cook. Thank you Matthew for this wonderful book!

"The Seasons at Walden Inn" is not only a marvelous book of recipes, it is also a delightful journal of life at the Walden Inn which gives the reader an insight to the character of Chef O'Neill. In his recipes, this award-winning culinary expert uses the finest of fresh, local produce, but isn't averse to using time-saving tips when possible. Matthew O'Neill is co-owner of the Bloomington Cooking School in Bloomington, Indiana, where I experienced first-hand his enthusiasm for his trade, imparting his culinary skills to his students. He is also owner of Bloomington's Runcible Spoon Restaurant where one can savor the many wonderful dishes of this talented chef. "The Seasons at Walden Inn" would be a wonderful gift or addition to one's own library.

This cookbook is marvelous!! As an Indiana native, these dishes reflect the tastes and smells of Indiana in all seasons. The dishes seem very "doable" for even the novice, but the combinations of textures and tastes gives even the expert cook something new and exciting to try. Matthew O'neill gives a wonderful slightly nouveau twist to down home Indiana cooking.
In addition, the beautifully written poetry and comments make the cookbook a good read!

For those who use scripture for their daily meditation this is a handy and beautiful way to pray. Well done and inspirational pictures.

Imcredible photography! A book perfect for a gift in this difficult year. Since September 11 we are all taking a fresh look at priorities, faith, and family. The pictures and thoughts in this book help to quietly focus on what is important in life.

A wonderful combination of visual imagery, inspirational verse, and thoughtful comment. Interactive opportunity for personal reflections and meditation. An unusual format that is captivating, enjoyable, thought provoking, and peaceful. A perfect Christmas gift for young and old alike.

It's November, but I already have my New Year's resolution. It is to start the year 2002 with journal work using The Songs of Nature as my guide.

I have enjoyed reading and re-reading this book. The photographs are outstanding images of the beauty that surrounds us in nature and the author's meditations depict so well our human awareness of our dependence on the Almighty.Very worthwhile reading.

An unusual but delightful collection about Ms. Hurston. Listen to her sing and talk. The book is beautiful. Her works are wonderful for everyone--not only women.

This is really great addition to my library. I have several of Zora's books. The pictues ,copies of handwritten notes are great. I really feel more connected to Zora with this edition. Great as a gift!

In 2003, fans and scholars of Zora Neale Hurston's work were given the invaluable opportunity to rediscover this writer's life and authorial genius through a much-awaited collection of her letters. This year, that same audience is treated to another book of admittedly different purpose and scope. Comprising only 39 pages of text, Lucy Anne Hurston's SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN offers a concise and compassionate portrait of Zora Neale Hurston as a gifted writer, a dedicated anthropologist, an impetuous lover, a reticent maid and, perhaps most of all, a fierce and uncompromising individual. Therefore, this book provides the novice with a clear and accessible digest of Hurston that will then, ideally, enable one to conduct further, more in-depth investigation.

But what really distinguishes SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN from a run-of-the-mill digest are its many valuable reproductions of photographs, contemporary reviews, and handwritten manuscripts. All of these cherished documents are either laid out clearly on every over-sized page, or are folded carefully into a sewn envelope attached to the page. Whether one examines a duplication of the author's handwritten chapter "Love" from DUST TRACKS ON A ROAD, or studies the hand-penned poem of the same title, or thrills to see "John Redding Goes to Sea" as it looked in the May 1921 issue of The Stylus magazine, SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN provides all readers of all levels with a fascinating glimpse of the material evidence of a by-gone era.

If, as an armchair historian of Hurston's life and work, I discovered little in the text that I didn't already know and occasionally (as in the case of Zora's artist-patron relationship with Charlotte Osgood Mason), noted a need for development, I was nonetheless graced with so many precious artifacts from the Hurston estate. There is even a CD attached to the inside cover where one can hear the author being interviewed, reading from various excerpts of her work and performing her legendary "crow dance."

In its dimensions and design, then, Lucy Hurston's literary biography of her Aunt Zora is as much a scrapbook/photo album as it is a sympathetic summary of one of America's most cherished writers.

--- Reviewed by Tony Leuzzi, Monroe Community College

This is sheer magic. Just magic. For teachers of Hurston, it's a fantastic opportunity to hook students further into the life and times of Hurston and the fascinating (albeit simulated) feel of working with primary documents.

Lucy Anne Hurston, the neice of Zora Neale Hurston, in a collaborative effort with the Estate of the great writer, has produced a beautiful tribute to her aunt and also a collector's item for fans of Zora Neale Hurston. Not only does it include biographical sketches of the famous author, but also live interviews, as well as a CD of folk songs sung by Hurston.

The pages of this book are rich in heritage, painting a kaleidoscope of her life. Touching on her childhood, her days attending Howard University, and of course her writing, the reader is able to see that even though Zora Neale Hurston wrote about memorable characters, she too could have been one of the characters she wrote about. Because of the replications of original letters, maps, photos and writings, the reader is given a more detailed account of her life, told by someone who knew and loved her. Each of these are in pull-out sleeves and envelopes, easily removed from the book to allow closer inspection upon, or displayed vividly on the full color and black and white pages of the book.

SPEAK, SO YOU CAN SPEAK AGAIN is a fascinating keepsake of a writer who means so much to not only the Harlem Renaissance and to African-American readers and writers, but also to literature as we know it. Through this collection, readers are offered an intimate portrait of a literary legend.

Reviewed by Tee C. Royal
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

Spirituality And Health: Multidisciplinary Explorations, deftly co-edited and complied by Augustine Meier (Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Ontario), Thomas St. James O'Connor (Delton J. Glebe Chair, Pastoral Counseling and Director of Pastoral Counseling Programs at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario), and Peter L. VanKatwyk (Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario) is an in-depth collective study of the connection between a healthy well-being and a spiritually attuned existence. Acting as an exclusive documentation of the history and modern comprehensive understanding of the influential attributions one may have for the other, Spirituality And Health presents an invaluable reference for all readers seeking an understanding of their spiritual-self's contribution to their physical wellness.

Spirituality And Health: Multidisciplinary Explorations, deftly co-edited and complied by Augustine Meier (Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Ontario), Thomas St. James O'Connor (Delton J. Glebe Chair, Pastoral Counseling and Director of Pastoral Counseling Programs at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario), and Peter L. VanKatwyk (Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario) is an in-depth collective study of the connection between a healthy well-being and a spiritually attuned existence. Acting as an exclusive documentation of the history and modern comprehensive understanding of the influential attributions one may have for the other, Spirituality And Health presents an invaluable reference for all readers seeking an understanding of their spiritual-self's contribution to their physical wellness.

Spirituality And Health: Multidisciplinary Explorations, deftly co-edited and complied by Augustine Meier (Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Ontario), Thomas St. James O'Connor (Delton J. Glebe Chair, Pastoral Counseling and Director of Pastoral Counseling Programs at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario), and Peter L. VanKatwyk (Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario) is an in-depth collective study of the connection between a healthy well-being and a spiritually attuned existence. Acting as an exclusive documentation of the history and modern comprehensive understanding of the influential attributions one may have for the other, Spirituality And Health presents an invaluable reference for all readers seeking an understanding of their spiritual-self's contribution to their physical wellness.

Spirituality And Health: Multidisciplinary Explorations, deftly co-edited and complied by Augustine Meier (Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Ontario), Thomas St. James O'Connor (Delton J. Glebe Chair, Pastoral Counseling and Director of Pastoral Counseling Programs at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario), and Peter L. VanKatwyk (Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario) is an in-depth collective study of the connection between a healthy well-being and a spiritually attuned existence. Acting as an exclusive documentation of the history and modern comprehensive understanding of the influential attributions one may have for the other, Spirituality And Health presents an invaluable reference for all readers seeking an understanding of their spiritual-self's contribution to their physical wellness.

Spirituality And Health: Multidisciplinary Explorations, deftly co-edited and complied by Augustine Meier (Emeritus Professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences at Saint Paul University, Ottawa, Ontario), Thomas St. James O'Connor (Delton J. Glebe Chair, Pastoral Counseling and Director of Pastoral Counseling Programs at Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario), and Peter L. VanKatwyk (Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario) is an in-depth collective study of the connection between a healthy well-being and a spiritually attuned existence. Acting as an exclusive documentation of the history and modern comprehensive understanding of the influential attributions one may have for the other, Spirituality And Health presents an invaluable reference for all readers seeking an understanding of their spiritual-self's contribution to their physical wellness.