Works Books


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Works Books sorted by Average customer review: high to low .

Works
It's Hard to Make a Difference When You Can't Find Your Keys: The Seven-Step Path to Becoming Truly Organized
Published in Paperback by Penguin (Non-Classics) (2003-12-30)
Author: Marilyn Paul
List price: $15.00
New price: $5.13
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Average review score:

I want to join the Marilyn Paul fan club!
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-01
I was merely looking for a book to help me get better organized, but I got so much more!! This book will not just make your sock drawer look better, it will help you to really look at yourself and why you do the things you do. There were times when I had to just put the book down and marvel in wonderment because she asked a question or made an observation that was so incredibly insightful, I was almost moved to tears.

Tremendously Helpful
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-06
This book helped me tremendously when it came to organization - something I don't have a natural knack for. I learned that it takes very small changes to make a big difference and I have felt an inner calm since implementing some of the advice this book gives - like taking the extra ten seconds to think about it as you set your keys down, making a conscious effort to giving everything a home to avoid clutter, and sorting through little piles of mail and papers before they become overwhelming nightmares. Also just taking it step by step and not expecting magical changes overnight. I highly recommend this to anyone who struggles with procrastination; anyone looking to learn the advantages of delayed gratification...and a more organized mentality over all.

I'm rather better now... deskwise, at least...
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-14
So far, this is the only book that has made a serious dent in my disorganization. My desk at work has been cleaned off and organized for months on end now, since around June 2007.

Unfortunately, I still have a strong tendency towards lateness, and my entire apartment is still a wreck, but this amazing desk progress is really something.

I learned some cleaning and organizing techniques from Clean Sweep, Julie Morgenstern and David Allen's Getting Things Done, but this book somehow got me to apply what I knew from those other sources. Some of the more extremely hippy dippy stuff is over the top, but some of it hits home. I'll be rereading this book soon, for a second pass at the problem.

Truly life changing....if you are ready.
Helpful Votes: 3 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-16
This book will remain on my permanent bookshelf...it is a treasure. Took me 1 month to finish as I completed nearly all of the exercises that are placed throughout the book. Even as I worked through the book I always looked forward to the next chapter...which is rare for me. I would strongly recommend this book if you are looking for guidance to truly learn about yourself and WHY you do those things that you do. If you are looking for a list of quick organizing tips then this is not the book for you.

Holistic approach to organization
Helpful Votes: 8 out of 8 total.
Review Date: 2007-01-04
Drawing on the four areas of development (physical, emotional, mental and spiritual), the author focuses on WHY people are unorganized. The book is not as focused on practical steps to become organized, but does give an excellent overview on the path towards understanding. If you want a more specific, skills-based approach, this isn't the book for you. On the other hand, if you want to learn why you're not organized (in ANY area of your life, not just housework!), then this is a good tool.

Works
Lament for a Son
Published in Paperback by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company (1987-07)
Author: Nicholas Wolterstorff
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Average review score:

Wonderfully written
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-31
The author really captures his feelings in words. He brings spirituality to real life circumstances. My best friends just lost their 16 year old son very unexpectedly and I bought this book for them. Very relatable.

Lament For A Son
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-06-09
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.

Painfully honest...
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-17
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.

Empathy for the loss of a child
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-05-13
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.

Wonderfu resource for those in pain
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2007-06-14
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.

Works
Lincoln's Assassins: Their Trial and Execution
Published in Hardcover by William Morrow (2006-10-31)
Authors: James L. Swanson and Daniel Weinberg
List price: $39.95
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Average review score:

"The bodies were laid on white pine boxes...and they were buried in unmarked graves beside the gallows."
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-18

This has to be one of the most fascinating ,interesting ,and probably the most factual treatment of the trial and execution of the assassins of President Lincoln.
There are several reasons that this book is so outstanding.It's large size,9 1/2 X 12 inches is required to do the photographs justice.The paper, quality,printing ,color reproduction and overall construction are supurb.The two authors are outstanding in their knowledge and long time interest in the subject.It has a selected bibliography that must be as good as one will find on the subject.The organization of the book makes it a clear ,concise and easily absorbed chronology of events that was probably even more captivating in its day than the period after the Assassination of President Kennedy.
The book also shows, as a besides, the difference in the art of photography in 1865 compared to what we have come to take for granted today or in the time of Kennedy's assassination. The fact that newspapers did not even have the ability to print a photograph. Photographs were not even available until several days after taken,and forget about color photography then. Come the advances in 100 years and we watched events live and in our living rooms with the assassination of JFK.
Compare this advancement in recording and speedy dissipating of information with the regression of and the drawn out, convoluting that takes place in the legal and justice that has become the norm today. Absolutely amazing in both cases.A few weeks and negligable expense in the case of Lincoln and years and untold millions with Kennedy.There has been great advances in the information processes and just the opposite in the legal and justice process.
Getting back to how the assassination is covered in this book. The authors have been able to make the reader feel that they were living at the time the event took place and convey what it might have felt to witness those great events taking place.There have been many books on the subject,and it was complicated;but the authors have boiled it down to the essentials.The hundreds of photographs,illustrations,reproductions and illustrations are a real treasure trove that have been collected and assembled in a way that obviously must have talen taken lot of time ,knowledge and contacts.
If you want a book that details the capture,trial and execution of President Lincoln,in a clear,concise way;look no further --this is the book you are looking for.

Excellent Pictorial Study of Lincoln's Assassins
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-04
James Swanson has done a super job at presenting Lincoln's assassins thru the the use of pictures of the individuals as well as documents of the time. An excellent source for teachers dealing with the capture, trial, and execution of those associated with Lincoln's assassination.

Avid Lincoln Reader
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-25
I saw James Swanson giving a speech about his other book "Manhunt" and found him fascinating to listen to. he knew facts that I had never heard before and could describe them with such detail I felt like I was watching it happen. I read "Manhunt" and was thrilled to have the details of those twelve days come to life. When I saw this book I snatched it up as quickly as I could. It is the perfect book for both the avid reader and for those who like to look at artifacts and photographs of the era. This is by far my new favorite Civil War book (and I have many). James and Daniel did an excellent job of laying out the story then showing artifacts and pictures from the event. I've looked at this book for hours and am only through the second chapter! Not that it's hard to get through, just fun to look at and read.

Neat little book for assasination historians
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-10
This text dovetails nicely with Swanson's recent effort "Manhunt", but more from an artifact perspective than a written one. Many of the pictures are one-of-a-kind, especially Alexander Gardner's entire collection from the courtyard at the D.C. prison where the conspirators were hung. Again, this is not a complete text (nor does it aspire to be), but a great addition to any historical collection regarding the Lincoln assasination.

Excellent
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-26
This is more of a picture book than a text-laden history book, but it's the appeal of the many photos, pictures, illustrations, and even cartoons that make this book a fascinating one to read. The book includes photos of all the conspirators, in life as well as death, along with other interesting details such as a letter Booth wrote as a teenager. Today few remember that John Wilkes Booth was the teenage heart-throb of his day, making it all the more shocking when he was involved in the assassination.

The details of the trial sound like something from some fantastic kangaroo court, not the U.S. For example, the defense had no time to marshall their case, interview or call witnesses, or even to meet much with their clients. The jury was composed of generals and military men, not civilians, and their decision would be final, with no right of appeal.There were indeed judges in the courtroom, but they were watching from the audience.

The public and the press constantly talked about their favorite conspirators, of which the young, handsome and dashing looking Lewis Powell was the favorite, who attempted to kill secretary of state William Seward with a Bowie knife on the night of the assassination, rather than the president, but was foiled. Even the decision of who to prosecute left many questions unanswered, as several suspects with far more incriminating evidence weren't even brought to trial, whereas others with less evidence were tried and executed. The authors suggest that this might have had more to do with who actually plotted the murder vs. who was involved with post-assassination attempts to shelter Booth.

However, it's the stunning visual presentation here rather than the now well known history that is the star here. This book will be enjoyed by any history or Americana buffs or anyone interested in a well done presentation of a unique event in our history.

Works
The Little Book of Snowflakes
Published in Hardcover by Voyageur Press (2004-10-31)
Author: Kenneth Libbrecht
List price: $7.95
New price: $2.94
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Average review score:

Wonderful winter beauty.
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-16
One may feel a sense of gloom and doom as winter closes in. But Ken Libbrecht shows us the astounding beauty that only comes in winter -- in the intricate designs of snowflakes. Libbrecht's exquisite photographs of snowflakes have appeared in a number of books, and have been honored by the U.S. Post Office on postage stamps. This little book is a wonder. It show a miniature miracle of creation in each unique snowflake. And with each picture come captions discussing the science behind their beauty, as well as literary quotes relating to snow and nature. With no two exactly alike among the billions that fall, snowflakes are a magically beautiful picture of the infinity of the Creator.

Too Much Money, Not Enough Book
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-19
My wife loves snowflakes and I bought her this book for Christmas. I was disappointed in the book, not in the quality of the images, but in their relative scarcity. For the money, I would have expected more book and certainly more photos. The pictures are beautiful and we both love them, but this is simply a case of too much money for too little book.

Snowflake Book is a WINNER!
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-12-26
Saw this little book and was really impressed. Gave it to my wife for Christmas...and she LOVES it.

The photos are spectacular and the little sayings/poems suit it very well.

WONDERFUL!

Beautiful book
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-17
This is a beautiful little book containing magnified pictures of real snowflakes. It is a chance to marvel at God's creation.

Winter Wonder
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-05-30
Very beautiful book. I paired it with a crystal snowflake as a gift and the receiver loved it.

Works
On a Positive Note
Published in Hardcover by Atria (1999-05-01)
Authors: Cece Winans and Renita J. Weems
List price: $20.00
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Collectible price: $30.00

Average review score:

A Very Personal Experience
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2004-01-14
I am constantly amazed at the magnitude of CeCe Winans musical and spiritual capabilities and I am pleased to say that her gifts do not end there. On A Positive Note is a beautiful piece. In it, there is a very natural and earthy quality that reaches the reader to relate the story CeCe seeks to tell. The flow of the book is very smooth; transitions are made nicely from one subject to the next as she relates her story. I cannot stress enough how the personal the experience of reading this book feels and how natural the language reads. CeCe has done it again. God is consistently working through her in a mighty way.

Faithfulness Brings Blessings
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2002-08-01
I read this book and I was so blessed by it. Throughout it, Cece constantly discusses the fact the she was taught to give up the world for God. This blessed me because it is evident in the way that God has blessed her music ministry that if we give up the world for God that he will do exceedingly, abundantly, above all that we could ask or think in our lives. It was awesome to read about how God just kept blessing her life because the posture of heart was correct towards him. It was great to read a story about saved artist who had just been taught to live holy and to see the rewards of doing it. I was blessed and truly encouraged through this book.

Excellent and very well written
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2002-06-28
While reading "On a Positive Note" by CeCe Winans, I was taken back into a time when I myself was growing up, how her childhood memories was very similar to my own. I also grew up in a large family, and reading her book brought back so many memories of my past. Despite all the tribulations and triumphs of her life, she managed to hold on to her spiritual belief, letting it guide her through her every decision in life. "On A Positive Note" has inspired me, lifted me to a higher level of praising the Lord and reminded me to always put God before each decision throughout my life. This book was quite a page turner that filled my heart with laughter, joy, tears, praise, sadness and forgiveness. I was moved to pray for Ronald myself as she astoundingly shared his testimony. My thirteen year old daughter is now reading this wonderful book and I will reccommend it to everyone I know.

http://pages.ivillage.com/cassie23/

Inspirational Book
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2001-01-20
This book, "On A Positive Note", was truly an inspiration. I didn't want to put the book down. Ms. Winans biography was written so that you felt that you were right there in that moment of time. Again, GREAT BIOGRAPHY!

Inspirational Book
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2001-01-20
This book was truly an inspiration. I didn't want to put the book down. Ms. Winans biography was written so that you felt that you were right there in that moment of time. Again, GREAT BIOGRAPHY!

Works
The Prison Angel: Mother Antonia's Journey from Beverly Hills to a Life of Service in a Mexican Jail
Published in Hardcover by Penguin Press HC, The (2005-05-05)
Authors: Mary Jordan and Kevin Sullivan
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A Saint amongst us
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-10-11
I read this book in several sittings which is unusual for me. I just couldn't stop and wanted to read some more of this fascinating story. It is a feel good story for the modern ages. If you are reading this you probably know about the former Beverly Hillls mom , twice divorced who was unable to receive Holy Communion from the Catholic Church, circumvented any road blocks and began her service for mankind(the most down and out of low people in La Mesa prison near Tijuana)and our Lord at age fifty. She produced her own habit and eventually was recognized by an official order. She has worked amongst the biggest drug dealers of Mexico, the murderer of Presidential candidate Colosio, the bloodiest of assasins and the peons who are just to poor to live in society and seek refuge in jail(now that is desperate)and the mentally ill. A prison in Mexico is unlike an American prison. Torture is common. She got involded in prison reform as well as changing men. Mother Antonia is unafraid of the toughest and meanest because she is a righteous woman and all who encounter her love and admire her. She lives in prison. She lives the same way the prisoners do. She walks and talks to the hardest of hard core. She gives them hope and transforrms many of their lives through the miracle of faith. This is an inspirational story that will leave you pondering your own existence; it is truly an amazing story that all should read as it will make you feel better about mankind. She is truly a living saint. Oh yes, there is a large print edition of this book available for the visually handicapped. God bless Sister Antonio and all who she touches.

Truly living a Christian Life
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-06-10
This is a very inspirational book and helps people see how they can still be useful as they get older.

Great read!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-03-20
The Prison Angel is one of the most inspiring books I've ever read. Mother Antonia is so amazing that one would question the truth of her story if it weren't for the consistent witness and corroboration provided by all those who come into contact with her. She loves and ministers to everyone without distinction. This is a great book for teaching the golden rule.

Best Book I have Ever Read
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2006-10-07
This book touches your soul and uplifts your spirits. You would dare to judge another person after reading this book about a woman who could forgive and love the "unlovable." Very touching

Inspirational Life
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2007-02-24
Mother Antonia is an inspiration for us to see all people as fellow humans with similar needs - to be cared for, loved, and accepted. I appreciate that she paved the way to be valuable at an "older" age, and she welcomes women in their later years as valuable and able to serve others. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and passed it around among many friends.

Works
Promise to Mary: A Story of Faith in Action (Public Health/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Anthology)
Published in Paperback by Jossey-Bass (2008-02-25)
Author: Paul Jellinek
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inspirational tale of a promise kept
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-17
Paul Jellinek's Promise to Mary chronicles the author's travels through the northeast, south, and Alaska, capturing the spirit of "Faith in Action," a loose confederation of interfaith religious congregations who mobilize volunteers to care for the elderly and homebound. Told in the form of refreshingly original vignettes, an engaging portrait emerges of care-givers and receivers. We see the lines separating them often blurred, with some drawn to this calling by traumatic life events, leaving an indelible formative imprint on their life's experience.

Begun in 1993 through a series of nationwide grants awarded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the groups were started through seed grants to fund a paid executive to coordinate the volunteer base. The author's visits reveal that most of the original 25 have flourished more than 20 years, melding into the bedrock of community service in their individual locales.

The author skillfully remains the unobtrusive central character, through whom these voices are heard. The human toll exacted over a lifetime is examined in stories woven in a distinctly compassionate literary style. The author's gently probing questions are genuine and heartfelt. He gives voice to those whose eloquence, stifled by their infirmities, reveals their quiet perseverance and he allows them to express simply stated life-affirming truths.

Dr. Jellinek celebrates the nobility and dignity of those who populate the book. The overriding tone is decidedly redemptive and hopeful. Stories of great courage emerge as the unsung heroes of local community service manage time and again to marshal their inner reserves, drawing upon a fragile yet durable support network woven of member interfaith congregations and faith communities. These are ordinary people doing extraordinary things, largely under the radar. The stories call to mind the importance of small deeds which loom large in the lives of those whom they touch.

The nonthreatening imprimatur of "church" is time and again the narrow margin breached by wary "forgotten souls" who tentatively reach out for much needed help. Their simple but profound acts of faith and trust are to what the program owes its success.

This book should be required reading, especially for those embarking on a career in social work or community service. To read it is to be infused with a sense of all that is possible and to have one's faith in humanity restored, through a rare glimpse into the heart and soul of some of the finest people one could meet. The author succeeds in focusing a deserving spotlight on those remarkable people who populate our everyday lives, but whose heroic deeds are largely unknown, except to those whose lives are quietly transformed by their gentle presence.

This is a book whose power lies in the gentle yet compelling individual stories which emerge, revealing the humanity which lies within all of us. It is also a compelling journey of personal discovery for the author as well as a wonderful historical record of Faith in Action.




Dr. Jellinek documents the sustained viability of what remains a simple but profound formula for success - ordinary people accomplishing the extraordinary, when artificial barriers to human compassion, in the form of preconceived stereotypes are ignored and people are free to relate to one another on the most basic level. By entering this world with Paul as your guide, you emerge hope-filled and humbled by the extraordinary compassion his journey reveals.

Promise to Mary - A Story of HOPE
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-13
Paul's caring and poignant sharing of his journey across the continent and through the years with Faith in Action is one that will warm your heart and hopefully inspire you to look closely at your own community. I will guess that you won't look far to find your own Mary, Gracie, Harold or Eddie Mae. But stop and look farther. Find what it is you can do in your own community and with your own neighbors to help - with or without a Faith in Action project. Paul will tell you from his own experience as a Faith in Action volunteer for many years, that you will get so very much more than you give.

Thank you Paul for writing this important anthology once again proving what a small group of very committed people can do.

An eye-opening experience
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-07
Paul Jellinek is a masterful interviewer and storyteller. The amount of depth and detail he was able to uncover in the lives of those he visited in just a few short hours is incredible. For those who take time to assist neighbors in their communities, it is an affirmation. For everyone else, it is compelling work of non-fiction that will keep you reading on and on. It is truly inspirational. I would recommend this book to everyone.

Mission Accomplished...and Then Some
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-03
This is a book with a mission. It accomplishes its mission and then some. It spreads the word about Faith in Action, a successful, 15-year-old national program that brings together local congregations of different faiths to provide volunteer help to elderly and disabled individuals. Through interviews with administrators, caregivers and those they help, the book enlightens the reader about the program and its life-altering accomplishments.

The interviews, combined with the author's observations, provide keen insight into many of our country's great challenges--racism, poverty, crime, drugs, isolation, loneliness, abandonment. They also show how Faith in Action and its remarkable staff and volunteers take on these challenges and make a difference. The book is instructive, inspirational, and motivating. Undoubtedly, some who read it will become volunteers themselves.

The book's style is entertaining and captivating. The author brings us along on his road trip to contrasting parts of America where he conducts his interviews--New England, the South, and the Last Frontier of Alaska. Through his writing we share the scenery, weather, accommodations, and food he experienced--the good, the bad, and the ugly. (On the good front, I long for a piece of the "...best slice of pie I had ever had at a restaurant." Inquiring minds should see page 217.)

Each interview is a personality profile. We are introduced to a bevy of characters--some endearing, some distasteful, all remarkable. Among the favorites are the indomitable eighty-five-year-old Miss Helen; Sylvia, who once excelled in the study of mold spores and now excels in administering social services; Kim, whose hard life has transformed her into an expert practitioner of compassion; Jamie, a former wild child turned nurse with unique experiences involving death and dying; and Rodney, a former gang member who has yet to recognize his power and purpose.

The book has a rare attribute--a wonderful use of humor. There are more than a few laugh-out-loud moments. Always appropriate, humor is skillfully interjected throughout our journey with the author.

A Promise to Mary is reader-friendly. Because of its clever format--broken out by geography and interview--it can be picked up and put down as the reader's lifestyle dictates. It can be read in one sitting from cover to cover, enjoyed at the beach, or become part of a daily public transportation commute.

I owe a great deal to the book and its author. During my time reading the book, it became my travel companion, making my weekday commute a pleasure. My faith in the goodness of human beings has been reinforced. And I have added one more goal to my list of things to accomplish--becoming a Faith in Action volunteer. Thank you, Dr. Jellinek. Well done.

very real human beings as memorable as characters in a novel
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-16
PROMISE TO MARY is a gem. With a narrative style that rings true, the very real characters are as complex and interesting as any in a work of fiction. The author's genuine, but realistic, empathy provides a welcome antidote to the "kumbaya"-tinged works common to the genre. It is enough to provide even the cynic with at least a modest insight into our shared humanity.

Works
Reverse Heart Disease Now: Stop Deadly Cardiovascular Plaque Before It's Too Late
Published in Kindle Edition by Wiley (2006-11-03)
Authors: Sinatra and James C., M.D. Roberts
List price: $30.00
New price: $9.15

Average review score:

Hope & Information Galore
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-30
Written by two cardiologists.By far the most informative book I've read so far on heart disease. It's an easy read, yet chucked full of information you need & must know. Unfortuneately when we see a doctor or cardiologist they focus solely on the symptom, they have little or no time to devote to prevention nor a cure. You'll be happy to know...as the book states you CAN stop deadly cardiovascular plaque before it's too late.

Reverse heart disease now
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-06-05
this was a decent book with a lot of good usuable information. It is a Must Read for anyone over 45 who has a poor diet and is over weight. It is written by medical doctors who are interested in healing the body-not just treating the symtoms. there are also many suppliments that they recommend that are available in most stores (unlike Kevin Trudeau who recommends product not even available in the U.S.)!! It was well worth the money and I strongly recommend it to any one who is concerned about heart disease.

CVD - There's more to the Story - There is hope.
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-21
I've had a heart attack. I want to take personal responsibility for my health and do all I can to prevent my experience from reoccurring. As I began recovery and started researching the why's of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD), I found there was more I needed to know. Dr. Sinatra's book helped me understand how my body works and what I and my doctor can do to promote healing and restore my health. Dr. Sinatra's book is well written and chocked-full up-to-date information that the reader can use. The resources contained in this book are invaluable. There is hope. GW

Great Heart and Supplement Book
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-11
Nice book especially the supplements section, such as vitamins, enzymes, etc...that is if you don't mind taking supplements instead of or in addition to standard medications.

This book lets YOU take control of your health!
Helpful Votes: 3 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-09
Dr. Sinatra's book endorses traditional medicine's solutions to heart disease -- as a last resort! He believes there are many changes in diet and supplements that may help you avoid/postpone heart surgery. And he backs up his findings with research. Finally, a intelligent approach that lets the patient decide what's right for them.



Works
Seaward
Published in Hardcover by London The Bodley Head 1983. (1983)
Author: Susan Cooper
List price:
Used price: $35.00

Average review score:

Thought Provoking
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2006-07-29
The first time I read "Seaward" I was in middle school. I found it to be an easy fantasy read by the genius behind "The Dark Is Rising", but even at the age of 12 I could see that there was a deeper level to the story than I was - at the time - capable of understanding. Over the years I have re-read "Seaward" over and over, and each time am amazed at the depth and profundity of her final concepts. While it is a children's book on the surface, many adults can appreciate the moral dilemma of the Peter Pan type, and the dichotomy of sorrows and joys that come with death, life, and most importantly, love.

Moving seaward
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2006-07-27
Susan Cooper is best known for her epic "Dark is Rising Sequence," with all its Celtic legends and sense of mystery. But she tries a different tack in "Seaward," an atmospheric little story that is just a little darker, more complex, and full of symbols and hints.

West's mother was killed by some armed thugs, just as he escaped through a door into a strange land. Cally watched her parents waste away with a strange illness, before slipping through a mirror to the same land. When she encounters West, he's trying to escape from the ruthless, cold-hearted Lady Taranis.

A kindly stranger named Lugan seems to be their best hope for escaping Taranis. As the two travellers cross the world that is an echo of our own, they encounter strange creatures such as the selkies, a talking insect that guides them over a desert, creatures made of stone, and the haunting specters of their own pasts and destinies...

"Seaward" seems like a pretty simple story at first -- two kids travelling across a bleak land. But in that simple storyline Cooper tackles questions about death and life, about grief, loss, love, about good and evil and how sometimes you can't easily classify anyone.

Probably the biggest stumbling block in "Seaward" is the slightly dreamy tone of it all. Unlike Cooper's other books, there is no grounded "homey" base -- it's all like a legend right from the beginning. As a result, it takes awhile for the story to really get going, and there are long stretches where the characters are just walking.

Though the setting is another world, it has hints of Celtic myth. The mysterious Lugan and Taranis aren't fully identifiable until the ending, but they seem like characters out of a legend. And mythic creatures like selkies are linked to the characters, by virtue of the thickened skin on Cally's hands.

Cally and West are very richly drawn, confused and saddled with grief over their parents. It makes it all the more poignant as West overcomes his guilt, and Cally is tempted to find a new family. The only problem is that their romantic feelings seem to come out of left field.

After the mass appeal of the "Dark is Rising" books, Susan Cooper tackles a more oblique, fantastical approach in "Seaward." Deceptively simple, and richly evocative.

Magical, often unnerving
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2006-02-01
In the first chapter of "Seaward," we find a young man hurrying over wild moorland from possible distant, unidentified pursuers. He pauses to catch a small fish from a stream for his supper, and afterwards:

"...he took the glistening white skeleton, tipped still with head and tail-fin, and laid it across the blackened twigs pointing back the way he had come. He took out his knife and raised it high, stabbing the blade down into the ground behind the white bone-arrow's tail, and hesitantly, trying to remember, he said some words under his breath.
And the skeleton of the fish called out, in a thin high scream shrilling like a cicada, and Westerly knew that there was danger, that he must go on."

If the first chapter does not draw you irresistibly in, you have no magic in your soul. Well, OK, maybe that's too strong - but certainly every created "presence" in the book is a wonder of imagination, from the two-sided Life and Death images of the ice-cold Lady Taranis, to scary Stonecutter and his huge, ominous boulders that come heavily alive and mobile in a ray of sunlight, "...suddenly there was no boulder at all but two huge figures, standing, turning to her."

Is it a myth? a fantasy? a parable? outside the world of logic? a meditation on accepting Death? Yes to all of the above, and more. I see it is not to everyone's taste, but if you fall under its spell you will not escape.

Brilliant Love
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2005-12-20
I am not sure what it is about this book; I cannot stop reading it. Every so often, it beckons to me from the shelf. I drop everything that I am currently involved in and devour it, front to back.

Perhaps it is the simplicity and complexity of the story, the dreamlike quality of the writing, the characterizations that arise from only the barest sketch. I feel like I have known West and Cally all my life; I have been waiting for another book like this one for all my life. If I have a favorite book, this is it. But I can't articulate the reason. Seaward must be experienced for itself.

Childhood Favorite!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2005-05-27
I loved this book as a child and continue to enjoy it as an adult. It is haunting and full of rich imaginative detail. It spurs many daydreams. Like all her books, it deals with the struggle between good and evil, in a very unique way.

Works
The Seven Deadly Work Sins
Published in Paperback by BookSurge Publishing (2007-10-31)
Author: George Abraham
List price: $18.99
New price: $18.99
Used price: $17.98

Average review score:

Read this book and go from complaining, to understanding and coping with the work place-a double must read !
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-26
I rated Dr. Abraham's book a 5 star. I have been in
the restaurant business for many years and found his
book to be extremely appropriate in describing how
workers can sabotage their purposes with their
dangerous journey into unholy politics. When
customers and colleagues commit one of the Seven
Deadly Sins against the Golden Rule, sales
eventually deteriorate. What good is a restaurant
without business?
If you own a business and employ workers, read this
book no matter what part of the world you are from.I'm living in Europe over 12 years-one thing is for sure...
The Golden Rule is a universal principle and people
are people everywhere.

[...]

7 Deadly Work Sins: The Best Book I've Ever Read
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-03-18
The best book I've ever read, hands down. I am a recent college graduate and entered the working world in August 2007. Every college senior should be required to read this book before graduating. This book taught me far more than any college text book. I will use it for the rest of my life. Dr. Abraham is truly a genius and a dear family friend.

Corporate 101: As Real as it Gets!
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-21
The Doctor is in! Dr. Abraham's book offers a pragmatic approach to understanding and managing the not so admirable aspects of human behvior while encouraging and celebrating the good in people.
Dr. Abraham tackles business relationship matters they just don't teach in business school. Seven Deadly should be required reading for all college students planning a corporate career. I'm passing my copy to my son.

Mike Skidmore reviews book of the year
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-13
One of the best books I've read in recent times. Full of insight and memorable characters. If you've read it - read it again - if not - pick up a copy and enjoy. Good lessons to be learned.

7 deadly work sins - its the real deal!
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-29
Now here's a good read that any manager or organization can use to either thwart or prevent disfunctional behavior in the workplace. I used to wonder how things can get so messed up that the weasles start running the show and us regular peeps get caught in the cross-fire. Well, Dr George shares some bona fide case studies that are easily digestible, and fall in the truth is stranger than fiction category.

Having worked with George Abraham I know what I'm talking about. I'm glad to see he is sharing his work with others. I have learned a lot from him and he's had a profound impact on my career. Put simply, he's the bomb - and believe me,...I wanted to drop him on a couple of spineless villans back in the day...and did!

I recommend 7 Deadly Work Sins to those who have recently graduated from school and are coping with their first entree to corporate life. They really should have corporate HR assign this book to managers and others who exhibit "sinful" behavior on the job. In fact, anyone who is dealing with bad seeds in the workplace.

This will be a good one for "books on CD" - I think the rhyme is Sublime and I pity the fool that breaks the golden rule.





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