O Books

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.

This book does a wonderful job of presenting a very extensive array of information about water and how significant it is in our lives. It shows how human thoughts and prayers affect water and how this is related to humans affecting other humans. There are a lot of useful guidelines and practices for making your life better via intention, thought, and prayer. A very informative book about water, people, and the nature of the universe. Highly recommended.

I loved this book so much as have the precious people I've lent it to.It has opened my eyes so much about how powerful we are, and how careful we have to be with everything we say and think.If everyone read this book, and heeded the message it has to give, the world, and everything that resides on it, would be heeled.

I personally know Lawerence and have had the pleasure of working and processing through a break through in Hawaii during Dr. Emoto's workshop. The book is in line with Lawerence's own personal vision, belief and as a seeker of what high vibration or truth is...his mission and the book will create a serene and positive outlook on everything life has brought and will bring.

I highly recommend this beautiful book for all ages and for anyone and hope that many will come across this book when the timing is right and feel compelled to not only own but to pass on the great message that can only bring more light and peace...

The Spirit of Water by Lawrence Ellyard is a valuable extension of the pioneering work of Masaru Emoto. This exceptional book will reveals the subtleties of water and consciously-directed energy in a way that can bring you better health and a deeper, spiritual happiness. Well done, Lawrence!

The Spirit of Water highlights the importance of how we think and why we should take the message in this book seriously. I really enjoied reading it and couldn't put it down. One of the best books on the subject which shows you how to use the principles of Hado in daily life. Highly recommended!

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.

My daughter loves trains, so I bought this lovely picture book for her. She has me read it to her all the time! It has lots of interesting stuff about trains and the history of locomotives without being overly wordy. I think she especially likes that the greatgrandmother of the narrator was an engineer in the 30's.

This is a beautiful book. My 3 y.o. train crazy son LOVES it. My 8 y.o. daughter, not such a train lover, really ejoyed it too. She keeps wanting to get in on my son's bed at story time to hear it over and over. I have even learned a few things. Beautiful illustrations. I highly recommend this to anyone who has a train or history lover.

When my son found this book at the local library, I couldn't wait to write a gushing review. I am really delighted with this book. The more we read it together, the more impressed I am with the author and illustrator.

This book is organized so that you go back in time, viewing the trains of earlier and earlier generations. (This is much more interesting than it sounds. Stay with me!) The narrator is a boy who says that when he goes up, he wants to drive a train like his dad. Then we hear about how his dad also wanted to be an engineer because that is what HIS father was, and so forth. We are brought back in time all the way to the earliest American trains (and the boy's great great great great great grandfather--kids love the repetition too). The final scene is a futuristic train that the boy imagines driving when he grows up.

Every other page spread on the book contains short text about a child wanting to drive trains like his father (or mother in one case!) and a gorgeous illustration of a train. If you look carefully, you'll see that every scene is shown from the exact same vantage point, with the same mountains in the background. Not only do the trains change, but so do the stations, the tracks, and the buildings around them. The illustration style is lush, and every one of these images features a different cat somewhere in the scene. My son loves to search for them.

The alternating page spreads contain extended text and additional images about the era of train history depicted on the previous page. I have read many, many books on trains because my son gobbles up anything we can find on them, and yet I learned many new things from this book. For instance, did you know that when multiple engines are used to pull a train, they are called a "consist"? Or that brakemen on old trains had to run along the tops of the cars to set the brakes on each one manually? The level of detail is not a whole lot greater than most other non-fiction train books for kids, but it seems to find the most unique and telling details.

I would recommend this book for any train child ages 3 and up. You won't mind reading this one over and over. For younger children, just read the text on alternating pages and the captions of the pictures on the more detailed sections.

This a great story of the history of trains as seen through the eyes of a family of engineers. Well written and the artwork is fantastic. A recommended read.

My little newphew loves, loves trains. At this time this is his favorite train book. We read only every other page. The other pages are to long, but he loves it. And I like the theme of the story.

The third volume of five in the Chronicles of the Kings series by Lynn Austin is spiritually inspiring fiction. She writes so as to be accurate both to history and to the Biblical accounts, but develops the characters and dialogue in a way to bring everyone to life in interesting ways.

What an awesome storyteller. If you have ever had the pleasure of reading a Francine Rivers novel, you will enjoy Lynn Austin as well. While I meditated on Rivers novels for days and even weeks, I found Austin's stories a bit faster paced and entertaining yet at the same time thought provoking and nourishment to the soul. I greatly enjoyed the first three books and highly recommend them. I am waiting for the fourth and fifth!

A glimpse into the our past, our families lives, our history...A MUST READ! You will be hooked!

Wow! That's the only word that comes to mind after reading Lynn Austin. I picked this up with one lingering doubt in my mind, "Will this even match books 1 and 2?" They were THAT good, and Lynn Austin did her homework to the nth degree, and I'm sitting here astounded! I was wondering if she'd include Sannacherib, Hezekiah's fierce, taunting rival! Oh, she did all right, and had me sweating a time or two! She did an amazing work, and if you have yet to read this, you really are missing out. I really don't feel like putting the book down when I'm on my lunch break at work, or potty training the 2 year old, and it made me all the more crazy to get back to reading!! Yeah, now read on, right? I still have my review to do!

The theme in this would ultimately have to be trust. And for that matter, not trusting in ourselves. To me that is a gut wrenching matter. Especially when I think I need something, and it just ain't happening! When you look back on the times when you haven't trusted God, please don't feel so bad. It is called crisis, and we all go through it. King Hezekiah went through it, and he HAD to trust God. The question is, would he? If you know the story, well then you already know the answer. But let's not make it so obvious. What about Hezekiah's wife, Hephzibah, who has yet to birth a future king? She thought she was promised, yet no baby, not yet anyway! What about other people in this that we've grown to love... like Eliakim? The Assyrians are planning to attack Judah. Eliakim's wife, Jerusha knows about how beastly ONE of them can be. Will God protect them? Will they rely on God's strength, or will they lean to their own understanding? Isaiah, the prophet is still alive and well in this whole mess, and he plays a big part!

This also gives a better understanding of Passover. With a portrait more real than life, the passover is displayed to me in great awe. It really drives home the point, like for instance with the parsley dipped in salt water. Just an example, and you might really appreciate what an awesome God we serve after this. There is a lot of scripture, yet when you see it come alive, WOW!

All God asks sometimes is to simply trust Him. To put aside our strength, and to simply trust Him. Is it always easy? No way. Is it worth it? Yes it is, because I know from some tough experiences. Outstanding once again, Lynn Austin! I'm ready for more.

You will mostly enjoy this book if you love biblical history or if you would like to understand it better.

First, the writting is not as smooth as more experienced authors I've read. In some places its even a bit jarring. BUT Ms Austin is certainly one thing.....a storyteller!!!

I found myself reading this book and really understanding human nature versus obeying God. It made me repent of some of my own thickheadedness and at other points it made me pray not to fall into the traps that I saw the characters fall into.

Ms Austin has worked good cause and effect into her plotting of this book. Keep up the good work Ms Austin. All in all it was a good read that makes you look introspectively at yourself and hey....thats what every author wants to accomplish...right? 8-)

Mr. Potter has done a great service, in the service of bringing to life (literally) the wonderfully detailed personification of the steamboat "Sultana's" explosion and fiery sinking; woven marvelously into the adept story-telling describing how such an event would vanish from history, and the circumstances that created each and all.

Extensively documented, fleshing out all angles of the event before, during and after.

Simply marvelous.

I finished reading The Sultana Tragedy: America's Greatest Maritime Disaster on December 7 while on vacation in Aruba. The news of that day was that it was 58 years since that infamous day at Pearl Harbor. Yet it struck me odd that practically no one today was aware of the Sultana tragedy of April 27, 1865. The 2300 killed by the enemy at Pearl Harbor were only slightly higher than the estimated 1800 who lost their lives that forgotten night with the Sultana.

As my fifth and seventh grade sons stepped into the overheated Jacuzzi to listen to Jerry Potter's story, the initial shock of the excessive hot water put them in an appropriate listening mood. Memphis Attorney Potter's study of the disaster is no doubt the most comprehensive examination of this 133-year-old incident. Why, I wondered, why did this disaster become lost in the memories of America? While I have vague memories of the Sultana from my Tennessee history professors and Memphis law school days, Potter's book easily captivated my attention as I roved through its 300 pages with 655 footnotes, pictures and a comprehensive list of the passengers. Perhaps, this history was lost because of timing. April 1865 had seen headlines of the end of the Civil War, the assassination of President Lincoln and the capture of John Wilkes Booth. And the Eastern newspapers were apparently not that interested in what happened on America's western front.

My sons being very familiar with last year's top movie, "Titanic," gave their full attention as I explained what I had just read. As a 31 year veteran of the Army and history buff, it puzzled me also why the Army has not covered this topic substantially. The Titanic's 1522 deaths are less than the 1800 who died with the Sultana. Of the approximately 765 individuals who immediately survived the disaster, nearly half would die within days of their recovery from the dark and cold Mississippi River. These U.S. prisoners of war had just endured the worst of all times at the infamous Andersonville and Cahaba prison camps. Over 20,000 US POWs had died during imprisonment while the South had over 23,000 of its prisoners to die in Northern prisons. Many recently released prisoners, weighing in at less than 100 pounds, believed that they were finally going home after the War. The worst was over they thought.

The Sultana Steamship, one of the largest and best steamers supposedly every made, was only designed to carry 376 passengers. In the hurry to leave Vicksburg, an estimated 2500+ passengers crowded aboard, including crew and other non-military passengers. The Steamship Captain hurried a boiler repair that remains the primary suspect of the explosion, yet others believed that perhaps a revengeful Rebel might have placed explosives in the coal. Bribery, political influence, greed, indifference, criminal misconduct, and gross stupidity allowed the overloading of the ship at Vicksburg, Mississippi. Visions of being home in a few days perhaps were worth the crowding in the minds of these ex-prisoners who had seen much worst.

Prior to departure, the steamer's first clerk remarked that this would be greatest trip ever made on western waters since there were more people on the Sultana's board than previously carried on any one boat in the Mississippi River. The Sultana also carried a large store of freight of sugar, wine, mules, hogs, and the crew's pet alligator. Due to the spring time floods of the Mississippi River, water was cold and swift; the river spread several miles as it flowed over fields and its banks. Even though other steamers were available, the ship's crew and passengers wanted to get the trip on.

At approximately 2 a.m., April 28, 1865, the worst nightmare that could occur happened. The Sultana's boilers blew sending scalding steam over many passengers; decks crashed pinning hundreds of passengers in an inferno to burned alive, and it was miles to the shore in icy cold water- and there was only one lifeboat. For days following, bodies were found floating in the Mississippi - many unclothed. Animals were found lunching on human carcasses days later.

My sons asked why no movies tell the story concerning the Sultana since it includes hundreds of touching stories. Assuming Potter's accurate description, perhaps it is really too tragic for viewers to envision. I wondered where could actors be found to portray the large group of frail men on the steamer? Absent Hitler's holocaust camps, perhaps there have been no collection of humans as frail as these released Confederate Prisoner of War Camps survivors.

While citizens of Memphis, whose allegiance had been with the opposing force, opened their homes and care giving to the survivors with true Southern hospitality, the aftermath of seeking fault and blame paints a sad story. Potter's research included the investigations that followed. Further, the lengthy court-martial of Captain Frederick Speed who was convicted but then set aside by the Army's Judge Advocate General. No doubt this explosion should not have rested on one lowly Captain when others were equally or more responsible. Although it is apparent that there were many faults in arriving at the disaster and even questions as to what caused the Sultana's boilers' to explode, the matter was swept under the rug.

Most tragic is the manner in which this country treated these victims. This feeling is best summarized by a bitter survivor: "The men who endured the torments of a hell on earth, starved, famished from thirst, eaten with vermin, having endured all the indignities, insults and abuses possible for an armed bully to bestow upon them, to be so soon forgotten does not speak well for our government or for the American people."

We have a museum in our little river town , it is a sternwheeler from the early 20's , I used to go there with my friends and brothers and roam around and just soak up history...on one of the walls (that were filled with memorabilia and posters) was a poster of the Sultana with a drawing of it blowing up and telling of the great loss of life...so when my brother told me of a book he read of the event I had to get it too...this book covers the ship's last voyage from beginning to end and is very good...I learned a lot from this book..a lot of interesting photos too...

This is a little known event in the Civil War era. The Sultana was carrying released Union prisoners of war from Vicksburg to Camp Chase in Ohio. Due to an imcomplete repair of one of the four boilers and the vast over crowding of the steamship, there was a huge explosion a few miles above Memphis on the Mississippi River. The explosion and sinking resulted in the loss of between one-two thousand people, mostly soldiers.

Potter, who is a lawyer by trade, investigates why there were so many soldiers on board and why the boiler repair was incomplete. His theory is that the Captain-Mason bribed the Head Quartermaster Hatch so that all the released soldiers were placed on board the Sultana rather than two other steamships. The Captain also hastened the repairs of the boiler rather than take the ship out of service. This set the situation up for the accident. These two factors caused the ship to roll much and the boilers were affected. When the boilers blew, the resulting fire doomed a great majority of men.

Potter also describes life in the Confederate prisoner of war camps and what it was like for those who had to live a life in one. These soldiers were indeed weakened to the point where they could not muster much energy to save themselves when the steamship was sinking. When they went into the water, most drowned.

This is a great short read on a little known event of the Civil War. Potter did a great job writing a very informative history of a little known tragedy.

One of the returning Union POW's on the Sultana was my 3rd Great-Uncle Pvt. Wesley Lee of the Ohio 102nd Infantry. Uncle Wesley was one of the fortunate ones. He survived that awful disaster. Jerry Potter has done a great service to Uncle Wesley's comrades who perished in the Sultana explosion and aftermath. His excellent research, along with Gene Salecker's earlier work, goes a long way to bringing to light what has to rank as America's most "forgotten" tragedy. No Civil War library shelf is complete without this book.

I'm a prime candidate for using voice over Internet (VOIP), so it was with much interest that I dove into this book. The first few chapters are background information describing VOIP, how it works, and how it is different (and the same) as landline phone service. There is even a comparison of what you might pay in each case.

Since there are a myriad of choices in the VOIP universe I was glad to see a clear (and sometimes humorous) explanation as to what each offers. It helped me select which way to go for my own personal situation. Implementing the information from this book is saving me at least $10 a month initially and perhaps a lot more in the future.

Anyone wanting to adopt VOIP should read Talk is Cheap before deciding which (if any) provider to use.

Now that there are alternatives to using Ma Bell, people are switching (or contemplating it) to broadband phone services. Granted, those on dialup are still out of luck, but some of the services offered provide motivation to get a broadband account. With the proliferation of broadband phone companies, it gets confusing when trying to decide which service is the best, or which one offers the options you need most.

This book explains the services that broadband companies like VONAGE offer, as well as the ones that companies like Skype offer. It also explains (in the first chapter) how internet phones work, as well as an explanation how Voice Over IP works. I also liked the analogy about how innovation over the years has forced traditional phone companies however grudgingly to offer better service. It makes one wonder how they eventually will adapt to VOIP.

There's also a chapter devoted to features that you now pay for that you can get for free using an Internet phone (several of them are the various fees your phone company adds on to your bill), such as call waiting and forwarding. I find it interesting how the phone company manages to slip in various fees as a "cost of doing business."

911 service is also touched upon. Broadband phones will likely have complete 911 service within the next two years, whereas their computer-centric counterparts may not for a few years. It seems to be one drawback to using this type of technology, but one that will likely be ironed out the more popular this technology becomes.

This is a great "consumer guide" to Internet telephony, one that you should buy if you're considering the move to Internet phones.

With Internet Telephony gathering acceptance and converts daily many people are trying to figure out what service will work best for them and the differences between the various offerings. With a straight-forward analysis of Internet telephony as compared to traditional phone lines and the various options available, this book is well done and very informative. I happen to use one of the services mentioned in the book and found the author's review of it right on the mark. He provided an excellent discussion of the differences between a broadband phone-centric service and a computer-centric service as well as the offerings of specific vendors. If you are thinking about making the move to Internet telephony this book will provide you with sufficient background information to determine if it would be useful for your needs as well as how to shop intelligently for the appropriate product. Although the information also applies to small businesses this book is aimed squarely at the home market. Written in a very non-technical style Talk is Cheap is easy to read and understand and suggested for anyone interested in learning about the subject.

This book happened to arrive on my doorstep while I was doing my own researching on switching my traditional phone service over to Broadband. I had a lot of questions, and this book does a good job of providing answers to many common questions and technical details behind making the switch.

The author goes into great detail on both telephone-type broadband service (Vonage, one of the author's favorites) and computer-based Softphone systems (Skype, for example). He explains various packages, benefits and technical details behind each. For example, I want to keep my traditional telephones since for some reason my 15-year old, as computer-savy as he is, seems to have this need to "grasp" onto a traditional telephone receiver. Thanks to this book, I now know how to hook-up those phones (directly to the router provided by the broadband provider) and how to make sure that I maintain my current coverage throughout the house (get a base station phone setup with remote stations). I also found out a lot about how the services that are available as they compare to my traditional phone company today, and some of the pitfalls as well -- Fax machines don't work with broadband service without an extra fee from most providers, and my ADT alarm system is going to need to be retrofitted.

If you are curious as to how broaband phones work (and also want a short, but good overview of how traditional phones work) the author starts the book off with going behind the scenes to explain the details. How does my call from my broadband phone reach my mother, who still believes that computers are those strange machines in the basements of banks and other big companies that manage to overcharge her, who still uses a service provided by Ma Bell? How can I live in Missouri, but have a number in Las Vegas? How can I go on a month-long vacation and still receive all my phone calls? How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie-Roll pop? Ok, so maybe the author doesn't cover that last one.

About the only gripe I had with this book was the author does a lot of moaning about the traditional phone companies. I am no big fan either, but I still realize they are necessary and will be so for many, many years to come. I also would have liked to seen a little less emphasis given to just Vonage and Skype, though to be fair they are the major market players at this stage in the game.

A good read for those considering making the switch. It's written well and is it times humorous which makes for a very easy read.

Want to say good-bye to your plain old telephone service with the high cost of taxes, add-on fees, and long-distance? Check out James E. Gaskin's book Talk Is Cheap - Switching To Internet Telephones (O'Reilly). I certainly learned quite a bit from this book...

Contents: How Internet Telephone Calls Work; Your Internet Phone; Free Internet Phone Features That You're Paying For Now; Choosing Your Internet Phone Equipment; Vonage And Other Broadband Phone Carriers; Skype And Other Computer-centric Services; 911, Alarms, And Other Outgoing Calls; Tips, Tricks, And Techniques For Advanced Users; Go Wireless; Index

As more and more people switch to broadband internet access, there's an emerging option for telephony services in the home. Using your internet connection (DSL or cable), you can switch to internet telephony, also known as Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) and go all digital. Gaskin does an excellent job in explaining exactly what this is, how it works, and the pros and cons of switching to a service like this. He's a pretty strong advocate of VoIP, so you can pretty much figure out where his bias is going to lie.

The book focuses on two major types of internet telephony: phone-centric and computer-centric. In the phone-centric area (using your phone much like before, but only through an internet service) he uses Vonage as the primary example of what to expect. On the computer-centric side (no telephone, just headphones and speakers attached to your computer), he uses the Skype package as the leader in that area. In this growing technology area, it's impossible to write a book covering every option such that it won't be out of date before it's printed. To Gaskin's credit, he does a good job in covering the current playing field, as well as giving enough detail to figure in new options as they emerge.

Even though you can come away from a book like this thinking all is rosy, that's not quite the case. There are very well documented customer service issues with Vonage, and no player in the field is mature enough to get it right as often as Ma Bell does. Still, if you're an early adopter of technology, this is definitely an area you need to check out. And if you have no exposure to residential VoIP up until now, I'd recommend a copy of this book to get you up to speed quickly.

Nice, easy to follow book for young children. All prayers are in English and Hebrew.

Thank You, God!: A Jewish Child's Book of Prayers (Shabbat) I purchased this book for my daughter when she was around 3 years old and she woke up every morning and went to bed every evening with the book - she just loved it. She is now in college and wanted to bring the book with her as a memory from home. When we couldn't locate it I purchased it again for her to take to school. I don't think you can have a better review than that for a book. One that took her through her young childhood and had such an impact on her she remembered it and wanted it with her at college.

THANK YOU, GOD! An outstanding book for jewish children to learn that prayer is a part of jewish life. It is a book that every parent or grandparent should put into the child's library.

When our first child was five, she asked us for her very own prayer book. This was the one we chose, and it has been wonderful both for her and her brother.

The book is only 25 pages, but it is filled with the most important prayers in the Jewish liturgy, beginning, after the prayer thanking God for a good night's sleep, with the Shema, the watchwords of the Jewish faith. As the English text explains, "Every morning and every night when we say the Shema, we are saying 'God is everywhere and God is One'."

These pages also include the beginning of the Veyahavta, which states, "We will love God with all our hearts, with all our souls and with all our might."

There are prayers for before and after meals, for lighting the Shabbat candles and blessing the Sabbath wine, and for saying good bye to Shabbat with the Havdalah blessings, with which the Jewish people welcome a new week.

The book also includes the most important blessings for four of the major holidays, Rosh Hashonah and Yom Kippur, Sukkot, Chanukah.

Children are also introduced to prayers in thanks for nature, for trees, prayers for good health, prayers for escaping from danger or good health, for peace, and to remember those who have died. The book ends with the traditional Jewish benediction, which I noticed at a Catholic service some years ago, is also a Christian tradition--

"May God bless you and keep you.
May God watch over you in kindness.
May God grant you a life of good health, joy and peace."

--Alyssa A. Lappen

My husband was raised observant. I still have trouble with reading Hebrew and I wanted a book to help me with some morning and evening rituals. My one complaint is that they should have used the extended version of the Shema

The book I read was given to me by a dear friend. I have read it many times over. It is deep, thoughtful and meaningful - yet uplifting. It truly enriches my life each time I read it.

Unfortunately, the book I ordered over a month ago, has never arrived. I wanted to give it as a gift to someone for the same reasons I just stated. I cannot even get a reasonable ship date from Amazon so I don't even know if it will EVER arrive. I am a very, very unhappy customer of Amazon at this time, but that does not reflect on this wonderful book. Maybe you should order it elsewhere.

Warning: the art in this book will inspire you! If you have never seen the art of John August Swanson, this is a grand introduction. I also recommend "The Story of Ruth: Twelve Moments in Every Woman's Life," another collaboration between Chittister and Swanson.

This is a life changing book. Joan Chittister is a little extreme in her feminist position for me but everything else in her book truly touched my soul and made me rethink some long-held opinions.

This is a beautifully written and illustrated book that makes us see the world in a new light. The author explains issues such as intolerance, war and lonelines as immature reactions that can be understood and overcome by spiritual growth and reverence to the soul and to the natural world.

The book consists of 20 short essays, each pondering one of the seasons in the Book of Ecclesiastes, a time to be born and a time to die, a time to love and a time to hate,a time to plant and a time to sow, etc. and guiding us to meditate and to see life in a fuller and more gentle context.

This is a beatifully illustrated book that can be used as a special gift. I have read and re-read it, which I seldom do, because it always helps me focus on the real virtues of life. I have given it to my ( young adult) children who are now entering the time in their lives where living meaningfully will impact all that they do.

The simplicity of the style and the poetry of the images makes this a delightful book to be turn to time and again. Few authors can say so much in such few words.

I highly recommend this wonderful jewel as Christmas gift for those you most love, for those passing through trial and bafflement, and sadness, for those filled with great joy.

I had not noticed the large and generous size of this book, so favorably available herer on the amazon, before ordering it, and wondered at the large package in my mailbox. It was Sister Joan, speaking large, praying with me with an embrace as wide as all outdoors.

Perhaps we have heard the old song sung by the great American folksinger Pete Seeger, and by others including the Byrds. This book nevertheless brings our understanding, appreciation and entry into this Scriptural verse to a new level. Truly this book serves as lectio divina as Benedictine Sister Joan, winner of the 1992 US Catholic Award for her holy and wonderful work of ministry, meditates carefully on each phrase of this famous Holy Scripture: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. Each brief phrase of a few words length Talmudically receives pages of commentary of great wisdom and holiness and strength, like a guided meditation.

In fact, this great book can edifyingly find use as a prayer meeting, sitting quietly in chapel, hearing its consoling words. BUt be aware in this context that you might only read a fifth of each chapter at a sitting. Each phrase truly receives many pages of text in this coffee table book sized volume, and each chapter is thick with wisdom and truth, and much to meditate. The chapter on war in particular, published in 1995 someight years before our current situation, breathes a prophetic prescience which speaks deeply to or hearts today. The chapter on restraining from embracing supports not only the mystery of celibacy but also examines the unrestrained consumerism His Holiness now condemns. Each chapter has so much to say; the more slowly you read it the more you receive.

A great gift for the RCIA candidate; a great introduction to the prolific and profound spiritual writings of Sister Joan, a great way to return to the careful contemplation of Holy Scripture in lectio divina.

As if this were not enough we have here the wonderful painting of John August Swanson, with whom Sister Joan also collaborated in The Story of Ruth: Twelve Moments in Every Woman's Life. HIs beautifully detailed painting resembles the ancient medieval illuminations in the Books of Hours, as well as the beautiful Mexican folk art retablos. In a powerful way these iconic images bring home to our hearts the meaning of these verses.

A great gift for yourself. A great gift for everyone on your list, so favorably and readily available here upon the amazon.

So much research went into this book, it felt like I was right there with the characters.Kathleen deserves all the awards possible for such hard work I loved the book, I was sorry to see it end.I can't wait to see what she does next, she is a genius!

Excellent research by the author. It is much better than sitting in History class. I find it interesting the beliefs of the Indians and Jesuits. Also enjoyed the romance going on between a Priest and an Indian and there beliefs involving such relationship.

Is this: to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.

Deuteronomy 24:17 Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger, nor of the fatherless; nor take a widow's raiment to pledge.

What I remember from this book was the contrast between two jesuit priests sent into the wilds of Quebec to live among the tame Huron Indian tribe. One priest truly understood the love of God, the other, more legalistic and harsh, a rules rules kind of person, carrying his cross, rosary, bible wherever he went. The vector of the epidemic which rages amongst the Huron peoples following the jesuits arrival comes from one of the implements of their faith.

Kathleen O'Neal Gear and her husband Michael are both archeologists who have worked in the past for the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. Years ago, I read their series of books on American Indian tribes of North America which starts with The People of the Wolf, the account of the indians migration across the Bering Strait. Totally loved those books, learned so much about the different tribes' lifestyle and culture. Some common misconceptions of these people disproved by the evidence found hidden underneath the dirt covering their remains.

I avoided this book because it involved missionaries, well I was mistaken. This is a excellent addition to Ms Gears work. I couldn't put it down, literally. I took the day and just read. Fabulous.

So much research went into this book, it felt like I was right there with the characters.Kathleen deserves all the awards possible for such hard work I loved the book, I was sorry to see it end.I can't wait to see what she does next, she is a genius!