Shadow The Books

I picked this up early on my path into Wicca, and found it to be a useful reference book for weaving magick into my life. It was a great spiritual guide and contained beautiful accounts of the sabbats, etc, with helpful photographs. It was also very helpful to find a book on Wicca which dealt with all aspects of life. Very refreshing read.

I loved it.It was inlighting , moving , everything I thought it would be. All witches need this book.

A wonderful reference book for anyone who wants to make Wicca and its rituals a part their life.

This book takes the time to explain the basics and does so in a complete, honest, accurate and genuine manner. It is a must for any Wiccan library.

What a treat! This book has it all. Even if you aren't a fan of poetry or have a narrow view/opinion of poetry, this author will dispell all the short sided rumors of poetry being boring and lacking excitement. My favorite is the title poem "Chasing Shadows". If you're looking for a book to add to your collection, this is the one.

Miss Cabell is not only a good writer, but a GREAT woman. Her love for God as well as her love for others illuminates from her very being. I met Briana in one of my college classes when she came to share a few of her revelations with our class. I immediately found a new friend. I cried as she shared her heart with us. Not a dry eye in the class as a matter of fact. I am proud of you Briana! I look forward to Volume 2.

I heard of this book through word of mouth. I really didn't think much of it because I am not a huge poetry lover but I kept hearing so many things about this local (Maryland) girl that I had to check it out. Boy was I surprised! It's not only poetry, it's short stories, and thoughts and ideas and everything in between. Briana Cabell really has something to say and she says it well. I even cried reading a few of her stories because they are so very personal. I almost feel like I know her. Buy this book.

I can't believe this young lady is only 25 years old! Her words and thoughts are extraordinary! Her flow is flawless and her lyrical prowess is unmatched by anyone I have seen so young. This lady has obviously gone through something and is blessing the world by telling about it and really helping other people heal through her healing. Her website says that this is the first book in a 3-part series. I, for one, can't wait for part 2!

Re: The Kirkus Review. Lucrecia Guerrero paints portraits in miniature of small-town life. So did Sherwood Anderson in "Winesburg, Ohio." So why isn't Anderson dinged for "small" themes?

At any rate, Guerrero's interwoven collection of stories in the fictional border town of Mesquite (cut down the middle by a fence that separates the US side from the Mexican side) draws us in with simple, precise poetry and characters that continue to haunt the imagination long after reading about them. They are indeed chasing "shadows" -- of love, prosperity, identity, justice. Some of them find what they want, however fleetingly. But though there are grim moments in these stories, the overwhelming compassion and affection that Guerrero has for these people shines through. She knows them -- their voices, their houses, their clothes, their motives. And by the time I finished reading this book, I felt like I knew them, too -- and was the better for it.

The characters were so believable, and I liked the way they kept popping up in other stories. It made the stories read like a novel. I'm waiting for Guerrero's next book.

The Kirkus reviewer takes a safe anonymous potshot at Guerrero's marvelous book. You'll note the same sort of drygulching of every Arizona-themed book in Kirkus; the same coward writes 'em all.

Lucrecia Guerrero is a wonderful writer; her prose is deceptively calm on the surface. Once you enter, you'll feel riptides if you pay attention. There is a periodic surge of genius in the Chicano/Latino literary world, and currently there are several very exciting talents emerging. Among them (Diana Garcia, Carl Marcum, Rich Yanez, Jose Skinner), Guerrero shines. She is clearly a formidable talent, one we will hear much from in the future. I'm already hungry for her novel.

Chasing Shadows, a collection of well-crafted stories, tells about an engaging cast of characters in a fictionalized town of Mesquite along the Arizona and Mexican border. While Sandra Cisneros in The House on Mango Street wrote about Latinos in Chicago, Guerrero chose the rural desert of Arizona to create a special place for some captivating characters and stories that are mysterious, humorous, dramatic and poetic.

Her characters are strong and believable. It's Guerrero's masterful and brilliant writing that makes her characters come alive. As the book opens, Cookie McDonald, formerly Cuca, now a U.S. citizen was an illegal immigrant from Mexico more than twenty years ago. She is afraid of what the sun might do to her skin and turns in Mexicans to the border patrol. She is the epitome of La Malinche (Indian translator and mistress of the conquering Hernán Cortés who conquered the Aztec Empire of Mexico). Some of the town's people refer to her as La Malinche.

In "The Curse," Flaco, a young boy of eleven, is infatuated by Tonantzin, a young girl, whom his older brother Riquis thinks is a witch. Tonantzin, somewhat self-possessed, but in a big way is the opposite of La Malinche. Riquis, I suspect, also likes her. He just doesn't dig being rejected for such a little thing as being a smelly tough kid and stinker.

In the stories, Joaquin de la Torre, a young Chicano champion and role model for justice is good looking and smart, but his character might have been developed more as I want to learn more about him.

Then there is Blanca Rosa del Rio, Francisco López's entrancing dream love who he meets for the first time coming off the bus at the Mesquite bus station.

Dolores Durán is a school teacher that somehow managed to get an education, but somehow doesn't manage to win at love and is looking for love in all the wrong places.

These are just a few of the characters that make for some wonderful story telling that is vivid, haunting, and captivating.

Guerrero's language is the language of the border, authentically capturing the culture of this region of the Southwest. It's real, in some places poetic.

Guerrero's characters intersect with one another as stories are interwoven with suspense and surprises.

Mesquite is a place that could have been developed by Laura Esquivel, Rudolfo Anaya, or Gabriel Garcia Marquez, but it was written in a masterful and beautiful way by Lucrecia Guerrero. This is a tribute to Guerrero's creativity and style.

This is Guerrero's first book. It's a captivatingly good read.

Beautifully told and illustrated. This is a wonderful book for everyone on your Christmas list--young and old alike. Everyone will enjoy this sweet story!

Also recommended: Christmas Gifts, Christmas Voicesby John Allen--a parable of how lives are blessed through anonymous acts of kindness--wonderful!

Also recommended:Christmas Jarsby Jason Wright--another wonderful book!

A Christmas Dress for Ellen is a heartwarming story of the faith of a mother living in abject poverty. It is also a story of the goodness of many, many people. It's a story of a Christmas Miracle. Best of all, it's a true story of real people with real faith! Although written as a children's book, it's a great story for children of all ages... even those of us who are a "little" beyond childhood. I bought two copies; one for my family and one for a friend.

This book is so beautifully told and illustrated. The true spirit of Christmas is felt from reading this...and it is a true story with a happy ending! I keep giving my own copy away to friends and have to buy more! (All my friends love the book as well.) My 3 and 5 year old like to listen to it, too!

This is a wonderful Christmas story that the whole family will enjoy, told in Elder Monson's typical warm-hearted manner. A must for Christmas--the real meaning of Christmas.

Contains the complete texts of Millions of Strange Shadows, The Venetian Vespers, and The Hard Hours (for which he won the Pulitzer prize). Hechts poems are formal and savage. You'd be hard pressed to find another poet who can write with such grace and ferocity. From jealous love to the holocaust, Hecht approaches every topic. One of America's greatest, and, unfortunately, lesser known poets.

To read more reviews check out Void Magazine's website.

if i had to describe Anthony Hecht in one word, it would be regal. there is no poet who looks more dignified or acts with more dignity. and his poetry is full of grace, dignity, and a quiet power. it is no wonder that hecht is as respected as he is. the poems in this collection are ones to be read slowly, over time, in order to fully digest what makes hecht such a magnificant poet.

Anthony Hecht's poems are such carefully crafted masterpieces, unfolding beautifully, quietly creeping into the heart. For those who recognize and appreciate the flow of language, the meter of words and syllables. Read "A Letter" and "Sestina d'Inverno." True works of art.

Anthony Hecht is Moses coming down from Mount Parnassus with these Collected Earlier Poems as his Ten Commandments on the craft of ARS POETICA. He is perfectly at ease with all the elements of style and leads the reader easily into his world of observed treasures- Venetian Vespers - Cape Cod Lullaby - and for a change of pace, Third Avenue in Sunlight. An absolute master of his craft.

The book Come Like Shadows is a amazing book full of comparisons.
i.e
-comparisons of setting
-comparisons of characters
-comparisons of themes
-comparisons of historical info

all these r compared with the real life Macbeth except way different and way kewler

Welwyn Katz's Come Like Shadows is the story of sixteen-year-old Kinny O'Neil who things she's landed the job of a lifetime as the assistant to the director of Shakespeare's Macbeth at the famed Stratford Festival. But she finds that the director is acting strangely, the cast members are hostile, and a woman is killed in a freak accident on the very first day of rehearsal. Then there is an the antique mirror she found as a prop and which seems to have some kind of malevolent power when Kinny and her friend Lucas see strange images within its depths. Kinny and Lucas find that they must struggle to protect one another when assailed by unleashed forces that could destroy them all! Come Like Shadows is a superbly written action/adventure fantasy for young readers ages fourteen through young adult.

I loved this story. It was well written and interesting. Katz's has a great twist on the character of Macbeth. Though I must admit that I find it hard to read/watch/study Shakespeare's play now without thinking of Macbeth as a good guy.

The book also appealed to me because it's set in a familiar place, Stratford. But even if you have no idea what country Stratford's in, don't let that keep you from reading the book.

Welwyn Katz has a good talent for plots of a type that no one would have thought of, such as in modern Arthurian "The Third Magic." Here, attention is swerved toward Macbeth, the evil witches of legend, and a modern-day Shakespearan production.

The book opens with Macbeth (the REAL Macbeth) interrupting a sinister ritual performed by the three witches to insure their immortality. As a result, the eldest witch and Macbeth become trapped within a mirror, only to have the hag escape almost a millennium later.

Teenage Kinny O'Neil has a summer job at a Canadian Stratford's theater, helping with the production of "Macbeth." But a supposed curse on MacBeth plays (check the Idiot's Guide to Shakespeare--there have been a lot of misfortunes) seems to be coming true via a series of sinister occurrances, that involve the hand mirror. And the witch, who wants to gain a girl's body, is targeting Our Heroine.

Kinny and Lucas can see Macbeth in the hand mirror, thus prompting them into investigating the sinister magics of the three witches. The journey to stop the witches from unleashing their evil will take wits and brains - and a voyage to Scotland, the place where it all started...

A great chiller, full of atmosphere and creepiness in the forms of the three witches and their sorcery. Katz weaves a spellbinding aura around the book, such as the opening chapter and the scenes where Macbeth can be glimpsed in the mirror -- and the climax, of course. We are also given more grounded visions of places like Stratford (a beautiful place, BTW, book descriptions truly cannot do it justice). He/she also managed to make the backstage events and preparations seem equally intriguing, no mean feat.

Kinny is well-written and drawn. She reacts in a manner in keeping with her age and background, but evolves over the course of the book into a more mature and experienced gal. I thought Lucas was a bit weird, but not enough that I didn't like him (although I wish a bit more time had been spent on him)

Sadly, no book is perfect. One thing that could -- and should, for it is handled rather clumsily -- have been dropped was the occasional political statement concerning Canada and French Canadians. While it is in keeping with the statement that Macbeth's events are universal, the handling wasn't subtle enough to be likable.

Overall, this is a very cool book if you are a fan of fantasy/horror or Shakespeare. Or both.

The book explains how the show got it's start. You read about how the actors were choosen and about them personally. There is a section about what each actor has done since the show ended. An episode guide gives a brief summary about all 1245 shows. There are several pictures throughout the book. Stories are told about the writing, set designs,and funny things that happened during the run of the show. This is a very interesting book.

Exellent Book.If your wanting to know anything about Dark Shadows or are a fan this is the book for you.I have had mine since its first printing.I still take it out and read it.Wonderful pictures,and a complete episode guide.A Must Have!!!

I thought this book gave tons of interesting information and i enjoyed it. I read it over and over because I have DS club online and give my members trivia information. Great book! I would recommend it to any Dark Shadows fan.

This is an excellent book for fans, having both information about the series as well as sources for further information such as fan clubs and where to look for videos. I highly recommend it for fans of Dark Shadows. It also has an episode guide, which comes in handy for viewing and taping favorite episodes. This book has turned me on to some of the many Dark Shadows sites that are accessible on the internet.

Story of a lost and abandoned child. Which catches your interest right off the git go. Hard to put down once you start and short enough that you don't have to put it down much anyway. I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!

This is a must read dark tale that draws you in from the first few pages! Once I started reading it I couldn't put it down. I recommend it for anyone, it's a great book!

When I first picked this book up I couldn't believe how fast it caught my attention. After I started reading I just couldn't put it down. It's not too long and can easily be read in a sitting and you won't be disapointed! I hope Katie King writes more, you can tell her writting comes from the heart! This book will make you feel the characters emotions throughout the entire book! Enjoy!

I thought this book was extremeley captivating, while there were some errors in it, no doubt from the editor. Those few things aside I was amazed how it caught my attention. I came across the book while shopping in the Denver bookstore that claims they have all the modern books published in the US. It was in the new independant author section. I read the back of the book and the first few pages and was hooked. I definitely recommend for anyone that wants to be entertained and at the same time experience the dark tale that lies within!

Hodagneu-Sotelo's poignant look at the lives of Latina immigrants in Domestica: Immigrant Workers Cleaning and Caring in the Shadows of Affluence, can be a source of enlightenment as well as a sort of "how-to" manual for any employer or employee in the nanny/housekeeper and house cleaning fields. The author argues that the women in these types of work continually battle for basic employee rights: adequate pay and set hours free from discrimination, harassment, and substandard working conditions. She addresses issues of long hours, unreasonable demands, alienation, and the reasons that the workers stay in these situations; fear of retaliation from employers and deportation.
Although a bit verbose, this book is packed with valuable information and resources that the reader is sure to use or be able to pass along to someone else. It is a meritable attempt at expressing the angst felt by Latina immigrants and the unresponsive attitude of the employer. It does tend to come across as a bit one-sided, due partly because not many employers or employees were willing to participate in her research efforts, but is still a great and easy read.

In Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo's Doméstica: Immigrant Workers Cleaning and Caring in the Shadow of Affluence, readers explore, along with the researcher, an oft overlooked element of domestic labour in America. In examining this particular manifestation between the haves and have little, Hondagneu-Sotelo has provided a "scholarly" treatment where Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed fell short. This is by no means an indictment of Ehrenreich's work, quite the contrary. Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed is approachable by the many levels of readers that seek to understand the phenomenon of the working poor and their interaction with affluent Americans (here, I speak specifically of Ehrenreich's chapter two titled "Scrubbing in Maine"). However, in Doméstica, Hondagneu-Sotelo has opted to focus her research on immigrant domestic workers, specifically Mexican and Central American women in Los Angeles. In so doing, her research provides insight into the minds and worlds of both parties who engage in what can easily be termed a "love hate" relationship; one where, out of necessity, both the employer and employees are in need of one another. In addition, Doméstica serves to highlight some of the struggles of members of America's largest "minority" population (be they documented or otherwise). While Hondagneu-Sotelo relegates her analysis and interviews to women in the Los Angeles area, this reviewer is of the opinion that her research may well be duplicated in other cities with similar populations and yield like outcomes.

Reading this work, I began pondering the future of work and workers and four questions came to mind: (1) As America becomes more diverse, will the question of immigrants holding less than desirable positions along the socio-economic margins become of increasing interest to researchers and politicians such that worker-friendly policies emerge? (2) If so, what forms will later policy manifestations assume? (3) What will such a shift mean for the future of economic relations between these two disparate groups? (4) Also, will America continue to marginalize employees that hold the critical job of caring for our young such that we ensure a future of troubled youth due to attachments to caregivers and the familial realities of economic and social stratification? History has shown if we ignore questions not unlike these, problems are sure to result.

Historically, "love labor" had been performed, initially, by captive African American women and later those under strict laws (Jim Crow) of mobility, both physical and social. With the relative ascension of African Americans into the socio-economic sphere of marginal acceptance in America, certain forms of work are left to the cheaper, and sometimes unpaid, labor force of immigrant women. Increasingly, such workers are admitted into affluent homes in America through informal networks. For this brief iteration, we consider Hondagneu-Sotelo's Part Two titled "Finding Hard Work Isn't Easy." Here, Hondagneu-Sotelo discusses the other worldly process where women in need of domestic workers and the women in need of domestic work come in contact with one another.

This "whole other world" is highlighted when Hondagneu-Sotelo writes, "most prospective employers looking for paid domestic workers in Los Angeles bypass employment agencies, newspaper ads, or other formal job announcements, which they find expensive, slow, and unreliable. Instead the majority rely on their co-workers, neighbors, friends, and relatives when they seek domestic help" (63). This in itself is telling in that it pulls from Granovetter's theory of the strength of weak ties as mentioned in Deirdre Royster's Race and the Invisible Hand. Applied to Hondagneu-Sotelo's work, there exist, in the domestic worker community, ties that allow for a potential employer in need of workers to gain access to a network of domestic workers with the ability to refer friends and/or family members to employers in need of domestic assistance. Additionally, such a process not only allows for a socially and economically unequal relationship to ensue and continue for years in some cases, it also provides the foundation for further entrenchment of unequal employee and employer relations rooted in economic exploitation.

Whereas many of these workers are not earning a living wage, some employers exercise great pains not to flaunt their affluence. In one telling moment, Hondagneu-Sotelo writes, "some employers try to snip off the price tags on new clothing and home furnishings before the Latina domestic workers read them because they fear the women will compare the prices of those items with their wages - which they invariably do. While some employers often feel guilty about 'having so much' around someone who 'has so little,' the women who do the work resent not their affluence but the job arrangements, which generally afford the workers little in the way of respect and living wages" (xi-xii). In this instance, we witness the uneasy but, to the employer, necessary relationship between the affluent employer and the unaffluent worker. Additionally, we note how workers, through Hondagneu-Sotelo's in-depth interviews, indicate that they would rather that requests come not "as a symbol of servitude and a humiliating affront" to one's dignity, but that their work is seen for what it is, essential to the functioning of the household in which they are employed (145).

In producing a work with statistical data on domestic labor in Los Angeles, coupled with the voices of women on both sides of the issue, Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo has done an admirable job of broaching the subject of the uneasy relationship between affluent women who require domestic assistance and unaffluent immigrant employees that work and, in some cases, live among them. Of the many good points in this work, her in-depth interviews with employees and employers are most revealing. Not unlike the work of Ehrenreich in Nickel and Dimed and Katherine S. Newman in No Shame in My Game, Hondagneu-Sotelo allows readers to, as Newman suggested, gain a clearer understanding of the interconnections between people and networks that a purely quantitative work would not permit. That being said, this reviewer applauds Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo and her effort to provide a clearer understanding of the women we see on train platforms and in bus terminals that dot American cities and suburbs of affluence.

First let me begin by saying that this is an interesting read. You basically learn about domestic workers (live in nannies, home cleaners). The author gives you alot of information, in fact I would say that she gives you a plethora of information. As such it took me over a month to finish this book, and the fact.

Basically, the two problems I have with this book are 1. The author's monolithically leftist viewpoint (which seems to be common in books like this), 2. The hard time she has getting to the point. In particular comments like "Some feminist theorists, especially those influenced by Marxist thought, have used the term "social reproduction" or "reproductive labor"..." (Page 23) or "The United States has a long history of incorporating people of color through coercive systems of labor...slavery and contract labor systems...today, international labor migration and the job characteristics of paid domestic work" (Page 51)

Again the biggest problem I have with this book/writer is the use of a marxist/conflict theory filter in regards to analyzing domestic worker (as in us [domestic workers and their allies] vs them [middle class homeowners who employ domestic workers]). When if you actually take a moment, breath and impartially assess the facts the relationship is more of a symbiotic/functionalist/"we need each other" type deal in which two autonomous human beings are simply trying to work out a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Now what I do like... There is some great information presented in this book. 1. Domestic workers are entitled to minimum wage like normal employees and can sue for backwages. 2 Live-in housekeeper is a common first job of immigrants to the United States and as such is very important to economic integration of immigrants (legal and illegal alike).

Basically, you learn all about domestic work in all it's most interesting facets. An example being spoiled children who are hell for their domestic workers, and the situation is compounded because consciquences for bad behavior are underminded by the parents. Or usage of prozac and ritalin by parents for behavior modification of children and the avoidance of direct confrontation between domestic workers and their employees and many other interesting facts concerning the profession.

Because of how interesting this book is I'm giving it 4/5 stars (although I'm tempted to give it 3/5 because of the marxist rhetoric).

Dr. Hondagneu-Sotelo's beautifully written work takes the reader into the world of Latina nannies and housekeepers, showcasing the women's own voices and perspectives while maintaining an academic's sharp-eyed analysis. She chronicles the difficulties of domestic workers while still acknowledging their ability to impact their own work environments. One of the strengths of Hondagneu-Sotelo's book is the analysis of class inequality, particularly the ways that employers awkwardly handle their own discomfort with their priviledge. Her conclusions, rather than knee-jerk dismissals of domestic labor, suggest ways that domestic employment can be viewed as the job it is. The author's thoughts on her own position to her research subject in the preface is worth the price of the book. This book recently won five awards from different sociological organizations, and deservedly so.

I read this book when I was a teenager, involved with gymnastics, and it was such an inspiration to me not to give up. The book is about staying positive in life even when hard trials may come your way. This true story is heartwarming and full of courage. Diane (main character) is truly an incredible person.

I found this book to be great reading. It is an inspiration to all who have lived with adversity.

Don't start reading this book late at night. I have shared it with many of my friends and when they start at night, they don't get any sleep.

Renon Hulet captures the pain and ultimate triumph of a real life champion gymnast who becomes paraplegic after an untimely and devastating fall. This book will lift and help anyone who has or is facing seemingly insurmountable tragedy.