Companies Books

Very good book. She does it again! Dr. Vliet knows her stuff. I'd recommend this book to any woman who wants to know how hormones effect her life.

Anything that Dr. Vliet writes is always informative. It's information that even your own personal physician may not know.

Most US doctors know very little about the effects of hormones on women's bodies. Testosterone is incredibly important for women as they age-it is the hormone not only of sexual desire, but desire for life, drives to achieve, and enjoyment of life. Find out the testosterone link to healthy skin, hair, eyes, and urinary tract, brain, and mood! Learn how to measure it, what the lab results mean, and how to supplement it safely. This is the clear and complete handbook for women from a female physician who has been treating patients for 25 years, and is on the cutting edge of the latest research. She also covers these topics in a weekly internet radio show at www.blogtalkradio.com/drvliet which is devoted to information, not sales pitches.

I read this book in one night and determined that my lack of test. was the problem and immediately contacted my gyn and got a prescription. She had already told me that I was low and I was prescribed another prescription before but it made me angry and unhappy. This compounded prescription is just right and I feel like my old self again.

Thank you.

Thanks to the author, the word MAY get out. I only found out about Testosterone when I got "pre-cancerous lesions". This was about 8 years after I had total hysterectomy.(Removal of ovaries, cervix and uterus)at age 32. During that time, I lost pubic hair (and even head hair), my vagina shrunk so bad I looked like a Barbie Doll and sex/libido was GONE. Then when I got these lesions, GYN prescribed Testosterone as "useful" but controversial. Within days, the lesions diappeared, hair began to grow back, vagina softened and swelled to normal and then I got HORNY! I've used it for over 10 years now and I look younger than my friends, I have a very happy hubby, my body looks ten years younger and I am in my sixties. I moved to a new state and the new Doctor is not wild over my insistence of Testosterone cream. He says it's controversial. I want to say, "Get over it - just look at your patient, don't you see the health difference?" So don't expect your MD to clamor for the information this good Dr. Vliet is imparting. After all, she is a female. I say, just listen to her!

I got this book after the First Gulf War. Rhonda Cornum's courage as a POW is inspirational, especially under the circumstances in shich she found herself. It is well-known how the Ba'athists rotinely employed torture (real torture, not redefined torture) in order to get airmen to make statements critical of the Coalition war effort. In fact, the enemy we were fighting against at the time were barbarians who had no scruples when it came to the men and women who fell into their hands.

An awesome book about an awesome Soldier.

I thought I'd let readers know that now Col. Rhonda Cornum was nominated for promotion to Brigadier General today.

I express my deep respect, admiration and gratitude for Colonel Rhonda Cornum's service to our country and the medical profession. She is a soldier's soldier. Her book is as entertaining and as inspirational as her career. Read it and it will change your life forever.

I'd heard that there was a female soldier captured during the first Gulf War, but I didn't know anything about her until I read this book. I enjoyed it quite a bit. Rhonda Cornum's strong personality comes through the pages of this book. Just her description of how she coped with her untreated injuries is impressive, and I second the person who admired how she kept her spirits up by singing in her prison cell. I hope if I ever found myself in as adverse a situation as she did, that I would be able to remain as courageous and confident throughout. Her description of the struggles she faced as a woman in the military is blunt without sinking into self-pity. An interesting and impressive slice of the first Gulf War, and a courageous role model and heroine.

I pinched COL Cornum's book from my boyfriend, curious to find out more about his boss. She jogs by my workplace almost daily, she seems frail and full of girlish energy. Recently,I met her at a LRMC function and she IS full of girlish energy. As she's a former POW, I was unsure what to expect. Since then, I've been even more curious about the woman my old mentor COL Ron Blanck described as "a woman to watch". That was back in '91 - we'd been following her release on AFN-TV from FARMC HQs during Morning Report. I was hungover but jolted out of my stupor by the respect in his voice. He later made it 4-star and respect was never something he's doled out like party favors.
I've just finished her book (coincidently on the anniversary of her release thirteen years ago). It was staunchly pro-military and pro-American without resorting to gush-mode. It made me laugh unexpectedly, it made me run to my PC and download Lee Greenwood, it made me understand my former mentor. I took it to bed, I took it to breakfast and finally, I took it in the tub with me where I cried so hard at the reunion passage that I dropped it in the water. It was the autographed copy which she'd recently presented to my boyfriend on his birthday. I hope her sense of humour has rubbed off on him. If not, I'm in big trouble. Buy this book. Buy your own copy and buy some for your family. Then buy some for your neighbors. I need the karma points.

I highly recommend Shorter Christian Prayer. Praying the Morning, Evening, and Night prayers daily (and uniting these prayers of the Church with clergy and laity throughout the world) has been and continues to be a great blessing for me, to the greater glory of God. It has greatly enhanced my prayer life, deepened my spiritual life, and is bringing me ever closer to the Lord. The daily Psalms and Canticles are rich in beauty and their splendor grows with familiarity. I especially appreciate that beneath the title and theme of each Psalm and Canticle there is a brief reflection that relates the Psalm or Canticle to its New Testament (New Covenant) significance.

The book is of very good quality in the leather cover, pages, and layout. Could use more than one ribbon-marker, but a well-placed holy card does the trick just as well!

Very edifying and well worth the effort. Highly recommended.

I had been using the larger red Christian Prayer book for years. It was getting worn and needed replaced. I decided to go for this smaller version and I am so happy I did. It fits so much easier into my brief case to take to work or to travel with. I usually only recite the morning and evening prayers so it is perfect for me and allows me to participate in the liturgy no matter where I go.

While not very sure about my ability to understand or find the time to pray the Liturgy of the Hours, this book has proven a great way to start.

It took me 45 minutes to pray the first time, following the ordinary and flipping like crazy. Some online LOTH sites helped. EWTN in particular has Morning and Evening prayer (audio) on the left hand sidebar of their homepage. I don't think they use SCP (they might be using Christian Prayer) but the texts were so similar it didn't much matter for learning purposes.

So now I've been praying it for a year and a half somewhat regularly, and it's become the backbone of my scripture/prayer life at home. There is no substitute for having scripture in your heart, and although limited, this little book proves its worth as the psalms and canticles are gradually memorized. Then you have them with you wherever you go. I've never been able to memorize scripture in any other format. Now I could rattle off the whole of Psalm 51 and several passages of the New Testament, as well as other frequently occurring texts.

The only problem now is that I chafe a bit when it comes to seasons like Lent and Advent where you only have seven days of readings and you have to repeat them every week (SCP includes Night Prayer, which gives only 7 days of readings, but I have since learned that that is all there are anyway). Plus I would love to read more extensive quotes from saints or the Fathers. And I hear the hymns in the full-size LOTH are more classical and beautiful, although without music.

No typos that I have found. Print/formatting is easy to read. No art, just little graphics. No sheet music. Could use an additional ribbon marker (there is only one).

If I had a genie in a bottle, and I could have one wish granted as regards this little gem, it would be a more traditional translation that elevates the language. I mean, it's hard to raise your spirit to God when you come across one of these dogs:

Psalm 72

O God, give your judgment to the king,
to a king's son your justice,
that he may judge your people in justice
and your poor in right judgment.

There are a few passages with these awful redundancies, or particularly uncreative or clunky phrasing. I've grown so used to it now that I don't mind it much, but I long for a more beautiful, flowing translation.

Still, an unbeatable deal, and a great way to get into the Divine Office.

Shorter Christian Prayer is a slim, pocket size version of the Divine Office or Liturgy of the Hours for Roman Catholics. It is perfect for travel, or if you want the simplest form of getting into one or more of the "hours" of prayer. It has the 4-week Morning and Evening Prayers & Psalms (150), and the standard one week cycle of Night Prayer. It does not have the Liturgy of the Hours for the middle of night and wee hours of day, or the variations for all the liturgical seasons and feast days.

The full Liturgy of the Hours is a thick four volume set which we have and it is rather complicated to jump back and forth as the Psalms and Canticles are scattered and cross-referenced. That one also has numerous wrtings by many great saints, Doctors of the Church, etc. along with the Hours.

The Shorter Christian Prayer has just the essentials of the Morning, Evening and Night Prayers. Let me briefly explain the Divine Office for those not yet familiar with it.

The Divine Office, or Liturgy of the Hours, is the official prayer of the Catholic Church. It is the "official" way to incorporate prayer throughout your day, every day. It was originally intended for clergy and religious, but has over time become popular with laity. The original Divine Office consisted of prayers and readings to be performed about every four hours around the 24-hour clock. Second Vatican Council simplified it somewhat and I believe eliminated the midnight prayer, or made it optional (I am not an expert, just getting started myself).

The idea is to "pray without ceasing" as Scripture instructs us. Do you feel a gap in your spiritual life between Sunday Masses? Do you feel that you lose awareness of God in the hustle and bustle of daily life? Are you struggling with bad habits or sufferings and seem to keep losing as much spiritual ground as you gain week by week? Then you need a strong habit of daily prayer to keep your dialog with God lively every day and to continuously seek His protection from evil and guidance in the righteous way. A firm foundation of structured daily prayer will also make it easier to remember to incorporate many small spontaneous prayers each day. Instead of your faith being a weekly devotion at Mass, it also becomes a daily on-going conversation with Jesus.

My wife and I started by doing the daily morning readings and prayers of the Magnificat [...] which is an even more condensed form of daily Morning and Evening Prayer with the daily Mass liturgy. Then we tried the Divine Office but it was too much. So now we use the Magnificat for morning prayer and reading and Sunday and occassional daily Mass. And we use the Shorter Christian Prayer for Night Prayer and occassional Evening Prayer.

Each "hour" of the Divine Office takes about 10-20 minutes. It consists of prayers, brief readings from the old and new testment, a canticle, and two or more Psalms. If you perform the complete Divine Office for the full 4-week cycle you will read all 150 Psalms and cover a lot of other Scripture readings. The canticle is a prayer about Jesus that was said by someone in the Bible, such as Mary's response to the Annunciation, Zechariah's proclamation and prohecy at the birth of his son, John the Baptist, the acclaimation of Simeon in the Temple, etc.

The Psalms especially give the prayers depth as they deal with real human sufferings, betrayal, persecution, repentence, prophecy of the Christ, thanksgiving, and glorification of God.

You won't get the commentaries and mediation from the great writers of the church in Shorter Christian Prayer as you would with the 4-volume set. You won't get the less common hours of prayer, or all the seaonal variations. But you will get a very accessible, easy to carry along volume of daily prayers and readings for the Morning, Evening and Night prayers. If you build a good habit of daily prayer with this small volume then you have a sound spiritual foundation for daily protection, and peace of heart with Jesus.

I didn't buy my copy of the SCP; rather, I found it in the military chapel in Kuwait when I was on my way from there to Afghanistan. I'm guessing that it was provided by the Knights of Columbus or some other group, or maybe an individual or parish. Whatever the case, I pray God's blessings on them! The SCP kick-started my prayer life over there. It went to the mess hall with me for breakfast and supper, and was the last thing I read before I turned out the light to sleep. The advantages of this book are that you can carry it with you (it fits neatly into the cargo pockets of DCUs and ACUs), and that it is more psychologically accessible. I'll probably break down and get the four volume set, but I have the feeling that the smaller version will be the more used.

... you just HAVE to check out Deb Butterfield's book "Showdown With Diabetes"! In her book she tells about her life with diabetes and her transplant! In the second part of her book, she talks about the progress over the years that pancreas and islet transplants have made! What impressed me is how she takes all the MANY researchers' information and discusses it all in an easy to understand and positive manner! I'm just so impressed and just had to share this book with you! It's the best thing I've read in a long time!

For anyone affected by diabetes, especially those of us with type 1 - this book should be a real fast and insightful read. Having personally lived with type 1 for the past 25 years, this is the first book I've seen which doesn't try to perpetuate the prevailing myth that the patient is ultimately responsible for his or her condition, or that this illness is nearly as "manageable" as the medical profession, the media or society in general would have us believe. I suspect that much of the first part of the book, which takes the reader through Deb's own struggle with diabetes, is so familiar that it could have been written by anyone who has lived with this illness. The second part closes on a positive note outlining the breakthoughs that will impact finding a cure. But it also serves as a message to the diabetic community that they must do better in advocating for a cure (including funding and policies) which are required to get there. A really good book.

Deb was looking back at me from my mirror! What an incredibly insightful, hopeful, powerful story of diabetes ... Showdown really tells it like it is ... unbelievable refreshing and cathartic! THANKS!

Before a few months ago I did not have a detailed knowledge of diabetes, although I have worked for academic medical centers for over twenty years.

I did a good deal of research when I was asked to consider the position of President and CEO of the Juvenile Diabetes Foudation. Of all my readings, none was as important as Showdown with Diabetes. Most important of all, it enabled me to understand the passion for a cure that has driven JDF's volunteers and staff for over 30 years.

Thankyou Deb for sharing your experiences. I hope that, in my new position, I can help to accomplish the goals you have so articulately described in Showdown with Diabetes.

... you just HAVE to check out Deb Butterfield's book "Showdown With Diabetes"! In her book she tells about her life with diabetes and her transplant! In the second part of her book, she talks about the progress over the years that pancreas and islet transplants have made! What impressed me is how she takes all the MANY researchers' information and discusses it all in an easy to understand and positive manner! I'm just so impressed and just had to share this book with you! It's the best thing I've read in a long time!

Fabulous quilts, Kim's colour sense is excellent, she also tells the reader how she selects fabrics & colours for her quilts. Alot of quilters have trouble with colour, so I found this info. very helpful.I haven't made any recipes as yet, if they are as good as the quilts they will be delicious.

This book has some great patterns. They are all warm and will be fun to put together.

Simple Seasons: Stunning Quilts and Savory Recipes (That Patchwork Place)
I did not know what to expect of this book when I bought it, as it's my first of Kim Diehl.
As the title tells the book contains works from each season.
I have not done any of the patterns yet, but I'm going to. The authors explanations of "how to" is visualized in a very good way. I am looking forward to sit in my garden with my sewing machine (if the weather allow it) this summer, sewing quilts from this book.
The recipes seem lovely too. I have to try some of them, all though I have to translate them in to Norwegian first.
This is a book I highly recommend.

I purchased this book in the hopes of completing a quilt top or two prior to Kim coming to Fort Wayne and being a guest speaker. Simple patterns. Easy to follow instructions.

What could be better than a book full of beautiful pictures coupled with great recipes, instructions and tips? This book is for quilters of all experience levels. For beginners, Kim includes clear, precise and easy to follow instructions. For the more experienced quilter, Kim's clever tips are always worthwhile. I never cease to be amazed at the author's fresh use of time worn patterns and techniques. She leaves me shaking my head saying, "Why didn't I think of that?" Buy this book even if you are just thinking about making a quilt.

This is the true story about the girls who had the good fortune to spend their summers in the most idylic settings to be had. The specific camp didn't matter, for all of them share the same values. I have sent this book to many of my camp friends and all have been most enthusiastic!

This book is a beautiful creation that will deeply touch any woman with wonderful camp memories. I couldn't put it down until I had studied every photo, read every caption, and ordered a copy for my best camp friends. I felt like a recognized the face of each and every girl in this timeless tribute. Kahn has complied a scrapbook for all of us to remember suntanned summers swimming in the lake and joyously eating burnt food from the fire.

I have had a copy of this book for three years now - and it the favored book by our CITs at resident camp. Several have received it as a graduation gift and they pass it around and around and around the unit. No matter what camp you go to - some things are universal.

I went to a camp in the Pocanoes for 12 years, my daughter now goes to this very same camp! 90 years!! This summer, while spending a week with other alum from my camp, "Sleepaway" was recommended to me. This book, from cover to cover, perfectly summed up all our camp experiences. There are many, many pictues of campers all the way back to the early 1900's...very neat to see what camps looked like back then! We were excited to see our camp in there!

I am 15 years old right now, and i have been going to sleepaway camp for 3 years now. I went to camp not knowing many people, mabye 3 girls and now camp is something i can't live without! For four weeks, and starting summer '04 it will be eight weeks-i have thought about camp all year round. Camp is one magical place where you can get away, and this book captures that special feeling that camp gives you. For any camper old or new this book is amazing!!!

Ron Fay, through his own experience, saves us the pitfalls of trial and error. Taking us through the planning process, he covers everthing from Market analysis, financial and tax considerations, equipment, and space planning, to personal training and membership retention. Other helpful tools include a section of forms and templates. As a Personal Trainer I knew the service end of the business but felt less sure of myself in terms of managing an entire facility. I took this book and have used it as a roadmap to open and successfully run a small club here in rural Upstate NY. Must Have reading for any trainer considering their own club.

THIS BOOK HAS SO MUCH SOUND INFO FOR THE NOVICE OR SEASONED TRAINER.I RUN A PERSONAL TRAINING BUSINESS FROM MY HOME . I WANTED TO TAKE THE LEAP OF FAITH INTO A LARGER BUILDING AND WAS LOADED DOWN WITH SO MUCH INFO I DID NOT NO WHERE TO START.THIS BOOK LAYS THE GROUND WORK FOR "THINGS THAT MAY BE FORGOTTEN" WHILE SPENDING YOUR FAMILIES LAST MONEY ON A FITNESS PLACE.THIS BOOK TOUCHES ON ALL OF WHAT WILL BE NEEDED TO OPEN THE DOORS OF A SMALL CLUB OR WORK OUT OF YOUR HOUSE IF NEEDED. THE FAYS DID NOT LEAVE ANY STONES LEFT UNTURNED. GREAT BOOK DERRICK BROWN

If you are thinking about starting a gym, regardless of size, this book is a MUST HAVE. I read it over a weekend. It is clear and concise and touched on many important aspects I never really thought about. Whether you are planning on a small home based gym or a large commercial one, this book gives great insights into equipment, financing, marketing, etc., AND a realistic view of what to expect from your business. Before you dive into a business, read this book. The information is well worth the money, and then some.

Excellent blue print for the person, that wants to start a business, without laying their financial life on the line.
This book shows how to start with little financial backing and build with the monies earned.
By following the advise given, many of the stops and starts of a new business can be avoided.
Highly reccomended for a small town successful business.

In researching my new idea to open a small gym, I was overwhelmed with information on the web and after perusing the SBA website and printing a full 3-ring binder's worth of research articles off the internet until I LUCKILY found this book. I was stunned to come across a book especially designed to guide me in my new idea to open a small gym. Then I was surprised at how completely applicable it was and how informative and practical the information was-these guys really share their secrets to success! Its a step by step easy to read well thought out book that guides your thoughts and decisions by helping you build a business plan based on your personal principles and desires for your gym. Its nothing short of amazing, and easily the most important bit of research I have done. I read the book and treated it like a text book, taking notes and when answering every question and carefully thinking about each point they recommend considering sot hat I read a little bit each day and wrote a lot and hammered out my own ideas in the process. I had all the ideas, but had not articulated them, organized them and nd built on them until I read this book. I am now 6 to 8 months from opening my gym but after reading this book, I have now articulated my true reasons for opening my own gym, and kept those reasons firmly in mind as I have analyzed my target market, competition and developed the marketing plan. I feel I am head and shoulders above most small business owners when they start out. I look forward to reporting back with the huge success of my new small gym!! Thanks to Ron and Barb Fay for not only sharing their experiences and lessons learned from them but for presenting these lessons clearly and in a concise book that gets the job done.

While I am biased becuase I stay at Marriott properties regularly, I did find this book useful. Bill speaks in a way that is easy to understand and shares some great tips on how to provide excellent service. Also, I learned some great mgm't related ideas as well. This book is not fancy, but deserves to be read.

If you've stayed in a Marriott hotel and you've wondered how they put everything together you'll learn about it in this book!

Ran into a copy of this succint biographical book at the Sydney Marriott alongside the Bible/Gita/Buddhist manual, and I wasn't too sanguine about something from the hospitality industry being too relevant to me. But this slim, easy read may actually connect with almost any business person. More so if you are in any way related to customer services or marketing.

Without skipping any beat on chapters of glorious prose, ala TypicalBusinessBook, it shoots straight from the gut about the tenets of Marriott -- how with sheer determination it shot to the big league from a small cottage inn, the MBE leadership style of Marriott (the younger Marriott that is) who prefers to walk his troops instead of boardroom inertia, lessons in team building, the importance of listening to all the levels of the organization, codifying past experiences into business philosophies (not the usual "Best Practices" bromide that is bandied about in elite echelons of business) etc etc.

In all respects, a hidden business gem of a book.

Now the million (ok, 11) dollar question. You can imagine how I got my copy. So would I *buy* this book if I had to? For the basement price, and for the simple but compelling REAL WORLD lessons, most likely yes.

Everyone has probably seen a Marriott Hotel product on one of their drives. They are everywhere and have a diffeerent line of hotels to suit every need from Fairfield Inns, Residence Inns, Courtyard, Marriott, Ritz Carlton and others. What you may not know is the story of how those hotel came to be and what drives the success at Marriott. From their langthy Standards of Operation, to thier treatment of the thier employees is all explained for you to read. You get a great insight on a great company.

While this is not a biography, there are many biographical moments where Mr. Marriott give a little insight on him and why he does what he does at the company. He explains some of the moments from when his father started the busines, to his army days to his life now.

This is not you typical business how to book either because much of the information is geared to Marriott and the lodging industry while leaving it readable for all who want a book on success and business. He also helps to give insights on the Lodging and food industry and should be a must for Hotel and Management Students.

Since I work for a Marriott product, it has help me to understand the organization better which makes me a better employee and more focused. The company has a great reputation and this book helps to define what is expected.

He does explain the four rule of decision making which are:

1. Be willing to make decisions. He fells this are the most
important.
2. Do you homework. Just do not do it to obsession.
3. Listen to your heart. Some times your heart knows best.
4. Don't waiste time regretting. Sometimes a decision will look
better in hine sight, but some times you win, some times you
loose. Just roll with them.

This is a very inspriational book also. Where he speach about his personal experience with a heart attact and his religion.

Recommended for all.

In The Spirit To Serve, Bill Marriott offers advice on how to develop the type of management basics and solid core values that made his company an industry leader. These ideas are neither new nor radical. They are the simple lessons that Mr. Marriott has learned during his lifetime tenure at Marriott.

· Take a hands-on approach to your firm. Don't sit at your desk. Walk around your facility and interact with your employees. Make sure they know that you care about what they do.
· Managing well depends on listening well. Cultivate patience and keep an open mind when listening to ideas from employees and customers.
· Give your employees the tools they need to work. Make sure employees are properly trained for their jobs. After training, make sure there are support systems in place to assist employees.
· Offer exceptional employee incentives. Marriott has offered employees a toll-free consultation service, profit-sharing programs, promotion from within and several recognition programs.
· Encourage teamwork among workers. Create an environment in which the rewards of working together outweigh the rewards of individual interest.
· Don't take your partners for granted.
· Discover what works best and do it. Develop detailed standard operating procedures. The right way of doing things is worth making a habit.
· Balance who you are with where you are going. Maintain order within your organization while embracing change.
· Don't let growing pains destroy what you have built. Stay close to the daily grind of your business during periods of growth. Keep a close eye on quality control.
· Don't waffle over decision making. Stand by the decisions you make.
· Learn to recognize boom and bust signals. Pay attention to colleagues, reports and other indicators in your industry to get a realistic picture of what is happening. Don't be overconfident.

An inspiring read which has the potential to change your life providing you actively apply the principles.

Written by international speaker and spiritual counselor Caroline Reynolds, Spiritual Fitness: How to Live in Truth and Trust offers a simple, seven week procedure for fostering purpose and sacredness in one's everyday life. Chapters cover how to detox one's soul, learn to meditate, seek one's role in life, and embrace the sacred aspect of relationships. Written in plain terms to be accessible to lay readers, Spiritual Fitness is a welcome repository of good counsel for emotional and spiritual health. "Soul level forgiveness is not about condoning or absolving someone's outrageous behavior. It means escaping from the painful zone of dealing with them only on an earthly, fear-based and limiting level. To forgive truly you must lift up your thinking to a soul level. Somehow you can find a present-day gift in this memory."

This book is definitely an "In Your Face" program. Each chapter presents full frontal examination of your Spirituality.

Unless you do the exercises at the end of each chapter, you are missing the full benefit of the book.

I highly recommend you use this book in a class or at least working with one other person to discuss what comes up for you.

I'll admit that I bought this to do research, to see what else was out there on the market that's in the genre we publish. What I discovered was a great book, written in an easy style, with practical exercises (I'll echo another reviewer here: DO the exercises. Really.). What I found especially thought provoking was early in the book when Reynolds talks about the "payoffs" for not getting what you say you want. Given that her discussion about that starts on page 11, it was a lot like "you had me at hello" and I dove into the rest of the book with a new outlook. Definitely a good read, and definitely do the exercises!

When I began this book, my expectations were that I'd pick up a few tips and practices that might help on the distraction-packed road toward more mindful living. I was totally surprised, however, both by the book's depth and the eloquence with which Reynolds writes.

Each chapter takes a down-to-earth look at a spiritual principle, then further grounds it in simple but powerful exercises that I actually found myself wanting to do. Most importantly, I wanted to do them again.

It's organized as a week-to-week program, and I went through it that way rather quickly and have found myself returning to particularly challenging areas again and again. Luckily, the book not only invites rereading, but rewards it -- many of the exercises that didn't resonate for me (and thus I skipped the first time through) were actually quite powerful the second (or, okay, third... fourth) time around.

There are plenty of books about spirituality out there, and sometimes it's easier to just move on to the next one hoping "it" will change your life. Reynolds clearly recognizes that change is your choice, not some formula, and she gives you powerful tools to recognize your blocks and finally get past them.

Euell Gibbons was master forager, or at least among those that are also authors. His book is absolutely fascinating, and he makes the reader aware of a multitude of wild plants and animals that few have ever tasted, or even been aware of for that matter.

There are countless useful recommendations for the preparation of foraged foods, many of which would be unpalatable or even inedible without using the provided suggestions. His stories are great and he relates many tales from his days as a forager.

The problem I have with the book is that it is first and foremost a cookbook. It has drawings and descriptions of most, but not all, of the wild edibles he talks about. This is hardly a good method for identifying plants. On the back cover it even suggests you could live off the plants and animals described in the book. This is possible, but not likely, particularly if you cannot even properly identify the plants! And considering that there are numerous poisonous plants in any given locale, you had best not delve to deeply into the world of foraging without tagging along with an expert or at least having a detailed field guide.

Take the book for what it is - an excellent resource for preparing wild edibles and opening a whole new world for the outdoorsman.

Bret

I was always interested in survival and eating wild foods and I tried several (with indifferent results) during my boy scout days. Thus, it was that "Stalking the Wild Asparagus" was a revelation to me when I first encountered it as a young man. Somebody else in the world was interested in eating wild plants! Quite a few somebodies, it developed, because this book ran through a lot of printings and Euell Gibbons became a folk hero and TV star.

Gibbons identifies and discusses the culinary virtues of about 50 different wild plants and animals. Among the familiar plants he identifies are dandelions, cattails -- the "supermarket of the swamp" -- and daylilies. He tosses in a few animals worthy of pursuit and ingestion by the modern day hunter/gatherer: bluegills, turtles, frogs, and carp. One is immediately impressed that Gibbons knows what he is talking about. He tells you what you need to do with the plant or animal, gives you a recipe or two for its preparation, and adds a bit of personal experience and folklore about the plant. He even gives you menus for wild-food feasts.

There is something of the primeval in the attraction of children to gathering their own food, even if is only raspberries growing beside a road. For a few, such as Gibbons, it becomes a lifelong passion. His strength as a writer is infectious enthusiasm. I usually find nature writers to be preachy and sanctimonious. Gibbons isn't. He seems impervious to the thought that he might be considered as crazy as a loon (not one of the animals he proposes for eating). He can say with a perfectly straight face, "Let's go nutting."

"Stalking the Wild Asparagus" has found a permanent place on my bookshelf and due recognition as a nature classic.

Smallchief

Euell Gibbons (1911-1975) had an adventurous life to say the least. His first intro to wild foods was due to his family's poverty when they lived in New Mexico. At 12 years old, Gibbons went out in the surrounding country-side to forage for edibles to help feed his family and a life-long love of wild food got off to a pragmatic start. One of his first discoveries was wild asparagus, hence the book title namesake.

This book is lyrical, yet practical and covers a sizeable array of wild foods- location, preparation, uses, etc. Recipes are given all through the book as well as some medicinal use info. One of Gibbons' favorite plants was the Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale). He relates how the Dandelion has been one of humanities longest known and useful wild foods and medicines and laments the assault by lawn care chemical manufacturers in trying to demonize this beautiful, helpful gift from Nature.

Gibbons traveled the world lecturing on the benefits of wild foods and was often seen on popular talk shows along with becoming a pitch-man for Post Grape Nut Cereal commercials where he treated America to hilarious daily line: "...taste like wild hickory nuts!". Gibbon's came across like a modern-day cross between Mark Twain, Will Rogers and Henry David Thoreau.

Those familiar with Thoreau's recently published last manuscript, "Wild Fruits" will see the close resemblance to "Stalking the Wild Asparagus"- both now classics and useful guides to Nature's cornucopia of wild edible gifts.

Not only is this book full of recipes for wild plant dishes, but it includes wild animals as well. I like his attitude towards the things that many people won't touch - I mean this dude ate a bobcat and had a buddy there eating it with him. Where do you find these kind of people? I don't know anyone who would eat bobcat unless money was involved.

I have known this book for over 20 years. I has been almost a bible for my foraging. I used to borrow it from the library several times a year. Then the county libraby removed it from the shelf to make room for newer books. I was very dissappointed. I had to borrow the book from a library 2 counties away. I was delighted to discover that Amazon carried Stalking the Wild Asparagus. The book is a wonderful reference tool, personable, acurate, and has detailed illustrations.