People Books

This book got to me, in a very good way.

Buck's stories are funny and poignant, and we as readers definitely learn some history if we pay attention. But even more than that we can learn from Buck O'Neil's outlook on life. He was patient, caring, outspoken in an articulate and positive way (something our politicians should learn how to do), and he had grace. More than anything else reading about Buck O'Neil was a lesson on how to live with grace.

I want to tell you the last words of the book, but I won't.

If you like baseball, people or life you will like this book.

Highly recommended!!

Sometimes a great author writes a 5-star book, and sometimes he must only get out of the way and let 5-star material shine through. "The Soul of Baseball" is one of the latter. This isn't a knock on Joe Posnanski. The decision to tell the story by reporting on a year in O'Neil's life, rather than interpreting O'Neil's history, was a brilliant judgment. The reader benefits from Posnanski's willingness to set his writer's ego aside.

Another good Posnanski decision was reporting O'Neil's occasional querulousness. Rather than seeing O'Neil as a mindless happy face, the reader sees O'Neil as someone who must work to maintain his positive approach. The occasional lapses serve to highlight the effort that O'Neil makes to bring the light into the lives of those around him.

But ultimately, the star of the book is Buck O'Neil. Not because he was a great ballplayer or manager. But because he was a decent, good-hearted human being whose attitude toward life is worthy of emulation.

I give few 5-star rankings, but this book deserves it several times over.

Reading this book gave me insight into the Negro Leagues and more importantly into Buck O'Neil. Buck O'Neil was a man today's player should study and revere; not only because of his courage but for his respect of the game.

The Soul of Baseball is a history lesson I encourage any fan or player to read.

This is an outstanding book by one of my favorite writers. Joe really knows how to tell a story and paint a vivid picture with his words. I loved it so much that I just couldn't put it down. A must have for any and all baseball fans.

My son, Jeremy, always gives me good books. He doesn't just pick up the latest best-seller, but takes the time to choose something special just for me. He hit a home run with The Soul of Baseball by Joe Posnanski. It's the story of an extended road trip Posnanski took with legendary Negro League player and manager Buck O'Neil. The lessons learned along the way are great ones for sons and fathers to share.

Posnanski, an award-winning sports columnist for the Kansas City Star, chose not to write a biography of the irrepressible O'Neil, even though the story could bear to be told over and over again. Instead, he penned a moving memoir of the year he spent with the then-93-year-old O'Neil as he toured the country promoting the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City and the memory of those men who played the game in the days before whites and blacks could share the field. The trip takes them everywhere from Nicodemus, Kansas, to New York, New York, and O'Neil has a fascinating story to tell at every stop.

He talks about Satchel Paige, Willie Mays, and Josh Gibson, names that will always be enshrined in baseball's collective memory. But he also tells the tales of forgotten men like Dan Bankhead, the first black pitcher in the major leagues, who would have been a great hurler if he hadn't been afraid to pitch fastballs inside against white batters.

The key theme of the book is Buck O'Neil's spirit-lifting embrace of the best in every person he met. Despite years of back-breaking struggle, O'Neil never turned bitter, never condemned anyone for their prejudice, never had a bad word to say about the often ugly conditions the black ball players endured. Even when he failed to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, Buck O'Neil refused to be angry about it. To make up for the egregious mistake, the Hall awarded him a Lifetime Achievement Award after his death.

The lessons Posnanski drew from his experiences with O'Neil are well worth telling and the book he created from them is well worth reading.

Dave Donelson, author of Heart of Diamonds: A Novel of Scandal, Love and Death in the Congo

The middle ground between memory loss -- with normal aging and Dementia is the diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). This is the only book I have found devoted entirely to MCI. Unless you have CMI, or you know someone has CMI or Dementia, you cannot speak intelligently about cognitive problems NOT associated with the normal aging process unless you read this book. The author pursued many options to improve her cognitive functioning and documented them all. She found out she did not have AZ, and she did improve her memory using several of the options. I too have CMI. In addition to Aricept, I have had to use oxygen, alpha-lipoic-acid and other supplements reviewed by the author to maximize my brain's performance. I did extensive research on the internet, but before I tried anything, I read "Carved in Sand" as a second source for the remedies I found most recommended on the internet posts. This is an Excellent Book by someone who deals with MCI.

I bought this book because of all the 5 star reviews, after seeing it at a book show last year. If you want a scattershot sampling of most of the available techniques for dealing with normal/abnormal change in memory over time this is for you. However, the author herself never sticks with any method long enough to see if it would be effective before ditching it and trying the next thing. The A.D.D. drugs are effective for her, and I can see why.

Carved in Sand by Cathryn Jakobson Ramin is a must read for anyone interested in how the brain functions and what happens as it ages.

Chock full of valuable information and presented in a highly readable style this book will take its place on your reference shelf for frequent revisits as it has mine.

What is especially extraordinary about Ramin is that she is completely honest about the results of what she calls a series of "Interventions" into the world of improving brain power. For
instance she finds that meditation doesn't work for her. Hallelujah! It doesn't work for me either. At last someone I could identify with instead of wondering what was wrong with me.

Ramin's journey through the research into the brain and the methods and drugs used today to help with problems is fascinating, educational and a great read.

Ms. Ramin's book is a fun, informative and sometimes scary ride down memory lane. One part scientific research and another part a personal quest of what was happening to her, she does a fine job of balancing the two in an easy to read style. It helped me to understand certain aspects of aging. Well worth reading for some peace of mind.

Carved in Sand has graced my "Top 10 List of Books to Read" and the stack on my nightstand for the past several months.
This past weekend, it made its way into my hands and I can't put it down! Solidly planted into my "fifty-something" years, my thoughts turn toward aging in the best of health and with dignity.
Memory loss and the inability to focus a big concern that hovers over many of us.
Your book is a gift.
One I plan to give to sisters, cousins & friends.
Jackie R.

This book appears to be written for young people, but gives a good picture of the life of a Maasai boy, as well as his family. It is a quick read, not political, and very enjoyable. Having recently visited in this area, I wondered if our view of life there was accurate. Facing the Lion reassured me that what we saw was real and so was the charm of the people.

I really liked this book. It is one of several that I purchased after coming back from Tanzania, and I have recommended it to others. The author is straight-forward about his situation, so I wouldn't recommend it to children under, say, 12, but it is quite moving as an adult book, though he wrote it for young people.

Facing the Lion is the amazing TRUE story of a Maasai boy growing up in Kenya. I first heard about this National Geographic book from my son's 8th grade world history teacher - it was on a summer reading list. B-O-R-I-N-G - right? Well think again. You will not be able to put this book down! The boy grows up tending his family's herd of extremely valuable cows - and that means standing guard at night when lions literally leap from the bush to decimate the livestock. The lessons that the boy learns from incredible adventure, adversity, and challenge in his African upbringing only serve to give him the drive, determination, and power to succeed at HARVARD. My husband read the book on a plane and now uses a number of examples in his consulting practice. A FUN read and a WONDERFUL book for ANYBODY - teens to adult.

Narrated in the voice of a child as he grows up in a Maasai village, this is a quick, easy-to-read book for learning a lot about the Maasai culture (ie; before traveling to Africa, or for general interest). It was recommended by my travel agent and, while very simple, I will agree it is very well worth the read!

This book was absolutely fascinating to adults as well as younger readers.

With Martha Finney, Libby Sartain has written a book that is, in her opinion (as of 2003), the first one written "by an HR practitioner for HR practitioners about managing your own unique career as well as dealing with the special challenges of daily life in the world of human resources." As she explains, most of the stories she shares are taken from her 13-year tenure as Vice President, People at Southwest Airlines. Since 2001, she has served as Senior Vice President of Human Resources and Chief People Yahoo at Yahoo! Inc. This book was published in 2003.

She is a staunch advocate of what she characterizes as a "fully empowered" HR career, viewing it as a "calling" and asserting that it can - and should -- provide a competitive advantage to any organization, especially now when competition for human talent is almost ferocious. Those equal to the challenges of such a career in HR possess both highly-developed business acumen and what Daniel Goleman defines as emotional intelligence. Sartain insists (and I wholly agree) that a corporate culture "based on respectful treatment of all the company's employees is essential to the company's long-term success...The most successful companies are the ones that make it their business to help their employees achieve their highest potential and use their gifts and talents most fully." It is no coincidence that on Fortune magazine's annual lists of those companies that are most highly admired, most valuable, and best to work for, several of the same names appear on those lists year after year after year. Presumably each of exemplary company has "fully empowered" HR resources and capabilities.

With regard to Sartain's advice to those already embarked on a career in HR or who are now preparing for one, she focuses on "six essential ingredients of every great HR career" in Chapter 3. She commits a separate chapter to each and they are best revealed within her narrative, in context. Throughout her book Sartain addresses just about every conceivable issue relevant to those "essentials," helping her reader to consider all plausible options and then make decisions appropriate to his or her own talents, experience, goals, and concerns. She also suggests a number of "dos" and "don'ts" based on what she has learned throughout her own career thus far. She seems by nature to be an enthusiast, one who would prefer (as the old bromide states) "to light a candle rather than curse the darkness," but she also reveals an abundance of street smarts.

She is passionately committed to helping HR executives to establish and then sustain a "fully empowered" career, in terms of both personal and professional development, one that is fulfilling and thus satisfying to them but also in terms of how much value they can add, not only to the given organization but also to the personal as well as professional development of those whom they are privileged to serve. I use the phrase "privileged to serve" deliberately and presumably Sartain concurs.

If empowered with sufficient resources (including the support of senior management) and if properly prepared and fully committed, a HR professional who is both competent and compassionate can help to achieve objectives such as these:

1. Continuous recruiting of those who have the talent, experience, and character that may one day be needed

2. Interviewing and hiring procedures that are rigorous, thorough, and cordial so that each candidate is given every opportunity to "shine," of course, but is also treated with utmost respect

3. Orientation that accelerates the process by which each new hire becomes an integral part of the given organization and its culture

4. On-going formal and informal training that develops in participants the leadership and management skills that are needed at every level and in all areas of the given enterprise

5. Performance measurement conducted formally (at least quarterly) and informally (each day) that is based on criteria that are clearly explained, mutually understood, and consistently applied

One of Sartain's key points is that hearts as well as minds must constantly be nourished. In many (too many) organizations, HR professionals have been "so distracted by the need to be taken seriously that [they have] been tempted to jettison any discussion of how [their] personal feelings and principles are factored into the business equation. As a result, the HR profession has been cultivating a reputation that I am tempted to say it often deserves - that of being a single-minded administrator with a big, red, rubber stamp that reads: `No! Against Policy and Procedures!'" Sartain is convinced that in human resources, indeed in all relationships within and beyond the workplace, head and heart should not be mutually exclusive. "That's what it takes to build a great business." In the concluding chapter, "How Do We Get There From Here?," she suggests nine "major points" that must be covered to reach that destination.

Bon voyage!

Those who share my high regard for HR from the Heart are urged to check out The New American Workplace co-authored by James O'Toole, Edward E. Lawler as well as The HR Scorecard: Linking People, Strategy, and Performance co-authored by Brian E. Becker, Mark A. Huselid, and Dave Ulrich. Also, two of Fred Reichheld's books (The Loyalty Effect and Loyalty Rules), David Maister's Practice What You Preach, two of Jac Fitz-enz's books (The 8 Practices of Exceptional Companies: How Great Organizations Make the Most of Their Human Assets and The ROI of Human Capital: Measuring the Economic Value of Employee Performance), Dean R. Spitzer's Transforming Performance Measurement: Rethinking the Way We Measure And Drive Organizational Success, and Enterprise Architecture As Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution co-authored by Jeanne W. Ross, Peter Weill, and David Robertson.

I had seen Libby present at a conference and bought her book there. I read the book on the plane ride back and dog eared several pages. It is a good no nonsense book on what HR professionals do. I liked it so much that I purchased a copy for our entire HR department and we used it as a discussion during Business Partner meetings.

The group loved it...you will too.

Writing this book as an HR professional's guide is a tragedy! Part 2 (HR is Your Company's Best Asset) is a truly enlightened guide on people management and should be read by everyone who is in, or who aspires to be in, a leadership position in any organization. Including Part 1, (Your Own Career is Your Best HR Asset), this from her heart advice guide by practitioner Libby Sartain (Southwest Airlines) is not just well written, it is superbly written - the thanks for that may go to Martha Finney; but the thoughts are surely the wisdom of a hands-on expert in people management.

Focusing on Part 2, let's look at a few examples of what Sartain has to say: Hire the Person, Not the Resume - hire for fit; Don't Forget the Stars You Already Have in Your Ranks - promote from within; Start Your High-Potential Employees in Customer Relations - they carry an understanding of customer needs ...throughout their entire career. And, her "Show Them the Money!" and "Using Benefits to Build Relationships" chapters may be the best ever for understanding compensation's role in engagement. But, it gets better; Chapter 32 is titled: Recognition, Rewards, Fun: The Triple Crown of Employee Engagement. I could go on, but you get the picture; this Part 2 of the book contains wisdom for anyone in a management role. The whole book is recommended as a must read for HR professionals, Part 2 is recommended as a must read for managers.

Dennis DeWilde, author of
"The Performance Connection"

HR from the Heart is an amazing guide for HR professionals who genuinely want to serve their companies. Lifetime learnings and analysis of human behavior have been compiled in this book.The book is wholistic and it is a guide for all aspects of the HR function. Today's companies need to have unique recruitment, orientation, learning, developmental and performance systems. Great people attract great people, and great people want to work for great people. Companies mission must be a cause around which everybody is motivated and energised. The companies need to have a differentiating culture and all leaders in the company must promote the culture. All leaders must embrace new attitudes and conduct themselves in new and different ways. The language of communication is important as it give the company it's edge over the competetion. The workplace should be friendly and people must have fun doing their duty.Lastly, HR's job is to serve others and to humanise the work.

I have been involved in the HR field for some 21 years. Like any HR professional, we have a lot of stories to tell. In this book, Libby Sartain has a way of melding her stories with solid HR theory. At times, the book is simple and colloquial but more often than not it weaves its simplicity into a picture of HR I think and practitionaer would want to establish at their workplace.

A lot has been said about HR "at the table" and being a "strategic partner". This book shows how that is accomplished not so much by providing means to that end but by showing how doing what is right and good can get us to that end.

Judging from its Amazon sales rank (88,428 at the time of this writing) the book hasn't made it into too many hands. But don't let that stop you. If you are in HR (or someone who wants to be) this book is essential for giving you the big picture and getting you started on the path to achieving your end.

I found this book (the first edition, 2003) in an apartment I'm renting in Jerusalem. It's quite interesting and well-written.

However, the author seems to have been rather sloppy in her research. I noticed at least two gross factual inaccuracies in details about the Orthodox communities in chapter 9, and this in turn calls into question whether the other information in the book is supported by the facts.

On page 176 (2003 edition), Rosenthal describes how "[s]oon after independence, Prime Minister Ben-Gurion agreed to Rabbi [E.M.] Schach's and other rabbis' requests to free haredi scholars of military obligation." Ben-Gurion's primary interlocutor on this issue was actually Rabbi A.Y. Karelitz (known as the Hazon Ish), the leading Lithuanian haredi rabbi of his day in Israel; the story of their meeting is quite well known in haredi circles, even to school-age children.

Again on page 188 (2003 edition), she writes: "For Lubavitch/Habad Hasidim, however, [Israel] Independence Day is a religious holiday becase they believe the birth of Israel in 1948 marked the beginning of the messianic redemption." This is completely incorrect: there are indeed religious Zionist Jews who believe this, and their communities are treated in the following chapter of the book; but Habad's position has never been that the establishment of the State has anything to do with the coming of the Messiah. Habad does support Jewish settlement on all territory under Israeli control, and opposes giveaways of land, for religious reasons having to do with saving Jewish lives; sometimes this puts them side-by-side with various Religious Zionist groups, as in opposition to the Gaza disengagement of 2005. Most likely our author saw or heard of such events and jumped to conclusions that the Habad and Religious Zionist ideologies are the same. But again, how hard would it have been to find out the real facts?

Rosenthal, Donna. "The Israelis: Ordinary People in an Extraordinary Land", New Press, revised and updated, 2008.

My People

Amos Lassen

Americans have no idea who the Israelis are. The stories we get in the American media by and large depends on the source of the report. We see them here as soldiers fighting for their freedom and we see them as aggressive colonizers who determined to stay in control over Palestinians who resent them. We know that there is truth to both depictions and at the same time they depictions are distortions of who the Israeli really is. Donna Rosenthal looks at the Israeli across the broad spectrum and she gives very interesting insight as to the nature of the modern Israeli in two aspects--an individual and as a group.
Many Americans are simply not aware of the vibrancy and diversity of Israel and as the nation is such so are the citizens. There are the very Orthodox who constantly study and await the Messianic age. They are against those that dress immodestly and violate the Sabbath. There are the modern Israelis who excel in business and industry and do not bother with their religious heritage. There are the Bedouin Arabs who still live primitively carrying everything they own with them to wherever they go. There are prostitutes and mailmen and waiters and there are farmers and fishermen and gays, lesbians and those that are transgender.
Rosenthal entered Israeli society and interviewed many people and she gives us their backgrounds and their viewpoints. She discusses the decline of the kibbutz movement which was once vital to the country and shows how the ethic of collectively is no longer relevant. She shows how the Orthodox remain a community unto itself and stays isolated from mainstream Israeli culture and society. She shows the vice and corruption with Israel and the presence of the drug trade and she gives us a history of Zionism as we hear the reminiscences of the way it was. We hear from the man on the street, from the leaders, from Arabs and from Druze, from the Russian mafia and from the subcultures of sex and gambling.
Rosenthal has a wonderfully readable style and she manages to weave interviews, anecdotes and vignettes to give us a picture of a people that most of us know little about. But let me tell you that you must be prepared to have your preconceptions become misconceptions. In giving us the information on whom the Israeli is, Rosenthal sheds light on the shadows. It is absolutely amazing when we realize that Israel is a nation that has "ingathered the exiles"--Jews from all over the world who have not much in common except a history of persecution and the desire to live free in their own land.

I ordered this book because it was recommended by the tour company that is arranging our trip to Israel. I was looking for something that would give me additional insight into the country and its people. This book does an excellent job of exposing me to the various ethnic and cultural groups in Israel. The author is very good about interviewing typical people within each ethnic group with examples of their feelings toward Israel and their way of life. Highly recommended.

Just finished the 2008 edition -- new and updated for Israel's 60th anniversary. Very stimulating. This famous book was recommended by Israeli friends -- and an Iraqi friend. It's filled with fascinating insights, you get nowhere else. Very balanced.
Fun to read, yet very deep. You really get an insider's look into the diverse lives of people whose a country is always in the headlines. You meet kids, techies, Russians, Ethiopians -- religious and not religious Jews, Muslims, and Christians. Students, soldiers, Google and Intel employees, Israeli Arabs -- they're all here and in their own words.

This new 2008 edition is a wonderful gift for readers of different religions, political backgrounds and ages.

I was born and raised in Baghdad, Iraq. As soon as I started reading The Israelis, I simply could not put it down. I learned about many varied faces of Israelis. The clear and easy prose and style of writing, the historical and political facts, the colorful anecdotes are enthralling and captivating. The book made me think and rethink about different issues that are an integral part of daily life in Israel -- and by extension throughout the Arab world.
It's packed full of information about different types of Arabic speaking Israelis -- Israeli Muslims, Christians and Druze. I learned a lot about their relationships within their communities and with other Israelis and Arabs outside Israel. Ms. Rosenthal does an excellent job elucidating issues that can change Arab thinking about Israel.
I highly recommend this 2008 edition of The Israelis for anyone interested in Israel, and also for anyone interested in grasping a better understanding of Arab society and its relationship to Israelis.

Layla Murad

There are an awful lot of dead bodies per capita in this book, and quite a bit of fairly mindless violence, but that said, it's a page-turner that is extremely well written. Unlike other reviewers I found nothing confusing about the elements of the plot, just found some of them unlikely in the extreme (both the ostensible pre-historic Chinese settlers of the Americas and the ostensible pre-historic Phoenician settlers just happen to have come upon and used the same underground and under-river storage caverns? Wouldn't proof of Phoenician settlers of North America alone have been enough??) This is clearly a read oriented more towards boys, but girls who like adventure stories will enjoy it too.

I have to agree with another review the cover of this book just hooked me. This came into the library where I work (5/6 grade) and I immediately snagged it. Read it in one night and have not seen the book on our shelves since!!! It has been out constantly since we put it in the collection. Our kids like it (mainly the boys and our teachers love it!!). There's action and creepiness. The scene in the cave was so vivid I could feel the cold damp and the spongy feel of the body as our hero, Tom, groped his way around in the pitch black. Excellent!!

N.D. Wilson's LEEPIKE RIDGE tells of a preteen who has always lived next to Leepike Ridge - but who finds himself lost beneath it when he escapes the man set to marry his mother and finds his escape raft has left him underground. His discoveries under the ridge - of a body, a dog and more - will answer questions and challenge his survival skills in a riveting adventure kids will relish.

I read a review that made comparisons between this book and Louis Sachar's Holes. This kind of comparison always makes me skeptical. "We'll just see about that," I thought. I read it. I saw. And I get it now. This one is worthy of that comparison -- and then some. And this book will definitely appeal to fans of Holes.

Leepike Ridge is a book for every kid (and every grown kid) who played in refrigerator boxes, caught critters in the woods, and floated down creeks on homemade rafts. It's a fantastic story with a grand adventure, a heroic boy, bad guys that you love to hate, a loyal dog, and a hidden treasure. The fact that it's beautifully written with magical, transporting descriptions is gravy.

If you know and like a boy between the ages of, let's say 9 and 13, Leepike Ridge would make a fantastic gift!

Great fun and very hard to put down.

I have no clue how it would go over for younger readers, but if you're a not-so-young reader, it's a real treat.

The story of the Alamo is one of my favorites. So when I found this book I was thrilled. This was a very well written story that brought out the longing of ever girls heart. I think that it is a must read!!

Sherry Garland's forefathers settled in Texas when it was a Republic (1836-1845). Garland wrote this novel to tell what it would be like for a young girl living at the time of the Alamo. Garland has written twenty-five books and received numerous awards and honors. The novel is written as a diary covering the days from September 9, 1835 to April 24, 1836. The `Epilogue' tells of the later lives of the characters. The `Historical Notes' tells of the settlement of Texas. The Spanish built missions in Texas between 1670 and 1793.

In 1821 Mexico declared its independence from Spain. The new Republic of Mexico welcomed Americans to settle in areas of Texas where Indians predominated. These colonists had to pass tests to legally settle in the lands. The Mexican Constitution of 1824 was similar to the US Constitution. But the aristocracy and the rich objected to democratic rule. They convinced Santa Anna to overthrow the democratic government and set up a dictatorship that would tax and oppress the people. [There were many reoccurrences of this in South American history. America avoided these problems with its "well-regulated militia", a small standing army, and a law of division to break up aristocratic wealth.] The state of Zacatecas first fought Santa Anna but lost, and their militia was exterminated. The state of Texas also fought; they were far off from the Mexican government, and their Second Amendment experience and history gave them better odds. They lost the first battles, but under the leadership of Sam Houston won the Battle of San Jacinto. Houston wisely extracted a peace treaty that recognized Texas independence as the price for releasing Santa Anna to return to Mexico with his armed guards. The "Napoleon of the West" met his Waterloo. The Republic of Texas encouraged immigrants from Europe to settle there, much as the Mexicans had earlier encouraged immigrants from America. They fled the aristocratic despotism of Europe.

This novel is based on the known facts, and can entertain and educate the readers. It is not a substitute for a real history book, but official history seldom tells you about daily life for ordinary people. A historian may note some information that isn't accurate. James Michener wrote a much longer book about "Texas" that you may read; it covers much more in Texas history.

What a fun read! I was not too enthusiastic about this book but I gave it a try anyway. I'm glad I did! Wall-to-wall action and relevant description abound in this story about a misunderstood historical period. I read this a few years ago and I still remember how good it was. Recently I read another book about the Alamo, and it makes me appriciate how well-written this one is. I don't agree that the action is sparse; if it was, I wouldn't have finished it.

one of the reviews complained that the book was mislabeled, because it didn't take place in the alamo. while that is true, the alamo is a central point throughout the plot.

i definitely learned a lot from this book, because while everyone knows "remember the alamo," no one knows what the alamo actually was (at least in my experience). as a novel, however, the book was less than a masterpiece. it emphasized the bravery of those who fought for texas, which was a good thing to point out, and i also liked that the main character was just an ordinary girl caught up in what was happening. but lucinda was a pretty boring character - in fact, pretty much all of the characters were very two-dimensional. the plot was also boring at times. while it informed me, it did not move me. i especially disliked that the runaway scrape - when lucinda and the rest of her town had to leave their homes behind in a desperate retreat - was barely described, when it should have depicted the miserableness of the refugees and their conditions. at one point, lucinda tells us she has had an eye condition and now is blind in one eye. she says it matter-of-factly in just one sentence, and i think if someone lost half their eyesight they would be a little morre distraught. i didn't really enjoy reading the book, though i don't regret reading it either. it was just OK.

A Line in the Sand is indeed a very special book. When my aunt presented it to me on my tenth birthday, I was very exited to add another Dear America to my collection. I had also never read anything about The Alamo, so my interest grew with every page I turned. During the war, the emotions expressed by Lucinda are great and powerful, as they are cleanly expressed through Ms. Garland's words. The Alamo was a terrible battle, but though this book it almost seemed a little less dreary than it was. I was glad that this book shed some light on the great was that was The Alamo, and will keep my newfound information with me forever.

Barjavel's The Ice People is the most amazing story that I have ever read. I cannot get over the passionate love story, the wonderful world of the Gondawans, and the truth in Barjavel's portrayal of humanity - even of humanity the way it was 900,000 years ago. The ending broke my heart, and the book changed the way that I think about love and how important it is in our lives. I live for finding books such as The Ice People, and I hope you will consider reading it as well. You won't be sorry if you do.

I first read this in about 1978 when I was in high school. I have since read it again once or twice just because it is a such a great story. A true original work that captivates and draws you in. In a world where innovation in writing seems now almost extinct, this book is a oasis for the intellectual SciFi fan. A must read. It is in my personal top 10 for SciFi!

My dad gave me this book a few months ago, and I LOVED it!! I was an incredible book. I've recomeded it to all my friends, but I don't think anyone else is going to read it sonce they are not avid readers and we are only in grade nine! But I still anyone who listens that this is the best book ever written. I don't understand why it's not famous and why it is so hard to find...

This book was the best book I ever read! I read in portuguese and english and both times I realized that life could be perfect. We are able to have a perfect world as the book show us, but we are also kind enough to destroy it. My hope from the book was beliving that life was once perfect!! Great book, great history, great science!

In "The Ice People", Scientists discover a perfect sphere buried deep in the continent of Antarctica - not in the ice but below the ice in the ground. A major undertaking is commenced...dig to the object. What they find astounds everyone - perfectly preserved humans, a man and a woman; young, healthy, and beautiful, these two are the last people from an advanced civilization 900,000 years ago.

Scientists rush to revive they two from their stasis. The woman comes to first and she begins to tell the story of their lost world. It is a beautiful story, and a heartbreaking one. But, as the man nears revival, chaos ensues and things will never be the same.

Thirteen years ago, on a road trip in the heart of California, a friend told me of this French Science Fiction novel he had read when he was younger called "The Ice People"; this was a book that had stuck with him for years and he lamented that he did not own a copy and had looked for a used copy for years to no avail. One of the purposes of this road trip was to hit used bookstores to find new treasures; this is what prompted his sharing of this book. The very first bookstore we entered ended up having a paperback copy on the shelf! He was astounded and of course bought it in a flash. Later that day, in another bookstore - and after more talking about the book - we came across another copy, and I promptly bought it after all of his influence for the day. I was not disappointed!

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A Guide to my Book Rating System:

1 star = The wood pulp would have been better utilized as toilet paper.
2 stars = Don't bother, clean your bathroom instead.
3 stars = Wasn't a waste of time, but it was time wasted.
4 stars = Good book, but not life altering.
5 stars = This book changed my world in at least some small way.

This book is a great resource that challenges Christians to analyze their lives as followers of Christ. Moreover, Ortberg challenges the business of life which has infiltrated those who follow Christ.

I wish I had read the reviews here before picking up the book. Let me state right off (to prevent the sure-to-happen viscious replies) that this is a well written, thoughtful book. It is, however, written specifically for "serious" Christians.

The cover and title are somewhat misleading. I thought it was going to be geared to a more general audience. I am sure that for those looking to regain touch with their Christianity it is worthwhile reading. But if you're looking for something that is not so centric into 1 belief system, then this isn't the book for you...

I have read several books on spiritual development
/formation and this is "hand-down" the best and most practical I have ever seen. The Author has either been there or has been given devine insight from God (or both). There is no "air" in this book it is hard hitting, accurate and real life. Should be required reading for all.

I just finished The Life You've Always Wanted in about three days. Ortberg is practical, challenging, and honest. I love his insights on some of the less talked about Christian disciplines - like slowing down, regular confession, and servanthood.

Here is a non-dry, non-wordy, powerful book that any Christian should read. Takes the "pressure" out of spiritual disciplines and inspires me to focus my pursuit of God. Good stuff! I'll read it again.

First of all, I want to say that some of the material in here is among the most applicable and heart-rendering that I have read in a long, long time. It seems to me that this book is almost two different books. The books reminds me of some movies that I have watched where the first half was so magnetic that I could not stop watching. Then the second half of the movie loses my attention because it goes on a tangent or is just plain uninteresting.

Ortberg's discussion of boundaries resonated within me. He states that Christians use boundaries to dictate who is in their group and who is not. Drinking is a boundary. If you drink, you are outside my group. If you don't drink, you are inside the group. The same applies for smoking, dancing, caffeine, you name it. Ortberg implies that this is how many Christians live their lives. He says that our lives should be marked by a transformation of the heart, not by boundaries. Wow.

Another chapter highlighted the need to be quiet, to take things slow. This, he says, is necessary to hear God speak to us. That really does make sense. Being one who likes to speed (and people in Nashville drive SLOW), I found this chapter to be refreshing.

A lot of the book deals specically with spiritual disciplines in bullet fashion (before reading the Bible, do this, this, and this). That's where it started to get uninteresting. Not that this is not important. Far be it from that. But he starts the book with such fervor on the life we are all looking for as Christians and then moves to a bullet list of what to do. For me, I just found that change too much. But still a good buy.

This is one of my favorite books and also of my daughters. The illustrations are beautiful, and the heart warming story of family visits, appreciation and love just makes you feel good. I like this book so much that I will add more Cynthia Rylant books to our home library.

We're from a large family and the images and descriptions of the family reunion really touched home. I've given it to two different sets of nieces and nephews, and hope they'll have the same great stories to tell about our family that Cynthia Rylant relates.

I bought this book to use for a discussion about how authors can paint pictures with their words. My first graders loved this book and we were able to talk about our favorite parts in the book and all the children can relate because they have either gone to visit relatives or relatives have come to visit them. They loved the pictures and the story!

I love this book, especially for kids with big families. As an adult from a big family it is equally fun to read. This account of the journey and the visit at the relatives' house is written from a refreshingly honest child's point of view. A completely delightful read-to book. I bought a copy for all my kids with children.

This story is about some
family members from Virginia came down to some other relatives that lived
far away and the family from Virginia was staying for a couple of weeks. They finished with eating, playing, and hugging. At the end of the story, the family from Virginia goes back to their house, and wait `til next summer.

I liked this book because the book was about family time and this book will be good for any kid at anytime.