Abuse Books

The book grabs your attention from beginning. It is bravely written and shows determination of an abused girl that continues to fight for her freedom and happeness.

Before this book, I have only read one novel from cover to cover in one sitting. This book is so captivating, however, it is the second time I have done so.

Anyone who has experienced abuse, is experiencing abuse, or knows someone who is or has experienced abuse, needs to read this book.

The hardships experienced by this person will do well to learn the lessons this author talks about.

What more can I say, but that I recommend this book very highly? It contains humor, saddness and real human emotion rarily found in a book.

Bill Duck (Ruidoso, New Mexico)

I found this book to be very well written. It captivated my attention from the beginning and held it to the end. I didn't want to put it down once I starting reading it. To be able to put in print what she had been through, had to be another very traumatic experience for her. As I read each event in her life, it made me want to cry, and reach out to her as if she were in my very presense. I wondered how anyone could conquer so much abuse and come out smelling like a rose. Beautiful. I feel this book shows her strong character and will be a means of helping others in similar situations. May God continue to bless you as your book reaches out to help others.

This book is very well written. It shows that she has overcome the past abusive situations, and has settled down to a new life with her husband. Reliving the past had to be very painful for her, and I have even more respect for her now, knowing what she endured, and has come out smelling like a rose. Beautiful. Once I started reading it, I could hardly put it down. It keeps your interest, makes you want to cry and reach out to her as if she were in your very presence. May God continue to bless you with this very informative book of your life that you have chosen to share with others that it might be a means of help anad encouragement to them, also.

PAST AND TENSE is a well written, interesting and informative book concerning abuse and all the ramifications of abuse within a family.
The main character is the author and the book tells how she came to the other side of abuse, remained intact and ended her story with a happy ending, which she so much deserved. The content isn't for sissies and the author could be a real role model for those living in abuse, or for those who continue to stay in an abusive situation. It's graphic and holds the attention of the reader.

I very much recommend this book, whether you're a victim of abuse or not. It's interesting and you can't put it down until you get to the last page. If you're not in an abusive situation, this will make you glad you're not, but you will still enjoy the read.

This is a beautifully done book. I was surprised by the content and delighted by the artwork. Every page is an unexpected joy. Hogshire probes our pill-taking conscience and examines the cultural significance of pills. He is playful, provocative and informative. Don't make the mistake of dismissing this important work as merely another how-to for druggies. This book transcends popculture and should be required reading for pharmacists, healthcare providers, even cops. It is a seminal work. I love this book.

As a pharmacologist, I found this book very interesting and much more informative than I expected it to be. I expected the book to be a simple review of drugs in pop culture, having read a little bit about the 'zine Pills-A-Go-Go that this book is based on. Mr. Hogshire presents some very thorough information about the processes of drug manufacture, marketing, and information control used by pharmaceutical companies. He also gives us a good history of pharmacies and the role of physicians in perpetuating this nation's obsession with prescription drugs. The book is written in a magazine style with lots of graphics, quotes, and lists. I love the use of old drug advertisements to show the history of pharmacetucial marketing toward doctors. I recommend this book to anyone interested in a career in pharmacy, pharmacology, or medicine, as well as anyone simply interested in "pill culture".

I only have two minor problems with this book. First, there are a ton of spelling and grammatical errors, which don't necessarily detract from the book's content, but do make the book a harder read. Second, the book is often very subjective and tends to follow Mr. Hogshire's very strong opinions on the pharmaceutical and medical industries. While this is to be expected based on the nature of the 'zine, it could have been written with a little less bias. In his defense however, he does a good job of telling all sides of the story on many subjects. Overall, this is a wonderful book.

This is one of the most interesting and fascinating books on drugs I have ever read. Amazingly thorough and enthralling. It has so many tidbits of information and gossip.

All I can say is, wow! This book is chock full of absolutely fantastic pharmaceutical information- more than I had even hoped for! Mr. Hogshire is right on the mark on his views of grumpy pharmacists- that was a classic chapter! I admire his bravery in writing this work- no doubt many narrow minded people will dislike this book intensely for obvious reasons, but never mind about them! I stayed up until 2 a.m. just happily reading every little interesting factoid. A MUST for all of us PDR freaks! Highly recommended!

Jim Hogshire's "Pills-A-Go-Go" is an exceptionally entertaining and informative work that is great to read in a couple of sittings or in bits, a page or two a day.

This book is a good reference point to distingish the huge difference between a drug USER and a drug ABUSER.

There are MANY issues covered here that I have rarely (if ever) seen addressed elsewhere. One example is the fact that most pills are effective to treat things that they have not been officially approved to treat but if a doctor prescribes a drug for a non-government-approved reason he risks losing his licence. Also, much inside information on the relationship between doctors and the pharmaceuticle companies. And, the fact that government agencies have more input - as to what type of and how much of a drug you need when you are sick - than your doctor does! (How certain agencies of our government think it is more important to stop someone from "having fun" with a drug than to allow someone with, for example, a severed spine to have proper relief from their pain).

Highlight chapters include "The Pill as Virgin/Whore", "Rude Pharmasists", "Rape Drugs" (in which Hogshire points out that the date rape drug of choice is nor Rohypnol... it's ALCOHOL!), "Before Viagra, Better Sex Through Pills", "Pill Road Tests" (including a roll-on-the-floor hilarious account of an extreme Robitussin "experience"), and much more.

Well written & compiled, wonderful design & layout and great artwork.

WARNING: If you lend books, you may want to buy more than one copy... this is the type of book people borrow, then "forget" to return!

I had no interest in medical marijuana when I first picked up Prescription Pot, but I soon discovered this book is not some hippie diatribe. It is one of the most heartfelt, amusing and intriguing biographies I've ever read, with the ability to teach people the value of civil political discourse. This is an underdog's tale that every person dealing with pain, disability and death should experience. And the groundbreaking clinical study contained in the appendix is convincing evidence of official wrongdoing.

...because it exposes their myths, humanizes a pressing political issue, and reveals hidden casualties of prohibition. And it accomplishes this through a creative narrative that appeals to politicians, churchgoers, law enforcement officials, and ditch-diggers alike.

This book has more potential for changing public policy than a thousand pot rallies. That's exactly why some government officials hope Prescription Pot will "go gentle into that good night".

So take my advice. Be a good citizen. Become informed in your mind and heart. Just say NO to ignorance. And read this book!

Prescription Pot chronicles the amazing true life of George McMahon, one of five U.S. citizens who can legally smoke marijuana in every state. A recipient of the National Certificate of Heroism, George receives 300 pre-rolled cigarettes each month through a little-known FDA program, to treat pain, spasms, and nausea. Prescription Pot examines the medical marijuana issue through a unique account of George's courageous struggle with death, his victorious battle with daunting federal bureaucrats, his hilarious and harrowing escapades with police officers, and his journeys in search of America. George's story is encompassed within a wild and poignant trip across four states to the Arkansas State Capitol, Elvis Presley's Graceland, and Uncle Sam's marijuana farm at Ole Miss. The book includes the landmark clinical study on the federal cannabis patients.

Im George's oldest daughter Linda.
This book is the storie of my father and mothers long struggle to obtain a medicine that would give my father a quality of life he never would've attained hadn't he obtained this medicine, his family wouldnt have any kind of life either hadnt we found medicinal marijauna , who wants to grow up with a sick father ...or no father at all???
My father is a wonderful , caring man who just wants to help others with life threatning diseases..he is not a pothead on some high...he actually has a quality of life no Dr.'s wonder drugs gave him!!! He is here to see his family succeed, and his grandkids blossom ...

What if you had an illness that caused you pain, made you unable to eat, and was going to cut your life short, but there was an herbal medicine that could provide relief of the symptoms? Would you use it? What if using the medicine was a crime? George McMahon doesn't have to worry, much, about that. He has a strange congenital illness called Nail Patella Syndrome (NPS), which clogs his kidneys, causes his bones to break with little stress, and brings on muscle cramps and chronic pain. The federal government provides McMahon with the medicine he needs to ease the symptoms and live a relatively normal life. Only six other patients get it, because the federal government frets about the medicine - it has no worrisome side effects on McMahon, but the government worries that others will use the medicine as a drug to get high. McMahon is one of seven people in the United States who can legally smoke marijuana. How this came about, the difficulties it has presented for him, and the problems of other patients who could use the drug if they could get it, are the subject of _Prescription Pot: A Leading Advocate's Heroic Battle to Legalize Medical Marijuana_ (New Horizon Press), which McMahon wrote with his friend Christopher Largen. Read it and you might not think of marijuana in the way you do now.

Demerol and Percodan worked for the pain of NPS (codeine made him throw up) but they also put him into a brain-addled haze. In the sixties he smoked pot; although his fellow tokers got intoxicated and giggly, he simply got... better. The spasms eased, the pain was not so debilitating, and he could move around more. But it worried him. He didn't want to have a problem with drugs. Looking back on it, he knows he should have been concerned by the prescription pills he was swallowing which made him a junkie. He eventually found a doctor who jumped through all the paperwork hoops to enroll him into the Compassionate Investigational New Drug Program. Eventually, the doctor started receiving shipments of McMahon's medicine, ten joints a day. It continues to be his regimen, and he continues to do well.

McMahon's story isn't proof that marijuana works as medicine; it is actually just one anecdotal case history, though it is told with appealing humor and modesty. There are the stories of others told here, just as anecdotal (and some from those who have to get the pot illegally), but also just as affirming. However, there have been a limited number of studies on the few patients who get the drug legally, and the data is not just anecdotal: glaucoma, chronic pain, anorexia, nausea, and spasms can all be helped by it. That seems to make little difference to the government. In 1992, the legal medical marijuana program was closed to new applicants by the first Bush administration. The problem, as the White House saw it, was that there were too many new applicants because of the AIDS epidemic. The real problem is that the government has trouble accepting that marijuana can be anything but bad. It does not seem to matter that these patients could all be getting prescription joints, grown in a federal facility, rather than being doped up on other medications. Marijuana cannot be made easily available as a medicine, because non-patients enjoy it for fun. Given the sorts of scientific studies reported in books like _Understanding Marijuana_, continued heavy criminalization of pot use makes little sense, but as _Prescription Pot_ shows, denying it to patients who need it is simply immoral. McMahon goes out on the stump to try to convince legislators of the benefits of the marijuana he is lucky enough to get legally, and his and Largen's book is yet another part of that program. It is hard to disagree with it; patients simply deserve this option.

No creo en la conexion falsa de Andres Caicedo con movimientos de izquierda ni politicos de ningun tinte.
Este libro evoca nostalgias de una Cali que se esta desvaneciendo y que no se ha podido rescatar, a traves de los ojos aun inocentes y al mismo tiempo crueles de los personajes adolescentes de sus novelas e historias. Es existencialismo sin densidades filosoficas.
Totalmente recomendado.

Que buen libro nos dió Caicedo. En este se refleja no solo como en Cali, Colombia, America Latina, sino el mundo la salvajadas capitalista nos quita la esperanza de luchar por un mejor futuro. Es una buena paradoja de la realidad, y aunque fue escrito en los 70 se puede adaptar en gran medida a la realidad en que todos vivimos.

Andres Caicedo is a classic of contemporary Colombian literature.
Caicedo is perhaps one of the most bloody and formative modern writers associated with the (post)latin american BOOM of literature. Caicedo is a vivid example of the contradictions lived by all latin american countries: US colonies both mentally and economically. As a result of "LA VIOLENCIA", thousands of countrymen, escaping the official extermination campaign by the conservative party, gather up in the marginal slums of basically all Colombian cities. The opposition between the high class youth of the city of Cali, familiar with the Rolling Stones, Miami, the beatles, the English language, the Country Club,etc,
and the poor popular classes, where Richie Ray's Sonido Bestial is king, constitute a leit motiv. Maria del Carmen Huerta, the main character, a beautiful up town blond, suffers a process of "decadence" that takes her from an ellite world to the pleasures of life through a process of rejection of her own fake class values. The generational crisis of the youth which grew up with the revolutionary attempt in Paris in May of 1968,
the massacre in Mexico city, the student insurrection in Colombian public universities, the Cuban Revolution, the guerrilla priest Camilo Torres Restrepo, existentialism, the CIA sponsored military coup in Chile, the rise of the National Liberation Army, the revolutionary process in Nicaragua, the new freedom and a new conception of the world, constitute the vital background of the author.
Caicedo depicts the modern social crisis of Colombian society in a setting of the quotidian and the generational.
Sadly enough, 25 years after the suicide of the author, Colombian social structures have not changed at all, and the crisis is probably worse.

This Novella presents the best qualities of this Colombian author. His incredible style is displayed in this story of music, drugs, and decadence. A fundamental piece in any book collection!

It tells the story of Maria del Carmen Huerta, a high middle class girl, and her changes in society by taking new experiences. Since the beginning of the book the "caicedian language" (unique - full of horror apetite, strange and weird scenes, melancholy, drug situations, "teen responsability", street life, rock and salsa music, comedy full of tragedy and film addiction) will inmediately filter through the eye-pores and reach in the mind's fine pleasure for "new" literature.

Andrés Caicedo was born in Cali, Colombia in 1951 and commited suicide at the same city in 1977 and though that living more than 25 years was a lack of sense. He was influenced by authors such as Poe and H.P. Lovecraft. He loved films, theatre and literature. Also the Rolling Stones. Young people are discovering this author as a "new" one. This means that he still influences in new readers and his style is unique.

As a survivor and as a psychotherapist who has worked in the field of trauma recovery for 15 years, I found the book "Quest for Respect" the single most helpful piece of information I encountered, and I recommend it highly to survivors, family members, and their helping professionals.

Terese

This is the best book I have read on the subject of rape & how to survive it. Unlike so many of the books out on rape, this is not written from a statistical aspect & how to prevent rape in the first place. This book is written totally to the survivor with exercises to help you recover from rape. If you are a victim of rape & trying to figure out how to recover from it, this is the book for you! It really made me realize that my reactions are typical of the normal victim & that there is nothing wrong with me for taking so long to recover. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has been the victim of rape & is trying to become a survivor!

I found this book very easy to read and helpful in the recovery process. It basically describes the process of going from victim to survivor. The shortness of the book did make it easier to read as I was in grad school at the time. I didn't have time to read anything besides my assignments. It addresses shame, guilt and anger and ends with solutions or ways to change thoughts and behavior (cognitive restructuring). It was a good introduction to survivor issues in a very manageable size.
If you are in crisis now you can call the national sexual assault hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE. They will forward you to a local rape crisis counselor. The crisis center can give you a referral to a rape crisis counselor, a therapist, victim advocacy (for reporting to police or going to court), provide free counseling or offer a support group. This hotline is run by RAINN.org which is the leading resource on sexual assault.

I have read several books for survivors of rape and this one has the best ideas written most succinctly. Also, this book can be completed in one day if a person has the time.

As a therapist and survivor of rape, this book has been an essential resource for myself and so many others. This is the first book I recommend to all clients who have been raped. It can be read immediately following the rape and for years after, each time offering meaning and hope. This book may also be a guide for family and friends affected by this event, helping them better understand what the victim may be experiencing. This is a great place to begin and continue a healing journey.

I don't usually write reviews about books, but I felt obligated to write a review for this one. The book not only gives great advice about eating, but also great general advice for everyday life. The book is well-written and reads like a novel. I highly recommend this book.

Wow-this book really encouraged me in my journey with compulsive overeating. It is a terrific resource for the beginner all the way to the fully recovered! Written from an insider's perspective, this book is sure to comfort, encourage, and strengthen overeaters and/or those who love them.

I bought this book to help me understand what OA is. Sometimes you go to a meeting, and in the beginning - it feels like you have a million questions that may go unanswered. OA is the best thing that has happened to me in 2007, as I have been on my recovery path for the past 10 months! This book is very thorough, and answered all my questions. In the beginning, I was SO ready to understand, and make the commitment to myself and my recovery. This made it that much easier for me. I continue to use it as a point of reference today with other literature. This isn't an OA book persay, but written by an OAer with a great deal of recovery and helpful insight into my addiction to food. This is a great tool!

ODAT!

I started doing online Overeaters Anonymous meetings and joined an OA "mail loop" about a month ago, and needed some basics about the OA program, because although I was getting help from the OA online sources, I had a lot of questions about how OA works.

And other things -- how could I ever deal with holidays and traveling without overeating, how to explain to my doctor, friends and family that I wasn't dieting per se, but rather dealing with my compulsive overeating problem, etc.

I've read this book from cover to cover TWICE now, and each time I find answers to new questions I didn't even know I had.

Jim A. essentially shares his own experience but also talks about OA's history, the steps, what "abstinence" is, and why the program works so well.

A terrific guide -- and one I'm sure I will refer to over and over again!

This book gave me a new understanding of what overeating is. I always thought it was a lack of will power and never had a full understanding of what I was doing to myself. It has shed a new light on things, I have faith that I can recover too.

This story really drew me in. It was frightening how someone who was trusted by family and friends could do such evil things. A true account of what can happen to good, kind people who trust someone too much.

This was a great book! When I started reading this book I thought the middle of the story was an odd way to begin but, by the time I had read chapter 2 and chapter 3 I realized what a clever tactic this was. You not only learn this woman's story but you also start to understand why she made the decisions she made & how someone can get to know you & gradually start to use your weaknesses to control not only your actions but your inner-most thoughts. This book is very well written and a good insight into the cult life style & manipulations by it's leader. I started reading it one evening and at midnight I was still telling myself--just one more chapter---it's hard to put down! You not only want to find out what happens next but also why it happens the way it does. I will anxiously be waiting for Linda French's next book

Jenny was a young woman who was seeking something that had been missing from her life (or so she thought). The horrific circumstances her family found themselves in seemed to offer no way out. "Reflections of Her Mountain Look" is based on a true story originating in Central IL and is a must read. You won't be able to put it down until you have finished reading about their entire journey.

In "Reflections of Her Mountain Look" Jenny's search for a more godly life
takes an extraordinary direction.

Anyone who has struggled with years of hardships can identify with Jenny
wanting a new start. Her desire to have a closer relationship with her
family, a more spiritual relationship with God and a feeling of security with both led her face to face with evil. She and her family were mentally and physically abused and brainwashed. Through the pain and disappointment she fought back - she fought the deceitful leader of this cult (who was someone she idolized), she fought legal battles and she fought battles with her own guilt.

This writer has an exceptional talent of putting you in Jenny's shoes. She takes you on a frightening journey. Frightening because Jenny's desires are just like ours. Could this happen to us? It has taken amazing strength and faith to write this story. This is the book
I can't stop talking about - this is the book I have recommended to all my friends.

This is an incredible story that will not allow you to put the book down until you are finished! Jenny is an amazing woman to be able to write about this horrific experience and have it make sense. It's about mistrust, mistakes and forgiveness. Anyone who is faced with unbearable obstacles in their life should read this and know that it is possible to not only overcome such evil but go on to live a happy and rewarding life. This is a must read book to share with your friends.
Thank you Jenny.

I think the most striking aspect of this book is the warmth and humanity with which James manages to infuse into stark scenes. He manages to observe without passing judgement and without detracting from the harsh reality. I was left wondering what he really thinks about all of these things and with that in mind, felt that he has left the reader space to think for him/herself, which is a rare talent.

Very well written with excellent descriptions of the subject
Writer is very articulate and has a unique style and approach
with sensitivity, to the American Drug culture.
I highly recommend the reading of this book for all who have been involved in Drugs,know someone who has used drugs,or curious of the life in Drugs. This book is not JUST for the Drug related society. Any one with the appreciation of modern poetry will enjoy the style of this book. It has a variety of well written poetry,easy to read and understand and covers a variety of subjects . There is more than one poem which would apply to everyones life and emotions in some aspect of their life.

Mr. Murphy's book is an amazing collection of brutally honest poetry. Once I began reading the poems it was hard to stop. As a person that was raised around the sort of subject matter in the book, several of the poems reminded me of something I had experienced in my own life. The collection of hard-life realisms will take the reader on a realistic journey through a life of drugs, alcohol, and violence and ultimately hardships on the road to recovery. I highly recommend "Road of Sighs" to anyone who may have had some of these experiences in their own life or may be just curious about the life style. I look forward to future work by Mr. Murphy.

James Murphy clearly has led the life he describes in "Road of Sighs." Those who normally shy away from poetry will find something very different here. Poetry, yes. Stilted, flowery? Emphatically, no. The back cover blurb aptly describes it as "honest to the bone". The words are painfully blunt, carefully chosen, honest, straightforward. The words don't pretend anything. The writer is who he is. The poems don't glamorize life in the world of drugs and gangs, nor do they gloss over it. Murphy's writing informs, telling those who would consider this lifestyle exactly what it's like and what they are getting into. Since he donates a portion of the proceeds from this book to programs for drug and gang prevention, his intent is clear. It's not for the squeamish. The language is coarse. Poems like "Law of the Land" are devilishly clever but uncomfortable; poems like "Great American Rip-off" will likely make you nod in agreement. It IS for those who want a fascinating read that you can't put down. It's also for those who want an unvarnished picture of a dark world.

I keep returning to Road of Sighs and each time I do I find something new; something to help me breathe mor clearly despite life's clogging fumes... and something to make me think. This is a gem of an anthology written from the heart by a man who has lived his life perhaps not wisely; but to the full. James Murphy's work oozes urgency and wisdom. Read it. Then read it all over again. Then pass it to a friend. They'll love you for it.

This book is compelling on so many levels. Not only does Lisa take you with her on her journey to different locations around the world, she takes you on a journey to her heart, mind and soul. I would consider this a must read for everyone.

WOW! The author (Lisa Rhodes) allows the reader to take an exciting journey to the most exotic locations on Earth. Destinations include the far east, the middle east, Africa and perhaps the most exotic, her heart and mind. This journey is a clear illustration of how travel can expand one's self.
Highly recommended!!

Roads To Existence is a real page turner. I couldn't put the book down. I trotted the globe with this author to places that I didn't even know existed. The book has so many levels to it. The author takes you on a journey to remote places in the world and at the same time to remote place within her soul. The way Lisa Rhodes transitioned from the collective experience to the personal expereince was masterfull. I couldn't help but ponder my own existence. I loved the way she interacted with the 'real' people, off the beaten path. The book is rich with emotion. I laughed and cried. I was outraged and inspired. I'm in awe of the courage that this woman had to travel around the world by herself and at the same time to look so deeply within and heal. I enjoyed the journey immensely. Thank you Lisa Rhodes for sharing your story!
S Jennings
Colorado Springs, Colorado

I expected this book to give me an insight on the local cultures of communities around the world, and it definitely met that expectation. What I didn't expect is the emotional journey that the writer puts the reader through. I started reading the book when I sat down for a long flight. And when the plane landed I was disappointed since I hadn't finished reading yet. I just couldn't put the book down. As soon as I got to my parents place, instead of visiting with them, I decided to finish the last few pages of the book before starting my visit. I love visiting my parents, but I think I made the right choice. This book is so eye-opening, they should make it required reading for everyone.

This is an amazing book. Reading it was like taking a journey with the author through countries I've always wanted to know about but wouldn't dare go to on my own. The same goes for the emotional journey Ms. Rhodes takes us through. Her life story and personal evolution give the reader rare insight unto the workings of a remarkably brave female heart and mind. I couldn't put this book down!!!!!!!

A HARD TO PUT DOWN BOOK. From wanting to see what could happen next, to what else could happen to this poor woman. This woman that went thru so much & never gave up looking for happiness. I'm glad to see another cycle of abuse was broken. Her children are successful & the struggle to make it is not as tough for them, thanks to her endurance. It must have taken a lot to relive all of this & share her life with us, Thank you for that. I know that we are never alone it is good to see I am not alone in this belief. I look forward to more from Rose, you left me wondering.

A HARD TO PUT DOWN BOOK. From wanting to see what could happen next, to what else could happen to this poor woman. This woman that went thru so much & never gave up looking for happiness. I'm glad to see another cycle of abuse was broken. Her children are successful & the struggle to make it is not as tough for them, thanks to her endurance. It must have taken a lot to relive all of this & share her life with us, Thank you for that. I know that we are never alone it is good to see I am not alone in this belief. I look forward to more from Rose, you left me wondering.

I couldn't put the book down. This is an american story of the struggle that so many single mothers have endured. Abusive relationships can blossom into happy endings. People love to blame their present day problems on their upbringing. Witness the true to life drama of an american family that does not allow the past horrors dictate their future. You won't want to put this book down...

This book could not have a more appropriate title. I wish every woman who feels she's had a hard life, or been dealt a bad hand, etc. would read this. Rosie Hodges is living proof that adversity can be overcome and your life is what you make of it, together with God.

The book takes you on an emotional journey, which is filled with the gamut of sentiments regarding the ups and downs of being raised up in an abusive environment, as a child, and then- lo, and behold- marrying into an abusive relationship as an adult, not once-- but twice. Sometimes you feel absolute sorrow, other times you might say, "how STUPID can she be?" Don't be surprised if you even feel hurt at times, when she goes through hurt, and pain, and abuse-- by spirits of MACHO.

And-yes, there are times of joy, and happiness, showing allout moods of upbeat and high spirits!

The author is very good in her literary expressions. In fact, it gets to the point that you want to DARE NOT put it down(this book); your mind becomes suspenseful and you begin to feel, "I've got to know what happened next!"

It's just a great book... and to top it ALL, the outcome is not defeative for the author-- it's triumph!