Used Books

David and the Giant is a delightful book. It tells the storyof David and Goliath in a way that has our son captivated and theartwork is bright and interesting. We have been searching for bible story books that would engage and interest our 2 1/2 year old for sometime. We have finally found a real winner! I highly recommend this book!

Lonnie Scruggs writes about purchasing and re-selling mobile homes. Its an easy read, the steps are outlined 1 by 1 for you. Everything from what to look for to repairs to ads to what to say to how to sell to sample paperwork.

You don't have to be a superstar seller, you don't have to be a financial wiz to understand these simple, effective techniques. As Lonnie says, don't overanalyze! Just follow his steps and you'll be on your way.

I can't give him enough kudos. You WILL succeed with this book.

Ernest Holmes founded the metaphysical Church of Religious Science. The New Thought philosophies espoused by that and a number of other metaphysical groups utilize terms of art which frequently appropriate and redefine common usages from Christian, Buddhist and Hindu theology. This book provides a helpful guide to the reader--whether adherent to New Thought ideas or not--to understand "what the words mean" in New Thought writing. Holmes has a conversational, Sunday preacher writing style which is easy to digest. As any apologist for a faith might, his elucidation of the terms includes a fair bit of advocacy of the ideas. The mildly evangelical undertone, however, does not detract at all from the usefulness of the book as a study guide in the terms and ideas of New Thought. New Thought ideas pervaded our popular culture for the better part of the 20th C. such that many New Thought ideas are no longer seen as "new ideas", but instead as mainstream truisms. Holmes would undoubtedly find this entirely appropriate, as he did not claim for his faith an exclusive message or a freedom from influences outside the faith. New Thought is interesting in and of itself, but it is also a fascinating window into a very American system of theology. Although this work is a "dictionary" of "terms", it is not dry reading. Holmes instead is clear and reasonably simple in his language. Holmes' great gift as a writer was to be able to write popular theology which was not unduly laden with abstruse ideas. This work exemplifies the best of his writing, and is an excellent starting point for anyone who wishes to understand better just what the New Thought adherents believe, and the language of this branch of American metaphysics. The skeptic or believer in a different faith may find much to disagree with in Holmes' work, but the book is nonetheless a good exercise in just what Holmes did believe and preach. In some instances, New Thought writing can seem to be all "positive thinking" and no system. Holmes' work seeks to systematize the ideas, without alienating the reader. In the main, the work succeeds in this task.

This is the definitive book on the subject. If you want to know about (the subject) it's all here. The thing it does not cover are the companies. To this book a plane is a plane. If you want to know wether a 1924 sargeant is worth more/better than a 1913 Stanley buy a dealer catalogue. If (on the other hand) you want to know what a wheelright's felloe saw looked looked, this is for you.

were so intimately linked."

Do you have a poet's heart? Or do you consider yourself a hopeless romantic? Maybe you love great quotes and succinct information in a easy to carry and store, thin paperback? Perhaps you love gorgeous, contrasting colors full of light and shadows in passionately rendered yet solemn but oh so expressive and thought-provoking symbolism with an occasional illusionist effect (as in Waterhouse's "The Lady of Shallot" and Millias' "Ophelia") in your art then welcome to the Pre-Raphaelite movement! There is plenty of all of the above and more included in the wonderful, lightweight, colorful, informative art book!

This group (P. R. B. aka Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood) was dominated by three artists: John Everett Millias (1829-96), William Holman Hunt (1828-1910) and Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1828-82.) "The Pre-Raphelites wanted to represent modern life realistically, whether they approved or disapproved of it." Hmmm. Isn't that something that art must consist of to Be Art?!

"Go to Nature in all singleness of heart, and walk with her laboriously and trustingly, having no other thought but how best to penetrate her meaning, and remember her instruction, rejecting nothing, selecting nothing and scorning nothing; believing all things to be right and good, and rejoicing always in the truth."
John Ruskin 'Modern Painters', Vol 1, 1843. [Love it! I'll take a bottle of wine from 1843 please!]

I believe that an artist has a gift from God. Combined with free will, it becomes a reflection of the portion of God in him/her that wants and desires to be expressed, all through the artist's unique views from the heart. The work of an artist communicates, often on a much more proficient and profound level than words can ever say; the artist speaks without words and the viewer has the honor of deciding on his/her own interpretation, application and inspiration to his/her life--THIS is why I Love Art so much. Truly Art is one of the highest forms of sharing. So if you are an artist, past or present, thank you and Godspeed. o8E I would love to be an artist someday. And I see myself giving it a go again someday, if just as a hobby. Perhaps someday I'll be found by a kindred spirit working on a canvas on the beach while taking breaks doing Tai Chi and yoga. ^_^

In closing, I believe the key to getting the most from art is to look at it with an open mind and ponder the message that enters your heart. The Pre-Raphaelites do just that, touch my heart. And I enjoy pondering with an open mind!

"I mean by a picture a beautiful, romantic dream of something that never was, never will be--in a light better than any other light that ever shone--in a land no one can define or remember, only desire."
Edward Burne-Jones, head of the second generation of Pre-Raphaelites, along with Morris. [Wow, I really love this quote. The quotes and illustrations of paintings alone are worth the price of this book. Highly recommended!]

Some of the plates for your information as well as some of my favorites: (I love all of them but *** is the highest)
The Eve of St. Agnes (1848 Arthur Hughes)
Italia and Germania (1828 by Johann Friedrich Overbeck)
The Study of Gneiss Rock at Glenfinlas* (1853 John Ruskin)
The Girlhood of Mary Virgin (1848-9 Rossetti)
Ecce Ancilla Domini!** (1850 Rossetti)
Covenant Thoughts (1850-1 Millias)
Ferdinand Lured by Ariel (1849-59 Millias)
The Hireling Shepherd (1851-2 Hunt)
Claudio and Isabella** (1850-3 Hunt)
Ophelia**1/2 (Millias)
The Awakening Conscience* (1853-4 Hunt)
April Love** (1855 John Ruskin)
The Light of the World* (1851-3 Hunt)
Monna Vanna* (1866 Rossetti)
The Blind Girl*** (Millias--a woman with young child as the woman's eyes are closed and the child looks back to see a double rainbow! Deja'vu! I wouldn't have titled the painting that...)
Prospertine** (cover pix 1873-4 Rossetti)
The Beguiling of Merlin** (1870-4 Burne-Jones)

Phyllis and Demophoon* (Burne-Jones)
The Golden Stairs* (1876-80 Burne-Jones)
The Doom Fulfilled* (1884-5 Burne-Jones)
The Baleful Head** (1886-7 Burne-Jones)
Crown of Glory* (1896 Evelyn de Morgan)
The Lady of Shalott*** (1894 John William Waterhouse)

Soar!

Ken was born on 1/19/1921. There is no mention of a story that could be interpreted as his 'fall from heaven story' in his youth (see my review of "in "Werner Erhard The Transformation of a Man"). At 25 Ken contacted polio & was on wheelchairs from then on & he was able to accept it as a great gift and it disappeared on p.25. In 1970, he met an incarnation of the 3rd Patriarch of Zen on p.86:

"When thought is in bondage the truth is hidden,
for everything is murky and unclear
and the burdensome practice of judging
brings annoyance and weariness....
What benefit can be derived
from distinctions and separations?...
To set up what you like
against what you dislike
is the disease of the mind....
When the mind exists undisturbed in the Way,
nothing in the world can offend,
and when a thing can no longer offend,
it ceases to exist in the old way."

Plus with the 3 Noble Truths of Buddha, he found after 50 year the foundation of a science of happiness on p.90 & turned over his very successful real-estate business to an employee.

The GENIUS of Ken can be seen in his invention of "TURNOVER" bed on pp.20-21 that "I devised a bed that would turn me from my back to my stomach or sit me up when I pushed a switch...it could turn two people as easily as one...I was later issued a US patent on it...I wanted to donate the patent to the Veteran Administration, hoping that many hospitalized people could once again live at home with their families...VA official...later sent me a polite letter saying that the VA 'did not buy turnover beds.' I wonder if the Wright brothers were ever sent a letter from the War Department saying it did not buy airplanes! So far as I know. I'm the only handicapped person who has enjoyed this wonderful bed. The patent has expired - and I'd still like to see this invention used to help people."

SUPERMAN the actor, please take note, 'turnover bed' is a simpler cause than 'embryonic stem cell research'. because the former doesn't have any side-effect, while the later at the current level of human spiritual development will be a biological atom bomb. Plus anyone like my bed-ridden 80 year-old mom could make good use of a 'turnover bed' and hospitals too.

In the Bahamas, Ken experienced enlightenment pp.117-118: "As I watched the sun setting into the water. I moved into experiencing my loneliness as caused by my demands - no thoughts of 'wouldn't it be wonderful if I had a partner.' Life was enough. I was enough!" for 45 minutes & then he completed his MASTERPIECE "The 12 Pathways to Unconditional Love and Happiness" & his "Handbook to Higher Consciousness".

In ch. 16 Ken wrote "I had learned that the Greek word 'agape' refers to UNCONDITIONAL LOVE...As I become more aware, I found that unconditional love is a central theme in all major religions of humankind. In the Christian Bible. Paul wrote a letter to adherents in Corinth that very clearly defined UNCONDITIONAL LOVE:

'Love is very patient and kind, never jealous or envious, never boastful or proud, never haughty or selfish or rude. LOVE DOES NOT DEMAND ITS OWN WAY. It is not irritable or touchy. It does not hold grudges and will hardly even notice when others do it wrong.' "

In a photo on p.218 with Penny, there in the background is "YOUR DEMANDS CREATE YOUR UNHAPPINESS" or to put it another way 'the conditions you create or impose generate all your fears and worries'. This is why love unlike fear is unconditional.

The seed of what happened later with Penny was already planted on p.151 subtitled "Deeper Levels of Honesty": "My new game was to be totally honest so a woman could perceive what she liked about me and what she didn't like...It was okay for a woman to see me unclothed with no element of glamour. I liked that." Next page was subtitled "Criteria for Marriage" which in essence is a 'game' or 'demand' or 'condition' on Ken's part.

What happened with Penny's part can be glimpsed on p.167 "One of the few areas in which I consciously used Living Love methods was in Penny's refusal to share adult films with me. She did not like movies that showed frequent sexual activities. I occasionally enjoyed sensitive sexual movies that were being made for couples to enjoy themselves."

In spite of the above Ken still decided to have a marriage ceremony with Penny as his third wife on 9/2/1984. Ken ended his autobiography, written in 1989, with subtitles "Loving More - Demanding Less" "We're Nothing Special" "Life is My Teacher" & "The World Is My Mirror". Great EPITATH if any.

As in "Werner Erhard The Transformation of a Man: The Founding of EST" biography, written in 1978, there is a common mystery for these 2 delightfully enlightened human beings.

Both had a good relationship with their then current spouse in their respective intimate story. Werner with his second bigamous Ellen & Ken with his third wife Penny. Something happened & both of their relationships turned very sour & both ended in a (fiery) divorce?

As far I can tell in "60 Minutes and the Assassination of Werner Erhard", written in 1992, Ellen hates Werner to the point of wanting to destroy his relationships with his kids! Penny even accused Ken of brainwashing her, according to Ken's matchmaker to his 4th young wife before Ken passed away in Dec. 1995. On the inner back flap of his last book "Your road map to Lifelong Happiness" Ken has a new young wife named Lydia.

I'm very happy that Ken met Lydia in the Philippines next and 'had a turbulent but entertaining relationship' and wrote his last book on UNCONDITIONAL LOVE till - THE END.

My son used his own money to purchase this book and he really enjoyed it. I grew up reading the Spider Man comics and so I also read it. It is a combination of the description of the powers of Spider Man and how he obtained them and a list of facts about spiders. This is an interesting and effective way to teach children science. While he was reading it, he would come up to me with questions like, "Daddy, did you know spiders . . . ?"
Written at a level perfect for the later elementary school child, this book teaches science in a unique and interesting way. I strongly recommend it.

Excellent vission of the mind of Cristobal Colón and the spanish Kings and Spain about the Americas

Robert Doisneau is best known for his photo of a couple kissing on a Paris street. (Haven't seen it? You don't buy greeting cards or calendars, do you?)

Doisneau was one of the very best "street photographers" ever, who documented Paris life from the 1940s to the 1970s in classic black-and-white. His ability to capture candid moments was first rate. His photos maintained a whimsical mood, for the most part, which probably kept him from being as famous as his contemporary Henri Cartier-Bresson. Personally, I think he was better than Cartier-Bresson, in terms of timing, composition, and consistency. But Cartier-Bresson emphasized subjects with more gravity, so his pictures get the nod of history, and deservedly so. (See Cartier-Bresson's monumental retrospective "The Man, The Image, & the World" -- Thames & Hudson 2003) But Doisneau documented the ordinary, with a sense of gentle irony, so his imagery gets relegated to greeting cards.

As a portrait of Paris, as a representation of Doiseau's work, and as a lesson in photographic timing and composition, this book is better than you could ask for. The opening essay by Brigitte Ollier is overly emotional (overly French?), though informative. The pictures, however, speak for themselves, and I'd bet Ollier would be the first to say so.

The price of this book is a bargain, with 665 pages of some of the best photographs by a photographer who deserves more than greeting card consideration. Truth be told (and as a HUGE fan of Cartier-Bresson), I didn't know how absolutely incredible Doisneau was until I got this book. So you should get it, too.

This is a fantastic book. Explanations are clear, and there are plenty of relevant word problems. Makes a difficult course easy if you're willing to put the time into it.