UK Books

Does this book, with its five lessons of life have relevance after the events of September 11, 2001? Does it show the way forward so that the west can live in harmony with the east? My answer to both questions is yes and in a few years time, I suspect that I will look back on this book as being very influential in setting priorities in my life.

Bill Adams, the author, lives in India and while taking a holiday in the north he meets an Amchi. An Amchi is a wise man who lives and teaches the wisdom of the centuries of this remote part of the world - a wisdom that has now been lost in written form but is continued by word of mouth. The wisdom stems from the fact that the people in this area are very different but they have learned to live in harmony and get along with each other for the good of the community. Adams visits a temple which is used by two distinct religions. One group is violent and uses blood sacrifices while the other is peaceful and follows the teachings of Buddha. That two such contrasting groups have been able live successfully side by side for centuries suggests that we have something to learn from their philosophy of life.

The Amchi teaches Bill Adams five lessons which changed his life and will, I think, change mine. The first lesson is to take the time to discover what is important to you. This sounds easy but as I look back on my life I realize that I have only a vague notion of my priorities. Bill Adams decided that the most important thing in his life was his young son. Once he realized this he changed his life to give more quality time to his priority. For instance, his meal times became more important and more focussed. As there are only a limited number of hours that father and son can spend together, Adams set out to make each one count.

In the same way we are lead through the other lessons passed on by the Amchi. There is nothing difficult about learning and implementing them but with our busy lives it is easy to keep on putting them on the back burner and never actually getting round to doing something about them until it is too late. This book has helped me to clarify what are the important things in my life and to make sure that I keep focussing on them. For this push back in the right direction I will always be grateful.

Why are these lessons relevant to living successfully in our world after September 11, 2001? It seems to me that we have two broad options. Either we wipe out everyone who we think might commit a terrorist act against us or, like the people of northern India, find a way to live harmoniously with people of a highly contrasting life style. The second path is the only sustainable one.

Even if I as an individual am successful in living these five lessons, what effect will this have at government level? I believe that it is impossible to have peace and harmony at a community level, at a national level and at a world level if I am not peace and harmony in all that I think and say and do. The community is made up of many individuals and if a sufficient number have learned the lessons from this book we will influence the community and then the nation and then the world. Every successful society has a common philosophy of life and shared values. We can influence those around us in creating a philosophy of life which will allow us to live without the threat of terrorist acts.

It all comes back to the first lesson - taking time to discover what is important to us. If the most important thing is to have the most toys when we die, then almost certainly we will continue to live in a world where terrorism is rife. If it is more important for us to leave a world to our children and grandchildren which is peace and harmony, then there is no better place to start than to absorb these five lessons and to encourage others to do likewise. I am part of the problem and I have to change to become part of the solution.
dwillis@afs.edu.gr

The author describes how he met a healer-sage in a himalayan retreat and learnt about the five lessons about life. ( The author claims it as a true story). He is a westerner settled in India. He goes for a retreat to mountains with his wife and kid. There he comes across a healer-sage who always goes with a dog. In the first meeting the healer calls him by name and welcomes him. The healer-sage goes from village to village to treat people. In a series of meetings he give the five lessons. The lessons are not new for any one exposed to spiritual/self help books. Basically one should meditate on one's situation, find proper value to guide life and appreciate interdependence of all forms of life. But the story telling is very good. For instance, one night the author goes out and meets the sage at a place with a warming fire. He stays whole night with him. While he returns in the morning, he is worried about that his wife would have been anxious looking for him. He finds her sleeping. When he asked her whether she worried about him, she answers that the old man came and gave a message that he would be away whole night. The description of the feature of old man fits with the features of healer-sage. One of the main episodes deals with how the healer-sage prepares a family for death of the family head.
The author ends the book with some prophesies of the sage. The section could have been avoided.
The lessons are extremely meaningful.

This book is now published as The Water Mirror. No word yet on the translation of book two in the series but, this is brilliant, fast-paced and it makes you think. I believe some of the subject matter might be a little much for today's conservative america but, if you are an open minded parent and wish to raise your children in the same manner, then I suggest this book. Gotta love it when a child is forced to make an agreement with the devil in order to save the goddess of Venice, right?

It is my opinion that reading a book in the original language is always the best so I speak from the experience of reading this book in German. I am ecsatic to find it published in English because it is a really good story.

Meyer combines elements of fact and magic to masterfully create a setting in Venice that is neither here nor there. The story follows a young girl, Merle, as she seeks to find the truth about herself and save her home from destruction. She is drawn into a bigger tide of events that she herself cannot see by the mysterious "Flowing Queen"--the lifeblood of Venice. Aided by a troop of odd people and creatures, Merle must save the entire world in order to save her friends.

I would recommend all lovers of fantasy to read this series. The story is much like the books Dianna Wynne Jones: fun and fantastic.

Thanks heaps awesome cookbook, have looked around for a cookbook that is easy to understand, have cooked heaps of recipes from it.
The ingredients are easy to obtain and methods easy to understand. My friends say thank you as well !!

I have loved Indian cuisine and culture for many years - and have read many books on both.
In my collection, this book stands out as a truly great guide to authentic Indian cookery, and to the history and culture of India itself.
Keith Floyd opens this book with a travelogue which is a joy to read. Profuse use of photographs create a great atmosphere as you see the places described come alive on the page.
Next, we are introduced to a range of dishes (both vegetarian and non-vegetarian), and those I have tried I have enjoyed a great deal.
In summary, this is a great book, and one of my favourite guides to India and indian food. If you are looking for a book on either, you could do a lot worse than to buy this book! I very highly recommend it!
One sentance review: "A great Indian cookbook that is a joy both to read and to use!"

If you like Historical Fiction THIS IS IT!!!!!!!! Winstom Graham, now decesed began these family saga novels in the 1950's 'and finished the
Poldark Saga shortly up to his death.


The books number 13 in the saga and are the very best read, Ross Poldark is a swashbuckling romantic hero, the type one doesn't see these days.

The Four Swans, book six, marks the mid-point in the Poldark series. Set in Cornwall and also elsewhere in England at this time, The Four Swans sees Ross Poldark, survivor of war, feuds, plagues, murder attempts, raids, rivalries and marriage to the longsuffering but fiery Demelza Carne, discovers a new danger in his midst when a young (and gradually dying) naval officer he rescued from certain death in a French prison, becomes openly enchanted with Demelza, and quietly seeks to gain the love of this ever-loyal, beautiful woman. Trouble also stirs in the Enys household, where tragedy pays a visit to Caroline and Dwight, and the doctor's health is still not all it could be as a result of his incarceration. And even amid the extravagance with which George Warleggan surrounds himself and his family, all is not well. George tries to quell fears about Valentine's paternity, but his terrible suspicions that the child he is raising as his own heir is in fact the offspring of his enemy Ross Poldark, sets off a venomous fever that imperils his relationship with Elizabeth, the only woman he has ever loved. Meanwhile Morwenna's wedded life with the moneyed cleric, Osborne Whitworth, is an ongoing nightmare from which a pure-hearted boy, Demelza's younger brother Drake Carne, wishes to rescue her, unaware of the danger in which he places them both. The Four Swans was perhaps the last time Graham allowed such a deliberate pace to be used in his Poldark books, and this novel stands as a sort of gift from the writer to those who love the series, and lets a reader sit back and feel the totality of this immense literary undertaking go on around him...right before the series leaves familiar waters and plunges into the rapids of the year 1799 and the violent nineteenth-century after that.

Frankie Howerd was a much-loved stand-up comedian in Britain from the 1940s to the 1990s. He also appeared in tv shows in Canada and Australia, made several movies and starred in the hit sitcom 'Up Pompeii'. This biography is a superb introduction to the man and the performer, providing one with a remarkably thorough, well-written and well-researched account of his life, career and achievements, and it also fascinates with its more general insights into British comedy and the art of stand-up comics. Hugely enjoyable.

American readers may know of Frankie Howerd via BBC Worldwide (which screens, occasionally, his 1970s sitcom 'Up Pompeii!'), or possibly his association with the musical comedy 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum' (he took Zero Mostel's place in the first London production), but there's so much more to him than this, and, if you have a passion for the history of stand-up comedy, he is a vital figure to add to your memory banks (if you thought that Eddie Izzard, for example, is doing something 'revolutionary,' then you need to discover Frankie Howerd, who made such stand-up possible). Graham McCann, quite rightly, celebrates him as Britain's most innovative stand-up comic, because Howerd was the first to stop telling gags and start finding humour in his own life and comedy character. From the mid-1940s through to his death in 1992, Howerd delighted audiences on radio, television, movies and the stage, and the classically 'rollercoaster' nature of his long career - which saw him suffer multiple setbacks as well as enjoy multiple triumphant comebacks - makes it a compelling read. McCann writes beautifully, and with unforced authority, about Howerd's rise to fame, the perfection of his stand-up technique, and the various crises behind the scenes, and he also provides countless fascinating anecdotes about such events as the time when Howerd followed Lenny Bruce at Peter Cook's Establishment club, Galton and Simpson's ill-fated 1968 Broadway production of 'The Wind in the Sassafras Trees,' and Howerd's unlikely new wave of popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s with a fresh generation of college students, 'alternative' comedians and even Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols. This is a serious book about comedy that still encourages you to laugh and love: it is a superb biography of a unique comic star. I don't tend to write reviews online, but I loved and admired this book so much I felt compelled to make my appreciation public. This one is a special.

After seeing the film "Frida" starring Selma Hayek, I wanted to see more of Frida Kahlo's paintings. (I had already been to Mexico City where the guides readily show you Diego Rivera's murals but say nary a word about Frida except when she appears in Diego's works).

I am pleased I chose this beautiful and profusely illustrated coffee-table style book. It holds a place of honour on my bookshelves, its cover-jacket and self-portrait of Frida & her trademark "unibrow" facing the viewer as you walk in the door.

The book was produced to accompany the 2005 Tate Gallery exhibition of Frida Kahlo's work, and is a must-have for anyone wishing to have a closer look at her life and art without the trouble and expense of travelling to Mexico.

The catalogue for the 2005 Tate exhibition, this book is a complete survey of F.Kahlo's career. Present here are her major portraits (of the Mexican high society as well as of her husband, Diego Rivera) and also her more famous self-portraits. An informative text helps the reader forget all the recent hype surrounding the artist and concentrate on her best legacy: her paintings, many of which are masterpieces of introspection and portraiture.Seeing all the self-portraits, one after the other, makes you understand the artist's life, pains and sorrows, better than any Hollywood mega-production...

For decades now books and articles have theorized on british industrial decline (or "relative decline"). Culprits have been pointed: unions, poor management, nationalization, the education system and more. Geoffrey owen names all them but with the insight of distance he presentes a more balanced view. Failure to enter the EEC with consequent focus on the commonwealth and government mismanagement of nationalized industries and constant bail out of lame ducks drove to a loss of competitiveness on the world stage with consequent market loss. The entrance to the common market in 1973 and the thatcher reforms of the eighties forced firms to adapt and become international players on a globalized economy with the success we today now. But what makes this book stand out most is its analysis of industry by industry, ilustrated with real stories of dozens of firms, wich gives a vivid picture tha lacks so much in other texts. A good book, lucid, concise, recomended.

This excellent, thorough and generally very readable study of Britain's manufacturing industry since World War II well exceeded my expectations of it on first picking up the book at the library. This book attempts to analyse the reasons for the failures and successes of a variety of industries, and puts all the case studies in a historical context which is meticulously researched. Given the subject matter, the author could easily have opted to grind the axe for one political ideology over another, but refrains from doing so, which I found refreshing. All-in-all I came away from reading this book with a much clearer understanding of why manufacturing in Britain has fared as it has since 1945. This book is impressive, and I recommend it highly.

This is a fascinating autobiography by a very successful medium. The most interesting part is her gripping account of some of her sittings, which she does without revealing the names or whereabouts of her clients. From her mindboggling and yet very touching experiences, one feels transported into the world of spirits. There is no doubting her descriptions. Her language has an easy flow and a personal touch that quite inspires one to read more and go higher into mediumship. A consistently inspiring book and a must read for mediums or psychics who wish to know how to handle their clients or write about them, the best way that could be done.

It has been a long time that I have read a book and been unable to sit it down..... This book was one the best books I have read in a long time.... This book is about a gypsy fortune teller... she has the gift... I have recommended this book to many of my friends..... a must read....

Funky Chickens is another book of humane, compassionate and entertaining poems by vegan/animal lover Benjamin Zephaniah. His writing is delightful and addictive. If all children and adults were to read this book it would be for the betterment of a world that needs more conciliation, reverence for life and respect for both humans and the animal kingdom ! Benjamin Zephaniah is England's goodwill envoy who loves all sentient beings ! He is also multi-talented!

Funky Chickens is a fab book, Benji puts into words what I think but dont know how to say. Its fab, hip hop, funky poems on funky often over looked subjects. Ideal for kids to grannies it really cheers you up. Its a great follow up to Talking Turkeys. Go buy it and start saving the funky chickens (you'll want to if you read it) but if you were at all attached to Benji's cat after the first book avoid reading about her in this book cause you'll cry, i cried.

Further Adventures in Search of PerfectionIn Search of Perfection

I just love the passion and commitment that Heston has for his work. Everytime I read or see the things he tries, I just want to go and buy the equipment or search for the products so I can give this stuff a go myself. And the worst thing is trying to source stuff in Australia from a UK book! (Guess we just don't have the population to create the demand.) When you think about how much the regular food market available pricewise to the average consumer is regulated by food cost and the demands for cheaper food faster, it's fabulous to see someone willing to say I daon't care about that - I just want the best thing I can get that tastes the best and presents the most evocative experience for me. Sure it's not going to be perfect for eveyone's experience/food memory, but at least it provides you with opportunity to give something a go. I admit, that as a chef, it's possible to be jaded by constantly being driven by food cost and demands for cheap food. Or the the other end of working a million (!!) hours for a tiny salary to "further your career" but possibly work woth great food. I really enjoy the passion Heston brings to his work, and just wish I could take an opportunity to work in one of his kitchens and then bring that passion back to the culinary teaching environment I'm currently in. Bravo!

a recommended insight into a brilliant mind. Entertaining and informative text with good photography.Further Adventures in Search of Perfection