Books Books

The Truth (I'm a girl, I'm smart and I know everything) is a little book that gives a lot to think about. Told through the diary entries of a young girl who keeps a fake diary for her parents to find while writing the truth in her real diary, The Truth seems even more universal because the reader never learns the name of the diarist. We read her entries for the day and are free to picture her in our own minds as we will.

The Truth lets us in on the thoughts of a 10-year-old who is still very much a child, but who is also growing up and not sure how to deal with the changes she's going through. For instance, when she gets a crush on a boy in her class, it's such a powerful feeling that she knows she will love him forever. Yet, she fantasizes that she could easily have lots of children and take care of them well because she takes such good care of her dolls.

You feel the ache of a child's wanting to know about the changes that are in store for her, and her frustration that adults in her life think she's too young to think or talk about the things she's curious about. It's a great reminder that our children want and need information about topics parents are often uncomfortable talking about, and how important it is to talk about them.

Moms and daughters will have lots to talk about if they read The Truth together: How do children feel when they hear their parents argue? When do they need to know about changes their bodies go through in adolescence? Why is it important to hear about these things from parents?

I was a bit surprised to discover that the diary entries were not written in current times, but as though the writer was growing up in the 1950s or 60s. References to comic books, I Love Lucy, dial telephones and Brownie cameras may be confusing to some younger girls. But that shouldn't keep the book from being an interesting and quick read. And there's a great list of questions for kids at the end that's perfect to use in a mother-daughter book club meeting.

Reminiscent of Judy Blume...but broader.
As intimte and universal as Margaret's poignant conversations with God, The Truth (I'm a girl, I'm smart and I know everything)embraces today's preteen girl with equal candor and affection. With fresh and intimate insight, psychologist Barbara Holstein opens the private pages of a girl's heart and keeps us turning them. Much contemporary childen's literature is devoted to the turmoil and triumphs of later adolescence; The Truth...is a unique and wonderful prequel that appeals equally to the girl curled up in an armchair on a rainy day and the grown up girl embarking on the perilous parenting of a burgeoning teenager.
The Truth...provides an inviting stage for parent and daughter to read and converse, singly or together. This stream-of-conscious glimpse into the mind of a girl artfully and softly links the generations, illuminating the common thoughts and dreams of preteen girls and unlocking the back of the wardrobe for confident passage beyond the travails of today's middle school. Read it, share it, discuss it, expand upon it--it's a summer afternoon stroll that's worth taking!

The Truth for Girls is like the "All I needed to know I learned in Kindergarten" poems, but written in a new and fun format. Remembering what it was like when you were a kid is a great way to help you be a better parent. I can see any gender getting benefit from this book.

It seems in our overscheduled, hyperspeed, time pressed world we lose our inner child more quickly. How refreshing a viewpoint that while at the center of exploring her universe, "our girl" pledges not to forget herself. Would that we all could promise the same! The struggles to reconcile thinking and feeling combine beautifully with physical and emotional development. A masterpiece of simplicity in childhood wisdom....a gem for those who have been or are children AND those who have been or are parents.

At first glance, The Truth (I'm a girl, I'm smart and I know everything) might not hook the reader at first. It might seem presumptuous, arrogant and even unbelievable. However, upon further reading, some of what the fictitious twelve year old rings true. It's very difficult for parents, siblings, teachers, and other adults to sit down and listen to a pre-teen. It never occurs to some adults that pre-teens give a lot of thought to what they see, hear, and experience. In this particular twelve year old journal, the girl is a keen observer of what takes place before her eyes and ears.

When I was a parent, I was warned to be careful of my actions, words, and deeds. I was told that "young people have big pitchers." In this case, big pitchers meaning that young people often see and hear a lot more than an adult or a parent gives them credit or would admit to. The girl here tells you what bothers her and why it bothers her. She makes a sincere effort to tell the reader what she would like to see happen, if only for a brief moment. This twelve year old takes nothing for granted. Because of her parent's arguments, because of her teacher's insincerity, and because of her own admittance of how things ought to be, she exposes the truth at all levels.

I encourage all parents to read this book with their kids. I recommend to all teachers that they assign this book to their class, and then discuss it afterwards. Life is too short to keep repeating century old garbage. Wouldn't it indeed be lovely if the cycle of guilt, shame, and emotional manipulation be put aside, and a brave new world is inserted in its place. Think of what that would mean to adults...parents...grandparents...and kids alike.

Remember the fairy godmothers in Sleeping Beauty presented her with 'gifts' when she was born.....

A great baby present with lots of hopes and dreams for the child.

This was given to me as a baby shower gift for my daughter. It is one of our favorite books and I now give it out as a newborn gift to friends and family. The messages are powerful and simple. It is not a long book so it's perfect for bedtime.

This book is an awesome gift! It is a wonderful story that teaches children of all ages many important virtues and lessons!

This is a beautiful book about the wonderful gifts of birth! I have given this as a "new baby" gift to several of my friends, and they absolutely love the book. The illustrations and the words are done in a beautiful way. I highly recommend this as a great baby gift!

Every parent/grandparent needs this book and then every child needs to have it read to him/her over and over again so that he can know how very special the day is that he was born. This book celebrates the child's arrival to the family and helps to foster characteristics that should be a birthright to all children.

Modern, up-to-date dsp info, this second edition is a must have.
The "Tricks" chapter is outstanding.

I wouldn't be adding much to other reviews.

A good teacher can make a challenging subject accessible. This is THE book that proves it. It is a very well written introduction/reference to a field that is generally made scary by those who teach it. Any beginning electrical engineer who feels interested in DSP but doubts whether he/she is cut out for it, should read this book. It will dispel their apprehensions.

I first got hold of the "Chinese copy" of this book in paperback. I liked the book so much that I bought the hardcover real McCoy so I could pay my proper respects to the author and avoid the poor paper and ink bleed-through of the paperback version. It is one of a half dozen books on the subject that I really value.

Unlike some abstract mathematical treatments of the subject, Richard Lyons really connects with the guy who needs to make it happen on the bench. It is loaded with relevant examples and clear figures. I recommend it as a reference for the DSP practitioner and as a first class tutorial.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, to Richard Lyons for "Understanding
Digital Signal Processing", both editions. I had the great pleasure to
use and learn from the 1st edition about 5 years ago. At that time, I
had the overwhelming urge to convey my appreciation for the wonderful
work. Now that the 2nd edition is out, there is even more reason to
express how much I enjoyed and still enjoy those works.

In particular, the topics are spot on (eg, I needed to learn about CIC
Decimation filters), but most importantly, the exposition is so very
clear and so easy to understand: each step in the progression is made
obvious -- no "and then the magic happens" or "left as an exercise to
the reader" for the important stuff.

The result is an EXCELLENT EXPOSITION. The care and the craft of
carefully showing the intermediate steps makes it real and concrete.
And it is done with a beautiful balance of intuition, observation,
analysis, and math. Why sling equations around when a simple graph
makes things clear? The equations are there, but the pictures are the
teaching tools. Other books discuss the topics. Richard Lyons's books
illuminate the topics.

I'm pleased to be able to purchase these books, and happy that Richard
is being rewarded (getting royalties, for he is DSP royalty) for his
achievements.

I purchased this book because I found myself needing to do some digital signal processing and the FFT gives me anxiety. This book was an excellent and clear introduction to the basics and helped me to develop a much better understanding of the analysis. It's written in a clear style and assumes only very basic knowledge, in fact, I think you could understand much of it without even knowing calculus. I found the author's geometric exposition of aliasing to be particularly helpful.

I give the book 5 stars, but the potential reader should be aware that the book is serves as an introduction only. In the course of my analysis I discovered that some other "tricks" were necessary that could only be found in a more advanced DSP book. So, it might be helpful to have a more comprehensive reference at your side when it comes time to actually process your signals.

The Three Investigators was an AMAZING series of books,
which for some odd reason has gone out of print. It
featured three boys named, Jupiter Jones, Pete Crenshaw,
and Bob Andrews. Jupe was the brains, Pete the brawn,
and Bob the bookish one. Bob Andrews handled research,
Crenshaw was the muscle, and Jupiter was their leader,
the strategist. One day, there was a contest to guess
the number of jelly beans in a jar. Jupiter gave the
best answer, after thinking about volume and space,
and using math, to give what turned out to be the most
accurate estimate of how many jelly beans were in the
jar. The prize was the use of a Rolls Royce (Silver
Ghost), and the services of a chauffer, for what turns
out to be an idefinite time. Over the course of the
series, the chauffer tells the boys that they have been
his most interesting clients. These books basically
taught boys the importance of networking and self-esteem.
For example, Jupiter was "over-weight", some might say
"fat", but Jupiter always insisted on being called,
"stocky".

Do you see "jocks" hanging out with "nerds"? Pete Crenshaw
was the athletic one, capable of throwing a punch. Bob
Andrews handled research, and Jupiter Jones was their leader,
the "stocky" strategist.


But there is more to these books than that. For example, there
is the secret code, the triple question marks, ???, drawn in
three different colours. It was an identifying mark Jupiter
thought of, in case one of them should get lost, or worse, be
abducted. And the "ghost-to-ghost hook-up", an algorithm
Jupiter came up with to aid them in surveillance, or in "lost
and found" cases. They were on good terms with boys from lower
grade levels, who had heard of their fame as investigators.
And so the three would man the phones with a description of who
they were looking for. Each of the Investigators would call
five boys, who would in turn call another five, and so on.
The adults the Investigators were interested in, would not
be expecting children as spies. The kids would then call back
to HQ with details. Their headquarters (HQ) was hidden under
a pile of rubble, in a junkyard, and could only be entered by
secret doors and tunnels) with details. The "ghost-to-ghost
hook-up" made me think of the way girls gossip and share
information, through a "grapevine".

These books taught you communication theory, the importance
of social networks, mentoring, and friendship between boys
and men, of like attitude, if not mind. The chauffer for
example, thought the boys were cool. And they were.
Basically, this series of books teaches boys what feminists
have been teaching girls: self-esteem, networking, mentoring,
etc. These books taught co-operation skills, rather than
competitiveness.


How is it that books like these can go out of print, but
the yo-yo and hola-hoop manage to make their way back
into mass-production? A lot of books it seems, are
also being rewritten to conform to a feminist philosophy
or rather a femi-nazi agenda which promotes male hatred.
And so, the story of THREE boys working together to
solve mysteries may be "buried" just as old Warner Bros.
cartoons showing Bugs Bunny playing baseball against
the Gastown Gorrillas now seem impossible to find.


QUALITY READING MATERIAL FOR BOYS IS EITHER DISAPPEARING,
OR IS DIFFICULT TO FIND. 'Harry Potter' is a distraction.
People who have never heard of 'Harry Potter' are being
told it is evil by others who have never read it. 'Harry
Potter' may be satanic, but why protest 'Harry Potter'
when you could be demanding, "Where's the good stuff?"


Male illiteracy is being encouraged. Femi-nazis want a
relatively small percentage of the male population to
receive a "higher education" - in contrast to a much
higher percentage of the female population. These
"educated" males are the "beta" males: Femi-nazis want
beta males to specialize, doing "mental work", as
doctors, programmers, artisans, etc. In contrast,
"alpha" males are to be used for physical labour such
as "required" in construction work, landscaping, mining,
etc. Alpha males are also used to police (abuse) other
males. Males, both alpha and beta, are being "programmed"
to serve females in specialized roles, for "skilled
labour" requires that they be taught.


Feminazis encourage males to compete with each other, while
encouraging female co-operation. Males are being prevented
from NETWORKING, or protesting against feminazism. (Males
who network may be accused of belonging to "gangs" or
"terrorist organizations", and males who protest against
femi-nazism may be accused of being mentally ill.)


'The Three Investigators' stood for everything femi-nazis
are against. Femi-nazis are for male hatred, and that may
explain why these books are no longer being printed.

The Three Investigators have their first case: to find an authentic haunted house. Jupiter Jones, the intelligent leader, and Pete Crenshaw and Bob Andrews set out to see if an old castle nearby is truly haunted or not. Built by a silent film star, Stephen Terrell, no one has been able to spend the night in the castle since his untimely death many years earlier.

I first read this book about 30 years ago when I was a kid, and loved reading all the adventures of the Three Investigators, and they quickly became a favorite of mine. Now my 10 year old son and I have just finished "The Secret of Terror Castle," and he loved it, too. We especially noticed how the adventure and excitement was kept up throughout the story. We both agreed that the Three Investigators were much more exciting than the Hardy Boys, having tried to read one of that series without sucess. Instead, we found Jupiter Jones to be far more intelligent and we enjoyed the cleverness of the plot and story. We read the version with Alfred Hitchcock, which I'm sad to see has been changed in most of the books now available.

This is a good series we can recommend for kids who are sometimes reluctant to read, but who enjoy an intelligent mystery.

I remember reading this book when I was young and loved it. Great plotline with great characters and humorous dialogue at times. I started my 7 year old son on it. The first two chapters were slow going for him, but he slogged through it. The fourth chapter hooked him. He wouldn't put the book down for another 6 chapters. Recommended for ages 7 and older.

This book is so much more than a kids book. It was my first introduction to the Three Investigators, and quite possibly the best book in the entire series. The plot is quite intricate, and very intelligent. Adults can read this story and be thrilled and caught up as well, and to be honest, I get out my copy every now and then and visit with Jupiter, Bob, and Pete. The setting in California in the fifties, with Alfred Hitchcock as their mentor, is just perfect. I've read the later updated versions, with all refences to Alfred Hitchcock removed and rewritten, and I just think the original stories worked so much better. There was more of an air of mystery to them, although the stories themselves didn't change. In this book, the setting of an old movie star castle is just right. The writing is sharp, the characters already developed. Everybody at time in their life has encountered a super-smart kid, the one who knew everything. Sadly, the ones I met weren't as likeable as Jupiter Jones. This series is always clever, with strong plots, strong characters. Get these books and enjoy them. Many books aren't this well-written nowadays, especially for the teen-to-adult age range.

Quite a few children's mystery book series have become classics. Most people are familiar with Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, and Tom Swift. Even the Boxcar Children are relatively well-known. However, Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators were well-written books that offered an intelligent, interesting and more contemporary alternative to many of the earlier classic series. Many people recall the earlier series well, but the Three Investigators series, which Robert Arthur wrote and debuted in 1964, has, for now, largely been overshadowed by the other series and generally forgotten. Fortunately, all of these books are available either from Amazon or from other internet sources.

In this book, the first book in the series, we meet Jupiter Jones, Pete Crenshaw and Bob Andrews. Jupiter is the intelligent, often arrogant member of the group who has a tendency to be condescending. Pete Crenshaw is typically the muscle of the group. Pete is usually quite fearless. Bob Andrews, who begins the series with a broken leg, works at the library is handles records and research for the group.

In this debut story, Jupiter Jones has won the use of a Rolls Royce for 30 days of 24 hours each. Jupiter has also created business cards for the trio with the auspicious title "The Three Investigators," "We Investigate Anything," and three question marks. Jupiter Jones learns that Alfred Hitchcock is seeking a haunted house for use in his next film. The boys offer to find a house for Mr. Hitchcock if he will introduce their first story; thus the reason the title includes Mr. Hitchcock's name.

Soon Jupiter Jones is on the trail of a home owned by silent movie star Stephen Terrill. When the boys visit the late Mr. Terrill's home, strange phenomena in the house causes the boys to go running from the home, scared to their very bones! The mystery continues to deepen as the boys investigate Mr. Terrill's past the history of the strange house that appears to be haunted for real.

I wondered whether I would like these books as much as an adult as I did when I was a child. My answer is yes. Robert Arthur wrote these stories in a way that treated these three young boys as young adults rather than children. The three boys approach their mysteries with creativity, logic and more than a little bravery. The result is stories that continue to captivate readers.

If you are looking for mystery books for children and you are looking for an alternative to the stories I listed earlier, I highly recommend the Three Investigator series, and the best starting place for this series is absolutely with this book.

Enjoy!

Masterfully written, Banished to the Ribbons of Concrete is a true story of love, betrayal and everlasting faith.
Betrayed by his once true love who turns him in to the IRS, and fearful of an IRS probe into his investment group, the author is banished for months to a road trip across America in his decades old MG Roadster. This book is so riveting and heartfelt that the reader relives his incredible journey; from the unbelievable hardships he endures and wonderful people he meets to the horror that he faces upon his return. Compelling and heartbreaking, it is a true story of love, faith, morality and deceit, reaching deep into your very soul. A must read.
Suzanne Berglind

This is a masterpiece of a book!! I was crying, applauding, angry, hopeful
and the full range of human emotions as I shared the life and journey of this man. It is intimate and earthy..touching your soul. It causes one's
own personal reflection on one's own life and the importance of it in this
world...Mr. Vink is correct that the "Noblest cause on earth is to find true love." May you find it Jack, may we all find it...

Banished to the Ribbons of Concrete was a very hard book for me to put down. I was astonished that so much evil, and tragedy could prevail in one person's life, time after time. I so much enjoyed hearing Jack's story, and following his travels around our country. One truely has to believe in angels, after reading this book. Not all the events are bad in this book, there are many heart warming situations. I would highly recommend this book, it is very well written.

THE JOURNEY OF THE SOUL OF A MAN¹S BETRAYAL BY HIS LOVE

Donna J. Peake
Naples, Florida

Vanished to the Ribbons of Concrete Is a book that truly gives the reader a
transparent look into the soul of the author Jack Vink. I have never met
the author but through 652 pages, I have walked with him, and have felt the
feelings of having a close and intimate relationship with the heart and soul
of a man who has risen as a phoenix above the betrayal and heartache of
those he loved. In spite of this, he lights up your heart with his
incredible gentleness and loving spirit. You laugh and cry through the
pages, WHAT A STORY!!

I bought this book after being contacted at an online dating service (Match.com)by the author; he piqued my curiousity AND I needed something to start my summer reading! Mr. Vink gets high marks for marketing!
The first thing I noticed when I started reading was that the writing was very Freshman English 101, and yet, ironically, I liked that the book had pictures! So, I figured, who am I to judge? But, judge I did, and not just his misuse of tense. This was once a silly man, who lived a life better than most, complete with large homes and horses,and apparently believed that he was untouchable when it came to his finances and lifestyle. After being "betrayed" by a woman he dumped his wife and kids for, he ends up in a relationship with a woman he refers to throughout the book as his "red-haired angel," in spite of the fact she also consistently didn't do right by him. Made me start to wonder what he was really like to inspire such nasty behavior in his women? The obvious answer was that he was a man who could buy the shallow women he was attracted to, but, couldn't keep them, because in spite of what he might have convinced himself, he was never actually in an honest, true-love, reciprical relationship with either one of them. He was just too busy going on vacations and living the high life with them to notice! Regarding what he had to go on the road for: Jack manages to elude the reader as to the true nature of the business, criminal at best, at the least, unethical. Still, I admit that by the time I was reading about his time in jail, I felt genuinely sorry for him.
This is a book written by a man who at what was allegedly the worst time of his life managed to have the presence of mind to tape record his words and take photographs of his travels in banishment. And yes, I am sure he suffered tremendous pain, playing on the good of everyday people to get by, suffering physical ailments, and sleeping in his car (a very nice car, by the way). But, Jack, I've been through a lot worse!
Still, I can't not recommend this book, because by the time you're finished, you gotta like this guy, writing warts, bad judgement, self-pity party and all. He's a smart guy! And darn it, he's nice!
For those of us who presently remain wannabe authors, the novel weighs in at about 3 lbs. of inspiration: Mr. Vink can finish a book, and so can we!

This book was loved by my three nephews (one is 4 and the twins are 2). I was already their favourite aunt but I think I actually moved up a few notches on the scale with this one.

On my one week stay with my sister, I read this book to my nephews at least once per day. The four year-old liked it so much that we performed a show with puppets for the whole family based on this book.

"Bark, George" is typical Silverstein, innocuous on the surface, somewhat subversive within the depths. The child I read it to loves it, and has it memorized, and the adults find the unexpected ending very amusing. A bit of all right...

Bark George is a wonderful book. It incorporates animals, their sounds, a mother's dilema and love, and mystery/humor into a child's book. It is short, but wonderful! My 20 month old grandson wants it read to him over and over again. He loves to put on the "longest latex glove" like the veterinarian does in the book. A plus for children's literature...through 2nd grade.

My 3 kids love this book, we decided to get it for my Kindergartener's teacher, for a gift.

My daughter adores this story. She laughs so hard when the poor little puppy tries to bark and loves the mother dog's reactions to him. A fun story to read at bedtime, or anytime! Your kids will love it.

The biography of Babe and Wild Bill fills in the picture of the heroes shown in the "Band of Brothers".
Having read Malarkey's, Compton's, and Winter's, I find it fascinating how each remembers the popular events differently.
Their life stories just add to the whole picture. They help to fill in the picture from the enlisted man's view.
The more you read about these ordinary men doing extraordinary tasks, you can not help come away with a sense of gratitude for their sacrifice.

Easy Company from Band of Brothers revisited. Two of the men who became lifelong friends relate their stories. Easy to read and gives you a sense of war from men who were there. They were indeed a Band of Brothers.

Like many veterans of WW2 these two men say they are not heros, that title they insist , belongs to the boys who didn't come home.

Then what are they? They are two enlisted men who fought in some of the most savage fighting in western Europe during World War Two. The charm of this book is that these men are not officers. They were enlisted men. They were not involved in any big meetings or planning sessions. They took their orders and did their job and their shared memoire is that of the foot soldier on the battlefield. From training, through D-Day to VE and beyond.

Strangley some of the parts I found most moving were their lives after the war. When 'Wild Bill' became one of the driving forces behind the reunions that held the Band of Brothers together. Particularly touching the attmepts to welcome back Herbert Sobel. Hated during the war, he was still a mamber of the company. through the wonderful writing you feel you are there as Bill and Babe and the others are confronted by Sobel's sister, after his death. She was insensed over how her brother was depicted by Ambrose. It fell to "Wild Bill" once the chief hell raiser, to explain some hard facts to her, long after he clearly had forgiven Sobel.

These are not plaster saints but tell their stories, warts and all, gamlbing, drinking and girls rank along side battles and jumping and all the rest. Playing jokes on each other, dodging uptight officers and mourning those whom they would call heros.

So why is this getting so much attention? Well it's very well written. Also, well known from the Ambros book "Band of Brothers" and the HBO series these two men, and the other members of Easy Company, 506 PIR have come to represent all those GI's who went to war. We can hear about 10,000 men going into Arnhem or 90,000 going to Stalingrad, but the numbers are too big. We can't wrap our minds around them. But with Easy Company we can. We can see a few men and names and follow their fates through the war and so, by expansion all the others who served in the war. We can't think of 10,000 men. But we can think of Bill and Babe and their buddies and then a few more companies like them and that we can get.

They were members of an elite unit, but other than that they were pretty common. They are two examples of the millions of americans who put aside their lives and comfort and safety and went out to do nothing less than save the world. You know, that seems pretty darn heroic to me.

After watching Band of Brothers, I couldn't wait to read this book by "Wild Bill" Guarnere and "Babe" Heffron. It really gives you an insight into what went through their minds during the hell of WWII, but the most poignant thing is the enduring love and friendship all of these guys still have for each other. It's a lesson we all should learn.

In "Brothers in Battle, Best of Friends", Bill Guarnere and Babe Heffron not only tell us more in-depth stories of their Easy Company exploits but give us a true insight into the bonds formed in battle that most of the rest of us never experience let alone understand. Heffron and Guarnere grew up literally just blocks from each other on the tough streets of Depression era Philadelphia with the same strengths that would see them through the toughest of times during the Battle of the Bulge and the siege of Bastogne during the bitter Winter of 1944-45. We learn of the toughness ingrained into their generation and the street-wise attitudes that lent them the drive to be among the Army's best, the Parachute Infantry. That same savvy enabled them to continue to survive some of the toughest actions and conditions of WWII in the European Theater of Operations.

Bill was a tough sergeant, the prototypical inspirational leader of his men. Leading always by example, he not only lead them in combat but also looked after them like a doting father, especially when meeting Babe as Heffron joined Easy Company as a replacement at Aldbourne, the 506th Regt's. English home following Easy's Normandy exploits.

Robyn Post has done a marvelous job of compiling her interviews of these men not only humanizing each of their personalities but without adding her own to the mix.

If you are interested in first-person information on Easy's exploits in battle with the warmth and humor that only these two B of B can tell them, then please buy this book. Following a more than 60 year friendship forged in the toughest of times is educational, humorous and above all, inspirational.

In my life long search for the true meaning of life I have studied and investigated a lot of things. Ultimately I have become convinced that our truth purpose in life is enlightenment and now study and follow the so called non-dual religions of the east. Having found non-dual wisdom I abandoned all my previous spiritual / religious beliefs including the belief in channeled information as well as the new age idea's that we reincarnate to learn specific lessons. So initially I was resistant to revisit the concepts that are presented in this book as they seemingly are in direct conflict with the non-dual wisdom path. How could both be right? One believing that the personal self is an illusion and that there is only one true nature and the other believing that there is a spirit world and that we have individual immortal souls that reincarnate to learn lessons. However it proved well worth my while to put aside my reservations and read this book!

My review will not cover the `life plan' aspects of this book as so many other reviewers have already done that. If that is what you expect then it would be better to read one of the other reviews. If it interests you to read on then you will find a high level critical review of this book based of the highest level of spiritual truth that I know, the non-dual wisdom teachings of the east.

"If you always - and I mean always - take the higher road, the higher frequencies will lift you into more loving actions towards others." ~ Page 285, Courageous Souls. Non-dual wisdom says if you seek your true nature then the Self will begin to pull you in. What I discovered in reading this book was that it is far more inline with non-dual wisdom than I initially suspected. It now seems to me that reincarnation and life lessons are an intermediate stage (that we all go through) which will ultimately lead to the desire to seek enlightenment itself, which is where the non-dual teachings of the east begin. The channeled information in the book states quite clearly that the personality structure is an illusion created for learning; "The personality is the illusion that is required on Earth in this space-time to learn the lessons" ~ Page 222; "You must understand that the personality is a construct" ~ Page 230. Non-dual wisdom says something very similar that the personality is a construct / illusion and that enlightenment is seeing through the construct and knowing ones true Self, which is indescribable impersonal conscious non-duality (oneness).

I am university trained in logic and deductive reasoning and do not simply believe something because it sounds impressive or it is popular. I put everything I come across through rigorous logical analysis and cross checking and only embrace it when it stands up to thorough examination. Just because I have embraced spiritual teachings does not mean that I have thrown out logic and reason. Therefore the unscientific approach of this book grated on me and although I was pleased that the author validated the information by using several different sources for the same person the book is clearly written with no objectivity. I found the writing style too informal and loose for what I consider a serious subject. The author repeatedly inserts his own understanding of the material, his personal beliefs and common new age beliefs which requires some sorting through because of the different sources and levels of understanding mixed together. The reliability of the source of all information is of utmost important to all scientists.

Spiritual truth can only ever completely be trusted when spoken by someone who knows because they have been there experientially. Second hand truth may be true but there is no way to verify that it is not simply nice cozy concepts that we want to believe in because they make us feel better. Lastly I definitely do not trust channeled information, for the same reason, you have a completely unverifiable source of information. You have no idea what level of consciousness that `spirit' who is providing the information has reached, in fact you have no idea if information is even being channeled. A clever psychic or psychologist could simply be reading you and telling you what you expect to hear or giving you some spiritual information that they read in books especially after you have already provided them with a lot of information upfront. I am not saying that the information provided in this book is not true but rather that you can not verify the source of the information and therefore it is automatically less trust worthy. For these reasons the book lost one star. Despite my misgivings I still rated this book at four stars simply because of the inspiring and beneficial affect it had on me. And despite what I have said I have faith that the unverifiable `life plan' information is reasonably reliable because I crossed checked the other channeled information with my non-dual wisdom sources and these sources I have complete faith in since I have been validating them for years.

Some further extracts; "Do not consider reuniting, for that betokens a separation. There is never any separation. What the personality feels after death, when it feels as one with God, is simply the brushing away of cobwebs that obscure its view" ~ Page 223. Non-dual wisdom says that the world appears as duality but in reality is non-dual. In other words there is no separation only a oneness, this applies to physical object as well as consciousness. Further it says that we can not see reality because our view is obscured. "we create the illusion in which we appear to be separate from one another and All That Is" ~ Page 203. "The realization and recognition that one is responsible for creating one's own sense of happiness and well-being" ~ Page 143. This is also a teaching from a high consciousness level and indeed similar to non-dual wisdom which states that we project all meaning out onto the world. All emotion states stem from our mental positioning towards objects. Therefore if we give up our constant mental positioning we can experience peace. "What other activities are you engaged in? We, too, server as guides and mention for others, and we seek our own melding with the absolute"; a question that is asked of channeled spirit ~ Page 74. This is saying that there are other beings in other realms also seeking enlightenment in their own way and this agrees with the non-dual teachings that say we are seeking enlightenment.

I have given some examples from the book that I have been able to verify with my non-dual wisdom sources. Some other concepts that are mentioned in the book that also correlate with non-dual wisdom are impermanence, non-judgment, compassion and love. One of my non-dual western master teachers often says how judgment is reserved for God alone and that we think is just a beggar on the street may actually be an enlightened master. This book really helped me embrace this teaching. I have found faith in what else is offered about life lessons and despite my continued weariness and tendency to distrust channeled information I have found this book of great interest and usefulness. It certainly helped me become less judgmental, more accepting, inspired greater hope and meaning, and resolved a long conflict I had between my past new age beliefs and current faith in non-dual wisdom. In essence both teachings are true and compatible but vary in approach and target audience. I highly recommend this book to those of you who embrace new age and also to those who study non-dual wisdom (as an interesting and useful adjunct to your primary teachings). I end with one more validation with the non-dual wisdom teachings.

"The hermit who sits alone on a mountaintop radiating a vibration of peace does more to bring harmony to the world than the angry peace marcher." ~ Page 270

Since the sketical part of me never really stands down, I loved that the author used a back-up channeler for every example. One channeler for initial information, and a second, independent one to give her own insights. Although I certainly can't claim that every reader will have this experience, I did find peace through understanding about a life-long hurt. There was no answer to the question I (thought) I was looking for, but then came an enormous, clear understanding of a question I didn't know to ask! And the writer's style is thoroughly enjoyable.

Linda Senn, author of The Many Faces of Journaling: Topics &: Techniques for Personal Journal Writing

If there is ever one word to describe this book, its powerful. What a concept...that suffering is never meaningless, but a vehicle of purposeful intent and that we, as eternal souls, planned to use certain challenges to foster growth not only for our own souls but for the sake of our soul group and the universe at large. Putting it into a context like this, suffering has a whole different meaning.

According to the book, those around us also plan our lives intertwined with ours and all decisions are made out of love, no exception. I now think about my own challenges and those who have played a key role in my own personal growth and look upon them with gratitude and not judgment, including the "villains" in my story, because they fostered the most growth out of me. I am only now beginning to see the perfection of life. Aside from clarity, this book will bring healing and infinite comfort to those going through extreme suffering in their lives by learning there are no victims in this world.

Part of me picked up this book to find comfort for my own inner wounds. I cried when I read the words "Only the courageous plan fear" for I knew, that was what I intended to heal and have been working on it for years, having them dissipate one by one.

It has been a long time since I closed a book and felt warm, comforted and knowledgeable. The author takes you by the hand and guides you through this information with compassion, grace and great wisdom. I just cannot fully express how wonderful this book is. It is absolute perfection and if I could, I'd give it more stars. If there is ever a book I'd recommend, it would be this one!

I absolutely love this book! I knew that we had pre-planned our lives before reading it, but it explains it so well with people's stories to show you examples. I really hope I can get my friend to read it as I think it will help her to understand the reasons for some of her challenges in her childhood and now. EXCELLENT BOOK!

Everything always makes sense when you can see the big picture. This book provides a glimpse into why events we perceive as "bad" happen, through a varied collection of individual cases.

Our lives in this "reality" are just learning experiences, to expand our awareness of ourselves, we agreed to before we arrived on the planet.

This story is the best I, ve read in all the series.It shows Stanton's pointo of view.You get to know him a little better and understand all the problems he faces as a follower because of his love for Serena.Stantons a dream guy.He's cute,mysterious, and has really cool powers.
I think the author should write more books on him and stop writing Sons of the Dark!!
-TLATKD

This was the book that made me keep reading after I read the first in the series. I wanted to get to the book that I knew would be focused on Stanton and his point of view. It wasn't as fufilling as I had hoped, however, it was not as dissapointing as the book told from Serena's P.O.V. What is great about this book of this series as all of the background information we are getting, Stanton's past, that of some of his fellow followers and more of the technicalities of following the Atrox. The book also does a nice job of leaving you wondering what is going to happen next. It doesn't necessarily leave you with a burning desire to find out what happened next, but a mild curiousity that could lead to me reading it, or not.
And I still don't get the attraction between him and Serena. I almost want him to hook up with Cassandra, she seems more interesting in many ways.

I read this book along with the Secret Scroll this week-end. I love Stanton. I can't believe what he did to save Serena. I liked seeing into his life and knowing what he thinks. The book held me captive and I couldn't stop reading until I had finished it.

The Lost One by Lynne Ewing is one book of a fantastic series. The book tells about a 5 girls who become close friends by finding out that they are all special in one way or another. Catty can time travel, Vanessa can become invisible, Serena can read minds, Jimena can tell the future,
and Tianna can move things with her mind. These 5 girls make up the Daughters of the Moon. "Tu es dea, filia lunar. You are a goddess, a Daughter of the Moon"(Ewing 271). These girls come together to try to help Catty who has gone missing. If they dont find her they will all be destoyed forever. Will they ever get Catty back in time? Will the Atrox finally destroy The Daughters of the Moon? To find that out you'll have to read the
book. I absolutely love this book. It is the kind of book that always keeps you on your toes. When you start reading this book you will never want to put it down. The Author mixes mystery, danger and love into this book. I would recommend this book to people who love mystery and adventures because that's all what the book is, a great big adventure.

...I really enjoyed the book. My 18 year old daughter brought the book home last year, and she can't get enough of it or the series of books under the Daughter's of the Moon series.

I wouldn't personally reccommend the book for the younger teen audience, as it deals with some more grown up situations than a 13 or 14 year old may really understand, and with the fantasy elements and the supernatural aspects of the book, a slightly older audience would probably be better able to read the books for what they are.

In all, the book has a great story, interesting characters, and seeing things from a point of view that is not what one would normally find in books of this nature really makes the book compelling.

I would recommend it for the young adult crowd.

informative, accurate and advice is well explained. The children involved are ALWAYS of the highest priority. As usual though grandparents are forced to take a back seat and await a time when things are so out of control and the children are damaged before the court system recognizes the important roll they play in the children's future.

I have worked extensively in this area of family therapy, and I strongly recommend this book to any parent with children who is going through a divorce> It is also a must read for family attorneys, judges and social workers.

I am a mother of an 11-year old girl and was recently involved in a very high-conflict divorce. My daughter was sytematically stripped of her "mother/daughter" memories which were then replaced with father/daughter memories that didn't exist.

I had no idea what was happening let alone knowing how to neutralize my daughter's anger and the degredation of our once loving and incredibly strong relationship. Then, I read "Divorce Poison." It was as if it was written just for us!

I followed every single suggestion Dr. Warshak had for parents in my particular situation, and it WORKED EXACTLY AS HE SAID IT WOULD!

Not only did it work, we are back on track and enjoy an even closer relationship. Thanks to Dr. Warshak, my daughter now knows to trust her own experiences - what SHE sees, what SHE hears, what SHE experiences - rather than what she is told of her experiences. Consequently, she is now BULLET-PROOFED against future manipulation, even though she is still confronted with manipulative situations. She sees the truth for the truth and has become very skilled at identifying what is not truthful. She has regained her deep trust in her mother and our unwavering/strong relationship.

THANK YOU DR. WARSHAK!

Wow! Incredibly insightful...

Dr. Warshak comes at this subject from all angles! I have to say that I saw so many similarities to my situation that it was as if he was writing this book from my experiences, sadness, frustration and at times, horror of being the alienated parent. I'll also admit that I found myself being admonished for things (little mistakes) that I inadvertingly made in trying to solve issues. I have read and re-read ideas and suggestions that he presented. I have tried to make them habits in the last few months, trying to learn from all the craziness that has kept my life in a whirlwind of divorce and custody proceedings the last two years. Through some of the ideas presented in this book, I'm learning to think in a different, more productive way - for my own sanity and that of my children. I am hopeful that with this new way of thinking, I can overcome this horrible situation. So for that... thank you, Dr. Warshak.

In my opinion, this is a great book for those who are struggling with finding answers on how to cope with divorce and alienation from your children. Good luck and Godspeed to all of you!

I've read many books in this area, but none as well written, authorative and useful as this one - it should be compulsorary reading for all parents, whether together or separated. The Take Action sections have practical steps that will really help you in your bewilderment and feelings of helplessness and remember that virtually all children benefit from the involvement of both of their parents, so never give up, no matter how hard the struggle or pointless it may all seem. Thankyou, Dr Warshak.