Educational Books

I found this book to be helpful when working with a child who has Down syndrome.

Excellent resource for parents, teenagers with all types of disabilities, as well as repite providers, and teachers.

Excellent book.
Great pointers for parents of little ones with Down syndrome. As a parent of an adult with Down syndrome, I found the book to be excellent in discussing sexuality and body boundries.

Thank you for making it so easy for me to get the information I need to be the best parent I can be to my daughter who was born 15 years ago with Down Syndrome. Sometimes it feels like we are in a boat with no oars. When I find books like this that actually give me some insight it makes all the difference in the world. And right here on Amazon, I don't have to go out searching and searching.
This book is very easy to navigate and find the info I need help with. Just another way to approach things helps tremendously.
Thank you

Terri Couwenhoven's book is a terrific resource for parents and teachers of kids with Down syndrome and other disabilities (including autism). The book includes lessons to use when teaching kids about safe behavior and social relationships.

The content of this book covers key areas of course conversion and management to help prepare for online instruction and to update one's knowledge base in regards to the latest concepts in online learning. The faculty that I have trained while using this book have benefited from the rich chapters covering all aspects of online learning and teaching. I wish there had been such a book available when I began teaching online.

This book is well organized and contains many practical tips. It is a must read for those new to online education and would be helpful to those who've been teaching for several years as well.

Ko and Rossen's paperback on TEACHING ONLINE is small in size and simple to read, but it contains all essential information needed by a teacher or professor who has suddenly found himself or herself thrust into the mushrooming world of online learning. More and more professors are being told that they must produce a computer-based class, and that they must manage that class themselves, but fewer and fewer universities are providing comprehensive training for this totally new technique. TEACHING ONLINE is the book that will save the day for these pressured professors. It will also guide the enthusiastic cybersleuth through teacherly tips about preparing a class, accessing online libraries, controlling unrurely cyberstudents, encouraging coversation, taking tests, and all sorts of other nitty gritty. And it does this in plain, simple conversational English that is peppered with interesting anecdotes supplied by seasoned cyberprofessors. No one needs to feel intimated by this play-it-straight-and-simple approach to this state-art-technique, and no one need worry that he or she will loose a long-time teaching slot, because they hadn't read every issue of WIRED ever issued. TEACHING ONLINE will get you up-to-date, and it will do it fast, and you'll love every minute of it. Even cybersaavy junior faculty will benefit from this book, because it includes generic information that will make or break any teacher, in class or in ether. Reading this book, chapter by chapter, in conjunction with your standard university training program, or as a stand-alone text, will make sure that you stay in the tenuous university teaching game for good. If you follow this book, you will gain skills, confidence, and panache you never knew you had, that you can translate into the classroom, and into the rest of your life as well. If you are just entering the job market, and fear that your unfamiliarity with computer-based classes will hurt any opportunities that await you, then read this book before you enter your interview, and you will sound so so so computer saavy, that no one will ever suspect you of inexperience. But don't loan this book to a friend when you finish it; be sure to keep it on hand, throughout your first semester, because it contains several quick-reference chapters that will troubleshoot you through the toughest times...and straight on to tenure.

Ko and Rossen do an excellent job of laying out a lot of basic concepts if you are involved in any kind of project that involves teaching online.

I have a read a few books dealing with this topic and this one does a better job than any of the others that I have come across in helping the reader to understand the big picture- from getting to know your institutions resources to managing student behavior online. There are a lot of great tips to help the online teacher deal with any number of potential problem areas.

My only complaint would be that some of the technology discussedd is a little bit dated, but it is still useful and I'm sure that will be updated in the next edition.

One other resource for which this book in invaluable is the collection of Web Resources at the end of every chapter that often provide real world examples of the concepts being discussed.

So I've been tasked with teaching online, but I didn't know where to begin. Sure, I can teach decently in the classroom, but I wanted a book that would show me how to transition my existing pedagogy into a successful online course. If you are in a similar situation, THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU!

A quick look at the table of contents (available via Amazon's "look inside" feature) will reveal that this is more than a simple primer. This is a book written by people who have online teaching experience and can give you practical advice (as the title suggests). You can take a face-to-face course and get quite far in converting it into an online course.

The only caveat I have is that many of the web links included with the book are now defunct. Though irritating, this is not a major problem, because searching for the article or site via Google (or another search engine) you can easily find its new home.

Selected in Brandon & Hill nursing bibliography (Nursing Outlook, March-April, 1996)for nursing collections.

This book is truely a classic in the field of patient education. Everyone who teaches patients/clients should read this book as much of what is written for patients -- can't be read by them. The number of illiterate and poor readers in this country is unbelievable yet this is sledom taken into consideration by health professionals. I had the pleasure to attend an all day seminar given by Cecilia and Leonard Doak years ago and have used their lessons since.

I wish I could tell everybody who has ever produced any kind of health information material to read this book. The advice it gives has helped me write more clearly period - not just for people with low literacy. Given the overwhelming amount of about health care information in the news and on the Web, health communicators need to make their messages accessible and meaningful or get lost in the shuffle. This book shows you how.

Thank you for this most useful manual in helping us understand the barriers to learning and how to overcome them. I work in a Family Practice Residency in which many of our patients have low literacy skills. We use this text to evaluate our spoken words and written texts offered to our patients. I was asked to summarize one of the chapters to present at a meeting, and found this text can't be summarized...it is already as concise as it can be made, with every word necessary.

We ordered several teaching tools shown in the later chapters and have found them to be helpful as well.

We checked out the text from our Health Science Library, liked it so well we got one of our own for the office, and I just bought one for myself to keep at home

This book is misnamed. It shows you not only how to teach patients with low literacy skills--but all patients!

Teaching Patients With Low Literacy Skills shows you how to apply current research findings to actively involve your learner and enhance understanding and retention. It shows you how to prepare written and audiovisual materials so they most effectively teach.

Best of all, the Suitability Assessment of Materials form helps you evaluate teaching materials, quantitatively, so you invest your limited patient ed dollars wisely in the best teaching tools.

It's the classic in the field. This is the book everyone else quotes. Including me.

Computers have been a part of our schools for about two decades now. Many people believe that computers are the solution to the problems of American education; however, it is pretty clear that they have not been the magic bullet many thought they'd be. The questions then arises: why? Why haven't computers fulfilled the promise they seemed to have in their early days?

In The Technology Fix, William Pflaum tries to answer the question. Taking a sabbatical, he travels the country and visits a number of schools, trying to get a sense of the impact computers are actually having. This book is mainly a report of the visits he made and the different ways he sees computers being used (or, more than likely, not being used) in the classroom. He then gives some of his interpretations of what this means and suggestions for how technology might be used better.

What impact this book has it has through its observations on what is actually happening in schools. As a consultant for schools on technology, I have seen many of the same things Mr. Pflaum has: computers sitting unused, resources managed inappropriately, focus on computer bells and whistles over curriculum content, etc. I agree whole-heartedly that computers have yet to fulfill their promise and I find Mr. Pflaum's categorization of implementation on the basis of commitment and focus to be very revealing. On the other hand, despite the depression I feel sometimes after visiting a school where technology, if it is being used at all, is being used poorly, I maintain my belief that technology is the future and we can use it more effectively. Mr. Pflaum seems more pessimistic.

Within his descriptions of what he's seen in schools, Mr. Pflaum has some useful insights; however, when he tries to build these into universals at the end of the book, he is less powerful. Not that his suggestions are necessarily lacking merit. Instead, some are so obvious as to not be worth the effort of a book-length study. Use computers for assessment? I would think so. Use computers to align standards, instruction and assessment? Of course. Coordinate computer skills across grade levels? I hope so.

This is not to say that schools are actually doing these things. Many aren't. But he's pointing towards obvious best practices here that just need to be implemented. His one controversial suggestion--that computers be target towards those that can use them most as opposed to spreading the wealth equally--is practical but also a sign of his pessimism. We aren't committed enough to do what we should so we should at least do what we can.

In his book, Mr. Pflaum has provided valuable insights into what is actually going on in schools today per their use of technology. This alone makes the book valuable. Though his suggestions for improvement are a bit short-sighted, they have their place and could open the eyes of some administrators and teachers. Still, his bleak view clouds the possible bright future and growing impact technology could have if we are willing to have commitment and focus. I hope readers won't let his attitude bring them down.

For anyone who has grappled with the question of why technology hasn't lived up to its promise in schools, this book is a must-read. Pfaum's observations are fresh and candid, and he examines the question of the "technology fix" of schools without an axe to grind or pre-formed conclusions. This very readable book will ring true to those who have spent time in classrooms and have wondered why technology has not had a greater impact on improving student achievement.

This is a wise and thought-full book. Unlike many books about technology in education that are often too theoretical, too empirical, too uninformed, or too polemical, this book is anchored in real classrooms. Rather than starting with a breathless vision of the future or a cranky rant about the imagined glories of the past, Bill Pflaum begins with what is happening in classrooms right now. He gathers his data first hand - not from surveys, focus groups, or aggregated data but from a year-long personal journey through classrooms all across the country. His careful, thoughtful (and often entertaining) observations are neither completely unexpected, nor completely predictable - instead they explode with authenticity. From such a solid foundation, both personal and universal, he reflects carefully on what is working and what is not working - and offers thoughtful suggestions for a better future that is both reachable, and worth reaching. I liked reading this book.

This book is a must read for decision makers at every level.

Data rules in the age of standards. This is the only book that I have read that discusses educational technology with a genuinely human voice. Pflaum takes a refreshing welcome approach to the task of thoughtfully examining the use of technology in America's schools. Instead of recycling mountains of data from research studies, he visited classrooms across the country and talked to students, teachers, principals, and technology co-coordinators who are on the frontline of the problem.

For educators, like myself, who deal daily with the problems and the blessings of technology in the schools, the book is raw opportunity to view the problem outside of the boundaries of their state and local district.

Pflaum ends his book with some clear, realistic guides for future directions, but the real value of the book is in its rich, constantly thought-provoking portrayal of things as they are now.

Too many books are either all for technology in schools or completely against it. Neither kind of book is very useful for teachers who are trying to figure out how to use technology intelligently in their classrooms.

This author takes a walk through 20 or so schools, and describes what he observes with the insight of a seasoned educator. He does a very good job of spotlighting the intelligent uses of technology, and an equally good job of uncovering the dreary, wasteful uses. I found the book is a wonderful way to hone my own thinking.

Moreover, the book is a fast read, and very engaging. Pflaum writes with an uncommon honesty and humanness, and he has that wonderful ability to draw pictures in your mind. I'd recommend it to both teachers and parents who have input in the way schools are run.

My 3 month old seems to really enjoy this book. Each of the kitties pictured are so cute. She isn't really into all the touchy/feely parts of the book yet, but I'm sure that when she is she'll love this book even more!

My daughter picked this book out herself when she was 7 months old. It is one of her favorite books. She knows exactly where the touchy feely parts are. She has to read it every day. It is definitely a keeper!!

My 16-month-old doesn't care much about other touch and feel books we have, but she loves this one! She'll have my husband or me read it to her twice in a row, which as anyone with a toddler knows, is rare indeed; she also loves to read it herself, turning the pages and touching the different areas. Our daughter's a big cat fan, but she also enjoys the other books in this series. The repitition in phrasing and bold artistry are really appealing to her.

The book is great for teaching animal parts. The book is colorful and the textures are great. The only downfall is the fact that all the books in the series are very similar. Some even use the same wording on a page. I would say buying one book in the series (we picked our son's favorite animals) is sufficient.

The perfect gift! We received this book when our boy was 5 months old. Instantly it was his favorite book... and continues to be four months later. We have two cats so it was quite appropriate subject matter, but the tactile pages are bold, colorful and easy to manipulate. A winner in our house:-)

Clear, concise, age appropriate, relevant to teen life, easy to apply, theologically sound, accurate Catholic teaching.

Theology of the body is the REASON of abstinences, self respect and plan of God for men and women in the world. It is as if you were blind a now you can see.

The book really makes explain complicated things, easy. Hope every youth group could do this seminar. I only wish they can translate this workbook in Spanish and all other languages.

This book goes step by step through the Theology of the Body for Teens to help the leader guide meaningful discussions. It is easy to understand and well written. There are suggestions for games to play with the teens to help them in groups. This book is a valuable rescource.

This extremely user-friendly book reveals the powerful, mysterious and beautiful biblical teaching of John Paul II in EASY, understandable format. Great for teens, even better for adults!

I haven't gotten too far into the leaders guide, but so far it has been VERY insightful about human sexuality and the dignity we deserve as humans. It's also helpful for people who teach teenagers or work with them. There are great activities in the book, so there is time to work and play!

A friend gave me Tino Turtle Travels to London and told me that I had to read this and to be sure to also listen to the CD...
She was right...I had to read and listen to this...

This book is adorable, cute, funny, yet very informative...I felt like I was getting a history lesson without going to school. Best yet, my friend told me that her kids loved it so much, they keep asking when they can go to London as they want to see what Tino got to see.

Not only that, but this book comes with a CD where Tino sings a song and since the book has the sheet music in it, you and your kids can easily sing along...which is fun...In addition, there is a reading of the story on the CD with sound effects and all. A 'ding' sound will tell you to turn the page, which allows your kids to read along, and it will improve their reading skills as well.

The CD is fun, whether you just listen to it, or read along...I mean, it has the sound of Big Ben on there...how cool is that? I have never been to England and therefore not been to London...I have to admit that I did not know too many details about the monuments there...Yet, after reading Tino's adventure...I not only felt as if I just went there, but being an adult, I still learned a great deal about London's history, and it makes me want to go there, like now...(and I never had any interest to go there, but now I do)...

I can't wait for the Paris version...which will come out soon, I heard...I bet that it will be just as fun...and maybe we'll get to learn some French words as well...

I can highly recommend this book to kids and adults...It educates the reader in such cute and fun way, it makes you want to travel along.

Sleep well, Tino...Until next time you travel...I'll be there! I wouldn't want to miss it.

Thanks for a wonderful book and cd...I am looking forward to the next book of the Tino Turtle seriea...and next and next and next...

Tino Turtle's adventures in London take the reader on a wonderful ride through the cultural differences one finds when visiting England. The clever illustrations of Neallia Burt Sullivan bring the story to life as the inquisitive desert tortoise visits an English classroom, sees Big Ben and even gets a picture of the Changing of the Guard. The end of the book finds the traveling turtle back in his dessert burrow with expectations of future travels. A great book to introduce children to cultural diversity, geography and travel.

Along with the book comes a CD that contains both a sing-along and the story read aloud by Las Vegas voice personality Ryan Ahern. The combination of CD and book make the Travels of Tino Turtle an instant hit with children and parents alike.

At Neighbors Bookstore we had the good fortune to have both the author and narrator in the store for an afternoon of signing, reading and delights. During their visit Carolyn and Ryan put on a thoroughly professional and entertaining show that kept the customers and staff enthralled for hours. Carolyn is a delight to work with and Ryan Ahern gives the stories a whole new dimension with sound effects and vocalizations.

My children love Tino the Turtle! It is an excellent book for teaching children about geography and history. We have read both Tino Travels to London and Tino Travels to Paris. Each book comes with a CD that plays the Tino the Turtle song and reads the story to your child. My children love to listen to the book on CD at home and in the car. I would highly recommend these books.

As a certified K-12 teacher and independent Educational Consultant, I have seen first-hand how this book educates children about culture, history, geography, language, and even music in the most entertaining and fun manner. Teachers, as well as children, enjoy the Tino Turtle Travels...series because of the beautiful fit into a variety of disciplines.

Additionally, as the mother of a five year old, I enthusiastically recommend this book selection to anyone who would like to capture a young mind and inspire the adventure of world exploration. My son has learned to sing Tino's song, to speak a few words of French, and he can even find France on a globe! Children and adults will find this book fun and exciting in many ways.

I can't wait until the Mexico City, Kenya, and Bejiing come out!

The Tino Turtle books (England and France) are just too adorable. The illustration is amazing...and the story is cute and so informative...I felt like I, myself, went to these places...
The CD that comes with it, is very helpful and really good, because I can put it into the player and the music plays, my kid dances along and then the story is being read and you hear sound effects, etc...

This would be great for schools and daycares...I can visualize kids sitting in the circle and listening to the story while looking at the pictures...

I would like to highly recommend the Tino Turtle Travels books to any parent and teacher...for kids from very young to teens...even adults as you will learn about the city...The Paris one even has some French language with glossary and all...([...]).

I hope that more of these books come out soon...I'd love to travel to Italy...

Anna Cotman is a sweet, pretty, vulnerable girl who has just moved to Redmarsh with her grandmother and facing the first trials of a new school, making friends and adjusting to her new life. But luck isn't on her side, and Lindy Miller snaps her up at school: "a bossy girl, quick to quarrel and slow to forgive." After running through her own friends, she looks upon newly arrived Anna as a blessing and quickly snaps her up, announcing "you're my best friend."

Anna is delighted and eager to please, which is how she gets caught up with initiation into the club known as the Society of Masks (or the Som for short). Started by Lindy's brother Jeremy Miller and including all of his school friends, the Som is designed to prevent bullies and provide comradeship, including all the codenames, secret passwords, elaborate rites and junk food feasts that you'd expect from such a club.

Of course, Jeremy didn't want his little sister to be a part of it, but his stepfather (who gives him the key to the abandoned factory in which they have their meetings) insists that they all be involved. And so Lindy is allowed, as is one of her friends, and Anna makes the vow of loyalty to the Som. At first she is happy - she's is accepted, she has a friend, and she's under the protection of the popular Jeremy Miller, who wears a golden mask at meetings and is known as the Goldmaster - she's in awe.

But a friendship with Lindy has its costs; she is manipulative, jealous, spiteful and extremely difficult to get along with. But Anna has been raised to keep her promises and be loyal to her friends - despite her reluctance; she is now a part of the Som.

And then things begin to go very bad. More people are initiated into the club - people that aren't school children and who control and bully the younger kids. On top of this, they never take of their masks. The Yellow Lord in particular makes life difficult for Anna, forcing her to do several menial chores about the place. Soon the youngest children are being forced to shoplift and work themselves to exhaustion. Anna wants to tell, but she can't - she's sworn an oath of secrecy.

Finally the catalyst comes - Anna stands up for one of the smallest members of the club and is labelled a traitor as a result. She is to be put on trial before the Som, and with more and more sinister goings-on at the factory, the Goldmaster himself under the influence of alcohol, and Lindy seemingly abandoning her, poor Anna is almost in a state of nervous collapse as the trial date moves closer and closer.

"The Trial of Anna Cotman" is absolutely riveting, shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and a book that should be on every child's reading list. Vivien Alcock creates an incredible and realistic story, with perfect representations of bullying, insecure friendships, corruption and values among children, and the small seed of evil that can germinate in groups that rely on secrecy, control and unquestioning loyalty - in many ways it is a "Lord of the Flies" for younger readers.

Alcock creates many memorable characters, and I'm certain that almost everybody in their lives has known a Lindy; she is vividly portrayed as the girl on the playground who has to have it *her* way, who is never to blame for the misfortunes inflicted upon her, and who is a master at dissembling and fibbing. Likewise is the sad reality of her family - a distant mother, a woebegone stepfather and a perfect elder brother that is everything Lindy wants to be - and isn't. There are other perfect little portrayals of human character and behaviour in Tom Smith, the friendly best friend of Jeremy who tries to help, and Peter Elkin, the petrified boy under the power of the malevolent Yellow Lord. Speaking of which, the Yellow Lord is certain to give anyone nightmares...

Anna Cotman herself is a thoroughly likeable, intelligent young girl, who has been raised the best way, but put into the wrong situation. Taught to be loving and forgiving, she's the perfect tool for Lindy and the Som to manipulate, but eventually learning to stand up for herself and the injustices of the Som.

This is a terrific book, meticulously displaying the interactions between children and adults, the shadowy world that children can create for themselves, and the strength that they can display when faced with corruption of the system. Some of Alcock's insights into the ways and minds of children made me gasp with their accuracy - this is a woman that remembers what it was like to be a child and the hierarchy of the playground.

This book is great! The first time I started to read, I couldn't finish. It is about a girl who goes to a new town. The snotty Libby declares the new girl, (Anna Cotman) her best friend. Libbys brother has a club and they let Anna join. in the biggining, the club seems fun. But when time goes on, a world of problems is opened up.

Anna Cotman is a sweet, pretty, vulnerable girl who has just moved to Redmarsh with her grandmother and facing the first trials of a new school, making friends and adjusting to her new life. But luck isn't on her side, and Lindy Miller snaps her up at school: "a bossy girl, quick to quarrel and slow to forgive." After running through her own friends, she looks upon newly arrived Anna as a blessing and quickly snaps her up, announcing "you're my best friend."

Anna is delighted and eager to please, which is how she gets caught up with initiation into the club known as the Society of Masks (or the Som for short). Started by Lindy's brother Jeremy Miller and including all of his school friends, the Som is designed to prevent bullies and provide comradeship, including all the codenames, secret passwords, elaborate rites and junk food feasts that you'd expect from such a club.

Of course, Jeremy didn't want his little sister to be a part of it, but his stepfather (who gives him the key to the abandoned factory in which they have their meetings) insists that they all be involved. And so Lindy is allowed, as is one of her friends, and Anna makes the vow of loyalty to the Som. At first she is happy - she's is accepted, she has a friend, and she's under the protection of the popular Jeremy Miller, who wears a golden mask at meetings and is known as the Goldmaster - she's in awe.

But a friendship with Lindy has its costs; she is manipulative, jealous, spiteful and extremely difficult to get along with. But Anna has been raised to keep her promises and be loyal to her friends - despite her reluctance; she is now a part of the Som.

And then things begin to go very bad. More people are initiated into the club - people that aren't school children and who control and bully the younger kids. On top of this, they never take off their masks. The Yellow Lord in particular makes life difficult for Anna, forcing her to do several menial chores about the place. Soon the youngest children are being forced to shoplift and work themselves to exhaustion. Anna wants to tell, but she can't - she's sworn an oath of secrecy.

Finally the catalyst comes - Anna stands up for one of the smallest members of the club and is labelled a traitor as a result. She is to be put on trial before the Som, and with more and more sinister goings-on at the factory, the Goldmaster himself under the influence of alcohol, and Lindy seemingly abandoning her, poor Anna is almost in a state of nervous collapse as the trial date moves closer and closer.

"The Trial of Anna Cotman" is absolutely riveting, shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and a book that should be on every child's reading list. Vivien Alcock creates an incredible and realistic story, with perfect representations of bullying, insecure friendships, corruption and values among children, and the small seed of evil that can germinate in groups that rely on secrecy, control and unquestioning loyalty - in many ways it is a "Lord of the Flies" for younger readers.

Alcock creates many memorable characters, and I'm certain that almost everybody in their lives has known a Lindy; she is vividly portrayed as the girl on the playground who has to have it *her* way, who is never to blame for the misfortunes inflicted upon her, and who is a master at dissembling and fibbing. Likewise is the sad reality of her family - a distant mother, a woebegone stepfather and a perfect elder brother that is everything Lindy wants to be - and isn't. There are other perfect little portrayals of human character and behaviour in Tom Smith, the friendly best friend of Jeremy who tries to help, and Peter Elkin, the petrified boy under the power of the malevolent Yellow Lord. Speaking of which, the Yellow Lord is certain to give anyone nightmares...

Anna Cotman herself is a thoroughly likeable, intelligent young girl, who has been raised the best way, but put into the wrong situation. Taught to be loving and forgiving, she's the perfect tool for Lindy and the Som to manipulate, but eventually learning to stand up for herself and the injustices of the Som.

This is a terrific book, meticulously displaying the interactions between children and adults, the shadowy world that children can create for themselves, and the strength that they can display when faced with corruption of the system. Some of Alcock's insights into the lives of children made me gasp with their accuracy - this is an author that remembers what it was like to be a child, and the very real existence of a playground hierarchy.

This is a different, creative book that could be kind of dark for a children's book. The plot is interesting, when a new girl, desperate for friends, joins up with a girl who is in a secret club. The club bosses Anna (the new girl) around for a time, until more members are introduced. When Anna is put on trial for sticking up for a younger member, the action starts to pick up. Overall I liked the book, although in some parts it is a little bit slow-moving, but the author makes up for it by adding suspense, like the part when Anna is made to sit on the roof to spy on one of the club's leaders. It has a dark side to it, when kids start taking their own "secret societies" a little too seriously. The characters are extremely well-developed and I really cared about some and hated others. I definitely recommend this book.

I recently re-read this book and didn't find it as interesting as I once did, but of course that's because I'm not ten years old anymore. However it is an excellent book for younger people, and it's not such a bad idea for "adults" to read either. It tackles issues like friendship, betrayal, addiction, struggle to fit in, using a very unique setting. The world is that of any adolescent, but has been made dark and frightening by a "game" gotten out of hand. The Society of Masks is intriguing, color-coded and led by "lords" who impose tasks and duties upon the lower-ranking "companions". It takes the reader to a different world, despite the fact that it's only some kids with some masks in an abandoned shop. The trial scene is strangely symbolic, and the ending is perfect (a rare thing for me to say, as I never like the ending of a book). Read!! ~Raksh:)

I got the book when it came out in October. Since then I have read it three times, lent it out to 4 different people, and led a small group examining the book.

The book is well balanced with the philosophical and abstract characteristics for the integration of faith and learning and for evangelism in academia, and with practical and specific methods for accomplishing this. Not only this, but the contributors come from a wide variety of disciplines and each has a different slant to their insight.

The introduction by Gould was one of my favorite chapters, though it only reads like an introduction for a few pages. I may be showing my affinity for philosophy, but the chapter by Peter Kreeft was incredible. As soon as I finished I saw that I had taken so many quotes from it with the intention of sharing with some friends that I just handed the book over with the chapter bookmarked. Speaking as someone weary from fighting the battles over the integration of faith and learning and the proper place for faith and religion in academia, this book was an excellent refocusing and encouragement.

My only problem is that Malik's chapter on the priority of uniting the orthodoxes and caring for our churches around the world didn't really belong in the book. I thought it was a great call to service, but perhaps it would be better placed in another book or journal, as it really didn't touch on Christian scholarship. But this won't knock the review down to 4 stars because the material in the rest of the book more than makes up for the flaw I just mentioned.

I apologize for not being terribly specific in the review, but the other reviews on Amazon have already done a good job with that. I encourage you to look at them should you want more specifics on the material.

This is an outstanding collection of essays centered around the theme of Charles Malik's 1980 address regarding redeeming the soul and the mind. It seeks to encourage Christian academics to glorify Christ in the secular university both in their academic research and their spiritual lives. Far from proffering a simplistic vision of the calling of a Christian academic, the book presents a deeply thoughtful, godly and concerned critique of the secular academy and how Christian scholars might successfully navigate the unfriendly waters there.

Perhaps the best essay in the book is the first one, Gould's "Two Tasks Introduced." The interesting and original discussion here of what "academic integration" really means is thought-provoking and immensely useful for those concerned with questions such as "what exactly is Christian scholarship?" and "what is an integrated Christian life?" Gould makes a helpful distinction between "explicit Christian research" and "latent Christian research," and how both can further Christian thought. "Explicit" Christian research is research that is asking "distinctly Christian questions" or "applying distinctly Christian concepts," while "latent" Christian research supports or implies the Christian worldview without explicitly discussing it. Both are useful and necessary in the academy, Gould says. But he doesn't rest there when describing the Two Tasks, as he includes the life and worship of the scholar in his definition. That is, in order to be a fully integrated Christian scholar, such a scholar must seek to glorify God with her life, how she treats and serves others, as well as standing up for Christ when necessary. These latter, practical areas are topics which, it must be admitted, are all too often forgotten in discussions of this type. Also included in this chapter is Gould's sketch of the metanarrative of Scripture and what that implies for distinctly Christian scholarship.

The essays by Robert Kaita, a physicist at Princeton, and John North, English professor at the University of Waterloo (Canada), are also very thought-provoking reflections on the two tasks from the perspectives of the sciences and the humanities, respectively. Kaita places the Christian integrative life within Paul's address at Mars Hill (Acts 17:16-34), and then discusses Intelligent Design with regard to Paul's approach to his audience at Athens. Kaita makes quite useful observations about the term "theory" as it is applied in physics, and how that differs from its use in biology. This, he says, has interesting implications for the acceptance of Intelligent Design in biology. North, as well, makes very interesting observations about the Christian roots of Western literature, and how his teaching of such literature has led to many spiritual discussions with students. In fact, North says, it was his study of the Christian symbolism in Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" which led him to study English literature as a career. He encourages scholars to simply select certain texts and let those texts, which have Christian themes, speak for themselves in the classroom.

There are a number of other outstanding essays in the book as well. Walter Bradley, professor of Engineering at Baylor University, gives very practical suggestions in his essay about how to reach out with the gospel to students and colleagues in a secular environment. Charles Malik's original "Two Tasks" address is reprinted here, and his son Habib Malik writes the introduction as well as an essay about the Two Tasks and "the clash of civilizations." William Lane Craig and Peter Kreeft offer fitting tributes to Charles Malik as well. Overall, this volume is an essential one for the scholar who desires to glorify God in the secular academy through integrative research as well as richly-flourishing soul. Highly recommended.

I got up at 3am to turn down the heat in the house and saw the book on my desktop. I read the foreword and chapter one. Chapter one is worth the price of the book. I loved the way Paul Gould unpacks the difference between 'agnostic pluralism' (merely being allowed a seat at the table of philosophical relativism) versus the 'committed pluralism' (what I believe Os Guiness calls a 'principled pluralism) which the book attributes to L. Newbigin.

I loved the C.S. Lewis quotes throughout the chapter in the text and footnotes. One example was on scholarship not being an end in itself but neither being merely instrumental and linking such to an essay from "God in the Dock" and to a C.S. Lewis's speech, and in the illustrative footnote from John Piper on worship and mission and the One who is Ultimate. What an intriguing way to get at scholarship as an act of worship, not of the endeavor but of the God who affirms it.

The world-view overview and the part on human flourishing (which
is the theme of the upcoming GFM conference) was vintage creation mandate BUT the book's mention of the significant missing puzzle piece for many, e.g. the part on the image of God and human responsibility as moral agents was masterful. Paul Gould's mention of how Darwinian determinism and American autonomous individualism really hate that reality was worth the late night musing.

In his rendition of recent history (on the shoulders of Mark Noll and others) of the western university and Christian transformational potentials, mentioning study centers like MacLaurin in Minnesota where I have a friend now studying in a Ph.D. program at Indiana University, and Harvey Fellowships where I also have a friend at I.U. are all worthy affirmations. What Gould offers as hope is indeed such. I've seen the scholarly fruit and high caliber players.

Quotes from F. Schaeffer, M. Noll, G. Marsden, D.A. Carson, and even the select ones from L. Newbigin all rocked in the big picture challenge Paul Gould describes as did his distinguishing scientism and naturalism. Well written.

Thank you Paul for your part in editing this work and for your chapter in particular. I love Peter Kreeft's writing and KNOW I'm going to love that
chapter as well as Walter Bradley's. Got to stop the review and read the rest. All the grad students and faculty I know at Purdue and I.U. really need to read, read slowly, savor, and discuss this chapter in particular. The familiar dodge (in a new context) on the 'play the game' (kind of a methodological naturalism) and wait for getting through the ABD phase, to waiting for tenure, to waiting for more time... pg 30...oh goodness, bulls eye challenging but it is written very graciously as is the tone throughout the chapter.

Did I mention the book's high view of biblical authority (if chapter one is any indication)? It is a very rich book indeed. Get it. Enjoy it. Share it widely!

In September 1980 Charles Malik gave a powerful talk on the need for evangelicals to reclaim the mind, and to reclaim the universities. It was published that year in a brief book called The Two Tasks. A century after his birth, a number of Christian scholars, including his son, commemorates Malik and his stirring address. Thus this book.

Seven Christian thinkers, including Peter Kreeft and William Lane Craig, remind us of the crucial importance of what Charles Malik said on that September day. And it was indeed a vital message. I have pulled from my shelves that quite thin volume (a mere 37 pages) and reread that incisive message.

Malik rightly said that the "greatest danger besetting American Evangelical Christianity is the danger of anti-intellectualism." He also said that the most urgent need is "not only to win souls but to save minds". He correctly noted that the universities are the real battle ground today, and we need to see Christ exalted there as much as anywhere else.

He gave his speech at a leading evangelical university, Wheaton College. In his impassioned address, he said he craved to see "an institution that will produce as many Nobel Prize winners as saints". The authors of this new book fully agree, and urge us to take seriously the challenges made by Malik.

Paul Gould reminds us that our universities and professors are the gatekeepers of ideas, and that they have a tremendous influence on every other aspect of life. If bad ideas come forth from our universities, then we will all be on the receiving end, because bad ideas have bad consequences.

Indeed, Malik warned decades ago that the ideas mainly emanating from our universities are not exactly faith-friendly. Worldviews and ideas such as naturalism, humanism, materialism, hedonism, relativism, nihilism, atheism and cynicism are rife in our institutions of higher learning. "All of which are essentially so many modes of self-worship" said Malik. "Any wonder there is so much disorder in the world?"

And the truth that ideas have consequences applies on the individual level as well as the social level. Gould says "there is a two-way causal connection between moral character and intellectual virtue". Indeed, Paul makes the connection when he speaks of "the knowledge of truth that leads to godliness" (Titus 1:1); and being "transformed by the renewing of our minds" (Roman 12:2).

William Lane Craig offers many great insights in his essay. He too acknowledges that "the single most important institution shaping Western culture is the university". Thus the importance of the Christian mind: "If we change the university, we change our culture".

Craig cites J. Gresham Machen who wrote in 1912: "False ideas are the greatest obstacle to the reception of the gospel". Although the battle for truth and ideas is so crucial, most believers have shirked their duties in this regard. Evangelicals especially have "for the most part been living on the periphery of responsible intellectual existence".

But Craig says there have been some signs of hope. He refers to the impact of Christian philosopher Alvin Plantinga's 1967 book, God and Other Minds, for example. He also notes how one atheist philosopher bewailed the fact that perhaps one-quarter to one-third of all American philosophers are now theists.

He reminds us that Christian academics stand on the church's frontline "in one of the most important theatres in the culture war, that of the university". He reminds them to carefully integrate their Christian faith with their academic calling.

The various essays contained in this much-needed volume remind us of some central truths - truths which Malik sought to hammer home back in 1980. They remind us, as Malik put it, that at the "heart of all the problems facing Western civilization ... lies the state of the mind and the spirit in the universities".

Malik was right to argue that all our ills stem primarily from the "false philosophies that have been let loose in the world and that are now being taught in the universities". And the consequences have been profound. "No civilization can endure with its mind being as confused and disordered as ours is today".

Fortunately, Malik's original address is included in this volume. The writers of these essays urge us to take seriously this most urgent of challenges. They, like Malik, have sounded the trumpet. The question is, who will respond?

The imperative for the Christian thinker is to integrate being a Christian with living and working in the academic world. A decade ago Should God Get Tenure? explored the legitimacy and participation of the Christian in the academic world. In The Two Tasks of the Christian Scholar, William Lane Craig and Paul M. Gould, with a cadre of academics, take the work of Charles Malik and propose the place and participation of the Christian in the academy. What they propose is specifically Christian, without compromise and without equivocation.

There is no honest Christian in the academy who compromises Christianity and attempts to segregate Faith from Knowledge. The fully integrated life is the best life for ministry. The following are some of the more significant points made in the book:

As Christian scholars continue to permeate academia we will have the opportunity to open doors for the gospel. That is one of the themes of this book. Not theocracy, not a conquest of the university, but an advance into a world often untouched by the Christian. It is sometimes closed, but when it opens, Christians as capable scholars and participants will gain the opportunity for ministry in the secular cathedrals.

Ideas have consequences, and the university in general and professors in particular are the gate-keepers of ideas -- influencing directly or indirectly all aspects of thought and life in our world. Christian professors must live a fully integrated life even in the face of challenges from within and without, for the sake of the lost -- and as Malik states, for our future generation of children. (p. 19)

...this very obvious fact -- that each generation is taught by an earlier generation -- must be kept firmly in mind .... None can give to another what he does not possess himself. No generation can bequeath to its successor what it has not got. You may frame the syllabus as you please. But when you have planned and reported ad nauseum, if we are skeptical we shall teach only skepticism to our pupils, if fools, only folly, if vulgar only vulgarity, if saints sanctity, if heroes heroism. ... Nothing which was not in the teachers can flow from theminto the pupils. We shall all admit that a man who knows no Greek himself cannot teach Greek to his form: But it is equally certain that a man whose mind was formed in a period of cynicism and disillusion cannot teach hope and fortitude. (p. 30, quoting C. S. Lewis, "On the Transmission of Christianity," in God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics)

Gone are the days of Constantinian Christianity where Christianity rules the culture. Rather, we should be principled pluralists -- recognizing that to be a Christian is always to stand in tension with what the Bible calls the world. (p. 41)

The Christian scholar is on the front lines of the battle of ideas. (p. 49)

I urge every Christian in the academy, as a student or a professor, to read this work along side Should God Get Tenure? Then take some time to evaluate your position and your ministry with all honesty.

Collin
[...]

This is by far the best book for older siblings who are about to have a new baby in their house. Great pictures and wonderful text make it a fun read, and it really touches your heartstrings. Especially the part when the older sibling helps comfort the baby, I see it so much now between my two kids. I highly recommend this book to anyone is about to go from 1 to 2. My son still wants me to read it to him and his sister is almost a year and a half.

This book is adorable. I got it for my son when his little sister was born, and have gifted it to several friends when they have their seconds. The older child will relate to the little tiger and parents will laugh at all the descriptions ("Yuk! Take a look / it isn't cooked!..."), the illustrations wonderful and the ending is very sweet. For those wondering, it is not "technical" or "religious" as to where one comes from. Just a very sweet (and secular) conclusion to the question.

A delightful tale of the experiences of a new sibling. The older child thinks of all the ways to send the new baby back but in the end realizes that a baby is not such a terrible thing to have around the house! A nice book to share with a new older brother/sister.

The tiger familyhas a new baby and the older sibling is curious as to where it came from. "Did you buy it from the store? Please don't buy any more!" This hilarious tale of the quest to figuring out where the pooping, crying, new baby comes from and how to take it back. The ending will leave you with warm feeling inside!

The main character in the story a cute tiger cub. He has just gotten a new baby in his house. He wants to know where it came from so he can take it back. He's upset by all the attention it gets. He also says all it does is cry, pee and poop, and spit up! He's had it with this baby. That is until one day when the baby is crying and he goes over to it to try and calm it down. The baby smiles at him and he starts to like the baby.

The pictures were fun to look at. The story moved at a fast pace as well.


We would recommend this book to families who are getting ready to have babies. This would make a great story to read and discuss with young children about the way they feel about having a new baby in the home.