Berg Books

He is a book factory and runs the kabbalah center pricey place of learning Kabbalah. This and other leaders not so greedy have some good information as well. Wood have given more stars but not a huge fan of the center of greed.They do help many and have a following but it is sold to the masses.Not bad but could be done for less.

This book offers an overview of the astrological signs in the Hebrew calendar so there is a need to convert your birthdate first from Gregorian to Hebrew, as your constellation of birth is not always the same in both. It then gives a list where your correction or tikkun sign can be found. I have found the comments for each sign quite applicable, as a birth sign as well as for the tikkun sign. Furthermore it gives us the general character of each month, and its effect on all of us, which is interesting to know.

This is a totally different way of looking at astrology. By using the chart at the back of the book you figure out what zodiac sign you were in a past life and what your correction is here this lifetime. Interesting material. Very entertaining.

Just when you thought there wasn't anything more credible than the Kabbalah as currently constituted, along comes P.S. Berg's "Kabbalistic Astrology," which adds the precision of astrology to the mix.

I happen to practice the casting of bones, so naturally I'm interested in Berg's oeuvre. As soon as I figure out the meaning of the third metatarsal, I'll be adding my spiritual gifts to this mass of wisdom.

I should preface this review by stating that I have read other books by Philip Berg and by his sons, and therefore have some familiarity with the material and the terminology. The book that introduced me to this system (Kabbalah)was "The 72 Names of God," which for me was an amazing eye-opener. Specifically with reference to the Astrology book, I would like to say that the information it has given me regarding my birth sign and my particular "tikune" (correction in this life) are right on target based on what I have recognized to be the areas in which I am lacking and the challenges that life has thrown my way in order to help me overcome those deficiencies. I therefore see this book as a very helpful tool.

Thirty-six years ago, I attended a party where cheese blintzes were served. It was my first blintz, and I had never tasted anything so delicious. I asked the hostess about the recipe and she handed me the Molly Goldberg Jewish Cookbook. I went out and bought this paperback ($.95, I believe!). There is a Jewish Deli in Cincinnati, Izzy's, and my husband had always enjoyed their Lima Bean Soup. I called Izzy for the recipe, and he laughed me off the phone ... wouldn't share. Well, lo and behold, a recipe was right there in Molly Goldberg. I have made this soup ever since. Lima Bean Soup was the Thursday soup, and they have at last removed it from the menu. I guess this recipe is not modern enough. But it is certainly authentic.

I just received this book so I cannot really rate it yet. Since I have a question about the recipes already it won't get 5 stars. Some of the recipes call for can tomatoes(#2 or #2 1/2)I have no idea what these numbers mean. Recipes nowadays usually say the oz.size to use. As soon as I find out what this means, I will start using this cookbook and then be able to review it properly.

In my library of over 100 cookbooks, many of them Jewish in content, this is the one I consult first before looking at any others. The recipes are truly wonderful, easy to follow and typical of the Jewish cookery I was brought up on. I have given copies of the book to my children and friends interested in the "real thing" and they all agree with me. The blintzes are outstanding and never let me down. It's the 1 book I couldn't be without to try "new old recipes".

The Jewish mother/family humor is dated and a little over the top, but it doesn't matter. The recipes are great. This is genuine, unmodernized Ashkenazi cooking, the way my grandma cooked. There's a great selection of recipes for every occasion--everyday, Shabbat, and holidays. No fancy ingredients, and the recipes are easy to follow.

If you want to wallow in nostalgia, this is it.

We have used two of the recipes (Sauerkraut Soup and Bagels Jake) and both were failures (p.s. we are usually quite successful cooks). The bagel failure was especially bothersome since we tried several times. After checking online recipes, we finally found the problem: the recipe is wrong! Boiling bagels for 20 minutes is crazy!

A Jewish cookbook that leads you astray on bagels??

This book has quite a bit of info, which is good. The flow is so bad. I have just decided to return this book. I am dropping my class. I like my intructor and all, but I know a school that uses a better book. using a good book is to vital. This book s horrible. A good read if you just want to read about biology. It is horrible if you are reading info that you will be tested on.

I used this textbook in a class taught by one of the authors. The arrangments is designed to make it easy to skim, that is the first few pages of each section summarize the sectioin, with each new section going into more and more detail. However this makes the book very hard to read in a good flow. Depending on the level of your class, yo uwill almost invariably need to know more detail than in the first few pages. Also, the text and metaphors used are terribly written and often times sentences jsut flow badly and lead to ambiguous sentences. However, the book covers a very broad range of topics in pretty good detail. so i am giving it a modst 3/5 stars. By the way, I got a 3.5/4 in this class so i am not just complaining out of sour grapes.

This has to be my favorite biology book. It is clear, consise, comprehensive, and all the figures and tables are very useful for studying the material. I suggest that whoever buys this book for a course, KEEP IT! Don't sell it, because it's a basic book for all biologists, past, present and future.

This text has a lot of diagrams, pictures and graphs that help the reader understand the material more fully. Also well written and easy to read. The diagrams for respiration were especially helpful.

This book wrote in easy language, easy to understand, beautiful cover and artworks, I sure that this book is excellent in every page.

This book like alot of these books were like a drink of water for me. I was raised Jehovah's Witness but witnessed and was subjected to alot and I mean ALOT of hypocrisy, dishonesty, and vile activity by "witnesses"...so, "organized" religion in general hadn't really held a strong place within me or made any real difference in my life. If anything it did more harm than good to my perspective on life and living in my own humble opinion.

So, this book opened my eyes and enlighened me. I grew up with people throwing up their hands at their responsibilities that their own choices in life would hand right back to them only to hear them say time and time again "oh God will take care of it". Shoving their responsbilities off on "God". I'll never forget the day realizing that WE as human beings each one of us is responsible for making things happen...WE ARE! And if we dont do it no one else will. I know that may sound primative but that's the environment that I was raised in. This book helped me along the way. If you're anything like me, or like I was then I would definitely recommend it.

This is one of several books I have read that were written by Yehuda Berg. (The First was "The 72 Names of God," which I found to be very illuminating.) The primary theme that I came away with is that we have the power to accomplish virtually anything. If we "lock hands" with God through love and the purity of intention, we can literally move mountains.

The information in this and his other small 4" X 6" books is useful, but it is repetitive. These books average 120 pages and contain several short paragraphs per page. His four books that I have seen are Miracles, Blame, Fear and Dreams. They could easily have been chapters in one short book with an explaination of what Kabbalah is at the beginning of the text. Instead, once you have read one of these, you find yourself having to skim over information you've already covered when reading the next. Two of his other books, The 72 Names of God and True Prosperty are better investments. The 72 names uses about a page each to provide meditation and inspiration on a variety of topics and has a good table of contents in the front to find what you need at the moment. True prosperity covers what is in Miracles but goes much deeper into the subject matter.

I have noticed that Mr. Berg's works either get 5 stars, or 1 Stars and not much in between.

I personally enjoy Mr. Berg's work because it challenges you to think about life, living, religion and meaning from a different perspective.

Having said that, Mr. Berg does not seem too concerned about teaching you how to read Hebrew, or the historic culture and customs, and the various levels of meaning embedded within the language - of which could take several lifetimes of university level study to get into.

Nope, Mr. Berg seems to be focused on "Life Application" of applying ancient interpretations that were forbidden, banned, kept from the general masses. Mr. Berg's revelations are nothing less than ancient mystery school magickal teachings. This is lost on those wrapped up in the legalistic and insane surface meanings of biblical "truth" which is not truth but pure and utter deception filled with contradictory garbage that demands obediance, blind faith in an angery, jealous and vengeful male "god" that demands blood sacrifices and other abominational behaviors.

Any "thinking" human being - when allowed to ponder Deity, God, Goddess, religous histories and the history of humanity - once given freedom of thought - starts waking up.

Mr. Berg - disturbes people into thinking differently - and what he has to say - resonates within the heart and spirit of those looking to transform their lives.

Does it work? Is it a "religion"? The first "Law" of Mr. Berg's Kabbalah training (101) free at his website - "Don't believe anything you read or that you hear - without first testing it to see if it works - if it doesn't work, why bother and waste your time?"

I think - that really is the bottom line. This is "ancient" magickal wisdom brought forth out of Egypt - you know - that now proven Mono-Theistic Warrior Cult that left Egypt after an Egyption Civil war. The "Torah" or "Bible" as code makes sense, because reading it "literally" is insane and many have spent their life times trying to "reason" out with "logic" and explain away, go to war and kill over it's meanings, rights, discriminations and doctrines - which lead to another command and control, fear based religion based on human beings being "less than" which became Christianity.

Want to be disturbed into perhaps most of what you may have thought about "God" may have been a great big manipulative lie to control the "masses"? Read Mr. Berg's stuff, you'll be disturbed, but then again, you may "wake up" to some things that will work in your life, and bring you peace within.

But that is your journey - you can go learn Hebrew - get caught up in the legalistic reasoning approaches to trying to study an ancienty society - but really, are you not simply interested in applying something new to your life to see if "it works?" and if so - learn more about "what works?".

Want to know what's funny? If you erase all you know and think you know about religions, history and "god" and start looking for Deity in the present - instead of the past - you'll discover the principles Mr. Berg is writing about because anyone who takes the time to simply look around and connect with Deity will always - regardless of language, custom or history - turn up with the same principles and conclusions. You don't need the Zohar, or Kabbalah, or Cabbalah for those who know the difference - if Deity is alive and well - then you can find it within and all around you - if you take the time to look.

My path was first Jewish, then Catholic, then agnostic Deist, then Born Again Christian, then a melt down when I discovered the fabrications rooted in all these religions and their many offshoots. Then I explored all the "forbidden" things and learned that I was lied to about what those different beliefs/faiths/religions were about. Finally I drew a line in the sand and began looking for Deity in the present.

What I discovered and experienced was amazing. Several years later while having a deep discussion with a good Jewish friend of mine about Life and Living - he asked me if I had ever studied "Kabbalah" - which I had not - he was suprised. I was suprised when I looked into Kabbalah and Mr. Berg's writings and courses because - much of it was what I discovered in prayer and meditation in the present.

So, some dude 2,000 years ago got fed up with life and the teachings of his day, went to a cave, and pondered religion and meaning and wrote the Zohar. Some dude 2,000 years later, gets fed up with life and the teachings of his day and discoveres principles of life and living, just like some dude 2000 years ago. Different history, language, culture and period of time.

Hummm - I wonder what the "connection" could be. Truth? Until you connect with Deity yourself and it "works" for you, it's all b.s. anyway, and meaningless until you make it yours - and you reach "knowing" rather than believing.

Funny, I was shocked to find Mr. Berg teaching the same things I was. So now I am reading Mr. Berg's stuff and the Zohar simply because I am amazed that some dude 2,000 years ago, and even 4,000 years ago - asked the same questions I was asking, got fed up with the same things I got fed up with, and had the time to "think" about it for themselves instead of being "taught" how to think and "interpret".

May you be bold enough to find the Divine in your present.

If you're completely convinced that the notion of learning how to live a truly miraculous life is utter non-sense, then don't bother to read this book. It's not designed to convince skeptics of a point of view that falls entirely outside their current thinking. Which makes sense to me ... intellect alone can't lead you beyond the realm of what intellect already understands is possible. Logic proceeds from assumptions, and if your assumptions preclude the miraculous, logic alone can't change that. Something has to happen to you to break you out of the pattern of your current thinking ... you have to EXPERIENCE something that causes you to call into question what you believe is and isn't possible ... an experience that leads you to change or at least reconsider your assumptions. This book (and I think wisely so) isn't designed to do that. LIFE is designed to do that. :)

On the other hand, if your personal life's experience has already lead you to either suspect, believe or KNOW that miraculous living is and always has been our destiny as human beings ... but you're not quite sure HOW to go about experiencing miraculous living yourself, this may just be the perfect book for you, as it was for me.

As a Christian, I was raised to believe that miracles were possible. Jesus teaches that those who come after him will perform greater miracles than his. And yet, I didn't see those miracles happening around me, either to me or to anyone I knew or heard about. How was it that we justified believing in a set of spiritual principles that didn't seem to actually work in our day to day lives?

Like most people, I put this and questions like it on the shelf until I reached the age of 39 and my own life had run into a wall of frustration and disappointment. Fed up with the limitations of my life, deep insid, I felt SURE there MUST be a way that we could learn to tap into the miraculous potential I felt sure was ours and experience the full "wonderfulness" that I felt sure life had to offer ... but I had no idea HOW to tap into this potential.

This began a quest for me ... a quest into the parts of Christian, Hindu, Buddhist and New Age mystical teaching that seemed the most "real" to me ... the parts that just made sense to my heart and mind as I read them. As I detected a pattern of similarity across all these teachings and began to apply what I saw to my day to day life, I began to see dramatic changes taking place, even to the point of experiencing things I considered miracles ... sudden, complete and permanent reversals of long standing "problems" that years or decades of conventional effort had failed to change in any significant way. I became convinced by my own personal experience ... miracles are real. Things you thought could never be ... happen. Things you thought you'd never escape ... melt away. Suddenly ... completely ... permanently.

The problem for me, by the time I reached 43, wasn't that I was unsure whether or not we could live miraculous lives ... What was unclear to me was how to transform my entire life into a continuous miraculous experience. How could I move from occasionally experiencing miracles in an otherwise ordinary life ... to experiencing them all the time and in all aspects of my life? It seemed that something in either the content of what I'd learned or my understanding of it still had gaps in it. And those gaps lead to an inconsistency in my ability to create experiences of the miraculous.

I put up with the sporadic experience of miracles for several years ... until one day very recently I got completely frustrated with NOT understanding the difference between those times when I could and those times when I couldn't create miraculous results. I got quite irritated with myself and said "I'm ready to learn how to do this all the time and I'm ready NOW. I'm no longer willing to go on living NOT knowing how this works." I simply demanded of myself that I learn HOW to create miraculous results in my life all the time.

I kid you not ... THAT VERY EVENING ... I found this book. Actually, the book found me. My soul mate found this book and said "I think you might want to read this." She knew nothing at that point of my decision earlier that day to finally break the barrier that kept me from consistent miraculous living. My heart skipped a beat when I read the title. "God Does Not Create Miracles - You Do". I was already in total agreement with this notion. So, if this book is about HOW we create those miracles ... consistently ... then I had the answer I was looking for. I felt a mix of excitement and fear of potential disappointment ... but I dove in.

I read the book through in about an hour and KNEW I'd found the missing pieces of the puzzle. Just like working a puzzle, when you get down to the last few pieces, it's pretty easy to tell when you've found what you're looking for because you've narrowed down the possible options to just a few. As I read the book, it was as if the previous 4 plus years of my life had prepared me for the moment when my soul mate handed me this book. I needed no convincing that miracles were our birthright ... I just wanted to know ... REALLY wanted to know ... NEEDED to know ... HOW to experience them all the time and in all parts of our lives. And this book spelled it out simply, quickly, plainly and in words anyone who's ready could easily understand.

If, in reading my review, you feel like "yes, that's exactly where I am in my life!" then buy this book ... I don't think you'll be disappointed. If you are disappointed, send it to me, I'll pay for it and give it to someone who's ready for it. After reading a lot of books that danced all around why and how we could CONSISTENTLY experience miracles in our day to day life ... this one just puts it out there in plain English for the whole world to see and do for themselves.

I decided right away to put the teachings of this book into action immediately. Just finding this book was actually an example of applying it's principles. I'll add to this review later as I am able to evaluate the change in my results. For those of us who feel compelled to learn how we can grasp the miraculous potential born into every human life ... this book is a BIG winner.

FOLLOW UP

I'd like to add, now that I've had a chance to read the book 4 times and apply what I read, that the only thing I'm not in agreement with about this book is how hard it is to apply the basic principles outlined here. I think the author over emphasizes the difficulty of putting to work the basic tools of how to live miraculously, making it seem harder than it is, which I find to be a common difference between me and most people who write on this topic. And if you tell yourself something is going to be hard ... it will be.

thank you for selling this book. it made it to me in great time and is in excellent condition. thanks!

"Interviewing for Solutions" is wonderful. I would encourage anyone interested in Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) to read this book. "Interviewing for Solutions" supplies the reader with a overview of SFBT, as well as demonstrating SFBT in action via examples of interviews with various clients. Regardless of the counseling orientation one takes when assisting clients, the book provides valuable tools for all! In addition to this book, I would highly suggest obtaining a few of the lecture tapes of Berg, de Shazer and etc from the Brief Family Therapy Center.

Although solution focused-brief therapy is considered a paradigm, this book could very well be used in any introductory, microskills class, and it should.

The authors put forth a paradigm that is easy to learn (yet technique is perfected with much experience),and it places focus on the client's "non-problem" life. This is important because what we tend to focus on tends to increase.

The authors present SF in a way that is very empowering to both the therapist and the client. For the therapist who is interested in genuinely helping people, this will work, but you cannot use this approach and have an ego-issue w/regard to being an "expert." Rightly, the client is the expert on his/her own life.

A first-class text, and a keeper!

In the year 2000, this book was my first acquaintance with the solution focused approach to helping people. I had heard from a collegue (who is also a management coach) about solution focused working and, although I thought it sounded promising, I remained a bit skeptical. However, from the very moment I started reading 'Interviewing for solutions' my attention was firmly captured. Two chapters later I was practically sold. The approach is very clearly explained and the many dialogues in the book are really excellent (especially those by Insoo Kim Berg). After reading this book I started reading and learning more and I began using solution focused working in my practise as a coach and consultant. With peasure and success.

Great strengths based approach to working with families and young people from vulnerable communities.

This book on little quilts is a winner!! I am dying to start. They all look very good with ample instruction - small projects that don't take long.

This is a nice quilt book with good instructions and lots of pictures. I did find however that after the first few pages you were looking at the same quilts over and over, only done in different colour schemes. There are still some excellent patterns and instructions. This book is very inspiring as well. Any room filled up with that many quilts is bound to feel at home.

I really like this book,the pictures are lovely and the patterns are very clear and easy to follow. I'm fairly new to quilting and found this book very inspiring . The thought of trying a small quilt for your first attempt at quilting is not as daunting as a full size one,and this book has some great ideas.

I think all quilters should own this book. The directions are easy and include both rotary and template patterns. The pictures of the finished designs are vibrant and beautiful. I taught a beginning quilting class and we used this as our "textbook". Many of the quilts featured can be completed in just a few hours. Also, my favorite part of the book is how the quilts are shown on display. These pictures offer great decorating ideas.

I love this book and have made the quilts time after time. I do think the seams in the star points get bulkey so I trim away the excess fabric even though it's not described in the book. Its a must have if you like or love little quilts.

Before I begin, I'd like to point out that this short novel was originally written in French as "La Montagne morte de la vie," and that this version is an English translation, which, like most translations, suffers greatly from losses in precision, which is to be expected. While only an annoyance, it does detract from the overall enjoyment of the book. Now, onto the story itself. The concept, as well as its very vivid images, are the book's greatest strengths. Suffice it to say that the premise involves a transition from the world we know into something that may be the afterlife, and all the confusion and strange experiences this entails. This was what initially drew me to seek out this somewhat hard to find story and experience it for myself. After its completion, I found myself more than a little puzzled with the glowing reviews that can be seen here. I found the story adequate, and the relationship between the two main characters rather interesting, but beyond that, there is very little to recommend. More than anything, I would classify "The Other Side of the Mountain" as an average surrealistic tale with not much else to its credit. I found the images to be vivid and shocking, but not designed to frighten or horrify the reader. Even so, these strange visions that greet the unnamed narrator and his companion Toine after their bizarre transition through life are at the center of this work, and without them, it would truly be lost.

2 stars for the fascinating landscape created here, but this landscape could have been explored much more fully.

I read this book 25 years ago, and its story still haunts me. Read it for the first time waiting for a plane in the Azores. During the flight, I caught myself surveying the ocean, looking for an island with a single tall mountain, and a ship wreck near.

This is one of the eeriest and most moving books I've ever read. The author recounts his experience on a merchant vessel that is becalmed and then wrecked. The voyage is obviously an allegory of life and Bernanos probes some of its darkest corners. The jacket notes describe the tale as a descent into madness and a voyage into hell and both of those descriptions are apt. I particularly enjoyed the friendship of the old cook with the author even as their end approached. This is one of the rare books that left me wishing I could have met the author.

I first read this book as a teenager over 30 years ago, and it has remained with me ever since, always disturbing, always demanding to be examined more deeply. When I found a paperback copy at a used book sale two years ago, I found that my memories had not played me false - if anything, it was even more troubling now that I was old enough to better comprehend it. Is the author describing life as Hell or Purgatory? I waver between the two, even as the book's grotesque images appear in my mind, appalling but powerful. Well worth reading ... but be prepared to be haunted afterward.

I read this book 27 years ago in 7th grade. I have often looked for it, but have never found it. I read it only once, it has changed my life. Scariest thing I've ever read, I still find elements of this book in my nightmares.

Superb biography of the Raven. Well worth your reading time. This was an unusual man! As old General Nicks said, "God made him two drinks scant."
Unfortunately, my first copy arrived missing 30 pages. Amazon graciously sent a replacement copy and allowed me to keep the defective copy with all my notes, underlinings, etc.

Today's historical books use poetic licence, meaning it is not the facts, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. I've been meaning to get around to this book for a long time, but it took the movie, 'The Great Raid' to cause me to put this as priority.

I previously reviewed GHOST SOLDIERS on which the movie was made, and done well. It was so realistic that I had to cry (and I don't cry easily) because of the ferocity and lact of humanity the enemy showed. It was the same in WWI only our soldiers were not equipped to fight anyone that animalistic. I see now why Tennessean Alvin York went berserk and killed so many of the approaching enemy in this war, as he was cornered and was fighting for his life.

It's not always war where you have to defend you right to live in freedom. I had to use my elbows to get out of a difficult situation which I found myself in this past month. As in WWII, the enemy set out to engage and reduce the other side. This war engulfed Europe in 1914 and we came to their aid; now, in 2005, more than ninety years later, Europe has surpassed U.S.A. as the superpower of the world calling themselves the United State of Europe. Copycats! We should not jump the gun so quickly when the ally you fight for strives to surpass you in everyway. We thought we were helping England against Germany. Well, at least the Confederates who 'lost' the American Civil War took the cause of Britain and France, while the American Yankees took the side of Germany. It was another Civil War only on foreign ground this time. My favorite historian wrote that Lincoln didn't ask for or accept a surrender from the Rebels as that would be acknowledging that the Confederacy had been a sovereing nation and not "just a feverish mob," as Sam Houston is credited as saying. I have trouble believing a Tennessee governor would stoop to such stupidity.

The machine gun, poison gas, trench warfare and the airplane were used first in this war to beat all wars. "As President Teddy Roosevelt rallied the diverse ethnic groups of the nothern state (where he originated from) -- Italians, Mormons, Jews, and Irish -- Confederate President Woodrow Wilson struggled to hold together a nation still beset by ignorance, prejudice, and class divisions." The United States still has all of the listed attributes, especially two professors from other states who tore down one of the Southern Civil War heros with a book full of lies and no truth. That shows ignorance and prejudice is alive and well as the Northerners are still considering Tennessee a hillbilly state and everyone in it "white trash."

As in WWII, the aim was "don't surrender," and "never give up whatever the situation." The Americans were bound to give no information to the enemy when captured except name, rank, and serial number. when captured except name, rank, and serial number. There is a government employee here named Whitt who is proud he went through "Ranger" school and, now sixty, is still using the war tactics he learned there to bully anyone who has a difference of opinion. Sometimes, in severe times of conflict, the soldiers and their leaders had to crawl like a snake to survive. Planes had a pivotal role in rescuing the POWs in the Phillippines and their flying low over the camp was the signal for the troops to move into position for the night maneuvers. It's true that war is hell; and nothing is really accomplished. When you defeat one dictator or generalisimo, there is another to take his place to start another war.

Houston went on to the Alamo after fighting at San Joquinto to meet his fate. He was shot in the ankle by his men there and had a festering groin wound from his early days in Tennessee which caused the dissolution of his marriage. He went to live with the Cherokee Indians leaving the Governor's chair empty. If he called the Confederacy a feverish mob, he is not one to talk as his life was just one fever after another.

In 1929 Marquis James published his autobiography of Sam Houston which he titled "The Raven". It reflects, favorably for me, the style of scholarly writing of the times. Mr. James, who has written of other men and events of Houston's era, writes in a manor that suggests an almost intimate knowledge of his subject. He often shares Houston's feelings and reactions which he probably picked up on through his research into his subject's personal papers. As a result, the reader is more apt to become more emotionally involved with General Houston as he or she reads "The Raven". This became somewhat of a problem for me because Sam Houston is a somewhat exasperating individual.

The Sam Houston that emerged, for me, in "The Raven" was a man of strong leadership abilities, solid loyalties, and minimal political thought. I say this last part reluctantly because Marquis James provides information that suggests that he was a very capable governor. However, there seem to be few issues that come up during Houston's various tenures in the US House and Senate. There were the issues of Texas, the Union, and his close friends; the Chreokees. There is little, if anything, on Houston's opinions concerning the National Bank, trade issues, interstate commerce or other important subjects of the day. Indeed, we get images of a bored Senator Houston whittling away (literally) his time in the US Senate. There is, however, plenty about Houston the leader whether it be on the field of battle or the state house. He was and remains a most impressive figure in the history of the United States of America. Much of what I had heard about the man was fleshed out in "The Raven" in a satisfactory manner.

The major events are dealt with appropriately. For example, we don't get half of the book devoted to the Battle of San Jacinto. In fact, we get only a brief message of the Alamo but enough of San Jacinto to know what happened and how it affected both Houstan and Texas. Indeed, the greatest attention seems to have been given to Houston's failed first marriage. It ended with neither party talking about the cause of the split. The author seemed intent on uncovering the real cause and had us revisiting his first wife periodically through her life after Houston.

Marquis James did have an interesting mystery that he introduced to us early in the book. It had to do with a gift from Houston's mother to him when he was young. I had forgotten all about it until it showed up again at the end of the book; an appropriate message at an appropriate place.

I learned a lot about Sam Houston from reading this book and I am glad I did. There is plenty of Texas in here as there should be. There is also plenty of Tennessee, Washington DC, Andrew Jackson, Santa Ana, Cherokee Indians, and, as I alluded to early, the first Mrs. Houston (the second Mrs. Houston seemed to exist solely for producing offspring and writing letters). If Sam Houston is your hero, this is your book. If not then this is still an excellent biography.

A interesting Texas history lesson, this book was recommended by a local Texas historian from the Haley Library and Museum. Very enjoyable if you want more than just a history about Sam Houston, this is a Texas/Mexico history mini-lesson as well. The book tells the story of Sam Houston's life including his: Tennessee Governorship, ties to President Andrew Jackson, role as General of Armies and Malitias, tenure as President of the Republic of Texas, role as United States Senator and Governorship of the State of Texas.

Marquis James shows why he won more than one Nobel prize for historical writing. In this book he takes you through the entire life of Sam Houston, giving the reader an insight on the events of Houston's earlier life that shaped his actions in the founding of the Texas Republic. Until reading this book, I had no idea just how important Sam Houston was to the history of not just Texas, but the entire United States.

This is a terrific book that should be part of a home library and would be enjoyed by children of multiple levels. This is definitely a more extensive history than that of many "children's" books. The omission of the end of Lincoln's life may be considered a plus to some parents who are not ready to share that part or a disapointment to those who desire a more complete biography.

It's unfortunate that the negative reviewer suffers from the "politically correct" and "revisionist" history taught in modern times.

This book is wonderful. It tells about Abraham Lincoln from start to finish. Great for small children

About 20% of this book is worthwhile reading. The other 80% remains historically inaccurate, mythological, or downright offensive. But I get ahead of myself.

In 1940 Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire won the Caldecott medal for their picture book, "Abraham Lincoln". Like many idealized versions of Mr. Lincoln, this book relied on a couple old standbys. Lincoln was born in a log cabin. Lincoln wore a stovepipe hat. Then it adds a couple new myths to the brew. Lincoln apparently was friends with furry woodland creatures. He fought pirates and carried a scar from a fight with them over his left eyebrow. Finally, the book disintegrates into absolute fabrications. Lincoln, according to this text, was rivals with Stephen A. Douglas for the hand of Mary Todd. Not true. He went to war without provocation specifically to free the slaves. Not true. But how much can you blame a story that was written in 1939? It's possible that back then children's non-fiction books weren't held to the high standards they are today.

Entirely aside from the inaccuracy of the text, the story is deeply offensive to African Americans and Native Americans. Here's a bit of what I mean. As justification for the destruction of the Sauk and Fox tribes (who merely wanted to raise corn on land that had been taken from the Native Americans thirty years earlier) the book says:

"His tribe had sold the land to the 'paleface,' but Black Hawk said: 'Man-ee-do, the great spirit, gave us the land, it couldn't be sold'."

Needless to say, the tribes aren't actually named in this book. They're simply referred to as "Indians".

And the African-Americans? Ecoute:

"The next day President Lincoln walked into the town, holding little Tad by the hand. An old Negro recognized the long, thin man with the tall stove-pipe hat. "Here is our saviour," he cried, and threw himself at Lincoln's feet. And suddenly Lincoln was surrounded by Negroes, weeping and rejoicing as they cried: 'Glory, glory hallelujah'."

Totally aside from whether or not that actually happened, it's the accompanying pictures that really drill this image home. The stereotypical African-American with the wide white eyes and big lips is everywhere in this book. From a slave auction, where a mammy-like woman stands on a podium to the vision of a group of happy former slaves praising their "saviour", there are repeated visions of stereotypical blacks not usually found in children's literature. In fact, many of the illustrations in this book suffer from a variety of ills. Some are offensive (don't even start me on the pictures of the Native Americans). Some are silly. There's a shot of Abraham and his sister standing in the woods, stylized tears stuck to their faces. The picture reminds you of nothing so much as one of those 1960s paintings on velvet of big-eyed children, once so popular. Some pictures are poorly constructed. The last shot of Lincoln suffers from such a lack of proper composition and perspective that you could spend hours trying to make it line up.

And what 20% of this book is worth reading? Well, it's hard to get around the fact that there are shockingly few worthwhile books about Abraham Lincoln written with little kids in mind. If you want a fabulous book for older children then run, don't walk, to your nearest independent bookstore and buy "Lincoln: A Photobiography" by Russell Freedman. But for the little ones? As far as I can determine, this is the best you're going to be able to do. It does get kids interested in the life of Lincoln. And it makes him an understandable human being, with hopes and fears of his own. If you don't mind inaccuracies, the occasional poor illustration, and a tendency towards offensive images then this really is your best bet.

This is a children's book about the life of Abraham Lincoln. First written and illustrated in 1939, it was expanded in 1957. Most of the book focuses on Lincoln's early life. The illustrations resulted in the book being awarded the 1940 Caldecott Medal for best illustrations in a children's book. It is a book that helps children learn more about U.S. history and a great president. It is also a book that should be on the shelf of any serious student of children literature.

This book is in a word, charming. This book is a factual account of the life of Abraham Lincoln, from his birth to his presidency. This book is educational and informative, without being dry and boring as many history books tend to be. Children as young as 4 will be interested, as well as kids through upper elementary years. Simply worded, but not babyish, brilliantly illustrated, but not unreal. Youngsters will learn and retain much about the life of one of our most admired, courageous and beloved presidents. D'Aulaire's at their usual, expected, shining best! A Caldecott medal/honor book.

Written by chiropractor and nutritionist Eric Berg, DC, The 7 Principles of Fat Burning is a health and diet guide that debunks common myths - such as the myth that fat on the body comes from eaten fat, that extreme low-calorie diets help one lose fat (instead, they trigger the body to make more fat in response to the perceived starvation), that simply exercising harder by itself will burn fat (while exercising in the right way is invaluable, too much intense exercise puts harmful stress on the body and can even worsen weight problems for people with some body types), and more. The 7 Principles of Fat Burning particularly examines the roles of hormones and their deficiencies in controlling how people gain or lose weight, and classifies overweight individuals into four body types (adrenal, ovary, thyroid, and liver) based on how their hormonal balance is affecting the distribution of their fat. Furthermore, The 7 Principles of Fat Burning spells out how to balance one's diet, avoid unwanted hormones in food, and schedule exercise to maximize the body's natural fat-burning ability. "Eating or consuming refined sugars before bed (for example, orange juice) can nullify growth hormone's fat-burning effects as well as keep insulin high enough to prevent any fat release. This includes a glass of wine. An apple, which has fiber, is a better snack before bed." Suggested meal plans for individuals of different body types, a handful of recipes, and recommended exercise and rest charts round out this enthusiastically recommended health and nutrition guide for anyone seeking to lose weight.

I found the first read through this book to be very compelling. I finished it in a couple settings which is quite uncommon for me. The principles are effective and make sense. I've lost 35 pounds, dramatically improved my cholesterol scores, and I feel healthier. I definitely recommend this book. However, the way this book is organized makes it a horrible reference tool. For example, there is no index which makes it very difficult to look up specific information over time. Now, I suppose if you have perfect memory that wouldn't be an issue. But for most people you will be frustrated trying to find out if pineapple is good or bad for you after you've been following the program for a few weeks. If this book had a good index I would definitely give it five stars. It would also be nice if there were more recipes.

A great read. Well organized, good flow with humor interspersed to captivate the reader on this timely topic. The author includes plenty of drawings, charts and graphs to concretize what's conducive to fat burning as well as what inhibits the same. He has a way of taking this complex complicated information and regurgitating it into easily digestible chunks. The 7 Principles of Fat Burning rapidly brings you up the learning curve to understand how to activate your fat-burning hormones unique to your body type. A wealth of information from debunking the myths to tantalizing recipes, eating guides and exercise plans. It's hard to put down. A definite keeper.

I lost 5 pounds in my first two days on just a small part of this program and lost about 40 pounds in 6 weeks. I was sleeping better and felt energetic all the time. The best part of this book is it is not anonther diet or weight loss program. I addresses the fact that, if a person has excess weight hanging around that something in the body is "sick" and needs to be addressed. Once addressed through proper nutrition, the body's funciton returns to normal and the weight comes off. So instead of weight being your problem, it is merely a symptom. I have never found this more true and it works. Oh yeah, by the way, he doesn't allow you to cut calories or get hungry EVER - In fact, he proves how doing so only makes your weight gain problems worse. I would recommend this book to EVERYONE because it's vital information I think everyone should know about their body. You'll always know what's good for you. 2 Thumbs up, Dr. Berg..THANKS!!!!

My husband and I bought this book for weight loss. We found it to be very informative. It explains the functions of our hormones, and how to balance your hormones to achieve fat burning with diet and exercise. There is a lot of research from other places, and so the book contains info from many different sources with the research and results. This makes it a very comprehensive study, it is probably equivalent to readng several different books on this subject. He has lost 25lbs in a month, and I have lost 50lbs over 3 months.