Bishop Books

This was one of the easiest books to navigate through that I have ever seen because it emulates the hardcopy. In fact, it's better because I don't have to keep paging and paging to get to where I want to read. Instead, each chapter or individual book is just a click away. This decreases my frustration which increases my enjoyment. Thank you, it's fantastic.

This offers book and chapter navigation - without such an ebook of this size is useless. I have tried a number and this is by far the best and worthy of 5 stars. Also includes a previous and next link on each chapter so you can easily navigate to the next. Great formatting of each page.

This was the 3rd or 4th purchase I made when I received my Kindle. I was pretty hesitant that the Kindle version of the Holy Bible would be as good of quality as an original paper copy. I took a few minutes to see if I could navigate through the books and chapters with ease. I am pretty critical when it comes to a Bible in terms of what I want and expect. But after a few short minutes of searching through the text, I had forgotten that I was actually reading the Kindle version. It is very impressive. I am enjoying having the Holy Bible at my fingertips. I have given this 5 stars...for the simple reason that I notice nothing different between my Kindle version and my favorite hard copy of the Holy Bible. A perfect addition to my newly expanding Kindle Library.

I am not a tech savvy individual and I get frustrated having to scroll through many pages to get to the chapter and verse I want to read. Time is a precious commodity, and this kindle version of the King James Bible has just given me more bible reading time! No more endless back and forth scrolling, the navigation is easy-to-use and takes me where I want to go in just a few clicks.

When I first used my Kindle, I inadvertently downloaded the wrong KJV. It had no table of contents and to get to the New Testament I had to turn every single page. I wasn't through the first chapter in Genesis when I realized the futility of my task. I began a more thorough search for a Bible that was more "user friendly." This one caught my attention because Diana Mecom, the lady who formatted this version, offered to send a sample of it. I requested it and was pleasantly surprised to receive a personal note from Ms. Mecum which instructed me in how to transfer it from my computer to my Kindle. The sample was ample. It gave me Old and New Testament books to experiment with. I bought it and am delighted with it. I was extremely impressed with Ms. Mecom's kindness and follow-up on this transaction. I highly recommend this version of the greatest story ever told. STLemos

I found this very interesting book and above all of easy consultation. In the area I believe it is one of the best for its clarity and the advice to all those that work in the field of the additions and not only. Also I can add, having known the author, that the book reflects in full everything its skill and its extreme preparation in merit.

F. Michler Bishop's seminal volume "Managing Addictions" breaks new ground in the field of substance abuse counseling and psychotherapy. The author manages to provide a perfect blend of science and clinical wisdom whereas other books addressing this difficult work tend to favor one over the other. The result will have clinicians being able to apply a variety of empirically validated techniques while at the same time not sacrificing individual style. On a personal note, this book has converted me from conducting exclusive non-substance use/abuse disorders psychotherapy to becoming interested and receiving training in substance abuse work (specifically nicotine addiction). Herein lies the greatest value of Bishop's efforts: its value to ALL in the helping professions, regardless of their training or area of specialization. Not only do I highly recommend this book, I believe it should be required reading for all mental health professionals.

In my professional opinion, Mr. Bishop's book, Managing Addictions, is one of the two or three best books written for working professionals or interested lay people in the area of the treatment of addictive behaviors. My graduate students and clinical interns have found this text to be extremely useful and helpful in developing their skills when working with their clients with addictive problems. Also, some of my clients have read the book and have been able to apply many of the cognitive, emotive, and behavioral techniques for their own benefit and positive change. Great book and a great contribution!!! Hope many more people will end up reading and using Mr. Bishop's valuable information!!!

As a master's level, state credentialed substance abuse counselor that has been in the field for over 15 years, I found Bishop's book to be one of the best texts that I have read in my career on addiction counseling, treatment and recovery. Bishop elegantly synthesizes the often conflicting models of abstinence based/12 step recovery and harm reduction. He very pragmatically values both perspectives and guides the practitioner in finding what works best for his or her individual client. I can honestly say that this book provided me with a much needed professional epiphany and I will keep it within easy reach for reference purposes for as long as I practice my profession. I highly recommend this book to anyone that works with substance abusing clients.

This book is more complete than I thought! In my modest opinion it's magnificent. It has a great practical value and will be very helpful in my work as therapist. And it's exactly the kind of help I was looking for! This publication will be a guidance not only for me but for all of my coworkers here in my province, since I'll make sure that this useful work and his author be of everyone's knowledge.
I am a cuban psychologist working in a clinic for foreign drug dependence patients. This work has enriched our experience and it has been of great help. It combines successfully both Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, Cognitive Behavior Therapy and addiction. I recommend it to every therapist working in this field, including those from Latin American countries. Some of my colleagues who have already read it as well as me, have commented about the values of this book, that is, for all of us, a masterpiece!

edward hopper ... robert bechtle ... william eggleston ...

the great american image creator.

the only book of bechtle. great!!

The mere act of transforming what might be considered an average snapshot into a work of art is Bechtle's magic. Quiet streets, mundane automobiles, and people from a home photo album take on an air of the sublime, proving that the greatest power of photorealism lies not in the technique, but in the process of transforming a snapshot into an irrefutable memory.

This is a great book about a great artist. I saw the pictures in original and they are very good reproduced in this book. Who loves photorealism should have it.

I drove from Jackson, Mississippi to the Modern Museum of Ft. Worth see the Retrospective of Robert Bechtle's work. I am an artist myself and was astounded at the collection in this exhibit. The book does a superb job of presenting photos of the paintings in the collection. Additionally, the museum store at The Modern had none of these books in stock so it was fortunate that I ordered it when I did.

Robert Bechtle has been a creative force in California art since the 1960s, yet his name remains practically unknown outside the Bay Area artists group. This very fine monograph by Janet Bishop, designed as a catalogue to accompany the traveling exhibition of this works, should help to mend that sin of omission. The style of writing is warm and informative and, in many ways, in keeping with Bechtle's vision of the world he paints!

One quick perusal of the many reproductions of his major works in this book quickly leaves the impression that Bechtle understands and successfully captures the quality of light that is peculiar to California. His street scenes of angled cars and bungalows are flooded with light and shadow. Though his art movement classification is Photorealism, Bechtle goes beyond mere photo copying techniques. His work is more about our lifestyle and our living compartments normally looked upon as mere blocks of space in which we function. Bechtle enhances everything he paints with a sunny 'romanticism' if you will. His art is more about a love affair with the atmosphere's effect on the mundane places we inhabit than it is with simple reproduction of images and landscapes.

For the art lover of realism and for those who respect the prodigious gifts of representational artists, this book is a must for the library. Highly recommended. Grady Harp, December 05

which is quite an achievement in and on itself considering this is largely a reissue of multi-genred articles, nuggets of varying length and depth from the 1990s zine, supplemented with a never published virtual edition made in 2000. The more engaging installments comprise plentiful interviews conducted by editor-in-chief Greg Bishop with - inter alios - the late courageous abductee researcher/activist Karla Turner; Dr. Mario Pazzaglini, expert on alien writing whose decoded messages include gems like the one received by Betty Andreasson, "If you want to make light solid, show it to the Moon!" (p. 184); paranormal investigator and theoretician Dean Radin, Michael Grosso, parapolitics specialist Kenn Thomas (confessedly in the footsteps of Mae Brussels), and the likes.

"Space ranger and captain of the starship 'Psychopath'," Adam Gorightly (don't miss his radio show dubbed 'Untamed Dimensions' on gorightly.podomatic.com) is also among the contributors interviewing the controversial Dr. Andrija Puharich's colleague Ira Einhorn (sounds an exceptional human being, indeed, who since then has been extradited on murder charge -- set- & hush-up, rather -- to the U.S. by the French, if memory serves), and with an essay on the Castaneda-craze penned in his unmistakable style, with a telling subchapter title 'BS as a fertilizer in the garden of truth' (p. 229).

Also worthy of mention are the posts by co-editor Peter Stenshoel probing the socio-psychological aspects of borderland studies; as well as a debriefing on the once clandestine group/network (now defunct or morphed into sg. else) ATPWG (short for 'Advanced Theoretical Physics Working Group'), which connects such notorious characters as Col. John Alexander, Maj. Ed Dames, Dr. Hal Puthoff, Col. Philip Corso (not so by the way a rescuer of Nazi scientists under Project Paperclip), and possibly ufologist Jacques Vallee (pp. 389-92); plus Joan d'Arc's (of Paranoia mag) paper outlining the envisioned modification of humans for space travel (alternatively, read Robert Silverberg's 1993 sci-fi novel 'Hot Sky at Midnight' as predictive programming?), John Carter's piece 'Remnants of Thule: Semitic Seeds in Nazi Germany', & so forth.

The reader can also find interesting newsbits, film/video and book reviews, including the late great Jim Keith's (died under suspicious circumstances in 1999, like so many others) devastating assessment of David Icke's bestseller 'The Biggest Secret'.
As for the downside, the large format renders the present compendium (with a few disturbing typos here and there) a bit unwieldy and less portable; whereas the smartarsing, pretentious fun-pun factor prevalent on part of certain authors at the detriment of genuine insight is a tad too much for my liking. Otherwise, well worth its price.

If you read Fortean Times or a reader of Charles Fort you'll love this book. Totally enjoyable.

Greg Bishop's compilation of his Excluded Middle magazines is one of the best compilations of weird stuff available. This giant book, packed with material, reminds me of Kenn Thomas's Steamshovel Press Reader, or the strange earthmysteries compilation Far-Out Adventures. Anyway, Bishop is to be commended for his ground-breaking magazine and this compilation of articles.

Huge compilation of the great but obscure "Excluded Middle" magazine. Forget the Weekly World News, Fate, or any of the rest - this is the real thing! For once some intelligent people have gotten together to talk about conspiracies, UFOs, and the paranormal. An indispensable guide for the new millennium.

Get this book!
Five of the articles included in this anthology just plain made me mad! That's why I gave it 5 stars. How many books can do that these days? There are about 85 pieces in the book, most originally printed in tEM (although there is an entire virtual issue included) with something for everyone. (And very likely at least one that will make you mad!)
The intellectual level of the discussion in the Excluded Middle is a lot higher than that found in other 'zines covering the conspiracy/UFO/weirdness communities. The anthology is definitely worth the purchase price, just as the magazine is worth seeking out. (It is unfortunately hard to get.) If you've never seen the magazine, get the book and see what you've been missing.
...and you gotta love any book edited while listening to both Captain Beefheart and The Who.
Get this book!
Now!

The politics of this well-placed Duchy are in flux, and there seems to be an obsessed madman in charge, opposed by the Horsemistresses who ride flying horses which can only be touched by women and superstition says were given to the people of Oc by the Horse God. Tense, vivid, and even better than the first book of the series. I'm looking forward to more.

I greatly enjoyed this second book of the horse mistress series.
Lark's continuing development of her skills is fun to follow.
This is an exciting adventure and I am looking forwardto the next book.

The Duchy of Oc has been a safe place for many, many years. Long enough that protection isn't something that people think about, much less anticipate needing. All of that is about to change.

On a quiet day in late summer, Aesk raiders invade the fishing village of Onmarin. Many people were killed, and two children were taken. If they're lucky they will survive to be slaves. The Aesks aren't known for their kindness.

Larkyn Hamly and her friend, Hester Beeth, happened to be in Onmarin on that day. They were visiting their friend Rosellen, the stable girl from the Academy of the Air. Rosellen was killed that day, and her little sister was one of the children who was taken. Larkyn and Hester escaped. Unharmed physically, but tortured emotionally, they are determined to have something done. Young girls, especially ones who should be focused on horsemistress training, can't do much. They must hope that the council will do the right thing.

The Duke's descent into madness has grown more frightening, and more dangerous. No one and nothing is safe from him, and no one seems to have the power to stop him. More than a few people don't even see the need to try.

Mistress Winter again becomes their hope. She's not only fighting for the people of Onmarin, she's fighting to keep her job, and keep the Academy running, free from Duke William's dangerous clutches. He will try to stop her, even destroy her and Larkyn, at every possible opportunity. Mistress Winter is left, with little support, to make potentially dangerous alliances and promises.

Larkyn is nearly alone as well. She must not only keep herself and her beloved Tup, her winged horse, safe from Duke William, but she must walk a fine line to keep her family's home from being taken away.

The Duchy of Oc seems to be balancing very shakily. It's clear that something must happen, but what?

The more I read, the more involved and in love I am with these books. They are completely absorbing. The world that is created is so rich and full and real. The characters are wonderfully interesting and well-developed. I feel like I live inside this world and I know these people. This is great fantasy at work.

I'm not ready for this series to be done yet, and thankfully it isn't, but I'm not sure I ever want it to end.

Reviewed by: Carrie Spellman

The most important commodity in the Duchy of Oc is flying horses. These marvelous winged creatures only let females ride them, refusing to allow a man near them let alone touching them. Duke William is obsessed with riding a winged horse and is developing a new breeding line that will allow men to ride them. He is so intent on bonding with a winged horse that he neglects his duty to his people.

The village of Onmarin is attacked by the barbarous Aesklanders and two of the students of the Academy Of Air witnessed the event. The duke won't avenge his people's death or try to find the two children that were taken. Horsemaster Philippa of the academy works behind the scenes to get the students back without Duke William, her sworn enemy, knowing of her plans. An academy student Larkyn finds out what William is doing and reports to Phillipa; but William brings charges against Philippa. William is growing increasingly insane and dangerous as he takes an elixir that turns his body into a female so that his first flying horse Diamond will accept him. His brother Francis is the only one who can limit his older brother's actions but his power is restricted and the duke is cunning using stealth and trickery to get his way.

Readers who read the prequel to the novel AIR BENEATH THE MOON will thoroughly enjoy reading how much Lark has matured as she learns patience and caution. The duke hates her because he believes she stole his first flying horse of his new bloodline away from him. Her concern for her mentor Horsemistress Philippa endears her to the audience who can see she cares more about her mentor and her horse than she does herself.

Harriet Klausner

I enjoyed the first book in this series. I felt that the author had some really interesting concepts behind women and the flying horses that they rode and the sacrifices they had to make for it.

But I have to say... this book didn't enthrall me.

I struggled through the first half. I even put it down for a week, before picking it back up and making myself finish it. Luckily, the book finally hit its stride about halfway in, and I was able to enjoy myself again. Unfortunaly some of the plot points that I waded through had little or nothing to do with the last half, and it seemed as if it were put there for filler.

Some things in particular that bugged me:

Lark or Larkyn or whatever the main character is called (because it changes throughout the book). It seems like nothing important ever happens without her there to witness it. I won't give away any spoilers, but the only other person who ever does anything worth while is Mistress Winters. Even then, it's usually with Lark in tow.

The main character also has dark hair and violet eyes. Yuck. Pet-peeve of mine. And it's something that could be overlooked, if the author didn't point it out so many times!

Things that were a problem in the first book just magically didn't matter in the second. Like Lark's inability to ride her horse with a saddle. This is fixed in the book, it seems, by her practicing. Whoopie. But in the first book, it seemed as if no amount of practice would help. That was a major point. Now the problem was shoved in the background and kind of tossed off as, "Oh yeah, she practiced."

The main bad guy, the Duke, is stupidly obsessed with the main character. Doesn't he have anything better to do? I mean, really. I think the part where I stopped reading the first time was when his `evil scheme' was to kill Lark's horse's dog. Wow. These bad guys sure aren't what they used to be.

The cute little urchin who had a positive interaction with Lark for all of ten seconds of course is the one that is kidnapped by barbarians. So of course, all of the good guys are up in arms over saving him and cowardly little girl that was also kidnapped. In fact, they wanted to go to full out war. A whole Duchy going to war for two children. Meanwhile the bad guys were against it, and I couldn't help but agree. There are reasons to go to war, but killing hundreds of people for the sake of two children just isn't it. Sorry. Especially since in the last book, the Duke beat several women to death.

Petra Sweet is also like a one-dimensional copy of Draco Malfoy. Just saying.

Most of these things were in the first half of the book, as I said. Once all the nonsense with the barbarians was over (and it was never even explained WHY they had gone to all of the trouble of invading Oc, or why for that matter they did it, only to kidnap two children.) the book picked up. In fact, it became rather good with all of the creepiness of he Duke coming full fledged, the plot moving along and the side characters actually becoming interesting.

So in conclusion, the second half is what makes it worth buying. I'll give it four stars for the good parts in the book, even though it really deserves three and a half. I just hope that next book doesn't require so much patience on my part to get to the good stuff.

This book is simply the best source for 20th Century Brazilian poetry. As well-known American poets from Elizabeth Bishop to W.S. Merwin have publicized and translated Portuguese poetry, the Brazilian poets in this volume are becoming better known. Several of these poets have individual volumes of poetry available in English translation.

This book contains poetry of Manuel Bandeira, Oswald de Andrade, Jorge de Lima, Mario de Andrade, Cassiano Ricardo, Joaquim Cardozo, Cecilia Meireles, Murilo Mendes, Carlos Drummond de Andrade, Vinicius de Moraes, Mauro Mota, Joao Cabral de Melo Neto, Marcos Konder Reis, and Ferreira Gullar. Bandeira, Drummond de Andrade, Melo Neto, and Moraes are the best known of these poets. This sampling of poetry is heavily weighted to Melo Neto who is "difficult" - as noted in the introduction.

The translations are very good because the translators are all poets in their own right. Some of the translations are not very exact and the descriptions can be altered significantly, but in general, these translations would be difficult to surpass. The poems are en face - that is on the left page is the orginal Portuguese poem and on the right facing page is the translation. This is the only way to publish bi-lingual poetry and greatly aids the English speaking reader, even if he is fluent in Portuguese.

The quality of the poems is uneven. The more recent poets, like Melo Neto, are increasingly linked to American Poetry so you will find the poems less regional the more recent they get. Since I find most modern American Poets to be needlessly dense and obfuscatory ("difficult" if you will), it is no surprise that I like the earlier poems much better. They are clearer, less baroque in the sense that there is less decorative but useless wordiness, and speak more to the human condition. Melo Neto, who the editors call "dense" and "difficult" reminds me very much of Wallace Stevens. Like Stevens, you put in an awful lot of mental work to get a few thoughtful, interesting phrases from a poem that is much too long for the subject covered. (Can you tell I dislike Stevens?) But if you do like Stevens, generally considered one of the great 20th Century American Poets, you will like Melo Neto.

My favorites in this book are Moraes, Drummond de Andrade, and Mendes. Poetry is one of those art forms that is as much dependent on the knowledge and experience of the viewer as it is the content of the artwork. For example, when Mendes speaks nostalgically of "meu quarto modesto da Praia de Botafogo" (my modest room on Botafogo Beach), I am transported to the sights, sounds and smells of when I lived in a modest room on Botafogo beach.

I also note that the introduction of this book is essential in understanding who these poets are and the ambience from which they write.

At any rate, give this book a shot if you're looking for good poetry full of introspection. 4 stars.

Not only does this book (edited by no less an authority on poetry and Brazil than Elizabeth Bishop) contain poems by such greats as Carlos Drummond de Andrade, Vinícius de Moraes, João Cabral de Melo Neto and Manuel Bandeira-- but it has on the facing page translations by such respected greats as James Merill, W.S. Merwin, Mark Strand and Bishop.

The selections are neither too much nor too little. If, like me, you are learning Portuguese, the originals can be studied easily. The quality of the English translations is exceptionally high, many of them great poems in their own right. I credit Bishop and her co-editor Emanuel Brasil, whose introduction is brief and effectively sets the scene.

In Brazil, poetry is widely respected and read. The poets in this anthology are part of the generation that has broken away from the more rigid forms and themes of Portuguese and continental poetry. Poets like Vinícius de Moraes deserve to be known for more than writing the lyrics to "Girl from Ipanema" (he needed the money). This is their due. This anthology has introduced me to several poets I now plan to explore in greater depth.

Brazil is famous for its gems. It is clear this literary gem comes from a very rich mine.

This collection is an absolute classic and is particularly recommended to anyone learning Portuguese. How often are readers of English able to see both the original text and brilliant translated verse? And the selections are magnificent, from Oswald de Andrade to Vinicius de Moraes and Carlos Drummond de Andrade, many of the poets most influential both in literary circles and on the Brazilian songwriters who seem to be more and more prominent on the world stage. Also worth noting are the spectacular poets credited as translators: Elizabeth Bishop, James Merrill, W.S. Merwin, Richard Wilbur...

The poems are broadly chosen, from playful to mournful. Many are unforgettable. Highest recommendation I can give is that it influenced my decision to learn Portuguese.

This is a great book, especially for the native English speaker who is an advanced student of the Brazilian Portuguese language. On each left page is a poem in Portuguese. On each right page is the poem's translation into English. My Portuguese teacher (from Brazil) is a student of literature. She has reviewed the book and thinks it has a really good selection of poems. Not only are the poems great, I love to read the translations to improve my Portuguese.

Initially published in 1972, this anthology stands as one of the first to introduce English-speaking countries to Brazilian modern poetry. Fourteen poets in all are represented, a few more heavily than others (with Carlos Drummond de Andrade and Joao Cabral De Melo Neto receiving nearly half of the space of the book.) Aside from this imbalance, it introduces many poets who are still unfairly obscure in English-speaking countries, even among those with an extensive grasp of modern poetry. Like any great anthology, it has since prompted a few publishers to release book length works of individual poets, esp. Manuel Bandeira, Joao Cabral de Melo Neto & Carlos Drummond de Andrade. Unfortunately, the poets who caught my attention the most such as Murilo Mendes, Cecilia Meireles & Vinicius de Moraes have not received the same attention due to them. From lyrical incantations & meditations of love through pieces of anguish, they prove that they are just as competent to write on these subjects as the world's other great poets. The multiplicity of voices & styles so noticeable in this anthology, proves that Brazil's modern poetry deserves a lot more notice and consideration.In "The End of the World" Joao Cabral de Melo Neto writes, "Instead of the last judgment, what worries me/ is the final dream." This anthology will provide us with numerous dreams for a long time.

Also highly recommended-the recently release "Pip Anthology of World Poetry of the 20th Century Volume 3: 20 Contemporary Brazilian Poets" pub. Green Integer.

This is a great story and I enjoyed reading it. This book has left a standing impression. I will remember this story and encourage anyone to read it. Its not the best in the world but it is very enjoyable.

I first read this book when I was about ten, & re-read the whole series over the years. To this day it is still with me. The portrayal of the character's, the places they inhabit & the way their stories as individuals are related, is very real & very moving.
Even now, though it has been years since I last read the series (I'm now in my thirties)- I find that this book, its characters, & the history portrayed within its covers has never left me.

What a lovely book to read! The dialogue is touching, hilariously funny, fascinating and rings with honesty. The characters have depth and personality. An excellent choice.

Apple Tree Lean Down is the foundation book of all of MaryPearce's writings. If you can find it,count yourself as one of thelucky ones! Mary Pearce writes about english farm life like no one else on the planet.Her characters have such depth, that you feel they are old friends. Her historical knowledge of the way farm life was in the 1800's is phenomenal.All of her books are unforgettable, and you find yourself reading them over and over again.Jack Mercybright is a living breathing person you wish you could meet.And there is excitement,suspense,drama and death as well as beauty of the English Countryside. I can't say enough good things about this remarkable author. Lynda Blair

Superior!!! I read this book years ago after the birth of my son. It filled me with such depth of emotion (no book since has made me feel like I was part of it) If you have never read it, read it. The characters and countryside will remain with you for life!

Fortunately, The Teaching Company led me to Phillip Cary and Augustine's Invention of the Inner Self: The Legacy of a Christian Platonist.

His book brings two thoughts to mind. First, when I entered Western Washington University as a mixed-up student who had been disenchanted with "organized religion," an anthropology professor said, "Dick, you must find yourself." Secondly, I've always loved my Catechism's definition of a sacrament as "an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace," but now Cary challenges me to look beyond the beauty of those words in order to gain insight into their Augustinian-Platonic meaning. His book unites both thoughts and sets me on a demythologizing journey.

This is a book I'll need not merely to read like The Reader's Digest. I'll have to live with it. That will require much study. At little over 200 pages, it's not long, and one quarter consists of notes and bibliography. But what his book lacks in length it delivers in depth. Happily, Cary is incurably interesting. And that's the problem. I have a hard time trying to put it down. He keeps digging dilemmas--or maybe I should call them paradoxes--that arrest my attention. Moreover, it's not the end of the story. Just this year, he published Inner Grace: Augustine in the Traditions of Plato and Paul, and Outward Signs: The Powerlessness of External Things in Augustine's Thought. The titles are witty references to my Catechism's definition of a sacrament. I'll need to read and mark all three books if I wish inwardly to digest all Cary has to tell me about Augustine's thought.

Moving from the Catechism to cataracts, the book's nine-point font bugs me, and I need my most powerful magnifiers to regain the joy of reading. Oxford University Press doesn't seem to realize America is aging. Nor does the corny cover reflect Cary's colorful style that, fortunately, is better reflected in the covers of Outward Signs and Inner Grace.

Prof. Cary's book on Augustine resonates with me as few books have. Every page is so fruitful. What is the soul? One might say: what are the limits and opportunities posed by "introspection" or "self reflection" or "self consciousness." The remarkable development from Plato through Aristotle through Plotinus to Augustine is captured in a unique, sensitive, and joyful way.
I'm a layman who formally studied a lot of philosophy in my twenties (forty years ago). I think back on my own painful quest for meaning earlier in life before I became a born again Christian (under reformed baptist doctrine). I was studying under a program of philosophy completely controlled by the logical potivists and the analytic philosophers of the 20th century. I was cut off from the history of philosophy with its great riches. In this book, I see the love for philosophy that I never was able to bring to fruition in my own studies. It is a joy to see that someone has succeeded where I failed.
The problem of the inner and the outer has dogged me all my life. I had a fixed mindset that the "Truth" lay with the inner -- the inner was more "spiritual." In this book, I better see the weaknesses of the "inner" yet, at the same time, the reasons for its great appeal to deeply reflective persons. The power of inwardness still has some hold on me. There is a mystical element of "union with Christ" in my philosophizing about my life and theology. Yet, by grace, I have been freed from the domination of the inward. To see the whole matter laid out in vibrant prose is a thrill.
Thank you Prof. Cary. Perhaps you never would have guessed that you were performing a great personal as well as a professional service in writing this book?

I'm a honors philosophy student at Eastern college, and Dr. Cary is my professor. I haven't read all of this book, but have flipped through it enough to know its worth. Dr. Cary's knowledge of Augustine is at once both vast and concentrated, and his writing is highly academic but very clear and easy to follow. I would recommend this work to any one interested in Augustine, the inner self, or historical and modern Christian thought.

To critique Augustine, is to critique Christion theology. All Christians pay homage to the feet of Augustine, and, ironically, all Christians seem to think that Augustine somehow agrees with them. This is true of both Protestants and Catholics. This is seen in a lot of popular writing, and sometimes even in scholarly writing. Because St. Augustine is neither Protestant nor Catholic (Catholic in the sense that we now understand it today) understanding him on his own terms has radical implications for all Christians. When I was reading this book I would ask myself, what is this guy driving at? What is the point to demonstrate that Augustine invented the inner self? Who cares if Augustine was a Christian Platonist? Well... everybody should! Because Augustine is considered one of the most influential writers since the apostle Paul! Dr. Cary draws some startling criticisms that are often considered 'biblical doctrine.' (E.g. the doctrine of the division of the soul and body, or that heaven is this aerial and surreal place.) No, Dr. Cary says, Christianity is a faith of heart and flesh. Christ came in human flesh to restore creation. My only disappointment with this book is that the conclusion is all too slender. I hope this is not the only book that Dr. Cary writes on this subject. I hope he is working on more.
Dr. Philip Cary is a brilliant scholar, and (I think) an incredible lecturer.
I first heard him in a series of lectures that he did to the Teaching Company, ... This book is accessible to both the scholar and the inquiring student. Dr. Philip Cary masterly uses common words and clearly defines unfamiliar words.
As someone who is always on the lookout for well-written book's and scholarly books to cite in later Ph.D. work this book meets both of those requirements. It is a bit pricey, but it is worth it. I bit Oxford Press now offers a more affordable paperback edition.

In his 'Augustine's Invention of the Inner Self' professor Phillip Cary shows the reader in a brilliant way how to reveal one of the most complex issues in Western culture to the average reader. As if it was his main goal to offer a didactic achievement the book is readable as a detective novel. Origin and conceptual development of the inner self are convincingly demonstrated.
Nevertheless I have one question about the book. That is: why doesn't Cary give us a more thourough explanation about Augustine's rejection of literature in education (see p. 97 and footnote 9 on that page)? According to my view finding ones self, being one of the purposes of education, depends for a great deal on exploring one's culture's history and literature. By searching the one and only Truth in the self being Christ, and at the same time repudiating culture's traditional vehicles for that search, as is vehemently recommended in Conf. 1.16, education as Augustine saw it might have been severaly hindered.
Since Augustine's time the humanities have suffered from enduring attacks by Christian critics. The search for the inner self, as we find it again in Pascal (see 'Pascal et Saint Augustin' by Philipe Sellier, Paris 1970; another reference I missed in Cary's book is 'La découverte de Soi' by Georges Gusdorf, Paris 1948), might be victimized by those attacks up till today's educational practice. On many schools and colleges in Holland and in many other Western countries, humanities are a bit of a nonitem.
How is Dr. Cary's opinion about the posibility of the actual consequences of Augustine's thought on these matters?

Dr. Guido Everts, Historical educationist
Amstelveen
The Netherlands
E-mail: geverts@hetnet.nl

This is an extremely well written and engaging book by a first-time published author. I can't wait for his next mystery to come out in January of next year. Not only is the story exciting, the characters are fascinating and the Brazilian backdrop extremely interesting. I strongly recommend this book.

I like to read in bed before going to sleep. Usually it helps me relax and opens the way for a restful sleep. However, the interwoven multidimensional plot of Blood of the Wicked kept me up till 4 in the morning. I kept on telling myself that I'll put the book down at the end of the chapter; however it didn't quite work that way as the book kept on pulling me along. The author has that special knack that I'll call literature chocolate truffles. I'll keep on consuming each line until I read the whole thing. The only difference is that instead of eating an entire box and putting on 3000 calories I am stuck craving his next novel.

As far as the story content, I would recommend reading Duncan Haynes review. He did a good job describing the absorbing storyline and unique setting.

This book has already received rave reviews, but it doesn't hurt to add my praise. It's a brutal, graphic story at times, but Gage's notes at the end show he knows the Brazilian world he portrays. Leighton Gage's knowledge of the political, economic, and religious problems in Brazil is shown in his vivid descriptions of the cruelty of life.

Blood of the Wicked introduces Mario Silva, Chief Inspector for Criminal Matters in the Brazilian Federal Police. He's a well-educated man, with a law degree and training with the FBI. And, he's a complicated character. It's well known in the country that Brazilian justice is subject to bribes, money and power. When Silva's father his brother-in-law were killed in the early years of Mario's career, he took matters into his own hands. Silva understands that sometimes "Brazilian justice" isn't actually justice.

Silva's latest case starts out as a problem, and only grows more complicated. Before it's over, it involves landowners and the landless, the state police, the media, street kids, and the Catholic Church. It begins, and ends, with the death of priests. When a bishop is assassinated, Silva's dislikable political boss sends him to take charge. He arrives to find his case entwined with a recent death of a family in the landless movement. Brazil has a constitutional obligation to confiscate untilled land and give it to the landless. The landowners fight back. The landless occupy land they don't own, and violence results. And, the corrupt police support the landowners in many areas.

As Silva and his small team from the Federal Police investigate, they only face opposition from the state police and the landowners. Before Silva can put together the facts, he finds events escalating out of control, as reporters are murdered, the families occupying land are massacred, and each clue leads to more violence. And, suspicion alone can't solve the case.

Leighton Gage has written a powerful debut mystery. He brings Brazil to life, with the complex politics, and ugliness of the poverty, and, at times, the life. For those who object to the brutality in the book, the author explains that documented deaths are over 1,500 in Brazil's land wars. Gage shows the extremes of poverty and wealth, capturing it vividly in two scenes linked by one character, the mother of a street boy. He tells of the family tragedies in Brazil, and the crime. And everything is linked together, the lifestyles, the police, the politics, and the Church. Chief Inspector Mario Silva himself, is a complex man, who has witnessed, and lived, the contradictions of Brazilian life and "Brazilian justice."

I'm waiting for the return of Silva in the sequel to Blood of the Wicked.

In a carefully crafted mystery-thriller debut Blood of the Wicked, Leighton Gage reveals a little- seen side of Brazil. This is not a beach book of tanned and toned bodies moving to a languid bossa nova rhythm along the sandy shores of Rio de Janeiro. Nor is it an Amazon adventure. This story takes place in the pantal of the southeastern region. It is a gristly tale of greed, torture, murder, and of personal and institutional corruption in a country where one percent of the population owns half of the arable land, and where much of the peasantry is condemned to a life of involuntary servitude.

The story reveals the region to be a breeding ground for strife and Gage loses no time throwing us into the fray. Enter Dom Filipe Antunes, Bishop of Preidente Vargas, descending by helicopter on the town of Cascatas do Pantal to bestow blessings on the new church of Nossa Senhora dos Milagres. The bishop is greeted by a ring of townspeople, a crescent of banners of the Landless Worker's League and a posting of State Police. The delegation of local officials approaches at an annoyingly slow pace and a bullet from a high-powered rifle finds the bishop's heart as he stands alone.

Who did it? Was it landless workers upset that Christianity was not being practiced on its most fundamental level? Or was it wealthy landowners looking for another excuse to persecute the land-reform agitators?

Enter the institutions. The Vatican is upset. Powers in Brasilia demand a politically balanced solution. The job falls on the shoulders of protagonist Mario Silva, Chief Inspector for Criminal Matters of the Federal Police of Brazil.

Mario Silva knows a lot about criminal activity in Brazil -- urban variety, anyway. In the book's early pages we learn how his father was murdered by robber after making a fatal mistake -- stopping for a red light. We also learn how Mario Silva found the robber and exacted justice, urban Brazilian style. Subjects of Silva's investigation included pawn brokers, street kids, hoodlems and policemen who supplement their income by shaking them down. Silva's action did not involve arresting his father's murderer and bringing him to trial. However, distinctive feature's of the robber's tatoo and the uniqueness of the stolen object made Silva absolutely certain that he had gotten and dispatched the right man.

Investigating the murder of the Bishop in provincial city of Cascatas do Pantal, Silva is not able to take such decisive action. He is hamstrung by bureaucracy, blocked by the uncooperative Colonel of the State Police, and is hampered by people's fear to speak. As Silva investigates systematically we learn many interesting facts the way. We learn about the "Theology of Liberation" which was once advocated by rural priests and has now found the disfavor of the Church hierarchy. We learn of the vast fazendas (rhymes with haciendas), some as large as Connecticut. We learn that the constitutional allows for seizure and purchase of unused portions of these large holdings by populist movements. We also learn that the legal process is complicated and that the judges are for sale.

In Blood of the Wicked, Lieghton Gage serves up a strong brew of horror story, police procedural, slasher novel and whodunit. It would defy classification were it not a true and never- ending story. It is the story of a land war and frontier justice, south of the equator. A landowner has his overseer nail a protesting peasant to a tree. A group of hooded vigilantes rousts the landowner from bed, butchers his overseer in front of his eyes, then carts the landowner off to be buried alive at the top of a hill. We learn that the commandant State Police is not just a bureaucratic short-timer, but is one of the bad guys. The priests, we learn, come in several flavors besides Jesuit and Franciscan. Escalating violence gets way ahead of Chief Inspector Silva's procedural investigation of the initial crime. The struggle becomes a combination of range war and Mafia turf fight with many players lending a hand. When the dust settles, justice is served, but mainly because Silva the only honest man left standing and because national TV cameras are poised to broadcast the story.

The "ripped from the headlines" quality of Blood of the Wicked is the result of the author's wide experience with the Brazil, which includes marriage and frequent visits to the country.

In a classic sh*t rolls down hill, the Pope calls the Brazilian president twice; in turn the president pressures the Director of the Brazilian Federal Police Nelson Sampaio to resolve the matter ASAP; in turn Nelson orders Chief Inspector Mario Silva to uncover the identity of the person who assassinated Bishop Dom Felipe Antunes at a church mass in front of a crowd at Cascatas. Mario understands he is to drop everything else and personally handle the investigation in the remote town and capture the felon yesterday.

Silva travels immediately to Cascatas only to find angry townsfolk as the affluent landowners and the reform minded Landless Workers' League are in a brawl over sharing the wealth. Each side's leaders demand Silva investigates a local case that has raised tensions to a point that hostilities seem imminent if he wants any cooperation on the Bishop homicide. The son of a local landowner, Orlando Muniz Junior vanished without a trace. His father and his allies believe the league abducted and probably killed him. The League believes the lad is on holiday.

Silva is a fascinating character as he has enough personal issues and a difficult case without getting involved in the local tsunami, but cannot keep out of it as more kidnappings and murders occur. He makes little progress on either investigation and what he does learn like the church is involved in protecting its own when pedophile accusations surface make him wonder if the Bishop's death is related. Although extremely violent as the title is not false advertising, fans who have a strong stomach for gore will enjoy this Brazilian police procedural.

Harriet Klausner

This book is amazing. It is a must have for every Catholic household, I bought one for my family and one for my sister's family for Christmas. I will definently buy for other family members also! It is a great book to go to daily at family time to pray. It has daily prayers along with prayers for special reasons and for the different seasons. Excellent!!

I find this book to be very helpful in finding Prayers for different occasions in the life of an average person. It contains Blessings and Prayers for almost any encounter in life. It is a book that makes a nice gift for newlyweds, someone moving in to a new home, or anyone else. I purchased one for myself and one for a gift. It has a lot of Prayers that we have heard before, and some we may not have heard, but will find very beautiful. I keep mine on the coffee table along with my Bible and have had people pick it up and ask where I got it. A good Evangelizing tool.

Please notice this review refers to the recent (8/07) republication of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishop's excellent family prayer book, now leather bound and excellent for gifts and for daily multiple use in the home. The family that prays together stays together.

Now with a sturdier binding and completely revised to include new prayers by the new popes, and to update the Liturgical calendar and cycle of feast days, and with expanded scriptural readings drawn from the liturgical cycles, this book of prayers deserves a central point in every home. It even contains a useful version of the Liturgy of the Hours in which all may gracefully partake.

An excellent wedding gift, birth gift, new home gift, gift for anyone and for any family occasion, even for an old hermit like myself.

The first section contains Basic and essential prayers, as well as prayers for before attending the Eucharistic celebration, Acts of the Theological Virtues (Faith Hope and Charity), Marian prayers, prayers for the sacrament of Reconciliation, plus pious invocations. The second section generously provdes daily prayers, including a great Liturgy of the Hours, prayers upon waking, prayers for meals, prayers at work, at service, at study and for almsgiving. Here we find prayers at noon, upon returning home and for bedtime.

In the third section of this well-laden spiritual banquet we discover prayers of the seasons and day, including Sunday prayers, Advent, Christmas, Lenten and Easter prayers, plus other Feast days and US national holidays. The fourth section bears the title: Family prayers from birth to death, including blessings for family members, for the household, for times of sickness, for times of child-bearing (or adoption), blessings for childhood, for marriage and for grieving.

The fifth section of this generous and comprehensive womb to tomb banquet holds prayers for Catholic Living, including decision making times, for departures, for arrivals, for school and work, for objects, for the weather, for other circumstances and prayers of intercession. Part six contains prayers for the Church and the world, including for Christian unity (ecumenism), our Church in need, a culture of Life, evangelization, our leaders, prayers for migrants and refugees, prayers for Peace, for persons with disabilities, prayers for Social Justice, for stewardship, for the Victims of Abuse, and a new prayer for vocations.

Part seven consists of Litanies. The eighth section, an entirely new thematic section of Scriptural readings, presents God's Word in Times of Need, including anger, forgiveness, sickness and weariness, decision making, hope, doubt, fears, loss and grief, need and loneliness, Love (agape), thanksgiving, quiet, study and times of conflict.

Section nine presents both the traditional and a scriptural Stations of the Cross. Part ten has the Calendar of the Saints. Several indices, including new useful ones by Scriptural reference and first line, conclude this excellent collection approved and published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

This new edition comes bound in leather with gold stamping, bearing colored end papers, and includes a presentation page, making it excellent for gift giving or other special occassions. Those Catholics concerned about the orthodoxy of Scriptural passages will be comforted to learn the Bible excerpts used are taken from the Catholic Lectionary for the Mass or the Liturgy of the Hours. We are also pleased to learn this very full book permits us in one resource to find the prayers necessary for the blessing of such seasonal sacramentals as Advent Wreath, the Nativity scene, Easter foods, and vigil candles for the home.

An excellent resource for any Catholic household and highly recommendable in this new edition.

This book contains all the essential prayers for Catholics (and non-catholics alike). The print is easily read, and the book is well organized. It is leather bound and substantial. It should last a very long time.
R. Childs
Alabama

This newly revised Catholic prayer book from the U.S. Catholic Bishops is heavily weighted toward Scripture, with passages chosen specifically for almost every topic. Supplementary sources include the lectionary, works of several Catholic organizations, such as the Partnership on Disabilities, and official prayer books of other Christian denominations. Its leather binding, high quality paper, and easy to follow layout ensure that it will be a welcome addition to Catholic homes. In the introduction, Bishop Donald W. Trautman, chairman of the U.S. Bishops' Committee on Divine Worship, writes that this resource can help us all fulfill the Gospel exhortation to "pray always (Lk 18:1). He urges families to "make it a part of family dinners and holiday celebrations, of bedtime routines and special occasions."

Major topics are devoted to basic prayers, the kind most often committed to memory; daily prayers such as the morning offering and grace before and after meals; days and seasons of the Church year; Catholic living; litanies; and Stations of the Cross. A calendar of saints is also provided, as are two indexes, one of scriptural citations and the other of first lines and common titles.

In Part IV, Family Prayers from Birth to Death, the bishops remind that "Whether in times of joy or times of grief, God is always with us." The subtopic on prayers and blessings for family members is centered on family members, the household, birth and adoption, childhood, marriage, sickness or infirmity, and death and grief.

Part VI, Prayers for the Church and the World, address such topics as Christian unity, the culture of life, evangelization and missions, and social justice. Part VIII, God's Word in Times of Need is made up entirely of scripture passages grouped around issues such as anger; forgiveness; love; quiet; and trouble, crisis, and conflict.