Bishop Books

The writers reviewed here in this work are great men of faith and explorers of truth. If you want to become mildly acquainted with these men, this is an ok start--but little more than an expanded wikipedia biography. These writers are worthy enough to be looked at directly, not through this sort of heavy filter. Go buy their books, not this one.

This is an excellent read, especially for those not familiar with the writings of the people discussed. It is a kind of survey, an easy way to be exposed to a wide range of beliefs on spirituality. However, keep in mind that "spiritual wandings" is only one aspect of each person; there is much more than that to each. If one reads the writings of all these people, one will realize that there is much more to each, and some are very complex. For example, you would have to read a lot by Tolstoy to begin to really understand what his thoughts were, which covered many aspects of life and thought beyond spirituality. I suggest you read the book, then buy others on someone you especially like. Perhaps read a bit about them (the internet is a good source) before reading a bit by them.

That's the value of this classic. It gives you a sophisticated introduction to several great thinkers and prophets who searched for God. Muggeridge was, as others have noted, himself a prophet of the madness of his century and the twenty-first century. Here we have the sort of sensitive and perceptive introduction to great thinkers that induces us to read their original works. For a detailed review, see my blog above for Oct. 3, 2006. (Note: the older hardcover edition I read did not include Dostoevsky.)

Muggeridge gives almost an insiders view of what shaped the lives of these great men of the faith. Its almost like he was there witnessing their lives and tagged along with them in their "good times and bad times".

Honestly, I didn't finish this book. I didn't even get very far. It sounds wonderful, a book about some of the greatest Christian minds. It reads like a 4th-graders research paper. Muggeridge inserts so much of his own thoughts and experiences its almost like we're reading his biography. His bios of these brilliant men are muddled, not described chronologically or in any other apparent order. If you want a VERY basic overview of these men, maybe this book is for you. If you actually have the intelligence to read anything written by any of them - this book is far beneath you.

A superb biography about one of America's most talented personalities. The book is a milestone in the annals of Americana. We will never see his likes again. The author has done a most splendid and complete job in his portrayal. Best bio I have read in years.
jw
nyc

Thomas Reeves deserves kudos and credit for a very fine biography of a man much admired by millions. The high points of this book are as follows: the meticulous gathering of much information simply unknown by his admirers; the careful balancing of sanctity and human frailty of Sheen's character; the fascinating recreation of the Golden Age of Catholicism in America; the personal relationship between Cardinal Spellman and Bishop Sheen; a superb ability to synthesize and bring new insight from the wide variety of materials cited; a great bibliography and excellent notes. The weaknesses are minor: a tendency to repeat some stories, and the maddening tendency of Sheen himself to destroy and misplace correspondence or simply not document his personal life. Despite these minor drawbacks in the book, I was deeply moved by much of this biography and, indeed, brought to tears by the account of the last years of Sheen's life, his meeting with Pope John Paul II, and his funeral. Few will be disappointed in this book; it is a true accomplishment. Many thanks to Professor Reeves for this profound and necessary commentary on the life of a truly great person of the 20th century.

Fulton J. Sheen will never be canonized a saint in the Roman Catholic Church for two obvious reasons: his sins are bright scarlet and we know them too well. Sheen established a television intimacy with the American public in the 1950's that only a few individuals have achieved-Walter Cronkite and Johnny Carson come to mind-through his apostolic use of that explosive new video medium. I was a lad in Catholic elementary school when Sheen delivered his prime time homilies from 1952 through 1957. While I remember little of the content of those shows, I was captivated by the style. Sheen, I noticed, paused to let the audience think. None of my local priests did that, nor did they have Skippy the angel to erase the blackboard.

Thomas Reeves is to be commended for the manner in which he tells the truth, the whole truth, about Sheen without defacing the Bishop's many good works and his positive influence upon a wide and diverse American public. Sheen's life was indeed a message "written with crooked lines" and one is reminded of Christ's words to the penitent woman, "her sins, many as they are, will be forgiven because of her great love." Though haunted by the pride and ambition that would seem to stalk nearly all television evangelists who followed, in the final analysis Sheen did love his God, though he himself ran a close second.

Born in 1895 on a farm in rural Illinois, the youthful Peter John Sheen was devout, smart, and disdainful of manual labor and farming. He was hardly the first country boy to see the cloth as a step up from shoveling manure. We forget that he was originally a priest of the Peoria, Illinois, diocese, possibly because of his distinguished academic record at the Louvain.

There is an air of mystery about Sheen's academic status, though. Desperate to escape a life in Peoria, Sheen joined the philosophy faculty of Catholic University in 1926 but never became "one of the boys" of the staff. In fact, tenure was denied him for some years, in part because the young priest was away from the campus three days a week for his growing number of speaking engagements. [In 1928 he hired a clipping service to track his press notices.] Catholic University itself was in academic, political, and organizational disarray. The school was frankly under-funded and underachieving. Perhaps to ease himself out of the philosophy department and into theology, Sheen invented for himself a second doctorate, an S.T.D. that suddenly appeared after his name in 1928 and which remained on his letterhead as late as 1966. Reeves speculates that Sheen got away with this massive deception precisely because it was so audacious and no one would have expected it of him.

Reeves wonders if Sheen is under-appreciated today as a scholastic. Although brilliant and prolific, Sheen was not original, and added nothing of substance to twentieth century philosophy. Sheen's strength was apologetics: the presentation of Catholic faith and devotion in simple, straightforward, and yet cosmopolitan ways. For about forty years, from 1928 through 1966, Sheen was arguably the best preacher in the United States, dividing his time between public appearances, radio and television, prodigious devotional writing, and fundraising for the Society of the Propagation of the Faith [and, surprisingly, acting as an "observer" of sorts for J. Edgar Hoover, who admired his fierce anti-communism.] His work for the Society earned him the title bishop, appointed auxiliary to Cardinal Francis Spellman of New York in 1951. Reeves finds that Sheen was a holy priest who made a daily holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament and spent hours personally instructing converts, including numerous celebrities of the entertainment and publishing industries.

Having said that, it cannot be denied that Sheen shocked his clerical brethren with a champagne lifestyle. While a faculty member at CU Sheen built a magnificent home in NW D.C.and entertained frequently and graciously. As a fund-raiser, millions of dollars passed through his hands, though there is no whiff of impropriety. Reeves does comment upon Sheen's total absence of fiscal management skill, his arrogance and petulance that insulated him from sound advice, his unfettered cash charity, and his pride of bestowal, so to speak. These factors, coupled with Spellman's own devils, led to an estrangement between the two that produced one of the strangest episcopal appointments of our lifetime.

In October 1966 Fulton Sheen was appointed bishop of Rochester, NY. To church observers it was clear that Spellman had orchestrated the transfer for ultimate humiliation effect. In public, at least, Sheen put the best face on things, explaining that his tenure would be an experiment with the reforms of the recently concluded Vatican II. In truth, Sheen was a pre-Vatican II autocrat who alienated nearly every local constituency. His unilateral decision making cost him his priests, and his explicit criticisms of racial policies at Kodak the support of the city's largest employer. He was deeply wounded that Rochester did not recognize the celebrity in its midst, and within three years "America's best preacher" withered into retirement.

If the Rochester years were his crucifixion, they also brought Sheen into communion with his best self. In retirement he publicly regretted his earlier opulence and vanity. He became less dogmatic and more open to philosophical systems other than that of St. Thomas Aquinas. Although not entirely shedding his theatrical instincts, he lived the last of his 84 years with an optimistic piety that belied the sufferings of multiple illnesses. Appropriately, he was found dead in his private chapel. Throughout this remarkable life, with its graces and glosses, Sheen's prayers were always sincere. His arrogance and sense of self-importance are perhaps the less desirable fruits of his utter certainty in the truth and goodness of God and the holiness of the Roman Catholic Church.

I really enjoyed this book. I thought that it did a number of things well. For one it helped me to get to know Fulton J. Sheen, a name I had heard about from the past and brief mentions from my parents, but had never known except the author of one book on my shelf ("The Life of Christ"). I felt that I not only got to know who he was, but also about the times he lived in. Reeves seamlessly blends the historical reality of Sheen's time with Sheen's actions as well as his thoughts.
I felt that Reeves had presented Sheen as entirely human, he did not try to portray him as a distant saint, nor try to deconstruct him in a voyeuristic way. He attempted to accurately present the man and his message. Based on his liberal number of interviews and sources I think he did a good job. He stated that there was simply a lack of a good biography on Archbishop Sheen and I think that he filled it.
I appreciated Reeves working in numerous quotations from Sheen's writings and talks which sent me to Amazon.com to see if many of these books were still in print. However, many are not, which seems a shame, because Sheen seems to me (as a 26-year-old) to have much to say about the current age.

This is a book that has been ignored by the media which does not want to hear about good Catholic clergy. The media only wants to know about scandal in the church - because the Catholic Church and that which it really stands for(as contrasted with the deeds
of the fallible priests,and lay Catholics that can be found within it) is the mortal enemy to secular humanism, sexual license, abortion and the "if it FEELS right, do it" philosopy that is held so dear by much of the media.
The book is a great inspiration because Bishop Sheen, with all his human failings, is an inspiration to us all.

I bought this book because I love cats and am always in search of good cat books. This one was disappointing though, despite the good reviews. The inconsistent and poor grammar was distracting. And even though I love cats, this book managed to turn me off Siamese ones. Through the book, I now understand that they are very loud troublemakers. For those who love Siamese cats however, this book may be entertaining.

I read this book what seems like a thousand years and a million miles ago... but I love it still, and remember my own dear friends Tao, Lua, Charles, Misty, Mia, Ting, Tang, Dylan, Sasha, and Blue, when I re-read it again for the umpteenth time. Winston and Simon respectively leaning on my arm and chewing the corner of the book that is taking my attention from them.

This story will make you laugh over and over, and if you aren't yet one, will make you yearn to be the slave of a Siamese cat.

I would reccommend it to children and adults.

When I read this book, I was in an airport, and I had to hide my face in my coat because I couldn't stop laughing. If you have ever been owned by a siamese cat, this is a book you just have to read, I loved it!

No matter what you think of cats, sitting down with this book will give you a quiet chuckle.

If you are among those unfortunates who have yet to discover the joys of being owned by a cat, you will be able to indulge the ever-pleasant pass-time of feeling smugly superior to this poor deluded couple who find themselves willing slaves to their delightful but demanding Siamese.

If you are one of the lucky ones currently living under the paw of a common or garden variety moggie, you will be able to breathe a sigh of relief and think "it could be worse" as you search the supermarket shelves for their favourite brand of cat food (without which you dare not show your face at home).

And if you are one of the fortune-favoured (?) few who have lost your heart (and possibly your reason) to a Siamese, you will enjoy the consolation of knowing that at least you're not alone.

The book is a delight for cat lovers and non cat lovers alike. Warm, wry and witty, it encourages empathy without expecting conversion. One of my absolute favourite cat books. And if you enjoy it, there's also a sequel - "Cats in May".

I got this book on Friday and read it through twice within 48 hours, laughing more loudly the second time, and rushing to find someone that I could share excerpts from the book. Even though the book was first published 45 years ago, it has not gone out of style. Anyone who has Siamese cats today can still identify with Ms. Tovey's experiences with Sugeih, Solomon and Sheba. I can't recommend this book enough and encourage an enterprising publisher to put all of Ms. Tovey's books back in print so everyone in the world can read them.

The book jacket's summary of Janet Jensen's debut novel, Don't You Marry The Mormon Boys, describes a story about two people from different backgrounds and belief systems (Andy is mainstream LDS and Louisa was raised in a polygamous fundamentalist community) who fall in love at medical school but face overwhelming obstacles in an effort to be together.

That was the story I was expecting and found myself disappointed with the story I was actually given. Andy and Louisa do, in fact, face these obstacles, but it is never the focus of the story. In fact, were it not for a few flashbacks to medical school, there is no mention of these two main characters together in the same chapter, much less the same plot for the first 200 pages. Andy does his rural, family practice medical thing in Kentucky, which seems a completely unnecessary setting to me (unless the far fetched and wholly irrelevant ending was somehow important to the story of Andy and Louisa's journey....which it is not), and Louisa returns to her polygamous community to realize that her eyes have been changed to the situation around her after eight years of living away from it.

Sure there are a few wistful thoughts, memories and even dreams about the other, but the reason for their attraction, or friendship, is never explained. Andy thought she was beautiful, in spite of her plain, long ankle length dress, and crowning glory long hair, but apparently pursued a relationship with her because she was so smart and he wanted to study with her. (????) The reader is never given any information about Louisa's feelings towards Andy. There is simply an assumption that because she spent time with him, she fell in love with him. The hows and the whys are not worth mentioning, I suppose. Without that development of their relationship for the readers to hold onto, I didn't yearn for these two to be together. As their stories don't actually intersect in the story until page 197, a little yearning would have been nice. But, that doesn't seem to be the point of the book.

The thing I liked most about this novel was Jensen's humanistic portrayal of polygamous families. It's always troubled me that the media, pop culture and even the mainstream LDS church portray them as crazy, mindless followers without any thought or choice about their lifestyle. Jensen shows a side of their families and individuals who honestly believe what they practice, and that they do it for the same reason a lot of us do whatever it is we do - because we think it's what God has commanded us to do. I also appreciated the look inside their culture...from the need to protect themselves from outsiders to the organizations of their households. Considering the current events going on in Texas, it adds a deeper understanding to the story. But, that doesn't seem to be the point of the book either.

It isn't all sunshine, however, and as Louisa's eyes are opened to the real problems of their community (abuse, incest, birth defects, depression) she becomes a target of opposition to the community - particularly to the Council of Brethren, who seem like old, scary, mean men without a compassionate bone in their bodies. Again, this black and white portrayal of the community's leadership seems too clean and villainous to be true. Surely, there are some members who are able to be something other than completely dogmatic. It doesn't matter, though, because, once again, this conflict with Louisa does not seem to be the point of the book.

In the end, I'm not sure what the point is, or was supposed to be. Andy and Louisa seem more like conduits for the author to expound on the quirks and habits of rural Kentucky and polygamy than actual characters. The part of the story where they are actually together and communicating and conflicting only warrants 40 or so pages. Then the story jumps tracks and heads off in an entirely new direction - one I won't mention because it will seem like I am reviewing another book. I felt like it was a different book.

I guess I feel mostly disappointed because I didn't get the story I was promised. I didn't get Andy and Louisa's story. Not really.

Very well written. Shows insights and respect for two very different faiths. Lots of great plot twists to keep you turning the pages and of course it has a positivie ending.

Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys Review

The characters Ms. Jensen has so intricately and skillfully drawn simply leap off the page and into the mental eye of the reader. There were many of them whom I would dearly like to know in actuality and be judged a friend by those people.

The story-telling is clear and fully rounded, with subtle hints but no revelation of what's to come in pages ahead until the resolution. We see the situations from the viewpoints of multiple people and can even, as readers, get our own selves in an emotional conundrum as to how things might or should be handled and resolved. The issues and emotions are delicately interwoven tissue papers of humanity and the consequences of beliefs and actions are far-reaching and of vital import.

The history of the Mormon church and the issue of polygamy has obviously been painstakingly researched (the history I have read regarding polygamy bears this out); and while a major thread of the novel, it only adds to and enriches the tension and the questions the reader has as to what will happen to the protagonists and all those around them also to be deeply affected by events.

I purchased seven copies of this novel; one for me and the others for friends and public libraries as gifts. One of these friends called to express her excitement and enjoyment saying, "I was hooked by page one and could not put the book down. I laughed tears and cried tears." She summed up my own feelings exactly and her day was made when I explained that hopefully, there is to be a sequel.

D.T. Enloe
Wisconsin, USA
2/25/08

Genre: Fiction

Title: Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys

Author: Janet Kay Jensen

Louisa Martin knew she was very privileged to be in medical school. Being from a lifestyle of polygamy, few girls had ever had the chance to do anything like this, but her clan needed medical people who understood and would follow their belief system. Medical school had been incredible and Louisa did very well, but there was Andy, a young Mormon man whose family was mainstream and didn't follow the same lifestyle. -Two different cultures that neither could accept; a love that was doomed to fail.

Andy went to Kentucky to develop a practice and learned to love the country and its inhabitants. Louisa returned to her community to begin her practice but there she found abuse, illness and deformity. How could she have not seen these before? Try as she might, she could not change the way of things and had to decide to accept or reject her old way of life. Throughout their trials, neither could forget the other. Then circumstance pulls them together, while family and culture force them apart.

Throughout this beautifully written book, winds the thread of acceptance; acceptance of differing cultures, beliefs and lifestyles. Author, Janet Kay Jensen brings her characters to life and makes them feel like our neighbors. We can feel their uncertainties, fears and joys. We travel through their days like a friend. Mother, wife, member of the Author's Guild and winner of several awards for her writing, Janet Kay Jensen has given the readership of America an exceptionally well written, charming story of adventure, love and acceptance. I look forward to her future endeavors.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Reviewer: Elaine Fuhr, Allbooks Reviews

Janet's debut novel proves to be a brilliant piece of work with all its characters well depicted and its story masterfully crafted. One word of caution: Do not expect to be bored!

"Don't You Marry the Mormon Boys" is not your typical LDS/Christian romance; it is a piece of fiction that not only focuses on a wonderful plot and convincing characters, it is also a novel that finds victory in its use of words. Janet beautifully-composed sentences read poetically and are measured with intricate details and care. Although the relationship between the two lead characters is the driving force of the story, the real core of the novel lies in the underlying theme that continues to play masterfully between the lines--the true meaning of family, love, redemption and fogiveness. It is not a story about a group of Mormons; on the contrary, it is about a group of ordinary people who happen to be of the Mormon faith. Janet plays with her theme wittily, teasing the reader with traditional tales and urban myths about Mormons and polygamistsm. I will not expose the plot here for everyone; it will only take away the pleasure of your reading. Instead, I will tell you this: if this novel were to be a movie, it will definitely be Oscar-worthy. A literary fiction at its best, perhaps the best contemporary LDS fiction in years. I would read and reread a certain passage just to savor it before moving on to the next best passage. Janet is a promising writer who will undoubtedly break into the general market in no time. And this is a promise.

While I liked that the writer pulled material from the diaries of many different RAF pilots I found that the book jumped around the timeline of the Battle of Britain too much and that maybe too much time was spent sketching in all of these pilot's backgrounds while more time could have gone into the actual dogfighting or technical aspects of the fight but that is just a personal preference.

Patrick Bishop's Fighter Boys is the account of the rise of Britain's Royal Air Force, and the struggle it underwent in the first 15 months of WWII, culminating in the Battle of Britain. While Bishop presents plenty of information, the narrative wanders from discussion of the origins, aircraft, pilots, leadership, and tactics of the RAF leading up to the battle, but really doesn't focus on any one aspect enough to be comprehensive, and simply winds up with a scattershot description of various names, units, events, and calendar dates--ultimately presenting an incomplete picture that doesn't seem to convey the attrition and desperation most accounts of the Battle of Britain contain.

The book begins with some discussion on the origin of the RAF, through the aces of WWI and the subsequent evolution of Air Power in Britain in the interwar years. The author does a very good job of explaining the ingenious manner in which RAF Fighter Command chose to develop and maintain its pilot base, through the development of reserve and volunteer flying clubs. As the narrative progresses, we get to see the manner in which RAF set up its training structure and operational model, leading up first to the outbreak of war on the European Continent (and the concerns that Fighter Command would lose too many planes before the defense of England had even begun), followed by Dunkirk and eventually, the desperate struggle that was the Battle of Britain.

The people we meet in the book are really only described in passing, and generally in the odd, abstract way that it seems public-schooled Britons tended to talk about one another. Through quotes from combatants and unit histories, Bishop helps the reader to understand the struggles that the pilots and units went through in their defense of England, from the conditions at many airfields to the frightening attrition suffered by many units. He also does well to mention the attrition and struggles that the Luftwaffe was dealing with in its daily assaults on England; that attrition was taking its toll on both numbers and morale.

Ultimately, the subject matter really is fascinating, and Bishop does cover some interesting points that you generally don't get from many histories, especially the way the RAF was able to maintain a large auxiliary force in peacetime that helped it survive the opening year of the war, as well as the manner in which pilots were selected and trained, bypassing the traditional class structure within England. As informative as this book was, however, I can't help but think that there is more to the story than what I got from Bishop; perhaps he should be commended for being able to avoid writing an emotional narrative about the desperation and "hanging on by a thread" nature of the Battle, but considering that it was thought of as a battle for the survival of England itself, I would hope that those feelings would be conveyed through the writing to a somewhat greater degree.

I read the whole book, but felt that I was rereading the same chapter over again I didn't think the author has much of a feel for flying or the action involved. In a word, disappointing.

It is said that we live in a dangerous time, with terrorists and rogue states threatening our way of life and all that. These are serious things, real threats to be sure, but for most of us, most of the time, it's a rather vague and statistical threat we face, not all that different from a hurricane or a traffic accident. Sure it can happen to me me, but it usually doesn't. Things were different in the summer of 1940, though. Hitler needed to take Britain out of his war picture, and the Germans tried their best to bomb the Brits into submission in preparation for invasion. If they had succeeded, it would have been a different world. The RAF pilots and all the people who supported them kept this from happening, but it was a hard fight, a daily struggle against an all too tangible threat. It was a big story, but it was also a lot of personal stories.

I've read a lot of flying books, many on WWII, and a few on the Battle of Britain, including Len Deighton's excellent "Fighter," my previous favorite. This one is essentially an oral history of the Battle, with close-ups of the participants in their own words, through interviews, letters, and diaries. It mostly ignores the strategy, politics, and hardware, but there is plenty of flying action, from the perspective of the pilots themselves. This is what I really liked about it. I got a sense of what it must have been like to live through those times, and for the enormous efforts involved. These boys loved to fly, and it was glorious at times, but there's the other side too -- the many deaths and the horrible burns and the nightmares and the psychic damage. That's all here too, and it's very moving.

So all in all, very well done and recommended. It also has me fired up to visit the RAF Museum in London when I go there in early April (I love the stories, but I love the hardware too!).

N.B. It looks like I only review books I love, and I give them all five stars. I guess this is just a matter of wanting to share something I enjoyed, though I swear if I manage to get through something I truly loathe, I'll give it a bad review!

When you think of the Battle of Britain, one of the most common images conjured up is of pilots asleep or reading or some other thing in a lawnchair, easy chair or perhaps an old deckchair moved outside. I think the best thing I can say about Patrick Bishop's "Fighter Boys: The Battle of Britain, 1940" is that he does an amazing job of putting you in one of those chairs. This is not really a military critique or history of the battle, although Bishop does do some of this. What the author seems to want to do is give you the experience of being in the battle with the pilots that were really there.

We meet several pilots and we go with them into the air, into combat and into the pubs of England. We feel what it is like to sit in one of those chairs wondering when the bell would ring and the order to scramble would come. We also feel what it must have been like to sit in one of those Spitfires or Hurricanes and see the formations of bombers in our windscreens. We must deal, as the pilots did, with the daily sameness of waiting, flying, fighting and coming home to pass out from exhaustion. We feel the fear of facing the formations of bombers, facing the dangers to our loved ones at home and facing the knowledge that we can't know if and when the adversary will give up, or if and when we might have to give up.

We see comrades and friends die. We see them die, as must happen in these circumstances, in horrific, violent ways. We see them lost to the enemies fire and we see them lost tragically and yes, sometimes stupidly, in accidents. They also die, most frustratingly of all, because of miscalculations that send them into combat in machines that are not quite up to the tasks. And at the end of each flight, we retire back to the chair on the lawn, exhausted, passing out almost before we are fully seated, waiting again for the bell to ring and for everything to start all over.

Fighter Boys is really the pilot's stories. There are many wonderful books that analyze the military aspects of the Battle of Britain. This book takes more of a look at the human aspects of the same battle. If you've ever wondered what it might have been like to sit with the pilots of the Battle of Britain and fly alongside them, this book is probably your best opportunity.

Enjoyed the great tips on how to build a Hot Rod. This book helps you get more ideas than you already have. You will definately be informed.

Very well written; one of the only books I could find on "traditional" hot rods.

As a mere hobbyist, this was the book that made me realize "Wow! I can do this!". I found the enthusiasm of the writer to be contagious, the directions relatively clear (despite my lack of experience), and the advice to be sensitive-yet-consistent. Mike Bishop uses plain language and gives enough history to justify technical and aesthetic decisions without wasting words on superfluous background and gratuitous information. It's a short read that is chock-full of the exact knowledge I need to complete my build, but yet leaves plenty of room for individualization. If you are going to build a Model A hotrod, start with this book.

As of Saturday, 25 Feb. I had not received the book. This was ordered priority mail. Is there a tracking number to check on this item?

This book is very well done. It is mainly a one style book of ideas and those opinions and style come from the Bay Area of California so they may not exactly jive with So Cal or East Coast or anywhere else, but the info is very useful and well written. Don't necessarily agree with things like the stock 32 center cross member (too hard to change trans) or statements about the strength of stock trans and rear axles (have broken both with 304" flatty). Overall highly reccomended for Real Hot Rodders, if you aren't sure of the difference, look in the trunk - if there are tools, it's a Real Hot Rod, if there are only lawn chairs, it's a Street Rod.

A casual glance at the cover with accolades only from Oregon sources (at least in my edition) might give the impression that this is one of those local market books of dubious quality. This is far from the case. The text is clear and informative with good depth and appropriate caveats on how speculative or contentious a conclusion may be that treat the reader with respect.

The photographs are world class and far more than what you get in a the Roadside Geology series or most other books of this type.

For non-Oregonians not familiar with the state geography, more maps would have been helpful but not really an issue unless you are actually driving state roads trying to find these formations in which case a map and the Roadside book make a fine accompaniment.

As an illustration of the the in-depth geology of a region, this is an excellent book for anyone of any region interested in geology. For those interested in Oregon geology, compared to the Oregon Roadside Geology book, you will find the pictures much more informative and the text more thorough especially in its treatment of alternate theories (The Roadside authors seem to have an agenda, especially in regard to the origin of the Oregon flood basalts.)

This book is beautifully illustrated and well written, making it easy to grasp the geological concepts. I feel like I found a treasure. I have lived in Oregon all of my life. Now I am looking at the view of the mountains and river valleys--as well as that pile of "pretty" rocks in my yard-- with new eyes...

I gave this book to my husband, at his request. He's an engineer, so I figured that this would be a book that interested similar minds. :) It turns out to be really facinating - our extended family and friends have enjoyed sharing it, and the photos are beautiful and interesting for all ages. My only wish is that it still was easy to find in hardback, as I think that would be nice.

The book is written "story-style," which makes the information a lot more palatable to those who don't have a geology background. The historical and environmental perspectives are woven together with very thoughtful writing. There is a lot of data in this book, but I don't think it reads like a textbook, which is nice.

Overall, this is a great book. It makes a wonderful gift for just about anyone who appreciates the environment or anyone who has an interest in understanding the land formations they see or live on.

This book reminds me of an good meal at a restaurant ruined by the waiter forgetting your drinks. So much of it is excellent: the text is quite thorough and fairly well-written (if at times a little overwrought), the geological processes are well-explained, and of course the photographs are magnificent. What ruins the meal for me is the complete lack of a useful map. There is a map of Oregon at the back of the book, but it fails to include many of the locations mentioned, and the scale is so small and the notations so tiny that it is often impossible to locate the places that are labeled. I found myself flipping back and forth between map and text to figure out what the devil the author was talking about, but each place name required several minutes of searching to identify. After a while, I just threw my hands up in defeat.

The book should have provided small-scale maps on the same page as the text. This would have made it much easier to figure what the author was discussing. Alternatively, the author should have abandoned her detailed geographical descriptions and fallen back on much looser descriptions.

Here's an example of the kind of text that drove me crazy:

"The first Columbia River basalts to reach western Oregon were the extensive flows of Grande Ronde Basalt. Some followed the ancestral Columbia's broad valley. Others may have flooded through low places in the Cascades. Today, Grande Ronde flows are exposed along the Clackamas River, and at least four can be counted at Silver Falls State Park... Some of the lava covered portions of the Willamette Valley and what would one day become Portland. Today, about eight flows of Grande Ronde Basalt have been mapped in the West Hills..."

Wouldn't it have been much better to simply show a map presenting all this information rather than foist this avalanche of place names upon the poor reader?

Another failure was the absence of any geological map. I realize that full-bore geological maps are impossibly complex to present in a book, and very intimidating to the reader, but there's no reason why the author could not have included simplified geological maps to illustrate her points.

There are also no aerial photographs. Let's face it, some geological formations are best understood from the air, but the author seems determined to insure that nothing competes with her beautiful photography.

Lastly, there's the absence of diagrams. I'm sure that many readers would have appreciated a line drawing showing how a graben is formed, or how subduction works. But not one single diagram graces this book. There are some concepts that are best presented in a diagram, and no amount of colorful prose from the author can substitute for such diagrams.

It appears that the author may have wanted to present a nice coffee-table book that was informed with some serious geology; if that were the case, then she should have kept the geological explanations at a much simpler level. I myself enjoyed the detailed treatment, but the lack of any supporting material rendered the reading far more difficult than it should have been.

I recommend "Roadside Geology of Oregon" or "Geology of Oregon" by Orr and Orr, in preference to this book.

In describing the events and processes in Oregon's geological history the author repeatedly references and explains familiar landscape features. (E.g. Alameda Ridge is a gravel bar left by the Lake Missoula Floods entering the Portland Basin. Mt. Scott, Rocky Butte and Powell Butte are all remnants of Pleistocene volcanoes. ) This makes the geology lesson both clearer and more interesting. Likewise, descriptions of flora and fauna further illustrate extant conditions during our state's evolution. With its many excellent photos, the book could easily succeed as a 'coffee table book.'

In short, I have read "Joshua" and now "Joshua & the Shepherd", and I was more inspired by "The Shepherd" than even "Joshua". It reinforced my own vision of what the Catholic Church can REALLY be like, and SHOULD be like, if only some things would change in the Church today. It has a wonderful ecumenical tone through it too. It was very hard to put down!

Joseph Girzone has written a fantistic story on how Jesus can, and does, touch each of our lives. We can all relate to the shepherd as he takes his journey through live. He goes from highs and lows, in and out of the desert. I thought it nearly impossible to write at story as good as the orginal Joshua. Girzone did it!

Like all of Joseph Girzone's books, Joshua and the Shepherd is extremely well written. It is easy to read (excellent prose), and Girzone weaves such a detailed story that it is hard not to get swept up in the flow of the story. This book is definitely a story about the universal love of Jesus (Joshua) for all of His creation. The book is definitely idealistic in its ecumenical storyline (different denominations establishing a strong single community), but Girzone does leave one with the impression that there is definitely hope for such a possibility if people truly listen to the Word. Overall, I liked the book. Being an advocate of ecumenism myself (though I must state that I would not want unity by sacrificing Truth) I could relate to this book and thougth the message was truly inspiring. My one problem with the book however was that at times, Girzone writes so simply, you feel as if the book was actually written for grade schoolers. Then again, perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad idea to expose children to this message (the one of ecumenism) anyways.

I have read a few of these books and they never cease to surprise me! This book goes a little deeper into the social aspects of Catholicism, but still delivers it's message quite clearly! Joseph Girzone tells a wonderful story of a priest whose life is forever changed upon meeting Joshua. Perhaps the conclusion is a bit far-fetched and somewhat guessable, it is still a good read!

Having read several of the other Joshua books, I can say this is the one I liked the least in the series. I disliked it not so much because of a poor story, because I did like the story. I was disappointed to see that Joshua does not make many appearances in this book. The book also seems more focused on changes Girzone sees as acceptable in the Catholic church. While I have little disagreement with anything the author promotes, the book just was not what I expected.

A hard-line dogmatic priest, David Campbell is elected to the status of bishop. Yet on the night of his installation into office, a dream in which Joshua appears encourages him to change his ways. The people are more important than the dogmatic views of the church. Rules can not always be applied because times changes the needs of the people and circumstances often require changes. Campbells sets out on an unlikely path that initiates radical change in the church with relative ease. Even more unlikely, Campbell attains the support of the pope. But even I could not believe the level of ascent the author puts David Campbell in as he ends this book.

Fans of this series will still enjoy this book. Truthfully, I enjoyed the book though I believe the author is far too idealistic in this book. I suppose this comes with the simple yet wonderful prose with which Joseph Girzone writes.

Project Beta is a book about Paul Bennewitz, a brilliant physicist who during the 1980s became the victim of a disinformation campaign.

At the end of the 1970s Bennewitz, who lived and worked next to Kirtland Air Force Base outside of Albuquerque, started picking up strange radio signals and messages that he eventually concluded were extraterrestrial in origin. Around the same time he began capturing odd lights in the sky over the base, both on camera and video, and it didn't take long for him to convince himself that extraterrestrials were abducting people in the area, that they had built underground bases, and also entered into different alliances with not-so friendly representatives of the American government and military. In 1981 Bennewitz finished a report on his findings, which he chose to call Project Beta. This report was sent out in large quantities, not only to various ufologists but also to President Reagan (who didn't show much interest in the matter, though).

But things weren't quite the way Bennewitz thought they were. Much of what he had filmed, taken pictures of, and listened in to was actually top-secret military experiments, and in an attempt to divert his attention from sensitive subjects the ones in charge on the base simply decided to exploit his gullibility by providing him with bogus stories. UFOs, extraterrestrials, alien abductions, and much more were simply very effective tools to divert his attention from the truth, and agents and representatives from the military faked an interest in his extraterrestrial theories and provided him with false ideas in order to be able to keep him under surveillance and point him away from the classified truth.

Does it sound complicated? Well, it is. The book is said to be a true story, but most of the time if feels more like a traditional thriller, albeit a sometimes very entertaining one. It's also very tragic, but Bishop writes with a sense of humor and this accompanied by the high level of skepticism makes the book quite entertaining to read. Especially the sections where Bennewitz and ufologist Leo Sprinkle interviews an alleged abductee in a car covered in aluminum foil, which is supposed to prevent any extraterrestrial tracking signals. Man, those sections were funny indeed.

The title says it all: "The Creation of a Modern UFO Myth". For decades a debate has raged over the existence of aliens and if they do exist, why haven't they made themselves known in a more, how to say this judiciously, public manner? I've had a lifelong fascination with UFOs (what boy did not?) Only lately have I realized that support among other fields, i.e. biology is almost non-existent (the sheer number of accidents required to bring about intelligent life on our planet is astounding). I've become convinced that intelligence is extremely rare and perhaps unique in our galaxy. Scientific American stated that a civilization traveling at only 1/10 c could populate the galaxy in less than ten million years - a dot on the scale of galactic time. The real question is, why haven't they? (Occam's Razor)

Paul Bennewitz was a respected physicist, businessman, family man and citizen who literally went crazy over the subject of UFOs. The author suggests that a large part of his thinking was directed by the government in an effort to conceal super secret weapons at Sandia Labs. The disinformation campaign continued for years complete with "faked" government reports, wiretaps, secret agents, various mysterious agencies and infiltrators who may or may not be double or triple agents, etc. It's hard to decide which is nuttier - government employees creating elaborate schemes designed to convince a group of yahoos that little green men were real, aliens with unbelievable technology worried about our military, testing super-secret weapons where citizens can see or the continued belief in UFOs despite a lack of verifiable evidence. The book is not only a report on this man but a brief history of the UFO "Movement" and it is a social movement in its quasi-religious tenets, its appeal to those who seek simple answers for complex solutions and apostles & holy writ.

I'll go along with the idea that advanced weapons design goes on in secret. Yet where are they when we need them most? Why not send one of the balls of light into the Sunni Triangle & state that it is Allah's angel? Better, why not use the objects that turn on a dime, flight up or out or into the stratosphere to explode buried land mines? The author semi-suggests that UFOs show up at various military bases and laboratories without asking the question - why? How can our study of EMP or anti-gravity theory possible affect them? Indeed, the overall mood at the end is one of great sadness - for Bennewitz, his family, the other players involved in the scam and last but not least, the true believers.

In 1978 Paul Bennewitz, an electrical physicist in New Mexico, began monitoring the radio transmissions of the nearby Sandia Labs, convinced the strange lights hovering over the labs were evidence of an extraterrestrial alien invasion. His letter-writing campaign to the media and even the President to alert them resulted in an alliance between Air Force investigators and Bill Moore, author of the first Roswell incident book to keep tabs on him. The mystery eventually drove Bennewitz to a mental institution and the alliance prompted the spread of misinformation on the topic which began in 1989 and continues to this day. Project Beta is informative, engaging reading from cover to cover.

It's difficult to reach any profound conclusion about the volume of events discussed in PROJECT BETA: THE STORY OF PAUL BENNEWITZ, NATIONAL SECURITY, AND THE CREATION OF A MODERN UFO MYTH; much like the title alone, the information presented isn't necesssarily additive to any other result but "don't believe what you were just told."

Of course, this fact goes hand-in-hand with the book's subject: Bennewitz, an inventor and businessman, discovers possibly 'irrefutable' scientific evidence that something 'alien' is taking place involving the DOD's Sandia Labs. Monitored and decoded radio transmissions give the appearance that the Earth is being considered ripe for invasion by an unseen alien force. Rather than find his efforts stymied by the military, Bennewitz finds himself a sort of confidante by a plethora of insiders, all whom poke and prod the man to continue his work in possibly fradulent avenues. For the next decade, he finds himself pushed to his psychological limit, believing that he has somehow been placed in a clandestine race to save mankind partnered with Air Force investigators unwilling to do anything about it.

Of course, the principle problem with constructing an account about disinformation is that the author is showing you his cards at the poker table. Greg Bishop knows that the reader will understand the nature of disinformation as he's stripped the theory naked as part of the story he's telling. However, what he doesn't do very well is 'reconstruct' these events to any ultimate conclusion, despite Bennewitz's obvious mental abuse. Few of the details Bishop discusses can be substantiated because of the massive disinformation campaign, and any reasonably intelligent person can probably reach the midpoint of PROJECT BETA and have the revelation, "How am I to know for certain that I'm not the one being misinformed here?"

Still, author Bishop manages to craft a novel that is equal parts intriguing, frustrating, and confusing. The reader cares for Bennewitz -- despite some reservations about the man's stability -- and any reader would genuinely hope that some of these players who confess to be 'good friends' with the man would break their patterns of deceit long enough to help the inventor keep his fragile sanity. Bishop appears to justify their continued abuse of Bennewitz by routinely underscoring how much these men and women cared about the kindly inventor, but that becomes an increasingly difficult 'reality' to accept given Bennewitz's eventual destination.

PROJECT BETA by Gregory Bishop illuminates our darkest hour in UFOlogy with a spotlight so bright that you can almost read this page-turner in the dark.

With a devoted wife and two sons, Paul Bennewitz, then a fiftysomething electrical physicist and accomplished aerobatics pilot, had everything to live for. The company he founded, Thunder Scientific Labs, manufactured specialized instrumentation for high-profile clientele like NASA and the United States Air Force. He even played guitar.

Then Bennewitz noticed the UFOs. From the deck of his home perched high in the Four Hills neighborhood of Albuquerque, New Mexico, he photographed and filmed mysterious nocturnal lights cavorting over nearby hush-hush military installations. Soon after, ultrasensitive radio receivers of his own design tracked the luminous phantoms and recorded the covert signals -- modulated pulsed transmissions, loud and clear -- of the UFOs. Clues became proof and Bennewitz became terrified. At times his own worst enemy, the prodigious inventor and electronics wizard went public and contacted newspapers, TV stations, congressmen, UFO researchers and organizations, and even President Ronald Reagan.

Certain unelected and non-accountable powers (National Security Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, and Air Force Office of Special Investigation) decided to discredit and "neutralize" Bennewitz for keeps.

Enter William Leonard Moore, primary instigator and once fierce proponent of such trivialities as the so-called Philadelphia Experiment, MJ-12, and the alleged military retrieval of a crashed "flying disc" near Roswell, New Mexico. These three "mysteries" have most unfortunately drained precious time, money and manpower from far more legitimate and rewarding avenues of investigation and research into current unknown and unexplained phenomena and events.
By Moore's own admission, representatives of those previously identified unelected and non-accountable powers offered him a Faustian bargain. If he would watch various civilian UFO organizations and researchers in general and Paul Bennewitz in particular as the government disinformation game played itself out in earnest, they would let him in on classified UFO material.

Readers must make up their own minds regarding the actions and intentions of the key players in this stranger-than-fiction nightmare about one man's ruin at the hands of a government bent on concealing the truth. Very highly recommended.
(Copyright 2005 by Robert A. Goerman)

I ordered a new Hardcover copy of the 4th Edition of Understanding the Old Testament, by Bernard W. Anderson.

Instead, I was shipped a new Softcover copy of the 4th Edition of Understanding the Old Testament.

I communicated with customer service by phone & e-mail, and requested a Hardcover replacement. I shipped back the Softcover book.

The second copy (replacement)of the 4th Edition of Understanding the Old Testament was sent to me, and despite requesting, again, a Hardcover copy; this copy, too, was Softcover.

I called & e-mailed customer service again, and this time requested a "return", having received the wrong book, twice.

I shipped the second book back, & received confirmation that my refund for the book (plus original shipping)had been ok'd.

I can't really do a review of the book I ordered because I neveer got it.

Respectfully,

John E. Rolfe

"Understanding the Old Testament" provides historical settings and sociological background that help understand and enjoy the significance of the ancient people's continuing struggle over thousands of years to become a Covenant People in a repeatedly renewed relationship with God. The charts and photos also make the story clear and enjoyable. I heartily recommend this book for lay people who want to understand their Bible better. It's an excellent reference book for adult Bible study classes. No previous study of the Old Testament is necessary. This material is clear and basic for beginners, well organized, beautifully written with enough depth for serious Bible students.

Bernard Anderson opens up this magical land to us, with an experts eye and a critical academic mind. He delves into the tribal conflicts and conquests knowledgeably and with a sure hand and mind.

Undoubtedly, one of the best OT texts !

The Right Rev'd Richard G. Melli, CSP, Th.D.
Dean of Academics
Chapel of the Holy Spirit School of Theology

Throughout his long life of service to church and academy, Bernhard Anderson updated his textbook, "Understanding the Old Testament," for both a changing readership and a changing world of Biblical interpretation. One hopes that, with his passing on in late 2007, his work will continue through the efforts of his co-authors. A word on the somewhat confusingly titled recent editions of this work follows.

The newest, 5th edition, was published in 2006, with co-authors Steven Bishop and Judith Newman (ISBN 01392380X). The original 4th edition, authored by Bernhard Anderson alone, was the blue hardcover edition of 1986 (ISBN 0139359257). This was followed by an "Abridged 4th edition" published in paperback in 1997, assisted by Katheryn Pfisterer Darr (ISBN 0139483993). Searching by using the ISBN numbers for the respective versions noted may help in getting the edition you want.

Anderson's brief, introductory study guide, "The Unfolding Drama of the Bible," has also been updated, as has his introduction to the Psalms, "Out of the Depths." His understanding of the covenantal theology of the Hebrew Scriptures as it may be extended to Christian theology is covered in-depth his "Contours of Old Testament Theology."

I'm enjoying the read. It is slow because of the references to Bible passages, so have your Bible handy unless you have it memorized.
I would recommend this book for anyone who wishes to get the real connection between the Old and New Testaments.