Bridges Books

As pastors we live in a world that is changing. This book brings it out to the forefront what is changing and the choices that we have to make. I didn't walk away from reading this book all warm and fuzzy but I did walk away having a greater understanding of the issues involved in what is going on in my church and in the world and community around me.

This excellent resource from Roxburgh has been significantly revised and reissued as The Sky Is Falling: Leaders Lost in Transition. Roxburgh calls for a new conversation between emergent and "liminals" (or those in various existing traditions).

This book does a marvelous job of weaving together change theory, a theological vision of the church, and a sense of the cultural and social setting in which today's churches live. Building on the vision of "missional church" cast in a book by that title (of which Al Roxburgh was a co-author), this book helps leaders develop a sense of their calling to cultivate congregations in that direction in a time calling for rudimentary rethinking about who the church is and rerooting of practices that embody that understanding.

In a time when books on change are sometimes mere how-to manuals, this one sees things deeper and broader. In a time when cultural analysis paralyzes, this book invites hope within even vague and chaotic times of transition. In a time when biblical vision is set aside for what works, this book works toward a habit of discerning the calling and sending of God

This volume introduces the reader to some very helpful perspective on understanding the complexity of the postmodern world we now inhabit. While the "liminality" we find ourselves in at present between this new world and our present world prevents us seeing clearly where we are going, the authors provide some very helpful insights far charting a course. Those seeking to be leaders in the church in this postmodern milieu will find this a very valuable resource. The treatment of change is particularly strong - one of the best that is available in print for Christian leaders that I have seen.

This book gives hope and reality to stay focussed on mission and ministry in this time of enormous transition. The transition themes in the Bible are pivotal in staying connceted to the people of God who have crossed the bridge. Redefining leaders as poets, prophets, apostles, and pastors and notputting one type above another was liberating and very discerning. This book will be used in the SEPA synod for the training of future pastors and leaders and to transform existing leadrship. Biblical and postmodern ...all in one.

For a number of years now the U.S. government has abused the extension of allowing Immigrants to enter the United States. 'Crowded Land of Liberty: Solving America's Immigration Crisis' is an excellent book on this subject. Author Dirk Chase Eldredge does a fine job in examining the way pro-immigration enthusiasts extend new waves to unassimilated aliens streaming into the country. We are reminded of clichés that "this is a land of immigrants" only to a degree. The true origin of the founders of the original 13 Colonies were very much alike coming from Christian Europe, especially from British Isles, France and Germany. The flood of third world immigrants with the help of multinational corporation, arrive with very low economic and educational levels. They keep their native languages and take longer to assimilate into American culture and send back wages to their families residing in their home country.

The book examines how the dimensions of immigration growth and how it has contributed to a very serious major crisis facing the United States. The fact that what passes for American has ceased to be American people. Now, America is a state and government, it being a nation is a thing of the past. Even under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 those who sought reduction of immigration made a compromise with opposing forces in a foolish bargain only to create more illegal "chain" immigration and mass amnesty. To eliminate this problem the U.S. government needs to look into these immigration policies and revise the Immigration Act. With this out of control and if they continue at this rate the United States will end in disaster. With the trend in states like California being 52 percent Third World and Texas having 50 percent Third World, it's no doubt what the consequences will be. The future of our children and grandchildren will be very grim. Our only hope is America-first voice to take control of sensible policy. The policy should include an absolute freeze on new immigration, deportation of all illegal aliens in America, no extensions or visas. In order for the United States to correct this it will take a few years to solve it's overpopulation and invasion of mass cultures. It's up to the American people to have the will power to make their politicians to implement a solution.

This book woke me up to the threat of lax enforcement of immigration laws. The author has punctuated his arguments with convincing data and he proposes realistic solutions to the immigration problem. He shows how Canada has a program that could be a starting model for the US. He seems to have indirectly prophesied the 9/11 event.

This is no political book; it is of serious concern to US citizens.

This book woke me up to the threat of lax enforcement of immigration laws. The author has punctuated his arguments with convincing data and he proposes realistic solutions to the immigration problem. He shows how Canada has a program that could be a starting model for the US. He seems to have indirectly prophesied the 9/11 event.

This is no political book; it is of serious concern to US citizens.

Crowded Land Of Liberty: Solving America's Immigration Crisis by former Reagan campaign official, banker, entrepreneur, and public policy issues expert Dirk Chase Eldredge is a challenging social commentary for modern times. Eldredge examines America's population boom and how work can be done to improve quality of life for born citizens and naturalized citizens alike. Individual chapters address the pitfalls of assimilation, the essence of asylum and amnesty, and the very real need to balance an influx of people with a broader social service and school base. Crowded Land Of Liberty is highly recommended as a sincere, timely, and thought-provoking treatise on a critically important social issue, especially in a time of increased concerns for public safety, national security, and immigration policies.

great book. have to admit the author is 100% correct

Emily has a real knack for portraying the personalities of her horse children. Reading the book, I found myself wanting to visit and meet Lilli, Maria, Diamahn Lil, and all. For anyone who has owned a horse, or who has longed to own a horse, this book will be a real pleasure.

Two things bothered me though. Emily did not tell us enough about herself. I would love to know her approximate age and more about her human family. Also, I thought the 9/11 information was distracting, and made the story too "current event". If those two pages are deleted, the book will regain a noncontemporary feel, and should be enjoyable for many years to come.

I would love to read a sequel.

This is definately a book of a true Horse lover,I want to visit her and Summerwind Farms she makes real farm life come alive for me,took me back to my childhood.
I was raised on a farm in the state of Virginia with horses, cows, pigs etc.
I would recommend this book to anyone who has a love for animals be it horses dogs or cats the true love for the animals comes through.
This book also shows the care and love you must give to our 4 leg friends.
I shall look forward to another book by Emily Bridges in the future.

I really enjoyed DEAR DOLLY. Emily exposes her strengths and weaknesses in a humorous way, and in opening her farm and heart to us, we are offered hope in our own personal challenges. My 80 year old mother(who is terrified of horses) LOVED this book as well, it appeals to young and old, and will make a PERFECT gift book.

It's was very refreshing to read a REAL horse book! Being horse owners ourselves, we could relate with both humor and sympathy to the ups and downs of horse ownership! Even if you don't have horses, this book will delight and intrigue. Can't wait for the next one!

Loved how she followed her dream. This book will make someone who is not a "horse lover" want to be one! Full of useful advice!

I am a bridge designer and in the final semester of my Masters degree. I recently purchased this book based on the recommendation of my former mentor. It is a quality book with good insite.

My only complaint, and it is a big one, is that the examples are written in SI units. For applications in the US, this makes it very difficult to reference for quick design issues. Other than that, it's a quality book.

This book offers the bridge engineer a complete guide to the new LRFD specs in metric units. It is a great tool for both the new engineer, or the skeptical veteran, leery of LRFD. It offers a brief US bridge history in its introduction, and discusses aesthetics in the beginning: where it belongs. Next the development of LRFD and its advantages over ASD is discussed and should be read (and reread) carefully by the skeptics (excellent chapter). Influence lines follow, then system design, and finally concrete and steel bridge design and examples. This book is well suited to supplement the ASSHTO code or stand alone. Also, it is truly metric, no soft conversion at all. The book is quite long, however; it does command your undivided attention if it to be learned from. I highly recommend this book.

Our office found this to be the best, and most comprehensive reference on the new LRFD Specification available. The design examples set this book apart from other references. They are as complete as any we have found. While our interest sprang from our need to learn the LRFD specification, we found that the book is a valuable tool for bridge engineering in general. Most of the designers in our office at KDOT and many of the consulting firms who work with us have a copy of this book.

I am a bridge designer with three years of design experience. I purchased this textbook for Dr. Barker's (author's) bridge design graduate course in college. This textbook, unlike so many others on the subject of bridge design, delves into the real nuts-and-bolts calculations of structural engineering. The most in-depth sections are loads, analysis, steel bridges, and concrete bridges. The two examples in the steel and concrete sections are thorough treatments. No subject is simply glossed over in this book. This entire text seems to have been written with the goal of answering common questions from both designers and students. From why various code requirements came to be, to exactly the meaning of obscure variables, most everything in the 1st to 2nd Ed. of the LRFD code was addressed. My only complaint about the text is that there are several mistakes in the calculations (particularly in the lengthly examples). However, most of these appear to have been corrected in subsequent printings.

This book is a great desk reference for bridge designers. I cannot specifically recommend it as a study guide for the PE/SE, since those exams do not use the AASHTO LRFD specifications yet. However, for designing by the AASHTO LRFD, this book can be considered the commentary that space did not allow.

As a side note, the hardback book is a nicely bound edition. The sketches, tables, and diagrams are all clear, as well as the notations used (superscripts, subscripts, Greek, etc.).

As a Bridge Engineer trying to figure out the new LRFD Code, I found this book to be a necessity. It is comprehensive in applying the code to actual designs. The design examples are thorough, and the logic can be followed. In all, I would recommend this book to anyone trying to learn all the provisions of the new LRFD Code.

Defense is the hardest part of bridge to master. It's also the hardest to write about, which is why there are so many books on bidding and declarer play. But occasionally someone manages to get it right.
I've only found the "problems" format useful, as any breakdown into categories gives the game away: in defense recognition is well over half the battle.
Victor Mollo got it right for advanced and intermediates in his. For me, "Case for the defense" was a reveleation when I read it 10 years ago. Finally here's another book that's just as good, and at a slightly higher level. Like Mollo's, Lawrence's problems have a real life feel to them, and though the division between question and answer is not as clear as in Mollo's formatl, Lawrence makes it work, and puts his more conversational style to good use in posing several key questions for some of the hands. This book is also remarkably free of the questionable solutions and the flimsy analysis that plague so many other famous authors, and are especially hard to avoid in analysing defense.
I'm proud to say that when I'm playing at my very best I'll get most of these right. On a bad day, I'll probably get 90% wrong. To put it differently, every single problem is challenging and can improve how well you do around the bridge table.
This book will best serve players who've been playing decent defense for a while, and have a year or two of defensive card reading at the table under their belts. But even for those that aren't quite there yet, it's a good read as it will open their eyes to how much fun they can have playing defense the right way.
In short, though I've only been playing for 20 years, and reading American bridge books for 10, I'll go out on a limb a bit and say that this is one of the best bridge books ever written, on any subject.

You sit, mentally, at the author's elbow while he shares pearls of wisdom on knotty defensive problems that come up frequently at the bridge table. The great merit of this book is that it doesn't just tell you what to do in a mechanical sense, it guides you in how to think and base your defense on inferences and deductions. I have read it 5 times and gained incremental benefit each time. The exposition is lucid and cogent. Get two copies and give one to your favorite partner.

How experts think when defending. Recommended for all levels.

As usual with Lawrence's copious writings, this one is well written, well laid out, and well presented. If you learn its contents, you'll be ready when the situation calls for Dynamic Defense. BUT remember that often simply making declarer find the necessary tricks (and taking what you have coming) will yield very good defense, indeed. So, read about active (dynamic) defense, but consider carefully the moment when you step up and defend aggressively. When active defense works, it works really well (Remember the last time you got mauled by a defensive cross ruff?). When it doesn't work, it hands declarer contracts (or equally important for duplicate pairs players, overtricks) that could not be made by other means (Did you ever lead a short suit hoping for a ruff and help declarer set up the suit before you could cash your winners?). So, learn active defense (and this book is a good starting place), but play a lot of passive defense so that you deploy active defense at the right times (and sit back leaving declarer's work to declarer at the other times).

I tried reading this book when I first started playing Bridge, but it was over my head. I couldn't figure out the inferences and I put it down. Now, 2 years later, I think its a great book, just at my level. Most of the hands are straight forward, nothing crazy or advanced required. Just plain old:

- Listening to the bidding
- counting cards and HCP
- thinking about what the lead means
- thinking about what pards cards mean (signaling)
- asking yourself why declarer is playing in a certain way
- asking whats needed to set the contract

Great intermediate level book. I wouldn't necessariloy get these at the table, but they are mostly doable with a little thought.

If you find this too hard, try easier books like Bill Roots excellent "How to Defend a Bridge Hand".
If you liked this book also try Kantars "Modern Bridge Defense" and "Advanced Bridge Defense". They are dry but excellent.

I normally read several books at the same time as I get bored quickly. I do finish all but not in one sitting. This book was an exception. It was a bit harder to start as English in not my native language and there were a lot of BIG words. But once I began, I just could not put it down. Very well done and very accurate as I am quite familiar with the area's history.

I highly recommend this book to all.

This is a great read. Vivid characters both real and imagined, and of course the old town of Sausalito itself. Definitely captures the feeling of walking those streets on a foggy day and then having the sun suddenly stab through. Some of them vaguely Pynchonesque cosmic coincidences here too but on a very human scale. When the fog rolls in in a Sunday, put a log on the fire and bust out the Earthquake Shack...

Interesting to compare this one with another solid Bay Area tale of love and loss, Eric Miles Williamson's East Bay Grease, which stands as a grubby work-shirted cousin to Earthquake Shack's Marin magical realism.

From page one of his captivating and courageous first novel, author Gary Diedrichs grabs his readers by the lapels of their pea coats and pulls them headfirst into a wild waterfront world of renegades, romance, mystery and stranger-than-fiction history. We meet, greet and fall in love with an unruly gang of brilliant, eccentric characters (many of whom were actual denizens) of Sausalito, California in the salty, lawless, pre-Beatles, pre-Vietnam days--and baudy nights--of the late 1950s.

But the wake of Diedrichs' magical voyage expands far beyond a single calendar page or compass point. Through his skillful narrative techniques, the author effortlessy guides us back and forth between the flaming wreckage of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake to the late night Zen ramblings at the No Name Bar; from seaside shanties and eco-terrorist plotting to the comparatively mundane, yet heartbreaking, backroads of rural Ohio.

Diedrichs weaves all his characters and events--small, medium, large and cataclysmic--into the context of a powerful and poignant love story, blurring the lines of fact and fiction to where we are never sure where the actual truth begins or ends. And we really don't care.

You don't need to know anything about Sausalito to love this book. But if you do, you'll love it even more. Highly recommended!

I love books that take me to a time and place I wish I could have experienced firsthand; I also love books that peel back time to reveal the veils between past and present.

"The Earthquake Shack" is one of those books -- set in the final days of the Fifties, in the waterfront town of Sausalito, just north of San Francisco, which was a special place filled with fascinating inhabitants, long before it gave in to tourist shops and chain art galleries. It was a time of free-spririted Water Rats versus wealthy Hillclimbers; of beatniks and bohemians; of great local characters, including one of my favorite actors, Sterling Hayden, and the writer Jack Kerouac.

With considerable sleight-of-hand, the author - a Sausalito native - weaves the unique tale of a by-gone era into two stories: that of the main character, a Midwesterner dazzled by Sausalito but unprepared to join the party; and that of two ghosts who inhabit the cottage -- the Earthquake Shack -- into which he settles.

Through the ghosts' eyes, we also see San Francisco's Barbary Coast after of the 1906 earthquake and Sausalito before, and leading up to, the Fifties. One ghost worked in a San Francisco bordello, the other is a Miwok Indian girl whose tribe discovered Sausalito long before any white man did.

I recommend this engaging, beautifully written book to anyone who loves sophisticated historical fiction where the deft characterization and attention to detail transport you to a magical party you wish you had been invited to.

You know that feeling of entering a party of strangers, and one familiar face leans over and explains cogently who the other guests are? That's this book's tone, and it's spot on.

A friend of mine recommended The Earthquake Shack to me last week. Like many of us, I've got a pile of unread books jockeying for next place, with at least three in progress. I gave this novel a cursory flip and started reading somewhere in the middle. Five pages later, I simply stopped, sat down in the kitchen, and started from the beginning.

What you'll find is typical of strong writing: well-developed characters, brisk dialog, insightful tone, good storylines, amid a creditable backdrop of loss and possible redemption which keeps you rooting for the protagonist to make some right choices. This is more than I usually expect from a novel. It appears to be Gary Diedrichs' first novel, and I'll be looking out for his next.

So, this writer recommends The Earthquake Shack. For all the best reasons.

Our current administration is fond of dismissing its critics by labeling THEM as extremists. The Whitewater investigators are part of a "right-wing conspiracy." Those who criticize the under-the-desk-activities at the Oval Office are simply venting their wrath against people from Arkansas, and those who oppose the failed War on Drugs are "fringe groups."

With each passing day, this tactic becomes harder to get away with, as "fringe" types such as George Schultz, Walter Cronkite and Perez de Cuellar weigh in against the Drug War. The latest of these "fringe" elements to come out against our idiotic drug policy is Dirk Chase Eldredge, a founding bank director, "successful entrepreneur," and former co-chairman of Ronald Reagan's campaign for governor of California.

This conservative Republican has examined our drug policies in considerable detail. He details the failures of the Justice Department, FBI, US Customs Service, and others in their futile quest for a "drug-free America."

He clearly points out the horrendous effects of these policies on our country: the overcrowded prisons, police corruption, violence, spread of AIDS, unjust sentencing, judicial overload, and the tyranny of asset forfeiture.

Some months ago, I was having a drink with Judge Jim Gray, an Orange County, California, Republican running for Congress, and I asked him how he broaches the subject of the Drug War to his conservative constituents. "Easy," he replied. "I just say, `let me tell you about an $18 billion federal program that doesn't work,' and they're all ears." That is just what Eldredge does in "Ending the War on Drugs." He gives us just the facts, Ma'am. Those facts are the key to effective policy, and Eldredge has plenty of them.

There is, however, a human note to his opus, too. Eldredge points out that his father's life was ruined by his addiction to alcohol, and that what he needed was help from medical people, not law enforcement. Eldredge is also quick to point out that the vast majority of drinkers, unlike his dad, do not have a problem with alcohol. Likewise, he says, "Ninety-six percent of people use drugs today, use them recreationally, without harming anyone."

Eldredge also gives lie to the "Try and Die" is another myth promoted by Prohibitionists. In the preface, Eldredge says, "America's War on Drugs is reminiscent of the Russian princess who sat weeping profusely at the death of the hero in a performance at the opera, while, at the curb, her waiting carriage driver froze to death in a Moscow ice storm." He understands the inherently dishonest nature of the Drug War and makes an excellent case for ending it.

If I have a quarrel with anything in this book, it is with his solution, or at least part of it. There are three possible administrators of the multi-billion-dollar drug market in the US - the free-market, the government, and the underworld. Currently, our policy-makers obviously favor giving control to the underworld. Ending the Drug War would leave us two choices; the free-market or the government. Eldredge favors the latter, in the form of state-run stores akin to the alcohol sales system in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and other states. While this is an obvious improvement over turning the market over to the Mob, as we do today, I'm surprised that a self-proclaimed conservative Republican would opt for this Socialistic solution. A more effective system of state-regulated but privately owned "drug stores" would seem to be a better way to go. We are still a long way from either of these solutions, and have ample time to debate which one will prevail. Hopefully this book will hasten the time when that decision will have to be made.

Mr. Eldridge presents us with a very well writen critiqe of our nations stance against drugs. The book is full of insight into ways that the war on drugs can be put to better use. anyone interested in drug public policy should read this book.

The most knowledge packed 200 pages on Drug War circumstance I have ever read. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in politics and especially on the War on Drugs. The author is incitive and extraordinarly objective in his discussion. I read the book in one sitting and immediately searched to find more books by Eldredge. Though an ex Reagan man (campaign for CA governor) his views show a fairly liberal view on the topic, far away from any Reagan stereotypes. Too much good to discuss here, just read it!

Dirk Chase Eldredge's "Ending the War on Drugs" is a powerful and persuasive book that argues that America's war on drugs has been an abysmal failure and should be ended as soon as possible. The author's message has a certain edginess in that he is one of a small but albeit growing number of Republicans who are weighing in against the drug war. Of particular note, Eldredge was co-chairman for the California Gubernatorial campaign of Ronald Reagan, who was perhaps the nation's most vocal drug warrior. Yet there wasn't a single word in this book that I could disagree with.

Eldredge is encouraging us to act like grown-ups and provide the caring and compassion that drug abusers need. Through the use of numerous statistics that are supplemented by some interesting anecdotes, the author overwhelmingly shows that interdiction has failed. The bottom line is that illegal drugs remain readilly available to those who seek them. But their illegal status has proven to be a boon to the drug lords, street gangs and other undesirable elements -- including Afghan terrorists, as we have recently learned -- who are attracted to the promise of quick and (usually) easy profits.

Edlredge contends that de-criminalization will swiftly take away the profit motive and bust up the drug gangs, both here at home and in places like Columbia and Mexico. Safer streets will enhance the quality of life for our citizens and no doubt help stablize the governments of countries where drug lords are nearly as powerful as the state. And for the user, government distribution will ensure a safer supply of drugs and, importantly, provide the drug user with a point of contact who could arrange treatment, should it ever be requested.

Eldredge's discussion of the nuances of how the anti-drug laws should be changed and the types of programs that need to be implemented show that he has spent a fair amount of time carefully considering the issue. But Eldredge takes care to critique the drug war in terms familiar to most Conservatives: as an example of wasteful government spending. If criminalizing drugs is not working as a deterrent to behavior patterns, and if it does not suppress the supply, then the government should logically search for alternative solutions where it may be able to get a better return on its investments.

One hopes that the mature message found in this book will be heeded by a growing number of policy makers. I encourage you to read it and to join the growing number of Americans who think that sanity and clarity of purpose should rightly replace the current state of insanity and corruption that unfortunately characterizes our country's current drug war strategy.

In Ending the War on Drugs, Dirk Eldredge provides an insightful and convincing look at the full gambit of issues surrounding our perceptions of drugs in this society. He succeeds masterfully in proving that we must reexamine our "War on Drugs." I believe anyone wishing to make an informed and educated opinion about our public policy toward illicit drugs should read this book. It is my hope that this book will help spark a fresh debate on what we might do to stem the tide of horrors our drug prohibition has brought not only to our society, but also to the global economic and political landscape. While many may disagree about his proposed solution, namely the federally controlled distribution of what would be newly legalized drugs, few could argue his conclusion that our attempted "War on Drugs", has been a absolute failure.

Doctor Ichiro Irabu is one weird neurologist. With or without his patients' permission, he finds cures for their modern-day neurological woes (i.e., a man who finds relief from a mid-life crisis by sneaking into locked swimming pools at midnight, a man with an embarrassingly permanent erection, a model with the paranoiac fear of being stalked, a teenage boy's obsession with cell phone text-messaging). This is fun and delightfully easy reading which made me wish for more.

Award-winning Japanese author Hideo Okuda presents In The Pool, a wildly popular Japanese novel that has been successfully adapted to a major Japanese motion picture. "Doctor of Neurology" Ichiro Irabu is a therapist for the image-conscious and all too often mentally pressured people of Japan, and his odd methodology of sharing his patients' stress-related problems and making them much worse before they get better distinguishes him sharply from his colleagues. His patients include a man who suffers a constant and painful erection, a pretty young woman convinced that every man she meets on the street is a stalker, a high school student addicted to text messaging the "friends" he desperately craves, and a journalist terrified his house will burn down should he leave it. A deliciously twisted commentary on human neuroses, with wit and insight that translates seamlessly between cultures. Highly recommended.

In the Pool was a huge success upon its original Japanese release in 2002. The stories here have gone on to appear in movies and on TV since its release. In the Pool is a collection of episodes about one eccentric psychiatrist, Dr. Ichiro Irabu, the sole doctor in the lonely Neurology Dept. located in the basement of the Irabu Hospital (say, that's the same name as the doctor...). This is clever and rather hilarious collection is by former magazine editor Hideo Okuda, who credits manga as a major influence.

Five tales are told here, each one about a patient with a condition that cannot be treated by conventional methods, and each one a line on a laundry list of "ailments" that plague not only Japan, but human beings in general. Among the poor souls that find themselves consulting Dr. Irabu are a magazine editor who becomes obsessed with swimming, sacrificing work and family time to get in a few more laps; a just-over-the-hill car-show model who starts to believe every man she sees is stalking her; and high-school student so obsessed with text messaging on his cell phone, even a few moments of separation create panic and cold sweats.

Although each character begins as almost a caricature of him or herself, they develop into people we may recognize in our own lives, or even aspects of our own personality. The fun and humor of each story comes from not the ailment, but Dr. Irabu's unorthodox and unexpected avenues of treatment. Often the reader wonders if what Dr. Irabu is doing is even intended for the patients benefit, and simply his own. (The dubious injections given to each patient on each visit by Dr. Irabu's sexy female nurse give us a clue.) Though in the end of each tale some sort of resolution or recovery path is reached, whether this is by accident or by design becomes clearer as the reader finishes each story. Although each tale is written from the perspective of the patient, we get more and more hints as to what kind of person Dr. Irabu really is.

Translating humor from Japanese to English is one of the most difficult undertakings a translator can expect to take. Comedy is so different culture to culture, and having it make sense and seem natural in the translated language requires real talent, and that talent shows here is the seamless English creation by Giles Murray.

In the Pool is a fun and interesting splash, just slightly deeper than the surface suggests. Dr. Irabu's techniques and ideas collide with not only his profession, but his national culture, and although this isn't always comfortable for his patients, it makes for pure entertainment for his readers.

I had never heard of this author, and was given this book as a gift. What a delightful surprise! This collection of five short stories all share the same principal character - a wacky neurologist who works in the basement of a Tokyo hospital. Each story introduces a new patient, each with an unusual ailment, and follows their "treatment" with the doctor. The writing is crisp and funny, and I found myself busting into unexpected laughter throughout the book. My only disappointment was that there were just five stories. When I finished the book, I yearned for more! I hope that more books from this award winning author are translated into English, and marketed outside of Japan.

"In the Pool" is a deceptive book. From the bland cover and title, you are expecting something equally bland, maybe a bit of a quiet read to pass the time. Certainly not the perverse, hilarious and addicting book you are about to encounter. Just like the hapless patients at the Irabu General Hospital, you are suddenly pitched into a bizarre world where the inmates are running the asylum, nothing makes sense whatsoever, and then every so slowly, the bigger picture starts to become clear.

A series of five short stories, "In the Pool" follows the lives of five different patients, each suffering from some sort of psychological disorder. Kazuo Omori feels compelled to go swimming, and is willing to allow his job, marriage and morals disintegrate for the chance to sink into the blue security of the pool. Tetsuya Taguchi has an erection that just won't quit, making daily life impossible. Trade show model Hiromi Yasukawa is being haunted by an army of invisible stalkers, each one trying to catch a glimpse of her impossible beauty. Yuta Tsuda needs his cell phone the way an alcoholic needs booze. Taking it away from him causes massive spasms in mere seconds. Yoshio Iwamura knows that is obsessive compulsive fear of fire is my psychology, but can't stop himself from going home to check his apartment every few minutes. Each one of them finds there way into the helping hands of Ichiro Irabu, Doctor of Neurology, who seems more interested in joining their obsessions than helping.

Ichiro Irabu himself is a fantastically weird character. A fat, pasty middle-aged man, he has an erotic fixation on giving injections, and employs a sexy nurse who is a stand-offish exhibitionist. Stuffed down in the basement of the hospital, he is constantly complaining that they don't send him enough patients, and when they do it is always the lost causes. Together, Irabu and his nurse hold the stories together, being the only reoccurring characters, even though they are always just supporting actors at most.

Much of the philosophy of Irabu's style is based on the work of Dr. Morita Masatake, a contemporary of Sigmund Freud who taught that accepting your feelings was more important than trying to battle them. Or as Oscar Wilde put it, "the only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it." This is were the deceptive part comes in. At first Irabu's solutions seem to cause more harm than help, as he pushes his patients deeper and deeper into their psychosis until they burn them out. There is a method to his madness.

The only small flaw in "In the Pool" is the translation. The translator calls Irabu a neurologist, although it is clear from the text that this should have been psychiatrist. The translation error is actually fixed later, and he is called a psychiatrist in the later stories.

Life does not have to be complicated. This book tells how to have a good life without a lot of complications. I use the ideas in this book every day for myself, with my kids, and in all my interactions with people. Some of it may seem pretty obvious to some of us, but this book points out the cause and effect quite simply, and puts it in a way that everyone can use.

I read this book when I was a teenager. Although I had always been very well-balanced in my life, I was going through a bad period of my teen-years. Until a few months before, I had been always successful in school, had a pretty good relationship with my parents, and had good friends. Then it changed. Why, I found out reading this book. With very simple words, this book explains the concepts of ethics and morality, subjects often named, but deeply understood only by a few. I was "hanging out" with people who were absolutely the opposite of what I was and wanted to be: they smoked pot; didn't care about their education and therefore often disregarded their studies and school; didn't care of the efforts of their parents to give them what they needed, and talked bad about their parents all the time; didn't care about love, only about sex, which seemed to be considered just like a hobby, with nothing behind it.

When I realized all this, I was amazed at how I had been influenced to think like them. Luckily for me, this book helped me understand that it was more important for me to understand and act, rather than feel guilty, so I did just that. I went out of that group, and decided what I wanted to do with my life. I was able to talk to my parents again and they helped me get things organized again in my life to reach my goals. Soon I was doing well in school again and I was happy with myself, and I didn't have any trouble finding new friends whom I could share my goals and objectives with.

Later on, I used the data in this book many times to help people handle similar situations, as well as solve conflicts in my group of friends and in my class. I grew up, found a job that I liked, a man that I loved, and now I have a family, and I continue to apply the data I learned in this book.

Everyone needs this data. I am very happy I read it and that I know this data to teach to my daughter. It's a vital tool for parents, teachers, but also for younger people.

This book presents the concepts of ethics and morality at a level that just about anyone can understand. The concepts are defined, and instead of feeling guilty for one's transgressions, there is a very simple, yet incredibly effective, way to address these things. The result is a feeling of relief.

People are basically good. When we make mistakes and hurt ourselves or others, we feel guilty. Until now, there has been no easy resolution to these feelings of guilt.

I recommend it for EVERYONE, but I want to state that it is very effective with preteens and teenagers, too. I know many families with teens that are doing great in life, and this technology has been indispensible to these families.

Since reading this information, my 9 year old son has become very honest. If he does something he shouldn't, rather than keep a secret about it, he'll come to me, which is a MUCH better solution than hiding one's transgressions.

What impact something as simple as trusting yourself has on your life. Thanks, Mr Hubbard, for making it so easy. Now I can trust others too!

I got so much out of reading this book. I know for myself what is right and wrong. Life is just easier when you have integrity!

This book has been such a gift! We travel the intracoastal waterways in Jacksonville/St.Augustine Florida all year long and found this book to be so helpful.

The charts are well organized and very reliable. Only a minimum number of aids were missing or changed in number. Some of the bridge info is a little dated but generally did not cause any navigational problems.

Very usable in it's small page spiral format. Flipping pages as one cruises north or south is easy, and takes very little space at the helm. The annotations indicating marina locations save looking in separate guides when a stopping point is desired. Some obvious side trips (e.g. Banana River) are omitted and would have helped increase usefulness if included.

Great book, you have to have them to run the intracoastal and it's MUCH cheaper at Amazon then in the bookstores - or boat stores!!

A must for traveling the Intercoastal Waterway. A very detailed illustrative set of information to successfully achieve your trip.