Burns Books

I just finished reading this book and I found it extremely helpful. I'm seriously considering Wesleyan and I know that other students looking at the school would truly benefit from reading this insightful perspective. What I really loved about this book is that it's written by students and has details about things you wouldn't otherwise find out about from big reports. There is info about Nightlife, Campus housing, and Strictness, all of which give a glimpse into what it's like to attend. Buy this book!

As a high school student looking for information about colleges, I often find that the perspectives are wholly external. What's so great about this book is that the perspective comes from the students themselves. How utterly refreshing in a day and age where reviews on colleges are so corporate! Besides that, there is a ton of info that you won't find in other Reports (wink, wink). Everyone thinking about attending West Virginia U needs to pick this up. The information is given in an interesting way so you actually want to read it.

To the Native Americans, it was home. To Spanish Mexico, it was the north. To the British and French in Canada, it was the south. To the Russians and Chinese, it was the east. "But it was the Americans - the last to arrive - who named it the West and then made it part of their nation." Dayton Duncan's "The West" tells the story of how the United States fulfilled its manifest destiny to extend all the way to the Pacific Ocean. The story begins with native peoples but they soon find the first Spanish who entered the region looking for the Seven Cities of Gold. Lewis and Clark's expeditions are documented along site the Mexican-American War. There is a close look at the cowboy. Duncan explores the new economics of mining and ranching. Along with the everyday life of settlers, the impact of the Civil War is explored. The life of requisite figures such as Sam Clements, Sam Houston, General Custer and Sitting Bull are covered. The title covers the brutality that was directed at the Native Americans. Treatment of this topic proves to be one of the book's shining strengths. Indeed, many histories gloss over this dynamic of the region. Dayton Duncan's writing formula is that he introduces a large historical movement and then gives a personalized account. This technique is very effective. As "An Illustrated History for Children," this is intended for younger readers. Were it not for the power of suggestion held in the subtitle, the book would seem perfect for almost any reader. Given the writing style and historical photographs, this book may better appeal to more mature readers. The notion of a children's companion to the PBS series is in itself a bit odd since the Ken Burns series had no appeal to younger viewers. Regardless, the book shares the show's thematic organization and sensibility. In the end, "The West: An Illustrated History for Children" is a well-balanced and thoughtful overview of the Western experience.

Blurbs from the back cover:

"...this short book is long on information and understanding! It provides a depth of detail on the symptoms, causes, and consequences of missionary stress, burn-out, and depressions. And it shows the way to help and hope. It should be of tremendous value to mission leaders and to anyone concerned with the care of missionaries...."

"...an excellent and practical primer to the subejct of missionary burnout and depression. Missionaries and Church Mission Leaders will all benefit from this practical book"

Table of Contents

1. Missionaries and Burnout
2. Depression: Sources of Stress
3. Evidences of Bruising in Missionaries or Missionary Candidates
4. Depression as an Illness
5. Diagnosis of Major Depression
6. Adolescent Depression
7. Crisis Intervention for Depressed Adults abd Adolescents
8. Childhood Depression
9. Prevention of Burn-out and Depression
Bibliography

This book was so informative and fun!My co-partner and I could not seem to figure out who pays for what, so I made him read the book with me!! Now we have our bank accounts in order and are saving for a house. I recommend this for my single friends too!

When Dreams Don't Work is a most wonderful and essential guide for anyone facing life's challenges, sadness, and disappointment. The authors help us understand our very natural responses to burn out and most major perceived setbacks and dilemmas. I recommend this to every manager, investor, and thinking citizen, and to everyone entering the challenging stages of middle age and senior status. My only wish is that I had read this book during my college years, as its guidance is truly magnificent.

I had the most remarkable experience with this book. I was visiting a dear friend in the hospital and the other lady in the room had received a copy of this book from her son but was feeling too ill to read. So, I began reading stories from the book and the next thing you know, everyone in the room is laughing. A couple of nurses came to what was going on and listened in and they started laughing too. It reminded me of that last scene in the movie Its a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World when the lady slips on a banana peel and the whole ward erupts with laughter. This one is my Christmas list for gifts to be sure.

Now, when I need a smile, I open this book, and through it, this dear lady shares with me one of hers. Thanks, Laurie!

Based on actual events that surrounded post WWII Europe. Realistic and heart wrenching meet miraculous providence. There has to be a sequel.

As indicated in my title, Alexander Woolcott was described in his lifetime as "a first-class reporter, a great story-teller, a fine writer, and a leading wit of {his} time." His articles appeared in the "New Yorker", "Colliers", and "Cosmopolitan" and various other popular magazines of his era. The stories and essays included in __WHILE ROME BURNS__ are dated from the late '20's to the early to mid '30's. For those of us who grew up a bit later in the century, they give some idea of what a great time we missed.

In an article titled "Our Miss Parker," he relates some of his personal experiences with another great wit of the time, Dorothy Parker. He tells of the time she substituted for Bennet Cerf in his position as a theater critic. Her review of the play, THE HOUSE BEAUTIFUL consisted of a single line, "THE HOUSE BEAUTIFUL is the play lousy." Another time Woolcott went to visit Mrs Parker in the hospital, where she was ready to be released but was delaying leaving the hospital because she couldn't pay the bill. (Mrs Parker delayed doing most of her writing until she had to do so in order to pay her rent or, as in this case, had to come up with money immediately for something major.) She was propped up in her bed with her typewriter on her lap working on an article for one of the magazines which published her work. When Cerf came in she greeted him and almost immediately rang for the nurse. Suspecting that perhaps she needed some sort of service that required privacy, he offered to wait outside her room. Her response was, "No, it is supposed to fetch the night nurse, so I ring it whenever I want an hour of uninterrupted privacy." One other example of her rather acidic wit was when a friend tried to sneak up behind her on a major New York shopping street and frighten her. She evidently saw his reflection in the glass window as he approached, so she turned and in her loudest voice began to shout at him that no, she wouldn't give him another cent and that he had already bled her dry. She kept this up until she drew a crowd, and he had to slink off with his eyes diverted to the ground. Most people learned very quickly that she was the master of "the game."

One of the articles is devoted to Charlie Chaplin, who Woolcot considered the finest silent actor of all time. Along with praising Chaplin, Woolcott makes no bones about his feeling that these new "talkies" are going to ruin moving pictures. (I guess no one can win them all.)

There are articles of nostalgia for people, animals, and places long gone, and also for plays and books that have meant something to him. One play that he couldn't praise highly enough was "Journey's End" which takes place entirely in the trenches of World War One. From his description of the conversations and relationships of these mostly doomed foot soldiers, it sounds very much like a play that I would like to see revived. I have a feeling that this play, written around 1929 to 1930 contains some universal truths.

On that note, I'd like to conclude with saying that this is the sort of book that, even though it had at least 18 prointings between 1934 and 1936, deserves another reprinting now for the kind of audience that enjoys knowing about life in the fairly recent past, and enjoys reading well written stories, memoirs, and articles about that life.

This is an amazing true story about a courageous woman and her path to recovery after being badly burned. She went back into her burning home 5 times to save her children and grandmother. It's very well written and an easy read. Inspiring, and uplifting. It also provides a rare look into an orthodox Jewish community. I happen to know it's all true as I used to live in this community. I highly recommend it.