Richardson Books

Great biography on Augustus! Well written and the average reader (like me!) is in not talked down to by the author and the author - though obviously a highly intelligent and well-versed man on the subject matter, does not flaunt it but makes the read enjoyable and understandable. After watching HBO's Rome series, it was very enjoyable to have the fact sorted out from the fiction as well as to have greater dimension and depth added to the key players in Augustus' long life.

As a student, I only knew the basics of Roman history. Something about this book attracted me. This is an extremely well written, easy to understand history lesson on both Caesar Augustus as well as the Roman Empire. Everitt makes sure to explain every Roman or Latin term he uses. He covers all events througout Augustus' life that I never knew. After reading this book, I feel that I am significantly more knowledgable regarding the pinnacle of the Roman empire. Augustus entertains as well as informs. Highly reccommended.

Any list of most successful politicians throughout history must include the Emperor Augustus at the top. Victorious at Actium in 31 BC after the chaos that followed the death of Julius Caesar, he was the most powerful man in the Western world until his death in 14 AD. Anthony Everitt's lucid biography gives a great description of the times and political life of the man who established the Roman Empire.

I found this book particularly satisfying after reading "I Claudius" and viewing the HBO production "Rome". The author provides an excellent description of historical context for this fascinating rise from obscurity to preeminence.

`Augustus' by Anthony Everitt

In this eponymous titled work Mr. Everitt tells the remarkable story of Rome's first emperor, Augustus. Clearly, it is brilliantly researched, extremely well written and a really enjoyable book to read. Anyone looking for an entry into ancient history would be well served reading this book. Mr. Everitt does spend an inordinate time on Octavian, Augustus' name before he became emperor, however the book remains a comprehensive source of information not only on the life of this truly unparalleled Roman leader, but the Julio-Claudian family overall. The family lineage, which is a difficult feat for anyone to successfully describe, is very well laid out and clearly organized in both text and helpful chart inserts.

I had read Everitt's earlier work on Cicero and was immediately hooked on his writing style. Fans of the aforementioned book will not be disappointed with his follow up, `Augustus'. Enjoy.

Although a well-written and well-researched book, it becomes obvious very quickly that Anthony Everitt does not like his subject: Augustus. This shouldn't have surprised me, considering Everitt's unflattering portrayal of Caesar in his previous biographical effort (Cicero).

Despite Everitt's disdain (and the challenges inherent in reading a book from such a biased perspective), I recommend this considering the amount of rich, historical detail present.

Silvestre Vallejo

I read this story as a new Christian years ago, and then read it aloud to my children. It is amazing and the type of story you can read over and over and it is always relevant and you always get something new from it. Read it! The sequel is amazing as well, "Lords of the Earth."

A quick, easy, descriptive good read! I wanted to know more but realized the author gave enough info to totally describe his experiences.

Have read it once, and will definitely read it again. Shows how God can accomplish the impossible, if you are available for Him. I loved the details given about everything, the real-life likeness of the writing. It's a very intense real-life story, with an unbelievable outcome.

Gripping tale of real life testimony of making God known in a distant land. Richardson is a story teller. His writing is clear, direct and holds your attention. You will thank God for the fact someone brought you the same wonderful message of hope.

A true story of how the Gospel of Jesus Christ can cross cultures and change the lives of violent people. A great message for the world today, especially for people who believe that the answer to violence is more violence. Also, an interesting cultural study of indigenous people.

I found this book to be a great read. Anything that will make you stretch to raise your own expectations of yourself or help yourself is always worth the money.

This book gives a lot of insight on building a better you. It gives a lot of information that you can relate to and then gives you the tips, exercises, and tools you will need to live a more positive life. If you read this book and follow along with the exercises and techniques the author gives, you will start to notice a difference in your attitude fairly quickly. I reccomend this book to anyone who wants to get a start on building self-confidence and a positive attitude change.

If you want to run your own life - and who doesn't? - Cheryl Richardson will tell you how. The first step in her program is getting a clear sense of who you are and what you want. Then, tap into your inner power to develop the courage and confidence to move ahead. Richardson's examples from her personal life and from her clients' stories add lively human interest, and her comprehensive step-by-step program might intrigue many readers, particularly those who have just started reading self-help literature. Otherwise, this is a repeat of a frequently taught lesson about how to decide what you want and take steps to get it. Her exercises can help you clarify your goals as well as find and destroy any emotional barriers standing in your way. We recommend this book to readers, particularly women, who haven't already been down this path and absorbed this message; you will find that Richardson is an encouraging cheerleader.

This book came to me at a time when I was discovering ways to overcome depression. It helped me to realize that one of the causes of my depression was that I had ignored and repressed my own needs in order to take care of everyone else. Eventually, if you take care of everyone except yourself, you will run out of things to give. It's like overdrawing your bank account. You can't keep writing checks without replenishing the supply. Cheryl Richardson will always be a hero in my eyes for sharing information that helped me in creating a life I love living.

Although the subtitle reads: "Develop the Courage, Confidence and Character to Fulfill Your Greatest Potential," the book is not necessarily designed for confidence seekers who struggle with anxiety and fear.

However, reading and participating in the exercises of this book can be a great way to experience life coaching.

If you are hungry for deeper meaning and abundance in your life, you will find the coaching questions helpful for clarifying what you really stand for and what you want in your life. The questions can connect you with the dormant inspiration awaiting you beneath an everyday layer of doldrums and demands. Using this book can nurture a weary soul and might be a gateway to the inspiration you seek.

However, if you are seeking tools to overcome a strong resistance and fear of moving out of your comfort zone, you may not find what you need here. In order for the exercises to be really effective for confidence building, it is better if the reader already has a healthy edge over internal anxiety, fear and resistance.

Either way, if you do the exercises, they will experience results that have at least a subtle effect in your experience of the life and beauty around you.

I bought two sets. Sent one to my 29 year old daughter in New Mexico and one home to my 24 year old son. They both have enjoyed listening to the set. Well worth the money that I paid for it.

Last summer we listened to this series in the car, by borrowing them one by one from the libary. Come Christmas time we decided to buy the set. Both the adults and kids (ages 5&7) enjoyed listening. The readers do a great job, giving differant voices to the characters. We did borrow one book in the "radio style" format. We found the radio style confusing and not as pleasent to listen to.

I ordered this for my middle schooler who has a Learning Disability that prevents her from reading quickly and she has to read and test on many books a quarter to keep her grades up. The teacher said that I could suppliment with books on tape/cd. I love the Chronicles of Narnia myself and thought that she might like them too. She loves them. She would have never been able to get through one of the books by herself but she listens to them without my prompting. That is great.
One thing about this purchase was that in the picture it looked to me like it came with a set of books but it does not. I am not saying that the product was misrepresented I just didn't pay close enough attention. I had a set of books at home anyway so it was no problem.

This is an imaginative and wonderful series. C.S. Lewis is really a creative author. I love it that they are Christian stories. Each one is different from the others and yet they are all great. I was so sorry to get to the last one. The readers for the series are also very good. It is very important that the reader be enthusiastic and talented. A good book can be ruined by a poor reader. I highly recommend this series for children and adults. It is a series that will be listened to over and over again. These are great in the car for long rides. ENJOY!

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques

I've wanted to reread the entire Chronicles of Narnia series, back to back, for a long time and just never got around to it. When I found it in audio as a boxed set, I had to have it and it gave me the excuse I needed to revisit my childhood for a little while.

In The Magician's Nephew, we discover the origins of the wonderful land of Narnia and how Aslan the Lion brought it into being. Digory is a young boy tricked by his magician uncle into travelling to another world, where he must rescue his friend Polly who Uncle Andrew trapped there. Thus begins a grand new adventure for Polly and Digory, not all of which is enjoyable, as they jump through various worlds and see the birth of Narnia. Digory knows he caused most of the problems and will not quit until he fixes his mistakes.

It's been so many years since I read any of this series, I can't remember if I read The Magician's Nephew before or not. What a delightful story! Here we have the prequel to one of the most beloved children's books of all time. I enjoyed my foray through worlds with Digory and Polly and especially enjoyed being there when Aslan creates Narnia. I also liked getting to see the origin of the witch and how the division of good and evil in Narnia began.

In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy Pevency are sent to live with a reclusive professor to protect them during the war. A game of hide and seek leads to a whole new world when the children discover a wooden wardrobe that is a door to Narnia. The game grows serious when they learn they are the answer to a prophecy about two sons of Adam and two daughters of Eve bringing peace to the land.

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe is definitely the most popular book in the series and probably every single person of the past few generations has at least heard the name. This is the story that drew me into the world of Narnia and as such, it will always hold a little corner of my heart with the memories of meeting Aslan, the centaurs, the fauns, all the talking animals, and of course the infamous Pevency children.

In The Horse and His Boy, Shasta is a young orphan taken in as a baby by a fisherman and raised to work the fishing boat. When Shasta finds out his master is going to sell him to someone new, he decides to escape. While trying to figure out what to do, he discovers the horse belonging to the man wanting to buy Shasta is a talking horse from Narnia who also wants to be free. So they run away and early in their journey bump into a young girl Aravis who is also running away with Winn, her own talking horse from Narnia. Aravis and Shasta decide to journey together and find themselves in a whole mess of adventures that lead them to bump into King Edmund, Queen Susan and Queen Lucy and even the great Aslan himself.

The Horse and His Boy is first and foremost a quest novel, at least in my opinion. Here we have young Shasta who escapes his dreary life to go on the adventure of a lifetime, where he finds out there is such more to him than he ever realized. Aravis too, is trying to get away from her fears and she finds the strength to do so with Shasta at her side. She also has a tendency to speak her mind with n fear of consequences, which gets her into trouble on more than one occasion. I loved the horses, who added so much personality to the story, and experience some adventures of their own.

Centuries after Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy left Narnia they are unexpectedly called back from their world. There is a usurper ruling in Narnia and the true king, Prince Caspian calls for aid in defeating his uncle the phony king, so he can take his rightful place on the throne.

Much has changed in Narnia since the sons of Adam and the daughters of Eve disappeared. Centuries have passed in Narnia though only a little more than a year in Earth time is gone, and Prince Caspian needs their help to bring Narnia back to the way it is meant to be. I especially liked meeting one of my favorite characters, Reepecheep, in this installment of the saga. Anotehr part of this story I loved was seeing the reactions of High King Peter and his family when they realize Narnia is nothing like they remember it. Their friends are gone and their castles in ruins, but we also get to see them overcome their shock to once more step into the roles prophesized to belong to them. They've all grown up a bit and this has quite an impact on their reactions to their beloved Narnia.

Lucy and Edmund are sucked into a painting, with their cousin Eustace in tow, while visiting Eustace's family. They end up in Narnia on The Voyage of Dawn Treader, King Caspian's ship. Caspian is on a journey to the east and The End of the World in the hopes of finding several knights sent out seven years ago by Caspian's uncle, and they hope to finally reach Aslan's country.

The Voyage of Dawn Treader is actually much slower paced then the majority of the books in this series and as a result seems to take an awfully long time for the adventures to begin. Eustace is a spoiled little rich boy who finds everything he believes challenged on this sea voyage. He has to rise above his faults to become the boy he is meant to be. Anotehr nice touch is we see how much Caspian has grown up since he won the throne of Narnia from his uncle. He is destined to be a great king and here we really see this side of his personality.

Eustace Scrubbs (cousin to the Pevency children) has had a complete personality change after his first experience in Narnia. While trying to help a young girl, Jill, being bullied, they run off through a door in the stone wall and end up in the far east of the world, Aslan's country in Narnia. They have been summoned by Aslan to assist King Caspian in finding his long lost son, missing for 10 years. While on their journey they have four signs to follow that Aslan gave them and manage to mess up three of them. They get into scrape after scrape as they search for Prince Rillian and discover The Silver Chair.

Eustace is back in Narnia, quite by accident, and he has changed so much since his last experience. But then, who wouldn't be changed after what he had to go through in the previous story? We also get to visit with Caspian one last time, in the twilight of his life as king. I have loved Caspian since we met him in his first story so while I was pleased to see he had such a wonderfully blessed life, I was a little heartbroken to see him so close to the end, in agony over the disappearance of his son. I had a hard time deciding what I thought of Rillian initially, but he grew on my after a while, especially once I understood the curse he suffered.

When Shift the ape and Puzzle his donkey friend find a lion skin in the water, the ape decides it would be a great idea to dress Puzzle up in the lion skin and tell everyone Aslan has returned. When Shift gets greedy and makes a deal with the Callormens to sell the talking animals into slavery and cut down all of the dryad's trees, the real Aslan sends Eustace and Jill back to Narnia to help the king put an end to Shift's schemes with The Last Battle.

Patrick Stewart narrates this one and he does a fantastic job. He had me cracking up as he brayed like a donkey and barked like a dog, among other little bits he had to perform. The Last Battle starts a little slowly, as Shift and Puzzle put their plan into motion. But once the scheme starts to work, the pace picks up as we fly down the road into battle preparations and the final war.

For years I've heard about The Chronicles of Narnia as being a Christian allegory and the many references to similarities between Narnia beliefs and Christian beliefs. I also know there are many people who spend significant amounts of time studying the books for these Christian references. When I was little, all those hidden meanings were way over my head and the books were just adventure stories. Now that I'm older and wiser (or like to think I am anyhow), I can view the series with new eyes and pick up on many of the references. The allegorical nature of the series is most evident in The Magician's Nephew (the creation story) and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (the rising, crucifixion, and rising again of Jesus Christ) and The Last Battle (the Second Coming of Christ). The Voyage of Dawn Treader also struck me after I looked back on it, as reminding me of Noah and the Ark in some ways.

I loved the opportunity to read Chronicles of Narnia once more and enjoyed the fact that it is now so much more to me than just a fantasy saga.

© Kelley A. Hartsell, January 2008. All rights reserved.

This wonderful books opens the door to understanding Chinese food as medicine. It is truly full of wisdom, and very practical. A treasure!

yep! it brings me back home when i read through this book and taste the recipes!

glad this book was published!

The book is amazing and everything I had hoped it would be.

The author was very generous in sharing her family recipes which I think are authentic because I am familiar with American Born Chinese with a similar ancestry. The pronunciation is not Cantonese but perhaps the author has generalized her specific dialect to make it easier for the lay person to understand that she is from a Southern immigrant background with strong ties to San Francisco's Chinatown pre1980's generations.

I get the feeling that when the author refers to "The Chinese" that she is really referring to her own subgroup of Southern (Toisanese?) immigrants in America. The ingredients, the soup recipes and the beliefs while common in the South are interpreted in a specific visceral manner that is more oral history than official Chinese culinary rules. I am aware that there is disagreement over the handling of gingko nuts for example and that is not covered in this book.


I found Grace Young's book interesting and actually delightful though I minded the presumption of speaking for The Chinese and a certain accompanying dogmatism but overall, I appreciate the author's willingness in sharing her private family history and recipes. I think this does represent the author's subgroup extremely well and that many Americanized Chinese with her background will find this book very useful. Plus if they like the tone of the Joy Luck Club, they will love the writing style in this book.

The recipes are not complicated and you will find yourself with a simple but tasty vegetable soup in half an hour. Go for it!

I urge anyone who has come across the book to also read
My Shanghai: Through Tastes & Memories (Hardcover)
by Sandy Lam

which is also sold through Amazon. If you like Joy Luck Club and agree with the cultural proclamations in Grace Young's book, you will gain hopefully some perspective by reading Sandy Lam's book and if you disagree with the conceits in Joy Luck Club-type American Chinese of Chinatown of a certain intellectual background, then Sandy Lam's book will be something of a palate cleanser.

Since this book is an anthropoligical treasure, I intend to order Breath of Wok as well. Also, I will order all of Eileen Yin Fei Lo's books because she is from Sun Tak which is also not Canton proper however the people of Sun Tak have a reputation for cooking talent and I have found their accent to be charming.

Trivia: William Hung of American Idol fame is said to be of Sun Tak origin.

Grace Young's writing style is very thoughtful and a testament to her ability to embrace her Chinese Heritage and prescribe its finer aspects in cooking to a reader who has only a basic familiarity of that culture.

Her writing is reflective, beautiful, nostalgic, concise, thoughtful, and with an elusiveness that only a true philosopher could have that motivates the spirit in wanting to learn more not only about cooking, but about how everything in life is balanced together.

I've been reading this book while I've had a very bad flu and her sections on the medicinal values of ingredients in Chinese cooking has been a blessing to me.

The book is well organized with a vivid introduction of her life growing up in San Francisco Chinatown; her observations thru family anecdotes. Then she breaks down recipes with wonderful introductions in categories from rice, wok cooking, steam cooking, and two broader sections related to cooking and "The Art of Celebration" and "Achieving Ying Yang Harmony."

There are excellent instructions, pictures, and descriptions of key ingredients written in chinese with a photo so that while in a Chinese supermarket, you can find the ingredients.

There's also and excellent reference section in the back on the ingredients.

Little things such as eating congee (jook) when ill to aid the body in releasing toxins had an immediate effect on my health. Also, her recipe for "Dried Fig Apple Almond" soup immediately cured me of my coughing problems.

Her instructions on the recipe are very concise. If you follow her instructions academically, you will achieve the intent of the dish.

After reading this book, I look at eating more than just as a pleasure, but as a means of sustaining a longer and healthier life.

I only had one problem and that relates to the phonetics used in the pronunciation of some of the terms in chinese. People at the stores seldom understood what I was asking for, but fortunately, there were pictures.

Great read and a book that is a permanent reference guide.

This book proves the mandate God gave us in the Old Testament Jeremiah 29:13 King James Version "And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." The writer has done a great job describing how all cultures no matter how remote have in their history the existence of the one true God. The same cultures call for the arrival of The Redeemer and also a world wide cataclysmic event dated about 4,400 years ago. If the existence of the identical God, Redeemer and The Flood in diverse cultures around the world who could not have communicated with each other does not convince the non believer of the truth than perhaps nothing will.

Bill Hoidas

The apostle Paul contends that the law of God is written on our hearts so we are without excuse. Don Richardson, in this little book, provides examples of just how God has written that law in the culture and legends of a variety of people groups. His conclusion? That the secret to evangelizing is in seeking out those ancient seeds of the faith already planted by God in the hearts of those we hope to reach.

It is a brilliant response to those who would show similarities of ancient pagan rituals with Christianity as well. The response is, of course there are similarities, God planned it that way.

An intriguing and informative study and well worth consideration to anyone interested in evangelization. This is in fact a reprint and revised version of a rather dated book but the content is still relevant and the revision/reprint is a welcome sign of interest in the topic.

I really enjoyed this book, it was easy to read and provided interesting insights into the preparation many cultures have within their history for the gospel. I would have given it five stars but I also felt the editing was a bit sloppy as per another reviewer.

Traditionally, I would never have read this book, scorning it as some pluralistic diatribe about there being more than one way to Yahweh than through Jesus after reading the blurb. I couldn't have been more wrong in my pre-supposition! I read this book in the end because it was recommended to me by a respected friend. I devoured it in hours... and really was pleasantly surprised by the content.

Richardson never loses the need for all cultures to receive the salvational knowledge of the gospel and Christ from his message. He continually brings back that redemption only lies in Jesus, and places Him at the centre of the teachings of the book.

I also found then end part, as he assessed Tylor's 'evolutionary religion' theory to be fascinating. (I know, I know, I'm a nerd) I have had many atheists espouse this theory in several different derivations and had never realised that refuation was available to the concept that polytheism always outdated monotheism.

Overall, I would happily recommend this book to others especially those considering cross cultural mission work. I believe it would be especially encouraging in this context.

Another great Richardson book. This one deals in somewhat story form with a life premise of God's grace made known to all peoples. Well worth thinking through the implications for evangelism in today's world.

What an excellent book a must read.I also highly recommend reading GODS PROMISE TO THE CHINESE by Ethal Nelson and MYTH OF A CHRISTIAN NATION by Greg Boyd.
Lets face it americas "what have you done for me lately" cult of Christian prosperity and vanity is having dier consequences for the true gospel message.So God goes else where like HE has always done but He prepared the way long long ago as this book so beautifully reveals.
He will make a people for himself from every tribe,nation and tongue.

1 COR 1:27 "but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong."
JAMES 4:6 "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."

It was truly a touch of grace for me to find myself watching Oprah (which I don't usually do)the day she had Cheryl Richardson, Martha Beck, and Louise Hay on her show. This book is wonderful, as is Martha's, and I have owned Louise Hay's book and given it to many friends over the past 25 or more years.

"...Touch of Grace" is a very personal, easy to follow book. Common sense is not usually a phrase one applies to a book that is probably categorized as "spiritual" or "metaphysical" but this book just makes a lot of sense, and if one is truly open to looking at how grace has touched their lives and willing to be aware, this book will be a great help along the way...to...peace and serenity, joy, etc., etc.

Cheryl Richardson has put into words what many of us have experienced in our lives but didn't know how to explain or articulate. This is not just another "how to" book on creating the perfect life. It is a book that will help you become more mindful of what is already present in your life. You won't miss another "signpost" after reading this book and you'll become more aware of how grace has been a presence in your life from the beginning. Bravo, Cheryl! Pamela D. Blair, Author, The Next Fifty Years: A Guide for Women at Mid-Life And Beyond, co-author I Wasn't Ready to Say Goodbye (Updated Edition): Surviving, Coping and Healing After the Sudden Death of a Loved One

This book is really amazing. I still use Cheryl's earlier book, Take Time for Your Life, as a great reference for my coaching practice. Her latest book takes you in another direction by showing you how to recognize and follow the signs of grace - "the recognition that everything is connected and sacred". I enjoyed hearing her personal story as well as that of others in their search for grace. It is a great example of how setting your intentions creates your reality. If that wasn't enough reason to read this book - she provides some great book, website and magazine recommendations. I would highly recommend this book. It could change your life... if you are ready for a change.

I love this book and ordered 3 copies which I promptly gave away to my friends. I'm getting ready to order 4 more.

This book has to rank as one of the top life changing books that I have ever read. Cheryl Richardson relays a philosophy and proven life techniques that will give you a completely new perspective on your problems, daily frustrations and goals in life. Reading this will help lay the ground work for leading a fulfilled, purposeful and successful life.

Finally a book all about how to incorporate the newest in technology in the classroom. Combines info that's been floating around on the internet into a concise book and an easy read. Many great ideas.

I started reading Will Richardson's book to educate myself about how teachers and instructors have been utilizing web tools into their curriculum. In October 2007, I attended the Computers in Libraries conference and participated in a workshop called "New Research Tools" where they discussed practical and successful cases of educators using various online tools, like Flickr, Clipmarks, or RSS readers.

As a librarian, a 2nd year educator, and one who personally uses these different tools, I really am interested in incorporating these tools into the curriculum.

During the course of reading this book, I have started reading Will Richardson's blog - Web-logged - as well as other educator and librarian blogs. This book has inspired me to try to incorporate the different tools that I enjoy using personally into the curriculum.

Richardson's enthusiasm for these various web tools is conveyed through each chapter. He devotes chapters to each tool. For example, there is a chapter on Blogs, one on RSS and one on wikis. It is easily explained and whether you use these tools already or not, his writing is easily accessible. I have been promoting this book to my colleagues and have also pointed some of them to his blog.

His chapter on Wikis has caused me to reassess my hesitance towards utilizing Wikipedia as a valid source of information. I am still skeptical but one should be skeptical when approaching print media as well.

The chapters are short and easy to understand. He has an excellent list of resources and great examples of people who are already incorporating the read/write web into their classrooms. I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in Web 2.0, education and technology.

This is a great book. I am thoroughly enjoying every page! It is giving me so much inspiration and instruction on how to use these tools. Great examples and resources too.

I am an elementary school teacher who values technology integration in classrooms. Initially, the book begins slow with an overabundant amount of details about the simplicity of blogging. Some advice is given to lead novices in the right direction tailored to their blogging interests.

An aside: As I was searching on the Internet for safe and secure blog sites for young students, I found this website: http://mhetherington.net/blogs/?p=8 which was created by a middle school teacher with similar interests in student technology involvement. It details steps that can lead any teacher into a free (yet time consuming) setup for students to use. (I used this website to create my own blog site for my 32 fourth grade students and it worked marvelously!)

The author then introduced the power of wikis. I really appreciated the real-life accounts from actual educators who use wikis for group projects with students. I did feel a like the examples came mostly from secondary education and did not focus heavily on primary student possibilities with wikis. PB wiki (peanut butter wiki) for educators was explained and the book offered some great resources for teachers on a low budget with wiki interests.

Next, RSS feeds were explained. Although much of the explanations of RSS feeds were still above my head in understanding, I learned a number of values in using RSS feeds with the Web. One of the examples used in the book was that one could subscribe to all RSS feeds in Cyberspace about a topic of interest. If a person is interested in "Global Warming in California," they can subscribe to any place on the Internet that may use those words as an update when stories or writing is produced and submitted on websites you may not know existed. RSS feeding is a promising method of allowing the computer to do the searching for you.

During my reading of this book, I posted two blogs (on blogger.com) about my reflections. Within 3 days of my writing, the author of this book, Will Richardson, posted a comment on my blog thanking me for reading his book. My inferences told me he may have an RSS feed in Cyberspace that brings him news about whenever information is posted about himself or his book. I was impressed by his comment as this showed me he practiced what he preached in his book and really values the technology he promotes.

By the end of the book, podcasting, screencasting, and videos were introduced as well. In all, the book catered more toward novices and technology learners, not experts. Experts may find this book a bit juvenile, while I enjoyed it for its practicality and rapid information. My favorite part of the book stands at the providing of websites and tools that can be searched just seconds after reading about them. I found that using this book as a user's manual was helpful for technology novices on the go.

This book gives an introduction to a number of Internet-based tools and how they can be used by teachers. The focus tends to be on K-12, but the principles are applicable (generally) to other settings, including higher education.

The author covers blogs, wikis, RSS, social bookmarking, Flickr, and podcasting. Some strengths of this book include:
-Solid introduction to each tool for those not familiar
-Simple "how to" to get started with each tool
-Good pointers to resources, especially the free ones
-Some commentary on the significance of these tools that goes beyond "gee whiz"

Some weaknesses:
-In spite of a focus on K-12, there was little discussion of how to use these tools to support specific educational standards. Granted, that's a huge task, but some examples would be nice. Then again, if you "get" the tools, that exercise is for the reader.
-Huge emphasis on blogs, much shorter entry on podcasting. I can only guess that the author wrote about what he knew most about.

The physical paperback itself is ok. Mine definitely shows the wear and tear of being carried around in my bag.

Overall: if you're a teacher (or technology coordinator) and are a relative newcomer to these tools, this is a very good place to start.

There is no better place to start than this book if you want a solid foundation in Western Qabalah. Dion Fortune headed up her own magical order, and this book is written from the perspective of an experienced practitioner. Start here before you branch off with other writers.

There isn't much I can add to the other positive (and nicely detailed) reviews. This is simply one of, if not the best, books you can buy regarding the western tradition. Get this, then pick up Crowley's 777 for checking details, symbols, correspondences, etc. This is a strange area of study in that, on one hand, every piece of valid information you can get your hands on is helpful, but on the other hand it's very subjective when it comes down to the practice itself.

The only thing I can think to add is that A.O. Spare and Alan Moore are the only authors that have done as much to educate me as Fortune and Crowley.

This is an excellent book. I enjoyed every inch of it. Going into the book I had no knowledge of the Qabalah. My knowledge has grown to what I consider to be more than a basic or general understanding. I own several books by Dion Fortune and I must say this is the best of them. It is very well written and also extremely practical in its approach.

First off, let me say that I love this book. My problem is with whatever nitwit or nitwits at Weiser who re-edited this book, who, among other things, ran amok with the spelling and grammar checker. The most glaring instance is how "ein soph aur" has been changed to "or, ein soph"! For an example of changes made to the substance of the text itself, see the earlier customer review: "New Edition is badly flawed." By Greg Wotton. This edition is useful for the updated material added to the back of the book, but for the main text I recommend keeping your earlier edition, or if you do not have one getting a used copy.

What others below this review have stated regarding cultural bias and archaic science is true. However, we should always wear our ethno-culturocentric colored glasses when reading anything over fifty years old. Dion Fortune is an excellent writer, nonetheless, and her numbered paragraphs system makes each paragraph worth digesting on its own. Compare her writing to MacGregor Mather's "Kabbalah Unveiled" or the pedantic A.E. Waite's "Holy Kabbalah"...is it their Kabbalah that is difficult, or is it their language that makes them unnecessarily difficult reads? Ditto the reviewer who said this book has changed the way she approaches her study of Qabalah. The Mystical Qabalah is pleasurable and prerequisite. Another practical companion, a close second in readability would be Will Parfit's little primer, "The Elements of the Qabalah".

Some keen observations Fortune made that I wish to reveal here: This book was written in the 1930s. When she talks about the conflagration of the Alexandrian Library in Egypt, she wonders out loud how many sacred mystery texts have yet to be discovered buried under the desert sands. She also mentions the Essenes dwelling near the Dead Sea. Ofcourse, in 1945 the Nag Hammadi codices were discovered, where else, but under the Egyptian desert sands. In 1947, the first of the Dead Sea Scrolls was discovered in a cave in Qumran.

Another fundamental source for those of us who are interested in comparative religion is her classifying the three branches of higher consciousness: the devotional discipline, which is religious observance; the mystical discipline, which is the meditative or "putting yourself in a different space" kind of god consciousness, like the sufis, or hermits, Gnostics, etc.; and the occult or philosophical discipline, wherein the practitioner seeks to create change, making a situation adapt to the will, rather than adapting to the situation. It is important to understand these three tiers of spiritual understanding and practice. Likewise, the Tree of Life can be a glyph for understanding one's relation to the universe, or it can be a tool for effecting change in one's universe--Ms Fortune teaches us the former, while not-so thinly alluding to the latter.

I caught this mistake, but perhaps someone can reconcile it for me: In one passage she correlates the Pillar of Severity, with Binah at its head, in the house of Venus, with the feminine aspect, or the Chinese "Yang"...of course, any school child of our era can tell you Yin is the feminine aspect. Also, more than passing familiarity with Chinese Taoism, I would modernize her correspondence further. She equates the Middle Pillar with "Tao". I think the Middle Pillar is more correctly equated with "Tai Chi", while Tao, which is not strictly the balance of the yin and yang, as is the ta'i chi (great ultimate), but is something more than the sum of its parts, or nothing at all. Therefore, I think Tao is more correctly relegated to kether, the crown. In any case, in Fortune's time Western mystics had a nasty habit of mixing, matching and trying to reconcile eastern philosophical systems with western. I am totally against it, as it is like fitting a square peg into a pentagonal hole.

Finally, I can't easily express my delight at reading this book, above all others on the subject. I think Dion Fortune both knew her material on an intuitive level and was a natural born teacher. If I could make an analogy, it's like the difference between simply memorizing the Pythagorean theorem by wrote, versus manipulating formal trigonometric operations in your head for sport.

I read this book today, while my nine month old was napping, at the Dr's office, at a stop light and then at home after my children went to bed. I could not put it down. It brought so much peace to me. I had a miserable day yesterday and a friend had given me this book. I am so glad that I started reading it today, it made me realize how unimportant some pety things are. What an amazing book!

This is a wonderful book, that is easy to read and understand. It makes you laugh out loud and cry as you go through this incredible journey with Lance. What an amazing experience.

I was given this book by a wonderful lady, after my son died. It helped me out a lot, in understanding and healing. I've since given it to others that have experienced losses in their life. I really like the premise that we are really here to serve others, and help each other out. Please read it and understand that we are all family. Great story, and lesson.

The Message : Outstanding, short, riviting , can't put the book down, read. Some new things to thing about the after-life. Seems so perfect, it must be the way it is. Loved the book. Treasure its concepts.

I have read almost all the near death experience books. All of them seem to have a common theme and this one continues on that same theme with much more detail. Mere coincidence? I think not. All of us are given the gift of free agency and to choose at will. I choose to believe every word of this book and to also publicly state this to the world. I buy copies of this book and give to as many of my close associates as I can. For those that have agnst about this book all I can say is I am so sorry you are so lost. God loves you, come back.