Smith Books

C. S. Lewis is not only one of the 20th century's finest minds, he's also amazingly perceptive of human behavior. This well-written description explains so clearly the four kinds of love and with such accessible illustrations from real life. Most eye-opening for me was the chapter on "affection" where I began to understand for the first time why we moms think we are so misunderstood; in actuality, our "affection" (storge) for our family has gotten out of hand! You'll need to read in order to understand. I highly recommend this book.

CS Lewis does a wonderful job defining the four Greek words for Love. I would recommend this book most highly to the man (women are less likely to make this error) who thinks he needs no friends. Lewis shows the importance of friendship to a good life.

It Is One of those books that should be sitting on a coffee table. It defines the various types of pure love: agape, venus, and storge to name some. It truly defines where the 'heart' is and perhaps defining the brotherly love, the parental love, or the true love...



Susan Saige

This is in my opinion C.S. Lewis's best nonfiction work. The premise has been done before, but rarely with the sort of insight given here. His overviews of Affection and Friendship are much too often overlooked and glossed over as unimportant, but here they're given a status they really deserve.

The section on friendship, and the idea that people are bonded through mutual passions, and his grim statement that people who are just looking for a friend will never find one, was spot on. Friendships are formed as an extension of a passion for something bigger than the individual. A mutual cause drives people, whether they be sports fanatics, a tribe pining for survival, or art critics.

The pitfalls he explains for the loves such as lust, bigotry, elitism, etc. are self explanatory, but it's also practical. Friendships are exclusive by their very nature, and there's nothing intrinsically wrong with such a thing. Eros is most certainly exclusive. He emphasizes that we can't be friends with everyone, love everyone with Eros, but we can love everyone with Charity, the final section of the book.

One could write a book three times longer and not come close to the depth portrayed in this little book. Strongly recommended.

Within this work, Mr. Lewis is quick to point out the inherent difficulty with regard to the concept of love facing individuals whose native tongue is English. That is, it is easily recognized that there exists an extreme deficit when one applies the same word to describe the sentiment shared with one's spouse, as well as their favorite food. In such extreme cases of difference in terms of the word's application, clarification is hardly needed and might be written off as an embellishment about that which one feels about, say, strawberries or chocolate. However, other instances are more difficult to write off as a poor choice of words; such as, love for friends, family, a spouse, and God. One must surely agree that the sentiment in each of these instances of love can exist and be experienced in significantly different ways. While love is the umbrella under which all of these sentiments rest, they are, as far as most people can tell, very different things. That being said, it is lucky for the reader that Mr. Lewis, almost immediately, circumvents the language barrier and begins to illustrate the foundational understanding which must be apparent for further exploration of the concepts of love to proceed. For those who have struggled with this, even the simplest concept of love's significance, as this reviewer has, the first chapter alone is worth the price of this work's purchase.

Building upon a necessary base of knowledge, Lewis begins to explore the nature of love beginning with that love which might be the gray area between the words love and like, or either of the two, as spoken in the English language. Lewis continues his endeavor by tackling what people often consider the more significant forms of love such as friendship, erotic love, and the love of and for God. While no attempt will be made here to convey the significance of the final chapter regarding actual Love in fear of diluting a brilliant message, each of the chapters leading up to that point share common threads. That is, Mr. Lewis illustrates the difficulty which can be had with love in any form if left to our own devices. This illustration is achieved in the author's typical fashion of profound analogies and appeals to common experiences. One can be certain that while this recognition of the volatility of human love is of extreme importance, it is the overriding concept that only by surrendering these loves to Love that one can achieve happiness, solace, and purity in Love which makes this work unquestionably valuable to those that are fortunate enough to read it.

This book is awesome, but I can still criticize it. I read it along with the little Guyton book, and used it as a main source a couple of days before the NBME, which we took at the end of our physiology class in medical school. I read the entire book in two days, and understood it all! It is a fast dirty way to study physiology that hits all the necessary points. However, it has its down points. The book is in bullet point format all the time. It became a little degrading to see point after point, which is why I used the pocket Guyton book. Guytons pocket book is another source that I highly recommend because it explains rather than bullet points, and if the bullet points in this book become too much for you, try pocket Guyton. Also, the sections of this book may not follow your class lecture. It can be unpleasant to search for what your studying. If the book had sections smaller than 30 pages it would help. Another word of warning, this book is build for medical school. This book is not intended as a source for PhD work, etc. However, if you are in med school, this is a necessary evil!

The book had a lot of concepts that really helped with my learning of physio throughout the course and later with prepping for the physio shelf exam. My only beef with the content was with the impertinent discussions of molecular similarities between some hormones, but overall, I was pretty satisfied with the book.

This book is an amazing tool for my Medical School Physiology class, it will be a vital piece of my USMLE study regimen.

This book is an excellent resource to supplement boards study. I have been very pleased.

I think this is the best BRS there is. I used this book for course exam prep as well as board review. It is a great tool to highlight important concepts, and it explains things in a simple and effective way with the right amount of information.

A mi me encanto esta Biblia. A mi me gusta mucho la historia, y le encuentro mas sentido a las cosas cuando estan en orden. Esta Biblia te presenta todo tal como sucedio en su orden historico, en el cual puedes ver lo que dijeron los profetas en el tiempo que lo dijeron, tambien veras a las epistolas de Pablo ahi en los Hechos. Es una buena inversion - y tambien te ofrece un plan de leer la Biblia en un año.

La biblia Cronologica es una biblia muy clara y presisa. Es una buena inversion para aquellos que quieren entender y vivir cada pagina de la palabra de Dios. Uno siente como si estuviera dentro de cada hecho que ocurre. De verdad se las recomiendo. Al igual La biblia de Joyce Meyer.

This is a wonderful book, easy to read, logically arranged, and provides a better understanding of the Bible.

.....you wanted to read the entire Bible, this is the way to do it. Being chronological, scripture is drawn from various books as best they could determine in sequence. Makes for a great story and allowed me to put things in perspective.

I first started reading The Daily Bible over 15 yeards ago and I continue to do so today. I can think of no better version to use as a daily bible. Being arranged chronologically, gives a better understanding of the history of God's dealing with mankind. In addition, reading the various writings in their historical context is a great aid to understanding why these inspired men wrote what they did. I keep several copies of The Daily Bible on hand and give them to those who I meet that are sincere students of God's word.

This was one of my favorite books growing up. I really wanted to be a member of that club! I read and re-read it many times. I did have my own electronics workshop, and some of my projects were inspired by the book. I notice at the moment this book has 64 reviews and every single one is 5 stars. Well deserved, in my opinion!

As I often (probably too often) do, I just checked the ranking of MY young reader's novel, "Hubert Invents the Wheel," against others in its category and was delighted to find "Mad Scientists' Club" one slot of ahead of "Hubert." What great company to be in!

40 years ago, I read this paperback so many times that I wore the cover off and had to re-attach it with duct tape. I didn't realize it at the time, but Brinley gave me a HUGE push in the direction of my current writing career, by combining highly accurate and detailed scientific know-how with crackerjack tales of suspense, action, and humor.

I dusted off my copy of MSC a few years ago and was astonished by how up-to-date it still felt. Much of the scientific equipment mentioned is still used today (gastroscopes, thermocouples) -- one only wonders what Brinley would've had to say about the Internet!

Like several other reviews, I first read this book in a Scholastic Book Club edition as a kid, which I enjoyed and kept. I somehow later found the second book as well.

Now I've replaced them with these new hardback editions, and can now read the 'new' (to me) volumes.

As a scout, I also liked the stories where the club was shown to be Explorers. And, as a long time viewer of the Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday nights, when they showed an adaptation of one of the stories, I knew where they got the story from (which I was able to verify as an adult).

I loved these books as a boy, and I still enjoy them now. Yes, the science is a bit dated in a few places, and yes a few of the stories don't stand the test of time quite as well as others. However, the fact remains that these books mix fun, curiosity and scientific exploration in a way that is still very appealing. Get these books for your kids and for yourself!

It was so cool to re-read these stories! I first read these in 6th Grade in the 1960s, and the idea of a lake monster stayed with me all these years. Just the kind of stuff I used to love to daydream about when I was a boy. I even bought an extra copy for my nephew.

The Captive was by far my favorite and most anticipated of the Secret Circle series. It shows you another, less shy, side of Cassie and shines light on the other side of the coven, such as Deb, Susan, the Henderson brothers, and, of course, Faye. You also watch Cassie struggle with her feelings for Adam and her loyalty to Diana. I thought it was a great book. I couldn't -- didn't put it down.

Of the three books in this trilogy, this is perhaps the slowest one to read, simply because the action is not as quickly paced as the first one, and so much happens during the course of the novel. This is the book where most of the plot development occurs, and this is where we really start to know the characters who are introduced in "The Initiation." This book also serves as set up for the third book, and the climax of the series.

The mystery in New Salem deepens. More people die under strange circumstances, and Cassie finds out that many of the coven members' parents died in the same year, 1976. On top of that, Faye blackmails Cassie, first into finding the crystal skull that Faye covets, and then into voting for Faye when leadership of the coven is being determined.

One of L.J. Smith's greatest strengths is her ability to weave separate plots into a cohesive whole, and none of her series show this quite so well as her Secret Circle books do. The separate-yet-connected events in this book are expertly tied together in the third one, leaving no loose ends in the process and keeping the reader enthralled until the last page is turned.

I loved this book! The first Secret Circle book was good and this one was even better. I can't wait to read the conclusion to this series!

Faye, a powerful member of the coven, is blackmailing Cassie. Faye wants to have more power and be the leader of the coven and Cassie has to help her reach her goals. Cassie soon realizes that her actions may hurt Diana even more than the truth about Cassie and Adam would. Still, Cassie feels trapped and her only way to be free may be to join the dark side.

I enjoyed this one just as much as the first. The action didn't slow down and I was hooked throughout the entire thing. I also liked Cassie's brush with the dark side. It gave the series a depth that it may not have had otherwise. Another thing I liked was how the coven was no longer split up into groups of good and bad members. All in all this is a great middle book that doesn't fail to live up to the first.

"The Captive" is the second book in the Secret Circle Trilogy by L. J. Smith, her most worthwhile trilogy. In the first book "The Initiation", teenager Cassie Blake and her mother moved to New Salem, where she was adopted by a group of witches within the school, who needed a twelfth member for the completion of their coven. There were complications however: although Cassie is instant friends with the coven leader Diana, Diana's cousin Faye is hostile and manipulative toward her. Meanwhile, Cassie has fallen for Diana's boyfriend Adam, and now Faye is blackmailing Cassie into doing whatever she asks - if she doesn't, she'll tell Diana the truth.

And what Faye is after is the sinister crystal skull that the coven uncovered, but that Cassie suspects is somehow behind the awful deaths of several people within New Salem - and she knows that it'll become twice as dangerous if it ends up in Faye's hands. But telling Diana that her beloved boyfriend and her best friend have been cheating on her would break her heart, as well as see her kicked out of the coven. She seemingly has no choice but to get Faye the skull - but first she has to find it...

Meanwhile, Cassie is investigating other strange occurrences around New Salem - she's been experiencing odd dreams, and her mother and grandmother's behaviour is still secretive and aloof. She finds a sealed and blocked off cellar at the local cemetery, as well as an unusual feature on the graves of the other witches' parents - all of them died in 1976. What happened that year to kill so many of the first generation? Another time phenomena strikes Cassie as odd - all the teenage witches celebrate their birthdays within three months of each other, almost as if the parents coordinated their children's' births.

As well as this there is the usual teenager-novel fare: school dances, joy riding, bullying, hormones, raunchy games, and a sprinkling of witchy rituals throughout. Finally though, the story accumulates with the vote for the permanent coven leader, a position coveted by both Faye and Diana, and a disaster that reveals much of the back-story to the terrible happenings at New Salem.

However, the story ends with one of L. J. Smith's frustrating cliff-hangers which forces you to track down and pay for the next book before you find out what happens. I've always found this to be one of the most unappealing components of Smith's books, unlike book series like "Harry Potter" for example, with each installment containing a full, complete plot, Smith's books are divided into several volumes for the simple reasoning: they get more money this way. If there is a publication out there that combines all three of the books into one, I suggest getting that instead of spending money on three separate books.

"The Captive" is possibly the best book in the series, melding several mysteries and plot devices into a whole, with enough intrigue and suspense to keep anyone interested. Cassie's dilemma certainly makes compulsive reading, as does the duality between Diana and Faye, and the direction that the coven can take. The figure of Black John lurks in the background like a sinister shadow (and is certainly Smith's best villain) and again Smith deftly portrays the relationships and attitudes of normal, understandable characters in an abnormal situation. Here we get to see a little more of the personalities of the rest of the coven, and although the Cassie/Adam love match still seems a little unlikely to me, it shakes things up well for the final book "The Power".

The Chosen is the first Night World book that begins from the main character's point of view... at age five. It's Rashel Jordan's fifth birthday, and she's celebrating with her mother and best friend, Timmy, at an amusement park. But before the day is over she watches a vampire kill her mother, eat her best friend, and burn her aunt alive.

Years later we find our beautiful dark-haired, cat-eyed girl a sleek, dangerous, and prestigious vampire hunter. Rashel is The Cat, known for murdering vampires all along the East Coast. She joins up with the vigilante team, the Lancers, on a stake-out (pardon the pun), only to find herself fatally attracted to the vampire she's supposed to kill.

Quinn is legendary in his own right; a vampire dating back to the New England years, known to have a black heart and emotions colder than ice. He also happens to be a killer telepath and terribly dangerous, even to hardened vampire hunters. Imagine his surprise when he wakes up after tangoing with two hunters to find himself looking into the eyes of The Cat.

What follows is an intense hunt. Rashel, face cloaked by a scarf, allows Quinn to escape, tarnishing her reputation and even her own opinion of herself. She attempts to make up for it when she stumbles across Daphne Childs, a fluffy bunny of a girl on the run from supposed vampire slave traders.

Rashel is a deeply involving heroine. She's strong, tough, and always prepared. Despite how jaded she is, we see her helping others at the risk of her own life. She even goes head-to-head with Quinn, knowing his reputation. Quinn is just as fascinating. We saw a peek of him in Daughters of Darkness, but he really shines in this novel. His backstory is heartbreaking, moreso when he's betrayed near the end by one of the only people he trusts.

This is easily one of my top three for this series (and no specific location, as my three favorites are so for several different reasons). Even if you pass on the rest of the series, this is one you cannot let alone.

This is a pretty good book. The characters are good. The plot's great. The writing's wonderful. So what's my problem? It should have been longer! Most of the Night World books by L.J. Smith manage to feel complete despite being short. "The Chosen" was different. The characters, their feelings, and their lives were complex. I especially would have been interested in learning more about Quinn. It just felt a bit rushed to me at the end. Actually, that's probably a good thing, that I loved the characters enough to want more. In any case, for the length she had to work with, L.J. Smith did a pretty good job.

As the fifth book in the Night World series, 'The Chosen' improves on all four of the previous books, drawing on deeper themes and ideas than the rest, and setting the scene for this continuing trend in the next book 'Soulmate'.
Rashel Jordan is only five years old when she witnesses her mother being killed and her younger brother Timmy being drunken from by a vampire. Because she's seen the killer and is telling others about what happened he comes after her when she stays at her Aunt Corinne's house, burning it to the ground. Rashel is alone in the world.
At seventeen years old, she is the bane of vampire-kind. Calling herself 'the Cat' she hunts and kills their kind in all of the major cities, and there is a large bounty on her head. At the time this story takes place Rashel goes to the Lancers, a human organisation for killing vampires and joins in with a small group who're watching a warehouse that has been lately occupied by vampires. Their goal is to catch a vampire and discover its reasons for being there - through torture if need be. Among the group is a young girl named Nyala whose sister was killed by a vampire. Yet when the vampire is caught and the others go to scout around, Rashel finds that to her horror she and the vampire - Quinn (last seen in Daughters of Darkness) are soulmates. Letting him go, Rashel finds that she is suddenly wanted by both sides of the fight - the vampires still have a bounty on her head, and the Lancers think she has defected to the other side.
And it doesn't end there. While on the run from both of them Rashel literally runs into a young girl Daphne Childs, who is one of the missing young girls of late. With her in tow Rashel has access to exactly what the vampires are up to. For unknown reasons - though Rashel suspects its the slave trade - girls are being abucted from a club known as the Black Iris by none other than Quinn himself. Rashel's mission is clear - get into the club, become one of these 'chosen' and thus get herself to one of the secret and hidden vampire enclaves. And she'll have to do it by herself...

As you can see, the premise is a fascinating one, and there is no shortage of interesting characters and ideas. Not all vampires are bad, not all humans are good so it would seem, and there are enough twists and turns, suspence and excitement to keep most people interested. It draws on things mentioned from the other books - the enclave is probably much like the ones Rowan, Kestrel and Jade escaped from in Daughters of Darkness, and the password that Rashel uses with the Lancers 'the night has a thousand eyes/and the day only one' is re-used in the prophesy in book seven. L. J. Smith extends more on her idea and the nature of the Night World than previously seen, and several characters pop up that will have appearences in other books - namely Hunter and Lily Redfern.
The 'mission' plot strand gives the book some focus (too often L. J. Smith's work rambles, changes, backtracks or doesn't know where its going) and the pace is fast and never dwindles.

However, there are a few flaws, the nature of which keeps this book from being a 'five-star' novel. The character of Nyala was a complicated and intriguing one - a girl who was slightly mentally unstable. I don't want to give too much away, but for those who have read the books, I felt that she should have perished in the fire. Okay, that's not very nice of me, but a good author should know when to destroy a character for greater impact in the book's progression. But no, L.J. Smith simply *had* to save her, didn't she. She just *had* to have yet another happy, cliche-ridden ending that is so prevailent in so many of her books. To have Nyala has a tragic figure would have been both poignant and heartbreaking - *that's* what we should have come away from the book feeling.
Secondly, Daphne Child's part in the book is pretty implausible. Let me get this straight - she manages to escape from the jaws of certain death and is saves by pure chance by Rashel. And when she is faced with what she got away with, she wants to...do it again? Huh? Yes, yes, she's very brave about going back to the Night Club and letting herself get kidnapped, but come on! - it was just plain stupid. No one in real life would ever do this to themselves. It was the same when Rashel was at the docks and she turned around to find all the girls still there - face it, they would have run like deer.
It also ended very abruptly - we don't know what is to become of Timmy, of the girls, of the enclave...it ends with simply the boat sailing back to the shore. I for one had many unanswered questions, and since each book tells of a totally different couple, they weren't to be found in the next book.
Finally, the use of the name 'Timmy', brought back Lassie flashbacks: 'Oh no, Timmy's down the well!' Unfortunatly this meant whenever Timmy turned up I was plauged by visions of him floudering in water.

All in all however, a good read. One of L.J.'s more suspenseful, darker works. Highly recommended in the context of the Night World series.

But 'Timmy'?...

looking for vampire scum! After a friend and family perish at the hands of an evil vampire Rashel whips herself into killer shape and goes on a rampage as she leads a double life...hunting vampires by night and attending school during the day! All is well for Rashell, kicking vampire butt at night until she crosses paths with a magnetic vampire named Quinn. Rashell finds herself foiling the kidnapping plan and letting Quinn go free!
Their paths then cross again when Rashel goes undercover at a Nightworld night club...
Quinn has no idea the beautiful green eyed girl he meets at the underground club is the same lethal vampire slayer he met that night he was ambushed and then set free by. A determined Rashell wants to be let into a nightworld slave trade and will use all her wiles to get Quinn to let her into the slave trade.
This book has an exsplosive ending! Astonishing secrets are revealed to both Quinn and Rashel. L.J. Smith is my top author and I also suggest Christopher Pike.

This is my all time favourite L.J. Smith book although it is closely followed by Huntress. I loved Rashel's strong character and Quinn was to die for as the vampire guy with no heart. I felt that this was the best written book and the characters were a lot more realistic than in some previous ones. Also nice touch with the flashbacks into their pasts to give them more depth and background.

Rashel kicks butt in her role as the breathtakingly beautiful and devastatingly dangerous slayer of vampires. Ever since she was a kid, Rashel has been picking off evil Night World people and she has never been beaten or caught. Determined to find the vampire who killed her mother, a chance encounter with the deadly vmpire Quinn will change her life.

When she gives him a chance to escape, Quinn realises that this beautiful girl is far from what she seems. Later, they meet again and once again, Rashel is faced with either killing him or letting him escape and possibly ruining her disguise. She lets him go and soon after, he too his faced with the same choice.

Fantastic! Deserves 10 stars! Couple of questions though. Why is it that the humans never seem to want to become vampires? It's not that bad really, from the book description and would solve problems like dying. The best book though!

Young Adult Novel by Daniel Pinkwater is an amazingly witty story about five young dadaists, who are attempting to revolutionize the dull, strict, hyper-ordinary Himmler High School. One day, the main character (Kevin Shapiro) from a story they were writing is discovered to have the same name as a kid in their school. And that's when things really start to change at Himmler. One page of this hilarious short novel will make you want to finish the whole story. This book is for older children, but anyone will get a kick out of Pinkwater's ingenuous writing style!

by Clark

If you haven't read Pinkwater before, this is a good place to start. If you are familiar with his work then rejoice for here are five books in one. And not just any five books... oh no. This collection contains not only Alan Mendelsohn, the Boy from Mars and Young Adult Novel but the first and best of the Snarkout Boy books. Buy it, read it, and know that you and your children will never be the same.

I Loved these books. Daniel pinkwater is an old favorite from my adolescance. I fondly remember my older brother reading aloud from the "Snarkout Boys..." and "Young Adult Novel" on family car trips. More than holding up well with time, I found that now, at 32, I can finally grasp the great comic surrealism that is Daniel Pinkwater. This is a great compilation of old favorites and un-appreciated gems. This book is somehow bound with paper so light, I carried it on the subway daily until I finnished all 5 books and wasn't bothered by the size or weight. I highly reccomend this book to anyone who can appreciate inter-dimensional shopping mall parking lots, gourmets from space, enlightenment brought on by silly hats, socio-political revenge via soggy grape nuts and/or Psycho-kinetic guacamole. Yum...

The five novels in this book are genius. Alan Mendelson, boy from mars, takes youn through a boy going through being the new kid, goofing off with another weirdo, the wacky Klugarsh Mind Control, and... well I just can't give away the rest! I have to say i have a soft spot for The Last Guru, its so just... cool what happens to the boy :). This is an EXELLENT book for anyone to buy, I've read it so many times i tore off both covers and three pages. A great book to love and read again, again, again, and again.

This is an amazing, funny, incredibly random book with five comical masterpeices. Though I agree with the other reveiwers that alan medelsohn, boy from Mars is very good, my personel favorite is the last Guru. the idea of a self-made kid millionare is VERY intertaning. These books are, as I said earlier, random, and A Young Adult Novel is possibly the most random of them all. an example; the Dada's(the main character) beleive dishwashers should rule the world. Weird, isn't it? Any way, no matter wich story you read first, you'll laugh and have a great time reading it.

I spent most of the 80s and 90s reading every spiritual text, Bible, Gita, Koran, etc etc I could find. This one says more with fewer words than any other holy book I know of. Golas proves that there are many routes to enlightenment and peace of mind, and his pithy ability to condense history's wisdom into less than 100 pages is truly legendary.
The end page, Even Lazier, has a few sentences that will remind you what really matters when you need it most. For instance, "What do you think it is that needs to be loved?", a perfect answer to every time you struggle with negativity in any form. The ultimate reminder is "No resistance". Once you read this book--takes an hour or two max, and is a lot of fun--you'll know how deep those two words really are.
No new age book yet has come close to the concision and relaxed optimism of the Lazy Man's Guide.
Not bad for a broke head writing in a Berkeley hotel in the late 60s.
But then, old JC was a nutty freak too, wasn't he?
Blessings and much love, Mr. Golas.
May you expand forever.

I was terribly disappointed to come across this preface-laden edition - complete with family photographs - of a little book that I had kept at my side constantly for many years. Blew a lot of my illusions. This guy really did seem to think he's someone special for writing it, whereas in fact it's so obviously channeled, and in channelled works you'd usually rather the writer remained as anonymous as possible. Thaddues Golas, the author, proceeds to treat the book almost as a kind of holy text (which it isn't) and rambles on, by way of introduction, for a number of extra redundant pages in the slightly pompous and loopy epigramic prose style which we accept as an integral part of the Guide itself, but don't therefore necessarily condone as a good or even consistent example of mainstream thinking. Golas seems to harbor that illusion, and appears really to have a guru-complex of sorts. The book itself, though, remains perfect in its way. Pity he couldn't have just left it in it's perfection, and stayed back in the wings paring his fingernails,and cashing in his royalty checks.

The recent reprint of this book has an addition of a short biography with photographs of the author. Included is a letter for readers that he wrote in his last years about how the book came to be and a few added thoughts he had towards the end of his life.

What I have learned from this book is that no resistence is the way to love people with charity; with full unconditional love. If you can look at someone for what they are, with all of their strengths and weaknesses and love them regardless of what is right or wrong, in fact, love them for what they are, for what you see wrong in them too then you have discovered what many call the Christ love and are no longer drawn to and imprisoned by what you might deny.

From reading this book it has become very clear to me that we become what we hate. The very thing that we fight against is what we become. The same with our government fighting against terrorism, it has become a federal terrorist. The terrorist fighting against unjust governments have become unjust. Self appointed protectors fighting against what they perceive as protecting the innocent have become the guilty.

It always works that way.... no resistence is the only answer, love that which you would hate and you will not become that. It appears that the universe is built to teach us compassion. Hate something enough and you are drawn to it like iron to a magnet, offering your soul to the very thing which you sought to deny and in the end becoming a perfect image of that which you tried to destroy.

The big joke is that because none of us see everything the same way many of the pretty or ugly colors that you might see upon others uniquely exist in your own mind alone because you have colored them that way. When you see injustice, cruelty, ignorance and stupidity most of what you see does not exist exactly the way you see it, sometimes far from the truth. When you fight the image upon the mirror of your mind it's the most dangerous enemy you can possibly have because the internal oscillations of hate and dislike reflecting off of the surfaces of your own judgments take on a life as your own personal phantoms capable of haunting you to the ends of your days, never vanishing until accepted and loved for what they are, for what you have created.

Fighting against another with hate is like offering your soul to the devil. You will be consumed by and become the very thing you sought to perish. In the end trading one for the other, you stand in its place. Do as you wish to diminish the problems in this world, but do it without the resistence of hate, replace it with accepting love or you will become that which you fight against.

The new edition is fantastic! I enjoyed reading how Thaddeus finally published Lazyman after many trials and tribulations. I'm not quite sure about the "love and pain" part which he wrote with his "earthly" mind...I'd like to see what others think about it.

The recent reprint of this book has an addition of a short biography with photographs of the author. Included is a letter for readers that he wrote in his last years about how the book came to be and a few added thoughts that he came to in latter years.

What I have learned from this book is that no resistence is the way to love people with charity, with full unconditional love. If you can look at someone for what they are, with all of their strengths and weaknesses and love them regardless of what is right or wrong, in fact, love them for what is wrong as well as right, then you have discovered what many call the Christ love and are no longer imprisoned by what you might deny.

From reading this book it has become very clear to me that we become what we hate. The very thing that we fight against is what we become. The same with our government fighting against terrorism, it has become a federal terrorist. The terrorist fighting against unjust governments have become unjust. Self appointed Bodhisattiva's fighting against what they perceive as protecting the innocent have become the guilty.

It always works that way.... no resistence is the only answer, love that which you would hate and you will not become that. It appears that the universe is built to teach us compassion. Hate something enough and you are drawn to it like iron to a magnet, offering your soul to the very thing which you sought to deny and in the end becoming a perfect image of that which you tried to destroy.

The big joke is that because none of us see everything the same way many of the pretty or ugly colors that you might see upon others in the world uniquely exist in your own mind alone because you have colored them that way. When you see injustice, cruelty, ignorance and stupidity most of what you see does not exist exactly the way you see it, sometimes far from the truth. When you fight the image upon the mirror of your mind it's the most dangerous enemy you can possibly have because the internal oscillations of hate and dislike reflecting off of the surfaces of your own judgments take on a life as your own personal phantoms capable of haunting you to the ends of your days, never vanishing until accepted and loved for what they are, for what you have created.

Fighting against another is like offering your soul to the devil. You will be consumed by and become the very thing you sought to perish. In the end trading one for the other, you stand in its place.

This book is awesome!!! First and foremost, I must say that I am ashamed. I own this book and have not kept it in the cherished condition I should have. This book is indescribable. So exact in the rythm of life this script is. Each person that would appreciate its knowledge, is truly blessed. You will come to an understanding of life and yourselves. Buy this book. Feel it. Love it.

I've been a fan of Debbi Kempton Smith since the column she wrote for Seventeen magazine back in the 1980s, and this book does not disappoint. I really owe everything I know about astrology to her. I first bought this book in 1991, and then I had to buy this reprint when the first one fell apart.

If you're interested in learning the real basics of astrology, past the basics about sun signs, this is the book to pick up. The book includes ephemerical data so that you can look up the signs the moon and other planets were in when you were born, as well as what that means. But the best thing about the book is Smith's writing--it's fun and practical without even a hint of newageyness.

I have been a student of astrology for over twenty years and this is my favorite guide. It is a pleasure to read and filled with amazing insights. The void of course moon tables which guide you through your high and low periods alone are worth the price of the book. Debbi goes even further by making astrology fun and teaching you how to make very accurate decisions. After reading the book and being astounded by the often humourous insights, do yourself a huge favor and schedule an astrology reading with Debbi herself! I felt like I was drowning and she pulled me from the water. Debbi is compassionate and very witty as well. I am thrilled to have her as my personal astrologer and consider her my friend.

I bought this book over 20 years ago to learn about astrology. Kempton-Smith's chummy, humanistic approach to interpreting the aspects, planets, etc. shys of pretentious science speak, enabling her to relay her comprehensive understanding of the cosmos in a way that'll get through to just about anyone. Her generous injection of wit taught me and many I know more about astrology than any other book. Can't recommend it enough for either the novice or seasoned astrologer!

This is one of the top 10 books on Astrology. I have been a professional astrologer since the late 60's and when this book was published I grabbed it up. It is mandatory reading for my beginner and intermediate class'. One of the things that places it in the top 10: It's an easy read presented in a very humorous was and keep my students really interested. Way to go Debbi (so when are you putting out another?).

Hoping to make the most of my new garden, I picked up this book and hoped some of the techniques would work. WOW doesn't even begin to describe how great this was. The techniques outlined in this book will take a relatively small garden and produce veggies like you've never imagined! I can hardly wait for next year when I'll have more time to build beds and plant even more! I really believe it'll be possible to feed my family with just the vegetables we can grow ourselves.

If you wnat to get the most out of your garden space, you need this book!

I LOVE this book! It's enjoyable to read and incredibly useful. A great book to begin reading before you plant because it gives you guidance on laying out your garden.

The only people I think it wouldn't be helpful for are those who live in apartments and are container gardening. They should read You Grow Girl: The Groundbreaking Guide to Gardening instead, another awesome book!

If you want to have a hugely successful vegetable garden using organic methods, this book is for you!

Highly useful book, and a future edition that contained a few corrections and clarifications would be just about perfect.

The author mentions companion planting without discussing mechanisms, which makes typos hard to decipher. The "Artichoke" page states that tarragon is a good companion to artichokes, but the "Tarragon" page states that artichokes are a BAD companion to tarragon. Which is it?

The author also instructs novice tomato growers to remove all "nonflowering stems that grow between the main stem and the leaf crotches." What does this mean?! All stems will flower eventually...
(Of course pruning is controversial anyway... some gardeners claim that the complexity of tomato flavor depends upon lush foliage.)

The "Parsnip" section also has some vague instructions in the opening paragraph: "I deposit some seeds and labor in the warm months, and my investment matures the following spring." Does that mean that parsnips should be planted late summer/ early fall? What exactly is done in the warm months? The rest of the text does not explain this.

My nephew was starting a garden like me I gave him my copy and got a new one. This is a great book and it has helped me to be a gardner.

I wish I would had bought this book long time ago. So much it is written out there but this book gives you a clear explanation and it is so well written.