Williams Books

This book is an excellent investment. For anyone that is interested in performing Shakespeare, it is essential to learn to the First Folio Technique. John Basil is a master teacher and his book compiles his many years of experience into an easy-to-read series of chapters on what he teaches.

I used to think Shakespeare's plays were difficult to read and really challenging to act. It turns out that Shakespeare gave his actors the tools they needed to act his words right there in his text (stage directions, etc.) After reading WILL POWER I have a greater appreciation for Shakespeare's writing and I have the tools I need to interpret and perform his works.
John Basil knows his stuff. I've seen actors perform Shakespeare scenes before applying Basil's concepts and after and it's like seeing 2 different works performed. I've also used them to work on scenes from Chekhov and Ibsen.
Shakespeare is a lot more fun with Basil's approach (for actor and audience alike). I recommend this book to anyone studying Shakespeare whether in an English class or an acting class. In my opinion this is required reading for ALL teachers of Shakespeare and Shakespearian actors!!

WILL POWER: HOW TO ACT SHAKESPEARE IN 21 DAYS guides actors through the three-week rehearsal process which leads to an understanding of performance options of Shakespeare's plays, and comes from a teacher of the First Folio approach to Shakespearean directing and acting. His techniques have been developed for all kinds of performances: any high school to adult Shakespearean drama group must have this: it teaches the many opportunities and avenues available for exploring Shakespeare's plays, relating these opportunities to acting development as a hwole.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

I am a Sophomore at Montclair State University, and I am currently enrolled in John Basil's Acting Class. The book is the required reading, and I am not in the least bit displeased! I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and it helped me a lot with my Shakespeare scene in class. John Basil is an amazing professor, and I only hope I get to work with him again in the future! I would recommend this book to anyone who is entering the world of theatre or acting!

John Basil is a fantastic acting teacher and I am thrilled with his book Will Power. This is a wonderful articulation of his style, focus, and gift for teaching Shakespeare. The lessons in this book will help actors discover the layers of meaning in Shakespeare's language, and then use that knowledge to put bold character choices into action. These skills work wonderfully with Shakespeare and can also be applied to other plays written in heightened language. Sophocles, Sheridan, and Shaw, as well as Shakespeare, will feel invigorating rather than intimidating for the actor equipped with Basil's techniques. I use many of these same techniques when auditioning for or acting in commercials. After working through Shakespeare, making sense of medical jargon is easy. Whether you're a seasoned professional or a student, if you work through this book and apply these techniques consistently and courageously, you will learn to act Shakespeare in a realized and compelling way. This book would also be an excellent text for a university acting course focusing on Shakespeare. Over the years I have introduced my college students to Basil's techniques. Now that Basil's written this book, I can't wait to guide them through Will Power.

I purchased 5 of these books as a "Thank you" to 5 excellent physicians who supported me as an oncology nurse practitioner. Since I was retiring, I wanted to say "Thank you" and each physician was thrilled to receive a copy.

This is one of the most absorbing and readable biographies of Sir William Osler. Michael Bliss' book is considerably shorter and easier to read than the monumental Pulitzer Prize winning book by Harvey Cushing, Life of Sir William Osler.
As a retired general practitioner, Sir Willam's life and example is particularly close to what I have been practicing for the past forty years. When one reads this account one can begin to fathom this great man's ability, perception of human suffering, natural curiosity and dedication to the patient's welfare. This book reveals to us some of his other unique abilities and qualities namely his bibliophilia,vast reading, writing close to 170 papers, teaching scores of students, and having the honor of holding responsible and prestigious positions in the fields of medicine and the humanities. In addition to all these were his literally developing Johns Hopkins Hospital and University into the best in the world in his time and marshalled the achievements of hospitals in Philadelphia, Montreal and Toronto. As Regius Professor at Oxford from 1915 to 1919 he was a towering giant . He therefore stands in my eyes as the greatest doctor of the 19th.,20th. and perhaps the 21st. centuries. Not Sydenham, not Hunter, not even Lister could do all that Osler managed to do and do so with so much energy, dedication and humility.
We doctors who were not with him on hospital rounds, clinical demonstrations,lectures, lunches, teas and dinners and amazing conversations with him are very envious of those who were blessed with these opportunities.
He set a living example to his protege the way a doctor should live and work to earn that mark of nobility that the profession has had for centuries. He was the healer of all healers and inspired many to literally follow his foot steps. To mention two such would be too few but the likes of Harvey Cushing and Wilder Penfield come to mind and they both became superb neurosurgeons even though their hero, Osler , was an internist. I was astounded to read the great numbers of international luminaries who were treated by him. He ministered to doctors and their families, medical students and staff and was thus a doctor's doctor both as a teacher and physician.
His love of little children, the youth, the aged and his own extended family was exemplary to say the least.
How sad that such a doctor left the world at a mere 70 years of age. Three great nations, Canada, the U.S. and Britain all claim him as their own son. That honor and adulation no one and no doctor has the distinction of achieving. He served all of them so well.
We all stand in awe of this stalwart of modern medicine and Michael Bliss has opened our eyes to this individual so well.

Despite almost a century since his death, William Osler persists as the `the grand old man of medicine', a life devoted to doctoring and doctors, who has supplied inspiration for many generations of physicians in the United States, Canada, Britain and the Continent.

Osler's life was a remarkable achievement as a medical teacher, (important in America in giving medical students real medical experience, as clinical clerks in hospitals) physician, prolific author, councillor, researcher and mentor to literarily thousands of men and women embarking on the profession in the medicos. It was the philosopher and great teacher, William James, who commented to Osler, marvelling and his energy and interests. Osler replied, that he was terribly conscious of time that it was a commodity he wished he could buy more of, as there was so much he could do with it. (p. 502) Osler's zest for work and unbounding passion for medicine set the standard for medical women and men in the twentieth century.

After reading Michael Bliss's brilliant biography of the pioneering neurosurgeon, Harvey Cushing, another remarkable medical man, and Osler's first biographer, it seemed only natural to read about Cushing's mentor. Both biographies are first rate and it really would be a disservice to compare them, because both works are thorough, educational, inspiring and definitive contributions to the greats of medical history.

Osler is the author of the currently classic text, The Principles and Practice of Medicine, which became the core textbook for students and practicing physicians during his life. It became a yearly task for the doctor to revise later editions, (sixteen in all) and in present time, for modern doctors, according to Bliss, has now become patient-centred and a historical document of the state of 19th century medicine.

Osler is famous for his bedside manner, the notion of empowering patients and autonomy in clinical practice. The man's faith in medicine and the legendary "aura" of healing that surrounded him, causing patients to regain the faith in their own healing ability, has caused a renewed interest in humanities joining forces with science, a proper balance, ensuring an optimal treatment and outcome for the patient.

How did the man accomplish so much in one lifetime? Similar to the 18th century philosopher, Immanuel Kant, people close to him could adjust their clocks to the second by the philosopher's movements. Osler was the same: his day was usually planned down to the minute, rising at seven and retiring by ten-thirty everyday.

He was also a man born with writing disease, never a day would go by without putting pen to paper, as his articles, correspondence, speeches and books certainly reveal. A consummate bibliophile, his collection of medical texts and related subjects, at the end of his life reached eight thousand, taking many years to catalogue, ending up being donated, as was his wish, to McGill University.

An excellent biography of an extraordinary man of medicine.

This is, quite honestly, a hefty tome, but no less may be expected when writing about the greatest American physician who ever lived. Bliss presents us with a detailed, well-paced, and engaging biography of Dr. Osler, from his childhood days in Canada to his final years at Oxford. Being both a student of medicine and a Baltimorean (currently), I took a special interest to the chapters devoted to his post as the first chief of medicine at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.

Unlike the time-honored work by Cushing, Bliss's book is no hagiography; it makes no false overtures about Dr. Osler's iconic grandeur, instead letting the reader discover for himself (or herself) that Dr. Osler was, in fact, as great a man as people say he was. (All that being said, I still value the two-volume Cushing biography, and there is no way I will rid myself of the precious first-edition set I snatched up last year at the Maryland Historical Society bookshop!)

One need not practice Oslerolatry (that is, the veritable worship of Dr. Osler expressed by many of the older faculty at Hopkins and elsewhere) to appreciate this book, though having an interest in medicine and/or medical history may help. Critics often lament that American doctors no longer have any professional integrity, and that taking the Hippocratic Oath is a sham. Read this book, and discover how great the American physician can be...and THEN lament that they don't make them like they used to.

William Osler remains an iconic figure in American medicine. Osler is taken often to epitomize the physician who brings a crticial and scholarly approach to the bedside in conjunction with compassion and empathy. In this very well written biography, Bliss traces Osler's life, his achievements, and examines how he assumed iconic status and whether or not this status is deserved. Bliss is particularly well equipped to undertake this task. A well known specialist on Canadian history, he has written other fine books on medical history in a Canadian context.
Bliss presents Osler as a product of the rising British Victorian middle classes. The remarkable son of impressive parents, Osler was the son of an English naval officer turned Anglican minister and his equally intelligent wife. Raised in rural Ontario when this part of Canada was still a frontier, Osler's parents inculcated respect for learning, dedication to hard work, and clearly taught the value of community service. William Osler was not an outlier in this family. One of his brothers became a prominent businessman and two other brothers became important figures in Canadian law and politics. An early interest in natural history (biology) lead Osler to medicine. Trained in then provinicial Toronto and Montreal, he finished his education in some of the great teaching hospitals of Europe. Spotted by his mentors in Montreal as a future star, he was brought back to McGill to teach at the modest medical school. At McGill, Osler launched the career of careful clinical observation, pathologic correlation, and teaching that would propel him to the apex of his profession. His growing reputation led to appointments at the University of Pennsylvania and then to the nascent Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. At Hopkins, he became the first Professor of Clinical Medicine and introduced the teaching methods that revolutionized medical education in the USA. Relatively little of what Osler did was truly novel. Clinico-pathologic correlation has been standard method for expanding medical knowledge for decades and the clerkship method of teaching had been used in Britain and continental Europe for some time. Osler carried these methods to new heights. In his clinical practice, in his teaching, and in his great textbooks, Osler summarized and codified almost all of 19th century medicine. He was not a notable scientist, though his description and characterization of several important clinical conditions was very valuable, but he brought the best science of his time to the bedside and set clinical medicine on the course of drawing from systematic scientific work. In terms of his personal accomplishments and the example he set for his numerous trainees, his impact on 20th century medicine was immense.
Osler's reputation as a fine physician was deserved. Bliss shows him to be an warm and compassionate individual who was regarded often with great affection by his patients. Blessed with a generous and kindly personality, he enjoyed a wide circle of friends and a happy family life. In important respects, Osler exemplifies some of the most important and most admirable features of the Victorian period. His sense of virtue and service was very strong but he was not a prig and had relatively liberal values. Traveling in Germany towards the end of the 19th century, he noted and deplored rising anti-Semitism. He appears to have been devoid of overt anti-Semitic feelings and had a number of Jewish trainess, all of whom he appears to have treated with his usual combination of high expectations and civil behavior. Alone among the faculty at Hopkins, he supported the admission of women, though he did not really believe in female equality. Bliss spent years immersed in Osler's extensive writings and tremendously extensive correspondence, clearly likes and admires Osler, and his regard for Osler is reflected in the tone of this biography.

Osler was also that quintessential Canadian, the provincial boy who achieves fame on the wider stage of the USA or Britain. At the peak of his fame, he was the best known physician in the English speaking world and something of a minor celebrity.
Like all fine biographies, this book is about more than its central subject. It is valuable on the development of Canadian society, the growth of universities in the USA and Canada, the history of medicine, and the devastating impact of WWI.
This will be the standard biography of Osler and it is worthy of its subject.

I really love this book! The pictures are great and the recipes are what I was looking for! I highly recommend it!

Excellent book for anyone interested in desserts. I can't cook, but for some reason I can make excellent desserts. The berry fool is very easy to make and you can change it up a bit and put it in individual graham cracker pie plates. This book is loads of fun. Read the whole thing first though.

Most of the recipes in this book are suitable for bakers of any level.

What makes this book a standout, is the fact that even the simplest recipes look expensive and difficult, when complete. For example:

The Poached Pears With Raspberry Coulis, is simple. It looks like a million bucks when properly plated, though.

My boyfriend made the Lemon Curd Squares in the middle of the night. He isn't known for his cooking or baking skills (unless Noodle Roni counts). They came out perfect. From the way he carried on, you would think he solved cold fusion.

If your baking challenged, significant other, reads this book and is motivated to make just one recipe, then your money was well spent.

This book is a must have.

When you sensibly order this deal of a book, don't be surprised to find yourself promising to make EVERY SINGLE RECIPE as you flip through. The pictures are delectable, and the recipes easy to follow. They also include sidebars with both general information and that which is specific to the dessert at hand. I also enjoy their suggestions for alternate flavor additions. There are 6 sections of recipes: The Classics, Simple Desserts, Summer Fruit Desserts, Holiday Desserts, Special Occasions, and Chocolate Decadence. There are 7 recipes per section, and the book ends with basic dessert tips, glossary, and index.
Note that they use chocolate rather than cocoa in the chocolate-based desserts. I have a double boiler, but still generally prefer to use a metal bowl sitting atop a saucepan with gently boiling water. The bonus is that you can then use that as the main mixing bowl for zero chocolate loss.

I have not even tried a recipe yet but I've read it cover to cover. You can usually tell a good cook book by how well it's written. The authors explain in great detail each recipe which is very easy to follow. To top it off a picture accompanies every dessert so you know exactly what to expect. In the back of the book is a guide for baking novices, like myself, on the importance of preparation before baking and some other tidbits as well.

The same day I received my copy I watched a program that aired on the Food Network: Good Eats w/ Alton Brown. He made Crème Brulee, Pear Coulis', and a Soufflé. His method followed the book to a tee. As you can see I highly recommend this book.

This is a true must have. This is an elegant and beautifully crafted book, that contains best simple recipes from the Chuck Williams Collection: Simple Italian Cooking, Simple French Cooking, and Simple American Cooking.

The book includes nearly 200 recipes, beautifully formatted and at a great price. I say it again, a truly must have.

I placed the order and in just days I received the book very fast and in very good quality. Thanks a million !!!

I have collected some very interesting and promising cookbooks over the years, and all of them combined could not teach me what this one book has. I literally went from Novice to Gourmet when I started making some of these recipes. I rave about it and give it to everyone on my gift list.
You can make any of the recipes everyday and not feel overwhelmed because they are truly simple! My favorite is the Lamb Shanks with Rosemary and Leeks served with mashed potatoes. Although it takes 2 hours to make, your actual work time is less than 20 minutes. Just leave it to simmer and check on it every half hour, and Viola you are a gourmet chef!
I have such confidence in the kitchen because of this book! I hope, if you decide to purchase this book or put it on your wish list, that it will give you half the joy it has given me because even that would be heaven sent!

This cookbook demostrates that combining good ingredients with simplicity can result in wonderful dishes. I have an extensive cookbook collection, some are beautiful to look at and some are a great resource for recipes; this is both a joy to browse and a pleasure to cook from. The instructions are clear, the lists of ingredients and number of steps are reasonable, and the results have always been very rewarding. As an indication of how highly I think of this book, I purchased copies for both my mother and daughter. This is a great book to have in your kitchen library.

I have collected some very interesting and promising cookbooks over the years, and all of them combined could not teach me what this one book has. I literally went from Novice to Gourmet when I started making some of these recipes. I rave about it and give it to everyone on my gift list.
You can make any of the recipes everyday and not feel overwhelmed because they are truly simple! My favorite is the Lamb Shanks with Rosemary and Leeks served with mashed potatoes. Although it takes 2 hours to make, your actual work time is less than 20 minutes. Just leave it to simmer and check on it every half hour, and Viola you are a gourmet chef!
I have such confidence in the kitchen because of this book! I hope, if you decide to purchase this book or put it on your wish list, that it will give you half the joy it has given me because even that would be heaven sent!

This is a nice guide that gives you a nice illustrated overview. It not only describes women's health issues but even touches on subjects such as gastric reflux and strokes. Overall a good guide and good value a bit basic for a health care professional but to the point. Well done!

jon, Milton Keynes

This is an excellent book! A must for every woman's private collection. It is a easy guide that explores a number of current health problems surrounding today's women. This book provides detailed descriptions as well as statistic A must read!

The book gives clear explanations with detailed pictures. It's a user-friendly guide to a variety of women's health issues.

I love this book because it covers so many different topics, yet keeps it simple and easy to understand. I think it's important for women today to take charge of their health. The more you know about your own body, the sooner you can detect what it is and how to fix it. And, as research shows, the earlier the better. To this book, I make a toast, "Here's the women's health!"

We need more books like this... well-illustrated, easy to understand, and highly informative. In fact, I thought it did such a good job explaining the basics of women's health that I bought copies for all my female relatives who span in ages from early 20's to early 70's.

As the Fleet Intellegence Officer of Admirals Kimmel and Nimitz Edwin Layton was in a unique position to see and to understand what was going on regarding the battles at Pearl Harbor and Midway. This welcome reprint to the 1985 book has to be considered one of the more definitive books of the couple of hundred on the subjects.

Layton was a language officer stationed in Japan before the war to learn Japanese. He followed Japan and the Japanese developments closely. He was at Pearl before the attack and remained there throughout the war. He was on the Missouri at the Japanese surrender.

There are a series of revisionist history books that propose such things as Roosevelt and Churchill conspiring to let the Japanese attack at Pears. Yes there is evidence that we had some intelligence pointing to the Japanese attack. But you have to look carefully at how much material there was, how many messages had been intercepted, how few had been translated and you come up with the basic understanding that it just hadn't been put together. A lot like the situation with 9/11, Monday morning quarterbacking is much easier than being in the midst of the game.

Layton was there, he knew what Kimmel and Short knew, indeed he had briefed them with the material on hand. Could they have been better prepared, yes, Layton says, if Admiral Richmond K. Turner had forwarded the information. But like any inter-departmental power struggle, Turner held the information to himself.

I was also surprised by the relatively little animosity shown towards the Redman brothers who bounced Rochefort and Safford out. Indeed Layton points out that the do it themselves style of Rochefort and Safford probably wouldn't have done a very good job of managing the Navy Radio Intelligence activities that grew to almost 8,500 people by the end of the war.

All in all, a must read for anyone interested in what happened at Pearl and Midway.

And I was there.
This is a great book by one who was there, Adm Layton. He was Adm Kimmels intelligence officer at Pearl Harbor.
He shows how the incompetence of the Navy in Washington led to the surprise attack at Pearl, by the Navy, specifically adm Stark and Kelly Turner, not giving Pearl the vital information they had about Jap intentions, but refused to give Pearl. The Navy also had 2 intelligence groups fighting for the information, and control, evaluating, and dissemination of the information. This too sabotaged the intelligence efforts, and does to this day.
Gen Marshall is also responsible for the debacle. He was reprimanded, but Roosevelt set aside the Congressional verdict on him.
Kimmel was judged not guilty of any wrongdoing by the Navy, but found derelict by Congress, a tragic miscarriage of justice, due to lies under testimony by Stark, and Turner.

The Redmon brothers are faulted too for ousting the most brilliant Navy intelligence officer, Rochefort, who correctly guessed the time and location of the Midway battle.

Another tragic aftermath of Pearl, was the loss of Wake Island. Kimmel had a carrier task force sailing to resupply and relieve the garrision that was under attack by the Japs. This would have surprised the Japs and could have sunk many Jap ships, saved Wake Island, and kept open the supply lines to the Phillipines. Unfortunaely, Kimmel was relieved, and Adm Pye replaced him Pye lost his nerve and cancelled the mission.

MacArthur is noted, as being in charge of the Phillipines, and being under orders to attack Formosa with his B17's when Pearl was attacked. He had a 9 hour warning after Pearl had been attacked, and had been told to attack. It was not until years after this book was published that the records of why Mac did nothing in the Phillipines were found. He was paid $650,000 by Pres Quezon of the Phillipines to do nothing, as he wanted to be neutral. MacArthur lost the Phillipines, a far more important strategic outpost than Pearl, as well as half the B17's we had, and 1/5 of our fighters, on the ground, just as what happened at Pearl, only 9 hours later, after he had multiple phone calls from Washington to attack the Japs.

The battle of Guadalcanal and other Pacific battles is also gone into in some detail
It was Nimitz, not Mac Arthur that devised the island hopping idea.
A great book by a hero who was there.

First and major portion of book covering Pearl Harbor is excellent. However, after Layton's death, the book was continued from his notes and descriptions of campaigns after Pearl Harbor suffer in quality by comparison.

Before you jump on some revisionist books about Pearl Harbor, like Stinnet's Day of Deceipt, you should get it from the horses mouth! Layton, et al, tell a little known side of the war in the pacific. His opinions of some famous naval personalities like Stark and R.K. Turner will really have you thinking about how war is run when powerful, ambitious officers are running the show. It's a shame that lives had to be wasted while the U.S. got its act together to finally win the war in the pacific, but Layton's tale will give you a new perspective and supports much of what was previously written, like Prang's "At Dawn We Slept", about the debacle of Pearl Harbor and the genius that followed at Midway. Buy it!

Edwin T. Layton served as Fleet Intelligence Officer for Admirals Kimmel and Nimitz. He, along with the other members of station Hypo, were assigned the task of breaking into Japan's secret codes, especially their JN-25 cypher. Through exhausting efforts by its members, they were finaly able to penetrate enough of the JN-25 code to make reasonable assumptions as to what the Japanese navy was planning. "Magic" was the term used for the intercept and decryption of these secret codes.

However, no decoding was actually done at Pearl Harbor, because there was no "Purple" decoding machine there. All intercepts had to be sent to Washinton for decryption, and Hawaii relied on Washington for their information. Layton's thesis is that Pearl Harbor was denied vital intelligence which, if issued in a timely fashion, could have alerted Pearl Harbor to the impending attack which occurred on December 7, 1941. Although I agree with some of his thesis, I also believe that the Pearl Harbor commanders made terrible mistakes of their own which also contributed to the unpreparedness of Pearl Harbor.

One message that Washington failed to send Pearl Harbor which I believe, along with Layton, could have alerted the fleet to the attack was the so-called "bomb plot" message. In a nutshell, this message divided Pearl Harbor into several sections and placed ships in each section; almost like laying an invisible grid over the harbor. Of all the messages that Pearl Harbor failed to receive, this was probably the most important.

However, with this stated, I also believe that the commanders made grievous errors of their own. On November 27, 1941, a "war warning" message was sent to both commanders at Pearl Harbor. Both seemed perplexed and unsure of the course of action to be taken. Why was this? Both Admiral Kimmel and General Short were high ranking members of the military, yet they both dragged their feet when they received this message. Short simply ordered defense against sabotage instead of ordering an all-out alert, while Kimmel failed to order any further long-range patrols, plus he didn't order the battle force to sea. They seemed incapable of making any independent judgement of their own. Instead, they needed to be told directly what to do. These omissions are unforgivable.

Inter-service rivalry also played a role in the failure. As pointed out by Layton, there was very little inter-service cooperation or sharing of messages, so most of the time, one usually didn't know what the other was doing. Further, during the Midway operation, a rivalry betwen station Hypo and the Washington-based intelligence unit nearly cost us the battle, but fortunately, Layton and commander Joe Rochefort were able to convince Nimitz that Hypo, not Washington, was correct.

I thought this was a good book, but I disagree with Layton's assertion that Kimmel and Short were scapegoats and had no clue what was happening. Granted, there was some intelligence that was definitely denied to them, but they should have been able to interpret events on ther own, namely the war warning message. This book is a good counter-argument to other works, such as "At Dawn We Slept". The information about the battle of Midway is especially interesting, plus the story of the codebreaking activities was well-done.

Jung was meticulously looking for psychological patterns of thinking. These patterns he called archetypes. Like the instincts have influence on the physical body, the archetypes should have their influence on the thinking mind. They have their origin in what Jung called the collective unconscious.

While the personal unconscious is made up of contents which have at some time been conscious but which have disappeared from consciousness through having been forgotten or repressed, the contents of the collective unconscious have a collective, universal and impersonal nature which cannot be reduced to experiences in the individual's past.

All original mythological revelations have their source in the collective unconscious. Metaphorical mythology is needed in expression of the complex archetypal contents. Even though the cultural surroundings have their influence on various myths, too, it seems like the collective unconscious was identical in all individuals.

Although Jung was a real pioneer in his field, I find his (translated) style of writing slightly 'dry'. Especially the last chapters on mandala symbolism were boring. -I suggest you highlight the most interesting contents, so you'll find them easily later again.

Jung's books are not easy reads, but they are almost invariably eye-openers. I recommend first reading his student's works (von Franz, Barbara Hanna, Joland Jacobi), his "Man and His Symbols," & (especially with respect to this book) Joseph Campbell & Jean Shinoda Bolen. It helps a lot to understand mythology when exploring the collective unconscious. Jung goes to great lengths to show how the denizens of the collective unconscious (archetypes--universal images~Plato's view) map onto very different cultures throughout time & space--appearing in art, dreams, visions, etc. Bolen uses Greek goddesses & gods to depict these. Jung disliked neologisms (creating new words) instead he transplanted them from other disciplines to map into his psychological theories & constructs--thus, "archetypes" & "complexes"--paralleling General Systems Theory (cf. biologist von Bertalanfy's works). "Complex" comes from mathematics' complex numbers. Jung knew & conversed with physicist Pauli, Kabbalah professor Scholem, & many other famous, high-caliber scholars. It is important to realize, when reading this book, the important differences between archetypes of the collective unconscious & complexes of the personal unconscious--though they have the same names! Thus, the mother archetype is the pure image of motherhood--with both positive & negative aspects. But, each person has an actual, individual mother (or lack thereof--absent mother). The interaction or combination of these two forms one's mother complex. As in math, it has a rational part (actual mother) & an imaginary part (archetype). In math, the imaginary part is multiplied by i, the square root of minus 1--which cannot exist, yet mathematicians use it creatively! So does Jung. Even modern works by "post-Jungians" often confuse or confound these two. The Anima/animus is particularly prone to this confusion. Unfortunately, Jung added to this confusion IMHO by calling the anima soul & the animus spirit. The anima/animus use gender & projection to enable people attune to the Self, the overarching archetype (others are essentially subsets). It is the image of wholeness &, thus, the object of psychological individuation--not integration. Jung says one cannot integrate the entire unconscious--that is beyond human capability. This is more subtle than it seems--esp. regarding western mystics' unio mystica (union with God) & eastern enlightenment. Jung attempts to assist people evolve, ~the U.S. Army: "be all you can be," rather than a thin veneer of civilization--p. 269 "Outwardly people are more or less civilized, but inwardly they are still primitives." Further, p. 322 "The view that we can simply turn our back on evil & in this way eschew it belongs to the long list of antiquated naiveté's. This is sheer ostrich policy & does not affect the reality of evil in the slightest." Therefore, Jung includes the negative aspects of both archetypes & complexes. Finally, as scientific psychologist, Jung notes that p. 269 "We should never forget that in any psychological discussion we are not saying anything about the psyche, but that the psyche is always speaking about itself."

This intriguing study of the archetypes of our collective human unconscious is FASCINATING. Here we confront the fountainheads of the hypostasis of dreams and the active genesis of fecund mythology. The collective unconscious differs from the personal in that it is not constituted of repressed or forgotten complexes but of inherited archetypes that were never a part of your conscious life. Anyone who plans to study mythology should be required to read this book... ignorance of it would prevent your comprehension of the primitive man and tribes' living mythology and religion. (Also would be an essential tool in exploring dreamwork or human nature) The archetypes are felt in our most personal life and encountered in dreams. Unconsciously, unprojected, it turns out that our own minds have a "sea of possibilities", and that they assume definite forms only in projection. The archetypes are vessels that we can never empty or fill, having only potential existence, taking shape they become no longer what they were. They need be interpreted anew throughout the ages. They are the imperishable elements of the unconscious, but they change their shape continually, being the "treasure in the realm of the shadowy thoughts" which Kant spoke of, and among the highest values of the human pysche. They are the simple solution of how archaic myths, far from being merely historical remnants or allegories of physical processes, still grasp us with profound effect in all levels of society and eras. Awareness is needed of these jewels to understand the unconscious' interconnectedness with our conscious life and the fact that the human pysche is not born tabula rasa. This is a classic work, that some may not adhere to, but far from being a philosophy, and me far from being a pyschologist, I would not take the bold step here to criticize Jung's work. Jungian or not, I give it my stamp and seal of approval guaranteeing your utmost interest.

This work, along with _Modern Man in Search of a Soul_, is one of the best places to start if you are new to reading Jung. It is also the companion piece and predecessor to _Aion_, which is another spectacular and groundbreaking work. If you want to read _Aion_, it would make sense for you to read this one first, since it is part 1 of volume nine, while _Aion_ is part two. Overall, I would say that both parts 1 and 2 of volume nine are absolutely essential reading for any Jungian, and if you're going to buy one, go ahead and buy both.

As for the actual content of _The Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious_, I would describe it as an overview and recapitulation of many of Jung's key concepts. As the title implies, the main concepts are archetypal images (as revealed in to people in dreams) and the collective unconscious. These are trademark Jungian concepts, and Jung devoted a large portion of his writings to explaining what he meant by Archetypes and the collective unconscious. If I could explain it to you right here I would, but Jung spends a the first two hundred pages of this book simply explaining and defining "archetype" and "collective unconscious". These are key concepts in understanding the human mind, and may help unlock the mysteries of conscious existence; it is by no means superfluous to devote such rigorous study to these ideas. _The Archetypes and the Collcetive Unconscious_ is NOT a narrowly focused, specialized, or jargonistic work. It deals with ideas that are central to understanding the human psyche or soul, and applies universally to all of mankind.

There is also a pictorial section of the book in which Jung actually shows examples, in the form of paintings, of archetypal images that were seen by his patients in their dreams and subsequently drawn by the patients themselves. Some of these paintings are very artistic, and there are uncanny similarities among many of them. This pictorial section occurs about 200 pages in. After the pictures, Jung goes into a detailed explanation of each one, which I found to be somewhat tiresome, especially considering many of the paintings were extremely similar. Overall, the final, brief, section of the book in which the paintings are described is quite boring, and I would recommend that the reader simply look at the paintings and forego the final explanations, which are extremely redundant. In other words, read the first two hundred pages, look at the pictures, stop, and then move on to _Aion_. The weakness of this final section is not enough to justify removing a star from my ratings, however, simply because of the utter profundity and potency of the first 200 pages, which represents the majority of the book anyway. Keep in mind that the vast majority of Jung's writings consist of essays not more that 100 pages long each. You will find that most of his complete works contain numerous profound and insightful essays, occasionally laced with the odd, specialized, highly esoteric essays. When you come across one of these rare but unreadable essays the best idea is to just skip it rather than get bogged down. This is not to take anything away from Jung and his great, prophetic works; I am just trying to give you the heads up on how to avoid some of the rough patches.

It's a book of essays on a theme, like most of his other books. Here's an attempt to describe the whole theory in a few paragraphs. Jung suggests the existence of a 3-layered psyche consisting of (1) the conscious (active part of the mind), (2) the personal unconscious (thinking over which we have little or no control), and (3) the collective unconscious (unevolved, animal-instinctive mental activity). The collective unconscious is "collective" in the sense that humans resemble each other the most at the lowest, biological levels. "The body's carbon is simply carbon" (pg. 173). We inherit the collective unconscious from the common pool of human characteristics, like morphological aspects of the body such as arms, legs, etc.

The "archetypes" originate in the collective unconscious and are the psychological equivalents of Platonic Forms. (I realized about halfway through the book that archetype-figures also appear in the personal unconscious, where they're called "complexes"). The most important archetypes appear to be the Shadow (the inferior aspects of the self which we hide from others), the Anima/Animus (our object(s) of desire), and the Wise Old Man (e.g., teacher, medicine man). He also discusses a Mother archetype and a Child archetype and indicates the existence of numerous others. Identifying strongly with an archetype leads to psychosis.

The heart of the book is in the first essay, but the rest is useful in fleshing out descriptions and giving examples. The collective Anima archetype, for instance, can be found among movie stars and in the general pop culture. Devils and tricksters often represent the Shadow archetype. Tolkien's Gandalf is a good instance of the Wise Old Man. It's not so easy to identify a particular individual's Anima complex or Shadow complex.

A few things bothered me about the book. For one, Jung indicates that the "Primitive mentality differs from the civilized chiefly in that the conscious mind is far less developed in scope ... The Primitive cannot assert that he thinks; it is rather that something thinks in him" (pg. 153). This is a dubious kind of distinction between civilized and uncivilized states of mind that seems to have gone out of fashion over the decades. Also, I couldn't tell from this book what methodology Jung used to determine the significance of dream symbols. Does every dream about climbing a tree represent the psyche climbing the "World Tree" toward higher states of consciousness? Do snakes always represent the unconscious? Is every old woman in a dream an example of the Mother archetype? Etc.

One of the more interesting and also frustrating essays describes a case study of a woman who paints mandalas over a period of 16-plus years. Why mandalas? Jung says the mandala represents the Self, and painting them is useful for determining the contents of the psyche. He discusses the first dozen or so in detail (reprinted in color), but then glosses over the rest, which came into his hands after the patient had died from cancer!

Hortsman's book is a veritable gold mine of information about living an active life with arthritis. It will prove itself useful to people who have arthritis, loved ones, and the medical community. There is so much to be learned! The information is presented in a completely accessible way. Hortsman has demystified arthritis and offered an enormous array of treatments. Resources abound. This is "must" reading for anyone who is affected by arthritis!

Overall, a finely-written and much needed compendium of arthritis information. Judith Horstman did a wonderful job of sifting through the medical literature to produce an easy-to-access resource for the (often) confusing world of alternative arthritis treatments.

Nice graphics and type. Treats all therapies evenly. Basic info across all spectrums, including what to expect at your first acupuncture session, what naturopathy is, and more.

I found this book very helpful in making sense out of the confusing array of alternative therapies out there these days. Ms. Horstman provides a no-nonsense overview of many traditional healing techniques, together with a comprehensive bibliography and medical references. The organization of the book makes it very easy to use, too. Overall, this book shows a high level of quality on all levels, and is a valuable resource for those of us in search of health and healing!

When this book was first released, I gave a copy to my 75-year-old mother, who has osteoarthritis. Over and over, she's told me about consulting this book when trying to decide whether or not to try some remedy that a friend has suggested. She feels that it has kept her from spending a fortune on snake oil, and has made her bold enough to try alternative approaches that have been helpful, such as glucosamine-chondroitin supplements. Obviously it was the perfect gift.

Dear jwwaterhouse.com, thank you for finally making a wall calendar that is truly dedicated to my favorite artist! A stunning collection of the masters' work, beautifully illustrated with incredible detail to the originals and exquisite quality. I already have plans to cut out one of my favorite pantings to be used as a poster at work.

First, let me say what I love about this calendar. It is profusely illustrated with all pictures reproduced in great quality. Every page has either a description or a short poem that is related to the artwork. I can't imagine a better calendar of John Waterhouse because I have never seen such collection of most beautiful paintings all assembled in one year.

Thank you for making such a wonderful collection of the masterpieces of John William Waterhouse. As a Language Arts teacher, I put this calendar on my school shopping list for September. The collection of paintings will serve as a timekeeper, a visual aid for group discussions and journals, and a thoughtful present for co-workers. Recent emphasis on interdisciplinary projects will make it a great instructional tool in combining English, Arts, and History.

I own this calendar and plan to buy more because the quality of the pictures and paper cannot compare with any other. This is a great present for co-workers during the holiday season and a thoughtful thank you gift.

The power and skill of Waterhouse's works are displayed in a calendar created with a craftmanship that is rare to find today. A beautiful item to display in the home or office.

Great Baby book, thinking about getting one for my 2nd child as well. Truly had never considered it a puppy book, and not a human baby book. Who knew!

There's just something to be said for Wegman's puppy images being juztaposed with images of your own baby. This is my favorite baby book I've seen out there and I really shopped around. I didn't want a "traditional" baby book, but I did want to add in all of the usual information somewhere. Wegman's Baby Book let me do all of that, provided me with a super cute height ruler that I can use for longer than a year and all with pictures of shiny, silver weimeraners. So adorable. And, the cover is really soft as a bonus.

The best thing about this baby book are the ADORABLE photos of puppies in it. It also has pages for everything: family tree, lock of hair, growth chart, ultrasound photo, first birthday, etc. etc. I looked around for the perfect baby book and this one is it. I have bought 3 more copies since for friends who have had babies.
This is just the BEST baby book I've seen!

This is the cutest baby book I've seen. I hate the cheesy ones you see in the store. Perfect size for what I wanted.

I just bought this book as a gift for my cousin who is pregnant. It is absolutely adorable. If you like animals or are familiar with Wegman's work, it is just precious. I think it is a perfect gift for anyone expecting. There are the traditional baby book things--foot prints, family tree, firsts, etc. accompanied by terrific pictures. I would really recommend this to anyone--and the cover is this wonderfully soft velvet that makes it all the more lovable!