North America Books


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North America Books sorted by Average customer review: high to low .

North America
Keeping Heart on Pine Ridge: Family Ties, Warrior Culture, Commodity Foods, Rez Dogs and the Sacred
Published in Paperback by Native Voices (2004-07)
Author: Vic Glover
List price: $9.95
New price: $5.41
Used price: $6.68

Average review score:

Don't overlook this book
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-10-19
I cannot begin to imagine or suggest the effect this book will have upon another reader nor to fully comprehend how it has affected me; I can only suggest that one dare to read this book and not pass up the experience gained in the of reading it. It is well written in the author's unique style and a book that is hard to put down, yet I found that I had to take my time as I read, for the stories cannot be rushed.

Great book, that takes you deep into the world of the daily life on Pine Ridge,
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-08
This is a great book that takes you on a real live journey deep into the daily live of Lakota people (and a stray Mohawk) on the Pine Ridge reservation. Vic Glover opens a window and allows us to peak inside his world and the world of his people, unknown to the majority living outside the boundaries of the reservation. Vic writes with a great sense of humour.
Although he appearently has the skills, he doesn't cut into 'the bigger political or environmental issues'. In his book Vic makes it clear that the issue of surviving under harsh conditions and to maintain the social values and traditional structure is big enough to handle. All of this with a wit. That makes that the book stays close to the heart, his home and the land and makes it very recognizable, even for readers unfamiliar with Rez live. Highly recommended!
Since I read Vic Glover the novel Skins by Adrian C. Louis became my second best book on Pine Ridge.

Keeping Heart On Pine Ridge:Family Ties, Warrior Culture, Commodity Foods, Rez Dogs and the Sacred
Helpful Votes: 5 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 2005-11-28
A group from our church has gone to Pine Ridge on Mission trips for the past three years and we have gotten to know quite a few people there. We always seem to have gained more than we have given during our week stay. This book tells it how it is for much of the population on the Pine Ridge Reservation. It is a very helpful book for the leaders of our Mission to share with others that are joining us. We love the people there. They focus on what really matters in life and brings us back to where we all need to live. Most of us are so far removed from nature, family, giving our all to each other. This book shows us how and points out how far removed we are. It really brings questions to the way that I am living my life. It points out just how differently I need to live to become apart of life as Jesus would want me to live it.
Thank you, Vic Glover. And thank you to our Native brothers and sisters.

Telling it like it is
Helpful Votes: 5 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2004-12-22
A moving glimpse into the everyday lives of the people that live on Pine Ridge. The blending of Lakota spirituality into the challenges of life in an impoverished society is outstanding!

Keeping Heart
Helpful Votes: 7 out of 7 total.
Review Date: 2005-01-31
This is a beautiful collection of short stories and is a real life account of living on in Indian reservation in todays modern times.
Vic Glover has an amazing talent and style of writing that 'just takes you right there'.
With much humour and sadness, Vic takes you on a journey, that whets the appetite, always leaving you wanting to read more.
This is a great read, I highly recommend it.

North America
On Mother's Lap
Published in Paperback by Sandpiper (1992-03-23)
Author: Ann Herbert Scott
List price: $6.95
New price: $2.93
Used price: $0.01

Average review score:

Sweet, quiet story
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-17
First, let me note for those interested in the subject that this book shows babywearing on the cover.

But that's really just a lagniappe in a good book.

Michael is, as you can guess, sitting on his mother's lap, and he keeps getting down and fetching more and more of his special things to be with him. Eventually all this wakes his sister, and his mother goes to sit her on her lap as well, and he makes room and they snuggle together.

The author doesn't patronize kids by carefully spelling out "Michael is jealous of his sister" or anything of that nature. It's too easy to do that. Instead, Michael's feelings are clearly shown by his words ("There isn't room") and the illustrations (him hiding under his blanket is priceless).

I wouldn't suggest giving this to a mother of five who has already started yelling "I WANT MY LAP BACK", after all, the moral is that there's *always* room on mother's lap. But most everybody else is going to love it.

Pretty book
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-05-17
Nice book, not sure if it engages my 2-yr old. Great sentiment though.
...Looking for 'new baby' books geared to very young crowd. Haven't found anything super yet.

My daughter took to this book quickly!
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-06
We got this book for our 22 month old daughter for Christmas. It is now one of her favorites. I find it quite beautiful as Michael has to learn how to share his mother with his baby sister. It shows how he reacts emotionally and the difficulties involved around sharing, something all children can relate to.

Great for moms with a new baby (and older child)
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-21
This is a very touching book to reassure moms and children that life with a new baby means more love to go around. I have bought it for many friends. Those first months with a new baby are definitely a time of adjustment as the new baby needs so much attention and the older child has to wait (or the older child needs a lot of attention and the baby has to wait!) so this book is a nice, subtle reminder that there is always room on mother's lap. The last page definitely brings tears to the eyes!

AWESOME
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-03-08
This is a great book if you have a new baby come into the house. My son and I read this book every night and then he reads it back to me. I would recomment this book highly.

North America
Plant Spirit Medicine: The Healing Power of Plants
Published in Paperback by Granite Publishing (1991-01-01)
Author: Eliot Cowan
List price: $13.95
New price: $8.77
Used price: $8.26
Collectible price: $13.95

Average review score:

From the Plant Spirits
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-05-29
This is simply a beautiful book. Much good work has been done to help connect people and plants and we delight in that. Eliot looks beyond the physical plant you see and gifts you with the feeling of connection with Plant Spirits. Thank you Eliot. Many who read this book with an open heart will come through the door you have opened. We are ready to help - ready to heal.

Plant Spirit Medicine
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-03-24
Well written, full of passion and honesty. Cowan takes a leap of faith with courage in hopes that others will learn the connectedness of all, and the simplicity it takes to honor our most prescious resources, "OUR FAMILY". Well worth the read, and please; share it with others!

Connection, compassion and depth
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-04-22
Plant Spirit Medicine speaks of the elements of nature, the plants, shamanism, and healing. Cowan's integrity, wisdom and humor is apparent throughout. I first read this book 7 years ago. It changed my life, opening me up to a world where healing, love and compassion are always flowing from the plants and other aspects of nature. This book speaks of one man's journey and opens the doors to allow you to make your own journey and find your own path.

Awaken your own shamanic capabilities
Helpful Votes: 18 out of 18 total.
Review Date: 2005-08-27
This book is an accessible, sincere and inspired guide for anyone who is curious about how to recover the human's innate ability to be in communication with the non-human world - which apparently just awaits our intention to do so. Eliot Cowan shares his own fascinating journey of discovery in a way that also offers to the reader ideas for how to do the same. His message is not, "look at me, I have special abilities," but "look into yourself and see what is there just waiting to be revived." The disastrous psychological, ecological and spiritual situation humans find themselves in as a result of having stopped engaging in "the great conversation" with nature, as author Thomas Berry puts it, can begin to heal if we try hard, now, to apply ourselves to the wisdom available in such books as Plant Spirit Medicine. We have a responsibility to read and utilize such information as Eliot Cowan makes available here. --Tayria Ward, Ph.D.

Simple, straightforward, and deep.
Helpful Votes: 8 out of 9 total.
Review Date: 2007-07-12
I have been reading and practicing these medicines for some time. I am also studying ethnobotany and plant medicine in relation to psychopathology. I picked up this book as a supplement to my work, and I did not expect that it would be so good. I would recommend this book to ANY person interested in this subject- whether they are totally new to it, or have been doing it for decades.
Cowan clearly and eloquently provides his take on this subject, and does a very good job explaining the basics. But he writes with a gentle tone, and makes plant spirit medicine something that everyone can do. This book isn't trying to sell anything or promote a workshop or healing modality. This really does provide some genuine insights on how to communicate with plants and use them for healing.
Eliot Cowan is right on with this book. You won't be disappointed.

North America
Atlas of the North American Indian
Published in Paperback by Checkmark Books (2008-11-30)
Author: Carl Waldman
List price: $24.95

Average review score:

Thoroughly written
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-21
Very well researched and written book! If you are interested in Native American past and cultures, this is a great resource.

North American Indian Research
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-01-06
I am using this as part of my research to aid me with the series of paintings I am doing of North American Indians from the period 1850 through 1910. I found it interesting that of the paintings I have completed thus far, I often get asked by Native Americans if I have yet done any paintings of members of their tribes. This book helps with the geographical aspects of where my subjects may have been located at the time they lived.

Second great book by this author that I've rated 5 stars
Helpful Votes: 15 out of 18 total.
Review Date: 2004-04-20
Great maps explained by easy to understand text passages are the hallmarks of this user friendly and highly informative, not to mention interesting, book. I'm very impressed by Carl Waldman's work, which is characterised not by fawning apologias but by respectful insightful investigatory analysis.

A complete and useful guide
Helpful Votes: 18 out of 18 total.
Review Date: 2006-04-09
A good resource for any student entering the field of North American Indian studies, this book is carefully organised and rendered. Waldman traces the many facets that have been used to explain who the North American Indians were, how they lived and where. The text is clear and direct, well-suited to the novice in this area of study. The wealth of maps and other illustrative material well supports the narrative, although space restrictions force a certain level of clutter at times.

Waldman opens the book with a description of how humans arrived in the Western Hemisphere. The "Ancient Civilizations" of Mesoamerica, such as the Olmec and Maya are well summarised, before the author turns to the Southwest peoples - the Anasazi, Hohokan and Salado communities. He explains the often overlooked or poorly considered Moundbuilders of the Lower Midwest. The section on "Indian Lifeways" turns to areas like California, the Pacific Coast, and Subarcic regions. While these peoples didn't achieve the strongly hierarchical civilisations of Mesoamerica, their various social structures were complex and dynamic. Their economic systems allowed them to endure and they adapted well to change, something too often lacking in Mesoamerica. To a limited extent, the geography and environment hosting these people granted them the flexibility to maintain a dynamic society, even in precarious conditions.

One aspect of life they were poorly prepared for was the European intrusion. Waldman sets aside a section to introduce the problems introduced by European colonisation. The litany of wars and rebellions take up a hundred pages of the text. The accompanying maps showing battle sites sparkle with stars indicating clash sites. Some of these wars have almost disappeared from historical accounts of North American settlement. It's a good reminder of how the whites took over the hemisphere and what cost that hegemony extracted from the native population.

In time, war was replaced by "Land Cessions" and resettlement. The reservation system, never a fixed idea, is carefully explained by Waldman. The modern result of reservation communities and the ambivalent policies surrounding both the settlements and their populations gave rise to a new awareness among Indian people. The poor acknowledgement of Indian contributions in two world wars was but one of many irritants leading to "uprisings" at Wounded Knee and elsewhere. The author goes on to list major Indian government agencies and Indian organisations and facilities. Indian place names, often overlooked, are listed, with the modern "nation" structures for the US and Canada provided. In all, this book will be a firm base from which to expand a study of Indian circumstances for the future. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Good info, well organized
Helpful Votes: 2 out of 7 total.
Review Date: 2005-09-03
While I enjoy this book and its wealth of info and maps, it is a shame that the only map in color is on the cover. 4.5 stars.

North America
Dreamways of the Iroquois: Honoring the Secret Wishes of the Soul
Published in Paperback by Destiny Books (2004-12-16)
Author: Robert Moss
List price: $16.95
New price: $8.44
Used price: $6.65
Collectible price: $16.95

Average review score:

Imperative for Dreamers
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-08-24
As life if filled with messages, both in dreamtime, and time awake Moss guides us to listen to the spirit of your destiny. Moss was called to his dream writing and workshops and this book continues his teachings in understanding your dreams and and nurturing your intuition. Recently picked up a book by Wanda Easter Burch called She Who Dreams. Come to learn Burch and Moss met in New York many years after Burch dreamt of a young boy drowning, which happened to be Moss. Do not believe in coincidence and if you are looking for a path to understand your truths in life, this book will help your realization.

The Dreamways of the Iroquois Honoring the Wishes of the Soul
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-12
This is a great author and great book. I experienced many personal connections regarding my Native American ancestors and healing practices within the pages of this book. Very easy read. This book lead me to many other books written by the same author.

Real shaman of the West is Poet of Consciousness
Helpful Votes: 16 out of 16 total.
Review Date: 2005-09-24
Robert Moss's deep experience in the dreamscape is unlike any other shaman-writer in the West. As in all his books, this one shows the mark of a real shaman. In Dreamways of the Iroquois, Moss is more revealing about himself even than in his previous books. In spite of this personal tone, the book is scholarly at times. Interspersed with a retelling of the ancient myths of the Iroquois and Huron people, the children of Aataensic, is Moss'initiation by Island Woman, an Iroquois guide who leads him into the wisdom of her ancient people. One of the book's most potent message is that dreams reveal the real desires of the soul and should be honoured. There's little instruction here on how to work with dreams (one chapter does it) as the book is more of an exposé and a manifesto for the rebuilding of a dreaming society. I recommend all Moss's books to people interested in dreamwork as they are all very deep and rewarding.

Dreams
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2007-05-13
A great book that explains the doorway to our dreams and how our dreams may help us face up to lifes challanges. A wonderful read and the author has clearly spent time in other realitys that are just as real as our own. There are many guides and messengers that can help us through our dreams if we are open to them and can remember how to communicate in this fascinating world.

Good for Writing
Helpful Votes: 6 out of 9 total.
Review Date: 2005-11-04
Dreaming is good for writing the next day. Dreams know a lot; what is dreamed must come to pass. If not, one's nature is not followed which, is the way of sickness instead of joy and good luck. I hope this book will help me along in this writing about the ancient goings-on. If you study Iroquois, you will dream vividly and feel special when looking at stars.

North America
Grand Canyon, The Complete Guide: Grand Canyon National Park
Published in Paperback by Destination Press (2007-06-01)
Author: James Kaiser
List price: $22.95
New price: $14.28
Used price: $14.31

Average review score:

helpful and informative
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-10-31
This book is more detailed than most I have found. It gave me much needed background info.

A geat guide
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-03
This author gives a comprehensive overview of everything to do here. The photos are fantastic and I love the snippets of history too. I only wish he wrote more guides for other places.

"Grand Canyon: The Complete Guide" truly lives up to its title
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-05-06
The Grand Canyon is universally acclaimed as one of the great natural wonders of the world. Now in a fully updated and beautifully illustrated third edition, James Kaiser's "Grand Canyon: The Complete Guide" is the ideal guide for novice visitors and a superbly informative reference for the seasoned visitor as well. A complete and 'user friendly' travel guide and planner for visiting the Grand Canyon, this ideal reference includes the Havasu Falls, topography maps, trail descriptions for both day trips and overnight hikes, mule rides, scenic flights, Colorado river trips, public campgrounds, historic lodges, the canyon's geology, native wildlife, history, and a great deal more. Compact and easily portable, "Grand Canyon: The Complete Guide" truly lives up to its title and is an invaluable addition to personal and community library travel guide collections -- as well as the supplemental reading lists of the armchair explorer!

The Perfect Guide
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-05-02
Out of all the Grand Canyon guides I bought, this one was my favorite.
The color photos are amazing, and the background info about the
canyon's history, geology and wildlife is fascinating. If you're going
to Grand Canyon I would definitely recommend buying this book.

Nice pictures but no real reviews of lodging or trips
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2008-03-03
This guide had beautiful pictures, detailed maps etc... It listed lodging but no reviews of lodging, just a glorified description. Had I not seeked out advice and reviews about lodging at the Grand Canyon, I would have been seriously disappointed. This book is more of a thick glossy brochure than an actual "guide" to help you plan a trip.

North America
Medicine Cards: The Discovery of Power Through the Ways of Animals/Book and Cards
Published in Hardcover by Bear & Co (1988-09)
Authors: Jamie Sams and David Carson
List price: $32.00
New price: $49.80
Used price: $5.98

Average review score:

fabulous
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-09
these are indispensible to the person seeking out this particular path. I have learned so much and continue to share with friends and family. a must have in your personal library

Thoughtful art and nice guide to meditation
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-30
I've had these cards for several years now. Throughout that time I've used these for self-discovery as well as to enhance my study of nature and the world around me.

The artwork is welldone and there is always more in each card than what originally meets the eye.

The descriptions and guides and useful, but not in great depth. To me that's part of the joy of this deck...the necessity to put yourself INTO the process and really learn.

I recommend these if you are looking to find a focus point for your daily meditation and you are working to find your place among nature.

Great cards!
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-06-18
I tried for years to work with tarot decks and just found them to be cold and impersonal. A friend reccomended these and they've been not only easy to work with but very relevant to my life. I would highly reccomend these to anyone.

Medicine Cards: Discovery of Power through the Ways of Anima
Helpful Votes: 21 out of 22 total.
Review Date: 2002-01-08
I love this set, I kept my cards a secret to myself for the first few weeks I had them, but the identification of the reading and the situtaion I was questioning was eerie - so I asked various people who visited if they would not mind having a "Go" with the cards, well now my friends, family and acquaintences beleive I am a Shaman Sacred Card reader, this may be so but I believe it is the book and card set that are the true hero, as long as the person giving the reading has respect for the essense of the set the truth will Out. A teriffic gift to give someone interested in the subject of Native American Wisdom, it is so much fun to see a friends face change into the "Oh my god how did you know that" look. All readings are positive (I don't mean polite I mean give positive guidance for good news or bad) but one would have to be dim not to understand the significance of every card reading. If I can make sense of the set anybody can - The cards are Beautiful and the book print size is big enough for my bad eyesight, for late night reading with a bedside lamp.

enjoyed the book very much.
Helpful Votes: 6 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 1999-10-04
beautiful cards. Interesting book. had many dream of spirit animals after reading book.

North America
Roar of the Heavens: Surviving Hurricane Camille
Published in Hardcover by Citadel (2006-06-01)
Author: Stefan Bechtel
List price: $22.95
New price: $10.92
Used price: $10.00
Collectible price: $25.00

Average review score:

A great book about a great disaster
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2006-09-26
I remember some of the media coverage about Camille but Bechtel takes the reader inside the storm for a thrilling, if harrowing, ride. I confess I was ignorant of the damage in Virginia and I certainly did not put Woodstock and Camille together before reading this book. For disaster junkies like me, this is a MUST for your top shelf. For anyone interested in those reacting to a disaster, this book introduces you to some unforgettable people. And, for anyone living on the Gulf Coast, it should be required reading. Every week.

The Beast That Was Camille
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-09-25
Hurricane Camille was a beast of mythic proportions and she is still one of those extraordinary events that are engrained in the memory of all Southerners who are old enough to remember her rampage. In this book Stefan Bechtel has given us a riveting account of that once in a thousand years storm and he has done so with the voice of a great storyteller so that instead of a dry historical account of the facts he has delivered a vehicle that transports his readers into the heart of the storm where they feel as if they are right there witnessing those tragic events for themselves.

The famous or infamous hurricane party at the Richelieu apartments seems to have caused some controversy among those who have reviewed this book before me and while Bechtel does very little to dispel the myth he doesn't do anything to perpetuate it either. He does mention that Mary Ann Gerlach had planned a party but he also tells us that she took a nap and only woke up once it was almost to late to escape. The Richelieu apartments actually play only a minor part in this narrative and having read other books about this tragedy it was very refreshing to find a book that paid less attention to that one apartment building and more to the many other stories of survival and tragedy that occurred along the Gulf Coast. For a very full treatment of what was happening at the Richelieu apartments I would recommend Ernest Zebrowski and Judith Howard's "Category 5."

Many of the interviews that this author conducted were with people who's story has been told before but he also did interviews with and told the stories of many people who's story I had never come across before. Even when the stories were stories that I had heard before Bechtel told them in such a fascinating way that I still found them to be extremely gripping and moving. This author manages to convey the tragic loss that so many families suffered on both the coast and in Virginia in such a moving way that I would recommend that you keep a hanky handy just in case.

Camille and hurricanes in general have always fascinated me and this is one of the best books that I have come across on the subject. Bechtel tells his story with the deftness and skill of a David McCullough and although he did leave a strand or two up in the air he has given us a masterful narrative that not only entertains and informs but also manages to explain the meteorological events that caused the tragedy in Nelson County Virginia in a way that even I could understand.

Author perpetuates the myth of the "Hurricane Party"
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2008-08-31
The book rambles on. I suppose it's good reading at times, but as far as being well researched (as so many gush about here), it isn't well researched at all. There was no "hurricane party" at the Richelieu Apartments on the night of Camille's landfall. That is a complete myth, but one that will not die--the national media is apparently not interested in the facts; ditto for this author. Mary Ann Gerlach (who, btw, was convicted of killing her 11th!!! husband in 1979, but paroled in the early '90s) was not the only survivor of those 23 who stayed on at the Richelieu that night. Two other Richelieu survivors--Ben Duckworth and Mike Gannon--have tried to set the record straight for years, but the myth stays alive, and people eat it up like catfish. The fact is that only eight of the Richelieu 23 died. Gannon and Duckworth (and a few more) were staying in the apartment of an elderly couple, Zoe and Jack Matthews, to help take care of them during the storm. Mrs Matthews had recently had hip surgery. Another couple, Rick and Luane Keller, were also in the group. Luane perished, but Rick survived. Gerlach's husband Fritz (husband #6), also perished.

A storytelling event of the first order
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2006-12-05
review posted in the American Geographical Society newsletter, "Ubique":

The past as prologue: The story of Hurricane Camille, which until recently defined the apex of tropical energy and fearsomeness, as told by Stefan Bechtel in ROAR OF THE HEAVENS.
During the summer of 1969, nature opened her Pandora's box and released Camille. She perhaps took her first steps as a tropical wave of energy out of the Ethiopian Highlands, made a lazy parabolic arc through the southern Atlantic, then hit the cauldron of warm sea air in the Caribbean.
Bechtel follows nimbly on her heels and issues moment-by-moment reports. He provides a skilful, basic understanding of hurricane science -- readers walk away with a firm grasp of orographic effects, the nature of the tropopause and the fluid mechanics of storm surges -- as well as a "disaster culture" that spurs people to take the storm head on, a culture of cataclysmic ignorance.
What drives that point home is the vivid reconstruction of what it was like to be in the storm, fashioned out of interviews with a few principle actors and dozens of bit players. The storm made landfall to the east of New Orleans with winds that at times approached 200 mph and carrying a storm surge three stories in height. Survivors talk of darkness and howling, being raked by flying glass, having their clothes stripped off. Entire communities were obliterated, while farther to the north, the Woodstock Music Festival was being pelted by rain from all the atmospheric disturbance.
Bechtel relates how then the storm started to disintegrate as it moved up the Mississippi Valley, falling off the radar, only to gather itself once more, dropping biblical rains -- perhaps thirty inches in a nightlong deluge -- on a confined area in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. Once again, Bechtel's storytelling power takes on a terrifying clarity. Scores would die as towns were scoured clean away, the rain so heavy it was nearly impossible to simply breathe. A mountainside sloughed off, writes Bechtel, leaving the eerie "smell of deep time."
Camille was a meterological event of the first order. So is Bechtel's recreation.

Totally absorbing
Helpful Votes: 3 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2006-10-04
I was on my way to a Poetry Festival on a Friday, and
I started reading Roar of the Heavens Thursday night.
Instead of getting rested for the Festival, I was up
until 1:30 am, When I arrived, and pitched my tent, and
got to the Festival grounds, I immediately sat down and
started reading the book. Instead of strolling the village,
breaking into a discussion on Craft with a Poet, I sat
down and kept reading. Friday night was freezing cold,
and I kept reading. In the cold, I kept thinking about
the fascinating dynamics of the structure of a Hurricane,
and Warren Raines freezing as he clung to tree branches.
On Saturday, during a readings break, I climbed into my
car, and finished the book. Finally, I could stop thinking
about what happened to Mary Anne, Buzz, etc, and etc, and
starting absorbing some POETRY. Saturday night it was
raining, and I was terrified driving to the campground,
and hearing the rain on the roof of my tent, and it was
pouring Sunday morning, and I wondered if having been
isolated from Weather forecasts, something was coming of
which I was unaware. And thought of the unidentified bodies
perhaps hiking the trails as Camille roared through.
What a riveting read, and the adrenaline is still pumping!
The scientific explanation of the mechanics of a Hurricane
were so clearly described, and fascinating. And the interweaving
of what was happening in the country and world, with
the life and death dramas of those trying to survive
Camille really put things in time and place that connects
the reader intimately to the events. And the families and people
were so real; their pain and suffering, and the incredible
devastation. I know I was thinking about going to college
that summer, at that's all I remember. I remember going
to Mardi Gras in 1972 and seeing the steps going to no where
on the Coast, Biloxi. And I used to drive Rt. 29 going to
Conn. from N.C. in the seventies. Congratulations on writing
such an intense and absorbing, and well researched book.

North America
Truckers (The Bromeliad Trilogy)
Published in Hardcover by Chivers North America (1991-05-03)
Author: Terry Pratchett
List price: $13.95
Used price: $9.99

Average review score:

Pratchett at his best
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-05-16
This is the first book in Terry Pratchett's Bromeliad Trilogy, and it gets the series started well. It is about a group of nomes who live in a department store--but they have lived there so long that they have forgotten there is a world outside. The only problem is that the store will be demolished in 21 days. It's up to a group of just 8 outside nomes to convince thousands of stubborn people to leave a place they think is the entire universe, then hijack a truck and leave. This book has a perfect blend of humor, mystery, and plot, but the in my opinion the greatest element is the characters. The seemingly emotionless yet somehow smug spaceship computer known only as the Thing provides a touch of science in a world whose inhabitants don't even know what the word "thousand" means. Dorcas del Icatessen, the mad scientist of the nomes, who has complete control over the store elevator system. Angalo de Haberdasheri, who is fanatic about the possibility of life outside the store and has a pet rat named Bobo, and finally Grannie Morkie, the annoyingly apocalyptic nome elder. The final scene, in which hundreds of nomes wielding levers, pullies, and wires manages to hijack a truck and drive it on a chaotic romp through the city, might be one of the cleverest and funniest scenes in the history of fiction. One of the greatest quotes: "Give me a big enough lever, and a firm enough place to stand, and I could move the Store." The next two books in the trilogy are even greater, and do a good job of developing the already marvelous characters.

Very nice and noncondescending writing for younger readers
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-10-18
Pratchett is best known for his off-the-world Discworld yarns, but he also has produced a number of highly engaging, wryly funny, and thoroughly humane novels for younger readers. This one, the first of the "Bromeliad" trilogy, introduces the "nomes," four-inch-high people (well, humanoids) who live on highway medians and under the floors of buildings. They live fast (ten years is a very advanced age for a nome) and humans strike them as slow and stupid. Masklin, in escaping danger in the back of a truck with the last remnants of his tribe, finds himself in the Store -- "Arnold Bros. (est. 1905)" -- where there are thousands of nomes. These are divided into contending tribes by store departments, live a good life in the Food Hall, and worship Arnold Bros. And then he becomes aware that the store is about to be demolished. The strength of the story is Masklin's struggle to convince everyone else of the danger when most of them don't even believe in the existence of Outside, and then to organize an exodus by stealing a truck and learning to operate it. (Think lots of long levers, pulleys, and bits of string.) But the nomes turn out not to be "little people" at all. The nomes' interpretation of the signs they see will give you thoughtful pause, as will their unthinking belief in a nome-centered God in the sky. Or on the top floor. Pratchett fans will enjoy this, regardless of their age.

A fun romp!
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2001-07-27
These books (Truckers, Diggers, and Wings) are a fun romp! Well thought out, well told, with a liberal dose of humor. If you have read any of Terry Pratchett's "Disc World" books, you'll love this light hearted series....

"Truckers" away
Helpful Votes: 3 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2004-04-19
Terry Pratchett's Bromeliad trilogy is a mix of childlike fantasy and offbeat SF. While the opening book, "Truckers" lags in places and takes quite some time to really get moving, it's imaginative and very funny. Certainly it's a good place to start off with Pratchett's fiction.

Masklin and the other nomes are tiny people who scavenge on the streets, and now there are only a handful of them left. In an act of desperation, they climb into a lorry and ride to... The Store. Also known as Arnold Bros (est. 1905), where a complex civilization of nomes (about two thousand) live in semi-peace and prosperity. They either are dazzled by the idea of "Outside," or insist that the whole world is in Arnold Bros (est. 1905).

Seemingly, everything is fine for Masklin and his friends, especially when the mysterious Thing (a black box that is a spaceship's flight computer) comes to life and tells them more about their history. But suddenly their world is disrupted by the news of "All Things Must Go -- Final Sales." Now the nomes must escape the Store and find yet another place to live.

Tiny people living in a department store? Who are from another planet? That is something that could have bombed easily and hideously. But it doesn't, at least not in "Truckers." Clever plot elements like the sign-based religion (they take "everything under one roof" seriously!) and the department-based clans (Stationari, Corsetri) keep this unlikely plot afloat.

While "Truckers" is a self-contained story in itself, it has plenty of loose threads (mostly involving the Thing and the origins of the nomes) at the end, for the second and third books of the trilogy. The writing has Pratchett's usual sparseness and wit; the only problem is that it takes forever for the nomes to do anything. At least it's a fun slow ride. The wacky truck drive near the end is one of the best parts of the book.

Masklin and his nome band (especially the indefatigable, vaguely frightening Granny) serve as a good window into the nome civilization, since they're learning about it too. The better-off nomes are a bit snottier but eager to explore the Outside. But the Thing steals the show; despite being just a computer, it has a better idea than the nomes what is going on.

"Truckers" will delight fans of Pratchett, but you don't need to be a fan already to enjoy this story. While the plot takes awhile to go anywhere, the quirky characters and wonderful worldbuilding make it worthwhile.

A Fabulous and Hillarious Adventure
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2001-05-02
Truckers is the first book of the Bromeliad trilogy (followed by Diggers and Wings).

Masklin and his family are the last ten nomes of their warren, devastated by cold, predators and hunger. Desperately, they set out on a last chance journey and climb up on one of the lorries of the humans.

What they'll soon discover is that this lorry has lead them to the Store of Arnold Bros (est. 1905), the home of thousands of other little nomes who, having never left the Store, think of the Outside as of nothing more than just another fairy tale. The coming of Masklin will be a great upheaval in their quiet lives. And as they learn that the Store is to be demolished, they make plans for their escape.

Although Truckers was originally written for a young audience, it's an enthralling adventure but also a story about understanding other people's ways and helping each other, and no doubt grown-ups will love it too. Because Terry Pratchett's unique sense of humour is lurking round every corner, especially when nomes try to interpret our human world... and what's more to make sense of it!

North America
Walking on the Wind: Cherokee Teachings for Harmony and Balance
Published in Paperback by Bear & Company (1998-05-01)
Author: Michael Tlanusta Garrett
List price: $14.00
New price: $5.65
Used price: $3.89

Average review score:

Gift
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-30
I bought this book for my nephew and it met all my expectations and I am sure he will be quite pleased with it.

Timeless teachings applied to modern experiences
Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-08-24
Excellent reading. Michael Garrett has become a fine teacher like his father before him. A true student of life Michael takes the Cherokee ancestral stories, mixes in some modern day experiences and relays a wonderful message. If harmony and balance are traits you would like to have within your own life I highly recommend this selection.

walk in harmony
Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-02-18
If you want to find balance in your life, this book is an excellent way to start on that pathway.

Read this book only if you dare to see you as you really are
Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2006-06-08
Michael continues his journey of a Helper in the truest form of "being Cherokee". I am amazed at how simple God our Creator is revealed in our self induced complexity of life. Thank you Michael for helping to remove the scales of our heart and spirit. For those of you who are Christians, I would encourage you to use Michael's book as a help in your journey through the Bible.

Blessings

Outstanding!
Helpful Votes: 6 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 2005-01-03
I came across this book while exploring my recently discovered Native heritage. It fit the bill perfectly, helping me learn about universal Native traditions, practices, and thinking. I could go on and on, but it's enough to say that this book is well written, informative, and enjoyable. Michael Garrett has a lot to offer.


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