Death Books

I truly enjoyed this book. You laugh, cry and can't put it down~all at the same time.

I highly recommend this beautifully written book to anyone who has lost someone they love. While the author's stories relate to the loss of her beloved spouse, anyone going through the grieving process will benefit from the wisdom she has graciously and candidly chosen to share with us. I laughed and cried when I read the book (could not put it down). The author's approach of revealing such raw honesty about the range of emotions she experienced will help any reader feel not-so-alone in his or her grieving process. I will treasure this book, always!

After having lost both of my parents within the last two years, Lisa's insights helped me understand my own grieving process better. Her sharp wit even had me laughing out loud a few times. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who has lost a loved one.

This is a fabulous book. Lisa puts into words what many are afraid to say. It helps those that have not lost a loved one to try to better understand what the "support-caregiver" goes through during this trying time. I loved the book and have recommended it to many people.

I just can't recommend this book enough. Lisa's gift for prose and upfront honesty mixed with her sense of humor will give you insight into this unforgiving journey or comfort that you're not alone in everything that you feel. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll heal.

This was a good book. It kept my interest although a little slow getting started. There were several typographical and geographical errors in the book, however, it was a good read. The insight on the Quarter Horse industry was well done.

"Wine, Dine and Death Down Under" takes the reader on an exciting international adventure involving a mysterious murder in the Australian outback, and introduces a Sherlock Holmes for the 21st century, Chet Lake.

Multiracial, multicultural, multilingual, and multitalented, Chet Lake is an urban planning consultant of Native American, African-American and Mexican-American background who speaks Spanish, French, and Arabic. Born in Oakland, California, Lake was a star athlete at Oakland Tech and later at UC Davis -- where he majored in economics and anthropology -- enjoys the Napa Valley and Chez Panisse, sometimes sports an Oakland A's baseball cap, and maintains his offices for urban planning consulting in a location on the Oakland-Berkeley border.

But that's just Chet's storefront and day job. Under the cover of overseas consulting, Chet is an operative on foreign missions for the CIA, the Drug Enforcement Agency and the State Department. Danger is no stranger to this urban planner.
Chet's undercover work brings him to the Australian wine country, where an old, multi-million dollar wine fortune has become the center of family infighting, international plotting, and murder. The twists and turns of the plot are ripped from today's headlines, mixing the old, traditional world of the Australian outback with the new, dangerous world of biowarfare and terrorism.

Through Chet's eyes, the reader experiences situations loaded with racial and sexual tension that often span different classes and cultures. In these situations, Chet Lake is a maestro. Mustering to his advantage his varied educational and professional experiences and training along with his multifaceted personal background, Lake moves like a chameleon across cultures and classes. That skill, combined with his familiarity with and access to modern spy technology, gives Chet a remarkable ability to navigate situations that would confound others.

Again and again, the Chet Lake character delights the reader with his ability to solve difficult problems in unconventional ways.

I loved the way the story played out in this book! Completely unexpected turns--I could not put the book down. Great job building the characters. I feel like I know them. Waiting for the second book in the series....

I couldn't put this book down. I loved all of the details involved in showing horses. In some of the chapters I felt like I was actually in the barn with them. I highly recommend this book to anyone, horse lover or not, for a good story.

While I've always loved horses and love to ride, this book was my introduction to the world of showing horses. Everything in the book was written in a way that was easy to understand. The book did NOT read like some frilly novel steeped in fantasy. It was very real to me and grabed me right into the world the authors had created. I'm really looking forward to the next book by these two. I certainly hope that they haven't put their pens to rest. The only problem I did have was having to put the book down to go to work. I wish I had started it on the weekend.

Speaking of tension, E.R. Frank's Wrecked is one of the most moving stories you could find on the aftermath of an auto accident. An auto crash involving three teens kills one, leaves a passenger disabled, and is viewed from the driver's perspective in Wrecked. For Anna has killed her brother's girlfriend in the accident and has to handle not only the death but the rift with her brother and her passenger friend, who was drunk at the time. An emotionally charged story of responsibility.

This book cannot be put down. I read this book in 5 hours, I am in [...]honors so this book was easy for me, I absolutely adored this book. I love how it went into flashbacks of times with her and Jack. Excellent book, purchase!

The Book Wrecked by E.R. Frank, and published by Atheneum/Richard Jackson Books September 27, 2005. There are 256 pages in this book. This book is fiction. This book is about a young girl who accidentally kills her brother's girlfriend in a car accident. She deals with the ups and downs of having the girl's death on her shoulders, which is very hard for her to cope with.
This book is mainly about dealing with life and death. I think that the author is trying to allow young adults to take a look through a teens eyes and let them see how it would be if they drink and drive. The young girl's name is Anna she goes to a party with her best friend Ellen. When they arrive at the party peer pressure pushes Anna do what she normally does not do, that is drink. She stops after a while and sobers up a little bit but Ellen is definitely wasted. On the way home is what changed Anna's life forever. All she can remember is the accident, and waking up in the hospital. She keeps repeating things she heard like screaming, and Ellen's voice. Now Cameron her brother's girlfriend is dead and no one is blaming her but she feels that it is all her fault. From what I have read so far in the book I believe that it is a very good book. It makes me feel kind of like I am in the story. It is so descriptive that I feel like if I close my eyes I can see what is going on.
After reading the part of the book I have completed the book has really left a lasting impression it has made me think about what I would do if I were put in that situation. It kind of makes me sad, I want everyone that is interested in reading this book to know that it is the type of story that once you have picked it up to start to read it you can not put it down.

I loved this book. The voice of the narrator Anna, is sincere, and although she has endured living with a troubled father and survived a terrible car crash, her voice is never whiny or filled with self-pity.
Even though everyone tells Anna that the crash was not her fault, years of emotional abuse from her father and guilt over her brother's grief over the loss of his girlfriend in the crash takes its toll on her and she begins to have severe panic attacks and is unable to face driving a car. The author of Wrecked is a psychotherapist and the sessions between Anna and her shrink are realistically portrayed.
I also enjoyed the scenes between Anna and her friends at school and away in Florida. Anna's friendship with her friend Ellen is put to the test when Ellen continues to abuse alcohol. There are no easy answers which is what makes this such an excellent read for young adults and adults alike. It shows that there are no bad guys, just people like us who have a hard time navigating through life. A satisfying ending brought the book full circle. I'd read other books by this author.

Sixteen-year-old Anna was driving her (drunk) best friend home from a party when she collided head-on with her brother's girlfriend's car. Now a beautiful high school senior is dead, Anna nearly lost an eye and suffers from PTSD with crippling nightmares, her best friend Ellen is in a wheelchair, and the family is at odds with one another. Wrecked opens with the car accident and its aftermath, but, as a whole, the book is an exploration of the fabric of an entire family.

Anna's friends and family have widely disparate reactions to the wreck. What is the right way to respond, anyway? Anna can find websites about how to deal with a dying family member, how to be a friend to someone who is grieving, and how to cope if you have suicidal thoughts, but there is no website to address the peculiar situation of how to cope with unintentionally killing one of your peers.

The narration of Wrecked is told in a genuine teenaged voice, full of questions, full of frustration with parents, and desperately seeking direction. In a strange way, the entire crisis brings Anna's family closer, to a more complete understanding of one another.

This book is highly recommended for teens and family members of all ages. It is especially important for anyone dealing with a family crisis or the accidental death of a family friend. Fans of this book should seek out Mary Beth Miller's Aimee and John Green's Looking for Alaska.

I have read many books on personal and professional success, and have found Dr. Kennedy's book to be one of the best. Though on the surface it would seem that he is addressing personal change, the ideas expressed in this book address the total quality of life. It portrays personal and professional successes as intrinsically intertwined and synergistic so that developing good habits and discarding old ones enhances all facets of ones life. This is an excellent read!!

Worth a try - will help identify those things holding you back from achieving a more satisfying and productive existance.

This books is simple and it's about every one of us. We need more than just read a book, the workbook takes us places and to people we've forgotton--us! What a wonderful reminder as to why we're here and that in reality... the story we tell at the end of our lives should be the one we really wanted to tell. If we take this book seriously and make that Bahbit change, it really will take me and you and your employees...anybody...on a new path!

What a book. Simple and to the point of how we can change our habits to make a difference in our lives and the others that we come in contact with. I will recommend this book to all my friends and business associates.

5 a.m. is so compelling that once you get into it, you can't get out until you've read the whole thing. At just over 100 pages, that will be in less than an hour, but the effects will last a lifetime. Dr. Kennedy explores a fun new way to discover hang ups in your life AND how to fix them. Whether it is health, finances, stress, you name it, you can find your way out.

A truly great read with lasting benefits and no side effects.

But wait there's more! The foreword by Michael Gerber is an intimate look into an obvious friendship with Dr. Kennedy. AND the Power of An Hour audio bonus was a real surprise value!

There has been a long debate about the death of the theatre. And that debate still continues, but plays are nevertheless being produced, actors are playing Hamlet over and over again, and directors are staging everything, from timeless classics to newest avant-garde. Even so, death of the theatre seem iminent. New methods of expression appeared which drove public fromt the teatre seats. Nowadays, in those seats you can only find aged critics, younger men and women still posessed by the power of art" and some older couples which have no place to go. Can there be future to such setting?
Whilst future reamins obscured in unsettling clouds, past looks glorious and full of appeal. Not only in works like ones of O'neil, Brecht, Pirandello or Shakespeare but also in the ones that have more modern" sound, whatever that should mean. Dario Fo is one of those men who brings with himself entire glamour of theatre together with precise sharpness of satire and political subversion.
Upon reading this play, you cannot but think of Groucho Marx and his extravagant style, high intelligence and unparalleled big-mouthedness. All of those characteristics were incorporated into the Fo's character called Maniac. But such comparison might not be entirely fair, having in mind what was said before. Still, Death of an anarchist" functions as classic farce, with what it seems as a total anarchy in script and staging, anarchy that is apealing in such a way that you simple cannot put this book away.
Magic of the theatre shows itself in the best way on these pages. You are being drawn into the world wihtout rules, which scarringly resembles our own and which we can relate to. That kind of identification puts us on the edge. And Fo is aware of that and uses that fact in such a brilliant way, that you have to bow to him.
It is quite unnecessary and to some extent impossible to retell the story of Death of an anarchist". It would be exactly the same as if you were going to retell the Marx brothers film and expect that it would have the sam impact as seeing and hearing Groucho, Harpo, Chico and Zeppo act themselves crazy.
When you're feeling sad or you would just give up on everything and go with the flow, forgeting that posibility of rebellions ever existed, you should reach for this book, and it will charge up your dead batteries, making you feel the joy of existence and laughter all over again.

"Accidental Death of an Anarchist," by Dario Fo, is adapted by Gavin Richards from a translation by Gillian Hanna. The Methuen Modern Plays edition contains an introduction by Stuart Hood; Fo himself contributes an author's note and a postscript. The opening pages note that the original Italian edition had a copyright date of 1970. The author's note describes how the play was inspired by the death of an anarchist being held in police custody.

This outrageous comedy opens with a character known as the "Maniac" being brought to a police station. It's a very "metatheatrical" piece; Fo warps theatrical conventions and makes jokes in a way that reminds me a bit of Luigi Pirandello's "Six Characters in Search of an Author." There are some really funny scenes, but a very serious vein still runs throughout the piece.

Ultimately, this is a thought-provoking piece about truth. What is the true story, and how do you discover it? Fo's satiric wit explores police brutality as well as the relationships among the police, the media, and the political establishment. I recommend this piece by the Nobel Prize winning Fo to all with an interest in 20th century drama and/or political activism.

I truly enjoyed this play and again am wondering why it is not put on more often. Granted, it has a specific political objective, due to its timely plot and circumstancial event. Yet, as a performer, I find the quality of writing to be extremely wonderful. Interestingly, I also discovered that Fo's viewpoint on comedic and political theatre to be very similar to my own:

(It) grabs at the heart and guts, but attempts to get there by a violent moment of laughter. Because laughter does not remain at the bottom of the mind, leaving sediment which cannot be wiped off. Because laughter helps avoid one of the worst dangers, which is catharsis. (5)

Fo wanted the reverse of catharsis, the emotional release, and it is very apparent in Accidental Death of an Anarchist. He seeks to provoke, debate, to arouse feelings and to challenge ideas while inviting his audience to consider new points of view. I respect this form of theatre, for it is the hardest to write, collaborate, and present clearly to an already cynical audience in this day and age. By using an absurdist/satirical/farcial approach towards the issues of power, its abuse, and political stations, he creates sense out of nonsensical characters and situations. The maniac, a harliquien like character, leads the members of a police station somewhere in a city, in this case we assume New York or London, through a dizzying investigation around the questionable death of an anarchist from years before. Mysteriously, the anarchist had "thrown" himself from a four story window during the course of police investigation. We, the audience suspect foul play for the cause, and in effect we see the maniac give nothing but insane play to the accused. He is quick witted and incredibly dynamic with language and vast information. The maniac flaunts with their pride and guilt, causing mass confusion. The audience cannot help but love his crazy ways. In true satiric fasion, just and darkly comedic rewards are served to all characters by the end. The audience is left wondering how these events effect them. The ever present window in the scene is the only realistic element that the audience must contend with. It reminds them of the reality of the crime, how it really took place, and yet they are forced to laugh at it and find disgust in that humor. It is this form of satire that provokes thoughts and action towards change, which is what Fo wanted. It is this subtle stealthiness of dark humor that creates the desired effect of political theatre: change, perhaps for the better, or in this case, for the playwrights cause.

I saw a small production of this play a few years ago in downtown Minneapolis and was most interested in what it had to say about police interrogation techniques. This is not a topic which I would expect to be popular now, as most emphasis has been shifted to deadly confrontations, and the only major death in this play is of a suspect who was hanging out of a police department window before he dropped to his death. In the history of people being pick up for interrogation, this might be as famous someplace in Italy as the Biko case in South Africa, where police in Port Elizabeth picked Biko up and slammed him against the wall because he was not cooperating fully in their investigation of his attitude toward law and order.

I thought that the theme of the play was that the police get overly zealous in trying to pin a crime on a particular person once the police have made up their collective minds who they think should have committed the crime, as the defense allegations in the famous O.J. murder case seemed well founded when the methods of the L.A.P.D. were subject to the scrutiny of attorneys who are aware of how these things are usually done. In the case of the actual event upon which the Accidental Death of the Anarchist was based, the police techniques were subject to an official investigation, and the play was written as on ongoing farce which kept Italy informed as more facts came to light. The play may be way beyond the Zen of any audience, but if people think that something about the nature of the police is revealed in it, I don't think that those people should be considered as paranoid as they ought to be. Anyone who loses sleep over this kind of thing hasn't adjusted well to modern society, so they can probably find a shrink to give them pills that will put them to sleep, but that is a different topic, but not much different, really.

In the age we're living in today, this is the perfect satire of police departments. We always here in the news about some cop in some city getting caught framing someone innocent (or sometimes worse). Fo does a wonderful job of humorizing that situation. Some might call the play over-the-top, but they're just missing the humor of it all. I've read a lot of plays, and this is definitely one of the best modern plays out there. Everything about it screams "wit." The characters are great, and memorable too. If you have the chance to buy it, don't miss it!

I really love this book and as another user has stated I think every family should have even they aren't going through a loss. This is one of the only stories for kids I've read dealing with those left behind by death. The death occurs very early in the story and the rest is about his friends over coming their sadness and learning to live without him while still remembering him. This would be a good story for kids experiencing the death of a loved one despite your religion or situation. This book does not use religious subject and the cause of Fox's death is not really specified (illness due to old age or a disease ending his life early) so it can be interpreted however you wish. Regardless I think everyone should own a copy, I'm 20 and adore it!!!

Lovely story personifies animals, beautiful illustrations. I've had this in my closet for several years. A parent of my 6 yr old's classmate passed away suddenly, and a counselor was scheduled to speak with the class so that they might know how to speak with their classmate, and have some understanding of the loss. I sent this book in for the teacher to share with the class while the student was away. She too felt that this was helpful. The book contains touching moments that children can relate to, yet understand that moving on and good memories can follow. Children notice so much. My daughter noticed a detail (that I had missed entirely) at the end with baby birds chirping in a tree...in the deceased fox's hat...very sweet indeed. A great addition to a library, and tool.

I purchased this book for my children's library because I thought that it would be a good way to explore the loss of a loved one. The illustrations are so vibrant and expressive that even without words they depict the story. I also gave a copy to a family of grown children who found it helpful and compelling. I wish that I had had this book when I lost my Dad as a little girl.

We checked this book out at the library. My daughters had lost a close friend and out of all the books we checked out, this one was the very best. The reason why is because this book focuses on the people left behind. It is not about where the person who died went, or questions regarding death. It is a book about the grief process of the people who are left behind that love that person. Because the characters in the book are animals...it feels less "real" and allows a child to explore their own feelings with you and relate to this story in a non-threatening way. Most books that we read seemed to either upset them or make them angry and withdraw even more but this was one of the few books that helped them to talk about how they were feeling. I highly recommend this book if you need to use a story to show that grief is normal and that eventually they will be "o.k.". We bought a copy for our family to keep because death is a part of life and I know that we will go through this again.

I bought this book at the school book fair, since I liked the pictures and thought the topic would be handy, should anything unfortunate happen in our family. Later on, we had to put our 16-year-old family dog to sleep. We have two children in the house, who were 11 and 10 years old at the time. I showed them the book, and we all ended up reading it together on the couch. These are kids who were in middle school at the time, and they found a lot of comfort in this book. I couldn't read it without crying by the end, but that's ok. The kids were crying too.

It hits exactly the right note, showing the family's grief and initial feeling that it will never get any better. The author also shows how the family's sadness affects them, and that dropping out of life, so to speak, only makes it worse. When another friend comes over and they talk about the happy times, they begin to feel happy again, without feeling guilty. In the end, they each find a special way to remember Fox and keep his memory alive. It sends the perfect message to anybody who has lost a loved one.

I also recommended this book to my cousin, whose 9-year-old daughter lost a classmate, and she said that it helped them a lot, a speaked a healthy conversation about death.

Aside from the "death" topic, I would recommend that parents buy this book to have in their library, even if their child has not suffered a loss. You never know what will happen, and it is a beautiful story regardless of circumstances.

This little book is a heartwarming love story and a heart wrenching tear jerker all rolled into one. Dale Evans Rogers shares the tale of little Robin, her Down Syndrome daughter who died at a very young age. The story is told from Robin's point of view, as if she is sitting on her heavenly father's knee relating what happened "down there." The heartache of a mother's loss, and the hope of a child's eternity are entwined in an unforgettable tale. I highly recommend this book to any one who has lost a young child, or has had to deal with special needs like Down Syndrome. Be sure to have a tissue box handy.

This book is wonderful. It so beautifully written from the POV of little Robin giving an account to God of her brief life on earth. If there is a disabled child that has touched your life, you need to read this book. Dale Evans Rogers has written a masterpiece which will benefit the lives of many. Thank goodness God sent Robin into their lives!

My Aunt gave me this book to read when I was in grade school. I am now 42 years old and I still remember this book as being one of the most profound stories I have ever read. I have recommended this book often, I have never forgotten it.
Such a touching reminder for all of us that life is divine and should never be taken for granted.

Until I real Dale Evans' account of her daughter's life, I didn't realize anyone felt the way I do. We lost our 2 1/2 year old daughter this year. She had "special needs," some similar to those of Robin in the book. We always felt that God gave us our daughter and she was our own angel here on earth. This book is a wonderful story of the love between a family, their God, and their special angel. I highly recommend it to any parent or family who have lost a child with a disability.

I read this book when I was in 4th or 5th grade. The story of Robin Rogers has stuck with me for 35 years. While I have forgotten the details, I remember the essential message. All children are gifts from God, especially the ones that aren't everyone's idea of perfect.

birth == death. Heidegger is wading into eastern philosophical waters here. The impossibility of Being through the possibility of death of Being or as Being.

Dasein is not being towards death if death is non-relational and unrepresentable, and about those two points we seem to agree. Rather, dasein is death, it is not related to death. How else can one understand the equivalence birth=death? If that is the case, then the problem of the as such is not a problem, because dasein is not related to death, it is related to the nothing, and the nothing as such, the nihil absolutum, which opens up another big can of worms.Derrida does so much dancing around that he avoids the real problem.

The question of Dasein, for Heidegger always, questioning is a "way"... Heidegger does pronounce Dasein as being-towards-death, but Derrida's tiff is not with Dasein's non-relational to death; in fact he recognizes as such (not 'as such')-- the negativity of Dasein, its dying- or being-towards-death is always already before and beyond that which can be represented. So Derrida is revealing a problem with Heidegger's speaking of Dasein at all in this context (he is not objecting to 'as such' on the basis that Dasein is towards an end, rather the possibility -which is then, right then, an impossibility- that Heidegger can ever say 'as such' about that which can never be represented.

Is "death" a limit? For Derrida "death" is that which `involves a certain step / not ... pace' (il y va d'un certain pas) (p. 6). It is not a telos or a terma, a limit beyond which there is none, but rather a `step', a peras, a passage one traverses by penetrating. At the same time, it is the moment of a `not', of an impossibility. What is more, it is certain that one reaches this step as impossibility, as non-path at a certain pace.

And in bringing forth Heidegger and the Aristotelian notion of aporia in the sense of being stuck in-between, Derrida is wondering whether "death" can be conceptualized in non-vulgar terms without being stuck in an impasse.

To achieve this, he remarks that aporia is the border as limit, as oros, and at the same time as tracing, as gramme. Hence an `aporetology' (p. 15) as has been his key concern in numerous instances, when, what is at stake, is not the crossing of the border, but rather, the double concept of the border from which aporia comes to be determined. Thus the word "death" whose concept is `unassignable or unassigning' (p. 22). And to expand on this, Derrida explores two issues.

First the idea of aporia as the impossible (in § 1: Finis) along with Heidegger's definition of "death" as `the possibility of the pure and simple impossibility for Dasein' (p. 23). In using the Heideggerian distinction between "properly dying" (tod - eigentlich sterben) and "perishing" (verenden), Derrida emphasizes that the problem of "death" concerns Dasein or the mortal, `not man (sic), the human subject, but it is that in terms of which the humanity of man must be rethought' (p. 35). A possible answer lies in "demise" (ableben) in the sense of walking away from life, thus placing an emphasis on the "arrivant" with no name or identity i.e. Dasein proper - death proper. Such delimitations institute a three-pronged inquiry for Derrida in one single braid: the problematic closure (conceptualisation of limit), anthropological border (discourse on limit), and conceptual demarcation (logical redefinition).

Second the idea of aporia as the crossing of borders (in §2: Awaiting (at) the Arrival). To this purpose, to wonder what there is after death makes methodological sense if the ontological essence of death has been elaborated and existential analysis of death has been carried out. More importantly such decisions occur here, over this side (i.e. not after death): they concern Dasein in its essence of `the being-possible' (p. 63). With an emphasis on the possible, Derrida remarks that `death is the most proper possibility of this possibility' (i.e. being-possibility of Dasein): with death Dasein awaits itself, standing before the impending anachronism (contretemps) of death.

To conclude I want to go to the beginning where Derrida dedicates this text to Koitchi Toyosaki, apparently for two reasons: Toyosaki's death and his father's (p. x). It seems to me that in citing `Toyosaki' and given that `names matter' (p. 21), Derrida is echoing what Toyosaki says. Namely, `citing is a manner of translating since it is obliged to leave its milieu of origin to find another where it takes more or less a new meaning et more importantly that it enters with the words that surround it in a relation of reciprocal translation' (Les fins de l'homme p.246). Citing then is about crossing a limit between that which is original and another, this side and the other. And if death for Derrida is this limit, it is an aporia - that which prompts anyone to wonder, to interrogate ... death as a figure of difference.

A book you must have read - but keep Heidegger close by!

Derrida has Heidegger wrong. Supposedly Heidegger understands death as the possibility of impossibility as such, and hence Dasein is the sein-zum-TOd, or the being towards the possibility of impossibility as such. Derrida denies the as such and asks, how can dasein be towards such an 'as such'? Heidegger says no such thing however. Dasein is not sein zum Ende, rather Dasein, correctly understood, is Ende zu sein. It is not toward an end, it is an end. Notice the even humorous inversion of Aristotle. Death is non-relational, it is unbezuglich. One cannot adopt a relation to death because death is impossibility, and Dasein is possibility: Dasein is the possibility of impossibility. Death is not ahead of Dasein, rather death can occur at any moment, hence death never "stands before" (bevorstehende), it is rather "unbezuglich," non-relational. Derrida fails to understand, once again, that he misunderstands Heidegger by trying to jump ahead of him.

This book is fascinating--it says it's a detective story, and it is, but with a twist--it's a detective story about people, and why they do what they do. It's a mystery where the writer tries to unravel how choices and fate and relationships and everything else all twist together to make and change lives, sometimes in sad ways. To me, it is the most interesting sort of mystery ever.

Which is why reading this book was such a total delight. It's like spending time with a really intelligent, engaging person dissecting events and following shreds of evidence, and there's this sense of loss when it's all over--you kind of want to stay engaged. A most excellent read!!

In the late 1960s the author's father and mother joined a countercultural enclave in New Mexico, where their marriage floundered and Anna's father committed suicide. Anna was five years old at the time. Twenty years later the discovery of some old photos sends her on a journey to learn more about her father: her reconstruction of her past is charted in ASSEMBLING MY FATHER: A MEMOIR and provides a moving personal history which will also inspire any conducting their own family history search.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

I often randomly choose books to read, without reading reviews or recommendations. Sometimes that method backfires and I'm stuck with a stinker, but not in this case - I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. Perhaps it was the writing, perhaps it was the loss of my own father when I was very young (probably a combination of both) - this book touched me in a personal way that no other book has for some time.

Prior to reading "Assembling My Father" I was lucky enough to attend a writer's workshop with Anna Oliver in Boise, Idaho, and I must say she is an incredible woman. She is not only intelligent and insightful, but also extremely well read- all of which show up in her writing. In "Assembling My Father," she experiments with style and form, including extensive primary records such as pictures, news articles and writings from her father's journal which add to the overall theme of a "detective story." The inclusion of Anna's own tale of personal growth alongside her discoveries of her father's untimely demise create a depth of emotion and a unique poignancy. This is a must-read for anyone interested in writing memoir, especially family history, or for anyone who is interested in the counterculture of the 60's and 70's. I cannot reccommend it enough.

I can see I'm in the minority of reviewers of this book here. I had high hopes for this memoir that haven't panned out.

The story is simple on it's surface- a woman grows up in an off kilter family and realises as a young adult that she is adrift because she doesn't "know" her father. Of course, she can't because he committed suicide, but what she doesn't have are his stories. Slowly- and it felt slooow- she sets out to discover what she can about him.

She talks to whomever she can locate who knew him, including his childhood friends, and she gets what she can out of her mother who often refuses to talk about any part of her past. She collects what photographs she can- a task made more difficult because her father was usually the photographer. She reads his journal and tries to obtain copies of college work, including his undergraduate thesis and tapes of a "college bowl" contest which "put Rennsalaer Polytechnic Institute" on the map as a better school than people had previously thought.

She experiments with different formats in her writing- including some lists of things he would never know about her, and how she feels that he will always be a man who died at the age of 35.

Be forewarned though- it's not an easy book. It's boggy and uncomfortable. It very well may be intended to be that way- after all, the subject is a young father and the events leading up to his suicide. I kept returning to the photo montage in the front, contemplating this beautiful man and wondering what could have caused him to pull the trigger. of course, only he really knows, no matter what anyone else can say about him.

Here's my confession- I haven't finished it. At 2/3 through, I feel like I know what he did, but his daughter, like all of us, will never really know why. And he'll stay dead for her- sad as it is. If I do finish, I wonder if my feelings about the memoir will change.

I grew up in Wyoming about the same time as Lee Alley. While I wasn't in the military I know many that were and this book really helps me get a feeling of what they and their families went through and are still going through. I often wonder how I would have reacted under the circumstances these men faced. The feelings expressed in this book about how these veterans felt about their mission, about their brothers in arms and about their feelings after they returned home are very insightful. Perhaps even more insightful are the feelings expressed by some of the family members. I would recommend this book for anyone who knows a veteran.

I have read almost all the Vietnam books, even authored one myself. Gun Totin' Chaplain However, this book is unique for its personal testimonies. I can just imagine the tenacity expended in collecting them. Great kudos to the author. Most of us Vietnam combat vets have similar experiences and we all have our war stories. For a long time, nobody wanted to hear them. They now do. And, if as Vietnam vets, we have any legacy, it is the fact that we have paved the way for present day warriors. They will not have to be so shabbily treated as us because most Americans who care don't want it to happen again. For this we can be proud. Back From War is a classic. Recently, a psychologist, working with returning Iraq combat vets wanted to discuss Vietnam and Iraq. I immediately suggested she order Back From War. The testimonies are textbooks. I appereciate more than I can convey the immense effort that then Lieutenant Alley made in giving us this book. I will cherish mine given to me by a frined. I would have been honored to serve with Lt. Alley and his platoon and those who've written these incredibly useful testimonies.

I am the wife of a veteran. This book opened my eyes about the emotions by husband has fought so hard to supress. We have been married for 36 years, and until he wrote this book, I never know the pain he carried.

This should be given to every veteran of every war, and every person who knows a veteran should read it.

The book offers a first-hand account from Lee Alley and his men about the war and how it has affected them since. After reading the book, I decided to use the book as a basis for my high school students' study of Vietnam and as a means of working within the schools content reading goal. The results were powerful. The kids were totally engrossed in Lee's book. There were times when their scheduled reading time was up and they would beg me to let them keep reading!" Lee is a moving storyteller and the kids hung on every word."

The written histories and reactions really demonstrated the impact of the book and summed up its value in helping kids (and anyone for that matter) understand the Vietnam war and why we must care about those who have worn a soldier's uniform, regardless of the conflict. One student wrote, "I had always thought that most if not all men in war only cared about their own lives until I met and read about Lee. I have always thought of war as fighting and killing, but the real war is with us everyday and the decisions we make. I thank Lee for teaching me these life lessons."
Another student added "I guess you never know how someone is going to act when they come back from war because its one of those gray areas you never get to hear about in school but I look at veterans a different way now because of what Lee went through. The real hero is made when the soldier returns from war and tries to become a better person. Lee is that hero and not only that but a role model for people around the nation."

And finally, another student summed up the importance of the activity. "Although Vietnam wasn't the noblest endeavor in American history, it wasn't the worst, even though it is often portrayed as such. These men defended freedom...and that is why we must learn about it, and the sacrifices they made, or we can never truly appreciate what they did."

A great read for anyone.

This book isn't entirely about Lee Alley and his Vietnam experiences, but it easily could of been. His experiences of Nam are no different then the countless other experiences that have been shared over the years. However, what makes this book such an interesting, helpful and uplifting read is the other stories. The stories about the families trying to heal, looking for any information about their lost loved ones. The stories about the Veterans struggling with the loss of their comrades and the continual nightmares they carry around as never easy to lose luggage. The book is filled with stories of hope and how some vererans eventually find some piece of mind.
The last part of the book is filled with resource information for Veterans. How to file a VA claim, where to go to find information on line, a list of do's & don'ts for returning Veterans, even a SOP for setting up reunions.
This is a book that should be given to every service man and woman, along with their DD-214. If you know of any Veteran from any war struggling with the transition back to civilian life, get this book for them!