General Practice Books

This is a fast read, Ive read all the HRH books and this was intresting. I think the author did a fine job. After reading this book I felt that indeed Hughes would have loved the drama that swept the nation, Even in death he is larger then life. The book is a great read and will be surprising....

Magnesen is probably a great detective and FBI agent, but he gets a C grade for organization and writing. The book was difficult to follow; as were the characters. One thing that would have helped immensely would have been to put a list of key players and their job/title descriptions at the end so we could refer to the list when the people would be mentioned in later chapters. However, his purpose in writing was not intended as great literature, but to convince readers that Dummar is not a kook. And, he did succeed in doing that because I did put the book down feeling like the "Mormon Will" could be real. Magnesen discovers some very convincing evidence that did not come out in the trial or was not pursued.
If you are intrigued by Howard Hughes, add this book to your list.

It took a the span of 24 hours to read this book. Every second I was not working or taking care of a 10 month-old baby I was hiding in a corner with my nose stuck in this book. The author starts as a skeptic, but through brillant research and persistence he uncovers the truth of this long-awaited fiasco. His years of FBI experience really shines through his journey to the untold story. Highly Recomended!

I came away from this story convinced that justice was not served in the case of the Howard Hughes will. Mr. Magnesen's investigation of this mystery clearly demonstrates why he enjoyed a long and successful career as an FBI agent.

The Investigation by Gary Magnesen represents the trifecta of historical research. Magnesen has the rare combination of an FBI career, Nevada residency and a degree in psychology as implements to harvest the truth in regards to the "Mormon Will."

Fragmented by time and lore, the tale of the unlikely Samaritan, Melvin Dummar is cast in the bright white light of a logical and linear review by a skeptic armed with nothing more than his background and compelling logic as arrows in an intellectual quiver.

I followed the suspicion and misgivings associated with the tale of Melvin Dummar associated with the holographic Will penned by the late Aviator, Industrialist and enigma, Howard Hughes. Shadowing Magnesen's process and logic was eased by his descriptive narration of personal doubts and the path required to find a logical end. He was not on a quest, nor does he seem influenced by the story which ultimately led to his involvement. If anything, he was drawn by the mounting inconsistencies and unfinished stories by those directly effected by Mr. Dummar's tale.

I was fascinated by the process which he undertook in this unlikely task to add clarity to a foggy footnote from the past (1976). The mind numbing research of court and county records, with the juxtaposition of interviews including citizens from towns whose glory days have long since passed into modern history added an element of humor, without diminishing the value of those who still reside there.

Each chapter was a building block which reinforced the tale told by Melvin Dummar as more than plausible. In fact, I was totally convinced he was telling the truth.

The teaser associated with this story is the revelations of a pilot employed by Hughes in the sixties. Although his contribution to the book is barely represented by two dozen pages; his story contained the most unanswered questions or inconsistencies of the 263 pages representing Dummar's tale. The following observations are not a condemnation of the man, simply a set of examples which Magnesen held me rapt throughout the story!

1. When Deiro flew into the unpaved, unlighted airport at night, the previous pages referenced a truck illuminating the approach end of the runway. Yet on the night in question the truck was at the far end (in the pilot's eyes) of the runway. Any landing upon a gravel surfaced, unlighted airport at night would be a large risk at best and possibly illegal, at worst.
2. It is written on page 102, "The fact that Daniels (geologist) was having a beer or two in the morning tells us something about him." Yet the pilot (Deiro) having too many Johnny Walker's and needing to take a nap is not questioned in regard to his credibility. Drinking within eight hours prior to a commercial flight is illegal!
3. Upon the pilots return to Las Vegas, since nobody asked; he didn't bother reporting his loss of the passenger he departed with seven hours earlier.


The preceding examples are a reflection of my intrigue and justification for a media (website) to communicate with this author.

This book is at a minimum, a `can't put it down read' combined with intrigue, injustice and surviving principals!

John Ortberg is my Pastor...he is insightful, deep with a great sense of humor when presenting God's messsage to us.

"Love Beyond Reason" falls in line with how I've come to understand Jesus.

I would give it 10 Stars if it were an option.

I have been struggling with letting go of a loved one who is in the throws of alcoholism.
With the help of this writing, I have been brought deeper into my own healing as well as grown in faith & trust.
When we come to Jesus in answering His call to repentance, he accepts us the way we are, but loves us so completely that he won't let us remain that way!

I have read two other of John's books so far.
"If You Want to Walk on Water, You Have to Get Out of the Boat"
"The Life You've Always Wanted"
Each are equally insightful and encouraging!

I plan on making this a staple in my personal library and will give this book as a gift whenever possible.

Many thanks to you, John, for your faithfulness to the Lord and sharing your gift.

God Bless You!

Great book, a MUST read if you're trying to discover more of how much God loves you. This book explains an in depth explanation of God's love for you. Brilliant book.

This is a wonderful book that really depicts God's love for every individual. A must read by John Ortberg!

This book is amazing. I've read it slowly because I want to savor every word. I've been a Christian for a long time and usually I don't like sugar-coated Christianity, but the way this book talks about God's love really humbled me and made me realize the vastness of God's grace. This book discusses God's tremendous unconditional love and encourages us to have that same kind of love for others. One thing Ortberg said that stood out is, as I grow closer to God, am I becoming more approachable (more loving) or less approachable (legalistic and judgemental)? Really made me think about how gracious I am (or not) toward others. I've recommended this book to all my friends.

After having read several of Ortberg's books, I would have to say this is the one that really touched me.

John's gift for storytelling is simply wonderful. He starts the book by discussing our raggedness - but that is hardly the end of the story. He goes on to tell us how the greatness of God heals and redeems us - again and again. He uses biblical depictions that are rich in detail and apply to our lives today.

My favorite chapters were "The Lord of the Second Chance" and "The Roundabout Way."

In "The Lord of the Second Chance," Ortberg gives a detailed account of Peter's great failure and how Jesus restored him. It is a very touching depiction, rich in detail and emotionality.

In "The Roundabout Way," he explains that God is not as concerned with the journey as he is "who" we will be when we arrive at our destination. He discusses the possible reasons for the roundabout way, suffering and how this journey can bring us into a closer relationship with God. From my own experience in the "roundabout way," I can honestly say that I see things much more clearly now.

Another chapter that I found very provoking was the chapter on Grace and how even we, as Christians, sometimes forget that we need to extend grace to others as freely as God has extended it to us.

I have read this book over and over and plan to give it as a gift to several of my friends and family. I highly recommend it!!!

certainly made me think, most of us cannot imagine life without electricity, but here we have people who learn to manage. I don't think I would have done as well as them.

In this second book Terri Blackstock continues her story of a world thrown into chaos by way of a "starpluse" which has rendered the use of all modern technology useless. Terri Blackstock explores how our world might "look" if this were to happen, how some grow in their faith, love, and selflessness while others grow in their selfishness, sin, and evil. A griping story of orphaned children in a world devoid of "services" to deal with such an occurance and a family willing to sacrifice everything to help these children, their community, and to serve God in any way he asks.

It was as fantastic as the first book. Can't wait to get book # 3!

Spellbinding and interesting! Safe to listen to with older kids in the car too! Love the fact that the family is living out their faith and that the daughter struggles with being bound to a non-believer. We couldn't wait to get back in the car and hear what was next. (Caution: a few scenes have drug use, gun use)

Three months into the world wide technology outage, the Branning family and their neighbors are beginning to get the hang of surviving. They are bartering for what they need and digging a neighborhood well.

But then they are robbed. Jeff chases after the thieves and discovers they are four children, siblings, who have been living alone for months. Against their better judgment, the Brannings feel compelled to care for these kids. Where is their mother? And will the Brannings be able to feed these extra mouths?

If I were viewing this series as a mystery series, I'd be highly disappointed. While there are some mysteries surrounding the kids, they develop in fits and starts. And the climax of that story is pretty weak. Instead, this is a novel about survival and what humans will do when faced with the end of our civilization. As a result, it is fascinating and page turning. I had a hard time putting the book down. The characters are real, and I found myself asking if I would have the faith and compassion to respond as they did multiple times over the course of the novel.

This book relies heavily on the events of the first in the series. There is a recap and character guide in the first few pages, so you could jump in here if you needed to. But I'd advise you to read them in order. And there are some great develops as far as the overall story goes in this book that made me look forward to the third.

This is another challenging and captivating novel from a great writer. If you want a great read, consider this series.

I've read a lot of marriage/relationship books, including Sacred Marriage (which I also loved), but this has got to be one of the very best. Not only does Gary Thomas review important concepts about Christian wifehood, but he also gives practical examples/advice without sounding like a 5-step program. Reading it REALLY opened my eyes to ways that I was not handling situations in the best way to help/influence my husband, and also ways that I was still expecting him to think/act like a woman, which is totally unfair. Thomas also helped me understand what my husband was REALLY saying when he said certain things and what he was feeling, and why.

I've only had this book for a week, but I'm almost done with it and can already see how applying the principles is helping me and my husband's relationship. I would recommend it to any wife or engaged woman.

This book is very effective and is a great tool in the hands of God for shaping wives. Thanks much!

This book is by far the best book I have ever read for wives! Gary Thomas has an amazing ability to see marriage through the eyes of a woman. Whether you are single or married this book will have an intense impact on how you view your mate. Every woman should read this book!

Thomas delivers lessons about marriage that are simple but not easy. His writing is crisp and fluid. Throughout the book, he provides a message that is simple to understand but not easy to live by. And, ultimately, it is a message that married women of God are required to obey. It isn't easy but it is possible to live as a godly woman, the woman Thomas describes in his book, when we surrender to the will of God.

This book is a great tool! It helps one identify the ways they might be plowing their field upside down. Developing charity is tough. It takes incredible humility and Gary Thomas has some motivating methods for stirring up our resolve. So, 4.5 stars?

The book has one major controversy. Midway through the book Thomas admits this change in direction by bringing up Madame de Pompadour as a chief model of how to influence one's husband. Only Pompadour uses that influence on the king INSTEAD of her husband. Madame de Pompadour is actually a character one might want to avoid modeling their life after. She, a married woman with 2 children, chose to go and seduce the king of France and crush her husband rather than hold to the principles that would have kept her less famous, yet building her marriage. She became a master of intrigue who won for herself pompous titles and honors of land and a royal burial, but she was just the main course in a continuous buffet of infidelity, never mind what happened to her broken family. She did little more than what any power hungry, spiritually undeveloped woman, fearful to maintain illegitimate ties, might do.

So read that section with blinders off. His point for bringing her up is weak, but it does come across. Treat your husband (except in the case of Madame de Pompedour, conquest) like a king and you will, more likely than not, be blessed for it. Thankfully, Thomas mentions that model within marriage is still a position of subservience if used as a tool of manipulation. Submissiveness is an entirely different thing. It is done with confidence in Christ's love while subservience is not.

If you can get through that pot hole, the rest of the book does stay on track regarding submissiveness and its role in the salvation of one's family. This is mainly in regards to attitude.

Besides this there are some excellent points in Mr. Thomas' book regarding the role of hormones, such as oxytocin, and how they are used in a man's body to bond him to his wife.

This is a good read. The section on Madame de Pompadour is awkward, but Gary does use other righteous examples of women who secured for themselves splendid honor in their marriages. There is just less of a prominent focus on them because their racy side is left veiled to the public as it should be. Through them he makes a good point: it is an exceptional woman who comprehends her potential in the role that God outlines for her AND, after reading his book, you do come out flipped back over properly and plowing right side up.

I used this book to help me write my senior thesis (rooted in music education). I enjoyed this book because it was as much about personal experience as it was about science. Science is compelling, but personal experience helps one connect. The author has interesting hypotheses about music therapy. An enjoyable, educational read.

I just received this gem of a book as a Christmas gift and have not been able to put it down. This is an easy to read, superbly insightful volume with quick, accessible and practical chapters
that should be in everyone's bookshelf right at eye level. As an avid, long time collector of alternative (complementary) therapy approaches I find this to be the most comprehensive book I have ever laid hands on. A pity that, being published by a small publisher, it has not received the "marketing muscle" of much lesser volumes. Bringing together eastern thought, simple-common sense psychology (fully validated by research that supports all of the approaches throughout the book), and music from one's own collection the Tao of Music is a gift for mind, body and soul.
If you have children rush out and also get his "Nurturing Your Child with Music," sensational.

I originally purchased this book based on two, completely unrelated endorsements from colleagues who have found it consistently useful both in their personal lives and their professional practices. Having read this excellent book I can honestly say that it is a wise, cost effective investment. The fact that each clearly written, well researched chapter stands on its own makes it very easy to find a topic one is dealing with (using music to handle anger or depression for instance, or designing a personal exercise or relaxation program) and putting together a personalized program from among the many practical exercises suggested. The hundreds of recommended song titles are refreshingly modern and amazingly effective. If extra reseach into a particular area is necessary each chapter offers a number of relevant professional articles and resources to fit each target area.

As a professional trainer, however, I find this book takes an added dimension and provides an excellent resource for anyone designing programs to address many typical issues encountered throughout corporate or industrial settings such as time management, procrastination, motivation, productivity, relaxation, communication skills, social relations, and a host of other relevant areas encountered in management, education or business.

I recommend the Tao of Music highly both as a professional resource for trainers and a personal tool to help address day to day situations.

Julian Evans Corporate Trainer

A classic within this genre.
The cream of the crop.
Superb!

Simple to read. Relevant to laypersons and professionals. Essentially any "issue" we all deal with is addressed in this book written in a clear, practical, orderly format. I use it often in my practice (I am a psychotherapist) and recommend it to my clients who rave about it without fail. My wife, a high school teacher, also uses it to assist in her lessons plans. Exceptional!

This is a very moving and heart stirring true account of how God moved on young children in an orphanage in China. It's amazing!

Oh my goodness... this book is precious and made me soooo hungry for more, more, more of God!

My wife and I found this book to be very exciting as it depicts how orphan children in China where provided with a home in an orphanage; how they were fed and clothes and taken care of. This - in and of itself - is a dynamic testimony of how Jesus Christ brings victory into the lives of these children. However, their experience of seeing visions and dreams of Heaven, of God, of Jesus and of angels is one to be envied. We strongly encourage you to read this book. You will not be able to put it down.
Sincerely, Rev. Richard and Holly Lang

This is an essential read for those who want more of God.

Story of these Chinese orphans who experience a radical outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The book documents their experiences and visions which will stretch your brain and wreck your heart.

It's a short read that should be in all believers libraries.

I rate this book very high as it offers hope for the Christian and even greater hope for the Christian missionaries. H.A. Baker's journal account of what the children in his orphanage experienced just confirms many of the testimonies of others in different parts of the world, even as recent as 2007. God is alive and He still reigns! Books like Visions Beyone the Veil are inspiring to motivate anyone with a desire, to Ask, Seek and Knock knowing that God will answer, you will find and He will open the door to understanding.

The other reviews all capture the essence of Herter's cookbook. Laced with an ample portion of Herter's blustery wit, it's an enjoyable read, full of nuggets of subjective wisdom of the ages. I grew up having Herter's Professional Guides Manual and How to get out of the rat race, etc around the house and at an early age found my BS detector working well. My Dad gave How to get out of the rat race to his Dad, who was raised in turn-of-the-century Texas, and inscribed it: "Having actually done this, I thought you'd like to know how you SHOULD have done it!". True classics, which I've recently found and purchaed at [...].

I'm amazed this book is still in print! I found this book in a used book store in New Orleans and thought it was a bizarre regional oddity from up north - what a great read, especially if you're a big foodie.

Due to it's unique layout, this book is not the sort that needs to be read in front to back order. It's basically a random hodgepodge of rough recipes (some real, some bogus, and plenty that blur the line) sorted into alphabetical order - you can jump around and read at random, which is exactly what I've been doing. There's no introduction, nor even any information about the author - it's just a crazy quilt grab-bag of humorous pseudo-recipes and screeds about food philosophy ... new outrageous assertions, inside jokes, and so-called `facts' are always lurking just around the next paragraph (the kind of jokes best appreciated by history and food buffs).

As is the case with the best lies having a healthy dose of the truth mixed in (to lend weight and believability), the author intersperses some real history into the massive quantities of horse hooey he shovels into the reader's lap ... seasoning it generously with humor, purple prose, and two-fisted food philosophy - all with a healthy undercurrent of the author sounding like an overeducated backwater hick running a roadside stand and hawking his "world's finest" recipes and opinions to all within earshot. It's a heady mix.

Just to give you an idea what to expect, here's a BS-laden Herter-esque recipe, that I just now improvised, to demonstrate the author's writing style:

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Mary Queen of Scots Head Cheese

Mary Stuart, queen of Scots, was born on 8 December 1542 at Linlithgow Palace in Scotland. As the Scots of that time were wont to do, Mary's parents packed her off to France when she was only six years old, to marry Francis II (a notorious pedophile who conveniently happened to be next in line for the throne of France), in return for Frances's return aid in helping the Scottish rid themselves of the pesky English.

Utterly bored with vapid court life, and disgusted by the doting affections of her pedophile husband, Mary sought comfort and distraction by immersing herself in the royal kitchens, where she spent 10 years of her life honing her increasingly prodigious culinary skills. In particular, she developed a special love of pork, and pork products - all of which are fine eating, and which laid the early groundwork for the modern American BBQ that we know and love today.

Suddenly, Mary's philandering French hubbie became king, and then 2 years later died under mysterious circumstances. Whispers around court claimed that Mary had grown tired, at long last, of her husband's gropings, and got her revenge by feeding him a tainted strew of pork cassoulet (in which she substituted pork pizzle for sausage), laced with poison. He ate it all, smacked his lips, patted his stomach, took a brief post-degustation nap, and woke up in hell, with Satan grinning and jiggling the unpaid tab.

Unfortunately, with the death of her husband, a political coup forced her to rethink her dreams of ruling France, and return instead to Scotland, where she soon met and married her second husband, Lord Henry Darnley, who was historically noteworthy for being hugely endowed and with an capacity for wine, women and song that beggared the imagination.

Unhappy with her new husband's drinking and womanizing, not to mention disgusted with her household chef (who every day served the same thing: porridge for breakfast, fried mars bars for lunch, and haggis with nips & taddies for dinner, and all the weak tea and skunky 70 shilling ale she could quaff) she one again returned to the kitchen for escape and distraction, and eventually developed the recipe that later made her famous: Mary Queen of Scots Head Cheese ... one of the most glorious and finest eating dishes ever known to humanity. I make it myself at least once a month, during hog season. Simply wonderful.

Now then. Fame of her culinary talents spread, and eventually made their way to the court of King Henry VIII, a notorious glutton who (like Mary) loved pork, and who also happened to be desperately in need of a male heir, and under considerable pressure to produce same. Hearing of her culinary prowess, and her beauty, as well as her political status as hereditary Queen of Scotland, Henry and Mary initiated romantic correspondence, in which the two wrote at length about their love of food, thoughts on Protestantism and Catholicism, Marriage, Divorce, and whether or not pork sausage was best served dry aged, or roasted with peppers and onions. Copies of these heart-warming letters are a very popular item, and can be had from the catalog of my general store.

Eventually, Henry (at Mary's request) had her good-for-nothing second husband conveniently knifed during a tavern brawl, and he brought her to England, and with her own loving hands she made him her famous head cheese ... and for a while, things were blissful.

However, after many moons with no male heir appearing, Henry began to get restless and his eye began to roam. Mary caught him one day with a serving girl, and administered a vicious two-handed beating to both of them with an undercooked turkey leg, wielded like a gravy-soaked maul. After the gravy-splattered and disheveled King recovered, he had Mary imprisoned in the Tower of London, and eventually had her beheaded, and ordered his cooks to use her head to make her world famous recipe one last time - with truly royal results. One lip-smacking diner was overheard to proclaim "Mary ... the best head in all of England !"

MARY'S AUTHENTIC HISTORICAL RECIPE: Take 1 pig's head, freshly bled, and put it in a large pot of water. Add a few coarsely chopped onions, celery, a splash of white wine vinegar, and a small palmful of peppercorns, allspice, a cayenne pepper, 2 bay leaves, and a dash Paul Prudhomme's pork seasoning mix. Boil about 3 hours, then remove the head, let par cool, pick off all the edible meat (reserve) and return all the bones and other scraps back to the pot and boil the #@$% out of it for another 6-12 hours (adding more water as necessary to keep the bones covered) until the bones drop clean. Strain and discard all solids, and clarify the stock with egg whites and crushed chicken shells. Then reduce the liquid to one quarter it's original volume (reduce further if needed), or until thick and rich, and beginning to gel firmly when cooled. Salt to taste, and par-chill until beginning to thicken, but not quite set. Next, fill a mold with the cold flaked meat, cold diced lard, and cold diced cheese, and pour the reduced stock over it. Refrigerate over night, then slice when hard. Makes for truly fine eating. Simply wonderful in sandwiches, or eaten plain, out of hand. Children love it, because if made properly, it has a slight wiggle, and will bounce if dropped - making it not only fun, but economical if your children are klutzy and always dropping their food. No waste ! Guaranteed to be the best head you've ever had.

First of all, be advised: You will never get this (or any out of print book) from Amazon. Go to [Marketplace] instead. My copy - in very nice condition, for only $...- arrived earlier this week.

I've been aware of this book for some years now, and it's a scream. From the Virgin Mary's favorite dish; to Church Chicken, and beyond (the Church Chicken, by the way, "has done more good, I believe, than any other recipe in the world.").

As an enthusiastic cook, there is quite an array of interesting recipes that I'm sure I'll get around to trying. But the recipes are really secondary to Herter The Blowhard waxing rhapsodic on everything from the "fine Italian people" in Minneapolis & St. Paul; to the impact a nuclear war would have on the availability of soap.

I was just thumbing through my recently-arrived copy, and came across this gem, from Herter's mayonnaise recipe (and I swear I'm NOT making it up!): "Using this famous recipe, mayonnaise is very easy to make and you will never have a failure with one exception. If you are a woman do not attempt to make mayonnaise during menstruating time as the mayonnaise will simply not blend together at all well. This is not superstition but a well established fact well known to all women cooks."

Go ye, and read of it.

Remember Cliff, the postman in "Cheers"? You know, the John Ratzenberger character who was the know-it-all barfly who, even if he DID know something about a subject, managed to mangle it into unwittingly hilarious non-sequiturs?

Cross that character with an travel & food writer of great enthusiasm and woefully limited skills, and you might end up with something like this.

Part cookbook, part very dubious history, part polemic and 100% personal. It is refreshingly blunt and opinionated, even if his opinions are howlingly off base sometimes. Look at it this way, to use another TV analogy: which would be more interesting, a beer with Archie Bunker or a sherry with Felix Unger? This book is definitely not the latter.

I gotta confess I have a soft spot for Herter. I was born in 1951, and during my formative preadolescent years one of the finest pieces of literature I consumed ravenously was the Herter's sporting goods catalog. GL Herter wrote the same purple prose and with the same hyperbolic certitude whether the subject was Oysters Rockefeller or fly-tying supplies or worm bedding. Nothing was ever simple: it was always "World Famous Herter's Snelled Hooks" or whatever. Even as a kid I recognized this as over the top, before I even knew what 'over the top' meant.

Highly recommended. A terrifically crazy read. Where is the justice in a world which lets this go out of print while Danielle Steele continues to cause thousands of trees to be killed???

Meredith Gould has done a great job of bringing together traditions from all around the world, and offering these as ways to grow in true faith, not just more items on holiday to-do lists. Her suggestions for Lenten prayer are particularly valuable. Written in a clear, concise, and humorous style, this compact book has earned its place as a family reference.

This is a very nice manual of catholic traditions that can be incorporated into everyday life. My husband and I were looking for something like this as we both weren't raised with any Catholic traditions and hope to raise our kids with a very Catholic home. This is a great starting point, and has a lot of interesting ideas that I had never heard of.

I ordered this for my sister as a gift. She suggested the book and I had no trouble finding it on Amazon. Thanks!

I love this book! I grew up in a Catholic family and in Catholic schools. However, that did not prepare me for passing along Catholic traditions to my own children and to my converted husband. The fear of offending anyone(especially my non-Catholic relatives) made me a little hesitant to "let religious identity permeate our home". Gould's book encourages and instructs on how to do so. She has specific ideas, traditions, and even recipes for living a richer life within the Church.

If you are interested in Catholic customs and traditions for your family, this is a wonderful book. Full of interesting facts for different feast days and practical ways to celebrate in the home. A wonderful tool for the family or individual!

Spiritual authors and teachers just seem to fill you up with spiritual materialism. Krishnamurti says what you're self does not want to hear. That is why his stuff can be difficult to take in. Unlike others who talk about ultimate reality and what not, he does not speak like all the dharma, and new age enlightenment, awakening books. I can imagine the Zen ancients agreeing with him, the zen masters that existed before Zen became full of tradition and baggage.

Krishnamurti should be taught in all the schools as an example of how to think clearly. The effect would be astonishing. This is an excellent introduction to his methods, and you will be well-rewarded if you read this book and take it to heart. If you were to break with tradition and attempt to explain Zen in logical terms, this book could be yours. K's robust sanity is a symbol of hope for an ego-ridden humanity.

This is another collection of short pieces that doesn't do Krishnamurti's teachings justice. To fully grasp & enjoy his teachings, you must go into each & every subject slowly & carefully, as he himself states in many different works. The pieces here are too short, & Krishnamurti's vocabulary & philosophy aren't fully explained. If you've read several of his other works, & are familiar with his vocabularu & philosophy, then this is a fairly decent book. If you're not, this isn't a good place to start.

I am reading these books in sequence so that I will be aware of any shifts in this philosophy as he progresses.

The reading here is easy, but the thinking is more difficult. Krishnamurti doesn't attempt to speak what people might want to hear, but speaks from his heart, from his innermost being. So he doesn't give an easy path to follow nor does he promise such a path. Actually, to provide a path for others to follow would contradict his philosophy.

The answer according to him is in self-knowledge, but that knowledge can not be gained through effort. Nor, says he, can it be passed on to you by a guru. It won't be found in books. (I can't help but be amused by those who emphasize that the Truth isn't revealed in the printed word, and of course they use the printed word to share this message with us.)

The first half of the book is comprised of writings and portions of talks. The second half consists of questions asked after his talks, and in his answers you will find repetition sometimes as he clarifies. He has a way of emphasizing the main points by asking "Is it not?" or words to that effect.

I admit to having difficulties with much of what he says, but this isn't criticism as much as a compliment. The very difficulties I might have benefit me so so that I learn through resolving them. If you don't get this book, do at least read some of his other material. You will be rewarded.

JK was a mystery. His life story was dramatic and his teaching controversial - so many people found his talks transforming and yet many also were disillusioned. I myself, who was too young, foolish and too far away to see the man when he was alive, have been puzzled by the fact that supposedly no one who studies his talks was deeply transformed, sadly admitted by JK himself.

But how could we measure his merit as a teacher by that fact alone? Twenty years after he died, everytime I read his words, the man came alive, sharp, passionate, uncompromising and compassionate.

He came to the earth pure and clean, and he learned the mess of the human psyche in order to teach; he was a deeply religious and poetic man, evident from his few talks after his realisation and before he disbanded the Order, but in order to talk to a wider audience, "his beloved" was reduced to "the nameless" or "that immensity" in his later talks, with only a very slight touch at the end of talk; he didn't study any religious traditons, not even the Bhagavad Gita, and his talks were all his own, which perhaps explains why many people found his talks hard to grasp, because they can't be put into any familiar systems which we have learned before.

How can we judge him or measure him? He reached and touched more people than anyone else in modern times; his talked "from the ground up", from this drab of life everyone lives instead of exclusively to long time spiritual seekers; and his words are the best guards against superstition, which goes hand in hand with spirituality.

I salute to you, Sir !

This book is a moving account, part biographical, part medical that gives incredible insight into the experience of pain. Pain is protective and a subjective experience. Dr. Brand makes things imminently clear and understandable. Great read.

I have not quite finished reading this book (though I've skimmed the last chapters and know some of their content), but I am so excited about it that I could not wait to post this review! Be forewarned: those reviewers who used the phrases "can't put it down" and "the dishes will stack up" and "a page-turner" are not exaggerating. Every day I look forward to the time when I can open this book again and read, and I have lost not a few hours of sleep staying up late to read just a little more.

Paul Brand's account, expressed in Yancey's superb writing, of his investigation of the causes of leprosy and its devastating effects reads like a detective story, with pieces of the puzzle falling into place one by one. The stories of successes and failures are always placed in the context of the lives of real people. Brand's reflections on pain are never heavy-handed, always instructive, sometimes challenging, often humbling and awe-provoking.

If you work in the medical field, as I do, I cannot urge you strongly enough to read this book!! It should be required reading in every medical school, nursing school and PT/OT school. I have already started to re-tune my approach to patients with pain a little, and I have begun rethinking my own pain of various kinds.

Paul Brand was a compassionate genius of the highest order. I've never heard that he won a Nobel Prize for medicine or the Nobel Peace prize, but he should have. He applied his genius with sacrificial energy, enthusiasm, humility and humanity to helping "the least of these".

I wish I had read this book sooner. I recommend it more highly than I can express.

This was the first book that introduced me to the writing of Philip Yancey. He is a truly great writer and this story of Dr. Brand's life is exceptional. I suffer with chronic pain and have for many years. I was profoundly impacted by the wisdom of this book and found that reading it has made a healing difference in how I view my pain. Not only that, the tale of Dr. Brand's life is fascinating. I never knew much at all about leprosy and thought it was a disease of the past.

I think the title can deter some people from reading it. I remember hearing about it when I wasn't in chronic pain and it definitely did not sound like a subject I wanted to dwell on. For some reason, though, I purchased it and put it up on a shelf for years. One day I happened on it--when I was ready to read it.

Do miss this. The human body and the God who designed it is truly amazing.

I am a hand therapist, an occupational therapist who specializes in hand and upper extremity conditions and injuries. Paul Brand was an amazing man, an inspiring teacher and writer. Of course Philip Yancey coauthored this book, but this is Brand's own voice. It reads much like his professional writing, with clear and vivid analogies to explain difficult concepts. I never had the privilege of working with him, but I was lucky enough to spend time with him at various conferences and courses. He was a deeply spiritual man who spoke with both authority and humility, and possessed a sparkling sense of humor.

The book does not by any means cover Dr. Brand's entire career, but sheds a very bright light on the groundbreaking work he did with Hansen's disease (leprosy) patients. In the US, he moved to the Carville, Louisiana Hansen's disease center and continued to publish his writing, and to teach and guide hand surgeons and hand therapists. He was made an honorary member of the American Society of Hand Therapists, one of many honors showered on him throughout his distinguished career.

Please read this book. It will inspire you and give you fascinating food for thought.

Dr. Paul Brand's "The Gift of Pain" (with Philip Yancey co-authoring) is probably my favorite-ever book. It reads like a mystery, a biography and a story-teller's yarn all at the same time. Be careful - once you pick this book up you won't want to put it down; the dishes will pile up in the sink and you'll stay up later than you should, reading by flashlight if necessary. Apart from the Bible, I can't recall any other book that has been so uplifting to my soul. It is the only book that, after reading a library copy, I bought not one but two copies: one to keep and one to loan out to anyone I can encourage to read it. The Brand/Yancey team also wrote two other excellent works ("In His Image" and "Fearfully and Wonderfully Made"), and there is a biography of Dr. Brand entitled "Ten Fingers for God." All well worth reading, but "Pain" is by far the best. My only regret is not having met Dr. Brand personally. If I had to choose one man (apart from Jesus himself) to point out to my son and tell him, "Grow up to be like that man," it would be Dr. Paul Brand. Do your soul a favor; read this book!