P Books

A Genie in the House of Saud: Zubis Rises (A Genie in the House of Saud)

A bit arachaic in language and cultural approach, but the narrative pictures Doughty draws are fascinating; submersion into a little known cultural and time. Great for anthropological studies.

I must, grudgingly, give this monumental classic work of travel and adventure five stars, despite the fact that I don't really like the author. Doughty was probably not a very nice, friendly person; his life and opinions seem centered around a strict, almost fanatical and unforgiving, religiosity (he was a very fervent christian). Nevertheless, what he set out to do, he did with ample success and eficiency; and what he set out to do is not so simple as it seems at first sight,in my opinion, except for one of his main, but most superficial goals: to redeem the English language from the poverty and oversimplicity it had fallen into (Doughty believed the English language had fallen from grace since Spencer: I wonder, what would he think of it now?).

"Travels..." is an account of Doughty's two years of wandering through the Desert, in the 2nd half of the 19th century, with Hejaz and Nejd nomads. Unlike many other travellers before him (such as Sir Richard Burton), he never even tried to pretend he was a muslim, but admited to the nomads he travelled with that he was christian....and then went on, once and again for two years, to argue christianity's superiority over Islam and to explain how the fact that they were muslims excited his pity at seeing them fooled by their fraudulent Islamic beliefs. We know that traveleng in Arabia in those times was quite risky and dangerous, so it is a wonder that he was not killed by the nomads he was travelling with after they had to hear, for the hundredth time, how their faith was a fraud!!! This pious propensity, or even thirst for martyrdom (some times the provocations seem to point at that), is also quite trying for the reader.

However, if you can stomach the religious dissertations in his very special saintly style, the reading is rewarding indeed. Doughty had the (undeserved, I think with envy)luck to find the remains of the Nabataean town of Hegra, which he describes in some depth, with sketches of the tombs and copies of the inscriptions he found there. Who doesn't dream of finding the abandoned, lost, ancient town, built by a mysterious half-forgotten people? His descriptions of life with a Nomadic tribe of those times, with its unbelievable hardships, due to the famine-level subsistence usual among nomads, are an etnographic work of first rank. His report of the abuse, threats and indignities he had to suffer at the hands of the nomads because of his refusal to deny his christianity are unintentionally funny, in spite of himself.

But it is when we see that Doughty constantly compares the nomads of the desert with the Patriarchs of the Bible, and we know he can imagine himself in the company of Abraham's or Ishmael's tribes, when we learn the extent of the religious significance that this journey had for him. The ignorance and fanaticism that he finds in these nomads, he imagines in the Patriarchs of the Bible. For him Christianity, his own faith, was the light and salvation that took people out of the pitiful and primitive state these nomads live in. In fact, his journey is actually a pilgrimage to invest his religion with a significance that maybe he had been in the process of losing from sight.

And it is this, the fact that this author had set out for a journey with the intention of profoundly despising the people he was going to live with, what makes me despise him as a person, even though I see the importance of his work. Although Doughty repeats, now and then, the common, admiring expressions that were usual and fashionable to speak about the nomadic Arabs of those times -all the usal "noble savage" stuff-, we can read between lines (and later on, directly) that he thinks they are repulsive, inferior creatures. He goes to Arabia thinking he will be a superior among primitives, and he leaves Arabia, two years later, convinced that this has, indeed, been the case. In my opinion, the one who comes out the worst from the experience, is himself, although I have to thank him for recording his experiences and so, giving me the oportunity of reading between lines and learning from that.

I would like to add that this is not a complete edition of Doughty's work, which I read in the Dover two-volume edition, with an introduction by T.E.Lawrence and translations (of the Nabatean inscriptions) by Ernest Renan, and with some beautifully drawn maps.

There are few travel books that can stand up to the depredations of time - indeed, travel literature by its nature tends to be ephemeral. We may peruse the Victorian travelers, but mainly to get a sense of the exotic, from a time when it still was that way.

Fewer travel books still can claim to have had a conscious impact beyond their own genre. One thinks of Stendahl's travels in the South of France, Radishchev's journey from Petersburg to Moscow, or Stephens and Catherwood in the Yucatan. But Doughty is in a class by himself.

This remarkably eccentric man with the remarkably eccentric writing style set off into one of the last fringes of society, to a world where the art of the word was cultivated and where a man's worth was set by his speech. He is not an easy read. Yet his writing reflects the sense of a major intellect from one culture confronted by a tradition which is very old, very venerable and yet totally alien from that in which he was raised. That he sought to explain it by creating a new way of writing is perhaps not remarkable.

Many writers of the last century have been quite vocal about the debt that they owe him; one sometimes wonders if this is honored more in the breach than we would like to believe. But try him on for size, but be prepared to be patient. You will find that his style will win you over if you are.

After reading this work detailing the 1870s [mis]adventures of the legendary Charles M. Doughty, one comes to understand much better why T.E.Lawrence so admired the Bedu and mistrusted the Arab city dweller. Doughty's "travels" really amounted to being "driven" through hostile lands occupied by "fanatics," continuously handed off from one group of outlaws and thieves to another. "I found in them an implacable fanaticism," wrote Doughty. "All their life is passed in fraud and deceipt." Sacred oaths, swearing in the name of God out of mere habit, traditional mores of protecting the fellow-traveller in one's charge honored mostly in the breach. One friendly Arab acquaintance along the tortured path tells Doughty, "I hope that your life may be preserved: but they will not suffer you to dwell amongst them! You will be driven from place to place. As many among them as have travelled, are liberal; but the rest, no." Abdullah el-Kenneyny advised Doughty, "I am even now in amazement! that in such a country, you openly avow yourself to be an Englishman; but how may you pass even one day in safety. You have lived hitherto with the Bedu; but it is otherwise in the townships."

Early on, the strange language seemed humorous and distracting, but it soon grows on you. "Give me a hand" becomes "Lend me a grip of thy five." Robbed, stripped, insulted, the intrepid Doughty gives the evil-doers the back of his hand as often as he dared, many times with his hand on a revolver hidden under his robes. One bluff carried off successfully against fellow travellers, who were sworn, of course, to defend him -- "By the life of Him who created us, in what instant you show me a gun's mouth, I will lay dead your carcasses upon this earth."

Occasionally some paragraph seems to be the obvious inspiration for a like passage in Lawrence's "Seven Pillars of Wisdom," an exquisitely detailed description of how a camel comes to a halt and lies down being one of the most obvious examples.

A major feature of this work is the great care taken by the author to use and then explain the Arabic vocabulary for places and things unique to the Arab culture. Each and every page is peppered with these terms. There is a fine glossary, praise God, the Merciful One!

The first half of this collection of selected passages from the massive original work will give readers warm feelings for the Bedouin and sweet dreams of wandering amongst them at peace with God and nature. The second half will likely wipe out any such urge. Civilizations still clash, 130 years later. Extremists rear their ugly heads on both sides of a vast chasm. Will the next 130 years bring much fundamental change?

Doughty had reflected his belief throughout his journey and I am not surprised. He decreased the Bedw traditions and tried to link it completely to the teaching of Islam. He knew from the beginning that the Bedw tradition especially in the northern part of the Arabian Peninsula has nothing to do with the teaching of Islam. It was basically their culture. He did used the Bedw to serve his purpose since he wrote this book only to the western readers at that time to capture their imagination of the Arabian desert and to lay down the first step toward the colonization period that took place 30 years later.
Doughty in his book has described the Bedew life with many details that have shocked me. Since he lived with my great grandfather (Tollog) during his stay on al Harra, I was able to tell how close he was to reflect the real life of my tribe.
If we ignore his belief's reflection in his writing, we can conclude that his book is truly a masterpiece in detailing the life of one of the most isolated part of the world in 1800 century.

There are two books in English based on translations of Zen Master Bankei teachings, both pusblished in 1984. "Bankei Zen" is the title of the book written by Peter Haskel who behaved both as translator and editor under the supervision of his teacher Yoshito Hakeda. Haskel assisted the reader organizing the text and adding headings here and there to paragraphs, dialogues, anecdotes, poems. Also he added technical notes highlighting biographical and historical circumstances. These headings focus the attention of readers in their efforts to find their way throughout Bankei teachings. "The unborn" is the title of the book written by Norman Waddell, just a translator. His book becomes the forest of words. One Dharma Talk after the other and, here and there, also some highly interesting biographical and historical notes. However, Waddell produced a revised version in 2000 and included only minor changes to translations to very specific paragraphs. However no mention is made to Haskel's book on the same subject and author, similar texts. Under section III, other works in the bibliography section this reference to Hakei's book is conspicuously absent. Within the community of scholars the standard is mentioning books written by other authors on the same subject and basic source. This is not the case of Prof. Waddell at Otani University in Kyoto. His approach is below standards; competitors in the field must be mentioned after what is acceptable and recommended within the scientific and academic community. Haskel's translation has been tailored to readers making their best to find out their way around a genial and easygoing Japanese Zen Master of the 17th century. Bankei is the antidote for those suffering an overdose of Dogen and Hakuin teachings and comments.

I had the good fortune to attend a number of Alan Watts' live talks in the Monterey-Big Sur area during the sixties. Some 35 years later his body of work continues to stimulate my growth and understanding. While Watts never proclaimed any one person as his teacher or guru, the 17th century Zen master Bankei (1622-1693) appears to have been a major influence.

As early as 1950 Watts specifically identifies Bankei as a resource in an article he wrote for the journal of the Buddhist Lodge in England. He quotes Bankei even more profusely in his 1957 opus The Way of Zen. Finally, in his autobiography In My Own Way, published a year before his death in 1973, Watts reveals having spent many hours studying Bankei and elevates him to a representative of "Zen at its best." He said that he referred people to Bankei's observations whenever they accused him of misinterpreting Zen.

I am delighted to find that the teachings of this Zen iconoclast par excellence are available once again in the revised edition of The Unborn: The Life and Teachings of Zen Master Bankei, translated by Norman Waddell. Highly recommended with one caveat: if your feet are firmly planted in orthodoxy, anticipate the appearance of major cracks in your foundation. A retrofit will not necessarily be an option.

A great gem of a book for any seeker. Master Bankei's teachings revolved around the principal that we are all a part of the Unborn-here and now and that once we abide in that no other knowledge or practice is really necessary. His teachings mainly point this out from many angles based on peoples questions and issues at the time. After many years of his own struggle as a seeker he came to the realization that since everything arises from the Unborn we are all Buddhas once we really abide in the Unborn, which is possible NOW without any other knowledge. He felt that seekers distanced themselves from this very direct teaching by doing too many things like working on koans or spending a lot of time reading religious Buddhist texts, all the while missing the Unborn Buddha Mind right now that is always present. It seems hard to believe but Master Bankei very profoundly and intelligently makes a great case for this teaching in this wonderful book. I strongly recommend it. It is along the lines of the teachings of Papaji,Ramana Maharshi, Nisargadatta Maharaj and more recently Eckhart Tolle (The Power of Now & Stillness Speaks).

Of all the ancient masters-Bankei seems to speak the loudest to us in modern times. The Unborn makes this clear due mostly to the wonderfully natural translation Norman Waddell has given us. Bankei had an interesting background in Chinese thought, as most youth of his day, he started out early on reading the Confucian texts. But to Bankei Yotaku, Confucianism wasn't adding up, and so he turned to Zen Buddhism. While his style is primarily that of the Rinzai, he also incorporated Soto ideology as well into his teachings.

Sadly, at Bankei's time, being a Zen priest all too often became a "rank one wears" in society, more for the aristocratic society than for the common layperson. He was a bright beacon and a simple master who spoke to the people, not just the "upper class." This book is essentially a compilation of Dharma talks between Buddhist monks and priests, and himself. People from all over China would come to hear him speak of the Unborn Buddha-mind, which he instructs is always there yet while many don't know of it. It to me speaks of cutting your roots, of realizing though you were bore by your mother, there is also a part of you that remains unborn. Every moment, from moment to moment-you are being born as the Buddha. Zen master Thich Man Giac of modern times held a ceremony in which he handed out flowers to participants. He asked them to place a red flower on their lapel if their mother is still alive, and a white one on if she is dead. Jakusho Kwong -roshi recalls Thich wore a red flower. This he found funny, because Man Giac at this time was very old. So he asked him later how is mother is still alive, and Man Giac answered, "My mother is Kannon Bosatsu." That is essence, is the unborn Buddha-mind.

I hope you enjoy this book!:)

The Unborn: The Life And Teachings Of Zen Master Bankei, 1622-1693 is here presented in a significantly revised and expanded edition containing many talks and dialogues with monks and priests not included when it was first published in 1984. Ably translated for an English speaking readership by Norman Waddell, this superbly presented compendium of illuminative Buddhist wisdom is highly recommended for personal, temple, academic, and community library Buddhist studies collections and reading lists.

What is there to say? The guy is funny. He cannot write a bad sentance or a bad book. This is a favorite of mine dealing with Uncle Fred. Let the car note be a little shy this month and enjoy a true master at his art.

I loved the Jeeves & Wooster books so I was sad when I read the last one. Then I decided to move on to other Wodehouse books and have read a few since. I have to say this is one of my favorites! It definitely compares to the hilarity of the Jeeves/Wooster books. Uncle Fred or the Fifth Earl of Ickenham is one of my favorite Wodehouse characters. He always seems to be dragging his nephew Pongo Twistleton (occasionally mentioned as a fellow Drones club member in the Wooster books) into trouble but always seems to get through it as is typical in the Wodehouse books. Anyway, it is a great read, a good laugh, and a lot of fun. On a side note, if you like Wodehouse, the dvd series of Jeeves and Wooster (starring Hugh Laurie from the tv show House) is also very funny. You will see many of your favorite Jeeves story lines in them and they are very true to Wodehouse.

Professors of literature are fond of writing that the three greatest novelists of the twentieth century are Marcel Proust, Thomas Mann, and James Joyce. In this, they could hardly be more in error. The only contender for the title of the greatest novelist of the twentieth or any other century is P.G. Wodehouse, farceur supreme, or, in plain English, an extraordinarily funny writer.

Wodehouse wrote novels and stories that can be easily classified into several series: there are the Bertie and Jeeves novels and stories, the Blandings Castle novels and stories, the Mr. Mulliner stories, the Uncle Fred novels, etc. The characters from one series rarely appear in another. This novel is an exception. Uncle Fred appears at Blandings Castle, where he poses as Sir Roderick Glossop, normally seen in the Bertie and Jeeves novels (and one story); indeed, he encounters Sir Roderick while traveling to Blandings Castle. Uncle Fred, properly, Frederick Altamont Cornwallis Twistleton, fifth Earl of Ickenham, is a man who "together with a juvenile waistline, . . . still retained the bright enthusiasms and the fresh, unspoiled outlook of a slightly inebriated undergraduate" at the age of sixty or so. It is he who sets in motion the events that enable young lovers to marry and his nephew Pongo to settle his gambling debts. In general, his role is that normally played by Lord Emsworth's younger brother Galahad.

Of course, any reader of Wodehouse novels knows at the start that things will turn out all right for any sundered hearts or frustrated lovers, as he knows that, any time the efficient Baxter appears, he will be discredited despite being thoroughly correct. The fun is in discovering just how it happens.

And what fun it is. Wodehouse's mastery of the English language is unrivaled. He succeeds in producing prose that not only is enjoyable in its own right but also moves events ahead at a pace that is nigh exhausting. In the Bertie and Jeeves novels and stories, it is Bertie's narration that does this. In this novel, it is the dialogue as much as the narration that moves events ahead, establishes the characters, and gives the reader immense pleasure.

This is my very favorite book, and I have been reading it about once a year for the past 15 years or so. I still laugh out loud at every reading. The very complex plot deals with Pongo Twistleton and his Uncle Fred, who visit Blandings Castle as imposters (Sir Roderick Glossip and his secretary, to be exact) in an effort to prevent the Duke of Dunstable from stealing the Empress of Blandings, Lord Emsworth's prize pig, and to keep him from smashing the drawing room furniture with the fireplace poker. Polly Pott (daughter of private investigator Mustard Pott) is also in attendance, pretending to be Sir Roderick's daughter. The story also involves the Duke's two nephews and their romantic problems: It seems Horace Davenport has hired a private investigator (none other than Mustard Pott) to tail his fiancee Valerie (Pongo's sister) and she has called off the engagement as a result, and Ricky's jealousy of his fiancee's attention to cousin Horace has landed him in the onion soup. Money won and lost at Persian Monarchs, the slipping of mickey's into people's drinks, and a Duke who throws eggs at people who whistle The Bonny Bonny Banks of Lock Lomand outside his window add to the hilarity. Of course, Mr. Wodehouse's unique turn-of-phrase doesn't disappoint in this delightful novel. I recommend this book to anyone who seeks diversion from reality. A must-read.

A complete Wodehouse fanatic, I would have trouble giving less that five stars to anything I have read so far. Uncle Fred is a particularly good one to add to the guest room bookshelf----incredibly funny and nice light reading for a few days away from home.

All that and much more can be found in this delightful little book. Broken down into chapters focusing on different geographic regions, Dr. Karl Shuker takes the reader on a wonderful tour of the strange, mysterious and sometimes down right bizarre. Some of the material is thought provoking, other stuff Dr. Shuker openly admits to be hoaxes. Still, this book can provide fun reading for both adults and children, particularly those interested in the paranormal. All the usual things you'd expect are here... ghosts, sea serpents, bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster, Atlantis, crop circles, spontaneous human cumbustion. But there are also plenty of lesser known gems to pick through as well.

The first chapter is focused on Ireland and the British Isles, showing the region's rich heritage of hauntings, alongside the Loch Ness monster, black dogs, spring heeled Jack, alien big cats, stonehenge and stranger things. Next, we delve into historical mysteries of continental Europe, continental Europe like Kasper Hauser, Austria's tatzelwurm, alchemy, the Comte St. Germain, Leonardo da Vinci and the Voynich manuscript. A chapter on Africa and the Middle East explores both Biblical mysteries like the Ark of the Covenant, King Solomon's mines and Noah's ark beside more primal mysteries of the Dark Continent such as dinosaurs in the Congo, man-eating trees in Madagascar, pygmy elephants and strange snakes.

A chapter on Asia explores the mystics and occult lore of the east, such as the Himalayan yeti, fakir magic in India, the Tunguska enigma, the lost city of Shambhala, and Mongolia's death worm. Moving on to Latin America, we get treated to the mysteries of the Aztecs and Inca, Puerto Rico's chupacabra, giant anacondas lurking the Amazon, Voodoo and the crystal skulls of doom. Closer to home, a chapter on North America covers such infamous American phenomena as the Minnesota ice man, thunderbirds, the Marfa lights, Edgar Cayce, the Jersey Devil and alien abductions. A final chapter focuses on Australia and the Pacific, examining sea serpents, Uluru, the Aboriginal Dreamtime, the lost continent of Mu and the survival of the Thylacine.

This stuff is just the tip of the iceberg. The book covers so much other stuff that I don't have time or space to get into here. More obscure stuff that you rarely see in other books, including several photographs which I believe are unique to this book. If your interested in the paranormal, you should probably get this book.

I have more than my share of cryptozoology and paranormal (pity that those two are so often lumped together) texts among my multi-thousand-volume library. Shuker's stands out as a beacon light amid an ocean of foolishness, for his are the words of an objective scientist to truly employs the scientific method and is open to being amazed, not jaded against progress. (By way of contrast, promulgators of the "scientific method" such as CSICOP's Joe Nickell seem utterly unable to approach any mystery with an open mind, declaring it non-mysterious a priori and carefully working backward to those subsets of "the facts" that support their theses.) Shuker weaves a handsome panorama that covers a broad swath of mysteries--ranging from cryptozoological to spectral to religious to geokinetic (I just coined that, but I refer [hopefully obviously] to rocks that move by themselves and that sort of thing)--and does so in a unique and refreshing continent-by-continent basis, giving the feel of a gazetteer with frequent, detailed sidebars. Bravo, Dr. Shuker, for a job well conceived and expertly realized. I shall treasure your balanced portrayal for years to come.

All that and much more can be found in this delightful little book. Broken down into chapters focusing on different geographic regions, Dr. Karl Shuker takes the reader on a wonderful tour of the strange, mysterious and sometimes down right bizarre. Some of the material is thought provoking, other stuff Dr. Shuker openly admits to be hoaxes. Still, this book can provide fun reading for both adults and children, particularly those interested in the paranormal. All the usual things you'd expect are here... ghosts, sea serpents, bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster, Atlantis, crop circles, spontaneous human cumbustion. But there are also plenty of lesser known gems to pick through as well.

The first chapter is focused on Ireland and the British Isles, showing the region's rich heritage of hauntings, alongside the Loch Ness monster, black dogs, spring heeled Jack, alien big cats, stonehenge and stranger things. Next, we delve into historical mysteries of continental Europe, continental Europe like Kasper Hauser, Austria's tatzelwurm, alchemy, the Comte St. Germain, Leonardo da Vinci and the Voynich manuscript. A chapter on Africa and the Middle East explores both Biblical mysteries like the Ark of the Covenant, King Solomon's mines and Noah's ark beside more primal mysteries of the Dark Continent such as dinosaurs in the Congo, man-eating trees in Madagascar, pygmy elephants and strange snakes.

A chapter on Asia explores the mystics and occult lore of the east, such as the Himalayan yeti, fakir magic in India, the Tunguska enigma, the lost city of Shambhala, and Mongolia's death worm. Moving on to Latin America, we get treated to the mysteries of the Aztecs and Inca, Puerto Rico's chupacabra, giant anacondas lurking the Amazon, Voodoo and the crystal skulls of doom. Closer to home, a chapter on North America covers such infamous American phenomena as the Minnesota ice man, thunderbirds, the Marfa lights, Edgar Cayce, the Jersey Devil and alien abductions. A final chapter focuses on Australia and the Pacific, examining sea serpents, Uluru, the Aboriginal Dreamtime, the lost continent of Mu and the survival of the Thylacine.

This stuff is just the tip of the iceberg. The book covers so much other stuff that I don't have time or space to get into here. More obscure stuff that you rarely see in other books, including several photographs which I believe are unique to this book. If your interested in the paranormal, you should probably get this book.

All that and much more can be found in this delightful little book. Broken down into chapters focusing on different geographic regions, Dr. Karl Shuker takes the reader on a wonderful tour of the strange, mysterious and sometimes down right bizarre. Some of the material is thought provoking, other stuff Dr. Shuker openly admits to be hoaxes. Still, this book can provide fun reading for both adults and children, particularly those interested in the paranormal. All the usual things you'd expect are here... ghosts, sea serpents, bigfoot, the Loch Ness monster, Atlantis, crop circles, spontaneous human cumbustion. But there are also plenty of lesser known gems to pick through as well.

The first chapter is focused on Ireland and the British Isles, showing the region's rich heritage of hauntings, alongside the Loch Ness monster, black dogs, spring heeled Jack, alien big cats, stonehenge and stranger things. Next, we delve into historical mysteries of continental Europe, continental Europe like Kasper Hauser, Austria's tatzelwurm, alchemy, the Comte St. Germain, Leonardo da Vinci and the Voynich manuscript. A chapter on Africa and the Middle East explores both Biblical mysteries like the Ark of the Covenant, King Solomon's mines and Noah's ark beside more primal mysteries of the Dark Continent such as dinosaurs in the Congo, man-eating trees in Madagascar, pygmy elephants and strange snakes.

A chapter on Asia explores the mystics and occult lore of the east, such as the Himalayan yeti, fakir magic in India, the Tunguska enigma, the lost city of Shambhala, and Mongolia's death worm. Moving on to Latin America, we get treated to the mysteries of the Aztecs and Inca, Puerto Rico's chupacabra, giant anacondas lurking the Amazon, Voodoo and the crystal skulls of doom. Closer to home, a chapter on North America covers such infamous American phenomena as the Minnesota ice man, thunderbirds, the Marfa lights, Edgar Cayce, the Jersey Devil and alien abductions. A final chapter focuses on Australia and the Pacific, examining sea serpents, Uluru, the Aboriginal Dreamtime, the lost continent of Mu and the survival of the Thylacine.

This stuff is just the tip of the iceberg. The book covers so much other stuff that I don't have time or space to get into here. More obscure stuff that you rarely see in other books, including several photographs which I believe are unique to this book. If your interested in the paranormal, you should probably get this book.

Let me cut to the chase. If the reader is sceptical of the paranormal, this book is a good place to start. Karl Shuker, who actually has a Ph.D. in zooloogy, dissects many of the popular and forgotten mysteries from places all over the world, and from magazines like the dubious Fate and the more credible Fortean Times. He takes the cases, lays out the facts and comes to conclusions by graciously mentioning the scientific evidence and comparing it against what has been said elsewhere and what he witnessed. And if the explanations are too abstruse, then he will entertain with his mordant wit. A competent book in a normally incompetent field.

( If this book appeals to your tastes, I would further recommend Karl Shuker's other books, especially "From Flying Toads to Snakes with Wings" which specializes in mysterious animals, the works of Bernard Heuyvelmans, the father of cryptozoology, Ivan T. Sanderson, and Janet and Colin Bord. Most of the other people in the field are really amateurish tin horns (e.g. Budd Hopkins and Whitley Striebert) who are convinced they are doing the work of God. The aforementioned authors are cool and objective in an area rife with hoaxes and misinformation.)

Excellent little book. The "Vision" section is primarily pictures that are representative of different topics. The "Vow" section is excellent reading and offers a really insightful view of the Christian life.

This book has helped me to see my Christian walk in a way I never saw it before. I have been challenged and changed by the words of this book. It is time to start living the Vision for Christ instead of playing church. Don't read the Vision and the Vow if you're not ready to be challenged for Christ.

This is an excellent book exploring what it means to be fully committed to Jesus Christ in our current world. It explores everything from grace to holiness to our commission to take the gospel to the world. The call to prayer and intimate relationship with God is set in line with the call to be outward meeting the practial and spiritual needs of the hurting. This book is definitely worth the time. It actually surprised me how good it is. Pete Greig writes in a very natural and honest style and is very easy to read and identify with.

I have ordered over 20 copies of "Red Moon Rising" to distribute to Christian friends--all responses have been positive. I purchased "The Vision and the Vow" just to see what Pete Grieg was currently thinking. I found it powerful and persuasive--count me in. It is the rare book I want to give to a very gifted, capable, unconventional non-Christian who understandably can't get interested in "normal" Christianity.

The vision and the vow - pete greig

Not being someone who's been into the whole 24-7 thing massively I haven't read any of pete grieg's stuff before. I've been amazed and impacted by some of the truths of coming back to a life of sacrifice and love for God.

The book is not a natural contender for a recommendation on the ignite web site because towards the end it suggests you think about taking a vow of commitment to love Jesus, be kind to others and spread the gospel in other nations. It's not miles away from our own ignite declaration we encourage you to take but in all honesty we're into building God's kingdom and want to recommend this one to you because we believe it may inspire you.

The book has roughly five sections, firstly a fabulous chapter about Jesus that I've loved and that the vision, from the 247 stuff is actually Jesus and then some of how that works out in real life for us people living in the 21st century. The Vision in these pages connected somewhere in my heart with a desire that longs to live "dangerously, obsessively and undeniably" for Jesus. My favourite part of the book is called "summon the losers", identifying that no one is too bad, broken or boring to be used by God. I've used it as a great framework for some talks I've been doing in Christian unions across Cardiff. Those chapters, and in fact the whole book is packed with great stories and illustrations about us growing up into maturity with our relationship with God, a call to discipleship and some of the "how to" help that is most valuable.

Students always ask: How do you do that? Why can't I do this like you do? My answer is usually "Dedicate your life and practice, practice, practice!" This book explains it all.

Sensei Klein doesn't lie: Achieving Martial Arts excellence isn't easy--but it IS attainable. He breaks down the mental, physical and spiritual aspects of technique, then puts it all back together again to describe from experience, what technique is when the three planes become one. How a technique is properly thrown? How to achieve balance? Its all in there. By using vivid descriptions rather than pictures, Sensei Klein has created a book that students and Masters of any and all styles can learn and improve from. He breaks down fear and how to overcome it. He shows us how to clear the mind so that the body and spirit can create the speed and power necessary for even a person of small stature can defend themselves against larger adversaries. And through it all are pearls of wisdom about life mastery. "If your life isn't balanced, neither will your Karate be; if your Karate isn't balanced, neither will your life be." But read it for yourself!

This book is on my mandatory reading lists for my students from 5th kyu through yudansha. I find it the best book on explaining the "why" Sensei do what they do, think like they think, and teach like they teach. It also refocuses sensei to "remember" what it is that they are doing. This book gives insight and understanding to every martial arts practitioner on the way that it "should be" and is in traditional karate training. I applaud Mr. Klein and hope to see other books by him. Buy it.

There is linear (external) balance and non-linear (internal) balance; there's speed, power and focus, from a physical standpoint and a mental/spiritual standpoint. In years of study, one would be lucky to learn all of this in just one of these standpoints--not just because they're taught differently, but because their backgrounds are different. OR SO I THOUGHT! In this book, Sensei Klein teaches us that the internal and external are parts of each other, that one leads to another, that one can compliment another. And the result is truly LEARNING EXCELLENCE. He also discusses how teachers and Sensei can be better communicators, and how students can be better learners. The book isn't all philosophy, either: Sensei Klein gives exercises to improve ourselves physically and mentally, and it works. I am a better Sensei AND student today, for having read this book. Good job!

Rarely do we hear teachers talk about the relationship between Martial Arts and life, that balance in one is not possible without balance in the other--and that a life lived in balance, in our work, relationships and Art, is walking the path of the Sensi. This book does just that--while teaching the reader the truths about the mental, physical and spiritual aspects of Martial Arts excellence, it is almost also a "self-help" book about life. A life lived in excellence is not solely a product of practice; its practice and honor, integrity, passion, compassion, humility and confidence and self-respect. Anyone who reads this book will come away with precious tools for excelling in their Art--and if they're smart and read the book closely, they'll come away with precious tools for living a full and happy life. Here are the words of a great Master, and I recommend that anyone who took the time to read my words read the words of this Master in this book.

Sensei Klein has offered us the tools to walk the path of martial arts excellence by taking the three basic elements--mental, physical and spiritual, explaining them, then melding them into a clear conceptualization of the practical application of chi, focus and technique--so that the student becomes not a fighter, but a true master of their art. A true master is someone who is difficult to best, but while he is besting you, he is also teaching you how to become like him. Sensei Klein took great care not to cross the line of opinion into platform, which makes the book valuable to people of any style, but in reading between the lines, one can see that this is a man who walks the path of the internal warrior, and I would have liked to read his insights on the deeper aspects of internal martial arts concepts. Hopefully, he'll offer us another book where he takes us to that even higher level of excellence. Still, even if Sensei Klein does write such a book, it would best be read only if you read this book first, as this lays down the foundation we all need to walk the path of a Sensei.

Professor Richard Heitzenrater's "Wesley and the People Called Methodist" (1995) is destined to be come a Christian classic. This well-informed text (citing 100s of sources by the helpful "scientific notation" sourcing system) tells the story of 18th century Methodism. Throughout Heitzenrater fills-in many blanks not mentioned in other histories.

Heitzenrater provides a multitude of black and white pictures, maps, graphs, and charts to make his careful and convincing points. Beginning his narrative just prior to John Wesley's birth, the author moves to the high points of Wesley's life. We hear about his Oxford University days, his failed mission to Georgia, his Aldersgate conversion experience, the origins of Wesley's field preaching, the organization of the Methodist societies in London and across England, Wesley's concern for the souls and bodies of his people, the establishment of Methodism's first health clinic and school, Wesley's opinion about the ordinations of 1784, recruiting Methodist ministers, and much more. This book offers much to the reader.

The book also documents 18th century English living conditions, mortality rates, population wide ignorance, the English fear of a Franco-type revolution, Anglican unconcern for mass poverty and disease, and royal ignorance, pomp, and avarice. (Wesley remained loyal to his English king to the very end.) Heitzenrater presents the founder of Methodism from Wesley's own hand (he reviews many primary source documents penned by Mr. Wesley). From many of his sermons we learn Wesley's theologies of justification, sanctification and glorification. We are taught that, by the end, the senior English churchman rode over 100,000 miles on horseback through his long career. The book makes one feel as a witness to the English 18th century.

Heitzenrater's novelistic style makes this informative text an easy read. Its six chapters (338 paperback pages) bring 18th century England alive. It is history at its best as Heitzenrater answers many questions about the period. This book is very recommendable. Order your copy soon.

This was a well-written book that I am priveledged to have been introduced to. It is easy to read and carries one smoothly through the life of John Wesley from the rise of Methodism to the stage set for it's continued success folllwing his death in 1891. For any seminary student it is a must read. For any Methodist it is foundational to who you are as such. To any Christian it will be a blessing.

Heitzenrater's book is the best single-volume work on Wesley. He has, in an accessible prose, documented Wesley's life and the foundations of the Methodist Movement better than anyone before him. It utilizes the sources that are the foundation of the older biographies, such as Wesley's journal. More importantly, however, it effectively utilizes nontraditional sources for understanding his life. He creatively and effectively uses Wesley's theological writings, the writings of contemporaries, and conference minutes to more fully tell Wesley's story.

Heitzenrater is the Albert C. Outler Chair of Wesleyan Studies at Duke Divinity School. He is widely recognized as the foremost expert on Wesley's life. He is also the current editor of the Works of Wesley; he has taken that role since Outler's death.

Dr. Heitzenrater has written one of the very best books on the life and ministry of John Wesley and the early Methodists. This book is simply a "MUST READ" for any United Methodist or anyone else, for that matter, who is interested in the teachings and ministry of Wesley and his world-shaking Christian reform movement. Few books are must reads ... this is one of them.

This book has to be on the list of the top twenty-five books on early Methodism and the lives of early Methodist's. However, the book has a particular dryness, and if one get past the dryness of the writing, this book is a must get for anyone wanting to explore the history of early Methodist's. Heitzenrater begins with John Wesley's impact on early Methodist's to the different rises of Methodism, the impact of Calvinism on early 18th century Methodist's, and how Methodism evolved through the development of different societies, classes, camp ground meetings and conferences which helped to secure Methodism into the social and religous fabric of British life. This book is great for anyone wishing to discover the roots of Methodism, becuase of it's rich historical details. Another great addition to the book, which helped to clear up the dryness of the reading, was the authors use of visual aids (great examples), and sidenotes of John Wesley's work. This book is a great historical door to the past, and a must read for anyone wishing to discover more about, "The people called Methodist."

I bought this book as a gift for my cousin who is a Veterinarian in Italy. He LOVED IT. Wine - Dogs, how could an Italian Veterinarian not put this out in his office lobby.

This book is very enjoyable. It would make a great gift for someone who loves wine and dogs! :)

This book is a treasure and great gift for any dog lover. Pictures are beautiful and descriptions are humorous.

This was a Christmas gift for a dog-loving friend who also loves wine. She loved all the great photos in the book! I was initially dissapointed at the size of the book (did not look closely enough at the description and thought it would be a full-sized coffee-table book), but in the end that really didn't matter. Would highly recommend it!

This book is one of the cutest books I have seen in a long time - it really makes you smile! I love going to wineries, and now I am going to pick wineries based on the dogs in the book!

Whether this work perfectly parallels the expoits of the character's real lives, should not be of concern. This book is beautifully written, with a literary gem on almost every page. It is one, if not the best book I have read in 10 years. What a shame it has not gotten more attention.

I have had no interest in literary interpretations of the world until I read this book. Here I found other lives struggling with the same staleness of mathematics and logic and their implications that I could not escape. I found lives exemplifying the difficulties of pitting one's factual evidence against human assumptions. I found, that is, that my own life is not so different as it's felt.

Well done, Duffy.

I bought this book in 1988. It then got buried under tons of other books until I unearthed it this weekend. What a great find. Rich characters, engaging prose...a thoroughly satisfying read. At 500+ pages, I'll admit it's a bit overwritten, but once you get going it's difficult to put down. Ranks up there with "In the Memory of the Forest" as gripping and memorable. Go work out really hard, take a hot shower, then grab an herbal tea and melt into its pages.

Surprisingly readable, given the subject matter, and from an author who obviously loves to write. This quality seems less than apparent in many books, but Duffy, I felt, took great time and applied careful skill in making his characters emerge on the page as recognizably full-fledged people. Whether the clumsy and appealing, if fanatic and mysterious Max; Ottoline's bony limbs; Wittgenstein's trench nemesis Grundfeldt; Russell's liberated flapper DD and her dentist father from the Illinois prairies the philosopher visits in a wonderful chapter; DH Lawrence's fulminations about blood knowledge; Moore's gustatory enthusiasm when dining at Hall; or Russell's attempts to write an article for Parents' Magazine on "Are Parents Bad for Children" while trying to seduce yet another lissome lass and take care of his failing marriage, faltering children, and chaotic progressive school--this book's most engrossing.

Especially noteworthy are Duffy's depictions of trench warfare as Wittgenstein might have experienced it in WW1. I didn't expect that the relatively brief part of the philosopher's life would be so much a part of this novel. It serves, once you finish and can see the whole work completed, as the titular centerpiece and the fulcrum for so much of his subsequent reactions to the middle of the 20c. I had recently read Sebastian Barry's Booker Prize-nominated novel "A Long Long Way From Home," and while Duffy spends less than his whole novel on the hell endured on the Western Front, he gives a variety of vividly rendered scenes that match Barry at his best--no mean feat for Duffy's not a professional full-time writer, apparently, and this was his first novel. The depictions of war are simply and terrifyingly superb.

While I had difficulty even with the simplified explanations of Wittgenstein's thought, I confess, full comprehension of them may well be beyond any of us. W's own battles with his homosexuality, his family history of suicide, and his Christian ideals vs. his Jewish heritage make for engrossing material that eases the challenge of keeping up with W's ratiocinations. Duffy shows dramatically W's refusal to start a circle of fawning disciples or imitators of his notoriously challenging thought-experiments and investigations into what does and does not underly logic. Perhaps even Moore and Russell, as shown when they conduct the viva voce doctoral exam of W., cannot understand their candidate either.

The novel is not perfect; the latter chapters especially after WW2 appear rushed and the author seems winded by so much previous exertion on behalf of his complicated characters. The first section takes place around 1912; the wartime is largely early in WW1, and the latter part is around 1938 for the most part. Appended to this are detours back and forward in time that expand W's family history. It may sound cumbersome, yet it gives you enough of a context for each period to feel that you can find your way around.

Somehow over so many thousands of sentences, Duffy manages to avoid cliche, to write fresh and efficient prose, and to take the reader into a series of realms that would have seemed the least likely areas that a novelist would want to explore, let alone re-create over 500 densely printed pages. It took me most of a week's free time to read this, and it flows best when you have a few hours straight to immerse yourself in it. It's a novel that works by association, accruing patiently the rewards that pay off for the thinkers if not always their long-suffering supporting casts of lovers, relations, colleagues, and spouses.

The reason for so much reasoning gradually grows as the novel continues; you will begin to understand at least a bit how everyday life impinges upon and stimulates rarified speculation. This happens subtly, as it does in reality, and may take the space of hundreds of pages to connect, but it will cohere--for the most part, which is quite an accomplishment for a book that aspires to not only enlightenment but sophisticated entertainment. The novel does take its slow time to warm up; get beyond the first hundred pages, and know that with the middle section, part two, "The World as I Found It" will start to deepen its spell.

I certainly wasn't hampered in my enjoyment of this book by a lack of familiarity with (or, until now, interest in) twentieth-century philosophy. "The World as I Found It" taught me what makes a great fictional characters: such compassion and detail that I feel I know them as I know myself. Duffy's Wittgenstein, Russell, and Moore are forged from such different materials and live such different lives. But their struggles and motivations are painted in such rich detail that I intimately recognized the humanity in each of them. Great writing.

This book is an excellent way to determine a beginning program in terms of effort and time and a logical method how to progress without burning out. It has some questionaires, but don't be put off by the arithmetic. The charts determining your VO2 are accurate (correleated with my 1 1/2 run time) and the method of determining your first weeks target number and the increase for each week, helps you from being too lazy or pushing not hard enough. However it would have been good if the chart on the VO2 had been supplemented with a percentage(%) maximum heart rate chart, but the % heart rate and the correlated VO2 can be found on the web. In short, the point system is far superior to the Aerobic Points from the Ken Coopers books.

The biggest benefit this book gave me was a reasonable, sensible goal. Without some kind of measurable goal (in this case, meeting the minimum number of exercise points per week), you have nothing to measure yourself against and I always felt I wasn't doing enough! Now, when I've done my exercise for the week and I don't feel like getting up on Saturday morning, I just crawl back into bed! And it's working! Without changing my diet I've lost 10 pounds over the last month, just by using my stationary bicycle, hiking, and exercise videos.

This is a great book. It illustrates the fundamental theories of health and excercise in a rational straight foward way. Also all the scientific proof is written in the book for the cynics. The point system may not be a favourite for everyone but once you get the gist of the program and start analysing food labels for yourself it is really easy to add in a few more exotic foods. It is very simple to keep track of what you have eaten and how much energy you have expended without having to anlalyse everything you do during the day. One point that may be relevant to note is the ratio that foods should be consumed in. Like all books, it is biased towards the authors background. Body builders like weider and bill phillips recommend far larger meat intakes than this book. This book also focusses on having a greater complex carbohydrate intake than some newer books.

This is the closest thing to an idiot-proof fitness plan out there; trust me, I should know. Before I started using this book, I was overweight and not very fit. In school I was the kid who hated gym class and faked doctor's notes to get out of it. Over the years I had tried and failed at lots of fitness regimens. Then a friend gave me this book, saying it had worked for her. A year later I have slimmed down and I feel a lot stronger and more energetic. This may sound like a cheesy testimonial, but it's true. What's great is that the author, Dr. Richard Brown, uses the same plan with the Olympic athletes he coaches -- it is entirely customized to your level of fitness and your goals.

Under this plan, any exercise counts -- from scrubbing floors to Tae-Bo to sailing -- because you rate the effort yourself according to an easy-to-use scale (no heart-rate monitoring). The main point is to choose something you enjoy, the reasoning being that you'll be more likely to stick with it that way. I get my points mostly from walking, stationary cycling, and a strength-training video workout, but I can just as easily figure out my effort for the occasional day of hiking or swimming in the ocean. Even if you don't keep track of your points, you can still use the general principles to pace yourself. The result for me was that I didn't burn out the way I had on other plans, because I was doing exactly the right amount of exercise, and I started noticing the benefits right away. I'd like to thank the author: L.E.A.P. is quite an achievement.

The hardest part of exercise is getting started. This program really helps because it makes every little bit count. You can start by doing lite exercise and move up to more strenuous workouts. If you are already in shape and exercising regularly, you can also benefit. I found the point system fun -- kind of like taking a quiz in a magazine.