Product Description
The eagerly awaited new book from the Emmy-winning, Oscar-hosting, Daily Show-anchoring Jon Stewart--the man behind the megaseller America (The Book).

Where do we come from? Who created us? Why are we here? These questions have puzzled us since the dawn of time, but when it became apparent to Jon Stewart and the writers of The Daily Show that the world was about to end, they embarked on a massive mission to write a book that summed up the human race: What we looked like; what we accomplished; our achievements in society, government, religion, science and culture -- all in a tome of approximately 256 pages with lots of color photos, graphs and charts.

After two weeks of hard work, they had their book.EARTH (The Book) is the definitive guide to our species.With their trademark wit, irreverence, and intelligence, Stewart and his team will posthumously answer all of life's most hard-hitting questions, completely unburdened by objectivity, journalistic integrity, or even accuracy.

Also available as an ebook and as an audiobook. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (89)

Great if you are a fan of the Daily Show
'Earth' is super funny and a great satire but comes out as a bit irresponsible.. worth a read..

Earth is amazing
It is hilarious... You learn new and not so new things... It's got a great balance of factual and funny information. I love this book... It doesn't hurt that I love Jon Stewart either.:) buy this book and you won't be disappointed.

A comedic anthropology textbook?
A narrowly-focused work which can be summarized as "a cynical and satirical perspective on life, the universe and everything." In other words, bite-sized morsels of snark served up smorgasbord-style, tackling topics ranging from the seemingly mundane ("Flora and Fauna") to the more politically charged (e.g. the Walmartization of commerce, religion, and sexuality).

Offers a distinctly Yuppie-ish view of the world with the occasional bit of potty (or pornographical) humor thrown in. So, not really designed for consumption by children under age 12, the elderly, or the faint-of-heart social conservative (a.k.a. "uptight person"). In contrast with many fun activities, however, there are no restrictions on pregnant women participating.

Disclaimers aside, most mature (but not OVERLY mature) members of the millenial generations will almost certainly laugh out loud at least a few times per chapter, and might even (gasp!) learn something new about the world we inhabit... for now and as long as we can keep it inhabitable, as "Earth" will frequently remind you!

Rating Scale
Rate Jon Stewart 1-5 (1 being the lowest)
5 - Damn good book, I'm going to read it again
4 - Good book, I'll buy it second hand
3 - Borrow it from a friend
2 - Why are you looking up Jon Stewart?
1 - A MUST BUY!! TO BURN!!

Disappointed with Earth Book
I am a big fan of the Daily Show and Jon Stewart, therefore I quickly bought the Earth Book.It didn't strike me as funny, but the same humor as a 10 year old.Not up to his usual humor. ... Read more

Product Description
From #1 New York Times bestselling author Ken Follett comes this spellbinding epic set in twelfth-century England. The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of the lives entwined in the building of the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has ever known-and a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1633)

For such a thick tome, it'svery thin
Follett knows how to tell a story - he's good at plotting and it's a fascinating historical period. Lucky for me it's a period I'm not knowledgeable about, so the obvious historical anachronisms were not too difficult to overlook. I found it impossible to overlook, though, that this should have been so much more. Part of the fun of reading historical fiction is being transported to another era, but there is so little care taken with description - Follett seems to forget that readers have five senses. After reading 1,000 pages, I should know at least a little about what Kingsbridge smelled like, what they ate, what their clothing looked and felt like, what sounds pervaded in the background of daily life, etc., but I don't know much beyond what a few structures looked like. I had to invent details to fill the gaps, and when it comes to an historical epic I resent having to create the world myself.

If you love cliches, read this book!
I came to read this book through a friend who gave it to me as a present. Dutifully I read this book, not expecting too much and I was not disappointed.
This book is set in the middle ages. The plot revolves around the building of a cathedral under the reign of Prior Phillip. He is supported by a varied cast of characters, with Jack and Aliena being the main heroes of this book, she the daughter of a disgraced Earl and he the bastard son of a French itinerant entertainer. The bad guys are William, a rapist and murderer and the bad Bishop. In the end - good wins over evil.
So much for content.
Why is this a bad book? Firstly the characters are all stock characters reflecting our 20th centuries sensibilities. The good witch. The evil bishop. The kindly monk. The 'idiot savant' etc. etc.
Secondly the story is very predictable and mostly told in a flat and boring narrative. There are few cliches or stock phrases which Follett is not using. Bosoms are heaving, swords are mighty, faces grim. The bad are truly bad and the good truly good. There are no shades of grey.
If I were to point out the logical and historical inconcistencies I would have to write here a novel as long as this book. Yet - how long can a woman survive in the wild on a diet of mostly apples? Even though the middle ages were more tolerant of witches than commonly assumed, how long could a woman walk around and slaughter chicken in public places as part of a witch ritual before the authorities would have taken steps about it? Moder Anglosaxon prudery might think the sexual endavours described in the book to be tittilating, but the Middle Ages were not that prudish. Therefore the constant astonishment of the onlookers in the book on seeing sex, bare breasts etc., is more a proof of modern inhibitions. And, by the way, why are bosoms always heaving? The lurid prose of the sex scenes reminds me of the cheap novels with their colorful title pages sold at supermarket counters in former times.
The speech patterns and way of thinking were clearly 20th century.Yes, one can and maybe if should write historical novel in suitable modern prose, rather than assuming a pseudo-historical way of speech. But with this novel I was constantly worried that one of the characters would suddenly exclaim 'Gosh' or say 'OMG'.
Strong women abound in this book, a sort of 'women's lib' set in mediaeval times. This already grates. But obviously for a woman to be strong she must be one of the following: hideous and evil or raped noblemans daughter or a witch.
If at least the book were well written. But blandly the language rolls on and on and on, like endless grey waves.
All in all it is anjoyable in the same way a dime novel is enjoyable.

I can't say enough bad (past spoilers repeated)
I wasn't put off by the anachronistic dialogue, I had heard in advance that the author uses "modern" speech in this novel, so I was prepared. I didn't find the characters one-or-two-dimensional. I didn't mind all the colons, or all the saids. I didn't throw the heavy thing at my wall when the pretty lady from the woods gave surprise sex to the starving, snoozing builder just hours after he'd buried his wife and left his newborn child atop the grave to be eaten by wolves. The author gave me a LOT to accept, digest, and go along with, but I did it. I kept reading, and just accepting, until the middle of the book. From there, this "story" (one reviewer called it a "train wreck," and so do I!) nose-dived into nonsense, and my entire emotional investment was thrown in my face, page after worsening page until, a few dozen pages from the all-fired ENDING, I peeked to be sure the villain died, slammed it shut, and hurled it at the wall so hard I can now drive my car through the giant hole, into my living room. (FIGURATIVELY.)

I'll never know whether Waleran got his comeuppance, whether Walter got his, or precisely what William finally got hanged FOR. I couldn't ferret out that information in my scan of the last 30 or 40 pages of "asdf jkl;" which was all there was to the story by then, just typing, typing, and more typing. This story coulda and shoulda been told in 400 pages or less.

The author couldn't even remember what he'd said in the first half to carry it over to the second half. He couldn't remember from paragraph to paragraph, and this ham-fisted failing compounded the horrible inequities he imposed on the story and its characters. He was all tell, tell, tell, retell, and tell again differently, but never show, the most presumptuous of all writing styles. Prior Phillip and the monks "cannot witness or take part in bloodshed or violence, it is not allowed!" says our author. Except that he also says Prior Phillip and the monks CAN and DO flog each other, themselves, and wrongdoers in the community, gang up and forcibly throw disobedient novices into cells to sit and rot, and Prior Phillip, as "lord," is in charge of hangings which he would "carry out whenever necessary." He was such a "great guy" for buying Aliena's wool at the market that day. Never mind that all the wool he'd brought to market that day came from sheep on land he stole from her!

Like many, I objected to the nature of the rape scenes. There was a jarring sense that the author was getting off on the salacious details of these prolonged, repeated scenes. I got SICK of William hurting women, time and again, it went on soooooo long, and just keeeeept happening. Nobody fired an arrow at William from the trees as he rode all around with his "knights" (his kuh-nigits), nope, he just kept raping, burning, stealing, slasher-killing, face-slapping, raping some more, threatening to rape again, law scorning, and then showing up at church for saints' days with his momma and the nasty ole bishop, all of them purportedly untouchable.

The nasty ole bishop, purportedly, was acting all along out of a belief that anything goes as long as it's "for God" or "for the Church." BS! He was clearly an atheist, exclusively self-serving in his ambitions. There were no bones about that. Why tell it two different ways? And what about King Stephen? He imprisons and kills Earl Batholomew, leaves Bart's kids to the fates, but when anyone else crosses or betrays him (William, let's say), he's "too forgiving of his enemies," poor guy, and lets it slide time and again, while inexplicably not restoring Richard who was SHOWN to fight more bravely than any other man he had. And Maud? Not restoring Richard's and Aliena's legacy to them, not punishing William, while she could? Instead, she rewarded William, who had taken out her man, Bartholomew. Nonsense! INFURIATING nonsense!

The Pillars of the Earth is the worse novel I have ever read, hands down. I said that I can't say enough bad, and I meant it. The above isn't even a start! I have not even TOUCHED on what I did not like about this overrated mess of a book that claims sales and fame while great novels languish and go out of print.

Something new to hate about it, though: the crazed reactions of readers who loved it to any negative review of it. They are irrational, as if you were hurting their child, not critiquing a book.

I came away loathing Prior Phillip and despising the cathedral. I believe my reaction is not only sane, but a sanity test, which I passed. Prior Phillip was a selfish, egotistical, sly and dishonest man, and for me, the villain of this story. Everything bad that happened, except the convenient death of Tom's wife, was Phillip's fault, beginning with his and his brother's political meddling. I waited and waited, for 800+ pages I waited, for Phillip to feel contrition over all the human misery and far-reaching chaos he had caused. It never happened. Instead, Phillip grew more and more in love with himself, and considered more and more of his victims to be indebted to HIM, even unto cleverly sending young Richard to his death in the end. I cannot express how I hated him for that, and so much else, all because the first half was readable enough to claim a HUGE emotional investment from me. The book was unworthy of even a fraction of what I was ready to give it.

The "winding up of loose ends" was pat and disgusting. Ken Follett, you should be hoss-whipped for that alone, and ridden out of author-town on a rail, coated with tar and feathers.

Prior Phillip was a hypocrit, a grasping, priggish, self-seeking monster of a little man, whose brother Francis was no less than a traitor, and I believe that the author knows it, that he intended it, and is waiting for just ONE READER to finally get it.

Well, I DO.

(This too: The inclusion/incorporation of the murder of Thomas Becket was presumptuous beyond belief. I am still agape.)

An excellent read
Received book in good time.It is filled with wonderful characters, and is an enjoyable reading experience.

The Pillars of the Earth
An excellent story set in 12th Century England.Follett does a great job of describing the religion, politics and society of this interesting time in history and he does it with fascinating well developed characters.If you like historical fiction and have an interest in the middle ages you will love this book.Stick with it because it gets better and better as the pages go by. ... Read more

Product Description
J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of Babylon 5, joins forces with rising star artist Shane Davis (SUPERMAN/BATMAN: THE SEARCH FOR KRYPTONITE) to create this original graphic novel that gives new insight into Clark Kent’s transformation into Superman and his first year as The Man of Steel. This is the first in a new wave of original DC Universe graphic novels, featuring top writers’ and illustrators’ unique takes on DC characters.Amazon.com Review

From Superman: Earth One
Click on the images below to open larger sample pages.

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Customer Reviews (17)

What a pleasant surprise!
I've always loved comics, The DCU & everything in between but I have never picked up an actual comic book until this one. As a brand new first time reader, I absolutely loved the story & I will be picking up a lot more stories from now, thanks to Superman: Earth One. :-)

Very enjoyable
I have to say that Superman: Earth One delivered what I was hoping for.It's a great retelling of Superman finding his calling and what makes him tick.The art was great and I really to like the binding.This book has a hard cover and has a good binding.Paper is great too.Overall, I'm really happy with this book.I'm not a hardcore fan of Superman so I can't get into the continuity of the story line.But regardless of the past, this is a great place to start.I hope that we'll see more bound graphic novels like this one in the future.

It has its moments...
Superman: Earth One is a good retelling of the origins, but nothing in particularly special. I do recommend it, it has some very touching moments. If you're looking for a good and contemporary retelling of the Superman origin, "Superman: Secret Origins" by Geoff Johns is very good; "Superman: Birthright" by Mark Waid is also very good and the BRILLIANT "Superman: For All Season" -- buy this for the artwork alone. If you're looking for a great reinterpretation of the Superman mythology, "Superman: Secret Identity" by Kurt Busiek (which has BEAUTIFUL artwork) is spectacular and "It's Superman! A Novel" by Tom de Haven is excellent.

An absolutely brilliant Superman story is "All-Star Superman" by Grant Morrison.

I think newer readers to Superman will get more of a kick out of Earth One than the hardcore fans. I don't wish to hint at anything, so I hope you guys enjoy! :D

A "Modern" Take On Superman!
I was anticipating this graphic novel since I saw the cover art. This is a more modern approach to the Man of Steel. I think it is a great take on it. The story is pretty good, I won't say it's just amazing, but it's a great starting point for anyone wanting to start reading Superman. You get to know everything you need to know about Clark before he turns into Superman. This book introduces a new villain, "Tyrell", who I found pretty cool, he has an awesome design. Shane Davis' art is BRILLIANT. One of the highlights of this book. I actually like the way they explain Krypton explodes in the book, it makes sense.

Anyways, that's enough rambling. 5/5

Interesting Take
I found the story interesting as it followed John Byrne's Man of Steel approach.It basically stripped all the Silver Age trappings down to the Golden Age origin in order to build it back up to modern times.However, it had a slightly younger view as Clark Kent was only twenty years old.It would have been better for him to be past his mid-twenties, but I guess JMS was going for the "Smallville" feel.Also, did the villain remind anyone of Lobo in terms of his appearance and attitude?Moreover, I thought the tech executive was a dig at Tony Stark.Finally, I liked the art with its "Ultimate Superman" feel. ... Read more

Product Description
Richard Dawkins transformed our view of God in his blockbuster, The God Delusion, which sold more than 2 million copies in English alone. He revolutionized the way we see natural selection in the seminal bestseller The Selfish Gene. Now, he launches a fierce counterattack against proponents of "Intelligent Design" in his latest New York Times bestseller, The Greatest Show on Earth. "Intelligent Design" is being taught in our schools; educators are being asked to "teach the controversy" behind evolutionary theory. There is no controversy. Dawkins sifts through rich layers of scientific evidence—from living examples of natural selection to clues in the fossil record; from natural clocks that mark the vast epochs wherein evolution ran its course to the intricacies of developing embryos; from plate tectonics to molecular genetics—to make the airtight case that "we find ourselves perched on one tiny twig in the midst of a blossoming and flourishing tree of life and it is no accident, but the direct consequence of evolution by non-random selection." His unjaded passion for the natural world turns what might have been a negative argument, exposing the absurdities of the creationist position, into a positive offering to the reader: nothing less than a master’s vision of life, in all its splendor. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (249)

great service, price, delivery
great product, very happy with the service.book is great, and a fast read.

Enriching
How sad that a book like this must be necessary.We truly are marching directly into the Neanderthal Age once more.Hooray for Richard Dawkins who is not daunted by the need and fills it admirably.It is an excellent book.

Excellent summary of the current status on Darwin's Theory of evolution
I bought his book without any great expectations as I have a scientific background (though not in biology) and was already convinced of Darwin's theory of evolution before I read the book.
I expected a rehash of things I knew or thought I knew.
Still, partly because I had a long flight ahead of me and partly because I like Richard Dawkins (watch his excellent BBC documentaries if you get the chance) and thought it would be money well spent I bought the book.

I was therefore very pleasantly surprised when I started reading it.
Not only did I find the style quite engaging (not at all a dry arduous boring science factbook)and easy to read but I was also very pleased at the amount of things I actually learned.
I was not aware (or only generally aware) of the experiments that have been conducted that show evolution at work on short timescales (a few years or decades):
- Wild foxes turned into dog-like animals (complete with wagging tails, floppy ears and human friendly behavior) in only a few decades.
- Fishes changing their camouflage patterns in a few years depending on the river bed (sandy, pebbly, stony) they've been relocated and the intensity of predatory activity (more predatory activity = best camouflage is favored, no predatory activity = flashiest males are favored!).
- Carnivorous lizards turning into herbivorous ones (ie changing skull shape and digestive system) when relocated on a different (but with less insects) island off the same coast.
- Lenski experiment on Bacteria (amazing!) splitting an initial population of bacteria in 12 'lineages' subsequently kept strictly separate but under identical conditions (same flask with same liquid and nutrients) and showing how those 12 lineage evolved to cope with their environment over 40'000 generations (a few year's time for bacteria)with one of the lineages hitting (as a consequence of random genetic mutations) on a way to use a different nutrient, leading to an explosion of their population density.

In a nutshell, this is an excellent book targeted at non-specialist audiences who either want to be able to articulate rational arguments about the theory of evolution or people who genuinely wonder what the theory is about, how it came to be and how it is supported by scientific evidence (including the most recent developments in genetics).

Thoroughly Enjoyable and Educational Book on Evolution
I have been an atheist since I was 19, and came to read this book already convinced of the fact of evolution.My primary motivation for reading the book was to catch up on the current evidence supporting evolution, which makes constant advancements.When in conversation, I also want to be able to specifically articulate to others why I believe as I do, and not give them unsatisfactory boilerplate answers.The book helped me achieve both of these goals, and did so in an entertaining way that caused me to read the book almost as quickly as a good fiction novel. I liked the way Dawkins provides evidence for evolution from a large variety of different perspectives, including molecular biology, comparisons between existing species, fossil evidence, embryology, and even plate tectonics.Dawkins also explains experiments in which evolution actually takes place before our eyes.I was especially impressed by the experiments involving several separate generations of bacteria in which one of the lines evolved to digest and use a non-glucose chemical as fuel.As a by-product of reading this book, you will also gain much knowledge on the biology and anatomy of animals, including ourselves.Dawkins demonstrates the beauty of the evolutionary point of view, which in my view is far more practical, real, and elegant than the creationist faith.

Finally, I have the utmost respect for Dawkins as a scientist and a writer.He has fought for the cause of science, and done so in an admirable way; not with the puffery of a political pundit, but with the objective reasoning that is heart of all science.I've seen him promoting this book in interviews with people all the way from Bill Mahar to Bill O'Reilly; in all of them, he has held his own and done a great job of spreading the light of science.

I am better for having read this book.

I expected nothing less than I great book from Dawkins & I got that
If you have read Dawkins' earlier books and found answers about the meaning of life, then this book is just the cherry on top. It will update and enforce what he has started in "The Selfish Gene." I certainly recommend this book. But mostly I want readers to see it as continuation of what Dawkins likes to refer to as 'awareness raising' of the role of evolution in our lives. ... Read more

Product Description
The highly anticipated follow-up to the 2,000,000 copy bestselling inspirational book, The Power of Now

With his bestselling spiritual guide The Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle inspired millions of readers to discover the freedom and joy of a life lived "in the now." In A New Earth, Tolle expands on these powerful ideas to show how transcending our ego-based state of consciousness is not only essential to personal happiness, but also the key to ending conflict and suffering throughout the world. Tolle describes how our attachment to the ego creates the dysfunction that leads to anger, jealousy, and unhappiness, and shows readers how to awaken to a new state of consciousness and follow the path to a truly fulfilling existence.

The Power of Now was a question-and-answer handbook. A New Earth has been written as a traditional narrative, offering anecdotes and philosophies in a way that is accessible to all. Illuminating, enlightening, and uplifting, A New Earth is a profoundly spiritual manifesto for a better way of life—and for building a better world.

About the Author

ECKHART TOLLE is a contemporary spiritual teacher who is not aligned with any particular religion or tradition. In his writing and seminars, he conveys a simple yet profound message with the timeless and uncomplicated clarity of the ancient spiritual masters: There is a way out of suffering and into peace. Eckhart travels extensively, taking his teachings throughout the world.Amazon.com Review
Amazon.com Exclusive Content
Download "The One Thing," an exclusive essay by Eckhart Tolle. [pdf] ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1541)

This book will change your life!! (If you get it!)
I was going through a particularly bad time when I started this book and sought this book out for that very reason.
I knew I couldn't keep being so negative, I needed a solution (although, I was sure it would not work, I still bought it). In retrospect, that was mainly self-created/ego suffering. I was actually taking time in my day to cry.
I thought it would be cathartic. It wasn't, it just reminded me to be sad everyday :) LOL! The pain-body (a variant of the ego) loves pain because that is what keeps it alive and it can be very seductive. I felt so justified in my anger and sadness.Now I know. Now, not only can I see my ego, it so apparent to me that my friends and family members also like to dwell in past suffering and negativity i.e. in pain body/ego land.

I was a cynic when I started the book. I grew up in an environment where everyone was 'mock-spiritual' and the books they read and the practices they followed never brought me any solace. So that is how you become a cynic. I remember reading Tolle's first chapter where he says: 'this book will change your life or be completely meaningless to you'. I remember my exact thoughts at that moment (it was my ego reaction): 'Wow, what an arrogant guy'. That first chapter didnt do much for me (it was just a general introduction), but the further I read the more I understood. He was not arrogant, he was right. This book profoundly changed my life (the only thing that has had this level of positive impact). Im not telling you I'm enlightened, but I stopped crying about that issue (doesn't seem at all important now). What reading A New Earth does for most people is bring into their lives a new element that they rarely experienced in the past. It is a slight awakening and every moment offers the choice between living in the moment (experiencing more awakening) and not. As for Tolle's famoust words: 'this book will change your life or be completely meaningless to you': I found it to be profoundly transformative, so did 2 of my friends. I offered it to my sister, she said: 'how could I not be my ego?' and she gave me back the book. I think the book and its insight is available to you when you are ready for it and mostly when you have suffered a lot (as Tolle says suffering is most peoples spiritual teacher). That is because to really get it you have to realize that feeding the ego is counterproductive to your aims. When you suffer letting go of the ego does not seem to be such a bad idea. When everything is going well your ego seems like your best friend...

To those that say this book is meaningless. It might meen more to you when you are sick of your ego. When you realize that psychological pain and suffering are simply mind games, and have no real basis. There are no problems in the Now.
To those who have never read this book, I suggest getting a copy and if you don't get it now, Im pretty sure there will be a time in your life when all this clicks.
I read the following books: A New Earth-Ekhart Tolle, My Stroke of Insight-Jill Bolte Taylor, and The Power of Now-Eckhart Tolle: I consider it to be the trilogy that finally made me understand the spiritual realm and removed a lot of negativity from my life.

What is important is constantly dwelling in the now, by not letting your mind/ego take over everything you do. Everyone who complains about Tolle, saying that it is a quick fix, simply missed the essence of the teaching. Its a practice, and an arduous one, but the rewards are phenomenal. When I go through periods of dwelling in the practice, outside external problems do not affect me as much. However, when something does bother me a lot is when I realize that I have not been practising present-moment awareness. So the essence is keeping the practise alive in your life and once you have awakened even slightly it is hard to go back to complete ignorance (which is reassuring). AND once you have really, truly figured this out, you will realize that you already have within you, the solution to every single problem that will arise in your life.

A Logical Spiritual Teacher


From the first page of this book I was mesmerized and a believer --- what an interesting read!!. . It's not any easy path that Tolle asks you to consider.I was brought up in an eastern religion (not buddhism) but Tolle really helped me understand the root teachings of history's great spiritual leaders.I have a much deeper understanding of common spiritual concepts than I did previously.I'm nowhere close to being totally present, (perhaps a little more than I was before reading his book). But I never realized, that life itself, each of our "present moments," can become an act of meditation! What a revolutionary way to live your life, it's an entirely different way of being! How unbelievably cool and liberating that would be. I was inspired when I read this book 2 years ago and continue to believe in the tools it provides the reader with . .

Thank You
Every single word of this great work rings true for me. Thank you so much Eckhart.

Another excellent book from Eckhart
One of the greatest gifts in the world is to be able to take very complex and subtle material and make it understandable to everyone. Anyone who has ever tried this immediately understands what a challenge it is to simplify something without losing the essence of the teaching. No one should be excluded from the Path simply because of where they are along the way. I would imagine that anyone who is familiar with what I'm saying would agree that is what Eckhart Tolle is, in part, attempting to do in 'A New Earth'. I respect that.

I know because that's what I do in my Full Spectrum Coaching practice everyday: Share all the things we should've learned but were never taught about understanding yourself, having deep healthy relationships, and navigating well through the world so you can live happily and successfully.

At the core of so much of our suffering is a lack of real understanding of the ego and its shadow. Eckhart does a nice job of explaining the many ways in which negative aspects of the ego show up in ourselves and in life. Fritz Perls, founder of Gestalt therapy, is often quoted, "Nothing changes until it becomes real." How true. A New Earth really helps one to realize (ie: to make real) a very simple and powerful truth: the cause of your suffering is 'you', or rather, your mistaken identity as just an ego. For those who are willing to do the work the rewards are literally more than you can imagine. I've seen the lives of my clients transformed as they apply the ideas that Eckhardt writes about here. Anyone who applies the contents of A New Earth can begin that same kind of transformation.

The only reason I hesitate to give 5 stars is because one needs more than just understanding, one needs a practice or set of skills to engage in order to be able to change through experience. Its the only way. I wish Eckhart had included more of that in this book. Well done.

A Path to Individual and Collective Knowledge
Mr. Tolle provides insight into our destructive ego driven lives. After reading his book, I was able to more easily spot my ego based thoughts and smile at them.Mr. Tolle's speaks of who we really are and our connectedness.His discussion of our pain bodies resonates.So many of us are acting from our pain. I have purchased a number of copies and sent them to folks in my immediate circle asking them to pass on copies to folks in their circles.They have reported that they have benefited from their reading and engaged in discussion different aspects of the book.It is really time for us to awaken from our illusions of reality.Thank you, Mr. Tolle.
D. Watson ... Read more

Product Description
A disease of unparalleled destructive force has sprung up almost simultaneously in every corner of the globe, all but destroying the human race. One survivor, strangely immune to the effects of the epidemic, ventures forward to experience a world without man. What he ultimately discovers will prove far more astonishing than anything he'd either dreaded or hoped for.


From the Paperback edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (349)

I also found this spellbinding, decades ago
I read Earth Abides in the sixties as a teenager, and it is one of the few books that stays with me through the years. A beautiful, haunting book.

Interesting but not exciting.
I enjoy Post apocalyptic sic fi but this was not that entertaining after a while.

Excellent book
George Steward did a great job writing a novel that is timeless in nature. I thought the book was well written and the characters in the book were believable and down to earth. I could not put the book down.The pace of the book was fast and exciting. Each page of the held a new twist or further clarity in the development of each character. I especially enjoyed the development of the relationship between Ish and Em as it spanned over time and life events.George Steward did a great job writing a novel that is timeless in natureGeorge Steward did a great job writing a novel that is timeless in nature.

EARTH ABIDES by George R. Stewart
Earth Abides is a 1949 science fiction novel by George R. Stewart. When a plague all but wipes out the human race, a young introverted intellectual decides to observe the way the world responds to the sudden removal of humans, and, later, works to reconstruct certain aspects of civilization while battling to keep education alive.

This is a thoughtful book: one of Stewart's primary themes here is a philosophical take on civilization: its pros and cons, what is gained and lost through starting over, and whether parts or the whole are worth rebuilding. Stewart, with the world's last scholar as his main character, does a wonderful job with this.

But while Earth Abides is all about ideas, Stewart mostly punts on the moral and theological ramifications, as his characters move on quickly when these themes present challenges. In a world where people can't help but focus on death, that's a missed opportunity.

In addition to the book's philosophical emphasis, Stewart's post-apocalyptic world is generally free of unrest and violence. While this allows Stewart to focus on his themes of rebuilding, his characters are rarely in much peril, and there's never much suspense. Yet as Stewart charts the life of his protagonist through the years and decades, the reader becomes invested in and attached to the character, passive and powerless though he may be, and this is why the novel is compelling, and why the reader will not mind the book's many philosophical detours.

On the whole, Earth Abides is an intelligent, poignant and melancholy novel, and one of the finer and more influential works in the genre. Bonus points for an interracial relationship during a hostile era.

Earth definitely abides...
What an excellent book! I read this on Vacation in Cancun, and couldn't put it down. I may have missed a couple good vacation days totally engaged with this story. Well worth it. ... Read more

Product Description

These eight stories by beloved and bestselling author Jhumpa Lahiri take us fromCambridge and Seattle to India and Thailand, as they explore the secrets at the heartof family life. Here they enter the worlds of sisters and brothers, fathers and mothers,daughters and sons, friends and lovers. Rich with the signature gifts that have establishedJhumpa Lahiri as one of our most essential writers, Unaccustomed Earth exquisitelyrenders the most intricate workings of the heart and mind.

Customer Reviews (222)

Stunning talent.
I love Alice Munro's short stories, and I don't want to snub her, but Lahiri's writing is that rare sort that comes along every fifty years or so. She is a master. I felt palpable anxiety in the story that dealt with alcoholism - that was one of my favorites, but that in no way touches the last three short stories of the book, which are connected. Not only did I cry upon finishing them (I read a lot, but I RARELY cry over fiction), but I reopened the book and re-read them immediately (that, truthfully, has NEVER happened).

I can't wait to read everything she's ever written. Could not recommend this book more highly.

strong start, fizzled out
I very much enjoyed The Namesake and this short story collection starts out strong. The first story, about the father and daughter is an understated jewel of emotion and things left unsaid. The story of the sister and her alcoholic brother seems real and jolting. Then the story of the intercultural couple starts getting a bit mushy. Around the middle, the story of Paul and "Sang" is just horrible! It's like one of those Saturday Night Live skits where the writers have no idea how to end it so they just go on and on ad nauseum until it fizzles out. It's hard to believe actually that it's the same writer who wrote the tightly crafted first story.

I'm about ready to give up on this collection but I've heard good things about the last trio of loosely connected stories so perhaps I'll tough it out. But I expected better from a talented author like Lahiri. A lot of readers have mentioned that she should write about other than Bengalis. But think about it: white authors write mostly about white people, Chinese about Chinese experience, etc. But I do agree that her Bengalis should be other than academics living mainly around Boston, as that is getting rather old.

So good....
I just read the first story unaccustomed earth.. it was so good.Simple yet spectacular, felt so good, refreshing, relaxing.After namesake, this was the second book of hers I've read and she does not disappoint, like vintage wine,the first story is so good

A must read for anyone who loves books!
Jhumpa Lahiri's Unaccustomed Earth is a collection of short stories that is written about Bengali Indian immigrants but speaks to everyone.If you want to read some short stories about the tragedies and joys, the shortcomings and strengths of the human spirit, check this book out.Even though it's about a certain slice of the population, I think everyone can find something in this book to which they can relate.

Lahiri has an interesting story-telling style that is comprised of a disproportionate amount of narrative to dialogue.She spends her time telling her readers what the characters are doing and thinking and feeling, relieving her characters of the majority of that responsibility.In Lahiri's case, however, she has her craft down to such an art that we look forward to the narrative, to the long paragraphs and her authoritative disclosure of her characters' state of mind.Every word is measured and weighed, included only because it's absolutely necessary.And yet, despite this sense of being careful, there is a richness to Lahiri's work that makes one think of enjoying a really good meal at an expensive restaurant that is worth every penny.

Of the first five stories in Unaccustomed Earth, the most striking is "Only Goodness" about a sister-brother pair who deal with the issue of alcoholism in a heartbreaking way.Lahiri writes intimately about the addiction, and the final pages of the story make the reader shake his or her head in disbelief all the while wanting to know what might happen next.As is the nature of the genre, however, we don't get to know any more about the characters than what Lahiri chooses to reveal.And like the hallmark of any good book, we are left wanting to know more.

The section entitled "Hema and Kaushik" includes the trio of stories at the end of the book, going into the details of the title characters and their experiences in growing up as second-generation Bengalis and first-generation Americans.Their lives converge at one point, deviate from each other, and then intersect once again.Their end is happy and then again isn't; they find pieces of themselves in one another in that all-encompassing experience of being the children of immigrants.Yet despite that common experience, they suffer from the same shortcomings that all humans do and those shortcomings prevent them from finding the happiness for which they'd both hoped.

Because of my own cultural heritage I don't have an outsider's view of Lahiri's works (and because of my kinship with them I'm partial to anything she writes,) but I have no doubt that to a certain extent anyone could find elements of their own lives in these stories.In tackling the immigrant experience, Lahiri has managed to spotlight the human experience.For that very reason--and also to marvel at the beauty of her prose--Unaccustomed Earth is a must read for anyone.

A perfect "10" -- have to settle for 5 stars
To be brutally honest, short stories are a genre I usually avoid.I find myself frustrated with having to start and stop the story and my (usual) inability to get into the flow and inhabit the fictional world.When it comes to Jhumpa Lahiri, none of the above holds true and I will read anything she writes, in any genre.This collection of eight short stories is just as fabulous as "Interpreter of Maladies" and her full-length novel "The Namesake".Three books, three knockout winners in my opinion.

The first five stories are independent of each other and the final three are interwoven with the characters.Each story typically runs 40 pages so there is enough time to fully develop these characters and she does it so well.Telling the stories of second generation Bengalis, Ms. Lahiri explores all aspects of being immigrants and the children of immigrants but particularly shines as it relates to the conflict between the parents looking back to India and the children looking forward to the United States.Each story is an absolute jewel that creates a world where the reader can enter, enjoy and then exit all within the span of relatively few pages.Very few authors can do this to my satisfaction and she is the best I have found.

Outstanding book and incredibly talented author overall.
... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (399)

For Book Club
I purchased four "used" books, for book club, and everyone at club was amazed of the quality. The "used" books, were like brand new.

It is a modern classic...wonderful!
I loved this book!Everyone should read this book even if for the second time.

Old Favorite
I haven't read this book since high school, and my book group chose it as a prelude to reading the Pearl Buck biography.I enjoyed the reread; her characters seem to come alive.I also was very pleased with the edition, which offered valuable information to share with my book group.

Honest Seller
This is a great seller.The book I ordered was not in the condition that it stated.I left a critical review of the condition of the book.Seller took action and credited me the cost of the book.I am very happy with this seller and would highly recommend them.I really appreciated how they handle this problem.

Simple, elegant story, strangely inspiring
Buck manages to create really strong female characters within the framework of traditional Chinese society.This is a beautiful story with universal human truth, and one I found strangely inspiring in its message (the value inherent in land, partnership, and hard work). ... Read more

Customer Reviews (18)

Building a church and who did it and how
I have been a fan of good historical fiction for many years. The film based on this book is quite entertaining and the book is even better.

Best Novel I Have Ever Read
After reading Ken Follett's novel WORLD WITHOUT END, I learned that it was essentially a "14th Century" sequel to "PILLARS" with its 12th Century setting.
Somewhere I read that PILLARS is one of the 101 greatest books ever written. That could be true; but what I know for sure is the PILLARS is, by far, the greatest novel I have ever read.

The Pillars of the Earth
I have barely gotten started on this book but am looking forward to reading the entire book!Intriging!

Great book, great service.
The book was exactly as they described since I bought it used. It was reasonably priced and shipped/delivered fairly quick. Overall satisfied with the book and service.

Not great, overrated

"Pillars" is not a Horrible book, but for people like myself who enjoy something more than just a series of connected violent or sexual events, this book was both frustrating and boring, and not worth finishing.

I am not an expert in historical fiction, and my opinions are only from one who loves a great book, and a great fan of this historical period. However Follett's use of unbelievable dialogue, over simplification of everything, even the names of his characters ("Ted Builder", is the main character for goodness sake), drains the book of the dark mystique and allure that I love from this period. Also, I found the cast characters hard to believe for this time period.Simply, It was very hard to get lost in the book, without questioning its construction.

This book is not for some people, specifically those who enjoy subtext, deeper thought, and complex yet fruitful character relationships and personalities, or a good litterary challenge. It is not beautifully written. He uses big words, but the charecter reactions and plot suprises are really quite poor, and in a litterature mindset, bland and boring. In other words, this book is intelecually shallow for all its hype, and than 600 pages to long.

If you simply like an easy but long, readable, and action packed page-turner, than this book may be excellent for you. I will even say his architechure and geopgrahpical points are great and he has some real page turning moments of action.But this book is not profound, nor is it a soul-stirring piece. It is only another thriller made to sell, (which Follett himself admits in the preface).

In my advice, I would heavily research this book BEFORE reading it, and I think it will be easy to tell if you will love it or hate it. ... Read more

Product Description
A distinguished psychiatrist from Martinique who took part in the Algerian Nationalist Movement, Frantz Fanon was one of the most important theorists of revolutionary struggle, colonialism, and racial difference in history. Fanon's masterwork is a classic alongside Edward Said's Orientalism or The Autobiography of Malcolm X, and it is now available in a new translation that updates its language for a new generation of readers. The Wretched of the Earth is a brilliant analysis of the psychology of the colonized and their path to liberation. Bearing singular insight into the rage and frustration of colonized peoples, and the role of violence in effecting historical change, the book incisively attacks the twin perils of post independence colonial politics: the disenfranchisement of the masses by the elites on the one hand, and intertribal and interfaith animosities on the other. Fanon's analysis, a veritable handbook of social reorganization for leaders of emerging nations, has been reflected all too clearly in the corruption and violence that has plagued present-day Africa. The Wretched of the Earth has had a major impact on civil rights, anticolonialism, and black consciousness movements around the world, and this bold new translation by Richard Philcox reaffirms it as a landmark.Amazon.com Review
Frantz Fanon (1925-61) was a Martinique-born blackpsychiatrist and anticolonialist intellectual; The Wretched of theEarth is considered by many to be one of the canonical books onthe worldwide black liberation struggles of the 1960s. Within aMarxist framework, using a cutting and nonsentimental writing style,Fanon draws upon his horrific experiences working in Algeria duringits war of independence against France. He addresses the role ofviolence in decolonization and the challenges of politicalorganization and the class collisions and questions of culturalhegemony in the creation and maintenance of a new country's nationalconsciousness. As Fanon eloquently writes, "[T]he unpreparednessof the educated classes, the lack of practical links between them andthe mass of the people, their laziness, and, let it be said, theircowardice at the decisive moment of the struggle will give rise totragic mishaps."

Although socialism has seemingly collapsed in the years since Fanon'swork was first published, there is much in his look into thepolitical, racial, and social psyche of the ever-emerging Third Worldthat still rings true at the cusp of a new century.--EugeneHolley, Jr. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (47)

The wretched of the earth
Every person who is interested in studying about PTSD affects of war has to read this book

Uptight, personal, and angry, from the Savage War of Peace...
...which should certainly be viewed as an appropriate response. Frantz Fanon was a Black psychiatrist who was born on the French island of Martinique. During the Algerian War of Independence (1954-62) he worked in Algerian hospitals, and developed a strong sympathy for the struggle of the native Algerians (who were not of European origins!). Fanon died in 1961, far too young, at 36, stricken by leukemia. Alistair Horne wrote the classic, dispassionate account of the Algerian War, entitled A Savage War of Peace: Algeria 1954-1962 (New York Review Books Classics). Fanon wrote his own classic masterpiece, a cri de coeur, literally on his death bed. This book would be an essential inspirational text for those who fought in the remaining anti-colonial wars as well as the Black civil rights movement in the United States. The book also contains an introduction from Jean-Paul Sartre.

In the introduction, Sartre says in his indubitable style: "The European elite undertook to manufacture a native elite. They picked out promising adolescents; they branded them, as with a red-hot iron, with the principles of Western culture; they stuffed their mouths full with high-sounding phrases, grand glutinous words that stuck to the teeth. After a short stay in the mother country they were sent home, whitewashed. These walking lies had nothing left to say to their brothers; they only echoed." Sartre is utterly oblivious. Willfully oblivious? How many of those "natives" who were educated in European "rights of man" values went back to lead the revolts against their colonial masters? A minority, for sure, but surely a majority of those who actually revolted, from Ho Chi Minh to Pol Pot. And is Frantz Fanon himself a "walking lie"? Clearly he was one of the natives who benefited from a European education, and could see the hypocrisy in the proclamations of universal rights and then hear the clearing of the throat, the er.. ah.., of course I mean for whites, even leaving the distaff side "in their place."Fanon himself does not address his somewhat ironic situation of utilizing his European education to denounce the European "world order." Perhaps if Fanon had lived longer, he would have addressed this matter.

But STILL, this is an excellent book, because that is not really the issue. Fanon is simply scathing in his denunciation of the injustices and hypocrisy of colonial rule. For example, in speaking of the colonialist: "...he shows them up and puts them into practice with the clear conscience of an upholder of the peace; yet he is the bringer of violence into the home and into the mind of the native." Or: "The Church in the colonies is the white people's Church..." Or: "Leave this Europe where they are never done talking of Man, yet murder men everywhere they find them, at the corner of every one of their own streets, in all corners of the globe. For centuries they have stifled almost the whole of humanity in the name of a so-called spiritual experience."

Fanon also does denounce his fellow natives who have been educated, and are Sartre's "walking lies": "It (the native bourgeoisie) follows the Western bourgeoisie along its path of negation and decadence without ever having emulated it in its first stage of exploration and invention..." The word "bourgeoisie" is one of those flags that confirms a "Marxist analysis" which is obviously quite dated today, aside from connoting prose that drifts into the opaque.

But again, STILL, even with that `dated' flaw, it does not diminish insights such as: "Those literally astronomical sumsof money which are invested in military research, those engineers who are transformed into technicians of nuclear war, could in the space of fifteen years raise the standard of living of underdeveloped countries by 60 per cent." Even more dramatically (and only partially correct): "The people come to understand that wealth is not the fruit of labor but the result of organized, protected robbery."

Despite the heavy prose, and the lack of ironic introspection, this is a classic critique of the essential injustice of the colonial "world order"; it is a book which has inspired many. Ah, if he were only alive today to render such a critique of "globalization."5-stars.

Psychology for Violent Revolt
This was required reading for a graduate course in the Humanities.Frantz Fanon (July 20, 1925 - December 6, 1961) was a Martinique-born French author and essayist.He was perhaps the preeminent thinker of the 20th century on the issue of decolonization and the psychopathology of colonization.His works have inspired anti-colonial liberation movements for more than four decades.

"The Wretched of the Earth" (French: Les Damnés de la Terre, first published 1961) is Frantz Fanon's best-known work, written during and regarding the Algerian struggle for independence from colonial rule.As a psychiatrist, Fanon explored the psychological effect of colonization on the psyche of a nation as well as its broader implications for building a movement for decolonization.A controversial introduction to the text by Jean-Paul Sartre presents the thesis as an advocacy of violence.This focus derives from the book's opening chapter `Concerning Violence' which is a caustic indictment of colonialism and its legacy.It discusses violence as a means of liberation and a catharsis to subjugation.It also details the violence of the colonialism as a process itself.

Structural politics of race and making oneself is a continuous theme of Pan Africanism 1950's, 60's.Colonialism is toppled , growing awareness of colonial conditions and kinds of people that emerge from it, no one comes out of it unchanged both colonizers and subjects recognize colonialism is product of Enlightenment reason a perversion of what it stood for and its ideals. Some enlightenment thinkers justified feelings of superiority, people of science over people of mythology.All people are transformed by colonization.Many justify the economy of colonization, such as in the Belgian Congo.The colonizer has to invent a new human being, the colonized.

Sigmund Freud and W. E. B. Du Bois are intellectual fathers of Fanon.Colonialism depersonalizes people in their own country.The Theory of Manichean logic is a society structured around race.Social and racial structure of colonialism is Manichean.It is an us or them mentality, no in between.Black is bad, white is good, etc.Fanon argues that to get over this; a new world must be created.This is a Utopian idea.He advocates revolution and violence.Fanon finds that a 20th century preoccupation with violence becomes formative of the subject.This is his theme of 20th century philosophy and psychology.He argues that in the 2oth century we finally recognize we are a violent people.

1968 Algerian revolt shakes French society and history to its core.Algerians were promised full democracy for years, they finally get suspicious.Men were cheap labor and biggest import to France.Economic downturn in 1950's causes France to bar Algerians from working in country, so violence ensues.French intellectuals push out old guard and old thinking, student protests, etc.Jean-Paul Sartre led the movement, and wanted to find a genuine authentic voice of this revolt, he finds it in Fanon.Fanon, in his book, questions who is crazy, tortured or torturer.

For Fanon, there is nothing more consistent than racist humanism since the European has been able to only become a man thru slavery.The two groups are opposed they can't get along, because Empire needs slaves. Thus, he critiques the Enlightenment ideal.The two peoples live as perpetual protagonists.Colonizer and colonists are backed into a struggle.Colonization is good and colonized are amused by this.Both see each other as morally superior.Colonizer uses violence to keep colonized in check, so they learn to use more violence to overthrow colonizer.Colonizer has their history, and history books on their side.Colonized see them as delusional they see the propaganda as a form of violence.Colonized people will accept servitude because they fear death.Once they don't fear death you can't control them.Anger and rage starts to build and 1st violence against their own people and family, and finally they turn violent on the colonizers.As soon as they see colonizers can be killed, they will revolt, it gives them self-respect.Oppression is practiced and institutionalized violence.Oppression must be done cruelly and violently.This is what will overthrow Manichean world.A different kind of person will now emerge.He is openly celebratory of violence.He is shaped by his history.

Fanon's work in Algeria changes his way of thinking.He concludes counter violence will make a new man.Violence leaves scars on people.Violence becomes a dialectic of the master slave process.Colonialism is another stage of slavery.Colonial racism in crudest form say colonized have no culture, then they say there is a hierarchy of culture colonizer higher than colonized.He makes links to culture and economic relations and how change in one changes the other.Fanon argues that when the oppressed are lazy, it is one more way for them to sabotage.Laziness is passive resistance.This is a stage in process before colonized is ready to fight back.Colonized can use subtle ways to resist laws and mores.Colonized do this to revolt against oppression.Colonized must develop framework of collective struggle to fight against oppressor.Fanon believes that to have a new person violence is necessary to destroy category of blackness and whiteness Manichean racial duality.Decolonization is always a violent phenomenon.Replacement of one kind of man with another kind of man.Must have a clean sweep of change in society.Fanon's insistence on violence grounded in his history and personal nature.Psychoanalytic theory of his is different than Freud's, they come from different society and culture.Freud never took race into account in his theories.

On his return to Tunis, after his exhausting trip across the Sahara to open a Third Front, Fanon was diagnosed with leukemia.He went to the Soviet Union for treatment and experienced some remission of his illness.On his return to Tunis, he dictated his testament "The Wretched of the Earth."When he was not confined to his bed, he delivered lectures to ALN (Armée de Libération Nationale) officers at Ghardimao on the Algero-Tunisian border.He made a final visit to Sartre in Rome and went for further leukemia treatment in the USA.Ironically, he was assisted by the CIA in traveling to the United States to receive treatment.He died in Bethesda [Maryland, US], on December 6, 1961 under the name of Ibrahim Fanon.He was buried in Algeria, after lying in state in Tunisia.

Recommended reading for anyone interested in history, psychology, or philosophy.

Non review, review
I can not review this purchase, because I never received it. I did report that shipment was never received, but as of today I still have not received a replacement!

A book I could not get through
This book was recommended to my book club and boy oh boy it really was like digging through the "Wretched of the Earth" to read it.No one in the book club finished the book.Maybe I need to put some time and distance away from this book so I can look at it with fresh eyes.....but as it currently stands this is not a book I ever want to read for leisure. ... Read more

Product Description
Letters from the Earth is one of Mark Twain's posthumously published works. The essays were written during a difficult time in Twain's life; he was deep in debt and had lost his wife and one of his daughters. The book consists of a series of short stories, many of which deal with God and Christianity. Twain penned a series of letters from the point-of-view of a dejected angel on Earth. This title story consists of letters written by the archangel Satan to archangels, Gabriel and Michael, about his observations on the curious proceedings of earthly life and the nature of man's religions. By analyzing the idea of heaven and God that is widely accepted by those who believe in both, Twain is able to take the silliness that is present and study it with the common sense that is absent. Not so much an attack as much as a cold dissection. Other short stories in the book include a bedtime story about a family of cats Twain wrote for his daughters, and an essay explaining why an anaconda is morally superior to Man. Twain's writings in Letters From the Earth find him at perhaps his most quizzical and questioning state ever.Amazon.com Review
If you're already familiar with Finn and Sawyer, perhaps thiscollection of fragments, short stories, and essays--assembledposthumously some few decades ago now, but still fresh--will enhanceyour sense of Twain's true range. A particular favorite: his essay"The Damned Human Race," wherein he proves, ratherconvincingly, that an anaconda snake is a higher form of life than anEnglish Earl. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (50)

great transaction
Everything about this transaction was as it should be.Use this company with no fear.

Letters from the Earth is Mark Twain writing with a pen warmed up hell
Letters from the Earth is a collection of essays on humankind and the Bible written by Mark Twain (1835-1910) near the end of his life.Twain never expected these works to be published during his lifetime; they saw the light of publishing day for the first time in 1962. The book contains:
a. Letters from the Earth sent by Satan describing the sins and foibles of that foolish and warlike creature known as MAN.
b. Pages from the diary of Adam, Eve, Noah and Methuselah which are humorous yet biting in their criticsm of humanity, the literal interpretation of the Bible and human governments.
c. Twain includes a story about cats which he told to his daughters prior to bedtime. The story contains a drawing of cats by Mark Twain and is amusing focusing on wordplay.
d. Among other essays Twain comments on etiquette, visiting the historical sites of nineteenth century London, Simplified spelling ideas in ancient Egypt; repentance and the damned human race.
e. A withering essays attacks James Fenimore Cooper for his ornate prose style in "The Last of the Mohicans."
f. The book concludes with the strange unfinished story "The Great Dark. This weird tale deals with a dreamlike voyage in a drop of water which has been placed under a microscope.
Some passages and topics in this book were very bory; yet there was enough vintage Twain observations on our race to keep me reading. We see Twain the anti-imperialist and religious iconoclast at his best in this uneven collection. The book has been well edited by Bernard DeVoto the late Twain scholar.

An effective dissertation from one of literatures most defiant minds
If all was right in the world, "Letters from the earth" would be widely circulated and openly discussed amongst all who undertake the practice of religion. As it stands though, treasures such as this are wasted on those of us who already concur with its message.

Bullied Heathen
This is a fantastic book. I never thought I'd like Twain. It shed light on the concepts and ideas of Twain, which are ideas we are not meant to learn about in American Schools. Our schools still milk the whole black white shock value issue (from Mark's early works)where as Mark Twain truly turns out to be quite a deep thinker and social satirist as a mature writer as well. He is quite in tune with research and wit upon the subject of the human race and the history of religion. A+++ Go ahead and get it, especially if in our ethnocentric run nation, you are, like many of us, scared into the closet of any non-Christian idealism.

Good Read
I have always been a fan of short stories by our classic poets.Mark Twain's "Letters From The Earth" should be read with all religion left at the door.Some people don't realize the books spin on the bible.The book came in a timely manor and I personally would not change a thing. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (105)

Great Book on Healty Food!!
This is a great book if you are trying to eat in a healthy way. The experts top 10 healthy item list is interesting because there are different views on which of the foods are the absolute best for you. I have lost over 30 pounds and this book has helped me pick the best foods to eat, especially after I ran out of ideas for new foods to eat. The pictures are very bright and colorful and made me want to eat that food right away. Very good book!!

Healthiest Foods - A real treat to read!
I really enjoy this author's style.He is informative and has added great touches of humor throughout his book.The text is presented in a very eye-pleasing layout.It is wonderful to have this type of book available. I highly recommend this as a great reference book for those who want to make informed decisions about what foods they choose to eat.

Grocery store shopping will never be the same
This book has lots of high-res pictures of foods that subconsciously work their way into your brain so when you are at the supermarket you automatically buy them. Alot of the foods are 'no-brainers' but you will stumble across foods you never knew existed that are extremely tasty. My diet has changed for the better over the past year and I give some credit to this book.

Great resource!
I use this book as a food resource almost daily! I have learned a lot about the benefits of whole foods and have been inspired to incorporate new things into my diet.It is easy to read and understand, yet still scientifically supported. I definitely recommend it for anyone who is looking to understand their food better and improve their diet and health.

The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth
This book is intoxicating and inspirational. It takes the challenge out of making good food choices. I love reading it and using it for reference. Ten stars really. ... Read more

Product Description

The crowning work of the best-selling Earth Chronicles series

• Reveals the existence of physical evidence of alien presence on Earth in the distant past

• Identifies and describes the demigods, such as Gilgamesh, descended from these visitors

• Outlines the tests of this physical evidence of alien presence that could unlock the secrets of health, longevity, life, and death

In whose genetic image were we made? From his first book The 12th Planet on, Zecharia Sitchin has asserted that the Bible’s Elohim who said “Let us fashion The Adam in our image and after our likeness” were the gods of Sumer and Babylon--the Anunnaki who had come to Earth from their planet Nibiru. The Adam, he wrote, was genetically engineered by adding Anunnaki genes to those of an existing hominid, some 300,000 years ago. Then, according to the Bible, intermarriage took place: “There were giants upon the Earth” who took Adam’s female offspring as wives, giving birth to “heroes of renown.” With meticulous detail, Sitchin shows that these were the demigods of Sumerian and Babylonian lore, such as the famed Mesopotamian king Gilgamesh as well as the hero of the Deluge, the Babylonian Utnapishtim.

Are we then, all of us, descendants of demigods? In this crowning oeuvre, Zecharia Sitchin proceeds step-by-step through a mass of ancient writings and artifacts, leading the reader to the stunning Royal Tombs of Ur. He reveals a DNA source that could prove the biblical and Sumerian tales true, providing conclusive physical evidence for past alien presence on Earth and an unprecedented scientific opportunity to track down the “Missing Link” in humankind’s evolution, unlocking the secrets of longevity and even the ultimate mystery of life and death.

Customer Reviews (26)

there were giantsipon the earth
this is a very interesting and informative book.a very good read for all types of reader.

A great summation of his work!
Been a devoted reader for over 20 years!This could be his last book?It was a great read lots of well documented info!

There Were Giants Upoon the Earth
To order was easy.Confirmation was very quick.Order was received on a timely basis and in excellent condition.

There Were Ginats Upon the Earth
The legends and stories that have been passed down thru generations of people over the centuries and millennia are shared here with other sources of evidence dealing with the presence of aliens that lived on the earth in the distant past. Very interesting and pretty well written. Slow going at times but glad I read it.

the true origins of mankind
Why did Alexander the Great interrupt his campaign to make a detour for Egypt? How come so many varied ancient texts tell the same creation story as the Bible? Who was Noah? Did a giant ice shelf break off of Antarctica and cause the great flood of the Bible? Are the progenitors of mankind in fact extraterrestrials? Zecharia Sitchin has been exploring these and other mysteries for decades. Now 90 years old, his newest book, is a summation of a lifetime of work.

//There Were Giants Upon The Earth// seeks to unravel the true meaning behind ancient tablets, the Bible, architectural remnants of legendary cities such as Babylon, stories of Gods in myth, and more. It is a dense read, to be sure, and not always easy to follow. But, if you stay with it the reader will learn many things that are omitted from 'official,' sanctioned history. In the final analysis, Sitchin believes that advanced civilizations once existed on Earth and they were started by beings from another planet.

I believe he has made a compelling case for this thesis. Open your mind to other possibilities.

Reviewed by Bruce Marshall ... Read more

Product Description
When Heaven Invades Earth is a powerful statement and testimony on the Kingdom of God. Theologically sound, well supported, and extremely well argued, this message provides a carefully constructed biblical foundation for the average Christian to live and walk in the miraculous, supernatural power of God. Not only is the supernatural possible, it is also our commission. The Great Commission that Christ gave to the Church challenges us and makes us responsible to rise up to this supreme supernatural calling. Johnson shows you how you are called to dominion in the earth through the divine rule of God. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (79)

Making it Real!
Why are Christian's sterotyped as people who live in the "don't do this" and "Must do That" realm?WhenHeaven Invades Earth is a MUST read for everyone who wants to know how to REALLY live the life Jesus intended for his followers.Why for years have we prayed "Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven" and not seen it happen? Can it really happen?Answers awaiting you in the book, BUY THE BOOK!!!!!!!!!

Awesome book
This is such an awesone book, extremelygood content and very well written. Most informative...I bought extra copies to give away...it speaks to my heart and soul.

One of the most powerful faith building books you will ever read
I am so grateful for Bethel Church in Redding, CA and all that is pouring out from there. My wife and I hope to one day go to Bethel Supernatural School of Ministry.

I did not know much about Bethel when I initially bought this book, but I only heard a few sermons from Pastor Bill and heard about their breakthroughs in the supernatural, namely divine healing, so I picked up "When Heaven Invades Earth" & "The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind" at a conference.

When I started reading, I was blown away with the revelation that was in this book. As a man desiring to walk in a greater faith and awareness of God, this book truly captivated my heart. It will turn your faith on fire. I would share it with my fiance (at the time) over the phone, and we would be burning in our hearts to see a greater manifestation of God's Kingdom Reality in our lives. It so moved us that we got married, sold almost everything we had, and moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, to be around people with similar faith. Our lives have never been the same since! We still continue to listen to the teachings on [...]

If you are looking to get a taste of what Pastor Bill and His ministry are tasting, then this book is for you. I also highly recommend "The Supernatural Ways of Royalty" by Bill Johnson and Kris Valloton, the Associate Pastor of Bethel Church and Director of Bethel Supernatural School of Ministry. Enjoy!!!

Giving the King and His Kingdom
Before I begin, I rate books on IMPACT - how much they've truly changed my life. God has used this book to literally effect every area of my life and the lives around me. It most certainly deserves the highest rating possible.
Growing up my dad would tell me stories from the Jesus Movement. Stories of angelic activity, people getting healed, saved, and delivered, people receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit in radical ways, etc. All my life I wanted to experience these things: to see God work miracles through His people as He did in the early church, the Jesus Movement, and truly all throughout time. I wanted to see Jesus glorified through life altering encounters.
I read this book sometime around 2006. It took me 6 months to read. God used it to so transform my thinking that my life has never been the same; this has been one of the most impactful books I've ever read. Since reading it, I've known that God is still working miracles, that He's still healing people, that He is doing as much now as He did in the early church.
In 2008 I moved to Redding, CA, where Bill Johnson pastors Bethel Church and the leadership here runs a school called Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry. After going through the 1st Year program, it is now a regular thing for me to see people healed of all sorts of ailments, sicknesses, diseases, etc. Does every person I pray for get healed? Not yet. But what if 1 person out of 1,000 got healed after you prayed for them? What if that person and their entire family was transformed, turning their hearts to God and living for Him? Wouldn't that be worth it - Christ receiving the reward for His suffering? God so wants us to fulfill the great commission; to preach His Kingdom and love; to bring Heaven to Earth in the most tangible of ways. I wish every Christian (including Catholics) would read this book and start the journey [if it hasn't already started for you] of partnering with our Lord - our Love - in bringing His Kingdom and His will into every person's life around us. He is so worthy. Bless you! =)
Much love,
Jonathan Cline

PS. A little tip: when praying for anyone regarding anything, before you begin, become aware of God's presence. Since He is Love (and the Healer, and Provider, and everything good) it's best to be fully aware of Him, conscious that you're giving people Jesus, not just a prayer. May we all learn to love people with the very love of God!=D

Similar Books I Recommend:
"The Supernatural Power of a Transformed Mind" by Bill Johnson (the sequel to "When Heaven Invades...")
"John G Lake: His Life, His Sermons, His Boldness of Faith" by John G Lake (Oneness with Christ)
"Destined to Reign" by Joseph Prince (His grace & finished work of the cross)
"Good Morning, Holy Spirit" by Benny Hinn (relationship with God is crucial!)
"Miracle Workers, Reformers, and the New Mystics" by John Crowder (restoring intimacy & power to the Church)

When Heaven Invades My World
I am taking it slow on this one, on purpose. It would be so easy to just gobble up every life giving word, and sometimes that is appropriate and even necessary. In the case of Bill Johnson's When Heaven Invades Earth, however, speed is not expedient. Think medicine. Repeated intensive treatments. Long term, invasive, cell transforming, light therapy. Too dramatic? Okay. Not for me though, I mean it. If you are desperate for more light, more life, to breathe the air that Jesus breathes, Bill Johnson is the real deal, and he has something to say about that. I suppose you could really take it in at any pace too. If you'd rather gobble than savor, Mr. Johnson has made that easy work for you. I'd like to say you can, if you prefer, avoid the life changing benefits of this relatively smallish volume...but I'm not making any promises. ... Read more

Product Description
Second in the captivating Three Sisters Island trilogy.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Nora Roberts returns to the haunting shores of New England--and to the lives of three passionate, powerful women. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (148)

Quality merchandise
The book was in very good condition and arrived very quickly.Would highly recommend this supplier.

Three Sisters Island Trilogy
I so love this book, and am looking forward to getting the next one in the trilogy. Nora Roberts really is a most wonderful writter, there isnt any of her Irish books I dont like. Nora Roberts books are wonderful reads that you dont want to put down as well as they make you feel like you actually know the characters

Fiesty
I liked the book.I loved the whole series.Ripley was fiesty and funny.Mac was cute.Showing his intelligence but also clumsy.Very cute.Ripley dealing with who she and what she is.Really good book.

Definitely more earth than heaven
Book 2 in the Three Sisters Island Trilogy had me reading with bated breath as I wondered whether I would actually like Ripley Todd. Abrasive, harsh, rude and somewhat full of herself, I couldn't quite figure out a) how she had a brother like Zach and b) how she had friends like Nell & Mia. But after persevering and getting through the story, I realised that like most of us, Ripley had two faces. One that she showed to the world to let them know that she's a tough, no-nonsense cop and another where we see the woman behind the facade.
Her story might not be as dramatic as Nell's and she certainly doesn't have you rooting for her from the start, but eventually you get to the point where you can bear her. Then you begin to like her and wonder how long it will take before she lets Mac in. In the end, you wonder why it took her so long!
Another rainy day, snuggled in the couch good read.

Excellent!
best series ive read in a long time, loved it and cant wait to start the next one! ... Read more

Product Description
Following up Finn, his much-heralded and prize-winning debut whose voice evoked “the mythic styles of his literary predecessors . . . William Faulkner, Toni Morrison, Cormac McCarthy and Edward P. Jones” (San Francisco Chronicle), Jon Clinch returns with Kings of the Earth, a powerful and haunting story of life, death, and family in rural America.
 
The edge of civilization is closer than we think.
 
It’s as close as a primitive farm on the margins of an upstate New York town, where the three Proctor brothers live together in a kind of crumbling stasis. They linger like creatures from an older, wilder, and far less forgiving world—until one of them dies in his sleep and the other two are suspected of murder.

Told in a chorus of voices that span a generation, Kings of the Earth examines the bonds of family and blood, faith and suspicion, that link not just the brothers but their entire community.

Vernon, the oldest of the Proctors, is reduced by work and illness to a shambling shadow of himself. Feebleminded Audie lingers by his side, needy and unknowable. And Creed, the youngest of the three and the only one to have seen anything of the world (courtesy of the U.S. Army), struggles with impulses and accusations beyond his understanding. We also meet Del Graham, a state trooper torn between his urge to understand the brothers and his desire for justice; Preston Hatch, a kindhearted and resourceful neighbor who’s spent his life protecting the three men from themselves; the brothers’ only sister, Donna, who managed to cut herself loose from the family but is then drawn back; and a host of other living, breathing characters whose voices emerge to shape this deeply intimate saga of the human condition at its limits.Amazon.com Review
Jon Clinch on Kings of the Earth

Draw an X across New York State--letting one arm of it be the Erie Canal as it runs from Albany to Buffalo--and where the two arms of that X cross, you'll find the city of Oneida. The place where I grew up. It's a city by name and charter only, so when you picture it you should picture a town instead. A modest one. And on the perimeter of that town, past a sign at the edge of a cornfield that with no irony whatsoever marks the "city limits," picture a rich and endless panorama of farming country. A glacial landscape of great beauty, at work in the service of corn and cows.

My father was born in that farming country, although he didn't stay. He was the son of a previously itinerant day laborer and machinist and circus magician, who had left Tennessee's Clinch Mountain in order to start a new family in upstate New York.My mother, on the other hand, was born in the town. She descended from educators and preachers who traced their lineage to William Howard Taft--not just America's fattest President, but the only one who did double-duty as her Chief Justice.

No wonder I love that "city limits" sign, planted out there at the edge of a cornfield. No wonder I'm interested in whatever divisions it would seem to mark.

The thing is, I never saw the beauty of that place until I'd left it behind. And when I finally discovered what I'd lost, I spent years finding my way back. Kings of the Earth was part of that journey.

In it I tried to capture and preserve the voices of my childhood. The sound of the world as I knew it. The stories that people told, the things they valued, and the ways in which they understood one another (or tried to). Writing it was, as one character says, "like trying to hear a tune somebody whistled last week." But however impossible that kind of thing might be, making the effort can bring a person very close to something precious and important.

Because in spite of the many different voices heard in Kings of the Earth--women and men, farmers and city folks, con men and criminals and keepers of the peace--the book isn't just about how they talk. It's about how they listen. To one another.

The story begins with three old brothers on a dirt farm, just down the road from the place where my father came into this world. Three uneducated brothers who've lived and worked and slept together on that patch of hard ground and in that shack of a house all their lives long. Until the summer morning when one of them doesn't wake up.

Whatever might have happened in that shared bed of theirs was deeply private, but it takes on a wide public dimension. And the effort to make sense of it draws together a community of personalities, each of them with his or her own point of view. Together they draw a portrait that spans the better part of the twentieth century in one small American town, a portrait not just of the brothers but of themselves.

Listening to those people talk--giving them their own voices and putting them all in a book where they might endure for at least a little while--was my aim and above all my honor.

Customer Reviews (38)

REVELATIONS OF RURAL ISOLATION
Several reviewers of Kings of the Earth have cited the similarity to Faulkner's,As I Lay Dying.I see this more as a Greek tragedy set in a rural U.S. community.The story, narrated in first and third person voices, covers over fifty years in the lives of three illiterate and eccentric brothers who live isolated and insulated lives in a ram shackled house that lacks insulation.

Author Clinch has created a fictionalized version of a real life 1992 case in which one brother was accused and tried for murdering his sibling.The story is told in short chapters by various characters and moves back and forth in time.The book offers the reader a bi-polar reading experience. On the plus side, Mr. Clinch's portrait of the attitudes and actions of people living in a small village-like atmosphere are evocative of a simpler time while his descriptions of the brothers and their surroundings are so vivid you can almost smell and feel the dirt and desolation pouring from the pages.As for the negative aspects of the book, there were just too many voices adding their "two cents worth" (even people long dead spoke) and the jumps back a forth in time were disconcerting to say the least.

Even though the brothers and their neighbors appear to be able to "make lemonade" from the plethora of lemons in their lives, overall this book will never make my list of all-time favorites. It's not that I demand happily ever after from my reading material but for me this offering, though well written, is just too melancholy, the lives and surroundings of the characters too oppressive.The fact that the title of the novel comes from the book of Revelation is in itself revealing.Perhaps the message is that no matter who we are or where we live, we can never escape divine wrath.

Haunting Tale of Three Lives
This is the haunting tale of three bothers who live together through bachelorhood on a farm in upstate New York.Little educated with little money and few baths they continue through life just as their alcoholic father had.The oldest dies which moves the plot, such as it is, along.There is no great mystery, no great thrill to their lives.They are just three brothers who live as they always have, never advancing and always just getting by.Audie, the middle of the three has a mental handicap that is never really explained - they just live with it as another part of life that has been handed to them.This is life on that farm you've passed with a broken down bus in the back, no paint, no lawn, filth seemingly everywhere.Mr. Clinch takes you on that farm and shows you the characters you've probably never met.This is a fine work about the rural poor.

The story is told in short chapters that vary in length from one line to four or five pages.The chapters center on several different characters including the three brothers, their mother and father, a somewhat nosy neighbor, a sister and her husband and son and eventually a policeman.What makes this presentation unique is that some chapters are told from the character's perspective and others instead center on a character.This inconsistency works, which is probably a testimony to Mr. Clinch's fine writing.

So much of this book is just real life put on paper.I found myself looking forward to chapters about some of the characters and not others.Some are compassionate, some totally self-centered.All have a look at the three brothers whose bond makes them special in their own way.The harsh realism of all the characters gave the book a special flavor.This is a terrific book whose characters will stick with the reader for a very very long time.

Kings of the Earth - excellent condition, timing
I received this book in record time and it was in excellent condition as promised

THERE'S ALWAYS SOME KILLIN' YOU GOT TO DO AROUND THE FARM
KINGS OF THE EARTH

Mystery and questions are with you every inch of the way while reading this masterful book by Jon Clinch.Based on the true story of the Ward brothers of New York state this book kept me wondering and guessing. I will think about this book for a long time.

Meet the three Proctor brothers, Vernon, Creed, and Audie, born and raised on a farm by a loving mother and an abusive and hard drinkin' daddy.The three boys are thick as thieves and never leave the farm or each other their entire long lives.Their baby sister, Donna, goes away to school, marries, and makes her own life, all the while loving and worrying about her bizarre big brothers.These three men don't even own a truck or a car, they travel everywhere on their tractor, rain or shine.They themselves are filthy dirty and smell like last week's trash.Yet, one cannot help liking and caring for the three of them and wishing the best for each of them.

Clinch takes us on a journey dating from the 1930's to 1990.Told in many unique voices, each chapter is told by a different character.Clinch has the gift of making each character's narration extraordinary and distinct.Some of these chapters are one sentence, a paragraph or two, or several pages.This was a format that I thoroughly enjoyed and found refreshing.

The book opens with Audie's explantion that Vernon has went on ahead.Vernon had been sick and has passed during the night.But what first appears to be a simple natural cause of death has turned into a maybe murder -- who is the guilty party?Creed, who has killed before while serving time in Korea?Or Audie, the mentally challenged brother?Does anyone know what Audie and Creed are truly capable of?Could it have been a murder by an intruder?Or was Vernon's death natural?

Clinch writes with such ease and so beautifully.While the plot of this book hops from past to present and back and forth constantly, this was not confusing in the least and added much intrigue to the story.We are introduced to many characters with their own story to add -- the three brothers Vernon, Audie, and Creed, along with their sister, Donna.Add to the mix their dad Lester and mother Ruth, each telling their stories each with a different point of view.

We meet the brother's forever neighbor, Preston.While he finds the brothers eccentric, doesn't care for the squalor of their living conditions, and the pure oddness of them, he cannot help himself and is constantly taking care of them, helping them out of all sorts of situations and being a kind and considerate friend and neighbor.

Add into this mix the nephew of the three brothers, Tom, who deals grass and takes full advantage of his uncles and their ignorance.Tom gets into the dealing scene hot and heavy with consequences that will affect not only his life, but the lives of his entire family.

This book reads smooth and easy.The writing is superb and exciting.Clinch's gift of writing is a joy to read.The magic he works with words!

I am looking forward to reading Clinch's other book, FINN.If you enjoy a book based on true circumstances, with writing that is solid gold, characters you can identify with, and a story line that good to go, this is a book for you.I highly recommend it!

Thank you.

Pam

How am I the only person to give this a one star review?
How am I the only person to give this story a one star review?No disrespect to the author but this story goes back and forth through multiple characters but with no purpose!I read the whole novel waiting and wanting to know what this murder plot is aboutand in the end I got NO answers! I actually had more questions! Aghhhh how frustrating! ... Read more

Product Description
Two of the foremost American educators and healers in the Chinese medical profession demystify Chinese medicine's centuries-odl approach to health. Combining Eastern traditions with Western sensibilities in a unique blend that is relevant today, BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH opens the door to a vast storehouse of knowledge that bridges the gap between mind and body, theory and practice, professional and self-care, East and West.
... Read more

Customer Reviews (30)

Enjoyable, thorough and personally relevant
The authors have an excellent skill in communicating the concepts of Chinese Medicine to humans born into a western mindset with wonderful clarity.It was a joy to read.It's weakness from my point of view as a physician is that they seem to take their knowledge of western medicine from "a straw man" image of either what it was in the past or as if it was a solitary discipline epitomized by the surgical orientation of one of the author's father.Since I started in another career before medicine (biological psychology) I find that western and eastern medicine are both valuable disciplines, each with their own merits and their own weaknesses.As time marches on, with each vast system of healing having much more exposure to the other now than at any other time in history; we are also able to witness the needed and natural phenomenon of regression toward the mean.I could phrase that more poetically and spiritually as convergence toward the "Middle Way", the Tao or the balance of Yin and Yang.

Despite the inward aching of "De Qi" when I felt them hit a potentially true weakness in western medicine and the times when I felt they were perhaps a little further off the grain -- overall I found the book refreshing, hopeful and ripe with wonderful possibilities for strengthening the role of the client or patient in their own healing.The latter is something severely weakened in our third-party system of western medicine whereby someone elses pays for something to be done to me by procedure or pill, but yet I don't really have tonor am I inspired to change much about how I rest, recreate, eat, exercise or relate to my fellow earthwalkers or environment.

In eastern medicine these issues are all part of a larger concept of healing that has been sadly drained out of western medicine.Why this problems exists is complex and obviously western practitioners have their blind spots and exaggerations which have contributed to some but not all of the flaws.I especially think that it is not because most of us do not care as physicians.Nor is it because we have never spent time struggling with the passivity of the western model.There is no simple answer, but part of the accelerated dilemma lies with our institutionalized and bureacritized systems of delivery, now so heavily laden with other agendas that the essence of what we hoped for has sometimes been left out. Instead our "essence" became commercially packaged for mass production and profit mostly by people and corporations who never touch or sit face-to-face with the the real person made of flesh and blood (and qi) who came seeking healing.

Wholeness as glimpsed here could also be lost to the practice of eastern medicine, if the painful lessons in the evolution of western medicine are not studied with more thoroughness and heart than the authors exemplify in some of their superficial cliques -- such as doctor as mechanic.Science and medicine have moved on in the lives and practice of many if not most physicians.

I would point out that China in the early days of its exposure to western "materialistic science" likewise seemed to have become"intoxicated" with the grand idea that one could systematize, categorize, control and demystify nearly everything -- the tools becoming grandiose in their promise for mass production, delivery and speed.But at the end of the day, we and I believe they also ultimately realize that individual humans and complete living biological systems are always more than ... more than the micro by itself, more than a logical linear string of mechanisms, more than the isolated part, more than the quantity that is measurable by current standards and represented in group averages.Furthermore, healing done in harmony with the body's inate wisdom takes time.

Everytime I prescribe a medication I do so with some appreciation for what seems to be known about it and some hesitancy also realizing that for the person sitting in front of me it may have a somewhat different effect that than promised by the manufacturing drug company.Thus, my limited experience with Chinese medicines prescribed by L.Ac. colleagues and what I read between the authors lines tells me they understand the same -- there is great variation among individuals and their response to a given preparation will vary. Some of these differences may be explained by liver enzyme systems for metabolism, renal clearance, variations in biological half-lifes, and interactions with other medications in western medicine.They might be explained by season, time of day, age, gender, and propensity toward the expression one of the 5-Elements patterns in Chinese medicine.However, all our systems of explanation are imperfect in the face of life, its diversity and its wounds.

Nonetheless, I feel the authors did a very solid job of opening dialogue about their understanding of potential differences between left/right, east/west, yin/yang and ultimately eastern and western medicine.I would love to see that dialogue continued with a deeper respect between both sides -- for the greatest benefits of all of those who feel they are born and driven to be healers and who pursue with great diligence the expression of one or more healing arts and sciences from their own point of entry into the great mandala of wholeness.Such ahealing of the split between healers seems likely to do even more for those who come to them for healing.

There are many strong sections of this book -- I felt most drawn to the initial sections on theory, 5 elements, and the adaptation of archetypes to explain differences between people incorporating the physio-spiritual-pyschologic dimensions of the elements.I appreciated the balance in presentation of these types -- all of which have significant strengths and vulnerabilities for injury or illness.Unlike some texts I've read in which I felt the author might obviously like one type of person better than another; instead I felt a deep respect and appreciation communicated by these authors for every type of human, a recognition of equality or equilibrium between them and that all are needed to complete the human species.I also felt the emphasis on the positive side of each archetype, creating for the individual who possesses it a very important image of what it could look and feel like to be healthy. Sometimes that is greatly needed after a person has endured months or years of criticisms (even well intentioned) and chronic illnesses.

I do not know enough about chinese herbal medicines to speak to those sections.I definitely carry a fear for my particular group of patients/clients who have marked kidney insufficiency and who already have to take many western medicines; I am concerned that the additional burden of interactions with herbs and just more "stuff" for their already threatened filters to manage could overwhelm them.In this situation even the foods we would normally consider healthy (fruit, whole grain breads, nuts) can become toxic or lifethreatening by overdosing phosphorus or potassium.Thus I just don't go there with the population I serve.I am unable so far to speak to how this works with other groups.Nonetheless, I find much of interest in the book -- plenty to feed my imagination in the potential use of acupuncture and qi gong for assisting with pain and the de-spiriting aspects of chronic illness.

Easy to read
This book is great. I found that it easy for someone that is just beginning an interest in eastern medicine to get a clue. The book was referred to me by my doctor. He was right about it being a good place to start. It will definitely make you stop and consider the mind set of western medicine. There are also a number of useful recipes in the back if you like to cook.

Good Layman's Guide
Brought up by a scientist and a Western doctor, I was skeptical and mystified by Chinese medicine.After all, there is little more than anecdotal evidence for most of its success, and there is no rational reason for it to work.I was like Han Solo watching someone use the Force.I began acupuncture because Western medicine had not cured me in a year of trying, and my acupuncturist recommended this book.As I read it, Chinese medicine became less like a hokey religion, and began making sense.With creative language, personal experience from the authors, cases of their patients, elemental guides, and a rundown of various treatments, it's a great beginner's guide for the layman.On the not-so-good side, it does ramble on a bit sometimes, which is why I give it minus 1*.

Easy to follow
This book is a must read and a must own. It is a comprehensive easy to follow book allowing one to gain in depth information of the 5 elements.

Amazingly well written book!
This has got to be one of the best written books I've ever had the pleasure of reading on Chinese Medicine.Very beautiful language and with diagrams and pictures makes it VERY easy to understand and for once, an ENJOYABLE read ... Read more

Product Description
A towering masterwork of science fiction adventure andone of the best-selling science fiction novels of all time.L. RonHubbard's "Battlefield Earth" opens with breathtaking scope on anEarth dominated for 1,000 years by an alien invader--and man is anendangered species.From the handful of surviving humans a courageousleader emerges--Jonnie Goodboy Tyler, who challenges the invinciblemight of the alien Psychlo empire in a battle of epic scale, dangerand intrigue with the fate of the Earth and of the universe in thetenouos balance. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (472)

guilty pleasure
I have enjoyed reading and rereading this book over the years.I don't know how I first found it, since I would usually avoid L Ron Hubbard.The bad guys are really bad and the good guys are really heroic.It is somewhat simplistic, but a very fun read.I thought the film was a terrible adaption, and the pictures in my mind are much better.So don't see the movie, just read the book.

Good Pulp Fiction
L. Ron Hubbard was one of the great pulp fiction authors.His short stories are terrific. He turned out millions of words at high speed in many genres.

Pulp fiction authors were paid by the word and tended to pad their stories - that is the major weakness of this book. It would have been more effective if it had been edited down by 40% or so.

None the less, this is a fine "space opera": rugged hero, humanity on the ropes, evil "BEMS" (bug eyed monsters), lots of shoot-ups and explosions, green blood - all the good stuff.

Hubbard filled the book with lots of visionary ideas (social banking, peace dividends, market research etc.). Thus it is worthwhile although a slight cut below the icons of the era - Asimov, Heinlein, Sturgeon, Herbert, Niven, Dick etc.

Simply a hard book to put down..........
I was given this book as a present, I decided to enjoy it and started to read it on a Sunday morning with my coffee. I mostly like biographies, so I wasn't sure. After about an hour I could not put the book down, it went with me everywhere. I read it every chance I could and it was additive. I read it though the week, one chapter at a time. I was really enjoying it. It was a great book and I will say it will not disappoint you either.

Despite What Some Might Say, It Is Very Good
Many people really hate this book. I don't really understand that. It is very long and it is a little contrived sometimes, but it is really great fun overall. The main reason I don't give it 5 stars is that last part is a little inconsistent with the rest and kind of throws it off some.

Yes, there might be some mild Scientology kind of sticking out here and there, but nothing that is going to freak anyone out or anything. Trust me.

I liked the movie, even though it was not popular. I think if more people read the book first as I did, then they would have liked the movie better.

I think Hubbard meant for people to have a good time with this book. It should not be over analyzed for hidden meanings and scientific rigor. Come one people lighten up and have some fun.

Too long and boring
This is a very long and boring book. Actually, some of the concepts and some of the action is good. If the book were half as long and the characters more believable it wouldn't have been bad. It is dated though and women basically don't exist, not even alien women unless they are in servile roles. Probably all SF from this time period suffered from that so this book can't be blamed for that. ... Read more

Product Description
Kiko Denzer and Hannah Field, maker and baker, invite you into the artisan tradition. First, build a masonry oven out of mud. Then mix flour and water for real bread “better than anything you can buy.” Total cost? Hardly more than a baking stone – and it can cook everything else, from 2-minute pizza to holiday fowl, or a week’s meals.
Clear, abundant drawings and photos clarify every step of the process, from making “oven mud,” to fire, and to bread. Informative text puts it all into context with artisan traditions of many ages & cultures. Beautifully sculpted ovens (by the author and readers) will inspire the artist in anyone. And the simple, 4 step recipe (based on professional and homestead experience) promises authentic hearth loaves for anyone, on any schedule.
From weekend gardeners to "simple living," back-to-the-landers; Peace Corps volunteers to neighborhood community-builders; third-graders to earth-artists of all ages, this book feeds many hungers!
• updated, expanded, re-written, & revised.
• foreword by Alan Scott, the grandfather of wood-fired ovens and artisan bread.
• super-insulated design holds heat longer with less wood burned.
• 8 pages of color photos.
• Plus: mobile ovens, rocket mass heaters for the home, hay-box cookers, and more. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (48)

Very nice very simple
This book makes it very easy to build an oven. The steps are very clear and simple to follow!

Can't wait to try it
We bought this book in anticipation of building one this next spring.The book is well written and the directions look easy to follow.We'll find out when we actually try it, but it looks easy to follow.I particularly like the sculptural aspects of decorating the ovens and found the pictures helpful.

Great book easy to read, easy to do!
I think this is a great book. I'm no master baker or anythingbut the book really goes into good detail on the earth Oven. It offers great ideas to personalize your oven as well.

Good book,want to start building
It seems to have good approach to building a clay oven in this book. I think you probably have to learn as you go, as experience is great teacher, but I think it is nice having someone who has done something before share their experience with those who are in need of it.
It has allot of pictures and drawings to show how to build your oven, I am exited to start. wonderful, helpful step by step guide to help you in thejourney to creating a great oven.

Get your hands dirty!
This book is an excellent guide on the path to creating your own oven.If you are looking for detailed plans to follow step-by-step, this book will be helpful, but will likely disappoint.If instead, you approach building your oven as you do (or should) approach making bread...as a process instead of a procedure, you will be greatly rewarded.The author provides ample options, details, and examples to allow you to start on your journey, with an emphasis on experimenting and sourcing local materials.

After a few nights spent reading this book, I managed to successfully build a simple test oven in about 4 hours of actual work time (5-1/2 hours total, which includes digging the clay out of the yard, picking the kids up from school, and sipping some wine once complete while the kids decorated!).The oven physically turned out great, was easy to build, and I have learned much from the experience.Now I am eagerly waiting for everything to dry out enough to successfully bake pizza (the April showers may be good for the garden, but haven't been helping my mud oven dry out!).

As the author says: Experiment!There is plenty of information to allow you to confidently get your hands dirty building a few simple ovens with minimal time and monetary investment (I spent ~$50 on a fire-brick floor, and another $15 on cement blocks so I wouldn't have to move rock for the foundation).The major investment in these ovens is the time (labor) spent in construction, which is time well spent.The afternoon I spent building my first oven is chalked up to experience (you cannot truly appreciate building with earth until you've squished it between your fingers and toes!), family time (my six year old twins had a *GREAT* time helping me play in the mud!), and actual productivity (I did manage to build a complete oven from start to finish in an afternoon).

I encourage everyone to re-connect with the earth in a way most of us haven't since we were children and thought splashing in mud-puddles was fun...get this book, dig some dirt, get your hands dirty, and build something!

If your interests extend beyond ovens, you might also want to pick up the excellent Building With Cob: A Step-by-step Guide by Adam Weismann & Katy Bryce.

... Read more

Product Description
An icon of the environmental movement outlines a provocative approach for reclaiming our planet

According to Stewart Brand, a lifelong environmentalist who sees everything in terms of solvable design problems, three profound transformations are under way on Earth right now. Climate change is real and is pushing us toward managing the planet as a whole. Urbanization-half the world's population now lives in cities, and eighty percent will by midcentury-is altering humanity's land impact and wealth. And biotechnology is becoming the world's dominant engineering tool. In light of these changes, Brand suggests that environmentalists are going to have to reverse some longheld opinions and embrace tools that they have traditionally distrusted. Only a radical rethinking of traditional green pieties will allow us to forestall the cataclysmic deterioration of the earth's resources.

Whole Earth Discipline shatters a number of myths and presents counterintuitive observations on why cities are actually greener than countryside, how nuclear power is the future of energy, and why genetic engineering is the key to crop and land management. With a combination of scientific rigor and passionate advocacy, Brand shows us exactly where the sources of our dilemmas lie and offers a bold and inventive set of policies and solutions for creating a more sustainable society.

In the end, says Brand, the environmental movement must become newly responsive to fast-moving science and take up the tools and discipline of engineering. We have to learn how to manage the planet's global-scale natural infrastructure with as light a touch as possible and as much intervention as necessary. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (34)

Small planet, big proposals (and big ego)
Stewart Brand, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his groundbreaking "Whole Earth Catalogue," has quite a new startling proposals in this book-length manifesto. He wants us to embrace megacities (which have a smaller carbon footprint than the same amount of people would have living in small cities); he wants us to support bioengineered food (and ignore what he terms a hysteria surrounding "Frankenfood"); he wants us to reclaim wetlands; and he really wants us to embrace nuclear power after the move against it following the Three Mile Island and Chernobyl disasters of 25-30 years ago, since he believes it makes the most ecological sense to power our planet. All of these are intelligent ideas with many good arguments behind them, and many of them will certainly prove the way to go in the next fifty years.

Unfortunately, it's unlikely this book will, on its own, convince many people of these worthy ideas, since Brand may be terrific at spotting scientific trends but is fairly weak at making an argument. Throughout this book Brand constantly trips all over his own estimable ego. He congratulates himself constantly through the text for his projects and foundations and innovations, and can't resist dropping names as he goes. What's worse, this work isn't very balanced: he presents his arguments so unilaterally that it's often hard to know from his text why these proposals often meet resistance. As a writer, his prose seems at the level of Camille Paglia's: there are too many gushing adjectives, too many ornery locutions, and some truly jaw-dropping sentences that somehow escaped his editors' pens. It's too bad, because Brand is a legendary figure in the environmental movement, and many of these ideas deserve a more eloquent and balanced advocate, because they will almost certainly prove to be considered very carefully by world governments as the 21st century continues.

Whole Earth Intervention
As I read this the author, Stewart Brand, got a little under my skin.He seems like a "know-it-all" but actually does seem to know it all, or possibly 99% of what he discusses.I found myself thinking as I read this, that can't be right, then enjoyed having a perspective shift on the topic.I agree with his view of being pragmatic and basing decisions on science to solve problems.I was a somewhat unwilling convert to his position on GMO organisms until he dissected the research and showed the misconceptions that are fairly well established and wrongly so.

I am a huge fan of Dr. Daniel Janzen and his ecological restoration work in Costa Rica and was delighted to see Brand show how critical Janzens' philosophy
is in having a sustainable and working tropical ecosystem survive the population changes of our century.

Another example of how much impact this book had was that I finished reading it with about a dozen bookmarks left in place for passages that I found truly memorable and important to share with everyone I know.I'll spare you those details and let you discover them yourself.I very highly recommend it.

Footnotes are on the web for this important new book.
The author has dared to try to separate the wheat from the chaff in the environmental community.This book is crammed full of fact and opinion, and it took me some time to read and digest it. I started reading it right after the Deepwater Horizon explosion occurred, and finished it as plumes of oil started washing up onto those fragile Gulf shorelines. I don't agree with everything in the book, but the continuing disaster of that Gulf oil spill has done more than the global warming alarmists to convince me of the urgency of getting off fossil fuels-particularly oil.Brand is rational about how we should proceed to do that.His chapter on nuclear power is convincing.I agree that the US must develop generation 4 (Thorium and Integral Fast Reactor) nuclear power plants as soon as possible .Green technologies will also be necessary, but will not do the job completely.I also agree with Brand on the safety of GM (genetically-modified) foods.We have been exposed to GM foods for a long time, but the real need for using the technology is in feeding the world's poor.Brand's take on population and geo-engineering are interesting-but I have my doubts. If you want to get a good look at the topics in this book before buying or reading it, go to the author's website and find the link to the extensive online footnotes (just above the photo of the book's cover).This is an important and very extensive review of some very controversial environmental topics. Many environmentalists will accuse the author of being an apostate, but I think he is doing good for both the movement and for our earth.Highly recommended.

Try to read with an open mind, no matter what your bias
I scanned through many of the reviews here, mostly positive, but it was my persception that mosts of the reviewers' bias for or against Brand's recommendations came into play in their reviews.....so readers should keep that in mind.

I read this as I was a big big fan of Whole Earth Catalogs, CoEvolution Quarterly, and Whole Earth Review....long time subscriber and I will always tell folks that the Next Whole Earth Catalog was a life changer for me.Stewart Brand and his band of reviewers/writers introduced me to many many books and tools.

I knew from the promo on this book that Brand was going to challenge some of my beliefs....but I think we should all be open to taking in new information and being open to changing our minds on things.....I can say that Stewart truly changed my mind on cities being green, made me more receptive to nuclear energy and gave me food for thought on GE food.

The book is well written and entertaining to read....but after awhile I did have to think that Stewart's agenda was getting a bit in the way of presenting a totally balanced viewpoint. (I had to wonder at one point if he had some hidden reason behind this book's thesis.)He does give a nod to the other side such that those whoalready agreed with his positions will feel that he has weighed all the issues and come to change his mind....hence given his stature in the environmental movement, his "turning around" his position will be seen as major reinforcement that they were right all along....no need to read further on these issues, "Stewart has researched it and if he changed his mind, I must be right".I would caution those who feel that way to still seek out the opinions of those who think differently and see if there are other points that legitmately give pause to his assertions.

Those who disagree with his positions, I would encourage you to read this book....hold an open mind and see if there is anything that shifts for you.As stated, I shifted a bit in my thinking by reading this book....but still feel that Stewart may have left out salient points that disagreed with his position. But that's for me to go and research for myself.I don't think things are as cut and dried as he tries to paint in all the issues. Yet, that's natural, once you have a conclusion as Steward did, it is going to drive his writing approach.But if you read his book, it will push you to thinking on the issues and going deeper to see what is best for us.

One final observation, if you apply an integral lens to Brand's work, you might consider that he is only looking at things through an external materialistic scientific viewpoint.To use Ken Wilber's AQAL model, Brand is totally in the upper right quadrant with a bit in the lower right.He ignores the left hand quadrant and tends to discount the inner realities of people who may have emotional reasons for disagreeing with his view point.In fact, there is a bit of smug glibness that comes through when it comes to discounting anyone who makes a point that is not based totally in materialistic science.Brand might want to apply an integral lens to his framework and see what might have changed in his book.He may be ultimately right on all his viewpoints, but discounting the emotions of those who hold a different viewpoint is not going to further the acceptance of his ideas.Values and our inner world matter too.

Genius!
A book that is so easy to read and so important for our common future. ... Read more