Customer Reviews (4)

Thin I Was and Filthy Haired Too
Being of the same generation as Bob I shook my head knowingly between outbursts of hysterical laughter, whilst reading the book in only three days.Apart from being relieved to learn I'm not the only bloke whose early sexual experiments were about as successful as Kryten's attempts to tell lies, I also shared his frustrations in coming to terms with Straights and their bread-head world. But far from being self-indulgent nostalgia this book captures those years in our lives when events seemed to sweep us along by their own momentum. In the company of people who likewise challenge the secure world around them, Bob finds himself caght up in a conflict between easy middle class existence and trying to be a working class revolusionary. The gate crashing of the Oxford Ball is perhaps the hardest bit to believe, but any creative license is well justified. I liked the fact that he adds an update as to the present whereabouts of the main characters at the end of the book. To be honest they mostly come across asa better crowd than the tossers I used to knock around with and now avoid like one of Rimmer's lectures on the Hammond Organ.

Bobbie, you middle-class bastard!
Bobbie, I am extremely annoyed that a middle-class bastard such as yourself should write a book this good, which is why I am trying to reduce your average star rating. And subtitling it Memoirs of a Bad Boy? Everyone knows I'm the bad boy of the Red Dwarf cast and you're just an overprivileged middle-class whiner. Everyone: read my books instead! They're honestly quite good!

Not so thin and filthy anymore
For fans of Red Dwarf or Junkyard Wars, the early years of Robert Llewellyn's life will leave some wondering "How did he ever wind up as an actor?", and for others it will all make sense.This wonderfully written auto-biography invites us into the '70's world of sexual self-awareness, upper-class prejudices, free-spirited hippies, silver polishing, party crashing, toast, weed, and geodesic domes.

Mr. Llewellyn manages to keep the reader trans-fixed from beginning to end.His "tell it as it is" writing mixed with copious amounts of humour makes for some embarrassing moments if you're reading this in public places.

I highly recommend this book for true Llewellyn fans.It's a very revealing look into his youth and his background.From cartoonist to convict, from visionary to drag queen.You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll laugh some more, but all through-out the book you'll never stop wondering "this guy is Kryten?!"

"Thin He Was and Filthy-Haired", "Man in the Rubber Mask", "Man on Platform 5", "Punchbag", and "Sudden Wealth".An impressive collection of truly wonderful works.

Far out and ethnic...
I love Mr Llewellyns books. "Rubber mask", "Punchbag", "Platform 5"- they are all first rate. I finished reading "Thin he was..." his teenage autobiography last night and I have to say its my favourite so far. The title is derived rather arcanely from a quote about aliens- "Dark they were and golden eyed".

The novel tells the story of Rob(the cartoonist) who in his teens went ever so slightly off the rails. He lives in a geodist dome, smokes weed and crashes Oxford balls in drag. A fantasy writer called Duncan finds Robs rebellious behavoiur extremely rich and makes a pass at him. Young Rob is flattered, but his hormones are too much raging for attractive females. He is also desparetly seeking a direction in life. His romantic and anarchic ideals seem to have no place in "The System".

Unlike anything else Llewellyn has written, this storys innocence goes straight to the soul. He perfectly captures the sights and sounds of the time and his characterisation is utterly charming. At one point he mentions having never read "Catcher in the rye". This is interesting because his book has a similar engaging narritive with the wild excitment of "On the road". ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

The War Diaries of Alistair Fury
The funniest story cassette you can buy. Alistair and his "revengers" get up to all sorts of hysterically funny antics. Well written and very well read to make you ( and your child of course!) laugh out loud! ... Read more

Product Description
Written by Chad Merrimen. Jeb was a singl-minded man. He came out West to discover who had bushwhacked his brother, and he had no interest in running the small ranch that was left. He wasn't concerned about who ran the other small ranches around either, or whether the nesters could be scared off the land claimed by the empire. But when Jeb was strung up by the thumbs, he discovered right quick whose side he was on. And suddenly it became even more urgent to find out who had killed Tom - for all Jeb knew, he might be siding his brother's murderer. ... Read more

Product Description
Everyone's trying to impress Giselle, the French exchange girl. Alistair Fury and the Revengers want to throw a party with people of their own age with kissing and crisps. If Giselle comes to that, she'll be able to see how attractive and mature Alistair is. ... Read more

Product Description
Everyone's trying to impress Giselle, the French exchange girl. Alistair Fury and the Revengers want to throw a party with people of their own age with kissing and crisps. If Giselle comes to that, she'll be able to see how attractive and mature Alistair is. ... Read more

Product Description
Miles, a computer programmer and obsessive cyclist, made tons of money in Silicon Valley but it means nothing to him since he can no longer feel any kind of emotion. Anna, a German car designer can't find a reason to stop sleeping. The two have nothing in common except a radical trauma therapist. ... Read more

Product Description
Magical Aromatherapy by Scott Cunningham combines the modern science of aromatherapy with the ancient science of magical perfumery. Together they make a powerful system that can improve your life and bring you what you want. Already, over 170,000 people have found out how useful this book can be. You can, too!
In these pages you'll discover how to use aromas from fresh and dried herbs and essential oils to make changes in your life. You can use them to bring you love, peace, protection, psychic awareness, happiness, joy, and more.
You'll discover that the dried seeds of celery can be used to enhance psychic awareness or bring restful sleep. The fresh flowers of gardenia can be used for peace, love, and spirituality. Honeysuckle can be used for weight loss and prosperity. This book includes full instructions on how to use these three and ninety-seven more aromatics!
If you do magical rituals, you'll also be thankful for information such as the ruling planet and element for each of the herbs. Also given are aromas of the seasons, lunar cycles, days of the week, and zodiacal signs. You'll also learn how to make, store, and use essential oils. Cunningham also includes addresses of essential oil distributors; fresh and dried plant distributors; and aromatherapy organizations and publications. There's even a glossary and a great annotated bibliography, as well as a history of magical perfumery.
Even if you've never done any magic in your life, you can use this book. For example, to attract love, "visualize yourself freely giving and receiving it as you smell the crushed fruits" of the caraway. You can repeat this several times a day, especially if you are worrying about your current relationship.
And if you've been doing rituals for a long time, you will find this book to be invaluable. The correspondences and information will allow you to use aromatics to enhance any of your rituals. This is truly a book anyone can use.


... Read more

Customer Reviews (22)

Excellence.
I'm assuming you've read Cunningham's Encyclopedia of magical herbs, and Incense, Oils & Brews.

With those awesome books, he takes it a step further with aromatherapy. It's a great book and gets more into detail on the oils themselves than in the aforementioned I/O/B book.

It's small (ie: short & 1/2" thick), it's an easy read, packed full of great info, and it's cheap! It's great. :)

Very Helpful Book!
I recieved this item in record time, and I love the quality of it!! Thank you

Everything you need to know about aromatherapy!
I've gotten several different herbal books, books on all things magick but this book tells you everything you need to know.You get plant names, how to use them, what element they are and more!Scott Cunningham was an amazing author and this was one of his most important for natural healing.

Good
This was a good book for my research; wasn't what I thought it would be.

Magical Aromatherapy
A short history of aromatherapy, how to use oils and herbs, a list of 100 plants and their magical properties. This book is easy to read and Scott Cunningham also give warnings about allergies and reactions to oils. A very responsible author who firmly believes in what he has written.A very useful book for your own spellwork. ... Read more

Product Description
From the author and photographer who brought us "a new genre of art book" in Albemarle: A Story of Landscape and American Identity comes a new collaborative effort detailing the story of our nation's birth: Jamestown and the Making of America. This beautiful work of photography and prose traces the ways in which American culture grew out of the conflict that characterized the first contact between Native Americans and Europeans. Expanding in their unique treatment of Albemarle County, the artists use photographs from our time to suggest both the ancient and recent pasts, creating a virtual experience from the Colonial era into modern times. Telling this great story in modern terms by dusting off the history to reveal the main players as fresh and alive today as they were then, Jamestown and the Making of America beautifully depicts a landscape synonymous with American history, from its tumultuous beginning through today. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Empires in the Forest
This is an extraordinary book. A sensitive collaboration between photographer and author, it suggests a broad emotional landscape in which to view the founding of Jamestown. Intellectual bearings are difficult, given Chenoweth's fictional handling of the material. But the brilliant photography of Robert Llewellyn grounds the work in what clearly was the book's intent--an artful evocation of the ephemeral nature of American history.

Personal connection
We are fortunate to know one of the indian men prominently featured in this book.That made it very special to us.We are delighted that it is published at this time of the 400th anniversary of Jamestown.It will be a valuable learning tool forgenerations.We delighted in reading it and then presented it to one of our children and our grandchildren.The excitement of knowing our indian friend added to the enjoymnent of the book and the anticipation of visiting Jamestown.

Timeless and memorable re-telling of the Jamestown story!
This book is a special experience. The format combines a sort of historical fiction approach with beautiful photographs portraying the English, the Native Americans, and the timeless beauty of the natural world in coastal Virginia. The text explores the complex relationships of Captain John Smith, chief Powhatan, Opechancanough, Pocahontas, and John Rolfe, and how it resulted in the destruction of the native Americans and the creation of a new nation, America, based on the profit motive.

This is a tale told so many times before. But somehow this is one of the best versions ever-it really is more accesible than a scholarly treatise. A great deal of heartbreak, a great deal of depth and understanding, and a pretty clear differentiation between what we are sure of and what is still unclear. You have to experience this book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

In Defense of Astrology: Astrology's Answers to It's Critics
(3 & 1/2 - actually)Initially, I wanted to give it 2 stars based upon its "one big gaping logical hole" (at liest in terms of the books title).However, in spite of said hole, it still manages to be a pretty good book for any person who already sees Astrology as being valid and who knows what to expect from the book.True, it doesn't do a very good job at defending Astrology against the intellectual critic (and one can only wonder if such a thing is even possible).However, I can't help but be impressed by the wealth and varity of information this book contains.Misleading title aside, I feel this is must reading for any astrologer who wants to know more than just how to interpret charts and transit listings.

If you think that the founding constellations were based upon what people thought they saw when they looked up into the sky; this book has a surprise for you.It tells you why you should be concerned about forced births and why Astrology isn't as pagan as you think. His open-mindedness and impartiality are quite refreshing.Consider, for example, the following footnote: (Chapter Nine) "1. West, J. Toonder, J., The case for Astrology, Penguin.Contains some interesting photographs of time twins, though some details in the stories have been discredited by later research" - (Some Astrologers absolutely rave about time twins yet Robert Parry tells it like it is.)

Mr. Parry responds to twelve of the thirteen most common arguments against Astrology.The one that he just couldn't respond to is the one that goes something like, "How could it possibly work?You mean to tell me that the SKY is divided into 12 personality types?How could a big rock in outer space have a personality?"There just isn't any "logical" defence against that 13'nth argument.However, if the reader knows what to expect (and what to not expect) I would give it a thumbs up, depending, of course, on what the reader is looking for.

It should be understood that in this book, the author is attempting to do something that is extremely difficult (or perhaps even impossible) and that he does a better job at it than Sydney Omarr's work "My World of Astrology".If one wishes to criticize this work fairly, it should be compared to other authors who attempted to do the same thing.

I would further point out, however, that some of his statements about Astrology and free-will are a bit puzzling.

Interesting, but hard to persuasive
This book aims at defending astrologers' position against major critics. The author gives us the answers to the following 12 typical questions:

1) Pop Astrology: This is a question from the people who know only sun sign astrology.

2) Twins: This seems to be a reasonable question about whether or not astrology tells twins must have the same destiny.

3) Earth-Centered: This is an old question that should have been dealt by modern astrologers.

4) Nations and Peoples: This looks a little tough question about whether people who are killed by natural disaster like earthquakes have something in common in their natal charts. The answer to this question is somewhat related to mundane astrology.

5) Zodiac: This question asks why the stars in each sign that are all different distances from us can cause us the line-of-sight effect. A little difficult question.

6) New Planets: This question asks whether astrologers introduce new planets into their system.

7) Conception: This is a question asking why we use birth time to when constructing onefs natal charts rather than referring to the time of conception.

8) Fatalism: This is also an old question between fate and free will.

9) Forced Birth: This is a rather new question that has been arisen from the scientific development.

10) Paganism: This question identifies astrology as superstition.

11) Influence: This seems to be a fundamental question asking how planets affect us.

12) Relevance: This question regards astrology as similar to religion.

Though you may not agree on all the answers, I think that this is an interesting book by reminding us of the fundamental questions of astrology.

In other parts of the book, the author classifies astrologers into four types; pop astrologers, small-business person, private and semi-professional astrologers, and fully professional consultants. Pop astrologers and small business people are considered to work for their fame and money. Private and semi-astrologers may not behave on the "Code of Ethics" of astrologers. The author attached the Code of Ethics of Faculty of Astrological Studies for reference. Interestingly, the code prohibits astrologers to commit 'sunsign' forecasting for media. But as far as I know, some of the graduates of Faculty of Astrological Studies, writes sunsign forecasts every day. Maybe the code does not have any power to enforce its provision.

Defending the indefensible through tai chi
This is a defense of astrology in the sense of giving people who enjoy astrology some tools for dealing with ridicule about their beliefs, not in the sense of addressing the objections of informed skeptics.Parrypresents, superficially, the standard responses to the common paradoxesinherent in astrological theory.He debunks horoscopes and Sun Signs("All Capricorns are ..."), while presenting the fuller view ofwhat is involved in a serious modern practice of astrology.Parry leavesno doubt that there are people who consider astrology a legitimate form ofcounselling and forensic science.Unfortunately for his cause, he doesn'tpersuade the non-believers, if such a thing is possible.I bought thisbook because I enjoy scientific controversies, and was hoping to see thestrongest possible rational defense of astrology.I was disappointed atthe profoundly unscientific tone and content of the book, even in its bestchapters.Also at its failure to adequately address even the simplestquestions in any really detailed fashion.Parry's main content is a bag oftools for believers to use to defend their astrological practice fromuninformed ridicule.He relies on his experience with Tai Chi to produce areasonable and compassionate strategy for defusing hostility andintolerance to unpopular beliefs.Parry introduces one of the interestingareas for showing astrological influences, the "time twin."Astrological theory predicts that people born near each other at the sametime should be very much alike and follow similar life courses.Parrysuggests that this is true, but does not provide any analysis, relyinginstead on anecdote and things like people having the same number ofchildren as their "time twin."Another disappointing lostopportunity to defend his craft is when he discusses why fraternal twinsare so different from identical twins.He suggests that tiny differencesin the moment of birth are a big influence on personality.This seems tomean that even a few minutes difference should give people a completelydifferent natal chart, and this fact alone would make natal charts almostuseless.The one person who managed to produce some semblance of evidence ofplanetary influence on human personality, Michel Gauquelin, is givensurprisingly short shrift in this book.Possibly because Gauquelinbelieved that he found evidence for planetary influence ("The MarsEffect," but that he at the same time found evidence that astrologywas useless, even beyond horoscopes and sun signs.His theory, which isnot mentioned by Parry, was that planetary events somehow influence thetime of birth in different ways for different people, rather thaninfluencing their personality.This is how he explained the finding thatthe era of technological birthing and conception options createsstatistical problems in his analysis.Even with the leap of faith thatplanets can influence us in some way, if the effect is negated by thingssuch as induced labor, as Gauquelin suggested, then astrological theorybecomes a quaint artifact rather than the ostensibly scientific counsellingand forensic service that Parry tries to defend in this book.This book ismost interesting in the insight it provides into how we tell stories toourselves first, about our role in the universe, and then explain themrationally. It is in the level-headed, rational, but unsuccessful attemptto defend indefensible beliefs in books like this that we see a big clue towhy we believe the things we believe. ... Read more