2/04/2010

Review of Pain Free 1-2-3: A Proven Program for Eliminating Chronic Pain Now (Paperback)

I love Dr. Teitelbaum because he knows what he is talking about.There are tons of books out there that are written by people with no medical degrees.While their opinions maybe of some value, you can never fully trust their judgement.

What makes Dr. Teitelbaum's books very effective is two things: a) He's been through Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Fibromyalgia himself, had to drop out of med school and got over his ailments, therefore he can relate to a patient more than many book writers.b) He's an M.D. which means that when he recommends a dosage of a drug, you can rest that he knows what he's talking about AND his views on alternative medicine are so well balanced and well researched.

There are tons of claims out there about all kinds of therapies and treatments and magic pills.. Teitelbaum juices it down and presents his recommendations on everything from bracelet magnets to prolotherapy and traditional prescription pain medications.

Excellent book that I keep referring to over and over.

Product Description

The bestselling author of From Fatigued to Fantastic shows chronic pain sufferers how to treat the underlying causes of pain and regain health and vitality

Pain Free 1-2-3 demonstrates the four critical components for healing tissue: getting optimum nutrition and sleep, correcting hormonal levels, and eliminating the factors that put stress on the body. Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum provides more than 100 treatments combining both natural and prescription approaches to guide you on how to aid the body in healing, locate the source of their pain, and tailor treatments for maximum effect.

"An excellent and powerfully effective part of the standard of practice for treatmentof people who suffer from fibromyalgia and myofascial pain syndrome."--The Journal of the American Academy of Pain Management



From the Back Cover

Conquer your pain and take back your life!

"Jacob Teitelbaum again breaks new ground with his characteristic insightfulness and compassion for patients. The result is a book that offers practical solutions to heal the underlying conditions that cause pain."
--Mary Shomon, New York Times bestselling author of Living Well with Hypothyroidism

"An amazing book on pain management by a world-renowned expert! You can once again enjoy and love life to its fullest."
--Marc Darrow, M.D., Assistant Clinical Professor, UCLA School of Medicine

Finally, here is a proven step-by-step program to get rid of the aches and pains that wreak havoc on your life. For years, Dr. Jacob Teitelbaum suffered from chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia pain until he learned how to effectively treat it. Based on this firsthand knowledge and his thirty years of experience as a pain specialist, Pain Free 1-2-3 provides more than one hundred treatments along with advice on customizing and combining safe and effective natural, alternative, and pharmaceutical remedies.

Dr. Teitelbaum shows you how to:

  • Address what is critical for healing and tissue repair-optimum nutrition and sleep, correcting hormone levels, and eliminating stress
  • Create a new, comprehensive, and integrated approach to pain relief
  • Treat fatigue, depression, anxiety, and other problems related to pain

Haven't you suffered enough? It's time to say goodbye to pain forever!

Find much-needed relief from:

  • Myofascial and fibromyalgia pain
  • Acid reflux and indigestion
  • Back pain
  • Headaches
  • Cancer pain and discomfort
  • Menstrual cramps and much more




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2/03/2010

Review of The Books of the South: Tales of the Black Company (Chronicles of the Black Company) (Paperback)

This collection of three Black Company novels tells the story of the Company's journey out of the North, into the South, and how the Company came to fight the Shadowmasters.For several reasons, this isn't as cohesive a volume as "The Books of the North," but it still represents some of the best work done in military sci-fi/fantasy.Fans of the Black Company should pick this up for their bookshelves.Newcomers will also find a lot to like, but I'd recommend starting with "The Books of the North" or skipping straight to the Glittering Stone storyline.

"Shadow Games" is set-up book, telling about the mercenary Black Company's flight from the North after its near-destruction at the end of "The White Rose."Still narrated by physician/historian/Captain Croaker, it feels very much like the first three books.The story is very episodic, in keeping with the storytelling mechanic of having Croaker tell the Company's history in the Annals.As with the previous three novels, a lot happens here, and there's not a single paragraph you can afford to skip.

"Dreams of Steel" shifts the narration to Lady, who is either your most or least favorite character.Either way, there's no denying that she's fascinating, and telling the story from her perspective was a great way for Cook to compress events.Instead of Croaker's style of telling a three-month tale in the space of a single chapter, Lady provides more detail, and this novel covers a lot less territory as a result.This is the only novel Lady narrates, and it sets up the events of "Bleak Seasons" (which, I hope, will come out soon in a "Glittering Stone" collection).

A previous reviewer named "The Steel Spike" as her personal favorite, and I'm glad to hear I'm not alone there.It's a "by the way" story, following some of the characters who left the Black Company after the events of "The White Rose."Many are our old favorites, and this book is their swan song.This is the last we see of Raven, Silent, and Darling.It's narrated by a new character, someone from outside the Company, and I actually found Case's narration to be a lot more engaging than any of the others Cook has used; it's a lot more conversational and personal, and gives us an outsider's perspective on the culture of the Black Company."The Steel Spike" doesn't strictly follow the story of the Company's transition to the South, but it fits with this collection as a way of tying up the last of the story threads from the first volume.

Overall, this is not The Black Company at its best, but it's still miles better than most other fantasy fiction.The gritty realism and themes we expect from Glen Cook are all here, as is the persistent refusal to classify any of our protagonists as "evil" or "good."(This is most obvious when we see the world through Lady's eyes in "Dreams of Steel.")It's still the story of soldiers, sorcerers, and the people caught in the midst of a struggle they don't even try to understand.Highly recommended for fans of engaging, realistic fantasy.

Product Description
Marching south after the ghastly battle at the Tower of Charm, the Black Company is hounded by shadowy figures every inch of the way.

The game is on: the Company versus the Shadowmasters, deadly creatures that deal in darkness and sorrow.

When hope dies, there's still survival. And there's still the Black Company.

This omnibus edition collects Shadow Games, Dreams of Steel, and The Silver Spike.



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Review of The Macrobiotic Path to Total Health: A Complete Guide to Naturally Preventing and Relieving More Than 200 Chronic Conditions and Disorders (Paperback)

To those who understand its significance, this is a profound and revelatory book.

Like all living things, food has energy in it. Macrobiotics is eating according to the energy in food, which allows us unprecedented control over our health.

The "vague" quality the previous reviewer objects to is inherent in Chinese medicine and is in fact one of its greatest strengths, permitting a view of health and disease based on concepts rather than data. (And in fact, the book isn't vague at all--this is just a reflection of her unfamiliarity with the ideas.)

Nor do the authors "mention all types of alternative therapies." For each category of illness, they outline the conventional medical treatment, provide references to medical studies (for those who feel the need for this sort of thing), and then discuss the macrobiotic approach.

The same goes for the comment that "a more specific macrobiotic way of eating would have been nice." This is a highly specific book on how to use macrobiotics to treat over 200 health problems without recourse to the toxic, invasive, and expensive techniques of conventional medicine. Nevertheless, the authors devote over 100 pages to macrobiotic philosophy and practice and another 20 or so to recipes. Anyone who feels the need for more information should investigate the numerous books on the subject by Michio Kushi and others.

As for repetitiveness, this is inevitable in a book intended even for those with no exposure to macrobiotics, because each condition requires modifications of the diet. Rather than giving the basic diet in one place and requiring readers to flip back and forth through the book and put it all together themselves, they've quite reasonably done so for us.

As far as wanting you to "buy more from their website," this 500-page book has a two-page resource list at the end, presumably for those without convenient access to natural-food stores. If that constitutes a shameless hard-sell, I'd like to see more of that attitude in the marketplace.

I've been macrobiotic for over 20 years and find this an extraordinary book, like all Michio Kushi's works. I buy copies and give them away to people I know who are sick, because my two decades of experience with this diet have convinced me that vegetarianism is essential to good health--and if you're going to be a vegetarian, I can't imagine doing it any other way.



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Review of Nutrition For Dummies (Paperback)

Love the book. This book is perfect for the begginning dieter. Usually when someone starts a new lifestyle, which includes a change in activity level and/or diet, they do not know much about what they need to do, as far as exercise, and how they need to eat to accomplish the goals they want.I am a exercise sports science major with a minor in nutrition and I have reccommended this book to many of my personal training clients.Reason being b/c as everyone knows you can not just start an exercise routine, you must change and modify your diet to see good results.Your body needs the right type of fuel and the right amount.This book explains in easy to follow terms how to go about changing your diet to a more healthy one.If you are trying to change your diet, knowing what you should be doing and eating is the place to start.Knowledge is a great thing!Buy the book you will be glad you did.

Product Description
You've been hearing it since you were a little kid: "You are what you eat." But unlike most of the adages you've long since debunked, this wise saying is true! Good nutrition is the key to achieving and maintaining a healthy weight and lifelong good health-no matter how you slice it.

This edition of Nutrition for Dummies has been updated with the latest revisions of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, new recommended daily allowances for all the nutrients a healthy body needs, plus the real low-down on all the conflicting opinions about vitamins and minerals, protein, fats, and carbs. You'll discover how to:

  • Interpret nutrition labels
  • Prepare delicious, healthy meals
  • Keep nutrients in food, even after cooking
  • Eat smart when eating out
  • Evaluate dietary supplements

Nutrition for Dummies, Fourth Edition, is a one-size-fits-all guide to nutrition for anyone who may have fallen asleep in health class, wants to brush up on what they already know, or is looking to keep up-to-speed on all the latest guidelines and research. It shows you how to manage your diet so you can get the most bang (nutrients) for your buck (calories) and gives you the skinny on how to put together a healthy shopping list, how to prepare foods that are good for the body and the soul, and ten easy ways you can cut calories.

An apple a day may not necessarily keep the doctor away, but with the simple guidance of Nutrition for Dummies, you can live happily-and healthily-ever after.



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Review of Healing is a Choice: 10 Decisions That Will Transform Your Life and 10 Lies That Can Prevent You from Making Them (Paperback)

Every person makes choices. Some are major and imposing, while others seem insignificant and inconsequential. Still, each individual --- no matter how discouraged, hopeless, or dejected he or she might feel --- has the opportunity to effect positive, life-enhancing change in his or her life. This principle holds true for those struggling to recover from infidelity, divorce, bankruptcy, illness, job loss, familial estrangement, or abuse. Author/counselor/radio host Stephen Arterburn teaches readers practical methodology for making biblically sound decisions that will change their lives for the good.

Arterburn offers no quick fixes in his text, but he compassionately leads those who are seriously interested in investing their time, energy and commitment toward realizing significant life changes through biblically effective methods that will help them to think differently --- Godwardly --- and will enable them to recast a damaged, spiritually stunted history. The author points out that God has provided the properties to heal within every facet of our nature --- bodily, emotionally and spiritually. Writes Arterburn, "It takes courage to seek out, obtain, and utilize whatever resources you need to treat the untreated areas of your life. But not everyone has the courage. Not everyone is willing." His call (plea, actually) is for all Christians to look carefully at who they are, why they do what they do, and how they can move forward to a richer, more spiritually healthy place.

To jumpstart this process, Arterburn recommends "inviting quiet" so as to do a "pain inventory and a feelings checkup." He suggests that individuals ask these introspective questions: What am I afraid of? What is missing? Am I empty? What am I filling up on? Why am I refusing to feel? What feelings am I avoiding? Arterburn says that these questions and their respective responses help people gain insight into life patterns of protection. He asks readers to look at areas where they experience fear, then anger, and finally guilt. Once this exercise is completed, studied and carefully considered, healing can begin when honesty and courage meet with trust and faith in God, and in His ability to provide gracious daily strength to change.

Specifically, the author discusses the following 10 choices every person makes in regard to healing:

Connect one's life with others, or give in to the lie that "all I need to heal is just God and me."
Face life (ugly emotions and all), or the lie that "real" Christians experience real peace in all circumstances
Thoroughly investigate life in search of truth, or embrace the lie that it does no good to look back.
Seek healing for the future, or believe that time heals all wounds.
Help one's life, or give in to the lie of self-sufficiency.
Embrace life, or pretend there is no problem by denying its existence.
Espouse forgiveness, or only bestow the gift on those who deserve it.
Allow risk its proper place, or spend every day protecting oneself from any potential pain.
Serve today, or wait until complete healing has taken place.
Persevere, or give in to hopelessness.

Each of these subjects is handled on a chapter-by-chapter basis with countless narratives, real-life scenarios, and lots of author-to-reader dialogue that encourages, challenges, and lovingly directs.

One of Arterburn's strengths as a communicator is his willingness to be honest about his own life struggles. He is candid, at times sorrowful, and at other times jubilant. But always he urges individuals to seek out the substantive help and healing Christ alone can offer them.


--- Reviewed by Michele Howe

Product Description

The power to heal-physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually-is in God's hands. But the choice to be healed is yours. Everyone, at some level, needs healing. In this book, Stephen Arterburn outlines ten choices crucial to receiving healing and ten lies that can prevent you from making them. You will find the wholeness God desires for you in a practical and prayerful way through this book.



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Review of New Worlds for All: Indians, Europeans, and the Remaking of Early America (The American Moment) (Paperback)

In this book Colin Calloway sums up another cycle in the historiography of the American Indian.The book is arranged topically, and is really more a series of essays than a single narrative.Calloway is even-handed in hisapproach, avoiding the demonization of both settlers and Indians that havebeen features of other works on the same topic.Calloway tries to cutthrough the mythology that has encrusted much of American Indian historyand get at the way things really were--cultural give and take,misunderstandings, and accomodations.Overall, an excellent book and anecessary antidote to wrong-headed notions about cultural interactions inearly America.



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Review of All Things Wise and Wonderful (Paperback)

My first experience with the late James Herriot's inspirational books took place in a bookstore in Singapore, in the 80's. I was barely 14 & had not heard of this writer/vet. But as soon as I started reading All Things Wise and Wonderful - my very first JH book, I knew I had to get the rest of the series.
Through his poignant, funny, sensitive and Yorkshire-accented writing, I relived his world as a practising vet. His was a world where decent, civic minded people lived with much love & respect for their pets and farm animals.A world where I wanted/want to be in.
It is true how one book reviewer put it: every chapter will have you either laughing out loud or shedding a quiet tear. To this day, I still remember some of his stories that touched my heart.The courtship years when a young JH was trying to impress Helen (who eventually became his very supportive wife); the timid little black stray cat, who with her last breath, would placed her one surviving kitten into the hands of a caring family; the endearing 'beggar' dog; the bored, pampered & misunderstood pet dog of a wealthy spinster...I could almost touch and see JH's characters through his vivid writing.I even felt his pride when his daughter also became a vet, & his son a doctor.
I am sorry that there were not more of his wonderful tales.



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Review of Leota's Garden (Paperback)

Leota Reinhardt only has to look out her window to see how much her life has changed.Now 84 years old, her once comfortable little house with its abundant garden shows the effects of years of neglect, just as Leota shows the effect of years of yeaars of strained contact with her daughter and son.She is not prepared for the changes that will come into her life, a granddaughter who is dertermined to follow the promptings of the Spirit, a young college student, motivated by getting a grade, touched by goodness and Leota's own indominatable spirit.Francine Rivers is well known in among Christian readers (this is the first of her books I have read) and it can be a bit disconcerting to read the characters inner dialogue with a Higher Power.The characters are well developed and evolve, not change magicly...which is good.I was worried they would all see the light and the book would end.I liked many of these characters too much to be cheated that way.I hesitated to pick this up, but I am glad I did.



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2/02/2010

Review of The Old Farmer's Almanac 2009 (Paperback)

The Old Farmer's Almanac goes back a long way! On page 206, the 2009 version notes that the weather forecasts go back to a "secret formula" devised by the Almanac's founder, Robert Thomas, in 1792. Now, that's a legacy! I've always found this volume a lot of fun.In fact, it has become an institutionalized Christmas gift to my son each year (he seems to enjoy it, too), so don't spoil the "surprise" by letting him know that I've purchased the 2009 edition!

First, the weather. On page 206, the methodology of predicting weather is discussed (vague). The Almanac's founder, Thomas, thought that sunspots were the key.Now, that metric plus others (more scientific) are the basis for predictions. So, what to expect?I live in central Pennsylvania. According to the Almanac, I (and others living in a corridor from Elmira, NY to Asheville (NC) can expect: a mild November, a cold and snowy December through March. The heaviest snow would be in January, with some snow at about Thanksgiving and frequent snowfall in December and the middle part of February.Mark that on your calendars and see if the old Almanac is right!

Second, there are many other features, such as estimates of frost and the growing season, cataloging the tides, and so on.

Another fun version of this "golden oldie"!





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Review of Fasting and Eating for Health: A Medical Doctor's Program for Conquering Disease (Paperback)

I am Dr. Steven Acocella and I have been in private practice for 15 years. In addition to my training as a doctor I completed post-graduate studies in Human Nutrition at the University of Bridgeport and a residency program in clinical nutrition directly under Dr. Fuhrman.

My knowledge and experience allows me to comment on his work with a depth of understanding shared by only a few.That said, I am writing this because I felt the strong need to comment having viewed some of the weird, self-serving posts and `reviews' in recent weeks.

Dr. Fuhrman's Eat to Live is the most comprehensive research-supported and scientifically credible diet book, offering significant health improvement, longevity and sustained weight control, simultaneously.Dr. Fuhrman has successfully treated thousands of over-weight patients (with a variety of related medical problems) many of which were referred to him by other physicians because of his impressive results. (see physicians comments on drfuhrman.com).

But, there are crazy people and those who feel threatened by Fuhrman's ideas who will work feverishly to attack and discredit him.His powerful message poses a resounding danger to the profits of the food, drug and weight loss industry; industries that have billions of dollars to spend on advertising.Dr. Fuhrman's rise in popularity will unquestionably cost these industries untold millions in lost sales.They will wisely make large investments to discourage the ever-increasing popularity of Eat to Live and plan appropriate counter-attacks against him.

One such group is called the "Center for Consumer Freedom" established with a grant from Philip Morris (its funding now largely derived from the liquor and fast-food industry).They have previously been hostile to Mothers Against Drunk Driving and have also stood in opposition to the Center for Science in the Public Interest, The Center for Disease Control, numerous animal protection groups and The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.In reality, the group seeks to impair consumer choice.They achieve this by disrupting the discussion and dissemination of information by anyone's message that details the dangers of certain (unhealthy) foods and substances.Their approach is simple: "If you can't argue with the message, shoot the messenger."Rather than intelligently discussing health issues, CCF attacks health advocates, like Fuhrman.

The attacks against Dr. Fuhrman are directly proportional to his book sales.They're both on the rise!But these phony, unsupported attacks are easy to spot. Be particularly skeptical of vicious attacks with a similar style with rotating names and city locations that instantaneously pop-up again as soon as Amazon decides an old posting was too unbelievable and inappropriate to leave on their system.These `objective reviewers' also typically claim they are a doctor.Or they claim to have spoken to a doctor who invariably indicts Dr. Fuhrman's book as dangerous.Physicians and the scientific community don't make critiques or advise in this method.Dr. Fuhrman always evaluates another author's diet book by looking at scientific research studies that point to its value or dangers.This is clear in his discussion of high protein diets or diets rich in trans-fats or refined foods.

I am very interested in watching what will happen as the opposition gets more creative and uses more of their big budgets to protect their profit and loss statements.I hope Dr. Fuhrman has a bullet proof vest.For me, having already seen many, many lighter, healthier and happier people successfully embrace Eat to Live I know which side I'm on!Read the book and decide for yourself.

Product Description
Precise diet and fasting programs to relieve headache, hypoglycemia, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, colitis, psoriasis, lupus, and uterine fibroids.

Using fasting to lose weight

How to start, what to expect, how to reintroduce food to maintain maximum benefits

How to work with a physician for longer fasts (more than 3 days)




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Review of Serendipity Bible: For Personal and Small Group Study (Paperback)

I was first introduced to this Bible when I was 14 years old; that was 16 years ago. I have since used this Bible to help teens get into reading God's word daily and journaling the questions and answers. This Bible wasdesigned with group study in mind but I have found it to be one of the bestfor individual daily study as well. It has thought provoking questions thatreally help you think about what you have read and makes it applicable toyour life. I have had teens tell me that they just couldn't get intoreading God's word because it was hard to understand and boring. When Igave them this Bible they were amazed at how now they were understandingand excited to read. The questions in the margins and the short biblestudies within the books helped make it more than words on a page. I HIGHLYSUGGEST THIS BIBLE FOR TEENS.

Product Description
- Provides Bible study leaders with ready-made, life-changing discussion questions on any passage of Scripture- In-text study questions help groups open discussion, dig deeper into the meaning of a passage, and reflect on life application- 200 new studies and 60 course plans address the needs of 10 different groupsmen, women, singles, youth, and more

From the Back Cover
Life-changing Bible studies for small groups- Everything you need to lead a group Bible study- Thousands of penetrating study questions- 60 course plans for 10 different kinds of groups

Leading a small group just got easierHot coffee, donuts, and hearts that are hungry for more than just snacks-all the makings of a great Bible study group. Get the most out of your times together with the NIV Serendipity Bible. You don't have to be a gifted teacher or leader to make it happen. The Serendipity Bible gives you everything you need in one practical, flexible, easy-to-use package. It provides Bible study leaders with ready-made, life-changing discussion questions on any passage of Scripture. In-text study questions help groups open discussion, dig deeper into the meaning of a passage, and reflect on life application. The 200 studies and 60 course plans address the needs of ten different groups, including men, women, singles, youth, and more. With the ready-made studies in the Serendipity Bible, the only thing a group leader has to prepare in the coffee!

Features include:- Thousands of penetrating study questions- 60 felt-need course plans for ten different kinds of groups- 16 topical study courses offer basic and deeper question tracks for study- 200 Bible story questionnaires offer another study alternative- Separate studies for each book of the Bible- Lectionary-based Bible studies for churches that follow the church year calendar - 200 general group studies address the needs of ten different groups, including men, women, singles, youth, recovery, and more- "Open-Dig-Reflect" questions help you discover each other's hearts and apply God's Word to your life- 32 two-color introduction pages help you use this Bible more effectively- Presentation page



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Review of The Nature of Animal Healing : The Definitive Holistic Medicine Guide to Caring for Your Dog and Cat (Paperback)

If you do not to read, hire someone to read it for you!!Your pets will thank you.

I lost a cat to cancer two years ago. My feeling that I was somehow responsible for his demise at such a young age wasn't entirelygrief related. For instance, was there something wrong with feeding ananimal the same old stuff day and night for his/her entire life, oftendried stuff at that? If so, what other options were there? And how abouttap water? If we the people are concerned about drinking it, what about our pets? Inquiries about diet to everyone, vets included, almost alwayselicit the same response: do not feed table food or "scraps."Troubleis, most of us just do not have a scientific and/or medicalbackground with which to argue the point. Dr. Goldstein discusses food andtapwater and how it affects health in this book.

All that is requiredfor reading this book is an open, active mind and the ability to strive for something better. People who have added lots of fresh fruits andvegetables, whole grains and, yes, even soy products to their diets know that they feel better, look better, and are healthier. And so it would bewith animals. My 3 remaining cats are doing much better after onlytwoweeks on real MEAT, grains, and vegetables. I know my cats so you can trustme on this point. Some people will want studies. Well, scientists haveconcocted chemicals for making the RENDERED BY-PRODUCTS in commercial petfood appealing to animals via smell and/or taste. But show me a study whichsays it's GOOD for our animals. Isn't it golden age advertising and hasn'tit worked, especially in this busy world!! Incidentally, several naturalpet food brands are mentioned in the book for non-cookers.

Finally, I'veconcentrated my comments on diet (and maybe one or two too many on my ownopinions :)) because health starts with food and food isone aspect we petowners really have control over. However, Dr. Goldstein covers many othertopics including vaccines, herbs, supplements, natural remedies, anddevotes an entire chapter to cancer.Many of his patients are very sick.He explains why he believes in helping an animal heal itself by treatingthe disease rather than thesymptoms. Feeding real food is part of theprocess. Dr. Goldstein writes from experience. He even admits he doesn'tunderstand how or why some of the holistic methods work; he's just seen itwork year after year. His final chapters deal with the spiritual realm,including our relationshipwith our pets, and death of pets (choosing whento let go, euthanasia, grieving). There is an extensive resource guide atthe back.

I also recommend FOOD PETS DIE FOR by Ann N. Martin. She spent7 years investigating the ingredients in commercial pet food. If you readthat book first, you'll surely want to read this one (or vice versa).

Whoa, did I get ever get carried away here. But I've waited a long time for this book. Thank you, Dr. Goldstein, for writing it.



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Review of Marijuana Cooking: Good Medicine Made Easy (Paperback)

It came quickly, and was exactly what i expected! Very good recipes and concise instructions. A nice beginners book for any one looking to help someone out who is suffering from certain Medical conditions.

Product Description
Increasing awareness of the therapeutic properties of marijuana - to ease muscle tension, relieve pain, promote appetite, and induce overall relaxation - has generated widespread interest in its use as a medicine. Without question, the best and safest medicinal application of marijuana is through ingestion. In Marijuana Cooking: Good Medicine Made Easy, authors Bliss Cameron and Veronica Green guide would-be chefs through the process of making their own tasty and healthy home remedies using marijuana as the main ingredient. Five different methods of preparing pot for use in the kitchen are provided with step-by-step instructions, as well as advice on personalizing dosage and substituting ingredients to account for different tastes and medical conditions. The recipes include Bliss Balls, Butterscotch Blondies, Honey Chocolate Brownies, Honey Whole Wheat Banana Bread, and Honey Pumpkin Bread. Lush, high-quality photographs of actual marijuana dishes grace nearly every page, making the book a delight for the eyes as well as the body.

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Review of Anthropology (Home University Library of Modern Knowledge) (Paperback)

this book was fascinating.the author offers what i found to be incredible insights.it is quite dated, but it is nevertheless greatly worthwhile reading, given that i have not had a course in anthropology and this was free on kindle.i rate it at a B minus.

Product Description
Home University Library of Modern Knowledge No. 37 Editors: Herbert Fisher M.A. F.B.A. Prof. Gilbert Murray LITT.D. LL.D. F.B.A. Prof. J. Arthur Thomson M.A. Prof. William T. Brewser

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Review of RV Repair and Maintenance Manual: Updated and Expanded (Paperback)

OK - I haven't read this book front to back. It is, after all, a reference book. However, I have skimmed each of the sections and read several in detail, particularly those dealing with 12 Vdc and plumbing. I didn't pay so much attention to those parts dealing with motorhomes because I don't have one.

However, whether you own a Class A motorhome or an humble single-axle travel trailer (like I have), this book is *THE* guide to maintenance and repair. Example: I have an n-th hand 1975 Vanguard T13 travel trailer. The electrical system is in horrible shape, to express it charitably. This book has been my constant companion and guide as I refurbished and repaired the wiring, charging system, distribution boxes and so forth. Without doubt it has paid for itself twice or even three times over.

The book is broken down into self-contained sections - so you don't have to read the electrical section if the topic of the day is plumbing. Each section provides definitions for any special terms used, discusses the requirements and nature of the system in general terms, then gets into more detail. Each section has lots of clear line illustrations and high-quality black and white photographs.

The only reason I give this book only 4 stars is that in some respects it is a little intimidating for a novice RV owner. Once you get into it, it is very clear, but the initial impression is a little overwhelming, simply by the sheer size of the book and the volume of information presented. The only way to address this would be to produce multiple books - which might not be such a bad idea.

Product Description
RV Repair and Maintenance Manual is the most popular resource for owners who prefer to work on their own RVs. The book features step-by-step procedures for maintaining and repairing RVs, presented in easy-to-understand layman's terms and simple-to-follow instructions. The fourth edition has been updated and expanded to keep up with the latest in RV technology and repair procedures. From trouble-shooting guidelines to quick diagnoses and repairs, this manual will keep you rolling down the highway and not in the repair shop. Packed with valuable information, checklists, photos, and charts, the RV Repair and Maintenance Manual includes topics on electrical systems, LP-gas systems, water systems, sanitation systems, AC generators, heating systems, air-conditioning systems, refrigerators, trailer brakes, trailer suspensions, dinghy towing, hitches, drivetrain systems, solar power systems, ovens and ranges, microwaves and ice makers, exterior and interior care, and accessories.

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2/01/2010

Review of Storey's Guide to Raising Dairy Goats: Breeds, Care, Dairying (Paperback)

This is probably one of the best books on the market, but having raised a few goats before with my mom, I found some serious gaps in the information here, especially regarding illness, post-partum does, and bummer kids.

For example, I recently bought a Nubian cross goat after many years without one, and she came with the surprise bonus of a day-old bummer kid. Unfortunately, never having had a bummer before, I was unsure how to feed her properly and bought this book. Within a few weeks she died due to bloat because of the bad and/or nonexistant advice of this book. I then bought the Storey book on sheep and found the information on bloat that could have saved her life if it had been in the goat book.

Additionally, the tone of Mr. Belanger's writing rubs me the wrong way, sounding somewhat condescending at times and cavalier at others. I was disturbed by some of the things he recommended, such as transporting an adult goat by sticking it in the trunk of a car (!!!), but his attitude is that those who disagree with him are either ignorant or they're whiners. I am neither, and I don't appreciate paying good money to be told I am because I disagree, thankyouverymuch.

In conclusion, this book does have its merits and is good for the basics, but it's not a complete source of information and I would get at least one other goat book as well as the Storey sheep book to fill out your library, especially if your large animal vet is very far away from your goats.

Product Description
For 17 years readers have turned to Storey Books for advice on raising animals. Our Modern Way series of six books has sold more than 1,000,000 copies. In an effort to provide readers with the best how-to animal books on the market we are completely updating all six Modern Way titles and re-introducing them as part of our Guide to Raising series.

Written by experts, these guides give novice and experienced livestock farmers all they need to know to successfully keep and profit from animals. Each book includes information on selection, housing, space requirements, breeding and birthing techniques, feeding, behavior, and health concerns and remedies for illness. The books also address the business of raising animals - processing meat, milk, eggs, and more. The authors were chosen not only for their expertise but also for their ability to explain the ins and outs of animal husbandry in an inviting and authoritative manner. Whether readers are ready to start an entire herd or flock or are considering purchasing their first animal, Storey's Guide to Raising series offers vital information; each book is an indispensable reference.

From the Back Cover
The Best Advice on Raising Dairy Goats

This indispensable, fully illustrated guide provides the very latest practical information for dairy goat owners. All of the essentials are covered here, including:
Individual breeds - Feeding and housing - Health care and disease prevention
Breeding and kidding - Milking and dairying

"We receive many request from novice goat owners wanting caprine information. This book will give answers and help people get started. It can also be used by established goat owners wanting a reference in an easy-to-read format. We will certainly recommend this book as a great reference about goats." - John D. Howland, American Goat Society, Inc.



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Review of Building Type Basics for Senior Living (Hardcover)

This book is a quality overview covering most facets of long term care facility development. As with any broad coverage, there will be information that does not apply to your project, and areas that you will need other sources to complete the picture. But the authors of this book know their stuff.

Written by architects and planners for same; but accessible to the lay reader. A good tool for those interested in developing long term care facilities and senior-oriented communities.

Product Description
The Building Type Basics series provides architects and other building team members with concise, essential information for planning and designing a variety of building types.
This new volume covers the essentials of designing housing and care environments for the elderly and provides need-to-know information on a range of building sub-types
Included are active retirement communities, continuing care retirement communities, assisted living facilities, Alzheimer's facilities, hospices and more. The text is heavily illustrated with descriptive floor plans, diagrams, and photographs. Authored by an architect who is viewed as a pioneer and leader in this field

From the Inside Flap
Building Type Basics for Senior Living covers the essentials for the planning and design of housing and care environments for the elderly. Authored by architects whose firm has handled hundreds of such projects, this nuts-and-bolts guide provides need-to-know information on a range of building subtypes, including active adult communities, continuing care retirement communities, assisted living, adult day care, skilled nursing facilities, and more. The authors, pioneers in the field, offer highly illustrative examples of issues that are key to designing structures for the growing over-65 population.

This indispensable guide:

  • Asks and answers twenty questions that frequently arise in the early phases of a commission
  • Provides project photographs, diagrams, floor plans, sections, and details
  • Includes design guidelines for a variety of senior living projects, from creating a continuum of care to working through a maze of regulatory policies

This conveniently organized quick reference is an invaluable guide for busy professionals who want to get moving quickly as they embark on a new project. Like every book in the Building Type Basics series, it provides authoritative, up-to-date information instantly and saves architects, facility planners, and their clients countless hours of research.Engineering consultants will also find in this volume a wealth of information to help them tackle senior living commissions of all kinds.



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Review of Oracle Database 10g Performance Tuning Tips & Techniques (Osborne ORACLE Press Series) (Paperback)

I highly recommend this book as a handy reference to keep at your desk.It is full of handy tips and a great assessment for reviewing your own environnment.

Product Description

"Offers hundreds of hints, tips, and tricks of the trade that can be useful to any DBA wanting to achieve maximum performance of Oracle applications. No Oracle library would be complete without this book." --Ken (Dr. DBA) Jacobs, Vice President of Product Strategy for Server Technologies, Oracle Corporation

"Rich is the first and last stop for Oracle Database technology and performance tuning. His knowledge is a vital tool that you need to successfully negotiate the waters of Oracle database development." --Mike Frey, Principal Architect, Navteq



From the Back Cover

Maintain a High-Performance Oracle Database 10g Environment

Monitor, analyze, and optimize Oracle Database 10g using the tested methods and insider advice contained in this definitive volume. Written by Oracle Certified Master Richard Niemiec, Oracle Database 10g Performance Tuning Tips & Techniques is packed with detailed case studies, best practices, and code samples illustrating Oracle's new tuning features. Find out how to select optimal indexing options, effectively manage drives and disk arrays, troubleshoot queries, and reliably predict future performance. You'll also get detailed coverage of PL/SQL performance enhancements, initialization file tweaks, and the latest database surveying and reporting utilities.

"Rich does it again with a book that teaches to multiple levels in a bold and inspiring way." --Ari Kaplan, President, Independent Oracle Users Group

"There is no doubt about Rich's grasp on Oracle tuning and the way he simplifies intricate details in it." --Muhammad Shuja Uddin, Vice President and Head of Technical Support, Ora-Tech Systems; President, Pakistan Oracle Users Group

"Rich Niemiec is THE expert on Oracle tuning.This book is a ‘must have' for every Oracle DBA's bookshelf--there is something for everyone to learn. It is an excellent reference that proves useful over and over again." --Kimberly Floss, Manager, Database Services, PepsiCo; Former President, Independent Oracle Users Group

"Any book with Rich Niemiec as the author is a ‘must buy.' The man knows Oracle inside and out." --Karen Brownfield, Board of Directors, Oracle Applications Users Group





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Review of Unplugged Play: No Batteries. No Plugs. Pure Fun. (Paperback)

Playfulness is the name of the game in childhood. Unfortunately, in their workaday world, many parents forget that all work and no play makes Little Johnny a bored, lethargic boy. Thanks to Bobbi Conner, Little Johnny just got 710 reasons to get up off the couch and join his hopscotching playmates outdoors.

Veteran radio show host on NPR, Bobbi Conner is concerned about today's kids and their lack of creative outlets. Instead of being busy with electronic entertainment such as video games and push-button toys, she suggests myriad avenues to get down to the business of play in fun, very simple ways. Unlike many guide books that read more like a Martha Stewart manual (and must be secretly backed by major craft store chains), Bobbi's approach is simple - take what you have at home and let `er rip.

The book is divided into three useful sections - toddler play; preschooler play; and grade school play. It was gratifying to see many of the games we've thought up on our own are in the book. Necessity is the mother of invention. This book is the mother of children's creativity.

Bobbi's tone is real-life and compassionate, not patronizing or oozing with `expertise'. She was once a time-strapped single mom raising her kids with nothing more than her ingenuity to keep them occupied. When we think back to our own childhoods or that of our children, the best times were those spent together around a Parchese board or telling stories to one another. But if you think you have to spend hours with your children to right the wrongs of those hundreds of TV hours your kid has logged, you're wrong. Bobbi recognizes the reality in today's world. She recommends ways in which children can learn independent play by sparking their creative thoughts and having them vary the activities themselves. You needn't micromanage their play. In fact, Bobbi warns against it.

This book came in the nick of time as my son recently had a playdate with a boy who is very `plugged' into video games and TV. Concerned we wouldn't make the three hours without hiscrying for TV, I grabbed the book and discovered some cool, easy ways to interest the boys in a new game of toss the button in the bucket. My son's friend only asked to watch TV once, but after I showed him the book and all its possibilities, he never asked again!

I highly recommend Unplugged Play for its usefulness, inventiveness, and fun. It may even remind you that all work and no play makes Little Johnny's mommy and daddy very dull girls and boys, too!

~Christine Louise Hohlbaum, author of Diary of a Mother: Parenting Stories and Other Stuff and Sahm I Am: Tales of a Stay-at-Home Mom in Europe, is a freelance writer living near Munich, Germany, with her husband and two extremely playful children.




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Review of Inconceivable: A Woman's Triumph over Despair and Statistics (Paperback)

Far from adopting the attitude that "all infertility doctors are jerks and out to take their patients' money" as one reviewer asserts, Indichova sought alternatives when her doctors gave her no hope of conceiving with her own eggs.In conjunction with adopting a myriad of lifestyle, dietary and other changes, Indichova continued to periodically assess her medical condition with conventional Western doctors.In fact, if this reviewer had really read the book carefully, he/she would have remembered that Indichova had an appointment with yet another RE to discuss the viability of an ART procedure based her decreasing FSH levels on the day that she learned she had beat the odds and conceived her much-wanted second child!

Some of the reviewers seem to have a negative attitude about anything that doesn't fall within the strictures of conventional Western medicine and thereby assign the corrollary attitude (incorrectly!) to Indichova (that she is into "hocus pocus" and "wacko" stuff and disparages Western medicine (she does not).

I will agree with the reviewers who've noted that this may be a tough book to swallow for those infertility patients who are struggling with primary infertility *and* have never conceived any children.Indichova suffered secondary infertility, and until I emotionally reached the point where I desperately want a 2nd child (my first miracle baby was IVF 3 years ago), I too would have had little sympathy for someone in Indichova's position.My perspective now is definitely different, but women who've never conceived any children should be forewarned of Indichova's situation.

I've been diagnosed with diminished ovarian reserve, and though my FSH numbers aren't high, I've been largely written off as a lost cause by Western medicine.I have found new hope and inspiration in reading Indichova's story, and I'm grateful that she wrote this wonderful account. I'm certainly willing to give some or most of her ideas a try!I've adopted many of her suggestions over the last few weeks and I already feel better, regardless of whether my body is producing a good egg this cycle.True that she has no scientific backup to support what she did ... maybe all those dietary and lifestyle changes did absolutely nothing toward her second pregnancy.But maybe they did.Maybe they did.

This review has been edited in June 2003 to say that I am now 12 weeks pregnant with my 2nd child, conceiving 3 months after I adopted many of Indichova's suggested dietary and lifestyle changes.Thanks for the inspiration!

Product Description
A memoir of hope for the thousands of women struggling with infertility, from one who beat the odds by simply tuning in to her body and tapping her well of sheer determination.

At a time when more and more women are trying to get pregnant at increasingly advanced ages, fertility specialists and homeopathic researchers boast endless treatment options. But when Julia Indichova made the rounds of medical doctors and nontraditional healers, she was still unable to conceive a child. It was only when she forsook their financially and emotionally draining advice, turning inward instead, that she finally met with reproductive success. Inconceivable recounts this journey from hopeless diagnoses to elated motherhood.

Anyone who has faced infertility will relate to Julia's desperate measures: acupuncture, unidentifiable black-and-white pellets, herb soup, foul-smellingfruit, even making love on red sheets. Five reproductive endocrinologists told her that there was no documented case of anyone in her hormonal condition getting pregnant, forcing her to finally embark on her own intuitive regimen. After eight caffeine-free, nutrient-rich, yoga-laden months, complemented by visualization exercises, Julia received amazing news; incredibly, she was pregnant. Nine months later she gave birth to a healthy girl.

Unlike the many infertility books that take a clinical "how to" approach, Inconceivable simply professes the wisdom of giving expert status back to the patient. Julia's self-discovery, and her ability to see her body as an ally once again, yield a beautiful message about the importance of honoring the body's innate powers, and the power of life itself.

About the Author
JULIA INDICHOVA leads support groups in New York City and teaches workshops across the country for the American Infertility Association, Resolve, and The Learning Annex.Her website, fertileheart.com, averages 90,000 hits per month.She is the director of the Fertile Heart Learning Center in Woodstock, New York, where she lives with her husband and two children.



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Review of Ask Dr. Marie: Straight Talk and Reassuring Answers to Your Most Private Questions (Hardcover)

I'm Marie Savard, M.D., ABC News Medical Contributor and the author of ASK DR. MARIE. I want to share with you my reasons for writing this book for you. I am fascinated by the many challenges that women face when making the best decisions about their health, hormone, or birth control options. I never hesitate to weigh in on the latest research and how it can be applied to women in the real world - far removed from these often faulty research studies. My earliest research in women's health helped women decide for themselves if they had vaginitis or cystitis and how best to treat these conditions safely, naturally and with as little medication if possible. So it is no surprise that women often pull me aside to ask sometimes difficult - but almost always embarrassing-- questions about what is going on "down there." Is this discharge or dryness normal? How long will this last? Is this what menopause, sex after childbirth, having painful cystitis or bacterial vaginosis - the list goes on - really like? Will this cream or pill work for me? What hormones, vitamins, and supplements do YOU take? Are bioidentical hormones were the safest way to go? I thought that my bleeding was just a hemorrhoid. I didn't realize it could be something else. I am newly divorced - what precautions do I need to take before having sex again? How will I know if he is okay? The list of intimate questions from women (and often men want to know the answers to these questions, too) goes on and on. In the pages of ASK DR. MARIE, I share with you what is normal, when to get help, what you can treat on your own, what are the best and most up-to-date tests to get, and how best to make the right decision for YOU for pretty much all that goes on "down there." But that's not all. I also talk about my all important "lifestyle pill", how to manage your weight and waist size as you get older, why stress can be different for women, and much, much more. I honestly believe this is the book women - and men -have been waiting for. Advance reviews from top physicians and lay people alike have confirmed that belief for me. I hope you'll order your copy today!

Here's to your health!
Dr. Marie


Product Description
By addressing women directly and honestly, but with compassion and understanding, ABC News Medical Contributor Dr. Marie Savard reveals that there are no off-limits questions, no dark secrets of womanhood . . .



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Review of Hydrogen Peroxide: Medical Miracle (Paperback)

I bought this book along with, "Flood Your Body With Oxygen" by Ed McCabe. This is a good reference book also, a little less involved than McCabe's book but covers the points. After reading both books I decided to start an experiment of my own. As the gardening season was just beginning at that time, I was planting 2 tomato plants in large half barrels on my patio. I decided I would start supplementing the water of one plant with hydrogen peroxide (in the form of a product called "CellFood"). Everyday I put a few drops of CellFood in the water of the one plant and used plain water for the other.. The results are amazing. The plant that is supplemented with CellFood is at least 5 times larger than the non supplemented plant and is incredibly healthy looking. It has tons of tomatoes budding out all over, while the other plant only has 2 so far. My belief is if it can do this for a tomato plant just think what it could do for my own body. I started taking Hyroden Peroxide in the form of "OxyAdvantage" from Healthy World Distributing, and within a short time it was amazing to see the difference in myself. I have so much more energy now. When I ran out of the product, I reverted back to my condition before taking it which was fatigued. I literally felt like I was suffocating and craved oxygen. Yet this is how I had lived for years before discovering oxgyen supplements and thought it was normal. Folks, it's not normal! I quickly ordered more and my husband, who had also been taking it, asked me if it was coming FEDX because he couldn't stand being without it either. We are early on in our oxygen/alkalizing program and are convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt this stuff is great. As we develop better deep breathing techniques and our bodies become more alkaline, I'm confident we eventually won't need the oxgyen supplementation. But folks if you are tired, fatigued and lacking get up and go, read up about Hyrdogen Peroxide and give it a try.

Product Description
Peroxides are supposed to be bad for you. Free radicals and all that. But now we hear that hydrogen peroxide is good for us. Hydrogen peroxide will put extra oxygen in your blood. There's no doubt about that. Hydrogen peroxide costs pennies. So if you can get oxygen into the blood cheaply and safely, maybe cancer (which doesn't like oxygen), emphysema, AIDS, and many other terrible diseases can be treated effectively. Intravenous hydrogen peroxide rapidly relieves allergic reactions, influenza symptoms, and acute viral infections. No one expects to live forever. But we would all like to have a George Burns finish. The prospect of finishing life in a nursing home after abandoning your tricycle in the mobile home park is not appealing. Then comes the loss of control of vital functions the ultimate humiliation. Is life supposed to be from tricycle to tricycle and diaper to diaper? You come into this world crying, but do you have to leave crying? I don't believe you do. And you won't either after you see the evidence. Sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? Read on and decide for yourself. . When using H2O2, noted sensitivity to pollen and food allergens clinically improved. Improvement in allergic bronchitis, asthma and chronic sinusitis... significant improvement in energy and endurance. Discover how this miraculous healing agent works, and why the medical establishment wants to suppress it. No other chemical compound comes even close to hydrogen peroxide in its importance to life. Join Dr. Douglass as he reveals how this fascinating healer works to rid the body of disease.

About the Author
Dr. Douglass reveals medical truths, and deceptions, often at risk of being labeled heretical. He is consumed by a passion for living a long healthy life, and wants his readers to share that passion. Their health and well-being comes first. He is anti-dogmatic, and unwavering in his dedication to improve the quality of life of his readers. He has been called "the conscience of modern medicine," a "medical maverick," and has been voted "Doctor of the Year" by the National Health Federation. His medical experiences are far reaching-from battling malaria in Central America - to fighting deadly epidemics at his own health clinic in Africa - to flying with U.S. Navy crews as a flight surgeon - to working for 10 years in emergency medicine in the United States. This dedicated physician has repeatedly gone far beyond the call of duty in his work to spread the truth about alternative therapies. For a full year, he endured economic and physical hardship to work with physicians at the Pasteur Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia, where advanced research on photoluminescence was being conducted. These learning experiences, not to mention his keen storytelling ability and wit, make Dr. Douglass' newsletters (Daily Dose and Real Health) and all of his books uniquely interesting and fun to read. He shares his no-frills, no-bull approach to health care, often amazing his readers by telling them to ignore many widely-hyped good-health practices (like staying away from red meat, avoiding coffee, and eating like a bird), and start living again by eating REAL food, taking some inexpensive supplements, and doing the pleasurable things that make life livable. Readers of Dr. Douglass´ books get all this, plus they learn how to burn fat, prevent cancer, boost libido, and so much more. And, Dr. Douglass is not afraid to challenge the latest studies that come out, and share the real story with his readers. He has led a colorful, rebellious, and crusading life! Not many physicians would dare put their professional reputations on the line as many times as this courageous healer has. A vocal opponent of "business-as-usual" medicine, Dr. Douglass has championed patients' rights and physician commitment to wellness throughout his career. Dr. Douglass comes from a distinguished family of physicians. He is the fourth generation Douglass to practice medicine, and his son is also a physician. Dr. Douglass graduated from the University of Rochester, the Miami School of Medicine, and the Naval School of Aviation and Space Medicine.

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1/31/2010

Review of The Last Full Measure (Mass Market Paperback)

Jeff Shaara follows in his father's footsteps ... big shoes to fill indeed! He does a highly admirable job of researching and writing about the heroes, both North and South, who fought during the last two years of the Civil War. This book provides the reader a ring-side seat to key battles and positions, as each side fights to their last full measure of strength. The reader is provided personal information about the lives of the major players: General Robert E. Lee, General Ulysses S. Grant, and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. We get inside the hearts and minds of these soldiers and although fiction it rings true to life. Historical fiction is a marvelous method to learn aboutdetailed and important battles which became turning points in this most fundamental war in the history of the United States.

Most impressive descriptions are provided as General Robert E. Lee struggles in his heart and soul to send his valorous troops against the much better equipped Northern soldiers. We learn how strategy and insight gave the South advantages over technology and numbers, in the beginning. We learn that after Gen. Ulysses S. Grant was given command of the North, the tides turned ... and the reasons why. Maps are provided which give proper visualization to the word descriptions of strategic locations and key battles. Divided into four parts, the prolog to each section uses the words of President Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg address very effectively. Each section includes descriptions of a wide range of events, thorough analysis, and human emotions for the years of the war and post war events that it covers.

The book goes beyond the war to include descriptons of when President Lincoln is shot. It concludes with an afterward that gives a wonderful summary of the post-war lives of major participants both Blue and the Gray. Reading this book was truly an eye-opening experience, filled with illuminating moments and unforgettable real people. It leaves the reader hungry to read more about the subject It compelled me to buy more books by this author - for example, "Gone for Soldiers" (the Mexican War) and "Rise to Rebellion" (the American Revolutionary War). Erika Borsos (erikab93)



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Review of Life in the Left Lane (Paperback)

No typical tourist guide is this. Emy Thomas provides a refreshingly frank account of life in St. Croix. She deals directly with the pleasant the beaches, the people, the pace of life and the sometimes unpleasant hurricanes, and occasional crime.

Emy Thomas has found her own way to enjoy this island paradise. Hers is no superficial experience. She enjoys St. Croix in all its richness. Not for her an imposing mini castle in an expatriate enclave. She goes out of her way to live modestly yet comfortably. She knows some creole, and is deeply involved in local social initiatives. She seems to blend and integrate with the majority West Indian population much better than could be expected of the stereotypical New Yorker.She joins the locals in laughing off the perpetualGovernment inefficiencies, rather thangetting upset. But her journalist background is not entirely forgotten. She still manages to take a few swipes at local politicians.

If you know St. Croix already, you will readily identify with Emy Thomas perspectives and sense of humor. If you ever wondered what a Caribbean retirement would be like - read this before you decide. It will prepare your mind, and most likely will make you want to do it even more.

Product Description
A short and lively non-fiction book about what it?

About the Author
Emy Thomas spent her first thirty-three years following a typical middle-class path, growing up in Connecticut, graduating from prestigious schools in the northeast, and working as a journalist in New York City. Then she discovered the tropics and has embraced the islands and their laid-back lifestyle ever since. For over a dozen years home was a sailboat, when she cruised throughout the Caribbean and Pacific with a typical 'yachtie,' who made wandering a way of life. They visited scores of island paradises. When it was time to leave the boat and settle down the author chose St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands as her permanent home. She built her dream house on a hillside overlooking the Caribbean Sea and finally found her true calling as an author. Her first book, Home Is Where the Boat Is, was published in 1993. Life in the Left Lane is her second book.

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Review of If You Had Controlling Parents: How to Make Peace with Your Past and Take Your Place in the World (Paperback)

This book is one of the best self help books I have read in a long time.It dealt more with the emotional than the physical abuse in childhood.I have always had a hard time because to me emotional abuse specially whenmixed with religion can be so easily justified in your mind.You can feellike "something is really wrong here", but then in the samebreath say "well they love me so much and are just obeying God andwhat he requires of parents".I have been eaten up with guilt for therebellion against my parents that I displayed as a teenager.Now though Irealize I rebelled against their control, not against them inorder to hurtthem or make them miserable.I read this book, started seeing a therapistand confronted my parents and let me tell you how much freedom I feel forthe first time in life.I actually feel happy, and a great sense of hope. What do I owe my parents? Why am I so fearful of hurting their feelings?Why can't I just do what is healthy for me? The book answered thesequestions and the exercises were wonderful.We need more books like thisone because obviously there is a problem in parenting that needs to belooked at and changed fast!Kids are becoming more violent, lessrespectful of authority, and completely losing any conscience what-so-ever. So if I can break the generation sin that has been passed down forgenerations, then I am thankful I was put in the home I was put in andstrong enough to SURVIVE!



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Review of A Town Called Ruby Prairie (Coming Home to Ruby Prairie, Book 1) (Paperback)

what a wonderful story! so simple and real - i had a hard time putting it down.very inspirational in perfectly subtle ways. i bet you will love it!!

Product Description
Mitford meets Mayberry in the first book of the Coming Home to Ruby Prairie series. In the small town of Ruby Prairie, Texas, even the most blessed of plans can go amazingly awry. A Town Called Ruby Prairie tells the story of newly widowed Charlotte Carter, who moves to town with plans to open a foster home for troubled girls. Fiercely independent and determined to succeed on her own, Charlotte soon learns that caring for six teens is much more challenging than she expected. One crisis follows another until the quirky, good-hearted people of Ruby Prairie rally their support to keep the home open. This humorous and inspirational story celebrates the joys found in the simple things of life - faith, friends, family, and community.

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Review of Ayurvedic Healing, 2nd Revised and Enlarged Edition: A Comprehensive Guide (Paperback)

Ayurvedic Healing is an excellent book whether you know anything about the Vedic medical science of Ayurveda, or not. The book deals with:
a)Finding out what body type you have, (vata-air, pitta-fire, kapha- earth/water) based on a questionnaire of health related questions
b) It helps you determine what kind of diet you can follow to balance your system.
c)It deals with common ailments as well as major diseases, covering everything from arthritis to AIDS
d) You can learn how to use chants, colors etc to relieve stress.

And that s just section I. In section II, it deals with the technical preparations with the use of various herbs, oils etc, which ayurvedic doctors use.

Thus this book is a comprehensive study of Ayurveda, which can be used to good effect by both the layman and the ayurvedic practitioner.

Product Description
Ayurvedic Healing presents the Ayurvedic treatment of common diseases, coveringover eighty different ailments from the common cold to cancer.It provides afull range of treatment methods including diet, herbs, oils, gems, mantra andmeditation. The book also shows the appropriate life-style practices and dailyhealth considerations for your unique mind-body type both as an aid to diseasetreatment and for disease prevention.This extraordinary book is a complete manual of Ayurvedic health care thatoffers the wisdom of this ancient system of mind-body medicine to the modernreader relative to our special health concerns today.The present edition is an expanded version of the original 1989 edition, covering additional diseases andadding new treatments.

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1/30/2010

Review of The Gay Science: With a Prelude in Rhymes and an Appendix of Songs (Mass Market Paperback)

This book contains the famous description of the madman announcing theDeath of God.Obviously Nietzsche sees himself as the madman, sacrificinghimself to bring humanity the awful news.What's odd is that Nietzsche wascertainly not the first person to proclaim God's death; in fact, as hehimself notes elsewhere, many educated people had already become eitheragnostic or atheistic.None of them, however, found this as earthshakingas Nietzsche.The reason, I think, is that he had an essentially religiousnature. The word "spiritual" recurs throught the book.In oneremarkable passage he even chastises St. Augustine for being insufficientlyspiritual.

The Gay Science is a pivitol book for Nietzsche because it isthe first in which the tension between the spiritual seeker and the atheistbecomes manifest.Gone is the skeptical pose of "Human All TooHuman"; instead we have the anguish of a man torn between twoconflicting ideals.The tension, while it ravaged Nietzsche, did producesome brilliant ideas and unforgettable prose, even if it did not ultimatelylead to a liveable philosophy.



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Review of Thread of Fear (Mass Market Paperback)

Laura Griffin strikes gold with her third book, Thread of Fear.Fiona Glass is a forensic artist, the best in the business.She no longer wants her job.The haunted faces of the killers and victims she's sketched over the years have taken their toll.But police chief Jack Bowman isn't an easy man to deny.Jack needs Fiona's expertise to help put a serial killer who's targeting young girls behind bars.He appeals to Fiona's sense of justice and successfully convinces her to help him.But as they work together, Fiona becomes more important to Jack than he ever imagined she could.~~~~~~~~~Thread of Fear is the first book I've ever read more than once.Yes, it is that good!The writing is tight, the story is explosive and the tension kept me turning pages long into the night.I had no choice.I had to find out what happened.Right from the start, Ms. Griffin's talent took me inside the story and gave me a front row seat to all the emotions Fiona and Jack experience while tracking the killer and fighting their attraction to each other.And I have to mention Fiona's sister, Courtney.Ms. Griffin created such a wonderfully complicated character in Courtney, I couldn't help liking her and I'm already looking forward to her story in Whisper of Warning. The next time you're in the bookstore, make sure to pick up Thread of Fear.I promise you won't be disappointed!


Product Description
Forensic artist Fiona Glass is the best in the business -- which is precisely why she's quitting. Her skill at mining victims' memories to re-create the faces of sadistic criminals has left her haunted and wary, and only Jack Bowman's dogged persistence convinces her to help him. The rugged police chief is hunting a serial killer who's targeting teenage girls. But what seems like a simple assignment is fraught with complications, including a searing attraction to Jack that's tempting Fiona to let her guard down in potentially dangerous ways.

Jack never intended for Fiona to become so deeply involved in the case -- or in his life. But every instinct tells him she's his best hope for finding a psychopath who's lurking in plain sight, growing more ruthless with each passing day. And now that Fiona is right in the killer's crosshairs, the only way to keep her safe is to unravel a small town's darkest secrets, one terrifying thread at a time....

About the Author
Laura Griffin started her career in journalism before venturing into the world of romantic suspense with her first three novels for Pocket Books -- One Last Breath, One Wrong Step, and Thread of Fear. Her articles have appeared in numerous newspapers and magazines, and her fiction writing has garnered awards from writing competitions throughout the country. Laura currently lives in Austin, where she is currently working on Hot List, the first book in her new series for Pocket. Visit her web site at www.lauragriffin.com.



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Review of FDR (Paperback)

FDR, by Jean Edward Smith, proves that no highly significant historical figure or event is beyond a great writer's ability to improve a particular body of literature.Indeed FDR is a towering work of both writing and scholarship.Smith again proves he is one of our foremost biographers and captures, in a very evenhanded way, the very essence of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Indeed, this writing is up there with David Herbert Donald's Lincoln.Both took on truly larger than life topics and did so with energy and vigor.

The footnoting in FDR is highly extensive and the curious reader will look at many of them and make notes to read on additional topics as Smith piques the interest of any with any significant interest in Roosevelt.He, like Lincoln, was the President in a time where it is difficult to imagine, even for his critics, another person assuming the role.Smith explains and documents almost all of FDR's life and gives very plausible reasons for his rather radical views at the time, especially for one with his Hudson River pedigree.He tackles his many physical challenges, his relationship with his peripatetic wife Eleanor (see Doris Kearns Goodwin's No Ordinary Time) , his affair with Lucy Mercer Rutherford, his intimate relationship with Churchill (see Jon Meacham's Franklin and Winston) and his reliance on a cast of eclectic personal and political operatives over the years. All of his public years are well covered, perhaps even more so his early years in New York politics.

There is very little, if nothing to criticize about this book.One could make an argument that Smith tried too hard to keep it a readable 636 pages with and additional 221 pages of notes and an exhaustive bibliography.Maybe two volumes would have improved this work, but that is sheer conjecture.This book must be read by all with more than a passing interest in 20th Century American history.Simply sublime.



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Review of Caring for Patients from Different Cultures (Paperback)

As Director of Nursing for a small, rural county health department, I was looking for cultural information on dealing with Hispanic populations.What this book covers is all of that and more.It was a real eye opener! Ms.Galanti gives case synopses on caring for patients from many diversecultures.She covers cultural differences with nutrition, religion, familysupport, response to pain, and a wealth of other topics.I purchased thisbook for our staff library, and a copy for myself and my nurse-mother.Anyone who deals with people from other cultures(not just health careproviders) needs to read this book!

Product Description

What happens when a Cherokee patient summons a medicine man to the hospital, or when an Anglo nurse refuses to take orders from a Japanese doctor? Why do Asian patients rarely ask for pain medication, while Mediterranean patients seem to seek relief for even the slightest discomfort?

If the goal of the American medical system is to provide optimal care for all patients, healthcare providers must understand cultural differences that create conflicts and misunderstandings and can result in inferior medical care. Geri-Ann Galanti's updated classic, Caring for Patients from Different Cultures, is even more comprehensive than the first three editions, containing new appendices for quick reference, an expanded and updated bibliography with Internet resources, and a detailed index.

Caring for Patients from Different Cultures contains more than 200 case studies illustrating crosscultural misunderstanding and culturally competent health care. The chapters cover a wide range of topics, including birth, end of life, traditional medicine, mental health, pain, religion, and multicultural staff issues. The case studies illustrate important concepts from the fields of cultural diversity and medical anthropology. This volume is an important resource for nurses and physicians in achieving cultural competency.





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Review of McGee & Stuckey's Bountiful Container: Create Container Gardens of Vegetables, Herbs, Fruits, and Edible Flowers (Paperback)

Finally, here's a book on container gardening that focuses on vegetables (and also herbs, fruits and edible flowers). I was tired of looking through tons and tons of books on container gardening that were full of stuff about houseplants and flowers but had zilch when it came to the edible stuff. Was vegetable gardening out of bounds for apartment dwellers like me? I thought so till I came across this book. This book is a godsend for people who want kitchen gardens of their own but who can only garden with containers.
The book has no photos, only illustrations (but then again, who needs another coffee table kind of book with pretty pictures and little content) but it has lots of good advice and instructions.It starts off with the basics (container types, soil, fertilizing, pests etc.), then it moves on to a hefty section each on vegetables, herbs, fruits and edible flowers. Each section has a number of entries with detailed instructions on the particular veggie/herb/fruit/flower in question. These include stuff like planting, fertilizing, soil depth, plant size, light requirements and so on. Interspersed throughout the book are interesting projects, for example, creating a garden for children or a kitchen garden with an asian/italian/greek theme. All in all, this book is extremely useful and a real treasure.

Product Description
With few exceptions-such as corn and pumpkins-everything edible that's grown in a traditional garden can be raised in a container. And with only one exception-watering-container gardening is a whole lot easier. Beginning with the down-to-earth basics of soil, sun and water, fertilizer, seeds and propagation, THE BOUNTIFUL CONTAINER is an extraordinarily complete, plant-by-plant guide.

Written by two seasoned container gardeners and writers, THE BOUNTIFUL CONTAINER covers Vegetables-not just tomatoes (17 varieties) and peppers (19 varieties), butharicots verts, fava beans, Thumbelina carrots, Chioggia beets, and sugarsnap peas. Herbs, from basil to thyme, and including bay leaves, fennel, and saffron crocus. Edible Flowers, such as begonias, calendula, pansies, violets, and roses. And perhaps most surprising, Fruits, including apples, peaches, Meyer lemons, blueberries, currants, and figs-yes, even in the colder parts of the country. (Another benefit of container gardening: You can bring the less hardy perennials in over the winter.) There are theme gardens (an Italian cook's garden, a Four Seasons garden), lists of sources, and dozens of sidebars on everything from how to be a human honeybee to seeds that are All America Selections.



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