With Their Eyes: September 11th--The View from a High School at Ground Zero Review

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(More customer reviews)This is not a broad-brush, wasn't-it-awful retelling. It's a very thoughtful, direct, personal contemplation of a very scary day and the weeks that followed. The characters' speeches in the book are the real words of people at the high school -- students and adults who worked there -- who have lives and personalties beyond 9/11. I felt they were all talking to me. The choice of voices and incidents is wonderfully diverse. I keep pushing this book on friends, and we always find different things to discuss.
This one will keep you both riveted and thinking for a long time.

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A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr. Review

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(More customer reviews)"A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr.," edited by James M. Washington, is an impressive volume. This book brings together essays, speeches, sermons, interviews, and excerpts from King's books. Together, these many documents offer insights into the life and philosophy of a giant of the civil rights movement in the United States.
The book includes the "I Have a Dream" speech, the letter from Birmingham jail, the "Playboy" interview, and more. There are even fascinating transcripts from two television appearances.
This is a thought-provoking collection. I was fascinated by King's strong critique of that part of the white Christian establishment which opposed his movement. It is also intriguing to read that, apart from the Bible, King would choose Plato's "Republic" if he were to be marooned on the proverbial desert island with only one book. Also noteworthy is the emergence of King's multi-faith, global vision of humanity.
This is an important volume for those interested in African-American studies, 20th century U.S. history, or progressive currents in Christian theology. But more than that, "A Testament of Hope" is truly a testament for all people.

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"We've got some difficult days ahead," civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr., told a crowd gathered at Memphis's Clayborn Temple on April 3, 1968. "But it really doesn't matter to me now because I've been to the mountaintop. . . . And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land." These prohetic words, uttered the day before his assassination, challenged those he left behind to see that his "promised land" of racial equality became a reality; a reality to which King devoted the last twelve years of his life. These words and other are commemorated here in the only major one-volume collection of this seminal twentieth-century American prophet's writings, speeches, interviews, and autobiographical reflections. A Testament of Hope contains Martin Luther King, Jr.'s essential thoughts on nonviolence, social policy, integration, black nationalism, the ethics of love and hope, and more.

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The Twelfth Insight: The Hour of Decision Review

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(More customer reviews)I've read (and own) all of James Redfield's books. I'll review the book momentarily, but let me give a little background on where my review is coming from. I'm interested in the human situation, thinking, and consciousness. I enjoy philosophy (Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, Wittgenstein, J. Krishnamurti,etc.) and I'm really into the writings/teachings of Thich Nhat Hanh, and Buddhist/Taoist philosophy in general. I also enjoy the Walking Dead and Chew comic books, Seinfeld, and Arrested Development on TV. These interests, I believe, give you a taste of my tastes. I'm not a New Age person, per se.
I tried reading Louise Hay's stuff and other Hay House publications (the Abraham series, etc.) and I've seen the Secret and read things written by some of the presenters thereon, and plenty of other things of that sort. While I "get them", they all just seem far too "me" oriented. From what they seem to be saying--in my quite possibly erroneous interpretation--is that the whole point of life is to manifest cars and boats and live forever. And an Abraham cruise-ship?! Seems weird to me (if you've got the money to take a cruise, might you consider manifesting food for the poor, or clean water for third world nations?)And while I understand that those sorts of things click with some people--everyone is at a different point in their journey--they don't click with me. I can not get around the irony found in a text or a video that tells me to transcend my ego, yet at the same time tells me that my ego might like me to have more money and a bigger house. And take a cruise.
Back to James Redfield. He's different. He doesn't appear to be in it for the money. For goodness sake, he offers a bimonthly (I think?) webcast/teleconference with anyone who wants to join, FOR FREE! Anyhow, I started with his stuff by first seeing the Celestine Prophecy Movie a few years ago. Then I promptly read all of the books, and I've just finished reading The Twelfth Insight. I loved it.
What I love and appreciate about Redfield's philosophy is that it isn't "me" focused. Whether you start with the first book (which you probably ought to) or you start with this latest, you'll be shown how to exist in the world with more compassion towards others.
The Twelfth Insight is very similar in structure to the other books in the series: The (unnamed)hero catches wind of a document and travels the world looking for more pieces of it, all the while learning more and more about it. People who read Redfield probably aren't looking for an adventure so much as they're looking for philosophy, and The Twelfth Insight provides a great one.
I really, truly believe that if a person were to actually read these books--with an open-mind--and investigate for themselves the truths that are offered inside (like the Buddha would recommend!), s/he would come to a striking revelation that we are, in fact, all One. The Twelfth Insight, essentially, is an action/adventure detailing how an open-minded person can get to that feeling of Oneness, with the hope to sustain it.And to the Redfield faithful, if you're reading this: Yes, it's worth it. And you'll wish you could read it for the first time all over again, just like the other books in the series.
Peace to you. Enjoy!
=)

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On December 21, 2012, the Mayan calendar will end. Many see it as an apocalyptic sign.But is it?In The Twelfth Insight, the long-awaited fourth book in the beloved Celestine Series, we again follow our Hero and his close friend Wil. They have just received a portion of another ancient and mysterious manuscript that describes a secret approach to spirituality that is silently arriving in the second decade of the 21st Century. But the manuscript is only available in fragments. To understand its full meaning for mankind, our Hero and Wil begin an urgent search to find the message in its entirety. As they embrace the power of Synchronicity and begin their search, they are confronted by powerful political forces and religious extremists that stand in the way of these spiritual revelations. Utilizing what he calls the "parable effect," and based on his own sources, James Redfield explores the similarities and differences that exist among the world religions, revealing the essential messages contained within them that can energize our experience of spirituality-- and produce a new wave of integrity and reform that can transform our lives and our world.

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The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the Horse That Inspired a Nation Review

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(More customer reviews)Like the author of this lovely book, I was a horse-crazy little girl and one of the books I remember reading is SNOWMAN by Rutherford Montgomery. Therefore I'm thrilled that Snowman's story is being rescued from the dustbin of children's lit and being told again with greater detail and accuracy. I especially like the way Elizabeth Letts paints a complete picture of Snowman's time. This is history not just a horse story; a portrait of the America that embraced the former plow horse and his immigrant owner, Harry De Leyer, also known as "The Flying Dutchman".
This is the stuff of horsemen's dreams: to literally pull a thin and dirty horse off the slaughter truck and train him to become a champion. That is the true story of Snowman.
Could any book have a more charming hero? Snowman sparkles in these pages, a quiet gentle giant who gave pony rides to little children and taught timid beginners not to be afraid. He's so loyal that he repeatedly jumps both paddock and pasture fences to return to the man who rescued him from the slaughter truck. Harry De Leyer is a young horseman with a growing family who desperately desires to run his own horse business. He's looking for that magic horse who can take him to the top.
He'd been training a top thoroughbred prospect, Sinjon. In 1957, Harry persuaded the owner of the horse to take him to the National Horse Show in Madison Square Garden. Sinjon, a nervous and hot-blooded animal, exceeded expectations by jumping out of the qualifying rounds to place fourth. That very success was Harry's undoing: he loses the mount he has carefully and lovingly trained to a rider on the U.S. Equestrian Team.
He goes home to take another look at the horse he rescued off the slaughterhouse truck, the horse that came home dragging a tire which had been supposed to anchor him down and a piece of the fence that had been supposed to contain him. Harry knew that Snowman could jump; he just didn't understand why the horse was so clumsy in the ring.
Snowman routinely tripped over poles on the ground and knocked over low cross rails. Harry had been trying to train him to jump for over a year. The breakthrough came when one day Harry rode out into the ring. The jumps had already been set high for another horse. Finishing his warmup, Harry pointed his former plow horse at the high jumps...and the rest is history!
If I have a criticism, it is that the author has left out and glossed over some of the story about the humans. For example, she doesn't explain why Harry De Leyer and his first wife get divorced. However, I'm not sure she's wrong to leave that out. When it comes to Snowman, she has ferreted out many charming facts and features of his personality. When you are telling a story about a horse with a heart of gold is it necessary to explain every imperfection in the people around him?
Horse people will love this book. Snowman in his lovable essence will remind them of that favorite, special horse of their own. Folks who love animals in general will love this story. If you are in search of inspiration, look no further! This is a book for the entire family.

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