Autism and the God Connection Review

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(More customer reviews)Several years ago, I penned an article for "Angels on Earth" Magazine (Loving David), regarding my young daughter's belief that an angel often visited, and watched over her brother, David, who has autism. I had no idea when I wrote that story of reverence for my nonverbal son, that the severity of his autism would lead us full circle back to our core beliefs about his diagnosis.
Now, years later, while reading this luminous work by William Stillman, I felt validation of a truth we had always suspected, but came dangerously close to losing touch with: our autistic children are creations of God and a manifestation of His Divine Plan. It feels so good to come out of my closet again! :)
William Stillman has woven moving, haunting accounts either by people with autism, and/or those who love them to explore spiritual realms where clinicians often arrogantly refuse to acknowledge as anything beyond "hogwash". Buried in this sensitively treated text, Mr. Stillman reminds us, above all things, to show the same sensitivity and respect in our daily dealings with people who have autism as we would our "neurotypical" acquaintances. More importantly, he builds a compelling case as to why we should always assume the intellect and competence of persons with autism.
The arrogant presumptions by those who label themselves "behaviorists", "educators", and "clinicians" drive home a painful, common message: autists, especially nonverbal ones, are hopelessly retarded, largely ineducable, and spiritually "empty" souls. As a parent of two with autism, I am often left with the the feeling that these "professionals" have spent little, if any time at all, truly getting to know, and understand, a person with autism.
While our youngest son who has autism was always verbal enough to make his intelligence apparent to would be skeptics (J. was born knowing how to read--nobody taught him), our older, nonverbal son struggled greatly to "prove" his intellect. His extreme sensory dysfunctions complicated things further. A brief spell of beautiful, peaceful years when David used pictures to communicate brought him some welcome respite, and access to more "intelligence assuming" curriculums. Then as he aged out of early intervention, his pictures began to fail him as a trustworhty form of communications. Our beautiful boy had more to tell us than what he wanted to eat, drink, or wear, and his pictures could not account for his maturing communications needs. Predictably, as his world narrowed, his behavior began to grow severe. In response, his "teachers" and "behaviorists" began to narrow his world further in response to his anger and frustration. Mental Retardation was slapped onto his list of labels, further narrowing his options. The light in my son's blue eyes grew painfully dim. We were losing David.
No amount of arguing could budge his school district into moving him towards intensive augmented communications training. They felt they'd done their job. Our child could communicate basic wants and needs. While we struggled to find resources to advance our little boy's communications further, we lost our child. His marathon episodes of aggressions and self abuses became so frequent and severe that his school district placed in a behaviorally focused group home in a program designed to force him into "compliance" with a rigid set of behavioral tasks. We were told by experts, that this was his only hope for a life outside of an institution. He grew worse, and worse. In the name of "treatment" our son faced injuries, human bites, pinching, hitting, food deprivation, falls through windows, and finally, witnessed and documented sexual molestation. Against all "expert" advice, we bought our little boy home, where at least we knew he'd be safe. Nobody could argue that he never got wounded or molested on our watch.
It wasn't until we set aside "expert" notions about autism, and began to operate on our original assumption that our nonverbal son was an intelligent and competent human being that we finally began to get over the hump of his seemingly insurmountable "behaviors". Seeing some changes from the first day of our "new attitude", we committed ourselves to previously "Unthinkable" approaches--the only ones we hadn't tried.
Here, during my son's eleventh year, we abandoned everything we were taught to believe about "how" to teach a person with autism. Daily, we are rewarded with increasing amounts of time where our son feels able to reveal the bright, luminous, funny--and wounded, traumatized individual that he is.
Today, our eleven-year old is an amazing young man by anyone's standards. He communicates with a letter board, he has pen pals, he writes poetry, he craves material about astronomy and ancient cultures, and no, we don't facilitate. He accesses grade level curriculum using the Rapid Prompting Method, and we are in the process of trying to convince his school district that behavioral approaches do not work for every child.
In trying the one thing clinicians warned us to never do---assume our child a capable, intelligent human being---his lost childhod was unearthed and reborn--hopefully before the wounds ran too deep to salvage his boundless spirit. While I can't change the painful mistakes we made in trying to help him live with autism, our son understands that we did the best we could with the tools we had available at the time.
In truly accepting autism, and embracing it as an integral part of the children I have, all of our lives are once again filled with reverence, joy, and miracles. I often find myself describing myself as a woman redeemed by her children's struggles. The best there is to say about me....or anyone in my family....revolves around having known, loved, advocated for, and accepted as the miracles God intended---two amazing children with autism.
Does that mean that in accepting our son's autism as a gift, we don't seek improvements which will ease their paths and broaden their worlds? Absolutely not! We simply operate on the same set of assumptions for our children with autism that we would for any child---we want them to become happy, healthy,contributing human beings.
In closing, my son David, has a message hew wants to share with Mr. Stillman, which he wrote in response to reading some of Mr. Stillman's work on the fundamental rights of autists to communicate:
When you look into the sky
The stars are all you'll ever see.
I have chosen instead to see
The possiblities lying in between.
"Autism And the God Connection" is a book about just that...choosing to see the possibilities beneath the label. Thank God we revisited that choice before our son's radiant spirit was dimmed forever.


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The Holy Man Review

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(More customer reviews)This book is a metaphor (in the tradition of the Canterbury Tales) for the various journeys each of us take to find wisdom. Often we feel that someone or a place will give us the results we seek in life, but eventually the realization grows on us that the answers are already programmed in ourselves. In her writing, Susan Trott takes us along for the ride as she slices into many perspectives on the road to the Holy Man. Highly recommended reading... but give yourself some thinking time in between the chapters. It will help you reconnect with your beliefs in an authentic way.

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The Wolf at Twilight: An Indian Elder's Journey through a Land of Ghosts and Shadows Review

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(More customer reviews)Dan, the Lakota Elder who we met in Kent Nerburn's nationally acclaimed book "Neither Wolf Nor Dog", reconnects with Kent via a mysterious note attached to a tobacco pouch that says, simply, "Fatback's dead."
"The Wolf at Twilight", a "novelized non-fiction" account of Kent's second encounter with Dan, unmasks the dynamically complicated relationship between a white American and a Dakota Indian. Nerburn creates this remarkable partnership through humor, gentle understanding, wisdom, historical revelation, suspense, full embodiment of real people, and his personal journey through the colorful lives of the Lakota people. The Lakota Elder, Dan, has an abiding trust for Nerburn, not because he can pay for the gas, motel rooms and meals, but because Kent has proven his genuine understanding of the Native people through an earlier book project with the children and elders of the Red Lake Indian Reservation, "To Walk the Red Road: Memories of the Red Lake Ojibwe."
It's been many years since Kent and Dan shared an adventure together on the sprawling plains of the Dakotas in "Neither Wolf Nor Dog". But, a cryptic note and a strong sense of duty (and some remorse) again send Nerburn on the road with Dan and Grover through the sprawling plains of the Dakotas. There is a colorful collection of Native characters embedded in this excursion including Fatback, Dan's dead dog who Dan has preserved in a freezer for Nerburn to bury; Grover, Dan's crusty, intrepid friend and protector; Wenonah, Dan's granddaughter who makes it clear to Nerburn that he better not disappoint her grandfather; young Native relatives and friends practicing the traditional ways of the Lakota; and small town Americans responding to the confusing juxtaposition of the modern world and an ancient way of life.
Nerburn is the student (and sometimes the stooge); Dan is the teacher. Throughout the book, Dan the Elder practices the traditional indigenous pedagogy passed on to him by the many teachers before him. We are reminded constantly, at the expense of Kent's pride, to stop talking and just listen. He asks Nerburn to engage not only his ears in the listening process, but all his senses. Many scenes in the book are masterfully descriptive in their sensory sensitivity. But, Kent also accesses the deep sensing of the forces of nature and brings us into the world of the unseen.
Dan is the ever patient but desperate pedagogue. He must get the message to Nerburn. Dan trusts Kent with the responsibility to pass on the information and experiences of his life. It is a life that is fading quickly and Dan needs Nerburn to just do what he's told. We can learn from Dan many of the traditional teaching techniques that worked just fine for thousands of years before the arrival of the Black Book. If Dan can bring Kerburn to understand that the sacred is in everything, they can travel through the unseen world of the spirit guides who will lead them to Dan's long-lost sister, Yellow Bird, and ultimately, to resolution.
There are many times when the student, Nerburn, tries to settle for "contempt prior to investigation", but Dan refuses to accept anything but full cooperation. When Dan explains that his newfound, mange riddled mutt, Charles Bronson, was revealed to him by the spirit of his former (and once frozen) dog, Fatback, Kent is incredulous. But Dan persists, and we find much later that Charles Bronson takes on an important role in solving the mystery of Dan's lost sister. Nerburn learns along the way that the seen world is only a fraction of what Dan accesses to guide him through life. It's more often the vast unseen world that directs Dan, and Nerburn's not always reading the same script. It's this spiritual tension that gives us so many vibrant exchanges between the dying Lakota Elder and the Stanford and Berkeley educated Ph.d.
At the end of this book, there is a realization that Nerburn, the word sculptor, has carved a beautiful piece of art from the dirty, dark historical secrets of the Indian boarding school experience. He has taken this huge, gnarled chunk of wood and allowed us to observe him carve through rotten pieces of historical and intergenerational trauma. This is not a wandering travel-log we are on. We are the observer, watching a master craftsman follow the grain and knots of a twisted past. We see him in dialog, and in process, with a form that was there before the work began. The shavings on the floor of the studio are the remnants of an ugly episode in American history that cannot be swept under the rug of denial and propaganda. We realize that what we have today is the result of what was created in the past. Nerburn is here to bring it to life.
There is a very complicated dynamic between the Native American people and the predominant White culture. It is a twisted web of superiority braided with submission; shame carefully disguised as hegemonic religiosity; genocide justified by hubristic government policies that declared that we must "Kill the Indian to Save the Man"; federally issued educational edicts that ignored the constitutional separation of church and State and bankrolled church sponsored schools of torture and cultural homicide; and the portrayal of the "Noble Savage" on Saturday morning TV shows with big lips, hook noses, buckskin loincloths, and an intuitive sense of humility (a la Tonto). The White culture has always attempted to justify their superiority over indigenous peoples by using the smoke screens of charity, righteousness and pity. The result has been an entire indigenous culture that has lived their lives with the realization that, "I am no longer myself. I am someone else." Dan's search for his sister also becomes a search for his own sense of self. It is a search led by a resilient survivor and not a broken down victim.
It is unfair to assume that this book is going to be a "downer" or another swing of the White guilt stick. "The Wolf at Twilight" is, above all, a great story. It takes you through the lives of real people who experience the full range of emotional dynamics and complex human relationships. Kent gives us breathing, crying, dying, laughing, Mountain Dew swilling people who are very much a part of the ethnosphere, and not just anachronistic remnants of Manifest Destiny.
Tom Kanthak
Perpich Center for Arts Education
Liaison for Indigenous Arts Education
Teacher on Special Assignment


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A note is left on a car windshield, an old dog dies, and Kent Nerburn finds himself back on the Lakota reservation where he traveled more than a decade before with a tribal elder named Dan. The touching, funny, and haunting journey that ensues goes deep into reservation boarding-school mysteries, the dark confines of sweat lodges, and isolated Native homesteads far back in the Dakota hills in search of ghosts that have haunted Dan since childhood.In this fictionalized account of actual events, Nerburn brings the land of the northern High Plains alive and reveals the Native American way of teaching and learning with a depth that few outsiders have ever captured.

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The Third Millennium: Living in the Posthistoric World Review

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(More customer reviews)Ken Carey's has transcribed a book from the celestial realm that contains pearls of wisdom that I found unparalled in 30 yrs of metaphysical reading and searching. I am reading it for the third time; right around Christmas each year. As the New Millenium dawns, this wondrous message contained within becomes more clear and explicit as time unfolds... We are at a crossroads of mankinds future in the next 12 yrs. Our consciousness will spell the story of what happens to this earth and to all of us upon it. If you want to know what road to place your feet upon, this is the best book I have read to show you that the true answers lie within... Ken Carey is a virtual unknown prophet in our time... I dont understand why this book isnt on the best seller list with "Conversations With God".... Read this book. It will change your life.

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This work for spiritual wisdom brings the blueprint for new modes of perception and understanding. It examines the interconnectedness between ourselves and the planet, allowing us to move beyond the cultural limitations of language and ingrained belief.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Closer to the Light Review

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(More customer reviews)Not to repeat what several others have mentioned here in these well written reviews, but this is a wonderful book.
The most notable element I see in this book is that children do not pass ALONE. There is always a loving presence - someone that goes with the child - and takes away their fears and eases the transition.
There was one story about a young girl (age 7) who tried to kill herself. She'd been the victim of horrible child abuse and chose suicide as the only way out. She left her body and found herself surrounded by "a bubble of love and life". She was shown a tree - encased in ice and snow - and told she was in the winter of her life now, but that summer was coming and much joy was ahead of her in life.
She was 47 when interviewed for this book and her adult life had been one of stability, joy and much peace.
The other good reason to buy this book is because on page 147 is "the rest of the story" about the 1986 bombing of the elementary school in Cokeville, Wyoming.
Many of the children who were there when the bomb went off (they'd all been stuffed into one classroom by David Young, the bomber) told of angelic beings that gave them very specific instructions as to where to go to be safe.
Not one or two, but many children talked about the angels, or "nice ladies who were all lit up" and voices - all giving them clear direction.
And by the way, only David Young died when that bomb went off.
This is a well written, informative, enlightening and good-news book.

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The skeptics have had their say; now listen to the experts. In hundreds of interviews with children who had once been declared clinically dead, Dr. Morse found that children too young to have absorbed our adult views and ideas of death, share first-hand accounts of out-of-body travel, telepathic communication and encounters with dead friends and relatives. Finally illuminating what it is like to die, here is proof that there is that elusive "something" that survives "bodily death.""New information on what may await us after death...Responsible, highly readable, and certainly thought-provoking."THE KIRKUS REVIEWS

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Out of the Saltshaker & into the World: Evangelism as a Way of Life Review

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(More customer reviews)Pippert offers a timely reminder to Christians that we are all called to exemplify Christ in all situations, and to be attentive to what tactics to use. Particularly important was her emphasis on the fact that people are not projects, but rather, children of God who are valued by God and should be treated as such. Pippert's obedience to God is an inspiration. A must read for all Christians.

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In 2006, Christianity Today voted this title to be one of the top 50 books that have shaped evangelicals!A year 2000 Finalist in the ECPA book competition!"Christians and non-Christians have something in common," writes Rebecca Pippert. "We're all uptight about evangelism."So begins the bestselling book on evangelism as a lifestyle. Through stories, biblical insight and plain common sense, Pippert helps us feel relaxed and enthusiastic about sharing our faith. She offers an inspiring view of what effective, engaging evangelism might look like--for individuals as well as for churches through memorable stories, like this one:When I first came to Portland, Oregon, I met a student on one of the campuses where I worked. He was brilliant and looked like he was always pondering the esoteric. His hair was always mussy, and in the entire time I knew him, I never once saw him wear a pair of shoes. Rain, sleet or snow, Bill was always barefoot. While he was attending college, he had become a Christian.At this time a well-dressed, middle-class church across the street from the campus wanted to develop more of a ministry to the students. They were not sure how to go about it, but they tried to make them feel welcome. One day Bill decided to worship there. He walked into this church, wearing his blue jeans, T-shirt and of course no shoes. People looked a bit uncomfortable, but no one said anything. So Bill began walking down the aisle looking for a seat. The church was quite crowded that Sunday, so as he got down to the front pew and realized that there were no seats, he just squatted on the carpet--perfectly acceptable behavior at a college fellowship, but perhaps unnerving for a church congregation. The tension in the air became so thick one could slice it.Suddenly an elderly man began walking down the aisle toward the boy. Was he going to scold Bill? My friends who saw him approaching said they thought, You can't blame him. He'd never guess Bill is a Christian. And his world is too distant from Bill's to understand. You can't blame him for what he's going to do.As the man kept walking slowly down the aisle, the church became utterly silent, all eyes were focused on him, you could not hear anyone breathe. When the man reached Bill, with some difficulty he lowered himself and sat down next to him on the carpet. He and Bill worshiped together on the floor that Sunday. I was told there was not a dry eye in the congregation.The irony is that probably the only one who failed to see how great the giving had been that Sunday was Bill. But grace is always that way. It gives without the receiver realizing how great the gift really is.As this man walked alongside of his brother and loved him with all that he had received from Christ's love, so must we. This man was the good Samaritan. He made Bill feel welcome, feel as if he had a home. So he also knew the secret of the parable of the prodigal son: there finally is a homecoming, because we really have a home to come to.This thoroughly revised and expanded edition of Out of the Saltshaker is now even more valuable, with new chapters on the natural stages of evangelism (cultivating, planting and reaping), new stories of God's work in people's lives and added material on meeting the challenges of the new competitors to Christian faith. Out of the Saltshaker is more than ever a rare book--one that is both fun and deep, light and life changing.

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Life and Teaching of the Masters of the Far East (6 Volume Set) Review

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(More customer reviews)These books are my all-time favorites. Over the past 15 years I have purchased several sets of these books and tapes and shared these ideas with countless people. Some found them interesting, some inspiring, some didn't want to part with them, and some became obsessed with the ideas presented in these books as much as I have. What can I say, these books did change my life.
I understand that for a lot of people the ideas presented in these books seem totally outrageous and that some people try to discredit them looking for information that will prove that the adventures presented in these books are all fabricated. To a lot of people it is very disconcerting when their ideas become challenged and they'll fight to prove that their limiting beliefs are the sound ones even if those beliefs are actually crippling their lives and taking the joy out of it. Whatever we choose to believe, we'll always look for ways to validate our beliefs and we'll always find what we are looking for (proof).
Even though we may or may not be able to prove whether the stories in these books are factual, we call all apply the principles presented. The main idea of these books is that man is limited or unlimited according to the thoughts and beliefs he chooses. And even if your main goal in life is not to master the ability to walk on water, walk through fire, teleport, or spiritualize your body, you can still use the principles in this book to get as far as your imagination and faith will allow you. Then, if you ever get bored with the mundane life, if you ever begin to wonder if there's anything more to life, you can get ideas here that will keep you busy on developing yourself, growing, expanding and actualizing your potential as long as you so desire. And then, if you are really interested, you can find many other books that explore the same principles presented here to feed your mind, your imagination, and your passion for life.
If you choose to apply the principles presented in this book, instead of just reading the books once for entertainment, you will soon begin to experience events in your life that will serve as a proof that these principles are valid and applicable in your life wherever you are right now and your belief will grow stronger and who knows, maybe one day you decide to imagine for yourself what was previously unthinkable. Maybe one day you give yourself a chance to surprise yourself allowing the power that is locked within you to come out and express itself in all its glory. Then you'll feel grateful that you found these books - even if they seemed far-out when you first picked them up.

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The Knight in Rusty Armor Review

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(More customer reviews)I know that every man who reads this book will see himself in this book. And I hope that they will pay close attention to this story about a man who learned that he does not have to prove to others that he is good, loving and kind.
Men are traditionally taught to fight the threatening enemies; and place fragile women, who are consumed with despair, into an environment that tells the world that they are materially doing just fine.
What's wrong with this, as the story demonstrates, is that this is done out of allegiance to the world first, as apposed to the man's allegiance to himself, and his family.
He develops emotional, social, and spiritual armor, to the point that he doesn't know who to be fully in the moment, in the presence of others, until the price for living like this potentially costs him the very people who he claims to be providing for.
In this story, the knight learned to take in the reality of life, which led him on a path to find his authentic self. He learned that he had lived his entire life trying to make everyone like him, at the price of not knowing who he himself was, in his heart.
And it was not until he was able to cry tears from his heart, that his armor disappeared, and he was able to go home, and truly love his wife and child.

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While searching for a way to remove the armor that has become stuck on him, a knight finally discovers the true qualities of knighthood.

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The Gabriel Method: The Revolutionary DIET-FREE Way to Totally Transform Your Body Review

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(More customer reviews)I have a graduate degree in nutrition and extensive knowledge of nondiet approaches, including Shapedown, Intuitive Eating, and Eating Competence. That said, I believe we all have our own inner wisdom and should follow what works for our own, unique bodies. So this review is my own personal view. It doesn't mean I bow to the USDA or don't have a critical thought in my head, it's just my review of the book (which I liked).
THE BABY: Gabriel's book has some wonderful qualities, including the visualizations, which I find to be a missing link in many nondiet approaches to weight management. He also gets the reader to "add in" healthy foods rather than "restricting out" foods that they see as "forbidden." This is something I've always preached and agree with wholeheartedly. His take on the dynamics of dieting and emotional starvation are spot on.
THE BATHWATER: Although he has "notes" and citations at the end of each chapter, don't get caught up in some of the nutritional assertions he makes. Pasteurizing milk does not "denature" the calcium in it. Calcium cannot be denatured... it's a mineral, not a protein. The calcium in any milk is just fine. Eating foods in a specific order is also unfounded. He says that meat requires an acidic environment, where milk and starch require alkaline ones... well yes, no, and it doesn't matter. Protein (from both the meat and milk) is digested first in the acidic environment of the stomach, and then in the alkaline environment of the small intestine (the pancreas shoots in bicarbonate to neutralize the stomach acid). Sugars and starches are primarily digested in the small intestine. The key: your stomach is like a blender, and all the nutrients are in one big glob. You have mroe enzymes than you can shake a stick at, and they only recongize the nutrient they're trying to break down, be it protein, carbohydrate, or fat. There is no reason to eat foods in a particular order or at separate meals.
He also asserts the aspartame causes an insulin response. This is based on a small study (that he doesn't cite, but it's the only one I could find) from 1988 on a handful of type 2 diabetic patients. The insulin peak was no different than with the unsweetened product, and the area under the curve was slighly greater.
I could go on (and on, because he really does make some outlandish nutritino claims) but you get the idea. He makes some mistakes, as so many authors do, by not consulting with experts in areas with which he's not familiar enough. He relies on "it sounds good, and makes sense."
NOT THROWING THE BABY OUT WITH THE BATHWATER: There is so much about this book that is excellent, just not the nutrition information (other than eating whole, healthy, unprocessed foods). I suspect Jon Gabriel will correct some of his errors in subsequent editions of the book. I hope the next edition will be even more grounded in science, as there is a LOT in this book that is uncited. It's a red flag for me, as the citations he does give are often news articles or simply "notes" that are his opinions. I'm concerned that some readers might see the smattering of citations and swallow the whole shebang without a critical eye.
THE BOTTOM LINE: A good read for those struggling with weight issues, although there are other similar books grounded in science. Simply take the nutrition information with a grain of salt. No pun intended.

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The pile of recent dieting books is growing faster than the average American's waistline. From the well-known programs that deprive and restrict to ones that rely on juice alone, it seems that everybody has an answer to the growing problem of obesity. When Jon Gabriel's life took an unexpected turn, he suddenly was awakened to the marvelous gift that he had been given -- the opportunity to live -- and was disgusted at how he had treated his body. At over four hundred pounds, walking, sleeping, and working was a struggle against gravity, and his life was a constant battle between emotional and physical satiation. He was slowly killing himself with food. Like the estimated 58 percent of Americans, and rising numbers in other countries, Jon was trapped in what he came to call the FAT - Famine and Temperature - trap. By studying biochemistry, Gabriel learned that your body has an internal logic that determines how fat or thin you will be at any given time. The way to lose weight is not to struggle or to force yourself to lose weight but to understand this internal logic and work with it so that your body wants to be thinner. When your body wants to be thinner, weight loss is inevitable and becomes automatic and effortless. You simply crave less food, you crave healthier foods, your metabolism speeds up and you become very efficient at burning fat, just like a naturally thin person. And that's the real transformation -- to transform yourself into a naturally thin person, so that you can eat whatever you want whenever you want and still be thin, fit, and vibrantly healthy. After reading The Gabriel Method, you will learn:
Your body has a reason why it's holding on to weight--and it's not your fault.
Fat is a cushion--a protective barrier that our mind believes is helping to protect us.
If you can change that belief, you can change your body; Stop the cycle of crash dieting and start eating what you want, when you want it.
How to choose healthy, nutritious foods that nourish the cells in your body, not starve them.
Delicious shakes and smoothies, and super-power supplements, that can jump start your success.
The simple way you can train your mind and body to work with your goal of health, not against it.
Eliminate the emotional and mental reasons your body holds on to weight in just 10 minutes a day. It certainly worked for Jon; he lost 225 pounds in two-and-a-half years, going from 409 pounds to 184, without suffering, dieting, or anguishing over his body. Unlike most people who lose an extensive amount of weight, his skin tightened up and now is indistinguishable from that of a person who has been healthy his whole life.

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The Hummingbird's Daughter Review

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(More customer reviews)I read a lot of books. Some are just for fun, some are silly, some are educational, some are not very good. But, every now and then, I find one that is so special that I will read it again, and probably again a few more times.
You can read a "summary" of the book in other reviews, both publishers' and readers'. So, why did I like it and why should you read it.
First, the story is incredible. A child born in poverty begins to show amazing intelligence, skills...and grows to womanhood having had profound effect on her country of birth. Truth is indeed "stranger than fiction".
Second, the author has an amazing talent with words. He gives you the sights, sounds, smells of the world in which Teresita lived. He also uses words to bring each person to life. I actually called a friend to share a quote...Tomas Urrea to Lauro Aguirre...."Although it is true that you are insufferable and irritating, and rightly famed for your endless posturing and platudinous pontificating..." (don't worry, potential reader, though, the book is not full of big words, just, occasionally, one creeps in...I loved that quote because it reminded me of someone.)
Third, I was able to experience a time and place distant from me.Some of what happened was horrific, but, it happened. I was able to begin to understand.
Finally, I loved this book, and will read it again because it contains a message of love and hope that I can understand.
Books do many things, entertain, enlighten and sometimes enrich.
This book enriches, enlightens and entertains.

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Things Hidden: Scripture As Spirituality Review

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(More customer reviews)Toward the end of his marvelous Things Hidden, Richard Rohr tells an equally marvelous story. Parents bring home a newly-born baby. Their 4-year-old daughter insists on speaking to her new sibling--alone, she insists. The amused parents leave, but stand at the doorway for easy eavesdropping. Their daughter gets close to the infant and urgently whispers: "Quick! Tell me where we came from and why we're here. I'm beginning to forget!"
This little parable is a nice encapsulation of what Rohr has to say about the spirit of scripture. For Rohr, following Rene Girard (whose influence, along with Nouwen's, is all over this book), the bible is a "text in travail," a fluid, living document that is often times messy and meandering, taking one step forward and two steps back. That's why it's important, insists Rohr, to be clear about the bible's trajectory and momentum, so that we won't get lost down a sidetrack and take the inessential as vital (the fundamentalist failing). The trajectory is the working out of the human recognition of God as a loving, nurturing parent who exhibits mercy, grace, faithfulness, forgiveness, and steadfast love; of recognition of ourselves as originally blessed, made in the image of a loving God and hence intrinsically lovable ourselves; and recognition that the bible encourages awakening, remembering, rather than accomplishing. (It's fascinating to reflect on the fact that the Greek word for truth used in the New Testament--aletheia--can be translated as "unforgetting.")
Readers familiar with Rohr's work won't necessarily find a great deal to surprise them in this lovely and wise book. But readers new to Rohr, as well as those (like myself) who have read and profited from him for years, will appreciate the insight and grace with which he puts scripture in a context that moves away from uninspired literalism on the one hand or academic textual crunching on the other. If spiritual knowing (cognition) is really, as Rohr argues, a re-cognition, an unforgetting of the soul, this book is as good a memory-jogger as one is likely to find.

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In this exploration of central themes of Scripture, Richard Rohr transforms the written word, discovering in these ancient texts a new and vital meaning, relevant and essential for modern Christians. He uncovers what the Bible says about morality, power, wisdom and the generosity of God in a manner that demands a life-changing response from believers. Rohr offers his readers a Christian vision of abundance, grace and joy to counteract a world filled with scarcity, judgment and fear a vision that can revolutionize how we relate to ourselves, others and the world.

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Zen And the Art of Happiness Review

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(More customer reviews)I've read many, many books on Zen and the way of happiness...but this one is the best I've ever read. And the beauty of it is that it makes it very simple, straight to the point, and tells you the way to achieve real happiness in life. I've recommended it to many people and still re-read it every few months. The simplicity of it is very powerful and it has the potential to really change one's own life.

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Cutting-edge science and spirituality tell us that what we believe, think, and feel actually determine the makeup of our body at the cellular level. In Zen and the Art of Happiness, you will learn how to think and feel so that what you think and feel creates happiness and vibrancy in your life rather than gloominess or depression. You ll learn how to adapt to life s inevitable changes, how to deal with stress in a healthy way, and how to nurture a mindful happiness in your daily life. Most importantly, the gentle wisdom of Zen and the Art of Happiness will show you how to invite magnificent experiences into your life and create a personal philosophy that will sustain you through anything. A timeless work about the art of happiness, the way of happiness, the inner game of happiness.

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Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom Review

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(More customer reviews)The magic about this book is that it centers completely on the definition of the human experience and all the emotions that it entails. In addition it gives us guidelines usually through poetic pieces and beautifully scripted prose on dealing with many of life's issues.
I read most of this book on a flight back home to Ireland. I just couldn't put it down. As cynical and routine that life sometimes appears each of us has a yearning to break the mold, break the routine and deep down find our way, our reason for being on this earth. O'Donohue reminds us regardless of who we are and what the material world values us at - our soul has a yearning to belong and live life spontaneously and to avoid the clutter of routine and the depression of complacency.
There are important lessons in this book on the areas of love, death, belonging, depression etc. Finding your significant other for example is something that happens through fate. Death should be celebrated for the life that it gave an individual and the journey it now presents to the soul. Depression should be addressed not through constant interactions with pyschologists, who yes help, but confronting that which caused the depression in the first place and absorbing it as a strength rather than a weakness.
I was in Ireland for a funeral, which though a sad event, i left feeling happy - This book reminded me of what a great gift life really is.

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The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself Review

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(More customer reviews)I simply cannot say enough great things about this profound book! The Untethered Soul gets right down to business answering some of the deepest, soul searching questions I'd had for years but didn't know whom to ask. It's almost as if the author has seen into the inner-workings of my mind!
With very straight forward examples, the book emphasizes the pitfalls of relying on the mind to come up with ideas for making ourselves happy. The book points out that relying on the outside world for inner happiness just simply doesn't work. Happiness comes to us when we change and let go of ourselves at the deepest, innermost-level rather than changing the world outside.
The Untethered Soul helps to explain the crazy world around us where the unhampered ego creates conflict. This book is a step-by-step guide to the letting go of the ego - a process that may seem counter-intuitive initially, but ultimately leads to freedom from the nagging mind and heavy heart and directs you to the beauty of the self within.
The chapter on Contemplating Death has made me truly appreciate each living moment. I no longer want to waste time on energy depleting thoughts and feelings.
I am grateful that Michael Singer has written a book so deep that it could actually make a difference in people's lives and help to make the world a better place to live.
Consider yourself warned! Once you read this book, there is no turning back from The Untethered Soul within.

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Who are you? When you start to explore this question, you find out how elusive it really is. Are you a physical body? A collection of experiences and memories? A partner to relationships? Each time you consider these aspects of yourself, you realize that there is much more to you than any of these can define. The Untethered Soul, spiritual teacher Michael Singer explores the question of who we are and arrives at the conclusion that our identity is to be found in our consciousness, the fact of our ability to observe ourselves, and the world around us. By tapping into traditions of meditation and mindfulness, Singer shows how the development of consciousness can enable us all to dwell in the present moment and let go of painful thoughts and memories that keep us from achieving happiness and self-realization.

This book, copublished with the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS), offers a frank and friendly discussion of consciousness and how we can develop it. In part one, he examines the notion of self and the inner dialogue we all live with. Part two examines the experience of energy as it flows through us and works to show readers how to open their hearts to the energy of experience that permeates their lives. Ways to overcome tendencies to close down to the rest of the world are the subject of part three. Enlightenment, the embrace of universal consciousness, is the subject of part four. And finally, in part five, Singer returns to daily life and the pursuit of unconditional happiness. Throughout, the book maintains a light and engaging tone, free from heavy dogma and prescriptive religious references. The easy exercises that figure in each chapter help readers experience the ideas that Singer presents.

Visit www.untetheredsoul.com for more information.

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23 Minutes In Hell: One Man's Story About What He Saw, Heard, and Felt in that Place of Torment Review

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(More customer reviews)With a heavy heart, I must give an honest review of this book. Before I begin, I want to start off by stating upfront that I am a born-again Christian, and I do believe that unbelievers who die without Christ will suffer eternal torment in Hell. However, with this said, I must say that I do not believe Bill Wiese' account.
I had heard about this book for quite some time before I had actually read it. At first I thought this was going to be a story about a man who wasn't a Christian, clinically died and went to Hell, came back to life and is now a Christian. Instead, I was surprised to find out that not only was Wiese already supposed to have been a Christian, but he didn't even die. Instead, he just went to bed at 3:00a.m. one night, fell into a pit and ended up in literal Hell. In this Hell he was tormented by demons, heat so intense that he should have been dead, and he witnessed a pit of fire where souls were being tormented. During his time in Hell, Wiese claims that he didn't know about God and had "forgotten" he was a Christian. He later supposedly gets rescued by Jesus and is told that he was purposely made to forget that he was a Christian. The entire reasoning behind this experience is so that Wiese can know that Hell exists and he can now tell others about it. He wakes back up in his living room where he fell asleep at 3:23a.m.
Right away, one would think that Wiese just had a nightmare, but Wiese is convinced that he had an out-of-body experience where his soul literally descended into Hell. Wiese insists that this wasn't just a dream.
This is all told in the first three chapters of the book, and the rest of the book is simply accounts of Wiese' evangelistic testimonies and answering a few questions about Hell. But the first three chapters are really the "highlight" of the book. In fact, I found myself getting bored after the third chapter, because the rest of it becomes testimonies of Wiese being invited to speak about his experience, and then the book going into answering standard philosophical questions about Hell that can be found in many other books.
The main problem I have with Bill Wiese' story is that it just simply isn't consistent with what the Bible teaches about how God operates. One of the claims Wiese says in his book is that God made him forget that he was a Christian while he was in Hell. On the contrary, the Bible teaches that God cannot lie, and therefore, I don't see how God would make Wiese "forget" that he is a Christian.
Also, in Luke 16:19-31 Jesus tells a story about a rich man who dies and ends up in Hell. The rich man becomes concerned that his family might end up in Hell too. So he asks if he can go and tell his family about Hell. And the response he received was, "If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead" (v. 31). So, knowing that Jesus told his story of the rich man, and the bible teaches that if someone isn't persuaded by the Scriptures, then they will not be persuaded by someone returning from the dead, why would Jesus send Wiese to Hell to basically do what Jesus himself says won't persuade unbelievers anymore than the Scriptures will? The simple answer is, Jesus wouldn't do that.
Another problem I have with Wiese's account is that Jesus said that anyone who believes in him will not see death (John 8:51).
After reading the book, I must admit that I am really disappointed. And while I am a born-again Christian who believes in the existence of Hell (and by that I mean eternal punishment, not annihilation), I must tell the truth of what I believe about this book. I had thought about not writing a review at all, but Christians need to stand on biblical truths, not lies. I'm still not even sure why Wiese is so convinced that he didn't just have a really bad dream... which is what I think he had if he's not just making this whole thing up.


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"My sincere hope is that this book is the closest you will ever come to experiencing hell for yourself"--Bill Wiese saw the searing flames of hell, felt total isolation, and experienced the putrid and rotting stench, deafening screams of agony, terrorizing demons, and finally, the strong hand of God lifting him out of the pit--"Tell them I am coming very, very soon!"Wiese's visit to the devil's lair lasted just twenty-three minutes, but he returned with vivid details etched in his memory. Since this life-changing ordeal, he has spent the last seven years studying the Scriptures to find answers and has listed more than 150 Bible verses referencing hell.Everyone is curious about the afterlife, and now Wiese shares his insights to commonly asked questions such as:
Is hell a literal burning place?
Where is hell?
Do you have a body in hell?
Are there Degrees of punishment in hell?
Are there children in hell?
Can Demons torment people in hell?
Can "good" people go to hell?
"Even if you don't believe my story, I hope you will believe the Scriptures and avoid hell just the same."

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