4 comments about Eight Lives Down: The Story of the World's Most Dangerous Job in the World's Most Dangerous Place.

1. In "Eight Lives Down" Chris Hunter does his part to shed light on the EOD operations in Iraq from his first hand experience as a Royal Logistic Corps Ammunition Technical Officer (ATO) serving in Basra. Hunter's counter-IED efforts were so successful that he was personally targeted by the Mahdi Army, a dubious honor previously reserved for ATOs operating in Northern Ireland.
   It is enough that Hunter chronicles his team performing multiple hair-raising render safe procedures, but the impact on the reader is amplified by valuable insight tied together with strong writing. In "Eight Lives Down," military enthusiasts and historians will appreciate Hunter's reflective points about the challenges of counter-insurgency. Those new to the world of bomb disposal will find themselves suitably educated into its procedures and associated dangers. Any fan of non-fiction will empathize with the inclusions of Hunter's personal touch, describing the difficulty in maintaining family life from a war zone. Finally, those who served in Iraq will undoubtedly be transported back to their service there through these pages. I predict that in years hence, when queried about their service, EOD Technicians who served in Iraq will point to a copy of Eight Lives Down and say, "Read this first." Hooya, Major Hunter.
   
   Also recommended: A Special Kind of Courage: 321 EOD Squadron Battling the Bombers,The Longest Walk: The World of Bomb Disposal, BOMB SQUAD: A YEAR INSIDE THE NATION'S MOST EXCLUSIVE POLICE UNIT, America's First Frogman: The Draper Kauffman Story



2. This is a non-fiction account of the tour of duty of a British bomb disposal operator in Iraq in 2004. The title is a reference to the fact that the bomb disposal squad in Northern Ireland were called "Felix" (meaning that they have nine lives, like a cat). It's an amazing story, so packed with action and danger that it would seem unbelievable if it were fiction. The first half in particular is so tense, so fast-paced that you find yourself longing for the occasional brief interludes of downtime just so that you can catch a breath! The book was very reminiscent for me of the Jamie Foxx/Jennifer Garner movie "The Kingdom" - and it made me realize that the film was more realistic than I had previously thought.
   
   Chris Hunter is a very likeable narrator who is also extremely brave and passionate about what he does. He doesn't just bring the action scenes alive, but also manages to convey what it is that soldiers love about what they do, even when it puts them in extreme danger. He also talks a lot about his family back in the UK and the strains that his army career put on his marriage. This fleshes his character out and makes it a far more interesting book than if it were just about the action on the ground.
   
   I did feel that parts of this book got a little hard to follow due to the military jargon, but that probably more a reflection on the fact that this is an unusual choice of book for me rather than on the book itself. I was engrossed in Eight Lives Down and I highly recommend it.



3. As an American Navy EOD operator, I've had the opportunity to rub shoulders with Chris's mates in the same theater of operations, and it doesn't get realer than EIGHT LIVES DOWN. From the numbing boredom and anxiety while waiting for "the call", to the controlled terror of "the long walk", Chris has done a spot on job of revealing the persona typical of the joes who go in first to save lives and property, without going so far as to reveal the techniques and secrets that allow most of us to come home with all of our fingers. This is the reason that, while you'll find scads of books about other special operations units (SEALS, SAS, Green beret's, etc.), you'll find very little written about these publicity shy operators. By far the best insight into military tactical bomb disposal I have ever encountered. Great job Chris...I trust you're enjoying Nine.



4. Mr. Hunter spent 17.5 years in the British army, 10 of which were in bomb disposal. Eight lives down focuses on 4 months of his tour in Iraq, with the first two as his last stint as an ATO (ammunition technical officer). He and his team were so successful in diffusing bombs that insurgents took a disliking to him with a price on his head. His next two months were spent as a weapons intelligence officer, a position he reluctantly accepted but grew to like.
   
   Major Hunter was married with two kids when he deployed to Iraq, despite one more empty promise in a string of broken promises not to spend time away from his wife on dangerous missions. Iraq would become his longest mission away from home, during which he became borderline paranoid about his wife divorcing him. It's a wonder why a married man with two small kids would prefer the rush of adrenaline from diffusing bombs to spending time with his family. "I've never taken drugs," he said, "but I don't believe there's anything that will ever equal the exhilaration of that tour," referring to Iraq.
   
   Chris Hunter wrote this book under an alias for security reasons. His intent was to share his experience of what it was like to be terrified, how his family coped with his time away and the ever present danger of losing him, and how soldiers like him react to the pressures of the day to day grinds in battle.
   
   In this action packed book, Mr. Hunter compiled the most exciting events of his tour in Iraq sure to satisfy the appetite of even casual military and combat enthusiasts.

5 comments about Breaking Back: How I Lost Everything and Won Back My Life.

1. Let me preface my comments by saying that Blake is one of my favorite tennis players. After having watched (and enjoyed) him in so many matches I was very interested in what he might reveal about himself in this book. While Blake certainly hasn't missed his calling by not being a professional writer, he nonetheless has crafted a readable and entertaining first effort with "Breaking Back." I was immediately engaged as I began reading this book because of Blake's relentless honesty - with regard to himself, the game, and the important people in his life. No pretense here. Blake isn't trying to impress, he's trying to convey a message about love, loss, and redemption; and in his own way he accomplishes his goal in an effective and emotionally touching way. To state the obvious, all of us either have or will face various adversities in life of one kind or another. But few of us will lose as much as James did, and even fewer will become stronger and better people for having undergone the experience. To summarize: A sudden convergence of events in Blake's life mounted a remorseless attack on everything that held meaning for him. Lesser men would have fallen, but Blake dug deep and he fought back. He overcame. And we're all better for it because he chose to share the experience with us. When I turned the last page of this book I was thankful to have spent some time with this gifted and special young man. As he relates, he has a number of close friends. I'd like to be one of them. Whatever his faults, this man has qualities that made his parents proud, as they should have been. And you'll be a better person for having invited James Blake into your life through a reading of this moving memoir.



2. This is a refreshing and inspirational story, one that leaves your mouth open as you witness and experience the challenges that Blake went through, as well as leave you with a smile and a pump of the fist as he slowly and steadily built himself back up. Most people would not overcome such devastating life experiences in such quick succession, at least not as well as he did. But this was what Blake did when, after he broke his neck, lost his father to cancer and came down with zoster, he was able to climb back in the rankings and do better than he had ever done before, winning two titles (he had only won one previous tournament in his career) and getting to the quarterfinals of the US Open, catapulting himself to a ranking of 23 from a low of 210 in 2005, then to 4th by the end of 2006 (with an additional 5 tournaments).
   
   This is an up front and honest account of Blake's personal life, bringing the reader into a world that is hard to understand. We get to see some of the inner workings of the tour, as well as some of what tennis pros go through in their day to day life, but not too much.
   
   This is, of course, not meant to be a day to day memoir of his experiences on the tennis court. Some may pick this up thinking they will get to read about tennis a lot more than is present, but this was never Blake's intention. After all, the subtitle of his book is "How I Lost Everything and Won Back My Life". So instead of a book crammed full with tennis thoughts on matches and other players, we get to witness through Blake's words what he went through, starting with where he came from and going through where he eventually got to at the end of 2006. It is clear that it was his father who played such a huge role in his life and this biography is an homage to him. Additionally, Blake reiterates how much of an impact his coach had on him through his philosophic style of coaching.
   
   I think this is definitely the way to go, besides not straying from what he intended to write upon, and has helped paint a picture of himself that is sure to gain him many fans and inspire many more. His writing is easy and enjoyable and flows from beginning to end. I've always been a fan of Blake, even before I knew what had happened to him in 2004, and after reading Breaking Back I am an even bigger fan. I definitely recommend this book to any interested.
   
   4 stars.



3. This is by far a must read for any person. Realizing the hardships and injuries for Mr. Blake to overcome is incredible. The best part about reading his book is the way you view life and to understand everything happens for the best.
   
   Towards the end of the book there is a chapter on his friends who he calls the J-BLOCK. People would kill to have something like that Today, and the best part about it is he is so great full to be where he is today.



4. Interesting, inspiring, uplifting story. Reminds us that there are still a lot of GOOD people in this world.
   
   A good and enjoyable lesson for people of all ages, athletes and couch potatoes alike. After reading, you will be a James Blake fan, even if you have never seen a tennis match.



5. The most boring tennis book I ever read.I bought almost every single tennis book Amazon has to offer, and this one is by far the dullest one.This book is not aimed at the serious tennis player.You'll learn nothing new from it.It's just a personal journal where he keeps trying to take the focus away from tennis. The only conclusion I arrived to is that Blake's life without tennis is boring as hell.

5 comments about Tao Te Ching.

1. I wish I had known that this wasn't a translation before buying. The author basically uses other people's translations and inserts is own perceptions to replace the wording in many of the verses. I was looking to purchase the Tao Te Ching not Mitchell's philosophy based on the Tao Te Ching. I actually bought the audio and stopped on verse 46. It was this verse that really stood out:
   
   Mitchell's version 46:
   
   When a country is in harmony with the Dao
   The factories make trucks and tractors
   
   When a country goes counter to the Dao
   Warheads are stockpiled outside the cities
   
   There is no greater illusion than fear
   No greater wrong than preparing to defend yourself
   No greater misfortune than having an enemy
   
   Whoever can see through all fear will always be safe.
   
   
   It is obvious from the above that the author took license with the original (because Lao Tzu would not have mentioned trucks, tractors, warheads, etc), but what is worse, if you review other translations, he obviously inserted his own pacifistic thinking into the version which changed the whole meaning (no greater wrong than trying to defend yourself for example). To illustrate, see the translation from Jonathan Star's book:
   
   When Tao is present in the empire
   men follow their own nature and riding horses work the fields
   
   When Tao is absent from the empire
   men go astray and war horses breed on sacred ground
   
   There is no greater loss than losing Tao
   No greater curse than desire
   No greater tragedy than discontentment
   No greater fault than selfishness
   
   Contentment alone is enough
   Indeed, the bliss of eternity can be found in your contentment
   
   
   Jonathan Star's translation is more literal (in his book he provides the actual Chinese so you can check his translation). Mitchell's "version" is basically Tao Te Ching with Mitchell's own world view intermixed to the point that it changes the meaning of what is being said. He does this throughout his book.
   
   Like I said in the title, Buyer Beware



2. I bought this book on a whim at a local bookstore. When I started reading it, something seemed a little off with the text. I started checking it against other versions online, and the phrasing and wording is way different from the majority of translations.
   
   As someone who has knowledge of Greek and Hebrew, I know how tall an order it is to translate an ancient language faithfully, especially one where context is so key. I appreciate Mitchell's efforts and feel that this is an interesting book, but I felt a bit deceived by its label. To me, anyway, "A New English Version" suggested it was a translation, but that's not the case. It's _based_ on the Tao Te Ching and has some great insights in the form of his interpretation, but it's not a translation. This would be a great book to get after you already have two other translations of the Tao Te Ching, just to give a different perspective and make you think.
   
   I don't yet have another version of the Tao Te Ching, so I returned this today. I'm checking out translations recommended by some of the other reviewers, and hopefully will find something that's poetic, yet faithful to the original tone and has lots of footnotes to mention alternative translations.



3. This book has true value...unlike most books the Tao Te Ching can help you find meaning and truth in life.



4. The word warhead appears in this text. When I read it, I became suspicious of the entire book and the reading became unpleasant as a result. After reading reviews, my worst fear was affirmed: this is not the Tao Te Ching. This is more of a paraphrase of various translation with the author's own language thrown in.
   
   I know that the Tao cannot be conveyed through words. It is better to say that the Tao Te Ching describes around it, like hands attempting to contain a ball, concealing it so that it cannot be seen while hinting at its shape and size. The ball is there, but the hands conceal it. Lift the hands and the ball shall be seen! It is not there, but it is. This book is like a pair of hands, but they are dirty. They have been sneezed in. It is impolite to offer one's hand to shake when it has been sneezed in!



5. If you buy this book and accept the knowlege bestowed upon you, it will transform you life forever.

5 comments about Paula: A Memoir (P.S.).

1. I am a big fan of Isabel Allende's work in general, but this book, based on her daughter Paula's illness, is certainly one of her best. The story is haunting as Allende works through and chronicles her grief and tells us some of her own life story. It is certainly not a light hearted read or full of the adventure and mystery that fill her fiction, but it is equally or even more moving than her other work and is, as always with Allende, written in exquisite prose. However, if you have never read Allende before, you may want to start with "House of Spirits", which I think is her best fiction, or "Daughter of Fortune", a close second.



2. I like this book very much, but it is sad... The way Paula dies is just terrible, and Isabel Allende suffered so much!!



3. This story is so inspiring. It is so amazing how Isabel Allende shows the love to her daughter in this autobiographic story. We gave the graduating palliative care fellows this book as a gift. It demostrated very well all that there is to life that goes beyond death.



4. When Isabel Allende's daughter suffered a calamatous illness, Allende did what came naturally. She wrote a story. On its most basic level, this book is about a mother who is losing her child. She goes through the stages of grieving, sometimes even arguing with herself on the pages about what might come next. It goes much deeper, though. There is a point in the book when it seems she has discovered she is no longer writing the book for her daughter. A seer told Allende that her daughter would be known throughout the world. At some point in the writing, Allende discovered it would be through her own efforts, not her daughter's.
   Allende has so many fascinating pieces in the story of her life, not the least of which is the fact that she is an extremely famous author. She is also a historical figure, being the niece of the Chilean president ousted by a military coup. She witnessed this and talks about it in the book. She was also raised by a man in the Foreign Service of Chile. She has traveled around the world and experienced what it is like to be accepted and what it is like to be rejected. She has been an exile as well. She wonders in the book whether her life has been very interesting. To her, it seemed normal and boring.
   This is really one of the best books I have read. The vulnerability with which Allende writes is devastatingly beautiful. In her sorrow, she chooses to share her story and the story of her daughter with us. I feel honored.



5. In this book, Isabel Allende downplays her first two traumatic experiences. The central focus is her third trauma, her daughter's illness.
   
   The first trauma is a predator who's incomplete seduction is enough to scar a child; moreover, she sees the man's death. The second trauma is that of her uncle forced from office in an air bombardment and dies (perhaps at his own hand) along with many supporters, precipitating a military coup in which thousands die, flee and/or are tortured. She is not numbed by these, but she is by her third trauma, her daughter's coma.
   
   It took about 100 pages for me to get into it. I almost put it down. After about 100 pages, the breezy language and cryptic metaphors seemed to stop and Allende opened up. She became frank about about her married and extramarital life, but continued to restrain the prose relating the first two traumas. For instance, the childhood predator story is told like it was someone else's. Her uncle is like a stranger, and if how she is related to him is mentioned, I don't remember it. There is some discussion of family members who oppose the uncle, but nothing about their actually knowing him.
   
   There is some of the language of magical realism present in her novels. This book is worth reading for it's description of letting go. There are some vague descriptions (admittedly not the focus of the book) of life in Chile after the coup and life as an exile. I think there is a bigger memoir inside of Isabel Allende yet to be written.

1 comments about Lady Q: The Rise and Fall of a Latin Queen.

1. I have read both of Reymundo Sanchez books and they were great! But this book... pretty much repeated it self over and over and over again. I dont want to say too much without giving the entire book but I'll let you be the judge. I read the book in 5 days and was just simply not what I expected.

5 comments about The Long Loneliness.

1. I was required to read this book for school this summer and it was by far the worst book I have read in my life. Its only a 280 page book, but her style of writing makes it seem as if it was about a thousand. She fills the book with useless information (i.e. she writes an in depth account of a cover of a book her brother brought home one day and then wonders what it was about. That was completely pointless and failed to advance the plot at all.) Instead of sticking to the core story, which might have been interesting she rambles off about random occurences constantly.



2. Catholic faith fascinates people. How did her spiritual life develop, and how did it influence the remainder of her life? Many wonderful authors, including but not limited to people such as William Miller, Robert Coles, and most recently Paul Elie, have written extensively about Dorothy Day and help us understand this amazing and complex woman, but nothing is more rewarding than reading the writings of Day herself.

   THE LONG LONELINESS is a classic spiritual tome and is often referred to as Day's spiritual autobiography. In many ways it is similar to Thomas Merton's SEVEN STOREY MOUNTAIN, and it is easily a close second in popularity with many Catholics. Though Day's writing style is much drier than Merton's writing and her story is not quite as spellbinding as the artist and aspiring writer turned monk, the reader can sense God working powerfully in Day's life. If the book were published today, it would probably be categorized as a memoir, rather than an autobiography since day does not as much tell her story as reflect on how God called her to a life of faith.

   The book is a "must read" for anyone who loves and admires Dorothy Day. It is also a book that will interest people interested in religious social activism. Yet the book may speak most powerfully to those who are on a spiritual quest themselves, either knowingly or unknowingly.




3. This book is Dorothy Day's own autobiography. I know she was a remarkable woman. Everything that I have seen and heard about her has been outstanding. I was excited when I found this book.
   However, I felt disappointed by this book. It was rather boring and dry. Dorothy must have been very humble, because she writes about herself in a mundane fashion. It sounds like this is the diary account of her life. I guess she must not have realized how heroic she really was. She also experienced significant pain and isolation in her life, hence the title.



4. "The Long Loneliness," is one of the most enriching testimonies of an individual's search and discovery of faith that I have ever read, although I found the first 60 pages a bit slow (about her background and coming of age). I am very happy I persevered, because it only got better and more inspirational, as she began to perceive glimpses of God and tried to learn how best to follow Him.
   
   Dorothy Day was a journalist who lived in the early 1900s and died in 1980. She was raised an agnostic. Her family did not practice a religion. Early in her life she attended churches with neighbors, and loved the feeling of communal worship, but felt discouraged by so many people who attended church only on Sunday and thought that was the end of their religious obligation to others.
   
   An early memory that had a great impact on her was an earthquake during her childhood, in which the families who retained their houses opened their homes to those who had lost theirs, and the community banded together to help each other in brotherly love. She lived her life searching for this sense of community. During her college years she began an activist involved in political causes such as women's voting rights, and labor rights for women and children, and had sympathies with communist organizations, that, from her perspective, seemed to assist the needs of the poor more than any Christian church.
   
   This is a conversion story, much similar to Thomas Merton's "Seven Story Mountain," but which inspired me much more than his good work. She felt an incredible need to worship God, so much that she believes that human beings have a deep psychological need to worship and when their devotion is misplaced on humans rather than the divine, it is a recipe for disaster. The First World War and the Great Depression was the background for her conversion. She worked as a nurse during the War and began attending church with a colleague, but latter returned to writing in an environment where there was less church, but she continued to pray.
   
   She had a common law marriage with a man, whom she loved dearly, but when she became pregnant, she decided that she must have the child baptized so that her daughter would not experience the lack of spiritual support that caused her so much confusion and soul searching. She felt such great love durign her preganancy, that she believed she required a supernatural channel to channel the love. She had hoped to enter a church with her partner as a marriage before God, but he was adamantly opposed to religion and perceived it as a form of imperialism. She left him with her daughter, in order to follow a life that she believed would be pleasing to God. It was not an easy situation for her, as she had hoped for a traditional life, and being a single mother is never and easy vocation in any time period. The anguish she described when she reached the conclusion of what she must do was only a page but it moved me to tears. The situation that the decision evoked was not easy, but reaching the decision for her seemed to be a simple matter, because of her great faith. She wrote about it as occasionally God offers s the same proposition to us that he gave Abraham; to sacrifice something we love in pursuit of Him, whom we should love above all created things. She worte too, that staying with him felt natural, but that she was aspiring for a supernatural life, which requires different considerations when making decisions. I would like to hope that I would have the same faith and courage in a similar situation, but I don't know.
   
   The time period following her separation was difficult for her, and she experienced loneliness, as she searched to discover what would be her niche in the world, according to God's plan. She believed that the antidote for loneliness is involvement in community life. She started the "Catholic Worker" with Peter Maurin (who she felt was sent to her by God as a response to her prayers for guidance in her vocational quest), a paper which reported about the injustices confronted by the poor and that presented articles of helpful advice for struggling families. The paper is still in existence.
   
   She also started a hospitality house that offered food and shelter to those who need it, and a space where people can find a voice. Eventually a chain of such houses grew and now are operating not only across the US, but across the world. Some became retreat centers. Day's life is a perfect testimony of an individual discovering God's love and learning to return the love with faith, not only through worship to God, but also through offering love and help to others.
   
   This is a great book for people seeking to understand what is faith and how does it move people, and a great book for people dealing with difficult situations in their lives when they are seeking to find what it is that they are meant to do with their lives. I recommend her story to every one.



5. The Long Loneliness by Dorothy Day has long been held to be an important social document as well as a meaningful written Catholic memoir, because it delves deeply into the intimate conversion experience whereby there is a moving epiphany that changes that person so completely and totally. And The Long Loneliness illustrates that point quite clearly. Even before the Catholic Worker was ever founded by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin, their approach to religious activism was almost on par with other lay Catholic social orgaizations, mirroring the motto of Catholic Action, founded in 1868, the best, whose battle cry is: Prayer. Action. Sacrifice. However, what makes this memoir so appealing is that it is outlined in a belief framework of pragmatic thought and a consistent work ethic, like Opus Dei. Dorothy Day, in the recounting of her conversion and the afteraffects of it, is not given to flights of supernatural fancy or prone to self-created mystical experiences or visions, which, when people do have them, are psychosomatic or psychotic, at best.
   
   There are various reasons why people enter the Catholic Church, and for Day, she wanted her daughter-Tamar-to not flounder in a life of sexual radicalism and voracious wantonness, both of which wounded her quite grievously before she had her conversion experience. Before she became Catholic, Dorothy Day was a doer rather than a sayer; she put action behind her words, and she found comfort in the Gospel: feeding the hungry and clothing the poor. The latter was the very impetus for why The Catholic Worker was established, to make it real, living and vibrant for others. What is recounted in the Long Loneliness is not any caliber of theological scholarship or penetrating analysis of the Gospel. Rather, besides being lived, Catholicism in conjunction with pacificism, economics, helping the downtrodden and the labor movement is thoroughly explored. And yet, simplicity, simplicity, simplicity is exemplified throughout. Through her collected writings, especially her memoir, Dorothy Day illuminated that in accepting the Catholic ideal, everyone must carry their cross if they want the world to be even a slightly better place and that the Catholic faith is not one to take lightly.

5 comments about The Faiths of the Founding Fathers.

1. David Holmes writes a very informative study regarding the religious beliefs of America's Founding Fathers. He examines this diverse eclectic group in a opened balance perspective. Today there is a desire to better understand the relationship between the founding of America and the influence that Christianity played within that founding. This has been made apparently clearer as the religious right and the liberal left want to place the Founding Fathers into their respective camps and use them to make some political statement. Holmes reveals the religious views of several of the leading Founding Fathers. He shows that men such as Washington, Adams, Franklin, Jefferson, Madison and Monroe were more Deist in action and thought than orthodox Christian. These early US Presidents maintained a low religious profile during their presidency and didn't advocate personal religious beliefs upon the new nation. The influence of the Enlightenment from Bacon, Locke and Newton were spreading a new school of religious thought called Deism throughout England and into the Colonies. Having come from Europe where church and crown were extremely intertwined, the Founding Fathers had no strong desires to continue this tradition. As the First Great Awakening was growing into American's belief system, the foundations were beginning to be laid for a Nation to be built upon religious freedoms and personal liberties. Throughout history there have been individually great men and women, but at no time has there been found together, in one place and time, this collection of the truly wise and noble men such as the founding fathers. Men that "appeared less devout than they really were"..and "valued freedom of conscience and despised religious tyranny." It is near impossible to understand or even know an individuals private religious thinking. The best possible way of understanding this is, as Holmes shows, is by their writings and the lives they lived. Holmes' book challenges us to remember that the founding fathers were remarkable, even noble men and that we need to keep their background and ethos in proper perspective.
   
   This book gives an informative look at the men and the religious feelings that were spreading throughout America during this remarkable period. Holmes reveals to us the great and noble men who laid life, liberty, and property on the altar of freedom and never apostatized from it. Well worth the read and addition to the history shelf.



2. A concise primer on the faiths of our nation's founders. Fair assessments, avoiding any kind of dogmatic revisionism (be it evangelical or secular). Holmes deals with each figure individually, avoiding sweeping claims, and appreciating nuances. Avoid Meacham's _American Gospel_; it is simply an amalgam of anecdotes with no thesis other than "America has a public religion" driven over and over again. Stick with Dr. Holmes!



3. Shortly after Washington's death, certain writers began trying to depict him as a devout orthodox Christian. Mason Weem's book of 1800 was representative of this group and was reprinted regularly with newly added tales about Washington the pious man of prayer. The memorable story about the cherry tree came in the fifth edition in 1806 but the disreputable Weems was easily discredited. Jefferson, Madison, and many others disputed all these efforts. "Sir, he was a Deist," one of Washington's pastors declared upon discussion of the question.
   
   Franklin and the first five presidents were All Deists, a minimalist religious belief system without an organized hierarchy that sprouted from the Enlightenment. For the straight story about their beliefs and the varied Christian denominations of the colonies, this book can't be beat.
   
   The excellent reviews already on this site say it all. I'll just add that "Faiths of the Founding Fathers" is well organized, authoritatively researched, extensively documented, and unusually readable. History buffs and the general public will like this book.
   
   DB



4. This book was very well written. The author made the case that some of the founding fathers were not necessarily Christian, but Deists. His conclusions stem from letters written to, and from, various people that had contact with them (friends, family, clergymen, etc.) - which makes sense; however, some of the author's assumptions (i.e. the language the "fathers" used in writing and speeches) about how they referred to God (the Almighty, Nature's God, etc.) is not necessarily the best way to prove that the founding fathers were not Christian.
   
   It certainly shed some light, although not definitive, on the faiths of our founding fathers and their families.



5. David Holmes seems to be on a mission to disqualify our Founding Fathers as Christians. He picks a few names, Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, Adams, Monroe and Madison as if these were the only ones who had any influence in our early government. Further, he wants to make each of them a Deist when, in fact, most of their writings lead to a very strong Christian base. Like any person in public office, some speeches and writings can be taken out of context and you can easily make the writer or speaker appear to be something they are not. An in depth study of any of these six men will prove they lean far more to a Christian base than Deism. In addition, Holmes leaves out more than 30 other Founding Fathers who were very strong Christians. Somehow, many authors today have a goal of trying to convince us that our country was not founded upon Christian principles. A good source to confirm our country's foundational basis is David Barton's book, "Original Intent". I think Holmes book is slanted and short on factual information.

5 comments about Letters from a Stoic (Penguin Classics).

1. Stoicism has been much misunderstood, and the adjective "stoic," which loosely can be taken to mean bearing up under duress, is partly correct but does not do justice to one of the world's great philosophies. This Penguin volume presents a great selection from the letters of Seneca, which hits all the high points of the philosophy and captures Seneca's remarkable personality, which has made him a hit with the cognoscenti for 2,000 years. Few perhaps realize that the Stoics postulated a great commonwealth governed by law, or that they idealized democracy. Seneca mentions Solon the lawgiver as the creator of democracy and refers numerous times to the Roman Stoic saint, Cato, who strove mightily (and unsuccessfully) to preserve the Roman Republic.
   
   Seneca, like other Stoics, has a doctrine of nature that is remarkably close to that of Emerson or modern American environmentalists. The wise man (sapiens) will never be bored when contemplating the simple things of nature. The natural beauty of the countryside and the healthful action of the waves can have a calming effect (although there's a memorable passage in which a storm causes terrible sea sickness). He also believed in the simple and strenuous life and the avoidance of luxury and decadence, and there are numerous passages in these letters to his disciple, Lucilius, which decry the ostentatious, self indulgent practices of his contemporaries. These are sentiments and ideas adopted by many in the modern world, including President Theodore Roosevelt. Seneca has no patience for philosophy as a word game or a practice of engaging in hair-splitting arguments for their own sake. He rather sees it as a practice or way of life that all those who seek the good should investigate and adopt. While the Stoics believed in democracy and republicanism, their doctrine of freedom is different from the modern idea of Liberty. Freedom was the ability to endure and pursue the good even under tyranny. While that may be admirable, modern commentators on liberty (such as Isaiah Berlin) have pointed out that defining down the range of one's actions is not a satisfactory solution to the problem of the absence of liberty in society or the world.
   
   No stranger to power himself, Seneca virtually ruled Rome as tutor of the boy Nero--and yet he adopts a quite believable stance of simplicity and humility. It's a good bet these letters will still be found absorbing by readers for another 2,000 years.



2. The letters in this book are full of nuggets of wisdom and quotable passages. Seneca isn't my favorite Stoic philosopher but this book is one of the easiest to read translations of an ancient text I have ever come across. It was worth adding to me library.



3. This is an enjoyable read. Ancient self-help for every man, not a dense philosophical treatise. Also, many opportunities to take a glimpse into the daily life of an ancient Roman; not so different from us, eh?



4. Seneca was probably not the most original thinker of the Stoic school. His writing style was also not the most agreeable to many. However, Seneca has had a profound influence on many, many later writers. Pliny the Younger, St. Augustine, and Ralph Waldo Emerson all quote, and borrow from Seneca. With Marcus Aurelius, Seneca is one of the most accessible of the Stoics. He is also an invaluable source of information about Stoicism's rivals, Epicurus and his followers. This particular volume is also filled with very helpful notes, and it is a good place to start a journey with the stoics.



5. This book is all wisdom, from a mentor to a student/friend. It is written in such an eloquent style that it is almost poetic. It is a classic book inwhich I come back to over and over again. Get lost in the wisdom.

5 comments about Batista Unleashed.

1. I refused to by this book but I did read it and I can tell you that Batista is a REAL jerk.
   
   I am NEVER was a Batista fan because I felt he lakced wrestling skills and Mic-skills. He has his moments but his personality is Blah. When he came out with this book, I was hoping that after reading it, he would eventually turn me into liking him as a person.
   
   The fact that he treated his ex-wife like $#it goes to show what an embarassment he is to pro wrestling. Guys like him give bad names to guys that passed and actaully changed their lives for the better. I do wish Batista would change in the future but I refuse to support someone who practically bragged about what woman he had sex with and how he cheated on his cancer-enduced ex-wife.
   
   I know a wrestler's lifestyle is hard but why would you get married in the first place. He thinks it's love but judging from this book, he did it out of comfort.
   
   After reading this book, I think i found the REAL wiesel of pro wrestling and that's Batista.
   
   In fairness to him, he could have made up these stories and if he did, then I take everything back but this is label a non-fiction.



2. Dave Batista, one of WWE's current big stars, while his autobiography was in the planning stages, stated that he was a pretty boring guy and was only going along with this because the WWE wanted to push a book about him. He was right - through no fault of his own, his book is not exactly must read material.
   
   Batista Unleashed, likely as told to Jeremy Roberts by Dave Batista, is the life story of the sudden sensation of a big man who started in the industry late in life, debuting at the age of 33. As the man is only 38 when the book was released to store shelves last October, most of the book is mostly based on his personal life.
   
   And that's kind of the problem. As a fan of a lot of wrestling autobiographies, I read mostly for the road stories and other industry workings in the strange and unique business of professional wrestling. Batista and Roberts do try to make the best of it, trying to put in as many interesting diversions as they can, since the book is an obvious cash in on Batista's current popularity.
   
   The story follows Batista from his childhood on the rough streets of Washington D.C., into a run with a bad crowd and a brief life of crime. He spent much of his young adult life serving as a bouncer, a natural given his height and build. He goes into his time as a bodybuilder, which he credits to saving his life. He spends much time speaking of his relationships with various women, and the resulting unplanned children from those unions.
   
   As expected, he doesn't actually start to speak of the wrestling industry until he's a good ways into the book. For what's there, he makes it entertaining and is seemingly not afraid to throw mud, which can be a positive or negative depending on one's opinion on the maturity of that. There are some fine gems of passages in the book, such as Batista's altercation in the WCW Power Plant with a small pasty white career jobber/trainer by the name of Sergeant Buddy Lee Parker saying that the future Wrestlemania Main Eventer would never make it in the industry.
   
   Another plus I'll hand the book is that Batista actually reflects on his past and is actually regretful of some of his past screw ups, such as the aforementioned delving into a life of crime, and even in the wrestling industry such as his known backstage brawl with fellow star Booker T. This is a nice change of pace to other books in the genre, where the author was always in the right and everyone else has no idea what they're talking about.
   
   On the flip side, as a duality, he still comes up as bullheaded a lot of the time, almost to the point of comicality. As an example, are his claims to be sleeping around with many of the WWE's Divas - women wrestlers. The need to promote this fact(if it is a fact) is a strange one to stick in one's book, especially given it's talking about a relatively current time of not even a year ago. One would think you'd keep your current sexual exploits to yourself until a later date, not publish them all for the world to see.
   
   It's by no means the worst wrestling autobiography you could buy. But you could do better. If you're a big Batista fan, it's probably worth a read. A general wrestling fan? I'd place it low on your list behind A Lion's Tale, Have a Nice Day, To Be The Man..., Etc. For a non-wrestling fan? I wouldn't even bother, as I do not see much universal appeal here in this obvious WWE Cash-in.



3. This book is an excellant reas.Dave goes well indepth of his life experiences in and out the ring.5 stars plus



4. This book is not meant for younger kids its for a much older crowd. This book brings out his true identity and lays out his life for everyone to see. If you didnt like batista before you will now after you read this book. A great read for batista fans!!



5. When I first heard that former World Champion and WWE wrestler, Dave Batista was penning his own autobiography, "way too soon" ran through my mind. The book, "Batista Unleashed" only covers the first five years of his WWE career, right through his feud with Undertaker shortly after Wrestlemania 23. It didn't seem like a whole a lot of history to cover, and I thought the book would be a failure like previous wrestlers who released their autobiographies early in their career like Bill Goldberg and The Rock.
   
   I couldn't have been more wrong. Of all the wrestler biographies I have read thus far, no one has had such an eventful childhood as Batista. His accounts of growing up in the rough part of Washington D.C. leaves plenty of interesting first hand experiences. Batista's childhood troubles, growing up in a divorced family, dropping out of high school, having his own kid at an early age, his doomed marriage, and a ton of other shenanigans combined to have me hooked throughout the entire first half of the book.
   
   When it comes to Batista's wrestling career, Dave doesn't pull any punches and tells it like it is. He admits how he struggled in his early years learning how to wrestle while coping with his asthma, and his frustrations with management not teaching him anything else other than to be a big, powerful brute. Dave doesn't hide much either, as he tells the ugly truth about his enemies, and gives praise to people he still wish were in the company. It was quite fascinating reading about how he grew to learn the business and how he was taught so much while part of the faction, Evolution with Triple H, Ric Flair and Randy Orton.
   
   That all led to Batista transitioning from a supporting role to becoming a main event star by winning his first World Championship at Wrestlemania 21. Dave explains how tough it was behind the scenes to become accepted as a top draw, and how it became tougher when he got drafted to the Smackdown brand and had to deal with leading a new locker room.
   
   This all culminates for one entertaining read. I am surprised this didn't turn out to be the quick cash-in book like I so dreadfully thought it would be. I wasn't that big of a Batista fan like before this book, but I had a whole new respect for him coming out of it. If wrestling biographies are your thing, than I highly recommend not to skip over Batista Unleashed.
   
   Batista Unleashed

5 comments about The Spiral Staircase: My Climb Out of Darkness.

1. The Spiral Staircase is an honest and insightful account of Karen Armstrong's spiritual journey of painful self-discovery from the age of seventeen until she was, at long last, led to her true purpose.
   
   At seventeen, Armstrong decided to devote her life to God and entered the Roman Catholic Church. She became a conscientious novitiate but over time began to question the rigid tenets of her faith. In addition, the strictness and seemingly uncaring attitude of the nuns caused her health and mental state to spiral downward. She experienced sudden, frightening panic attacks and seizures which the nuns ascribed to her overly sensitive nature and childish histrionics.
   
   After seven years in the convent, distraught and deeply wounded, she accepted defeat and left a world she had cherished for many years. Not used to the outside world, she entered academia, another cloistered existence, and worked toward her doctorate. But, after years of hard work, her thesis was rejected.
   
   Armstrong is a writer of such skill and emotional depth that in reading her story I suffered with her. It was almost as though I had known and loved her from childhood and needed to know that her health had improved, that she had finally found what she was searching for. I turned page after page with a heavy heart as I read of her continued frustrations with all that she tried... her failed doctorate, a string of televsion documentaries that also led nowhere, her terrifying seizures.
   
   The life the author describes reminds me of my own past struggles to find myself, how I too poured my heart and soul into various jobs and relationships that did not work out, and to which I reacted with feelings of hopelessness, confusion, and a severe loss of self-confidence.
   
   But Armstrong had a problem far greater than any of mine. She was ultimately diagnosed with epilepsy. Though her symptoms were the classic symptoms of this illness, they were not taken seriously by the nuns; nor were they recognized by the psychiatrist she was seeing for many years. During a hospital stay many years later, a doctor diagnosed her illness correctly, and she received the medication that stablized her and enabled her to begin her writing career.
   
   Karen Armstrong has written numerous books on the sacred texts of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Her work has been translated into forty languages. In The Spiral Staircase, she shares how she came to the understanding that living a spiritual life is not merely about the rigors of following the tenets of any religious order but about living with an open, loving heart. Her engaging personality coupled with the wisdom she has gained places this book among the most moving, inspiring and entertaining memoirs I have had the pleasure to read.
   
   by Duffie Bart
   for Story Circle Book Reviews
   www.storycirclebookreviews.org
   Reviewing books for, by and about women



2. This is a remarkably personal and insightful journey which takes us through the loss of hope and faith and then back to a higher realm of love and understanding. Here are my personal thoughts about this book:
   
   1. By the end of the book, I felt a bond with her that is similar to something I have felt for some of my best professors and teachers who helped me understand complex things. Karen is extremely honest and open and able to describe emotions and reactions which many thoughtful people must have to orthodox religious training and dogma. She works so hard to do the right thing and yet she is unable to feel the connection to God and make the decision to accept things as they are. She is the opposite of the normal rebellious person who bolts. She is the long suffering special person who will follow the rules, sacrifice and do the right things over and over again to come up with the expected result of obedience and conformity. And yet, that brilliant and analytical mind of hers cannot allow herself to be tricked or cajoled into compliance. I feel that this is because she is brutally honest and pure.
   
   2. She lets us into her very private and sometimes sad life. We know her every fear and understand that she is shy, awkward socially, and backward, and as she heals and moves to the next level of understanding in her life, we root for her and admire the things she is trying to do. Her accomplishments are huge and she has done it virtually all alone with extreme patience and many setbacks as well as thousands of days carefully studying the history of religion, various poets and other important writers. The ultra close relationship we have with her every day struggles helps us comprehend her conclusions and remarks about spirituality, religion and life. She has taken the time to do what many of us would like to do but can't do because of other more pressing obligations and, perhaps, addiction to regular shallow life things.
   
   3. She is imprisoned by her unknown health problems, her religious obligations, fear and shyness, and yet we see her determination get her to a level of freedom experienced by very few people. She loses her faith, gains a cause to help others understand how religion at a certain level can be damaging, and as she reads and studies each of the three major religions, she gradually moves back to a spiritual understanding that gives her a new freedom and love of everyone. Along the way, she teaches us some of the basics about each of the religions and why we need to understand them before we assume that all others are incorrect and horrible. This gives us hope and makes us want to reexamine and study others and then move to that higher level that is taught by all of them. Certainly, it makes me want to study more about Judaism and the prophet Mohammed's teaching.
   
   I finished the book with a great and positive feeling that there may be hope in the world if we could take the time to truly understand each other. It's a great book. Thanks, Karen.



3. Written with much sensitivity (and courage), it induced much empathy with the author. A good read.
   
   I was less than impressed with some of her books on history of religion, but this autobiography shows where she was coming from, and helped me better appreciate what she was trying to convey in those other books.
   
   I look forward to the next installment in this autobio series. :-)



4. So Karen is dysfuntional? No, like me, she has temporal lobe epilepsy, a condition from which the world and society prefer to turn away and pretend it doesn't exist. It's exceptionally hard to describe, since it has literally hundreds of forms and does leave one doubting one's sanity at times. Then we doubt the world's mental balance. I was once dismissed from work by someone who feared I'd bite colleagues. And Karen is an apologist for Muslim extremists? Oh, for pity's sake, grow up! Read what she says, not what your prejudice tells you. Does she perhaps wear a Paisley scarf too (originally a Scottish design, by the way)? There's no trusting these people, is there, if they don't think just like you? Open the window and look outside. There's a world out there, bigger than even your prejudices and bigotry.
   And a note to Mr Benanchou: the Greeks didn't believe the world was flat. In the centuries BCE, the circumference of the world was calculated to a high degree of accuracy, with two sticks, sunlight and basic trigonometry (subtended angles - look it up.) We rely on very pricy satellites, not garden canes, which cost so much less.
   I applaud Karen Armstrong. It can still be problematical - I know well from experience - to assert one has epilepsy. Fears of evil spirits crop up, even now. And it can lead to social and career disaster. I was forced to retire, with two degrees, at only 42.



5. As a memoir, Armstrong's "The Spiral Staircase" succeeds in the first half. She documents her life in a Catholic convent, her physical challenges and her mental state of mind. Readers wonder, Why would she do this to herself when she was so miserable most of the time? Answer: Her goal was to find God.
   
   Her obsessive journey leads me, and I suppose many other readers, to conclude that she tried too hard. But it's a fascinating story.
   
   The last half of her memoir solves the puzzle of her physical (misinterpreted early in her life as mental) disability. Success follows her discovery, but the book gets tedious with her sometimes repetitious account of daily life and re-learning how to cope with job loss. She eventually finds her niche as a writer by publishing "A History of God," a thoughtful review of many religious cultures.
   
   Armstrong realizes that the study of God does not have to include belief in all the dictates of a specific religion. In fact it need not include belief in God at all. She finds out that the journey is more important than the goal.