5 comments about My Great-Aunt Arizona.

1. By far, one of my favorite books for children. I love reading it to my babies. The text with the beautiful pictures will go with you in your mind forever...



2. I use this book in both my reading and writing workshops for fifth graders. It's an excellent book that could be useful to 3rd-6th grade students. It's a great example of characterization.



3. Read this book to your kids because it's a great story. Read it because it'll help them appreciate what their teachers do for them. And then, maybe give a copy to their teacher as a gift. This wonderful book is a tribute to those who pour their lives into children who can then go forward with dreams and the ability to do anything.



4. My Great-Aunt Arizona is an excellent book for children and for anyone who is encouraged by a positive message on education.
   
   Gloria Houston's work is wonderful!



5. My Great Aunt Arizona is a beautifully-written, beautifully-illustrated book based on a real person, the author's great aunt Arizona. We loved the book so much we took a family vacation some years ago to see the area. The artist obviously went there and saw Henson Creek and the real places, just as we did. We saw Great Aunt Arizona's grave site, too, and met the author's mother.
   
   We love this book so much we have donated it to a couple of libraries and given it as gifts many times. Top notch!

5 comments about When China Ruled the Seas: The Treasure Fleet of the Dragon Throne, 1405-1433.

1. I bought this book because of the long-term interest in the treasure fleets. I have known of their existence for 30 years but did not really know much about them. This book provided a great deal of information and context about an interesting topic. I wonder, however, whether someone who did not already know some Chinese history would be able to follow the narrative. She covers an amazing amount of ground, and I would think that it would be easy to lose track of who was who and what was what. So I would highly recommend the book to someone who is interested in the topic and has some background in Chinese history. I would be more cautious in recommending it to a general reader with no real knowledge of China.



2. Louise Levathes had me at "Treasure Fleet." Those two words next to each other inevitably make for a winning combination. But, while she had me at Treasure Fleet, she soon lost me after that. Which is a shame, because the topic is so darn intriguing. What went wrong? I'm not sure. Throughout the reading of the book, I kept asking myself the same. I wondered if maybe it was the author or the sources or some other unknown factor. All in all, however, the book just was not that interesting--which frustrated me, since I thought it should be. Here's what it felt like. It felt like Louise Levathes had enough information for a nice long National Geographic article, but not near enough for a book. So, to fill in the missing gaps, she added a bunch of pre-history and cultural quirks--many of which had absolutely nothing to do with the era where China ruled the seas. On occasion such offenses are forgivable, especially if the asides are interesting, but I found them to be annoying divergences. Then, when Levathes gets to the meat of the tale, the actual Treasure Fleet, it is surprising how little she actually tells about the treasure fleet's voyages. Certainly, they take several chapters worth and destinations are revealed, foreign countries dabbled on, but it feels so empty of actual, researched material. I understand if Levathes is limited in the information she could have garnered about these expeditions, but if that is the case, it would have been nice to explain the lack of resources to the reader so that the scarcity of knowledge on the voyages can be explained. Here's what I would have liked to see. I would have liked the author to skip past the distant, pre-history of China--or at least summarized the essentials in one, short chapter, and then moved on to the Treasure Fleet, dwelling there for the rest of the book. This could be filled in with accounts from the fleet or from the countries visited or compared with European progress at the time. That is what I would have enjoyed reading. To give Levathes credit, she does drop interesting tidbits here and there, such as the constant philosophical struggles between the Confucians and the Eunuchs in the royal court and how the personalities of the Chinese rulers controlled the fate of the fleet. But those things are verdant oases in an otherwise colorless text. It's possible that there are books out there (or articles, even) that do a better job presenting the world of the Chinese treasure fleet, but it will probably take a while before I'll dare pick them up.



3. This book does entertain with its numerous anecdotal bits of trivia, such as footbinding and gratuitous references to slavery. But as a book on the maritime history of China, it is seriously deficient. The author's lack of grounding in Chinese history and its traditions is evident from her focus on the sensational, mixing myth and reality. The Ming period, was truly a very controversial historical hiatus in China, coming as it were between two foreign regimes, the Mongol and Manchu. Its insecure rulers sought to emulate the great Tang Dynasty (7th to 9th AD), copying even its robes and headwear, but they did not possess the vision or openness of the Tang rulers and deep down were very suspicious of foreign influence. The eventual closing of inquiry and inward focus sowed the seeds of later decay. The story of Zheng Ho needs to be told by examining the various forces operating in China at the time, not only historical but cultural and philosophical. Read for entertainment, not reference.



4. To call this book "unrestrained speculation" as some academic reviewers have is far too polite; it's rubbish, with no basis in facts at all.
   
   Avoid.



5. The brutality of castration and the adventure of seafaring are vividly described in this history of the Ming Dynasty's seven epic commercial and military voyages of the early fifteenth century. Led by the eunoch Zheng He, the right-hand man of Yongle emperor Zhu Di, the voyages of the treasure ships established Chinese dominance at sea from Indonesia to the east coast of Africa and the Persian Gulf. Traveling in armadas of hundreds of ships with 25,000 or more men the Chinese adventurers traded silk, porcelain and other goods for western products, sought and received tribute for three successive emperors, and sometimes intervened in the affairs of foreign nations to ensure the best trade conditions for China.
   
   At ten years old, in 1382, Zheng He was captured by Ming soldiers following a retreating Mongol army in Yunnan province. "As was the custom since the first millennium B.C., young sons of prisoners were castrated. Thousands of young boys - some no more than nine or ten years of age - were stripped naked, subjected to one brutal stroke of a curved knife that cut off both penis and testes, and left with a plug in the urethra. Hundreds never recovered ... Those who did were taken to the capital to serve as court eunochs," Levathes relates. Zheng He was castrated and made a servant of Zhu Di, the prince of Yan and fourth son of the emperor and Ming dynasty founder Zhu Yuanzhang. Zhu Di was a fighter; he took his eunoch sidekick on campaigns against the Mongols and others and Zheng He became a good warrior himself. Zhu Di was not in line for the throne but won it in 1402 after much hard fighting. As a usurper the Yongle emperor might have had unusual incentive to establish the legitimacy of his mandate, Levathes suggests - and he did so with huge gestures such as the treasure fleet voyages and the construction of the Forbidden City in Beijing. To command his great fleet the emperor selected his trusted eunoch lieutenant, Zheng He, whose time in the field with his master might have contributed to his virility and strength, unusual for a eunoch. "Eunochs like [Zheng He] who were castrated before puberty were called tong jing, meaning `pure from childhood,'" Levathes states. "They were especially favored by court ladies and tended to behave like young girls themselves. As adults, they were said to have shrill, unpleasant voices, and they were often temperamental and emotional, quick to anger and cry. [Zheng He] clearly departed from this stereotype. Family records report that he was 'seven feet tall and had a waist about five feet in circumference.'"
   
   The Yongle emperor's thirst for foreign contact was not new in China. Levathes relates Chinese shipping adventures dating back hundreds of years to the Tang dynasty. But war had depleted Zhu Di's treasury and he needed money. He also might have sought his nephew, who had assumed the throne on the death of Zhu Di's father the Hongwu emperor. After Zhu Di's capture of the capital of Nanjing, the nephew was rumored to have fled the country.
   
   Zheng He never found Zhu Di's nephew, but he found pirates and others to fight on his expeditions cleaning the sea lanes of criminals and stabilizing trade. Levathes suggests the sight of the Chinese armada must have been breathtaking for some coastal residents, especially those of east Africa, and many immediately surrendered before the large force and offered tribute to the emperor. By 1415, Zheng He's voyages had made China the leading sea power in the world. Tribute missions from Malindi brought giraffes to China, and some of the most compelling reading of this book is the case of mistaken-identity over the tribute giraffes. The Chinese believed these creatures to be qilin, the mythical creature that is one of four sacred Chinese animals - the others being the phoenix, the dragon and the tortoise, according to Levathes. The appearance of the "qilin" in Ming China was seen as a sign of prosperity and peace in the empire.
   
   Levathes states: "At this moment [1415] Chinese influence abroad was at its peak ... While Europe was still emerging from the Dark Ages, China, with her navy of giant junks, was poised to become the colonial power of the sixteenth century and tap the riches of the globe. The appearance of the qilin indeed heralded an auspicious time, ripe with possibilities, but the emperor was already beginning to focus his and his empire's energies inward. That moment at the pinnacle would last barely more than five years."
   
   At home the Yongle emperor engaged in expensive warring including an ill-fated campaign against the Tartars to the northwest of China. The emperor also spent China's energies moving the capital from Nanjing to Beiping, which he renamed Beijing and where he built the Forbidden City (the construction of which engaged one-in-fifty Chinese before its designation as the capital in 1420). Palace sex and intrigue play a leading role in Levathes' book - from Zhu Di's usurpation of the throne to his own purge of palace eunochs and concubines in 1421 after "two concubines were discovered having intimate relations with a eunoch," as Levathes relates. "This was not an unusual occurrence, but for some reason, perhaps because the women were also having relations with each other, they committed suicide. The emperor was furious when he learned of their deaths because he had been fond of one of the women. He immediately ordered an inquiry. Palace servants slandered the dead women, saying they had been plotting to kill the emperor. Before the investigation was concluded, 2,800 concubines and eunochs had been implicated in the alleged treason, and it was reported the emperor himself killed many of them."
   
   The warrior sea captain Zheng He comes across in this book as more gentle, in his way, than the emperors he served. Though he commanded the greatest fleet of wooden ships ever assembled, Levathes paints him as generally fair to his men and the people he encountered at the tip of China's long sword. Zheng He remained a devout Muslim and supported various temples until his death at sea in 1433, during the seventh expedition of the treasure fleet and the reign of the Yongle emperor's grandson, the Xuande emperor. Though Zheng He could not have children, he left a family through an adopted nephew. He is worshipped as a saint to this day and is one of China's greatest real-life legends. As Levathes relates, his voyages spread Chinese influence to the "four oceans," and though overseas travel would by 1550 be illegal for Ming Chinese, and the country would never regain the maritime supremacy it achieved in his age (and indeed, would soon be suffering under the crunch of the Manchurian invasion), the effects of the treasure fleet voyages would be felt for hundreds of years to come. - THOMAS BRENT ANDREWS / more reviews at [...] ##

5 comments about Never Give Up: My Stroke, My Recovery & My Return to the NFL.

1. Bruschi inspires people, even those who aren't football fans, in this book that tells about what he went through when he had his stroke and the aftermath. I would even recommend this book for stroke survivors or people whose family or friends had a stroke.



2. I bought this book for my husband for Christmas. He has hardly put it down since he got it. I can't wait for him to finish so I can read it!



3. I am a HUGE Patriots fan and i could not put this book down. I am 14 years old and i have to read every single night and i was excited when i started to read this book. This book makes you think about what you have and the things that you take for granted. Even though the patriots lost the super bowl i got over it quicker than i would of since i had just finished the book. I liked the insight on what goes on and what goes through the NFL players head. You have got to read this inspirational book!



4. I haven't finished the book, but what i have read is excellent. It was well written, and I felt it explained in the details of his life.



5. Truly insperational. I love Tedy Bruschi and this shows the heart of a true sportsman and a great person. This book is easy to read and a must read if you are a PATS fan at all!

5 comments about A Life of Picasso: The Triumphant Years, 1917-1932.

1. This a wonderful book portraying an incredible time of Picassos life and also of the other great artists of that time period with whom he was sharing this spectacular period of creativity with.
   
   John Richardson has outdone himself and this book is a must for all art lovers!!!



2. If you think you know Picasso's work, this book will convince you otherwise. John Richardson has done a tremendous service by sorting out when Picasso produced his greatest works between 1917 and 1932, what sources he "borrowed" from, what he was trying to accomplish, and how all of these works affected his career. This book was quite a revelation to me. Simply by seeing a lot of his work (as you can do at Musee Picasso, for example), you quickly realize that Picasso constantly copied himself. And, of course, it is well known that he borrowed much while trying to establish a style and while working with Braque to develop cubism. But Picasso borrowed early and often in ways I didn't realize. In that sense, he was a supreme stylist who could execute someone else's idea in a more profound way. I came away with a new appreciation for that aspect of his talent.
   
   While Picasso was alive, very little was said in books about his mistreatment of women and the motives behind his paintings of his wives and lovers. While his second life was alive, people were still pretty circumspect on this point. But now we know that Picasso was louse when it came to women and his family. This book gives you the full story of his first marriage, relationship with his young mistress who inspired so many joyous works, Marie-Therese Walter, and his constant attraction to prostitutes.
   
   There are some other surprises in this book including how central his work with ballet was in creating interest in his paintings and sculptures. It was through Diaghilev that Picasso met his first wife, Olga Khokhlova, a ballerina in the Ballets Russes. Picasso decided it was time to settle down and marry. Despite having had long relationships with women before, he now was looking for someone who would help make him respectable. In the process, Picasso adopted the lifestyle of one of the first wealthy artists (famously being driven around in one of the world's most expensive cars by a chauffeur in the middle of the world-wide economic depression).
   
   As good as John Richardson is on those subjects, he can be most annoying in other ways. For example, Mr. Richardson seems to have an obsession with Jean Cocteau and writes a lot about him even though Picasso didn't like Cocteau very much and Cocteau didn't influence Picasso very much either. Mr. Richardson also has a writing style that can be enormously elusive, describing what happened without saying anything. Picasso's wife seems to have had a lot of physical and mental problems but these are mentioned without providing much real information other than when they occurred. A greater problem comes in that Mr. Richardson likes to drop in lots of French phrases (I read French so I had no problem), but if you don't read French it makes the text harder to follow. Some will also find some of Mr. Richardson's put downs of those who disagree with as being rude and high handed. Perhaps the most annoying problem comes in using academic words to describe distasteful aspects of Picasso's personality and behavior. It's like putting lipstick on a pig.
   
   But I advise you to read the book while being prepared for its weaknesses. I'm afraid there is no substitute. The generously represented art makes up for the weaknesses.



3. John Richardson's long awaited third of four volumes of "A Life of Picasso" does not disappoint. The writing is insightful due to the author's personal relationship and knowledge of the artist. The first two works provided more than simply a lesson in art history, rather, an encompassing view of the life and times of the man and his culture. This most recent work continues the saga in the same well written manner.



4. Mr. Richardson has out done himself on his Picasso opus. He displays Picasso in the light of his work and his influences without fluff and sensation. The book is a pleasant and interesting read sans the dry, academic, and often inaccurate writing of other books on Picasso. He also down plays the sensationalism producing a sensative and revealing portrait of the greatest artist of the twentieth century. As an artist myself, (www.arteespanol.us), I found this book extremely informative, useful, and entertaining. I highly recommend this, and Mr. Richardson's previous books on Picasso to art lovers and lay people alike.



5. I love Picasso and to read about him as a regular guy living his life is very revealing in that he is human as well as a protean god of Art. Loved this book as it continues the story along. The only real criticism I have of J. Richardson is that it seems he's in a rush. Quite a difference from the slow but sure tone of the first two books. It seems for some reason that he went in and took out a lot of stuff some stupid editor told him was too much for any one to care about. Wrong. I sure hope he finishes the proposed 7 volume series but for as long as it is taking him to write it, well, I will keep my fingers crossed because he writes in a honest way the story of one man who changed the world.

5 comments about The Story of the Trapp Family Singers.

1. I smile whenever I see this book on my shelf...
   
   Picture a large, creative, talented family seated around a fireplace in the evenings--playing with dolls or whittling--while the mother reads aloud. Later, they sing together...imagine that...a family singing together for fun!
   
   German occupied Austria in 1938...I can only envision what it would have been like. Its intriguing to see it through Maria's eyes. One of my favorite quotes in this book is: "you can't say no three times to Hitler." My second favorite quote is: "The Americans never seemed to ask, "Who are you?" but "How good are you? Let's see."
   
   I've read this book several times, and I always enjoy it!



2. You will enjoy this true story of the "Sound of Music" family. It is both historical and charming. The family's adventures and trials will keep you turning the pages.



3. Excellent writing--My mother has enjoying reading the book. I have enjoying reading it also.



4. Maria comes alive as a very sincere godly woman. Devoted to her Lord, Family, Friends, and Country. To read this book was to understand a deep trust in your God, a faith beyond imagination. If you enjoyed the movie for the family values and inspiration you may have received, you will enjoy the book that inspired the movie. I will recommend this book to all of my Christian Mommy friends.



5. Bought it as a gift, wife said she found it interesting. Of course it had more meaning because we had been in Saltzburg.

5 comments about How to Sell Anything to Anybody.

1. This book was such a waste of money and time spent reading it. Unless you are in the car sales business, this book will not do you any good. The title of the book in my opinion is decieving. The advice is basic and again it only pertains to an individual who sells cars. Not to mention, the author toots his own horn too much throughout the book. He spends so much time talking about his greatness at sales. Total turn-off.



2. There are some good tips for selling in this book, and people who are in the car-sales business would probably enjoy it and benefit from it. Aside from that audience, however, this book is likely to disappoint. First of all, the information and the way its presented are extremely out of date. The book was originally written in the late seventies, and if it's been updated, it's hardly evident. There is a very sexist tone to the book -- not a malicious one, but just a product of its times. Nevertheless, it is pretty offputting. Secondly, a major portion of this book is dedicated to author Joe Girard working out his abusive childhood. This may have been therapeutic for Mr. Girard to write, and may be interesting for some to read, but if you're looking for sales tips, this whole portion of the book is going to be quite frustrating. And thirdly, although some of the sales tips can be applied to any type of selling, for the most part, this is a book for car salesmen -- period. Mr. Girard seems like a nice guy and one heck of a salesman, but this book did not even begin to live up to my expectations.



3. My husband works in car sales. Several of his co-workers spoke highly of this book, and said it was a "must" read. Amazon offered it at the very best price. It has received rave reviews from my husband who states it is very well written, and has had a positive impact on his profession.



4. This book is called "How to Sell Anything to Anybody," but it should be called, "How to Sell Cars." All the examples and all the author's experience is related to selling cars. I know there are a lot of similarities between selling cars and selling other things, but this book centered on a lot of things that are only relevent to the auto industry. The title is definitely deceiving!



5. If you are looking for a big on tips, tricks and tactics for improving your sales then this may not be the best for you.
   
   If on the other hand you believe that some basic fundamentals, executed continuously and well is the road to success, then read on.
   
   Joe Girard is in the Guiness Book of Worlds Records as the worlds greatest salesman. Working at a Detroit area Chevy dealership he has sold more cars than anyone, and it is really based on fundamentals.
   
   Focus on the customer, ask for the referral, word of mouth, and making a memorable impression. That may sound simplistic and there is much more to the book than these few things.
   
   Girard treats being a salesman as a calling and profession not just a job and his results speak for themselves.
   
   Read Girard, put it down for a time, then read it again and let it sink in, and the wisdom of his experience will come to light for you.
   
   Cheers!

5 comments about Alone Together: Making an Asperger Marriage Work.

1. This book is written in a very relaxing and easy to read style, I do not think this is only for Asperger diagnosed people, but for everyone, since all of us show aspergians characteristics once in a while, specially when we are under a lot of stress, so the key is having open communication so we can understand why the other person did what he or she did, rather than walking away without having all the information. One of the key characteristics that I have taken away from this book is that Aspergian behavior seems to be triggered when we act out on our feelings without putting any bounderies or controls over them, then a balance is broken and people get hurt, however, understanding that some people do not know how to build those boundaries or limits can be the key to re-establishing an old relationship in new and fresh ways through teaching, practicing and lots of patience, lots of it, but the end result is all worth it, since we are all human beeings and we like each other's company although we may not know how to express it. Great book.



2. I am married to an Aspie. I've read many books on this subject. So far, this one is helping *me* with my marriage. The other books helped me to understand the Aspie, but this one is helping me with my reactions to him. This book is written in layman's terms, and in story form which makes it easy for me to understand. I recommend this book highly.



3. I recently purchased this book as I suspect my husband has AS. It has been very informative in helping me communicate in a more successful manner and improve our relationship. I am still not sure if AS is applicable to my situation as I am still on the road to discovery. Any assistance is great.



4. My heart bled for this woman, over and over. Why is it so many loving, sensitive women get in relationships with men with Asperger's? Aspie men are brilliant at presenting themselves as charming, intelligent, slightly shy or aloof and we flock to them like bees to honey- feeling that we are the ones who can rescue and bring them out of their lonely shells. I do understand much about Asperger's, and have great compassion, yet why is it that she stays in this marriage that keeps her constantly working so hard to keep him from getting upset or on overload? How could she stay after, "The Girlfriend"? She doesn't touch on a subject that is an issue in many Aspie/NT marriages and that is lying by the Asperger's partner, specifically in relation to infidelity. She begins to touch upon this in "The Girlfriend" chapter, but seems satisfied that Gavin once and for all learned his lesson. I somehow doubt it. Fooling other women who don't know them as well as we do can be addictive to husband's with Asperger's. They don't have to get that disapproving, disappointed vibe that we wives naturally give off after being hurt, lied to, let down countless times.
   I think this women has begun to love her prison; and has lost her sense of self.



5. The author does an excellent job of communicating the difficulty of an AS marriage. The title is wonderful and says it all. She does a good job of explaining the frustrations of everyday life, but is very kind and understanding when speaking of her husband even when he is verbally abusive to her. There was somehow a comfort in reading about the feelings and frustrations that I experience daily. It was like I have a friend who understands completely what I am going through and is sharing her similar story with me. I highly recommend the book.

5 comments about Let's Spend the Night Together: Backstage Secrets of Rock Muses and Supergroupies.

1. "Let's Spend the Night Together" is like a virtual trip through the decades in rock 'n' roll. The story is told by the ladies who loved, admired and inspired some of the most celebrated and famous musicians of our time. The stories go from heartbreaking, to shocking, to truly aweinspiring. But all are honest, smart and bravely candid. I applaud all these fine ladies who were good enough to entertain us with their dazzling tales. And, thank you Miss Pamela for getting it all together for the masses to enjoy. A wonderful read, and tons of fun. Five stars!!!



2. I love Pamela Des Barres and I hate to write a negative review of anything she does, but I found this book to be mostly a dull rehash of slutty one night stand chicks who had/have no goals in life except hooking up for an hour with the bass player.
   
   I enjoyed the Q & A with Bebe Buell.
   
   Classy, groovy ladies like Patti D'Arbanville and Gail Zappa notwithstanding, sick, sick women like Sweet Connie disgusted me--sounds as if she'd blow the guy a McDonald's if he gave her a free Happy Meal. I guess we know how she'll afford her nursing home, although she looks as if she's on her way to Slut Heaven due to anorexia. I think Pamela has pretty much exhausted this topic. Move on doll!!!



3. Pamela desBarres is a true insider on the rock & roll scene. These women in the book also are. Their honesty and candor is refreshing and highly entertaining.



4. The Pamela Des Barres in "Let's Spend the Night Together" does not seem like the same easygoing, free spirit, Miss Pamela, in "I'm With the Band". In fact, reading this book made me wonder why I ever liked "I'm With Band", so I went back and re-read it. I mean, I have no problem with juicy gossip, whether it's about someone famous or someone at work. Thing is, "I'm With the Band" was more than just kiss and tell. Pamela Des Barres proved to be a humorous and gifted writer whose chatty and confessional tone made her seem more like a best girlfriend than just some chick who slept with really famous rock legends. I would've been just as interested if Jimmy Page and Mick Jagger had been Jim the electrician or Mike the CPA. Sadly, "Let's Spend the Night Together" lacks the warm humanity of it's far superior predecessor. Hell, in some instances, it's downright dehumanizing. Pamela Des Barres seems so desparate to validate the groupie lifestyle (and perhaps fill an entire book) that she seems to have checked her discrimination at the door. For every Tura Satana, Cassandra "Elvira, Mistress of the Dark" Peterson and Pleasant Gehman, there's "Sweet" Connie Hamzy, Keith Moon and a banana. There's also much waxing philosophical about the groupie-as-muse, from Mary Magdalen to Constanze Mozart, great cultural and historical tradition, yadda, yadda, yadda and so forth. Which may be so, but in the context of this particular book it often comes off as defensive and methinks-she-doth-protest-too-much (see "Sweet" Connie, Keith Moon and banana above). Take my advice: Save your money and spend an evening drinking margaritas and dishing with your friends instead.
   
   



5. I think I would be less jaded if I bought this book used. It was not worth the full price. Some stories are interesting (like Cynthia Plaster Caster), but most are boring and seem self serving and self congratulatory. The author cannot help but insert herself, in all the stories (which I thought she already wrote a book about her own groupie days and ways, before?).
   The book is ok, and some spots are interesting and entertaining - but overall - I would not recommend it to my friends. Not worth the price I paid. It made me wish I would have spent my money on better reading material for rock related subjects.

1 comments about Kasztner's Train: The True Story of an Unknown Hero of the Holocaust.

1. An expertly researched, captivatingly written and long overdue book about the courage, ingenuity, successes and ultimate sad persecution of a great but much maligned hero. Brava Anna Porter!

5 comments about Over My Head: A Doctor's Own Story of Head Injury from the Inside Looking Out.

1. Osborn does what is virtually impossible. She translates the fog of a damaged brain's function into vignettes that an undamaged brain can comprehend.
   
   In her case, this translation is from experiences which were by definition wordless, disorganized, incomprehensible, frightening and often completely mindless to their opposites. The level of Dr. Osborn's skill in doing this may be best understood by readers who have some experience (as I do) in being with brain-injured people.
   
   Whether one appreciates Osborn's achievement in communicating the uncommunicable is unimportant. What is valuable is that she succeeds so well in giving us insight into the "being" of at a subset of the injured.
   
   Most of the incidents recorded in the book are too long to quote in illustration of my point. Their length is a necessary consequence of Osborn's wish to reveal her floundering. Nothing in her life was straightforward. A relatively short excerpt follows:
   
   BEGIN EXCERPT (page 33)
   
   "I left soon after for the bookstore, but with the force of old habit and despite Marcia's written reminder dangling from the dash, I drove directly to the hospital. And then home again. Three times.
   
   "It was noon when I drove out of the hospital parking lot for the third time, I was determined it wouldn't happen again.
   
   "Now, as I turned onto the main road, Marcia's note clutched in my hand, I chanted, "Book store, go to the bookstore.'
   
   "I was still saying it thirty minutes later as I turned into our driveway.
   
   "When I got into the house, I reread Marcia's note. Lord, the bookstore.
   
   "Well, I would definitely get the book tomorrow. Right now, I could still do the second item on her list - water the lawn."
   
   END EXCERPT (page 34)
   
   Needless to say, Osborn forgot to water the lawn.
   
   The book is also notable in illustrating the lack of insight (in regard to her limitations) that Osborn (as others) experienced for quite some time. Then, once insight was gained, she writes about her struggle with a sorrowed sense of lost self.
   
   One incident that helped to her to understand the scope of her lost abilities (which apparently were exceptional) is recorded on pages 205-206. She was not able perform even so "simple" a cognitive exercise as making a telephone call to obtain a patient's medical information.
   
   The book provides a generalized understanding of how rehabilitation is accomplished. This includes learning stratagems for partially replacing lost structural functions.
   
   BEGIN EXCERPT (page 145)
   
   "Now my notes ordered me to [begin italics] really look in the mirror. Hair combed? Teeth cleaned? Collar straight? Earrings match? Expression alert, smiling? [end italics] It began to make a difference."
   
   END EXCERPT
   
   For the most part, the rehab portions of the book are most useful for providing a patient's view of rehabilitation. "Over My Head" certainly does not provide an overview of rehabilitation techniques. Osborn does, however, include a concise review of the generalized deficits that rehab and therapy have to address.
   
   By the end of the book, Osborn manages to return to teaching medicine, but in a format and in situations where she can proceed more or less by rote and under controlled circumstances. Osborn emphasizes that adult brain injury generally imposes permanent limitations upon post-trauma performance. You will not be who you were. Part of the rehabilitation process requires coming to emotional grips with whom you have become.
   
   I recommend "Over My Head" without reservation. It will be of most value to people new to dealing with brain trauma. It also has worth for those of us who lost figurative pieces of ourselves, but do not have brain trauma to blame. The "coping with loss and less" element of the book has universal appeal.
   
   Throughout, Osborn shines as a human being.



2. I have had Encephalitis twice, recieved rehabilitation in Occupational, Physical and Speech therapies, and currently work full-time, yet will forever be aware of my physical & mental limitations. In this book a doctor explains her acquired brain injury and the rehab process she and her famuly and friends dealt with, along with the positive strategies she has gained to deal with her life today. This book clearly clarified for me the diference between TBI and simple brain injury and brought to reality the fact that other people have dealt with similar rehab situations as myself & survived successfully! A must read I found hard to put down.



3. I suffered a ruptured aneurysm this summer '07, and read this book while recovering from brain surgery. It prepared me for the worst regarding other's responses to my temporary slower mental functioning. The book also helped me to be more sensitive to other people in general regardless of whether an infirmity is obvious or not. I.e., people were very compassionate toward me when my head was shaved and my scalp was full of staples, but now that my hair has grown back and the staples have been removed, that sensitivity has disappeared even though I am still recovering and will be for a long time.
   
   I was inspired by Dr. Osborn's strength and her determination to overcome her deficits. I admire her for writing this book to help others in her situation. Because of this book, I knew to ask my neurologist about cognitive therapy and am now enrolled and working with a occupational/speech therapist.
   
   I don't recommend reading this book early in the recovery process if you have had any kind of brain injury. I did, and it caused severe depression to overcome me. For lighter, more humorous material about brain injury survivors' ordeals, I recommend Susie Becker's book, "I had Brain Surgery, What's Your Excuse?"



4. I first read this book at the recommendation of my neuropsychologist following a closed-head injury 8 years ago. I think it saved my sanity! Closed-head injury can bring about a panoply of just plain WEIRD symptoms that can make the patient (and their family, for that matter) feel as if they're losing their mind. The insanity is explained by a doctor who went through the same experience after an accident. She talks about it in a very non-technical way and helps the patient and those around the patient understand what's happening, why, and that NO, you're not nuts!



5. I was told to Read the book Over My Head By Claudia L. Osborne. I Like Her Was in a Bad accident in which I also had a closed head Brain Injury. I was in a coma for over 7 weeks in late August of 2006. I would agree with the writers synopsis that all you want to do is get back to your old Self, To be the same personyou were and do the same things but so many things changed in that split second that it is not only better to forget the Who you were and to Start basically a new Life. It is the only way to look positivly and to go on with life a new. A lot of the things in life will stay the same and yet there are so many things that I can no longer do. I could Bitch and Moan and get on hating My New Life or I could accept what has happened, Thank God Daily that for what ever reason I was spared: that He has a plan for Me and I must look at the positive and not the negative. I make it a goal now to work on putting a smile on My face every day by the time I close my eyes and go to sleep. That is of course after I have thanked the Dear Lord For The things that I can still enjoy among those things are the greatest Family and Friends a person could have. You have to look at life as a whole New life; separate and different in so many ways from who You used to be, but The same in social aspects where things ar still the same.