5 comments about On the Wings of a White Horse: A Cambodian Princess's Story of Surviving the Khmer Rouge Genocide.

1. This Book is one of the best book i have ever read. Oni, the author has such a sad story in her life that really touch your heart. Those who survided the 1975 Holocoust you might want to consider read this book. as young child Oni was taken to the Killing camps along with her family, she suffered many death and very harsh treatment. However that did not stop her to become the great person she is today. I Love her book it is a really good book.



2. This is one of the most fascinating books I have ever read. From the beginning of her life in a cave to the constant struggle for suvival, Oni describes her ordeal, an ordeal no one would have dreamed could ever actually happen. Her life could have ended many times if it were not for the caring people around her and for her own perseverance. Oni is one strong, determined lady and her story needs to be told to the world. If you only read one book a year, this should be the one!



3. This is a wonderful book and easy reading. I would recommend it to anyone and I am going to refer it to my friends. Take the time to read it, it's definitely worth your while.



4. A reading of Oni Vitandham's "On the Wings of a White Horse" is an inspiring experience to say the least. It is a tale of immense pain and suffering, yet courage in the face of failure and despair. It is the story of a life that may never have been but for the love of family and friends. A theme that seems often lacking in our world today. It is not an easy book to read. Indeed, it is often violently confronting. However, it is certain, that the reader will leave with a greater sense of compassion, love and hope for the future of humanity
   
   Oni's is a powerful, at times confronting and terrifying story that delves into the subjects that have all too often been left to the back pages of history. From the fall of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, to the Communist movements in Laos and Vietnam, and beyond to a new life in America, Oni's journey often reads like a political history of South-East Asia during the 1970s. For one young girl to be at the centre of some of the most desperate struggles of the decade, and to emerge not only alive, but also so incredibly empowered, seems almost beyond comprehension.
   
   Yet this is what makes Oni, and her story, so enthralling. To quote the saying, "whatever doesn't kill us, makes us stronger" seems almost inadequate to describe this story. Indeed Oni tells her life as it is, with little attempt to shield use from the intense pain and suffering that she herself has had to endure. At first this seems almost to hard to bear. However as even Oni herself tells us at the start of the book; these are her childhood memories. It is this thought enough that inspires the reader to continue on.
   
   Indeed Oni stands for an idea that is greater than her own personal story and even greater than her desire to see a prosperous and peaceful Cambodia. She believes in the right of all people to have the chance to grow up in peace and happiness. She believes in the power of the individual and the immense capacity that humans have for spreading happiness in their world.
   
   A reading of Oni's "On the Wings of a White Horse" will leave the reader inspired. Indeed it is a story that enters through the heart and leaves through the head. One cannot read it and not be inspired to get up and care about the plight of the millions of people who are so less fortunate than ourselves.



5. "And a child shall lead them" -- Oni Vitandham begins her real life story as a child, of resilience and survival surrounded by constant death, destruction, danger, and unimaginable horror. Although dealing with a conflict over 30 years removed, this book could not have arrived at a more poignant time. At its core, the political themes are as relevant today as they were then in stemming the flow of innocent blood.
   
   This book should further resonate with recently honed political sensibilities (per Abu Graib, Iraq, etc) and serve as inspiration to us all not only as citizens but as human beings to stand up for justice and equality (even in the face of dire political rhetoric).
   
   Oni's story reminds us how truly blessed we all are and of our universal responsibility to prevent these horrors from re-occurring.
   
   "Evil prospers because good men do nothing." Edmund Burke

5 comments about Rosa: The Life of an Italian Immigrant (Wisconsin Studies in Autobiography).

1. First we need to thank Helen Barolini for resurrecting this precious book from obscurity. And for all those who complain there are no uplifting, inspiring tales about Italians, here in Rosa The Life Of An Italian Immigrant, is the proof that there certainly is.

   Rosa would be the first to say she was no one special, just an ordinary peasant orphan who kept herself from starvation and worse by the faith of her religion and incredilby hard work for her entire life. Not that hard work is a surprise but the reality with which this uneducated woman shows us a plain ordinary life is as unforgettable as she is. God gave her the gift to tell the story of her life, to share laughs and to charm her new friends in wherever she landed, in a mining camp, a convent school or a silk factory.

   From her early life as a child laborer who is beaten for mistakes in the silk mills of the 1860s to the uneducated young girl who is forced to marry a lousy, drunken bum, Rosa perseveres and triumphs with a long life and many friends who love her. You can't read this story with out falling in love with this precious woman as she endures life.

   In 2001, it is hard to imagine that the cruelties Rosa suffered were every day occurences a century ago (or even less!), that is, nothing unusual. We have come a long way baby, but we had better not forget where we've come from.

   Rosa The Life Of An Italian Immigrant will keep you rooted in the reality of our history and ancestry. Buy it, read it. Give it to your friends. Buy them their own copies! Give it as gifts to all the young women in your family.

   Rosa's story must be remembered. Her story is unforgetable, so is Rosa Cavalleri.

   Hey, Hollywood, I dare you to make a movie about this incredible woman!!!!




2. I stumbled across this book a month ago while writing a term paper on Italian immigration.
   Rosa's tale is a poignant story. Her life story reveals her pride,faith and determination to survive in both the new and old world and her unwillingness to compromise her values.

   I highly recommend this book!




3. Being a member of a third generation Italian American family this book was very interesting to me. I felt like I was sitting next to Rosa as she went through her experiences. It brought back many memories. I finished the book in one weekend then mailed it to my Italian mother for her to enjoy. This is the first Italian American book I have read that was written from a women's point of view. I highly recommend it.



4. A wonderful view of immigrant life as well as a poignant look at life in the old country. Rosa's voice is full of detail--almost as if she is sitting across the table from you, sharing the joys and sorrows of her life.



5. History is so much more when you see what a lifetime was really like in the 19th or 20th century for someone completely "unimportant." A story like Rosa's is a hundred times better than the oatmeal summaries we get about immigrant hardships and all the stuff about people coming to find their fortunes in America or whatever. This gutsy girl never wanted to come, didn't choose to come, but what do you do if you start out life as a foundling, are sent to work in a silk factory at age 8 where your job is to unravel silk cocoons (!), and then you get married off to an old creep who's carting you off mostly to run his boarding house and look after his mistress while he slaves in an iron mine in Missouri. Man, this was a hard life, but out of it came this wonderful, storytelling woman who somehow survived to tell us what things were really like to end up starving in Chicago in the 1890s. Whew. Forget the history textbooks. Let's just puts books like these in front of our kids. And ourselves. Take Me With You When You GoNutty to Meet You! Dr. Peanut Book #1

5 comments about After Long Silence.

1. This is one of my favorite books of all time. It is a real eye opener even after years of hearing, learning, and reading about the Holocaust. I plan to read it again.



2. I was very surprised to learn that Helen Fremont was able to become a lawyer and knew nothing about the Holocaust. What kind of education did she obtain? How was it possible that she wasn't interested in her parent's history? Even if they were Roman Catholics.
   Book is full of historical errors (Warsaw was captured within hours, it was safer to be a Pole in the streets a Lvov during the German invasion)
   It bothered me that the street names were Misspelled (Owacowa instead of Owocowa, Mariacki Platz insead of Plac Mariacki)
   The story itself was very interesting. I wish however it was written by her parents.



3. From today's perspective, it is difficult to comprehend just why a couple who survived the Holocaust would hide their Jewish identify from their daughters for years, insisting that they are Polish Catholic refugees in the USA. This memoir, however, explains how their fear of a repeat pogrom drives them to deny their heritage, keep secret their loss of religious identify, and assuage their horrific memories and guilt at surviving.Fremont and her sister's quest to discover the truth causes their parents much pain, but the author is clear that the family's pain had dominated their lives since birth.



4. I have given this book as a gift to at least five friends. I couldn't put it down!



5. Imagine as a young adult, passionately involved in your career, you start pulling away the pieces of the facade your parents had created to protect you and your sister fom the truth about your own family. Like pulling a thread and unravelling your entire wardrobe to show your nakedness, Helen Fremont knew whe was dealing with sensitive, even explosive issues, but he could not stop pulling that thread.
   What she has done with this remarkable memoir is show her family's roots and branches in ways she never knew existed before she and her sister began discussing the "What if's?" It is a moving story packed with complicated relationships and the true history of her parents' lives and the terrors they went through during the Holocaust era in Europe. You finish the book wondering how such a powerful story could be supressed, and cheering for Helen Fremont for unearthing it. As with so many memoirs, you are also left wondering, "where are they now?" and hoping for a sequel.

5 comments about Femme Fatale: Love, Lies, and the Unknown Life of Mata Hari.

1. I could almost feel sorry for Mrs MacLeod (Mata Hari). Almost. As the key factor in her own downfall, she had no one to blame but herself. As she spun her web of lies, mis-truths and deceit, she didn't see her own web closing in around her, until too late. It was a web of her own making.
   
   I originally ordered this book through a friend's recommendation based on my friend's claim that here was a "innocent, if naive" woman, just struggling to make ends meet and getting falsley blamed for all of France's war woes and was subsequently executed. That is not how I read the book. While men might be to blame for their own reckless indiscretions and mistakes, they cannot be held liable when someone such as Mata Hari is doing so much of the manipulating. She wanted her cake and eat it, too. Unfortunately, this cake was the guillotine's blade...er, bullet. And the author, whether conscience of it or not, attests to Mata Hari's innocence, which as an impartial "reporter" she shouldn't do, unless she can offer evidence other than what was presented here.



2. A good biography of one of the 20th. Centuries most interesting spys/nonspy...Professor Shipman writes a no hold barred tale of Mata Hari...The book is really two stories. The first is how Margaretha Zelle born of Dutch parents became Mata Hari...Margaretha Zelle was a woman of enormous talents in language who mastered besides her native Dutch, German, French, English and Spanish along with with the languages of the Dutch East Indies where she pent her years as a young woman married to a Dutch Colonial Officer...Marrage, an abusive husband and the hard colonial life were not for her and after a few years she divorced here husband and returned to Holland...This was the begaining of her transformation from a wife and mother to a performer and a high priced courtesan...The second story was how she got involved in espionage and spying or not...Professor Shipman lays out the "factual information" we have on Mata Hari and then leaves it to the reader to determine if Mata Hari was a spy or because of her notarity and the fact that she had been a paid mistress of some many powerful men it was best to silence her...The reader has to determine if she was an agent for the Germans, French, both or some other country, the facts are not clear...If you like an honest well scribed book then you will enjoy Femme Fatle, but don't expect the author to spoon feed you any speculative ending.



3. Book goes quite in depth with Gerta's early life in the Dutch East Indies with her husband, but it helps to understand her personality. This poor wretch is branded only as a spy by the French who wanted to spy on the Germans and being refused, trumped up charges against her. Seems she was only an exotic dancer that enjoyed men in and out of uniform. Good read, only boring at times. Recommended.



4. So, I purchased this book at the behest of some NPR reporter or another, and I did so with my friend Amy in mind. Although not an avid reader, I will try to coax her into this book with the promise of great scandal. Months from now, I envision myself demanding the return of this book so I can read it (as I am sure she will have not) and I will enjoy it thoroughly. Up to this point though, I cannot attest to it's content. The cover is very lovely, though.



5. I read for escape, and when I can also learn something along the way then it's even better. Shipman gives us a wonderfully written and fast-paced exciting book. You really feel sympathy for Mata Hari and pain at the horrible traps she walked into. What a wonderful snap-shot of that time in European history. I truly enjoyed every word in this book and highly recommend it.

5 comments about No Mountain High Enough: Raising Lance, Raising Me.

1. Funny, sad, interesting, well-written, inspirational. I have great respect and admiration for Linda Armstrong Kelly. She is a remarkable woman with an incredible ability to adapt to any situation life throws her way. What a great woman!



2. A very well written book bringing the reader the life of an adoring Mother and her son. Neither would give up on their individual dreams in their respective pursuits of happiness in their lives. Enjoyable, insightful reading start to finish. Many congrats to both, and a special congratualtion to Lance for winning his seventh Tour deFrance.



3. I am glad Lance's Mom decided to write her story. After I read It's Not About the Bike, I was inspired and eager to learn how a seemingly super-human came to be. Now I know: his Mom exudes energy, enthusiasm, and optimism without bounds: who could lose with such incredible and selfless support screaming in your ear on each lap of the race.
   
   This is a book that focuses primarily on Linda Armstrong Kelly. Lance plays a pivotal but supporting role in the story. She is honest and forthright about the men in her life; other women have just shriveled and become bitter. She is unabashedly supportive of her son, in spite of his adolescent fixation with speeding and dangerous shenanagans with his pals. And... she raised a smart son who loves and respects his mother, especially shielding her from some of the pranks that would drive many parents to pack their son off to some military academy. The fireballs come to mind as I write this.
   
   She is a mom that celebrates Mother's Day, everyday. Now, if she can figure out a way to bottle and sell her optimism and energy! Enjoy the read.



4. Linda Armstrong started out with enough strikes to doom most to a mediocre life - daughter of divorced parents and a drunkard father (stopped drinking when Lance was born), married at 16, mother at 17, expelled from high school for being pregnant, and abused by husband whom she eventually left. Instead, she raised (inspired, cheered, protected, funded, and assisted his early development and becoming a champion, and then added her inner strength to Lance's during a devastating cancer encounter) a world renowned bicycling champion and major force in cancer research and support.
   
   At the same time Linda went on to complete her GED and worked her way up to a high-level position within a large communications firm. It was not all success for Linda, however - she also had to go through two additional failed marriages (a philanderer, and a drunkard), before finally finding her "true love."
   
   After reading the book it is clear that both Lance Armstrong AND his mother, Linda, are very exceptional and inspirational individuals. I wish I had read this book myself before becoming a parent - my approach and perspectives would hopefully have greatly improved.



5. Reading Linda's story I instantly knew I'd want to lend this book to my Mum after I'd finished it. Are high achievers born or made? You won't find the answer in reading this book, but you'll see how a determined young woman who had every reason to fail succeeded and raised a champion. More importantly I feel - this story isn't just about Lance. It's definitely hers, it's quirky and charming, easy to read and definitely gives you a feel for her character. I preferred It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life - but I definitely recommend this as a great follow up read.
   Kirsty Dunphey, Author Retired at 27, If I can do it anyone can

5 comments about The Many Lives of Marilyn Monroe.

1. This is a fantastic book for people who know Marilyn and her life well. It generally does not cover basic facts in depth, as it seems to assume that the reader already has some knowledge about the details of her life. Instead, it analyzes what different biographers have said about her, comparing and contrasting them, and providing different perspectives and viewpoints from people who knew her.
   For those looking for the basics on Monroe, Barbara Leaming's book or Donald Spoto's book is perhaps a better choice, but for those of us who already know the main outline of her life, this book is genius and quite a find. I picked it up in the bookstore and I immediately fell in love with it. It is markedly different from other biographies, as it reads like an analytical essay instead of a chronological detailing of her life, and this format is marvelous for "Monroe experts," as there are so many theories that need to be discussed. She is fantastically neutral in her discussions, and presents the facts as they are and the speculations as they are. There is no bias. I would very highly recommend this book.



2. This was a very informative book with plenty of references to biographies on Marylin Monroe in the past.



3. Marilyn Monroe was born in Los Angeles in 1926. Her mother had mental health problems; her father was not in the picture for long. MM spent time in foster homes and orphanages. She became Playboy's first centerfold; she became the world's most famous blonde bombshell in post World War II America; she died at the early age of 36 on the night of August 4, 1962. Her most memorable movie roles were "Niagara:" The Seven Year Itch"; "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend," "How to Marry a Millionare": "Some Like It Hot" and her final film "The Misfits" .
   Other than these basic facts most of Monroe's life is the subject of conjecture, prurient interests and mysteries galore!
   Dr. Sarah Churchwell is an American scholar teaching in England. This book is not a traditional biography of Monroe (born Norma Jeane Mortenson). It is, rather, a scholarly examination of her most famous biographers and the various theories they posit as to the life lived by the sexy star. Many of these biographies, opines Churchwell, are based more on speculation than facts. Churchwell examines the biographies by such famed authors as Norman Mailer; Barbara Leaming; Donald H. Spoto; Donald H. Wolfe and others. Churchwell also looks closely at Joyce Carole
   Oates fictional account of Marilyn's life entitled "Blonde".
   Churchwell explores the various theories on the marriages of Miss Monroe to James Daughtery; Joe DiMaggio and Arthur Miller. When playwright Miller wed Marilyn it was called a coupling of Egghead and Hourglass. Dimaggio probably beat her up. We see Marilyn Monroe through the lenses and the biases of her various biographers. We still do not know for sure:
   a. Whether she ever had an abortion or had at least 14 of them.
   b. Was a dimwit or had a sharp intelligence.
   c. Did she die of a drug overdose or commit suicide? Was she murdered by suspects ranging from the CIA to the Kennedy Family to the Mafia. Or was she murdered by her doctor and housekeeper or a Soviet Agent? We will in all likelihood never know for sure. Conspiracy theories abound.
   This is a good book to sort out what is fact and what fanciful or speculative in the life of Marilyn Monroe. It is a good book showing fine research and adds insight to our understanding of the enigmatic star.



4. This is one of the best books on Marilyn Monroe I have ever read, if not THE best. The author does a fantastic job of analyzing the various biographies of MM and strips away the myths, lies, improbabilities, and biased ways others saw her that have distorted her image and life for the past 40 years. Churchwell shows us that NO, Marilyn was not crazy, nor was she split into two people - Marilyn Monroe and Norma Jeane - anymore than Cary Grant was split into CG and Archie Leach (his real name). She shows us that MM was a complicated and intelligent woman and a successful actress who tried to improve her acting and her mind throughout her life. I deeply respect the author of this book for her objectivity, honesty, penetrating analysis, and scholarship, and for showing how so much of what has been written about Marilyn is either stereotypical, unfounded, nonsensical, or just plain untrue. I loved it!



5. Sorry, but I found this book written by an author who used other books written about Marilyn by other authors and "her opinions" on those. If you are confused by that statement, try reading this boring rehashed book of other books on poor Marilyn. Don't bother and waste your money. No lie.......ugh!

1 comments about Bombay Anna: The Real Story and Remarkable Adventures of the <i>King and I</i> Governess.

1. What a wonderful book! So full of information, so well-written and easy to read, I couldn't put it down. Author Susan Morgan not only brings Anna Leonowens's remarkable life to life, she makes the reader see why Leonowens made up so much of her "official" life story, and why the (false) image of blond Anna (a lie) dancing with King Monghut (played by Yul Brynner) in The King and I, has had such a powerful grip on our imaginations. Anna Leonowens could do a lot more than dance, and Susan Morgan can really tell a story.

5 comments about Chicken Soup for the African American Woman's Soul (Chicken Soup for the Soul).

1. I have enjoyed reading about the joys, the struggles, the good and the bad of this wonderful culture. Women have many roles, moms, daughters, sisters, aunts, wives, friends. I have enjoyed reading about all of these roles from personal experiences and veiws of the writers. I recommend it to everyone who enjoys good reading and want to know more about the phenomenal black woman.



2. I'm really enjoying this book. I'm formerly an avid reader who recently has been so busy that spending time reading and finishing a good, thick book has been quite a challenge. I like this book because while I'm commuting or waiting in the doctor's office or whatever I can choose at random any of these short, stories and get a quick "pick me up" a little lift in my spirits that gets me through my day in a better frame of mind.
   I definitely reccommend it!



3. Well, this second helping of Chicken Soup for the Afrian-American Soul is for women and everyone who loves them. When you need something to feel good fast, gulp down one of the tasty short stories, seasoned just right. When you want to lift someone up, treat them to this unforgetable treat that they will gobble up. Get ot as a gift for yourself or someone else-- a gift that will keep on giving because of the memorable and inspirational feel-good stories packed inside a beautifully bound cover.



4. This "serving" of the Chicken Soup for the soul shows the vision, way of thinking and feelings of AfroAmerican women, which have had a so great role in the shaping of the recent history of the USA. I've missed more stories from the "old days", more stories told from grandmothers to their grandchildren and I think the book would be richer with them. Also, it doens't show the sad face of the racism many of those women have suffered and even if it's extremely hard and sad, it's not less true and it must be told in order to avoid such facts being repeated.



5. The stories are inspiring and uplifting for Women, Men and Children of all colors And Especially so for African Americans. Beautiful!

No comments about Here's the Story: Surviving Marcia Brady and Finding My True Voice.

5 comments about Seeking Enlightenment... Hat by Hat: A Skeptic's Guide to Religion.

1. In this collection of short essays, Ms. Barr shares her spiritual experiences which are sometimes witty and sometimes thought-provoking. Some of the stories may even inspire readers to do some soul searching of their own, as they relate to some of the deeper issues Ms. Barr shares. These issues include social conciousness and responsibility to the global community; the importance of keeping commitments to others as well as to oneself; and striving to be a good person, not only for the hope of redemption of one's soul in the hereafter, but for the benefits received during one's lifetime.
   
   Ms. Barr shares some unusual thoughts regarding spirituality that other seekers might also find enlightening. Those readers who are already on a well-defined spiritual path may not agree with some or many of the ideas Ms Barr presents, but reading this book is still a good opportunity to explore the musings of a fellow traveler on the spiritual journey of life.



2. I found Nevada's book to be honest, well written, with a subtle sense of humor so needed in works dealing with religion and enlightenment. One of my favorite lines: "... I would occasionally run across someone who seemed to truly know God, and I realized that religion, like a bad toupee or a face-lift gone sour, is only obvious when it's done badly." This book did not do well commercially because honest well-written books dealing with things that really matter don't sell. But this book is very good, very important. It helped me on my return journey to God.



3. This book touches deeply and lovingly on many of today's spiritual issues. I bought copies of this book for all the people in my life that I care about.



4. Having read all of Nevada's novels, I didn't expect to be surprised by her spiritual journey, but I was. It was interesting to find out how much of Anna Pidgeon's personality and personal history was based on Nevada's own and how much was very different. Her insights are very real, down to earth and unlike most spiritual guides. I didn't always agree, but she made me examine some assumptions from a new viewpoint.



5. I've read all Nevada Barr's books not so much for their stories/plots but because I love Ms. Barr's, and her protagonist Anna Pigeon's, attitudes and views on life. I first took it out of the library, read it twice, and then decided I wanted my own copy so I could reread it whenever I wanted.
   
   For me, this book is about Ms. Barr's journey to reconcile and integrate spirituality, without becoming a religious fanatic, with her down-to-earth psyche and firm footing in physical reality. This is something I've been working on for most of my life, and I'm astonished how similar my thoughts have been to Ms. Barr's. The thought paths she takes you through in this book, and the clarity of her conclusions, helped me focus on who I am and how to make the best of my time here. I am so glad I found this book.