5 comments about The Wheel of Life: A Memoir of Living and Dying.

1. I never received my product. I only purchased this product as it was of very sentimental value to my mother, however I was bitterly dissapointed to find the product was lost in transit. I would love to say amazon made every effort to find my product, I personally could not believe this to be true. I do appreciate the jesture of a full refund, but I can honestly say I feel totally dishartened by the whole ordeal. I only purchased from amazon as I knew the item was difficult to locate but to pay almost 13 dollars for it to be lost is in my opinion both unacceptable and extremly unsatisfactory. I shall not purchase from amazonm in the future.



2. Heard THE WHEEL OF LIFE by Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross, the author
   of the classic ON DEATH AND DYING . . . here, facing her own death
   at age 71, she tells the moving story of her life and what makes life so
   worthwhile.
   
   It is love!
   
   As she notes, "I have never met a person whose greatest need was
   not love."
   
   She then concludes with a powerful final statement, saying, "It is very
   important that you do only what you what you love to do. You may be
   poor, you may go hungry, you may live in a shabby place, but you will
   totally live. And at the end of your shabby days, you will bless your life
   because you have done what you came here to do."
   
   It seems that doing so will make dying easier. Or so it can be
   hoped!
   
   Ellen Burstyn's narration added to my enjoyment of the book . . . in
   addition, I liked that there was an introduction by the author.



3. Kubler-Ross had a massive impact on our society and the way we approach death. Her collection of 20,000 interviews with people who died and came back to life showed common threads in almost every way, a spiritual goldmine of positive and loving experiences. This autobiography details how she came to be the person who let us know for sure that death isn't some hokey religious shell-game available only to those who tithe but rather a guaranteed return for all of us to a more loving place.
   The first half of this book is tear-inducingly sad and beautiful, and it's hard not love the young Kubler-Ross as she lets her heart lead her through very tough times. There are some exceptionally moving passages that make this book a real must for those who want to feel better about letting go of life and living it more fully here and now.
   Unfortunately, the latter part of this book and her life found her enamored of charlatans and spiritual quackery, but in no way does that lessen her accomplishments. Not a one of us is perfect, and very few of us change the way the world sees life. Elizabeth was one such soul, so it's easy to accept her foibles.
   I read this book while preparing for an interview with Kubler-Ross, which sadly turned out to be the last she gave before her passing. She was as gracious and wise and funny as this book indicates, and was very much ready to die. She spoke lovingly of her life and happily of letting it go to move on homeward, and she clearly embodied the many positive attributes of this truly moving autobiography.
   Highly recommended for those who like to both feel and think.
   Knowing that death will be joyous sure takes the load off.



4. I loved this book so much that I am having my book group read it. It is an amazing life story about a very driven and gifted woman. This book also has been a gift to have during a very diffcult time. It has helped me immensely through my grieving process.



5. I don't want to in any way discount the body of work this woman created, yet I have to say I was disappointed in this book. By the end, I kept thinking that the most important lesson Dr. Kubler-Ross needed to learn before she died was humility. She evidently considered herself a thoroughly evolved human being, yet wrote with bitterness about the world she would be leaving behind. Also there were times that she lapsed into sentimentality when speaking about her childhood in Switzerland.
   
   I really wanted to love this book. But I think she revealed more than she realized and robbed readers of an example of her own "good death."

5 comments about Cave in the Snow: Tenzin Palmo's Quest for Enlightenment.

1. This book exceeded my high expectations.
   
   First off it is a well told life story of a western woman drawn to Buddhism. That spiritual attraction is not so unusual, but her subseqent move to India, and the related discomforts she overcame long before starting her years of seclusion were truly inspiring.
   
   Then came the chapters on her actual life in her cave. Since "the cave" is in the title of the book one reads with great anticipation until that part of her life begins. And the author does not shortchange you. You get detail and wholeness. Your curiosities are satisfied and you get a feeling for the spiritual evolution she was achieving herself.
   
   The latter chapters of the book were an added bonus. You gain a rich feeling for Tenzin Palmo's inner peace and stand in awe as she travels the globe fulfilling her goal of starting a Buddhist monastery for women.
   
   Let me leave you with a quote of Palmo's that I found very satisfying: '...taking time to be still and think is often a better investment for future productivity than cramming every waking moment with feverish activity."
   
   All in all a book of growth, wisdom, adventure and a bonus of personal reflection.



2. Cave in the Snow is an Intelligent and Insightful book. Tenzin Palmo helps us to Realize that we as Humans are open to unimaginable Possibilities. Her Journey is one of Integrity and Truthfulness. She battles the Elements , a male dominated Faith and her own upbringing in an attempt to find True Enlightenment. Her Cultivation of Higher Values and Moral Essence are a Testament to the Strength and Courage of not only herself but of all Women. I was Deeply moved by the Wisdom and Accomplishment of Tenzin Palmo.
   
   Vicki Mackenzie - the author of this incredible book - should be applauded for presenting such a Fascinating and Balanced book. Tenzin Palmo takes us along a Path of Spiritual Transformation. She is truly in Union with the True Self. I am a Better person for having read this book.
   
   Cave in the snow is a Faciltator of Awareness. We as readers are are Inspred by Tenzin Palmos Knowledge and Confidence. She proves that Divinity is your Birthright. Enhance your Experience of today by reading the Tapestry of the Soul which is Cave in the Snow.



3. This is the story of an extraordinary woman who strives for enlightenment, and in her quest she trundles off to live in a cave for years. Quite amazing.
   Unfortunately, despite the fact that the story is fascinating, this book is so staggeringly badly written that every page made me wince and in the end I gave up and haven't finished it. Despite the authors fairly prolific output in matters of buddhism/spirituality I found the content bland, trite, rambling and uninspiring.
   I am not normally so critical of a book, and this is my first review, but this book incensed me because it completely mangled a fantastic story.
   It's only worth reading if you are particularly interested in Tenzin Palmo, I would never bother reading it for anything other than gleaning the facts.



4. In 1961, a 21 year-old English girl named Diane Perry embarked on an extraordinary journey towards becoming only the second Western woman ever ordained as a Buddhist nun. Adopting the Tibetan name Tenzin Palmo, this young Cockney girl, daughter of a poor single mother working as a cleaning woman in south London, went on to transform herself into a cross-cultural spiritual pioneer, devoting her next 20 years to steeping herself in the rarefied higher teachings of Tibetan Buddhism, and bridging enormous barriers of culture and gender to pursue a deeply felt spiritual calling.
   
   For most of the next two decades, Palmo lived among the exiled Tibetan monastic communities in India, at one point spending twelve years - yes, that's twelve years - in solitary retreat in a Himalayan cave. Since then, she has become a leading advocate for women in Buddhism, and a widely respected teacher leading Buddhist meditation retreats worldwide and working towards completing her convent for Tibetan nuns.
   
   In the years since her long Himalayan solitude, Palmo has also taken a solemn vow - one that non-Buddhists may find outlandish, but that Palmo herself undoubtedly takes quite seriously - to dedicate her current and future lifetimes (as Tibetan Buddhists believe) towards attaining enlightenment in the female form, transforming herself into a full-fledged female bodhisattva.
   
   Mackenzie, a former Times of London journalist, has written a captivating account of this remarkable womanýs life, including fascinating vignettes about her early encounters with Tibetan luminaries such as the great meditation master Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, a young Dalai Lama, and her lifelong teacher and guru Kamtrul Rinpoche, who recognized her immediately upon their first meeting as a reincarnated Tibetan lama in the Kargyu tradition.
   
   A reluctant biography subject (agreeing to the project only after much heartfelt persuading by Mackenzie, an unabashed admirer), Palmo comes across as a deeply humble, holy figure, possessed of a profound inner wisdom and much practical sense.
   
   This book is that rare find of a biography, in which we meet a remarkable but hitherto uncelebrated figure, whose life story provides an object lesson in moral virtue and grace.
   
   I would recommend this book to men, women, Buddhists, non-Buddhists, and others.



5. This true story is extremely well written, I love the authors style of prose. Clearly, Tenzin Palmo (heretofore referred to as T.P.) is certainly a force to be reckoned with. While the external story of T.P. was captivating and inspiring - I couldn't do for a month what she did for many years; what I had hoped to find were her insights, what did she discover on the internal journey? Unfortunately when pressed to express her truths T.P. responded with a nonchalant "it's too private" sort of response. This is the part of the story that blows my mind: Some of the major themes of Buddhism are love and compassion, well where is the compassion in withholding one's internal discoveries, the candid discussion of which might assist others in overcoming their own illusions? Also, if Buddhists are so "enlightened" how have they been able to ignore/dominate/exclude their mothers/sisters/daughters for so long? My hope is that T.P. and Vicki Mackenzie will sit down and articulate the internal story of T.P.'s path, the subtleties of mind and illusions she explored and overcame - or didn't overcome. That's where the treasures are! Should have been 5 stars, but in good conscience I can only give 4.

5 comments about Mankiller: A Chief and Her People.

1. In "Mankiller: A Chief and Her People," author and former Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Wilma Mankiller recounts her experiences growing up on reservations, government relocation, and her activism in Indian affairs.
   This book is well written and offers, if nothing else, of a peek into the mid 20th century Native American and reservation experience.
   There is no doubt that those of us with Native American heritage, particularly Cherokees, have ancestors who have been dealt less than a fair hand throughout the history of the United States. But I find it unfortunate when such potentially powerful leaders of social movements seeking to rise above past adversities, place generalized blame on the "white" community at-large for current problems. It is regrettable that Mankiller, who is herself half-white, can wholly reject one part of her heritage while fully embracing the other.
   Mankiller speaks with contempt of the "white lady" do-gooders, who tried to reach out to her as a reservation bound child. This is precisely the type of racial bitterness that keeps many fellow modern Native Americans "victims," feeling helpless and reservation bound.
   Cherokee heritage has a long history of acceptance and assimilation, not necessarily just into white culture either. Other cultures (even Europeans) were long accepted into early tribal clans.
   While we must never forget the reprehensible Trail Of Tears or any other federally sanctioned forced relocation of any tribe or peoples. There comes a time however, when all persecuted cultures must move foreword, as the tribe most certainly has. We must begin to embrace the long acknowledged civility and citizenship of the Cherokee people and stop seeking modern scapegoats for our moments of misery.
   Having said this, I commend Mankiller for achievements in both American and Cherokee societies. To have witnessed the transitions of Native American culture at the height and hub of the American Civil Rights Movement grants Mankiller the prerogative to share her story and her perspectives in this book.
   REVIEW EVERY BOOK YOU READ, AUTHORS DESERVE READER'S OPINIONS!



2. I read this one in four days ~~ it helped that we had some downtime while camping in a small state park. It is a wonderful memoir about a strong woman who, in spite of physical obstacles, managed to lead the second largest Indian Tribe in America. It is not just a memoir about a strong woman, it is also a history of a strong Indian tribe. It is an absolutely wonderful book and one that every serious reader of history should read.
   
   I picked this book up two years ago while traveling in Cherokee, NC, and never found the time to read it till recently, when I knew that we would be outside and camping again. (It seems that I do my best reading when we're traveling ...) I found the subject title fascinating and when I did finally get to the book, I found it even more fascinating and curious. This is a woman in every sense of the word. Wilma Mankiller is a heroine that every woman should look up to ~~ young and old.
   
   Wilma Mankiller grew up in poverty-stricken Oklahoma and while she was still young, her family relocated to California as part of the Native American relocation program that was offered just after WWII. She grew up in California, married young and had two daughters. She became involved with the civil rights movement and at the same time, she has never lost sense of her own heritage. After her marriage fell apart, she moved back home to Oklahoma, went onto working for the Cherokee National Tribe doing various things and eventually became the first Woman Chief. Intermixed with her personal tale are ancient stories from the Cherokee history ~~ of the times before they left their homelands, about the Trail of Tears, and so on. It's history mixed in with personal story-telling and it's a wonderful way to read this book.
   
   Unlike some reviewers, I did not find Mankiller bashing the whites for all their problems ~~ she was very diplomatic in telling the readers about the history ~~ but the history has shown that when the white settlers came to America, they did break treaties and their promises, and there's reason why the Native Americans don't trust them ~~ the government of US and its citizens have not given them reason to. But on the same breath, Mankiller mentions that her tribe has a hard time with change ~~ she doesn't sit there and bemoaned the loss of their ancient lands, she gets out and work on solving the problems that her tribe is facing. She admits that change has occurred and she's very realistic about fixing the problems. I cannot but help admire her for that.
   
   This is an excellent book ~~ it's guaranteed to be a thought-provoker in conversations and discourses ~~ at least it has for my husband and me. It is such an interesting tale about a woman who never learned the words, I can't. She never gave up the fight for her people. This book is just a small testimony to that fight.
   
   8-13-07



3. This book was horrendous. She is an ultra-sensitive cry baby who can't move on with her life. Aside from her life which literally has almost no accomplishments, the history of the Cherokees is just as boring. She rambles on and on about treaties and agreements that were broken by the united states and won't shutup about it the whole book. We get it, america ripped the native americans off. big deal. that's history, might makes right, and many nations in history faired worse off than the indians. countries have attacked each other for land for years, at least we allowed them to continue to exist. then, somehow she compares the trail of tears to the holocaust, which is just ridiculous. theres a difference between a walk that they chose to take by not previously cooperating, and a genocide of 6 millions jews through torture and starvation.
   
   DONT READ THIS BOOK



4. For anyone interested in Native American History this is an excellent book. The book chronicles the life of the former Cherokee Chief Wilma Mankiller during times of political Native American activism and the fight of not only Cherokee people, but Native Americans as a whole during her lifetime. It is candid about the struggles Native Americans faced due to government programs of relocation and the struggle to make it in the white world while maintaining their Indian heritage and culture. In addition to providing a detailed account of Mankiller's life, the book gives a detailed account of the history of the Cherokee Nation and their struggles with removal, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, oppressive legislation, and issues faced on reservations.



5. To me this is an excellent purchase. I can relate to many of the author's passages from the time she resided in California, memories of same have been brought to mind, in a positive sense.

5 comments about Confessions of the Other Mother: Non-Biological Lesbian Moms Tell All.

1. This book provides a much needed voice to the world of parenting essays and writing. The essays range from serious to hysterical, covering a wide range of experiences. I highly recommend the book for all parents, gay, straight, biological or non-biological. It's about being parents.



2. The book is funny and touching, honest and real. It is a reflection of a part of our society, that is often ignored from within.
   
   This is not just a "lesbian mom" book. It is a "everyone" book. There is something for everyone and will touch you at some point in the book on many levels.
   
   I could not put it down!



3. As the biological lesbian mom, reading this book; as our little boy still squirms around in my belly, has helped prepare me/us for some of the other issues or concerns we may face as a lesbian couple preparing to raise a child. It has been a wonderful tool for my partner and me to discuss topics and concerns that we hadn't yet thought of. It has also given me a new perspective and sensitivity to the issues she may be faced with as the other mother.
   
   I especially enjoyed the variety in authors. Each chapter takes on a whole new personality, making it very diverse and quite entertaining. Each story is so well written and articulate, not to mention funny, heartbreaking, and touching.
   
   A great read for anyone who is looking to be entertained and enlightened.



4. We have read them together and it was helpful to start discussions about some of our fears for our family!



5. Very easy to read. Nice glimpses of a variety of moms (and babas) and how they fit in their roles and how families come together to make it work. As a future "other mom," I found this really helpful and validating.

5 comments about The Peabody Sisters: Three Women Who Ignited American Romanticism.

1. Megan Marshall has done superb work in this carefully researched account of the amazing Peabody sisters.



2. I only get to read on the train to and from work. This book makes my daily trip a real treat. I'm only half through, but hooked from page one. Not only does Marshall make a fascinating biographical and historical account of the Peabody sisters, but she provides answers as to why strong, ambitious, smart women have been so frustrated for so long. Society supressed gifted women in the 1800's so much so that women either became outcasts because they had to find expression, which in itself was restricted to motherhood, housewife or teacher, or they retreated into themselves in the form of illness or depression. Indeed, the contributions to romanticism by the Peabody sisters came at a very high cost to them. And now I can read about them and think "How strange that society was so close-minded back then!"



3. Somehow I overlooked this book when it was released, but thank goodness I discovered it later. The author takes readers back in time to share the amazing lives of these sisters. In the process, acquaintances of the Peabody family, that readers already know as historical figures, are brought to life as real, flawed but remarkable people. Readers will identify with these women as they strive to achieve and practice their own talents in a society that shares possibilities and limitations not so different from our own.



4. The Peabody Sisters is a wonderful book. It was so interesting and fast-paced, it reads like a novel. The women of the Transcendentalist Movement have been so poorly remembered it is possible to learn something new on every page. Megan Marshall's writing style is relaxed and conversational, a good balance to the 19th century melodrama, angst, sentimentality, and lofty philosophies of the sisters and their circle. Although Marshall quotes letters, sermons, poetry, reviews, journals, reports, and literature from many sources, it is done sparingly and logically integrated.
   
   The Peabody sisters were extraordinary women living in extraordinary times. A case can be made that Elizabeth Peabody, the oldest sister, is one of the most important figures in Transcendentalism. Barred from college and commerce by poverty and sex, she still managed to be more educated than many of the men she befriended and promoted. Many of the relationships we take for granted in Boston and Concord of the era can be directly linked to Elizabeth Peabody's tireless efforts to intellectually support interesting, creative individuals, make introductions, even find people jobs and students, housing, mentors - all while she is shut out and struggling to support her parents and five younger siblings while teaching herself Hebrew, Latin, Greek, Italian, Spanish. Also: teaching children and adults, writing articles, editing and publishing, and keeping up a lively correspondence with teachers, philosophers, artists, poets of the era. Her sisters Sophia and Mary are hardly less accomplished.
   
   And yet Megan Marshall always keeps things grounded. The sisters are always real people who display very normal sibling rivalries manifested in jealousy, competition, ambition, despair, frustration and anger. There was also commitment, love, affection, support, delight and generosity.
   
   What is most amazing is the strength of the women in this group. They are creative, adaptable, intelligent, extraordinary in many ways. They are continually held back by the convention of the time that women were somehow frail and that ambition and accomplishment were unseemly in the "fairer sex." Considering what hothouse flowers many of the men in this group proved to be, it's all the more unreasonable that the inequality of the sexes persisted.
   
   Megan Marshall never harangues - the rant is purely my own. Marshall simply gives us the benefit of her prodigious research in the most straightforward and appealing manner. Don't be scared off by the length of the book: the last 100 pages or so are notes and index. The book itself speeds by and the reader is left at the point when the sisters are taking up their own separate lives.



5. The author attempts to run the three biographies in parallel but what really happens is that she jumps from one place to the other, so none of the biographies unfold properly. I found it utterly unreadable. On top of it to add to my frustration, there are generalities, like Elizabeth fought with her mother "like all adolescent girls do" or romantic creations "like on this day if you didn't watch out a dog might have showered you with water". I wanted to read a proper biography and not a society novel. I had read "Eden's Outcasts" by John Matteson before and came away with a more lively picture of Elizabeth Peabody and her involvment in the Temple School then from this book. If you are interested in the transcendentalist movement, the time, or women I highly recommend "Eden's Outcasts: The story of Louisa May Alcott and her father".

5 comments about Walk with Us: Triplet Boys, Their Teen Parents & Two White Women Who Tagged Along.

1. At a time when we are inundated daily with reports of violence, heartbreak and tragedy, it is gratifying to read of people who not only go out of their way to help each other, but willingly perform sacrifices most of us would never dream of. However, don't assume this is a smarmy tale of saintliness - Ms. Gordon portrays everyone honestly and realistically (herself included), warts and all. These are people who struggle and make mistakes, but because of their love for each other, their tenacity and their wish to do what is right and good, they manage to overcome obstacles that would daunt and defeat 99% of the population. They are ordinary people who chose to step up in exceptional circumstances. By the end of the book, I felt I had witnessed true heroism.



2. For anyone who wants to understand cultural differences, who wants to understand the roots of poverty, ignorance and bigotry, Elizabeth Gordon has given us a window into that world. She shares her acquired wisdom (and continuing feeling of insufficiency) with palpable honesty and elegant metaphor. She sees second graders "whirled away like leaves in a gust to decorate the playground with their happy cries." She describes her young charge as "caught by accident under the bell jar of her misery" and, later, as "a nail head under the hammer of minimum wage." She is a writer who thinks visually and paints with her pen.
   The blurb on the back cover of Walk With Us and the subtitle, Triplet Boys, Their Teen Parents, & Two White Women Who Tagged Along, did not prepare me for the world in which Elizabeth Gordon immersed me. For nearly 50 pages, I colored my comprehension with the hidden impression that I was reading the story of a couple of middle-class do-gooders who were proving that homosexuals can be as socially conscious as heterosexuals (a credit to their gender, my inner bigot whispered), while happily bringing ghetto-living have-nots into the illuminated world of haves.
   And then the raw reality of it finally penetrated my shield of self-congratulatory liberal smugness. The gender of two privileged whites is beside the point, though perhaps their backgrounds are not. They represent two classic caricatures of white society - the middle-class, well-fed American from a prosperous family and the working-class, first-in-the-family-to-have-a-college-degree American from a stretched-thin family plagued with alcoholism and abuse.
   Elizabeth and her partner Kaki plunge themselves into a culture about which they know nothing. This is not a simple tale. It is not the story of someone given the gift of enough to eat or a college education and living happily ever after.
   Tahija is fifteen years old, pregnant with triplets, drifting from one relative's home to the next while her mother completes a stay in drug rehab. Her friends and relatives live in subsidized housing, where someone can be evicted by having a guest who stays longer than a few days. Enter Elizabeth and Kaki, who create a safe haven for Tahija, including a room of her own, a nursery for the babies and a healthy, balanced diet. It is Tahija's seventeen-year-old boyfriend, Lamarr (father of her babies), who makes the connection through Kaki, whom he met while attending an AVP (Alternatives to Violence Project) workshop that she was leading.
   In the course of their association with the young black couple, Elizabeth and Kaki get a first-hand appreciation of a world where people expect to spend more time standing in queue for services than receiving services, where people expect to be treated with bored disregard, where people expect to be defined by what they don't have and can't do. Like most family groups bound together by mutual need and caring, the serendipitous family of two middle-aged white women, two black teenagers and three growing babies explodes into pieces of hurt and misunderstanding, suffers the pain of humility learned, then reassembles in a form more supportive of the people they have become through the experience. Gordon quotes Hannah Arendt: "The only power we can have over the past is forgiveness."
   One of the themes that colour this narrative is that long-term racism does not remain one-sided, but bifurcates into a two-way mistrust, creating a balance that erects a wall between human beings. These seven people lay themselves bare to show us how this works and point us in a better direction. I had expected a story about the difficulties of being lesbian and the problems of cultural differences. I was blind-sided by a story of love and hope and excruciating, debilitating racism. Elizabeth Gordon has produced a classic work about the personal face of racism. It should be required reading in every secondary and tertiary classroom that touches on the subject.



3. This is an inspiring and compelling story of two women, Elizabeth and Kaki, who moved into a multiracial community in Philadelphia in order to improve the lives of those living there. As they embarked on this unique and moving journey, they were forced to confront their own personal issues, motivations and philosophies.
   The author, Elizabeth, has constructed a beautifully written memoir detailing the joys and difficulties of meshing two cultures in on household. Tahija and Lamar, both young teenagers from dysfunctional families were invited to live with Elizabeth and Kaki before and after they gave birth to triplet boys. However, the author and her partner soon found themselves dealing with young parents whose entire methods and beliefs about parenting were vastly different and foreign from theirs. Only by learning to understand, confront and accept these difference while establishing necessary boundaries, were Elizabeth and Kaki able to hold the household together. It is a tale of love, and the accompanying compromises that has much to teach us all. The book also brings the reader into a world of racism, poverty, drugs, alcohol addiction and mental illness detailing both the harsh realities and the desire of all to protect the young, vulnerable boys. Although the families eventually separated and moved on, their mutual love, concern and support continues to evolve and grow.
   This book is a must read for anyone in our everchanging culuture, particularly for those who have or care for children of any age. It has challenged me to relfect on and question my own attitides and judgements. Although I consider myself a liberal, it has forced me to think about how much I truly understand about other cultures or other people who hold different beliefs and engage in different life-styles,and how I would handle myself in a similar situation. The two women mentored this family deserve tremendous credit for their devotion and persistence in helping Tahija, Lamar and their three boys survive, develop and grow. I thank Elizabeth for sharing her story.



4. Elizabeth Gordon invites readers into a world of self examination, the kind needed to recognize and solve problems in human relationships, especially those tainted by racial stereotypes and cultural divide. Walking with Gordon and her make-shift family is a trip to a literary candy shop set on the deteriorating concrete steps of despair. I really enjoyed agonizing, laughing, and learning and yearning with this family. The book is a first course offering for young, old, Black, White, blessed and cursed. Don't pass it up!



5. "Walk with Us" by Elizabeth K. Gordon is an important true story about what happens when two middle-aged white women, two inner-city African-American teenagers, along with their triplet sons, all come together as one big family. Kathryn (Elizabeth), Kaki, Tahija, Lamarr and the triplets, along with many other people, learn how to get along with each other despite obstacles and challenges that could easily separate them. There are many obvious differences between the individuals -- race, religion, age, economic class, sexual orientation, etc. -- but there are also many commonalities. Rather than just emphasizing "otherness," the author addresses issues that motivate readers from all backgrounds to make connections between their own experiences and the issues that are presented in the book. In telling her own story, the author establishes the universality of the human experience. Because the United States today is a nation composed of people from all over the world, with diverse religious, racial and ethnic backgrounds, it would be impossible to describe a "typical American." It would also be unrealistic to stereotype a single, homeless, Muslim, African-American, teenage mother like Tahija. She is an independent young woman who is determined to make a life for herself and her family, despite her troubled background. In this book the reader is encouraged to explore -- from different points of view -- issues common to many different people who live in the United States and beyond. The stories from the book also remind us of the diversity in American society. It reminds us to be sensitive to the experiences of all Americans. As a transplanted Philadelphian, Kathryn learns that the experience of growing up can differ from one part of the country to another, from one ethnic/racial group to another, and from one era to another. Tahija and Lamarr's experiences growing up are dramatically different from Kathyrn and Kaki's experiences. Kathryn discusses her awareness of these differences and how she is shaped by it. The idea of family and identity is also explored by the author. The traditional nuclear family is getting harder to find today. Instead, new patterns are developing -- patterns which reflect changing attitudes about what defines a "family." Gordon also discusses the use of language and how it not only gives us the means to express our thoughts, but it also shapes the way we think and the way we look at the world around us. Kathryn and Tahija both speak English but they don't always speak the same language. That's what happens in a family sometimes, isn't it?

5 comments about Bitch: In Praise of Difficult Women.

1. Great, more caterwalling from this self-obsessed, immature, indignant egomaniac. Do us all a favor Lizzy, and throw in the towel. You're schtick is overtired. You're pushing 40. Would you finally grow up and stop torturing the nation with your whining?
   
   That's right, your depression was real. But you were 19. You were nothing but a scared little girl. It doesn't take a Harvard education to figure that out.
   
   And this book, I yie yie. Please go on another bender and never ever take pen to paper again. You'll be doing us all a huge favor.



2. Everything that Elizabeth Wurtzel wrote in this book is true. The truth about how males can be so sexist, and how men are 'allowed' or supposed to do certian things, while women aren't. Elizabeth uses many examples of 'difficult women' in this book such as Dilea, Madonna, Amy Fisher and so on.
   
   I am pretty sure that everyone has heard of phrases like, "Men can sleep with 10 women and thats fine. But if a women would sleep with 10 men she is a whore or a slut." And thats what many people believe to be true.
   
   When guys are difficult and speak there mind they are 'just being a guy' but when a woman is difficlut or speaks her mind she gets classified as a bitch. And those are some of the things that she points out in her book. This is a very good book, but I wouldn't recommend it to people that have the minds set to the old fashioned ways or people that believe 'women are better off seen than heard'.



3. I have rarely been as disappointed with a book as I have been this one. In many ways Elizabeth Wurtzel is a brilliant writer, gifted with the ability to construct a memorable sentence or a brilliant image. Moreover, as a bit of a rebel and a very intelligent woman I would have imagined that this would have been a book bristling with insight. Besides, I liked the subtitle: In Praise of Difficult Women. My own thought has long been that the way our society is constructed, brilliant, independent women would often be taken by society at large as "difficult." I had imagined that this was going to have multiple overlaps with third wave feminism and perhaps the riot girrrls and all kinds of wonderful new ways of women asserting their rights to be whoever it is they want to be. Besides, she and I share very similar tastes in music and pop culture. I imagined a brilliant effort in gonzo feminism.
   
   But I was disappointed. Yes, there were the brilliant turns of phrase and startling paragraphs. But like other reviewers, when I finished I really couldn't say what the book was about. The details were often marvelously expressed, but to what overall end? The book ended up being brilliant on the micro level, but dense and opaque on the macro. The result was a book that was fun to read from beginning to end, but frustrating because I was never able to grasp what it was all about.
   
   The book is structured around five themes, each one with several women evoked to stand as icons, but in each case one woman above all others. The first part deals with sexual sirens who can also be conceived as man eaters, with Delilah, Samson's seductress/betrayal as the great example. The second part deals with under aged temptresses, with Amy Fisher as the great exemplar. The third section deals with women who died either by their own hand or by the kinds of lives they had come to live. Here several women are presented as icons, including Margaux Hemingway, Sylvia Plath, Zelda Fitzgerald, and Anne Sexton. The fourth section, written at the height of Monica-gate, skewers Hillary Clinton for being a wife instead of achieving great things herself (a secton that seems hopelessly out of touch with reality as she in 2006 looks poised to run for president--for the record, a move that I am passionately opposed to, since despite the hype she is extremely conservative on most issues, especially economics, and I think she would keep America on the right wing course upon which it began under Jimmy Carter--another person perceived to be liberal who was actually quite conservative on economic issues--and has continued under all successive presidents). The final section deals with women who are the victims of extreme violence and centers on Nicole Brown Simpson. The problem is that the book simply never coalesces around any substantive ideas.
   
   In the end, the women she chooses to write about are women that are as difficult for feminism as for men or society or the public at large. Feminism simply can't absorb Amy Fisher and claim her for one of their own. The story is too tawdry and messy for that. But after three hundred pages of writing about these women, it still isn't clear what she is writing about. The big pay off never comes. It is a book that promises great--or even just pretty good--things but never delivers. This truly is a book that is far less than the sum of its parts. I think the fact that one can love many individual pages while hating it as a whole is reflected in the weirdly schizoid reviews that my Anchor Books edition contains (I have as of today the latest printing, so this may not be true of previous editions). The blurbs are divided into "The Good," "the Bad," "the Bitchy," and "The Bottom Line." The attempt on the part of the publishers almost seems an admission that it is a deeply flawed book, but they want to portray it as one of those ultra-controversial books that you have to read so that you can discuss.
   
   I stil think there are some great books to be written about truly difficult women, about women that society has trouble absorbing or that it resists. I just in the end did not feel that this was one of them. This despite the fact that she writes well, that she is obviously a smart woman, and--let's admit it--very hot. Yes, that is her on the cover. Not many writers could pull that off.



4. I was eager to read Bitch after having read Prozac Nation years before. I was sorely disappointed. Wurtzel rants and expounds on various maligned women throughout history. Her rambling can be hard to follow and I soon lost interest. This book had a lot of potential but Wurtzel just wasn't able to deliver.
   
   I later read her memoir of drug addiction and recovery, More, Now, and Again which explained Bitch's dismal failure. It turns out that during the time Wurtzel was writing Bitch she was heavily using a myriad of drugs.
   
   I suggest reading Prozac Nation and More, Now and Again (which are fabulous)and skipping Bitch. Read Manifesta and Grassroots for a modern perspective on feminism.



5. As a radical feminist, I was pathetically amused and enraged by this book. It does not celebrate women's strength or struggle, instead finding glory in the consolation prizes of temptress roles and the like. As a reader, I was intrigued but confused. It's easy to lose your place - the author is very clever but harder to stay with than a mechanical bull. I don't think any book i've ever read has given my facial muscles such a workout: i'm sure someone watching my expressions as I read would have been the more entertained of the group. Now that i've learned it was written during a drug binge, I understand it better and can get some sleep. We can do better.

1 comments about The Cone Sisters of Baltimore: Collecting at Full Tilt.

1. This is a beautiful book that vividly recounts the story of two Baltimore sisters who never got married and who,at the beginning of the XXth century, became two of the foremost modern art collectors in the United States. Following a chronological pattern, it is full of previously unpublished photographs (the authors are the great-niece and great-great-niece of the Cone sisters)and marvelous illustrations of the paintings acquired by Claribel and Etta Cone, paintings which today form the core of the Baltimore Museum of Art collection. The text is lively and replete with anecdotes that give a good idea of the artworld in Paris (Picasso, Matisse,Gertrude Stein, the art dealers, etc) and of the society of a medium-size industrial city in the United States during the first three decades of the XXth century.
   
   Light, but good reading

5 comments about Don't Bet against Me!: Beating the Odds Against Breast Cancer and in Life.

1. This book is totally awesome. A great insight by Deanna from her life with Brett to her cancer and beyond. A book worth reading.



2. This is an excellent book about a woman's journey with breast cancer. Deanna Favre is the wife of Brett Favre of the Green Bay Packers. She describes her dealing with breast cancer, the aftermath of it and her struggle to survive and live with a deadly disease. Her and her husband have started a foundation dealing with breast cancer and continue to work tirelessly for the foundation. Reading the book brings forth a variety of emotions and I would recommend this book to everyone especially those who have been touched by breast cancer in some way.



3. In a word? Inspirational. This lady has faith and talks freely about it. I believe this to be an ideal gift to share with someone facing this disease; they may well be comforted.



4. She is a very brave woman who because of who she is will inspire women to get through whatever God puts in front of them. She is someone who has not let being in the public eye to change them into someone they are not. But has stayed true to herself and is doing wonderful things for others.



5. Wonderful book with lots of information about breast cancer. Also a great story on Deanna's life and such a down to earth person. She is just a sweetheart and you will love her. Don't Bet against Me!: Beating the Odds Against Breast Cancer and in Life I also bought the book for a friend that has breast cancer and is going through chemo and she has found the book to be a great comfort.

5 comments about Marie-Therese, Child of Terror: The Fate of Marie Antoinette's Daughter.

1. I was thrilled to read Susan Nagel's wonderful biography of Marie-Therese. I had only read Marie-Therese's slim account of her life during the French Revolution, so this work filled in the "mystery" of her years after her release.
   
   First of all, I can't believe that Nagel has done this! The amount of research is staggering, and she really helps us to fully appreciate Marie-Therese's life that went from from pampered princess to imprisoned pauper in a few short years. Nagel's wonderful writing helps us to see Marie-Therese rushing with her mother to safety while the mob waits outside Versailles in October 1789. The account of her family life with her doomed parents (her father tutored her while they were captive), her concern for her brother (who was brutalized and terribly abused), and her close relations with her Uncle, Louis XVIII are all discussed in vivid detail.
   
   I especially enjoyed reading about Marie-Therese's role as a Bourbon prop and her concern for her brother in law's children. Nagel covers the Napoleonic era and the restoration. In the meanwhile, Marie-Therese carries a box with the shirt worn by her father at his death. She has to also refute the many imposters who travel around Europe proclaiming themselves as the lost Louis XVII.
   
   This is a book to be kept, savored, and read again and again. It fills a "gap" about the fate of the family of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.



2. I managed to slog through the book, but wasn't anxious to get to the end like I usually am. After Marie-Therese's release from the Temple prison in Paris, the book gets very dull. Although MT's life can be best described as nomadic and full of reversals of fate, it doesn't seem very interesting. Whether this is because Marie Therese herself was uninteresting or because Nagel fails to write compelling prose is hard to decide.
   
   I also found the random passages inserted about the Dark Countess to be out of place and confusing at first. Perhaps Nagel should have devoted a chapter to the Dark Countess instead of putting in a paragraph here and there would've led to a better understanding of the possibility of a switch. As it is, the whole line is confusing and not well played out. It could have added an interesting dimension to the story and instead left me saying, "huh?"
   
   A decent read for any Marie-Antoinette-philes, but otherwise I'd pass. Good thing I love MA, otherwise I wouldn't have ever finished.



3. I have read every book on the French Revolution and on Marie Antoinette in particular and so I was eager to learn more about her only surviving child. I was absolutly not disappointed!!! This book is wonderfully written and brings to life an era through the eyes of a truly thoughtful, kind, intelligent Princess. This is not just a biography about any royal daughter- she is an inspiration to all women whose lives ebb and flow through good and bad. Always trustworthy and kind, she is an admirable person, and a good example to anyone going through tough times.



4. Nagel has written a splendid biography of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette's only surviving child. The author begins by describing Marie-Therese's birth and early childhood in the luxurious world of Versailles. Nagel then guides the reader on an amazing journey from the sickening brutality of the French Revolution and the French people's savage treatment of the monarchs' children, to Marie Therese's escape and never-ending journeys away from and back to the country of her birth. Nagel takes an enormous amount of historic facts and people and places them neatly in a seamless and brilliant fashion in this biography. The reader doesn't learn only about what happened in the life of Marie-Therese; the reader is also treated to a subtle and gradual revelation of the true and noble character of this woman. If one has enjoyed reading about this woman's parents, then it is such a treat to see that the best characteristics of Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette lived on in this lady. I was particularly fascinated to read that Louis XVI's judgment was so well placed when he trusted the American, Gouveneur Morris, with a large sum of money to support his surviving family. Morris personally delivered it to Marie-Therese years later. Amazing when one considers the recent news reports of the failed auction of the pearls Marie Antoinette gave to the British ambassador's wife to sneak out of France. Apparently, those pearls never left the ambassador's family's assets in spite of the fact that Marie-Therese LIVED in England for years!
   This is a great biography and I highly recommend it!



5. A must-read to get a much bigger picture of the last years and days of King Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, and the fate of their two surviving children. European history buffs will love the details provided from the family's personal letters and from other contemporaries to the Madame Royale. This book was captivating and enlightening, and draws the reader into the heart and mind of Marie-Therese. Truly an inspirational, if not much overlooked historical figure, this book is a wonderful portrait of this courageous and heroic young girl.