No comments about Fears, Phobias and Rituals: Panic, Anxiety, and Their Disorders.

5 comments about Everyday Heaven: Journeys Beyond the Stereotypes of Autism.

1. Donna is changing the way that, hopefully, millions of people think about 'Autism'. Everyday Heavan gives a wonderful insight into the world of a fantastic lady on the Autism spectrum. In this fascinating book Donna shares the ups and downs of relationships, exposure anxiety, information processing, connection, tolerance, contol, dietary difficulties and many more experiences that she has had. You will be captivated by the warmth and passion that Donna brings to the Neuro -Typical world of Disabling barriers.



2. Of all Donna Williams' books, "Everyday Heaven" is one of my very favorites. The fourth in her autobiographical series, this part of her story invites us to be a fly on the wall while she navigates life and love in her thirties. Donna's unbridled candor draws you in, and her clarity and insight hold you fast. When you read it, you'll want to have a box of tissues near by, and also a friend to share some of her humorous anecdotes with. What strikes me in this book, is that in spite of the horrific circumstances she survived in her early childhood, and to whatever extent her Autism continues to impact her daily life, there is never a moment of blame or bitterness. She personifies resilience and a lust for life. If you dare to read any of her books, Donna Williams is someone who will take all of your excuses away. "Everyday Heaven" is a heavenly read.



3. Those who have read Donna Williams' other three autobiographies will continue to find ideas and insights that will stretch anybody's understanding of autism far beyond textbooks and what professionals have published. But more than that, even if you aren't especially interested in autism, this book is about the zest for and love of life. Considering how gloomy and bitter Williams could be if she chose, "Everyday Heaven" really serves as an inspirational memoir. In spite of the very real hardships she describes, this book filled me with joy.



4. Thank you, Donna. I am an avid fan of Donna Williams' autobiographical and other scholarly writing on 'autism'. She is a true peacemaker. In her previous book, Like Colour to the Blind, I found tremendous insight into the kinds of problems that many of us encounter when we expand our world to include that of another in an intimate partnership.
   
   Similarly, reading Everyday Heaven inspired me to continue to understand and deepen my relationship with myself. Donna's style is ever fresh and impeccably precise. She continues to charter the borderlands of differences in thinking, feeling, perceiving and behaving that have been labeled 'autistic'. Perhaps with so eloquent a mapmaker as our guide, the rest of us can learn greater tolerance for all of the individual 'autistic' realities that we each bring to bear in the creation of this thing that we think we share called 'consensual reality'. Maybe then there will be peace and Everyday Heaven on earth.



5. Donna Williams is already one of the most famous people diagnosed with Autism in the world and people look up to her achievements and particularly perhaps, the fact that as an Autistic person, contrary to all existing stereotypes at that time, she has married and, of course, an iconic writer of heterosexual romance.
   
   But all is not what it seems. Agoraphobic, outside of her public face, Donna is actually a relative recluse on a farm in the middle of nowhere, completely controlled by her obsessive rather Autistic-Spectrum and somewhat multiple-personalitied husband, Ian. She is beginning to discover that not all 'Auties' are nice at all and the one she's married is a doosie.
   
   Now, on the day of their second wedding aniversary, only one week after the death of her eccentric rather bipolar father from cancer and in the middle of the filming of a documentary about her life, Donna is falling deeply 'in like' with one of the crew, Mick who himself lost the father he loved. Now Ian boldly de-masks and announces he wants to run off with the male producer!
   
   The de-masked Ian clinically announces how he has now qualified for being two years in the marriage and, hence, is entitled to half of everything she ever made from her internationally bestselling books. To boot, she has only a few weeks before flying to America to give a talk about being happily married and on the Autistic Spectrum before a massive US audience!
   
   As Ian packs up the furnishings and strips their house bare and the cameras keep rolling, Donna's 'in like'with Mick has turned to being in love and after she starts a smart drug she finds herself developing lust for the first time in her life at the ripe old age of thirty-two.
   
   But Mick has his own challenges with love, sex, identity and alcohol and with the help of a colorful hippy eccentric dance teacher, Margo, Donna finds herself on the road again. More alone as famous than she would ever have been otherwise, and deeply traumatised by the death of her father, she confronts her sexual orientation and attraction to women, going to a gay club specifically to meet 'someone'. She ends up in a torid sexual relationship with an alcoholic lesbian, Shelly. Then her best friend, Margo, goes suddenly into a coma, then dies from a brain haemmorage, and soon even Donna's beloved cat Monty joins the 'other side'.
   
   It's like everyone is dying and she is surrounded by their 'ghosts'. But among the ghosts awaits an angel named Chris who in rescueing him from his own messy love triangle, she rescues herself from the edge of breakdown.
   
   Everyday Heaven is a humorous, moving, riveting, roller-coaster of a book.

1 comments about Freedom: Letting Go of Anxiety and Fear of the Unknown.

1. With the same comfortable style one finds in Richard Bach's Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Jim Britt's work, Freedom: Letting Go of Anxiety and Fear of the Unknown resonates. The story of the many shades of love centers on the catastrophe occurring at Ground Zero on 9-11. Britt's hero struggles to understand the occurrences and with the interaction of so many connecting lives, discovers courage and the willingness to let go of fear and open to love. When we have something to learn, we find ourselves in situations which provide the opportunity. Through the storyline we find tools to create a framework from which to view life differently so that we can become accountable for our feelings, thoughts, beliefs, behaviors, and find personal freedom. Courage dwells within each of us along with a "profound reluctance to give up the future." As we choose to wake up to all the things that bring love to life, we come to know that "what you pursue will elude you, and what you become is what you attract."

5 comments about When Going Through Hell... Don't Stop! A Survivor's Guide to Overcoming Anxiety and Clinical Depression.

1. When Going Through Hell...Don't Stop! is a monumental work. It offers a compelling story of one person's valiant struggle against a life-threatening depressive illness as well as a comprehensive self-help manual on treating depression. What I liked most is that the book is so accessible. It lays out practical coping strategies that a person suffering from depression or their caregiver can use on a daily basis. I also like that the author was healed by spiritual intervention, showing that alternatives do exist when drugs don't work. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is struggling with depression or anxiety, or to anyone who wants to give a loved one with a depressive disorder the gift of hope.



2. Since reading When Going Through Hell...Don't Stop I have put its coping strategies to use in helping a good friend recover from depression and anxiety. So far, there has been definite improvement in his depression. Everyone involved is thankful for Mr. Bloch's sound words of advice. This book has a wellspring of information to offer for anyone who is suffering from depression or their friends and caregivers.



3. I appreciated his thoroughness. Lots of web sites to contact for all types of depression. Also a strong focus on spirituality. It gives everyday help.



4. Thank God for this book. I am going through hell with anxiety and clinical depression. This book has coping strategies. I think most readers know something about clinical depression. Yet it is the combination of clinical depression and anxiety that is so devestating. This book attacks the combination.
   
   The hardest part is that one can't stop when in this sickness. The only solution is to keep going. Hence, the perfect title for this book which is "When Going Through Hell, Don't Stop." If one stops, then one drowns in the condition.



5. This book was very easy to read. It was helpful to know how the author felt during his depressive episodes and how he managed his symptoms. I learned a lot about the different Depressions (and its symptoms). And how to find help and support while I am battling my Major Depression and Anxiety. I feel that I am not the only one who suffers from Depression. The Depression and Anxiety rating chart is an excellent idea and it helps me track my moods on a daily basis.

1 comments about Even If I Spill My Milk?.

1. My three year old daughter just loves this book. I think the familiar situation rings very true to her little three-year-old heart. The story is very simple, yet conveys a consistent message of love and follow-through. The pictures, too, are straight forward.... nothing fancy, yet nicely convey the story at hand. If you are having trouble with leaving your child when the babysitter comes, this is a good read. It also does a good job of re-affirming that question "will you always love me, Mommy?"

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No comments about The Big Day at School.

3 comments about How to Solve Word Problems in Geometry (How to Solve Word Problems (McGraw-Hill)).

1. This book hardly teaches "how to solve word problem in Geometry". It just crams as much geometry definitions and theorems as it can into small space which can only confuse students that are already confused. In fact, the listing of concepts are not ordered well either.

   I almost gave this book 1 star rating since I strongly believed this book DID NOT do the job as its' cover seem to promise. But!...I gave the author some credit for her good intentions and thought about some that it MIGHT benefit...

   First, she gives us the shortest Geometry review ever! (I think even Cliff Notes does more)...and points to couple of examples that are somewhat helpful. It adds short exercises (about 10 per chapter) with complete solutions (which is nice). Yes, it may be good for those that want to quickly review (or the quickest review), but there are other books out there that are MUCH more...MUCH better.

   I recommend: Geometry the Easy Way by L. Leff. And in many Test Prep. books like those of SAT and GRE contains surprisingly good reviews on Geometry with very insightful problems. I personally like Kaplan's materials.

   One more note: The other book of this series "How to Solve Word Problems in Algebra" on the contrary does an excellent job! It really helps.




2. The book has a concise review of geometry. It lists about five to ten related theorems at a time, and then gives about two examples for each. This would be a good review of geometry for someone who is preparing for the SAT or GMAT if there were not so many typos. There are typos such has having the wrong diagram for a given question and listing questions that are not consistent with information in the associated diagrams.

   If you are learning geometry for the first time or expect difficulty in re-learning geometry, I would not recommend this book. However, if you need just a quick geometry refresher, then you can probably detect the typos without too much frustration and learn the basic theorems of geometry.




3. i picked up this book just 4 the fin of it, 4 lil geometry problem drill. goodness, so so many mistakes were found. first of all, this book is only good 4 people who alredy know geometry, not 4 ppl who hope 2 learn sum of it by reading this book, cuz if i dint no geometry b4 pickin up this book, i would be at a complete lost. 2ndly, the book has made so many mistakes in answers and problem solving techniques that, again, if u dint no how 2 solve the prob b4hand, u would b at a complete lost. lastly, the book would overwhelm its reader with all its definitions, postulates, and theorems. only about 1/5 of the whole book is actually problem solving and the problems are not even that "advanced" to play around with, only the typical ones u would find in any geometry textbook. the book, in my opinion, dusnt even really deserve 2 stars, but i'm nice. :) (P.S. try the how to solve word problems 4 algebra 1, a much more better and thorougly ritten book).

1 comments about Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule (ADIS-IV) Specimen Set: Includes Clinician Manual and One ADIS-IV Client Interview Schedule (Treatments That Work).

1. This is the third diagnostic interview schedule I've used (the other two were the DIS and the SCID), and it came highly recommended as state of the art for anxiety disorders and related diagnoses. In attempting to implement it, however, our research team found it not logically ordered, confusing and unnecessarily difficult (e.g., the developers have fondness for using multiple 9-point scales for rating symptoms, without fully defining either anchor points or cut-offs). I'm not sure how people really use this instrument, but as for us, we've gone back to the SCID, which is much clearer and easier to use. If you are intent on using it, I would recommend getting special training in its use (including, presumably, which bits of it to ignore).

No comments about The Pregnancy and Postpartum Anxiety Workbook: Practical Skills to Help You Overcome Anxiety, Worry, Panic Attacks, and Obsessions and Compulsions.