5 comments about Love Letters of Great Men and Women From The Eighteenth Century To The Present Day.

1. For those only interested in this book because of the SATC movie the letter varies slightly. I'm not sure that many people know that it is a great mystery whom the "immortal beloved" is referring to by Beethoven. There are many theories about who "immortal beloved" is and there is even a movie about it...but no one knows. I love that. I love to read that letter and I feel like I am given a brief glimpse into someone's secret heart and I wonder how she felt about him.



2. This book has all of the love letters from the SATC movie that I was looking for. It's a beautiful edition.



3. I adore this book, and the theme behind it. As a romantic at heart and as one of those girls that would love to believe in true love, this book confirms to me that it is actually possible to find your soul mate. Now I'm not saying this book is for the people that want to read about happily ever after's, because in reality most of these love letters are dated and back when Beethoven was in love with the imfamous "Immortal Beloved" people didn't always get to have a happily ever after. The letter's are more based on the Romeo and Juliet scenario. You find your true love but you are destined to forever be apart. However, those facts do not take away from the remarkable truth that these letter's were written by real people for real people, and while reading them you can find yourself trasported to that place and time, and feel just as loved and adored.



4. Some of the letters I have to question why they were included. $5.99 would be a better price for this. Extremely disappointed.



5. This is of course the book eluded to in the Sex and the City movie. I have been able to take quotes out of this book and pass them along to my girlfriend when she is having a bad day. She really appreciates the inspiration these love letters provide to her and I get big brownie points for the romantic implications. I need all the help I can get.

3 comments about The Cuddle Sutra: An Unabashed Celebration of the Ultimate Intimacy.

1. The author states that cuddling is the most intimate method of touch...and after looking through this book I would have to agree. My fiance and I are usually attracted to more explicit and edgier books, but we couldn't resist buying this one because it reminded us of how we cuddle. We especially liked the ideas on ways to hold each other while out in public.



2. The world is certainly full of sex books. It seems that you can't talk about connecting with a person physically without it meaning sex. That's really sad! Some of the most powerful touches are NOT sexual. They are the holding of a hand as you walk down a tree-lined path ... they are curling up together on the couch to watch a romantic movie. The feeling that rushes through you when you run into your lover's arms after a long absence is one of the ultimate sensations in the world. Sex comes in a feeble second!
   
   I am just SO glad that The Cuddle Sutra helps to encourage people to rediscover this lost art. From the moment we are born we want to be held. Infants relish being snuggled in their parents' arms. Teens love to snuggle. Where do we lose track of just how powerful snuggling and cuddling can be? If anything is worthy of a book, cuddling is.
   
   There are cuddles of all levels in here. Let's start with the public cuddles. The book gives you a variety of choices. I love the pinkie clasp; we actually do this sometimes and it's delicate and powerful at the same time. There are the hands-in-back-pockets, the side by side, the full body press. The illustrations help you see and understand how snuggly each position is.
   
   How about when you're hanging out with your lover on the couch? There are numerous options for reading, watching TV, or just hanging out. There's the position where you sit on either end, twining your legs and massaging the toes. How about where one person stretches down the length of the couch, and the second snuggles in against their chest? There are numerous options explained, each more comfortable than the previous.
   
   Finally, there are cuddles meant for people who do share a bed. I don't mean that in a sexual way - but the cuddles are meant for both people to be able to sprawl a bit. You could do them on a picnic blanket out in the park, or on the floor of the rec room while you lay out to watch a movie. There are the classic ones, where you spoon up against each other to stay warm, and the comfy ones, where you lay your head on your partner's tummy as a pillow.
   
   If I have any complaint with the book, it's that it starts with the in-bed positions right off. That is going to discourage the MANY people out there who are not living with their partners. You want to start subtle, with the walking cuddles and the couch cuddles. You work your way up to the full body cuddle.
   
   So I highly recommend that any person who wants a vibrant relationship get this book - but start from the BACK. Tune up your snuggling as you walk, your subtle touches. Then nuzzle a bit on the couch or at the movie. This is about intimacy of the purest, most wonderful kind. It is about rekindling the human touch that we all crave.



3. While sex is a great thing, sometimes a person just wants to be held and touched. Cuddle Sutra is a sweet book to give a partner and shows various cuddling positions. It's not deep or thought-provoking, but I think it wasn't meant to be. I am giving it to my girlfriend and we'll see how the cuddling goes. :)

5 comments about The Sleepeasy Solution: The Exhausted Parent's Guide to Getting Your Child to Sleep from Birth to Age 5.

1. I felt this was the only book to recognize parent's fear of crying, as well as having a healthy time expectation of not training before 4-5 months, when babies should still be getting nighttime feeds. It also offered lots of good ideas on how to get ready to train, to minimize crying, and reasonable advice. Such as not going cold turkey with crying it out or dropping all of their sleep-associations such as swaddling and pacifiers, all at once. This allowed us to gradually get our daughter used to falling asleep without her pacifier, THEN we worked on getting her out of her swaddle (which she was SO ready for and happier out of---but she was just used to it).
   Some hardcore attachment parenting types may get indignant at the thought of their child crying, but my daughter now cries LESS, now that she knows how to soothe herself. I hear her cooing as she gets put down to sleep and she wakes up LAUGHING. (no lie) she is SUCH a happier baby now! And she never had to cry for more than 7 minutes, from the very start of her training. now she rarely cries for 1-2 minutes, if she wakes in the night, and then zonks right back out and the whole family is happier! You do your child no favors by denying them the skills to make themselves happy.



2. This is a good book with good insight. It is a cry it out method. Unfortunately I haven't done the steps yet because my baby has been going through some transitions and growth spurts. Basically, it's a system that gets baby to sleep through the night gradually weaning off his nighttime feedings and feeding him more during the day. I think it's a good book with a good theory as long as you DO IT!!! I guess that's the only way for any baby, just let them cry and always have a good routine for them. I was kinda hoping for something that wouldn't involve so much crying. Oh well!



3. Our six-month old daughter was doing well sleeping through night, but we had to go through an elaborate process of rocking her and putting her down several times to get her to sleep. She was also sleeping in an Amby-bed and it was time to move her to her crib. The first two nights were difficult, with crying for 45 minutes, then 25 minutes. But the results have been great since then. She is sleeping more at night and during her naps and seems much happier because of it. I was avoiding Ferber and "cry it out" methods and chose this book because it is advertised as the "least cry" method. Really, though, I don't see that it's much different than Ferber. So, be prepared for some good solid crying the first few nights. But it works very well, and the benefits to your baby of getting good sleep day and night far outweigh a few nights of crying. I would also read Marc Weissbluth's book (Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child) for good background information on the importance of sleep for babies.



4. I was looking to try anything to get our 8 month old to sleep at night. This was a last hope purchase. It was AMAZING. Within 3 nights our little guy was sleeping for 8 1/2 hours. I am a true believer in this system.



5. This is pretty much the same as the Ferber "cry it out" (i.e. ignore your baby no matter what) method, which I believe is too harsh.
   
   Instead, I highly recommend The Baby Sleep Solution: A Proven Program to Teach Your Baby to Sleep Twelve Hours a Night by Suzy Giordano. Not only does it not require ignoring your baby's crying, it also gently guides them to sleep TWELVE hours a night, not 9 or 10! And there are many other benefits as well.

5 comments about I Brake for Meltdowns: How to Handle the Most Exasperating Behavior of Your 2- to 5-year-old.

1. Although the toddler and preschool ages are wondrous years of learning and discovery, they are often overshadowed by power struggles, tantrums, and battles. It can be a very frustrating time for both parents and children. As I'm currently in the throes of raising twin four-year-old boys, I immediately jumped at the chance to read "I Brake for Meltdowns: How to Handle the Most Exasperating Behavior of Your 2- to 5-Year-Old." Finally, a book has been written to help me cope when life with little ones makes me wonder if I'm truly adequate for the job of parenting!
   
   What I really like about this book is that it's practical. It gives real solutions for how to handle very specific scenarios. In fact, the list is so extensive that you're sure to find a solution to your particular parenting problems. Written by Michelle Nicholasen--a mom who had five children in five years (including triplets)--and Barbara O'Neal--a mother of three children (and three grandchildren) who has worked with preschool-aged children for more than 40 years--the authors bring a wealth of wisdom and experience to the table. Every parent with a 2- to 5-year-old needs to pick up "I Brake for Meltdowns." It will give them hope that they can survive the trials of raising toddlers and preschoolers!



2. In addition to its ultra-helpful table of contents organized by situation ("Won't let you leave the bedroom;" "Ignores you or others;" "Won't get fingernails clipped"...), I was delighted to see that I Brake for Meltdowns also includes a range of "What Ifs" covering some of the many possible curveball responses that kids come up with (because, at least in my experience, the absurdly neat child-response scenarios in many other parenting advice books often read like fairy tales. Or some serious wishful thinking). The authors have a clear respect for children. Unlike many advice books which are focused solely on using Skinnerian discipline to control behavior, IBfM offers insight into children's motivations and developmental stages along with advice on how parents can help children learn to be pleasant, civilized people. And the authors' down-to-earth, been-there-done-that tone about the sometimes maddening business of childrearing makes it a companionable read.



3. Highly recommend! As a mom of 4 children aged 11 down to 2, it's not often that I have time to pick up a parenting book anymore. But this great book kept me reading & gave me some helpful new parenting tools for my arsenal. It would be a wonderful resource for new parents, too.
   
   Targeted to common parenting challenges -- e.g., pushing, mean & angry talking, refusing to stay at the dinner table -- the book suggests very specific words & actions parents can use with young children for each particular issue -- with a loving, respectful, but firm tone that most of us aspire to, but don't always achieve. So busy parents can flip right to the problem at hand for a quick refresher on an ideal response, or for another approach to try when you're stuck in a parenting rut. The authors include lots of examples & solutions from their own experience that really ring true & make this a much more practical & helpful resource than most of the parenting books I've consulted over the years.



4. Wow! This book is truly amazing. The information is really practical and applicable for both parents and early childhood teachers. The table of contents makes it especially user friendly; no need to reread the entire book for problem-specific solutions, though you may find it impossible to put down! Thank you, Michelle and Barbara!



5. I love this book. I've read some chapters with my daughter (instead of just me reading it, I read it to her like a story book, ha), and it works! Especially the "won't say hello to greeters" & "won't give a relative a hug or kiss"...works right way!!!

5 comments about 100 Percent Erotica.

1. This is in my opinion without doubt the most sexually charged book I have ever read. Red hot short stories that don't waste time with a lot of trivia, there is of course a little bit of scene setting, there has to be, but it is not plodding and you won't be looking at your watch thinking when is it going to get going. In fact the settings are real life, situations and places we all recognise (well, some of them are a bit surreal, but we've been there in our dreams), and then we get right down to the business. Also I think its unusual for a book of short stories of this kind to be written by one person, usually several writers contribute, so there is inevitably a little déjà vu to be felt. However that is a minor criticism, I didn't expect great literature, I expected great sex, and that is what I got. I'd love to be a fly on Ms. Van Aartman's bedroom ceiling, she has a fantastic imagination and if her sex life is only half as good as her book, it's a wonder she has the energy left to write.
   
   Her style of writing puts over the characters and situations as very believable, even though the physical attributes of some of them are bordering on the superhuman. Again, that isn't a major criticism, because lets face it we all really yearn for the XXXXL occasionally. Although highly erotic, it is tasteful and warm; there is no nasty sordidness in the stories and it gives me the feeling that I could be living these situations. The atmosphere of the book has a sort of quaint English feel about it as well, which is in part indicated by some of the spelling and grammar. That gives me a particular tingling glow as I was very much in love with someone from over there and this book always makes me think of that brief but enchanting affair.
   
   As for comments I've read about the book being `boring and repetitious' well I have to say, if anyone has a sexual imagination greater than this, don't waste your time criticising, put pen to paper and start writing. If you can improve on this, and write a hotter book than this, there will be a queue six wide and as long as the Great Wall of China waiting to buy it, with me at the front.



2. Nice short stories before going to bed. Also gives some romantic ideas to try with your own love life. This book will help give new spice to your bedroom dreams.



3. This has got to be the hottest book of erotica I have ever read. Many of the others seem cool and restrained by comparison, but this delivers red hot passion and goes all the way. The characters come over as warm and real, even if some of them are exceptionally well endowed (well we all dream don't we), they could be you or me or the ordinary couple next door, and I think that is what gives this book its appeal.
   
   All the stories are obviously written by one person, rather than different writers as in most anthologies and occasionally you do get a feeling of being there before. But that doesnt detract from the book because the stories are red hot, and come on guys you don't look at the wallpaper when you are lighting the fire, do you. This book definately raises the passion within and I can highly recommend it.



4. This is a collection of short erotic fantasies, most of them are 4 to 6 pages long. They are all told in the first person with about three quarters of them told from the female perspective. The sex described is all vanilla, by which I mean there is no S&M, no humilation, no fetishes, no rape. There is one where the man is tied up. Most of the stories are about heterosexual couples. There is one lesbian fantasy. There are about five stories about multiple partners. However, don't think that vanilla means boring. Absolutely not.
   
   One story is about a man who is visited by female aliens from a planet where the males have all died. They've come to mate with an Earth man, and they've brought a drug that turns him into a sex god. Another good one is about the CEO and the cleaning lady.
   
   A number of the stories feature women who are over forty. Also there are a few about older women, younger men. Apparently the author is British, so she uses British English. Americans won't have trouble with that, but it does mean uncircumcised men are described, which may be a plus or minus depending on your taste.
   
   I am definitely hoping this author will write another book very soon.



5. A wonderful collection of very erotic stories, an absolute pleasure. Believable situations about ordinary people of all ages and shapes enjoying their sexual freedom to the full. It certainly inspires the imagination and has certainly given me some good ideas (my husband thinks I've been taken over by alien forces). He has read the story about the lucky man who has been visited by lust hungry female aliens and imagines I'm one of them. There are a number of stories that concern the more mature lover, and I think those are my personal favorites, but all of them are good and there is even a hint of humor in there. If erotic short stories are your thing also have a look at Best Women's Erotica 2008

5 comments about The Fountainhead.

1. One of my favorites. Have read it twice. A must read for today's world.



2. This novel predates Atlas Shrugged, and sometimes reads like a prequel telling the backstory of John Galt's life before he went on strike in Atlas. In its focus on individual characters, it sharpens the picture of pain and painful consequences to significant choices that drive the character's in Rand's objectivist world, so in some ways is more interesting and readable than Atlas Shrugged. It is more traditionally novelistic and less explicitly philosophical.



3. My first thought while reading this book was "Why does Rand hate women so much?" There does seem to be a misogynistic theme throughout the text, which is unfortunate because the story is pretty decent. Like "Atlas Shrugged," the characters here are one-dimensional and not terribly interesting, but Rand writes some good descriptions and the plot is good enough to make you want to finish it. Even though it's clear what her philosophy is in this book, she doesn't beat you over the head with it nearly as much as she does in her other fiction books. That said, you still do get the sense that if you don't agree entirely with how Rand feels about certain things (like, say, the arts), then you are an idiot and are part of the problem. Some authors are masters of subtly, but Rand isn't. She's about as subtle as a picture book for toddlers. If you can put up with this style of writing, then the book shouldn't be a problem. If you like shades of grey and think that the world doesn't exist solely in black and white, you might want to skip this, along with "Atlas Shrugged."



4. In the Fountainhead, Ayn Rand presents her philosophy of objectivism told through the lives of her characters. The protagonist is architect Howard Roark who portrays the epitome of the heroic individual standing against mediocrity. The villain is media figure Ellsworth Toohey who is known for raising up what is insignificant and tearing down what is excellent. Don't be surprised if many of the events and dialogue in this book rings true in regard to current events.
   
   I read Atlas Shrugged before Fountainhead and found Atlas Shrugged to be much more compelling and a better presentation of Rand's philosophy. Fountainhead is still worth reading but is not quite as good.



5. I bought a used book in good condition. This book arrived very fast and of course was in a better condition than my expectation. I am happy with my current purchase and would like to continue in future.

5 comments about Your Baby's First Year: Week By Week (Your Pregnancy Series), Second Edition.

1. I liked this book so much with my first child, I am re-reading it with my second and it is my standard first baby gift.



2. This was a bargain book that indicated it may have a "small mark from the publisher or an Amazon price sticker." The price sticker was there and that was fine. However, the cover has a long carpet-knife mark all the way down one side, the front and back covers are bent and have small tears. the binding is loose toward the end of the book. There was a stain that, luckily, I was able to wash off. This book was a gift for a young, new mother and I didn't have time to return. I will know better next time. GR



3. We used it every day. It is a day by day guide. The entries are short which is important at that stage because you don't have a lot of time. We left it in our bathroom and that was enough to have time to read it every day. It really lets you know what to expect(what they could be doing or physical developments).It also gives you a good idea of when to go to a doctor. It also teaches quite a bit of what new parents need to know to take care of their babies.(Just don't be thrown off by what they put in for the first week- It's what you need to know but you may not have the time for it. That week is better to read ahead if you can.) LOVE IT!!!!



4. This book is a great reference tool for any new parent. With week by week insights into how your baby is developing, and what to expect along the way, it's the best book I've found.



5. i, too, bought this book because I liked the pregnancy version - but babies are just not as regimented as pregnancy. the advice, ostensibly written by doctors, is really off (e.g. solids at 4 months, a baby is supposed to be talking at 9 months, etc).

5 comments about I'm Going to be a Big Sister.

1. This book is very informational on a child's level. My daughter will be 4 in a couple of weeks and she understands it well. The book gets your child to know 'amanda' the character in the book whose mommy is expecting. It tells about mommy's physical changes and the developing baby's changes. It also eases the mind by telling your older child that she will get to spend time with grandma while mommy's at the hospital. Great book! Highly recommended!!



2. THis book is pretty cute. My daughter is 5 and liked it. She wanted me to change the names in the book to read her as the main character. This book tells about little things like small objects and toys to keep away from the baby and what the baby should play with and little details of how important the big sister is too. It also shows a little about how the baby is born.



3. I think this book was a good way to talk about the changes mommy will be going through as the baby grows inside her, but personally, I felt like the explanation of how the baby will come out is TOO much information for my 3 year old. Plus, I am having a c-section which is a completely different topic of discussion. We just skipped that page (I may follow another person's review and cut the page out altogether). I may save the page in case one day my daughter asks me those kinds of questions. I may not use it as my tool for showing her, but I may use it to give me ideas about how to appropriately explain it to her depending on her age and ability to handle that kind of information. I know that this particular issue is a matter of opinion and preference among families. I believe it was the author's effort to reach a wider range of age groups and to bring up an honest subject. Just handle it the way you feel is best.



4. I just had to respond and say I'm very disappointed to read that a few reviewers found this book "graphic." There is one page in the book that shows a mommy's belly (really mostly a profile view) with a uterus and a baby inside. There is a very vague line that is supposedly the "birth canal" and the line goes off into ambiguousness since the legs are profile. The text says nothing except that baby is in mommy's uterus and when it gets too big for the uterus, it comes out the birth canal. I find it disturbing how strong of a reaction this has gotten by readers. Why is the female anatomy so shameful? Regardless, the detail is so vague, that I'm sure if someone is disturbed by it, there are easy ways to brush off this conversation. I have decided to raise my daughter to know and understand her body, not to treat the subject in a shameful dirty way. This book is beautifully and tastefully done. Please don't strike it from your list because of these reviews.



5. While this book starts very innocent about half way it gets quite graphic using words like birth canal and uterus with pictures that I felt were a little strong for a 2 year old. This is likely a great book for a 4-5 year olds and up. I ended up returning it as I felt the content was a bit much for a 2-3 year old.

5 comments about Dangerous Games (Tempting SEALs).

1. I'll admit, there's something about those SEALs that just make me hot! Every one I've ever read about is the ultimate Alpha, and Clint is no exception. And Morganna is the type of heroine that I love. Strong, capable, and willing to do whatever it takes. I'd definitely recommend this series to friends.



2. I wasn't emotionally drawn into the story. It was easy to put down. The ending was happy but didn't elicit the emotions I like to feel at the end of the book. It was predictable. Nothing surprised or delighted me. The writing was ok. It didn't have any of my major pet peeves.
   
   This was a typical good guys fighting bad guys with moles and spies in each others' camps. Clint and Reno are Navy SEALS. They grew up together and are best friends. Reno's sister Morganna is 9 years younger. She has been in love with Clint all her life. She pursued him, but he always kept a distance. There are 3 main dominant/submissive clubs in the area. Morganna knows Clint is a dominant and frequents those clubs. She has been going to the same clubs for three years, but doesn't go when Clint might be there to see her. She becomes an agent for the DEA and continues going to those clubs as bait in their efforts to get the bad guys involved with a new date rape drug. Clint discovers her there, and she and Clint finally get together. He has issues from his past due to abuse from his parents. The sex scenes in the story involve body piercings, rear door activity, exhibitionism, bondage and submission.
   
   Story length: 344 pages. Sexual language: strong/erotic. Number of sex scenes: 14. Length of sex scenes: 4 short scenes (1 page or less) and 10 long scenes (average length 5.5 pages with 3 scenes 8 to 9 pages long). Setting: current day Atlanta, Georgia. Copyright: 2006. Genre: erotic contemporary romance.
   
   For a list of my reviews of other Lora Leigh books, see my 4 star review of "Tempting the Beast" posted 6/30/08.



3. This is my first...and my last Lora Leigh book.
   Apart from disliking the story, the characters, the setting, and the repetition...the mistakes were unforgivable. They weren't abundant in the first part, (small but obvious errors - such as inconsistent placement of characters and dialogue from one scene to the next) but towards the end of the book, characters in the scene were given the wrong names. At first I thought I missed something so I went back and re-read the lines. Sure enough the wrong names were used ... several times. It's as though the author got bored and lazy toward the end and just wanted to be done with it. How does something this bad and this unprofessional get published?



4. I haven't read the first story in this series, the short story Reno's Chance in the anthology, Honk If You Love Real Men so I felt a little lost when guys started popping up left and right. I just felt like I was inundated with too much information too fast. The plot also looked more intricate than it really was and when it finally unfolded, I felt let down. The bad guy and girl were just too pathetically stupid after all that buildup.
   
   Clint McIntyre was the type of guy who was way more complicated than he needed to be. He had too much baggage for someone like me to want to hitch a ride on and his momma issues were particularly unsavory in light of his sexual preferences. It made me question whether he even liked women and made me wonder if he secretly substituted his mother whenever he was "disciplining" a submissive. Nasty. Morganna seemed a little flighty to me. I didn't dislike her, nor did I particularly care about her. She was just, eh.
   
   The sex in Dangerous Games was overblown and at times, silly. Clint has an emergency overnight bag that just happens to have a butt plug in it? WTF? Who the heck travels with an emergency butt plug? The premiere Dom of Atlanta, that's who. Whatever.
   
   This book was overdone and a little overwrought in my most humble opinion. It took itself waaay too seriously and felt like an absurd caricature. I just can't recommend it. It was just okay, it wasn't awful but nor can I see where this could have been better without stripping everything down and starting again. This was my first Tempting Seals book and now I'm no longer enthusiastic to try any more. I've read Wild Card, which I loved and while it too had a lot of emotions running around it worked for me, Dangerous Games just fell flat. :(



5. Excellent, riveting storyline with two interesting & entertaining main characters. Clint the strong, troubled alpha male & Morganna the equally matvelously strong female who gives as good as she gets. Truly an enjoyable read.

3 comments about The Optimistic Child: A Proven Program to Safeguard Children Against Depression and BuildLifelong Resilience.

1. I had read this author's book "Learned Optimism" which was oriented to adults. The Optimistic Child gives an emphasis to the parent-child relationship instead which is a great addition to his prior work. I found it a little more technical in its writing than the adult version, but not too difficult to read. I highly recommend it for parents trying to help their children to be positive and optimistic in life.



2. This is the most helpful book I have ever read for helping your children cope with anxiety and pessimism. It provides you with tools and techniques for building a solid foundation of optimism. A psychiatrist recommended this to me, and I have since recommended it to friends.



3. Dr. Seligman has put much effort in the writing of this book. The materal, although aimed for parents, I found it very beneficial as a primary care pediatrician. I encounter depression among children almost daily. Dr Seligman helps me to understand the problem with great case discussion and practical strategies. Especially, the questionnaire used in his study was also included in the book and it was very useful. I enjoy reading the book and parents are please that I can offer help for them and their children.