No comments about A Woman with a Past, A God with a Future: Embracing God's Transforming Love.

4 comments about Bird Cards: The Healing Power of the Bird Kingdom.

1. What a wonderful discovery these cards are! I have used them every day and am always refreshed by the beauty and richness of the drawings and the invitation into alignment the texts offer. Whatever one believes about mysticism, one cannot help but notice and be grateful for the uncanny relevance of the messages for spiritual growth. They are wise, profound and helpful. Treat yourself!



2. "You are moving on the wings of Light to a new harmonic. We know about sound, and we know about flight. We can lift you up and help you fly. These Bird Cards are given to you all to connect with us, so that we can begin our task of moving you to this lighter expression of yourselves. We do things joyously, so this will be joyous too. Each of you is beautiful beyond your present very limited conception of yourselves. We see the beauty in you; we know where you have come from and we know where you are going--come with us." - From the Bird Cards companion book
   
   Marrying the insightful prose of South African author Jane Toerian with the soft, colorful renderings of Netherlander Joyce Van Dobben, the Bird Cards box set is a gentle yet powerful gift from the bird realm. From Robin to Crow, Hummingbird to the Phoenix, the Bird Cards oracle deck offers 55 cards dedicated to imparting feathered wisdom to the human realm.
   
   The 159-page companion book provides affirmations and messages from each bird, as well as seven comprehensive spreads, artist notes and the fascinating introduction into the creation and birth of the Bird Cards set.
   
   By tapping into the overlighting consciousness of each bird through divination, intention or affirmation, we can gain both wide perspective and minute insight into whatever concerns or perplexes us. For example, if you draw the Duck card, you may be extremely hard on yourself and the overlighting Duck energy wants to alert you to ways that you are self-destructive--and where, and why, you need to give yourself more credit and support.
   
   Or perhaps the Divine is prodding you to identify discord in your life, and by drawing the Thrush card, its overlighting consciousness encourages you to soothe dissonant tones with the antidote of healing melody, light-heartedness, harmony and laughter.
   
   Here are several other feathered friends featured in the Bird Cards box set:
   
   * Pigeon
   * Dove
   * Eagle
   * Owl
   * Lark
   * Sparrow
   * Nightingale
   * Ibis
   * Pelican
   * Goose
   * Heron
   * Oriole
   * Turkey
   * Vulture
   * Raven
   * Wren
   * Rooster
   * Partridge
   * Lovebird
   
   From relationships to life purpose, parenting to career, Bird Cards serve as an extraordinary tool for insight, clarity and comfort. I've used this kit several times over the last few months and always find the messages extremely accurate and pointed. Over the last few years, I've experimented with a handful of animal-oriented oracle decks, but this one has been--by far--the most comprehensive, precise and uplifting.
   
   Nature has many messengers and the Bird Cards oracle deck can help you tap into the special energy of foresight and perception found in the feathered kingdom. If you have a special affinity for the element Air or the bird realm, the Bird Cards set will undoubtedly inspire, delight and gently challenge you.
   
   (To see 13 card images from this deck, visit the Reviews--Decks section at JanetBoyer.com)
   
   Janet Boyer, author of The Back in Time Tarot Book: Picture the Past, Experience the Cards, Understand the Present (coming Fall 2008 from Hampton Roads Publishing)



3. These beautiful cards dispense wise advice, comfort, hope, joy and a special light that only birds can transmit.
   
   The first card that I picked up even before reading the book or going through all the set reflected the precise situation I was experimenting for the last 2 weeks. This little bird told me exactly what I needed to hear in order to move forward.
   
   With each card comes a little affirmation/prayer very effective and healing and I love the way each bird relay a message. It feels soft and strong at the same time.
   
   This set is unique and it has been created with love and time. The images and the text are born from the heart of the artists, and have been experimented as well.
   
   Since I have these cards I pick up one each morning and I really appreciate the difference that it makes in my day.



4. my wife and I frequently use the animal "medicine cards" by sams and carson, each morning to give a tone for our day. I purchased these bird cards for the same reason. However, upon reading the descriptions in the book I find they are written more for a professional card reader, voiced for the professional to sort of "tell the fortune" of another person they are reading for. Some of the descriptions fortell warnings and cautions which are not really what I am looking for, but I suppose many people paying for a professional reading might be expecting.
   
   At the same time we also purchased "Bird Signs" by Carbone which I find more pleasant and aimed at an individual using the cards for him or herself.

3 comments about Alive and Well with Neptune: Transits of Heart and Soul.

1. Wow! Buy this book! The chapter entitled "A Neptunian Tour of Our Natal Planets" is alone worth the price of the book and your time! Mr. Tierney simply "becomes" the planet he writes about. He brings the ponderous, foggy Neptune into our daily life so that we may effectively access it's energies and he does so in a manner that I have not experienced in studying any other book on Neptune. There are other excellent books on Neptune and I have read many of them and while Mr. Tierney leaves out none of the features of the other books, he simply relates them more clearly to "this world" and practical every day life.

   Readiing this book is like mining for gold....you won't be sorry you took the time to investigate it's contents!




2. Clarifying the meaning and function of astrological Neptune is not dissimilar to trying to converse underwater. You end up with a bunch of bubbles in your face that pop and leave you with nothing. Bil Tierney found a way to have that conversation about this nebulous ruler of the deep and actually give his readers something they can comprehend, keep and apply. He accomplishes this feat by being not only an adept astrologer, but also a masterful story teller.

   This energetically written book provides much insightful information about Neptune's transits. Tierney includes a sometimes amusing review of our natal planets and houses---all from Neptune's perspective--plus he offers an uncommon way to look at mythological Neptune (especially the stormier side) in his Introduction.

   In Part Two, Bil is describing Neptune's influence in more down-to-earth ways, showing how this planet functions in our day-to-day world.

   Tierney's books reveal he is a deep but practical thinker who is very psychologically astute. And . . (very important to me), he is much fun to read!




3. Just like "Alive and Well with Pluto" and "Alive and Well with Uranus", this book is fabulous in its clear writing and in its thoroughness of coverage. As other reviewers have noted, the murky waters of Neptune are the hardest to fathom, but Tierney makes sense for both practicing astrologers and for those undergoing Neptune transits themselves. He takes the reader through Neptune's transits of houses and planets, explains the themes and suggests ways of navigating them. Indispensable!

5 comments about Love Dharma.

1. That these women attained the levels of wisdom they attained is astonishing enough. That they did so in societies that tended to discourage spiritual practice for women, if not outright saying, "Women aren't fit to do this," is almost inconceivable. In the final analysis, of course, gender isn't the point, for what do wisdom and compassion know of gender? As a man, I place my head at the feet of these women.

   LOVE DHARMA is a true gift. In it, Larkin displays a knack for bridging what normally seems a 2,500 year gap, making these womens' stories our own. The modern stories she adds to them are useful, resulting in what amounts to the best book I've read on romantic relationship, completely lacking the sort of smug, self-satisfied, ultimately useless, advice-of-the-month one often finds in such work.

   I've read every book of Larkin's since STUMBLING. In every case, she seems willing to lay bare her own difficulties in her efforts to help others. It seems her own sincerity is worthy of these remarkable women, and I can't recommend LOVE DHARMA highly enough.




2. This is an excellent Buddhist companion to Cheri Huber's BE THE PERSON YOU WANT TO FIND for its wisdom on navigating relationships (or recovering from a tough one), sexuality, and being alone. Besides sound observations and two cents' worth of advice here and there, with a lot of valuable personal material, Larkin is providing another gift to western practitioners of Buddhism by bringing out old Buddhist stories about female practitioners. Where there is a real need for female models, Larkin has done her research (as well as her practice) and provided some wonderful material showcasing lesser-known Buddhist women in a tradition that has been decidedly male-centered. The two projects blend together into a distinctive and rich book. Very well done.



3. As Geri Larkin's book illustrates, relationship issues are nothing new, and the ancient teachings of the Buddha are rich in wisdom on matters of the heart. Larkin is the author of several spiritual memoirs (FIRST YOU SHAVE YOUR HEAD) and a Zen teacher at the Still Point Buddhist Temple in Detroit. LOVE DHARMA is a relationship guide offering "relationship wisdom from enlightened Buddhist women" who, until now, have been largely unknown outside Buddhist academic circles (p. 5). As such, this is not so much a self-help book, as a collection of Theravadan stories of love, loss, and personal transformation offering us guidance on relationship issues such as "relationship rage" (pp. 53-78), jealousy (pp. 79-101), "the pull of an affair" (pp. 103-127), competition (pp. 129-151), surviving the loss of a lover to death or infidelity (pp. 153-180), the "gift of bone-deep loneliness" (pp. 181-199), and being alone (pp. 201-215). In returning again and again to the Buddha's four noble truths--that life brings with it suffering, that we suffer because we are always wanting something more, that there is a path out of suffering, and that path consists of deep morality mixed with attention to our lives (p. 4)--the simple, "Golden-Rule" teaching of Larkin's LOVE DHARMA is to "treat others as you would like to be treated" (p. 34).

   G. Merritt




4. I had high hopes for this book based on its great title, but the contents fall short. This is bascially a book about the author's personal view of love and relationships, and there are some irrelevant poems by ancient Buddhist nuns thrown in here and there (just a handful in the entire book.)

   The advice the author gives is not always the most enlightening, but fairly common-sense attitudes about how to deal with general relationship issues. That's why I give it two starts instead of just one. I highly suggest you save your money (and the paper used to print this book) and look for love advice elsewhere.




5. While I will agree that this book was a bit "fluffier" than Larkin's others, I had a lot of "A-ha!" moments while reading it. She provides sound insight from a Buddhist perspective in dealing with common relationship emotions: rage, jealously, the desire to have an affair, and loneliness. A very good read.

3 comments about How to Grow Up When You're Grown Up: Achieving Balance in Adulthood.

1. I didn't understand why I always got into the same problems in relationships, but after reading Dr.O'Connor's book I realized the patterns of my own behavior that I have used to sabotage the relationship. I tried her suggestions and now I do things in a different way. Thanks, Dr. O'Connor for the insight and help



2. I just read your book and my impression was really fabulous. I was amazed at how easy it was to understand. With this one book I can begin to help myself and know what kind of help I need. With this book "growing up" can be easier than you think. I highly recommend this book to anyone who needs self improvement and wants to work on giving thier best.



3. I had been deeply emotionally hurt by someone extrememly close to me. I prayed about it -- the hurt and the pain, that is. I told this person that I forgave him and that I would support him. However, I found myself always judging him. I could never get passed the acts he'd done to me. Sure, I'd been told to "let go of the past". But how can you move forward when the trust is gone? Well, one section in Dr. O'Connor's book (pg.74 paperback) released me -- totally. I give high praises to this book and to its author. Dr. O'Connor,what a wonderful job at addressing an issue that many of us deal with inside, but never voice to those around us. You understood us . . . thank you.

5 comments about The Leader In You: How To Win Friends Influence People And Succeed In A Completely Changed World.

1. There are lots of much better books on the subject of leadership. For example, read "The Leadership Challenge."



2. This book is a compilation of excerpts from many other publications. Nothing original.



3. This audio program is an abridged version of the book "The Leader in You." It is in some ways similiar to How to Win Friends and Influence People", but is more of an updated, modern version of that classic.

   This is an excellent audio program for people who want to become leaders, improve people skills and maximize their lives. Not for people who have shallow lives, are not around people and live for the internet.




4. The CD version of this book is very disappointing. It must be an abridged version. If you've read the original,"How To Win Friends & Influence People" then this is nothing more than a brief review of part of that book. It's really all common sense and courtesy (maybe some upper management needs this) but it wasn't new information as far as I was concerned.



5. This book was a complete waste of time. Dale Carnegie's organization has gutted his classic How to Win Friends & Influence People and replaced it with a fluffy and useless "The Leader in You". They make some references to Carnegie's seminal work, but remove most of the meat to leave room for "inspirational" quotes from "important" people. The only nice thing I can say is that it was relatively short. Stick with the original.

No comments about The Asperger Personal Guide: Raising Self-Esteem and Making the Most of Yourself as a Adult with Asperger's Syndrome (Lucky Duck Books).

5 comments about Every Day I Pray: Prayers for Awakening to the Grace of Inner Communion.

1. I have incorporated the prayers in this book my everday spiritual well-being. My fiance' and I read a prayer from this book, and a daily devotional from another book, and I have never felt this close with him before. We take time to pray together and relfect on the devotional for the day every night before we go to bed. God has definitely sent his message through this sister because they are on point almost every day. Thoughts expressed in this reading can apply to almost every area in my life. I love this book!



2. I loved this little book filled with dynamic verses and prayers designed to unlift the spirit and feed the soul, while addressing a variety of subjects and situations that we are often confonted with in life. A prayer book to make reference to for any and all occassions.



3. Prayers for all occasions, a book you will always return to. You will enjoy tremendously



4. Enjoyed the book. Noticed neither Jesus nor the cross referenced a single time. How can a Christian write an entire prayer book and not ONCE mention the Lord, the King, the cross, our ONLY mediator and advocate, the way the truth and the life for us?
   
   (It's a rhetorical question.)



5. I'm a huge fan of Iyanla's and I love almost everything she writes- this book is no exception. It gives you a glimpse into how she communicates with the Divine. It inspired me to add more depth and more honesty to my own prayers. Highly recommended

No comments about The Body Image Workbook.

5 comments about Silver's Spells for Protection.

1. There are SOOOO many GREAT books about wicca and witchcraft out there I certainly wouldn't waste my money again on another ravenwolf book, and I suggest others don't either. I am a solitary practioner for 8 years and have been studying wicca for 10 and when I picked up this book I thought it was very cheesy. There are many many books that focus on different spells to try, with lots of background information on how to do them corectly, this book isn't one of them. It is a lot of pop propaganda made to make wicca and witchcraft look like something out of the movies.
   It is however full of false information made just to look cute so it will sell, sell, sell. This book is not for anyone who is seriously interested in learning Wicca and spells
   This supposedly "advanced" book doesnt go into details on how to focus or make your spells stronger, it doesn't go into the operations and importance to keep your spells safe so they work corecctly, and it doesn't go into making your own spells (which tend to work BETTER). It DOES however make the reader feel like they can just read a spell out loud from the book and it will all work in a puff of blue smoke...which is far from reality.
   Instead of just reading spells from a book a reader should look into expanding their knowledge of witchcraft and of wicca so that they will have a solid understanding of how and why spells do what they do so that they can feel confident in creating meaningful, sucessful spells of their own.
   
   Unfortunatly this book may seem fun but it it is far from what most consider resonable information. Her different of opinions and different practices one can handle as a form of paganism but she portrays a real, religion as a fun and games, do whatever you want choice. I am not in a coven and I am very happy being a solitary practioner but I understand wicca is a religious choice and like any religion there are beliefs and redes which are followed. It is not 'do whatever you want to do and call yourself wiccan'. Yes some things in religion are personal choices but the building blocks of the religion are totally lost on her. Freedom of choice in religion is wonderful and its everyones right but if your choice is to make up your own religion you should not go around saying your wiccan when you do not follow the wiccan ways, Unfortunatly that is EXACTLY what ravenwolf does.
   This book seems a nice commercial, and cutesy to make everything pretty and oh so shiney. If you truely want to learn about wicca and learn how to cast better spells then you need not do the spells in this book but look deeper into magic and learn what makes a spell work and how to improve your spells. Then you won't need a book like this to read aloud from every time you feel you need a change.



2. This book panders to the emotional insecurities of youth. The instances of "psychic attack" which are actual, are a minute percentage compared to those claimed by teen-aged drama queens. SRW tends [especially with this work] to cater to the dramatics of the teen-aged mentality.
   
   If you are searching for a serious book concerning protection for home, land, and psyche, I highly recommend "Psychic Protection: Creating Positive Energies for People and Places," by William Bloom [ISBN: 0684835193], instead of a book which preys on the fears and insecurities of a juvenille mind.
   
   While Bloom isn't my favorite author on any subject, at least he isn't selling poison to children.



3. I know so many people absolutely hate Ravenwolf for one reason or another. I own two books by her (this one and solitary witch), and I've only found a few instances where I scratched my head. Of course, I tend to read everything with a grain of salt and understand that any spell I read can be altered to suit my purpose, etc. Silverwolf is definately not a total fluffbunny in my humble opinion, which can be good or bad depending upon the mindset of the reader. I would suggest that a beginner start somewhere else as this series assumes you have a handle on witchcraft. Please also remember that one person's idea of violating the rede may be different than yours, adjust (or reject) the information you receive to match what you think is right. I found this book to be a nice idea generator when I'm in a situation and need a jumpstart on following through. The information is mostly concise, although there are instances in the book that a little confusing.



4. This book is exactly what it is meant to be, a cook book of spells for protection. The writer doesn't claim it to be anything else. It says on the cover in plain site "Spells for Protection!" If you want more in depth teachings about magic she does get into this subject in other books. Anyone who has been practicing witchcraft for very long knows "anyone" can cast a spell, even if they don't know there doing it. Anger and jealousy are both energy and can be directed by the people feeling them and cause harm to you. I personally like her techniques for protection and use them often. There simple and to the point and she encourages you to customize them to your needs. So many of the people reviewing her books really need to lighten up.



5. I own the collection of Silver's Spells (the first printing), and Spells for Protection is probably the strongest of the series. Protection magick is always a good idea, and RavenWolf emphasizes this in her book. She also says that witches are never to attack, but we are entitled to defend ourselves when necessary, which is true. Right on the first page of the book, she says "Don't Be a Victim...Be a Victor!" which I found to be empowering, especially in an age where protection magick is needed more than ever.
   
   In the opening of the books ("Operating Instructions"), she explains some of the basis of spellwork (when specific spells should be done, correspondences, etc) but the reader should already have at least a basic knowledge of how spells work before moving on to advanced spells, like some in the book.
   
   The book itself is divided into Operating Instructions, Personal Prevention Magick, Banishing Those Lesser Irritations and When Things Get Sticky. The organization is to be applauded.
   
   Something that struck me as setting this book apart from other Protection spell books on the market is the spell that she has in Chapter 4 called "To Bring an Animal Killer or Abuser to Justice", which I have never seen in print before, but is nevertheless something that every animal-loving Witch should have handy.
   
   From minor inconveniences to major catastrophies and everything in between, Silver has got you covered with a spell in this book.