Swamy's Book Reviews

Pretzel on Prozac

2008-02-12T16:14:00.000+05:30

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Title: Pretzel on Prozac - the Story of an Immigrant Dog
Author: Ellen Palestrant
Publisher: Elusive Press
ISBN: 9781587368417
Genre: Animal / Memoir / Literature / Psychology / Immigration
Presentation: Soft cover

Pretzel is a pet dog of the author and when she immigrates to USA from South Africa, it also goes along. Unlike the other pet dog, Pretzel doesn't adjust well and later when the author's house is being remodelled, all the noises made by men and machines add to Pretzel's problems and it develops depression, anxiety etc. The vet puts Pretzel on Prozac, an antidepressant and the title of the book is derived thus. Pretzel becomes normal and after a few years, continues to be normal even after Prozac is withdrawn. Pretzel lives to a ripe 20 years of age.

The book is well written and is at places humorous and poignant. It would appeal to all pet lovers. It brings out well, the problems of adjusting to a new society and environment and shows how other animals are similar to humans if having difficulties of adjusting.

An excerpt:

"How excited Pretzel is to be in motion out in the open. His tail wags vigorously. This is his Lap of Luxury-the Sonoran desert blooming with lus, emerald green golf-courses paved with perpendicular lanes. This is where he struts. Only in the streets of Scottsdale does he take charge of Bailey (the second dog, which normally dominates him - reviewer), lead the expedition, and decide when it's time to sprint. Attached to both their leashes, we obey the dogs and go tearing after them."

The book is edited and printed well.

Recommendation: The book would appeal to pet lovers. Check it out online or at the local book store.

Book Reviews of 2007

2008-02-12T16:10:00.000+05:30

Friday, December 28, 2007

Title: The Sinatra Solution - Metabolic Cardiology

Author: Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D, F.A.C.C.

Publisher; Basic Health Publications Inc.

ISBN: 978-1-59120-158-8

Genre: Non-Fiction/Health

This book is a really welcome addition to the growing field of metabolic cardiology (the role of food nutritional supplements to improve heart health - not a dictionary definition).

Author's Biography: The author Stephen T. Sinatra is a Board Certified Cardiologist, a certified bioenergetic psychotheraist and a certified nutrition and antiaging specialist. At his practice in Manchester, Connecticut, USA, he integrates conventional medicine with complementary nutritional and psychological therapies to help heal the heart. He is an assistant clinical professor at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, and is the author of several books, including Optimum Health, Heartbreak and Heart Disease, Heart Sense for Women, and Eight Weeks to
Lowering Blood Pressure.

About the book: The book gives detailed information, backed by many case studies and other published research papers the role of Coenzyme Q10, L-Carnitine,D-Ribose and Magnesium in maintaining and improving heart health and also diseases of the peripheral blood vessels, muscles and conditions like Fibromyalgia etc.

The introduction by Dr. James C. Roberts, M.D, F.A.C.C. is really excellent and gives a good idea of the subject. Chapter 8 and the Conclusion also are helpful in allowing you to decide whether the book will be helpful for you. Chapters 4, 5, 6 and 7 deal
with the four supplements in detail. The book has a glossary, Resources, References and an Index.

An excerpt: In congesive heart faiure (CHF), like other caardiovascular and many other disease syndromes, he actual root causes can be quite varied, from weakened heart muscle, to overly tight or overly loose heart valves, and so on. And while it is is definitely appropriate that cardiologists (and other medical practitioners) use the conventional drugs mentioned to treat CHF - because they work - consideration toward adding powerful nutritional supports like L - Carnitine, coenzyme Q10, and
D-Ribose is equally judicious.

Only by adding the these three nutritional supports will practitioners be treating symptoms as well as directing nutrition to the cellular level, where it can make a real difference on the undelying pathology. I have watched from the side lines as the simple addition of these nutrients has affected my patients' quality of life most positively... and has even helped them live longer than expected with their heart
conditions.

(From Pages 93 and 94, Chapter 5)

End of the excerpt

I would suggest that you check out the Introduction, the Chapter 8 (Sinatra Solution) and the Conclusion.

About Writing, Editing and Printing: Very good. The subject is very difficult to explain in layman's language but the author and editors tried their best. Printing is very good.

For whom the book is meant: Patients and their care givers. Many health professionals will find this a good handy guide to the field.

Recommendation: An excellent buy for preventive and maintenance care of the heart and general health. Will make an excellent gift to your family members, friends and their cardiologists and of course to yourself too!

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 1:21 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Title: Laughing Sickness A Medical Mystery
Author: Anne Black Gray
Publisher: Bridgeway Books
ISBN: 978-1-933538-93-8
Genre: Fiction/Medical Mystery

The author grew up in semi-rural West Virginia, studied physics at Carnegie Mellon and then migrated to Southern California for a career in Aerospace Engineering. After retiring, she too up her second career (novel writing) at the same time that she was learning of the plight of victims of rare, hard-to-diagnose diseases. The needs of these patients became the inspiration for this, her first novel. The subject is very interesting and has been dealt with beautifully. It indeed reads like a good mystery and the reader is certainly kept waiting for the final diagnosis and to know how the patient fares.

The book gives the reader a good tour through the modern medical system, as experienced by Jessica Shepperd, the heroine of this novel, a sufferer from a hard-to-diagnose illness. She finds that when confronted with the apparently solvable problem, doctors who usually speak with science-backed authority can become irritable, evasive, dismissive and doubtful of the patient's mental soundness. If they can't find a physical reason, "it must be all in her head!" sums up the attitude of some of them.

Her illness changes her relationships with many, and she breaks up with her boyfriend, a doctor himself and who is a control freak. Jessica, on the other hand is obsessed with individual freedom. After a series of wrong diagnoses and after going on long disability leave (which affects her financially), she finally gets the right diagnosis (cataplexy) and hope is rekindled that the right treatment will enable her to lead an almost normal life. She also finds that she can write her experiences well and share with other sufferers. She also finds other people suffering similar problems and enjoys the friendship.

One small excerpt from the book:

Laughter and tickling inevitably cause attacks in over ninety percent of cataplectics.

Like her. May be all her life. When she was a little girl, if someone tickled her or told a joke, she fell. That could have been a precursor to her present condition.

She found little information on the physiology or neurology of cataplexy. It was simplistically described as a mistake, in conjunction with with narcolepsy, where the brain believes it's asleep and dreaming and, just as in normal dreaming, inhibits the body's ability to move. She read that narcolepsy and cataplexy are thought, but as yet not proven, to be autoimmune or autoinflammatory. Nothing was mentioned about sensations of switches flipping in the brain. Or about collapses after acceleration or deceleration.

End of the excerpt.

The books is extremely well written and beautifully printed. The style is engrossing and the suspense is kept up. I could put down the book only with a lot of difficulty and finished the book in 2 or 3 days. There is a lot of useful information about many medical conditions and diagnostic procedures. At the same time, it is entertaining too.

All in all, an excellent read.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 8:25 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Friday, December 07, 2007

Title: The Journey to a pain relief - A hands on guide to breakthroughs in pain treatment

Author: Phyllis Berger

Publisher: Hunter House Publishers

ISBN: 978-0-89793-469-5

Genre: Non-Fiction/Health/Pain Management

The book is both a complete handbook of pain-management options and a detailed introduction to specific cutting-edge techniques. The physiology of pain, the effects of fear, stress and worry, and the importance of the right attitudes that help you in
tapping the body's ability to heal.

Physiotherapy, Acupuncture, magnetotherapy, homeopathy, herbal treatments, prayer, TENS, Electropuncture, Modified Direct Current treatment methods etc. are covered.

The author is a qualified physiotherapist and acupuncturist. She has considerable personal experience with the methods described while trying to get healed from pain.

The book has a very good preface and 12 Chapters on various topics, followed by 3 Appendices, End Notes, Glossary, recommended reading, Resources and an Index. Thus it is a comprehensive manual of pain management and will be useful for patients, care givers and health professionals too. Chapter 3 (Patient, Heal Thyself), Chapter 6 (The Pain Pathways), Chapter 10 (Multimodal Approaches to Chronic Pain) and Chapter 12 (Coping Skills) are especially useful. Other chapters deal with specific techniques like Acupuncture, Electricity in pain management etc.

I would have liked to see Reiki and similar energy healing techniques also discussed, since from my personal experience as a healer, I can attest to their effectiveness.

The book is very useful for sufferers and caregivers alike and is strongly recommended.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 8:42 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: Supercharging Quantum Touch - Advanced Techniques

Author: Alain Herriott

ISBN: 978-1-55643-654-3

Publisher: North Atlantic Books

Genre: Non-Fiction/Health/Healing/Bodywork

Quantum Touch has become quite popular in the recent years and I was somewhat familiar with the topic but did not really know much about it. So, when an opportunity came to review the book, I was very much interested. The preface by Richard Gordon puts the whole book in the right perspective. The ability to sense the energy in one's own body or other is the key to the success of QT healer.

Mary Derr has also contributed to the development of some of the techniques and the whole subject has been presented in an interesting and easy-to-follow way by Alain Herriott. But you would first need a good exposure to the Quantum Touch method and the best way is to use the Quantum-ouch Interactive Video Workshop Package and get some hands on experience of the technique.

A small excerpt from the book:

Imagine a piece of flexible fabric, similar to the ribbing of a sock or cloth with an expandable weave that fits snugly. You can imagine it like an energetic "Ace" bandage. The woven mesh is made up of the basic building block colors: Copper, Silver, and Gold. This elastic light bandage blankets the area of the body where you hold the U-NAN pattern to maximize the healing effect in that area, making it last longer and affect the tissue at a deeper level. You can wrap the area internally, externally, or both. Visualize the are wrapped in this woven pattern and then "shrink wrap it" or make the bandage, snug, but not too tight.

Tip: The flexible body parts, like an elbow, should be wrapped more loosely to allow for greater movement. A disc or a vertebra, however, is not very flexible; therefore wrap it somewhat thickly, above and below the injury site. This gives added support to the weakened area. The same rule applies to broken bones.

End of the Excerpt.

I hope you get a good idea of the book from that. I was taught some similar techniques in my Reiki Classes (Reiki Surgery and similar techniques). I enjoyed going through the book.

The editing and printing of the book is very good.

All in all, it would be a good addition to QT practitioners and others interested in energy healing work.

I have no hesitation to recommend this book strongly along with other resources given at the end of the book. See www.quantumtouch.com and www.thelifeforceproject.org

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 8:08 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: The Foundations of Shiatsu

Author: Chris Jarmey

Publisher: Lotus Publishing, North Atlantic Books

ISBN: 978-1-55643-639-0

Genre: Non-Fiction/Health/Massage

I have only heard of the word Shiatsu but had no idea of what was involved. However, as a healer, I was certainly interested in knowing a little about the technique and I was thus happy when this book came to me for a review.

What is Shiatsu? Shiatsu is a Japanese bodywork therapy - a natural healing discipline from the same ancient oriental medicine principles as acupuncture. Shiatsu works by stimulating the body's vital energy flow in order to promote good health. The practitioner uses palms, thumbs and fingers, elbows, and even knees and feet to apply pressure and stretching to the energy lines known as channels or meridians. Thus it is also similar to acupressure, Sujok and Reflexology.

A short excerpt (Page 65)

Two-hand Connection

The techniques that have the most profound effects upon the receiver's Ki are those that involve having both hands in contact with the receiver's body. The hands are your most sensitive Ki imbalance detectors and Ki projectors. Therefore it stands to reason that two hands should be twice as effective as one hand. Two hands are even more effective if they are separated while in contact, rather than one overlapping the other. ......

End of the excerpt.

It is somewhat similar to the hands-on healing practised by Reiki practitioners.

The book covers the theory and practice of Shiatsu. Also, a comprehensive overview of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as applied to basic shiatsu completes the picture.

The author Chris Jarmey is the Course Director / Principal of the European Shiatsu School.

I confess that I or for that matter any one else cannot become a Shiatsu healer by simply reading the book, excellent as it is. The practical work has to be learnt by working with a Master like Chris.

But if you are interested in learning the technique, you would get a good idea of what is involved by reading the book and thus this book is a good investment and helps you decide whether it is for you.

If you are a massage therapist, an acupuncturist or acupressurist etc., you may consider adding the techniques taught in this book to your practice.

The book is edited and printed beautifully and the number of photos are add a lot of value to the text.

Strongly recommended.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:53 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: The Magic Violin

Author: Mayra Calvani

Illustrator: K. C. Snider

Publisher: Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc.

ISBN: 978-1-933090-49-8

Genre: Fiction / Children

The book is about a 8 year old girl Melina and how she regains her confidence that she can indeed learn the violin through some stratagems of her wonderful teacher Andrea.

When Melina starts losing her self-confidence, Andrea disguises herself as an old woman and tells Melina that her violin will become magical. And the child trusts the old woman and regains her confidence, which is of course the real magic.

The story of course only hints at this stratagem of Andrea and thus the children who read will really enjoy the old woman and the midnight magic so beautifully described in the short but sweet story.

The book is printed well, edited well and the illustrations are very appealing.

All in all, an excellent book for gifting to a child in this festive season.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 2:50 AM 2 comments Links to this post

Monday, November 12, 2007

Title: Secrets from the Sofa
Sub-title: A Psychologist's Guide to Achieving Personal Peace
Author: Dr. Kenneth Herman
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 9780595414321
Genre: Non-Fiction/Psychology/Self-Help

Key Words: Psychology, Change, Coping, Improvement, Self-Helf

'Secrets from the Sofa' is an attempt by a board certified clinical psychologist to share the lessons that he learned from nearly 50 years of practice. In his long career, Dr. Kenneth Herman had the opportunity to listen to the problems of many people and thus gained a deep understanding of human nature and he shares with us the readers, that understanding.

Change is difficult but is not impossible. That is the message that this book gives. The blurb on the back cover says, "With motivation and determination, you will find that your personal peace plan can make a change for the better completely possible. Secrets from a Sofa can lead you to a happier, more fulfilling life. And if you really put your mind to it, it will." I agree with that statement.

The book has eighteen chapters spread over five parts. Part One is titled, "Understanding Why", Part two is titled, "Gearing Up", Part three is called, "Your Personal Peace Process", Part four deals with "Your Emotions and Feelings" and the final part is "Emerging Stronger"

Chapter six has detailed checklists to help you understand yourself better.

The book has a number of case studies and the style is easy and interesting. Names have been suitably changed to protect the privacy of the individuals. It is easy to relate to many of the problems (lack of confidence, indecisiveness, anger etc.) faced by the people in the book.

Additional resources are listed at the end of the book to help you explore specific topics in more detail.

The book is edited and printed well.

The book makes an useful addition to the many self-help books in the field and is recommended.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 8:11 PM 2 comments Links to this post

Thursday, October 25, 2007

Title: Reiki Without Rules
Product Details:

Printed: 231 pages, 6.14" x 9.21", perfect binding, black and white interior ink
ISBN: 978-1-84799-866-8
Publisher: Lulu.com
Rights Owner: Keith Beasley
Copyright: © 2007 Keith Beasley & Pintados Healing Art
Language: English
Genre: Non-fiction/ Health/ New Age/ Self-Help

Reiki Without Rules is an excellent effort by a Reiki Master Keith Beasley to explain what Reiki is, the history of Reiki including the myths that circulate about the origins of Reiki, the need for symbols, the question of charging and all other details.

There are several books on Reiki and each author has rightly presented the material from his/her own perspective. Keith also does the same in this book and thus adds a sincere personal touch to the subject.

The printing of the book is good. A few editorial corrections (very minor) were in order.

The book will appeal to all those interested in Reiki, whether they are beginners or are Masters. I certainly enjoyed Keith's personal journey through Reiki.

I strongly recommend the book.

About the reviewer: Swamy is a Reiki Master from Hyderabad, India and has written articles on Reiki.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 12:01 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Labels: Health, New Age, Reiki

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Title: Links to Reviews published by Metapsychology

The reviews of the following books were originally published in metapsychology.net

Eastern Body, Western Mind
Psychology and the Chakra System as a Path to the Self
by Anodea Judith
Review by S. V. Swamy on Mar 14th 2006

When It Gets Dark
An Enlightened Reflection on Life with Alzheimer's
by Thomas DeBaggio
Review by S. V. Swamy on Apr 6th 2005

Hatred
The Psychological Descent into Violence
by Willard Gaylin
Review by S. V. Swamy on Apr 12th 2004

Pox
Genius, Madness, and the Mysteries of Syphilis
by Deborah Hayden
Review by S. V. Swamy on Jan 4th 2004

The Churkendoose Anthology
True Stories of Triumph over Neurological Dysfunction: Insights into the Holistic Approach to NeuroDevelopment and Learning Efficiency
by Judith Bluestone (commentator)
Review by S. V. Swamy on Oct 1st 2003

The Cancer Monologue Project
by Tanya Taylor and Pamela Thompson (editors)
Review by S. V. Swamy on Aug 18th 2003

A Life Shaken
My Encounter With Parkinson's Disease
by Joel Havemann
Review by S. V. Swamy on Jun 25th 2003

It Takes a Worried Man
by Brendan Halpin
Review by S. V. Swamy on May 5th 2003

Bone
by Marion Woodman
Review by S. V. Swamy on Dec 22nd 2002

Limbo
A Memoir
by A. Manette Ansay
Review by S. V. Swamy on Jul 3rd 2002

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 4:00 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: Eastern Body Western Mind
Sub-title: Psychology and the Chakra System as a Path to the Self
Author: Anodea Judith

* Paperback: 488 pages
* Publisher: Celestial Arts; Revised edition (August 2004)
* Language: English
* ISBN-10: 1587612259
* ISBN-13: 978-1587612251
* Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1.4 inches
* Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds

Genre: Non-fiction / Psychology / Healing /

Key Words: Kundalini, Chakras, Psychology, Colors,

The title is rather intriguing and invites the reader who is interested in exploring his/her self. The author is a trained psychologist with additional qualifications in health and human services. She is also trained in bio-energetics, trauma recovery, yoga therapy etc.

The book starts with an introductory chapter that deals with human body, mind etc. and gives an introduction to the seven chakras. Each chakra is then dealt with in a separate chapter. The layout of the chapter on chakra one is given below:

Shades of Red

Unfolding the Petals

Growing the Lotus

Traumas and Abuses

Character Structure

Excess and Deficiency

Restoring the Lotus

Conclusion

A similar structure is maintained for all the chapters on the chakras, which are followed by a concluding chapter.

Since an imbalance of any one chakra leads to imbalance of the other chakras too, a tabular presentation is given in each chapter relating the attributes associated with excess and deficiency of each chakra in respect of some typical personalities (for example the first chakra has a table connecting it to the Schizoid Character Structure).

As a layman with a good interest in and a moderate exposure to psychology, I found the author's discussions of the various examples of personalities and the real life examples interesting and educational. As an Easterner with some background, I found her discussion of the chakras accurate. However, I felt that the attempt at an integration of these two aspects needs some more fine tuning, especially with respect to the style of presentation. I found the author's style rather heavy going at places.

The book is rather exhaustive in its approach and is serious reading. Thus it may be difficult for the prospective buyer to decide whether to go for it or not after a cursory examination in a bookstore. I would however recommend the book to those who have a serious interest in the subject.

I would have liked to see photographs, not line drawings of different psychological profiles listed, and I would have also preferred to see some before-and-after photographs of the same people after chakra work.

Since the book requires multiple readings to be really understood and appreciated, it would have been a good idea to go in for hard-bound edition instead of a soft cover.

2006 S. V. Swamy

S. V. Swamy, India.

Note: The above review was originally published at:
http://metapsychology.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=book&id=3040&cn=139

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 3:44 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Monday, September 10, 2007

Title: "A Secret of the Universe"
Author: Stephen L. Gibson
Genre: Fiction - religious & metaphysical
Publication Date: October 2007 (But it is already available at www.amazon.com and from the publisher)
Publisher: Truth-Driven Strategies
Price: $26.95
ISBN13: 978-0-9793880-0-2
URL: www.truthdrivenstrategies.com
Bound: 6 x 9 Hardcover
Pages: 576
About: This is a story about belief-in God, sexual ethics, morals, political ideologies-told through two friends' struggle to make sense of life's triumphs and tragedies, which they interpret through very different religious filters. When profound revelations lead each friend to uncover shocking historical "secrets" in support of his own world-view, their odyssey plays out on a global stage, with tragic consequences. Only by embracing the inherent mystery and pain of their quest do Ian and Bill make the discovery that really matters-a genuine secret of the universe.

More details of the book at www.truthdrivenstrategies.com.

You can find this book listed on Amazon.com at http://www.amazon.com/Secret-Universe-Story-Discovery-Eternal/dp/0979388007/ref=sr_1_1/002-6362047-3964044?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1179499521&sr=1-1 and you can read excerpts of this book using Google's "Book Search" link at http://books.google.com/books?id=pEIc5SALBFwC&dq=isbn:0979388007.

My own idea about the book: The book is a novel with a few chapters of Non-Fiction interwoven that explores the concept of God from a Christian perspective and through the eyes of two child-hood friends who look at the same teachings from different perspectives.

My reading experience: The book has a fairly good plot and the style is good so that the reader's attention is held for the many hours that the book takes to read. Some of the concepts are not that secret for me since I grew up with different religious teachings and in the course of nearly 60 years on this earth's plane have been exposed to different ideas about truth.

Printing and Editing: Excellent

Recommendation: Strongly recommended, especially to Christians to get a wider perspective of the world. Readers of other religions too will find the book interesting since fundamentalism is not confined to any one religion but is a basic trait of human nature.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 3:09 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Saturday, September 01, 2007

Title: How to Name Paint
Author: Linda Chun Yan Wang
Publisher: NPA Party Productions
ISBN-13: 978-0-9791979-1-8
Genre: Art/ Self-Help

How to Name Paint is a step-by-step introduction to the art of name painting using art forms for the letters of the English alphabet that both children and adults will enjoy. The book contains step by step instructions to the author who is trained in China and the example creations are indeed very appealing. You can see sample pages of the book and other books, kits by the same author at her website, http://www.namepaintingart.com/books.html#

I enjoyed looking at her art creations, though I did not try out anything myself.

In her companion book, Each letter of the alphabet is painted in five different styles in The Art of Name Painting (76 pages Softcover ISBN-13: 978-9791979-0-1 8.5 x 11 inches)

If you enjoy art, esp. painting, you can certainly go for this fun activity.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 1:43 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Title: Reality Check: What Your Mind Knows but Isn't Telling You
Author: David L. Weiner
Publisher: Prometheus Books
ISBN: 9781591023029
Genre: Psychology
Presentation: Soft Cover
No. of Pages: 303

About the Book (From the Back Cover): What's "reality"? Each of us has a "virtual reality" consisting of our individual idealogies, opinions, attitudes, values, and beliefs that we have built up over the years. But what if you found out that what you thought was true really isn't? The author takes us on an entertaining romp through many odd and interesting new findings in various scientific fields - from neurobiology to physics to genetics - in order to dismantle some of our most common misconceptions about being human. By opening our minds to a scientific view of reality, rather than hanging on to our own comfortable (and mostly incorrect) beliefs, we can gain valuable insights and tools for improving the quality of our lives.

My own perception: While the book is informative, it is not really entertaining or it is not definitive. It tries to bring down the disadvantages of rigid mind sets but throws up too much uncertainty and leaves the egos without a good alternative prop. Also, science has been changing too fast and keeps revising so many things previously touted as definite truths, so, unless one is willing to keep a fully open mind, the book leaves you with a sense of confusion.

The book reached me in December 2005 and was one of the books partly read and kept aside. So, when I recently took it up and reread from beginning to end, the feeling returned that it is not an easy read.

The book has a few editorial slips, one being the wrong year of India's independence (it should be 1947 and not 1949).

The author's introduction to various religions including Hinduism could not be deep enough and if only he had delved deep into the teachings of Hindu Philosophy (not the ritualistic portions but the deeply spiritual upanishadic or vedantic portion), he would have probably seen things in a different perspective.

My recommendation: A good read but may or may not be your type. Check in the local book store or online excerpts and decide.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 5:18 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Monday, August 13, 2007

Title: Emails from Hell - The Wrath of William Wendell
Author: David Earthman
Publisher: Synergy Books
ISBN: 9781933538457
Genre: Humor

About the book (from Back Cover):

“Have you ever wanted to respond to the Nigerian scam e-mails just to see how long the criminal would carry on the charade? A foreign dignitary promises to pay you a percentage of his millions if you just send money now!

Have you ever wanted to get in on the ground floor of a pyramid scheme? You sell vitamins and recruit your friends!

Have you ever wanted to reply to job postings and personal ads in an outlandish way just to see what happens?”

My own impression:

The book is the result of an attempt by the author to take his revenge at many of the spam (junk, bulk) mails and the scam mails originating (or purporting to be originating) from Africa. In that process, he has created a mythical character named William Wyndell, who wreaks havoc on the poor and unsuspecting spamsters and scamsters. He also tests the patience of innocent folks who just want to sell an unused wedding dress or some thing similar. The result is real fun to the onlooker (the reader) but a real pain in the ass to the recipient. You can read the excerpts of the book (the first chapter) at www.amazon.com and may be look at some more pages through google and at your local bookstore.

Some of the mails are a little offensive to read but in general the book will appeal to one and all. The book is edited and printed well.

I recommend this book as a good way to pass your time in airports or other places where you need to cool your heals while the system goes in its own way.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 10:18 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Title: The End of Time
Author: Randall Towe
Publisher: www.lulu.com
ISBN: 978-1-4116-3846-4
Genre: Science Fiction / Christianity
Presentation: Paperback

"The End of Time" is a Science Fiction novel by Randall Towe. It is a good mixture of science, philosophy, religion etc. , and is a good story of the classic struggle between good and evil.

The book is based on the current world situation and at places reads like a commentator's narrative. But, overall, it is a good read and will appeal to Christians especially.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 2:51 AM Links to this post

Sunday, July 08, 2007

Title: Building Personal Leadership – Inspirational Tools for Work & Life
Author: Joe Farcht
Publisher: Genesis Publishing, an Imprint of Morgan James Publsihing
ISBN: 9781600371653
Genre: Business / Leadership / Self-Development
Presentation: Soft Cover
No. of Pages: 356

About the Book (From the Back Cover) – “Building Personal Leadership is a book containing a treasury of tools and techniques to help the individual seeking greater success in their work and lives to realize their wants and dreams. The wisdom contained in this book will revolutionize your life if you are willing to absorb and apply its lessons. The best way to predict your future is to create it. You must take this book along on your life journey.”

If you always wanted to attend a seminar on Personality Development and Leadership etc., and could not attend the same because 1) It is too expensive and as an entrepreneur you could not afford the expense or 2) your boss did not think it worthwhile to sponsor your candidature, you can consider buying this book and spend a good weekend usefully. You will of course miss many of the other inputs of attending a live seminar (the free goodies, the food, the camaraderie, the networking etc.) but you will also spare yourself the expense, the troubles with the travel and a food which doesn’t suit you. If you buy the book at a fraction of the cost of such a seminar, you will also get many useful online bonuses, which as a reviewer, I am not going to get!

I first sampled the book at random at several places and after being satisfied with the contents and the presentation, read through the book in a linear sequence. I was of course exposed to several of the ideas and concepts presented by Joe in his book in the course of my long career (spanning over 4 decades) and my exposure to several speakers, books, Multi-media presentations etc. Thus to me, it was a good refresher course.

If you are a middle or senior level employee of medium and large organizations, you may find that you have already been exposed to several of the ideas presented in this book and thus you too may find that this book is a refresher course. It does its job refreshingly well.

If you are relatively new to life and business, you will find here at one place, almost all the information that you will need. Use the book and the online bonuses and I am sure you will be benefited.

I found the printing and editing to be of high quality. I have no hesitation in strongly recommending the book.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 5:09 AM Links to this post

Title: Hermanisms – Axioms for Business & Life
Author: John L. Herman Jr.
Publisher: HSB Press
ISBN: 978-097902041-4
Genre: Business / Memoir
Presentation: Soft Cover
No. of Pages: 288

Hermanisms is the result of a number of years of experience of the author John L. Herman, who considers himself a failure expert – that is, not some one who fails at business (though he did fail at quite a few businesses and learnt his share of lessons), but someone who understands why a business fails. Having learnt the lessons from his own failures and successes as well as the many clients whose businesses he helped sell and thus salvage some thing out of a sinking proposition, the author decided to share his ideas through this book with those interested and willing to learn. He has already written another book “The Innkeeper’s Tales” again business wisdom through the story format.

The front cover of the book greets you with Hermanism # 55 - Are you Making Money… or Wasting Time? Which is explained in detail from P.203 to 206. Turn the book over and on the back cover, you will see a few more Hermanisms:

- Know math or no money (21)
- Failure isn’t fatal (33)
- Facing reality is sobering. Ignoring reality is like being drunk. (38)
- Make the right business regardless of money. (77)

And if you are holding the physical copy of book in your hand, you will like its get up, the fine print quality and the very high level of editing. You can also quickly browse through some more Hermanisms and I am confident that you too will find the book attractive and useful, as I did. Even if you are seeing the book online after reading this fine review, I am sure you can read excerpts, see the images of the front and back covers etc.

Though it will be good to read the book from cover to cover, it is by no means necessary. Open the book at random and enjoy the witty and eloquent wisdom of Herman. In fact, I read several such samples at random before deciding that it is worth investing in my time as a busy reviewer and read it in full. As the father of an entrepreneur (my second son is a successful businessman after a few initial failures and could succeed mainly because of the financial support extended by me and my wife), I found his ideas matching with my own at several places.

I strongly recommend the book to you if you have any interest in business or even if you want to apply the lessons to life.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 5:07 AM Links to this post

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Title: High Performance Health
Sub-title: 10 Real Life Solutions to Redefine Your Health and Revolutionise Your Life
Author: James W.Rippe
Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: W Publishing Group (May 29, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0849901820
ISBN-13: 978-0849901829

The credentials of the author are very good. He is a board certified cardiologist, he is the author of several books including “Healthy Heart for Dummies” and is also the editor of “Irwin and Rippe’s Intensive Care Medicine” and “Lifestyle Medicine”. He is also the founder and director of Rippe Lifestyle Institute. This book is based on research on thousands of patients treated at that institute and also at Celebration Health, owned and operated by Florida Hospital, the largest hospital in USA.

The book has 2 parts. Part 1: Diagnosis and Understanding has 10 chapters and Part 2: Action Plan has 2 chapters. I am giving below the chapter titles for your information:

1. You will protect what you love
2. Achieve your best health now
3. Mastering the basics
4. Build your high performance health team and environment
5. Transform your life through high performance thinking
6. Revitalize your health through emotional well-being
7. Stop to rest and heal when your body and spirit need it
8. Overcome the seven main barriers to high performance health
9. Use high performance health as a springboard to high performance living
10. Find your purpose and embrace your destiny
11. Ten steps to achieving high performance health
12. A personal journey to high performance health

You may be able to browse through the book and read some excerpts online or at your nearest brick-and-mortar bookstore.

I found his approach quite holistic though he doesn’t use that word, which has been overused and abused and also has come to acquire a connotation with alternative medicine. The book has a very engaging style and is highly readable. The author comes through as a sincere and caring human being. The editor Mary Abbott Waite deserves to be congratulated and well deserves the thanks of the author, which he offers in a special Author’s note. The reader would benefit from the appendices and notes. A companion workbook available may also be worth taking a good look at.

Dr.Rippe could have added more value by integrating the alternative medical (and non-medical healing) systems also in to his holistic approach to health. Modern medicine has its limitations as he surely knows.

I strongly recommend this book from Dr. Rippe.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 9:01 PM Links to this post

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Title: The Monk’s Son
Author: W.R.Wilkerson III
Publisher: Ciro’s Books (www.cirosbooks.com)
ISBN: 978-0-9676643-1-6
Genre: Fiction / Religion / Novel
No. of pages: 280
Presentation: Paperback

About the book: (from the back cover)

“From great hell comes Paradise”

When Brother Dominic finds a baby hidden in a field, the real world crashes into the peaceful cloisters of an English Abbey. It is 1940 and German bombs threaten the country side.

The foundling, Steven, grows up in the abbey. Over time, the monks take in other abandoned children, including sixteen-year-old Michael, a defiant artist who upsets the community’s tranquility. The boy’s friendship challenges the monks’ sacred vows and takes Steven to the brink of death.

Michael leaves the serenity of the abbey and plunges into the turmoil of ‘60s London. But disastrous sexual encounters and his battle with the drug called Paradise drive his life to take darker and darker turns. Steven, meanwhile, is nurtured and strengthened by his faith and the abbey community. He takes his final vows and dons the monk’s habit.

When at last Michael’s world spirals out of control, he returns to the monastery in despair. His reunion with Steven brings them together in ways that they would never have thought possible.

My impression: The story is beautifully written, is gripping and the style quite fluid which holds your attention through out. The author succeeds in painting a vivid canvas of the events. The novel has many facets that appeal to different people, like orphanage, art, religion, philosophy, and the darker sides such as homosexuality, drugs etc.

My Recommendation: Strongly recommended.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:41 PM Links to this post

Title: Eric, Jose & The Peace Rug
Author: Dr. Helen B. Mcintosh
Illustrator: Carol Blumenaus
Publisher: The Peace Rug Company (www.peacerug.com)
ISBN: 978-0-9763949-8-3
Genre: Children / Story / Psychology
Presentation: Paperback

About the book (from the back cover):

Not only do Eric and Jose not get along – they hate each other. Theirs is a “simple-to-understand” story of conflict resolution, learning to talk to each other about the problem, talking through a plan to make things better, learning to be friends, and even teaching others “how” to become friends, including you the reader with a step-by-step plan that adults and children can understand.

My impression: The book, meant for children of all ages (especially school children) is beautifully illustrated and the story line is simple and direct. The message is clear and direct. If you want friends, you must be willing to listen to them and you should be willing to change. The message is equally valid for adults too as pointed out by the author.

The colorful illustrations add a tremendous value to the story and the book.

My Recommendation: Strongly recommended to all children, parents, other adults and schools etc.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:30 PM Links to this post

Saturday, June 09, 2007

Title: On Shapes and More

Author: Roni Rosenthal-Gazit

Illustrated by: Jehanne Silva-Freimane

Publisher: StoryTime World - publishing house

ISBN-10: 0-9792800-0-1

ISBN-13: 978-0-9792800-0-9
Genre: Children/Picture Book

This little book aims to teach children shapes such as triangles, circles, squares etc., by relating them to some every day objects which they can relate to. The text is presented in a nice rhyme-like manner which goes well with the colorful illustrations.

I enjoyed going through the little colorful book that teaches the shapes and how they relate to every day objects in life. Congratulations to the author-illustrator and publisher team for a very useful project to help the children learn the connections between maths (and science) and life in a fun-to-read and fun-to-do manner. Parents can encourage children and help them extend the knowledge of shapes to more every day objects in and around the house.

There are a few blank pages at the end of the book for the child to try out his / her own hand at drawing.

I would have preferred that the pages of the book were laminated to withstand the rough and tough use expected from active and energetic children. As printed, the pages are good enough for a few readings and a few trials of shapes from the children's hands.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 10:31 PM Links to this post

Monday, May 21, 2007

Title: Dr. Bach’s Flower Remedies
Sub-title: Tapping into the positive emotional qualities of the chakras
Authors: Philip Salmon and Anna Jeoffroy
Publisher: Lotus Publishing, Chichester, UK and North Atlantic Books
Genre: Non-Fiction/ Health/ Alternative Therapies/ Flower Remedies
ISBN-10: 1-55643-640-8
ISBN-13: 978-1556436406
Presentation: Soft cover and high quality art paper.

I requested and received this beautiful book from NAB’s publicist after seeing an excerpt on the net ( a .pdf file) and the printed book is equally good or even better in its get up and print quality. This book combines the wisdom of Dr. Edward Bach whose 38 flower remedies have established an excellent reputation from many users since their inception, with the Chakras of Kundalini and their effect on human mind and emotions. The authors are reflexologists and are also knowledgeable about Flower Remedies and Chakras. The remedies have been grouped into 7 groups corresponding to each chakra, its color and its qualities. I am giving below the table of contents for your ready reference:

1. Edward Bach
2. The Journey of Consciousness Through the Body
3. Chakras and Physical / Emotional / Mental Development
4. Balancing Positive and Negative
5. Crown Chakra and Remedies
6. Brow Chakra and Remedies
7. Throat Chakra and Remedies
8. Heart Chakra and Remedies
9. Solar Plexus Chakra and Remedies
10. Sacral Chakra and Remedies
11. Base Chakra and Remedies
12. Using the Remedies
13. Journal Keeping with the Remedies

Quick Reference to Remedies
Quick Reference to Remedies in Alphabetical Order
Some Suppliers of Remedies, Books, Audio Tapes and Posters
The Bach Remedies and the Chakras
Bibliography

Thus you can see that the book is a good welcome addition to the already extensive literature on Bach Flowers.

Water Violet, Heather and Impatiens are clubbed with Crown Chakra and are especially indicated for Loneliness. Similarly, Chicory, Vervain, Beech, Vine and Rock Water are clubbed with Brow Chakra and are indicated for “Overcare for the welfare of others” and so on. Each chapter has illustrations of the plants and flowers, discussion about the chakra and is followed by detailed discussion of each flower. For each flower, the illustration of the flower, Qualities of the flower, Chakra qualities are given on the left hand page and Positive qualities, Negative state and The Action of the Remedy are given along with the illustration for the chakra and the color on the right hand side page.

This book will be a welcome refresher to students and practioners of Bach Flower Remedies and of course will be a good introduction to the subject of flower remedies for others. Even though, I already knew most of what the authors wrote about the flower remedies, I enjoyed reading the book since it refreshed my knowledge and gave a few new perspectives on some of the remedies. I also enjoyed looking at the beautiful illustrations of the plants and flowers as well as the color indications for various chakras. Being a Hindu well exposed to some esoteric knowledge, I am of course already familiar with chakras and their role in our mental / emotional well-being.

I strongly recommend this book to students and practitioners of alternative medicine. Patients too will benefit if they lack access to a good holistic healer in their areas. I also recommend to such people to also make use of my free online course on Bach Flower Remedies at the following address: http://floweressencesintro.onlinecourse.com

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 2:55 AM Links to this post

Sunday, April 29, 2007

Title: Keeper of the Arts
Author: Jackie Grant Miller
Publisher: Trafford Publishing
ISBN: 141207784-2
Genre: Fiction/Martial Arts

Any one who watched Bruce Lee's "Enter the Dragon" (if not other movies) will be certainly intrigued by the apparently effortless way the Master defends him/herself from many attackers. And watching that movie and some of Jackie Chan certainly whetted my curiosity and so when an opportunity came along to review this book, I said yes. I also read / heard of other styles like Aikido, Jujutsu etc. and thus wanted to read about the different styles that the author was mentioning.

The book is a bridge between a fictitious account and a thesis. So, you need to persevere with it. The book is certainly informative but unless you are familiar with the movements of the different martial arts, it may be difficult to relate to them. The historical accuracy of the book is out of my purview since I am not an expert on the history of the different cultures.

The book evolved from a stage play titlled Dream Maker. Thus, what is obviously a very visual exression of the different martial arts had to be converted into prose and that is not easy, esp. in the absence of any photos or illustrative diagrams.

Try to browse through the book (either online or in a bookshop) before deciding whether it is for you.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 5:19 AM Links to this post

Monday, April 23, 2007

Title: Sex Secrets of an American Geisha
Subtitle: How to Attract, Satisfy and Keep Your Man
Author: Py Kim Conant
Publisher: Hunter House Publishers
ISBN: 0-89793-490-3
Genre: Non-Fiction/Sexuality/Sensuality/Relationships
Presentation: Paperback
No. of Pages: 240

I got an ARC (Advance Reading Copy) of the book, "Sex Secrets of an American Geisha" from the author for my review. Though I left the sexuality part of my life behind for some time now and am on the spiritual path, I agreed to review the book, because I was always intrigued by the Geisha system and here is an American Geisha (in a spiritual sense of that word), willing to share her sex secrets with all of us! The job of reviewer is to read, review and present to the potential reader, the strengths and weaknesses of a book, so that the reader may make a better decision about investing further time and money on the book. Whether it is a Good Book or not is to be decided before continuing to spend one's money and more importantly one's precious time!

Py Kim Conant is not Japanese but is from Korea. She came to USA many years ago when she was young and like any young woman, was in search of a Good Man who can give her a good relationship. She failed and she failed miserably! But instead of giving up, blaming her fate, her destiny etc. (which is the typical Oriental reaction to failure), she set about finding out what a woman can do to attract men to her and
having attracted them, keep one of them as her Good Man. Through out the book, Py stresses on finding a Good Man so that you can have a good relationship. You, the woman, of course, also need to be a Good Woman, and she defines the Core Characteristics of a Good Man and a Good Woman.

In 13 Chapters (obviously she is not superstitious about that number), she shares many valuable tips and tricks (used in the positive sense of the word, not to cheat or manipulate) on how to make yourself attractive, hot, sexy and so feminine that men get attracted to you. In 4 explicit chapters, she tells you many sex secrets so that you learn to love your body, your lover's body and be an expert lover. I read
such explicit sex manuals like the famous Kama Sutra, Ananga Ranga, The Perfumed Garden etc., many years earlier and could not but help compare this book with them mentally. I can certainly say without any hesitation that Py's book is certainly on par with them. Her description of the female G-spot and the female ejaculate is an eye opener to many men and women.

Having attracted the right man, who is a Good Man (Py keeps stressing about the Good Man and your being a Good Woman), how to take the relationship to the logical conclusion of a marriage or a long term relationship? Py shows you the way and leads you by your hand as your Elder Sister. And concludes with an excellent recommendation of how to keep the relationship healthy. All through the book, she
confesses her own mistakes without any fear and comes through as a sincere and genuine person, a good guide.

I noticed a few typographic errors but since it is an ARC, it is quite likely that the errors would have been fixed before the release. In any case, they are very minor and don't detract from the message of the book.

A good Bibliography, References, Index etc. add value to the book. A good read indeed.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:49 PM Links to this post

Thursday, April 05, 2007

Title: Great Saints of South India
Author: R.Sreeramulu (Original telugu)
Translated by: Smt. Sonthi Anasuyamma garu
Publisher: Richa Prakashan (www.richaprakashan.com)
ISBN: 81-87062-75-4
Genre: Biography/Religion and Spirituality

Sai Ram. "Great Saints of South India" is a very good collection of short biographies of many great saints of South India (Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamilnadu). This is the second of 5 books given to me for review by Sri KVR Rao of www.telugubhakti.com, Devi Bhagavatam being the 1st.

The book under review was originally written in telugu by Sri Ravinuthala Sreeramulu and received a lot of acclaim. It has been translated into good english by Smt. Sonthi Anasuyamma garu, who has to her credit many other religious and spiritual translations including "Arunachala Mahatyam" written by Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi, of whom both the original author and the translator of the present book are disicples. Bhagawan's grace enabled them to do a good job of bringing out the biographies of great saints including Sri Tyagaraja, Sri Ramadasu, Sri Kanakadasa, Sri Purandaradasa, Sri Eknath, Sant Jnanadev, Namadev, Samartha Ramadas etc. Many Saivite and Vaishnava Saints are also covered. Thus it gives a good heritage of the southern india over many centuries. It is worth noting that God is beyond caste and creed, and you can read about the great saints of all castes in this slim volume. Biographies of a few women are also given, indicating that devotion and jnana are not the exclusive preserve of men.

The book is generally well produced but could have been better edited. A few stories are somewhat disjointed. One example is that of Karaikal Amma where the beginning of her life story is apparently in Kailasa but later it is portrayed again as if she went to Kailas in that birth and thus it is not clear who related this story to whom. A few other stories also left me a little confused. And notable absence in this book are biographies of Sri Ramana Maharshi, Sri Raghavendra Swami of Mantralayam, Sri Shirdi Sai Baba, Sri Akkalkot Maharaj, Sri Sripada Vallabha and Sri Nrusimha Saraswati etc. And many modern saints are also not covered.

Except for such minor omissions and a few typographic errors, the book is well written and will be a good addition to the spiritual library of every sadhaka. Sai Ram.

India has produced many more saints and the book may hopefully be expanded in future editions to include some more great saints. I am thankful to www.telugubhakti.com for this opportunity.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 10:41 PM Links to this post

Monday, March 26, 2007

Title: The Splendour of the Supreme Mother - Devi Bhagavatham
Sub-title: A Compact condensed prose narrative
Author: Dr. V.V.B.Rama Rao
Publisher: Richa Prakashan (www.richaprakashan.com)
ISBN: 81-87062-46-0
Genre: Devotional/Hindu Mythology

Sai Ram. Sri Matre Namah. This book came to Shri K V R Rao of www.telugubhakti.com for review and at his request, I accepted this and took it as a command of Devi, The Supreme Mother. I also took it as a blessing from Sri Mata since earlier too I got a chance to read Her Glory in Telugu, and that too at the behest of His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Sankaracharya of Sri Hampi Virupaksha Vidyaranya Peetham, Sri Sri Sri Abhinavoddnanda Nrisimha Bharathi Swamiji around 1999 or 2000. At Swamiji's command, I read a fairly elaborate form of Sri Devi Bhagavatham written by Vidwan Saripella Viswanatha Sastry, published by Sri Rama Publishers. I also used to regularly recite Sri Lalitha Sahasra Nama Stotram, Sri Suktam, Sri Maha Lakshmi Ashtakam etc. for many years and thus took this as an opportunity to again read about Sri Devi, Sri Mata the Originator of us all. Sai Ram.

One thing which struck me is that the book is as described compact, rather too compact. Much of the detailed glory of The Mother had to be left behind in this attempt to condense and make the book compact. But many of the important features of Sri Devi Bhagavatam originally written in Sanskrit by Sage Veda Vyasa and which came through in the detailed Telugu transation that I had the good fortune of reading, did come through. So, if you, the reader are new to Devi and Her Divine Glory, this book under review is a good primer. And being in english, this book is more accessible to Indians and others who cannot read Sanskrit or for that matter the vernacular languages too. Thus it fulfills a good need.

In short, this book is a good introduction to Sri Devi Bhagavatam and it is Her grace that this review is being written on Sri Rama Navami, the end of Vasanta Nava Ratras, which are also dear to Devi (in addition to Sarannavaratras ending with Vijaya Dasami, which are traditionally considered very important for Devi Puja). As a Sai devotee, I again consider it auspicious that this review is being written on a day very dear to Sri Sai Baba of Shirdi (this day is celebrated as Baba's birthday by Sai Devotees), and as mentioned in this book, Sri Rama also worshipped Devi during this Vasantha Navaratras. Sai Ram.

Sai Ram. Now I come to some shortcomings with a view to offer a constructive criticism for improvement in future editions. The 6th skanda (Chapter) on The Order of Creation could have been prefaced by a suitable explanation from the author that what was described thousands of years earlier is a little different from the world as it is observed by scientific means now. A few statements that it takes thousands of years for light to reach from Sun to Earth could have been avoided (it takes 9 minutes for light to reach our earth from Sun).

The book also suffers from many simple editorial slips that could have been easily avoided with a little more care. If the author or the publisher is interested, I can share the editorial corrections that I made as I was reading the book. Sai Ram.

In the end, I once again offer my pranams to Sri Devi for this opportunity and thank the author, the publisher and Sri KVR Rao of www.telugubhakti.com for being instrumental in my humble effort. Sai Ram. Sri Matre Namah.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:23 PM Links to this post

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Title: A Woman’s Guide to Saving Her Own Life
Author: Mellanie True Hills
Publisher: Healthy Ideas Press
ISBN: 0-9766008-0-3
Genre: Non-Fiction/Health/Self-Help
Key Words: Heart, Health, Women, HEART, Plan

A Woman’s Guide to Saving Her Own Life by Mellanie True Hills is a book written as a self-help guide to educate women in general and women of USA in particular , about the risks of heart disease and the steps that they can take to prevent such diseases or having come through, how to prevent recurrence and worsening of their health. The author was a high pressure executive and almost suffered heart attack and came out with an angioplasty (which was difficult because of the location) and is thus a survivor. She made a fairly intensive research of the various risk factors including heredity, life style, stress etc., and has developed a plan, which she has aptly named as HEART :

H : Healthy eating
E: Exercise daily
A: Attitude
R: Rest, Relaxation and Rejuvenation
T: Take Proactive Control of your health

The book is informative and well written with lots of charts and other inputs to help the reader chalk out her own action plan and see how it goes. Since she herself went through these problems, she comes out as a sincere person and her writing carries conviction. She is active as a speaker for the American Heart Association.

Since it is so informative, the book could have been hard bound to withstand repeated use. A few editorial slips were noticed but they don’t detract from the value of the book.

All in all, this will be a good read for women (and their men), especially this month (February is observed as a heart health month in USA).

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 12:49 AM Links to this post

Friday, February 02, 2007

Title: Miracle Stem Cell Heart Repair
Author: Christian Wilde
Publisher: Abigon Press
ISBN: 1-59975-054-6
Genre: Health/Medical/Heart Health
Key Words: Heart, Attack, CHF, Stem Cells, Stroke, Angina

This book, published in October 2006 is the companion book for the author's earlier book, "Hidden Causes of Heart Attack and Stroke" published in 2002. In case you have not read that book, I strongly recommend that you read that book and that too read that book first before taking up this one. I assure you that both are easy on the eyes (they use a bigger type face and are printed on off-white paper to avoid glare).

While Christian's earlier book focusses on the preventive aspect of health care, this book focusses on the repair of the damage already done. Stem Cell Research has shown good results in repair of scar tissue in heart attacks, reduced heart enlargements and helped patients of Congestive Heart Failure, helped patients with Angina, Stroke and so on. Thus this book offers hope to the so-called "No Option Patients".

Stem cell research has been in the news for the last few years and many debates are going on about the several issues, ethical and scientific about the use of stem cells in therapy. Christian has brought his journalistic skills (he is the host of a very popular radio talk show) and his deep and accurate understanding of the complicated subject and has presented the same in a easy to read and understand manner.

The author has taken the opportunity to update some of the information presented in the earlier book and thus has added value. The caution about the too low cholesterol and the associated risks of depression, stroke etc., is very timely.

The book is enriched by a number of references, Glossary of Medical Terms and an Index. I only wish it was hard bound to withstand repeated references.

I strongly recommend this book along with the other book for any one interested in heart health issues for themselves or for their family and friends.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:44 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: Hidden Causes of Heart Attack and Stroke
Author: Christian Wilde
Publisher: Abigon Press
ISBN: 0-9724959-0-8
Genre: Medicine/Heart Health/Fitness
Key words: Heart, Health, Cholesterol, CRP, Homocysteine, Inflammation, Stroke, Fibrinogen

I received this book along with another book written by the same author and which attracted my attention and resulted in my making a review request. And I am so glad that the Publisher sent this book too, which I read first. The other book takes off where this book ends and is titled, "Miracle Stem Cell Heart Repair". But first things first. About this book.

This book is a little dated in the sense that it was published in 2002 and obviously the demand must have been good to require a second printing in 2003. So, it is nearly 3 years old, but rest assured that the information is quite uptodate and it is worth spending the few hours to go through the book.

The author, Christian Wilde is not a medical doctor but is well qualified to write on the subject since he is a sort of investigative journalist and when he had a problem with his own health, he did not just go by the doctor's prescriptions but investigated all the literature thoroughly and more importantly discussed with the leading researchers and cardiologists to ensure that his understanding is correct. The result is an outstanding and up-to-date book on the various risk factors that go to make up the problems in the field of heart health, resulting in Angina, Heart Attacks and Strokes. That the author and the editorial team did an exemplary job has been endorsed by the leading members of the medical fraternity. Thus you can safely use the information provided in this book to discuss with your own doctor (who is the final authority to help you with your health problems) in an intelligent and meaningful manner.

Christian covers all the important risk factors that may compromise the heart health including cholesterol, Hypertension, Diabetes, Smoking, Obesity, Fibrinogen, CRP, Homocysteine etc. You may be aware of some of them and may not be aware about some of them. This book is a handy reference guide.

I enjoyed reading the book and as some one deeply interested in holistic health, I was impressed by the information provided. I found the editing to be less than perfect at some places but fortunately, that doesn't impinge on the accuracy of information presented. The book has a good Glossary of Medical Terms to help us, references to the various research articles cited in the book and an Index.

I found the larger type font and the non-glare paper easy on the eyes. I would have preferred to see the book hardbound to withstand repeated use since I expect this book to be referred to often.

I strongly recommend that if you have any interest in heart health (either of your own, your spouse, parents or friends), you should buy this book and the companion book mentioned above by the same author.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:08 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Labels: A good book, Causes, Heart Attack, Stroke

Book Reviews of 2006

2008-02-12T16:07:00.000+05:30

Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Title: Big Idea's Veggie Tales Bible Storybook - with Scripture from the NIrV
Authors: Cindy Kenney with Karen Poth
Illustrated by: Casey Jones and Robert Vann
Publisher: Zonderkidz
ISBN: 978-0-310-71008-0
Genre: Children/Stories/Religion/

A good effort to bring Bible Stories to kids, I found that the book succeeds in bringing the Biblical Stories to the present generation of parents and children with a fresh approach. I also found that the values taught by the book are applicable all over the world to all cultures and religions in general, though some controversial statements like Jesus being the only one son of God could have been avoided.

Using the commonly available vegetables as characters is an interesting experiment in educational entertainment. I am not sure whether the suggested age group of 4-8 is appropriate since now a days, kids appear to be much smarter and may not enjoy a vegetable speaking to them.

However, even elder children will certainly enjoy reading the stories from the Bible and the accompanying values. Each story ends with an affirmation, 'God made you special and he loves you very much'. This is a very important contribution of this book to instill love in childen and the parental figures in their lives.

I would have normally recommended that the book be converted into a multimedia DVD or VCD, but I found that the book is actually adopted from the Videos.

In general, I liked the book and recommend it.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 1:19 AM Links to this post

Labels: A good Children's Biblical Story book

Sunday, November 26, 2006

Title: Inside the Space Race
Author: Lawrence E. Lamb, M.D.
Publisher: Synergy Books
ISBN: 978-1-933538-39-6
Genre: Memoirs
Key Words: Space, Aerospace, American Space Program, Fitness, Cardiology

I accepted this book for review with some trepidation, since I was not feeling totally fit for taking up a non-fiction book and since I was struggling to finish a book that I have been trying to read for the last few months. However, I found that this book is really well-written with an easy style, that takes the reader back into time, to an era that was exciting. I was in my Bachelor of Science Program when the space program was launched by USA and following the Soviet and American Space successes over radio (we had no TV at that time) was really exciting and inspiring.

Dr. Lawrence E. Lamb describes the successes and the difficulties associated with the American space efforts especially in the cold war era. He brings out very clearly the efforts of his own team in developing a medical evaluation program for selecting the astronauts for Projects Mercury, Gemini and Apollo. He also brings out vividly the office politics involved in such programs where money and fame are at stake.

His account appears to be fairly objective, though I cannot certify that, having had no opportunity to read or hear all the parties involved. As a physicist and also with my own deep and abiding interest in health matters (I feel I too deserve the epithet, "Quack" because of my fairly extensive medical knowledge and because I have no formal training and certification to practise medicine), I enjoyed reading his detailed explanations of the problems with atrial fibrillation, the effect of bed rest on blood pressure etc. I hasten to assure you, however, that you don't have to be medically knowledgeable to appreciate what Dr. Lamb wrote. He keeps the whole thing fairly simple.

The book has a number of photographs of Presidents Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson and other dignitaries who played a major role in the development of US Space program.

While reading the early experiments on the effect of high 'g' s (a 'g' is the force of earth's gravity, during take off of a high speed aircraft or spacecraft or during sudden deceleration, a person experiences forces many times the g) on the human physiology, Dr. Lamb describes the work done by others including the Soviets. However, I did not find a mention of the work done by other members of US Air Force, esp. Dr. Stapp and others, which helped the development of modern safety belts for cars, apart from indicating that the human body can withstand fairly high 'g' s . I felt that the account of the experiments of that era conducted by other departments would have added value to the book.

I found that the book has a few editorial slips. I would have liked to see a short biography of the author.

All in all, I feel that this is a good addition to the literature on an important era of US space successes.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 12:33 AM Links to this post

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Title: I Can Handle It!
Sub-title: 50 Confidence-building stories to empower your child
Authors: Susan Jeffers and Donna Gradstein
ISBN: 0-9777618-0-0
Publisher: Jeffers Press
Genre: Parenting/Children's Self-Help
Presentation: Paper Back
No. of Pages: 137

The book is a collection of 50 short stores and is aimed at Parents (and those who are in a parental position of helping and guiding children) and children. The stories have different themes, Fear, Guilt, Embarrasment, Frustration etc., but have one thing in common - all of them teach the child how she can handle it. Each story has the byline, "I can handle it" three times (the third time, it says, "No matter what happens, I can handle it") thus reinforcing the child's ability to handle a situation. Affirmations have better chance of succeeding in children since they are like virgin soil without the weeds of negativities. So, the seeds of affirmations have better chance of taking root.

While one may differ with the way a story is told, one will not differ with the theme of the book. Many of the stories are enjoyable to even the adults and resonate with the inner child.

My only reservation with this book is the soft-cover presentation. Considering that the book is meant to be handled by parents and children over many days (and considering the situation where the child may like to read it by himself), a hard cover edition with plasticised pages would have been more appropriate. However, the cost of production would have gone up and the aim of reaching as many children and parents as possible would have been defeated. A good e-book (with nice background music) would have been a good option.

I recommend the book strongly to all children and their caregivers.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:03 PM Links to this post

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Title: Lords of Terror
Authors: Allan Cole and Nick Perumov
Publisher:Zumaya Publications / Zumaya Otherworlds
ISBN: 1-55410-285-5
Genre: Fiction/Fantasy
Presentation: Soft Cover
No. of Pages: 350

The cover is suitably alien and frightening, so that unless you are a fan of magic, other worlds, aliens etc., you know it is not for you. And if you are a fan, jump right in and get a satisfying feast to your imagination. Allan Cole and Nick Perumov take a seemingly simple story (the US-USSR Cold War) and weave a beautiful novel of violence, betrayal, espionage, and of course bravery, heroism.

An American civil space liner is blown up by a Russian warship whose best instruments (magical of course) and wizards are tricked by an unseen evil force to see a warship in place of the civilian craft. The resultant political crisis is exploited by several vested interests to push their own agendas for their own hideously selfish purposes. Only a few committed and courageous individuals including an engine devil and an orphaned boy try and obviously succeed in preventing an Armageddon. Read and be thrilled by the excellent story telling and you will spend hours engrossed.

The book is a good mix of science, space, aliens and of course the eternal conflict between the good and the evil.

I did not read any of the other books written by the authors but if this book is a good sample of what they are capable of, I hope to read their other books too in the near future.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 3:10 AM Links to this post

Saturday, August 19, 2006

Title: A History of Murphy's Law
Author: Nick T.Spark
Publisher: Author
ISBN: 978-1-4116-8469-0
Genre: Non-Fiction/History/Reliability

This book is of valuable help to those who always wondered about the origin of Murphy's Law, which became quite famous along with Parkinson's Law and Peter's Principle. When I read the press note, I was really interested and when an opportunity to review the book came, I was delighted. And I can confidently write that I was not disappointed after finishing the slim tome which is quite attractively printed and has a number of photographs to put the text in the right perspective.

That Dr.Paul Stapp, arguably the man who first expressed the law in a press conference, was also involved in making car travel in USA and many parts of the world, including India, where I live, was news to me. You, the reader of this review too may similarly find something new in the book. In any case, unless you too have been a researcher like the author about the origin of Murphy's Law, you will certainly be much more informed after you finish the book, which can be read while travelling in a bus, train or while waiting for your flight at the airport.

Nick certainly writes well, in a good, readable style and he has tried to be as fair as humanly possible to present all the sides of the story. Whether he has indeed become the leading expert on Murphy's Law is for you to judge after reading the book. In any case, in Nick's own words, the book was and is intended not just to be a reflection on the origins of Murphy's Law, but on the difficulty in making an assessment of any historical event that was not documented properly. From that perspective, the book has broad appeal I think to anyone who is a student of history or science.

I certainly enjoyed reading this book and recommend it strongly to you too.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 4:15 PM Links to this post

Sunday, August 06, 2006

Title: Summer Snow
Author: William T.Hathaway
Publisher: Avatar Publications
ISBN: 0-9738442-3-X
Genre: Fiction/War/Religion/Sufi
No. of Pages: 208

Summer Snow is a fiction by William T.Hathaway, a US war veteran and now a peace activist. The story takes place in Kyrgyzstan, which has borders with several other countries including Afghanistan, China and..... A nuclear bomb is stolen and it is suspected that Al-Qaeda and other terrorist organisations could be after it for inflicting extensive damage on US property and life. A group of Sufi women try to bring the story to a peaceful end through Transcendental Meditation, popularised by Maharshi Mahesh Yogi.

The story is told in an interesting way. The book is special in the sense that there is no hero. Jeff Madsen, the American veteran, who is dragged into the mess, is not the typical hero. The heroes if any are Djamila and Cholpon, the Sufi Master and her main Chela (disciple).

The novel is a good blend of war, religion and philosophy. Djamila integrates Sufi Islam and the TM of Hinduism. The peace which radiates from an advanced meditator is not fiction and can be experienced even today in some of the Ashrams (Hermitages) of India. Though in the story, Djamila fails to resolve the theft of the nuke peacefully (because the meditation is below the critical threshold and the sudden entrance of Al-Qaeda throws the process out of gear), the author succeeds in interesting the reader sufficiently to try out the meditation techniques described as instruments of peace.

The love scene between Jeff and Cholpon is described rather too vividly but it serves the purpose of highlighting the importance of sex as a breaker of the ego barrier albeit very briefly. The ending is tragic yet not contrived. I felt that the burying of the nuke is a too simplistic solution and a Master like Djamila should know that modern science has enough gadgets to locate even deeply buried nuclear weapons. She should have handed it over to her Government. Otherwise, the story is well told and holds the attention of the reader.

I enjoyed reading the book as a physicist and also as a student of spirituality. Though I don't practise the meditation techniques described in the novel, I know that they are real and potent. I recommend the book to all the readers who are interested in peace at personal, national and international levels.

Note: Though I am spiritually inclined, I am not a Yogi or Sanyasi (Monk). And you too need not be one to enjoy the book. I also apologise to the other authors and publicists for taking up this book ahead of their books, since this was the second of the two books which were at hand when I was hospitalised and did not have access to the previously received books. Now also, I am not yet sufficiently strong to take the several serious non-fiction books and so will finsih some more novels which are pending. Thanks for understanding.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 10:41 PM Links to this post

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

Title: Revelations
Author: M. Scott Byrnes
Publisher: Blue Stripe Books
ISBN: 0-9772674-0-7
Genre: Fiction/SF

"Revelations' by Scott Byrnes is a SF novel that holds your attention throughout its 279 pages. Here is the blurb from the inner flap.

"Huddled over her seismometer on the frozen surface of Mars, NASA geologist Kathy Palmer struggles to explain the image that just appeared on her monitor. Simultaneously, sixty-five million miles away, brilliant scientist Tim Redmond bolts upright in bed, inexplicably terrified. In a matter of days, these two strangers will unite in the face of a stunning revelation: our traditional perceptions of God are wildly inaccurate, and Armageddon is quickly approaching. Mankind's only chance of survival lies with Palmer and Redmond, who must sift through clues on Mars - and within religious doctrine on Earth - to solve a cosmic riddle s old as time itself. The two soon discover, however, that it's not just a perplexing mystery that stands in their way, but something infinitely more imposing - the pernicious being that's protected the secret for billions of years."

The story keeps shifting between the exploration of Mars and the unearthly attempts on planet earth to keep the secrets being revealed. The story is well knit and is a good mix of space science, religion and evolution/creation. Readers of Erich von Daniken's books such as "Gods from Outer Space" and "Chariots of Gods" will find some of the ideas described therein in the present book.

Though earth and its civilisations have seen several religions, the author sticks to Christianity only. So, readers of other denominations may find the story stretching their credulity rather too thin. However, if one keeps in mind that it is just a story, one can certainly enjoy the same.

The book is well written and well edited, well printed. Certainly a good read.

Note: This book reached me when I was in hospital and thus was one of the couple that were available for reading. So, my apologies to other authors whose books stayed unread.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:29 PM Links to this post

Monday, June 19, 2006

Title: Do-It-Yourself Natural Health: Natural Health Trio
Sub-Title: Acupressure, Aromatherapy and Herbal Therapy
Author: John Sherman, Ph.D., OTR, CST
Publisher: New Found Therapies Publications
ISBN: 0-9709411-2-9
Genre: Non-Fiction/Alternative Medical/Self-Help

This book is the latest by the author who has authored several other books on the subject over the last six years. It combines in one handy volume, three alternative treatment options for 60 common ailments and conditions. Acupressure, Aromatherapy and Herbal Therapy are covered. The acupressure points are clearly explained by using line drawings of the human body and indicating the points. Precautions where applicable are also given.

The author explains that acupressure is meant for immediate relief and is to be followed by aromatherapy and herbal therapy.

Depression is one of the sixty ailments covered but in my opinion, depression is a major health disorder and is to be treated by a competent health professional, not necessarily by a mainstream psychiatrist. The author of course advises that all the treatments should be undertaken only under the supervision of a physician.

The author rightly stresses the importance of correct breathing.

This book will be very useful to those who can't take allopathic medicines because of the side effects or cost. A pocket reference book dealing with 50 of the 60 ailments is available from the same author and will be a very invaluable aid.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 2:20 AM Links to this post

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

Title: Hypoglycemia The Other Sugar Disease
Author: Anita Flegg (Foreword by Dr. Ron Rosedale, MD)
Publisher: Book Coach Press (September 30, 2004)
ISBN: 0968034748
Genre: Non-Fiction/Medical/Diet/Self-Help
No. of Pages: 237

Having read "Overcoming Runaway Blood Sugar" by Dennis Pollock, I was wondering whether I should take up yet one more book on blood sugar problems, especially hypocglycemia (Dennis's book is also dealing with the same problem) , but then I took it up to see the difference in treatment of the same subject by a different author, who, incidentally shares with Dennis the unfortunate similarity of being a sufferer.

Anita's book under review treats the subject very comprehensively and gives the various forms of hypoglycemia and the causes for them. The treatment protocol is more or less similar and is largely based on elimination of refined carbohydrates and sugar (in all its forms like cane sugar, glucose, fructose, honey, etc.). A diet largely based on complex carbohydrates, fats of the right kind, proteins and fiber (very important) has been found to minimise the spikes in blood sugar and thus minimise the incidence of hypoglycemia and thus help minimise the onset of adult diabetes, which is caused by insulin resistance.

The book under review provides a good discussion of the various popular diets such as the no-fat diet, Atkins Diet, South Beach Diet, The Zone Diet, etc. and suggests a diet aimed at hypoglycemics, which incidentally also helped many of them lose weight and which eliminated the mood swings etc.

The author gives the life stories of other sufferers in their own words at the beginning of each chapter and follows up their stories with a good analysis. This feature has added a lot of authenticity to the book. She discusses various problems like fatigue, fibromyalgia etc., associated with hypoglycemia, in Chapter 9, with the notable exception of hypochlorhydria (the symptoms of which were described by Michel in Chapter 4).

The work book at the end adds value to an already good book and Anita provides the reader with two or iterations (cycles) to check how they are doing. If the workbook is photocopied before being written up, the same can be used in the unlikely event of the reader not being able to reach the desired state of health in the first few cycles.

All in all, I found the book a good read with a good style and very good editing.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 3:10 AM Links to this post

Title: Mayday A Physician as Patient
Author: Allan Lohaus, M.D.
Publisher: Synergy Books
ISBN: 978-0-9755922-9-8
Genre: Autobiography/Medical/Self-help
Presentation: Hard Bound with dust jacket
No. of Pages: 114
About the Book (From the inner flap) - Mayday! is a medical odyssey journal revealing the thought, feelings, humor and spirituality of an American physician during months of hopitalization. Rising on swells of optimism and tugged down by pain, infections, operations and adverse outcomes, he drifts through waters too deep to stand in and too dark for him to see hidden dangers. The illness ends in New Zealand, two years later. This body, mind, and spirit experience of dying and returningto health is a personal and universal journey.
A little more about the book (as I understood after reading) - It is a good indepth account of the doctor's struggles with illness, fortunately for him, an acute problem and not chronic illness. He was operated for removal of some intestinal polyps and the post-operative infections and the resultant complications required three more surgeries to restore his body to a semblance of normalcy.

What I liked about the book - The intensely personal narrative and the good style. Since it is a relatively short book, it could be read in a day. Since I always had an abiding interest in medical matters (though I became a metallurigst), I enjoyed reading the details of the treatment and the operative procedures, his emotions as he was struggling with pain and a very real chance of prolonged illness or death!

What did not appeal to me - None.

What else I would have liked to see - A fuller account of his younger days, and his own mom's struggle with Hodgkin's disease etc. His estrangement from his biological father probably pushed him to mature spiritually since he searched and found his father first in senior friends and later in God through Christ. I would also have liked to read a more detailed account of his treatment.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 2:42 AM Links to this post

Friday, March 17, 2006

Title: Overcoming Runaway Blood Sugar
Author: Dennis Pollock
Publisher: Harvest House Publishers
ISBN: 0-7369-1721-7
Genre: Non-Fiction/Health/Self-Help
Presentation: Paperback
No. of Pages: 217

Overcoming Runaway Blood Sugar is a good self-help book written by a layman for laymen. The author is a Christian Preacher and found the right keys to open the secrets of good health when he was struggling with wildly swinging blood sugar levels. Diet, exercise and weight management - these are the three keys for effective management of blood sugar levels in Diabetes Type 2 - also called NIDDM (Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus) or Adult Onset Diabetes. Dennis rightly emphasises the main factors for the early onset of this type of diabetes in urbanised developing/developed societies. Poor eating habits and lack of exercise leading to obesity is the main cause of this type of diabetes. Refined carbohydrates (starches and sugars) without enough fiber is the main cause of the swinging blood sugar levels.

Dennis has a good style and the book is easy to read. He writes in a simple yet convincing style and he has done enough research to give the reader an accurate account of the factors that cause fluctuating blood sugar levels, which lead to diabetes if left untreated.

As a believing Christian, the author encourages Christian readers to believe in Jesus Christ. Readers of other religions can leave out that portion, if needed. The rest of the book is quite secular and provides a good road map for effective management of blood sugar levels, weight and general health through aerobic and resistance exercises.

For pure vegetarians (those who don't eat eggs, fish and meat etc.), the recipes and diet suggestions in the book are of limited use. However, by following the general principles of the low-carb diets and ensuring adequate fiber, vegetarians also can manage their blood sugar levels. What not to eat is more important in their case.

All in all, a highly readable and informative book for those who are diabetic and or overweight.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:26 AM Links to this post

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Title: The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation
Sub-title: The Mysteries of Grammar and Punctuation Revealed
Author: Jane Straus
ISBN: 0-9667221-7-5
Published by: Jane Straus, www.grammarbook.com
Genre: Non-Fiction/Language/Grammar
No. of Pages: 110

The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation is "An Easy-to-use Reference Guide and Workbook" and lives up to its description. Attractively designed and well-written, the book is indeed a good attempt to demystify the intricacies of grammar and punctuation. What I received is the New, Expanded Eighth Edition and so the author would have incorporated several improvements based on the feed-back from users of the previous editions.

The book provides clear rules and examples for Subject and Verb Agreement, Pronouns, Adjectives and Adverbs, Problems with Prepositions, Lie vs. Lay, and Effective Writing in the grammar section.

The Punctuation Section covers Spacing, Periods, Ellipsis marks, Commas, Semicolons, Colons, Question Marks, Exclamation Marks, Quotation Marks, Parentheses, Apostrophes and Hyphens, etc.

The book has a number of exercises and quizzes to test one's knowledge. The layout is attractive. I have no doubt that the book will be useful to all users of English language.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:10 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Sunday, January 22, 2006

Title: Transmutation
Sub-title: A novel about Eternal Love
Author: Lydia Bisanti
Publisher: Buenos Books America
ISBN: 1-932848-12-6
Genre: Spiritual Fiction
Presentation: Soft cover
No. of Pages: 116

Transmutation is a Spiritual novel by Lydia Bisanti. It is about transmutation of the individual man to a Universal Man. The hero of the novel, Rene Eagle goes through a series of personal catastrophes (as seen through normal eyes) which push him over the precipice and help his ego to refine/ dissolve/ sublime.

Transmutation is a word used in alchemy and in nuclear science. It means changing one element (a base metal like lead or iron) into another noble element (like gold). The Philosopher's Stone is a 'mythical' object which is supposed to help the alchemist to transmute a base metal like iron and lead to gold. Philosophically, it is the transmutation of an egoistic soul (which because of its limited vision is naturally selfish) into an Universal Soul (a soul which becomes the whole universe and thus has no scope for being selfish). The purpose of each soul is to transmute itself into the Universal Soul. To achieve that, the ego has to achieve a sacred union with that missing complement soul, to which it is compellingly drawn. Till then, shadows of such soul (egos that have some semblance to that real mate) will attract the individual, resulting in infatuations, addictions etc. The objectives of various prayers, meditations and other rituals is to prepare the individual ego for this sacred union, which is the real fulfilling union. Eternal Love is the natural result of such an union. Till then, the ego goes through several planes of existence.

The author succeeds in bringing out these concepts well, which are not really new to eastern minds. The story is well told and grips the reader through out. Rene becomes Siva, the three-eyed God (the third eye representing true knowledge and wisdom), though the author doesn't use that specific name.

The book could have been edited better, but fortunately the communication comes through. I strongly recommend this slim volume if you have any leanings towards spiritual matters. Even without the spiritual connection, it makes a good read.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 8:14 AM Links to this post

Saturday, January 21, 2006

Title: Fighting Time
Author: Oskar Frankfurt
Publisher: Llumina Press
ISBN: 1-59526-514-7
Genre: Science Fiction
Presentation: Soft cover
No. of Pages: 204

Fighting Time by Oskar Frankfurt is a SF novel set forth in contemporary America but spanning into a few thousand years into the future and at a few places, into the past too. The book deals with gene therapy and its application to immortality and cancer treatment. It also deals with all the scientific, ethical, moral dilemmas that go with path-breaking research in any branch of science. There is not much of science in it for the hardcore SF fan. However, the ethical and moral issues of immortality, of premature human trials due to pressures etc. are nicely brought out.

The style is rather pedantic. At places, it reads more like a book on philosophy and ethics. The author uses the technique of dreams and their interpretation to make the characters speak of their sub-conscious thoughts and fears. A book within a book is a novel technique, atleast to me.

The story is not really that strange. It is predictable at many places. However, it is told in sufficiently good style to hold the reader's attention.

The book deserved better editing than what it received.

All in all, a good read if you are of the scientific bent of mind.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:33 PM 1 comments Links to this post

Monday, January 02, 2006

Title: Tattered Flesh, Resilient Spirit
Author: Craig H. Collison, M.D.
Publisher: Llumina Press
ISBN: 1-59526-169-9
Genre: Medical/Self-Help
Presentation: Hard-bound with dust jacket
No. of Pages: 171

When I read the press release about the saga of survival of the author, a medical man himself from flesh-eating bacteria's ravages, I was very much interested in learning more about the interventions that helped him. So, when an opportunity to review the book came up, I was very happy. And I am not at all disappointed with the result.

The author succeeds in holding the reader's attention all through with a fairly detailed and at the same time, highly readable account of the main factors that proved critical in his pulling through a gruesome and potentially fatal illness. The excellent medical care, the support of the family, esp. his wife Michelle and his own grit pulled him through the ordeal. Faith and prayers played an important part (that is the support part) and Dr. Collison is now quite willing to share these aspects with all patients and thus help them in their own recovery.

I would have preferred to see a more detailed account of the disease and the reconstruction (with possible figures, sketches and photos), since a picture is worth a thousand words. Also, the author could have discussed the possible source of his infection to alert the readers about similar possibilities. The photographs of his family inside the book could have been in color.

The book is very well written and the editors should be complimented. A few typos remained in the book, possibly escaping the proof editor's eyes. I felt that the price is a little on the higher side.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 12:45 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Book Reviews of 2005

2008-02-12T15:33:00.000+05:30

Tuesday, December 27, 2005

Title: DragonSpeaker
Author: Laura J. Chipman
Genre: Fiction/Magic/
Reading level: All Ages
Paperback: 76 pages
Publisher: PublishAmerica
ISBN: 1424101360

DragonSpeaker (it is written together though the book cover shows the two words separately) is a book for the child in each of us. It is a story of magic, of fire-breathing dragons and how a small girl of 10 is called to save them fromextinction. The dragons use the fire not only to punish evil people, but also to roast apples! Jamie Mathews is a DragonSpeaker, one who can speak with dragons. She is consistently called through dreams to her true purpose of life and is helped by her grandma. She goes out on the adventure accompanied by a bully Billy, who ends up becoming her friend.

When Jamie unites the tear drop pendant with the original stone of Magic from which it has come out, she discovers her oneness with the mountain and thus the whole world. She is also united with her parents who went to save the dragons and were trapped in the mountain. The book conveys a deep spiritual message to each of us, that we all need to discover our true mission in life and fulfill the same to achieve happiness. It also conveys the idea that the magic in each of us will be restored when we become whole and complete.

The book is well written and appeals to children of all ages. I liked this book for its different take about saving of dragons as opposed to the others dealing with slaying of dragons.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 6:55 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Title: The Hurried Woman Syndrome - A Seven Step Program to Conquer Fatigue, Control Weight and Restore Passion to Your Relationship
Author: Brent W. Bost, M.D., FACOG
Publisher: McGraw-Hill
ISBN: 0-07-144577-3
Presentation: Hardcover with dustjacket
No. of Pages: 340
Genre: Non-Fiction/Health/Women/Self-Help

I was intrigued about the title and set out to find out what the good doctor meant by that. And I am really happy that I read this book, courtsey McGraw-Hill. Though I am a man, I could relate to many points explained by Dr. Bost in the book since my own wife was and is going through some of the symptoms so vividly described. And, as Dr.Bost explains, there are many symptoms common to both sexes, caused by too much hurry and worry. My spiritual mentor who is also an Ayurvedic Healer always refers to the three ingredients of several health problems: hurry, worry and curry, the last referring to the spicy food which is consumed for stimulation and for satisfaction of the taste buds.

The book deals with the group of symptoms (that is why the Syndrome comes into use) commonly affecting a large number of women in USA (and probably many other developed and developing countries too). The Hurried Woman Syndrome deals with the adverse effects of chronic stress produced by trying to do too many things at a time, typical of a successful life.

The book is divided into two parts. The first part, titled, "UNDERSTANDING HURRIED WOMAN SYNDROME" has 5 chapters:
1) Life as a Hurried Woman
2) Stress and How it Affects Your Brain and Your Life
3) Are You a Hurried Woman?
4) Using Cognitive-Behavioral Coping Skills and
5) The Role of Antidepressants.

I learnt a lot and also got confirmation of some ideas which were building up in my own mind over the course of the last few years.

The Second Part is "YOUR SEVEN-STEP PLAN FOR BETTER LIFE BALANCE" and consists of 8 chapters (yes, not seven as is obviously expected!). They are:

6) Step 1 - Create Balance in your Body
7) Step 2 - Find the Right Caloric Balance
8) Step 3 - Exercise, No Matter What!
9) Get Started on the Program (I thought that by that time, the reader is already on the program)
10) Step 4 - Rekindling the Fire
11) Step 5 - Identify your Priorities and set Reasonable Limits
12) Step 6 - Get the Best of Stress and finally
13) Step 7 - Organise Your world.

Two Appendices and a Index follow. A fairly comprehensive coverage and a good road map for a workable program.

The book is VERY WELL WRITTEN and is highly readable. And as is to be rightly expected from McGraw-Hill, very well edited. However, as a Quality Assurance Professional and as an Editor, I was delighted that I could catch a few slips! But let me hasten to assure you that the book is of real quality and you will get the message clearly. The printing is good and the readability is good. The conversational style adopted is quite effective.

The author sticks to mainstream medical knowledge and suggests cognitive-behavioral therapy and herbs as adjunct or alternative for treatment of depression. He doesn't advocate the several alternative / complementary treatment options for stress and depression. In a way, that is to be expected since he has been trained in the mainstream medicine and also since he got good results with a number of his clients with the program suggested.

The book is very informative and will help not only the Hurried Woman but also her harried family members (yes, every one suffers when the lady of the family suffers, husband, children, even parents, friends etc.), recognise the hurried woman amongst them and help her. Just check out the first and the third chapter. If you recognise yourself or your wife/mom/sister etc., in that description, I would recommend that you go ahead and buy/gift the book. It may just be right thing that the doctor has prescribed. However, like all books of self-help, you need to practise what is written. Reading and understanding is the preliminary step.

About the reviewer: I am a physicist and a metallurgist, not a medical man. Thus I am a lay reader as far as health books are concerned. However, I have been deeply interested in health (partly because of my own health challenges) for long. I have studied Homeopathy, Biochemic
(Schussler's) Tissue Remedies, Bach Flower Remedies, Reiki (I am a certified Usui Reiki Master Healer), Crystal Healing etc. I would strongly advise you to seek the advice of a health professional before trying out the program outlined in the book.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 3:30 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Thursday, November 24, 2005

Title: The Oculi Incident
Author: Regis Schilken
Publisher: TurnKey Press
ISBN: 0976498138
Genre: Fiction/Religion/Christianity/Mystery
No. of Pages: 348
Presentation: Paperback

This novel attempts to portray the ever-raging conflict between good and evil, between altruism and greed, through a religious setting. The story takes place in a Catholic Church. A cross is sent for renovation to a nearby monastery. Brother Anthony who is doing the renovation disappears suddenly without a trace. Nothing much is made of the mystery because it is not too uncommon for Fathers and Brothers to get bored of the monastery life and disappear to surface under a different name and lead the so-called 'normal' life. No one is beyond temptation.

7 years later, suddenly a 'miracle' starts taking place in the Church where the restored cross is installed. Tears start forming from the eyes of the statue of Jesus Christ. When investigation is attempted, deaths start taking place and threats are held out. The connection between the renovation of the cross (and the body of Jesus) and the present miracle is lost on the people because of the time gap.

Pastor Paul Logue’s gut instinct keeps telling him that the few drops of water that fall from the eyes of the statue suspended in the old, Gothic Church are probably a diabolical human ruse or possibly a display of Lucifer himself. But for simple believers and to his Bishop, the word miracle arises in the mind and it spreads like a raging fire fanned by the media’s unquenchable desire for sensationalism. The unique occurrences at his church quickly become national phenomena. Money pours into church coffers as droves of curiosity seekers, tourists, and religious believers visit Saint Martin’s to glimpse the miracle cross and to leave behind extremely generous donations. The mystery is finally solved by the help of a policeman and his live-in partner, a school teacher. They are aided by an young woman in the police department and an intelligent technician working for the villain.

The author succeeds in conveying a few ideas through the characters of this interesting book. Firstly miracles do take place. But all apparent miracles are not necessarily real and thus need to be investigated thoroughly. The forces that are trying to bring about the miracle, human or otherwise will not keep quiet when the investigation is attempted and will try to thwart the same through threats, murder etc., It is not necessary for a human being to believe in Church to be good, and it is entirely possible for an evil person to be in the robes of religion, since normally suspicion doesn't point there.

The story is written well and till half of the book, the suspense of who could have done the killings is well maintained. Though the villains are identified fairly early in the book, the plot keeps unfolding nicely and a good climax is presented. The end is quite mysterious.

The physics behind the formation of the water drops is fairly simple and is well presented. To lay people, the science could indeed be mystifying and magical. I felt that graphic descriptions of love making are out of place in such a book. The story stands quite well without such descriptions. The characters are well developed and look plausible. The effects of war and violence combined with the innate greed could certainly make a man inhuman.

All in all, it is a good read.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 11:11 AM Links to this post

Sunday, November 13, 2005

Title: The Alcohol Blackout
Sub-title: Walking, Talking, Unconscious... and Lethal
Authors: Donal F.Sweeney, M.D. with Robert A. Liston
Publisher: Mnemosyne Press, Santa Barbara
ISBN: 0-9747943-0-9
Genre: Non-Fiction/Medicine/Neuroscience/Law/Psyciatry/
Pesentation: Soft Cover
No. of Pages: 221

What happens when one consumes alcohol? Several things can happen. A sense of euphoria, a high, then loss of coordination, blackout, passout etc. All other stages except blackout are well understood and are well documented. Common people also are aware of almost all these stages but when it comes to blackout, it seems that the knowledge and awareness is rather low. Dr. Donal F. Sweeney, M.D., a board certified doctor of internal medicine, chest disease and addiction medicine, set out in this book to fill this gap in the knowledge. Together with Robert A. Liston, a former newspaperman and magazine journalist, Dr.Sweeney deals with a complex subject in a faily clear and cogent manner.

The authors define what is a blackout and explain what factors probably cause the blackout, the difference between a blackout and a fadeout, the difference between a blackout and a passout, the probable mechanism of a blackout and its implications in the legal systems of a country. They forcefully argue the need for further research into a subject that is not well undestood by the community of scientists (including doctors and psycologists, psychiatrists etc.), lawyers, police and the judges. A good number of cases involving alcohol induced blackout are presented. The difference between immediate memory and short term memory is crucial in understanding the phenomenon of alcohol blackout. The case of Henry, who was operated for epileptic seizures and was left with only immediate memory and no short term memory made interesting and poignant reading. The parallel between alcohol blackout and Henry's lack of memory is really striking. The comparison between drug induced blackout and alcohol blackout is also interesting, esp. because of the difference in terms of the type of memory and duration affected.

While the treatment of memory and its formation and the description of brain anatomy and the role of neurotransmitters etc., may need rereading and or additional reading (for which the authors do supplement the book with a list of resources), the subject matter and its treatment is not beyond the understanding capacity of an educated layman.

Dr.Sweeney is frank and forthright in his views on the subject and while he is no lawyer, his analysis of Paul Cox's case, made me think that he could have made an excellent lawyer or detective if he ever wanted! I feel that he would make an excellent expert witness now for many cases of alcohol blackout related crimes.

The print quality is average and the editing could be better. You will be able to check out the contents, excerpts etc., at a local book store or at Amazon and similar on-line bookstores and so will be able to make a fairly quick decision to buy the book or not.

I would strongly recommend this book to you if you need to deal with the problem of alcohol blackout in any capacity, including as a friend, a policeman, a lawyer etc.

About myself: I am a physicist and a metallurgist, not a medical man. Thus I am a lay reader as far as health books are concerned. I have tasted alcohol out of curiosity but luckily came of a possible addiction at an early stage. I never experienced a blackout myself. However, I have taken up this book because I am interested in health (partly because of my own health challenges) for long. I have studied Homeopathy, Biochemic (Schussler's) Tissue Remedies, Bach Flower Remedies, Reiki (I am a certified Usui Reiki Master Healer), Crystal Healing etc. I would strongly advise you to seek the advice of a health professional when trying to understand and implement any knowledge gained from books.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 4:16 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Friday, November 04, 2005

Title: The Time Has Come - The Book of Grace - Part One
Author: Barbara Oleynick
ISBN: 978-0-9755922-5-0 and 0-9755922-5-4
Publisher: Synergy Books
No. of Pages: 188
Category: Fiction/Spiritual
Presentation: Hardbound with dust jacket

The photograph of a small baby with chubby cheeks and beautiful eyes calls to you from the front cover of this book. If you are called or destined to respond, you will read this book, like I did. This books gets to the core of the reader, the heart. It certainly did to me. Made me cry at several places with its intense narration of the lack of love and the consequent cruelty of a man to a fellow man (I am using that word in its most general form, which encompasses man, woman and child). The author certainly knows how to grip the reader's imagination and she made me feel as if I was there when all that she describes was happening.

Well, let me give a brief peek into the story. The story is about Grace, God's grace to be specific, which was sent to earth in the form of Grace, a baby born to an unwed child of 14, Rachel, who didn't even know that she was pregnant and who didn't know how she became pregnant. And the baby's arrival is known to a wise old woman Gyada and is heralded by the appearance of a bright star. She was waiting for a long time and her role is to teach her. The baby is abandoned by the child mother and is picked up again through a Divine Plan, by Albert, a large hearted man, whose wife Henna is equally loving. The two brought into the world children, who in turn are loving, thus emphasizing the role of good upbringing. But even where love is lacking, God sometimes has His/Her own plan like in the case of Rachel. Rachel proves a loving and forgiving daughter and a wonderfully loving sister to Stefi, whom she brings up like a mother since her biological mother is addicted to drugs and uncontrolled sex. Rachel's mother kills her younger daughter Stefi in a fit of uncontrolled rage, possibly drug induced. She repents and is forgiven. Rachel is directed by the same Divine force that is responsible for Grace's adoption by Albert and Henna to go searching for her baby and naturally is welcomed with open arms by the couple.

Rachel grows up to become a qualified medical doctor and Grace becomes a miraculous healer. She saves another baby Jeffrey, the grandson of Albert when he was just a few months old. When she is about ten years old, Grace performs another healing miracle by healing a man with multiple stab wounds. She continues to help others and the climax for this particular part comes when she saves a train from being blown up in a terrorist attack, set in 2008.

Barbara is at her best when she is narrating scenes of love and interestingly scenes of great sorrow like when Rachel was delivering her baby not knowing what is happening, another small child being attended in the Emergency Room by a desperate team whose members cry when they fail, Stefi's death and Rachel's desperate attempts to save her sister and similar incidents. When she comes to the part where she describes the decaying social order, the increasing incidence of crime, the way children are being ill-treated etc., she sounds more like a preacher and like a narrator of a documentary film. The philosophy that she tries to share is really not new and is more eastern though the western world did have similar thinkers but lost most of that knowledge in the mad rush for materialism. Now the eastern societies are pursuing similar agenda and the societies are paying the price. Barbara seems to send a message through her novel that if sufficient number of people work more from her heart than from their minds (which are more logical and self-seeking) and thus share the love (sharing material possessions comes as a natural act when the heart is full of love), the world can still be saved from a total disaster.

You will read this book if you are destined to read. After reading, how you will feel is dependent upon how much dogmatic your belief systems are. If you are spiritual and believe in the oneness of Universe, you will resonate with some of the ideas presented by the author.

As I wrote, the author has a good style and really grips you in the first part of her book. The later part is as mentioned a little more in a documentary or reporter style. Still, fairly readable.

The editing of the book left much to be desired. It didn't interfere too much with my ability to understand but left me wondering at the state of English in US colleges and universities.

Swamy

About me: Swamy is a part of my given name, Venkateswara Swamy Swarna. Swarna is the family name and is the name of a small village in Andhra Pradesh, India, from which my ancestors hail. Venkateswara Swamy is the name of the presiding Deity at Tirumala Tirupati, the richest temple of India and the second richest religious institution in the world. It is the tradition in Hindu families to name the children after Gods and Goddesses, with the optimism that the child does develop the divine qualities. I am clarifying this since Swamy is also used as a respectful title for Sadhus, Sants and Sanyasis (monks) in India and thus sometimes I am confused with such monks. I am not a monk. I am a physicist and a metallurgist, a Quality Assurance specialist and am presently working in a full time job in a large organization, at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. The views expressed are of course my own and my organization has no connection to it.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:53 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: Lean Strategies for Product Development
Sub-Title: Achieving Breakthrough Performance in Bringing Products to Market
Author: Clifford Fiore
Publisher: ASQ Quality Press (www.asq.org and http://qualitypress.asq.org)
Publisher's Catalog No: H1205
ISBN: 0-87389-604-1
No. of Pages: 96
Genre: Non-Fiction/Management/Industrial Efficiency/Product Development

"Lean Strategies for Product Development" is a small, beautifully printed soft-cover paperback that you could pick up and read while waiting for your flight in the airport and may be finish by the time you reach your destination after about an hour. However, you may need to reread it a couple of times to really appreciate and fully absorb the important concepts presented therein. In 11 chapters spread over just 62 pages, Cliff succeeds in presenting lucidly some very important concepts and methodologies for faster and better product development. These are aptly called Lean Strategies since they tend to make the organization lean by reducing flab and wastage of resources. An analogy that comes to mind is how a small torpedo boat is much more nimble when compared to a bulky aircraft carrier, or how a lean and fit man can outrun and outmanouver a flabby, overweight opponent in boxing. The need for faster, leaner product development teams that can come up with smart and cost-effective designs to withstand intense competition is very well brought out.

The book resembles the well-known business novel "The Goal" in style, though the story line is not as strong as that book. The tone is quite conversational and most of the time, the text is easy to follow. The examples are quite meaningful and with only a little rereading, it is possible for the strategy to be understood. The contents and a sample chapter of the book can be accessed by clicking on the following link:

http://qualitypress.asq.org/perl/catalog.cgi?item=H1205

In addition to the 11 chapters, the book has appendices including a Glossary, Product Development Approach Summary, Examples of Waste, Value Stream Map Examples, Common Product Development Problems, Product Development Maturity Path, References and at the very end, a very useful index.

I especially liked the chapters on Modular design, Platform Design and The Lean and Six Sigma Connection. I also liked Cliff's emphasis on the imperative need to capture knowledge (Knowledge Management if you prefer). I feel many of the existing organizations, even large ones, neglect
this area. As Ken Hawkins, the Project Engineer of Donetics in the book rightly remarks, knowledge goes into a black-hole, never to come out again!

As an editor, I found a few places where I felt that the text could have been edited better. But in general, there is no difficulty in understanding the message.

All in all, I have no hesitation in recommending this book to individuals, organizations and libraries.

S.V.Swamy

About the reviewer: Swamy is a Physicist and a metallurgist by education and has spent almost all of 37 years in Quality Control, Quality Assurance with special emphasis on various aspects of material testing. His other interests include training and general management. Presently he is actively involved in Human Resource Development and Corporate Communications in a large organiza- tion in India. The above views are his own and do not in any way reflect the views of his orga- nization.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 6:55 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Sunday, October 30, 2005

Title: Lupus - Alternative Therapies That Work
Author: Sharon Moore
Publisher: Healing Arts Press a division of Inner Traditions International
ISBN: 0-89281-889-1
No. of Pages: 246
Category: Non-Fiction/Health/Alternative/Self-Help
Presentation: Softcover

This book is written by Sharon Moore, who suffered from SLE (Systemic Lupus Erythomatus or simply called Lupus) and who was told that it is an autoimmune disorder and she may not recover from it. She did recover from it by studying alternative approaches to health, which she describes well in this book. Her story is spread over 13 chapters and an epilogue. She talks of the effect of liver on health, diet and health, nutritional supplements, herbs, beneficial fats and oils, toxins in food, problems from toxins in dental work, Traditional Chinese Medicine, Mind-Body Therapies, Caring for Your Spirit and interestingly the last chapter, "How to Begin" a good road map. The
epilogue is a good graphic portrayal of her recovery from a debilitating illness.

I found the book readable in general but some sections are a little more technical, which may need additional reading. Fortunately, the author supplements her book with Suggested Reading and Resources. An index is also added to enable you to return to a specific topic easily.

I would suggest that you should read the Introduction, My Story, What is Lupus and Your Liver, followed by a quick read of the rest of the book. When you reach the chapter How to Begin, you would know whether these approaches are for you. If you are convinced that Sharon's suggestions will work for you, read that chapter carefully and follow the advice given by Sharon. The epilogue should keep giving you courage and perseverance when things look a little bleak.

I found her suggestions on the treatment of depression (which is a natural complication of any chronic health problem) with Multivitamin supplements, B Complex, DLPA and tyrosine (detailed on pages 75-76) very interesting and very useful. I am painfully aware of the problems of B 12 deficiency and associated problems.

I have no hesitation in recommending it to you if you or your people need a good resource book on the alternative approaches to the management of Lupus.

Swamy

About the reviewer: I am a physicist and a metallurgist, not a medical man. Thus I am a lay reader as far as health books are concerned. However, I have been deeply interested in health (partly because of my own health challenges) for long. I have studied Homeopathy, Biochemic
(Schussler's) Tissue Remedies, Bach Flower Remedies, Reiki (I am a certified Usui Reiki Master Healer), Crystal Healing etc. I would strongly advise you to seek the advice of a health professional when trying to add any alternative health system to your treatment protocol.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 1:14 AM Links to this post

Sunday, September 25, 2005

Title: Waking the Warrior Goddess - Harnessing the Power of Nature & Natural Medicines to Achieve Extraordinary Health - Dr.Christine Horner's Program to Protect Against & Fight Breast Cancer

Author: Dr. Christine Horner, M.D., F.A.C.S.
Publisher: Basic Health Publications, Inc.
ISBN: 1-59120-155-1
Genre: Non-Fiction/Health/Women/Cancer/Holistic/Ayurveda
Pages: 320
Presentation: Hard Cover

Breast Cancer is one of the more prevalent forms of cancer that is affecting a number of women all over the world. From time immemorial, breasts have been associated with femininity and thus any disfiguration (caused by chemotherapy, radiation and mastectomy) is emotionally devastating to many women. Dr.Christine Horner, a Board Certified plastic surgeon has personal experience of seeing the suffering since her mother was affected. In this wonderful book, Dr.Horner shares the latest research on the factors that increase the risk of developing breast cancer and the best ways of fighting those risk factors. She combines life style changes and Ayurveda for an effective fight against a deadly, disfiguring and emotionally devastating disease. In fact, her recommendations will most probably protect against other disorders like other cancers and aging too.

The book is spread over 28 Chapters and is followed by Dr.Horner's 30-step program, and Dr.Horner hastens to assure the reader that they are really not steps and thus there is no sequence. They are life style change suggestions and if really implemented become customs.

The book is highly readable. However, there are a few problems with units. For example, on Page 74, ppt is defined as parts per thousand and then an absurd figure is given for the concentration of PCBs in waters of the Great Lakes. 1000 ppt becomes 1 or 100%. So, there cannot be a higher value like 17,000,000 ppt. Similarly, a microgram is one millionth of a gram and is one tenth of a millicentigram. A millicentigram, mcg is one over one hundred thousand. There are a couple of statistical errors and there are a few slips in text editing too but in general, there is no problem in understanding the subject. In any case, taking of any herbal supplements etc., is best done with the full knowledge and guidance of the primary health professional and thus the dosage etc., will be taken care of. These minor deficiencies, I repeat, do not in any way reduce the value of the information given by Dr.Horner in this excellent book.

The publisher's disclaimer of not endorsing any specific product including the product promoted by the author is very apt and the same disclaimer applies to this review too. Similalrly, the reviewer doesn't endorse the specific brand of Ayurveda or Meditation that the author recommends. That doesn't reduce the value of the information given in the book.

The book will be found useful not only for US readers but for all women and for that matter all people since men are also adversely affected when their mothers, sisters, wives, lovers and daughters are affected by this disease.

Some Hindu readers of this book in USA or other countries may get offended by the author's naming her pet cat, Sita, who is the incarnation of the Divine Mother in Ramayana, the great Indian Story of the victory of Rama, the embodiment of virtue over Ravana, representing the demoniacal forces of lust and arrogance. The author could probably rechristen her pet with a culturally proper name.

I really enjoyed reading this book and strongly recommend any one with even a slight interest in cancer in general and breast cancer in particular to read this book.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 2:11 PM 0 comments Links to this post

Saturday, September 03, 2005

Title: Reiki Energy Medicine Bringing Healing Touch into Home, Hospital and Hospice
Authors: Libby Barnett and Maggie Chambers with Susan Davidson
Publisher: Healing Arts Press (A Division of Inner Traditions International)
ISBN: 0-89281-633-3
Pages: 126
Price: $12.95
Category: Health / Alternate Health / Energy Medicine / Reiki

Reiki is a form of Energy Medicine. The Japanese compound word Reiki means Universal Energy and is equivalent to the Chi of Chinese and the Prana of Indians. In this book, "Reiki Energy Medicine Bringing Healing Touch into Home, Hospital and Hospice", the authors Libby Barnett and Maggie Chambers, Reiki Masters, give us a number of areas where the Reiki healing touch can be applied with advantage. They give a good number of case studies and examples from their extensive health-related professional experience spread over years. Libby is a Medical Social Worker and Maggie is an artist who works with handicapped children. Both found Reiki to be useful in a number of situations. In collaboration with Susan Davidson, who helped the book to be edited into a highly readable account of Reiki, they succeed in getting the message through that Reiki as an adjunt to all other medical systems can improve the healing process effectively. Reiki is intelligent and it is the receipient who receives as much or as little as one needs and uses it for the highest good. Thus, it is not to be construed as a panacea, but it should be offered with unconditional love. I especially liked their comment that Reiki is not only Universal Energy but is also Universal / unconditional love. They also bring out an important point that Reiki should be welcomed by all other medical systems and the insurance firms since it doesn't interfere with their working and helps in bringing down the medicare costs.

The book gives a short introduction to Reiki but concentrates more on the applications of Reiki in the health field. The emphasis through out is on touch. The Appendices give the hand positions for self Reiki and for giving Reiki to others. The other aspects of Reiki which enable distance healing, programming etc., which do not involve touch have not been covered.

I recommend this book to all those who are interested in the use of Reiki in the health field.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 10:50 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

Title: Becoming a SERVICE ICON in 90 Minutes a Month
Author: Jeff Mowatt
Publisher: JC Mowatt Seminars Inc. (www.jeffmowatt.com)
ISBN: 0-9734704-0-2
Category: Business / Management
No. of Pages: 164

"Becoming a SERVICE ICON in 90 Minutes a Month" is a well-written, highly readable book that gives a clear road map to those individuals and organisations (or rather the individuals who feel responsible for the organisation) who are interested in taking their service standards to ever increasing heights and having reached a great height, staying there. They stand out as symbols of outstanding service, or in other words, they become the SERVICE ICONs. And Jeff shows how it can be done, with as little as 90 minutes a month, which is all it takes to conduct a CAST Meeting (Customer Service Team Meeting, copyrighted). However, before the first meeting can be conducted, a lot of groundwork is needed, including employee training, conducted through his "Influence with Ease" (Trademark Registered) customer service training.

Jeff's approach is good, and is laid out in 8 chapters. Chapter 1 is rightly titled, "What's in This for you". The second chapter gives a broad outline of the CAST Meetings, followed by the next five chapters, which describe the subtle shifts needed in Customer Service Training, Service Standards, Customer Surveys, Employee Motivation and Daily Priorities. The final chapter describes the actual meeting process.

The anecdotes and the examples given by Jeff are from real life and will certainly hit home. I liked especially two examples: one about the customer feed-back survey, where a car-wash employee not only gets the real problem about the front-desk poor service from a customer (who was not going to complain but who, if possible will not come back) by asking the right question, but also succeeds in getting the customer's good-will by offering a discount, simply because the company empowered him to take on the spot decisions. The second example, which appealed to me was the way a Government employee went out of his way to give a refund cheque to a person who was in real need. That story brought tears to my eyes. If only we all could be as sensitive as that employee!

Jeff makes one important observation in his book, which I liked, the need to treat all people (employees, customers etc.) fairly, not necessarily equally. The difference is important and in many organisations, which go by the rule book, the approach becomes impersonal. Every rule has an exception and Jeff brings out clearly the need to empower employees to differentiate between these two aspects.

The cartoons used by permission from Randy Glasbergen (www.glasbergen.com) in the book add humour and reinforce the points made by Jeff. The book is well printed, and the editing is generally good, though a few slips were noticed, which however, do not distort the message.

The book is aimed at managers (that include people at many levels including supervisors, executives and top management) who are interested in making their organisation a SERVICE ICON, an example to be looked up to and emulated by one and all including the competitors. Even for those who are not in North America, the book gives enough ideas to get going. The book can be supplemented by the Multimedia kits availble from the same source.

I would have preferred to see this book in hard-cover since it makes a good addition to the shelf of many a library. The paper-back is fine for individuals.

Recommendation: A good read

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 9:12 AM Links to this post

Friday, August 26, 2005

Title: Many Faces to Many Places - A Story
Author: Judy Azar LeBlanc
Publisher: Xulon Press
ISBN: 1-594678-66-9
Genre: Spirituality/Fantasy
No. of Pages: 92

"Many Faces to Many Places - A Story" by Judy is a highly readable, philosophical / spiritual fantasy. Using allegory and symbolism, Judy tells very eloquently the problem that all of us face at some time or other in our life. Many Faces is the girl in this story, who escapes from a witch and goes on a journey to seek fulfillment. She meets many spirits in various shapes, sizes and is guided by them. She goes through a dark spiritual desert of lust, greed etc., and comes out successfully. She meets a Veiled Man, a fatherly figure, full of wisdom and love. When he hugs her and lifts his veil, he disappears and she finds that he is no other than her indweller. This book touched a respondent chord in my heart since Judy's philosophy is very similar to our eastern philosophy. The trick is in living that philosophy. So, Many Faces had to go to Many Places and go through Many Phases to discover her true Self! You and I are also going through such transitions all the time. Intellectual knowledge has to be absorbed through experience. Once she discovers that she is One with All and whatever she is seeing and experiencing outside is but a manifestation of her inside, she feels at peace since she now knows true love to one and all.

I especially liked the easy style of Judy. The symbolism is not difficult to understand. Her play on words like Fake (King Ekaf) and False (Maiden Eslaf) is really insightful. The book makes an interesting read to young and old alike. The first part can be read out to children as a fantasy, while the whole book (which is quite short) will appeal to the spiritual seeker.

The book is printed well, but the editing could have been better. I hope the future editions will take care of that aspect.

I recommend the book strongly.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 8:02 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Monday, August 15, 2005

Title: The Acid-Alkaline Diet for Optimum Health
Sub-title: Restore your Health by Creating Balance in Your Diet
Author: Christopher Vasey, N.D. (Original in French)
Translated into English by Jon Graham
ISBN: 089281099-8 (Soft cover)
No. of Pages: 170
Category: Health/Diet
Publisher: Healing Arts Press (a division of Inner Traditions International)
website: www.InnerTraditions.com

"The Acid-Alkaline Diet for Optimum Health" was originally published in French and this present edition is translated into english by Jon Graham, who rightly preferred to give credit to the original author. This book is my first full-length introduction to this subject, though I have been reading some articles about the deleterious effects of excessive acidity on the body's health. I am happy to report that this book is certainly exhaustive in its approach and is at the same time, very well written and is highly readable.

The author takes a systematic approach to the subject and takes the reader through a well-guided tour of acidity and alkalinity. He discusses the effects of various foods with respect to their acidic and acidifying nature (this distinction is very important) or their alkalising nature. He analyses several typical meals right from breakfast to dinner/supper, tea, coffee, desserts and gives sensible suggestions to select a good blend of various food items so as to achieve the optimum balance in the body. More importantly, he gives good advice on deacidification through the use of alkaline supplements, deacidification through increased kidney function, increase in sweat etc. He also gives good advice about other supplements like ginseng, spiriluna etc.

I especially recommend the reader to read Pages 18 and 19 of the book so that the reader can decide whether or not he/she has a problem with excessive acidity or acidosis as it is called. I found that I do have several symptoms described by Vasey and I am now enthused to take up the dietary changes and alkaline supplements. I will certainly share the results with you through this blog.

I would have liked to see Vasey include the homeopathic approach to acidity, since I am aware that homeopathy has a lot to offer in this regard. However, he has stuck to what he knows and he comes through as a genuine and sincere naturopath.

The book is well written and well printed, but for a few editorial slips, which are not significant. I strongly recommend this book.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 9:19 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: This House is on Fire - The Life of Shri Dhyanyogi
Author: Shri Anandi Ma
Publisher: Dhyanyoga Centers, Inc.
ISBN: 1-883879-50-5 (Hardbound), 1-883879-51-5 (Softbound)
Category: Spirituality / Yoga / Meditation
Pages: 448 (144 in color)

My review of this book is based on a Galley Copy (with photos in Black and White) and with a few editorial slips, which would certainly have been corrected in the actual print edition. The book is scheduled to be released shortly (in amazon.com, the date given is September, 28, 2005). I was probably too late to get my review on to the back cover, but I do hope that my review will help you to decide whether the book is for you or not.

"This House is on Fire" can literally set your own spiritual house on fire and burn down all the karma to ashes! If you have any interest in spiritual matters, if you ever felt suffocated by the materialistic desires which bind you, if you ever felt that your present life is rather empty or is not fulfilling, if you have at any time felt like exploring Kundalini, Hatha Yoga, Meditation (Samadhi), Bliss etc., this book is for you. If you enjoyed reading "Autobiography of a Yogi" by Paramahansa Yogananda and "Living With The Himalayan Masters" by Swami Rama etc., you will enjoy this book too.

Narrated by His Spiritual Heir, Shri Anandi Ma (not to be confused with Shri Anandamayi Ma and Mata Amrutanandamayi, who are Masters in their own way), this book brings to the reader a fairly detailed, vivid portrayal of a great Master, Who has attained enlightenment and Who decided to share His experience with all others, who came to Him. Born in a highly pious family in Bihar in 1878, the boy Kashinath left his house at the age of 11 and then again at 13 (this time for good) and went through various spiritual processes for 30 years to finally achieve the Ultimate Reality of Samadhi and Bliss. He served a small rural community in Bandhwad, Gujarat for several decades and then the call to go to USA to serve the spiritually hungry children of that country came, after a OBE (Out of Body Experience) - or Near Death Experience, if you prefer that word. Heeding that call, He goes to USA along with His carefully prepared Spiritual Successor Asha Devi, now known as Shri Anandi Ma. He is ably assisted by another disciple, Shri Deepak Parekh, now rechristened as Shri Dileep ji (ji is an honorific suffix to Indian names to show reverence).

Pl. check out http://www.dyc.org to know more about Dhyanyoga and the Dhyanyoga Centers set up to continue with the work started by Shri Dhyanyogi Madhusudhanadas ji (as He was renamed after renunciation). He took Mahasamadhi (left His physical body) at the ripe age of 115 years, but continued to be available to His disciples in His subtle body.

There is a saying that unless a Saint wishes it, we cannot go to Him. Though I have been born and brought up in India, I did not know about the existence of this great Mahatma (great Soul) all these years and it is again a quirk of fate that I came into contact with Him (in a subtle manner, since reading about Him and seeing His photographs is in a way meeting Him), after all these years, that too because of my hobby of reviewing books. This book came to Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India all the way from USA! Strange are the ways of the One who became many for Leela (Sport, Play). Thanks are to Adrienne Biggs of www.biggspublicity.com, for sending me this beautiful book.

While reading this book, I was constantly being reminded of my own Master, Shri Sai Baba of Shirdi, Maharashtra, with whom I came into contact (though He took His Mahasamadhi in 1918, nearly 30 years before I was born physically), in 1998, though I have seen a film depicting His life in 1984, been married to His devotee in 1978 and though I have been in general interested in Gods and Saints for a long time. Sai Satcharita, the Life Story of Shri Sai Baba and the present book have many parallels. Check out www.saidarbar.org for a good introduction to Sai and to read Sai Satcharita and Shri Guru Charitra on line. Similarly, "Autobiography of a Yogi" has some common features with this book. As mentioned in this book, all Sadgurus (True Gurus, Masters) have many common features. I was also reminded of Bhagawan Ramana Maharshi (www.ramana-maharshi.org) and Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa, His Spiritual Heir Swamy Vivekananda etc. I also found a lot of parallels between the life story of Shri Dhyanyogi and Shri Shankaracharya of Hampi Virupaksha Vidyaranya Peetham, Hampi, Karnataka, with Whom (and with His successor too), I have the Guru-Sishya (Master-Disciple) relationship.

This book will come into your hands and you will read it if you have some connection with Shri Dhyanayogi or if you are already connected to another great Master, who decided that you should read this book.

An important note: My name is Venkateswara Swamy Swarna. I was named after Lord Sri Venkateswara Swamy, also called Lord Venkateswara, Srinivasa, Balaji etc., Who is the presiding Deity of the famous Tirumala Tirupati temple. I am not a monk or a Sanyasi, though as mentioned, I do have strong spiritul leanings. I am married and have a family, full time job etc. Pl. see www.freewebs.com/svswamy to know more about me. Thanks.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:21 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

Title: American Warrior
Author: James Snyder
Publisher: Infinity Publishing.com
ISBN: 0-7414-2320-0
No. of Pages: 334
Presentation: Soft cover
Genre: Fiction, War

American Warrior is a novel that deals mostly with the Vietnam war, which in this case symbolizes the internal conflict. The hero is abused by a drunk father, by schoolmates and by local thugs when young. A half-Dutch and half-Indonesian man named Draeger rescues him and the two develop an intense soul-level relationship (as a father and son). Pestered by the hero, the recluse Draeger teaches the young protégé, a secret martial art so that he can defend himself. However, the boy finds that to really master that martial art, he has to transcend his own ego. When he dies, Draeger leaves all his property to the young American, whose drunk father commits suicide. The young teenager gets into trouble with the law and with the help of a teacher, who takes paternal interest in him, gets into military service.

He lands up in Vietnam and gets caught up in the war and the politicking and machinations of CIA. He runs away and is caught by the American Military Police. He survives torture and is again sucked into Vietnam by a slick talking CIA man who has his own personal agenda. He finds that his trust in the CIA man is betrayed and he leaves him behind to his fate in his final escape to Thailand.

The novel is sufficiently interesting to read that one continues with it. Some portions of the book are rather graphic in their description and may cause distress to readers who are a little squeamish, though the title itself should alert the potential reader about the content. However, some of the mysticism, symbolism and eastern philosophy underlying the story may not appeal to the average reader. The book has a strong anti-war message though the hero finds that when buffeted by much bigger forces, one can't do much about fighting or not fighting.

I was reminded of another Vietnam war novel, "Diverting the Buddha" by Bob Swartzel, which I had the opportunity to read and review a few years ago.

A short biography of the author would have been a good addition to the book. However, the would-be-reader can get some information anout the book and the author by checking out the website, www.americanwarrior.org and reading the author's interview by Dian Moore.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 8:59 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Saturday, August 06, 2005

Title: Goober The Golf Ball's Great Adventure

Author: Michelle Lynn DiCicco (Writer) & John Terlato (Illustrator)

Publisher:Trafford Publishing
Category: Fiction / Children's
ISBN: 1-4120-2071-9

"Goober the Golf Ball's Great Adventure" is a children's book, written by Michelle DiCicco and illustrated by John Terlato. It is a short and sweet story, humorous and with a happy ending. A boy Tommy loses his favorite golf ball, Goober. After a short separation, they get reunited.

The story is simple and easy to read for children. The illustrations are colorful and are eye-catching.

It would have been better if the age group for whom the book is meant for was mentioned somewhere, on the cover or in a short intro. Also, even in USA and Canada (for whom the book is meant for) there could be parents who don't play golf and so will be at a loss to explain what is a driver and what is meant by slicing. Such golf terminology could have been explained so that the curiosity of children and parents could be taken care of.

The story and the illustrations lend for a multi-media approach in the form of a CD (with nice music and the story read out).

A good effort from a first time author.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 7:33 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Sunday, July 31, 2005

Title: Hot Plants – Nature’s Proven Sex Boosters for Men and Women
Author: Chris Kilham
Publisher: St.Martin’s Griffin (www.stmartins.com)
ISBN: 0-312-31539-2
No. of Pages: 208
Genre: Non-fiction, Health, Herbalism

Hot Plants is Chris Kilham’s account of exploration of plants, which help men and women lead better sex lives and thus enjoy better health. The author is a medicine hunter, author and educator and is the Explorer in Residence at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, where he teaches ethnobotany. He has written a dozen books, four of which are listed in side the book.
In this particular book, Chris explores about 10 medicinal plants including some like Aswagandha, Yohimbe and Ginseng, which have been well known all over the world and a few lesser known (to me atleast). He describes for each plant, the active part, the location, the scientific studies conducted if any and the views of the traditional doctors, herbalists and the users. He has tried almost all of them himself and thus what he writes can certainly be taken as authentic. He also gives the side effects for some of the plants where applicable. He finishes the book with a very engaging account of the benefits of chocolate, not from the erotic angle but from the angle of love and bonding. His writing style is engaging and the accounts of his wide ranging travels and his experiences with people of various civilizations makes the book an interesting read.
He got a few Indian names wrong (he refers to Dr.Prabhakaran as Dr.Prabakhan and Vata as Vatta), which I hope he will correct in future editions. His perception of the Hindu Gods Krishna and Siva may offend orthodox Hindus and fundamentalists. The conversion of temperatures by the author from Centigrade (Celsius) scale to Fahrenheit scale is approximate at some places. The special feature of -40 degrees in the temperature scale (that -40 F and -40 C are exactly equal) does not come through in the book.

The book would have been certainly more valuable if a few photographs of the plants were included. The author’s recommendations at the end will be certainly useful to those who would like to try out these plants as a good substitute for Viagra and Cialis etc.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 9:59 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: The Transformed Leader
Author: Ernest L. Stech, Ph.D.
Publisher: Trafford Publishing
ISBN: 1-4120-3695-X
No. of Pages: 212
Genre: Non-fiction, Management, Psychology, Leadership

The Transformed Leader by Dr.Ernest Stech (Ernie Stech) is a study of the traits that differentiate a leader from a manager. He differentiates the leader from the manager by the use of the adjective ‘transformed’ and describes the process of transformation.

The book has 17 chapters. The 1st chapter deals with Leaders, Leadership, Management and Power and explains the difference between management and leadership. The 2nd chapter discusses ordinary life and ordinary leadership and the next chapter discusses the development of life history and leadership. The topic of the book is introduced in the 4th chapter where transformation is linked to a kind of death and rebirth. This transformation is discussed from 4 perspectives, that of a mythological hero’s journey, the archetypes of Carl Jung (further developed by Carol Pearson), Humanistic Psychology of Dr.Abraham Maslow and Taoism. An integration of the concepts brought out in these four different approaches is attempted in the later chapters. The reviewer couldn’t but help noticing the similarity of approach of Indian (Hindu) epics to this topic.

The book certainly covers the topic well and the resources at the end of the book help the reader to explore some of the concepts further if so desired. Dr. Stech writes in a highly readable and lucid style and holds the reader’s attention well through out the book. Dr. Ernie Stech is the Principal in Chief Mountain Consulting and Executive Director of the Flagstaff National Monuments Foundation. Examples from his own consulting could have been included in the book and would have added greater value.

The book could certainly have been edited better and this reviewer couldn’t help marking his copy at several places.

This book is a good addition to the literature on leadership.

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 9:51 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: The Roly-Poly Hunters in Kindergarten
Author: Robin Merlino
Publisher: Trafford Publishing
ISBN: 1-4120-5353-6
Pages: 24 plus cover
Genre: Children's Fiction (Illustrated)

Rating: 8/10 (4 stars out of a possible 5)

The Roly-Poly Hunters in Kindergarten, written and illustrated by Robin Merlino is a visually delightful and colorful book meant for children of 3-6 years (Pre K through 1st grade) and their parents / care givers etc. It is a short and inspiring story of how a small girl Maddie overcomes her shyness and makes friends with her Kindergarten class mates with the help of Roly-Polies. The book has a nice educational value too since the author explains what a Roly-Poly is in the beginning with the help of a good illustration.

The illustrations are appealing, the colors are eye-catching and the story is good. The target readers may need a little help from their parents or other elders to read and understand the story. The book may be a good addition to play schools and libraries that cater to children.

While the editor has done a good job in general, I came across a minor slip. The spelling of one Roly-Poly as Cassy and Cassie on two different pages is a little confusing. Except for this, the book is well-produced.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.V.Swamy
swamyreviews@yahoo.com
www.freewebs.com/swamyreviews

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 6:14 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Title: Dance with Your Heart - Tales and Poems That the Heart Tells

Author: Shirley Cheng

Publisher: Lulu Press (www.lulu.com - The Marketplace for Digital Content ID 81082)

ISBN: 1-4116-1858-0

Pages: 228

Genre: Fantasy - Short Stories, Poetry

Dance with Your Heart is Shirley Cheng's (see www.shirleycheng.com) collection of short stories and poems, some of them written when she was in school. Some of the stories and poems were published in local press and won awards. While I could not appreciate her poems much (because I am not much of a poetry fan), I did enjoy reading her stories, which show her very vivid imagination.

The True Leader is about the true traits of a great leader, including kindness and courage, willingness to sacrifice oneself for the sake of others. A doe is portrayed as teaching the apparent leader lion, a few lessons in real leadership.

Fancella, the Fire Goddess is a fanciful tale about why a fire is hot, which apparently was not initially so. Interesting to read.

Smell the Roses is a heart-warming story about the transformation of a man by a girl dying of cancer.

There are many more stories, most of them good to read, with some useful moral.

Shirley writes in a fluid style, though the language gets a bit flowery at times. Those who like to escape into a world of fantasy for a few hours by reading the stories will like the book.

The book is well printed with an easy-to-read font. It will be a good buy for children and parents who like their children to read some good stories. It will also be a good addition to libraries and schools.

- Swamy
www.freewebs.com/swamyreviews
swamyreviews@yahoo.com

Posted by S.V.Swamy at 12:21 AM 0 comments Links to this post

Sunday, July 17, 2005

Title: The Revelation of a Star's Endless Shine - A Young Woman's Autobiography of a 20-Year Tale of Trials & Tribulations

Author: Shirley Cheng

Publisher: Self Published by Author

ISBN: 1-4116-1860-2

Category: Autobiography

No. of Pages: 700 (including 50 photographs)

The book with the rather long title is the story of Shirley Cheng, an American girl (of Chinese descent), who was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis when just 11 months old. Cared for by a loving,courageous and spiritually strong mother, Shirley overcomes all her physical challenges including being confined to a wheelchair, loss of vision and constant pain to realise her intellectual and artistic potentials to a great extent.

The book is written in third person and reads more like a social novel than an autobiography. The author chose this particual format to probably maintain a sense of objectivity and seems to have succeeded to some extent. The book is written in a lucid, vivid and flowing style and is easy to read. It may take the reader a few days to read through because of the number of pages. But it is certainly not boring and the author holds the reader's attention all through. The portrayal of the various people who played a crucial role in Shirley's life has been well done and the reader gets a fairly clear idea of the people involved and the events. As is to be expected, Shirley and her mother encounter a number of problems from various people who are not able to understand the special problems of Shirley and at the same time are helped by some really kind souls.

The narration is moving at many places and at the same is also inspiring because of the perseverance of Juliet, Shirley's mother and Shirley herself. Their problems with the US Medical, Social and School systems evoke reader's sympathy. However, the same system helps Shirley in several ways including her getting a laptop computer with special software which finally allows to read what she is typing. The reviewer could empathise with several aspects of Shirley's suffering. All in all, a good, inspiring read.

Please visit Shirley Cheng at www.shirleycheng.com and

this reviewer at www.freewebs.com/swamyreviews

When It gets Dark

2007-09-18T13:29:00.000+05:30

Title: When It Gets Dark: An Enlightened Reflection on Life with Alzheimer's

Author: Thomas DeBaggio

Publisher: Free Press (November 12, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743250036
ISBN-13: 978-0743250030
Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
Shipping Weight: 11.8 ounces

When It Gets Dark: An Enlightened Reflection on Life with Alzheimer's by Thomas DeBaggio is a poignant account of a man's efforts to retain a part of his memory in the face of Alzheimer's Dementia. Thomas DeBaggio was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, a progressive disorder which leads to loss of memory. The short term memory is affected first and then the longer term memory too. In this book, the author tries to recollect his past life, partly helped by his wife, son and a few other relatives and close friends.

Since the author was a gardener all his adult life, he describes that part of his life in considerable detail. The actual symptoms or problems of Alzheimer's are given rather briefly, that too towards the end of the book. The book is interspersed with short paragraphs full of despair, self-pity etc., which is to be expected in a patient who has been given a slow but sure sentence of mental death, since loss of memory is a mental death.

The narration is gripping and moving at places, especially on pages 179 and 180. It gives a fairly good portrayal of the anxieties, fears and despairs of a sufferer. However, if you are looking at a medical description of the disease, treatment options etc., you will need to look elsewhere.

2005 S. V. Swamy

For my recent book reviews, click here

ZenWise Selling - Mindful Methods to Improve Your Sales...

2005-09-29T22:41:00.000+05:30

Title: ZenWise Selling - Mindful Methods to Improve Your Sales...and Your Self
Author: Lee Godden
Publisher: Two Circles Press

Category: Non-fiction / Business
260 pages; ISBN: 0-9740076-0-9

Rating: 9/10

ZenWise Selling: Mindful Methods to Improve Your Sales…and Your Self is written by Lee Godden, who has consistently and successfully used a Zen mind in his career as a sales executive. It is primarily meant for people who are already in sales or who may be looking at sales as a possible career option. The book does offer a basic course in selling too, but the focus is on Zen techniques.

The book has ten chapters and covers the subject well, both in breadth and depth. The approach is friendly and polite. The style is interesting and will hold your attention. For very definite reasons, the author has chosen a second person, guide book approach rather than the self- promoting autobiographical approach. He keeps himself in the background. Since the book does refer to 'you', the focus is on you, the reader, the customer, the consumer. The 'I' has been subdued, keeping with the Zen approach.

If you are totally new to Zen, this book may or may not be sufficient to understand that concept. The first few chapters of the book and the appendix give a fairly good treatment of Zen. But if you prefer to first read a more thorough introduction to that subject, the author gives good recommendations.

Lee Godden rightly differentiates between philosophical Zen and religious Zen. He uses the philosophical aspects of Zen, which when added to a set of beliefs and rituals forms the religious core for a good number of people in the present world.

The book is well-written and is well-produced. There are a couple of typos, but they don't interfere with understanding. Use of bullets and pointers, use of boxes with specific messages, exercises with specific focus, in general all the tools that make a guide book effective, have been liberally used. The book has two appendices on Zen, one on its history and one listing Zen resources. For those needing or wishing to explore the subject further, the notes and bibliography sections are a welcome addition. The book’s index will help you quickly locate the topic of your specific interest.

A summary or recap at the end of each chapter would have been a useful addition. Chapter 7 discusses the role of a Sales Manager, including coaching, correcting and critiquing. The painful but sometimes necessary step of terminating the services of an employee, who can't be corrected has also been dealt with, in a sensitive manner. However, the other scenario of a dissatisfied employee, quitting, has not been touched upon.

The book ZenWise Selling is indeed a radical departure from the usual guides to selling - which often focus on the individualistic aspects of selling and winning at the expense of another if needed. However, this book is at a higher level, where you, the customer and every one else, wins. This idea is emphasized throughout the book and is dealt with more at length in Chapter 8. Sales and business professionals open to new approaches will enjoy - and benefit from this book. Even if you are not immediately comfortable with Zen’s place in sales, but are willing to explore further, this book will become your friendly spiritual guide. And, it’s also a good value for your money.

Your Active Child

2005-09-29T22:38:00.000+05:30

Title: Your Active Child
Author: Rae Pica
Publisher: McGraw-Hill (Contemporary Books)

Category: Non-fiction / Education
243 pages; ISBN: 0-07-140558-5

Rating: 8/10

'Your Active Child' by Rae Pica is a 'must-read' to all modern parents, educators and any one else connected with and interested in child health. The book focuses on such questions as,
- Is Physical Activity important for children?
- If yes, which is the appropriate type?
- Is there a situation of too much?
- Which activities are not appropriate for children?
- Is there a correlation between physical activity and mental/emotional development?
- What is the role of parents and teachers in fostering love for movement in children?
etc.

In the space of a little less than 250 pages, the author, a 'movement education consultant', presents a very convincing case for introduction of appropriate physical activity to children of all ages. And gives several appropriate activities for children of various age groups.

Rae's book is a valuable resource to start with if you are new to the subject. She also refers to publications of several other experts in the book. Additional material in the form of Resources and an index given at the end of the book is added value.

The book has a few editorial/style problems but is otherwise well-produced. A good value. A glossary of terms at the end of the book or as foot-notes on the page they first appear would have been helpful.

My rating of the book is 'Very Good' with a score card of 8/10.

Why Did I Marry You Anyway? - 12.5 Strategies for a Happy Marriage

2005-09-29T22:35:00.000+05:30

Title: Why Did I Marry You Anyway? - 12.5 Strategies for a Happy Marriage
Author: Barbara Bartlein
Publisher: Cumberland House Publishing

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
ISBN: 1-58182-367-3

Rating: 9/10

"Why Did I Marry You Anyway?" by Barbara Bartlein is an excellent Manual to create a happy and stable marriage. No doubt, there have been many books already on the subject and there will be many more in the future. But each book needs to be looked into and evaluated on its own. Does the book cover the topic well? Is it readable? Does it make sense? Are the examples close to your heart? Are the solutions suggested practical?

I asked myself these questions as I read the book and happily I am able to say 'yes' to all these questions.

In 12.5 chapters (the last chapter is a half chapter and yes, probably the author doesn't want to call it the thirteenth chapter for well-known reasons), the author explores the various valid reasons for the marriage to get sour, derailed and broken, and counters with strategies to prevent the disaster. Yes, you guessed it, it is a good Maintenance Manual.

All through the book, the author is asking of only one thing from the partners, commitment. Commitment to make it work. Commitment can work wonders in any field of human endeavor and marriage is no exception. It is all fine to be having one's head in the clouds, to have all sorts of fanciful ideas, about what marriage should be, but wisdom dictates that one tempers these fancies with practicality and works to keep one's relationship with the 'life partner' stable. One example from Chapter 7: "This balance between time together and autonomy is one of the critical challenges in a marriage. The need for autonomy requires understanding, communication, and a willingness to acknowledge that no one person, no matter how perfect, can fill all your needs."

And if that statement makes you think that you can stray to fulfill your 'needs', read this:

"Like land mines, there are signs of trouble before infidelity occurs. Wise married couples watch for danger signs and work to avoid the minefields. And when they feel terribly attracted to someone else, with a sexual urge that they absolutely cannot control, they run home to their spouses and make passionate love long into the night." Very sensible advice from the author.

Personally I feel this issue requires great understanding from the partner's side too. Especially women are very intuitive and she knows that the man is mentally making love to someone else. Can she accept it? If she cannot and berates the man for it, she will be driving him physically too away from her. Thus what is being suggested by Barbara is not perfection or Saintliness, but commitment and a practical approach. A willingness to accept the frailities of human nature and not to dwell on the past but to refocus on the present and the future.

All inter-personal relationship problems arise from difficulty in communication, or especially what is called crossed-communication. Barbara rightly stresses the need for the couple to work out their problems through proper communication. Counselling plays a vital role in 'moderating' these potentially explosive situations where the verbal communication process breaks down and the non-verbal part, which could include shouting, screaming, pushing and physically hurting the other person, takes over. The author shares her rich experience in counselling many couples in her long career as a psychotherapist.

The correlation between poor communication skills and problems in inter-personal relationships, especially marriage could have been more thoroughly explored. The problems facing men and women are a little different and may be the author could write separate books, for 'Him', for 'Her' and for 'Us'. But the present book is a good starter.

The following are excerpts from what I wrote to the author after reading the book.

"Dear Barbara,

Thank you and Thank God for the book! It is an excellent gift for all married, would-be-married, waiting-for-the perfect mate, have-been-married-but divorced, in fact any man or woman ............... You have touched upon all the aspects of marriage that can go wrong and you have given an excellent road-map to steer clear of the pitfalls and boulders ............

Your line on spirituality was very close to my own heart, but in today's America, it may not go down well with many. In fact, degradation of the spiritual life is probably the cause of increased divorce, increased promiscuity and increased crime rate."

When Your Heart Seeks the Sky

2005-09-29T22:33:00.000+05:30

Title: When Your Heart Seeks the Sky
Author: Wang Jian
Publisher: Authorhouse

Category: Fiction / Fantasy
88 pages; ISBN: 1418485985

Rating: 9/10

When Your Heart Seeks the Sky by Wang Jian is a fabulous book, the story of how a spirit finds its true nature. Written as a fable, it is the moving and heartwarming story of a bald eagle, who was raised as a chicken, but who finds his true nature and regains his rightful place in God's creation. A very heart warming story, it has all the elements that touch you, all the values that help you find your true self.

This book is a good read for children of all ages, since there is always a child in each of us, a child, who had dreams, whose dreams have not yet become a reality. It is the birth right of every soul to dream, but to make the dream a reality, one has to take the trouble of going through a spiritual renewal, a painful but necessary process. Wang Jian holds your attention at every page, nay, every line.

Read it for simple entertainment, if you prefer. But read it, with sincerity, read it between the lines, for the real message of spiritual renewal, that the book is really about. And then, go for it. Go for fulfilling your own dream! Learn to soar!

I would in short sum up the book as very Heart-warming, Highly Symbolic and Spiritual.

Walking the World - Memories and Adventures

2005-09-29T22:30:00.000+05:30

Title: Walking the World - Memories and Adventures
Author: Alan Cook
Publisher: 1st Books Library

Category: Non-fiction / Travel
316 pages; ISBN: 1-4140-2040-6

Rating: 7/10

"Walking The World - Memories and Adventures" by Alan Cook will certainly appeal to those who are avid walkers. Thus the book is rather specific in its appeal. Walking the World is a slight exaggeration. Alan did not walk large parts of it. Russia, China, India, Australia, Africa and South America etc., are not yet trod by his feet. But he did walk extensively in USA, Europe and some parts of Asia etc.

The book is certainly readable, but is not always gripping. That may be because I am not obsessed with walking. I walk for the health benefits. But Alan has been walking for years and has accumulated a number of experiences in his long life. He shares it with the reader, very freely. He also acknowledges the excellent support received from his wife in all his walks through life and many countries.

Some good advice to walkers and would-be-walkers is presented in the book. A specific chapter addressed to that topic would have been better.

The poems that are interspersed in the book are good to read.

The book is rather unevenly edited. And has a few typos too.

All in all, the book will appeal to those who take their walking seriously.

Under Wraps - One Soldier's Hidden Diary of World War II

2005-09-29T22:28:00.000+05:30

Title: Under Wraps - One Soldier's Hidden Diary of World War II
Author: Jay Coffman - Edited by Tom Fulks

Category: History / War
330 pages; ISBN: 1-59411-043-3

Rating: 8/10

Under Wraps is the diary maintained by Jay Coffman, a soldier of US Armed Forces in World War II. Since maintaining a diary was forbidden, Jay maintained the diary on scraps of paper and hid them among his baggage. The scraps of paper were sorted out and typed out neatly by his fiance and later wife, Dot. The diary was passed on by Dot to Tom Fulks, Jay's nephew as a family heirloom and is now published by Tom with editorial notes interspersed and additional notes at the end of the diary to help those not familiar with the historical events.

The diary is certainly a good portrayal of the mind of an average American in the war time. It brings out nicely Jay's ties to the family, which kept him going in the war. The diary also brings out the abiding love of Jay and Dot to each other.

Editor's notes regarding the war are certainly welcome and add value to the book. The notes in the diary look crumpled and the type looks rather odd.

While the diary is certainly a useful addition to the Second World War literature, its value would have been much higher if the original scraps of paper were photographed as they were and compiled date wise. That would have been a real heirloom. A few handwritten notes of Jay if inserted, would have given more insights into Jay's mind.

For those who are familiar with the second world war, some of Jay's entries and Tom's notes would be familiar. For a majority of post war readers, the book is a good introduction to the war from an American perspective. And the book does give a good account of the life and culture of the Polynesian islands. The few photographs by Barbra do help the reader better visualise what was written by Jay. A few maps and sketches of the islands would be welcome.

The book is in one way timely in view of the US involvement in the Iraq war, from which it is becoming increasingly difficult for Americans to extricate themselves.

The reviewer feels that the US economy is war-driven and a few years of peace leads to a recession. Also the policy makers seem to suffer from megalomania which keeps driving them to become the super cops of the whole world.

All in all, this diary is a good addition to the war literature.

Think Safe - Practical Measures to Increase Security...

2005-09-29T22:13:00.000+05:30

Title: Think Safe - Practical Measures to Increase Security at Home, at Work, and Throughout Life
Author: James M. McGrew, CPP, CFE
Publisher: Cameo Publications

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
168 pages; ISBN: 0-9744149-6-4

Rating: 8/10

"Think Safe - Practical Measures to Increase Security at Home, at Work, and Throughout Life" is a long title, which does describe the book well. Written by James M.McGrew, CPP, CFE, a long time professional, the book is a fairly wide and sufficiently deep introduction to safety of life, limb and lucre. The book is meant for the US and Canadian markets but is also useful to people in other parts of the world.

The main attraction of the book is its ability to bring home the many dangers that lurk all around us. The book stresses on the importance of being aware of the potential risks and suggests several strategies to reduce and or eliminate the risks.

The statistics given are indeed eye-opening and underline the need to take personal safety seriously. If you are looking for a comprehensive safety manual and a do-it-yourself help book, you may be a little disappointed since the book lacks the depth and details to achieve that goal.

The book's editing failed to appeal to me, but fortunately the author's message comes through.

I would recommend this book as a good primer but I would suggest that you look elsewhere for more detailed professional advice. You could of course, consult with the author, who is a thorough professional.

The Treasure Hunt... A Complete Guide to Interviewing

2005-09-29T22:11:00.000+05:30

Title: The Treasure Hunt...A Complete Guide to Interviewing
Author: Brian P. Carey
Publisher: Trafford

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
73 pages; ISBN: 1-55395-793-8

Rating: 7/10

"The Treasure Hunt...A complete Guide to Interviewing" by Brain P.Carey is actually a self-help 'workbook' and is arguably, "The only way to find your dream job." It may or may not be the only way but is certainly a good way to land one's dream job. In the short space of about 70+ pages, Carey does a good job of charting a course for you to follow to reach your goal of happiness through a good career, not just a good job.

In true work-book style, the author gives detailed instructions and a clear roadmap for a prospective candidate to land a job of one's choice. It is also an activity book, a fun book.

Each Chapter is a Clue, there are eight in all. It starts logically with discovering oneself through goals and ends again logically with a conclusion that the whole process is a self- discovery. In between, Strength & Weakness analysis, Industry Research, Selection of a Company, The Right Career, Getting the Interview and General Interviews/Q&A Theory are the ingredients.

All in all, it is a good book. It would have been a much better book if real life examples, actual transcripts were given.

The book deserves better editing than what it received. Poorly costructed sentences and actual typos are noticed, which it is hoped will be corrected especially since the book is published using Trafford's POD technology and thus lends itself to editing.

The Supreme Mystic - A Biographical Novel About the Early Years of Lord Krishna

2005-09-29T20:23:00.000+05:30

Title: The Supreme Mystic - A Biographical Novel About the Early Years of Lord Krishna
Author: Amal Bhakta
Publisher: Turnkey Press (A Krishna Productions Book)

Category: Biography / Religion
342 pages; ISBN: 0-9744668-1-6

Rating: 8/10

"The Supreme Mystic" by Amal Bhakta is a biographical novelised version of the story of Krishna, Vishnu's incarnation on the earth plane towards the end of Dwapara Yuga. The book follows the story as told by Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa in the Tenth Canto of Srimad Bhagavath, written by Vyasa and a few other sources, given by the author at the end of the book.

Vyasa means diameter, spanning and by extension, who spans. Vyasa also is an Amsa (part) of Vishnu and a great sage takes on that role in every Maha Yuga, which is one cycle of four Yugas. Krishna has one meaning, dark colored. Dwaipayana was added because he was born on a small island in a river. And since he divided the Vedas, that is spanned them, he was known as Vyasa. So, Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa. The author could have explained this so that readers know the author of Srimad Bhagavat and other Puranas, epics etc. better. In fact, Hindu literature effectively started with Vyasa.

The book is very interesting to read. Though written by a western devotee, it follows faithfully the Hindu text in major details. The style is easy to read and holds the reader's interest. If you are interested in other lands, people and cultures, you will find the book interesting.

This particular book traces the story from birth of Krishna upto about 11 or 12 years of age when He killed Kamsa, His demonic maternal uncle. It is being followed by another book which covers Krishna's later years and which details His Bhagavad Gita, Song of God, given to His friend and disciple Arjuna on the battle field of Kuru Kshetra.

Amal Bhakta writes with sincerity and devotion. He succeeds in making the reader visualise the situation being described. Line sketches at the beginning of each chapter additionally help the reader visualise the ancient times to which this story pertains. A praiseworthy effort.

The author uses Hindi and Sanskrit terms without explanation, which may confuse the reader, not familiar with those words. A glossary at the end of the book, or a footnote explaining the terms as they occur, would have been better. A few names have been mis-spelt. The book also has a few minor editorial glitches, but is otherwise well-produced.

This type of story lends itself well to a Multi-Media presentation. A companion CD, giving animated scenes, explanation of terms and references for a particular incident narrated etc. and a few scenes from the movies which have been made referring to these events in history would have greatly added value to this fine book.

I commend Amal Bhakta's praiseworthy efforts in bringing Krishna closer to the Western World.

The Personal Wealth Coach

2005-09-29T20:20:00.000+05:30

Title: The Personal Wealth Coach
Author: Jeff McClure

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
310 pages; ISBN: 09741858-5-X

Rating: 6/10

"The Personal Wealth Coach" by Jeff McClure, Certified Financial Planner, is written with a good intention of educating the public about the various options of wealth creation and preservation.

The author has a strong background of cultural anthropology in addition to his Certified Financial Planning qualification. This background helped him bring out the historical aspects of wealth. The first half of this book is more or less devoted to these historical aspects.

The second half of the book tries to coach the reader about various investment instruments, plans, choosing the right investment manager etc.

The author successfully argues that all average investors need professional advisors to help them to identify the right investment managers. Then the reader may rightly ask him/herslef the question, "why should I then spend this much time in reading this or similar books and try to understand these difficult concepts?"

The book is not easy to read, especially the later parts of it. The author makes a sincere and valiant attempt to explain difficult concepts in an easy to understand style. But I am afraid to report, not really successfully. While the historical aspects have been brought out quite well, the author doesn't quite succeed in explaining in a simple and lucid manner the various investment strategies. The book does not accomplish the goal of clarifying and educating the average educated lay reader.

The author is quite biased in favor of the American Capitalism as the best vehicle of individual enterpreneurship and thus wealth creation. People of other cultures may not agree. There is much more to life than just money. And the means are as important as the ends.

In spite of the author's grateful acknowledgement about the editorial efforts, the reviewer could not but help noticing various glitches in the book.

I would strongly advise the reader to spend more time in going through the book or buy it from a store which has a refund policy.

The Nature of Man and God - A New Look

2005-09-29T20:16:00.000+05:30

Title: The Nature of Man and God - A New Look
Sub-Title: How We Can Know Our Self, Our God, and Our Life's Purpose
Author: Simon S. Godfrey
Publisher: Trafford
Category: Non-fiction / Education
233 pages; ISBN: 141200693-7

Rating: 7/10

"The Nature of Man and God" by Simon S.Godfrey will appeal to those curious to know about the real nature of him/herself and who is not satisfied with the teachings of main stream religions. The author takes a scientific, rational approach most of the time in addressing the all important question, What is our true nature? What is our relationship with God/Universal Self?

The author is a psychologist and is thus well qualified to probe into the depths of human psyche. He has also researched the topic extensively, especially the western views on this subject. The author's exposure to the Eastern views on the subject seems to be confined to a few sources, especially the Upanishads, the portion of Vedas, also known as Vedanta (end of Veda), which deals with Atma Vidya (knowledge of Self).

The book is spread over 11 chapters. The author differentiates between Nominal Self (what we normally associate with our Self), Transcendental Self (the Self which becomes apparent when we transcend, i.e. overcome the bundle of conditioned responses and the Universal Self/God. Most of the concepts presented by the author are common to Hindu Philosophy (which is different from the ritualistic religion for day-to-day living).

Although the topics discussed are very similar to those taught by the great traditions, the difference lies in the line of approach. The teachings of most traditions must be accepted on faith. Godfrey here offers a well-thought-out basis for the theses he puts forth, treating the topics systematically and experientially. This approach appeals to the modern reader who needs scientific arguments before accepting any concept.

The book is not easy to read, since the concepts presented are complex. The style is also not uniform. Some portions of the book are surprisingly lucid and easy to understand. Other portions are difficult and may need multiple reading sessions before the subject becomes clear.

The author argues that the Universal Self is the Unity of All Things. If this Unity encompasses all as It has to, to be called Unity, human beings and all else are perforce parts of All, parts of the Universal Self. Additionally, the author discusses the issues of free will and the necessity of evil quite broadly. His views on these issues are in my opinion, very close to the monistic (Non-Dualistic) philosophy of Hinduism as elaborated by Adi Shankara and in modern times by Sri Ramana Maharshi etc.”

The book has an Epilogue (also available at www.trafford.com/robots/03-1063.html) worth reading by the prospective buyer. The book also comes with copious notes, Bibliography and Index, all very useful features.

The book is generally well edited, though a few typographic errors were noticed.

The book is recommended to serious readers of philosophy.

The Marketing Toolkit for Growing Businesses

2005-09-29T20:12:00.000+05:30

Title: The Marketing Toolkit for Growing Businesses
Author: Jay B. Lipe
Publisher: Chammerson Press, Minneapolis, MN, USA

Category: Non-fiction / Business
ISBN: 0-9720345-0-1

Rating: 8/10

Key Words: Marketing, Tips, Tools, Techniques, Growing Business, Marketing Plans, Toolkit

"The Marketing Toolkit for Growing Businesses" by Jay B. Lipe is a highly practical, Do-It-Yourself book, targeted at small to small-medium organisations (with an employee strength of say 5 to 50). He brings those marketing strategies from large organisations that are also useful to smaller, emerging businesses. Even if the organisation is going to use the services of an external consultant for developing and implementing marketing plans, it is essential that the CEO or some other reponsible person in the organsiation understands what is involved. This book helps that person to focus clearly on what needs to be done.

In the space of nearly 250 pages, Jay gives the Marketer (would-be type, need-be type, seasoned type, a novice type, in fact any one with any interest in marketing), a well-prepared, field- tested game plan, a road-map for success. He assumes nothing on the part of the reader and uses a practical, easy-on-the eyes, step-by-step approach. The style is lucid and conversational, friendly without being patronising.

The book or toolkit (that is an apt description), is divided into 17 chapters, thus making it easy for the reader to take the concepts in easily. Every chapter focusses on one aspect of the marketing, for example, Chapter 6 is "Your Business Vision & Goals: Keeping Your Eyes on the Prize". Notice the second person approach. The book is a well-written and good-to-read practical step-by-step guide. It is as if Jay is standing in front of us in a small seminar room and is
giving us the distilled wisdom and experience of his and several other seasoned marketing professionals. Yes, the book is full of practical wisdom. Every chapter focusses on one important aspect, and at the end of the chapter, the main points are well-summarised and are presented as "Tools to go."

The book is well designed visually and uses all the presentation tools and techniques effectively viz., boxes, bullets, figures, diagrams etc., designed to help the average reader, who is a busy
marketer with many things crowding his/her mind and clamoring for attention, absorb the concepts and more importantly get the gut feeling, yes, this guys knows what he is talking about, he has been there, he is genuine. If he can do it, so can I. And that after all is the objective of the author in writing the book and I would say without the least hesitation that he has fully succeeded.

Considering the amount of information packed into the book, which I again emphasise is not an academic tome, meant for being stored in your book-shelf, but is your daily friend, philosopher and guide, to be kept with you and used; considering that the volume captures the knowledge of a seminar of many hours - 10 hours at a guess?, the price is very, very reasonable. In fact, it is a bargain. Go for it.

And yes, for those who are perfect beginners or even for those, whose experience has been in some specific areas of marketing, who may have just a little difficulty in understanding some terms, the book comes with a glossary. And for those, whose curiosity has been kindled and would like to read further on some aspects, there is a big list of further reading. Added value or bonus items, in my view.

The book is primarily meant for the US Markets, especially the small (Jay prefers to call them emerging) businesses, who need marketing but can't afford a full time marketing director. However, some of the tools, tips and techniques are applicable to markets in other countries too.

I compliment Jay for coming up with such an excellent effort.

The Maker's Diet

2005-09-29T20:00:00.000+05:30

Title: The Maker's Diet - The 40 day health experience that will change your life forever
Author: Jordan S. Rubin
Publisher: Siloam, a Strang Company

Category: Non-fiction / Health
304 pages; ISBN: 0-88419-948-7

Rating: 8/10

"The Maker's Diet" by Jordan S.Rubin is a book for those who have health challenges and would like to follow the biblical injunctions to regain their health, like the author did. Jordan recovered from a very severe form of Crohn's disease, which is considered incurable by the main stream doctors. He recovered by his faith in his Maker (the God) and by following the dietary guidelines given in The Bible. After recovery, Jordan felt inspired to continue to help other sufferers by sharing with them his knowledge. He is a doctor of naturopathy and is thus well qualified to write on the subject. But many of his recommendations appear to be commercially motivated. Many chapters of the book read like some marketing testimonials!

While the information given by Jordan is indeed valuable, the book has one limitation in that the food items suggested cannot be followed by lacto-fruito-vegetarians, who, by choice, by faith or by their religious upbringing have decided not to eat eggs, fish and meat. And Jordan seems to believe that God has chosen the Israelites specially to share His wisdom about food and has not shared His wisdom with people of other faiths in other lands. The Hindus too believe that He spoke to them and their food habits are quite different.

Much of the information contained in this book is common to what is given in Jordan's other book, "Restoring Your Digestive Health" coauthored by Jordan and Joseph Brasco. There is of course, some difference in the emphasis, in that the present book focuses more on following the Maker's Dietary instructions.

The last few chapters of the book are devoted to specific suggestions about the 40 day Diet and the Appendices give sources for getting the various foods recommended.

If you are comforatble with the Bible and would like to adhere to the dietary guidelines of that book, you may derive good value from the present book. You may also find that the diet recommended by the book is beyond your affordability.

The Lamb

2005-09-29T19:58:00.000+05:30

Title: The Lamb
Author: Dr. Bruce Burnett
Publisher: iUniveres, Inc.

Category: Fiction / Religion
305 pages; ISBN: 0-595-27061-1

Rating: 8/10

The Lamb is the story of the coming of the Second Christ as Joshua Adon, a Scientist, who doesn't want that role, but is chosen by God and so has really no choice. Since his childhood, Joshua finds himself in situations where his unusual gifts startle not only the onlookers but himself too. Finally Joshua reconciles himself to his role as the Second Savior from a Christian perspective, (from the perspective of other religions, there have been many more saviors and many more will come) and averts a Third World War.

The story grips the reader's attention and interest right from the beginning to the end. The science becomes a bit complex at the DNA Fingerprinting part. Otherwise, the story is easy to follow and while every one may not agree with the development of the plot and the ending, there is no doubt that it is interesting. The style is good and the character development is good. A few scenes are quite poignant and moving. A few are horrible too, esp. the death of Dr.Adon's colleagues in lab.

I didn't find the Angel's arguments about the limited powers of God, free will etc., convincing. While the Angel is talking about man's free will, the events in Josh's life support the theory of destiny. The book is nevertheless interesting to read. It resonates well with the present brinkmanship policies of the US leaders and the chasm between Christianity and other religions. Fundamentalism and fanatism in any religion acts as a stimulus for appearance of similar fanatic groups in other religions too.

I have no hesitation in recommending the book to all lovers of fiction. This book is Dr.Burnett's first novel but I felt that he writes like a seasoned professional.

A few editorial glitches are noticed but by and large they don't interfere with the enjoyment of the novel by the reader.

A very good effort and a worthwhile buy. Strongly recommended.

The Complete Guide to a Creative Retirement

2005-09-29T19:56:00.000+05:30

Title: The Complete Guide to a Creative Retirement
Author: Rob Kelley
Publisher: Turnkey Press

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
316 pages; ISBN: 0-9740030-9-3

Rating: 8/10

The complete guide to a CREATIVE RETIREMENT by Rob Kelley is obviously meant for those who have been retired and are wondering what to do with their new found free time. What is not so obvious is that it is a good buy for every one else too. You could read it and help your spouse, your mom and dad, uncle or just your retired friend or neighbour, or gift the book to the person.

In the space of a little more than 300 pages, Kelley gives a retired person, several options and strategies to keep the body and mind fit, healthy and happy. Five alternative life styles, twelve easy-to-follow retirement strategies and eighty exciting and worthwhile projects. Yes, that in a nutshell is the scope of the book.

A feature which appealed to me is the slightly off-white non-glossy paper and the large type face, which is so easy on the eyes. At 55, and with a few more years to go for retirement, I certainly enjoyed the several choices which Rob has spread out before a prospective retiree. No doubt some of the choices are specially useful for retirees in USA and Canada, but generally the book is useful to any retiree anywhere in the world. At the end of every section, useful resources in the form of books, websites etc. are given, which is another useful feature. The index is not really necessary in this type of book, but is given to help you quickly locate a specific topic later.

Now to the not so positive aspects of the book. The book is rather poorly edited and there are quite a few slips. Not to the point of distorting the meaning, but slightly distracting. And a few typographic mistakes too. Some of the projects could have been grouped differently and some repetition at the conceptual level could have been avoided. A companion CD or a website with a check list and a program to come up with the suitable choices based on the answers to the questionnaire would have been a good feature, which it is hoped the author will incorporate in future.

Considering all the aspects, I would still recommend the book as a very good buy if you are looking for a comprehensive guide to creative retirement.

Song of Salvation

2005-09-29T19:52:00.000+05:30

Title: Song of Salvation
Author: Kher Rajendra

Category: Fiction / Religion
326 pages; ISBN: 1-894869-99-0

Rating: 7/10

The Song of Salvation is a novelized version of Bhagawad Gita,literally meaning God's Song, a part of Mahabharata, the Great Indian Epic. Gita, as it is popularly called was a dialogue between Krishna,the God in the human form and Arjuna, the great Pandava Prince and a great warrior. The original Gita is in the form of 700 Slokas (verses) in Sanskrit, divided into eighteen chapters. The dialogue took place on the battlefield of KURU KSHETRA, a big plain named
after King Kuru in present day Haryana, a state near Delhi, after whom the dynasty of Kauravas was named. Another meaning of Kuru is 'to do'. So, Kuru Kshetra also means the Field of Action. And it is this dual meaning that is the starting point of a series of wonderful symbolisms, that convey very deep esoteric meanings and take us to the highest peaks of philosophy, knowledge of one's true Self.

The book generally follows the setting in Mahabharatha, though at a few places, the author seems to have taken a few liberties with the original version. Like when he wrote on page 123, "Seeing irritation on his friend's face, Arjuna quieted" implying that Krishna was subject to common human emotions. Ofcourse, such liberties are allowed in a work of fiction and Rajendra Kher is quick to point out that his book is exactly that.

The book portrays vividly the social conditions of a period of history nearly 5000 years old. The characters of Arjuna,Dhrutarashtra, Draupadi, Krishna etc. are portrayed in good detail. The descriptions of the battle field, the place of dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna etc., are quite good and with a little imagination, the reader can mentally go to that time and be there, like Sanjaya who was given the gift of Divine Vision.

The author generally uses good analogies and metaphors to convey the esoteric philosophical secrets of Gita. But the clarity is fluctuating and is lucid at some places and obtruse at others. The analogy, "No matter how much water is poured into an upside-down pitcher, the pitcher does not hold water." on page 49, is inappropriate since one cannot pour water into an upside down pitcher. Probably a better analogy would have been a pitcher with a hole in the bottom would never get filled. Because Arjuna was without Sraddha, Faith, Krishna's words did not register and take effect.

Rajendra Kher's attempt at novelizing Gita is to be praised. In English language, this type of presentation of Gita is certainly new. The reviewer received the Asian Edition printed in India and so all the comments given below, including the quality of printing etc. apply to that edition only. However, it is understood that the Zumaya Edition and the Asian Edition share the same .pdf file, so the printing errors may be common to both.

The first impression when I got the book in hand was that print quality is satisfactory, not great. The book has a good sprinkling of typographic and style errors, which generally do not distort the meaning. However, they do distract the reader and covey an impression that pre-press work could have been done more carefully.

One exception - the word Brahma is used for Brahman at a number of places on Page 229 and 231, and unless the reader has prior exposure to Gita, confusion will result. It may be clarifed that Brahma is one of the Three Gods, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara. Brahman on the other hand, is used to represent the ultimate Soul, Paramatma, also called ParaBrahma, to differentiate from Brahma. Brahma has a definite life span, Brahman doesn't, since Brahman is the Principle of Eternal Reality.

The reviewer had a fairly good exposure to the teachings of Gita and so certainly enjoyed the refresher course provided by Rajendra Kher in this novel form. However, for a new reader, the concepts are not easy to understand and at places, the going becomes heavy. Also, the author has not given a basis for some of the philosophical statements made. He could have given a list of Commentaries on Gita that he perused for this endeavor.

Readers without prior exposure to Gita may have difficulty in coping with the Indian names. And some of the terms used could have been defined or explained with the help of foot-notes or a Glossary at the end of the book. And an index at the end, connecting the chapters of Gita to the chapters in this book would have been welcome. A biographical note about the original Author has been given, but not that of the translator, Mr.Khare. It would have been a welcome addition.

The book will definitely interest those who would like to know the concepts of Gita but would not like to take up learned commentaries right now. It would also refresh their memory if they had studied it long ago.

A good effort.

Sacred Union - The Journey Home

2005-09-29T19:49:00.000+05:30

Title: Sacred Union - The Journey Home
Authors: Sri Ram Kaa & Kira Raa
Publisher: Robert D.Reed Publishers

Category: Non-fiction / Religion
164 pages; ISBN: 1-931741-33-6

Rating: 9/10

Sacred Union - The Journey Home, by Sri Ram Kaa and Kira Raa, their official, spiritual and legal names, is an extraordinary book. The book is really dangerous, beware! It will change your outlook for the rest of your life. Anyway don't worry. Nothing happens by chance. If you are reading this book review and then buy the book, you are ready. To go on board a vessel that would take you on your most important journey ever undertaken by you, viz., to discover your true authentic self.

In eleven chapters, spread over 4 sections, the two authors and their spiritual friend, philosopher and guide, Archangel Zadkiel, Kiel for friends like us, reaffirm many of the spiritual truths. The journey home is simply a change in the direction, turning towards our real self and seeing our ego to be what it is, our shadow, which we have been following. When we turn towards light, the shadow goes behind us and thus follows us, not leading us! We truly become Masters and become fit to help other souls when they are ready. We accept every soul as divine since it contains the same essential divine spark as all of us. There is nothing which is not divine, which is not perfect. Even the worst, ugliest thing in the world has a role to play, if nothing else, to remind us that both Good and Evil, Beautiful and Ugly are the two faces of a coin and knowing that every coin has two sides is the Sacred Union.

Through Kira Raa's mouth and recorded by Sri Ram Kaa, Archangel Zadkiel, (OK, OK, I understand that you want to be referred as Kiel), guides the reader gently, lovingly and yet firmly, to the truth. And the message that comes through is clear: trust, trust in your true authentic self. If doubts come, ask yourself, does it give joy? If yes, do it. If not, don't. Simple isn't it? The joy that Kiel is referring to is not the temporary pleasure of sensual nature. Joy is Bliss, it is eternal.

The concepts brought out in the book are not really new or revolutionary. But that doesn't detract any thing from the value of the book. The truth needs to be retold everytime and it has been told beautifully, sincerely and at places movingly. The book touched me to the core of my heart at places and made me cry. We all feel the pain of separation, separation from the beloved, which is our true Self.

And the Sacred Union is not just Sexual Union, though Sexual Union too could lead to the Sacred Union. In Sanskrit, the word Yoga is the closest to what Sri Ram Kaa, Kira Raa and Kiel are trying to convey. Yoga is related to Yoke, the cross bar that makes two oxen to go in unison to plough the field. Thus Yoga unifies two. Sacred Union, like marriage, also unifies two bodies and souls into one or makes the individual ego-soul one with the Higher Self from which it emanated.

If you are interested in spirituality, if you are
interested in the journey of self-discovery, and if you are ready to undertake a journey which can only end in the 'death' or 'dissolution' of 'you' (ego), go ahead and buy the book. Read and re-read. Follow the diet etc., if moved by heart. Do the exercises given as Appendix.

Kiel promised to give more information in the coming years and it is earnestly hoped that I will get an opportunity to review those books also.

The book has been printed well, with few errors. Kiel seems to be rather old fashioned in his english! But the message is always more important than the messenger.

I heartily recommend this book for true seekers.

Swamy

--------------------------------------

I am an independent book reviewer in India. Though I consider himself to be spiritually oriented, I am not a Sanyasi or Monk. I got my name from a well know Hindu Deity, Venkateswara Swamy, of Tirumala Tirupati. It is the custom in Hindu families, to name the children after Gods and Goddesses, with the hope that they do work to get the qualities of that God or Goddess.

Restoring Your Digestive Health

2005-09-29T19:45:00.000+05:30

Title: Restoring Your Digestive Health - How the Guts and Glory Program can Transform your Life
Authors: Jordan S.Rubin, N.M.D. & Joseph Brasco, M.D.

Category: Non-fiction / Health
380 pages; ISBN: 0-7582-0282-2

Rating: 8/10

Publisher: Twin Streams, Kensington Publishing Corp.

Key Words: Health, Digestion, GI, HSO, Food, Nutrition, Digestive Disorders

"Restoring Your Digestive Health - How the Guts and Glory Program can Transform Your Life" by Jordan S.Rubin and Joseph Brasco is a good resource book for all sufferers of digestive disorders. In a very detailed and fairly simple, easy-to-understand style, the authors, a naturopathic doctor who was an ex-patient and a Board-certified Gastroenterologist, explain the reasons for poor digestion and the resultant problems.

The book deals with a variety of GI problems such as IBS, Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Dyspepsia, Candidiasis etc., and the role of intestinal flora in optimal maintenance of health. They offer a number of useful suggestions and very specific dietary protocols for each problem.

The experience of Jordan S. Rubin who was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease - a very serious 'incurable' disease and who tried a number of doctors and treatments adds credibility to the book. The critical role played by various foods in maintenace of intestinal flora, i.e. the various bacteria which help in optimal food digestion and absorption is brought out well. The authors explain how HSOs (Homeostatic Soil Organsims) play a major role in improving and nurturing the intestinal environment. The treatment regimen given in the book is based mostly on what worked for Rubin, modified over years by the combined wisdom of Rubin and Brasco who claim to have helped thousands of sufferers over the past few years.

The book is specifically aimed at the US and Canadian readers, but the general principles are applicable to all. Thus for understanding the types and causes of various stomach ailments, this book will be found to be useful for all English speaking readers. I found it very interesting and useful to understand the general principles of good GI health.

The book would have better value if suitable illustrations accompanied the detailed explanations about the role of various organs in Alimentary Canal or GI tract as it is called. The dietary program given will not be appropriate to people with different religious beliefs. Thus all non-vegetarians will not be able to accept pork or beef etc. And the program is certainly not suitable for vegetarians, though some of the insights will help lacto-vegetarians too.

The opinions expressed by the authors about the other testing and treatment options may not be acceptable to all readers, esp. those who benefited from them in earlier instances. The opinions do come across as rather subjective and self-serving at places. In my opinion, that chapter could have been written better by the authors.

The book would also have benefited from better editing and proof-reading. Chapter 10, 'Protocols' could have been shorter since mostly same matter is repeated under each condition. Alternatively, that chapter could have been bound in tear-off sheet style, so that sufferers can tear out specific sections for day-to-day reference or may be paste to their refrigerator/kitchen cabinet. Typographic errors and style errors are present, which however, do not prevent our understanding and appreciation of the subject.

These minor shortcomings not withstanding, I strongly recommend this book to those who need to better understand the Digestive Disorders in themselves or their relatives and friends etc. A good buy.

Ramayana - A tale of Gods and Demons

2005-09-29T19:39:00.000+05:30

Ramayana - A tale of Gods and Demons
by Ranchor Prime Published as Mandala Classic Edition

Category: Fiction / Religion
100 pages; ISBN: 1-932771-02-6

Rating: 8/10

Review

ISBN : 1-932771-02-6, pages: 100, Published by Mandala Publishing.

Ramayana - A tale of Gods and Demons by Ranchor Prime is a colorfully produced, beautifully illustrated and well printed book. It was originally published as a full color bigger art book. The present Mandala Classic edition itself is eye catching. The cover depicts Hanuman, the Monkey God and the servant, devotee and friend of Sri Rama. Hanuman looks charming indeed on the cover and I was thus attracted to take up the book ahead of the que of books pending review. The inner pages too are well printed. The illustrations by Shri BG Sharma are really appealing and add visual value to the well-printed book.

Tha story of Rama is now fairly well known, but bears repetition and retelling again and again. Ranchor Prime followed a particular translation of Valmiki's Ramayana. His narration is good. A few incidents as depicted in this book appeared odd to the reviewer who read different versions. One example is that the queens of King Dasaratha received Dasaratha and his party on return from Mithila with Sita. Another example is that Ravana is depicted as dragging Sita by her hair to his chariot. The story which the reviewer read is different, wherein Ravana doesn't even touch Sita but makes her swoon by showing his frightening form and then lifts her up indirectly by digging up the earth surrounding her body. The reason was that Ravana was cursed by another beautiful woman Vedavati that he will die if he ever touches a woman against her wish.

There are a few more similar differences in the story, but in general, the story is well told. One important omission is Aditya Hridayam, the Heart of Sun, a glorious hymn in praise of Sun God, told to Rama by Sage Agastya. Ravana's death was certainly felicitated by Sun God's blessings of Rama's efforts. Aditya Hridayam is one of the most beautiful hymns of Valmiki Ramayan and is chanted daily by lakhs of devotees.

This book will be a good read for children and adults who are interested in Hindu mythology.

Putting It On Paper - The Ground Rules for Creating Promotional Pieces that Sell Books

2005-08-25T22:50:00.000+05:30

Title: Putting It On Paper - The Ground Rules for Creating Promotional Pieces that Sell Books
Author: Dawn Josephson
Publisher: Ground Rules Press A Subsidiary of Cameo Publications LLC
Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
ISBN: 0-9744966-1-8
Rating: 8/10

Review

PUTTING IT ON PAPER - THE GROUND RULES FOR CREATING PROMOTIONAL PIECES THAT SELL BOOKS by DAWN JOSEPHSON is clear in its target group - authors who need to promote their books and who lack the resources to engage capable people like Dawn to do the job.

The need to promote the book is of course very well known and accepted. Once the need is accepted, the choices are clear: either engage a competent Author Services Outfit or do it yourself. When the author tries to do it, he/she soon finds that writing the book was far easier than writing suitable promotional literature about the book.

Dawn does an excellent job of explaining the various promotional tools, starting from the cover letter to the press/media kit to bookmarks, postcards etc. Her style is easy and interesting. She gives good examples of each tool.

I was especially interested to learn that the author has to prepare a ready-to-use review too, to help out the harried editor of the publication where the review is expected to be published. As an independent reviewer, I always read the book before trying to write a review. So this was a new angle indeed. It may be an acceptable practice in some cases, but I personally feel that an independent reviewer is to be preferred. And there are many nowadays willing to review books of upcoming authors too, like myself!

The author may consider bringing out a companion workbook with more examples of actual real life promotional tools and especially the transformation of each from a 'Not OK' to an ‘OK’ state. With a few exceptions, all the examples given in the book are finished pieces.

The present book will certainly help new authors and even experienced authors refine their approach to creating powerful promotional materials. Compared to the amount of information given, the price appears to be quite reasonable. A good buy.

Principled Profit

2005-08-25T22:46:00.000+05:30

Title: Principled Profit
Author: Shel Horowitz
Published by AWM Books

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
160 pages; ISBN: 0-9614666-6-9

Rating: 9/10

Review

'Principled Profit' by Shel Horowitz is an excellent book on ethical marketing, abundance mindset and other innovative ideas. They are innovative from the typical materialistically oriented, aggressive, 'If You Win I Must Have Lost' perspective. It may or may not appeal to the typical A-type (Ambitious, Aggressive and often Angry) pusher, but it will certainly open the mental doors to a different and more efficient ball-game of marketing. Instead of the Win-Lose mentality, it talks consistently of Win-Win situations and gives plenty of examples.

The book is a comprehensive tour of ethical marketing, where the marketer is a partner of the client right through. And where 'There Is Enough For Everyone' is the recurring concept. Cooperation is more efficient than competition, and competition should be a friendly 'I Help You - You Help Me - Together Let Us Build A Better World For All' is the key theme in this small but great book.

Unlike many 'professional' reviewers, I do read through the book carefully, though it takes a lot of time and effort, since basically I am a book-lover. So, I can't but help notice editorial or style problems, spelling and grammatical errors etc. I do make notes of them as I read, in the book's margins. I also note down some very good points which strike a resonative Aha in my mind. I am happy to report that Shel's book had very few adverse notes when I finished reading and several 'good', 'excellent' etc., comments spattered through out.

Chapter 18 is the best chapter in the book and will give you a gist of the whole book. So read that short chapter first apart from this and many other reviews/endorsements in the beginning of the book, so that you can decide whether the book is for you or not. The "Resources' at the end of the book and the Index add value to the book.

If you are in any way connected with marketing of a product or service, this book is definitely for you. Even if you are not directly involved in marketing of anything, since you need to market yourself without selling your 'self', PRINCIPLED PROFIT will give you several ideas.

My score for this book is 9/10 and rating for this book is 'Excellent'.

Peacemaker

2005-08-25T22:40:00.000+05:30

Title: Peacemaker
Author: Dan Ronco
Published by: Winterwolf Publishing

Category: Fiction / Thriller
Pages: 284
ISBN: 0-97527-114-8

Rating: 8/10

Review

"Peacemaker" is a Thriller by Dan Ronco. The main character in the book is not any human being, but a self-adoptive, 'intelligent' Virus built into an Operating System. All other characters are human beings drawn into different roles, depending upon their fears, values etc.

Dianne Morgan wants to bring the Federal Government to her knees with Peacemaker, the Virus. She is utterly ruthless and doesn't mind using any one and throw them when finished. She uses her body as a bait to get many men to do what she wants. Ray Brown, a brilliant software architect is one of her victims. His other weakness is alcoholism. However, he overcomes both of the weaknesses to fight the virus.

The book has all the usual ingredients, suspense, sex, violence, betrayal etc. to keep the reader hooked. But at some places, the ideas thrown out are quite disturbing and the scenario, presented by the author seems too close to the present reality to be dismissed as fiction. The over- dependence on computers all over the world is well portrayed in the book, in the aftermath of the virus shutting down almost all the computers in the world. The black out, the chaos, the anarchy etc., described is too real to be dismissed as fiction. May be such books will alert some strategic management groups in various governments around the world to introduce checks and balances so that in the event of a massive strike by such a malicious computer virus, the damage will be still controllable.

The book is easy to understand even to a lay man though knowledge of computers and software will be useful. Similarly the few pages about the nuclear reactor are easy enough to follow even for a layman, though for a technically informed person, the scenario is easier to follow.

All in all, a good buy to keep you engaged for a few hours.

Passion v. Arrogance: A Dana and Goliath Story...

2005-08-07T21:23:00.000+05:30

Passion v. Arrogance: A Dana and Goliath Story of Wine, Women & Wrong!
by Margaret Broderick

Published by Passion Power Press, Inc

Category: Non-fiction / Business

254 pages; ISBN: 0-9762597-6-1

Rating: 6/10

Review

I received an uncorrected proof of "Passion v. Arrogance: A Dana and Goliath Story of Wine, Women & Wrong!" by Margaret Broderick (the Dana of the story) for review a couple of months ago. Since the copy received is not the final printed book, I will not comment on the editing and the typos, which hopefully have been attended to before printing.

The book is about the rise and fall of a Winery in Indiana. The author and her partner Angee set it up with the help of loans from the Small Busniess Association and a local Bank. The business does well and they receive a lot of attention and praise. They approach the bank for more working capital. Because of some changed economic and political factors and because the bank that lent them money was also in trouble, the bank demands more equity from the enterpreneurs which they could not come up with. The health problems of Angee add up to the difficulties and they finally decide to close the business. But the bank doesn't play the ball and the whole thing ends up in a big mess! The legal tangles that follow, the incompetence of many people who are supposed to know better, the couldn't care less attitude of the other players as opposed to the passion of the enterpreneurs etc., is brought out well.

It took some effort to read through the book because of the anger and frustration that comes through very strongly. It was reading more like a rant than an objective analysis of a business problem. But a lot of useful information is embedded and the author deserves praise for that.

I could not empathise with the author as regards the we vs. they, women vs. men, right vs. wrong and such binary thinking. Practical world is not black and white. And many businesses fail, not only because of their own mistakes but because of many external impacts. Margaret's account reads as if there was a great conspiracy to ensure the failure of their business. That may not be the case. To me it appeared that the author could not convince the other people involved of her point of view. Her passion is praiseworthy but her persuasion skills were not matching.

Why the author and her partners did not take up some extra-legal methods which are quite popular in USA (like going to the Congressman of their area, writing to newspapers and mobilising pressure groups etc.) is not clear. What is clear is that Margaret took up writing this book as a means to get it off her chest, as a therapy.

Buy the book only if you too feel strongly about the topic and after browsing through the book extensively.

Our Toxic World - A Wake Up Call

2005-08-07T21:21:00.001+05:30

Our Toxic World - A Wake Up Call
by Doris J. Rapp, M.D.

Published by Environmental Research Foundation

Category: Non-fiction / Health
510 pages; ISBN: 1-880509-08-3

Rating: 7/10

Review

"Our Toxic World - A Wake Up Call" by Dr.Doris J.Rapp, M.D., is a detailed account of the serious health challenges posed by increasing pollution of our air, water and thus the food chain. In a little more than 510 pages, Dr.Rapp, a Board Certified Doctor of Environmental Medicine, Pediatrics and Allergies, deals in detail with the various effects of many chemical pollutants that are now common in most of the developed countries, especially, the USA.

Chapter 1 titled, "Chemicals and Pesticides Can Hurt You and Those You Love" lays the groundwork for the whole book. The next Chapter, "How Can You Tell If Chemicals Hurt You?" describes the symptoms of illnesses set off by chemicals. The next chapter deals with methods of prevention to exposure and other actions to be taken after exposure. Chapter 4 explores in detail, whether the chemicals can affect the behavior, activity and learning etc. of children. Chapter 5 deals with a very important aspect of pollution, namely the effect on sex, including feminisation, masculinisation, infertility etc., in animals and humans.

Chapters 6 to 10 study the extent of the contamination, what one can do to minimise the effects, the ineffectiveness of the present governmental efforts in USA etc. Then follows a summary of the entire book and some useful Appendices.

The book is not easy to read in the sense that it is too detailed. But one will get a lot of information and a number of references about the points covered. In that aspect, the book is certainly useful.

One may or may not agree with the alarmist approach of Dr.Rapp, but there is no doubt that environmental health has become a major area for further research. If you or your loved ones, friends etc. are suffering from severe allergies and other vague illnesses, it may be useful to check out whether any of the common pollutants could be the reason.

Nobody Home - From Belief to Clarity

2005-08-07T21:16:00.000+05:30

Nobody Home - From Belief to Clarity
by Jan Kersschot

Publisher: Watkins Publishing

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help

Genre: Psychology, Spirituality

191 pages; ISBN: 1-84293-062-1

Rating: 7/10

Review

"Who am I?" is the question that comes up often or atleast once in the life time of every thinking, rational being. This question has been studied and answered by several thinkers over the ages. Is there really a separate entity? Or is the sense of separation/ego an illusion? Advaitins (Non-dualists) maintain that the concept of ego as a distinct entity is an illusion or a trick perpetrated by the ego. Other thinkers have come up with different schools of thought. Jan Kersschot explores this question and the logical follow ups to this question in his earlier book, "Coming Home" and in the present book.

The author doesn't ask for much of believing and accepting. He asks the reader to explore the subject in an objective manner, but at the same time doesn't leave the reader to rediscover the wheel all by him/herself. He provides many insights from other philosophers and thinkers of various ages and lands/religions. He extracts the common ideas and suggests some innovative experiments to the reader to check out these ideas.

The book is certainly thought provoking and will appeal to an intelligent and persistent reader. Persistent because the book is not uniformly easy to read. You may need to read it a little at a time or reread it two or three times before you can say, "Aha! It is now clear!"

There are many books on the subject but Jan's is probably unique in not asking the reader to accept the metaphysical concepts without questioning and experience. A good read.

Is Nothing Sacred?

2005-08-07T21:13:00.000+05:30

Is Nothing Sacred?
by Walter von Wegen

Category: Fiction / Crime
360 pages; ISBN: 1-59590-006-3

Rating: 7/10

Review

"Is Nothing Sacred?" by Walter von Wegen is a novel, that is gripping, scary and at places, rather revolting. It is about crime, police, politicians and manipulators. The story starts with a severed head discovered in a canal in Venice, Italy and then moves to USA. That and a bank robbery pulls in quite a few officers of New York Police Department and their rivals, goons of NPDi, the Internal Security wing, led by Donner, a real ruthless and cruel manipulator. The good guys come out on top at the end.

The novel has everything to hold one's attention if one is not put off by graphically explicit descriptions of torture, sex etc. It also has a lot of swear words, which probably may be acceptable in this situation.

The story and the incidents described are too realistic to be dismissed as fiction and the vivid imagination of the author. Thus the book is indeed disturbing and I needed quite a few days to read it. I am therefore, unable to agree with Judy Schuler's review on the back cover that it is - "one of the most fun reads..." But it has its fair share of humor too.

I found a few editorial slips, but fortunately they don't distract from following the story.

In The Beginning... There were No Diapers

2005-08-07T21:11:00.000+05:30

In The Beginning... There were No Diapers Laughing and Learning in the First Years of Fatherhood
by Tim Bete

Published by Sorin Books

Category: Non-fiction / Humour
189 pages; ISBN: 1-893732-87-8

Rating: 8/10

Review

"In the Beginning... There Were No Diapers - Laughing and Learning in the First Years of Parenthood" by Tim Bete is, as is evident from the title, a humorous take on the parenthood. The title is self-explanatory and the book lives up to the promise. Certainly I laughed and though long past the stage of holding my boys with or without diapers, learnt a little more about the parenting skills. May be in a few years, when I become a grandparent, the skills will come in handy!

Tim writes well and writes with wit and humour, making liberal use of hyperbole. There is no doubt that the book will touch the typical American parent at the right spots.

The book is edited and printed well. It will make a good present to yourself or your friend who has just become a parent.

How To Dance With Life

2005-08-07T21:07:00.000+05:30

How To Dance With Life
by Sara DeGraff

Category: Non-fiction / Education
80 pages; ISBN: 0-9709917-9-7

Rating: 7/10

Review

"How To Dance With Life" by Sara DeGraff is a small book of 80 pages, containing short articles on various aspects of living.

A few topics: Learn From Your Mistakes, Listen to Your Intuitiveness, Practice Humility, Do Not Fight Other People's Battles etc. Most of them are one page or a part there of. A few are two page long.

In keeping with the title, many of the articles read like instructions and in a few cases like sermons. This may or may not appeal to all.

While the content of most of the articles is in line with good psychology, spirituality etc., the reader may or may not resonate with all the ideas presented. But it is worth getting a Spiritual Master's perception on several aspects of a life.

Sara comes across as a gifted and spirtual person, but some traces of negativity (probably caused by past negative experiences) still come through the articles at a few places. That does add a little more authenticity to the book.

The book has a few typos.

Overall rating is GOOD.

Healing Environmental Illness From Within

2005-08-07T21:05:00.000+05:30

Healing Environmental Illness From Within
by Marcia Murphy

Published by Trafford Publishing

Category: Biography / Health
118 pages; ISBN: 1-4120-0289-3

Rating: 9/10

Review

HEALING ENVIRONMENTAL ILLNESS FROM WITHIN by Marcia Murphy is a very intense personal account of a woman's struggle with chronic illhealth for several years and her understanding the root causes of her illness. Written in excellent style, the book holds the interest of the reader from beginning to end.

Marcia Murphy opens up her heart, mind and soul in the book. She takes us on a very intense private journey and shows us how she discovered, the role of mind over body. What was diagnosed as electromagnetic poisoning, and chemical sensitivity, she found had much deeper roots, of fears, of resentments and of lack of self-love. She describes beautifully how her Higher Self helped her in the process of discovering these aspects through some wonderfully mystical events.

And Marcia describes how the Option Institute helped her recover from serious illhealth and how she is now able to help others similarly placed.

The book is short and sweet, just 118 pages. The same Spirit which helped Marcia learn about her body, mind and soul, also motivated her to write such a moving, intensely interesting tale of learning, learning some deep lessons, from the book of life.

I have no hesitation to recommend the book as a Must Read for all those involved in health, that is all of us.

Happiness Is.

2005-08-07T21:01:00.000+05:30

Happiness Is. - Unexpected Answers to Practical Questions in Curious Times
by Shawn Christopher Shea, M.D.

Published by Health Communications Inc.

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
340 pages; ISBN: 0-7573-0066-9

Rating: 8/10

Review

"Happiness Is." subtitled "Unexpected Answers to Practical Questions in Curious Times" by Dr. Shawn Christopher Shea, M.D., psychiatrist, is not a self-help book in the traditional sense.
The correct categorization is Philosophy / Spirituality, and it is a well written exploration of what makes us happy that is fun to read and at places funny, yet manages to address two key philosophical questions - What is the nature of Happiness? and, What is the structure of human nature that determines the extent of that happiness? - in a compelling fashion. Of course, all books that help us understand our true nature are self-help books!

The author adopts a systematic approach to defining the problem, analyses data, picks up bits and pieces of the jig saw puzzle, and then more importantly, validates the various premises with real life data and comes up with a practical workable blueprint.

Dr.Shea's model of human nature - the human matrix - is not really a new concept per se having been part and parcel of eastern philosophy and western mysticism for centuries, but his presentation is refreshing and provocative. He deftly creates a picture of human nature that resonates well with modern sensibilities and science. Dr. Shea describes human beings as constantly evolving moments in time where five interacting systems - our biologies, our psychological perceptions, our interpersonal relationships, environmental conditions, and spiritualities interact to determine a new being with every passing second. I would add that there are, in reality, probably many more elements to the human matrix but these are the five most prominent and they will do for now.

If you are looking for a book that, in a concise language, answers specific practical questions
you may be mildly disappointed by the storytelling and literary wordiness that distinguishes this book. Dr.Shea is quite clear in his Introduction that this is not meant to be a self-help book "filled with case studies and statistics. I believe in such books, and, indeed, have spent much of my career writing them. But the goal of this book is not proof. It is provocation. It is an invitation to think creatively, to view our existence through a different lens."

Thus "Happiness Is." is one of those few books of applied philosophy - that explore human nature in a compelling way via the use of vivid, sometimes quirky, and often memorable stories of what it is to be a human being in a universe that is at once both magnificent and overwhelming.

The examples chosen by Dr.Shea from his extensive reading (including in his own words, historical mystics such as Julian of Norwich, modern philosophical renegades such as Alan Watts, and contemporary humanitarians such as Paul Farmer the subject of Tracy Kidder's recent bestseller "Mountains Beyond Mountains") are described with a freshness and in contemporary language. Perhaps even more striking are his tales culled from his extensive clinical practice (taking care to protect the patient's privacy as usual) and from his everyday encounters.

The resulting tales are quite appealing and at places powerfully moving. If possible, see page 164, where a watchmaker named Bob finds his life's work of model airplanes all smashed to bits by floodwaters and then looks to his wife Judy whose eyes give him the power to smile through his veil of tears. She smiles back with a quietly intuited understanding of his loss and with unspoken support. It moved me to tears. There are several more examples in the book like that of Nick, the 8-year-old boy troubled by severe OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) and many more equally vivid tales. Dr. Shea is at his best, when he is telling his stories, and has a good knack of weaving the seemingly disparate threads of the stories into a comprehensive, elegant, and useful understanding of the nature of happiness and the structure of human nature itself.

The book is easy to read, but is not to be read at a fast pace like a novel. I would recommend that you read it at your natural pace first. I think you will then find yourself returning again and again to come back for specific solutions, in a fashion characteristic of those books that have moved us deeply.

Perhaps the book would have benefited with an index. It was certainly a bit irritating to have to flip through several chapters to relocate the pages where Bob and Judy's story is told. On the other hand Dr. Shea provides a comprehensive bibliography, whose rich selections, may be useful if you want to go deeper into specific aspects of spirituality or even some of the historical curiosities that fill the pages of the book. The book has a total of 18 Chapters, in the typical eastern tradition!

I couldn't agree with some of the points made by Dr.Shea. He clearly emphasizes the essentially interconnectedness of everything (quantum theory is coming up often in my reading now a days). He also emphasizes this integration through his robust synthesis of Eastern and Western mysticism. But Dr.Shea seems to focus a bit too much on providing prescriptions for the individual to use to help solve the day to day problems of uncovering happiness. Thus he inadvertently slips into an acceptance of the illusion of individual independence. I also think that he would have done better to show in more detail how unhappiness and pain are useful, indeed necessary forces for helping an individual realize his/her true nature, which is Universal, which is beyond space and time. Till then, unhappiness is a good driving force to push the individual along the path that he/she is destined to travel.

Despite these concerns, I liked the book, that overall, is filled with provocative ideas, a fairly fresh definition of happiness, and a masterful use of storytelling to create philosophical intrigue.

The book has a bright blue dust jacket that pulls one into its pages, which are smartly designed and pleasing to read. In short, the book is not only well written, it is well produced, but the editing could certainly have been better. It tended to obscure the flow of ideas at some places and at places, the text tended to verbosity.

Dr. Shea comes across as a refreshingly warm and sincere psychiatrist, who has created a book of philosophy that is both fun to read and hard to forget. The stories of his patients will return to you over and over at times when their wisdom may prove most valuable. I would certainly recommend this book if you are serious about finding happiness. The book, whose ultimate message of compassion is sorely needed in our contemporary times, should appeal to a wide cross section of the reading public.

Goober The Golf Ball's Great Adventure

2005-08-07T20:56:00.000+05:30

Goober The Golf Ball's Great Adventure
by Michelle Lynn DiCicco (Writer) & John Terlato (Illustrator)

Published by Trafford Publishing

Category: Children / Fiction / Humour
24 pages; ISBN: 1-4120-2071-9

Rating: 6/10

Review

"Goober the Golf Ball's Great Adventure" is a children's book, written by Michelle DiCicco and illustrated by John Terlato. It is a short and sweet story, humorous and with a happy ending. A boy Tommy loses his favorite golf ball, Goober. After a short separation, they get reunited.

The story is simple and easy to read for children. The illustrations are colorful and eye- catching.

It would have been better if the age group for whom the book is meant for was mentioned somewhere, on the cover or in a short intro. Also, even in USA and Canada (for whom the book is meant for) there could be parents who don't play golf and so will be at a loss to explain what is a driver and what is meant by slicing. Such golf terminology could have been explained so that the curiosity of children and parents could be taken care of.

The story and the illustrations lend for a multi-media approach in the form of a CD (with nice music and the story read out).

A good effort.

Going Deeper

2005-08-07T20:53:00.000+05:30

Going Deeper - How to Make Sense of Your Life When Your Life Makes No Sense
by Jean-Claude Koven

Published by Prism House Press

Category: Fiction / Self-help
438 pages; ISBN: 0-9723954-5-8

Rating: 9/10

Review

'Going Deeper' by Jean-Claude Koven is not a novel in the ordinary sense of the word and again it is also not a self-help book in the normal sense of the word. It is a novelised version of a man's spiritual search to understand his true nature and his true mission on this planet earth. The book's cover categorises it better as Self-Help, Spirituality, New Age and Metaphysical.

The action takes place in Joshua Tree National Park and the whole 'Story' is about the Spiritual Rebirthing (the Phoenix is an appropriate metaphor) of Larry, the 'hero' through shedding many layers of ego resulting in better awareness and thus better integration of the many egos that go to make up an individual.

Through Larry and his dog Zeus, who acts as a teacher, guide and guru, Jean-Claude tries to explain the nature of the 'self' or soul. The book is especially appealing to the 'Wanderers', souls of a higher plane who have volunteered to take birth on the earth allowing the veil of ignorance to cover them, but who, at the same time are not allowed to forget their true mission. This reviewer could well identify with the wanderer's problems, having been tormented by similar conflicts between the insights that keep coming up from the other side and the veil of ignorance that tries to cover up those sights. The book certainly helps clarify many of the puzzles presented by the universe. The book is different from the usual new age books in that it tries to harmonise the relationship between spirituality and science. I found the portion that bridges the spirituality and science excellent reading.

Even if you don't have a scientific background, the book talks to you from several points of perception and thus succeeds in reaching its central message across of non-duality, or the unity in diversity.

The author has obviously been exposed to several philosophies and religions from across the world. His ideas run close to the ideas of non-duality carried in the Upanishads and Sri Bhagavad Gita (The Song Divine), the teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi and Sai Baba etc. Readers who are steeped in believing a specific religion may find some of the ideas revolutionary and disturbing.

In general the book has been edited very well. The few slips don't affect the message. The photograph on the cover is really inviting and the printing quality is good.

The book has gripped my attention and interest. I had to pick it up every day and continue. This is the first book that I could read from beginning to end in the space of about a week, after several months of health problems. As the author writes, nothing is really random and I felt that the book came into my hands at the right time.

I won't urge you to go and buy the book and read it. If you are ready, the book will come to you.

Getting Hip - Recovery From A Total Hip Replacement

2005-08-07T20:38:00.000+05:30

Getting Hip - Recovery From A Total Hip Replacement
by Sigrid Macdonald

Published by AuthorHouse

Category: Non-fiction / Health
160 pages; ISBN: 1-4184-7837-7

Rating: 7/10

Review

"Getting Hip" is the first person account of Sigrid Macdonald, who went through a Total Hip Replacement Surgery and felt the need to share her experiences before, during and after surgery.

At places poignant, at places serious and at some places humorous, the book gives a detailed account of what is involved in a Total Hip Replacement Surgery, including the decision to go in for the surgery, type of implant to be selected (given a choice) and what to expect in terms of pain, restrictions on movement and post-surgery life style etc. The author has referred to several books on the subject and has added her own wisdom to the subject.

One interesting feature of the book is the chapter dealing with the experiences of other people who underwent similar surgery. The widely different experiences of these people confirm the author's own experience that when it comes to a major issue, each individual has a different experience and while other's experience has some educational value, that does not and cannot form a benchmark. That is the message of this good book.

The bibliography and electronic references given at the end of the book add value to the book. The last chapter dealing with the Future of Hip Replacements is a little speculative and should be taken as the author's perception of various bits and pieces collected in the course of her extensive reading and interaction. Brand names of drugs should be acknowledged as such and wherever possible, generic names of the drugs may be preferred.

The book doesn't deal with alternative or complementary aspects of health care in detail since the author is totaly dependent on the Canadian Health care system, which is dependent on the main stream medical knowledge. Several people are however trying out alternative systems like herbal supplements, Homeopathy, Acupuncture etc. because of the adverse side effects of the main stream drugs.

The reviewer found some sentence usage patterns in the book rather odd, but probably these are country specific and in any case there is no difficulty in understanding the text.

If you are considering a hip replacement or if you need to support a friend or relative who is contemplating such a surgery and are looking for a layperson's perspective of what is involved in a major surgical operation like Total Hip Replacement, this book is certainly recommended.

This book is also worth taking a look at if you are in the health care profession, since it gives you the perspective from the customer's point of view.

Fun With Chinese Characters

2005-08-07T20:35:00.000+05:30

Fun With Chinese Characters - The Straits Times Collection 1
by Selina Yoon - Publisher & Cartoonist: Tan Huay Ping

Published by Infini Press

Category: Non-fiction / Language / Humour
176 pages; ISBN: 1-932457-00-3

Rating: 8/10

Review

FUN WITH CHINESE CHARACTERS, The Straits Times Collection 1, is a fun book to learn a few basics of Chinese characters and sentences. The book is attractvely printed and the cartoons definitely add an element of fun to the activity. Each character is explained through several sketches, with the individual strokes and the sequence explained.

Since I don't know Chinese language myself, I can't vouch for the accuracy of everything presented, but that didn't prevent me from enjoying the book. The book may or may not be sufficient to learn Chinese language, but it will help one to recognise some of the characters. This is the first of a three part series and may be the reader who practises the characters may develop some skill in reading and understanding Chinese Script. A companion CD with guide to pronounciation would have been more helpful for learning to speak and to comprehend the language.

Recommended to those with interest in the language, culture etc.

Forrest Tales - The Secret of The Labyrinth

2005-08-07T20:17:00.000+05:30

Forrest Tales - The Secret of The Labyrinth
by C.J. Lewis

Published by Publish America

Category: Fiction / Fantasy
140 pages; ISBN: 1-4137-1035-2

Rating: 8/10

Review

"The Secret of the Labyrinth" is the first of Forrest Tales, a series of adventures featuring Edward Forrest. Written as a juvenile fantasy, the book is an extremely good read for adults too. I couldn't put the book down except for brief intervals necessitated out of fatigue. I had to finish it in one day. The story is good, the style is mostly good and the characterisation is very good. Most of the time, author C.J.Lewis succeeds in painting a vivid picture in the mind of the reader.

The book is not only about powers of light and darkness, but also the story of courage, withstanding temptation, learning to forgive and ultimately learning to 'be in the light'. The last few chapters of the book are spiritually very uplifting. Whether the present generation children will resonate with the lessons presented by Lewis is a debatable point. But the book is certainly an inspiring addition to every school, library and I would add, every home too, where a child lives.

I found a few editorial glitches but they do not interfere with the enjoyment or understanding.

I compliment the author, C.J.Lewis for an excellent effort and look forward to more offerings from her pen.

Finding The Right Spot

2005-08-07T20:14:00.000+05:30

FINDING THE RIGHT SPOT - When Kids Can't Live With Their Parents
by Janice Levy; Illustrated by Whitney Martin

Category: Non-fiction / Education / Children
42 pages; ISBN: 1-59147-074-9

Rating: 8/10

Review

‘Finding the Right Spot – When Kids Can’t Live With Their Parents’, with text by Janice Levy and illustrated by Whitney Martin is a small book for young children, of suggested age 6-12 and the adults who need to take care of them.

Written from the perspective of a child, who is in the care of a foster aunt, and illustrated vividly, the book is a good read, filled with deep psychological insights. It is touching and moving. It is also highly educative. It is good value for children and for adults too.

Since separation from the biological parents is always traumatic, even where the child has been ‘rescued’ from a situation of abuse, the child needs to be taken care. The trauma of a fractured childhood lingers long, deep in the psyche, and holds sway for several years, until the script is erased by understanding and accepting.

Human psyche, especially in the formative years is fortunately flexible and negative strokes can, to some extent be compensated by positive strokes, hurts by hugs etc. This book demonstrates and reinforces the same concept through the small girl ‘finding the right spot’ in Jake, the orphan pup, to whom she can relate well because the pup too is separated from his mom. Aunt Dane provides the optimum support.

The same story, told from the perspective of the child's mother and the foster aunt would be interesting and educative to the adults who need to be the caregivers to similar children. I hope the author and APA will bring them out soon.

The Note to Caregivers at the end by Jennifer Wilgocki, M.S., and Marcia Kahn Wright, Ph.D., adds value to the book, by putting the story in the right perspective.

All in all, the book is an excellent addition to the children’s literature.

More information about the author, Janice Levy and her other books etc. can be found on www.janicelevy.com

Experiencing Astral Travel

2005-08-07T20:12:00.000+05:30

Experiencing Astral Travel- An 8 week course
by V.M. Beelzebub

Published by Gnosticweb (www.gnosticweb.org)

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
157 pages; ISBN: 0-9740560-0-6

Rating: 7/10

Review

'Experiencing Astral Travel- An 8 week course' by Mark Pritchard, writing under the pseudonym V.M.Beelzebub, is a good practical introduction to the subject. In about 150 pages, the author gives a practical approach to learn astral travel. There are many books on the subject, but this book starts from the very beginning and takes the reader to a fairly good level.

The author deals with astral planes, the problem with concentration, fears and other obstacles caused by egos and ways of overcoming the same. He also suggests a few mantras to help in remembering one's dreams, to conjure evil entities away etc.

This book is based on the FREE 8-week course offered by www.gnosticweb.org, with whom the author is associated. Similar courses on 'Self Knowledge' and 'Esoteric Wisdom' are also offered by the same site. That all these courses are FREE is praiseworthy.

The cover has been printed very attractively and the book is well printed. The editing could have been better to avoid style errors, punctuation problems etc.

Considering all the factors, I would rate the book as 'Very Good' with a score of 7/10.

Every Dream Interpreted

2005-08-07T20:07:00.000+05:30

Every Dream Interpreted
by Dr.Veronica Tonay, Ph.D.,

Published by: Collins & Brown (www.chrysalisbooks.co.uk)

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
272 pages; ISBN: 1-84340-051-0

Rating: 9/10

Review

EVERY DREAM INTERPRETED by Dr.Veronica Tonay, Ph.D., Licensed Clinical Psychologist, is a very well produced book, that invites itself into your hands and then into your heart. I have no hesitation to say that this book is very elegantly designed and printed. And the subject is one which appeals to all of us. After all, all of us dream and almost all of us would at one time or another, be wondering about the meaning of our dreams.

With her impeccable credentials, Dr.Veronica tells us what our different dreams mean. She gives us the choice of interpretation from four principal schools of dream interpretation, Freudian, Jungian, Gestalt and Phenomenological. She also takes into account the various symbolic meanings attached by various cultures to different dreams. More importantly she tells us unequivocally that the dream is a product of the dreamer's psyche and so only the dreamer can truly interpret the dream! (The same view is expressed by Simon Godfrey in his book, "Dreams and Reality" reviewed in this blog)

The book has two main parts. The first part describes the dream theory, including the importance of dreams, the dreams that we remember, dream characters and unusual dreams. The second part is the dream directory,consisting of the environment, human characters, animals and buildings.

The book comes with a bibliography and an index, so that the interested reader can pursue the subject further.

The book is well edited. Still, my critical eye couldn't help noticing a few errors. Very minor, I assure you and unless you are very alert, you may not be bothered by them. I am not a psychologist, but I do have a different opinion about some of her interpretations, for example, the role assigned to cats in dreams, the negative interpretations for dreams of dogs etc. And I also wish she had touched upon seeing bulls, monkeys, donkeys etc., in dreams. In Hindu Mythology, these do have some special meanings.

All in all, an excellent introduction to the world of dreams and their meanings. Happy reading and happier dreaming!

Eternal Treblinka

2005-08-07T20:01:00.000+05:30

Eternal Treblinka - Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust
by Charles Patterson, Ph.D

Category: Non-fiction / General
312 pages; ISBN: 1-930051-99-9

Rating: 8/10

Review

"Eternal Treblinka - Our Treatment of Animals and the Holocaust" by Charles Patterson is a touching, moving indictment of the cruelty of man to fellow men and to animals. The holocaust (mass murder of Jews during Second World War) is aptly compared to the daily slaughter of millions of animals. Charles, through Nobel Laureate I.B.Singer, whose works he quotes extensively, makes a strong case for veganism (strict form of vegetarianism excluding milk, yoghurt, cheese, honey and other animal products). In the case of most of the vegetarians and vegans in America and Europe, it is an acquired food habit out of their sympathy to animals, on the ground that man has no right to kill an animal, which can feel pain, for his living. The reviewer, on the other hand, is a born vegetarian (Indian culture accepts milk and milk products, honey etc. as acceptable food, but also requires that all food should first be purified by offering it to God before being consumed). Thus many of the arguments given are a part of belief system in India.

However, the reviewer hopes that the author extends his sympathy to insects and plants, who apparently don't feel pain. They do feel pain and alas, lack the organs to express the pain. The experiments of scientists like Sir J.C.Bose and others proved that conclusively. Thus the indiscriminate exploitation of vegetable sources and the slaughter of many 'lesser brethren' for our survival is also to be condemned.

It is a fact that in the food chain, each living organisam depends on another living organism for its survival. Plants and bacteria etc., depend upon the nutrients in the soil, water and sunlight for their survival. Animals depend upon other animals and or plants. Thus interdependency of the living organisms in the ecosphere is inevitable. What is unpardonable is wanton, mindless cruelty on the ground that might is right. In that regard, man who considers himself the most intelligent of God's creations, has the maximum responsibility to protect the other animals, plants etc., that is the nature. The present mindless exploitation of planet earth is like a monkey trying to cut down the very branch on which it is perched or trying to burn down the house which gives it shelter. To that extent, man has not really evolved fully.

The book is well written and holds the reader's attention well. Some of the descriptions of animal and human torture are rather vividly portrayed and squeamish readers may get distressed. The book is well researched and is also a good sourece for further reading and gives the reader many leads.

Whether the readers will be converted to veganism is another matter. Human minds have a great knack of repressing unpleasant thoughts and rationalising all actions. However, the book will certainly appeal to animal lovers and animal/human rights activists.

The concept of Karma, is probably new to the author and the other protagonists cited in the book. Many of the animals killed would have been born as Nazis and would have taken their revenge against the Jews. And who knows, the victims would have been born as Muslims and may be taking revenge against the Americans and Europeans. The Universe of God has enormous patience to balance the karmic books of all.

The reviewer does not share Singer's vision of God that is portrayed in the book as a malicious, vicious, self centered being indifferent to the plight of the animals. This perception of God is highly colored and is arising out of a limited perception. If God is the creator of all and also dwells in all, who is the killer and who is the killed? As per Hindu Philosophy, the whole life is a constant Yagna, Sacrifice. The concept of ritualistic sacrifice is not limited to Judaism or Islam. The animal sacrifice is an external symbol of the sacrifice of the ego. Having said that, the reviewer too shares the anguish of the author about the needless torture inflicted on fellow creatures.

The book is strongly recommended and will hopefully convert many readers to a life of compassion and love to fellow brethren of God's creation. Readers of this book may also be interested to check out "Hatred - The Psychological Descent into Violence" by Willard Gaylin, PublicAffairs, 2003, Review by S. V. Swamy on April 12th 2004 - Review at

http://mentalhelp.net/books/books.php?type=de&id=2103

Dreams and Reality

2005-08-07T19:47:00.000+05:30

Dreams & Reality - Revelations on the Nature of Man & God
by Simon S. Godfrey

Published on-demand by Trafford Publishing

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
245 pages; ISBN: 1-4120-1143-4

Rating: 7/10

Review

Dreams & Reality - Revelations on the Nature of Man and God is a book written by Simon Godfrey, a retired psychologist. He followed up this book by another book, "The Nature of Man and God", which I happened to review first. In the present book, the author shares the wisdom revealed by God to him over a number of years through dreams. The author's approach to interpretation of dreams is quite different from that of many other psychologists. In fact, the author covers in the first few chapters, the different ideas regarding dreams as propounded by various people over the centuries.

From Chapter 6 to Chapter 11, the author covers various aspects of dreams using his own library of dreams over several years. Each chapter in the book is enriched by a summary at end of the chapter. A glossary of symbols (as pertinent to him and his dreams), notes for each chapter, a list of references and an index at the end add more value to the book.

While I am in general agreement with the author about the subject, I do differ with him on certain aspects. I believe that all dreams are not messages with a purpose. Some dreams are simply wish-fulfilling fantasies. Their purpose is to show them that they are still bound by their wishes, which they are probably suppressing in their wakeful state. Similarly, it is known that some dreamers can direct their dreams and travel in astral planes under their will, which the author doesn't seem to think is possible. I also don't agree with the views of author in Chapter 12. The author seems to contradict himself between individual freedom and the Divine Wisdom. (The apparent conflict between individual freedom and destiny (Universal Will) is very difficult to resolve. So, while accepting God's (Universal) Will, the individual continues to try to do different things, since the thoughts do come from that Universal source only. So, the author's apparent contradiction is to be viewed from that context. - Added by Swamy on 7/8/2005)

The book has a few editorial glitches but is other wise quite readable. The book will appeal to serious students of philosophy who are trying to understand themselves.

Calm Amid Chaos

2005-08-07T19:13:00.000+05:30

Calm Amid Chaos - An Executive Guide To Reducing Stress Through Meditation
by Charles Graybar

Published by Serenity Hill Press

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
170 pages; ISBN: 0-9740265-6-5

Rating: 8/10

Review

"Calm Amid Chaos - An Executive Guide To Reducing Stress Through Meditation" is a practical guide to meditation by Charles Graybar. The book is authentic in that it is written by a man who himself has been a successful business executive and who thus understands the pressures and pains of the average American Business Executive / Leader. That he failed several times to meditate and finally succeeded should give all of us who fail to meditate (including this reviewer), the perseverence to persist and succeed.

Most of the meditation practices described by Charles Graybar (Chuck to his friends) are based on eastern approaches. But they don't demand any change in the religious beliefs of the meditators and thus the book should be acceptable to people of all faiths.

The book's editing left a lot to be desired. Fortunately, the author's message comes through with little distortion.

If you have been looking for a simple, practical guide to help you learn meditation, this is for you.

Blink : The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

2005-08-07T19:10:00.000+05:30

Blink : The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
by Malcolm Gladwell

Category: Non-fiction / General
288 pages; ISBN: 0316172324

Rating: 9/10

Review

"Blink : The Power of Thinking Without Thinking" by Malcolm Gladwell is an interesting book that explores the mechanics of thinking without thinking. The author calls it thin-slicing, to refer to the small size of the sample data when compared to the population from which it is drawn, especially in terms of the extremely small time window for decision making.

The book should properly be categorised as Psychology since Malcolm explores the science behind the process of thinking and intuition. He brings out, with the help of several examples, the positive and negative aspects of this thin-slicing. The positive aspects are of course very important when one needs to decide quickly and correctly. The negative aspects bring out the situations when prejudices and biases, prior conditioning etc., play an important role. As brought out by the author, negative first impressions can be and should be countered and tempered by prior practice to reduce the chance of error.

The examples are many and are interesting. Except for the highly technical words used in describing the anatomy of facial expressions, the writing is easy to understand and follow. The concepts come through very clearly and the author makes a convincing case for his hypothesis.

Whether you need to make the sort of snap judgements that Malcolm describes or not, reading the book will certainly increase the reader's clarity of the dynamics of thinking.

I would certainly recommend this book if you are interested in the mecahnics of thinking.

The book is printed well and the editing is quite good. The errors are very few. A good value for the money.

Beyond the Broken Gate

2005-08-07T19:01:00.000+05:30

Beyond the Broken Gate
by Charles Graybar

Published by Serenity Hill Press

Category: Non-fiction / Self-help
360 pages; ISBN: 0974062522

Rating: 8/10

Review

"Beyond the Broken Gate - An Ordinary Man's Extraordinary Journey In Learning Who We Are, Why We Live, And Where We're Going" by Charles Graybar is a Spiritual book. The author had questions which trouble many seekers, viz., what is the purpose of life, where are we going spiritually etc., and got answers from advanced spirit guides. In about 360 pages, Charles or Chuck as he is referred to in the book, shares with us his extraordinary journey into some advanced spiritual realms and the answers that he got. Obviously his spiritual encounters have affected his career and personal life very extensively, so that his prsent life is in better tune with the original purpose.

To many westerners, the ideas presented in the book may be new and may thus challenge their beliefs. To eastern believers, much of what Chuck describes is already known. The Upanishads, The Bhagavad Gita and of course Buddhist teachings (which Chuck is aware of slightly), present similar teachings. However, his attempt at explaining esoteric concepts is laudable and will appeal better to the 'rational' minds. Chauck comes through as an extraordinary man. In fact, since each individual is unique, no one is really ordinary.

There is an interesting perceptional block in Chuck's understanding. While agreeing that the life on earth plane is similar to a dream and thus all events that take place here, good or bad have no real significance in the higher planes, except for their value as educational lessons, Chuck is still distressed about the negative atmosphere prevailing on earth in his life time. Chuck seems to have missed one important spiritual lesson that life has several cycles and the world too goes through several cycles of war and peace. A great war always cleans up the atmosphere and love, peace etc. start growing. But again as the decay keeps piling up, as the negativity keeps building, another war or earthquake, a flood or some other natural disaster comes up. In Hindu philosophy the Trinity of Creator, Preserver and Destroyer are three different aspects of the same Source. Much before the Crusades and the World Wars, two major wars were described in detail in Ramayana and Mahabharatha. But since Chuck's lessons to be learnt include compassion, empathy etc., his feelings are as per the programmed script.

The book has a fair number of editorial glitches, but thankfully the message comes through quite well. The book is strongly recommended to all spiritual seekers.

Awakening To The Dream

2005-08-07T18:51:00.000+05:30

Awakening To The Dream
by Leo Hartong

Category: Non-fiction / General
148 pages; ISBN: 0954779215

Rating: 9/10 (Ratings explained)

Review

I have great pleasure in presenting my review of 'Awakening To The Dream', a book on Non-Duality by Leo Hartong.

Get from : www.awakeningtothedream.com and Amazon

Keywords: Advaita, Non-Dual, Philosophy, Religion, Spirituality, Dream, Awakening

'Awakening to the Dream' by Leo Hartong is a good introduction to and exposition of non-dualism, Advaita (not two). It explores the oft-rising questions like 'Who am I?', "What is Liberation?' etc., from the monistic (There is only One) point of view. It gives convincing arguments to reject the concepts of dualism (looking at the world from the point of view of two, (I or mine and You or Not-Mine) or pluralism (I, You and They/Others - a modified form of dualism). The book demystifies the psychic/mystic experiences which are often confused with enlightenment.

The book is extremely readable and after first reading, one can come back to it off and on to find answers, to clear the mental cobwebs. The author, Leo Hartong writes from personal experience and conviction. He doesn't expect you to accept his point of view. He shows you his perception and it is for you to decide whether those concepts vibe with you or not.

Leo is certainly not the first western author to write on non-dualism, which by the way is not a Hindu monopoly. I was pleasantly surprised that more or less similar concepts are found in Hinduism, Buddhism, Zen, Tao etc. Of course, since Buddhism was an off-shoot of Hinduism, that part was not new. But Zen, Tao and many other religions, also share this vision of Unity in Diversity.

The author has nicely brought out the common thread in apparently diverse religions across the world. Spirituality seems to be much more unified than apparent. It is the ritualistic diversity which is probably causing the apparent differences.

The author has rightly listed some of the other leading exponents of non-dualism who have inspired him. So, if the reader is a total novice to the subject, he/she will have not only Leo's point of view but will have the advantage of getting some more leads to read further. And if the reader has already a good grounding in the subject by reading classics of Sri Adi Sankara, Bhagavad Gita, Avadhuta Gita, Ashtavakra Gita etc., or modern non-dualists like Nisargadatta Maharaj, Ramesh Balsekar and others, he/she will find much to confirm the concepts by different analogies. More links are available at the author's website, www.awakeningtothedream.com

It is seen that a Dutch Language Edition of the same book is also available.

All in all, a very good and highly readable book. I recommend it strongly to serious readers who would like to answer the question, "Who am I?" -

Absolute Honesty

2005-08-07T18:31:00.000+05:30

Absolute Honesty
by Larry Johnson & Bob Philips Publisher: Amacom (www.amacombooks.org)

Category: Non-fiction / Business
290 pages; ISBN: 0-8144-0781-1

Rating: 9/10 (Ratings explained)

Review

Absolute Honesty by Larry Johnson and Bob Phillips deals with the critical role of honesty, ethics and morals in business. In 10 Chapters and 290 pages, the authors bring out the negative consequences of dishonesty, shying away from speaking up, lack of a clear policy on ethics etc. They point out the benefits of actively following Absolute Honesty. While the book focuses on the corporate scene in USA, especially in the wake of many corporate scandals that broke out in 2002, similar situations have arisen in many other parts of the world and this book strikes a welcome chord in many a heart.

The book is meant for every one but especially for leaders and managers of business organisations, big or small. Employees also benefit, since they will learn the need for courage and honesty, the need to stay away from illegal and immoral activities. So that one can not only sleep better but also look at oneself in the mirror after waking up, without guilt.

The authors accomplish what they set out to do, very effectively. The book is very well produced, with the important points well structured and effectively communicated. Reading the book was like attending a seminar and listening to Larry speak. The style is lucid and friendly. Bob's rich experience as a Human Resources expert has added significant value to the book, in the form of real life examples.

Information about the book is available at

http://www.amanet.org/books/catalog/0814407811.htm

where Chapter 2 is available as sample. Chapter 1 is a good introduction to the book and chapter 10 is a good review of the whole book.

All in all, a very valuable addition to the bookshelf of every manager. The book serves the role of a good self-study guide too.

Rating: Excellent

I would like to share with the readers of this review, excerpts from a mail which I wrote to Larry Johnson, after reading the book.

"I finished reading the book. It is excellent and I am really happy that I could read the book.

The book appealed to my own strong ethical and moral streak. ..............I found the tips for differing with boss, like off-line communication very useful.

I found a few places where I would have edited the matter a litle differently. But in general, the editorial standards are quite high.

Would you consider bringing out the contents of this book as a Seminar on Multi-Media CD, or as a companion to the book?

Thank you for this excellent book.

Swamy"

In another development, Larry asked me whether he can share with his readers his experience of my own honesty and integrity. I agreed.