As you might expect from such a great person, the Pope's book provides few insights into the Pope himself. He does show how our own lives can influence others, especially in a cumulative way, as the he tells of all of those who influenced his entering the priesthood. He cites the religiosity of his father; the holiness of Jan Tyranowski; the writings of St. John of the Cross, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Louis Marie de Montfort; the devotions in his parish, to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, and of the brown scapular. The reader can't help but wonder if there is a link between the lack of devotions today and the lack of vocations today.

A priest's life is challenging. He must be attentive and sympathetic; critical and watchful with regard to historical developments; a giver of Christ; a spiritual father -- especially in the Confessional; holy; constantly training, studying and updating; promoting the family; defending mankind; in dialog with the youth; in dialog with the culture; intellectual and scholarly; and living the Gospel.

But a priest's life is most rewarding. The priest is "a steward of the mysteries of God." An essential part of his mission is fulfilled in the Confessional. The priest is an essential being in the only suitable offering that man can make to God, the offering of God-made-man, an offering made at every Mass. The priest is so united to Christ at Mass that he is "in the person of Christ." What a beautiful reflection on the Mass is offered by the Pope!

The challenge of the priesthood seems overwhelming. It would be without God. It is "a mystery of divine election."

Every parent of a potential priest should read this book.

'Gift and Mystery' is indeed an affectionate gift from Pope John Paul II to all those who pursue a priestly vocation. It is the story of his own priestly call which is a Divine gift as well as a great mystery. On the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of his priestly ordination, the Pope reflects on his own growth in his vocation to priesthood and his ministry as 'a shepherd of God's mysteries'. We follow him through his college studies, his job in the stone quarry, his love for the theater and his theological studies to his ordination to priesthood. His deep faith and reliance on God, his gratefulness and kindness towards others, his devotion and dedication to the priestly commitment are all laid out before us with clarity and love. As he himself says, what is related here belongs to his "deepest being" and "innermost experience". Every priest and seminarian should read this and draw energy and inspiration from this 'Holy Father' and spiritual giant of our day.

Pope John Paul II is an intellectual giant, capable of holding his own with any great thinker. However, JP2 has been blessed with an ability to relate his innermost longings and ideas to even children. Gift and Mystery is a recollection that can hold the interest of any scholar while making a schoolboy smile. The pope methodically retells his soul's desire to be united to God and to follow His will as a young boy, employing a most vulnerable state of being to the reader. We follow the pope through his college and seminary days with delight until that wonderful day this man was ordained a priest of the Lord. With clarity and love, JP2 gives us a taste of the power of the Holy Spirit transforming him into the glorious leader he is today. At the same time, it gives us a hope and a vision of what God can also do in our own lives. A true masterpiece!

Tigers a Twilight
I absolutely delect the book titled Tigers a Twilight by Mary Pope Obsorne , a fabulous writer that discribes the problems that occur in a way that you will react, like the part when the children, Annie and Jack try to rescue the tiger.you might inmediatly get attracted to the book after you read only the first word from the book. I totally reccomend this fabulous mystery book because two kids magicly appear to be in India and learn more about nature.

Tigers At Twilight by Mary Pope

If you read this book you will think it is very interesting. A little boy and girl go on a quest to solve a riddle. They almost get run over by a rhinoceros and ride an elephant in the forest.

I think this book is really cool. It has a magic tree house and I like tree houses.

Mary Pope wanted to teach us to never be afraid to do something hard.

Join Jack and Annie in this thrilling expadition to find the third gift to free the enchanted dog Teddy in the 19th book of the series of the Magic Treehouse, Tigers at Twilight. Jack and Annie have one more gift to go before Teddy is freed from the enchantment. In this outrageous adventure Jack and Annie must face many dangers such as tigers, snakes, and rinos! In my opinion this is the most outstanding book in the series of the Magic Threehouse that I have ever read! I hioghly recomend this wonderful book. Hope you enjoy Tigers at Twilight!

Hi I am Glenna Miller my book is My brothers keeper .The auther is Mary Pope Osborne.There are a 107 pages. The setting is Gettisburg in 1863.The Genre is fiction. The plot is her brother and dad go to her uncles to help hide his horses from the rebs. So she has to stay with Reverand Mcullys family.Jane Ellen Reverand Mcully daughter likes Jed her brother but she only saw him once.The rebs came and yelled "have the union came"I like the place and I like the way it goes in 1863 it is pretty cool. I like her name it is Virginia cause it is my home town.I hope you like this book the way I did. So pick up this book My brothers keeper

Nine-year-old Virginia Dickens is left in the care of Reverend and Mrs. McCully while her father and brother help her uncle hide his horses from the Confederate raiders and fight. She promises to keep a journal for Jed, her brother. Her family thinks she'll be safe but they are wronged when Gettysburg is ambushed. After the battle, she and her father find her brother in a makeshift hospital. The book ends as the town slowly recovers and Virginia hears President Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.

Mrs. Osborne has successfully creates individual characters, and she poses difficult questions about war and the waste of human life. There is a lyrical quality to several passages, and the author slowly builds suspense and release.

Also recommended: All the Dear America Books

The book is about a young girl named Virginia that stays at her neighbors' house while her father and brother Jed, are at their Uncle's to help with the horses. We learn what happens when when the Civil War starts and she writes her thoughts and what she sees and hears in the diary Jed gave her before he left.
What I like about the book is how the author uses such descriptive words about the war and it seems like it's happening right in front of my my face. Also, I love what Virginia writes in her diary. It seems so true. Once you read this book you know what it feels like and what she's trying to say.
The book's theme I think is you can never know what's going to happen when your family is away and what might come between you and your family. I'd give this book two thumbs up!!

First a warning: I advice you to skip the very first part of the book, in which is the author tries to give the reader a feeling on the Polish background of the pope. It's unbalanced, emotional, somewhat chaotic, and very little to the point. I almost stopped reading the book because of this.

But when you start reading where the chronological description of the pope's life starts, you'll find a thorough biography, without exaltation, and not without some critical points of view. The first half of the book deals with the years before Karol became pope, and show how he was trained, coached, and grew as a actor, priest, play write, bishop, mystic poet and cardinal, in the often hard conditions in Poland. The second half deals with his policies as pope. Here is also a special focus on the Polish situation and how the pope exercised influence there. The book helps understanding the motivations of John Paul, even though one doesn't have to agree with him on all accounts.

An interesting, insightful book.

This book is an excellent resource for anyone interested in the life of one of the greatest and most influential popes ever, John Paul II. Through the author's exceptional work, we get to know the man who became John Paul II, and relive his early heartbreaks and triumphs. From Nazi occupied Poland to the modern day Vatican, all significant events are detailed and discussed. This is a biography to be reread time and again.

Pope John Paul II has revolutionized the Papacy, stripping away much of the secrecy and making the Pope, for the first time in history, a Shepherd available to his flock. Although I thought this book leaned a little too heavily on Poland and Polish history, I will give in and say it enhanced my understanding of this complex and charismatic Pope. A very thorough biolgraphy with fascinating looks at behind-the-scenes-politics in Vatican City. Because of John Paul II's impact, he gets my vote as Man of the Century and I recommend this book as a must read for people of any faith.

This work as a whole will enlarge your understanding of water maiden creatures, but don't expect to find any rivetting storytelling.

The value of this book lies in its cultural scope. How intriguing to note that water maidens play a significant role in the folk lore of such diverse cultures! And how interesting to see how these creatures vary from country to country (for they are not all mermaids as the title would suggest). Readers will discover an added bonus in Howell's artwork, which enhances the cultural flavor of each tale to great effect.

However, each tale is written in a sparse, folk tale style--flat characters and settings with little descriptive embellishments. For this reason I would recommend this book mainly to those who love mermaids and other sea creatures, rather than to those who just looking for a good story. But recommend it I do, for it is a fine collection.

i'm 15 years old and have always loved mermaids. My favorite movie is Disney's The Little Mermaid, and i am always interested in any books i come across about them. i came across this book in 6th grade. it was my teacher's book, but i stole it for the entire year! i read it over and over again, i was mesmerized by the stories and pictures. most of the stories i havnt even heard before. i was so sad when i had to give it back, but just now, 3 years later, i found it on this website! i ordered it right away and couldn't be happier. i reccomend this book to anyone that has a facsination with mermaids. this book is truly wonderful.

This book is wonderful for all ages. It includes stories from all over the world, not just Europe. The illustrations are excpetional, with the artist emulating the style of whatever area of the world the story is from, resulting in a genuine feel. The stories are told well, and the book is large enough to be able to show the pictures to a story-time group if desired. I am an adult, yet I found the stories to be interesting and though not dumbed down, accessible to almost all age groups.

This is only the second Magic Tree House Book we have read but the books in the series are quickly becoming my soon to be second graders favorite books to read.

The story is really about the Irish monks and the contributions they made to civilization during the Dark Ages. The Vikings are raiding Ireland.

I was pleasantly surprised of the authors mention of Christians and use of God in a blessing by one of the monks. When we borrowed this book from the library we thought it was all about the Vikings. The Christian monks were a wonderful bonus.

This book will appeal to your school age childs sense of adventure and they will learn something about history without even realizing it. A wonderful series.

VIKING SHIPS is a really fun book. I actually lost myself in the story. It's short, but exciting, with a real sense of adventure. This is a great series for kids to read and to own. I could tell from the introduction that it's probably better if you read them in order. The first in the series is "Dinosaurs Before Dark."

This Magic Tree House book really teaches you about the Vikings. It's a neat setting, and there's some good action, especially when Jack and Annie are in their darkest hour. I highly recommend this book to any Magic Tree House fan, because this is more than one of the best. Enjoy!!!

i was looking for an inspirational work on such an inspirational figure...wasn't there. Quite repetitive and I'm afraid his spirituality was redundant, a bit boring and reflected asceticism and fear & trembling. HOWEVER, he did a great job with VII and responded nicely to the Holy Spirit. His best line that I know of is when asked: "How many people work at the Vatican?" His reply: "Oh, about half."

While I am not a Roman Catholic, I have always been interested in the history and politics of the Holy See and the Popes. It is fascinating that John XXIII, in his short tenure as Pope, appears today to have influenced the world of his faith more than either his predecessor, Pius (Pacelli), or his successor, Paul (Montini). These were both highly political leaders with failings common to all politicians, religious or secular.

John XXIII had no political axe to grind. By his very nature and the fact that he was expected to be a 'caretaker' he was uniquely able to bring his church into the twentieth century. Some have alleged that through his actions he may have saved the Catholic church for the twenty-first.

This is a unique book, for it demonstrates a man of humility without excessive self-righteousness. His love for God and for his fellow man are demonstrated in equal measure. As some have said of John Paul II, John XXIII 'humanized' the papacy. That he was able to do this without diminishing the authority of his office was part of his genius.

As a previous reviewer noted, I agree that John's work in areas not dominated by Roman Catholics appears to have widened his world, perhaps laying the groundwork for his later ecuminical progress.

This is a memoir that doesn't require one to be a Roman Catholic to enjoy, and to admire. Holiness through living rather than platitudes. Very highly recommended to anyone!

This is a fascinating and even inspiring glimpse into the heart and soul of a man who very seriously sought to do the will of God. It is a remarkably personal testament from somebody who rose to preside over the Church of Rome -- a document that, at least in my experience, has few modern parallels. One doesn't have to be Catholic (I'm a Mormon) to admire his integrity, to learn and profit a great deal from an outstanding man's honest struggles to discern and carry out what he regarded as divine purpose, and from the manner in which he grew over a long and notable ministry.

This is one of the worst "books" I have ever encountered. In the traditional sense, it is not a book at all, in that there is no publisher and thus, no editor. As John Paul explains, he started with an outline and "worked on each section depending on my mood." He must have, or as he would say, "must of," been in a very sour mood during the entire process. This book reads like a high schooler's English paper where the procrastinating student tried his best to meet the minimum word requirement. The repition is tedious. The excess verbiage is smothering, and consists of distracting personal rememberances, unqualified assertions ("most people don't have the metabolism to have this sort of body {6' 200 lbs.} at a young age {21}"), the obvious ("most {legitimate} massage therapists will not discuss penis size"), and the really obvious ("Hair color tends to come in blonde, light or dark brunette, black, and red"). Mr. Paul needs to learn that being able to type is not the same as being able to write, and having a good word processor is not the same as having a good publisher. Any competant undergraduate journalism major could have taken what is obviously thoroughly researched and fascinating material and produced a better product. In its current form, it is essentially unreadable.

This book is one of hope and inspiration for all children of the world. It consists of passages taken directly from speeches given by Pope John Paul the II to children and youth groups around the world. The book is geared toward elementary school children of the Catholic faith, but the words will speak to any heart. Each page has a heading, such as "Peace," "Love," "Family," "Faith," and an excerpt from one of the Pope's speeches. There is also an accompanying photo of young children (often depicted with the Pope himself or in the midst of typical religious activities). This is a book that is meant to be read aloud to your child and shared together, as you talk about the meaning of the words within. I find "For the Children" to be especially apt today, in light of the unfortunate tragedies that have befallen our nation and world. One of my favorite passages states: "I say to you, with all the love I have for you,...do not listen to voices which speak the language of hatred, revenge, retaliation....Love life, respect life in yourself and others...do not think that courage and strength are proved by killing and destruction...true courage lies in working for peace." The book also talks about the unconditional love that God has for everyone, about hope for the future, and about praying for peace and harmony in our world. Pope John Paul II is a very wise man, one of the biggest peacemakers of our time. I have a lot of respect for him as a person.I would encourage any parent to buy this book to share with their family and share the message of love and peace found therein.

This book has excerts of Pope John Paul II's speeches which have been directed to Catholic children. These words of our Pope, however, have significance even to those over the age of 10. I highly recommend this book for First Communicants and for all other Catholic children, because had I had this book when I was younger, I would probably not have fallen into as many traps as I did.

Lt. Lord Ramage single-handedly overcomes the fleet mutiny at Spithead, sees through a slaver's ruse to take a rich prize, exposes a spy, and winkles out a secretive privateer terrorizing the Caribbean. A busy, and entertaining, fellow.

I like the sense of adventure, the clever plots, Ramage's audacity and modesty, the nautical lore and clearly described maneuvering, and the sense of place. I don't like Pope's insertion of interesting lore as a device to delay the action once it's underway, his predictably good or evilly incompetent characters (irrespective if friend or foe), and his telegraphed plot solutions (despite coy circumspection). However, in Freebooters there IS one key character about whom Pope did maintain my suspicions through many chapters and another person turns out to have had conflicting loyalties. Two minor plot elements jumped out as inconsistent.

These McBook pb edition books have a nice look, heft, and feel. (Why DID they pick that silly name?) Again there's wrap-around cover art by Peter Wright, evocative in its ghostly silence and spidery tracery. Wright repeatedly over-emphasizes an integrated design for the catheads, one that reminds me of horned beetles or owls.

Is it odd how many maritime authors write series rather than one-off novels? Pope, Woodman, Kent, Forester, O'Brian; D.C. Poyer doing it for the modern navy. Maybe it is the ready handle of a rigidly structured career ladder to follow and explore, each rung offering a different view of command behavior and individual psychology. Do others find the early books in a series offer the greatest compass for ingenuity, excitement, and water-level story telling? For example, some of the later O'Brian titles in the Pacific drag interminably to small effect, and Lambdin's Lewrie loses some of his bold, ah, flirtation.

In the third installment of the Ramage series, can our hero overcome the mutiny at Spithead, deliver dispatches to 3 separate fleets and solve the mystery of disappearing ships? The fact that there are 15 more novels in the series hints at a successful conclusion. Of course the redoubtable Ramage will overcome all obstacles and emerge triumphant although not without controversy. In the first two novels, Ramage was successful but his means of achieving success left him open to criticism. It would be unreasonable for a first time reader to expect anything any different in Ramage three.

Like the first two novels, the action in Ramage and the Freebooters starts early although shots aren't fired until well into the book. Still the novel builds to a thrilling climax with lots of action along the way. It's a good read.

Pope typically includes mysteries and subterfuge as part of the action in his novels. In Ramage and the Freebooters there are covert operations, spying, and mysterious goings on. My only complaint in that regard is that it seemed obvious who was doing the spying.

I also had a couple of other concerns about the story. Ramage finds romance in the Caribbean while Gianna waits at home. He seems to feel no guilt about establishing another relationship while he is involved with Gianna. Oh well, this was published in 1969, "love the one your with" etc. Also, unless one has a map of the Caribbean, the sailing is confusing, as is the setting in the climax. Maps would have been a real plus.

Pope was a sailor and his knowledge of the sea shows. He does include some realistic details (his description of the fashioning of the cat for example) but doesn't overburden the story with them. The Caribbean is a winter vacation spot now but Pope conveys it as the disease infested hellhole that it must have been 200 years ago. Also, it is clear that Ramage is a born, charismatic leader. Some people are like that and Ramage conveys natural authority better in this novel than the first two.

Ramage and the Freebooters isn't as good as the first two but it is a worthy entry in the series.

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Review of the Ramage series of novels:

Don't read this until you have read the first book: Ramage and Ramage and the Drumbeat by Dudley Pope. Also included below a partial review of The Black Ship, also by Pope about a factual mutiny.

Book 1: Ramage

Book 2: Ramage and the Drumbeat

Book 3: Ramage and the Freebooters

Book 4: Governor Ramage RN

Book 5: Ramage's Prize

Book 6: Ramage and the Guillotine

Order them all, because you won't want to stop. The action is fast and furious.

This is third in a series of historical fiction by Dudley Pope. All of these are fictional novels based on British Admiralty records of the Napoleonic era. Written in the best tradition of Forester and O'Brien, these books will capture your imagination. And if you haven't read the Hornblower series by Forester, or the Aubrey/Maturin series by O'Brien, try them also. All of these are excellent books that you will treasure and reread. I particularly like these books by Pope. I recommend that you buy them all at once and read them in order. You will be glad you did.

If you enjoy reading accurate descriptions of naval maneuvers in the age of sail, or simply a good adventure yarn, Dudley Pope delivers. Pope conveys how the best of the best, handle emergency situations. He portrays these situations with realism and authenticity.

Review of this book:

Ramage, is given command of the Triton with orders to deliver a warning to three offshore fleets that the fleet in homeport has mutinied. His first job is to get the Triton under way and he comes up with a surprise to get the mutinous Triton's out of port. Even then he still has to hold the crew together and build their loyalty. Then upon arriving in the West Indies, he is given a mission and set up by his admiral to take a fall and must gamble against the odds to be successful.

Buy the series in the hard cover--worth keeping and handing down.

For more historical information about mutiny in history, read the factual story of the most notorious mutiny of all time in the, The Black Ship by Dudley Pope. It gives keen insight into the conditions of the time, an analysis of the mind of a heartless Captain whose floggings often resulted in the deaths of his men, the terrrible casualty rates due to Yellow Fever, and the gruesome deaths of the officers. One horrific tale, but if you have the stomach for it, well worth reading.

A good yarn. Buy them all. I'm starting on the next one tonight.

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Conrad B. Senior

This book came highly recommended to me by a good friend of mine and overall I enjoyed reading it, but I must let everyone know-- this book has no plot. The book starts out promising enough-- the election of a surpise pope. However, no major plot arcs emerge. Instead we get these minor plot arcs that we recognize as being secondary and yet they often take up large parts of this book as if they were major plot arcs. This left me wondering when the "real" story was going to happen, but sadly the most promising story arc that is hinted at all book (a major meeting for peace between the US and Russia) never happens.

But this is a well written book for what it is. West does a great job in developing the complicated character of this new pope as well as many of his advisors. West also does a great job in showing the immense complexities of the modern papacy (so many countries, so many different competing interests) while still showing a great compassion for the ordinary man and woman. It's this compassion that is perhaps most striking and the most powerful component of the book. Read this book for its emotions and its ideas, not for its plot.

A heartwarming and profound novel about an Eastern European who surprisingly becomes pope. No, it's not a fictional account of the election of John Paul II -- it was written many years before the current Pope's election.

Surrounding the main plot are a number of sub-plots dealing with the very human problems of abortion, infidelity, divorce, homosexuality, and many of the other issues which continue to plauge the world and the Church.

This book is highly recommended.

Morris West is one of those rare authors who can conjure up an excellent book from minimal material. A lot of his works centers around (or is linked with) the Catholic church of which he is an excellent and compassionate portrayer, even when he is being critical.

Shoes of the Fisherman, one of his best, is a heart warming look at the Papacy. Starting with the esoterics of a papal election by acclamation (an unusual procedure) of Kiril Lakota, a virtual unknown, West sees the leader of the church not as the storied infallible pontiff but rather as an earnest human being, beset by his own frailties and needs as well as constrained by the inflexible traditions and bureaucracy of the Vatican. But in focusing on Lakota (and his fellows) as a human being, subject to the same weaknesses of all humanity, West makes one admire him all the more, for his willingness to carry the burden. As the head of a religious organizations that spans the seven continents and hundreds of different cultures, the pope must make huge decisions in lonely abstract while bearing in mind the ordinary man and woman who comprise the church. This is a tremendous responsibility and a near impossible task. In the process West looks at numerous sub-themes that still plague the church (though this book is sited at the peak of the Cold War), of marriage, of theology, of doctrine and of the clergy. He makes no judgments, but in painting the essential humanity of the players, West makes the institution of the church and the papacy not only more accessible to the reader, he also generates a more sympathetic understanding of both. This may not (as previous readers have remarked) be a book with a major plotline, but it is a book that, even at its darkest, maintains faith in humanity. Highly recommended, (though members of other religions may find some of the parts hard to follow).