Pope John Paul II has given us one of the best (if not the best) books of modern theology today. This book is a compilation of many weekly addresses the Pope gave in the early 80's. Now compiled into this one work, we can view the absolute genius of the mind of Pope JPII. His insights into humanity, creation, the human person and the body are without equal. In fact, he may be known for this work more than any other when history judges him in the future. He has given the Church new insights into the dignity of the human person, marriage,... and made it challenging to all of us.

If you haven't read any of the Pope's writings, I suggest you start with his encyclicals, and study them hard, before jumping into this work. The Theology of the Body has already started several grass-roots evangelism projects and my guess is that we are only starting to see the fruit this book will bear.

The Theology of the Body is comparable in depth of thought to the works of Augustine and Aquinas.

The writings speak to a reader at numerous levels: the personal, the organizational, global, sacramental, familial, paternal, maternal, fraternal, vocational, scriptural, anthropological and many others. The beauty is the integration of teachings at and across each level!

The teachings encapsulated within this work synthesize many truths about humanity and Catholic Christianity.

The book's writings shed light on the fullness of Truth revealed in and over the fullness of time. What was implied in the truth of the Gospel is revealed in a more explicit way in the Pope's analysis.

Topics of interest include: the dignity of the human person, the human body in art versus pornography, the intended relationship between man and woman from the beginning - in the present - and future, what the physical human body reveals about the nature of the person and God, the call to Chastity and Modesty, the universal call to holiness, the mystery of Body of Christ, the mystery of the priesthood, celibacy, and the mystery of the Eucharist and much, much more.

The book is a difficult read if you are not familiar with the Pope's method... but well worth it!!

Those with a philosophical background may regard JPII's leaning toward phenomenology as either a peripheral "quirk" or a departure from traditional (i.e., Aristotelian-Thomist) realism. "Theology of the Body" should dissuade of either conclusion. JPII's approach to phenomenology is foundational to his celebration of human personhood, and totally realist and thus thoroughly compatible with traditional Christian philosophy. The theological significance of JPII's philosophical approach is clearly demonstrated in his phenomenological exegesis of the existential signficance of man's transition from "original solitude" (before Eve's creation) to "original nakedness" (Adam's encounter with Eve). JPII's meditation on how man's personal self-awareness - and thus his personhood - is fulfilled through the bodily disclosure of another person literally "fleshes out" the teaching of the universal Catechism: God is an eternal exchange of Love, in which man is destined to participate (CCC 221). I only regret that the Pope did not develop the analogy implicit in his meditation between the purely relational Personhood of the Blessed Trinity and the nuptial meaning of the human body.

"Dingoes At Dinnertime" is the book where they free Teddy from his spell, as you probably know already. It all starts when Annie hears Teddy's barking, then they go to the tree house, go to Australia, and then begin their adventure. It's too much to say, but you can't miss this one. So read this one and enjoy it!!!

I thought this was the greatest adventure that Jack and Annie ever had so far. I liked it because therer was a lot of action and it was fun to read. This is my second-favorite series of books. I like them even more than Goosebumps. It would be pretty hard to get better than Magic Treehouse, even though I like Harry Potter better, but that's all.

I was almost as excited as my 8 year old daughter when she finished reading this wonderous adventure, completing the four part series to break Teddy's spell. It had been tough getting her to read, until I found the Magic Tree House series. She really enjoyed the adventure and the involvement of animals as characters in the story. I like the fact that at the end of each story is "More Facts for You and Jack" - reinforcing the educational elements of the story.

This book is a good book.I learned alot about dinosaurs.This book inspired me to love and study dinosaurs.Now everybody says I'm crazy for dinosaurs!This book talks about plant eaters and meat eaters.It has pictures of dinosaur skelatons.It has lots of theries on how the dinosaurs disapeard.So read it!

This is my favorite book in the whole Magic Tree House series, because they wrote about a new dinosaur called Giganotosaurus. It was even bigger than T-Rex, and if they find more fossils of Giganotosaurus, it will be the king of dinosaurs. I think it was funny when Annie pretended to be Dromiceiomimus because she looked silly with huge eyes!

What a wonderful idea. Mary Pope and Will Osborne share the research that they put in to writing "Dinosaurs Before Dark" with their readers in a fun and entertaining way. My 8-year old daughter has devoured this book and "Knights and Castles : A Nonfiction Companion to the Knight at Dawn". These books are not only instructing her on the particular subject of each book, but they are also teaching her how to do research on her own. They also build vocabulary and fill her head with wonderous thoughts and questions. I highly recommend this series to every young reader and their parents.

I wish I saw this novel on more Top 10 lists, but oh well. Nevertheless, I demand that you buy this book right now, and with the hefty discount Amazon is providing, you can't afford to pass this up! With a cover price of 30 beans, I can understand why some would balk initially at purchasing this, but now you have no excuse! Thirty percent off is the deal of the century for this book, and I paid full cover at my local shop! If you are a fan of modern fiction, fine graphical art, or just insane ideas, you owe it to yourself to pick this up at Amazon's great discount.

Set in the near future, the main question in Heavy Liquid is "what is Heavy Liquid?" I'm not going to tell you, but I will tell you that the characters in this story are all affected by this strange substance, part highly addictive drug, part... I don't want to spoil it, but suffice it to say that Pope's concepts are always first rate. As someone else mentioned, fans of PK Dick should take note of this work and read it.

The art is Paul's signature style, completely unmistakably his and no one else's. The lines themselves form beautiful abstract art, in addition to the concrete images they suggest, but his execution is so fluid that nothing is stale or static; these pages rip with dynamics.

All in all, among the very best graphic novels of all time, and considering that it is the work of one man, it qualifies as genius.

Heavy Liquid takes place in a not so distant future, and the plot circles around a man only known as "S".He''s mission is to deliver a pack of the ultimate high: Heavy Liquid to a mysterious collector. Heavy Liquid has everything a good comic should have and some more, read it.

Man, what a cool book. You got the futuristic sci-fi vibe perfectly mixed with this gritty, urban scene harboring an almost retro, beautifully illustrated chase story. Really cool stuff.
If you like old 60's flicks like Velvet Hustler, movies featuring the hip psuedo-anti-hero who's just tryin' to do his thing and not get caught/killed in the process, check this one out.

My Patient With Tales is a great book, easy to read and veryenjoyable. Even if Dr. Pope was not my vet (he has been for 22 years), I would still recommend this book to everyone I know. I could not put it down until the last tale was told. This is the kind of book that can be enjoyed by everyone whether they have a pet or not.

Dr. Robert Pope tells sometimes funny, sometimes sad, but always touching tales of his life as a Wisconsin veterinarian. He often ends his tales with a quote from Scripture and a lesson he learned or a realization. I enjoyed his wife's simple drawings. Anyone who loves animals or has pets should read this book. Through Dr. Pope's words, you too can learn some of the things that animals can teach us about life.

This book is tales about the tails in the life of a vet in WI. The series of short stories are written so that one does picture the scene of the moment. Dr. Pope brings life to each of these moments in the mind of the reader while giving some Wisconsin philosophy to the reader. I would suggest this book as a book for a Father's Day gift, or a gift to yourself. The illustrations by Marjorie Pope, also bring smiles, especially the cow pictures.

In creating Augustine Cardinal Galsworthy, Edward R.F. Sheehan has made a rare contribution to the growing universe of novels imagining the next conclave, that rare gathering of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church to elect a pope. "Cardinal Galsworthy" is panoramic in scope, rich and faithful in historical detail, at times beautifully written and has as its protagonist an uncommon character who is not a mere stick figure for some real-life character the author hopes will be elected to the Petrine throne. This is not yet another "Martini-for-pope" novel. It is not a philippic against the Roman Church and its current pope. It is something entirely different.

The eponymous Augustine Galsworthy is born an Englishman, but has a pronounced affinity for things French. His father, William, is an English Baronet -- a baronet being a hereditary knight, who ranks above all non-hereditary Knights of the Realm, except those illustrious but few Knight Companions of the Order of the Garter. We know this because Galsworthy, in his towering vanity and love for the theatre of life, cares very dearly about this and painstakingly explains all the minute but significant hereditaments of his English recusant family and of Roman Church through whose ranks he rises.

Sir William has one great ambition for his son - that someday he may add a "red hat" the family tree. But Augustine Galsworthy is not the poised child of the almost-aristocratic that one might expect. He trips, he falls, he runs into walls - and, worse yet, he stutters. So, Augustine spends most of his childhood and adolescence in a Benedictine monastery in France. There, a young monk befriends young Augustine and introduces him to the treasury of the Roman Church. One of his formative influences is, appropriately enough, the great French Romantic Chateaubriand and his "The Genius of Christianity."

Galsworthy begins his preternaturally successful ecclesiastical career in spiritual and moral turmoil. Does he truly believe in God? Does he want to be a priest? Can be resist the temptations that easily beset him? His struggles are set against a rich backdrop of history. We move from the end of the reign of the "Stern Pope" through the reigns of the "Sunny Pope" and the "Sad Pope," with their struggles with the Second Vatican Council, and, finally, through the reign of the "Slav Pope." The author steadfastly refuses to call these men by their real-life names, admirably reluctant to impute, even in a work of fiction, words to men who did not utter them. Still, he never strays from their personalities. (There is no "September Pope.")

Galsworthy is the close collaborator of the Sunny Pope, who raises him to archbishop at age thirty-four, thereby gratifying the protagonist's vanity. Galsworthy is an early supporter of the Sunny Pope's call of the Second Vatican Council and encourages the pope to cut through curial resistance to it. But his enthusiasm for the Council ebbs as he sees its aptitude to truncate church doctrine and scrap its liturgical traditions. Before he dies, the Sunny Pope expresses his outrage that Galsworthy turned against the Council and accuses him of vanity. Who is more vain, Galsworthy wonders: me or the Sunny Pope who desperately needs the love of the whole world?

The Sad Pope is determined to implement the directives of the Council and fulfill the legacy of the Sunny Pope. Love will conquer all, he assures Galsworthy. But Galsworthy has traveled the world, from the Middle East and Africa to the troubled Church provinces of the Netherlands. He knows better. Civil strife, guerilla warfare and the destructive impulse are not so easily regulated. The Sad Pope dies convinced that he was a failure and desperate that what he has down has helped undermine the Roman Church.

In the Slav Pope, Galsworthy is in orthodox harmony. But Galsworthy's lust gets the better of him as he chases after a woman several decades younger than him. The dénouement of his struggles with the flesh comes in a dramatic scene in New York's St. Patrick's cathedral, when homosexual activists burst in and seize the Eucharist.

This is but one of many real-life events in this novel. The author shows us the collapse of the ancien regime in Egypt, civil war in Africa and Central America, the collapse of the Roman Church in the Netherlands, the removal of the Jesuit father-general and conflicts with Marxist prelates in Nicaragua. We can also see in the author's characters the shadows of real-life characters: Alfredo Cardinal Ottaviani (in the person of "Cardinal Baluardo"), Pericle Cardinal Felici ("Monsignor Samosata") and Giovanni Cardinal Benelli ("Monsignor Gianni"). The rich historical texture of this novel is unmatched in this sub-genre.

The modern reader will probably take offense at Galsworthy and the tone of this novel. Galsworthy believes in the mystery, the poetry, and the theatre and drama of the Roman Church. His is not a low-church, a congregationalist-type church that exalts a transitory sense of social justice for the real salvific work of a church. For Galsworthy, the drama of the old Latin Mass subtly admits the faithful into communion with God and awes the squalid unbelieving into silence. For Galsworthy, the traditions, doctrine and discipline of the Roman Church are the work of twenty centuries and countless martyrs, evolving slowly under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and not something to be blithely discarded in a pell-mell attempt at relevance. This will not be a popular view today. It will even be alien. Perhaps the modern reader will be partially satisfied by Augustine Cardinal Galsworthy's penultimate act of sacrifice, made in that conclave called to elect a successor to our Slav pope.

I could not put this book down. Cardinal Galsworthy is a complex, sinful (as we all are) yet pious and faithful Catholic. This is a character you will never forget.

My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed this superbly-written tale of one man's journey of faith. Sheehan's insights into the worldy and other-wordly dimensions of the Church are outstanding. So beautifully written, you won't want to put it down.

Earthquake in the Early Morning
By: Mary Pope Osborne

Have you wondered what it would be like to be in one of the biggest earthquakes in the world? This book is about two kids named Annie and Jack. They go back in time to 1906.The kids have to find something to lend, because they have to save Camelot.
You can picture when the city gets on fire in California, because the story says, "The fires raged for three days, nearly destroying all of San Francisco. Over 28,000 buildings burned down."
The author of this story teaches you to always be prepared.
I like this book because it has adventures.
Read this book to find out what happens at the end. Will Annie & Jack get back to the treehouse & save Camelot?

Once there lived two kids named Jack and Annie.They had a magic tree house.They had to go to San Francisco .When they were at San Francisco there was an earthquake.

Once again Mary Pope Osborne had conjured up another exciting adventure for Jack and Annie. Young readers can travel with them on their quest for the last item they need to save Camelot.
As a teacher, I am always impressed with the knowledge students can gain as they read these adventure stories. Mary Pope Osborne includes interesting facts and real-life situations in her stories. In this book children can use their imaginations to get a feeling of what it was like in California during the big earthquake and at the same time read about the true experiences of the people and actual events.
This and other Magic Tree House books are great for in-class whole group readings or individual readings.

This book was a good learning book, but still it showed more miracles and wonder, but there's no doubt it's a learning book. Otherwise, I don't know what else to say about this book, and I'm glad because I don't want to spoil a single surprise.

This book was fun. I like it when Jack and Annie go to the Artic. They have to act liked polarbears to get off some thin ice.I liked this book because it was full of adventure.

It's icicle city when the Magic Tree House whisks Jack and Annie to the freezing Arctic tundra. Luckily, a seal hunter on a dogsled (led by huskies) lends them warm clothes and takes them back to his igloo (which in Inuit, means house.) They run out to feed the huskies and Jack accidentally takes masks that the seal hunter made. Annie finds some polar bears and they play tag with them. Jack suggests they go back to the igloo, but Annie and the polar bears lead him down a little hill. Then, unluckily the ice starts to crack. A female polar bear (which happens to be the mother of the polar bears that Jack and Annie found) comes to rescue them. Jack reads in the reasearch guide that even though female polar bears can weigh up to 750 lbs., they can slide on very thin ice. So, the female polar bear takes the cubs and slides on the ice. Jack and Annie put on the masks and slide on the ice, too. When they get up the hill, they see a burst of red, green, and purple in the sky (which happens to be the Northern Lights.) But after Jack read that fact, the lights disappeared. The seal hunter finds them and takes them back to the igloo. Then, Jack and Annie think they've solved the riddle. The riddle is: I cover what's real, and hide what's true. But sometimes I bring out the courage in you. What am I? They think it's a mask, and they're right! But before they can go home, they find another riddle. Soon, they solve it.

Once in awhile I can judge a book by its cover-I have now owned a copy for 11 years and I also re-read it once a year or so. Mr Pope-Hennessey does a brilliant job bringing a huge cast of charachters to life, and Queen Mary herself is a fascinating study in early 20th century womanhood. I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading about women in the royal family. All the elements are there, in great detail-but don't expect dirt digging. But you will not be dissappointed!

I've owned this biography for ten years, and I seem to go back and re-read it once a year. It's the kind of book that's so well-written, you can start reading it from any chapter and get hooked. I don't think you have to be a Royalty-fan to enjoy it. Queen Mary was a fascinating person & her life was so interesting, to say the least. It's got so much detail, and the author makes you understand the circumstances which made Queen Mary the person she was. This book was published in 1957, which was only a few years after her death and a more reticent time, so don't expect any delving into Queen Mary's unfortunate habit of "guilting" people into giving her their historical knicknacks, etc. for her vast collections. (Or about her shady dealings in the matter of acquiring Empress Marie of Russia's jewel collection from the Empress' daughters at a bargain price.) For the Royal buff, there is also a wealth of information on Queen Victoria, Edward VII, Alexandra,et al. Make this a cornerstone of your Royalty (or just good biography) collection & you won't be disappointed.

Pope-Hennessy's book is a delight to read. He writes in a readable engrosing manner which makes his book hard to put down. He gives us a enthralling account of the life of this remarkably down to earth woman who is always a queen. The many love letters she received from her husband, the king, also disclose to us a woman who was indispensable to his success as a monarch. For everyone who has an even remote interest in royalty this is the book for you. A good read!

In the final months of the Civil War, Virginia, now 10, and her family move to Washington, D.C., where the cold winter brings uncertainty and hardship. But just as things start to improve ­ her father gets a job and the war finally comes to an end ­ the tragic assassination of Ginny's beloved President Lincoln occurs. In this, her second diary chronicling the Civil War, Ginny learns that life is constantly changing.

This "My America" diary of ten-year-old Virginia Dickens gives us a glimpse of the nation's capital during the Lincoln presidency--the joy at his election, the despair when he dies; the challenges of finding work for newcomers like Virginia's father and even Virginia herself. The book is easy to read with large text and a diary format, as well as historical notes and pictures at the end. It is a touching though not adventurous story that gives life to the Civil War era off the battlefield.

Also recomended: All the other Dear America books

Hi,I am doing a book review on After The Rain.The author of After The Rain is Mary Pope Osborne.There are 98 pages if you want to know.The genre of my book is realistic fiction.
The setting of this book is the Civil War around the 1800's.
This book is about this young girl who has envy(which means jealousy)See what all of this means by After The rain.
The 3 reasons I like this book are because it is exciting and it is about a Virgina's Civil War diary.2 The girl's father plays at Fords New Theatre.3 There lives turn around when she changes her live.I all like these reasons because this book has many changes And excitement.I would only recommend this book to people who like historical fiction and My America books.If you want to read this book go to your library or your local library.
Go and read After The Rain.See you later !!!! bye!!!!

Ten-year-old Virginia Dickens, her father, brother Jed, and Jed's wife Jane Ellen, have left Gettysburg to move to Washington, D.C. There they hope to start a new more prosperous life. Jed hopes to find a nice job but ends up with a low-paying job that he hates. After Ginny's dad gets injured during work the family finds themselves no even being able to send Ginny to school because they need her to work too to make ends meet. So Ginny finds herself having to work as a house servant in a wealthy family. To the Dickens winter seems very bleak and long. The only bright spot is the baby Jed and Jane Ellen are expecting. Finally when the war finally comes to an end and thing seem to be getting better Ginny must face the awful news that her hero President Abraham Lincoln had been assasinated. Ginny learns that life is constantly changing and you have to take both the sweet and the bitter.