In the Annotated Bibliography of "Learning A Living' A Guide to Planning Your Career and Finding A Job for People with Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorder, and Dyslexia, I wrote;

"Success stories of people that range from age 12-62. Some are famous including Pat Buckly Moss, an artist whose work is known worldwide, and Paul Orfalea, who is founder and Chairperson of Kinko's. Others are less famous, but also have lessons to teach. Most of the stories involve academic issues, but some workplace incidents are included."

I would like to add a few things to this initial review. The book has great, easy-to-read print. It is inspiring. I loved each story. It is very worth reading.

After 35 years of teaching children with all kinds of abilities, I found this book truly emphasized the theory of working through strengths. Success can only be evaluated by the individual and his relationship to the world. It is easy for a professional or any person for that matter, to find one's faults. The skill of the professional is to discover one's strengths. This takes patience and a sincere determination to work with an individual and help him identify his potential. These strengths can be very simple however simplicity can lead to success. Jill Lauren has clearly illustrated this concept in her book and has made it an inspiration for both children, adults and most importantly educators. It is a pleasure to know that a person like Jill Lauren knows her strengths and she is obviously succeeding in her field.

I met Shaykh Taner this past weekend. It was my first real exposure to Sufism. The perspective offered by Shaykh Taner is wonderfully down-to-earth. I have spent the past 15 years of my life building my own understanding of "the truth" as I perceived it and based on my own experiences. Shaykh Taner's explanation of his beliefs was so close to my own that it was breathtaking. I don't foresee myself ever becoming a practicing Muslim. But I found a lot of truth in the Islamic principles as Shaykh Taner explained them. I will always value the time I spent with Shaykh Taner and I look forward to spending more time with him in the future.

After talking with him, I had to purchase the book. I wanted to be able to sit down and take an in-depth look at what this man has to say. I am now about 1/3 of the way through the book and am still finding it to be both enjoyable and enlightening. After having met many close-minded "holy men", Shaykh Taner's openness (and open-mindedness) is refreshing. In the several hours I was with him, I never got the impression that he was trying to "convert" me. He was simply sharing the truth as he perceives it (in his words, "as he has recevied it from Allah"). He lays it on the table. Whether we pick it up or not is entirely up to us and he makes no judgements on our choice (that is up to Allah).

He's not a man who's been cloistered and hidden from reality. He has lived in and survived dangerous times. He explains things from a perspective which is firmly rooted in reality.

"Enlightening" is the only way I can describe the information he passed on in person and in this book. It's not as if he's trying to persuade people to see things his way ... he simply shines a light on what is and leaves it up to the individual to accept it or deny it.

I highly recommend this book to anyone ... regardless of their religious background. Whether you accept it or not, it will definitely make you think.

Sincerely, Mike

In The Sun Will Rise In The West: The Holy Trail, Shaykh Taner Ansari dispels common myths and presents Sufism as a modern day reality. It presents an unprecedented, truly comprehensive written exposition of Sufism's core teachings in English and is written in a style that is accessible to Americans. Previously this body of knowledge remained either hidden within the oral teachings of the order or locked inside rare Turkish or Arabic texts, never before translated into English. Shaykh Taner's book provides American readers with a unique opportunity to gain a fresh view of the basis of the Islamic faith told from the Sufi perspective.

The Sun Will Rise In The West offers a thought provoking compendium of the entire system of Sufi knowledge, including the larger cosmological perspective. It describes the Sufi understanding of the structure of the universe, the relationship between matter and energy and the Sufi theory of consciousness. The book provides numerous examples and comparisons between Sufism and other knowledge systems such as physics, energy medicine and the Kabbalah. The material is well written and told with a lively sense of humor.

The author has created an endearing character who has real-life concerns of size and self-acceptance. The book is about sunflowers and families, but it is really a tool to help children appreciate their own unique abilities and perspectives. Sunflower Sal is an unpretentious child who loves her family, her life and the large sunflowers she plants yearly. She learns to love her size, as well. By accepting that some things come naturally to her, she gives up her struggle and "thinks big". Her contribution is heart warming, and very like Sal herself.

Sal is a big girl in search of her special talents. She admires her grandmother's quilting abilities and tries to quilt herself, but is dissatisfied with the results. With supportive encouragement from her family, Sal pursues her gift of planting sunflower seeds, and is beautifully rewarded at harvest time. A great book to promote positive self-esteem (especially in girls). Warm, lovely illustrations.

SUNRISE Tomorrow is A must read book for A MOTHER who has lost a CHILD And Everyone should read it! So when some one you knows looses a child or a loved one then you will know how to help them deal with it, You will understand the person that is greiving more and you will learn WHAT TO SAY AND WHAT NOT TO SAY! DURING THAT TIME OF LOSS !!THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE AFRAID TO TALK TO SOMEONE CAUSE THEY DON"T KNOW WHAT TO SAY TO THEM ,WHEN THERE CHILD DIES OR ANY LOSS. THERE AFARID TO TALK TO THEM ABOUT IT, IF YOUR AFRAID TO BRING IT UP OR DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY EITHER THEN READ THIS BOOK. IT HELPED ME WHEN MY DAUGHTER DIED JUST TO KNOW ABOUT ANOTHERS CHILD AND WHAT THEY WENT THROUGH HOW HARD IT WAS. THIS TO ME IS A PART OF THE GREIVING PROCESS TO READ ABOUT OTHERS THATS LOST A CHILD OR TALKING ABOUT IT . FOR ME TALKING ABOUT MY DAUGHTER HELPS KEEP HER MEMORY ALIVE ! ( IN MEMORY OF KIM THI LE PHAN ), THANKS, BARBARA

Elizabeth Brown very honestly shares her walk down the dark road she must travel after the death of her daughter, Leanne. Ms. Brown reminds her readers that in the grief process there are choices to be made: to hold tight to your joy and blessings or to wallow in misery and allow tragedy to extend in other ways. I read this book shortly after my nine-year-old son was killed in an accident. I was inspired to hear that yes, you can be happy again after the loss of one as special as your own child. Most importantly, Sunrise Tomorrow reminds us that when we are experiencing loss, we are never left alone in our suffering, God has never been closer. In addition, there is solid advice for friends and family on how to help. A guide for planning services and support is included. Ms. Browns comments on how children who were friends and siblings of the deceased child will be affected are right on the nose. Sunrise Tomorrow is a "must read" for the bereaved and for the people who love them.

I read this book almost twenty years ago for a book report. I was and still am a slow reader,and would lose interest in most books. The sword and the satchel changed my opinion of reading. It was fun and exicting. With this book E. Boyer helped me open up to an entirely different world of literiture. I had found a place where school work and day dreams could finally co-exhist.

Ms. Boyer continues to write exquisite stories with great color and depth. If you haven't read anything by her fine it, check you local Librady, whatever. You will not be sorry you took the time. Kilgore is a great character.

Lucid, persuasive and illuminating, this book makes an important contribution to the very contemporary issue of best educational practices. The scholarship here is of the first order and the diversity of approaches that the authors have selected enhances any reader's understanding of effective teaching and learning strategies. The long view, coupled with the shorter view; the rigorous statistical analysis, joined to the more philosophical reflection on the subject, ensure a comprehensive and helpful insight into women-centered education for any reader. One need not be an expert to find the ideas that the authors put forth both thought-provoking and inspiring. Everyone should be interested in effective education and this book makes that possible.

A remarkable contribution, informed by heart and soul as well as social-scientific analysis. This book is well written and based on much original research. In fact, it brings together many years of experience, thought, and careful study of the issues involved.

I thoroughly enjoyed issue number 12 of Taproot. I was especially taken by a piece called Sepia Afternoon, written by Michael Atzert. I thought its elegant imagery truly captured the magic of a memorable romantic interlude.

I am a reader of poetry and I love a good story. I found both of those interests stimulated by the reading the authors published in Taproot Literary Review. The poetry is varied and exceptional and the short stories are excellent. Each piece draws you like taking a sip of water from a cool spring, and tasting water from all over the nation and other countries. Never the same, always fresh. I loved it and I am looking forward to the next edition.

As a teacher who yearly goes to the library to get books about insects, specifically bees, this is the best book ever on the subject! (The bee is our school mascot.) For two reasons:
It takes a complicated subject, how honey is produced, and makes it simple enough for 5 year olds to understand; and the handcut collage artwork is something five year olds can handle in an art unit on collage. More, please, Ms. Wallace!

In A Taste Of Honey, Lily Bear asks her father a great many questions and in doing so a jar of honey is traced back to Mike's Market, the honey farm, the beekeeper, the honeycomb, and ultimately to the bees themselves! Author and illustrator Nancy Wallace uses brightly colored diagrams and sidebars in this delightful and entertaining picturebook story for youngsters 4 to 8 showing all the steps of making honey from beehive to dining table in clear, simple, and engaging detail.

When I was a girl I loved checking this book out at our library, both for the beautiful illustrations and for Tatsinda herself. Of course Tatsinda would have had no difficulty having her beauty appreciated in the USA. It could have been her personal tragedy that she has brown eyes and golden hair in a land where everyone else has blue eyes and white hair, so she's considered disfigured. Tatsinda does not allow the rude opinion of those around her to sour her personality. The strength and courage of this extraordinary young woman are proved in a daring adventure. In the end, she is instrumental in changing her community's narrow point of view. Besides the heroine, I love the wise woman who knew Tatsinda's true worth before anyone else did. I also liked the woman's attitude toward people who wanted to consult her. I don't have the book with me at the moment, so I hope I'm quoting her correctly: "Waste not my time, waste not your own. Ask only that which MUST be known." My review's title comes from the fact that this wonderful book was out of print for many years. Back when I was in library school ['76-'77] and had no car, another student from my dormitory was nice enough to give several of us a lift to a local used bookstore. There I spotted a copy of TATSINDA. I bought it even though the driver saw it and exclaimed that she loved that book. I felt horrible because she would have been able to buy it for herself if she hadn't done me a kindness, but my better nature did not prevail. I never saw her again after graduation, so I couldn't even mail her another used copy I found. I'm so glad the book is in print again, not just for all the readers who now have a chance to be as enchanted as I was, but because that nice lady can get her own copy.

When blonde Tatsinda is dropped, literally, into the mountaintop land of the Tatrajanni, her unusual coloring sets her apart from the people of the kingdom. She must overcome their prejudice to win the love of the prince and establish her own worth in their midst. The book is full of strange and mystical characters and creatures.

Tatsinda is a strong female character in a book that was written long before this was the norm. It was my favorite book when I was ten and still is as I pass it along to all the ten year olds on my gift giving list.

Simply put, this book is a perfect gift for anyone whose friendship and love you might cherish. This is a marvelously engaging and unique piece of literature. It's also the perfect gift for a friend who has an appreciation for history and an aptitude for sharing thoughts and friendship with others. It's an equally beautiful experience to read this book in the privacy of your den or to follow its recipes in the kitchen.

This is more than a window into a less complicated past but a sense for what many of us have deprived ourselves from enjoying in decent conversation and quality entertainment. A good friend gave me Tea with Miss Rose as a gift and for that friendship I will forever be in his debt. I am ordering copies for those I regard as good friends as I know they'll appreciate this magnificent and charming reminder of a lovely life.

This very well written book gives an insight into a special way and lost way of American life, Boston around the turn of the last Century. In addition to its pictures and descriptions, we were able to savor the experience from its tea recipes. Highly recommended.