This is not a typical historical biography of the band like we are seeing released these days. Instead, the book complements some of the other better books on the subject such as Miles and Schaffner by offering insight on society and its influence on the band (hence the title). For example, it talks about how the MI5 and CIA originally studied drug abuse as a mind control method and how that research indirectly led to the band's rise and Syd's collapse. Or how the punk movement in the mid '70s influneced Animals. It ends in 1986 by giving an even-handed view of the Waters - Gilmour situation. If you can get ahold of it, I recommend it, especially to the completist. Non die-hards might find it a bit rambling and would be better off looking elsewhere.

I have always enjoyed listening to Pink Floyd and when I came across this book the first time, I could not put it down until I was done reading it. It is a wonderful look at the history of Pink Floyd. This book takes you from the very beginning all they way up to around when Momentary Lapse of Reason was releaced and gives you how and why each album was made and the band member's thoughts about each song.

I believe that Lee Harvey Oswald alone killed Kennedy. I've also read about five books that tout various conspiracies in the JFK case, and _Six Seconds in Dallas_ is the best of them. Thompson appears to be one of the more honest conspiracy researchers who attempt to find an answer to the mystery rather than just endlessly find fault with the Warren Commission. His theory of the shot that hit JFK in the back (or throat, depending on how you see things) is particularly interesting and almost compelling. I recommend this book whether or not you believe Oswald acted alone. It's very readable and to the point.

A marvelous study for the time it was written. And fortunate for all, Dr. Thompson has just recently "re-surfaced" - showing that the Zapruder film was NOT altered...contrary to recent books like "Assassination Science" and "Bloody Treason." Have Amazon.com try to obtain a copy of "Six Seconds..." - it is a worthwhile addition to the bookshelf of any serious Kennedy assassination student.

This book explains lots of things that I just didnt understand. I recommend it to everybody!

POWERFUL and very rememberable.

This is a story of betrayals: fathers and mothers are busy betraying their children, and the children, likewise, are betraying one another, sometimes knowingly, sometimes not, but the betrayals cascade like dominoes. This is also the story of an adoption that goes terribly wrong. It opens with James Johnson burying his latest blond victim. He calls her Bobbye, and cuts her blond hair to take with him. He knows this is not the Bobbye he seeks, but his Bobbye's image transposes itself on other blonds. Or is it his blond sister Michelle's image? Questions, questions, questions... Suffice it to say that the man is a serial killer who, when his own wife dies, promises her memory that he will stop the killing. Unfortunately, Johnson is the father of a blond-blue eyed toddler. Officially, he arranges her death by drowning. Unofficially, he sells her in an illegal adoption. This little girl grows up as Lisa Littau, until her adoptive mother confesses, on her death bed, that Lisa was bought, and offers only one small clue as to the identity of her original family. Lisa, now a 28 year old divorcee with a blond blue-eyed, 5 year old daughter of her own, begins her quest to find her biological roots. She places an ad in the local paper and contacts Harry Bronson, also known as the "Ma'am Guy", a detective with the missing persons bureau. Harry gently tries to screen the parent pretenders that surface, as well as Lisa's other activities, but the gullible Lisa is determined to do things her way. It is not long before the wealthy James Johnson is back in the hunt, stalking a naive Lisa and her daughter. Will Lisa find out that she is the daughter of a serial killer? And what about Thomas, her dark haired, previously unknown stepbrother, exclusively in line to inherit Johnson's fortune? Who is trying to kill whom, here? When all the loose ends are finally tied together, and Lisa discovers where the secrets lie, how will this knowledge effect her relationships with those she loves? Is it possible for a serial killer to emerge as a hero? Lots of questions, but no soap box preaching about adoption pro or con. Take a deep breath on page one and you may not come up for air until half way through the book. If you like high action, and a fast paced mystery, with no deep messages, you will like this book. The action is not slowed down by long descriptiveparagraphs. Settings are rather sketchy except for a marvelous man-made West Virginia hill that defies my imagination. The emphasis is on plot and fast action, and Hayden is a master at ending a chapter at the proper moment and rolling you right into the next page before you know it! The story does have a few minor flaws within the details. Don't let them snag you, keep on going! Again, the strength of this book is in its speed and its plot; everything else is secondary. My only major complaint is that Harry does not get enough print space. He is a quiet, polite, competent detective, but this is presented as Lisa's story and I do get impatient with her from chapter to chapter. Neverthe less, this is a galloping good entertainment.

What do you do when you find that your whole life is based on a lie? Lisa Littau is called to the hospital when her mother has a heart attack and as she lies dying, tells Lisa that as an infant, she was illegally adopted. Lisa is devastated, her entire world turned upside down and she becomes obsessed with finding her birth parents. With her young daughter in tow, she heads to Dallas to search for her natural parents. Her search attracts the attention of James Johnson, one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in America. Johnson is a haunted man, who has also built his life on a series of lies, most of which will destroy him if they become known. Where Secrets Lie, L.C. Hayden's latest is an absorbing suspense novel, filled with red herrings that will have you dashing down many wrong turns in your efforts to solve the puzzle. She brings such depth to her characters that you sometimes forget they aren't real. As Lisa spirals closer to the truth, she faces the realization that someone doesn't want her to find that truth. This is a good old-fashioned heroine in danger suspense novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.

You'll find yourself wanting to have a weekly outlet for creativity and true companionship like Queenie Bean. Ignore her hokie name and any preconceived notions you have about farmlife and quilting and enjoy this story about the nature of true frienships and trust. It's a touching story about the layers of intimacy between friends and how those shared experiences create the tapestry of life. The friendships in the Pickles are as interwoven as the fabrics the share in each others quilts. Just like they complete each others quilts, they complete each others lives, sometimes arranging the unimaginable. Perhaps it's not too believable, but I enjoyed this book and felt comforted and inspired by all the ways these women supported each other.

I picked this novel up right after finishing Dallas' "The Diary of Mattie Spenser" (my first experience with Dallas -- loved it!). So, I was extremely happy to discover that Persian Pickle is even BETTER than "D of M S"! This one is set in a small rural Kansas town during the Depression, where a close-knit community is struggling against the hard times together. The women are particularly close as they all belong to a quilting club they call "The Persian Pickle Club" (I'll let you read the book to find out what a "persian pickle" is). Their quiet town is shaken up a little when the son of one of the local farmers returns, bringing his fiery new wife Rita with him. Rita aspires to be a journalist so she can get a job in the city (she hates farming) and when the bones of a man are found buried in a field, she jumps at the chance to get the scoop. Her investigation, however, brings her dangerously close to a secret the Pickles (who by this time have come to adore Rita and have made her a member of the club despite the fact she's wretched at quilting) have sworn to keep. She eventually has to decide whether her loyalties lie with her career goals or with her new friends. The characters in this story are wonderful (in fact, the narrator of this one, Queenie Bean, reminded me a lot of Mattie Spenser, which is a good thing) and by the end I was actually very envious of their friendships and their community (born too late). I highly, highly recommend this and can't wait to read the one remaining Dallas novel I haven't gotten to yet (forgot the title). I'm thinking I'll save it, though, as her next book isn't due out until October, 2000.

A truly serendipitous find. Initially attracted by the book's title, I could not tear myself away until I had finished reading it. I often think that the best books are those that transcend/defy genre classification, and 'The Persian Pickle Club'certainly does this, with its assorted elements of fictional slice-of-life tale, mystery, comedy, tragedy, and philosophical questioning of the fundamental nature of right and wrong.

Set in a small town in Depression-era Kansas, the novel's plot revolves around the lives and relationships of the members of a multi-generational women's quilting group. Through Ms. Dallas' deft handling of language, character development and detail, the reader is transported to this other time and place as these wonderful women support one another in facing life's various joys and curveballs -- friendship, love, marriage, infertility, death, economic difficulties, etc. And, if all of the foregoing were not enough, there is an intriguing murder mystery thrown in, the resolution of which underscores the very special nature of friendship between women.

My only regret is that this book had to end. Don't delay -- read it soon, and pass it on. Like a good friendship, it is something to be savored and shared.

I have read all of Sandra Dallas' books (and have enjoyed them all) since finding a copy of "Buster's Midnight Cafe" at a used book shop many years ago. "Alice's Tulips" is a delightful book about women, friendship, quilting, the Civil War, and murder - although not necessarily in that order. When we first meet Alice, she is a newlywed who - since her husband has enlisted with the Union - has just moved from the city to live with her mother-in-law (Mother Bullock) in the farming community of Slatyfork. Even though the story is told in Alice's voice through letters she writes to her sister, Alice comes alive as a charming but flawed individual. At the beginning of the novel, she is vain, immature, quite a flirt, and not an entirely good judge of character. As the War continues, Alice must face a number of challenges and re-examine her relationship with Mother Bullock. It is their growing respect for each other which neither is willing or perhaps able to express that forms the core of the story. It was refreshing to read a novel where characters change and grow with such believability. Throughout the novel, a good deal of information is given about quiliting, which is Alice's passion - and her refuge. I read this novel aloud to my wife and we both agreed that are only disappointment was that it was too short. Hopefully Ms. Dallas will let readers know what happens to Alice and Charlie, Piecake and Harve, Annie and Joybell, and the irrepressible Miss Kittie.

A word of warning for anyone considering reading a Sandra Dallas book....Once you start, you will ignore everything else until you finish the book! "Alice's Tulips" is no exception. Following the life of newlywed Alice Bullock, who has left a more comfortable life to live in Slatyfork, and the life of a farmer's wife. Her husband joins the Union army and leaves Alive with Mother Butler, her plain speaking (if she speaks at all)harworking mother-in-law. Life is not easy foe a young bride, missing her husband, the comfortable town life she once led, and beginning to face the harsh realities of farm life. The townfolk of Slatyfork barely tolerate her:they accept her only because of her quilting abilities, and the only solace Alice find is in her letters to her sister Lizzie. This is a very fast paced book, character driven, and written in a most engaging manner. In the letters Alice writes, we are able to see her mature as a woman and really begin to face the life and changes the Civil War brings to her and those she loves. A wonderful book.

Alice's Tulips was not the first book I've read by Sandra Dallas, but it is definitely my favorite. The book is a series of letters, most of them from one sister to another, who are separated when the younger sister marries and moves to an isolated farm in Iowa. The younger sister, only 16, writes the sort of callow, self-centered and judgemental letters that only a sheltered 16-year-old could write, but she has a kind heart and a good brain, and it is a true joy to watch her learn the sometimes painful lessons of adulthood, especially in the trying times of the Civil War. The characters were all so real, so well-defined and true that it was almost impossible not to think of them as real people, and to think about them long after I completed the book.

I recommend this book for quilters, for readers of women's fiction, and for anyone who enjoys Oprah's picks but who also likes a novel that ends on a positive note.

I didn't like DDP when I first started watching WCW. That changed quickly, as I admired his work ethic in the ring. Even as a heel, he got the job done, and I became a fan long before he became the People's Champion. In his book, Positively Page, I now understand why I've been a fan so long. Page has overcome a lot of disiversity in his life, and the book details it in a very unique way, from first person from Page through various narratives by friends and others. The book reads like a television documentary, and it's a very easy read. My personal library is made up of over one thousand books, and this is one I would highly recommend for sports fans, sports entertainment fans, or for anyone who likes to see the underdog win.

I may be one of the few that remember seeing page on the old Florida Championship Wrestling Show. Even then something about him left an impression on me. When he reemerged on the scene in WCW a few years ago I was immediately drawn in by his arrogant, over the top self reliance. When he hit it big with the Diamond Cutter heard round the world on Scott Hall a couple of years ago, I became a fan for life. In this day and age, who would have thought that a professional wrestler would be a good role model? This book entails everything that I admire about Page. His self reliance, His refusal to quit in the face of adversity, and above all his commitment to the people who support him week in and week out. This book is not just a biography, it's an inspirational and motivational story of someone who has worked for everything he has. If you read this book and don't get excited and pumped up about following your dreams, nothing will. Buy the book, and encourage everyone you know to do the same. FEEL THE BANG!

What can be said about Diamond Dallas Page? He's truly a great wrestler, a great performer, a great role model, and after reading his story, a great author! This book is filled with so much information about Page's life that after it you honestly feel as though you know the man. Unlike the Rock's book, this book is done in real life and it isn't some wrestling story driven book that insults our intellect. I put over a great deal of WCW's products simply because somewhere along the lines I grew a strong dedication in my support for the product, but this time I can honestly say it is something you MUST read to truly appreciate not only DDP the wrestler, but DDP the person, and a remarkable one at that.

This book lacked suspense a little too much for it to be labeled 'Suspense/Romance'. It should be labeled simply 'Romance'. I am an avid romance reader, but I was bored with the romance in this one. The character of Ben English got on my nerves because he was a little too perfect and seemed obsessed with the female lead China. I never did understand how he fell in love with her just by seeing her one time on the streets and barely that when she was shot. It moved too fast and he became too much with the 'honey' endearments and 'sweet' words when he didn't even know her. Throughout the story I was never fully convinced he loved her and wasn't sure when it happened, or if it ever did. China was a bit unsecure for my taste and trusted him too fast without knowing him. Considering some wacko was after her and she was being used by everyone in her life, a few sweet words and she was 'in love'. I just wasn't convinced.

~China is pregnant and alone. She is left homeless and walking the streets after her loser boyfriend takes off with all her money. She finds herself the victim of a woman's bullet when the woman kills a photographer trying to take a picture of her on the streets. China Brown is the only witness to the senseless killing and when the woman turns the gun on her she is sure she is dead. Waking up later in the hospital, she finds her baby dead and a very attentive detective at her side. How can she live without her baby?

Ben English has to track the merciless killer who thought nothing of murdering a man and then a helpless pregnant woman. He finds a bond with her that he can't explain and wants her to trust him. Things get touchy when at first they are looking for a man and find out its a woman with long blonde hair that they should be looking for and someone who may have a grudge against a tabloid photographer. That could be hundreds of people!
He must protect the case's only witness, a shattered woman who doesn't want to live. Is the killer the person they least suspect? Is China in immediate danger? Are they tracking the wrong person?

Tracy Talley~@

I agree that this story was lacking in it's motivation and other details having to do with the murderer's psyche.The two main characters, Ben and China,while meeting under such tragic circumstances, compliment each other and seem destined to face their challenges together and overcome them.Ben may seem to overdue the "honey" but I can't fault the sincerity of his feelings for China and the love that builds between them.As for the mystery woman with the long blonde hair that commits the murders, I had a pretty good idea who was guilty, but the puzzle didn't fit exactly right,even in the end.I still enjoyed the book. Ben and China were worth the time!!

China Brown has known nothing but heartache and lonliness in her life. She vows that will change as soon as she has the baby that she loves so desperatley. For she has made a promise that her baby will have the life that she never did. Then one night she finds herself out on the street when the father of her baby takes off with all her money. It was that night that destroyed her dreams and she has vowed revenge. With the help of Ben English, she begins to heal and lets Ben find his way to her heart.

Bennett English is drawn to China from the first moment that he saw her. There is something beatiful and rare that he sees when he looks at her. He finds himself falling in love before she even wakes from her coma and when she wakes and looks into his eyes, he knows he is lost. The only thing standing in the way of their happiness is a killer.

Butterfly is an enjoyable book that is more romance than suspense. The killers identity was a surprise to me, but I enjoyed this book and will look for other books by this author.

This book provides a strong Biblical case for miraculous gifts both historically and for today. It looks at several passages that are usually fluffed off by cessessionist who commonly rely on the lack of historical events relating to the manifestation of miraculous gifts to write of the gifts. Deere looks at the Bible. No matter what your view is on this subject, this book is worth reading. This book could have been rated higher if Deere would have stayed away from references to other leaders that share his view. Unfortunately, some of these leaders can be called into question on other views that they hold. Deere should have stuck with just looking at the Bible itself instead of aligning himself with these other people. As a result, I can see where other reviewers are classifying his writing as being emotional. But with regard to Scripture, he presents a strong case (unless of course you disagree with him). Overall, it is refreshing to read this book from a well studied individual (i.e. Dallas Theological Seminary) who was educated from a conservative perspective. Usually, the only option for looking at opposing views on this subject is to read the plethera of resources by cessionist or read resources from charismatic perspectives on this issue. I think that there are abuses regarding this issue from both the cessionist and charismatic viewpoints. Our challenge should be to inductively view what Scripture is actually saying and not hold our own denomination, seminary, upbringing..etc in a higher view than Scripture. This book will challenge your view!

Jack Deere's book was recommended to me in June 1995. A few days later I saw it on a bookstore's bookshelf and bought it for mine - but there it remained for over a year. That was my loss!

This book is one of the most balanced theological books I have ever read, on any issue. Using a wonderful blend of narrative testimony and theological explanation, Deere recounts his shift from a theological professor who believed that the so-called charismatic gifts (such as tongues, healings, miracles, prophecy) had ceased with the deaths of the first-century apostles, to someone who now believes that these gifts are not only available to the church today, but should be actively encouraged and used.

The book takes the reader through the same process of experience and Biblical investigation that Deere went through as he grappled with the issues of charismatic experiences and spiritual gifts. It is an insightful book, Biblically based, clearly reasoned, humbly written, and worth every penny. It should be read by every Christian.

I read this book back in 1994 just after my wife and I had been baptized in the Holy Spirit. Our personal experience of the Holy Spirit had made believers out of us; a pesky quarter-sized "mosaic" verruca that my wife had tried to rid herself of for years withered away two weeks after she had received prayer to receive the fullness of the Spirit. I experienced an unusual number of opportunities in the following days to give some kind of Christian witness or other. So we were ready to learn more.

And learn we did! Jack Deere's book answered intellectually what we already know was true experientially. Deere begins with his personal journey from his professorship at Dallas Theological Seminary, a bastion of cessationism, through some rather amazing experiences, to understanding that the baptism and filling of the Holy Spirit are still for today. In the latter part of his work, he shifts his approach and turns to the intellectual issues. He forcefully demolishes the cessationist position of John MacArthur, one of the leading proponents of that view, and answers in a very satisfactory way the objections raised by its advocates. (By the way, the reader should not ignore the footnotes/endnotes, especially in the later chapters of the book. Some of Deere's most powerful insights are found in the fine print.)

In my opinion, the most valuable quality of Surprised by the Power of the Spirit is the void that it fills within charismatic/pentecostal literature. For far too long, charismatics and pentecostals have been treated by other traditions within Christianity with a degree of supercilious diffidence. Indeed, many have emphasized emotionalism at the expense of sound biblical exegesis. Jack Deere brings to the charismatic/pentecostal camp a brilliant, penetrating mind that will be of great value in presenting a scholarly, intellectual apologetic for the continued existence and operation of the gifts of the Spirit.

Very easy read, but a very good read. I could not put it down, as much of the advice in this book is an extension of most of the reading material I've been led to read of late.

This book is worthy of five stars when Mr. Frazee finds time to add one or two chapters on Suffering. Because when a church becomes countercultural, there will be those who take advantage of it. Mr. Frazee keyed on Jesus' foundational teaching of "Love God . . . Love your neighbor as yourself." Not all in the church will "sign up" and fully participate. Mr. Frazee needs to give us warning - just as the apostles have in their epistles - that even those in the church will persecute their fellow Christians. Turning the other cheek, walking the extra mile, giving in when it isn't fair is not always reciprical in the Christian community. Even though it should be. And we need practical advice on how to react when fellow Christians are not being Christ.

And this persecution will not just come from within, but without the church as well. Not all the principalities and powers, both spiritual and non-spiritual, will like what we're doing when we're building common purpose, common place and common possessions in such a counter-cultural way. Again, how do we react to such situations?

Some dissappointments: the lack of quality quotations from our church's past. This breakdown in the church is not just a late 20th century phenomenom. It's happened before. Looking deeper into our church history can help us "discover" how our forebearers "fixed" these problems, and what methods we can use today.

A small request is to eliminate Mr. Frazee's numerical growth goals for his church. Although I appreciate the need to strategize for church growth, and it is good to have goals, it may be better to keep these goals internal to his church. We must never be pictured as simply number crunchers. Mr. Frazee admitted his addiction to the ABC's of church management and growth early in the book (attendence, buildings, cash). But we should be quite content in allowing God to "add to the church daily those who would be saved."

Many will be attracted by the premise of this book: the loss of community and its recovery.

Frazee and his church have made significant research and effort into exploring the topic and beginning its recovery. The main culprits that have allowed community to be eroded out of the American scene are individualism, consumerism and isolationism/independence.

The solution they discovered from among "community" doers exhibited a given set of characteristics (fifteen in all) which can be organized into three central foci: common purpose, common possessions and common place.

The stickler here is that this necessitates being countercultural.

Frazee outlines one way how this idea of Christian community could be played out in a congregational setting. He must be credited with not being dogmatic about his ideas or thoughts on implementation, e.g. "I openly confess that this is not an all-or-nothing proposition. ... In my estimation, the application of any of the characteristics of community will dynamically enhance the life of your congregation." This is exceedingly well said and is the premium reading this book provides.

A Biblical study of NT fellowship and unity, i.e. koinonia will garner much more emphasis around the God given means of grace, Word and Sacraments. As this is where the Lord is to call, nourish and lead His people, this should be far more the emphasis than programmatic organizational schemes. For this to happen as the Good Shepherd proclaims, He gives the church "the called and ordained servants of the Word" which Frazee downplays severly (pg. 233).

Christ's body should rejoice as this reader for this fine work which addresses many of the inherent faults with church growth up till now. His diagnosis of the need for more common creed, etc. are commendable. Get's one truly thinking about what should be at the core of "church," i.e. community.

The important offering this book makes to the Church in this day, I think, is how it recaptures the idea of Biblical community (which of course, fleshes itself out as sharing a common vision, common values, a common place...etc...). It speaks of "connecting" to each other, connecting to God...

I will be intrigued to see how Frazee's vision (no doubt God-inspired) fleshes itself out in other locales, as other leaders begin implementing like ideas. Even if you can't lead your congregation to do the things he suggests (going to a small group structure, etc.) there are still some valuable concepts you can take that will show you how to connect better with those around you at your church, your work, and in your home.

Face it, we're lonely people. And we need each other. This book is important in that it takes an honest look at that... the lost art of belonging...