Body Work is an amazing compilation of a strong woman's short stories. It should be every woman's responsibility to pick up a copy of this book. Hollis really conveys the unsung strength of women everywhere. I have taken a course with Hollis, and she is a true woman, just as those she conveys in her work.

This collection of stories is nothing short of amazing. Seamon has a wonderful voice...feminine and powerful. In eloquent strokes she paints beautiful views into everyday lives. The women, born to these pages, are real and flawed...perfect because of their imperfections. We see the best and worst of ourselves reflected back as, however brief the encounter, we bond with the characters. The stories could not be more different from one another, thus offering a wonderful variety. However, there is a common thread which binds the book together nicely. We witness defining moments, large and small, in the lives of these various women. We see how day to day life presents us with a multitude of choices and we are privledged to see where simple decisions lead these characters. I thoroughly recommend buying this book.

This book is about being real and most importantly being honest with your self. These stories aren't riddled in self scrutiny or sugar coated with happy endings. I feel like I just took a wonderful tour of many women who are trying to reconcile themselves and carve their own paths through life. The one continuous theme is that they are not willing to let themselves down, despite a wide range of consequences.

My only criticism is the nipple on the cover. I've been walking around covering it up. It makes the impression that it is a book of erotica.

I have been teaching graduate social work for fifteen years and have yet to discover a text about psychosocial casework that surpasses this revised classic in its clarity, depth, thouroughness, and wisdom. The basic psychosocial orientation and typology of casework procedures defined by Florence Hollis remains intact, yet the text, as a whole, is substantially updated by Mary Woods, whose fluid prose is rich in clinical detail, articulate, and aimed at what the practitioner yearns to know and needs to know. As an experienced clinician, I still turn frequently to the chapters on couple and family treatment where protocols for navigating these exceptionally tricky modalities are clearly presented. In chapter 16, for example, Mary Woods develops a typology of "relationships and problems" detailing 12 patterns of couple conflict that, in itself, serves as a primer for the novice practitioner. Approaches to nontraditional couples (premarital couples, unmarried pairs, cross-cultural relationships, and gay and lesbian couples) are amply discussed as well with sensitive consideration of social differentials in power experienced by men and women and by couples of color. The text consistently partializes assessment and techniques of intervention so that one can read and assimilate complex clinical procedures in bite size pieces. Heuristics are laced throughout the text, giving one a feeling of personal guidance. The fifth edition of Casework is a treasure chest for students and teachers of social work and the helping professions to dig into time and time again.

Casework: A Psychosocial Therapy, 5th edition

by Mary Woods and Florence Hollis

For many years the classic Woods and Hollis text has been required reading for graduate students of social work at the Hunter College School of Social Work. The updated Fifth Edition is even more useful than previous editions in its in-depth and detailed explanations of modern social work practice. This book addresses clients' concrete practice needs, environmental deficits and pressures, and personal and relationship dilemmas. Seldom in the literature is the field of social work firmly grounded in its own special knowledge and traditions, described so fully that the reader can clearly distinguish it from other helping professions. Recently, when asked about which of many professional writings they found most helpful, eight-five percent of a class of first year social work graduate students consistently identified Casework as particularly valuable in illuminating knowledge essential to their education for social work; they noted the text's clear explications of the unique history, values, missions and rick accumulation of practice experience-and the complexity of the interactions among these-that must be mastered to train for a career in this profession. Students have further indicated that the book is extremely helpful in identifying the theories underlying social work practice and how these theories can be specifically applied in work with a broad range of clients, presenting a vast array of quandaries and difficulties, seen in many settings.

Clear explanations of techniques (the "how-tos" of practice)aid new social workers in developing skills of listening and intervening. The importance of "mutuality" between clients and workers in emphasized. The text explains how clients-individuals, couples and families-can be helped to claim their own strengths and become empowered to resolve dilemmas, make decisions and choose changes. From the outset, the reader learns about social work's dual focus: on people and their environments and on the interactions and "fit" between them. The book describes and illustrates how people's lives affect and are affected by external conditions. Straightfoward discussions and a wide variety of case examples demonstrate how inner and outer phenomena are in constant interaction and inseparably intertwined, and how social work interventions have to be tailored to focus on those systems most accessible to change.

The four chapters on family and couple treatment introduce beginning students to multi-person interviewing and are often studied intensively by second year and post-graduate students who are preparing to gain further understanding and skill in these modalities.

Dr. Florence Vigilante, Professor, The Hunter College School of Social Work, of the City University of New York Dr. Martha Haffey, Associate Professor and Chair of Casework, The Hunter College School of Social Work of the City University of New York

As a graduate social work clinician of 15 years, I turn to Casework: A Psychosocial Therapy to renew my understanding, hone my skills, and refresh myself on the particulars of treatment techniques and procedures involved in individual, family, and couple work. There are few books that blend theory and the "how-to" of clinical practice in the ways that this book does. It is an exceptionally clear text. This book reminds the clinician of the importance of listening closely to what is important to clients as opposed to imposing upon them what we think should be important to them. Respect for the client is foremost, and this book underlines this and other values which represent the best our profession offers. It is the definitive test in psychosocial casework, and I heartily recommend it to others.

Creating art work that passes on a political message, that is spawned in part from social awareness, is almost impossible to do well. Holly was always an artist first, and the paintings and drawings in this book testify that she broke the rules to become the exception--while rendering her rage over her breast cancer she transcended it to make a thoroughly beautiful body of work.

Hollis Sigler has created a visual language, easily learned and powerfully understood, using images of a woman's everyday life to portray wildly varying emotions of a woman diagnosed with re-occurring cancer. "Hollis Sigler's Breast Cancer Journal" show's Hollis' own incredible strength in living and painting life to the fullest while concurrently fighting serious illness. Her drawings and paintings reflect the experiences of women living with breast cancer and those who care for them, while providing a means of immediate, almost organic emotional understanding to their families, neighbors, and friends. Hollis is brave, powerful, and very much attached to life. Her struggles are all of ours: through her art we learn to better understand ourselves. From 1994-1997 The Society for the Arts in Healthcare (SAH) sponsored with the National Museum of Women in the Arts a national tour to 24 hospitals of replicas, donated by Polaroid Corporation, of 14 Hollis Sigler drawings and painting about living with breast cancer, all of which now appear in "Hollis Sigler's Breast Cancer Journal." Hollis' powerful images provided a vehicle for patients and families, doctors and nurses, visitors, medical students and non-professional staff to consider breast cancer from a visually articulate patient's point of view. Kathy Miller of the Cancer Wellness Center in Northbrook, IL wrote at the time about the art and Hollis Sigler: "The art is thought-provoking for people of all ages and in all stages of health....Women have a lot in common -- her work says it all." Hollis Sigler's work is important, a series of visual statements with the same emotional validity as the writings of Elisabeth Kubler-Ross or the choreography of Bill T. Jones. I have shown some of Hollis' images which appear in this book during arts-in-healthcare talks to medical students in Ohio, patients in New York, and healthcare professionals in Japan. The images have always met with visual and emotional appreciation and immediate understanding from the audience. From the standpoint of this particular reader and member of the Arts in Healthcare movement, "Hollis Sigler's Breast Cancer Journal" is a Must Read!

This book is a success story, not in the sense of finding a tidy, happy resolution to a difficult biography, but of illuminating both the human capacity to act bravely and forcefully and the power of art to communicate about impossibly difficult things. "On the wall of deadly silence about the disease, I aimed to hang my Breast Cancer Journal. This work was an outcry." And it still is. Breast cancer is an immense epidemic, affecting more people than AIDS, yet it gets far less attention. It is just as complicated emotionally because of the way that death shadows it and the blows it deals to the literal form of femininity. Through her quirky, poignant, personal art, Sigler depicts a universal experience of how it feels to live with disfiguring disease, with loving others while ill oneself, with ignorance, with the trauma of treatments more drastic than the disease. She deals with the loneliness of illness and with the power of art to communicate, to create community, to produce social action. This is an instructive, inspiring and truly spiritual book.

This is a great book! While the quality of the poems varies widely (there being a few which really don't deserve a place in any anthology), you will find many surprises in this book, some derived from the sheer historical interest of the works, some from unexpectedly masterly poems from little-known authors who will give you lines to remember! Every once in a while, a particular line or poem would leave me stunned at its beauty and the way it portrayed something I had personally felt (which is, by the way, one of the most important things that poetry aims at). See for example the work of Sarah Maguire, Patricia Beer, Kath Fraser and Marion Strobel, to name only a few. The biographical info is particularly useful if you want to read more from any of the authors, and also because of the interesting (if, inevitably, succinct) data it provides on these creative and talented women.

To think that women's views on love and relationships as far back as 500 years ago hasn't changed one bit and never will. So diverse, yet so common. The selections are excellent!

Love's Witness is a wonderful collection of love poetry by women. I have read it cover to cover and highly recommend it. It has become one of my favourite books - a must have! :-

I think this is a wonderful book!! If you want to make a gorgeous and very traditional treetop angel for your Christmas tree, look no further. This one is perfect and you could not find a better one. There are also two great charts for tradtional Christmas stockings. They are for smaller stockings. Especially wonderful are the designs that take after the famous "Fishing Lady " Samplers. This book is a must for your needlework library.

Very beautiful needlepoint that is timeless. Highly recomeneded

WOW - what a wonderful needlework book - I love everything about it. One of the neatest things about this book is it's not just oriented to one type of stitching - there are patterns for cross stitch as well as instructions for using decorative needlepoint stitches as an option. The projects are all beautifully presented with color charts.

Those of you that like traditional and historical patterns will find a lot to do in here. There are cushions, brick covers, a pretty stand up Angel figure, purse, handbag and much more. Just looking at the pictures gets the fingers itching to stitch!!

Wonderful color pictures and a very readable text of background info on all - Holly knows her historical needlework sources. I recommend this book highly.

Contents - Berlin Bouquets Fishing Lady Embroideries Beautiful Bargello Birds and Butterflies Lattice and Flowers Cornucopias Hill & Dale Victorian Country Bouquets Luscious Fruits Victorian Paisley Garden Flowers and Vines Yuletide Greetings - Christmas stocking

A REVIEW OF
"RITUALS of POWER and REBELLION"
November 26, 2001

A masterpiece of social history, Dr.Liverpool's book, "Rituals of Power & Rebellion -The Carnival Tradition in Trinidad & Tobago 1763-1962" is an invaluable addition to the scattered body of literature available on this topic. Hollis "Chalkie" Liverpool, has successfully managed to put into context, the social, political, economic and cultural forces which inadvertently came together to create the greatest show on earth. Rituals of Power & Rebellion is an in-depth study of the development of Trinidad carnival. It reveals that what appeared to be simply a musical bacchanal, was in fact the struggle of an oppressed people to maintain their cultural identity in a land of foreign domination, class struggle, economic deprivation and political strife, The Trinidad carnival provided an outlet for the maintenance of sanity and a powerful weapon to resist oppression & injustice.

Dr. Liverpool has done the people of Trinidad and Tobago a tremendous favour by making this book available for posterity. He has set a standard in a West Indian context, that is rivaled only by Dr. Williams' "Capitalism & Slavery" and Walter Rodney's "How Europe Underdeveloped Africa" in terms of his documentation of historical events. The extensive research that went into the writing of this book is beyond impressive and the fact that is was written by a son with the caliber of "Chalkie" as opposed to a foreign observer is a credit to West Indian scholarship.

This book should be read by anyone interested in the history of Trinidad and should be compulsory reading for students of West Indian history at the University level. To a griot and historian, I say Chuba Dubai.

J. Michael De Gale

Toronto, Canada.

Only in Trinidad could a serious historian also be a serious calypsonian. This is a great, original, absorbing book. Get a Chalkdust album as a companion to the book.

"Rituals Of Power and Rebellion" by noted historian and calypsonian, Dr. Hollis "chalkdust" Liverpool, is a masterpiece of scholarship, insight and impressive research. An in-depth study of the evolution of Carnival in the Caribbean and in Trinidad & Tobago in particular, "Rituals Of Power & Rebellion" is that history lesson, which needed to be told and which now needs to be read by all people of the African Diaspora. Dr. Liverpool uses his wonderful skills as a storyteller to keep his readers enthralled as he unravels the many layers of social, anthropological, cultural and musical history, which have contributed to the survival and evolution of Carnival. As a history of Carnival, "Rituals Of Power & Rebellion is unparalleled. It covers all aspects of Carnival's growth and evolution. The book takes the reader beyond the shores of Trinidad & Tobago as it examines the strong cultural and social ties, which kept the displaced and enslaved African closely connected to his African traditions, as evidenced by the nature and characteristics of the Caribbean masquerade. "Enslavement, then, did not cut the cultural rope linking Africa to the New World. Rather, there was always continuity and change. ... The Carnival in Trinidad then, was filled with African traditions of mask, masking, masquerading, singing and dancing." Dr. Liverpool shows how European and other ethnic traditions also influenced the manner in which Carnival evolved. "The tradition of Carnival, it will be seen, was utilzed by the people as part of their organized cultural resistance, to check the imposition of European values and customs on Africans generally." "Rituals Of Power & Rebellion" is a wealth of information. It brings together many of the elements - positive and negative - which have contributed to the social and cultural evolution of the displaced and enslaved African. It gives the reader an in-depth look at the traditions and customs of Africa, which survived the Middle Passage -- those African myths, customs and rituals, which are so important to the heritage of the displaced African wherever he happens to be. "That the Carnival tradition survived from 1783 to 1962 was due in no small measure to the resilience of the Africans in Trinidad and their determination to carry out their West African traditions despite the attempts of the dominant elites and the Colonial Government to rob them of their memories and legacies." Calypso is traditional Carnival and Dr. Liverpool gives his readers a master's course on this subject as he shows the direct relationship of calypso to the music of Africa in technique, rhythm and style. "The roots of music and dance as contained in the Carnival of Trinidad go back therefore to Africa, where music is integral to almost all aspects of community life". The book gives a detailed look at the various musical instruments and the patterns of music, which have influenced the development of calypso, as well as other forms of Caribbean music. It is a fascinating account, which gives, in great details, evidence of the strong connection, which the music of the Caribbean still has with the African continent. We are told that, "Singing in the Caribbean followed the African impromptu style and call-and -response pattern." Dr. Liverpool gives such an in-depth analysis of the subject that this book becomes a most useful reference for students of Caribbean/African musicology. "RITUALS OF POWER & REBELLION" educates the reader on the evolution of Carnival, the music and the masking and, in so doing, gives a remarkably in-depth historical review of the period in question. Not only does it provide the political and cultural aspects of the celebration of carnival from 1763 to 1962, but it also gives an insightful account of Trinidad's history during that period.It shows the indubitable spirit of the displaced and enslaved African in the struggle to survive the harshest of conditions in a place far removed from the land of his forefathers. On reading "RITUALS OF POWER & REBELLION" one becomes acutely conscious of the important role of a people's heritage on their cultural and social evolution, often in ways not usually considered. Dr. Liverpool has written an exceptional book. To his credit as a storyteller, this remarkable historical account flows beautifully and becomes an easy read. It will, no doubt, become an important part of the scholarship for students of Afro/Caribbean studies. It should also become a much-used reference on bookshelves in the homes of anyone interested in the evolution of Carnival in the caribbean and in the cultural history of people of the African Diaspora. Hats off to Dr. Hollis "Chalkdust" Liverpool for such an impressive tour de fource...Kanchan Gilfillian & Anthony County... New York, N.Y.

I liked this book a lot-- I thought the pictures were very beautiful, very fluid, not tight or rigid. The work here is similar to another Cincinnati artist, Caroline Williams, but Mr. Orlemann is much more relaxed and his subject matter a little more contemporary. A lot of city scenes, busy streets, skyscapers, bridges and such. The use of the watercolor on some of the sketches is very nice also, but there are more sketches than there are actual "paintings." I also liked reading the text under the pictures-- I actually learned a thing or two! Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in Cincinnati, or that is familiar with Mr. Orlemann's work.

I found this book for my girlfriend for her birthday-- she LOVED it! It had all of the sites she loved to visit while growing up in Cincinnati-- it was a nice trip down memory lane for her. She liked it so much, she's getting one for her mom and dad for their anniversary! Very nice book-- thumbs up!

I could not recommend this book more highly! It is an absolute "must read" for anyone searching for meaning during the mid-life years. Although the book is small in size, it manages to capture the essence of our struggle for purpose and a sense of congruity. I recommend it to everyone I meet that wants to enrich their life. I am personally grateful to Mr. Hollis for making this wonderful resource available to all of us!

I have dozens of books that I recommend to clients, and a few that I suggest to friends. There's only one I have given as a gift a half-dozen to a dozen times. This is it.

Hollis is an insightful therapist with a hopeful AND realistic perspective on mid-life and the difficulties that can beset us as we realize that "this is it", that we're not preparing for adulthood anymore, that we are there and better make something of it. He is also a gifted writer who can take Jungian theory and bring it down to earth, explaining it clearly without oversimplifying. (I'm more of a hard-nosed research-based cognitive-behavioural type myself, and I still think the book is brilliant.)

Best of all, he is a judicious self-editor. Too many self-help books have one idea that gets padded out to 300 pages. (In the process of writing one of my own, I came across dozens of bad examples.) Hollis is concise and clear. The text of the book is 117 pages, worth twice as much for being half as thick as he could have made it.

My suggestion: Buy it, read it, apply it, and then go buy copies for your mid-life friends' birthdays. On a selfish note, it's great not to be stuck for 40th birthday present ideas any more.

After a lifetime of steadfastly holding onto increasingly ineffective ways of dealing with life and its disappointments (large and small), I finally cracked and landed smack in the middle of a mid-life crisis. Divorce, depression, anxiety, and a total loss of comprehension about life's purpose were the wreckage of a lifetime of disowning my authentic self in order to meet the high expectations of others and of our culture in general. As I began to read "The Middle Passage," it was as though a curtain had been opened to reveal a new possibility and the normalcy of the process of mid-life introspection, pain, discovery, and rejuvenation. It's a "let's grow up" book, and through its compassionate prose and honest voice it invites one to risk a journey that, otherwise, one might never choose to take.

Tim Hollis' book is an entertaining, informative, and evocative tour of the glory days of tourism in the South -- mostly before the arrival of the interstate highway system, but certainly, as the title suggests, before the opening of Walt Disney World in 1965 changed the nature of vacations. A veteran of many of the roads and roadside stops pictured here, Hollis has a real feel ... and a real affection ... for his topic. In these hip days, when so many writers feel the need to ridicule or treat with arched eyebrow anything less sophisticated and post-modern than *right now,* it's very pleasant to read a book about popular culture and "commercial archaeology" that's not encrusted in irony.

This book is also a celebration of Southern culture, especially that part of Southern culture that developed in order to separate visiting Yankees from their money. For, as Hollis notes, it was the arrival in the South of northern vacationers seeking warmer weather that prompted the birth and growth of the attractions listed here. It also promoted a number of important, and lasting, businesses. Among the companies born in the South to capitalize on the tourist trade, KFC (of course), Popeye's Chicken, Long John Silver, Red Lobster, Burger King, Hardee's, and Holiday Inn are just some of the more recognizable names.

From water parks to Wild West shows, Cypress Gardens to Stone Mountain, Dogpatch USA and the Grand Ole Opry to Stuckey's and countless attractions now nearly forgotten, this book is a great nostalgia ride through a largely vanished time. If you were fortunate enough to have seen that time, this book may bring back some happy memories. And if this is your first time through you may find yourself wondering what you're missing as you cruise in air-conditioned comfort on the soulless interstate.

Tim Hollis has done a great job of showcasing the unique, quirky, and sometimes down right bizarre, attractions of the South. I, too, am a Southerner and I miss the days when Gulf Shores was not more than a few cottages on the beach. I enjoyed reading about the places I remember and the ones I never knew. This writer has done a wonderful service by perserving the memories of a bygone era.

What a refreshing look at family travel! Even though many of the places mentioned are either greatly altered, torn down (or should be), Mr. Hollis's delightful peep into the past provides insight as to why we Southerner's are so eccentric and also makes many wonder about the eccentricity of those Yankees who were flocking to our aquarium-ski-lodge-Indian-reservation-botanical-gardens complete with wild-west-shoot-outs-in-the-sky! Mr. Hollis's humorous descriptions of the many 'um... "interesting" things the South had to offer families was like traveling with my brother!

This book was so much fun to read! I can't believe all the info Hollis was able to uncover. His passion for the subject of kids shows is obvious, as is his excellent and humorous writing style. The book is a must for every 'kid' over the age of 35 who grew up watching TV. All of us can find a pleasant memory or two here. It's fascinating to read about the origins of these shows, and sadly, their demise. There is something here for either the nostalgia or history buff.

Tim has truly done a tremendous amount of homework putting together this walk down memory lane (three years' worth).Sure, not every station is mentioned; however, I am impressed by the histories, reviews and interviews he has amassed. You, the buying public have already read a couple of stories of some hometown TV personalities that went on to more fame.One sidekick, dressed as a clown, from my original hometown's affiliate, later went on to become a successful announcer on many game shows, including a short hosting job of two game shows. (Ah, ah, ah, you'll have to buy the book to find out who it is!)As the author wrote on this announcer/host, "Perhaps being a clown was good training for such a show."Well done, Tim! We hope you'll continue adding more information on more editions, as they become available. Most of today's youngsters really missed out on wonderful, quality childrens' programming, mentioned in this book, and were not videotaped...it is a part of our lives we shouldn't forget!

This is one great nostalgia book! It is incredible the flood of memories that this volume brings back. Remember the hundreds of hours that you spent watching the local kid's show on T.V.? Well, I can almost guarantee that this book will open the floodgates of long negected memories- so much in my own life was linked to the time I spent watching these shows. The author really did his research, there are obscure local shows that you never hear mentioned anywhere else. In my own case it was Roddy Mac in Rockford, and Captain Vern and his Cartoon Showboat in the Quad Cities. It seems that practically no documentation, let alone tape, remains of these local shows because they were just locally produced "time fillers." Then there is the mention of the old shorts and cartoons that you forgot about (remember Roger Ramjet, Funny Company, Space Angel, or Clutch Cargo?)