I've read several books and online materials about substance abuse and how to help someone out of addiction. This book is the most comprehensive, considerate, simple, and useful source for friends or family members. It is more complete and helpful than the better-known cornerstone works from the Betty Ford Clinic and Dr. Vernon Johnson. Not only is the text full of information, but the charts offered at the end to help organize an intervention are most user-friendly and designed to give you a thoughtful helping hand. This one is the best investment.

Whether you are a family member, a friend or a professional counsellor, this book is a "must-read" for anyone dealing with alcoholism or drug addiction. It may be painful to read, but it's so true. I am purchasing copies to share with friends. I need their support.

In an effort to promote the healing and recovery of individuals and families in the 10 county diocese with 98 parishes, the parish representatives trained in the community resourses to assist people who have loved ones with a substance abuse/alcohol problem are using the guidebook "LOVE FIRST". Because of this new approach to intervention we are averageing ONE intervention a week acrose the diocese. A beautiful well written, easy to under stand text that appeals to those with a caring love for someone who is hurting.

I've read several book bij this author. This one was and is my favorite! I read the original Dutch version about 20 years ago, and I still have it on my bookshelf! It's a great adventure that will surely grab a young reader's attention. Buy it!

i read this in jr. high about 25 years ago. i read it a couple of times , actually. loved it so much, i even remembered the author's name. now i am ordering this for MY daughter(12). i hope she will love it as much as i did. great adventure story!!!

I read this book in high school about 25 years ago, and it was such a good book, that i remembered the title up to this day. i have been trying to find a copy, and since getting a home computer, i am now able to find it and share it with my daughter. it is an amazing story.

The poems, the famous words spoken, the documents we once knew from school, from stories, from one another reciting on stage in plays are presented here in this little treasure. I forgot, and wanted to remember and here they are.......all together. But, not only the poets. There is the perfectly written letter to a mother who lost 5 sons in the Civil War from Abraham Lincoln, our American President then. And many other writings in history's place. A must have in everyone's library.

Years ago I read weekly from an elderly woman's poetry book to her and other residents at a nursing home. She and the other residents greatly enjoyed my poetry reading. I particularly relished THIS particular collection of poems because they were ones that I'd long ago heard/read/known. I absolutely "loved" the book.... but ALAS! I never took to memory the book's title, the book's owner died, and the book was packed off with her other things to a distant daughter. Searching through other poetry anthologies would reward me with SOME of those poems, seldom enough of them, and NEVER all of them. I looked through Amazon's poetry listing, hoping against hope. I ordered this book because its table of contents urged me to think MAYBE it would suffice. What a wonderful surprise to receive it and find out that it IS THE SAME WONDERFUL BOOK! (My only disappointment was that the original borrowed and shared copy was hardcover.) Anyway, I've enjoyed re-acquainting myself to what seems an "old and dear friend" in reading and re-reading this book.

One of my favorite poem books. One of my favorite poems:

Laugh and the world laughs with you Weep, and you weep alone, For the sad old earth must borrow it's mirth But has enough trobles of its own Sing and the hills will answer Sigh, it is lost in the air Echos bound to a joyful sound But shrink from voicing care

you should read it...

hey reynold!

Saw this book for the first time at the Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland during a cross-country trip (side note: an interesting place to visit. Check out Jerry's guitars: Rosebud, Lightning Bolt, Wolf and 2 he ordered but never played). Bought it on the spot! If you think you have seen all the pictures of the Boyz, think again. This is an impressive collection, perfect for the "Deadhead who has everything". I just bought a 2nd copy, 'cause I know I am going to wear out the first one I bought!

This book is required reading for all fans of the Grateful Dead. Wonderful photographs and commentary. It brings back so many memories from years past that I find myself not being able to put it down. I will most likely buy a second copy, just to have it for future enjoyment when I wear this one out. Great job Jay!

The photographs in this book evoke a community and a culture that was a huge part of my own life during the Grateful Dead touring years. Looking through these photographs brought back so many great memories, and finding photos of familiar faces and places was both nostalgic and sentimental and at the same time incredibly satisfying. Thank you Jay!

Fine book, can be read again and again. Would be a great book to give an expecting mother or new mother.

It seems that a week doesn't go by when I see a woman on the subway or in a coffee shop reading a book from the What to Expect When You're Expecting series. Those detailed tombs of writing seem to be sent to people planning or in the process of rearing children as if by storks. (I've even heard of some workplaces keeping the book What to Expect... in the human resources supply closet, to be given as a gift when a woman announces she's pregnant.) However, upon reading some chapters from those books and informal discussions with mothers, a theme that reoccurs is that some women will explicitly instruct others not to read those books. Why? Not because they don't contain a plethora of knowledge but precisely because they do. That is, these can wind up really scaring a parent-to-be because they contain all the zillions of possible physical and emotional things that can go wrong during pregnancy and the first years. I think everyone can agree that raising the anxiety level, especially of a woman during pregnancy, is quite a less than desirable outcome.

What if there was a book that spoke honestly about the experiences of pregnancy and childbirth and, more importantly, treated these experiences as natural events rather than listing all the possible things to be feared? Better yet, what if there was a book that did all those things and spoke of the spiritual aspects of pregnancy and children, in a gentle and non-denominational way? Well, a book with all those features and more is available in this book.

Erdrich is of Native American ancestry and a writer by profession. Her background is rich with symbolism and spiritualism and is wonderful at weaving her story into the passage of seasons. At times I felt I was really looking through her eyes in the room where she wrote, looking out at a large picture window in her remote rural home. She saw the lives of various wildlife, from all types of birds to deer to wild dogs, intertwine with the passage of time from the beginnings of her pregnancy through the first year of her daughter's life. This book seems to be very realistic primarily because it does not compartmentalize pregnancy or infancy; Erdrich does not shy away from concurrent events in her life including changes in relationship with her husband, observations of nature, memories from her own childhood and recipes she craves during pregnancy or for their nurturing powers.

In more popular baby manual-type books, the subjects of actual labor, sleep deprivation, nurturing "instincts," and patience are sometimes glossed-over or described in such a way to possibly make a parent feel guilty for not automatically possessing certain qualities. This is yet another way that Erdrich's book masterfully succeeds as she lovingly and with understanding tackles these and other important subjects. She describes with humor and passion of a "no-sleep week" by stating how she wanted to call 911 Emergency because her baby wouldn't sleep. She describes the situation: "It happens to be a long crying bout, nothing wrong physically, just growth, maybe teeth. Why knows? Sometimes babies just cry and cry... in my office, with her in the crib next to the desk, I break through a level of sleep-deprived frustration so intense I think I'll burst, into a dimension of surprising calm," (71).

Erdrich speaks of the "tender and grueling task of rearing a newborn," (6) with such a fullness and richness of spirit that I cannot help but be moved by her descriptions. I highly recommend this book not only to anyone personally considering parenting but also to educators and anyone interested in the mutual development of a parent and an infant. I think it could also serve as an excellent supplement for all students in any Infancy and Child Development course. The best summary for her book is by Erdrich herself. In the introduction she states: "These pages are a personal search and an extended wondering at life's complexity. This is a book of conflict, a book of babyhood, a book about luck, cats, a writing life, wild places in the world, and my husband's cooking. It is a book about he vitality between mothers and infants, that passionate bond into which we pour the direct expression of our being," (5).

I loved this book when I first read it before my daughter was born. Re-reading it now, as a new mother, I find it even more remarkable. Louise Erdrich has perfectly captured both the frustration and surpassing joy of life with a new baby. The book is also a beautiful nature narrative, with observations on the changing of the seasons interwoven with the story of a child's first year. Highly recommended!

This fantastic book, written by the talented Dr. Jay Hosler and published by Active Synapse, will appeal to readers of all ages (my sons and my wife all love it). Fun, funny, and filled with accurate information, this book will have you laughing and crying as you follow the life of a bee in the hive. You might not know that this book was actually a series of comic books! I loved reading the comics and was so happy to see it available in a format suitable for my bookshelf. I was checking the Active Synapse website just today and bought several issues of Dr. Hosler's current comic book series, Sandwalk Adventures. Can't wait to see (and buy) Sandwalk in this collected format as well!

Simply put, Clan Apis is a delightful book. Using the underappreciated medium of comic, Jay Holser tells the tale of Nyuki, a heroine honeybee from the hive called Clan Apis. After a truly inspired and poetic introduction, Hosler uses his talented pen to both illustrate and narrate the reader through Nyuki's adventures. From her beginnings as a pampered but peppy larva, Nyuki matures into an adult bee, all the while adjusting to newer and greater responsibilities to her hive community. Suffice to say that Nyuki's trials and tribulations are not exclusive to the insect world. As a research biologist who works with bees, Dr. Hosler draws on his etymological expertise to deftly interweave biological teachings with downright cool entertainment. Clan Apis is charmingly clever, and strikes a perfect balance in its ability to engage children and adults alike.

Jay Hosler's Clan Apis is a rather brilliantly executed graphic novel format presentation of life in the beehive. Accurate, informative, totally engaging, the biology and life cycle of the bee is laid out with an anthropomorphic storytelling that is as fun as it is educational. Clan Apis is highly recommended reading for all ages -- especially for those who thought the life and world of the bee might just have some relevance for we mere humans living in our post-industrial, information age.

I enjoyed the characters so much that I hope they appear again in a future book. Fast paced plot and great villians make this a fun read. I highly recommend it.

This book is a real mystery thriller with twists and turns in the plot. It is a high-tech drama at its finest to be sure! Anyone who enjoys non-stop action and information shouldn't miss this one.

I bought this book for reading on a plane. Considering my experience with United Airlines, I am glad I had a real page turner that lasted the many hours of delay.

Simon Leonidovich is not your average courier. He leans toward the high stakes, very volatile deliveries that cost thousands of dollars in security. His sister Lara runs the office and he is the sole "bagman." When he accepts delivery of an apparently innocuous file of medical info from a site in Sweden, his life becomes threatened as he slowly discovers the real value of the file. A global-hopping, fast-paced read. I am already looking forward to the next title, a sequel.

I like potry. This book has great rime and meter. I remember when my Uncle Liam from Ireland came over, he brought me a huge bottle of wisky and a case of Mickeys Big Mouth, that Uncle Liam was always three sheets to the wind, I think it runs in the genes, after all, look at me, hck! Uncle Liam and me went to the woodshed with all that good stuff, we had a very pleasant time....

The poetic pair of Pinsker and Passer pen yet another epic opus! Pinsker starts us out with some of the bizarrest metering I've ever read, expounding upon his adherence to the B'ahai Faith through his H. Rap Brown-inspired rhyme scheme. His Seattle street-style adaptation of the Cornish "Mmph -Kaph-Kaph-Hmm-Mmm" is one of the most sullenly beautiful pieces I've ever read. The second half consists of Passer's more conventional, yet equally beautiful Dickinsonian poetry. I hope that Passer brings back Jeremy Surbrook in the future -- he really lends a lot to Passer's poetry. All in all, a fine book.

I was absolutely blown away by the caliber of this book. Brian Pinsker has a way with words that is truly brilliant. He can evoke many different portraits within the minds' eye with a simple twist of phrase. Jay Passer also is inspired, although his is a different, more harshly provocative style. I enjoyed this work thoroughly, and consider myself very fortunate to have been able to take a glimpse, through their written word, into both authors' thoughts.

I saw this book in the store when I was seven and had to have it. I read it over and over as a kid. All of a sudden 23 years later I was walking down the street and I remembered the name of the book and the great pictures too. I can't wait to read it again.

This story of a child's acceptance and trust in the midst of adult rejection and scoffs is a classic morality tale. Mercer Mayer's wonderful illustrations combine authentic Chinese painting styles with familiar "Little Monster" type characters. If Little Monster was human and Chinese, he'd look like this!

My aunt gave me this book for Christmas the year it was published -- I was five.

I read and reread it throughout my childhood. I still read it once and a while and always think of it fondly. Because of the illustrations, I do know what a dragon looks like.

I cataloged this book for a university library's curriculum lab, loved it, and bought it for my 21/2 yr. old daughter in 1973. My daughter adored it, but, unfortunately, years later she loaned her copy to a friend who never returned it. She's been looking for another copy since she reached adulthood. This is the first children's book that I know of that shows a female in the classic heroic role, typically assigned to males, and the first that ends with the the female and the male as equal partners. The ending has a delightful twist and the story will be appreciated by either gender.

A classic fairy tale setting is turned inside out in this story of strong-willed princess Petronella, brought back into print after more than 20 years by startup children's publisher Moon Mountain Publishing.

In the kingdom of Skyclear Mountain, three princes are always born to the king and queen--until the day when the youngest prince turns out to be a girl, Petronella. When the time comes for her elder brothers to go off to seek their fortunes, everyone expects Petronella to stay home and wait for a prince to turn up and marry her. But Petronella has other plans. She sets off on her own quest, which brings her to the house of Albion, a sinister enchanter. There she finds a prince, Ferdinand of Firebright, apparently in need of rescue. Ferdinand isn't exactly what Petronella expected--in fact, he's a bit of a boob--but she sets out to save him anyway, with results that delightfully confound the reader's expectations.

Jay Williams, author of more than 80 books for children and adults, didn't set out to write a feminist fairy tale. According to his daughter, he was simply responding to a request from his children to think up a story where the princess, for once, took an active role. But Petronella, first published in 1973, came at just the right moment to be embraced by the women's movement. Its portrayal of an assertive female protagonist and reversal of gender stereotypes--relatively rare in children's fiction at the time--won it wide attention, and it was much-reviewed and extensively anthologized before falling of print (and out of fashion) in the late 1970's.

These days, strong heroines and gender reversals are commonplace, in children's fiction as elsewhere, and Williams' scenario no longer seems radical or even particularly surprising. Far from diminishing Petronella's appeal, however, this shedding of political baggage makes it possible to see just how charming the book really is, with its engaging characters, amusing dialogue, clever situations, and flowing, supple prose. The lavishly colorful illustrations by fantasy artist Margaret Organ-Kean perfectly capture the story's momentum and the sparkling wonder of its enchantments, and give vivid form to the personalities of its characters, from fiery Petronella to sinister Albion to lumpish Ferdinand.

It's an altogether lovely new edition of a book that very much deserves its return to print.

Strong-willed and resourceful Princess Petronella goes on a quest to rescue a very odd prince from a mysterious enchanter. Overcoming perilous challenges with courage, kindness and talent, Petronella makes a daring escape with the prince -- but has she rescued the right man? The enchanting watercolor artwork of Margaret Organ-Kean is a perfect visual showcase for Jay Williams gender bending, highly recommended fairytale for young readers ages 8 to 12.