It is a man with little imagination that writes a book about historical events that no one cares about. The editing was badly done, with several errors that I picked up with only one reading. Yes, documentary literature has its place in the literary world, however this one would not be missed if it had not been written.

It has been suggested that he is writing a book about a Mass Murder. God forbid! Literature has been murdered enough in the past. Do we really want Murder in the Unimaginative in the present

I personally enjoyed the book. It was an interesting look at a piece of American history often overlooked. It may be a little rough around the edges but it was very informative. As to Amy Scott's comments; "It is a man with little imagination that writes a book about historical events that no one cares about." I do find it hard to believe that no one cares about an accident that took the lives of almost 100 people. What might a 'bitter little woman' like that recommend as more acceptable? Does her emphasis on the lack of imagination of the author hint at a desire for him to make stuff up? While Amy may be happier sticking with her Dr. Suess books I'll be looking forward to see how the next one comes out.

This is useless as a field guide. Too big to be carried comfortably during a field walk. To bunch all photos at the end and to have just scores of descriptions in the front, with area ranges is not helpful for a quick guide in the field. Look elsewhere for better materials.

Great for easy identification of birds. Contains some beautiful pictures and helpful information on habitats. Paperback edition is convenient for birding walks and drives. Really fueled my interest in birdwatching.

After reading the first two chapters of this book, I was beginning to despair that it might ever make sense, or that the author might have anything of lasting value to say.

Reading it is definitely a struggle, as it has to be one of the most confusingly-written books I have ever read. Think FINNEGAN'S WAKE with real words.

(Okay, maybe not that bad, but we used to have a guy at church who talked on and on and on in a confused succession of sentences -- which did carry on a theme and make a point of sorts, but at the end of the largely one-sided conversation, you wondered exactly what he had said and what was his point. Reading Moody's book brought back memories of conversations with that guy.)

Moody may indeed have an intriguing and valid model for the Parousia and its relation to the Kingdom and Jesus's real and/or spiritual presence and/or absence. He discusses the flaws of the major schools of thought on this subject -- Futurist, Liberal, Preterist -- and posits an understanding that incorporates the valid aspects of all of them. At least that's what I think he's doing here. As I said, this book is one tough read, and it's not because I cannot read. Rather, Moody's writing style is, in my opinion, not very good, and is in fact quite awful for this kind of thing, as this subject matter necessitates the author being clear and precise, lest he lose the reader in his juggling and comparison of scheme after theme.

Following is an excerpt from pp. 113-114. Imagine 240+ pages of this turgid prose, and you'll have an idea of what reading the book is like:

"To describe this mystery, we have previously defined God's methodology of revelation as the simultaneous presence of the 'already' and the 'not yet.' We have used the word 'paradox' for lack of a better term, as one of its Webster definitions is, 'a statement that seems contradictory, unbelievable, or absurd but that may actually be true in fact.' Having arrived at a rather unconventional hypothesis, derived from a widely-accepted model of God's revelatory method, we are left looking back over a landscape scattered with decidedly precious gems of insight. It will be our task to arrange those gems, all of them building blocks of major eschatological schools, into a pattern that supports the hypothesis. Failing that, we shall hopefully have demonstrated that one can at least experiment with the 'view from the top' without losing hope, the essence of the Kingdom, or Jesus' intent in the Olivet Discourse of comingling (sic) the destruction of Jerusalem with His Second Advent.

"On the other hand, if the pieces should come together to make the hypothesis of this treatise plausible, the task is by no means complete. There will always be the debate over literal versus figurative interpretations of Scripture, as there will be endless opportunities to refute the construct as well as the logic at every level. That is as it should be. However, there is much more at stake here than just another theory. The nature of the Parousia pales into insignificance compared with the need for all of us to stand in awe, not only of what has happened in the past, but of what will happen in the future, understanding, of course, that neither can be divorced from the other."

The author is a pastor of a church and has a Ph.D. in theology. Lord knows what listening to his sermons must be like, if he teaches and preaches the same way he writes.

This book charts the progression of the second coming doctrine in the spirit of G.R. Beasley-Murray's "Jesus and the Last Days," and it is much more readable.

Follow the progress of Christian history's 'de-futurizing' of the Biblical verses relevant to the parousia of Christ.

The book is completely up-to-date on the emergence of the Preterist alternative to the Futurist views, and takes a pro/con approach to the two perspectives (as well as many others).

Todd Dennis, MGR
The Preterist Archive<

The good thing about this book is that the information is all listed in alphabetical order. I was very disappointed when I read it: has little info about what the title suggests, but is instead the authors list of comparisons or tidbits of items from different beliefs, most have little or nothing to do with the idea of death and afterlife. Is this all he has to offer? It does not compare in any way to Raymond Moody or others who have written insightful and informative books and manage to stick to the subject. Maybe I just wish the book had a title that would reflect the actual info in the book. I'd like to get my money back.

First of all the forward is written by Dr.Raymond Moody, and while a lot of "researchers" throw his name around carelessly, the good doctor is careful of the work that he actually endorses. This well organised and truly encyclopedic guide is clearly worthy of his endorsement. In over a decade of personal research, this is the best single reference work on death and the afterlife that I've found. All the entries are well written, professional, and scholarly. Indeed, just by browsing through this thick volume you begin to see connections between subjects that may never have occured to you before (such as between shamanism and the mystery religions.) The highest praise that I can give this book is that it contained a sizable amount of information that even I wasn't familiar with- definately worth investing in for your library.
After all, what subject is ultimately of greater importance?

I was very misled by the title of this book. I expected a comprehensive counseling guide and instead found a children's picture book. It was disappointing. It is useful as a picture book ... .

According to the National Association of School Psychologists there are approximately 1.5 million children in the United States with a parent in prison. Children with parents in prison are five times more likely than the average child to commit crimes and be imprisoned. By the next decade, one half of all prisoners will be from a family which had a parent in prison. In When A Parent Goes To Jail, professional family counselors Rebecca Yaffe and Lonnie Hoade have successfully collaborated to provide an invaluable resource to children ages 5 to 14 with an incarcerated parent cope with the resulting psychological and behavioral traumas including the physical, emotional, and social stigmas, as well as feelings of guilt, anger, fear, and shame -- thereby guiding them in maker wiser life choices than their parents did. Unique and very highly recommended for use by parents and counselors, When A Parent Goes To Jail is a comprehensive and informative approach to prevention when dealing with the symptoms of children under the stress of parental incarceration.

Cassandra Swann is worth meeting and this mystery is an excellent introduction. Swann's knowledge of bridge and eternal meddling in the death of Lady Portia Wickham are considerably less impressive than her relationships with what is left of her family and the men in her life. Yet, somehow, Susan Moody has woven the stories together so well that you can't imagine finding out about one without the other. As a heroine, Cassandra Swann is just neurotic enough to be interesting; and good-hearted enough to be endearing

"Laughter and humor are phenomena which, in order to be understood, must be looked at and evaluated from numerous, interrelated perspectives."

Dr. Raymond A. Moody, Jr. was born on June 30, 1944. he taught philosophy at East Carolina University and conducted humor workshops throughout the country.

In this book, the author traces the history of humor from the Biblical advice of "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine," to modern examples of how laughter and humor have been shown to heal the body. Moody also shows how medicine relies too heavily on the technical science of medicine and overlooks our God-given ability to aid the healing process through the use of a good sense of humor.

The contents include:

A Doctor Looks at Laughter
Healing By Humor: Some Examples
Humor and Health: The History of an Idea
Laughter and Disease
Laughter and Madness
The Pathology of Laughter: Occupational and Iatrogenic Causes
Society and Healing Humor
Why Humor Works
Humor and the Healing Professions

After reading the description of how a laugh occurs, how could you ever think of laughing in the same way? Have you ever wondered why you sometimes laugh until you cry? Why is it socially contagious?

If you enjoy this book, you might also enjoy: Smilosophy by M.D. Gray

Despite the blindingly obvious fact that Moody Moose suffers from Bipolar Disorder, Healthy Hippo, the town "doctor" prescribes buttons to treat her symptoms. BUTTONS! This misdiagnosis should come as no surprise considering that he fails to recognize that Goof Off Goose clearly suffers from narcolepsy, Yakkity Yak from attention deficit disorder, and Responsible Rabbit from obsesive compulsive disorder.

This is not an exceedingly nice book. However, it served to clear up some of the confusions I had previously. The purpose of this book is clear. It is a philophical textbook for the beginning undergraduate level. As the book goes on, there appear, in my opinion, certain misrepresentations, especially those concerining connectionism. However, the historical introduction in the first chapter was very much enjoyable and other philosophical concepts are presented very lucidly.

This book is an expert treatise on the Roy Moody case. Any person who is interested in Explosive Investigations would find this book a compelling read. Several photogrgaphs, including device xrays are included. It would be a good used reference book for a library on the subject.