This is an in depth story of a poor but educated family struggling through economic hardships that result from a series of misfortunes: first the father, Charles LeBlanc, loses his decent-paying white-collar job and starts a business selling candy from a truck to the corner stores in the city, but eventually poor health and age leave him ill suited to the physical demands of the job, and business fails as a result. His wife, Claire, who is 25 years his junior, begins to work as a substitute teacher out of necessity and also out of determination that her family should enjoy some degree of prosperity, however limited. The marriage is strained. The story is told in the third person with a shifting narrative perspective; the reader is given, at various times, the thoughts of Charles, Claire, and Nicole, the second eldest child. The tone is wistful and the sadness that permeates will probably produce some tears, but there are also a few screamingly funny scenes of misbehavior on the part of the four children. This novel neither sensationalizes disfunctional relationships nor idealizes family values; it is a clear-eyed portrait of one family's complicated life, a portrait that is always subtly handled, never heavy handed. Candyman is storytelling at its best--emotionally and psychologically astute, it remains always a great novel and never a case history.

This book was a real eye-opener. The author portrays the 1950's and life as it was then. There is a real story behind the images. Excellent book, I would recommend it to anyone in the market for a really good novel.

Thich Nhat Hanh has updated the traditional Buddhist precepts in this book. His version goes beyond "do not kill," for example, to be mindful of that we might be killing inadvertently. He makes us aware of the broadness of the precepts and thus encourages us to be more mindful. If we are not mindful, we break the precepts. Therefore, he calls them Mindfulness Trainings. Thay's approach frames the precepts in a way that is helpful in our daily life. He makes them relevant.

In a world of deceit, excess, killing, lying and stealing, the present moment works with faith FOR A FUTURE TO BE POSSIBLE by enlightenment from the Buddha, the practice of love and understanding, and ever bigger and greater numbers of communities seeking wisdom, harmony and awareness. Art and meditation send energy into cell nutrition and nervous system health. Mindfulness teaches respect for all life, generosity, responsibility, careful speech and healthy diet for concentration and insight. Nobel Prize winner Thich Nhat Hanh's book is a beautifully reader-friendly steppingstone to THE GOOD HEART by the Fourteenth Dalai Lama, AWAKENING THE BUDDHIST HEART by Lama Surya Das, and LOVINGKINDNESS by Sharon Salzberg.

This book was most interesting and in depth. It brought a real family viewpoint of what everyone was doing before the explosion, their daily routine etc. It's done in such a way, that it will go through the Jackson Family aspect, then also have excerpts of the historical data, intertwined through the book. Then shortly into it, it goes into the explosion, how each person was killed, and then it goes into the survivors recovery. I Loved it. I was interested in it as my Grandfathers First Wife was killed in this explosion and wanted to learn more about the event. Highly recommend this book.

Not since Barometer Rising, have I read such a descriptive, and detailed book about the Halifax Explosion. The author of Too Many To Mourn has gone to great lengths to research the details of the actual explosion and the devastating aftermath that followed. I made this year my goal to learn more about the history of Halifax and Nova Scotia itself. After living here all my life, I can finally pinpoint the area and surrounding communities that were directly hit by the explosion. I highly recommend this book to all those who have any interest in the worst manmade disaster to hit this area. Better still, out of the estimated 2000 killed, try to imagine the loss of 46 family members .... in one day !

This book is a celebration of a womens journey through life on a great path, not an easy path but one of great discovery about herself and life. A must to read if you are looking for inspiration in relation to the human spirit.

Two voices share compassion and humor in relating their concerns for the education of young women. The prime mover of the English Revolution advises his daughter on how to deal with her husband when he comes home drunk, with his friends, and needed reserve in expressing her emotions in church; Phoebe Taylor describes her own uncertainties in the depression of 1910 and on raising daughters 3 centuries later. Her mentor is a college professor of psychology, as wise as the Marquis. Great period reading with delightful illustrations.

Thanks be for the bringing back of this ghostly masterpiece! As a lifelong collector and devotee of ghost stories I find this collection to be one of the finest, most elegant collections I've read. I have always felt a well written ghost story is among the finest examples of the beauty of the English language one can find. And these are superlative examples of the genre. Reading these on a "dark and stormy night" is a guarantee for a delicious shudder and a nervous glance over ones shoulder.

Jon Lake has, in this book, given Halifax fans the world over a comprehensive reference material which gives any reader an in-depth look at Bomber Command's forgotten warrior. From the history to its deployment, the operations and squadrons and its ultimate fate, this book has the lot. In a concise format, this book is the ultimate for any one wanting to know about the Halibag, and the colour plates gives this material the ultimate edge over other Halifax books.

Stephen Poole leaves no stone unturned in this wonderful book. I highly recommend Halifax: A Color Guidebook. It's a winner for local Nova Scotians, but a must for anyone, anywhere interested in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

This book presents the latest scholarship on a wide variety of topics in the lively field of fur trade history. By making available many of the best papers presented at the Halifax conference, this book brings to a broad audience the research of scholars young and old who have studied several important aspects of what may fairly be described as one of the fundamental themes in early North American history. Topics range from biographies to economic, social, and cultural history. This book demonstrates that the field is alive and well, and that fur trade history can certainly offer important materials for students and teachers of American or Canadian history.

Buddhist Acts of Compassion is the latest book from Pamela Bloom, an award-winning writer, journalist, minister, and spiritual counselor. In it, she has collected inspiring stories from such luminaries as Pema Chodron, the Dalai Lama, and Thich Nhat Hanh, as well as from numerous others involved in spiritual growth.

Bloom says that "compassion is universal," and not a religious practice, but adds that "for most people, however, the development of compassion must necessarily start small, and the various Buddhist traditions have a richness of methods to cultivate loving-kindness in even the most intransigent of beings."

The stories she has included all serve to illustrate how compassion can change lives, including those of jailers engaging in torture, thieves, and ordinary people facing the stresses of daily life.

Bloom includes directions for two special meditation practices. The first is "Metta," or loving-kindness, which focuses on becoming calm, centered, and connected. The second is a powerful practice named "Tonglen," in which meditators "breathe in" the sufferings of others, and "breathe out" healing and love. Both are extremely effective in developing compassion.

Buddhist Acts of Compassion is small enough to fit into a purse or briefcase, so that it may be easily carried. Each story stands alone, allowing readers to open it to any page and find inspiration. Bloom's desire is that her book provide "a boat, a bridge, a passage . . . for those seeking to relieve suffering and develop the ultimate source of healing within." Readers will find that she has provided the understanding they need in order to begin practicing their own acts of compassion.

   Rinpoche is defined in the glossary of this beautiful anthology as "Literally ‘most precious one,’ a form of address used in Tibetan Buddhism for…respected teachers." Buddhist Acts of Compassion is truly a precious teacher. Pamela Bloom states in the introduction that "the greatest merit a book like this can achieve is to inspire you to delve more deeply into the traditional teachings."

With just a rudimentary knowledge of Buddhism, I found myself touched again and again by the deeply personal stories related by masters and students alike of their journeys to the real meaning of compassion and the often severe tests of their desire to relieve the suffering of all sentient beings. The individual stories are short, and quotes from the great Buddhist teachers are interspersed throughout. Even the design of this small book is beautiful.

There are many lessons offered in this anthology. One of the most powerful is that the practice of Buddhism is to be compassionate in your very nature. Several of the stories are written by the rinpoches, who have spent many years imprisoned by the occupying armies in Tibet. As I read of their ability to overcome the extreme physical and mental torture by practicing Tonglen (breathing in the suffering of others, breathing out compassion and light), I was in awe of their complete dedication to uncompromisingly relieving the suffering of all sentient beings—even that of their tormentors.

It was in this small book that I first read of the concept that anger and compassion were not mutually exclusive. However, according to the Buddhist definition of karma, anger often leads to non-virtuous acts, creating negative karma, but compassion is a state of great merit, creating positive karma. The philosophy of nonjudgmental acceptance of all beings and always being kind led one writer to muse when meeting one of the Dalai Lama’s tutors that "His magnanimity offended the part of my mind that wanted him to value me specially."

Buddhist Acts of Compassion has over 50 short stories interspersed with quotations, a guide to Metta meditation, a guide to Tonglen meditation, a brief glossary, and a brief biography of each of the individual contributors. The stories can be read in order from front to back, or the book can be flipped open to see what message the Universe may have today. This is a book that can be read again and again, and the message will be different each time. The daguerreotype photo of a monk’s beautiful hand holding a mala, the ivory paper, and the clean, delicate type all add to the tangible pleasure of experiencing this book. Pamela Bloom has indeed inspired me to learn more about the traditions of Buddhism. --By Kathryn Lanier. Buddhist Acts of Compassion  Pamela Bloom (Editor)  Foreword by Joan Halifax Conari Press, Berkeley, CA, 2000 ISBN: 1573245232

   Rinpoche is defined in the glossary of this beautiful anthology as "Literally ‘most precious one,’ a form of address used in Tibetan Buddhism for…respected teachers." Buddhist Acts of Compassion is truly a precious teacher. Pamela Bloom states in the introduction that "the greatest merit a book like this can achieve is to inspire you to delve more deeply into the traditional teachings."

With just a rudimentary knowledge of Buddhism, I found myself touched again and again by the deeply personal stories related by masters and students alike of their journeys to the real meaning of compassion and the often severe tests of their desire to relieve the suffering of all sentient beings. The individual stories are short, and quotes from the great Buddhist teachers are interspersed throughout. Even the design of this small book is beautiful.

There are many lessons offered in this anthology. One of the most powerful is that the practice of Buddhism is to be compassionate in your very nature. Several of the stories are written by the rinpoches, who have spent many years imprisoned by the occupying armies in Tibet. As I read of their ability to overcome the extreme physical and mental torture by practicing Tonglen (breathing in the suffering of others, breathing out compassion and light), I was in awe of their complete dedication to uncompromisingly relieving the suffering of all sentient beings—even that of their tormentors.

It was in this small book that I first read of the concept that anger and compassion were not mutually exclusive. However, according to the Buddhist definition of karma, anger often leads to non-virtuous acts, creating negative karma, but compassion is a state of great merit, creating positive karma. The philosophy of nonjudgmental acceptance of all beings and always being kind led one writer to muse when meeting one of the Dalai Lama’s tutors that "His magnanimity offended the part of my mind that wanted him to value me specially."

Buddhist Acts of Compassion has over 50 short stories interspersed with quotations, a guide to Metta meditation, a guide to Tonglen meditation, a brief glossary, and a brief biography of each of the individual contributors. The stories can be read in order from front to back, or the book can be flipped open to see what message the Universe may have today. This is a book that can be read again and again, and the message will be different each time. The daguerreotype photo of a monk’s beautiful hand holding a mala, the ivory paper, and the clean, delicate type all add to the tangible pleasure of experiencing this book. Pamela Bloom has indeed inspired me to learn more about the traditions of Buddhism. --By Kathryn Lanier, a freelance writer published in several national publications. In addition to conducting internet-based Wisdom Circles, I design and teach workshops on The Art of Forgiveness, The Art of Simplicity, and The Healing of Your Heart. MilleniumWisdom@aol.com.

Ms. Bloom has collected, edited, and offered us a wonderful book of short stories and quotes to be read and savored at any time.It's a book I could pick up one day, read a page or two before starting work, then read again a week later if I chose to. What I found so fascinating was that although the title contains the idea of Buddhism, it need not have contained it at all. These acts of compassion are a true celebration of our humaness and as Ms Bloom quotes from the Dalai Lama, "My religion is kindness." This book is an act of kindness that had a positive effect on me. It allows one to open just a little more to the possibilities I can engage in during everyday life. This book makes a wonderful gift for others regardless of background. It is a book to be read at the beginning, the middle, and during,the continued unfolding in anyone's practice. It's one of those books that encourages endless levels of inspiration and discovery as we deepen and manifest our own acts of compassion. I highly recommend it.