Though I was raised in a Prostestant church, until quite recently, I had no belief in a God or a Higher Power. When I finally came to this belief, I came empty-handed, with nothing but the Lord's Prayer and the Serenity Prayer to pray. I searched for a non-denominational prayer book and finally found this wonderful little book. I use it daily, as a meditation book, and I use it as a source for particular prayers, as needed. This is truly an excellent gift to people like me, those just coming to faith and learning to pray.

Although this book is based upon prayers of a great Rabbi from 200 years ago, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, the sentiments expressed are univeral and are highly appropriate for all religions. When you are reflective and feel the need for a personal prayer, this book may well have one that fits your needs at that moment. I have been going through a very emotional period in my life as I prepare for possible major surgery as an organ donor. I found a perfect prayer for my mood, one that expresss my hopes that my children will be guided by my demonstrated values and behavior. There are many other wonderfully reflective prayers and I recommend this book for people of all faiths who are seeking a closer connection with God.

How compact these prayers are but how powerful! How direct, unflowery yet stirring! Proudly from the Jewish heritage but highly accessable to a diverse audience. Each prayer is categorized for a different need or purpose or issue to deal with, such as;"Learning to Wait","In God's Will", or "Anger" The brief but effective introduction really sets the tone for this collection. As Rebbe Nachman is quoted in the introduction, "Life makes warriors of us all. To emerge victors, we must arm ourselves with the most potent of weapons. That weapon is prayer." Gentle yes, but powerful beyond belief.

No intelligent, conscientious individual reading this book, and who carries out the experiments/exercises given within, can seriously refute the conclusions drawn; that man, for all intents and purposes, is asleep, and the 'essential self' or 'being', if you will, having fallen into identification with the sleep of the 'machine' can undergo transformation if and only when the 'human biological machine', within which it voyages, is brought into the 'waking state'.

Such a mouthful, is the basic premise of this book.

If, while asking ourselves what the meaning and purpose of life can be, we find that the key to accomplishing something of objective value lies in our potential for inner evolution, then we must find special methods which can teach us how to use our mind, body, and emotions to transform our inner selves.

Real transformational methods enable us to achieve objective change by transforming the ' essential self '. The HBM is a veritable ' hitch-hikers guide ' through the perils and pathways of such inner transformation.

As Robert S. de Ropp, author of The Master Game, says in the Forward to the book, " E.J. Gold has hit the nail squarely on the head. Man is an unfinished animal endowed by nature with the capacity to complete itself. It can then take charge of its own evolution and become worthy of the proud title Homo sapiens. The alchemical process of self-completion is shrouded in mystery and understood only by a few people in each generation. The Great Work consists of transforming a helpless other-directed puppet into an inner-directed unified being that understands its place in the scheme of things. Nothing can be more important than the attainment of this uderstanding. Without it we are at the mercy of our dreams and delusions and our technical devices become more of a menace than a blessing.*If a great cathastrophe is to be avoided a growing number of people must grasp the central truth. To compele one's own inner transformation is the only task worth taking seriously. Everything else is secondary.

*Here's to a hopping an' hoping good time.

I just finished reading the Human Biological Machine, and I have to say that in 47 years I've never felt so validated as a woman as in reading the chapter, Bringing the Woman to Life. That chapter really made my day, as I had used almost those same words years ago to explain "what women want" to at least one guy, only to hear, "yeah, right, like that's going to happen." I howled with laughter over the part about sitting grimly under the blanket at a football game--I have in the past quarter century sat grimly scores of times in a canoe while a guy fished; on a stool in a garage in about 20 degree temps while a guy fixed his car; in the basement watching guys reload shotgun shells and tie fishing lures; in the woods while a guy staked out his deer stand; in a bar while they played pool; and in the living room while a guy I hadn't seen in a week announced he is planning to watch a sport....on ESPN at midnight....They, of course, didn't know it was done grimly, because it was all masked behind the co-dependent Yes, dear, that's lovely....After 20+ years of muttering the mantram, "I shaved my legs for THIS? " I had given up believing there would ever be a payback for the time spent standing around and waiting to be noted, spoken to, cuddled, made love to, etc. and retreated (with relief at not having to fake interest any more in these myriad masculine escapes from intimacy) to a life of introspection, gardening and animals. I'm so glad somebody out there understands--[to E.J. Gold]I love you!

E. J. Gold's 'The Human Biological Machine as a Transformational Apparatus' is one of a select group of titles I recommend whole-heartedly to all my Students. E. J. is a Guide for our time. He has diagnosed our society and has prescribed the medicine. And, while the medicine itself may be bitter, he coats the pill with his own brand of crazed-saint-humor. If you get off on dour faced cant, superficial religio-moral ethics, or lack the ability to read between, above, under, before, after, through, across, within, without, and beyond the lines . . . well, perhaps you should look elsewhere. Or you could just buckle down for the work-a-coaster ride of your life while you learn how to learn and unlearn. Kudos to E. J.

Francis Turretin (1623-1687) was a pastor and taught at the Academy of Geneva. This is the final volume of his magnificent and spirited defense of Reformed doctrine. This volume has indices to all 3 volumes and biographical information. It also includes the funeral message that Benedict Pictet preached at Turretin's funeral. In this volume Turretin covers: the Church, the Sacraments, and last things. To give you an idea of how thorough Turretin is, he takes 31 questions to discuss the sacraments. These books are excellent and highly recommended.

Francis Turretin (1623-1687) was a pastor, and taught at the Academy of Geneva. This is the second volume of his spirited and exhaustive defense of Reformed Theology. Samuel Alexander called Turretin "the best expounder of the doctrine of the Reformed Church" (high praise when you remember that John Calvin did a little exposition of Reformed dogmatics himself). This volume covers: the Law of God, the Covenant of Grace, The person and state of Christ, the mediatorial office of Christ, calling and faith, justification, and sanctification and good works. The section on God's law (which has a wonderful exposition of the 10 commandments) is worth the price of the book alone. This volume and its companions are a must in any serious theological library.

Francis Turretin (1623-1687) was a pastor and taught at the Academy of Geneva. An "elenctic" theology is one that trys to demonstrate the truth of a doctrine while refuting false doctrines. Volume 1 covers Theology, Scripture, God in unity and trinity, the decrees of God and predestination, creation, the providence of God, Angels, the state of man before the fall and the covenant of nature, Sin, and, finally, the free will of man in a state of sin. There is nothing else like these books in the realm of reformed dogmatics. The closest thing to them that I can think of is Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica except that Turretin upholds a sounder form of doctrine (Roman Catholics would heartily disagree with me there). Charles Hodge used Turretin in teaching Theology as did John Gerstner. Dr. James M. Boice hits the nail on the head when he says of Turretin's Institutes: "If ever a great theological work has been unjustly neglected it has been Francis Turretin's masterful volumes on the whole of Christian doctrine... I heartily commend [them] to preachers, theological students and lay persons everywhere." These are not easy reading but they are well worth your while.

This was an excellent book and gave me a very good understanding of distributions rules prior to January 1, 2001; however, the laws have since changed and I would not buy this book today. Much of the rules explained here are still the same, but you would have to know the material you are supposedly buying this book to learn in order to know the difference. If a new edition came out, I would buy it.

As always with Seymour Goldberg, the information is outstanding. I don't like the question and answer format, which I feel is an inefficient way to convey information, but others might love it. It is very difficult to acquire comprehensive information on IRA distributions and this is a very good source.

Seynour Goldberg takes the reader though all the intricicies of a complicated subject and provides the information necessary to make an informed decision. The pluses and minuses of single vs joint life expectancy and term certain vs recalculation are clearly defined for the IRA owner who must make decisions regarding required minimum distributions upon reaching 70 1/2 years of age.

You, as well as I, or lot of people more have heard stereotypes of Japan and its people, for sure. Maybe you use such stereotypes when talking about any topic on Japan. However, there are very good explanations for them, and I recommend you this book to know such basics.

In the first half, you'll read about Japan's history and the evolution of its society. In the second, you'll use those arguments to understand the behaviour of the groups of Japanese identified through the book.

The book set clearly two distinctions:
1. Talk about groups of Japanese, not "the Japanese," that is, don't use stereotypes.
2. Consider the time. Any argument is valid only in a certain period of time.

On that second point, the book was edited in 2001. It has arguments for 2005 or so. After that, you should look for new arguments.

The expertise gained from years of experience in Japanese advertising is supplemented with interviews and translations from Hakuhodo's think-tank newsletter on consumer mindsets. Highly recommended.

Japanese Consumer Behavior is a challenging book. There are multiple frames of reference: an analytical outsider, analyzing insiders analyzing their own culture, and changing trends within that culture. And that is just the approach. Then there is the data, relatively rapid changes across generations within a culture in response to major post-World War II, economic, gender-role, urbanizing, and, well, other real big changes. In essence there is a real fine grained analysis coupled with an analysis of the larger trends. And then there is the weird sense of dislocation, of finding "sneaker middles" in Japan bearing an almost but not quite resemblence to "yuppies" and trying to put a finger on what that "almost" but "not quite" is. The traditional anthropological road map one acquires does not apply very well to this book, hence it is an active reader book. If anyone is interested in what anthropology is going to be like in the future this is a good place to start.

Author Tobias guides the reader through that awful experience of losing a job. Employees sometimes need to know what there rights are, and this book helps. Useful for me as I negotiated severance and letters of recommendation...something that my employer really didn't want to do.

This book is excellent. A great help for those who have recently been fired from a job or who are expecting to get the axe. I especially felt that the chapters on negotiating a separation package were useful.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is having problems at work

If this is the same Life Cycle Library I remember from my childhood, this is wonderful stuff. Although Mom explained a lot whenever we asked, the books were a great reference source when we were too shy to ask Mom. Now that I'm a mother, I want to find the same for my children.

My mother gave me this set of books when I was 11 yrs. old at the time I didn't want to read them, but I'm glad I did. I now have an 8 yr old who is asking questions. I don't want to give her the wrong information, but I don't know how to word it. Our copy of the set is gone, I just want to replace it. I would love to find a copy now.

My parents gave me this 6 book library in 1973 when I was 11 years old. It told me what they apparently were too tongue tied to tell me! Now, some 25 years later, I'm trying to find the library for my 8 and 6 year olds. (no, its not to much for a six year old!) The series of books take the biology, psychology and chemistry of life (ya know, the birds and bees stuff) and make it easy to understand. I understand the library is out of print and my mother (bless her soul) can't find our copy! If anyone has a copy, I'll take it! Please! You can hand it to your kid and walk away. My parents did. And we all survived!

Poetry is soppy, Zen is impractical and Orientals don't think or feel like the rest of mankind - three myths demolished in one elegant little book. Every poem breathes humanity and warmth, and the pictures complement them beautifully. A translator should above all respect and preserve the intent of the original author; Clements' fine, perceptive translations allow the underlying emotions and sensations of the works room to breathe, and give the reader space to make his own interpretation. These are poets who, attempting detachment from the world, have stood back far enough to observe it and themselves with loving exactness. Beautiful in every way.

A book to savor. If you're familiar with haiku, you keep feeling a shock of recognition when you encounter a favorite redone in Clements's thoughtful lean style. Fresh organization, by time of day. Illustrations well chosen and well reproduced. This would be a fine gift book for a young person you want to interest in poetry.

A beautiful gift book. Each page of three haiku faces breathtaking paintings in the Japanese style. Most of the paintings are of nature, giving a sense of the season as one reads haiku of that season. The combination of painting and haiku gives a much deeper value.

The book just about covers every aspect of condominium management as the title suggests. An excellent tool for any Board Member or Manager of condominiums. It is easy to read and not done in a text like technical boring manner. Reccomended to anyone involved with condominiums, builders, members, managers and officers.

Living in a high rise condominium in Dallas for 20 years, a member of the Board for several of those years, I have found this book a great reference for the Board Members, the Manager and anyone interested in the way a condominium should work. It helps one avoid the pitfalls and frustrations that many home owners associations have encountered. I know Don Sally, one of the contributing authors, and he and this book saved our high rise (the first high rise apartment in Dallas). BUY THE BOOK, IT'S WORTH THE PRICE !!

As a property manager of 20+ years experience, I found this book extremely useful in summarizing complex concepts and laying out practical solutions. A must for managers and boards of community associations. Richard Thompson / Regenesis-Community Association Consultant

This is my favorite of shelves-full of costume books, not only because of the quality of the photography and the beauty of the items in the Kyoto exhibition, but also because it captures the experience of silently moving through the exhibition itself. I have used this book extensively as a visual reference for recreating 18th-century gowns -- no amount of words can compare with a good picture. I wish someone would reprint this. There's a demand.

This is the best book on the costumes of the 18th century that I have ever found. Page after page of gorgeous garments are clearly photographed and beautifully displayed. It is inpirational.

This is an outstanding exhibition catalogue from Japan (thankfully written in English). It has the most fabulous, clear photos of 18th, early 19th century costume.

If you have any interst in European Fashion during this period try and get your hands on a copy of this outstanding book.

It has worthwile text, but the photos are the real find.