Absolution is a true story of horror, love, the vulgarity of war, and the nobility of the warrior. Between 1960 and 1975, hundreds of thousands of young men were thrust into the barbarity of an Asian civil war. Inadequately trained for jungle warfare (and initially armed with defective weapons) the men of Charlie Company acquired their "killer skills" by instinct and imagination. Transformed by necessity, these young men became quickly transformed into brutal gladiators. "What's your body count"" commanders asked their soldiers each evening -- as if the war were sport, and if a scorecard named the winner. Exacerbating the soldier's dilemma was a powerful and biased news media which created a myth of the Vietnam-era solider as a misfit, a perverse example of a military machine gone awry, wreaking havoc and destruction upon innocent civilians. Absolution is the true, candid, unflinching story of Charles J. Boyle, a man who commanded a platoon in combat in Vietnam, and at the outbreak of the Tet Offensive, was selected to command Charlie Company, 3rd Battalion, 22nd Infantry. Absolution is an invaluable, eye-witness account and an outstanding contribution to the growing library of Vietnam military history.

I have finished reading Charles J. Boyle's, Absolution: Charlie Company, but I know this book will never be finished with me.

There is a great healing that needs yet to be done is this country; a great open wound that lies on the national soul and in the wounded bodies, minds, hearts and souls of those who we sent there. It does not matter where you stood, or stand, on the conflict called the Vietnam War; what matters now is resolution. That is what Charles Boyle has provided in Absolution. I have read hundreds of thousands of words penned on all sides of this so open wound, but none that I have read before have so touched heart and soul. There were times when I had to put the book down to process what these men, our sons, fathers, husbands endured in that time and place that is still so much with us; times when I felt weak with sharing their pain, awed by being witness to their courage. Boyle has taken us there, absolutely there; step by step, hour by hour, day by day as our young men grew, against all odds, despite betrayals from above, into men of courage, into comrades in arms, in a time and place, in a war often without explanation or understanding. Boyle graces us with witnessing the turbulence of mind and spirit when all that has been learned before is challenged in young lives, in blood, terror, conviction, fortitude, and courage. Be prepared for a great adventure into tears, into outrage, into anguish, into great pride. If you are prepared to face the beginnings of finding resolution, if you read only one book on the conflict called the Vietnam War, read Absolution: Charlie Company. "Falcon Six, this is Charlie Six. We're moving." Do move to read Absolution; it is time for the healing and it can begin here. Welcome home, Charlie Company.

No one has told his heart and the agony of Vietnam as has Charles Boyle in "Absolution". In telling of his time there, he lays bare his soul, what his effort was all about. He tells the how and why of his dedication to America and what Vietnam was all about to the US soldier. A great book -- one that should be required reading for all highschool students --- required reading in colleges.

Have no illusions about this book -- Bill Barnett delivers on his promise! We tend to make life more complicated than necessary! Bill strips away all the fluff and gets to the point on what works in the real estate investing business. This book is
truly a manual to get you on the road to wealth.

ARE YOU DUMB ENOUGH TO BE RICH is a candid "HOW TO" book on becoming rich by investing in real estate. Mr. Barnett (while using amusing antecdotes) explores and explains how to avoid the common pitfalls the that can destroy the novice real estate investor. Fortunatly he does not stop there, Mr. Barnett details the process and procedures (including scripts, formulas and templates) for obtaining quick loans for the purchase of real estate, how to find and aquire properties from motivated sellers and, once purchased, how to sell these properties quickly and for a predetermined profit. ARE YOU DUMB ENOUGH TO BE RICH is An excellent book for the novice and a great resource for the experienced investor.

Best Real Estate Book I've Ever Read.
Two Thumbs Up, a must read for any Real Estate Investor.
Thanks Bill
Sam

By 1963, the Rhodesian Cobra is an established assassin with Lumumba among his victims. His current assignment in Havana is to kill Castro, but he purposely misses shooting a cigar instead. When the Cubans catch him, Cobra explains that he intentionally missed. He proves his boast by reconstructing the shot using a "volunteer" from Texas, Rupert Justice Tolliver as the target. Cobra successfully demonstrates his abilities. The Cubans send him to meet J. Edgar Hoover's South Florida contact Fernandez who provides Cobra with his next job. In late November in Dallas, Cobra carries out his assignment. To escape the country, he joins the Marines.

Over the next three plus decades, Rupert becomes a TV evangelist and governor of Texas. Cobra buys a large farm in his homeland that he finances with an occasional hit. By 2001 Rupert is the president while Cobra continues to work his farm. Rupert believes that he is the world's savior and begins a religious war as described in Revelations. The international financial community panics and hires Cobra to kill Rupert. However, Cobra is unaware that the real brain behind the presidency is the First Lady and she has no compunctions to walk both sides of the conflict to gain what she wants.

BEHOLD A PALE HORSE is an exciting political thriller that keeps reader attention from start to finish. The story line never rests as the 1963 scenario ties back into the 2001 potential apocalypse. Though the characters are not going to gain any empathy, the audience will admire Cobra's chutzpah and gasp at Rupert's obsession with Revelations. Franklin Allen Leib had forged a triumphant tale that will send his fans searching for his previous novels.

Harriet Klausner

a wonderful tale of the apocalypse set from dallas in 1963 to washington and brazil in 2001, when the third millennium really begins. characters-president tolliver, his wife clarissa, his pursuer, cobra--excellent. highly recommended. roger.

This is an exciting book. You have a hired killer who took part in the original Kennedy assasination. The other character is a Texas Governor named Justice Tolliver who moves to the Presidency. The hired killer named Cobra has an interesting biography and an impressive list of hits. The President and his first lady are as wild as they come. They have shady land deals, the President was also a draft dodger. This book has every kind of scenario that you could ask for. The plot is outstanding as well. This will be one of the better books that you will read this year. You will be wondering if Cobra is sucessful in his newest assignment. You this book. It is a thriller.

BORICUAS is an eye-opener for both Puerto Ricans and non-Puerto Ricans. I never knew there were so many Hispanic, especially Puerto Rican, high profile names out there. For instance, did you know that Reggie Jackson and Sammy Davis, Jr. have at least one parent who was Puerto Rican? I didn't.

This book serves as a reference book, a novel, a selection of poetry, among other things. I recommend this book for everyone who is into multicultural thinking and studying, and even to those who are not open-minded.

Also for the young Puerto Ricans in the world who have assimiliated into the melting pot of society: read this book and learn about your ancestry.

Art, Poetry, Short Stories, Drawings. Stories of Religion, from Catholic, to Santeria. From growing up in hungry in the streets of Spanish Harlem, to growing up in the rural areas of La Isla. From being a street hood, to being a Chico and The Man Tv Star. Boricuas, is destined to be a classic. In this collection you get only the best, from the best Puerto Rican writers and poets. Piri Thomas, Esmeralda Santiago, Judith Cofer, Nicholasa Mohr, just to name a few of these talented writters. What I love the most about this book is that it will introduce many Puerto Ricans as well as the rest of the world to the many talented Boricua authors there are. This book will fill you with pride and joy, if you are ever thinking of that perfect gift for that young adult Boricua in your life, this is it.

Boricuas Influential Puerto Rican Writings is a perfect book to use to introduce people to Puerto Rican history and culture. My son who I always thought hated to read loves this book and carries it around like it was his bible. The book fills you with Puerto Rican pride. When I first heard about Boricuas I was afraid that it would be one of those snobby literature books written by college professors. You know the boring ones that you are supposed to read to get smarter but never do. When I saw the friendly cover I knew the book was for me and my son. Boricuas is not a book for the intellectual elite but for everyday people. I hope all my latin sisters and brothers will check this book out

During the 2nd WW, I spent a good deal of time selling newspapers in the days before vending machines took over. I now live in Huntsville, Al. so thought I should read something by this author,who is best known for "Rocket Boys." However,when I came across this title, I decided to go with U-boats. It was a subject which had great news exposure in the papers I sold . Well I never realized how close the sea war really was to our shores in the early going. This is an well documented account of Nazi sub activity which was apparently kept quiet at the time. As a matter of fact there are so many accounts of ship sinkings that I almost gave up reading Torpedo Junction; rather like having to endure a losing football team for several seasons. This all changes at about p.200 when Hickman proceeds to give a most exciting account of a battle twixt the 'Icarus'(coast guard cutter) and U-352 which was the first German submarine sunk by our side . If you are interested in this aspect of the war which was a critical effort in which we were losing badly, this is your book. For those who like their desert first, start on p 200 of the paperback edition. If you are a "senior" like me get the nore expensive edition with larger type!

this book is for you. Homer Hickam is an exceptional writer and a great researcher. This true story reads like an exciting adventure novel. It focuses on the tiny coast guard cutters that fought the German U-boats that attacked the American east coast during World War II. Thoroughly documented, the reader will be introduced to a huge, bloody battle that took place just off American shores (including the Gulf coast). This is the same Homer Hickam who wrote October Sky and The Coalwood Way. He actually dived on the U-boat wrecks and the freighters and tankers he writes about. Highly recommended for the World War II buff or if you just like adventure books. Every bit as good as The Perfect Storm. It reminded me of that book.

The only dry part to this book I saw was a necessary review of World War II U-boat activities up to December 1941. After that, with the arrival of the U-boats off New York and then the bloody carnage off Hatteras, this book is a gripping, bloody true tale of American and British courage on the high seas against a determined German onslaught of the American coast. Read it for knowledge and for its fascinating personal stories of seamen at battle. You'll feel like you've also rode on the deck of the little coast guard cutters as they battle the U-boats and, at the end, you'll never forget the unsung heroes who fought and died so close to our shores.

Unfortunately for Dole, Richard Ben Cramer tells the story of Dole's rise from small-town poverty to near-fatal war injury better than the Dole campaign did last year. The author paints a portrait of the 1988 presidential candidates that is vivid and human, making them more than the caricatures that we see in our television screens and newspapers. I worked for a Democratic candidate during the 1988 campaign. Cramer's storyline and energetic, somewhat frantic writing style both mirrors and reveals the hectic, seize-the-day atmosphere of a presidential campaign. His greatest contribution, however, is the tremendous insight he gives us of the men who wanted to become the best known and most powerful person in the world and believed they could do it within a matter of years by traveling to small towns and big cities as they meet with ordinary citizens the wealthiest Americans. They are both crazy and courageous and Cramer tells us how they became so as he digs through their personal histories from grade school to the present. Dole may no longer be a player on the American political scene. But Al Gore, Dick Gephardt, Jesse Jackson, Pat Robertson, and Jack Kemp still are. Thus, this book is still relevant. Above all, it's a good read. For those who want to know what it's really like inside a presidential campaign or the head of a presidential candidate, this is the best book and most unique book written since The Making of the President 1960 by the legendary T.H. White.

Every American should read this book to understand what the Presidency has come down to, not just what happened in 1988. This book takes us behind the scenes of that election to reveal the character and personal histories of the men who ran and the qualities a candidate must have in order to endure this tough and nasty form of marketing. At the same time the reader comes to see the effects of that process on the candidates and their families. Cramer doesn't pull any punches, casting a scrutinous and unmerciful eye on the role and motives of the media and the ignorance of the American public. What drives these men to run for this office? Cramer gets at the truth and heart of the matter with reporting that is tough, intelligent, sometimes hilarious, often shocking, and always pleasing. We are left with the sad knowledge that the good man doesn't always win, and thus neither does America.

"What It Takes" is simply a stunning book. The life stories of six 1988 Presidential candidates (Bob Dole, George Bush, Joe Biden, Mike Dukakis, Dick Gephardt, and Gary Hart) are told here, but Cramer's book is more than a simple biography. Their stories are told in deep, meaningful ways with more insight shed upon their beliefs and thoughts than a 1,000 dull press clipings. Cramer's prose is nothing short of brilliant. He has a natural writing voice that is beautiful to behold.

In terms of personalities, I particularly found the passages about Dole & Biden illuminating.

This is just a terrific book, filled with humor, wisdom, pathos and adventure. The author poignantly describes his childhood descent into blindness, his efforts to ignore it, his initial rebelliousness, and his gradual coming to terms with his handicap. Before long, the reader, like Erik, no longer sees blindness as a handicap, but as one of many hurdles life tosses in our way. It is certainly less of a burden to him than was the sudden, tragic death of his mother, which he movingly addresses and comes to terms with. He finds purpose to his life, he finds love, and he finds friendship and adventure on the mountains that he climbs. Buy this book and give it to any friend who has an inclination toward self-pity, and it may change their life. Read it and be inspired by the resiliency and strength of the human spirit.

This is a must-read for crowds of all types. Touching, humorous, moving, the story of Erik will inspire many. Being blind myself, I can totally relate to situations Erik describes such as the "shaking" vision, wanting to be accepted among peer groups of any age, and the comical remarks that must be made to lighten up a situation. I especially enjoyed the adventures in dating and picking up women. Blind people too want to know what a person looks like and it was great to hear someone else echo the embarressment of mistaking a voice for a "sexy" woman only to find out it's a "girly" man. Those mistakes are made and have to be laughed off. It's just a feature of life, just like blindness is only a feature of a person, NOT THE WHOLE person. I strongly suggest this book to anyone looking for information or coping on blindness. Read it and you'll never be the same.

This is an ease read but surprisingly soul-awakening book for me. There are statements on life lessons strung together like jewels hidden everywhere in this book, from the start to finish, mostly on self-assumed constraints that are common to everyone, sighted or not. I found vicariously the family love, friendship, and community support invigorating. I sensed the humor, strength, commitment, and perseverance Erik W carries with him daily, not just to the mountain top, which makes this book an absolute page-turner. Thanks Erik W for writing this book and share intimately with the readers the details of your journeys and the poeple in your life, we all have a lot to learn and draw from your experiences touched by the top of the world.

Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey has a "gift" from her Native American heritage. She is able to speak with the dead. Not words, but images. When a man's body is found encased in a cement pillar in a burb of Chicago, she is called in. The dead man has a golden pin shaped like a lightning bolt clutched in his hand.

Sam, with a little help from Jake and Tim (a boy computer genius/hacker), she unravels a complex case which dates back to the Korean War. The case gets worse as it connects to the death of her own father years ago.

I did not think this one would be good. A detective that is able to speak with the dead? Never work! I was wrong! This was an interesting book from the first page. The case gets more complex than I let on. Very good reading here!***

In this first Sam Casey series mystery, Chasen Heights detective sergeant Samantha ("Sam") Casey uses psychic powers inherited from her Lakota medicine-woman mother to solve a Korean War era crime. During a Chicago rush-hour traffic accident, a car plows into a cement pillar, cracking it open, and revealing a body that's been entombed there for so long it has turned to a soap-like substance. The first time she touches it, Sam is tormented with visions of the African American man's violent death.

The action-packed story weaves together sub-plots involving illegal gambling in high social circles, historic racism in the supposedly integrated US Army in Korea, and police departments' eternal political struggles. And, if that's not enough to hook readers, Sam very reluctantly falls in love with another cop -- one who seems to be out to get her kicked off the force. Tooley's characters are memorable -- even minor ones like the big-breasted blackjack dealer who mesmerizes male gamblers.

This book will leave you wanting to know more -- about bodies that can turn to soap, race relations in the 1950s Army, Sioux medicine women, and especially Sam Casey.

What fun!

When The Dead Speak by S.D. Tooley will hold the reader's attention riveted until the last page is turned. With a foundation of Native American mysticism blended with a solid murder mystery, Tooley creates a masterful tale of love and murder. A freak accident where a semi swerves to collide with the concrete columns of an overpass in Chicago. As chunks of concrete fall away, a body is revealed encased in its concrete tomb. In his hand is a gold pen shaped like a lightening bolt, and a clue that spans the world reaching into Korea and the racism that American soldiers perpetrated against their own. The corruption of the evil done in Korea has spread on American shores to the highest levels, and even ties to Sam's own deceased father. Detective Sergeant Samantha Casey has a gift inherited from her mother, a Sioux medicine woman. Using her hands, Sam can hear the voices of the dead. When she touches the mysterious golden lightening bolt, she witnesses the ravaged, bullet ridden bodies, and she smells the blood and gunpowder. From a corpse dead twenty-one years, Sam hears the screams of battle and senses the fear and terror. If you enjoy Alex Matthew's series with the heroine Cassidy McCabe, then you will find Sam Casey equally satisfying and yet uniquely different. When The Dead Speak is a rocket paced, addictive novel that is impossible to put down. The heroine is sexy, gifted, and imperfect, with just enough vulnerability to keep the reader hooked. While it reaches a satisfying conclusion, When The Dead Speak also leaves just enough untied and interesting loose ends to lead into the sequel, Nothing Else Matters.

Cindy Penn, Reviewer

Early drafts of Joan's book still occasionally appear in the scrap paper tray at Springwater Center. I worked there with Joan during the time she wrote the journals that became Bare-Bones Meditation. Hers in an honest account of life in a spiritual center and the development of a relationship with a teacher. From early idealization, she enters into the struggle all of us in such communities face, of reconciling the imperfections of the teacher and residents with the clarity of the teaching itself. I am looking forward to Joan's next book.

I have read this book several times and it still moves me profoundly. Joan describes wonderfully the search for a more meaningful life. The book is in part an engaging story, in part a portrait of a period and, more importantly, an insightful meditation that I highly recommend to anyone with an interest in the search of the real self.

Joan Tollifson writes with such directness she causes us to see. Taking us through the muddy waters of her early life--born without a hand, rejected and rebellious, she takes us through her coming out as a lesbian, her fierce love affairs and battles with alcohol and drugs, with being a victim. And yet the book is not about any of this. It could be any life struggle; the essence is seeing it clearly. And through the aid of several meditation leaders she finds her own ability to see and know. Her writing is a cup of tea thrown against our face. When we recover our breath it is easy and full, relaxed with her. Our vision penetrates to the bottom of the pool. At a time when "meditation" books are overflowing the market, this is one you'll want to take into your life. -Larry Smit

This is a wonderful book with detailed pictures and descriptions of aliens light and dark,good and evil, cruel and kind, and large and small. It has vibrant illustrations that grab the eye, and descriptions that send the mind and imagination to worlds millions of light years away. You will not find these alien faces anywhere else but in this book. I would recommend it to any science fiction lover who can get their hands on it.

Awesome. COOOL. A must get book that every sci-fi lover should have. It not only has pictures of the aliens but it tells its entire life!

I first read this book when I was 10, and it freaked me out. It was one of the major reasons I began reading science fiction. This book can be reread endlessly without losing an ounce of wonder, for Barlowe's representations of alien anatomy are truly inspired. I constantly recommend this to my friends, and they are never disappointed, even the ones who can't stand sci-fi. Unfortunately, his paintings are much more interesting than some of the books they're taken from.