Audiobook Books

This was not the most fun book to read but it should be required reading. We have to address these issues. Here, for once, are good ideas that can be achieved. This perfect for holiday giving.

An Inconvenient Truth: The Planetary Emergency of Global Warming and What We Can Do About It
How appropriate that the cover of Thomas L. Friedman's book [Hot, Flat and Crowded] be "The Garden of Earthly Delights", painted by Hieronymous Bosch in the fifteenth century. Our world is fast losing its "delights" and there's much we can and must do to save it. For the reader this becomes a pleasurable, informative "must read" to Al Gore's important focus on global warming.

If you oppose conservation and clean energy, I wonder why you would. Typical concerns relate to when conservation and clean energy reduce economic growth or reduce profits for some special interest in the near term. Longer term, most people would agree that conservation and clean energy make sense.

Journalist and social activist Thomas L. Friedman could have written a much shorter book if he had simply started with the premise that it's a good idea to have conservation and clean energy. He spends most of the book providing arguments in favor of those approaches.

Those arguments are related to these propositions:

1. Rising carbon dioxide levels are either causing global warming and more violent weather . . . or will at some point fairly soon.
2. Rapid population growth and concentration into urban areas are making pollution a greater problem.
3. Fast economic growth in the developing world is accelerating pollution.
4. Natural environments are disappearing at a rapid rate, taking with them weather-dampening resources and species which might have value that we don't yet appreciate.
5. Free markets encourage polluting rather than nonpolluting solutions.
6. Extractive energy sources encourage dictatorships, terrorism, and harm to women.

Most of these points are exemplified by an anecdote from when Mr. Friedman talked to someone while on a speaking tour, was traveling from country to country, or was helicoptering around to see some sight that interested him. Much of this book has a travelogue aspect, even though it is a book about social change.

When Mr. Friedman gets into his arguments in favor of laws, regulations, and tax incentives, his thesis is sometimes contradictory. He argues that it is more profitable to use conservation and clean energy, yet cites lots of business leaders who seem to say that they won't employ those methods unless forced to by laws, regulations, and tax incentives. That argument didn't make sense to me. It also seems like many countries are already using laws, regulations, and tax incentives to encourage conservation and clean energy use. If those approaches are a good idea, there should be all kinds of incentives to change.

The crux of Mr. Friedman's argument in favor of these governmental changes is that it is critical that the United States do more in these areas than anyone else for the following reasons:

1. It will be a competitive disadvantage to lag in these areas.
2. Economic growth in the United States depends on creating a large clean energy and conservation industry.
3. Safety from the Muslim world depends on these activities, as well.
4. Other countries will do more in these areas if the U.S. goes first.
5. People in other countries will support more change if U.S. consumers are making these changes.

The major flaw in this thesis is that the United States government can make such a large change and sustain it for several decades. Since the 1960s, there has been little consensus in the United States on any changes other than ones that favor growth of individual incomes and wealth in the short term.

The current economic crisis will put a heavy burden on economic growth for many years to come. The pending retirement of the baby boom generation will be an even heavier weight to carry.

I suspect that there will be little appetite for government to lead such changes.

Ultimately, I suspect that a more likely path to success in making these changes would be for state, city, and county governments to boycott suppliers who don't use clean energy and employ good conservation practices. Action at those levels of government often works, doesn't take a long time, and is already being successful in areas like California.

I praise Mr. Friedman for wanting to encourage conservation and use of clean energy, but I fear that he needs to spend more time thinking about how to do that . . . and less time on arguing for national changes in U.S. laws, regulations, and tax incentives. With our political system, I think he is whistling in the dark.

What do you think?

I have been following Friedman for a while via editorial comments. This is a great way for the US to get back onto the world stage doing good works, by getting us OFF our addiction to oil. His suggestion that there is an inverse relationship between the price of a barrel of oil and world democracy is well made.

Clear, insightful, and meaningful; a great sequel to "The World is Flat," this book should be required reading for informed and influential persons today. It is well researched with impressive and diverse references giving their varied perspectives on timely topics. I enjoyed the colorful writing style, tone and pace. I was very impressed by this book.

Granted my 4 yr old is a book-aholic, but these are by far her favorite! She will listen to these in one sitting if I will let her. We checked them out at the library and inside of 2 weeks, we listened to them 5 times. Needless to say, I decided she needed her own set, so she will be getting this and books 9-16 for christmas. Oh and by the way, this is a great price. They sell for $33 at borders in my neck of the woods.

My daughter (8) loves listening to these stories! It helps her concentration and encourages her to be more imaginative and descriptive in telling her own stories. A lot of fun to listen to together!

When I first read these books to my children, I was somewhat dismayed by the lack of excellence in writing style. Now that we have further immersed ourselves into the series, I can forgive that to a degree. Each book in the series (more later in the series than in the beginning) delves lightly into a given topic and gives a wonderful introduction into a given period in history. For example, in the Egypt story, enough background is given into the subject matter, i.e., why Egyptians were mummified (given in a factual and not gruesome manner), why they placed certain objects inside the tombs, etc., just enough information to help younger children understand the story and piques their interest to want to learn more. I love the fact that most of the stories have an accompanying research guide that delves into the subject matter in further detail. Great for homeschoolers, I am sure. The historical information is factually accurate and presented in an interesting manner by the two young children.

I purchased this set as part of my travel kit for entertaining my 2 & 4 yr old during a cross country move. I was amazed by their ability to keep my kids attention and I enjoyed the distraction as well. We've listened to them several times since. Including a 8-hr drive with just me and the kids and no DVD player. The CDs made the road trip no problem.

I bought this primarily for my five year old (although I think the toddler benefits from hearing it as well) while we're riding in the car, because we spend at least 30-45 minutes per day in the car. She loves listening to the stories and for the most part listens intently and occassionally asks questions about what is going on in the story and why Jack or Annie said or did something in particular.

The audio book is the way to go; much better than getting a DVD/TV player installed in your car. The author, Mary Pope Osborne, does a good job inflecting her voice to engage my daughter. I highly recommend this audio book series for anyone with youngsters who need a distraction while in the car.

We have 2 more stories left in this disc set and I plan on buying the next series as soon as I get tired of hearing this set over and over again!

I read this whole series as my young teenage daughter and all of her friends are seriously obsessing about them. I am still trying to figure out which age group the author and her editor (if she used one) really meant these books for! It all starts out so Romeo and Juliet and then the whole thing falls apart. The 18 year old getting married and skipping college and basically isolating herself from the entire world for a guy...what bold choices she makes...what dreams she chases. Such an empowering message. Afraid to get older than her stuck-at-17- boyfriend?

But the part that takes the cake in the age inappropriate award category is the whole get married so we can have sex, get pregnant, carry a baby to term under any circumstances (here the near or real death of the mother) and the incredibly messy yucky birth scene. What young teenager wants to read this? This is so out of touch with reality!

Stephanie Meyers started with such a good premise and an edge of your seat story...the ying and yang of the physical attraction (Jacob) versus the spiritual (Edward) and then proceeded to fall into a bottomless pool of ultra conservative Disney meets the vampire muck. (She did go to BYU)

I truly believe in having conversations and not censoring garbage just because I don't like it, but how many of us have time to read what our kids are obsessing about? Mothers should read this with their daughters and have a conversation about the choices women must make in their lives and other subjects touched upon in this series. I have pledged to read (even if I just skim the sludge) with my daughter after this experience. I watch her tv shows and movies to see what she is taking in...and Gossip Girl gives us a lot of interesting topics to talk about. Yikes! It's tough to be a parent these days!

I really liked the whole series and I'm sad that it's over. I spent more time just reading and enjoying it than picking it apart like other reviews. What's relaxing about trying to find mistakes in the book instead of just reading?

I have read the whole Tilight series and have completely fallen in love with all the characters. This final instalment was the greatest by far. Among reading the reviews of other readers, others don't agree with me too much. Other readers believe that this book was a complete and epic fail. The fact that Bella is pregnant and that it seems unrealistic is what makes this book more of a fantasy, which it really is. Therefore I would like to say Bravo to Meyer and I wish her the best of luck in her young but prosperous career.

I'll try not to spoil this for those who haven't read it yet.
Okay, First the good parts: We finally get a look inside Jacob's head. I know a lot of people hated this part, but I felt he was the only interesting character, and, despite being female, the only character I could relate to. He's also the only character who actually develops after Twilight. He's the only reason I gave this review 2 stars instead of 1.
The bad parts: The rest of the book. While Twilight was an intriguing new twist on an old story, the writing and plot throughout the rest of the series falls apart. From the 2nd book on, Bella is selfish, obsessive, worthless, has no redeeming qualities, nor is there any character development for her. She is so unrealistic that she becomes impossible to relate to. I honestly hoped she would die just because she's so annoying. Edward could easily be replaced with a loaf of bread-he has no personality at all, isn't particularly likable, is also impossible to relate to, and just downright boring.
For me the ending was a huge cop out. Stephenie Meyer spends an entire series leading up to what appears to be an epic vampire war, but it seems like she got lazy at the end and didn't really feel like finishing the book. Everything fits into place way too neatly, as every character gets a perfect happily-ever-after. Now I am all for happy endings, but you can still have a happy ending that does not insult the audience's intelligence by just making everything as simple as possible (think Harry Potter, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, LoTR). And the fact is, SM will completely change a character to get them to fit into her happy ending (imprinting is just so convenient, isn't it?).
Like most people I loved Twilight, but after reading Breaking Dawn I have lost all respect for Stephenie Meyer as an author. The book was rushed, sloppily written, poorly thought out, and not creative (seriously, did anyone really not see how this book would end?) There is a good reason why great series have several years between books. In her haste, SM ruined what could have been one of the greatest sagas ever.

I enjoyed the first 2 books in this series, but Ms. Meyer seriously ran out of steam in Book 3. I bought Book 4 just to see how the story ended. Other negative reviewers have done a good job discussing the problems with this book, and the series overall, so I won't repeat those criticims.

My main issue is that great epics require the heroines and heroes to overcome great challenges, make choices, and make sacrifices. Endings are not 100% happy. If they were, what would be the point of the story? Even in classic fairy tales and myths, the protagonists grow and learn through overcoming challenges and making sacrifices. Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, even Star Trek and Star Gate and Anne Rice's vampire novels demonstrate this.

In addition, the editing and publishing was poor (numerous grammatical and printing errors). Way too much dialog.

*Spoilers*
This series is for young people, not adults, and the underlying themes were extremely disturbing, which other reviewers have covered:

Pedophilia, obsession, a woman having no life other than her man, etc.

Here is what I found annoying, as well, especially considering how much time and money I spent on reading and buying all 4 books:

1. Why is Bella so attractive to all males? We are never really told - we don't get a clear physical description, she is clumsy, antisocial, and puts absolutely no effort into her appearance. Yet she is most beautiful (human) woman around? Get real!

2. I just don't know ANY woman who would be so uncaring about her appearance. Even "tomboys" care about their appearance. Bella expresses no interest in make up, clothes, shoes, her figure, etc. This is completely unrealistic for a young woman who is supposed to be such a knockout.

3. Bella is supposed to be a good student, even gets accepted by Dartmouth! Pleeeeez. She has absolutely no interests other than Edward, we don't know her GPA - no way would she get into an elite college. The kids who go to elite colleges are driven to achieve in school, extracurricular activities, and typically have plans for what they want to major in and some career goals. Bella is very ordinary in her academic career. (I went to one and am active in admissions, so trust me). In fact, she's really a rather boring person.

4. Edward is just too perfect. No matter how much we love someone, in any relationship, we do become aware of our partner's flaws and love them anyway. The classic romances are romantic because the partners love each other despite challenges and flaws and the story of the romance is of the relationship growing and evolving.

5. Sorry, but Edward has "lived" 100 years. Realistically, why would he enroll in high school and find a high school girl fascinating and his love object? That's very unrealistic and/or disturbing on many levels.

6. Bella never grows or develops on an emotional level, as far as I can tell.

7. Finally, Edward being a virgin after 100 years? LOL! Ask any man if he were as gorgeous as Edward and had money, etc., if he would be a virgin after 100 years - that's hilarious.

Overall, a very disappointing end to a series that started out with great promise.

I gave this to my sister who's been struggling for about a year or so. She's already writing in plans for the new year. I highly recommend this as a gift for someone else or yourself.

...and it's not even the "best of", sort of reference.
My thoughts are, that this guy is potentially a cult figure, with followers who are grabbing at straws. I can't imagine what Oprah was thinking. Her original spiritual strengths, were strong enough to take her, further than most people can imagine going.
2-stars is over-rating his books...in my book.
My concern:
Charlatans, exploiting those who may be needing real help.

This book is amazing. I am a person who takes everything personally worries about the future and the past all the time and never has time to enjoy now. I am in a transition period in my life and can't stop thinking about the future. I am a college student who never thought that now mattered, I always thought about what will happen after I graduate. I have also been clinically depressed for at least five or six years. This book put it all into perspective. It put details into what I knew somewhere in my heart and explained that what has happened in the past is not who I am and my Ego is just something that gets in the way but is not truly me! I was always defining myself with events in my life and how I saw my future (which is sometimes a really scary thought). "The Power of Now" let me look into my soul and find my true spirit. Things that would have given me anxiety attacks and sent me to xanax and bed, now let me look inside and push myself to see who I truly am; not to look back, or forward but to NOW. This book alone will not give you perfect peace but if you use the book as a guide and work on it yourself you can achieve peace in most of your life; maybe one day in every aspect.

I am a middle-aged professional with an academic background in philosophy.

As I grew older, I felt more strongly that there must be a spiritual realm to our existence. But I relegated myself to the belief that any understanding of this spiritual realm was not to be. That such things would remain a mystery. At times, I would have more spiritual feelings and sensations which reinforced this belief, but still felt that my belief of the spiritual realm would be faith-based and could never go beyond this.

As I entered into my forties, I entered into unrest and discontent with life. I felt spiritually, intellectually and even emotionally dead. Raising two great children and being married to a wonderful person was not enough. The routine of daily life was not fulfilling, materialism provided nothing of spirtual value, and I walked through life with a general feeling of discontentment.

About a year ago, I entered Barnes and Noble because my 11 year old daughter wanted to buy some new books. I dropped her off in her BN department and walked straight across the floor to this book which was sitting on a shelf -- the book not being singled out or advertised specially. It was the Power of Now. I picked it up, looked at the cover and decided to allow myself to impulsively purchase it (something that was out of the ordinary for me).

The next two weeks were incredibly intense for me. And what happened after that was even greater. Tolle's words rang truth to my core. For the first time in my life, my existiential views were married/bridged with a deep spirituality. It made sense. I couldn't put the book down. As I read it, I used the meditation practices that Tolle subtley infers. The inspiring energy of his words aided me immensely to get into a transcendental realm -- a switch. Not magic, not really enlightenment (as the term conjures up something unreachable and unrealistic). But I felt at peace and felt joy. I felt intensely transformed. The world came to me and I accepted what it gave me. I accepted the world existentially. My mind was finally much, much calmer. For the first time as an adult, my mind didn't control me. People and my environment vibrated with a vibrant energy. I knew (not believed, not faith) that there was a One Being that essentially came from stillness or silence and everything was one with that One Being. (Reminiscent of what I think Sartre's Being and Nothingness painfully attempted to point out). I felt this sense of peace on and off for a month or so. Admittedly this intense feeling declined somewhat as a result of some crisis life situations that proved too difficult to surrender to. I am still "working on it" with the joy of knowing that this spiritual realm exists.

This book is the greatest book I've ever read which -- to me -- says much considering I have read many of the great works of literature and most philosophers. No book has come close to this. Tolle's presentation (and what he calls "sign-posts") are succinct and clear. The only problem I have with this book -- and I say this with humor -- is how the book was marketed. Its title, "The Power of Now," and cover art is so sensationalistic that it looks like it should part of an info-commercial along with Ginsu knives and the Ronco fruit dehydrator. I fear that many in the academic world will dismiss the book as such without giving it a chance. I hope I am wrong. I also hope that if the world makes deeper into the future, that this book is mandatory reading for all students.

I hope you find the energy of my review helpful.


The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

When I saw Oprah mention this book on her show I ran out and got a copy right away. All I can say is THANK YOU VERY MUCH OPRAH. Excellent book teaching you how to live in the now. The best book I have ever read that exposes the false self (EGO) and how the primary job of the ego is to take your happiness away and create all kinds of problems every day.

Here's the ego's program that it is running to justify it's existance "Never Satisfied"

No matter how a situation turns out, the ego will find a way to be unhappy about it.

P.S. The book is so good, I ran out and bought extra copies for all my friends and family.

Meyer, Stephenie
Remember that time that your high school boyfriend left you and you became despondent and started doing crazy things to hallucinate his voice in your head? No? That's probably because you're a sane person with a healthy identity that is separate from your high school boyfriend's. Bella is not sane. Bella is completely out of her gourd in this book, and we get to see exactly how unhealthily obsessed with Edward she is.

I know that fiction is just that: fiction. I also realize that not all characters need to be likable or even have an iota of common sense. What bothers me about the Twilight books is that Ms. Meyer has created a world in which teenage hormones run free, completely unchecked by common sense, parents, or even reality. If I had a teenage daughter who slipped past the brink of sanity over a breakup with a boy she knew less than a year, I would be trying to rectify the situation. In Bella's world, her love (which is a sacred, pure, overwhelming love, the author assures us again and again) was so important that it's okay for her to just throw her entire life down the drain once Edward leaves her. School activities? Friends? Academics? None of it's important now that she doesn't have her man by her side (not that it was really that important to begin with; who could focus on being a strong and independent woman when there's a total hunk around?).

It's one think to suspend reality to prove a point or create an engaging world. However, suspending reality to let me read about a teenager who believes in soulmates is absurd.

This is a great sequel to Twilight. Stephenie Meyers really hammers in the impact of the characters' relationships, and creates a love triangle for us to argue over.

I love the whole twilight series. all of the books are great. i encourage anyone who likes love stories or books about vampires to read the series. =]

This series is so addictive. I started reading on a recommendation by a friend. I thought it was cheesy-sounding but it's not immature at all. I loved this series and I'm now reading the 4th in the series, and I've read 238 pages in 2 days. I'm going to be so sad when it's over!

Many of my friends recommended Twilight to me, and i found it to be one of the best books i have ever read in my life. Unable to put the book down, i finished it quickly and bought the rest of the series soon after. While New Moon was an exceptionally good book, i found it to be a little disappointing after reading Twilight. New Moon seemed to be devoid of the romance and action that urged me to read on through Twilight. However, the book is still a great addition to one of the best series ever written. Now that I have finished Breaking Dawn, the fourth book of the series, I have begun to reread the series and am on Eclipse once again. Reading the books the second time was just as exciting as the first. I would truly recommend New Moon, as well as the rest of the Twilight saga.

The audio books are really fun to listen to. If you are busy and are unable to sit down and read the books, this is a great option and you are able to get through them very quickly. Great for the car especailly if you have a long drive. I took the Twilight audio book with me on a road trip I took with my boyfriend and he even admitted he liked it after I got him to listen to it. You won't be disapointed if you buy.

I loved reading the books and I love listening to the audio books even more. I listen everyday over and over. My daughter was reading these books and one day I had to take my other daughter for a 2 hour dental appointment and took Twilight with me to read and I was hooked. For the next 13 days I didn't lay the books down until I was finished with all four.

I was thrilled with the story, however, several of the disc were damaged and I was unable to hear some of the story, had to jump futher on the disc to get them to play. They had permanet prints on the disc, and could not even clean them. The Story is great and a good young person adventure. (I'm old and enjoy this tale too) I paid $26.00 for this with Amazon, so this product was suppose to be new. First time poor quality from Amazon.

The CD's are great. They don't capture every bit of the books, but any Twilight lover should have both the Audio and the books. LOVE THEM!!!

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to these while working. After reading the books, I had to listen. BUY BUY BUY You won't regret it.

I was disappointed w/ this last book, still good to read but just felt like it was not close to the others.

I have to admit that I was never a Harry Potter fan,I read all of the books but I found the first four quite boring .However after the 5th book,I really got into it and began to see the appeal and understand why people loved Harry and his adventures so much!

The 6th book for me was definitely the best,I literally could NOT put it down!

And when the arrival of The Deathly Hallows came about, I was so excited to know what happened but I also dreaded the fact that it was coming to an end and that it might not live up to my expectations.

I really enjoyed most of the book,it's just the end I wasn't so sure about.

I also felt that J.K.Rowling was just trying to patch things up and in the last couple of chapters I feel in her writing a sense she just wanted to finish and tie up all the loose ends.

And I have to say,the ending was far too sweet for my liking,a bit obvious and I expected greater things from Harry and his friends.

To sum it all up...
Yes I suppose I enjoyed the book overall but at the end,I felt it was nothing more than a big mess that feels as if J.K ran out of imagination!

This was just the book I was looking for! Great service, quality product! I couldn't have asked gor the transaction to go smoother. As for the book, it is a must read!!! I can't wait to read it again!

After 6 epic novels, the tale of Harry Potter finally comes to a close in The Deathly Hallows. As a fervent Potter fan, this can be nothing but bittersweet. There are few living authors that can keep you engaged in the way J.K. Rowling can. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is a tremendous novel, a fitting conclusion to the end of one of the greatest stories of post-modern fiction.

J.K. Rowling is a unique author in that that, above all things, she is a storyteller. She doesn't delve into the deepest reaches of the human condition, questioning the metaphysical, or shed light on uncomfortable truths. She tells stories. Harry Potter, like the fairy tales that influenced her is a story of good and evil, the power of love and compassion persevering despite unthinkable obstacles and tragic loss. The formula has been done a million of times before, but she presents it in such a way that seems fresh and new. She goes through a conscious effort to tie emotional responses to the character's actions. There are times this comes across as overly melodramatic, but there is no denying it's effect. You care about Harry Potter and his comrades unlike few characters in post-modern fiction. The formula for a good story starts with an emotional attachment to the character's actions and reactions, and at this there is no denying her success.

The novel, like all her previous works, is written plainly. Sentences are short and succinct, dialog quick and snappy. This deliberately simplistic style causes the novel to flow effortlessly from one harrowing event to the next. The beauty is not in the language itself, but rather, in the fantastic plot it creates. There are some that credit this "simple" writing as catering to children, but this conclusion does Mrs. Rowling a grave disservice. True, this clearly isn't Joyce, but plain, simple, writing has its own charm and allure, she never lets the words get in the way of the story, and as a storyteller, this is paramount.

Compared to the previous Harry Potter novels, this is the most well-conceived since The Goblet of Fire. The action never lulls, like it does at times in The Half-Blood Prince, and throughout The Order of the Phoenix. The ending was conceived before she began book one, and this is apparent from the very beginning. Action starts from chapter one and remains consistent till the very end. The grim ending of The Half-Blood Prince is the perfect segway into The Deathly Hallows, as tragedy and struggle follow the characters every step of the way. To me, it seems that Mrs. Rowling struggled to get through books five and six because she had all of this amazing content bottled up for the epic final novel. She had to flesh out the events leading up to the end, but refrain from revealing her biggest plot twists and turns for the last full measure.

The novel does have it's faults, however. I believe she got overzealous in executing her characters. She wanted to portray that this is a war, and in war there are casualties, but she goes overboard. At times characters die for no apparent reason other than to raise the body count. She clearly does this emphisize the burden on Potter's shoulders, but she got a little carried away.

The novel, thankfully, explains all the previous mysteries that has plagued Harry for all of these years, and does so very elegantly. I hope this is the last we hear about Harry Potter and his comrades. Not because I don't want to hear about their future trials and tribulations, but like any good story, it must end. The story finally reaches its denouement, and anything else would serve to only tarnish it's greatness. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows is a testament to the power of good storytelling. While other author's try to mimic Hemingway and Faulkner, J.K. Rowling has a singular pursuit, to tell a great story, the fantastic tale of the Boy Who Lived, and at this, she has few equals.

This item is wonderful to add to ones collection.
My children enjoy listening to the Audio book as much as reading the book itself

The most action-packed book of the series-interesting histories of the Cullen family and Jacob's tribe members.

I love all of her books, this one is also a great read for many different reasons. I know other reviews in the past had a hard time warming up to Bella. I really liked her in the first two because she was young so I cut her a bit of slack with being indecisive and just not really knowing what was going on. In this book I feel like the maturity difference between Edward,Jacob(who's even younger than her) and Bella was a bit much. They seem so much older and self sacrificing and she just comes off acting very childishly. I guess I just wish she would man up a bit. It seems like every time she tries to be all self sacrificing and "brave" it's really just to admittedly manipulate one of the two guys. I guess we're just supposed to accept that she's just so freak'n great (even though she's kinda winey, and not that pretty) that the world revolves around here. Besides my problems with Bella this is a wonderful book and I can't wait to get into the 4th one to see how everything gets tied up. All of the other Characters are great, and Bella's not that bad I guess I just can't really identity with her.

The book was written well, but as other reviewers have stated this book is NOT for the middle aged man. This book seems more suited for teenage women. So I gave it a 4 star because the writing was hoever impressive.

I absolutely loved this book and of course, the entire series! They were absolutely incredible and I NEVER got to a point in the book that I didn't want to read more.

I love all the books and the author definatly got better at each book. Have recommended to friends and family and have loved them as well. Even though we do not fall into the "designed" graphic of teens, we are more like the author, and since she wrote it for herself I guess we fall into her graphic. Looking forward to the movie, looks like it may stick to the book close.

This is a wonderfully relaxing CD. The instructors voice is calm and soothing (with an intriguing accent) with instruction that is straightforward and easy to follow.

I am new to meditation and relaxation that I am developing with my yoga practice and I found this to be a valuable addition and if I do not haave time to set aside for a full session, I do find even giving myself a few moments is helpful.

I found this meditation to be forgettable. Long bouts of silence throughout. If I am going to pay for a CD, why would I want to pay for silence? Just not what I was looking for. Very little guided meditation. A lot of down time.

It could be that after reading the rave reviews I expected more, but I think this CD was mediocre and way over-priced.

The voice of Bodhipaksa is very calming to a stressed out mind and body.
I now use this meditation CD and another CD of his,Guided Meditations for Stress Reduction as a routine part of my life. They are and continue to be plesant and peaceful experience. It is my opinion that anyone would enjoy these CD's

As other reviews have stated - it is just the guy's voice... he has a very faint accent (somewhat Irish, but again - very faint). His delivery is unhurried, and smooth. No background music is both good and bad: it's great because if done poorly that can really be distracting... but if done well it does help, and can also block out background noises a little too. This CD will work best if you're fortunate enough to have absolute silence to work with... which for many of us simply isn't the case.

The breathing meditation is really good - you can really relax to it and he keeps your mind at rest nicely. The 2nd mdeitation is nice as well, and has some positive affirmations mixed in: a nice "feel good" meditation. the third is a "walking meditation"... I don't foresee using that one, but I do like the first two a lot, both in there own way are great.

I didn't plan on buying this CD at the time but somehow mistakenly or was it a mistake, I received this CD instead of what I thought I ordered. I am so grateful for the mistake I thought I made because I am learning with the use of this CD how to meditate and relax my thoughts everyday.

Wayne Dwyer is fabulous to listen to. He's got a lovely voice which is great for chanting as he leads you through this Meditation for Manifesting,

I love Wayne Dyer's books and watch his videos on youtube. So I expected a great deal from this CD. I really thought it would be a guided meditation for AM and PM. If this is what you are expecting you will be disappointed. The AM meditaion is 20 mins of literally "ah" being said over and over... and for the night meditation, 20 mins of "om" being said over and over. I could have recorded this myself and saved some $$. Buy his books but skip this CD.

Dr. Dyer's content is almost always right on. This version of his wisdom helped me to tap into a bigger conciousness and manifest my new novel. My own content was previously "out there" and his "Meditations..." helped me capture my story and channel it through my head and out my hands. The result is Uncle Juan's Cabin which is a dramatic, timely tale. It is entertaining and inspriational...just like Dr. Dyer's many works.

I have been using this CD for about 2 weeks now, mostly in the car on the way to work and on the way to pick up my kids from school. For the most part I enjoy the "Ah" meditations. Although Dr. Dyer's tonality is off at times, and that can be distracting, I enjoy the gentle reminders and directions. But I do have some problems with some of the affirmations that I find rather negative (ie: "My judgments prevent me from seeing the good that lies beyond appearances"). To make the most of the cd I no longer listen to the affirmations, instead I rewind back to the guided meditation and focus on my own affirmations for the day.

I was finally able to listen to the evening "Om" meditation and was very disappointed. The Om sound is fine, but the meditation itself disturbed me. It is very "God-oriented" and directs one to "find God within yourself" and really learn how to love God. As Dr. Dyer continues through the Om meditation he diverges from thankfulness and gratitude affirmations and begins to intersperse quotes from Meher Baba on the 12 ways of realizing God - Longing ("have the same longing and thirst for union with God as one who has been laying for days in the hot sun of the Sahara experiences the longing for water, then you will realize God."), Peace of Mind, Humility, Desperation ("if you experience the desperation that causes a man to commit suicide and you feel that you cannot live without seeing God, then you will see God"), Faith, Fidelity, Control Through Love, Selfless Service, Renunciation ("if you renounce for God everything physical, mental and spiritual then you have God"), Obedience, Surrender, Love ("if you have that love for me which St. Francis had for Jesus then not only will you realize God, but you will please God"). Then he finishes off with Shaloms.

I wish that a transcript of the CD had been provided or that more detailed information had been included in the "book description" as the evening meditation is definitely not about manifesting or even gratitude, but rather Meher Baba's religious philosophy. Dr. Dyer also states that this is not the way that he does this meditation every day, but then does not go on to explain how he does do it and we're left to wonder what the difference is.