Biography Books

This is one of the most violent books (an autobiography!) I ever read. It illustrates horrifyingly `that crime of crimes: making man the property of his fellow man.' It shows the horrendous `playing' field of blood and blasphemy, of flogging and callous skins, of hunger and nakedness, and even premeditated murder. `It was a common saying that it was worth a half-cent to kill a n.gger, and a half-cent to bury one.'

system: mental darkness, hypocritical religion
Forcing them to live in appalling living conditions (`nothing but a coarse tow linen shirt, reaching only to my knees, sleeping on a cold, damp, clay floor.'), the aim of the white man was to keep his slaves in mental darkness: `to make a contented slave, it is necessary to make a thoughtless one. It is necessary to darken his moral and mental vision and to annihilate the power of reason.'
The white man's barbaric behavior was justified by unacceptable religious Phariseism: `the religion of the south is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes, a dark shelter under which the darkest, foulest, grossest, and most infernal deeds of slaveholders find the strongest protection.'
F. Douglass poses the right question: `Does a righteous God govern the universe?' `He who proclaims it a religious duty to read the Bible denies me the right to read the name of God.'

freedom
All slaves dreamed of escaping to the free north, even at the risk of their lives, in order to earn a salary for themselves, to learn writing and reading and to live in decent living conditions.

This story, of which certain aspects are still very actual, reminds us of one of the darkest chapters in the history of mankind. It is told with unforgettable emotional lucidity and visualized with violent realistic scenes.
A must read.

This is more than an intellectual reading about slavery in America. It is a book that challenges the most basic assumptions we hold about justice, liberty, freedom, living out our faith, respect for human life and dignity. If the reader is honest, they will have to question their own prejudices as Douglass narrates his quest for freedom. Written well over a century ago, it is still essential reading if a white person is to be an educated American citizen. I recommend this book be read along with "Bullwhip Days: The Slaves Remember, An Oral History," by James Mellon.

PUCHASED THIS BOOK FOR CLASS BUT IT TURNED OUT TO BE A REAALY INTERESTING READ..

This book helped me to see the freedoms that I now have. It also taught me to follow my dreams with all my heart. "Give me liberty or give me death" What a true blessing to read about this great man of GOD.

I needed this book for an 11th grade summer assignment so I decided to purchase this version of the book. I loved how the price was good, and I loved the extra bits of information at the beginning of the book (like the timeline). I suggest anyone intrested in reading this book purchase this version...it definately was worth it!

This is an excellent memoir--written by the father of a 15-year old daughter about her descent into psychosis through bipolar disorder, and the impact on their extended, blended family. It is a very real look at mental illness, one that is not weepy or falsely brave--one of the best of the genre.

Michael Greenberg is a literary columnist whose community is one of writers and artists in New York's Greenwich Village. The setting may seem atypical to some readers, but the family's experiences are not. The book's strength is in the ordinary--the search for a "center of balance" that can be called recovery.

One summer, Sally, the daughter, is "struck mad" and hospitalized for several weeks. Upon discharge, she sets a goal of starting school in the fall, which she fulfills. But at no point is the achievement pre-ordained. Greenberg succeeds in conveying the step-by-step uncertainty that marked her treatment and recovery--a process that will recur throughout her life.

Coming together to support Sally are her grandmother, mother, step-mother, brother and of course, her father. Her illness becomes a prism through which their relationships are examined, exposing strengths, tensions, and fears.

Greenberg's description of life on a psychiatric ward is exceptional: marked by critical insight and occasionally dark humor. Families visiting loved ones on the ward are like passengers in train compartments, traveling the same route, but getting off at different destinations, and rarely exchanging addresses.

When Sally leaves the psych ward, the nurses tell her: "You made it, girl" and "We don't to see you here again a girl"--an encouragement that also signals stigma for those who may be left behind. Her brother is more explicit: drawing a line of distinction between her and "those people" and warning against the risk of becoming an "eternal mental patient." He argues for keeping her experience a secret.

Sally herself wonders what to say when she returns to school and people ask her what she did for the summer. The vulnerability of "getting out" and "getting better," is nicely described. It is a process that requires a higher level of self-awareness and self scrutiny and in some respects, self-definition. Places from "before" are "like visiting myself in a museum." Ultimately there is "the lunch counter test," in which she can sit in a public place, without worrying that people will "detect" her mental illness.

Sally goes back to school. In the epilogue, we learn that she graduated with honors from high school, but withdrew from college after a relapse. She later married, but separated after her third major relapse. She then works as a baker in Vermont.

"She is wry about herself and courageous even during her periods of retreat and loss," Greenberg writes. "She is determined to learn to anticipate her worst bouts of psychosis and head them off before they overwhelm her." When Sally learned that father was writing a book about her, she also told him: "I want you to use my real name." Overall, the book strikes a significant blow against the stigma that traditionally has surrounded mental illness.

I have not finished this book yet, but felt I would write the review anyway. I highly recommend this book, especially for those who want a glimpse at mental illness.

The writer's style flows and is easy to read and yet conveys complicated mental health and family issues in a way that I feel as though I know them.

It is a captivating read. I can't wait to have more time so that I can finish it and see what becomes of his daughter and family.

Hurry Down Sunshine is a gritty, realistic and true story of how a man's daughter went mad and then was treated by the most modern techniques and pharmaceuticals. One is made to see and experience the fact that even though the most modern techniques and pharmaceuticals were used, they aren't very sophisticated at all. The drugs knock people out and make them completely dysfunctional. The author proves that when he takes a dose of his daughter's medicine and tells what he experiences. The techniques include a triple-locked ward and a rubber room, things out of the nightmares of the past. This true story is affecting and sad and the author gives us every detail so we can see for ourselves.

I have a childhood friend who was struck mad suddenly when she was 18, but she didn't get the understanding and treatment that this man's daughter received. Her life ran off the tracks and stayed off the tracks. I regret that no one was there for her, to make sure she got treatment. I recommend this book to all who have had experiences with madness, in themselves as well as in loved ones, and also to care providers for the mentally ill.

Michael Greenberg wrote "Hurry Down Sunshine" to chronicle the year 1996 - when his 15 year old daughter, Sally, was struck with a severe psychosis caused by mania induced by Bipolar 1 disease, and had to be hospitalized. This text allows us an insight into mania that is unique in its thoroughness - allowing us to see the repercussions this disease has on all those around Sally.

Married to his second wife, Pat, Michael had already grown up with a brother who was a borderline personality and has taken care of his brother for years. To have his daughter suddenly struck mad as well is almost more than he can take at times.

Among the other patients in the hospital at the same time are an Orthodox Jew, whose family considers him in closer touch with God, a woman who is convinced that she cannot use her legs (although on several occasions she stands up from her wheelchair and walks around just fine - until someone points out to her that she is walking, at which point she will collapse), and a Classics professor who is also suffering from mania.

This book will be invaluable to anyone who is learning to deal with mental illness. I can definitely recommend it as a great read - I devoured it in little more than a day.

The author tells the story of his daughter's first psychotic episode in the summer of 1996. Throughout, he intertwines it with other stories such as that of his relatively new marriage, the leftovers of his divorce, his interactions with his brother, who is also mentally ill, his landlord, and other people he meets in the hospital, as well as with historical and literary reflections on madness (he spends a fair amount of time discussing James Joyce's daughter). The result is an effective and moving mosaic that describes not only his summer but also something about the human condition.

The writing is particularly excellent, neither shying away from emotional topics nor particularly overwrought. There is no "moral"--stories are dropped (we never find out the longer-term fate of the brother, for example) or left open-ended. When the author doesn't know how to evaluate something, he leaves it open ended. The decision of the author and his wife to have a child toward the end of the story thus seems neither triumphant nor foolhardy--just an event. If the story is at all optimistic, it is in the sense it leaves with us that crises are weathered as best they can be and that human life goes on, independently of our inability to predict the future.

I loved this. If you liked any of the usual books people read about the onset of severe mental illness (Darkness Visible, The Bell Jar, etc.) you should enjoy this as well.

This book is a great book, very eye opening and wonderfully written.

I have to wondering though, throughout the book, what is going through the author's mind...

He complains that the police treated them poorly. They were CRIMINALS. If they weren't up to no good at that SPECIFIC point in time, they were ABOUT to do something terrible or definitely had already DONE something terrible.

I don't understand how the author calls the police... "rioting police... in a murderous frenzy..." HELLO, you were doing illegal drugs in a public place, your friends stole something from a liquor store, then a mob started banging on the doors of the liquor store to let them in - am I missing something? Can you really blame the police for acting as they did? You just committed several crimes! The police were doing there job and acting defensively when KNOWN gang members committed crimes...

Then the author complains that he was thrown into an adult jail cell, with murderers and rapists, despite being a juvenile and too young to be in that specific jail. OK, fine, but earlier in the book, he was talking about hanging OUT with FRIENDS of his while they were RAPING UNCONSCIOUS WOMEN. He had SHOT people before, held guns to innocent peoples' heads during robberies. WHY IS BEING SURROUNDED BY MURDERERS AND RAPISTS *SUDDENLY* SO offensive to him? He wasn't old enough to be in an adult facility, but he was old enough to do drugs, drive illegally, drink illegally, commit robberies at gun point. Who is the author kidding? He acts like the police somehow treated him so badly but he DESERVED it. He was a criminal! The worst kind of criminal.

i was intrigued by this book when i saw it in the store so i bought it. it was very educational for me as i never knew how bad things would really get in gang life. i grew up in the burbs and this was all very shocking to me. it was truthful, sad and awakening.

What more is needed to say about this memoir? This is singlehandedly one of the most powerful memoirs I have ever read and that goes without saying. I was born and raised in the San Gabriel Valley, the same one that Rodriguez builds and describes and I can honestly say he is completely spot on. About? Everything. The racial, identity, and sexual struggle that Rodriguez weaves in this story is compelling and really grabbed me and immersed me into his life. This memoir says what there is to be said, and it says a lot.

I had no choice when it came to reading this book. It was after all, required in my college english class in order to survive the masses of quizzes and essays. But I will say that although I did not want to read this book at first, once I read the first couple pages I was hooked. I no longer wanted to read it just because it was required, now I was reading it for pleasure. Although the book is strongly graphic especially on the sex parts, it is done in a most tasteful manner. As a young latina born and raised in America, I was very touched by what my people had gone through in the past, and it is knowledge I had ignored taking the liberty I have now for granted. I really recommend this book if you're up to take a good dose of eye opener.

I heard this book was good, but didn't know how good it actually was until I read it. There isn't a dull page.

What's most alarming about the book is not necessarily the events that take place, as many movies about this lifestyle have been made since the book's first publishing, sort of numbing the harsh realities of gang life to even outsiders who grew up in secluded suburbs, but the age that Luis Rodriguez actually is when the events are taking place. Some of the day to day drama described in the book is so adult like that you can only picture the subjects of these tales being 18 to 25 years old, yet the reader is often reminded that the author was as young as 14 when some of them took place.

What may also separate the stories told in this book from the stories told in typical 1990s west coast gang folklore, from hip hop to film to books like 'Monster', is the sexual situations Mr. Rodriguez describes that he took part in and witnesses, again, in some cases as young as 14. Some are romantic, and almost remind the reader of a time when romance was first discovered in their lives, yet there are some that are so disturbing that the reader is quickly brought down to earth, reminded that love and romance in a violent, drug infested environment is far different from the kind most Americans have grown to know, that is dictated by Hollywood fairy tales.

Luis Rodriguez finding his outlet from the gang life through art and writing could give hope to any current gang member who happens upon this book. It's one thing for a suburban high school teacher to tell a 'homeboy' that he can express his views through art, it's another for an older 'homeboy' himself to tell him.

A must read for everyone, from suburbanites with little knowledge of the gang life who would like another version than that given by media outlets and law enforcement agencies, where the knowledge tends to be limited to crime reporting and identification of territories and monikers, to kids and adults wrapped up in the gang life, and just looking for any story that can inspire them or give them some kind of direction to a better life.

For those who are familiar with Anthony Flew and his work, this should be a very interesting book. Flew is a renowned philosopher who, for most of his life, argued clearly and (for many) persuasively against the existence of God. This book is the story of how he changed his mind and came to believe that God must exist. Flew's influence among atheists has been so strong that many of them have been scandalized by his change of mind. Some have gone so far at to allege that Flew did not write this book, is suffering from some sort of dementia (because of his age), and is being taken advantage of by others. I think that there is very little reason to believe these accusations unless you have a strong vested interest in atheism. An internet search on Flew's name and words like "dementia" or reading the other reviews on Amazon.com and the comments on them will give you details of the controversy.

The book is well written for the general reader and more of a story of Flew's intellectual journey than an apologetic work. In the first appendix, Roy Varghese responds directly to Flew's atheist critics. There is also a second appendix written by N. T. Wright giving a very interesting summary of his Christian approach to the question of how God reveals himself in the form of a human being who is resurrected after death. Flew does not seem committed to Christianity but says that Wright's approach is absolutely fresh and impressive. I agree. I highly recommend this book.

There have been some hysterical and ill-informed postings on various atheist blogs and websites about Antony Flew's rejection of atheism, and particularly his recent book There is a God (co-authored and edited by Roy Abraham Varghese - Harper One, 2007). Suggestions have been made that Flew is now senile and being exploited by Christians. 'Don't read this book!' shouts one atheistical blogger. Well, I have read the book, and I find it lucid and compelling. Much of it has been compiled by Varghese from Flew's published and unpublished writings and interviews, but every page has been checked and signed off by Flew himself, as he has made perfectly clear in print. I personally found some of Varghese's short editorial links a bit off for their jarring Americanisms, but they seem not to have bothered Flew. There are two appendices: one by Varghese himself and the other by Bishop Tom Wright, to whom I incidentally owe my own reconsideration of Christian claims. Both are excellent. Some critics have made a fuss about the cringe-making subtitle of the book, but that does not seriously detract from its value. I'm sure it was not Flew's choice, and I doubt that Varghese was responsible. Blame the publisher!

Two things can be added: firstly, Flew's dissatisfaction with Dawkins is long-standing. In Darwinian Evolution, published in 1984 when he was still a Vice President of the Rationalist Press Association (RPA), Flew described The Selfish Gene as a "major exercise in popular mystification", adding "Dawkins labours to discount or depreciate the main upshot of fifty or more years work in genetics" and he gives examples of this trend. In a further passage, Flew agrees with some trenchant criticisms of the book previously made by philosopher Mary Midgley (Gene Juggling, in Philosophy, October 1979 - see also her Selfish Genes and Social Darwinism in Philosophy for 1983). These paragraphs have been largely included in There is a God, showing that Flew's rejection of Dawkins's Selfish Gene hypothesis, echoed by many scientists and philosophers since it was first published, is not a new departure, but a long-standing, widely-shared and well-founded objection. They expose the fundamental flaws in Dawkins's theory, which undermine almost everything he has written since. His central dogma that "we are survival machines - robot vehicles blindly programmed to preserve the selfish molecules known as genes" removes any possibility of personal responsibility - for anything. We are simply the puppets of our genes. What a perfect excuse for all malefactors, including child rapists and murderers like Ian Brady, Ian Huntley and Roy Whiting: "It was them genes what dunnit, Guv!" An excuse, perhaps: but hardly a comfort. Dawkins was properly rebuked on Irish television when he said: "I'm not interested in freewill." How could there be any such thing in his worldview?

A second point: Barry Duke, editor of Britain's atheist monthly 'The Freethinker', has informed me by email that he has met Antony Flew (presumably some time back - he doesn't say) and he insists - without giving any reasons - "The man's an idiot". It would be interesting to know whether this opinion is based on Flew's views and writings while he was still a Vice President of the RPA, and the most prominent atheist philosopher in Britain, or whether it is a knee-jerk reaction, based on Flew's more recent rejection of the atheism which he had espoused for almost half a century. Well, I can tell you, dear readers, that I have also met Antony Flew (only once, in 1996 at an Oxford conference where we each presented a paper, and then socialised afterwards), and I have also read - over a 40 year period - practically all his published work. I can assure you that the man was not an idiot then, and neither is he an idiot now; though his memory, at 84, is admittedly not what it was. I was, incidentally, a Director of the RPA from 1989 to 1998, as well as (briefly) President of the National Secular Society (1996-97).

This book is mostly a narrative account of the process that Antony Flew followed first to become an atheist, and then to become a believer in God. It even has an appendix chapter by a Christian apologist discussing philosophical reasons for belief in Jesus. Flew admits he does not go that far, but he is open as he has shown, to changing his mind.

The book is unusual on many levels. Not many people make drastic, even 180 degree changes in core philosophy past their twenties, much less into their eighties. Most people are pretty well set in their ways by that eightieth birthday or so. It is also remarkable because of the notoriety of Flew as a philosopher; he's not just some guy flipping pizzas who suddenly heard a voice- he's a guy who's thought about this a lot and for a long time. Finally it's remarkable just from the sheer span of years the history covers. Much of Flew's academic life overlapped with Lewis and other well known philosophers of bygone eras, but has continued right up to the present. The book explains some philosophy, not on any overly intricate level, but more as a complement to personal history where most of the philosophy is detailed only to the level necessary to explain his extraordinary change of view.

One thing probably bothering many reviewers is the ghost writer, but after all Flew is 84, and certainly isn't the first person, young or old, to have a writer. The other thing is probably the fact that a lot of the new developments in microbiology along with some of the work from Intelligent Design had a big (although not necessarily primary) role in Flew's metamorphosis.

I enjoyed much of the charm that carried over from his era. For instance he describes the courtship of his wife, noting that he never attempted to seduce her before marriage. I smiled at how arcane that sounded, although it was a sad, bittersweet smile.

In summary, the philosophical arguments in this book are meant to be illustrative more than comprehensive, but they are well written and worthwhile. The more important point is the life itself, and I hope that it is still a work in progress. In any case, it's a remarkable story and a remarkable life.

I have heard Antony Flew's name many times over the years, because every time that I would read about a Christian apologist, it seemed that Antony Flew's name would come up as his atheist antagonist. So you can imagine my surprise when I opened my newspaper in December 2004 and read the news that Antony Flew had changed his mind and decided that he DID believe in God. What a Christmas gift to the Christian world! But what it really true? I later read that while Flew now believes in God, he has not accepted Christianity. I wondered, what caused this change, and where was he now in his thinking?
Thus I read Flew's new book There Is A God, with great interest to know what caused such an outspoken atheist scholar to change his mind. I was not disappointed.
While the book is only 160 pages (plus two appendices by other authors), it is thorough and deep in its content. Flew tells his own story of how he, the son of a Methodist minister in Britain, became an atheist out of disillusionment with how God could allow evil, particularly as he saw the atrocities in Nazi Germany in World War II. Flew went on to become a professor of philosophy and a writer of many influential books espousing atheism, teaching in universities in Great Britain, Canada, and finally in the United States, where he now resides. He followed the thinking of skeptics like David Hume, arguing that we must presume atheism is true and believers must prove there is a God.
So how did this atheist scholar convert to theism? Flew explains that one belief he has always held led to the change-- his belief in the words of Socrates: "We must follow the argument wherever it leads." (p. 22). As he debated and argued the issues with Christians, he gradually changed his mind as he "followed the argument" for three basic reasons, which form three of the chapters of the book:
1) The laws of nature indicate they were designed by the Mind of God. Flew quotes Paul Davies: "even the most atheistic scientist accepts as an act of faith the existence of a lawlike order in nature" (p. 107).
2) The finely-tuned universe that delicately balances life indicates it was designed by a Creator for us. He points out, for example, that if the speed of light or the mass of an electron had been the slightest degree different, then no planet would be capable of human life (p. 115).
3) The origin of life itself, with the amazingly complex communication systems of DNA cannot be explained by materialistic evolution, and only make sense if designed by God.
In addition to these three major reasons, Flew also cites the big-bang theory as scientific evidence that the universe had a beginning (p. 136). As for the problem of evil, Flew leaves the question open, but prefers the popular Christian explanation that "evil is always a possibility if human beings are truly free" (p. 156).
So has Antony Flew become a Christian? The best answer is not yet, but he is leaning that way. He says, "I am entirely open to learning more about the divine" (p. 156) and then he expresses his admiration for the person of Jesus Christ and the intellect of the apostle Paul, saying that if you want an omnipotent God "to set up a religion, it seems to me that this is the one to beat!" (p. 157).
The book has an appendix by Roy Abraham Varghese, giving a critique of the "new atheism" of bold writers such as Richard Dawkins. Appendix A is good, but even better is Appendix B by N. T. Wright, which explains why we should believe in Jesus Christ. Wright convincingly argues for belief in the authenticity of the Gospel accounts of the resurrection of Jesus Christ in a way that impresses Flew himself as "absolutely fresh." (p. 213).
I would agree. As much as I enjoyed Flew's book, I must say that Appendix B by N.T. Wright was worth the price of the book. My prayer is that Antony Flew will finally follow the argument of Wright as it leads him to embrace the claims of Jesus Christ on his life.

Never having encountered a book by the "world's most assertive astrophysicist" nor one by the "world's zaniest zoologist", Flew's subtitle came as something novel. Compounded by the fact that i'd never heard of him - my not being a scholar in "atheism" - it would have been easy to pass this by as a crank's production. However, at the insistence of some respected colleagues, i was impelled to give it a look. It's difficult to impart what a stunning waste of time this little tome proved to be.

It's bad form to chide a man's account of his own life. After all, he's the one who lived it. However, even his account of his early life exhibits some glaring omissions. Raised by a Methodist family - his father was a Cambridge tutor in the sect - Antony went off to a boys' school for his secondary education. There, as a "unenthusiastic Christian", his faith eroded away - mostly due to the "wearying ritual" he encountered at Chapel. That's it. No other fundamental reason is given for his atheism, which he successfully concealed from his parents for many years. After some erratic efforts to become a philosophical scholar, Flew produced a paper, "Theology and Falsification", upon which he built his career. The "Falsification" bit was supposed to indicate his interest in science, and his desire to follow where the evidence might lead. If the remainder of the book is any indication, somebody changed the pointers along the track and Flew arrived at some never-never land.

As a "philosopher", of course, Flew need not be held to a fixed position once taken. He recounts his readings in philosophy and the encounters he had with notable people in the field. None of it, however, is used to expound on his self-professed lack of faith. Issues of gods, the universe, life or the world, never arise in this account. At least not until he attempts to explain his "conversion" - which is a bumbling failure.

To open his segment on "My Discovery of the Divine", Flew provides an update of Paley's "watch on the heath" concept, in this case with a satellite 'phone! From this, he works up a succession of ancient, weary arguments about Nature exhibiting "design" - Paley's contention, which Darwin ably dismissed over a century ago. Flew, apparently, has not caught up with the times. Worse, Flew also adopts Paley's notion of Nature's organisms having evolved for a "purpose". If ever an argument has been dispelled by science, teleology stands high in ranking. It's astounding to see anybody propose that fallacy in these times.

Along with these gaffes, Flew actually dredges up the old comparison about the odds of life emerging from material processes with the "monkeys typing the works of Shakespeare" fallacy. No greater misunderstanding of evolutionary biology could be displayed. There are those who claim that Flew was entering dementia when this book was written. While that remains unproveable, his lack of knowledge in fields relating to his arguments is glaring. Yet, he has no problem with out-of-context or irrelevant quotes being sprinkled throughout the text. His mental state is of no consequence, but it would have been kinder to himself and unsuspecting readers to have kept this empty dissertation under wraps. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Mr. Cowell was a reporter for the New York Times when he covered the sensational murder of former KGB spy Alex Litvinenko in London. The book occassionally packs too much information in its attempt to be conprehensive for the "true crime" reader, but otherwise it is quite readable. While the Russians were clumsy in their murder which the author illustrtes with the ease the police unravel and trace the nuclear poison, the book can not say with certainity who ordered the murder (there are no dearth of suspects). A good beach read for the summer.

This is a page turner, a "can't put down" thriller of the London murder of Alexander Litvinenko on November 1, 2006. Thoroughly researched, carefully thought through, all its nuances and angles and dark pockets are explored and analysed leaving the reader satisfied but wide awake at night suffering from the heebie jeebies.

What if you lives in a country where, if you are a woman, you have a 1 in 12 chance of dying in childbirth? What if you are expected to have three, four, five children? What if a complication means being bundled on the back of a moped and being driven fast to the nearest larger village, where the nearest real medical care is?

The author of this fine book, Kris Holloway, spent 2 years with the Peace Corps living in a remote village in Mali. This story is the amazing tale of her friendship with Monique, a midwife who - although only 3 years her senior - was the only medical care most people in her village would ever see.

The story progresses from Kris' early moments being drawn in by Monique's personality and dedication, to an unexpected conclusion that is all too common in the world of Monique. A book I was prepared to not enjoy, I found myself drawn into it. With the plot structure a total shambles, with time jumping months in a matter of sentences with no warning, the book rather focuses in on Monique and her situation. A relatively short book at 200 pages, it successfully paints the picture of a woman who is fully aware of her situation as midwife in a sub-Saharan African village, and faces that with a striking combination of fatalistic acceptance and entrepreneurial will to change the fate of women in her village.

This story should be read by all Westerners, if only to contrast the sanitized birthing process we experience with the trials found in most of the rest of the world.

Monique and the Mango Rains is the moving account of Kris Holloway's experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer in Mali, West Africa, assisting Monique Dembele, the area's local midwife and medical worker. In the crippling poverty of Mali, Monique and Kris work to help Mali's women and children in times of medical distress. From the birthing of babies to relationship counselling, fending off disease and infection to nutrition education, Monique labors ceaselessly and tirelessly. Her work builds a reputation far and wide that draws women from distant villages seeking her expert help. Kris, while adapting to her harsh environment, becomes more than just an assistant to Monique, experiencing with her the joy of her work and her relationships with the local women. She shares the anguish and disappointment of Monique's life outside the clinic and the close bond of her host family in Africa, becoming a friend to this inspiring woman. As Monique and Kris work to bring education and information to the women, they must broach sensitive topics like birth-control, AIDS, and abolishment of female circumcision. These topics, foreign to the local women, directly affect the survival of the community, and they work tirelessly to educate and inform the women while still dealing with the malnutrition, illness, and injury that besiege them every day.

The candid portrayal of life in the small village was very informative and interesting. I learned a great deal about the regions politics, the African society, and the general day to day existence of the small provincial village. The backbreaking work that the community must endure to prepare for the seasonal rains that fortify their village was explained in rich detail, making the story of the community's struggle for their survival come alive to the reader. Every hand is needed to plant and harvest the life giving crops that will sustain the villagers in the dry season. Monique's inexhaustible commitment to her patients and to her family was awe-inspiring. Her work to repair the birthing house, her bi-weekly weighing of babies, and her educational instruction to mothers for the care of their children was invaluable to the women of her community. Monique's story, though inspirational, was also fraught with sadness. The relationship between her and her husband, who she only calls le gars (the guy) is upsetting and one-sided. While Monique provides the money, care and stability, her husband takes and takes from her, never realizing the treasure that he is entrusted with. Monique works long and trying hours at the clinic, barely scraping by financially, with her young son tied to her back. Though at times the story was sad, there were real moments of joy and laughter throughout this book, from the triumphant birth of twins in an area where a double birth is almost unheard of, to Monique's musings on an airplane ride, I found myself smiling and laughing with Kris and Monique. Monique and Kris's friendship continued even after Kris's time in the peace corps ended, and straddled two different continents and many years.

This was a remarkable story of a remarkable woman. It encompassed the difficulties, differences and uniqueness of African culture that goes unnoticed by most Americans. I found Monique to be a fascinating woman who gave her heart and soul to the people who relied on her for their daily survival. This book was written in part to document the work that Kris did at Monique's side, but more than this, it was written as a homage to her great friend Monique. Monique truly touched Kris's life, and upon reading this book, I found she touched mine as well. Wonderful book, highly recommended.

Kris Holloway spent two life-changing years in Mali, West Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer. Monique and the Mango Rains is her memoir of that time, of the people she met, and the country she grew to love.

Holloway, twenty-two years old, fresh out of college and hailing from Ohio, was assigned to the village of Nampossela in southeastern Mali. Her host, the person she would shadow for two years and with whom she would develop a remarkable friendship, was the village health care worker and midwife Monique Dembele.

This book educated me about so many aspects of Mali - the culture, it's political climate, the economy - never once losing my attention or becoming tedious. In fact, I was hooked from the first page. I attribute this to the author's love of the country and its people. Even though her focus in this book is Monique and the villagers, it is obvious that Holloway was an exceptional person in the ease with which she adapted to life in Nampossela. She picked up the language quickly, had relatively few complaints about the lack of ammenities and physical comforts, and was in general open to the experience, embracing the beauty and simplicity of this extraordinary existence.

Above all else, Monique and the Mango Rains is a tribute to its title character. Monique was regal and intelligent, wise beyond her 24 years, with an easy-going sense of humor. She was compassionate and kind, dedicated to her work, despite its frustrations and the toll it took on her own life. Overworked and underpaid, she worked at the dilapidated village clinic with her infant son strapped to her back. The resources available to health care were scarce and educating the villagers often meant contradicting a patrilineal cultural tradition in which women were not free to control their own destiny where health and reproductive issues were concerned.

Holloway's descriptions made Mali come alive. She painted a richly hued picture of the village of Nampossela. When she described the oily chunks of mudfish that accompanied one meal, I could see and smell them. My skin crawled when a seven-inch long, jet black scorpion fell from an item of clothing she was about to put on one morning. I felt emotionally invested in this story, drawn to keep reading but not wanting it to end. I ached for her when her Peace Corps assignment came to an end and it was time to say good-bye to Monique and the villagers. While Holloway recounted holding back tears on her last day in Nampossela, mine were flowing freely.

I am so glad that Kris Holloway decided to write this memoir of her two years in Mali, and that she did it so masterfully. It touched my heart, and changed the way I see the world ... and I can't stop thinking about Monique.

I so enjoyed reading this book. My daughter was in Mali with the PC 10 yrs after Kris so I had a different perspective than the average reader. We so need to appreciate the health care we have in America, as flawed as it sometimes is. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who is thinking of going into the health care field or anyone who is thinking of going into a third world country.

As a social scientist working with, and on, indigenous people's issues I read a lot of contemporary ethnographies. Most that I read are largely out of date by the time they reach publication. This is simply because of the nature of the discipline: taking time to do the fieldwork, writing up the manuscript, finding a willing publisher, and the overall book production process all take time. As a result, in a world that changes by the day, more often then not when an ethnography is finally published the material within it is often dated. Social scientists have tried to work around this disciplinary "time drag" by focusing on particular cultural phenomena rather then looking at the culture itself as a whole. Monique and the Mango Rains is an example of one of these modern ethnographies, where the central focus of the book is on midwifery and childbirth in Mali, and the Minianka indigenous people and culture are more part of the contextual background then the actual focus of the book.

Focusing on Fatumata - the author Kris Holloway's Malian name - and her Peace Corps experience among the Minianka indigenous peoples in Mali's southeastern region near the Burkina Faso border, the book is a deeply personal narrative about the rhythms of West African life and death. The Minianka (also known as the Mamara, Miniyanka, Minya, Mianka, Minyanka, or Tupiire) are an indigenous group speaking a northern Senufo language used by about 700,000 people in southeastern Mali and northwestern Burkina Faso. Mali is one of the economically poorest countries in the world - the average Malian earns roughly the equivalent of $210 US dollars per year. Compounding this extreme level of poverty is the fact that very few people in Mali have electricity, running water, telephones, or access to modern healthcare. Most women are married by the age of eighteen and have an average of seven children - the risk of death during childbirth and pregnancy is among the top ten in the world. It is here, in the remote southeastern corner of Mali that the author was stationed for two years, and where she met and befriended the local village midwife, Monique Dembele.

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The relationship between Fatumata and Monique is what makes this book succeed as it offers a unique glimpse into the day-to-day lives of the Minianka indigenous people and their contemporary struggles. The rarity of this glimpse is that we are given access to a component of Minianka life not often shared with the outside world - the inner realm of womanhood, midwifery, and childbirth. "I couldn't believe that here, in this dilapidated box, Monique, with a sixth-grade education and nine months of medical training, was birthing babies. Lots of babies" (Holloway 2007: 8). However, as we learn, not only was Monique the midwife - and thus responsible for the future of her village - but she was also a doctor and respected elder. The larger role that Monique played in her village is revealed in the deeply personal narratives presented throughout the book. For example, several times throughout the book Monique confides in Fatumata about her struggles and frustrations: Monique told Fatumata, "He has had many attacks of malaria over the past few months. It has caused severe anemia, and now diarrhea. He is also malnourished. The mother didn't know what to do. She had not heard about malaria prevention and drugs. ... I can do nothing. I don't have IVs. I don't have serum. These women must bring me their children before they get so sick, then I have ways of helping them" (Holloway 2007: 30-31).

Broken into thirteen chapters, the book chronicles Fatumata's relationship with Monique during several important cultural events for the Minianka indigenous peoples: the building of a new birthing hut, governmental revolution in Mali, and the death and birth of several community members. Filling an important gap within the contemporary literature dealing with indigenous peoples in West Africa, Monique and the Mango Rains is the perfect book for undergraduate classes, applied researchers and activists, or simply the interested reader.

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Indigenous Peoples Issues & Resources
http://indigenouspeoplesissues.com

I picked up this book after my wife and I started a group reading with my son of the book; "We Beat the Streets." "We Beat the Streets" book was written by the same authors but geared toward a younger crowd (suggested ages 9 to 15y/o). The pact was a great book as a source of inspiration. Being an African American male near the same age range, I was able to relate to at least one aspect of each of the three guys. At points where Rameck had a chip on his shoulder and struggle to put the anger behind him I related to that anger when confronted by unfair situations and judgmental people throughout college. Times when set backs occurred related to bad choices, an ill family member, or failing to pass a critical exam on the first try reminded me how as a young black male you feel like you're on the edge of falling of track at any given moment. Regardless of race and sex when you spear-headed the family into a new level of educational/professional success you will feel the weight of a lot of dreams and hopes placed on your shoulders daily. Often as a young man I felt times where I just didn't want to deal with that kind of pressure.

This story reminded me that it is important to stay focused and move through the rough periods in order to be in a position to help friends and loved ones. By example let them know that they can achieve there goals/dreams.

Two key factors in this story will continue to give me the courage to move forward. Never forget the 3 D's; Discipline, Determination, and Dedication. Always remember that choosing the right friends may mean the difference between success and failure in my life's goals. Friends are crucial when faced with situations in life that are difficult. I am proud to say that my wife is my best friend with an ear to listen. As I pursue my second master's degree my thoughts turn to adding to my list of goals a doctorate. Thank you Doctors Davis, Jenkins, and Hunt for this wonderful gift of brotherly love!

I give this book a, 5 out of 5 stars. If you're a Dad it's a must read with your son or daughter. All they see is the man you are now; let them know that God, Faith, and loving relationships got you where you are today!!

This book was meant for any child, teen, man or woman, who are living today without hope for a better future. The pact is about a brotherly commitment between friends to achieve their life long dreams. The reason that I use the word brotherly is because their pact was only as strong as the weakest of them. They became like family in support of one another and diligently worked together to achieve their dreams.

This book is a must read for every African-American male, no, not only Africian-American males, but any young man that has felt that the odds were stacked up against him. The message is: all things are possible if you keep striving.

This is a great book to read. Being originally raised in Jersey City and Newark at the same time the writers were; it just proves that if young people put their mind to it, they can accomplish great things!

This book served as an excellent Read - Aloud for my middle school students in grades 6 - 8. I read excerpts from the book about each person and the students were in awe about the struggles and obstacles that these young men had to overcome. It was dripping with real life situations and real life solutions.

There are many editions of James Joyce's "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" available, but this is easily the best Kindle edition. The text is based on Chester Anderson's 1964 text. There are also a good number of annotations by Seamus Deane--fewer than in Anderson's Viking Critical edition but sometimes more detailed and aimed at a less scholarly audience. best of all, this edition is a very well constructed ebook, with a good table of contents to facilitate navigation to the beginning of chapters and with an excellent implementation of endnotes. Annotated items are marked witha superscripted number that links to the endnotes. The notes are all placed together, so you can read other notes rather than having to go back to the main text to go to other notes.

All in all, this is the best Kindle edition of Joyce's classic. The text is based on a standard version, the notes are helpful, and the implementation highlight the advantages of the Kindle format.

After having just finished reading Ulysses (and loving it) I decided it would be rewarding if I read 'A Portrait' next in order to delve further into Stephen Dedalus' character. (Moreover, I had also just finished reading Ellmann's famous biography of Joyce and felt inspired to read Joyce's own semi-autobiography). Unfortunately I was extremely disappointed with the dry, tedious narrative tone that Joyce adopted in writing his novel, especially within the overdrawn third chapter in which we learn the terrors of hell and damnation. Yes, I know the sermon sequence had great significance in Stephen's development from the primordial muck of biological existence to the more rarefied air of the soul, of human conscience and (above all) of the powers of artistic creativity. Nevertheless I found my thoughts wandering elsewhere when I was reading this book and many times I had to re-read whole pages because I had realized I was just reading the words without absorbing their content. While Ulysses drew me immediately into the consciousness of Bloom and Dedalus, 'A Portrait' was bland, cold and uninviting. I felt by the end of "A Portrait" that I was solely reading the book because it was Joyce and because it was deemed a classic. Perhaps I ruined A Portrait by reading Joyce's masterpiece first. Even if Ulysses can seem (at times) even more glacially abstract and opaque to the reader than A Portrait, Ulysses at least challenges you in such a way that you want to understand more about the text (its various allusions, its satire, its narrative experimentation, ect). I do not feel compelled to read A Portrait again, in fact (in the process of writing this review) I now feel compelled to re-read Ulysses and perhaps even Finnegan's Wake.

I don't know where to start. It's pretty difficult to review a book in which nothing takes place. This book lacks... well, just about everything. It lacks half a sentence of substance. Nothing in the story is connected; I read the book and wondered, "What is this about? What was the story?" Actually, I have a confession to make: I didn't actually read the book in its entirety; I read the first half and was so disgusted by it that I had to read the summaries for the rest of the chapters online. It is that bad.

Normally I listen to other people's opinions but I am making it a fact in my mind that this book is the worst book I have ever read. If you disagree, you are wrong. That is how terrible this book was. It was a complete waste of my money. It was required reading for school. I always read the books regardless of whether I like them or not, only reading summaries after finishing to make sure I understood the whole story. This is the first book I have ever relied on reviews to finish. My teacher worhips this book but there is nothing good about it. If anybody can explain to me what this book is about in a way that makes sense, I will give them ten dollars.

So far, everyone in my school has failed to explain it to me. This book is everything Flowers for Algernon tries to be (that's not a good thing).

As many do, I read this in preparation for tackling Ulysses, in which Stephen Dedalus makes a return appearance. This has been called Joyce's most accessible work, however I found Dubliners faster paced reading personally.

The style of the book changes as the title character matures from a young child to a young man. The part that affected me most was the episode at school where, after he has fallen to immoral ways, a speech is given on Hell that is as riveting and detailed as Dante's Inferno. The fiery pits are described as an abomination across all the senses, where not just pain from sensory touch is there but in smell, sight, taste, hearing - and quite effectively described.

Stephen's subsequent change after confession and struggle to achieve harmony with God is inspiring even given the eventual outcome of that attempt.

The latter part of the book bogs down considerably as it falls into philosophical debates on questions that many a young (and old) person ponders. The ending is hopeful but uncertain.

"marooned"--an utterly wrenching and boundlessly suggestive term to describe the situation of the young artist.

Here Ingrid Rowland continues to demonstrate her profound mastery of the society and space of sixteenth-century Rome. Unlike most other accounts, Rowland emphasizes Bruno's role as a writer and shows that his fiery death at the stake in the Campo de' Fiori provoked change in the policy of the Roman Inquisition's treatment of intellectuals. I admire most of all Rowland's ability to bring forth vivid details from Bruno's beginnings in Naples, from his travels through France, England and even to the Frankfurt book fair, and from his obstinate conclusions both religious and scientific. She does much to humanize both Bruno and his chief prosecutor, Cardinal Bellarmine, and in the end suggests how science and religion soon found that they belong together rather than in conflict. This bright and polished biography does much to put the imagination of Bruno and his moving historical context in this reader's mind.

I have never been more intrigued by a story in my life. Anthony Kiedis continually strived to have fun in his life and never took life too seriously. He made a life derived from the use of drugs and had magnificant experiences. This book is awesome and wonderfully expresses Anthony's deepest, darkest thoughts and feelings. Must READ!

I was pretty shocked that between the alleged writer, ghost writer and a major publisher that somebody didn't catch a blatant mistake that really casts some doubt as to the effort and veracity of this manuscript. About midway thru the book Anthony starts to discuss his contract negotiations with Warner Brothers and company president "Mo Austin". I believe, unless he was kidnpped by aliens, that the head of Warner's at this time was actually a man named Mo Ostin, a relatively well known figure in the record business. This would be like writing a book about the real estate industry and referring to a "Danield Trummp" This makes me wonder if Anthony either didn't even read the manuscript or didn't know how to spell the name of a reasonably important business associate, namely the person responsible for paying him millions of dollars annually. And the ghost writer should be ashamed of himself. Obviously, the publishing company probably didn't care since this has a People Magazine quality to it that spent more time racking up naked photos of ex-girlfriends and endless gossip about intercourse and "babes".
I expected a lot more from this book. On some level, I was entertained but ultimately this is a very disposable effort that is much like a fast food meal. Anthony's youth, his struggles with finding artistic success, his incredible self destructiveness and creative abilities are ultimately overwhelmed by the low rent, frat house behaviors that he knows are inappropriate but still seems all too willing to share. We never find out about what happened to his Dad in terms of how he left California, people like George Clinton who fade in and out without any follow up.

As much as Anthony's drug use is discussed in detail, he frequently pussies out with justifications stemming from inadvertent dentist novacaine and wrongly prescribed pharmaceuticals. I would have been more sympathetic if he manned up and just admitted that on all of these relapses it wasn't a relationship or a wrong prescription, he just wanted to fall off the wagon.

A word about the women. Living in LA, I get the sense that Anthony's outlook on women is totally defined by looks only. It was astonishing to me that a streetwise individual would have a woman he had broken up with come back to him and then after this leech starts trying to threaten him for palimony he falls madly back "in love". Only in LA. Another LA reference which I'm sure AK is already cringing over is his discussion of Kabballa which has already come and gone like alfalfa sprouts and oxygen bars as a passing and absurd fixation of LA's jaded. More revelatory moments (besides the aforementioned baffling inability to attend his "friend's" funeral) was when he went to give a Christmas present to Ione and the mother wouldn't even let him into the house. The mother must have been very pleased with the type of behavior her daughter, a veritable child was having to endure. It takes a lot of bad behavior to generate that kind of hostility.
Also, the story where he is so loaded that he forgets that he made a deal to sell his house and a realtor does that and he isn't even informed. Hello, doesn't a seller have to sign reams of paper during that process. that one was a bit hard to swallow especially because a buddy's family was literally living there. this all happened in a week. Can you spell escrow period? That's gotta be at least 30 days.

Anyway, I did find this book fascinating at least from the level of abuse and the hilarious kowtowing to celebrities that allowed anthony to literally walk the Earth as a veritable emotional, physical, ethical and professional zombie. Finally, this was written in 2004 with a supposed happy ending of sobriety but I don't think any reader would be at all surprised to find anthony hiding out in some future seedy motel, blazing away. I don't wish that on him or anyone else but it eems that if he can't even really explain this continual obsession to us readers he probably doesn't understand it himself. For a true biography of personal tragedy and the tortured artist those looking for a little more substance might like Richard Ellman's "Oscar Wilde", but, careful you will have to concentrate and you won't be able to read it with MTV on in the background.

Anthony Kiedis. Red Hot Chili Peppers. It was interesting to read Anthony's autobiography and understand the meaning beyond some of the lyrics he has written so far. I do need to separate book from "facts" however.

The book: 465 pages in tiny print describing a life of excesses in every sense became at times a tedious read, mainly because Anthony's life is self-described and delivered by what I define a rather flat narrative. A repetition of events -and most often, a vicious circle, literally- that failed to engage me in full in a few parts. That does not mean that I did not "appreciate" the content. If anything, his is an often brutal testimony of what a serious drug addiction can do to a human being (I felt that this book was more about his drug addiction than about his life or the RHCP).

The "facts": oh, I would have a thing or two to say about his upbringing, I am itching to do it. But. Anthony comes out to be so non-judgemental, so not-critical, so loving towards his family, which he clearly loves to bits to this day, that I am discouraged to say anything more about it. And I respect him for not pointing any accusing finger, about back then or later on. He is not blaming anyone, or at least, that's the way I have perceived the core of this book. In his words, it was mostly all about "the shortcut", which brought him to jump fences instead of walking on a proper path, figuratively and literally. The drugs, his love stories, his songs, the band, the friends he has lost to drugs, the rehabs, and drugs again... An indefinable sense of hopelessness, sometimes peppered with sober, more productive moments, where the love towards life shines in full. I think that it is at this point that he chose to write the book, after a few years of sobriety. And I hope the process of retracing his past has added to the self-healing and helped to stay clean and sober, appreciating life to the full.

Would Anthony have become what he is without experiencing what he went through? I do not know. We are what we do, or so they say. But as much as this book conveys the dispiritedness, desolation and utter despair connected to drug addiction, it is uplifting to see that it is POSSIBLE to get out of it. Tough, difficult, hard, but possible. An inspiration for those ones who are still struggling.

I read somewhere that Anthony recently had a baby (last year). Not an epilogue to his story, but another, wonderful, beginning.

After listening to Stadium Arcadium and being blown away by the lyrics (e.g. Wet Sand) and stunning music (again, Wet Sand), I was very drawn to reading Scar Tissue. While not a die hard RHCP fan before the book (or before Stadium Arcadium), I am now. I dug up the old stuff and gave it a re-listen. It's amazing to listen to the songs after having read about them; the process AK describes on writing lyrics and the contributions and musical influence from the rest of the band past and present.

A main theme and thread throughout the book is AK describing his serious struggle with substance abuse. He writes in a very clear and vivid voice, it is moving and revealing. I have profound respect for his recovery and the process he went through. To me, the book itself is written with a sense of service and purpose beyond mere autobiography. A great read.

Scar Tissue is an excellent tale. More than anything the story is about a man who has done some hard yards and is witnessing without shame or pride his life story. The book is humbling in many ways. Scar Tissue is as fun to read as it tragic. His account of his day to day dealings as a rockstar leave you feeling like Anothony Kedis could very well be just one of your friends. He is down to earth. He is real, and he is very articulate. There is quite a bit of esoteric language, but you can handle it. Read it. 5 Stars