Biography Books

This book was a great introduction to Lisa's life from childhood up to now and how she came to utilize her gift of talking to those who have crossed over. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and can't wait for the next chapters of her life to begin. If you believe in the things she does, as I do, then this will be a good book to read.

I enjoyed this book very much, and read it in 3 nights. She has a wonderful and loving family whom have stood by her. What a fantastic gift she has, and being able to share it with others is astounding!

If you like Lisa Williams, you will love this book. I read this entire book in 2 nights. I truly enjoyed it.

I love Lisa Williams as it is, and this book made me love her and admire her even more. I almost felt what she was feeling I was so into it. Check it out

Lisa Williams, is a very gifted individual."Life Among The Dead" was a good read.I expected more from Lisa.I beleive that she has so much more to offer her readers and viewers.The majority of the book, was about her family and friends. Am sure we all love our familes and friends.There are those of us who haven't had the opportunity in meeting and talking with Lisa,who I am assumming wanted to hear more on the subject of lost loved ones. A little more detail, on how and why the dead come in contact with her. I myself beleive in her abilities, would very much like for Lisa Williams, to write a second book, for her readers and viewers.There are millions of people in the universe who are looking for some type of closure after losing a loved one.The chapter Epilogue on page 235 was very enlighten and well said. I only wished she could have elaborated more on this particular page throughout the chapters of "Life Among The Dead" "There is so much more to be said." There are so many people still grieving, we all are, it is universal. NEVER ENDS.

Have only read a small amount so far, but already would rate it very good and something all americans should read.

It's a shame that the public has to dig for the truth rather than rely on the press to be honest, but that's the situation. If you really want to know what was going on rather than buy into the juvenile theory that this was somehow all about W's oil buddies, this is a great start.

This is an important book that every American should read. Gen Sada is an amazing man, an eye-witness in Saddam's regime who lived to tell about it and claims to have actually seen WMD with his own eyes. Fascinating!

I enjoyed the information in the book. Poorly written but never the less informative

Finally, the inside scoop! Questions of WMD answered! Why isn't this information made more readily available to the American People? This is a story of one man's faith and honesty in the worst of situations! You want to know the truth? Read this book!!

As a mother of a little boy who was just diagnosed, I thought Jenny is right on with everything she says that she did to help her little boy in this book! I don't know why the first reviewer found this book so offensive because I found it be the very opposite of that. I found this book as a source of inspiration and hope-especially with a diagnosis that can leave you feeling helpless and alone. There is help and out there and you can get that help to help your son/daughter. I really loved Jenny's passion when talking about her son, and I could totally relate to alot of the things that she went through while searching through the medical community to find out what exactly was wrong with her son. I also loved the "What to Do Pamplet" at the back of the book so that she can try and help some of us who have just received our diagnosis and need to know where to go. All in all, this book was helpful and inspiring that I too can pull up my sleeves and help my child with as much vigor and passion as Jenny has with her son!! I give this book two HUGE thumbs up!!!!

I finished reading Jenny McCarthy's book "Louder Than Words: A Mother's Journey in Healing Autism" and I have to say it was one of the best books I have ever read and I am so glad I read it. I read it in a day because I could not stop. It was so good, sad, educational, and some parts were even a little funny because of course Jenny McCarthy can find a way to make you laugh even when talking about something as serious as her child having autism. Her humor is truly a gift. It helps lighten the mood when reading so it is not the most depressing thing you have ever read and you can get through it because the whole situation is heartbreaking but she is so positive and has such a wonderful attitude which is what helps so much in healing her son.

I had a couple reasons for wanting to read this book, one being I had read her other books: Belly Laughs, Baby Laughs, and Life Laughs and of course gained an interest in what was going on with her and her baby but also because with Autism now effecting 1 in 150 children I figured I should learn more about it because it might someday effect one of my children (I currently have a 3 month old and she is my first child) or if not surely the child of someone I know. I did not even know anyone with Autism, I only knew people that knew people who had Autism, or so I thought. I recently learned I actually know some people whose children have a form of Autism and I did not know it until now and I told them about the book already. I realized after reading the first two pages that I did not know much at Autism at all. Actually just reading the title made me realize I didn't know much because I did not think it could be healed. I always heard there is no cure, which technically there is not yet, but there are things you can try that work for a lot of children, especially if it is caught and addressed very early, and although they may never be completely healed they end up living almost normal lives. I also wanted to read the book because I was very curious about something that in the 1970's only affected 1 in 10,000 children now effects 1 in 150 and they are still not sure what the cause is. Jenny says in the book that this is something we should be concerned about more than global warming because if it keeps increasing and ends up being almost every child, what are people going to do, stop having kids? At this rate, I think we should be more concerned about this.

Another thing I learned about Autism from this book is there are many forms. Some kids have severe cases and some have mild cases even before treatment (some go from severe to mild with treatment like her child). Also, Jenny believes, and I agree with her, that Autism does not seem to be one disease/disorder. It seems to be several problems children have that have been given one name which is another reason children with Autism are so different. I think it is basically a lot of problems children are having and they don't know what is wrong so if they have certain symptoms they call it Autism. One reason she has so much success in healing him is because she doesn't just do things to cover up the problems with a temporary bandaid, she always ask herself what is causing the problem and tries to eliminate the cause.

She does not think that vaccines cause Autism but does believe there is a link there and so do I. She believes some kids are born with weaker immune systems and can't handle the vaccines. She is still for giving children vaccines of course, but thinks they should do something like maybe a test beforehand to determine the effects it may have on a child and she is also for greening our vaccines, which is not in her book, but I read on the internet that her and Jim Carrey are currently urging congress to makes vaccines safer because they have so many dangerous things in them. After reading several of her books, I personally think it also has something to do with an injury to the head her son received while she was giving birth to him. He had to wear a helmet for a short time as a baby to correct the shape or his head which was misshaped due to the difficulties in labor which resulted in a c-section and she talks about this in her Baby Laughs book not this book but I see a link because in this book the first sign of Autism her son has is seizures and the one thing they would always ask her at the hospital when he had a seizure was did he suffer an injury to the head and she would of course say no and did not understand why they were asking that until she later found out that injuries to a certain part of the brain cause seizures of course. I don't know if she ever even linked the two together but I did after reading both books.

I would highly recommend this book to everyone because I think everyone should be educated on the subject but would especially recommend it to anyone who has a child with Autism because most doctors, including Jenny's just basically send you out the door with the comment "I'm sorry but your child has Autism" like there is nothing you can do and she found out from other parents with Autistic children that there are some things you can do, or at least try. If it were my child, I would try everything just like she did whether it worked or not, at least you are trying and there is some hope instead of just giving up. I think the book she has coming out next month, which I also plan on reading, would be even more help to parents with Autism though because she wrote it due to the response she got from other parents with Autism after reading her first book and things they did to heal their child so in that book she shares their stories since each child with Autism is different and the new book also gives you an update on how her son is doing now.

I do not have a child with autism, nor am I a professional, but I am a psychology student and EXTREMELY fascinated by Autism. This book gave great insight to a personal struggle with a child with autism, and I loved this book!!

My respect for Jenny McCarthy has increased ten fold after hearing about and then reading her story. I first 'met' Jenny McCarthy back when MTV was still in its first stages and never would have guessed! Yes, I admit, I probably would have judged her on first impressions back in those days but she has taught me a valuable lesson. What a wonderful beautiful mom she is! I heard of her story when I caught a few moments of a TV interview when the book first came out. I was instantly touched and rushed out to purchase the book. My heart breaks for the struggles she and her son have faced. Her courage, determination, and love for her son have shown the world one person CAN make a difference and there is always hope.

I hope others will read of their journey together and be inspired as well. Jenny and her son certainly touched my heart and have made me more aware of nightmare families dealing with Autism can face. May those with the ability to limit those nightmares be inspired to do so as well.

Some things which should be noted about this book before going into it.

1. At no point does Ms. McCarthy claim to be a medical expert. Indeed, she goes out of her way to note her lack of medical qualifications and notes that this book is just a journal of her experiences as she grew into being the mother of an autistic child.

2. She does not claim that mercury vaccines are responsible for causing autism. She only mentions mercury once and that is to mention the theory and say that more research needs to be done to confirm it one way or the other.

3. The therapies she uses for her son are expensive and well outside the means of most families. But most therapies are, especially those dubbed experimental by HMOs and the health-care providers that most of us go through. Again, McCarthy notes this.

4. McCarthy does use a lot of salty language. This shouldn't be a surprise for anyone who is familiar with her comedy but it seems to be enough to inspire some parents to ignore the message and give it a 1 star rating besides. If this bothers you, you don't have to read the book. But don't go out of your way to trash it.

All in all, I found this book to be enjoyable for what it is - a first-person account of a young woman growing up and developing into a mother and a better person. And however you feel about Ms. McCarthy's comedy (I personally can't stand it), you have to admire her desire to try and share her story and give the parents of autistic children the respect that they deserve with her charity work.

Ms. Mernissi states that "The frontier is in the mind of the powerful", and that "...looking for the frontier has become my life's occupation. Anxiety eats at me whenever I cannot situate the geometric line organizing my powerlessness." This book is a very moving first-hand account of the secluded life of a young girl, born into a prosperous family in Fez in the 1940s. She is confined in a harem, which in this case consists of the women and children of an extended family, imprisoned behind walls and a guarded gate for their own protection in an occupied city. "When Allah created the earth, said Father, he separated men from women, and put a sea between Muslims and Christians for a reason. Harmony exists when each group respects the prescribed limits of the other. Trespassing leads only to sorrow and unhappiness. But women dreamed of trespassing all the time. The world beyond the gate was their obsession."

Throughout the book she illustrates the ongoing attempts of her mother and grandmother to discover the outside world, establish their individual identity, and exercise some tiny bit of control over their own lives. Her mother listens to radio Cairo when the men are out of the house, and despite her mother-in-law's disapproval, embroiders birds on her clothes instead of traditional patterns. Although her mother is barred from attending literacy classes by a vote of the leading men of the family, Fatima and her cousins are allowed to attend public school when the country's religious leaders vote to support women's education and schools are opened to female students. Suddenly the outside world is open to her, but she still feels powerless. Her Aunt Habiba provides liberating advice: "It is not enough to reject this courtyard - you need to have a vision of the meadows with which you want to replace it." Fatima must now discover her unique, personal dream, the vision that would give her direction and light. This is a radical change: she is not just a daughter and future wife and mother, she is also an individual with unique and valuable gifts to share with the world.

I read this after returning from Morocco. The insight into what life used to be like for most women enriched my understanding of the culture which I found fascinating. I'd spoken with several women while in the country who are "liberated" but heard none of the story of the lives of women who adhere to the old traditions. I saw many others who still live behind closed walls. This is the story of the latter group's growing up years that I couldn't have gotten otherwise.

The book was great and interesting. Amazon sent it very quick.

I couldn't help but fall asleep whilst reading this book. I only was able to go through about a little over a half, mostly because I was required to read it. Generally, the book is about a middle eastern girl living in a Harem and surrounded by the conflicting Western Power, the French Army. Lots of battles with tradition and western cultures, and primarily about the rift between men and women. So you're in for a subtle yet quite obvious gender conflict, which was in my opinion awfully sexist (I know it's from the view of a woman but that doesn't take away from the fact that she explicitly tries to write as if she were a child again with "innocence" yet fails because of her mature agenda). The author, Mernissi, spends about 10-15 pages per chapter driveling on about the most useless facts or coincidences. Just when you think she's reaching her point and finally bear fruit, it's the start of a new chapter and another take on a topic or segment of her life that is completely irrelevant.

I found this book to be entertaining, educational, inspirational and thought provoking all at once. I personally and Americans in general are largely confused and misinformed about the concept of the harem and how the women in them lived; and it is no wonder or surprise that we are! It seems that even within the high walls and locked gates of the harem the residents cannot agree on the subject! What is a harem? Is it a den of iniquity? A commune? A brothel? A prison? An extended family? A refuge?

Told from the perspective of a 6-9 year old girl growing up in a domestic harem in Morocco in the late 1940s, this book has a freshness and naiveté that only a child can muster as she ponders her place in her home, society, and the world at large.

Her observations of the world around her are uncensored, and guide the reader to a greater understanding not only of other cultures and other women, but of our relationships and ourselves. Only a child has the innocent courage to stand up and say, "The Emperor has no clothes!"

As I learned about another world, I began also to draw parallels to may own life and current times. Changing laws does not grant freedom to individuals. Here in America we have all the freedoms that these women were deprived of and fought for, and yet in many cases we remain trapped- prisoners of our fears, our habits, our insecurities, and our weaknesses.

In this book I found lots of hope and inspiration, reminding me of many ways to experience freedom inwardly- without the necessity of changing outward circumstances.
© 2006 Shahina

This book fits nicely in our homeschooling reading program. It is a wonderful addition to our classics collection.

A compelling memoir from a girl growing up during the Chinese cultural revolution. Filled with patriotic fervor for the Chinese communist government, Ji-li is at first ashamed to be part of her family, which is persecuted because of her grandfather's political beliefs. But as she sees injustices heaped onto the heads of many people around her, she gradually becomes disillusioned and no longer believes government propaganda. Ji-li's authentic voice inspires discussion about family loyalties, government betrayals, and China's history.

This is a great book to read with children. I read it aloud to my daughter, who could not believe that this life happened to this girl and so many like her in China. It prompted lots of discussion about families and government. Even kids as young as 10 or 11 should be able to appreciate the story, and it's fascinating for adults too.

I read this book quite a few books ago. What I remember was that it was very compelling. The author is forced to serve the "People" and endures many hardships while working in an Army production camp. Her description reminds one of Siberian memoirs on not such a grand scale, rather a Chinese adaptation.
The author begins by demonstrating her arrogance through stories of her childhood prior to service in the camp, she was selfish and cruel.
She excels as a patriot, and is promoted as a leader within her work group, she doesn't prove to have much compassion for others. Her colors most vividly show in one particular scene; when two people are discovered as lovers meeting in secret (male/female relationships are forbidden), with horrible consequences a result. The author eagerly participated in their punishment, only to suffer deep regret later. However, this experience, the enduring exhaustion of the camp, and lack of personal freedoms brings about a metamorphosis.
She realizes that there is no humanity in Communism, no true accomplishment in which one can truly take pride; her disillusionment brings about her own self-discoveries in the end making her a better person.
I found the narrative honest, in no sense was did it come across as embroidered to make it more compelling.

This book is about the cultural revolution. Through her own difficult hard times, the author tells the story of her and her family from the age of 12-14. This book is great for children and adults. It really tells what happened to family's during the cultural revolution

This book was the worst book I've ever read. It was scary, confusing and just plain beadly written. Some of my friends loved this book, some of them thought it was a peice of trash. I'm with the people that say it's a peice of trash. I felt like I was forced to read this book. I wanted to trough it away forever. The book was badly written because she decided to jump through different time periods and the story just didnt fit together. I would recomend to NOT read this book. if i would have to rate this book with 10 being the best and 1 being the worst, I would rate this a 1 and a half. I tell you, don't pick this book up!

Charlemagne occupies a position of central historical importance in the west. His rule was contemporaneous with Harun al-Rashid, the greatest Abbasid Caliph, and he presided over the great Carolingian revival-led by Alcuin and other learned monks.
Understanding the Franks during this historical period is vital to understanding the dynamics of the middle ages. One problem is the lack of reliable source material. These two sources do much to help us in this regard.
Einhardt's narrative is terse, well written, and fast paced. He cuts the fat and keeps the beef. Only problem is, he is biased from the outset. The cardboard picture of Charles we get from his narrative is lacking illumination. Compared to Notker, however, it is the more reliable source.
Notker's story is a series of tales, digressions, and fantasies; all written with an overly verbose, confusing style. Charlemagne seems more human and vivid in this account, but he still lacks complex, three-dimensional qualities. He is described as tireless, fearless, pious, unconquerable, etc. I do not think a bad word is spoken of him. The story also lacks a thread to tie it together. There are some entertaining tales and tidbits, but often they wonder into obscurity.

It is dissapointing to have these two "lives" of Charlemagne without being able to understand him. He still remains a mysterious figure. If you want his illusiveness to disapear, you will be very dissapointed. If you want to understand the mind of the medieval era, and some facts besides, these two accounts are great places to start.

The pairing of these vastly different accounts of the life and deeds of Charlemagne presents the reader with information about change of perception of the great emperor overtime. Charlemagne, in the many centuries after his death in 814, changes from a historical person into a legendary King Arthur-esque figure, a model chivalric knight and one of the Nine Worthies (a Medieval list of the most chivalric knights of all time), his paladins analogous to Arthur's Knights, and the subject of the first chansons de geste.

The first source, commissioned the request of Louis the Pious one of Charlemagne's successors, was written by Einhard, a monk, historian, and a dedicated servant of Charlemagne. His Life of Charlemagne, written between 817-830 is clearly in the vein of the famous Roman historian Suetonius' The Twelve Caesars (a text that existed at the monastery where the author worked). The work is brief, to the point, and for the most part does not include tangential information, and is biased. The bias is completely understandable and the introduction to the text points out where and why. His chronicle was written to make Louis the Pious' famous father look good. For example, one of the morally stained aspects of the Charlemagne's reign were the actions of his unmoral daughters, which Einhard carefully does not tell us about. Einhard, in short, sometimes deliberately obscures the truth. However, what is so appealing about Einhard's text is the fact that his most of his information was based off of 26 years as a servant of Charlemagne and his court, and information that he includes of actions before Charlemagne's reign most likely was gathered from sources and documents which he had access to. Lastly, Einhard's attempt at stringently following the model of Suetonius Twelve Caesars makes him connect the characteristics of great emperors such as Augustus to Charlemagne, obscuring Charlemagne's actual habits, personality etc...

The next chronicle, written 70 years later by a self described lazy, toothless, stammering, monk who could be either, Notker the Stammerer, or the Monk of Saint Gall, or both in one person, is completely different. The introduction states immediately what most reader's minds will skip. I quote "Our first danger is that when we put De Carolo Magno side by side with Vita Caroli we may be comparing it with something quite dissimilar; and our second that we may be criticizing both Einhard and the Monk of Saint Gall for failing to achieve what they did not set out to do." Einhard, wanted Charlemagne to look good, this monk wants to give his fellow monks fables, stories, semi-historical events, moral tales concerning bishops and churchman, that are all connected merely by the presence of Charlemagne in each. Moral tales are the most predominate. This is illustrated by these chapter headings: the bishop who bought a stuffed mouse, the bishop who gave Charlemagne cheese to eat on Friday, the bishop who thought himself divine, the bishop who dreamed he had sex etc... In the section where the monk talks about Charlemagne's extensive military adventures he is more concerned again, with short tidbit tales that have nothing to do with the military campaigns: the two illegitimate children who fought bravely for Charlemagne, the two brave soldiers, etc... Charlemagne has begun his journey to the realm of legend a mere 70 years after his death. Notker the Stammerer is writing for the entertainment of his fellow monks and in so doing explains the perception of Charlemagne over time.

The introduction is extensive and to the point, it does not merely summarize but explains. The notes do not merely present trifling material but ADD extensively to the text. The two vastly different texts do not rehash the same material but rather explain the same person in vastly different ways for vastly different purposes: one, using historical fact, the other using semi-historical stories and anecdotes concerning the moral behavior of bishops. These are very good sources for research and for the casual historian.

Looking at the three 'one-star' reviews this book has received, I would point out they are all written in the same style, are close in date and look suspiciously like they were all written by the same person.

Yes, this is a wonderful primary source.

With Einhard's story you are actually reading the work of a person who knew Charlemagne (who lived approx. 742-814AD).

Prior to Charlemagne there basically was no Germanic literature. Charlemagne encouraged book learning and the writing of what had before then been either purely oral or simply not remembered. We are looking at the birth of Germanic Literature and also the birth of Germanic recorded history. Before this, (apart from a few glosses in the 7th Century) there is only the archaeological record and the writings of neighbouring literate cultures like the Romans about their Germanic neighbours to turn to for illumination.

These glimpses into the minds of people whose culture and outlook on the world are both so different to our own but also has so profoundly impacted the development of our modern day life are fascinating.

Charlemagne after all followed in the footsteps of the Roman Caesars in his attempt to create a great and literate civilisation and by doing so deeply influenced the Anglo-Saxons in England. Some of the earliest Saxon writings were commissioned by Charlemagne and his son, Louis the Pious. Alfred the Great was deeply influenced by his example. It was Alfred the Greats encouragement of Anglo-Saxon literature that established sound foundations for later developments in English literature.

I preferred Einhard as I think he succeeded in showing Charlemagne the man to a greater degree than Notker writing a hundred years later. Already with Notker the 'legendising' of Charlemagne made him more one dimensional and also as you can see in the foot notes more inaccuracies creep into Notker's text. There is also something more primitive and 'mystical' about Einhard. Mystical, mind you when one of Charlemagne's rivals 'mysteriously' dies. ;) But this is not really a criticism of Notker as he gives a feel for the development both of Germanic culture one hundred years further on and also some insight into the making of the legend of Charlemagne.

The title of this book (i.e., "Two Lives") is not at all misleading if you understand the translators' understanding of the word "life" -- it's the medieval use (from the Latin, "vita", as suggested by the title of one of the "lives," Einhard's Vita Karoli Magni, or the Life of Charles the Great). Although Notker chose to write the Gesta Karoli (or "Acts of Charles"), the idea of it being a chronicle of Charlemagne's life is basically the same as Einhard's. The main difference is that a Vita is frequently written about a saint, whereas gesta are reserved for secular subjects; a little-known fact is that Charlemagne was canonized because of the efforts of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa and Henry II of England, in the 12th century. In any event, the vita can be construed as "fiction" in a modern understanding of history, but certainly not in a modern expectation of a novel... if you're looking for some salacious fluff, this is not the book for you. If you're looking for insight into Charlemagne's life and/or the late-8th or early-9th centuries, then this will be an ideal choice.

When I first read Lewis Thorpe's translations of Charlemagne's biographies by Einhard and Notker the Stammerer, it was clear that these were of differing value in assessing Charlemagne as man, king, and emperor. Einhard, who was a monk and in effect Charlemagne's private secretary and thus close to the Frankish king, gives a lucid, fairly-detailed, and down-to-earth description of Charlemagne as man, ruler, and father. Even allowing for the fact that he was writing about his late lord and may have indulged in a little licence in praising the Frankish emperor-king, the reader does get some genuine and valuable insights into Charlemagne as a man and ruler and the times in which he lived. He covers all the great events of Charlemagne's reign, including Charlemagne's military expeditions and exploits such as the bloody 32-year war against the Saxons. Einhard can also be on occasion mildly implicitly critical of his late lord, such as when he wrote that Charlemagne tended to dote on and be over-protective of his daughters. In comparison, Notker the Stammerer's life of Charlemagne is a much less biographical account of Charlemagne's life and times and is far more fanciful and inclined to medieval myth and legend. However for all that, the stammering Notker's life of the great man is still enjoyable and interesting to read and a useful, if rather garbled, example of medieval literature. I would recommend to anyone to read Lewis Thorpe's eminently readable translations of the two lives, especially Einhard's, as it does, I repeat, give some real insight and understanding of one of the great historical figures of medieval and Western history.

Opinion from an Apostolic Pentecostal Family: We really like this book. We use it as part of Ambleside Online Homeschool Curriculum. We don't know of any other book except "the book of martyrs" that the Amish has out that puts Christian Martyrdom in such a sober and accurate light. The first lesson was tough becuase of the tears my children found streaming down their face. They were literally putting themselves in the story as Polycarp (for example) and said if they were him they would be "scared to die because it would hurt", but ultimately they came to the realization that in Revelations we are told that we will be forced to choose between God and ________(fill in blank) and then suffer a consequence. I want my children to be prepared to know how to handle that situation and to know that to face death for our Saviour is just one way we can show Him our commitment. He paid the ultimate price for us. We want to have a willing heart to do the same for Him. This book helped us all (age range 7 to 31) to look at this very real and serious predicament and to answer and commit to a path of action should the time come. I cannot say that this book lists all the "dirty laundry" of the folks who are respresented but I can say that it doesn't matter... the heart of the matter was to inspire us to take a more steady and stronger course of action in our personal lives when challenged to "denounce Christ" or to "go with the flow" and relax a little...

Thank you Richard for this awesome and inspiring book.... I will be giving copies to family for Christmas this year...

This book is so informative. I have learned so much about church history from it. Although I wouldn't recommend reading it to a child under the age of 8, I think it has many good facts and lessons for a child to learn. I read this to my kids and they are always asking questions afterwards. It's thought provoking and inspiring.

I use this book for homeschooling my ninth grader. It gives a great selection of short biographies on historical figures in church history. we used it regularly when studying the Dark and Middle Ages. Excellent buy.

I'm not sure that there's a time or a place for hagiography. Anyone other than a Christian from a reformed tradition will have difficulty with the biographies here. In general they fail to show the full human-ness of the subjects -- tho' the specifically Catholic or liturgical traditions are, if not condemned outright then certainly have a disapproving eye cast upon them. This work, like others of this kind, fail dismally in that they sanitize the lives of real, sinful human beings -- a standard even the Bible does not aspire to. Yes, many of these Christians have served God faithfully -- but in many more cases God has worked in spite of their failings -- some of which count among the serious sins -- abuse of fellow creatures, adultery etc. To set these people up as some kind of standard to which all Christians should aspire is a real problem, especially when the whole story is not presented. Frankly I find it much more inspiring to know that God can work through little old me, in spite of my many sins and failings. Faithfulness in the midst of sometimes significant short-comings is a much more realistic and holy goal. I bought this book as part of our homeschooling program, but I shall re-sell it. I'm not about to subject my children to these misleading stories.

Many people have a bias against history, thinking it is either boring or that it has no application and value for the modern time. As a result, many people of the past and their contributions to what we are now are never known. This book can change that. Its well written and engaging style warmly introduces the reader to many important people in Christian history, giving a brief summary of the lives of 46 Christian men and women, beginning with Polycarp down to the modern time ending with Richard Wurmbrand. We've been reading a chapter a week in our church's Wednesday night studies to a mixed crowd of adults and children. I think it says something of the author's ability to communicate when both adults and children say that have been blessed and inspired by the witness of these saints as Hannula tells their stories.

I read this book because someone suggested my family might have been related to Beryl Markham, which is not the case, but...
What a woman - this is a true account of one of the first bush pilots in Africa, Beryl Markham, who was the first pilot to fly westward across the Atlantic from England. Although there is some dispute whether she actually wrote this autobiographical account (some say that her paramour, who edited the book, actually wrote it - she never confirmed or denied it), the stories are true and fascinating, encouraging the reader to learn more about her. The writing style is wonderful and interesting - no wonder Hemingway loved it. You wouldn't know this book was first published so many years ago.

I agree with Hemingway that this is a piece of high literature that reads like fiction and spreads itself before the reader like a well-produced film. It drove me to learn more about the author and her life.

Absolutely captivating personal account of times and places long gone. As a fan of "Heat of the Sun," this book was a treasure.

Much more than a memoir, Beryl Markham's work is a means of transport, not dissimilar to her beloved plane. It took me back to the Africa I lived in as a young bride, to its stark beauty, its dignified and desparate people, the language of its silences. Her tale of matter-of-fact mercies, and of cruelty equally unremarkable, is the stuff of life, as full of hope as of despair, for its millions of people. Her sensitivity instructs us in things as disparate as a young zebra's personal quirks, or the way the setting sun reflects off a downed plane creating an illusory lake in the dry Serenghettti. We learn of the hunger of a dying man for news from the city, and of the joy of friendship restored, but mostly, we learn of the heart and mind of a brave, independent woman for whom Africa is, eternally, home.

As a child growing up with her father in Africa, Beryl Markham faced down lions and wild boar. As an adult she trained race horses before learning to fly airplanes and becoming a bush pilot. Eventually she became the first pilot, female or male, to fly west with the night and cross the Atlantic ocean solo from Europe to North America. Markham brings the African bush to life with stories of boar hunts and elephant hunts. Of horse races and airplane flights over desert terrain. She lived a courageous life in a time when girls were only supposed to wear dresses and play with dolls and flying airplanes was a man's job. Highly inspirational to read!

There's so much to talk about in mother-daughter book clubs or any book club. How was Markham's life different from so many of the girls in her time? How would her life have been different if her mother was also in Africa raising her?

This book is beautifully written; I've read it three times and each reading I glean more and more from it. I highly recommend it for anyone in high school or older.

We all know how the story of Lincoln tragically ends. Therefore it is a testament to the biographer's consummate writing talent that one still feels a sense of emotion and loss when he describes that night at the Ford Theater. In the six hundred pages that come before, he so perfectly captures Abraham Lincoln the man, his strengths, his sometimes surprising flaws, that you feel in some way you know him. That is David Herbert Donald's singular achievement. With a style that avoids stuffiness and prolixity, this is a great read for both the casual reader and the more serious student of history.

I read this book a couple of years ago. I've heard it described more than once as the "definitive" Lincoln bio, but it's not the most readable. I don't insist that the history I read be easy and light, but this book was a bit too dense and detailed for me. Parts were interesting, but I got majorly bogged down in the middle. There have to be Lincoln bios out there that would be of more interest to the general reader.

This is a biography of Lincoln. The problem in writing a biography of Lincoln, of course, is that so many thousands of books on Lincoln have already been written. How do you say anything new and useful about the man, about whom more words have been written than anyone else in American history?

Donald deals with this problem by adopting an unusual biographic strategy. In most biographies, of course, the writer is writing both the life of the subject and at least to some degree larger history. To put the life into context, as a rule, the writer needs to explore the larger issues with which the person was concerned.

Donald very deliberately does not do this. He says in his introduction that is not a general history of 19th century America and it is not. He says that he will focus only on Lincoln himself, and he does. He does not, for example, give us a detailed description of any of the Civil War battles. Lincoln was not present at those battles, so they are not described. His focus is exclusively on Lincoln, the people around him and the events in which he was directly invovled.

The result is odd, but it works. You get very little about the overall strategy of the Civil War. You get next to nothing about Congressional politics in the Civil War. You get virtually nothing about the Confederacy. Instead, you get this kind of reality-TV approach, where you feel as if you were following Lincoln around.

In line with this approach, Donald offers a minimum of interpretation. He presents no arguments about Lincoln's signifigance or role in history. The thesis of the book, if you can call it that, is a very understated argument that LIncoln saw himself as the passive instrument of events, rather than the active shaper of them. It is more a theme, a literary device, than an argument.

The book, in short, takes a minimalist approach to the subject. It works, simply because there is so much written on LIncoln. Out of the vast oceans of material that one could cover, and out of the oceans of argument one could make, Donald sticks tight to the subject and lets events speak for themselves. The end result is that he is able to write a very full biography, on his own odd terms, and keep it just under 600 pages of text. I found the book kind of cold emotionally, but nonetheless very gripping and very informative. I would not call it a definitive biography of Lincoln -- it is too short and self-consciously limited for that -- but, as one volume biographies go, it is very, very good.

I have a read a lot of biographical works on Abraham Lincoln. I found this to be the best and most balanced view. If you read biographies or other works related to Abraham Lincoln, you must include this book. It is required reading and was written by one of the - if not the - preeminent scholar on Lincoln.

I would also recommend you to other books, in addition to this one, if you desire to learn about Abraham Lincoln. Reading a variety of biographies about Abraham Lincoln will give you an overall and better picture than one book can alone.

However, having said that, this is the best Lincoln biography. It is excellent.

David Donald's Lincoln is packed full of relevant (and irrelevent) facts. I was surprised that a biography of 600 pages on anybody, especially Abraham Lincoln, could contain so much information. It usually takes authors two or three volumes to say as much as Donald does in one.

Just like life on the western frontier, this biography begins slowly. This provides a good place for those interested in getting the author's take on Lincoln as a person. A portion of other people's lives that is usually covered in two to three pages is covered in great depth. In approximately 150+ pages, Donald gives us a look into Lincoln's early life, his time as a moderately successful Lawyer in Illinois, and his unsuccessful political career. For those looking to learn more about Lincoln's Administration, I would recommend skipping to Chapter Eight, where the book gets much more exciting.

Once begun, Donald sets an exciting (and still fact-filled) pace that does not let up until the end.

While this is a great biography, the subject will always be fiercely debated. Lincoln's Administration led during the greatest upheaval our nation has ever seen. Therefore the literature will vary immensely. For some (like Mr. Donald) Lincoln was mostly passive, and reacted to events as they came; for others he was a great leader with some less than great subordinates; and to still others he was a usurper who limited individual rights and constantly ignored the constitution.

Mr. Donald does an excellent job of providing a balanced review of Lincoln, both as a person and as President. Too many biographers prefer to keep out negative aspects of their subjects, hurting the overall integrity of their work, but Mr. Donald is willing to admit fault in his man.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the American Civil War era. I must again warn the reader that this is a hotly debated subject, and taking one opinion is not sufficient. I strongly suggest looking at other writers' take on the subject as well.