The Glass Castle: A Memoir

Amazon.com

Jeannette Walls's father always called her "Mountain Goat" and there's perhaps no more apt nickname for a girl who navigated a sheer and towering cliff of childhood both daily and stoically. In The Glass Castle, Walls chronicles her upbringing at the hands of eccentric, nomadic parents--Rose Mary, her frustrated-artist mother, and Rex, her brilliant, alcoholic father. To call the elder Walls's childrearing style laissez faire would be putting it mildly. As Rose Mary and Rex, motivated by whims and paranoia, uprooted their kids time and again, the youngsters (Walls, her brother and two sisters) were left largely to their own devices. But while Rex and Rose Mary firmly believed children learned best from their own mistakes, they themselves never seemed to do so, repeating the same disastrous patterns that eventually landed them on the streets. Walls describes in fascinating detail what it was to be a child in this family, from the embarrassing (wearing shoes held together with safety pins; using markers to color her skin in an effort to camouflage holes in her pants) to the horrific (being told, after a creepy uncle pleasured himself in close proximity, that sexual assault is a crime of perception; and being pimped by her father at a bar). Though Walls has well earned the right to complain, at no point does she play the victim. In fact, Walls' removed, nonjudgmental stance is initially startling, since many of the circumstances she describes could be categorized as abusive (and unquestioningly neglectful). But on the contrary, Walls respects her parents' knack for making hardships feel like adventures, and her love for them--despite their overwhelming self-absorption--resonates from cover to cover. --Brangien Davis

Book Description

Jeannette Walls grew up with parents whose ideals and stubborn nonconformity were both their curse and their salvation. Rex and Rose Mary Walls had four children. In the beginning, they lived like nomads, moving among Southwest desert towns, camping in the mountains. Rex was a charismatic, brilliant man who, when sober, captured his children's imagination, teaching them physics, geology, and above all, how to embrace life fearlessly. Rose Mary, who painted and wrote and couldn't stand the responsibility of providing for her family, called herself an "excitement addict." Cooking a meal that would be consumed in fifteen minutes had no appeal when she could make a painting that might last forever.

Later, when the money ran out, or the romance of the wandering life faded, the Walls retreated to the dismal West Virginia mining town -- and the family -- Rex Walls had done everything he could to escape. He drank. He stole the grocery money and disappeared for days. As the dysfunction of the family escalated, Jeannette and her brother and sisters had to fend for themselves, supporting one another as they weathered their parents' betrayals and, finally, found the resources and will to leave home.

What is so astonishing about Jeannette Walls is not just that she had the guts and tenacity and intelligence to get out, but that she describes her parents with such deep affection and generosity. Hers is a story of triumph against all odds, but also a tender, moving tale of unconditional love in a family that despite its profound flaws gave her the fiery determination to carve out a successful life on her own terms.

For two decades, Jeannette Walls hid her roots. Now she tells her own story. A regular contributor to MSNBC.com, she lives in New York and Long Island and is married to the writer John Taylor.

TO INQUIRE ABOUT SCHEDULING JEANNETTE WALLS FOR SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS PLEASE CONTACT:

Keppler Speakers

Dustin L. Jones

Associate, College & University Division

703.516.4000 (P)

703.516.4819 (F)

Customer Reviews:

THANK YOU JEANETTE and your entire family for sharing your life!.......2007-10-03

An excellent book so engrossing I could not put it down. I love to read, but this book has moved me and stayed with me longer than any other. This book shows that you can break the chains that bind when you are focused. I've been in recovery many years and I appreciate the work involved in writing, along with courage in sharing, such intimate details of a family history. I will be recommending this book for years to come. Thanks again.

Absolutely amazing!.......2007-10-02

An amazing account of how one can overcome her/his circumstances instead of "blaming" the parents. A real page turner and so well written. I had put off reading this book for many months (thinking it would be too depressing to read) until a co-worker said, "It's really a good book."

The Glass Castle.......2007-10-01

Moving story. Uncomfortable to think the young woman would deny the existence of Mother when seen on street until you hear her story. It's a story of child neglect mixed so strangely with child love. Parents- child like themselves.

Best book I have read in a long time!.......2007-09-30

I am a bookworm. I read a lot of books. The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls had me mesmirized from the beginning...The intro ...where she looks out of the window of a car and sees her mother rummaging through a dumpster was the hook. How children could grow up like she did seems amazing! She made me rethink the struggles(I thought)I had growing up...nothing like what she went through. I highly recommend this book to anyone.

Couldn't Put It Down.......2007-09-30

Although the author's self-absorbed and psychologically damaged parents appear to have raised their children with almost complete disregard for their welfare, she never allows the reader to lose sight of their humanity. In doing so, she creates a mesmerizing portrait of remarkably complex characters - and becomes a sympathetic character herself. I highly recommend this book.

Average customer rating:

Let me try to say something nice about this book...
Continuation lacks the luster of book one in the series
enjoyable, but does not compare to TAGD
Hijackers
I never wanted it to end!

Now Face to Face
Karleen Koen
Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0394569296
Release Date: 1996-01-13

Book Description

The beloved heroine from Koen's bestselling Through a Glass Darkly returns in a passionate, unforgettable, romantic tapestry. A widow at age 20, emotionally devastated and financially ruined by the death of her husband in scandalous circumstances, Barbara Devane leaves colonial Virginia for London to confront her enemies and to pursue a deeply satisfying yet dangerous clandestine love.

Customer Reviews:

Let me try to say something nice about this book..........2007-05-28

Karleen Koen's brief biography says that she was led to write Now, Face To Face and its prequel, Through a Glass Darkly through her interest in the period. I knew little about the Jacobite intrigues of the early 18th century. Ultimately, this is what drove me to finish the book, since even though these were historical events, I was ignorant of them, and I wanted to know how it all worked out. I am also drawn to big, meaty books, and at nearly 700 pages, this volume looked great for my week-long trip.

Koen's Protagonist, Barbara Montgeoffry, Countess Devane, is someone who I'm sure I couldn't stand if I met her. In the story, this would be written off as my jealousy of her physical perfection, mental superiority, high rank, excellent connections, and ability to charm any any man living. True enough, in real life such people are hard to take too. Barbara has suffered losses both personal and financial as the story opens, but luckily everything works out by the end of this lengthy story.

Karleen Koen is an author is more likely to tell rather than show, and this diminishes the effect of the events she portrays. For example, when Barbara finally gets together with Mr. Right, they have a little flirtation, he leaves her a flower, and then there's a fade until "three weeks later", when they are an established couple. What's the point of waiting 544 pages for this woman to find love after she's been wondering if it would ever come to her again and then not showing us the delightful early stages of love?

Readers who are knowledgeable about the 18th century and care about details might be frustrated by some of the anachronisms that creep in. I'm sure the historical facts are accurate, but the devil is in the details in a good historical novel (see Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series). Some of the daily details just don't ring true.

If you are a huge Barbara fan, you will probably love this book because it features the Georgian Barbie you loved in Through A Glass Darkly. Plot and character-wise, I didn't regret reading the first book, so don't let that put you off.

Continuation lacks the luster of book one in the series.......2007-05-23

In 'Through The Glass Darkly', Roger dies, leaving Barbara a widow and responsible for his enormous debt from the South Sea Bubble scandal. 'Now Face To Face' picks up where Barbara flees London and heads to her grandmother's plantation in Virginia. In the isolated wilds of the new world, Barbara learns to carve out a space for herself in spite of her nasty neighbor Bolling. She makes friends, winds out freeing her slaves, looses her personal slave Hyacinthe, and almost finds romance.

While Barbara is away, London bustles with activity. The Jacobites are the talk of the town, supporting the return of King James and the overthrowing of King George. Jane's husband Gussy finds himself knee deep in intrigues with newcomer and actor Laurence Slane, who's not who he really says he is. He's a gosling, one of James' most trusted informers. Barbara's grandmother, the Duchess of Tamworth, comes from the country to attend cousin Tony's wedding. Her mother Diana continues her liaison with Robert Walpole, the man responsible for Barbara's debt being unforgiven and a major force for King George.

The intrigue becomes, if this is possible, a little too thick, swarming over the storyline and drowning the characters in its overwhelming description. There's a lot of repetitiveness in the intrigues of James vs George and the who's who of the Jacobites. Tony went from simple to cunning, and it wasn't a good transition. No reason for it, nor any rhyme to it until later in the book when he'd already shown his feathers. It was as if a shade had drawn over his innocence in our absence and left a character that little resembled the Tony from the first book.

Also, if your expecting a little 'Gone With The Wind' action from Barbara in Virginia, you won't find it. Barbara went from a spirited, saucy personality to a rather droll and reflective one. Between books one and two, she lost much of the spunk that made her so charming. After the tightly woven 'Through A Glass Darkly', 'Now Face To Face' comes off as a thick (733 pages) "middle" book that basically goes nowhere. We're left hanging at the end waiting for the third book in the series.

Still, 'Now Face To Face' earns a solid 3.5 stars from me in spite of its obvious faults, because the characters are fleshed out, the times are interesting, and the prose is smoothly woven into a rich, though somewhat slow paced, tale. Faults and all, I still read it through in just a few sittings, finding myself absorbed in the tale. If you're a fan, purchase it, otherwise check it out from the library first. Enjoy!

enjoyable, but does not compare to TAGD.......2007-04-24

I read Now Face to Face after reading Through A Glass Darkly and Dark Angels. Of the three books, Now Face to Face is by far the weakest and least satisfying. The ending leaves room for another sequel, but as another reviewer noted, the material left by Koen may be too weak to continue. I was dissappointed at the author's portrayal of the "mature" Barbara. I loved her character in TAGD, but felt there was something missing here. Maybe it was the lack of Roger's spirit and passion, maybe it was the not entirely believable deep love for Slane that appeared out of nowhere, maybe it was the lack of spunk that Barbara showed in the other novel (and that the Duchess shows in Dark Angels) I was also deeply dissappointed in Tony's development. Why did he need to become an angry young man who, like the rest of Barbara's amours, ignored his wife and sense of self? The author should have chosen a different direction for his life to follow.
Hyacinth's story should have been fleshed out more, and I felt that many of the episodes and sub-stories could have had more drama in order to fill in some of the holes in the Jacobite/Hanoverian plot. And what happened with the smuggling issue, Diana, and Beth/Colonel Perry?
That being said, I did enjoy the book, and was overall pleased with the work Koen produced. However, I would recommend Dark Angels to a reader before Now Face to Face, and of course, I would recommend Through a Glass Darkly to ANYONE. So fantastic it should be in everyone's personal collection. (and for those who can't find a reasonably priced copy, I obtained mine right here through Amazon and it was under 20 bucks)

Hijackers .......2007-02-02

I liike Through the Glass Darkly and was looking forward to reading Now Face to Face, but obviously it is out of print. I am not so interested in reading it that I would pay the exhorbinant prices that are being charged for a used book. I understand the concept of supply and demand from my college economics class, but really, I would be ashamed and fear for my soul if I sold a used book at such prices and certainly can live without giving my hard earrned money to hijackers for a novel. Koen's Through the Glass Darkly was good, but irritating at some points, so I cannot fathom why people would actually purchase books at hijacked prices, which results in even more higher prices for everyone else. Retarded!

I never wanted it to end!.......2007-01-16

This was a wonderful follow up to Through a Glass Darkly. While it is not quite up the the perfection of TAGD, which I would have given 8 or 9 stars if I could, it's still pretty darn good. Although most of the story was wrapped up in the end, albeit too briefly there is more story to tell and I wish there was another sequel or two (PLEASE).

Most of the original characters return, Barbara, Hyacinthe, Theresa, Grandmama, Tony, Phillippe (ugh) and Diana -- plus some new ones. The first part takes Barbara to Virginia giving her time to work through her grief over Roger's death and the South Sea Bubble scandle.

The second part of the book brings a stronger Barbara back to London and to take it by storm once again, and she's caught up in the Jacobite rebellion. And throughout, we see Barbara mature and change, as we all do in real life. It was heartbreaking to see how Tony changed over his unrequited love for Barbara -- which can also happen in real life.

As in TAGD, you will laugh and cry, just as in real life, and gather a history lesson at the same time. Some reviewers complained because there was not a whole lot of romance, but this book should be classified as historical fiction, not historical romance.

Kaplan and Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry: Behavioral Sciences/Clinical Psychiatry

Average customer rating:

Necessary knowledge
Very Helpful
Univ. MS. Psychiatry Residents Text for Study.
Best Psychiatry Textbook for Residency
Unwieldy, unhelpful

Kaplan and Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry: Behavioral Sciences/Clinical Psychiatry
Benjamin J Sadock , and Virginia A Sadock
Manufacturer: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 078177327X

Book Description

The best-selling general psychiatry text since 1972, Kaplan and Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry is now in its thoroughly updated Tenth Edition. This complete, concise overview of the entire field of psychiatry is a staple board review text for psychiatry residents and is popular with a broad range of students in medicine, clinical psychology, social work, nursing, and occupational therapy, as well as practitioners in all these areas. The book is DSM-IV-TR compatible and replete with case studies and tables, including ICD-10 diagnostic coding tables. You will also receive access to the complete, fully searchable online text, an online test bank of approximately 100 multiple-choice questions and full answers, and an online image bank at www.synopsisofpsychiatry.com.

Customer Reviews:

Necessary knowledge.......2007-09-30

This condensed easy-to-read volume provides useful necessary contemporary knowledge about the brain,current drugs and therapies. I highly recommend it as an adjunct quickie-reference along-side the dsm

Very Helpful.......2007-09-15

I just satarted working, leading group therapy and this product has helped greatly in Diagnosis and writing notes.

Univ. MS. Psychiatry Residents Text for Study........2007-07-19

Excellent book. Major review book for teaching for all 1st Year Residents in Psychiatry at Univ.MS. Medical Center/Psychiatry Dept. All residents use this as a major text for their studies in all years of Psychiatry Residency.

Best Psychiatry Textbook for Residency .......2007-02-01

This book helps you understand the important concepts in paychiatryu, use it with other books for your preparation. Good source of review with its companion questions and answers book.

Unwieldy, unhelpful.......2006-10-08

Some people swear by this book; I don't get it. It's a pain to either read or to use as a reference The layout of this book is busier than that of an undergraduate textbook. For no apparent reason, brain images are slapped into sections of some disorders and not others. Ditto for lists of empirical studies. The authors feel it necessary to reprint as a box the DSM-IV criteria for every disorder--only the box appears in different places for different chapters. In fact, the structure of each chapter seems somewhat different, even across chapters on similar disorders. I'm not really sure about this, though, as the organizational structure of the chapters continues to elude me. And it definitely lacks some information that most people would find helpful. For instance, there are (I believe) only two decision trees in this 1400 page opus. And lots of space is wasted. It's unclear what the first 250 or so pages are doing in this book, doing a slapdash job of covering the entire lifecycle, the brain, Jean Piaget, Freud, IQ testing, and anthropology. These are bracketed by chapter 1, on interviewing, and chapter 7, on doing clinical examinations. Why those two chapters are not consecutive is anyone's guess. Do I need to go into the writing? It fluctuates between platitudes and stupefying detail. The case histories are well-written, but they are generally taken from the DSM-IV Casebook.
I only give it two stars because it does have a lot of information. I'm sure I will never open this book again, and I could really use a synopsis of psychiatry.

Average customer rating:

Outstanding book
Extremely Good!!!
cHICKS IN THE GAME
Definitely Worth the Read....
Boring

A Hustler's Wife
Nikki Turner
Manufacturer: Triple Crown Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Book Description

This novel portrays the life of Yarni, a sweet and innocent girl from a well-to-do family. By chance she meets Richmond Virginia's notorious drug kingpin, Des. Immediately they develop an astronomical love, which separates her from her family and friends. But when Des is sentenced to life in prison, Yarni will learn being A Hustler's Wife isn't easy with her sole provider behind bars.

Customer Reviews:

Outstanding book.......2007-09-18

I had purchased this book sometime ago, but never got a chance to read it. When I did get that chance, the book was outstanding. I would suggest that you read "Forever a Hustler's Wife" as soon as you are done with this one.

Extremely Good!!!.......2007-09-02

I thought this book was very good. I had to go out and get "Forever a Hustler's" after readng this. That one was also very good.

I recommend this reading!!

cHICKS IN THE GAME.......2007-08-29

OK FOR A CHICK BOOK i EXPECTED A LITTLE BETTER ENDING , IT WAS WEAK, BUT THESE ARE WOMEN WHO THINK THEY GOT GAME

Definitely Worth the Read...........2007-08-25

"A Hustler's Wife was a pretty good book. I am not familiar with Turner's writing, so this was my first experience. There were a lot of publishing errors and missed words. I had to use context clues to figure some things out, but overall, it was an easy read. It was a page turner, but not quite the page turner I expected after reading the reviews. By the time I finished the book, I was ready for the sequel. However, I will say that one thing I LOVE about Turner is how she incorporated spirituality into the street. That was hot!! Either way, I would say pick it up and read it, but buy it on Amazon.com.

Boring.......2007-07-30

I love to read....2 to 3 books a week. This was not at all interesting, but when I start them, I always finish. It took about 2 long days to finish. I'm not even the least bit interested in the sequel. Sorry.

Average customer rating:

Perfect for the lit-crit-for-clits claque...
Big Bad Woolf
Brilliant and Entertaining
Painted lives
To the Lighthouse

To the Lighthouse
Virginia Woolf , and Eudora Welty (Introduction)
Manufacturer: Harvest Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Waves

ASIN: 0156907399

Book Description

Subject of this extraordinary novel is the daily life of an English family in the Hebrides. “Radiant as [To the Lighthouse] is in its beauty, there could never be a mistake about it: here is a novel to the last degree severe and uncompromising. I think that beyond being about the very nature of reality, it is itself a vision of reality.”-Eudora Welty, from her Introduction.

Download Description

Virginia Woolf is one of the greatest novelists of the twentieth century, and To the Lighthouse is perhaps her crowning achievement. The story of the Ramsay family and the guests visiting their summer house in the Hebrides, Woolf?

Customer Reviews:

Perfect for the lit-crit-for-clits claque..........2007-09-22

This is not a book for everyone. It wasn't meant for me, and it is not one that I'll ever re-visit, but I can acknowledge that it is a minor classic.

Much like the far-superior Under the Volcano, this book focuses on how the thing is said, and not the thing itself. The plot is spare and banal, and what little action there is is tangential: what matters to Woolf is the inner psychology, the interpersonal dynamics, the thoughts, perceptions, emotions and feelings.

The book has a calamitous exordium, populated with clunkers such as this:

"Then, up behind the great black rock, almost every evening spurted irregularly, so that one had to watch for it and it was a delight when it came, a fountain of white water, and then, while one waited for that, one watched, on the pale semicircular beach, wave after wave shedding again and again smoothly, a film of mother of pearl."

But, gradually, the lyricism and prose pick up, and become almost sublime in many parts. Woolf does not have much to say, but she says it very beautifully, once she's found her sea-legs.

To the Lighthouse is very overrated at #15 on the MLA 100...it should be ranked far beneath All the King's Men, Appointment in Samarra, and the incredibly brilliant Pale Fire. (Most English professors would doubtless disagree, bless their politically-correct little hearts.) That said, it does deserve a spot on the list, and is not an aesthetically-devoid waste of time like Wide Sargasso Sea.

Big Bad Woolf.......2007-09-01

Ah, "To the Lighthouse." I've never been a fan of it. This coming from an English major... I just don't like the stream of consciousness writing style. You know, there are many that give huge kudos to Woolf for her writing. I do enjoy her grasp on imagery and description, and she has a wonderful understanding of the human experience. This doesn't mean that the book was really all that enjoyable to me either of the two times I've read this now for classes.

Brilliant and Entertaining.......2007-07-22

Virginia Woolf (1882 - 1941) was a well known writer, critic, feminist, and publisher. This was her fifth novel.

As background information, I read her first novel "The Voyage Out" published in 1915, skipped her second novel - which is considered to be a flop, Night and Day from 1919 - and then read "Jacob's Room," her third, then went on and read "Mrs. Dalloway," her fourth, and next read "To The Lighthouse," etc. Also, I read some of Woolf's non-fiction.

"The Voyage Out" is simple and straightforward work and it might remind the reader of a Jane Austen novel, but it set on a ship and then at a remote location. It is over 400 pages long, and has an Austen theme. After her second novel - which did not do very well - Woolf decided to be more risky and creative with the next book. She changed her style and approach to the novel and Woolf uses the stream of consciousness technique to bring a sense of the chaos and shortness of a young man's life around the time of World War I, Jacob's life, i.e.: from the pandemonium of Jacob's life as portrayed by Woolf through the use of the stream of the consciousness technique, we eventually have clarity in the novel. She carries this writing style on into the similarly chaotic story in the novel "Mrs. Dalloway."

This is her third novel using her stream of consciousness technique and she does it in a very dramatic fashion. The story is centered on the life of Mrs. Ramsay, a beautiful woman in her early fifties, and her older husband, and their eight children, plus other guests and neighbors and domestic help all at a beach house somewhere in Scotland on a warm summer day. Her husband is an academic and a bit remote. Mrs. Ramsay is more down to earth, and she is mostly loved and admired by all.

As in the novel "Jacob's Room" the reader is left dangling as Woolf moves from character to character, giving the reader glimpses of their inner emotions. It is hard to determine what Woolf is doing and where she is going. But what she seems to be doing is celebrating a moment in a life. This is done very effectively with the stream of consciousness technique, and very dramatically as the story proceeds. The prose is brilliant and awe inspiring in some spots, and we see the genius of Woolf.

To say a lot more would ruin the story for the reader, but most will appreciate the way the story unfolds, and it unfolds very dramatically after a seemingly slow and complex start. The change has an effect on the reader - or so I found. Some think that it is Woolf's finest work and it would be hard to find fault with that assessment. She takes her ideas from "Jacob's Room" and applies them to a more complicated and dramatic setting at a family get together at a beach house, and it works.

This is a must read novel.

Painted lives.......2007-06-01

An extraordinary book, at once light as air and dense with meaning. From the smallest happenings (a family gathered at a seaside house) seen in two brief glimpses (a long summer afternoon before the first world war, and a single morning ten years later), Virginia Woolf distils a profound meditation on love and loss, hope and disappointment, and human relationships, especially the precarious and limiting balance between men and women. But it is impossible to summarize in a sentence what Woolf achieves in two hundred pages, so let me just pick on three specifics: art, thought, and time.

ART. The Harcourt Harvest Book paperback edition has a beautiful cover, apparently a tinted turn-of-the century photograph of a beach with the sea and a lighthouse beyond. It is a perfect evocation of the period and of lazy summers by the sea. Yet the credits say it is adapted from a photo by a much later artist, Herbert List; presumably the period air and the uncanny overtones of Seurat's "Grande Jatte" are the work of the designer, Liz Demeter. I mention this partly because a book's cover is like incidental music; it creates the context in which you start reading, and this is perfect. But also because visual art also plays an important part in the book. One of the guests of the owners of the house, the Ramsays, is Lily Briscoe, an unmarried woman in her thirties. We first see her as she is painting in the garden: "Lily's picture! Mrs. Ramsay smiled. With her little Chinese eyes and her puckered-up face, she would never marry; one could not take her painting very seriously." So of course we take her for a mere amateur; and Lily similarly puts herself down, conditioned by a climate which denied creativity to women except as wives and mothers. But when we get to look closer at Lily's picture we see that it is extremely advanced for its time, and her thought processes are as rigorous as anything we hear from the paterfamilias Mr. Ramsay, a once-celebrated philosopher. Indeed in the glorious closing chapters of the book, it is Lily, struggling to express balance and feeling in paint, who comes closest to giving meaning and permanency to the whole family history. One recalls that one of Virginia Woolf's closest friends in the Bloomsbury Group was the art critic Roger Fry, who coined the term post-impressionism. Lily, far from being a minor character, stands as the alter ego of Woolf herself, achieving in touches of paint a very close analogy to what the author manages so marvelously in words.

THOUGHT. But fine as Virginia Woolf's visual descriptions are, her main medium is not sight but thought. The two days at the seaside are described entirely through the minds of various individual members of the family and their guests. There is occasional dialogue, but no third-person narrator. A paragraph may start with the thoughts of one person about another, switch smoothly to the mind of that other person, and then return to the first again. And often the thoughts of the first character will change significantly between one moment and the next. Affection can switch suddenly to anger and back again; Woolf knows that most emotions, especially given the complex ties that bind families, can seldom be contained by a single label; through her apparent contradictions, she builds up a truth that is richer than could have been attained by consistency alone. Again, I think of the visual arts and the multiple viewpoints of cubism, but though a modern writer, Woolf is not a modern-ist; her technique is concealed, not flaunted; she is not a "difficult" writer in the sense that Joyce or even Faulkner are. As a results, her portraits come through with great warmth, especially that of Mrs. Ramsay, willingly adopting a supporting role to her curmudgeonly husband (or almost willingly -- with Woolf that is important), but blessed with a radiance of personality that illuminates the entire book, even when she is not at the center of it.

TIME. Most novels tell a story that unfolds gradually over the course of time; this doesn't. The outer sections of the book take place virtually in real time; the action happens at about the same speed as it takes to read about it. But for all intents and purposes, these sections are static compared to the ten-year duration of the narrative as a whole. Only one thing happens in either of the outer sections that could really be called an event, and that involves two minor characters whose relationship to the Ramsays is never clearly specified. But that does not mean lack of movement. The rapidly shifting juxtapositions and viewpoints build up a dense texture of relationships and feelings that reach a certain stability at the close of the first (and longest) section, but leave you wanting more. In painting terms again, one might call this opening a still life -- except that the various figures in it are now linked by quasi-electrical charges, so that the balance between them is not static but dynamic, presently in equilibrium but capable of further motion. In effect, you could close the book at this moment and write your own narrative. Instead, Virginia Woolf does something quite extraordinary. In the ten short chapters of the twenty-page interlude entitled "Time Passes," she takes on the role of narrator for the first time, and tells what happens in the next few minutes, the remainder of that night, the ensuing nights, the changing seasons, the course of the War, and the passage of years. She writes of impersonal things -- the house, the garden, the wind, the sea -- throwing in small nuggets of personal information almost as afterthoughts. When the Ramsays finally return, much has changed, and the former golden days seem tarnished. But by the end of this marvelous novel, Virginia Woolf has burnished them to a new shine, less brilliant perhaps, but deeper and more lasting.

To the Lighthouse.......2007-05-31

The book is a poetic third person narration, that takes place on the Isle of Skye around WWI. The book begins as Mr. and Mrs. Ramsay take a summer trip to the Isle, along with their bevy of children. So, begins the story of a lives entwined,and told at a pace of varying rhythms and point of views. One might say that the pages hold a search for meaning in a world of chaos. Life cycles are central, to the themes of preservation and life. The ligthouse itself, sometimes seeming mysterious and ellusive, transitions by the story's end. James, taking note of the contrast in perspective recognizes that "nothing is one thing". In this story, even the wind and furnishings are given a haunting voice. As the house is being packed and cleared , the wind asks "Will you fade? will you perish?" The objects answer, "We will remain."

Standard and Poor's Guide to Money and Investing (Standard & Poor)

Average customer rating:

a fantastic primer for any investor
Pretty good general intro to investing

Standard and Poor's Guide to Money and Investing (Standard & Poor)
Virginia B. Morris , and Kenneth Morris
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Introduction | Investing | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Personal Finance | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Wall Street Journal Complete Money and Investing Guidebook (The Wall Street Journal Guidebooks)
Standard & Poor's Guide to Understanding Personal Finance (Standard & Poor's Guide to)
The Wall Street Journal Guide to Planning Your Financial Future, 3rd Edition (Wall Street Journal Guide to Planning Your Financial Future)
The Wall Street Journal. Complete Personal Finance Guidebook (The Wall Street Journal Guidebooks)
Standard & Poor's Dictionary of Financial Terms (Standard & Poor's)

ASIN: 0976474980

Book Description

An all-new personal finance guide from the authors/creators of The Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Money and Investing

First in a new series based on information from Standard & Poor’s—the leading financial information organization—Standard & Poor’s Guide to Money & Investing demystifies the world of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, futures, and options, empowering you to make informed investment decisions, measure your performance, and evaluate the risks and rewards. Completely up-to-date to reflect significant changes in investing due to new technologies and the Internet, this concise, easy-to-read guide explains how to understand the markets, evaluate companies, and spot trends to invest for success. Also covered are forces driving the economy and the roles of institutions from the Federal Reserve to multinational banks to the stock exchanges.

Customer Reviews:

a fantastic primer for any investor.......2007-09-17

I have been reading a bit about investing for a decade but still felt I lacked a clear and comprehensive understanding of the previously overwhelming world of money and investing. NO MORE! I have found nothing that compares to the clear, concise and highly readable format of this book. The color coded and cearly defined sections helped me digest the well-organized and very readable material. However, the author's far exceed the abilty of most to clearly and concisely explain the most difficult and complicated of topics. This little book is a gem.
I feel like I've had a brief course in economics and investing and am now able to knowledgably and confidently discuss investing with the most savvy of finanical experts, agents, and those know it alls one often encounters. I will most certainly be looking at other Lighbulb Press materials.

Pretty good general intro to investing.......2007-05-02

This book describes the basic ways to invest your money. It covers markets and currency, stocks, bonds, indexes, mutual funds, ETFs, options, futures, and other alternative investments (briefly).

The format is very easy to read - there are lots of diagrams and pictures, which actually provides a good break from the large amount of dense information provided. One thing I liked (but that some may find annoying) is the frequency of repeating definitions. Between various sections, concepts are often defined multiple times. I found this useful, since it reminded me what a certain concept was without having to go back and find it earlier in the book.

In general, the information is pretty accurate and up-to-date. However, I noticed 1 error on the idea of fluctuation in currency value (International Investing in the Money & Markets section, p. 21), which gets the concept of a "strong dollar" during an international equity trade backwards, but then follows with an example diagram that gets it right. I was frankly surprised to see such a glaring mistake. I e-mailed the publishers, but received no response.

Another thing that I didn't like is the fact that, for some numbers in some of the diagrams, there is no mention at how the numbers were calculated/derived. I personally like to see/try all the formulas, so that was slightly annoying. But for the most part, I was able to figure out the formulas myself.

In conclusion, the book does an excellent job introducing various investment opportunities. It covers general information on each investment vehicle and describes the risks associated. It does not, however, teach you any special strategies (other than the obvious "diversify your portfolio" and "use strategies to minimize risk" ones) on investing - this is not the purpose of the book.

While I was initially put off by the brochure-like format and the clip-art-like pictures, I was pleasantly surprised by the content and the ease with which the information was presented. I certainly recommend this as an entry book for someone who does not understand the different ways to invest in various markets.

Pros:
+ nice introduction to markets and exchanges, and how they are regulated
+ covers all of the important investment vehicles used today
+ lots of useful information - good reference
+ lots of diagrams and pictures to break up the text

Cons:
- a few mistakes
- relatively dense - don't expect to blow through it if you want to retain the information

CLA Review Manual: A Practical Guide to CLA Exam Preparation

Average customer rating:

CLA Review Manual: A Practical Guide to CLA Exam Preparation
A great review manual and reference book

CLA Review Manual: A Practical Guide to CLA Exam Preparation
Virginia Koerselman
Manufacturer: Cengage Delmar Learning
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Workplace | Organizational Behavior | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Vocational Guidance | Job Hunting & Careers | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Subjects | Books

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All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

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Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

NALA's CLA/CP Study Guide and Mock Examination
NALA Manual for Legal Assistants: A General Skills & Litigation Guide for Today's Professionals (West Legal Studies)
Real Estate Law Review Manual
Business Organization Specialty Review Manual
Legal Thesaurus/Legal Dictionary: A Resource for the Writer and Computer Researcher

ASIN: 0314206213

Book Description

This manual is a comprehensive study tool for the Certified Legal Assistant (CLA) Examination administered by the National Association of Legal Assistants, Inc. The manual thoroughly covers each section of the exam with extensive outlines, examples, facts, and charts for review. Sample tests are included at the end of each chapter. Tips for studying and successful completion of the exam are also provided. The new edition has been completely updated to reflect the latest changes in the law and the CLA Examination.

Customer Reviews:

CLA Review Manual: A Practical Guide to CLA Exam Preparation.......2007-05-22

Good and comprehensive. I have no problem with the substantive value, however, the finish of the pages was raged and not trimmed properly. One part was extended way beyond the cover. Is this because Amazon gives a discount? Not something I appreciate in a book I will keep in my library for life. The prior issue was a better-quality product.

A great review manual and reference book.......2000-06-07

This book was my primary source when I was preparing for the CLA exam. Coherent, organized and thoughtful, it is a "must buy" for CLA candidates. Until my book was borrowed (and not returned) by another legal assistant, the manual served as a handy reference manual in my practice.

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause (TM): The Breakthrough Book on Natural Hormone Balance

Average customer rating:

Essential Reading for All Women
a must-have book!
I learned a lot.
Read if you are female (any age) or know someone who is.
Please Be Careful - I Learned The Hard Way

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause (TM): The Breakthrough Book on Natural Hormone Balance
John R. Lee , and Virginia Hopkins
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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Look Inside Health Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

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Dr. John Lee's Hormone Balance Made Simple: The Essential How-to Guide to Symptoms, Dosage, Timing, and More
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About(TM): Premenopause: Balance Your Hormones and Your Life from Thirty to Fifty (What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About...)
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About(TM): Premenopause, Balance Your Hormones and Your Life from Thirty to Fifty
What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Breast Cancer: How Hormone Balance Can Help Save Your Life
Natural Hormone Balance for Women: Look Younger, Feel Stronger, and Live Life with Exuberance

ASIN: 0446614955

Book Description

The classic bestseller that has helped nearly a million women discover the answer to menopause is now revised and updated. Hot flashes, night sweats, weight gain, low sex drive, hair loss, fibroids, and osteoporosis-most women will experience these or other hormone- related problems at some point as they age. In clear, easy-to-understand language, an internationally recognized expert explains the benefits of using progesterone and other natural hormones to reduce or eliminate menopausal symptoms safely and effectively-without the harmful side effects created by commonly used synthetic hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Dr. Lee explains why conventional HRT drugs can be harmful and offers an easy-to-follow non-prescription 'Hormone Balance' program that tells readers how to stay energized, strong, and sexually vigorous during the menopausal years and beyond.

Customer Reviews:

Essential Reading for All Women.......2007-09-20

Women at every stage of life should read "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause", "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Pre-Menopause" and "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Breast Cancer". No one is too young or too old to read them. The late Dr. Lee had nothing to sell except the important information in the books. Of course everyone is an individual; naturally every statement won't apply to one and all, and that is OK. The books obviously are not a substitute for competent medical care; however, you make the best decisions when you have the most information. Incidentally, you may meet some people who have misinterpreted Dr. Lee's books and will say they advise women never use estrogen in any form. He strongly advised against the combination tablets that are made of Premarin with artificial progesterone. These are not bio-identical and have been proven dangerous in highly publicized studies, as Dr. Lee had said beforehand. Dr. Lee's outstanding contribution was in helping us understand the uses and benefits of natural progesterone cream, offering information you may not hear from your doctor ... this natural cream happens to be available over-the-counter. Unlike the synthetic prescribed forms, this cream has the same chemistry as that made by the body. It is derived from plants and is used transdermally for most effective results. It is a wonderful supplement for many women with many benefits but the key is that it stands alone in working to rebuild bone. Bone is automatically lost during the menopausal years and the progesterone was well-proven by Dr. Lee to work by his carefully documented studies over many years. Also excellent are the book "Menopause Without Medicine" by Linda Ojeda and the book "Smart Medicine for Menopause" and any other book by Sandra Cabot, M.D. Here's to good health and competent advice!

a must-have book!.......2007-09-16

I read the precursor to this book a few (OK, more) years ago - What Your Doctor May not Tell You About Premenopause - and it was absolutely wonderful. So I bought this book, and was not disappointed! The information and timely advice has changed the way I feel. Following it has given me new energy and brought my body (and life) back into balance. If you (or someone you love) is at, or preparing for, this stage of life, it's a must-read!

I learned a lot........2007-07-23

Fabulous book that I told my nurse practictioner about. Made sense to me. This book really explained the hormonal changes besides estrogen and causes of many of my symptoms. Worth the price.

Read if you are female (any age) or know someone who is........2007-04-19

As a man who cares deeply about his woman, I have an eye for other men who genuinely care for the well-being of women. That trait is evident in the author of this great book, and is my best reason for recommending it.

Please Be Careful - I Learned The Hard Way.......2007-02-03

Bio-identical hormones are not all they are cracked up to be. They have serious, dangerous impacts on the human body. Please, if you are going to try these, do your homework first. A growing number of women are experiencing lethal side effects. Some don't make it out the other side. I am one of the lucky ones - I survived the blood clots in my legs and two near-fatal, year-long illnesses connected with use of "natural" progesterone. Since that time, I have been contacted by scores of women who have suffered due to use of these hormones. I hope this information will be helpful to someone else, too. Please, safeguard your health - no one else is going to do it for you.

A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America

Average customer rating:

better then the audabon
Field Guide to Birds of Eastern & Central America
Excellent Gift, great resource
A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America
Great bird guide

A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America

Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Turtleback

General | Birdwatching | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Outdoors & Nature Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

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Similar Items:

A Field Guide to Bird Songs: Eastern and Central North America (Peterson Field Guides)
The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America
A Field Guide to Wildflowers : Northeastern and North-Central North America (Peterson Field Guides)
A Field Guide to Reptiles & Amphibians of Eastern & Central North America (Peterson Field Guide Series)
A Field Guide to Eastern Trees (Peterson Field Guides)

ASIN: 0395740460

Book Description

Roger Tory Peterson had already made his mark with his innovative field guide when he conducted DDT research during World War II. His friend and fellow naturalist Rachel Carson built on these efforts and eventually wrote Silent Spring, a landmark text that, along with Peterson's field guide, jump-started the modern environmental movement. By combining the tireless observation of a scientist with the imaginative skills of an artist and writer, Peterson created a field guide that Robert Bateman, in his foreword to the fifth edition, says was the doorway for millions of people into the wonderland of natural history. The Peterson Identification System has been used in the more than fifty books that make up the Peterson Field Guide series. Peterson's magnum opus, now in its fifth edition, created the trail for countless field guides to follow. They are still following year by year, but his is the standard by which all other field guides are judged. On the morning of July 28, 1996, Roger Peterson was painting his final bird plate. He died peacefully in his sleep later that day. It is fitting that his final worka culmination of more than sixty years of observing, painting, and writingshould be this one, a revision of the guide that started his legacy.

Customer Reviews:

better then the audabon.......2007-09-30

The North Carolina bird watcher's assoc. said it was about the best and I believe they are right.

Field Guide to Birds of Eastern & Central America.......2007-09-27

Best book I ever found on birds in Eastern and Central America. Excellent color photos.

Excellent Gift, great resource.......2007-08-23

I love the peterson's bird guides, they are much better than other birding guides. I bought this one for my friend so we could compare life lists.

A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America.......2007-08-09

This is one of the best birding books for beginners as well as expert birders. I have had my field guide for years and just recently gave my daughter a copy so she would stop calling me and asking me to identify birds over the phone to her.

Great bird guide.......2007-08-05

I like this bird guide. It is very helpful in pointing out specific markings/traits similar birds have. This way I can decipher who I'm looking at. I like the maps that indicate where the birds summer, winter or stay year-round. Most drawings have pictures of juveniles. One of the things I would have liked to seen is more juvenile pictures as many juvenile birds visit here in early to mid-summer. I wasn't able to readily recognize them due to similar body types to other types of birds and their plumage being so differnt from their parents. Another thing I would have liked to seen in the guide is what the birds eat at different times in their lives and at different times of year. This would help in locating and identifying. However, the guide does tell what type of areas the birds live in. Overall, I really like the guide. It is durable, the illustrations of the birds are very detailed and it is informative.

Average customer rating:

unavailable...
A must have
A woman's liberation classic
a room for what?
To get a room of one's own

A Room of One's Own
Virginia Woolf
Manufacturer: Harvest Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Women Writers & Feminist Theory | Books & Reading | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Feminist Theory | Women's Studies | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Women's Studies | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Women Writers | Women's Studies | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

Mrs. Dalloway
To the Lighthouse
Orlando: A Biography
Moments of Being
The Waves

ASIN: 0156787334

Amazon.com

Surprisingly, this long essay about society and art and sexism is one of Woolf's most accessible works. Woolf, a major modernist writer and critic, takes us on an erudite yet conversational--and completely entertaining--walk around the history of women in writing, smoothly comparing the architecture of sentences by the likes of William Shakespeare and Jane Austen, all the while lampooning the chauvinistic state of university education in the England of her day. When she concluded that to achieve their full greatness as writers women will need a solid income and a privacy, Woolf pretty much invented modern feminist criticism.

Book Description

Why is it that men, and not women, have always had power, wealth, and fame? Woolf cites the two keys to freedom: fixed income and one’s own room. Foreword by Mary Gordon.

Download Description

" A remarkable work in both the history English literary criticism and feminist theory, Virginia Woolf?

Customer Reviews:

unavailable..........2007-09-09

after i ordered this book, the distributors let me know instantly that they no longer had the book on shelf, and instantly refunded my account. speedy service is one thing, but keeping the customer informed is another...thanks

A must have.......2007-01-03

A timeless essay not only for women. Good hard binding that will keep. It's a must have if you like English literature.

A woman's liberation classic .......2006-05-23

This is a beautifully written and highly enjoyable exploration of the history of women in writing. It is also a plea for the liberation of women, and their full entrance into the world of Literature. Woolf argues that a woman needs financial independence, a room , that is a space of her own, if she is to be able to truly create. She also needs the kind of access to everyday life that women confined to hearth and home were as she sees it, traditionally denied.
She urges that Woman enter into all fields of writing, and develop in directions they had no opportunity to develop in before.
She also perhaps reflecting on her own experience and nature argues for the androgynous nature of the creator, seeing in Shakespeare, Keats and certainly Proust a strong feminine element.
Woolf anticipates and perhaps in some sense helps creates the vast flourishing of Literature written by women which will come in the decades after her.

a room for what?.......2006-03-14

This essay reunites several works from Virginia Woolf about the right of women to possess a place - a room- to read, write and work, intended that not as domestic work as was usual for women during many times.
This book is very good. The problem with it today is many people uses this work only as a vindicating feminist weapon, while few people has truly read it, but remember, Virginia Woolf wanted that room not for itself, but for a finality: to do an intellectual task inside. Some people forgets this fundamental fact.

To get a room of one's own.......2006-02-17

Woolf's argument that "a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction," holds true not just for fiction but for any activity a woman wants to pursue. The early 20th century essay is still widely relevant, and not just in developing countries.

On the reading style, this essay is much more accessible, compared to say `Mrs. Dalloway' and `To the Lighthouse'. Reading it felt like having a conversation with someone who was not just erudite, but also reflected some of my own thoughts and beliefs. Especially as I believe that economic independence and resource availability could be key to overturning the notions of sexual inequality.

Many thanks to Woolf for airing these thoughts and inspiring the rest of us.

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