The book guides you through planning and creating an Advent calendar that interweaves the liturgy of the season with your everyday Christmas preparations, giving rich significance to such "menial" things as housecleaning, and serving as a reminder to do everything "as unto the Lord." You can choose from three different materials/levels of difficulty, and each one comes with step-by-step instructions and a shopping list! The book is written from a Catholic perspective, and the calendar is easy to adapt to other Christian traditions. Some days (like the 4 Sundays of Advent) have specific themes, but even the "doors" on those days can be personalized with different decorations and Scripture verses. Other days, you choose something that suits your family -- a school house for the last day of school or a Christmas tree for the day you decorate your tree. Each day's theme also comes with one or more Scriptures, a brief "lesson" and a prayer. For families used to starting the day with a devotional, this puts a different spin on it. For families that aren't, it's a great way to start. I've found a wonderful way of reducing the stress and reminding my family what's really important.

Apparently William Bennett is unfamiliar with the myriad wonderful books for children written in the last thirty years. The only exception are "famous" people writing now like Barbara Bush. Why not draw on the terrific current literature? My guess is because Bennett would have to pay for that, whereas the older work is in the public domain. What a lost opportunity to speak to kids in terms they can better relate to and to introduce parents to some fine contemporary writers. Of course, this book is actually pitched to parents, not kids, so I doubt appealing to kids is actually his real aim.

We're on our second read through of this book of children's morality tales.

With poems, short homilies and stories, Bill Bennett entertains young children as life's good lessons are imparted. The accompanying illustrations are visually delightful.

Some of the stories, because of word usage, appeal to a slightly older audience than my four and five year olds, but they can appreciate most of the vignettes. A good book that helps parents in childhood instruction.

This is an excellent book to read to your young ones (4+) The stories are old yet the principles are ageless. The children will curl up and live these tales. I find myself truely enjoying this special time. When they get to six or seven I would strongly recommend moving to the Book of Virtues by William J. Bennett. The stories will sweep you and the children away. MY childrens favorite time is reading these stories. They actually ask for the book and seldom does anything else draw such smiles and "Thank You Daddys". Enjoy the experience.

Ms. Caplan-Bennet has done a stunning job of capturing not only the trappings and environment of a time period, but a mind-set from a particular era. Characters from the 70's could easily be seen as one-dimensional but not here. The cast of "Nothing Left To Lose" is filled with people those of us of a certain age will recognize and respond to. The journey of Naomi Hart from "Naive Naomi" to independent, budding adult awareness is engaging and satisfying. I look forward to Ms. Caplan-Bennet's future works.

I was recently given this book as a gift. Having grown up in the seventies, the thought was that I would enjoy a fresh exploration and look back at the time period. I was skeptical at first because this book is about a young woman trying to figure out her life in a world that was foreign to her upbringing. A unique approach to be sure, but one I wasn't convinced was for me. Boy, was I wrong. I was incredibly surprised and could not put the book down until I finished it. The characters were so well defined that I wanted to know them better and totally cared about what happened to them. The wonderful descriptions of the seventies and all its excitement, possibilities and foreboding brought up pictures in my mind as real as having been there. This was a terrfic job of story telling. Thanks for the fun ride.

Although a member of Generation X, I fully related to this book, based during the 70s sexual revolution. The issues addressed, monogamy, drug use, finding one's own path, are almost universal among women of our time and the setting does nothing to belie this book's poignancy. The writing is beautifully descriptive, without going overboard. The thoughtfulness and honesty of this book shine and illuminate those places within the reader that perhaps they have been afraid to look. As a woman, I found it a tremendous joy to have ideas and feelings that I have had myself reflected back to me with compassion, accuracy and non-judgment. In addition, I have never read a more lovely and true-to-life description of a positive hallucinogenic experience. Ms. Caplan-Bennett's style is endearing and engaging and I eagerly await her next work. If this is her starting point, I expect she will be a front-runner before too long.

it's an o.k. book, it's very helpful too for sexually abused teens!

This book is an excellent resource for teen survivors of sexual abuse, their parents, teachers, and counselors. I teach 7th through 12th grade adolescents within a state hospital setting. Many of the teens I teach are survivors of sexual abuse, and I have used this book as a resource for them for the past several years. The book is written in very straightforward language and in a readable format. It includes realistic discussions about feelings and easily usable suggestions for dealing with those feelings and other aftereffects of sexual abuse. I feel the authors treat the book's readers with respect and intelligence, never preaching nor talking down to them. Another outstanding book on this topic I also provide in my library for my students is: How Long Does it Hurt? A guide to recovering from incest and sexual abuse for teenagers, their friends, and their families, by Cynthia L. Mather.

Superb book with timeless ideas for investors. Structured before appreciation disappeared, Glubetich shows how to allow property to pay itself down quickly to take advantage of the least used technique--fast equity build-up from mortgage paydowns. Many other exciting, unique, profitable ideas. GK Gibso