Although this is a transcription from lectures it deserves the highest grade because M-L von Franz here combines here erudition and interpretative faculty to produce very thought-provoking interpretations of creation myths from all over the world. Von Franz introduces her own theories within the framework of Jungian psychology. C.G. Jung said that M-L von Franz was the one theorist that had accomplished the most congenial development of his own ideas. This book is no exception. It conveys some new ideas, while keeping the reader fascinated from cover to cover. Von Franz subdivides the myths into different categories like: "the first victim", "the two creators", "germs and eggs", etc. and interprets the different categories accordingly. She explains that the incipient of many creation stories seem to be a state of pre-conscious wholeness which is broken in two when "subject" and "object" are created. The book can be read by the layman without foreknowledge of Jungian psychology, but is equally interesting to the professional as creation myths often appear in the individual's unconscious. It also serves as a good mythological reference as particularly interesting creation myths are picked out. This is a fine piece which does not reduce the creation myths into grey two-dimensionality, but holds their mystery in high esteem. /Mats W

Marie-Louise von Franz is the most pre-eminent of Carl Jung's disciples, and one of the most respected expositors of Jungian psychology. This Jungian analysis of creation myths is one of her masterpieces. In the Jungian view, creation deals with the threshold between the conscious and the Unconscious. When we create a new "world" for ourselves (by a change in job, relationship, residence, life-status, etc.), we are at this inner threshold. This book uses images from ancient mythological systems to illustrate how a psychologically healthy person approaches the creative process. Although the theme may initially seem esoteric, the author is discussing issues that strike us all at our core.

Beautiful, inviting pictures and thoroughly re-readable text, this is the story of how Alice overcomes her fear of deep water with the aid of some friendly dolphins.

My two year old loves having this read to her, she points to the pictures of the dreamy underwater world and squeals wth delight, 'She's swimming!!!' Older children will enjoy reading it themselves, and perhaps they will come to see that their own fears can be overcome too.

This combines Winton's knowledge about kids with his love of the ocean. About a family who love to swim off the pier in the ocean, the young girl is afraid of going too far into the deep water.

It is not one of those stridently didactic books that sacrifices literature for a "good message". It is a terrific book to share with children who are facing particular fears (my son was scared of the water) - and acknowledging that fears are usual but can be overcome.

The illustrations are also lovely, the water that special Australian ocean blue!

Another early but confident;sorrowful but deep collection from the master poetess of this planet.

This is a beautiful, well-crafted work of poetry only Louise Gluck could have written. Though this is only her third collection of poems, "Descending Figure" possesses as much---if not more---power as any other book she has published. The most provocative poems are: "Descending Figure," which includes a brilliant section concerning a child dying in his mother's arms; "The Garden;" and "Lamentations." The poems of this book provide only meager hints of Gluck's forthcoming genius through examining mythology and Biblical stories.

Earlier this year, I attended a beginner's class on reading the tarot, and while this class helped me better understand Rider-Waite symbology, I still wasn't interested in the cards themselves. They seemed very dull to me, and the Rider-Waite I had stayed mainly unused even after the class.

So, I packed up several decks that hadn't made sense to me, took them to a metaphysical store that buys used decks, and went hunting. Then I saw the Diamond Tarot.

This deck could suck for a beginner, because while it uses Pamela Colman Smith's illustrations for the R-W, they are reduced in size and set into a fractal-like border. The border sometimes includes obvious symbols from the particular card it surrounds, but most often reflects an assumed mood from the card. Also, the colors of the cards have been, I presume, digitally enhanced a tad so they don't appear quite as flat. The whole deck just seems livelier without being painful to look at.

My reaction to this deck was "oooooooh," a reaction that I have not had before or since to any other R-W deck. Diamond is Rider-Waitey enough to feel familiar and like a good workhorse deck, but pretty enough for me to want to work with it. Whodda thunk?

So, if you've pretty much given up on Rider-Waite as not being able to call to you, go to a new-agey store that has deck samples on display and see if they have the Diamond Tarot. Or find a deck review website that contains pictures. I think you'll find the research worth your while.

This beautiful deck is a replica of the Rider deck -- but with several important differences and additions. The "replica" part is the center of the card, which is identical to the Rider card, but smaller and much more colorful. Unlike the flat and limited colors on the Rider cards, the colors on all the cards in the Diamond deck are lush and gorgeous! Surrounding the central picture is a large border, or frame, of what I can only term "mystical" design -- different on every card, and designed to enhance, by shapes and colors, the meaning of each card. These original designs give the effect of looking through a hallway of living color into the "room" of the card. They really must be seen to be appreciated. I must admit I was a bit put off at first by the "lights" on the borders of some of the cards, but as I continued to work with and meditate on them, I just fell in love with this deck. The backs are multi-colored, look the same upside down or rightside up ... I really don't know how to describe them, but they have many little petal-like parts that are also a bit like one of those shimmering, mirrored balls that sometimes hang from the ceilings above dance floors.

It is a really touching book. It is light reading, but it can be start many conversations or thoughts that extend very deep. Louise Lawrence has a different, new writing style that is unlike any other.

This was one of my favorites growing up, and I must have checked it out of the library 4 or times over the years. A teenager (young man?) commits a crime in the city and runs away to the country, where he develops a relationship with an old man. There's a paranormal twist which I only vaguely remember with the old man's long dead child, but the heart of the story as I remember it 10 years later is this irresponsible thug learning to act like a human being... so a good read with a positive message, what else can you ask for in childrens' books?

This "Discussion" was published in Canada for global distribution (by subscription only) in HUMANKIND ADVANCING (Vol.6, No.1, January 1995).

A SPATIAL VANTAGE POINT -- Discussion of EGOSHELL (a local-to-global leadership textbook) written by R.A.Thompson and L.S.Thompson

Instant advanced knowledge could be provided in spite of widespread illiteracy, the Thompsons believe. They describe "Learning Institutes" similar to exhibitions, in which visitors can select the field of their preference at whatever level of sophistication they choose -- from pre-school levels to those of post-doctoral scholarship. Preference choices will correlate individual gifts and occupations, ensure maximum contributions to our world, and lead to maximum personal satisfaction. Moreover, the learner becomes, wherever possible, part of a three-dimensional reality that involves all of his or her senses. Traveling through the universe in a "spaceship" (while the pictures on the walls and ceiling move) fills the student with the same awe experienced by the astronauts and the same love and respect for our own tiny vulnerable planet. The entire learning experience is, in fact, focused on the transformation of an ego-centered perspective to a spatial one. New terms are coined to redirect our very thought patterns -- such as ecological shell (the mantle of all physical life surrounding our earth), planetary ecoshell (the sum of all unique physically- individual human ecoshells within the ecological shell), planetary egoshell (the egological shell, a mantle of all perceptual experience straddling our earth and the sum of all individual egoshells composed of and implemented by each individual brain and its sensors), and so on. Instead of the present "tree-branch" model of knowledge (specialized linear knowledge that is branching constantly out into more detailed specialization, with hardly any understanding among different specialists), a "shell-like" model is introduced (consisting of a large, interdependent general knowledge core, about inorganic reality (1), surrounded by life (2), and then thought and consciousness (3), with specialized knowledge wrapped only around the outermost layer of the planetary egoshell that allows constant awareness of all shells' interaction with one another). This progression from inorganic matter to life and to consciousness reflects the very path and nature of evolution itself and thus incorporates a basic understanding of it into the foundations of our knowledge. In the authors' own words:

"Neil Armstrong's 'giant leap for all mankind' was not merely a metaphor for movement, not even one of technological advance. It was most of all expressive of a psychological quantum jump to the spatial vantage point, a leap that has provided a spatial contrast for all of our former localized perceptions.

'We observe that those of us who took that 'leap' and became aware of our emerging space-age reality are now challenging many traditional, localized concepts using the contrasts provided by that spatial reality. This alone has pitted the aware against the unaware and, in turn, caused a modern resurgence of the historical lifestyle crisis that has waxed and waned over the wandering course of civilization, much like the tidal phases of the moon.

'Those of us who now understand the space-age reality cannot willingly return to earlier forms of awareness -- lesser realities -- based on superstition or on other inconsistent fantasies." (P.281)

The first reaction to the Thompsons' suggestion, of course, is that the cost would be exorbitant. Besides, would there be no truly free choice at all? Would reality be chosen not by the individual, but by the richest persons and nations on earth -- those able to afford contributions to such "Instant Learning Institutes"? And would only Western-style logical knowledge be taught? The Thompsons' reply is that the price of worldwide instant knowledge would be less than is now expended on weapons by all nations together, that only about 200 such institutes, strategically located and interconnected, would be needed, and that the acquisition of scientific principles and logical thinking by everyone would be of the greatest benefit. It would provide a desperately needed basis for mutual understanding, would expose the insanity of wars, of resource depletion, and of runaway population growth. In short, it would be the fastest and most efficient way to save our planet and our humanity. Then to counter the accusations of utopian fantasy, the Thompsons explain:

"Lest the reader believe that the actions taken to practice egology [planetary individualism balanced with(in) planetary interdependence] would be futile, we need only remember that the world has always seemed fixed in the moments before great changes in human history. Catholic power seemed unassailable in the late fifteenth century -- it was the height of the inquisition -- but only decades away was the upheaval of the Reformation...And who would have thought today's 'world village' possible fifty years ago? Since social reality always precedes human understanding of it, there has, of course, been a disparity between that which our society has become and that which it understands itself to be. It is inevitable, however (so history has shown), that such understanding will emerge -- if we do not reduce ourselves to cinders in the interim."(P.295)

The Thompsons founded an organization to research the possibility of creating a future-oriented, computerized, satellite-interconnected network, Spatialworld Corporation, as well as a non-profit educational arm, Planetary Institute for Egology, to encourage the formation of the equivalent of a planetary brain. (Erika Erdmann, Ph.D., Editor and Publisher, "Humankind Advancing," R.R.1, Lockport, N.S., Canada BOT 1LO)

Following are two nationally-published reviews:

SCIENCE BOOKS & FILMS American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) (Volume 24, Number 1 -- September/October 1988)

100 Philosophy

THOMPSON, ROBERT A., AND LOUISE S. THOMPSON. Egoshell: Planetary Individualism Balanced within Planetary Interdependence. Buffalo, NY; Prometheus, 1987. 369pp. 87-61609. ISBN 0-87975-365-X. Glossary; Index.

C-T, GA * This book has two theses: the earth and each individual living on it are shells within shells, and the scientific unity of the world should lead to political and economic unity. The authors argue that the tree-branch model of knowledge and society, which subordinates part to part, should be replaced with a spherical shell-like metaphor -- a core of reality surrounded by one shell that is consistent with reality and another (outer) shell that is inconsistent with reality (i.e. as known to date). The shell model balances individualism and interdependence. The authors use astronomy, physics, and ecology to argue for a reorganization of knowledge and of nations into a unified whole. They concentrate on the implications of a spatial perspective -- the perspective gained from seeing earth from an orbiting vehicle or from the moon -- that allows us to conceive of the earth as a whole with no political or economic boundaries. This book is especially suited for courses in technology and society because its social vision of a united world is tied intimately to a scientific vision of the world. Although the range of scientific evidence is broad and although the book is (spatially) unconventionally organized, general audiences will be able to follow the argument because the authors make their case so clearly. -- Marlin Thomas, St. Francis College, Brooklyn NY

****** ****** ******

JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC LITERATURE (March 1988, Volume XXVI, Number 1)

THOMPSON, ROBERT A. and THOMPSON, LOUISE S. Egoshell: Planetary individualism balanced within planetary interdependence. Buffalo, NY; Prometheus Books, 1987. Pp. 369. ISBN 0-87975-X. JEL 88-0317

Searches for the social benefit of the Space Age. Suggests that a "social layer, essentially parallel to nature's ecology, the egological shell is...necessary to form one interdependent planetary society." Introduced by an epilogue and foreword, proposing a yet-to-be created means for dispensing spatial awareness -- (for) an all inclusive understanding of our spatial world. Contends that individualized and interdependent enlightenment can be achieved by disseminating the world's knowledge in a new way. Book 1 describes the egoshell, discussing the launching of a space age enlightenment, the lifestyle crisis, and the emerging planetary citizen. Book 2 presents the "knowledge core." Argues that nature provides a common pattern, based on its own spherical, shell-like structure, on which to refocus our institutions and help resolve the (impending) lifestyle crisis. Thompson is head of Spatialworld Corporation. Glossary; index.

A fantastic reference book for anyone making an initial investigation of any health issue. Well laid out with an excellent index. Comprehensive coverage of many health issues yet condensed and easy to read. The first health book any-one should buy. It even makes a great present.

Tenney's book offers easy to understand herbal treatments for every day health challenges. A must for anyone who wishes to take health care treatment dependency from doctors and put knowledge into thier own hands

I have to say that the book is simple to read and it shows one the steps in order for one to apply clown white and the other materials in steps that go along with face painting yourself like a clown, etc. the text(book) has live photos of kids, and on the following page it has several sketched photos of how the make up in applied. the book is low priced. the book contains like around 40 pages, and you actually learn alot.
Now if your dream has always been to apply corpsepaint and need a good book-i suggest you get this one because it is pretty good. the only thing i have to say that the book does not have any toll free numbers along with addresses that state the places in this country USA OR CANADA of the places that sell clown make up or also known as "Corpsepaint." clown white is known as corpsepaint in the heavy metal world
Fantastik. this book provides the basics to all, then the rest is up too you!!

This is a great 'cookbook' for face painting. The best part is deciding which character you want to become - a clown, a lion, a cat, a witch, a princess, a pirate... Or if you just want ideas for decorating yourself, those are provided as well. The book begins with a section of face-painting tips, including extra helps for doing this job safely. In addition to giving instructions for sixteen different characters, the author offers suggestions for costuming. Necessary materials are listed with helpful hints on where to find them. Step-by-step instructions are listed for each character. This is a delightful craft book with excellent illustrations for all face-painting novices.

I love having this book. I take it with me on trips. I have read it several times. The envelopes inside are so nice to look back on and the places to take notes are important. I wished that the book tied to close but I fixed that myself. You want this one.

If you liked Souvenirs de Fleurs, Louise Kollenbaum's pressed flower book, you'll love this one just as much. I never thought leaves could be so lovely and interesting until I opened this fabulous combination how-to book and journal. This book will make a wonderful gift for the holidays -- it is gorgeous to look at, fabulous to read, and enchanting to work with. I highly recommend it (as well as the accompanying notecards -- great images!).

In beginning my quest for information on stencilling, I came across this beautiful book. I plan to utilize many of the stencilling suggestions in my own house. A must for beginners!

31 ready-to-use plastic stencils that can be combined to create many beautiful classic designs

CONTENTS:
1. How to begin:
Starting to stencil, using your stencils, caring for your stencils, repairing damaged stencils, paint effects, masking a stencil, stenciling on other materials

2. Stencils :
Each designs has an explanatory paragraph on its background/history followed by step-by-step stenciling instructions.
There is also 2 pages of suggestions for combining the stencils called Variations.

* Medieval Iris + Variations

* Rococo Lattice + Variations

* Laurel Tree & Ginger Jar + Variations

* Rope & Rose Swag + Variations

* Victorian Leaves & Lilies + Variatons

* Mix & Match + Variations