The publisher has reissued this book in the Shambhala Classics series under the title: THE BUDDHA AND HIS TEACHINGS.

This is an excellent collection of writings aimed at clearing up confusion one may have about basic buddhist doctorines and the different buddhist schools. It is not a good place to start for the total beginner, since this book seems to be aimed at those who have some knowledge of buddhism and wish to advance their understanding of it. It is not as cut and dry as some of the other buddhist primers available today. One gets a variety of writers with varied insights into the Buddha Dharma. Highly reccommended!!!

This is an excellent introduction and intermediate level book on Buddhism. How can it be both? As an introduction, one would read each chapter through to gain an initial impression of the various key teachings and tenets of Buddhism. As one reads the book for the second or third time, one learns more and sees interconnectedness among topics, chapters, and ideas. Just as the teachers would have you do in their zendos, centers, and temples. If you are looking for a "what are the various types of Buddhism" book, then check out Nancy Wilson Ross' "Buddhism: A Way of Life and Thought." This book is more about the different teachings.

This slim volume by co-authors Zonderman (a writer with Crohns Disease) and his gastroenterologist Vender packs a lot of punch in a brief amount of time. Very up to date in terms of medication information and surgery, the authors also do an excellent job of describing the symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease and WHY you are feeling this way (something I've yet to come across in any other book on IBD). I was disappointed in the primitive line drawings used to illustrate the book and in the negative attitude toward some alternative medical treatments discussed in the "mind/body" chapter (although I was pleased to see its inclusion). The authors should be commended for approaching the emotional aspects of IBD in a forthright manner and the book would be an appropriate addition to any IBD library.

This is a short yet informative overview of inflammatory bowel disease. The possible causes, research developments, available treatments and surgical options are discussed. It is by no means a definitive text. However, it is a good place to start if you or a loved one have just been diagnosed with IBD. It explains IBD's vocabulary in easy-to-understand terms. It discusses the different forms of IBD and the various courses these diseases can take. I definitely needed this book to supplement the information I gleaned from my doctors. I had a much clearer idea of what to expect after reading it. This book also focuses on coping skills, alternative medicine and dietary advice. An appendix contains recommended titles for more detailed reading and provides contact information for the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation.

This thing is abyssmal, just terrible and amatuerishly written. Nuff said.

This book was a spin-off from the movie, Stealing Beauty, and like most books based on movies, the book fails to capture the mood and romance of the original. Description of the Italian countryside in this books pales in comparision to Bertoluccis' masterful use of the camera. The magnetic appeal of the film is lost in second-rate descriptive attempts and clumsy use of words. Regretfully, the author gets caught up in retelling the movie's blocking and action scene by scene and forgets to focus on the characters and the story being told.

However, if you enjoyed following Lucy's coming of age story and want to relive the moments, you could like this book.

For people who loved the film, Stealing Beauty may be worth a look. For everyone else, I'm sure you could easily find a more thoughtful, worthwhile and enjoyable book to read.

This movie is unbelievably bello, carino, it is beautiful. The story is touching, the landscape is like candy, and the ending is beautiful as well. Lucy is a girl almost a woman, who is searching for her the answer to an intriguing passage she found in her mother's diary. She is also searching for the boy, now almost a man also, who she kissed the last time she visited the breathtaking Italian villa four years past. This movie will leave you feeling like you have just witnessed a moment of beauty so strong and so intense that you will feel changed.