The clarity in which this book describes emerging technologies is astounding.

It seems to be right on the pulse of internet development and shows in clear examples how things work. But it does not stop there; all the little tricks that make the various products and tools sing in harmony are detailed and the author gives work-arounds and offers best practice rules for us to apply. (I have already tried many of them and they all work just as described!)

It is too bad that the section on XML was written prior to the release of IE5. I could have really used the author to elaborate his keen insight and vision into generating XML/XSL -- but, hey, if I knew yesterday what I know today...

Limited time prevents me from reading too many books, but I highly recommend this one to anyone who is or wants to build really great web applications in Visual Studio.

Rick Strahl really knows his stuff and it shows. The chapter om IIS setup helped me understand how to set the Web site server parameters better than I could with any other book or info (MS included!).

This book clearly explains the different ways to create applications that do something useful on the Web. It details ASP, ISAPI and COM with lots of easy to follow Visual FoxPro code examples.

It also discusses at length using VFP as a client and server using HTTP as your network.

I highly recommend this book to anyone serious about database programming on the web or using the internet for your app distribution.

This book makes the pain of migrating to Visual FoxPro pay off! I've finally found something that Visual FoxPro is better for than good old 2.x. Thank you Rick Strahl! If you are a FoxPro programmer and have a need to display your data on the web this book describes the mechanics to do it. While other internet development books only mention Visual FoxPro in passing, this book fills in the Fox hole! It's a must read for anyone looking for a Fox solution!

In too many histories, the campaign in Africa is quickly passed over as a prelude to the main act...the assault on Europe in 1944. But in fact there was seven months of hard fighting across Northern Africa that proved critical in turning the untried American Army into a hardened fighting force.

Rick Atkinson has written a fascinating account that captures it all, from the point of view of privates as well as generals. Familiar characters stride these across these pages: Ike, Mony, Patton, Bradley. But he also introduces us to the lesser known soldiers who fought across Algeria and Tunisa. I have read many WWII histories and biographies but I came across incident after incident and character after character I knew nothing about.His characterizations are vivid and his battle descriptions riveting...especially his account of commando operations gone wrong on the day of the invasion, and the famous fiasco as Kasserine Pass.

Atkinson is not a romantic. His account makes it clear that there were cowards and callous criminals fighting alongside heroes and good guys in North Africa. He does not shy away from relating the egocentric foibles of generals or the matter of fact atrocities committed by American soldiers.

But most of all he tells the engaging story of how an American army and it's soldiers found itself in the sands of North Africa, and readied itself for the onslaught to come.

An Army at Dawn is the first of a 3-part trilogy on the European campaigns of World War II, and I eagerly await the next two books.

"An Army At Dawn" is some of the most exceptional, accessible World War II writing I have ever come across. In his Wall Street Journal review, the erudite Max Boot compares "An Army At Dawn" favorably to the legendary works of Cornelius Ryan ("A Bridge Too Far," "The Longest Day," "The Last Battle"). I heartily agree.

Rarely has a 530-page tome held me in thrall the way this book did. Rick Atkinson presents a brilliant account of the U.S. Army's baptism by fire on the shores, plains and mountains of North Africa in 1942-43 -- the campaign in which the commanders learned to command (or were relieved), the officers learned to lead, and the troops developed an impassioned enmity for the Axis enemy.

In many years of reading, I have found that journalists (like Cornelius Ryan) often make the best historical writers. Rick Atkinson -- a former Washington Post reporter/editor whose story-telling prowess was abundantly demonstrated in "The Long Gray Line" -- follows in that tradition.

Please do not be intimidated by the book's girth; even the World War II novice will find "An Army At Dawn" to be a fast-paced, engaging, often spellbinding narratve.

Although not as crisply written as "Crusade", the author's excellent account of "Gulf War One", this book is the definitive history of the little-known North African Campaign, November 1942-May 1943 of WW II. Mr. Atkinson's observations are the result of prodigious research using PRIMARY sources amply supported by copious endnotes.
His description of the major players is startling. Ike is portrayed as a career staff officer more obsessed with headquarters politics than the combat taking place. I was amazed at his inept, brief appearance at the Casablanca summit meeting between FDR, Churchill and the combined chiefs of staff. In addition, George Marshall and his staff appear as incompetent dolts next to the British with their constantly updated red leather briefing books. Patton comes across as a puerile, insensitive, whining martinet. At one point he orders Maj. Gen. "Pinky" Ward to send more officers to exposed positions at the front until enough of them are killed so that the elisted men will be impressed. After ordering this 55 year old to lead a charge to take a hill or not come back Patton worries that he sent this man to his death. The scene from the movie, "Patton", where he observes the rout of a Panzer thrust gives the impression that "Old Blood and Guts" planned and controlled the whole thing. Actually, he stood next to Gen. Teddy Roosevelt, XO of the 1st Infantry Div., whose show it was.
Mr. Atkinson erases the impression of close cooperation between the Americans and British. His chief deputies, British generals Alexander, Allen and Montgomery held the Americans in distain. Patton, Bradley and other American generals were out-and-out Anglophobes. Neither ally liked the French and their colonial troops.
There are several surprises in the book. I was unaware that in the spring of '43 American artillery shells were being equipped with radar proximity fuses so they would explode 40 feet above gound to maximize the kill zone. The treatment of German and Italian POWs was shocking and not too dissimilar to what American prisoners of the Japanese suffered. Some people, I think, will recoil when they learn that some American GIs used Arab civilians as target practice.
One could conclude that officers like Eisenhower and Fredendall were given command simply because they rewarded for sticking it out in the Army in the lean years between The War to End All Wars and 1940. Given the contradictory orders, poor coordination and communications, lack of air-ground support, inept leadership, distrust among the allies and horrible terrain and weather, one has to wonder what the outcome would have been had the German and Italian forces been adequately supplied and reinforced.

This book represents the fusion of an etymological study and a dictionary. Rick Harbaugh's brilliant book enables the reader to identify a particular Chinese word if the word itself, or even only the stroke count or a particular radical, is known. The word-genealogies help the student remember the words by describing the nature and origins of the word, i.e., by its definition as a pictograph, ideograph, logical combination, or phonetic complex. This book is much better than the average English-Chinese dictionary because of the flow charts, quick-reference English-Chinese index in the back, stroke-count indices, and thorough definitions. (And, as the webpage says, quite portable!) This book is THE indispensable, encyclopedic resource for students of the Chinese language. -Ben

What a cleverly designed book!
-Search by pinyin (romanization)
-Search by bopomofo (zhuyinfuhao)
-Search the English word list
-Search by THE PART OF THE CHARACTER YOU RECOGNIZE (doesn't have to be the radical)
-Or, ok, search by stroke or radical

-Another way to search, not mentioned in other reviews or even in the intro to the book itself: search by looking for a character that goes with the target character (i.e. I have no idea what this character is, but I just saw it printed right after the word for water. Fine, I'll just look up water, and there's my mystery character). And the definitions show plenty of combinations as well. After all, what is a zi (character) by itself?

With this book, you will not be squinting through row after row of tiny characters as with, say, the Far East brand dictionary. You can find a word or combination in seconds, I promise.

Focuses on "traditional" characters, as used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, etc, the same characters that have been used for the last 2000 years. Also, includes simplified form in brackets, which have been used in Mainland China for 50 years.

If you don't care about written Chinese, and you just want to look up what you hear, then John DeFrancis' ABC Dictionary is surely the book for you. (It has simplified characters searchable by pinyin combinations).

If you love Chinese writing, and long to look up every word you see, but are tired of asking your friend to explain it to you,
then this book, 'Chinese Characters: A Genealogy and Dictionary
by Rick Harbaugh' is perfect.

One thing on the website which is missing from the book: reference numbers linking the character to Wieger's etymology, which (correctly or not) attempts to further explain a character's origins with samples of gu-wen (ancient writing).

Notice that this book currently takes 1-2 weeks to ship.

This dictionary is compact, so it is easy to carry in a bookbag or while travelling. But perhaps the most important part is that it is extremely easy to use. There are indexes to search for words via radicals, the bopomofo alphabet, total stroke number, pinyin, and english. Moreover, the dictionary is organized "etymologically", that is, characters with similar stems are located together. For example, (if you're a student you may know these words) cheng-to become, cheng-honesty, cheng-city all have a common stem. They are all on the same page. I found this vastly interesting in terms of learning how characters were formed (each definition contains a brief etymological description). Additionally, by viewing easily mistakable words in this context I was better able to distinguish them later, and this process has given me a better understanding of the written language.

The particular organization of this dictionary also speeds up the process of finding words that I don't know. For example, say I didn't know the word cheng-honesty, but i recognize that it resembles cheng-to become. I can look up cheng-to become phonetically, find it in the dictionary and voila there is cheng-honesty. For someone unaccustomed to the seemingly impossible practice of searching via radicals, this method is extremely useful. I took this dictionary with me when I travelled in Asia. I highly recommend it.

This book is a very fast read and Pitino hammers home some key points such as setting realistic short term goals. Also he emphasizes the importance of maintaining focused and keeping a positive attitude. He gives some examples from his coaching experiences. Some stories stand out more than others.

However, many parts of this book seem to repeat itself. Pitino does not distinguish each chapter enough. Somehow Pat Riley's The Winner Within offers better examples that are more special. None the less there is more good than bad and and any sports fan will appreciate Pitino's basic candor.

I overly enjoyed reading Rick's practical philosophy of basketball, business, and life. The whole emphasis of taking charge of your circumstances through hard work and determination....ultimately pays off. It at least will make one a better person. Being a basketball fan, I found his real life stories, interesting and encouraging. One can easily see how Rick's principles helped him develop winning basketball programs throughout his career and the book showed his genuine caring attitude toward his players. I especially like the end of chapter summaries, and the summary at the end of the book. The one thing I did not like about the book was the testimonies after each chapter that to me tried to show to the world a "how great I am" attutude. I certainly do not know Rick and this attitude did not come across through reading the chapters of the book, but I got this impression from the testimonials. Otherwise; a wonderful easy-reading, motivational book!

I read this book about 6 months ago and saw it again here on Amazon. I will give credit to Pitino for giving some no-nonsense good advice and some very interesting anecdotes, but he says them over and over again without really getting into much detail. In a couple chapters I found the EXACT same paragraph written twice. It looked like he had cut & pasted from a previous chapter. He also gives little detail about what he says. For example, he says we need to learn how to get in "the zone" (a term used by basketball players which refers to when an average player plays like an All-American without any effort) more often. NO KIDDING RICK! Players have tried a million different ways to get into the zone. It's not that simple. If you want a self help program, get Anthony Robbins' Personal Power II. It's second to none.

Rick Bass does it again! This book, as much a character desription of grizzly expert Doug Peacock as it is a search for supposedly extinct grizzly bears in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, is a great triumph. The story is compelling, the language is beautiful, and the search itself is important. Truly, our attitude toward grizzly bears must be a direct reflection of our attitude toward ourselves. Although sometimes Bass gets a little heavy-handed with his metaphors--we probably could figure out that Doug Peacock has many grizzly-like traits without his coming out and telling us--his plea for the protection and defense of grizzlies is compelling, believeable, and genuine. A wonderful read.

Lost Grizzlies is a superb read! Rick Bass is fast becoming (may already be) our premier writer of the american wilderness. Bass' descriptions of the books characters and the wilds of the San Juan Mountains of Colorado are vivid. I enjoyed Bass' descriptions of Doug Peacock's brilliance and brutishness. I enjoyed reading ABOUT Peacock almost as much as I enjoyed reading Peacock's book (Grizzly Years).

As Rick Bass and Doug Peacock go high and deep into Colorado's San Juan Mountains, on the chance there might still be grizzlies somehow surviving there, we are treated to glimpses of unspeakable beauty and wonder. It's as though Bass were able to blend his own Ninemile Wolves with Peacock's Grizzly Years. Their journey is both exhilerating and meditative. Reading this book was a pleasure.

I don't believe there is one other book to best explain Christianity. Whether you are just wondering about the Bible or walked with God your entire life, this book brings depth and simplicity to the core beliefs of the Bible in a way I have never seen before.
If you have never read a book by Rick Joyner this is the one to begin with, then don't miss "The Final Quest".

As someone who has read many Christian books, I took special pleasure in this brief volume. It covers many topics, all current, all covered biblically, and it wastes no words. Mr. Joyner has with this single work established himself as one the significant Christian authors of our time.

It is addressed to the believer in Christ who is serious about getting things in perspective: the state of the Church, issues on the horizons, and one's own walk with God. It is a book that tolerates many rereadings.

I don't like to say this..but not many books keep me through the end. Partly because of my busy life and partly because there just isn't enough in the content to keep me interested. I am proud to say I finished Rick Joyner's "There were Two Trees in the Garden! I found that the author had so much spiritual insight that I just had to keep coming back for more! I have recommended this book to friends and relatives because I feel so many christians have not grasped some of the great truths of the Bible and what it takes to please God! I believe everyone can benefit from the wisdom imparted through reading this book. Scripture is quoted throughout the book in bold text with insights presented in easy to understand language. I believe when a reader finishes this book he will be enlightened. I will reread this book to use as a reminder that we cannot please God with our goodness it must come through a spiritual relationship with Him.

If Rick Bragg can be given credence, there's no poverty like growing up dirt-poor in northeast Alabama. But he also has an exceptional Momma, and ALL OVER BUT THE SHOUTIN', besides being an autobiography, is Bragg's tribute to this loving and selfless woman.

Bragg was born in 1959. His father, perhaps irrevocably damaged psychologically by combat duty in Korea, was an alcoholic spouse abuser who finally deserted his family in 1966. Rick's mother, Margaret, was left struggling to support herself and three sons by picking cotton, doing other people's laundry, and swallowing her pride to accept charity from family and neighbors. This book is Bragg's account of those early years, and his career as a print journalist from reporting high school and college football games in the late 70s to winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1996 while on the staff of the New York Times. Most of all, it's about family - his Mom, her parents, and his brothers (Sam and Mark).

That the author is a gifted writer goes without saying. (After all, one doesn't win the Pulitzer by scribbling book reviews for a major website.) ALL OVER BUT THE SHOUTIN' is poignant, sad, affecting and absorbing. It's a page-turner. However, at no time did Rick convince me that he's experienced any joie de vivre. Unlike one of my favorite authors, Laura Shaine Cunningham, who penned the autobiographical SLEEPING ARRANGEMENTS and A PLACE IN THE COUNTRY, Bragg comes across as one whose difficult childhood left him one of the walking wounded. I'm not sure his numerous mea culpas scattered throughout the work added value, and the apologia began to get tiresome. Indeed, the whole book seems a prelude to chapter 40 in which the author explains why he is what he is, and apologizes for what he's not and what he hasn't done.

The best reason to read ALL OVER BUT THE SHOUTIN' is to become acquainted with Margaret, and perhaps the best chapter is near the end when Rick describes his Momma's very first plane ride and foray out into the larger world - at age 59 - to see her son awarded the Pulitzer in New York City. That chapter alone is worth the price of the book. Margaret is truly the essence of the meaning of "Mom".

A criteria in selecting books is a desire to be taken to a place, a place I can picture and learn about and, a time or era in someone's life. Describe to me in vivid detail the setting, share the fascinating characters with me, make me feel the passionate words written across the page. Pulitzer Prize winner Rick Bragg does just that. He has more than an art with words.

The 1997 story is about his courageous loving momma, a strong-willed woman whose alcoholic mean husband was very frequently absent from their lives, leaving her and three sons, with no money, no car, nothing. If not for her grit and determination and without help from family members, they couldn't have survived. In the book, Bragg doesn't have many memories of his absentee father. Of the few, Bragg writes about his alcoholic sickly father's phone call to the home, asking for his momma, "between bone-rattling coughs, the kind that telegraphed death". When his father died, he and his brothers didn't even go to the funeral. But take a look at the diction here: "between bone-rattling coughs, the kind that telegraphed death." Wow, how can I ever begin to learn to write like this?

Bragg has the gift for storytelling. He is able to make you experience the feeling he writes about, whether he takes you down memory roads, or shares a gripping story of real people. He offers enjoyable humorous recollections of the family and is blessed with natural wit. ......MZRIZZ.

"All Over But The Shoutin'" is part memoir, and part ode to the author's mother. Throughout their tough life as very poor whites in the Deep South (a trailer park would have been a "move up"), Rick Bragg's mother sacrificed herself for the hope that her sons would end up in a better place. Bragg neither romanticizes this life, nor does he dwell on the hardships. Although he talks about having a chip on his shoulder, the author does not whine, but simply trudges ahead with the conviction that he can do what he loves, and do it well.

Rick made it out of that hardscrabble world based on his writing talent. Without a formal education, he progressed from writing about local sports at a weekly newspaper to, ultimately, winning the Pulitzer Prize for feature reporting at the New York Times. The second portion of the book chronicles his progress and travels in the newspaper business. The chapter about his mother's first trip on a plane to go to the Pulitzer ceremonies is wonderful.

Beyond telling a moving story, this book is beautifully written. Bragg has an amazing talent for story-telling; it is not surprising that he is such a success as a journalist. I cannot more highly recommend this book.

This children's book about a young angel in heaven has long been regarded as a classic. It is one of the all-time best sellers of children's books here in the U.S. The story was read over the radio and I heard it as a child in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The little angel, who is acting like all little boys, has to come up with a present for the newly born baby Jesus. It is a beautiful Christmas story and every mischievous boy can relate to this littlest angel. I really find it hard to understand to understand the comments of the 1998 reviewer from Oroville. All children who have to provide gifts for friends or relatives have a hard time coming up with ideas. The littlest angel is no different.

When I was a child I loved this story. The difficult language (see review below) didn't bother me. I think that it WAS written as a children's story and that back when it was written children accepted difficult language more easily than now. Today we underestimate the power of a child's mind and reasoning and we make the mistake of dumbing down literature and arts for children. But that's another issue..... Regarding the story - as I said, I loved the story as a child, never got the "theology" of this book confused with the theology I learned from church (As I remember it,I knew that people didn't really become angels - or if I thought that at the time I quickly lost that misconception as I became older.)
I picked the book up again as an adult (after not having read it for years) and found that the story now makes me cry.
This is an extremely heart wrenching story for adults, but a comforting one for children.

This is a poignant book for children who need to know that they and their selected possessions are special. It is a story to remind us all of what true gifts are.

It has been my favorite Christmas book for 50 years and I read it each Holiday season and never make it through without a few tears.

We all need to feel like a small clumsy child as we look at the new born King.

Field Guides of Birds come in two different forms and each has its supporters. Some folks prefer those showing reality using one or more photographs. Others prefer those based on paintings that can be made to highlight key features. Kaufman's Field Guide attempts to blend the two approaches by using digitally enhanced photos as its basis of identification. And they are among the best photos I've seen for this purpose. But I have to admit that they don't quite do it for me; there is a degree of artificiality to the photos that is unsatisfying. The paintings of Peterson and Sibley are, to my eyes, more useful in helping me understand the key elements of shape, plumage, and other characteristics.

Anyone who is familiar with other Field Guides will also have difficulty with Kaufman's non-standard order of images (e.g., owls and hawks grouped together). It makes finding a given group of birds difficult until or unless you become very familiar with this book.

But there is much that is good as well. The multi-colored range maps, using a variety of scales, clearly impart more information than their counterparts in many other Guides. And the Family introductions are full of useful tidbits that help you understand common characteristics of a group of related birds.

It was certainly Kaufman's misfortune that Sibley's Field Guide was published so close on the heels of his for it makes comparisons inevitable. Viewed by itself, Kaufman's book would be applauded for its innovation and the wealth of information it contains. But when compared to Sibley, it is but a distant second-best. I would consider it a welcome addition to my bookshelf, but not my first choice as either a pocketable Field Guide or a home/car reference book (I'd choose National Geographic and Sibley, respectively, for those roles). Nice to have, but not a "must-have".

The "need to know" what kind of bird you are seeing, no matter where you are in the USA, is the reason to purchase this useful guide. Excellent photographs (more than 2,000) and succinct descriptions make bird identification easier. Though not the best book for beginners (I highly recommend "Stokes Beginner's Guide to Birds") "Focus Guide to the Birds of North America" is a very good book for intermediate and advanced birders. Kaufman organizes his book by placing the birds in groups according to their shape rather than color. Thus, using his methodology, identifying a bird was slower than other bird guides I have used. Nonetheless, this would be a welcome gift any birders library. Recommended.

I started birdwatching in the mid-seventies and used as my first field guide the Golden book. It is the perfect size to go anywhere and it includes the range maps of the species on the same page as the painting of the bird. (My major complaint of the Peterson guide is the maps are at the back of the book.) The Golden was my favorite until I purchased the National Geographic 3rd edition. The NG contains more variations of each species with great detail. However, this turned out to be a double-edged sword. Too much detail to look through on an unfamiliar bird, and the book is cumbersome in the field. Checking out Ken Kaufman's new field guide from my local library and using it during the waterfowl migration this spring, convinced me it is my must have book in the field. I was never a fan of the photographic guides, but with today's technology, Kaufman and his crew hit a home run. Clear digitally- enhanced photos. It IS field guide size with range maps next to the bird's picture. The one-page, short index inside the back cover is very helpful in looking up a bird quickly. I own eight field guides including the Sibley guide, but this is the one I take in the field. If you're looking for a single book to get started in birdwatching, this is my pick. Happy birding!

This book has two strong points.

1.) It promotes some basic spiritual disciplines and practices that will assist in one's walk with Christ and there is a much needed focus on understanding what it means to be a Christian in the Church.

2.) It outlines in a memorable way the basic fundamentals of Christian living: worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry, and mission.

However, the book has several weaknesses as well. The use of multiple translations without any explanation for using a particular translation in one case vs. another can potentially mislead readers. Literal translations should always be the primary translation and paraphrases should only be used when they do not contradict literal translations.

Also, the author's theology is fine if you are a non-sacramental modern baptist Christian. However, the presentation on baptism and on salvation would not be considered biblical by Catholics (like me), Orthodox, Lutherans, or Anglicans, nor necessarily by Calvinists and Methodists either. So it really is limited in its ecumenical prospects. Warren's views on Baptism and salvation are assumed to be true but not biblically justified (because they can't be).

The book primarily speaks to Christians in "seeker" and megaChurches who embrace modern american christianity. It is a helpful corrective to more self-centered books that focus on personal happiness and success, american style. In fact, Warren's best quote is "God is more interested in your holiness than your happiness."

I recommend that Christians read this with a bit of caution since I think there is something to be gained by it. But like all works written by men, it should be approached thoughtfully and critically.

This book is very simple and to the point. You won't have trouble time-wise reading a chapter each day. I will use this as a guide to teach my children about how to live a Christian life.

Ever wonder what your purpose in this world is or what lies beyond it?
Are you unhappy with your life?
Wish there was something better than where you are now, or how you live your life?

Well, there is a solution, and Rick Warren points us all to the answer. Mr. Warren has created the first self-help book at looks outside the self.

What do all self-help books suggest? The answer lies within you. Your problem and solution are within you. Really?

Let me ask you a question, that the author poses. If I gave you an invention, some device lets say, and I asked you to figure out how it worked, what would you do?
Ask the person who created the device?
How about look up how the device works in some form of an instruction manual?
Well, when it comes to you, where is your instruction manual? One didn't pop out of the womb when you were born.
Well, actually the creator of you, and all of us did leave an instruction manual of sorts.

Its the bible.

The very word of God. Its his message to us. What God expects from us. How to live our life. What awaits us in the next life and eternity.

Rick Warren has put together the most comprehensive manual on how to live like a Christian. He's divided the book into
40 chapters, and suggests that you read only one chapter a day. The chapters breakdown a particular area of subject matter, backed by very appropriate passages from the New Testament. Each chapter ends on a reflection for the reader to think and pray about.

The author poses 5 points that a Christian should live by in order to not only life a fulfilling Christian life, but also have a meaningful relationship with God and a fulfilling life in heaven. The main points are belief in Jesus Christ and how you live your Christian life.
The first point determines if you are going to heaven. The second point determines what you are going to be doing in heaven.

The remaining points the author makes help clarify what is expected of us Christians. Many Christians these days don't go to church, or go to church only 1 day a week. God doesn't want you one day a week. He wants you every moment of the day.
The author suggests in our daily activities, no matter what they are to do them in remembrance of the Lord. By doing so, he suggests that we are in fact worshipping God. Also, its important to attend Church to maintain fellowship with other Christians.
Fellowship can't be stressed enough as it helps us all in our walk.

Prayer? Many of us don't pray enough. Rick Warren gives some great suggestions on improving prayer. I'm finding that I pray more often than I've prayed before. I thank God for Rick Warren's ideas.

Purpose Driven Life is a great book, but I did have some problems with it.

What I didn't like about the book?

I understand that Rick Warren would like to make money from this book. Hey, how else is he going to pay the bills and upkeep.
The first chapter and final section in Purpose Driven Life covers all the Purpose Driven Life branded items you can buy along with this book.
Purpose Driven calendar with inspirational quotes.
Purpose Driven date book.
Purpose Driven mouse pad, coffee mug...etc...etc.
I found commercial aspect of these sections to border on the tacky. It wasn't enough to detract from the book and the message
presented, but it sort of put me off initially. Perhaps a single page in the end of the book with a web address to a site that sells these items would be more appropriate.

Also, the author claims that God has changed many people's life in the course of 40 days. He gives a number of biblical examples from Noah, to Daniel, to Jesus Christ. Yes, God does work miracles in our lives over time, but to make a claim that God is going to change your life in 40 days is a bit preposterous. God works on his time, not ours. How do you know that someone may read this book in 1 day and not be
changed by its word in a week? How about a year? A few years? First time Christians or even those that are seeking the Christian life may be let down in expectations that God is going to change them in 40 days.

Overall I highly recommend Purpose Driven Life to the new as well as the old Christian alike. I've been a born-again Christian for about 3 years and I feel that Mr. Warren's book has added a new dimension to my relationship with
God that I've overlooked.