This book is an excellent guide to beginning Chi Kung. It is a good book for anyone who wishes to start Chi Kung, it is simple to understand and has photos which really help you to know what you should do.

Excellent introduction to Chi Kung. Clear and concise text, accompanied by photos, of the exercises and postures make this an easy book to follow. It is designed to be used either as a guide to a gradually-intensifying daily workout or as a reference to find exercises geared to specific ailments. There is also a videotape available.

I thought that ENDLESS HIGHWAY was an interesting book. It showed a lot of what Carradine went through, and his triumphs. It has amusing moments and memories in it, along with powerful ones. It gives you a new dimension to add to that of which you see on television.

this book is one of the rare books I have read more than once, and everytime I read it, there is always something new to learn about him. it's worth getting even if you have to go throught your pulbic libary to get it!

It took me a week to read,and enjoyed every minute of it.I like it when he said he's a writer now.I am a unknown writer so I understand.His nickname Pokey as a child was great.His writing was real,you went away from the book with the feeling you know him.Better than the people you really know because they don't write their life story.

What a terrific way to re-live and reminisce about the great old days of the original Kung Fu TV show. The book gives a very interesting behind-the-scenes look at the creative and talented writers and actors who worked on the show, and follows with an episode-by-episode synopsis. The book, like the TV show, leaves you wanting more, so I can only hope that more will become available soon. In the meantime, the Book of Caine is a nice addition to any fan's collection.

This book has it all: a show by show guide, photographs, and more pertaining to the best television program ever. I have even more love towards the show after reading this book!

I found myself, overall, agreeing with one of the reviewers when he stated specifically that "Walden" is not a book to be read purely for enjoyment, it is not a thrilling read or even a very deep one in general but then one must remember in which time we live and the style used by Thoreau is one of the mid 19th Century which was prone to the type of writing he uses. Anyone who has read other novels of the time or rather written in that period will find similar styles eg James Fenimoore Cooper, Charles Dickens etc. In addition this is not a novel but rather a retelling of experiences of one man in his own adventure as he would put it.

That is not to say that Thoreau does not illuminate or at times give remarkable insights especially when it came to some of the people he met who had fascinating ways of life eg the woodcutter. The book varies from downright mundane and tedious to being very insightful and beautiful. Its amazing how someone can do this as he writes, verging from one extreme to the other. But then it was written from journal notes as he lived his life in the woods over two years experience and during that time a person changes as he adapts to his new way of life. At first its very exciting and new, any new experience is always full of a kind of life shock whether it be painful or joyful, the thinking mind, the mind absorbed in everyday "safe" tasks which define the "normal" life are absent in this new environment which requires new creative energies to survive, after a while this way of life becomes the accepted one and starts to be drained of the vitality it possessed at the beginning as one is fully acclimatised to it and it becomes the norm, after this stage comes the usual safety associated with the walls created to keep life ordinary rather than really being alive. This is hard to do when living in the woods by yourself where you need constant awareness to survive unless its a little too close to civilisation which provides the safety net which Thoreau always had available to him. But still during the period where he was very much alive and aware, life is lived without need for too much unnecessary thought, and this is the place from where insights and great creativity burst forth.

If one wants to know what it is like to be really truly alive in the moment and you are afraid to try it yourself and would rather read about it then try the books "Abstract Wild" by Jack Turner or "Grizzly Years" by Peacock. Am I wrong to criticise Thoreau so much ? Yes and no, eg Yes:see the comments by John Ralston Saul on exactly this aspect of Thoreau's writing, No: look at your own life or mine for example, in each case we do not escape this ordinary life we ourselves create. For the purely lived life expressed in poetry look at the poems by Basho, no clearer or more beautiful expression of life has yet been written. I say written not lived, lived can't be written down in full only a brief glimpse or shadow of it is possible even with Basho.

As regards what is said it often betrays Thoreau's astonishingly well read mind, quotes from the Baghvad Gita or other Hindu texts surprise because in Throeau's day very few people would ever have bothered to read the Indian works, the average American thought his own life and European works to be far superior. Thoreau often quotes Latin, often without reference, and the notes at the end of the book are very helpful. Thoreau's experience becomes the one Americans want to live at least without being in too much danger as he would have been in the true wild still available at that time in the lives of say the trappers or mountain men of the Rockies or any native American. As such it is an in between way of living wild.

So Thoreau's work is definitely worth reading even for only the historical value or the literature it represents. It stands by itself.

This book screams simplicity!

In this book, Henry David Thoreau takes an extended look beyond human nature and human habit. He brings forth a new and exciting view point on life and teaches how to live in happiness without the confusion of mechanical materials. I had to read this book for a 9th grade Language Arts assignment, and I had never heard of Walden or Thoreau before this project was assigned. When I completed this book, I felt very refreshed. It encouraged me to take a second look at my own life, and simply discard of the things which were causing complications or confusion. This book stretched past the limits and capacity of my mind as a 9th grade student. It forced me to think. Judging by the majority of my peers, I am convinced that anything that would force them to THINK harder, deserves 5 shining stars.

This timeless classic from one of the great thinkers of the 19th century American transcedentalist school appeals to all idealists. This would include idealists from both the left and the right. Envronmentalists are attracted by the themes of living in harmony with nature. For example, Thoreau observes all around him in his two year two month stay in his simple house in the woods. He describes in great detail watching certain insects glide along the pond and the ripples made when they do so. He provides an engrossing description of two ant colonies, one black, the other red, at war with each other and gives a lurid, blow by blow account of the battle. Envrionmentalist also will be drawn toward his declarations against waste and using more than is necassary.

Leftists from an earlier generation, "hippies" for want of a better characterization, are drawn towards Thoreau's rejection of the material. At Walden Pond, Thoreau eschewed unnecessary comforts and lived for what may be more truly important; a life in which we get to know the world around us. He was able to sit for hours, but this was not a waste of time because he was thinking and observing. He sought higher values.

Idealists from the right are also attracted by Thoreau's observations since he was self reliant and lived off of his own labors without thinking that anyone else owed him a living. He may have rejected the material but, in so doing, he fended for himself and lived off of his hard work and ingenuity. Unfortunately, there are many today who cannot possibly appreciate this great book because they are more concerned with materialism, an easy life and pop culture. I hope that these young people will ultimately experience what Thoreau early in the first chapter calls the greatest miracle: "to look through each other's eyes for an instant." I hope that these young readers will look through this great thinker's eyes and truly try to understand what he has seen and experienced.

this book is expressed suberbly the way and the spirit of the shaolin temple and their kung fu. as the name of this book,it is try to show and explain the true phylosophy of kung fu and the real meanning of kung fu,because it is actualy based on a dicipline (a way of life) wich a kung fu fighting is a part of the dicipline and not a brutal thing as most of the films usualy shows.this book will teach you what are the guidelines you should understand in order to understand the kung fu phylosophy,what kind of teacher is more suitable to you,and what to expect from the school,system,teacher,but most of all----discovering yourself through understanding of the true meannings of the shaolin kung fu spirit.it is not a technical book,but it is a much more fullfiling.this book is having a lot of sayings that are very much enlightning as the true phylosophy (and a practical one)of shaolin kung fu. there are also personal expiriences of david carradine in his film making and he shared his enlightning expiriences through his journy of life.i enjoyed,learned and growing through this book, thank you david-carradine,god bless you!. and to the readers i bless you all that you will enjoy,learn, and progress through this book,and into the life,because learning is a life time process!.superb book,i recommand it!

The original Kung Fu television show inspired me to begin studying martial arts: 24 years later I am still as fascinated by the martial arts as ever. David Carridine is no expert and much of his information on styles and systems is grossly inaccurate; overlook these flaws and what you find is a very interesting, heartfelt account of how the spirit of the martial arts affected, almost in spite of himself, a very intelligent but flawed man. Carradine no doubt ruffles the feathers of the Bruce Lee cultists who want to deify Lee, they should remember that Lee was a brilliant martial artist who deliberately chose to become a movie star. Carradines' advice seems very genuine and sincere. No, he is not a sensei, sifu, or master; he is simply a very complex man whose journey into the martial arts (a journey which seems to have not always been a pancea for his own demons) fundamentally changed him. Read this book not as a definite guide to Kung Fu, but rather as an exploration into personal change and growth.

The Spirit of Shaolin is an exceptionally readable book for those interested in discovering Kung Fu. It takes you on one man's journey to finding himself through this practice. That the man happens to be David Carradine, TV's Caine, is an interesting parallel. For those more versed in Kung Fu this book may contain too little, for those who adhere to Bruce Lee and his methods this book may anger, for those of us who are curious and who are an unwritten page ourselves this book is just what the doctor ordered.

On the Road tells the story of Sal Paradise and his trips across the country with his idol Dean Moriarty. The novel is based heavily on Kerouacs life and features several well known "beat" writers like Carlo Marx(Allen Ginsberg) and Old Bull Lee(William Burroughs.)

This novel was highly enjoyable for one reason, the infectious passion the author has for life's experience. Kerouac writes some beautiful and romantic passages idolizing partying with his buddy Dean all over the country. Apparently Kerouac wrote this in a burst of inspiration,(he even taped his typewriter pages together) and it shows with his genuinely emotional writing.

But spontaneous Prose? Anyone who has ever struggled to write knows good writing is not spontaneous, it takes time and a lot of effort to shape your ideas into a cohesive and focused effort. Granted this is good writing but it could have been better. Sometimes this novel reads like a first draft. At times Kerouac seems to ramble on, and it's breathless and tiring to read. If Kerouac would have taken the time to sit down and edit this potentially wonderful book and cut some of the extrenious information then this could have been much much better.

Still I liked this novel. Four stars for an almost classic. It really shows a lust for life, can you dig?

At lunch one recent afternoon, my friend and I were discussing books. I don't read a lot of fiction, but asked him if he had any recommendations for a good story. He jumped at the opportunity to tell me about "On The Road". Now, I've heard of the book and even saw a real good documentary on Kerouac and his beat generation friends, but I had never read any of his work. Anyway, by coincidence, my girlfriend bought me the book for my birthday, and I spent the next few days plowing through this incredible piece of storytelling.

Reading "On the Road" will take your breath away. At the end of each chapter, I found myself having to take a breath because it was quite obvious that Kerouac didn't take any while writing the book. The story comes off as this incredible ramble of beautiful words and sentences that magicly combine to describe this crazy cross country journey.

I heard that Kerouac wrote the entire manuscript on one really long piece of paper and didn't bother adding chapter, page or even paragraph breaks. It was just one big run-on story. The editors cleaned it up quite a lot, but the feeling still comes through. His descriptions of the American landscape are incredible, so incredible that they make you want to quit your job, buy some old jalopy and just go west.

In a time reverse way, I felt dated, reading this very modern piece of writing with my postmodern consciousness. At first I felt like I was in the ejector seat of a convertible without seatbelts doing 110 MPG with a drugged or drunk driver commandeering the steering wheel. Well, we the readers, not to mention the characters, are. But all the boozing, drugs, women, and breaking of various Commandments don't have the consequences we'd expect in a more recent novel. Instead, we learn about the holy pursuit of getting high on life, especially as it is lived on the edge. A gang of characters is wrapped like a hurricane's winds around Dean Moriarty whose bipolar (postmodern judgment there) energy flows inspire antic cross country road trips across several years. In a book that's fueled by organic movement, there comes the day when the characters have to move on and away after they have achieved the highest (literally) point in their travels, and that's the ultimate consequence, that the momentum dissipates.

I had put off reading this book, thinking I couldn't handle one long abstract rant, which it isn't, though I'd picked up that impression somewhere. Kerouac sings like Whitman in a voice that is at once poetic and yet concretely journalistic. It is urgent, thus propelling its content, peeling away the past and future. There is artistic skill and knowledge at work in every sentence.

I read the critical introduction last, so it would not color my experience. It is an excellent introduction, one addressing more autobiographical detail than text, but all the same, read it as an afterward; I think Kerouac would want you to live the book unfettered by context.

I was not able to learn this form from the text. Several of the movements are not depicted and described well enough, and there's no discussion of the transitions between movements, leaving it pretty much up to your imagination. The video that follows this goes too fast to be of use, at least to me. The chi kung movements he shows are a hodge podge, and are certainly the least interesting of any I've seen published. I'd prefer to see a full depiction of a complete system like 8 pieces of brocade, or tai chi chi kung etc. The only good thing I can say about this book is it got me interested in chi kung and tai chi. I would recommend The Way of Energy as a very good chi kung book. I'm still desperately searching for good tai chi books.

I can understand other readers having problems with the photos. My copy of this book originally came with a video which shows all the forms and a complete workout. The music is really horrible and Carradine seems a bit smug at times but you actually see what is going on. Why is it on sale without the video? Has it been re-written to allow for the absence of this?

Very good basic intro to one style of T'ai Chi. Warning to David Carradine fans: although there are a number of photos of David, most of the photos are not of him and it's not possible to tell how much of the text was actually written by David himself. However, you should be able to learn this form from the book, especially if you also have the videotape. It's always better to have a real live teacher, but this is the next best thing.