The title initially didn't mean much to me, but when I saw reference to the LRDG, a bell rang. Having served in the Western Desert of Egypt in WW2, I knew that I had to read this book. I did not know any of the LRDG members but I was very familiar with their existance. As with all Special Forces these men had a mission, and as with all special missions, exceptional men were called for... Their mission meant existance very different than todays desert forces face. There were no cell phones, no computers, limited communications, very little water and certainly no Perrier !! Anyone interested in special missions carried out by either side should absolutely not pass this one up. Trooper Jopling's diaries are incredible and the photographs are superb. Author O'Carroll deserves a medal for this one !

This would have to be one of the most insightfull books on the LRDG that I have ever read.Having meet and talked with several KIWI LRDG veterans,this book truly reflects what daily life in the LRDG was like. Frank Joplings diaries are packed with the "every day" happenings that this elite group of humble heroes took as "just doing their bit"as they blazed their way into history and legand. This book is one of the best.Many of the photographs have never been published before, Do not miss out, you will regret it forever.

Years ago Lee Stratton made a terrible mistake -- he betrayed a great friend named Penny. She was the one person who understood him, the girl who excited him, yet she frightened him since he wasn't used to feeling such strong emotions. When young Lee made a bet with the guys that he could get Penny to kiss him, his buddies watched and cheered as he won the bet, then turned and walked away. Devastated to learn Lee was a traitor, Penny, who later decides to use her real name, Meredith, heals her broken heart by loving and giving to others. Lee, the Iceman, spends years trying to convince himself that he doesn't need love, that it isn't necessary like food or water in life. When he finds Meredith and her daughter staying at his family's home where his father accepts them more than he feels close to his son, Lee is bitter. Not for long, though. His glacial cool melts as flames of desire rage inside him each time he sees Meredith. At Sand Castle, his home near the Gulf, he learns to love while she learns to forgive. The Friendship Oak -- once a place of pain and betrayal -- becomes the solid foundation for their bright future together.

Lorraine Carroll writes from the heart and the characters in BEAUTY AND THE GROOM reflect this. BEAUTY AND THE GROOM is a wonderful story that makes readers go away smiling long after they've turned the last page and closed the book.

During the past year, I've had occasion to read several books on theological education. This book is by far the most interesting and suggestive of the lot. Repeated visits by the four co-authors to two campuses and careful observation of how students are shaped by the all the dimensions of campus life (included but most certainly not limited to classes)yields a compelling picture both of what actually happens at a theological school and of the role of such schools in religious communities. For anyone with even a passing interest in theological education.

I ordered this book out of deference to a brief friendship with the author, who has recently passed away. Reading it these past weeks renewed my admiration for the technical depth of Carroll Stuhlmueller, coupled with his exceptional grasp of pastoral priorities. It also enriched this past Easter Season as I read his reflections each day. I was reminded that I have yet to read one of his books or articles without a sense of renewal. The book is excellent for any Christian reader looking for a deeper relationship with Scripture, because it provides exceptional insights into the liturgical season of highest majesty, the Easter Season. These include many of the most important readings of the Christian Scriptures. Father Carroll's writings are sensitive to the entire Christian community, although the book is organized around the Lectionary used by Roman Catholics and several mainline Protestant groups. The author's particular depth with the Hebrew scriptures is evident, although most of the scriptural references are from the New Testament. As a Catholic Deacon, I found his insights helpful in preparing homilies, especially for weekday Masses. There is considerable overlap among the readings around Easter, I expect for greater emphasis. It can be challenging to add a dimension to homilies on similar scriptures compressed into a short time period. His ability to relate the Word to our current life settings gave me several "aha" moments, often the crux of an effective homily. I never heard Father Carroll preach. I knew him through his scholarship and through a unique experience in participating in a video program with him and his Catholic Theological Union associates. Having read this book, I feel I must have missed a powerful homilist. In testimony to my 5 star rating, I have ordered the entire series of Biblical Meditations that he authored for Paulist Press, covering the rest of the liturgical Year. I trust the community I serve will be much richer when I have added his insights to my future homilies.

Like many of the old Carole Lombard movies, BLACK LACE AND LINEN is about financially well-situated people where someone is pretending to be something she isn't. Think of it as screwball comedy brought up to date for the 90s.

Laura Stuart, a children's book writer and illustrator, pays a visit to her identical twin sister, Chelsey. When Laura arrives at the hotel where her madcap sister is staying, she discovers that Chelsey, a high-profile personality who recently met scandal in the tabloids, has been impersonating her. Chelsey explains she has fallen for a younger man and his uncle, Adam Barnhart, opposes the match. Chelsey has been pretending to be Laura because she believes a children's book author would go over better than a photographer of male nudes and asks Laura to carry on the masquerade. Laura reluctantly agrees, but finds Adam too provocative to resist.

Laura is always in the hot seat as she tries to live up to Chelsey's uninhibited behavior and racy fashion preferences. When they have a chance encounter with Xavier Storm, whose divorce suit cited Chelsey as an extramarital partner, Laura finds herself in a position where, as Chelsey, she needs to do a nude male shoot herself. To her exasperation, the real Chelsey can't be located and Adam volunteers to be her subject.

This 1994 novel can bring about some serious argument about how realistically it portrays twins. Studies have shown that twins--especially identical--tend to bond stronger than any other type of relationship. Even when they've been separated at birth, researchers have found they still share similar interests and traits that have led them to wonder if environment is really as influential as genetics. None of this research or a twins' "psychic connection" is evident in this story. Even as sisters, they aren't considered close.

Be that argument as it may, the crafting of this story is nonetheless remarkably well done. Susan Carroll provides consistent, credible characters striving for definite goals in a tactile world. The humor is well-timed and the sexual tension ignites from Laura and Adam's introduction.

BLACK LACE AND LINEN is a fun, contemporary romance. It brings screwball comedy back to life.

Jim Carroll should win The Nobel Prize for christ's sakes. The Book of Nods definitely prooves that. Jim Carroll his a poet no one else could ever be, lets say he's a Ted Berrigan mixed with a Allen Ginsberg. Nods refer to him and his drug induced states which he wrote most of these in. This is a creative and largely intensive book! READ IT!

To bad it's out of print because it is a great book about old fort TICONDEROGA. The story of two teenagers who get caught up in the Revolutionary war is one of the very best historical fiction books I've seen in a long time.

I hear it is being made into a movie. Great! I can't wait to see it.

I've read several books in the past couple of years about bridging the gap between the different generations, and I have to say that this one is the most useful. It's written from an objective point of view, and so gives powerful "snapshots" of different types of congregations and how they are dealing with the generation gaps---some successfully, some not.

Instead of reading about someone else's cookie-cutter "fix-it program," I got a lot of ideas and insights that might work in my own congregation. I highly recommend this book.

In separate, but harmonious, voices, eleven writers describe layered art as an expression of a holistic perspective. Each chapter addresses a theme, illustrated in color with artworks related to: alchemy, the spirit, earth metaphors, cosmic forces, healing, archaic traces and the millennium. Layered art reflects the forward edge of syncretic thinking, the recognition that the universe is held within a matrix of shared consciousness. Everything is connected with everything else.

This short read is characteristic of the author himself: simple, to the point, focused on its theme, and honest. To be perfectly fair, the book is on the dry side, but the truth contained in its pages is hard to ignore. It focuses on the discreet (and not so discreet) ways the adversary of Christianity can damage an individual on a psychological level. Things in a person's past that said adversary may inflict with the goal of preventing a relationship with the Creator. If God uses the simple to confound the wise, then this simple volume could solve a lot of complicated problems.