I have used the many thought provoking ideas that really made an impression on me ever since I read a friends copy of this exciting book. I desparately want a copy for myself, but as it is now out of print, this is not possible. Can someone help. vleech@hot.co.za

The Strategy of the Dolphin has been an incredibly influential book in my career. Concepts like "do what you fear" and "talk about HOW you're talking about it" are part of my everyday thought. The metaphor of the dolphin works very well: an animal that can outsmart a shark! When something isn't working a Dolphin does something different! That's a great lesson for life.

I read this book when it first was published because I was in an executive position with a not for profit organization. Throughout the years I have referred to it and each time it has revealed another secret in my life style. I loaned it to a friend and never got it back, so am now buying my second copy. Truly a keeper whether it is used for business or success in your personal endeavors.

Slow Burn is a collection of tight, immediate, charged poems which move through the reader's skin and go straight to the heart. These headlong, short lyrics demonstrate the poet's ability to use language precisely. The poems reverberate emotionally as the book proceeds. This book is a knock-out.

The poems in this collection are well-crafted and thoughtful with no "cookie cutter" blandness. This startling original work is often harsh in it's judgments but always beautiful. Don't miss this book. At times, it will break your heart but you will feel hopeful for the tenacity and grace of the human spirit when you put it down.

Dudley takes his place along with the other historians (some very capable) who seem to criticise the Church for what took place at Nicea as the usurpation of power by Constantine. Obviously there is an element of this at Nicea, but to claim, among other things, that Christians were not already and from the beginning worship and celebrating the Eucharist on Sunday and that it took the emperor to settle it is a stretch. Argue if you want, but at least read a few other books that are not so biased. If you think that the Church became something radically different after Nicea, you have some learning to do. The Orthodox tradition only makes sense, however, if you believe that some theological opinions are more faithful to the apostolic tradition than others. In other words, "rainbow theology" is not how the early Church functioned. If she did, then the Lord's apostles were in extreme delusion, for they too discerned light from darkness in aspects that were not strictly moral (i.e. gnostic trends, although many false teachings lead to immorality).

I recommend Davis' "The First Seven Ecumenical Councils" and Allison's "The Cruelity of Heresy" to start with (and no, they are not "let's dump on the heretics" sort of books). Others include "God For Us" by LaCugna, "Jesus as God" by Harris, "Christology" and "THe Tripersonal God" by O'Collins.

If you're interested in the cannon of scripture, check out Metzger's "The Canon of the New Testament: It's Origin, Development, and Significance".

To the previous reviewer from South Africa, who was disappointed that the Bible canon wasn't extensively discussed in this book about the Nicene Council: the reason why is because that subject was never brought up at Nicaea.

The Council was convened at Nicaea at Emperor Constantine's request to resolve the Arian controversy about the nature of Christ. It also fixed the date on which Easter was to be celebrated, and decided that the bishop of Alexandria would have a kind of patriarchal authority in the East, like the bishop of Rome had in the West. The canon was not dealt with there, so look elsewhere if that is all you want to find out.

The book goes into good and interesting details on the life of Constantine and to a greater extant on the history of the council of nice which made christianity a formal institution. I was VERY dissapointed when the book FAILED to deal in detail with the books/canons that were LEFT OUT (LOST) of the conventional bible. The book only lists those books/canons that were included, BUT fails to inform the reader as to those canons/books that were omitted (lost) or excluded from the conventional books adopted at the council. To be honest I baught the book for this (excluded/lost canons) part! Yet the book does well to inform the reader as to the main issue that was brought to the council, viz. the divinity of Jesus the Messiah (Christ). It also informs the reader of some of the agreements reached by the council regarding the church and its formalized religion: especially that Sunday was decided solely by Constatine to be our Sabbath, while the proper rest day is supposed to be Suturday..

Bad Harvest? condemns the international timber trade and advocates a new strategy for the sustainable management of the world's forests. It is, therefore, of relevance to environmental and development economists, foresters and timber traders alike.

Bad Harvest? attempts to debunk the accepted view that slash-and-burn cultivation is the major cause of global deforestation. It argues that the timber trade is the primary threat to the world's forests and examines the role that the timber trade has played in global deforestation. However, many countries-and not just those in the Third World-clear vast tracts of forest to make way for agricultural food production. While global demand for wood is increasing, there are plainly other factors at work.

Bad Harvest? is just another addition to the body of alarmist literature churned out by environmental NGOs. Alarmist tactics, unfortunately, drive consumers away from wood, one of the most environmentally-friendly products available, to substitutes such as aluminium, plastic, glass, iron or steel. In their production, these substitutes require more energy than wood, and more carbon dioxide is emitted into the atmosphere, thus contributing to global warming. It would be lamentable if this book unwittingly revives the boycott of wood, which in recent years has led to a partial boycott of tropical timber imports in a number of OECD countries. This has had the negative economic consequences of devaluing wood, and accelerating the conversion of forests to other land use in tropical countries. It is vital that in trying to solve the problem of the world's forests, the authors do not inadvertently contribute to the creation of a whole new set of economic and social problems.