This book is a must-read for anyone that has gone through a tragic event, rough time, or is feeling sorry for themselves. It puts life into perspective and shows that there is always someone worse off than you, no matter how tough things get. It shows that you can laugh at yourself no matter what, and provides insight to the strength of the human spirit.
Paul sets the example that you can accomplish anything that you set your mind to.
Inspirational!!!

I usually don't get into books like this but I read a review on this one and had to check it out...and I was not disappointed. This is a great book for non-athletes and athletes alike. It really shows how someone can change their lives and become great in whatever they decide to focus their energies on regardless of the barriers in the way.

At times the book seems somewhat self-indulgent...but if it was my book I'd do the same...overall it's a great book and recommend it!

One Man's Leg shows the strength of the human spirit, and the determination of one man in particular. But rather than bludgeon us with a tale of dark adversity and eventual triumph, this book delights in its accessibility and humanity. Paul leads us through his life and evolution with humility and honesty, and writes in a natural prose that inspires genuine identification with him as a person first, and an amputee secondarily.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone at any stage of life, for both a delightful read and a reminder that humans are capable of great things if we only rise to the occasion.

This book is a gift from God to us in this end times. It will make you realise how unworthy you are in your own faith with the Lord. No words is good enough for this book and the faith that was shown by Brother Yun was beyond comprehension. It's a story of Peter in the 21st century; how God opened prison gates for his faithful servant Brother Yun. You just have to read it because if you don't, you've just missed a gift from God. God Bless you and may He speak to you the way He has to me through this wonderful book.

We lightly speak of our own 'cross' or of 'persecution', but those of us in America have no idea what other believers are going through.

Brother Yun has experienced unbelievable persecution, including torture and imprisonment. He has also experienced unbelievable grace and miracles. And in a paradox that continues to confound, he describes how the true church actually flourishes amidst persecution.

Be warned -- it is hard to read. Not in the sense of literary difficulty (the language is easy), but it will cause you to search your own soul. You cannot read this without questioning your own commitment level. Yet at the same time, one is tempted to read quickly, at breakneck pace, just to follow the adventure, and see how it all turns out. It's an adventure story -- truly a 'page-turner'.

Be inspired by one who made the choice to follow Christ even if it cost everything.

After reading this book, I'm convinced that most professing Christians in America have no clue what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. This book is about Yun who was nicknamed "The Heavenly Man". Yun was a church leader, planter and missionary in China. He faced much persecution because he refused to compromise. He could have avoided the persecution, separation from his family and imprisonment by just being quiet about his faith. But he choose to obey, and he suffered greatly. I was challenged and convicted of my fear of man. This book has been one of the most life changing books I have ever read. Buy It!

Beautifully written original profound philosophy woven into a delightful tale that creates modern day mythology.This is a must-read for anyone searching the maze of life.Filled with meaning and new thoughts on society,sex,religion,and slipstream love,Indian Summer could be the greatest book since The Lord of the Rings!Cornel again proves himself to be one of the greatest writers and thikers of our time.

Trish Stevens,writing for the "Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance" calls INDIAN SUMMER,The Return of the Myth of the Running Man,"...a page turner".She goes on to say "...you are barely aware of it until you are swept away and wonder how it happened.Cornell has conjured up a sci-fi thriller with a new sense of discovery through psychological and sensual explorations."..."The subject is multi-layered which establishes the story as science fiction,but like all good sci-fi's,it all seems real and very possible"...develops a theme that suggests a world like Shakespeare's Arden...and, as in '"As You Like It', the presence of gods and goddesses begins to be felt."..." Cornell weaves a tale that wraps around on itself,leaving the reader to wonder how it all began."Indian Summer" is definetely a pagan experiance which merges cultures into a new modern folklore."

The reader is transported through time,space and the astral plane on an adventure that explores pagan logic and the cosmic power of love.So-called sci-fi merges with historical facts about the history of religion and Shakespeare.The quality of Cornel's writing is so superb that the reader feels as though he or she soars into a sensual dream world.All this pleasure and entertainment combines with a deep philosophy of Nature and Mythology.It is a book of great value and meaning. Highly recommended!

This is a riveting breathtakingly honest look behind the scenes of today's Catholic priesthood in America. It's not about the headline sexual abuse scandals. It's about abuse that seldom makes the headlines -- abuse inflicted by the systemically dysfunctional climate within which priests must conduct their lives. The picture is not a pretty one -- honest expression stifled, initiatives thwarted, and normal human friendships crippled or tabooed. It shows the disabling effect on priests of being subject to heavy-handed authority, unyielding dogma, unrealistic law, and a code of celibacy that is a prescription for aching loneliness. All too often alcohol and other addictions fill the vacuum. But this is not an angry book. Dinter doesn't whine or rant. And that is the book's power. It objectively states facts, events and names. Dinter clearly loved his ministry and pursued it with energy and commitment. But the tension between this pursuit of his calling, and the human toll exacted as the price of membership in the priestly caste, became intolerable. So he resigned, not from his ideals, but from the dysfunctional system within which he was forced to try and live out these ideals. Dinter's quiet eloquence gives us a rare glimpse into the abuse inflicted on good priests by the disabling role expectations of an outmoded caste system.

This revealing book sheds light on the seminary training and life in the priesthood which finally ended for the author after a 39-year journey. The writing in this book flows well as the author begins with his life as a child, his seminary years, pastoral work in several parishes, campus chaplaincy, doctoral work, and a sabbatical at the Vatican. He tells about bad priests he encountered along the way and the many good priests who remain devoted to the flocks that they serve.

I wondered how he could continue as a seminarian in such a repressive and then permissive atmosphere. A sign should have been placed over the seminary door: "Beware all ye who enter here!"

He was a glutton for punishment from his domineering, powerful prelates as a priest, and I wondered why he stayed in the priesthood. After a lengthy description about all the good work he and others had accomplished while he was a chaplain at Columbia University, I expected that he would at least receive high marks from the bishop. Instead, he was called on the carpet and told that he no longer had a job!

He then went to study for a year in Rome after spending a summer in England. He describes the Vatican disparagingly as "a men's club on the Tiber." He was uncomfortable in the atmosphere of suspicion and distrust that prevailed there. When a group of priests had dinner with a visiting bishop from America, it was a command performance where the bishop embarrassed and humiliated the priests instead of being an enjoyable occasion of friendship and congeniality.

Upon returning to the U.S., he was not given an assignment and was treated with disdain when he pleaded with the chancery office to place him somewhere. When he received no placement, he took matters into his own hands and asked a fellow priest if he could stay at his rectory. After he moved there, he substituted as a fill-in priest in that area and also taught at colleges. He soon made many friends among the laity who supported him when he fell in love with a widow in the parish, left the priesthood, and married there. They are still members of that parish.

Dr. Dinter's experiences with his bishops left me with bad feelings toward them. The career men fawning on their superiors so that they will receive promotions are a despicable lot who have lost sight of the church as the Body of Christ. For them it has become a corporate ladder, and they care not for the lowly priests under their dominion after they reach the top.

I believe the author's writing is an honest, brave portrayal of his priesthood. One prevailing theme is the unnecessary mandated celibacy for priests, which he compares with a disability. The book explains why so many priests become sexually abusive to children and adolescents.

Dr. Dinter paints priests as extremely lonely men who cannot openly dissent about any Catholic teaching for fear of being ostracized by their superiors and/or being sent off to remote parishes in the hinterland. Banishment is the club held over the heads of priests and is an effective silencer for any dissenter. The priests cannot even openly discuss controversial issues in the church privately when they meet with each other which I found disturbing. Facing their future with fear and the silence it promotes smacks too much of "big brother" watching every move the priests make and everything they say. Priests should not have to function in this repressive atmosphere of suspicion and distrust.

I was so glad that this book ended on a positive note for the author because his many years of dedicated work in the priesthood went unappreciated by the hierarchy under which he served.

Paul Dinter gives the Catholic laity a rare view into the process of priestly formation. The Other Side of the Altar confirmed some of my ideas of this process, but revealed many other aspects of the continuous formation of Catholic clergy.

Mr. Dinter's use of his own story, his personal experiences, makes the book credible and interesting. The layers of possible dysfunctional behavior -- that of the individual priest, the collective group of priests and the entire Roman Catholic hierarchy -- are intertwined and bring understanding to many of the problems currently associated with the Catholic clergy.

The author clearly defines a curious view of human sexuality that is mainstream to past and present Catholic doctrine. How important this issue is to letting the Catholic Church move forward and into the new millennium is a matter for all readers to decide. Paul Dinter's ideas on this issue certainly broadened my perspective in this area.

Paul Dinter spares no punches and names some prominent people that touched his priestly formation. A great read for all readers and a must read for all Catholics.

I am a 42 year old woman who has traveled extensively throughout Europe and most of the world. American men could learn a great deal from this book. How about it guys? Are you up to the challenge to really know how to treat and love a woman. Read this book and you just may find the woman of your dreams. Pass it by and you will be like every other American male, sitting on the sidelines watching the Italian men sweeping the woman of your dreams off her feet. If enough men read this book, I won't have to go to Europe to find my Knight on a white horse.

Finally, a book written to help both men and women relate to one another. I really enjoyed "Dr. Paul's" open, say it like it is attitude - aimed at the intelligent reader - Thank you Dr. Paul!

i found this book to be invaluable in my search to develop a better understanding of the male perspective on dating in the 90's. i was entertained and amused. i consider it a "must read" for all my single friends.

I became acquainted with this compelling and moving story through an animation festival. Although the crowd of college students had been rowdy this film was the last shown and people all left the theater hushed. The story is not only about a man who plants trees, it is about how each of us can make a difference in the world by every small action of love. If we do not attach a need for recognition or money to our endeavors, they feed the spirit and health of the world. I have read this book over & over and seen the animated film 4 or 5 times, and I see and learn something different every time. What do you see?

This is a wonderful read. It makes a great bedtime story and it is also beautiful (the wood carvings) and inspiring. This is good for people tired of reading what is wrong with the environment. The Man Who Planted Trees is kind of like a sophisticated Lorax book. Anyway, buy this book and enjoy it!

The Man Who Planted Trees is the tale of Elzeard Bouffier, a man who, after his son and wife die, spends his life reforesting miles of barren land in southern France. Bouffier's planting of thousands and thousands of trees results in many wondrous things occurring, including water again flowing in brooks that had been dry for many years. The brooks are fed by rains and snows that are conserved by the forest that Bouffier planted. The harsh, barren land is now pleasant and full of life.

Written by Jean Giono, this popular story of inspiration and hope was originally published in 1954 in Vogue as "The Man Who Planted Hope and Grew Happiness." The story's opening paragraph is as follows:

"For a human character to reveal truly exceptional qualities, one must have the good fortune to be able to observe its performance over many years. If this performance is devoid of all egoism, if its guiding motive is unparalleled generosity, if it is absolutely certain that there is no thought of recompense and that, in addition, it has left its visible mark upon the earth, then there can be no mistake."

The Man Who Planted Trees has left a "visible mark upon the earth" having been translated into several languages. In the "Afterword" of the Chelsea Green Publishing Company's edition, Norma L. Goodrich wrote that Giono donated his story. According to Goodrich, "Giono believed he left his mark on earth when he wrote Elzeard Bouffier's story because he gave it away for the good of others, heedless of payment: 'It was one of my stories of which I am the proudest. It does not bring me in one single penny and that is why it has accomplished what it was written for.'"

This special edition is very informative. Not only does it contain Giono's inspirational story, which is complemented beautifully by Michael McCurdy's wood engraving illustrations and Goodrich's informative "Afterword" about Giono, but it also contains considerable information about how wood and paper can be conserved in the section "The WoodWise Consumer." Goodrich writes about Giono's effort to have people respect trees.

"Giono later wrote an American admirer of the tale that his purpose in creating Bouffier 'was to make people love the tree, or more precisely, to make them love planting trees.' Within a few years the story of Elzeard Bouffier swept around the world and was translated into at least a dozen languages. It has long since inspired reforestation efforts, worldwide."

The Man Who Planted Trees is not only a wonderful story, it will inspire you and your children to care for the natural world.

-Reviewed by N. Glenn Perrett

Paul's life was in so many ways a type for our own that I wonder why more books of this ilk have not been written. When we study his letters, we learn the teachings of a man who walked with God through this life in ways most of us can only imagine. But we don't get the point until we consider the man himself, flaws and all. Then we begin to see how Paul knew grace experientially, so he could explain how others could live in it. Paul understood sin, but he also knew the power of Christ to redeem sinners and he never 'got over it'.

Swindoll's books are as good as his sermons, which is to say, magnificent. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about the Christian life, but especially to anyone who wants to serve God with everything He has blessed you with.

Paul: A Man Of Grace and Grit is an extraordinary work detailing the life of the apostle Paul. The book outlines and explains the biblical and cultural history and signifigance of the life and times of Paul in a way I have never before discovered. I cannot recommend it enough. The book presents history mixed with important lessons mixed with timely analogies. It is a must read for Christians and non-Christians alike. I guarantee that reading it will affect your outlook on life and make you feel uplifted as it did me.

This is a wonderful book. I found myself staying up late so I could read "just one more chapter."

I have to admit that in the past I have had trouble with some of Paul's writings, while at the same time, his letters to the churches never fail to deepen my relationship with Christ. But,
I always tended to think of Paul as the "saint of saints" and this was very intimidating.

This book has helped me to see Paul as a real human being. I am still overwhelmed by his total faith in the grace of God, but I now have a deeper understanding of the journey he took and how he let God use him. I no longer feel that this type of faith is reserved for "the chosen few."

I appreciated Mr. Swindoll's way of showing how Paul's experiences could be applied in my life. This book is not just a traditional biography of a great man, but it has helped me see how to let God increase my faith.

It's hard to believe this isn't a work of fiction. This guy is filled with hate and rage and loathing as he watches the German-speaking people descend into madness. Incredible writing, powerful ideas. Get it.

The title is a calumny. As his translator, Paul Rubens, points out, Friedrich Reck-Malleczewen was a prophet - not in the vulgar sense of one who predicts future events, but a prophet after the fashion of Jeremiah, William Blake and Dostoyevsky: one who comments on the present from the perspective of the Most High. As such, even when his own death is imminent, Reck most certainly does not despair. Like the three individuals mentioned above, he is angered, disgusted, saddened and horrified by what he sees around him; his journal is filled with images of Calvary, the plague, and the Apocalypse; yet he continually strives to see his own and his country's ordeal as a time of suffering and repentance which must be endured to make way for a new and better world. None of which is to say that his thinking is "mystical" in the sense of being vague or escapist; indeed, the immense value of Reck's diary, both as literature and as a historical document, lies in its brilliant combination of sharp observation and lucid analysis. Although he makes the all-too-common error of lumping in the plotters of 20 July 1944 with the many opportunists who tried to dissociate themselves from the regime as defeat began to loom, Reck's analytical passages offer as clear and concrete a picture of the corruption underlying Hitler's Germany as any historian I have encountered. Telling details of life in the Third Reich - the omnipresent thuggery and tale-bearing, the forced barracks-gymnasium atmosphere, the all-pervasive lies and propaganda - spring out of every page through tartly written anecdotes and vignettes. The peculiar detestability of the Nazi functionaries - frustrated schoolteachers and jumped-up mailmen posing as masters of the world - is described and analysed with perception and admirable loathing. This elderly, conservative, royalist aristocrat - a member of a class who, because they did not support the Weimar Republic, are too often labelled supporters of the Nazis - displays a courage, intelligence, breadth of culture and (I cannot emphasise it enough) a faith which makes his journal as moving a human document as the more famous diary of Anne Frank.

It is true that Reck has a sense of class superiority to the Nazi's but that does not obscure his central point--he knew they were monsters--and he died for that. Counts for something you know. The invective is superb and more over Reck recognizes real resistance like the Scholl's (were they aristocrat?) and damns the generals assisanation plot as a an opportunistic move. Furthermore The Nazis crimes were pandemic--the annhilhation of the Jews, but also gypsies--and if one is making measurements which seems to me silly--the obliteration of 20,0000 soviet citizens. By the other reviewers logic if the destruction of the Jews is the question by which Germans will be judged, then Stalin becomes a heroe for saving the bulk of Soviet Jewry --sending them behind the Ural mountains--I don't think I want to go that route. It also explains why Israel refuses to make Dietrich Bonhoeffer a "rightious gentile" which is a scandal.
No The Nazis were monsters such total monsters that any costly resistance derserves honor. This is the best anti-Nazi book theis Jew has ever read.

The campus novel, written both by British and American writers, became a recognized subgenre in the last 50 years. Most of these books, produced by writers with academic appointments, are not very interesting. This book, however, is a real exception. This is simply the best campus novel and a devastating sendup of academic pretense and radical chic. In many ways, this book is also the best novel of the 60s as well. A key feature of this book is that Bradbury's characters are not caricatures; he is very careful to mix real elements of sympathy with his satire.

Hilarious book, with many shades of humor, from outright farce to gentle satire. Some home truths about academic life and radical chic mixed in. Wonderful characters and situations, but never wordy. Worth reading for the absurd staff meeting alone. I laughed out loud as I was reminded of similar afternoons in the company of not-so-learned colleagues and feckless students.

What a marvellous satire