I picked up this book at the recommendation of a friend right after my wife left. I gave her the book to try to work things out, and I feel if she would have just read it, things could have been different; it's that powerful. The points presented seem so easy, and so simple to implement, but most of us just do not for whatever reason.

I highly recommend this book to anyone in relationship crisis, as well as anyone attemping to avoid relationship issues in the future.

When conflicts arise in a marriage, the promise of peace through divorce is a temptation that few can resist. Divorce has become an acceptable and frequently encouraged solution to marital problems. As the Prathers tell us, today's "separation psychology," with its myriad of support groups and counselors, promotes selfishness: "you have a right to the kind of life you want," "the right partner will share your interests, meet your needs, and grow at the same rate you grow," "what's best for you is best for the children." Then we have the lure of certain "new age" ideas, such as the concept of soul mates, which excuses us from fulfilling our commitment to our original "imperfect" partner while we search for our "perfect counterpart."
The Prathers contend that none of us "deserves" an "ideal primary relationship and the fulfillment of all our dreams. What we deserve is love, and we have it only when we give it." For more than 20 years, Hugh and Gayle Prather have counseled couples and encouraged them to give to one another, thus building permanent, satisfying, and spiritually based relationships - the kind that can "go through fire."
The Prathers found that couples who divorces in spite of counseling are rarely happier after separation, and the betrayal of abandonment is damaging to their children and the community, as well as to the soul of the betrayer. The Prathers see the rash of divorces in today's society as one of the symptoms of an epidemic of fear and hatred. Their hope is that I WILL NEVER LEAVE YOU will serve as an emergency manual to deal with tis ongoing disaster.
Filled with wit and wisdom, this manual takes us through all the stages a couple typically experiences in a long-term relationship. It clearly outlines the exercises and sensitizing techniques that the Prathers and their clients have used to successfully heal the breaches in their faltering unions.
The Prathers hold up the real relationship as the ideal for all couples to strive toward. Their definition of a "real" relationship is "one in which two people love each other to fulfill themselves rather than withdraw from each other to fulfill themselves." It is "unquestionably a haven from fear... Once it becomes the goal of any two people, it not only lasts but grows stronger and lovelier with every effort." Any couple who sets this kind of relationship as a goal will find that the Prathers' book will serve as a guide through the storms of life until the two can say to each other: "I love you; I bless you; I want to walk home to God with you."

Emily VanLaeys, author of DREAM WEAVING: USING DREAM GUIDANCE TO CREATE LIFE'S TAPESTRY

This is a beautiful, thoughtful book written by a husband and wife team who offer an antidote to the prevailing mindset which has resulted in a high divorce rate and millions of broken promises. The Prathers impart some wisdom on the subject of enduring relationships based on their own experiences and those of the many couples they have counseled over the years.

The authors take us through the different stages of a marriage and map out what to expect and how to deal with these changes. They present an excellent strategy for having arguments, and discuss how much people lose out on by choosing divorce. There is a good chapter on dealing with an affair. They end with the six promises of a real relationship

I felt that almost everything they have to say here rings true. This is a great roadmap for staying married forever and reaping the rewards of lifelong love and friendship. They inspire me to have a successful and "real" marriage.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone.

This is definitely Nibley's best (and most caustic) work. Nibley, as a long-time employee of "the BYU", as he states it, educates Latter-day Saints in that which they need the most assistance: materialism and pride. I cannot give this volume enough praise in the short review allowed here. Start with chapter 2: "Zion, A Distant View", and you'll find passages like Matt. 6:24-34 coming alive and having greater application in your life. This book strays somewhat from Nibley's more critical or scholarly style employed in his other works, probably because he's trying so hard to help all people understand the dilemma in which the Latter-day Saints find themselves. Definitely pick this book up if you've been uncomfortable with the "standard" interpretations of what food storage means, or what worldliness means, or what working hard at your job is all about, etc.

First of all, this book is geared to temple-endowed remembers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. So if you want a basic book, I recommend "The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ," or "Standing For Something," by Gordon B. Hinckley, the world-leader of the Church., or "A Marvelous Work and a Wonder," by LeGrand Richards, or "Our Search For Happiness," by M. Russell Ballard. These books are designed as introductory texts, and explain our history, an what our basic beliefs are, and why we build temples.

This book, however, is written by a member for members, and has a very cutting edge to it. It is a very sharp and repeated call to live after the manner of happiness, after the united order, or, in short, after the manner of Zion.

This book is a collection of samizdat discourses that circulated underground at Brigham Young University. Dr. Nibley has the academic freedom to speak rather bluntly on the current economic order of things. He is not a communist, or a capitalist, but a third party-a consecrationist. He believes in restoring the early Christian order of things that prevailed in the primitive church (See Acts 2:32-37)

This book shakes you to the core as Dr. Nibley drives a stake thought the heart of the vampire of greed and selfishness. It it not all attack, though. This book opens your mind to focus on the things test matter, the eternal things, the peaceable things of the gospel.

I have read most of the published writings of Hugh Nibley and this book is my favorite. Drawing lessons from the past, Dr. Nibley shows us exactly how far we really are from the Zion ideal and what we must do to get there. And the changes required do not leave us in our comfort zone. A must read for any person truly wanting to reach a high spiritual plane. I would rate this book as one of the great classics in LDS literature. John Walsh, Editor, All About Mormons web site.

This is one of the barbecue books that you need to own. I have a few burger/barbecue books and this one as well as burger meisters are the best.

I always use recipies from this book when I entertain. All the guests are impressed with my spectacular presentation. The biggest secret of all I REALLY DO NOT KNOW HOW TO COOK!

Buy this book now

This book put me over the top as a great BBQ man! Using these recipies along with the grilling tips has made me the expert among friends. My friends demand that I make either All Star Asian ribs or Spicy Szechwan Chicken at every BBQ. I've even had a restaurant owner ask me how I do it! If you want to impress your friends with incredible food and leave them asking for more- buy this book. The other books in this series are incredible as well.

You will be drawn into the facinating short stories about the history of the Kansas City police department interwoven with the early history of Kansas City. A book you cannot put down.

This is the best book I've ever read on the history of Kansas City and its Police Department. I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in Kansas City's history. The vignettes in the book are both informative and a reflection of their times. A must read for all travelers to Kansas City.

What a great book! I especially enjoyed Hugh Chase's writing style and knowledge of the history of Kansas City. The photos were of great interest to me. Some of my favorite chapters were "Union Cemetary, Treasure, and Bob Potee." Sure to be a collector's item.

IF YOU ARE GOING TO BUY A BOOK ON LA HABANA THIS IS IT !!!!!!! IT IS MOST INFORMATIVE AND THE PHOTOS ARE THE BEST. BEING CUBAN I HAVE BOUGHT ALMOST EVERY BOOK WRITTEN ABOUT CUBA AND THIS ONE IS MY FAVORITE - THE BEST.

Unlike other reviewers, I have no link with Cuba and I have never been to Havana, but this book made me want to go there. It was given to me as a present. Since then, I have bought two copies for friends. The photographs are as beautiful as the writing. A really special book.

Truly a unique and memorable book. I own many books on Cuba, but this book is exceptional. As Maria Luisa's book provides us with in-depth historical and architectural background accompanied by impressive photography, she also delights us with her memories of sound, sight, smell and far away world of her childhood which comes alive for all readers, but specially those who lived in the beautiful island of Cuba. It is a treasure for our Cuban heritage and a beautiful addition to anyone's library. A friend, relative and admirer from Miami, Florida

If you have a question about English or American literature, chances are you'll find the answer here. William Harmon, professor of English at the University of North Carolina has revised and updated this handbook, long popular in academia. He's added more than 100 entries which reflect current trends in literature and criticism.

If you don't have a student at home, get this book anyway. Read it. Just the outline of English and American literary history in the back of the book is worth the price. You undoubtedly will find books here you never knew existed. I thought I'd read all of Eudora Welty, for instance, but I found a "new" title listed here -- new to me, at least. I also discovered a James Gould Cozzens book I'd never heard of.

The handbook is actually an encyclopedia of words and phrases pertaining to the study of literature. Listings are defined, explained and often illustrated. There are cross references. Appendices include complete lists of Nobel Prize and Pulitzer Prize winners for fiction, poetry and drama. The index of proper names in the back lists over 2,300 authors and prominent literary figures.

This book is a must for the home library. Also, it's entertaining as well as informative reading. You may well find yourself curled up with it, unwilling to tear yourself away.

I love this book because it has complete, concise definitions of every literary facet you can think of. I have used it as a study tool for my certification tests, as a quick look up tool before tests, and as a way to explain difficult literary terminology to my students. I cannot stress how badly English teachers (and anyone else who loves literature) needs this book!

With the possible exception of my Roget's Thesaurus, this was the most useful reference in my pursuit of a BA in English Lit and Art History. This was recommended by one of my professors and it served me very well.

Easy-to-use alphabetical format allows reader to look up terms essential to the analysis of literature, and is highly useful to students of other humanities. The definitions are easy to digest but are quite thorough and supply sufficient context. Take this to college and use it often. An excellent tool for your research and writing.

This book is a 1000+ page-turner. When I picked it up, I knew nothing about the Spanish Civil War. This book definitely remedied that. Hugh Thomas begins shortly before the outbreak of the war and tells the story through to its completion (essentially 1936-1939). It is somewhat long, but the story itself is so compelling and Thomas' writing so good that it sucked me in and moved along nicely.

I have only a couple of gripes. First, if someone wants a short introduction, this may not be the book. I am sure there are other titles out there that will give you the basic facts in less time. As I said, however, reading the book was entertaining enough that I did not mind at all. As an example of an interesting factoid that emerges from this book, it seems that a substantial portion of the treasure from America that Spain won in the 16th century was given to the Soviets for safe-keeping. It is still there.

Second, while the book is strong on narrative, it is a little bit weak in analysis. What is especially lacking is an understanding of the factors that led to the outbreak of war in the first place. The books starts with a short chapter describing Spain in the early 20th century and plunges directly into the events leading up to the war. While the suspense before the outbreak of the war is palpable, the basic question of why a country would degenerate into civil war is hardly touched. In fairness to the author, he may have deliberately chosen to focus on the war itself rather than its causes. On the other hand, the discussion about why the Nationalists defeated the Republicans is fairly good. Two factors stand out. First, the Republicans were crippled by in-fighting amongst the factions, a fact that is admirably discussed. Second, the Nationalists received substantial help from abroad.

Author background: I am not a historian, but have read a handful of books on Spanish history.

I very much enjoyed reading Hugh Thomas' work. He does and excellent job of sorting out the many and varied groups on both the left and the right who struggled for power during this terrible conflict.

In addition, I learned many things about the war that I never knew previously. For example, I was unaware as the extent of the persecution of the Roman Catholic Church in Spain during the war. Given that Spain is overwhelmingly Catholic I assumed the church passed thru the war relatively unscathed. How wrong I was.

Mr. Thomas paints a factual yet horrifying picture of how the so-called "republicans" who were in fact mostly communists, burned churches, raped nuns and tortured and executed priests. There are accounts of Catholic faithful being forced to swallow rosary beads, thrown down mine shafts and gored to death by bulls in bull fighting rings.

The most awful irony I learned was that the International Brigades, so glorified in the west, were responsible for many of the worst anti-Catholic atrocities. I was especially horrified to learn that these brigades titled themselves after such great men as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

Wherever your political sensibilities lie you will very much enjoy reading Mr. Thomas' well researched and well written book.

This 1994 edition (a 2nd or 3rd revision of the first edition put out c. 1980 I believe) is apparently not available because a newer revised edition is coming out in November 2001 with updated information no doubt--you should pick up this latest coming edition. Understanding the subject of the Spanish Civil War has been plagued by two major obstacles: 1) The use of the Spanish Civil war as merely a prelude to WWII by historians of the English speaking world, i.e., crudely lumping in Franco and the Nationalists as just a Spanish variation of Facism; this ignores the study of Spanish history in its own right and the unique and tragic facets of Iberian history; 2) The use and abuse of the Spanish Civil War as an ideological forum for anarchists and "Trotskyite" anti-Stalinist communists, again, mostly from the English speaking world. The biased accounts of Anglo/American/Canadian leftists of this period (as well as Hemingway's romanticized fiction) have distorted and confused the event in the eyes of the English-speaking world. Its good to see an English scholar clear up this mess. Thomas' account clearly delineates the various factions and their goals on both sides, pointing out that lack of unity and in-fighting of the various factions of the left-of-center Republican side (if "Republican" is even a proper term to use by the time the Stalinists were done with it) was probably more decisive in leading to its downfall than the outside pressure of the Nationalists (who were by no means unified in ideology, but greatly more cooperative amongst themselves than the Republicans). The "cowardly" stance of the Democratic Western countries is made understandable and must be seen in the context of their own instability and weakness of the time. In retrospect, any aid to Republican Spain would have probably only helped the Stalinist-controlled communists complete their strangle-hold on the Republican coalition government, the other factions--especially the anarchists--being severely and savagely purged by them (my own opinion). In any case, Thomas' outstanding research and balanced account of the event allows each reader to draw their own conclusion without undue ideological bias. If you read only one history of the Spanish Civil War, this is the one to have.

Hewitt makes great points in this book. Chrisitans need to speak out more, and not be afraid to say what they believe in. Outspoken christans are made fun of, especially ones that are in the public eye. Please read this book, you will love it.

This is an excellent book that every Christian needs to read. It is a wakeup call to the Christian community to get out there and do something about the state our society's shape--not in big ways, but in little ways. It's time to heed the call God has on our lives, and start making a difference.

It was a good read. Hewitt doesn't try to spare anyone's feelings during the book, including his own. He hits hard and doesn't pull any punches on the Embarrassed Believers, but delivers a matter of fact lay out. It's not high Christology (you theology majors know what I'm talking about); it doesn't claim to be. But should still challenge even the most seasoned believer. I think the end was a little lacking because it left a lot of questions and provoked thought, but doesn't really give you an answer to the questions it raises...it doesn't even really make a step in the direction of answering questions. However, I would still recommend that you read it. It's worth the small amount of effort you need to get through it and you'll have more than your fair share of food for thought.

The recipes in this book are wonderful. I made 3 of them for a baby shower, and they all were hits. Many can be done ahead of time, which is wonderful, and many have unique flavors and also create a beautiful presentation.

Great easy recipes, a must for the busy mom who wants to impress her guests with some tempting appetizers!!

I rarely entertain guests, but thanks to this book, now I can do it in style. My boyfriend invited several of his co-workers over for a coctail party and I dazzled them with my wonderful, good tasting finger foods, hot and cold appetizers and pastas. They were all easy to make and fast, they looked so pretty and didn't last at all. This book has well over 100 different easy to make recipes, some of the wives are calling me and asking for my recipes...

If you are looking for a book that will teach you how to hand-feed back yard birds and if you would enjoy poignant anecdotes about birds that have come to the author's hand to feed year after year, you will love this book!
The photographs are gorgeous, the text is clear, organized and interesting, and you can't help love the gentle, friendly, kind man who writes about his love of birds and hand-feeding them.
Another good point about this book is ...it works! I followed Hugh Wiberg's suggestions and with patience and practise, won the trust of a dear little nuthatch. He comes to my hand every time I go the park.
The book, Hand-feeding Backyard Birds, started me on this hobby and taught me how to be successful. It is a wonderful book!

There are some things that make you just stop and stare in amazement. Seeing someone in the middle of a park calmly hand-feeding chickadees is one of those things. Chickadees aren't tame - they fly away from feeders when you approach! And yet, ANYBODY can learn how to hand-feed these and other birds.

If you're interested, definitely grab this book. It has gorgeous photos, and simple, step-by-step instructions. It tells you when to try this for best results, how go to about it, which sorts of birds respond best, how they tend to act, what they like to eat, and much, much more.

Definitely a great gift for any birder, and once your birder (or you!) learns the technique, it'll be a present that lasts them a lifetime!

This book is a lot of fun - while also being realistic. The author tells you up front that you need to be patient, because it takes time to build the trust of birds. But once they do its such a joy! Reading through the book was inspiring and then in the winter I just bundled up and got out there. It was calming while at the same time exciting as the birds came closer and closer. Bundle up though - the best time to do this with the birds is winter since they're a bit short on food and it gets chilly out there.