I purchased this book after the sudden death of a friend. I was at a complete loss as to how to deal with it, and had never experienced this type of loss before. I was shaken.

I can't believe my good fortune to have this book. It taught me so much about the role Grief plays in our lives, as well as it's not just limited to the lose of a person or relationship. Grief can come in all forms from all things. I found it very comforting to discover this and it actually helped me to embrace grief as a natural precursor to healing.

This is definitely a great book to have around, and did give me some tremendous insights. I highly recommend this book for anyone having experience a loss or a feeling of loss that you can't seem to attach to anything. I really feel like this book was a sanity saver in a sense, as it helped me identify something I would have never recognized as 'grief-worthy.'

This book has helped me so much during a very rough time in my life where I've split from my husband, lost my house that I dearly loved, and moved to a place that I hate. It helps you understand what you're going through, and it gives you things to do that can help. An amazingly good book!

This book was an excellent guide for me when my husband came out of the closet. I felt like I was lost, floating in space. I was so scared to face what was happening to me. This book gave me the courage to face my worst fears and continue on. This book helped me at the worst time of my life by giving me a map to follow to get through. Thank you Alla writting such a read able book.

Janina Renee holds degrees in Anthropology and Cultural Studies. She has taught and lectured on a variety of subjects, appeared in films and on radio. She says her "life calling is to explore means by which to translate the magic and mystery of the old ways into practices that are meaningful for modern people."
Tarot: Your Everyday Guide is her third book, and in it, she shows readers how to use tarot cards for advice, rather than for prediction. She uses a practical, problem-oriented approach, explaining "how the cards can suggest courses of action, attitudes to take, and other things we can do to help with some of the common questions that come up in our lives."
She first describes the kinds of questions that might be asked, saying that if you don't have a specific problem, you can always ask for advice on how to improve your life. She offers general instructions on how to lay out and interpret the cards.
The bulk of the book is devoted to describing the individual cards and their potential meanings and interpretations. Renee provides enough information that readers can understand the advice the cards are offering, regardless of their individual situations. She explains, however, that nothing bad will happen if a person doesn't take the cards' advice. She says the cards "are entirely neutral and have no good or bad, positive or negative associations, since they merely suggest things you can do, and not things that are going to happen to you."
Many factors go into making decisions and sometimes we need help in sorting the relevant date from the non-relevant. Tarot: Your Everyday Guide teaches readers how to use "the wisdom of the Tarot to define our issues and frame our outlook [to] help the course of daily life run much more smoothly."

I buy loooottts of books.. and I've been reading as much as I can on Tarot. Some of the information seems too basic (like 'playing fortune telling at a party'). Other information is so symbolic that, while important and interesting, it is impossible to relate to life. This book just CLICKED for me. The cards finally were presented in a way that became relevant to me - a tool to guide me and others through the ins and outs of life. Janina has quickly become my favorite author on the subject to date. I just ordered her other book Tarot for a New Generation. While I no longer fit into the young adult target population, I have read this book is relevant to all ages... I hope it is as good as Tarot: Your Everyday Guide... Please keep writing for Tarot!!!

Ever done a Tarot reading to make sense of a difficult situation, examined all the cards, and still had no idea how to solve your predicament? Renee has written an excellent book that gets down to practical neamings of each card. She is coming from the perspective of "advice" readings, where you consult the cards in order to tackle a particular problem. Each card, including the often-neglected Minor Arcana, is examined in detail, and treated as advice you could take in a situation. You drew the 4 of Pentacles? Time to hold on to your resources and focus on security. The 6 of Pentacles? Now is the time to be generous. None of the cards are treated as "bad" cards, because--to use a cliche--to everything there is a season. This isn't an arcane, solemn tome about the Journey of the Fool and the mythical archetypes he runs into along the way; it's about your journey through your own life, and your own life situations both mundane and spiritual. Great for beginners and experienced readers alike.

Great introduction to the fascinating personality theory known as the Enneagram. I've been studying the Enneagram for four years now and I continue to be amazed at its accuracy and complexity. I know many people who are interested in it, too, and who claim to really want to know "What type am I?! Is that a good one to be?!" In the past, I've enthusiastically loaned out the more in-depth, advanced books by Don Riso and Helen Palmer, authors who address the weaknesses of each type as well as the strengths... only to have my friends come back with only part of the book read, turned off to the whole theory because it seems too complicated or talks about the "cons" of each type. "But I only want to see how cool I am," they whine. "If I wanted to hear criticisms of myself, I'd call my mother." Never mind that the whole point of personality books is to UNDERSTAND yourself and others, to learn to appreciate the strengths as well as to learn how to grow and to improve upon the weaknesses...but... (sigh).

So, partly out of my own selfishness to keep some friends into the theory, I checked out "Are You My Type....?" and I am so excited. The authors have done a fantastic job of providing a good, solid introduction to the theory and gently describing some of the, um, less appealing qualities that each of the types has. The cartoon illustrations throughout seem a bit too silly at first, but once you see them in context to the text, you can see that they really enhance the text. A sense of humor with the Enneagrams is nice, too, as it does get taken a bit too seriously sometimes.

I've loaned this book out as an introduction to the theory and have gotten a lot more people interested in the Enneagrams and in learning about themselves. A very good thing!

Although I am a long-time student of the Enneagram, I skipped past this book a number of times, mistakenly thinking that it would be yet another formulaic "How To Find Your Perfect Mate" book. Of course, I was quite wrong about that-- once again showing that there is SOMETHING to that old "Don't judge a book by it's cover" saying. Some day I'll learn.....

Baron & Wagele have put together a light-hearted and eminently readable book, introducing readers to the personality types with the Enneagram-- in the context of relationships and relating between the nine different types. The authors have also included a section on Myers-Briggs personality typing, comparing MB types with Enneagram types. Whereas this is intended to be a fun and informal look at type and relationships, the book offers lots of solid information for those interested in personality typing and understanding the people in their relationships. I suppose you COULD use this book is a helpful tool if you're on a quest to find your perfect partner, but I get the sense that's not really its purpose.

Each of the nine Enneagram types has its own chapter, which includes a brief description of that type; a section on each "subtype" (Self-preservation, relational, social); a brief coverage of Enneagram Wings; as well as examples of famous people and couples who fit that type. The bulk of each chapter is dedicated to paragraphs about what each of the OTHER types might think of the type described in the current chapter-- and I found these descrptions to be especially "on the money." Finally, the authors include their thoughts on "Things this type would NEVER do," and "How to get along with" each type. The book is illustrated throughout with Elizabeth Wagele's sometimes poignant, sometimes silly cartoon drawings.

Overall rating: Highly Recommended (9 bookmarks out of a possible 10); although this is by NO figment of anyone's imagination a "thorough" work on the Enneagram, I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of useful information and insight I found. A quick and easy read, and well worth it!

Don't be put off by the title -- this is not a is-he-the-one? book; it's about how the different eneagram types interact with one another. It may help you understand your relationships with friends, family, children, parents, coworkers -- everyone. The book is eminently readable, packed with information, and filled with delightul, laugh-out-loud cartoons. In addition to providing overviews of each of the nine enneagram types, the book goes through each of the types & summaries how each interacts with the other types -- What ones think about twos -- why they like twos, why they have dificulty with twos, what ones think about threes, fours, etc., and vice versa. It very accurately identified the high points & trouble spots in several of my friendships -- (I was bothered by a one friend who always abandons me when my depressed four side comes out -- the book identifies the #1 thing about why ones have trouble with fours is four's brooding & focus on their feelings). The authors also identify famous couples (real couples, movie couples, duos like Siskel & Ebert) by their types and compares the types to Myers- Briggs typing. I particularly like the book because it has application as to how the enneagram typing helps us understand not only ourselves, but how we interact with others. This is a good introduction to the enneagram. It and Baron & Wagele's The Enneagram Made Easy are the two enneagram books I most often share with others.

This is another in the American Girls series about Addy Walker, a ten-year-old African-American girl living in the America of 1865. With the war over, but so many ex-slaves displaced, Addy and her family still hope to find sister Esther. In yet another winter, Addy finds the good and the bad, gain and loss, and hope and the cost of freedom.

The final chapter is a historical look at the post-Civil War years, with Reconstruction, segregation, and the Civil Right Movement. This is another great Addy book, one that tells the unvarnished truth of life for African-Americans in America, but in an uplifting way. My eleven-year-old daughter is now the proud owner of the Addy books, and an Addy doll. She loves these books, and the young lady in your life will too.

This story is about a young American girl named Addy. In "Changes for Addy", Addy gets a letter from a women named Bertha Miller saying that she has found Addy's Auntie Lula, Uncle Solomon, and Addy's baby sister Esther. They were going to Philadelphia to give Esther back to Addy's momma. When they find Auntie Lula and Esther outside a church, Auntie Lula explains that Uncle Solomon has died and she, Auntie Lula, may die too. The joy of Christmas for Addy is washed away, leaving only the sadness of death. Is Addy's Christmas ruined? Or will Addy find joy in the happiness of the Christmas? I would highly recommend this book to a friend. This book is a tiny bit better than "Happy Birthday, Felicity" because Addy has way more adventure than Felicity. Connie Rose Porter is an awesome reader and writer.

Breaking the original overemphasis on the experiences of white girls, the Addy series remains one of the most realistic ones written.

The process of escaping from Slavery and starting over in a "free" society only to discover that society does not actually regard you as an equal either is not the happiest topic in the world, but it needs to be told in order to learn from our mistakes. The authors could have sugar coated the harsh realities of that world, but wisely chose to tell the whole truth to their elementary age target audience.

If ever there were a case where the Congressional Medal of Honor should be given out to a team of Children's Literature writers and illustrators, this team certainly has earned it.

In this installment, Addy is reuinted with her baby sister ester after what seemed like an eternity. While the previous reunions with her father and her brother were also emotional, the symbolism of shadows moving forward in a Church is especially powerfull. Her beloved Uncle Solomon has died, but has found peace because of his brief status as a free man.

The end of the book, which provides a historical recap is especially touching because it goes all the way into the civil rights movement of the 1950's and 1960's. Considering many public school districts give this portion of American History little attention (whether on purpose or not) I feel it is especially important for young women to read this particular portion of the American Girl's series.

Astrology Anyone? isn't your usual in-depth guide to astrology, but a bare-bones beginner's handbook which provides newcomers to the topic with an introduction to birthstones, sun signs, planets and myths. Those with a special interest in personalities and daily astrological forecast will be particularly interested.

Alyce Renee has written a terrific book on astrology! I am currently at the student level of astrology but ready to move on to serious study. I picked up this book while looking through basic astrology titles, and I can recommend it without hesitation to those with even a cursory interest in serious astrology. Alyce Renee's simplified approach to astrology won't confuse or overwhelm the reader with what can be an enormously complex subject. Her style is instructional, concise, and easily understood, but offers incredibly detailed explanations and charts for each of the 12 astrological signs. The reader will quickly be applying valuable insights learned here. It should be read with an open mind and desire for personal understanding. This book on astrology provides an invaluable tool for building personal confidence and developing strong lasting relationships. Astrology has literally been a source of revelation to me. If you only buy one book on astrology -- this is it! 5-Stars all the way.

After reading ASTROLOGY ANYONE? I was gently seduced into the world of astrology. In the past, when I have looked at astrology books, I have been intimidated by dates and numbers. Not so here. Alyce Renee explains with utter clarity the mysteries of astrology and provides worksheets for the reader to make his own astrological chart. Thankyou, Alyce Renee.

If you do not have any of MaryAnn Kohl's books, this will be a good resource for working with very young children. However if, like me, you already own several of Kohl's other books (Scribble Art, Global Art, Preschool Art, etc.) you might not need this one. I found that many of the ideas overlapped those in her other books. There was not a lot of new material here that I could not have adapted from Scribble Art (my favorite of her books, which can be adapted for all ages) or Preschool Art. The ideas in this book do allow for a lot of creative exploration, which cannot be said of a lot of other childrens' art books (many are more concerned with cute results than the child's experience). For that reason I would recommend this author's books very highly, just not necessarily this one!

I have most of Kohl's books. This one is VERY specific to working with the youngest kids...hints for adults and hints for kids. I work with the youngest kids, so this helps me quite a bit. I like the last chapter with ideas of things you can make to use with kids, like a pizza box easel. I found these ideas to be fresh and unique. Though I have used Kohl's other books with the youngest kids, this one brings art into clear focus and I don't have to think at all!!!

The secret of this book is that these art experiences are safe, fun and easy for toddlers but if you have older kids they will love them too. If you are a parent like me, you want to set up art projects that will be fun for all your kids. You also want projects that capture their interest and curiosity for a long time. I currently have twin 7 year olds and a 3 year old who have tried almost every project in this book. If you want to dive right into my top 10 favorite projects, here they are with comments based on our personal family experience:

Playclay - This is way better than the commercial playdough products you buy in the store. It sounds like a lot of effort to make your own, but this cooked playclay is so luxurious, wonderful and lasts for weeks. It is much better for toddlers than the store bought stuff since it is super soft and easier for tiny hands to roll, mold, and squeeze.

Waterpaint - Too easy to be true! Tips on taking a bucket of water and brushes and "painting" outdoors on a summer day.

Feelie Goop - A recipe of cornstarch and water with bizzare properties that fascinates toddlers, kids and adults alike.

First Color Mixing - This is such a favorite that I bought four ice cube trays and lots of food coloring and I bring this out often when my kids have friends over. I fill the trays with water, squeeze some red, blue and yellow in three of the compartments, and let them use pipettes (like easy eye droppers) from ...to drip the colors together in each compartment. This is an older toddler variation from the book. Great ideas for the youngest toddlers are in the book.

Early Scissors - My kids loved cutting playclay worms with plastic scissors and cutting strips of paper as they mastered the use of scissors. There are lots of great tips on getting toddlers started safely with scissors.

Buckets of Bubbles - My kids love to play in this stuff. It is like an outdoor bubble bath.

Scribble Book - Toddlers are fascinated with books. Make tiny homemade books that are OK to scribble in. The book has lots of great variations and ideas for this simple art experience.

Foil Squeeze - Foil paper is fun to make into shapes. I recently gave all my kids one sheet of foil paper on a long drive to Yosemite and the 3 year old made bowls and the 7 year olds created Half Domes.

Tabletop Fingerpainting - Here's a great recipe for homemade fingerpaint to do right on you table! My toddlers were fascinated and used their fingers to make endless patterns.

Color Tube - This takes a lot of time to set up, but I saw a huge version at a preschool carnival and it was such a hit. I tied lots of tubes and funnels to a board with twists and turns in the tubes. My kids and their playmates loved pouring colored water to see what would happen and what end it would stream out of.

I hope you enjoy these and the other projects as much as we have and still do. One tip that would have helped me when it started out is where to get inexpensive great art materials. Ask your local daycare, preschool, or elementary school teachers for teacher supply stores near you or the teacher's catalogs they order supplies from. In my area, anyone can shop through these venues and you will find the greatest stuff. (Always buy washable markers and paints! We stained lots of toddler clothes before I decided it was cheaper to just buy the more expensive washable art materials.)

Seldom do I see a business book that captures one compelling metaphor and carries it out over an entire book like this one did. The writing is good, detailed, and clear. Further, the book is filled with valuable team-building exercises that will improve communications and effectiveness, as well as work satisfication. If you work with manufacturing teams in the automotive industry, this book will be extremely valuable to you. In fact, it may function at beyond a five star level. On the other hand, if you work in high technology away from the NASCAR circuit and do most of your communicating in a virtual team by e-mail and shareware, this book may not seem very relevant.

The book's main weaknesses are part of its strengths. If you do not follow NASCAR, a lot of the metaphor will be lost on you. For that reason, I think the book would have worked better with more metaphors or one that was more universal than this one. The exercises are very good for bringing out differences and welding them together into an effective team, but they seemed very dependent on having a facilitator. I suspect that this facilitator would normally have to be from outside the team, for best results. Many organizations would not have the resources to draw on facilitators this much. Also, for short-term ad hoc teams, the exercises here could be overkill. There was not enough guidance about what you could cut back on, in those circumstances.

Also, I have seen a lot of team-building exercises blow up due to inexperienced facilitators. This book would not provide enough guidance to the neophyte facilitator on what to do, should a heated disagreement occur.

I graded the book down one star for its facilitator-intensive approach.

After you have finished enjoying new ways to improve team effectiveness, I suggest that you think about where people should work in teams but do not in your organization. What are the costs of this approach? What would have to be done to switch over to teams in those areas? Focusing on those opportunities may be an even bigger payoff than making your existing teams more effective.

May you enjoy the race, as your team is able to move faster, more safely, and more efficiently!

In today's increasingly complex business environment, "speed" has become the mantra of successful organizations. The ability to learn and adapt to changing conditions more quickly than the competition is what separates the winners from the losers. In their book, Checkered Flag Teams, Renee Merchant and Jo Ellen Roe capture the centrality of speed in the modern business environment by creatively building their presentation of team development around an auto racing theme. The auto racing theme also provides an interesting juxtaposition by demonstrating the importance of teamwork in a sport that to an outsider seems more of an individual endeavor.

The primary strength of the book is that it is based on a theoretically eloquent and easy-to-understand model of teamwork. I have never been overly fond of Tuckman's model of team development because it focuses too heavily on the social dynamics of teams while ignoring the crucial element of the tasks that the team was created to accomplish. The authors' model of team development (presented on page 31), however, corrects this weakness by providing a convincing case for the need to balance task and process issues in team development.

The more obvious strength of the book is that it provides a number of "tools" for developing effective teams. These team activities are indexed early in the book, so you can quickly locate just the activity that you need. The instructions and rationale for each activity are precise and easy to follow, so that even novice team leaders should be able to employ them successfully. In addition, most of the team activities are fairly brief and to the point which makes them perfect for teams on the move.

I especially recommend the book for teams that are just getting started, as it provides an excellent toolkit for getting teams off to good start. Though it also provides a nice reference for team leaders in any field who are working to develop their team facilitation skills or are just looking for some creative new team building activities.

Checkered Flag Teams: Driving Your Workplace Into The Winner's Circle employs an automotive racing template to provide the corporate manager an up-beat approach to having a strong business team utilizing a "Fast Start Teamwork" process. Authors Renee Merchant and Jo Ellen Roe provide the reader with more than thirty tools and activities that anyone who drives a car can relate to. Included is a completely new communications style inventory, "CARStyles", inspired by the type of vehicle team members prefer to drive. Checkered Flag Teams is highly recommended reading for corporate policy makers, human resource directors, managers, supervisors, team members, consultants, and aspiring entrepreneurs.

This is a very helpful book. I started using it about a month ago, and it has already made me feel much better about college. My mom, who is a high school English teacher, is also planning on using it to supplement her classes.

My nursing school requires you to complete this book. When I first picked this book up I thought oh gees, do I have to do this stupid "how to study" book. I have always been an A student and I really thought I had a grasp on my learning style and the best way for me to study. I have been working through this book and been very very pleased with all the info I gleaned from it. I found her to be right on about my best learning style and already have decided I will completely incorporate her suggestions. I was shocked to find I am an auditory learner and not a visual learner. I really thought I was a visual learner and I scored very poorly on that. (And it was clear and very apparent that I was NOT a visual learner that I learned the material better by auditory). This book is much much more than determining whether you are a visual or auditory learner though. There are lots of tips for studying and ones I just would have never thought of. I can't say enough about this book. I am actually anxiously working through it now, where as when I brought the book home I didn't even want to do it. I don't want to proceed with any further studying till I finish it.

I knew something was wrong when I began putting extra time into studying and my test grades didn't change.
Though my 4 children are in public school now,I had been a home-schooling mother and felt I knew the in's and out's of teaching,learning and studying.
I had the desire to do well on tests and yet the best I could do was a high B grade.
Over winter quarter I asked other students who did well on tests what they did to study and most everyone was either a natural A student and didn't have to study and others employed simple reviewing of class notes and 3X5 card memorization of key concepts (short-term memory).
Sometimes when I asked students about their study habits I would have the opportunity to tell them why I was asking and what I had found out from others.Adult and younger students alike wanted me to get back to them if I found any ideas they could use in studying that would work, so I knew I wasn't alone.
I have looked at and bought many books with promising titles. All of them filled with dull put your nose to the grindstone type of study habit suggestions. If you are already doing that now what?
This book was the end of my search. My test grades have improved significantly, I am spending less time studying and because I know I have done all I need to do to prepare for a test there is no room for test anxiety.
I no longer waste time studying in ways that don't work for me.So I have more time to relax without guilt.
The most shocking thing I discovered was, I had been using my weakest form of learning to study by, and my strenghts were virtually untapped.
This book can change your college experience and grades.If your just looking for tips and tricks you can get those ideas in any book.
This book will make a significant difference unlike the rest.

I loved this childrens book. Since I am a cat lover I know of the many things these fiesty cats can get themselve's into. This book was very interesting and has many colorful pictues to keep any child watching and listening while you read to them or if they are reading themselves. The authors did fine work and I have this on my must list for my grandchildren.

I FOUND THIS STORY REAL CUTE AND AM LOOKING FORWARD TO HEAR MORE ABOUT FIESTY IN THE NEAR FUTURE.

As the Grandmother of a 2 1/2 year old I am always looking at new children's books. I found this to be very entertaining, and of course my Grandson loved Fiesty. I look forward to more books on this delightful cat.

Great book about the Hunza. The book is basically 2 parts. The first part deals with the authors travel to the Hunza valley and the Hunza way of life. It's like a journal and very enjoyably written.

The second part appeals a little less to me [that's why "only" 4 stars]. It tries to explain why the Hunza are so very healthy and the author does an excellent job of listing all the factors, but especially in the big "Diet" section some explanations don't sound allright to me. [but I am a raw foodist and disagree with the author saying that americans should take artificial supplements] Besides that it is an excellent book. The book also features a section with Hunza recipes, though some of the recipes use sugar, which is stated in the journal section that the Hunza don't use sugar. Hmm, as I said, the diet section is a little weird. =]

Since I first became aware of the Hunza, I have been fascinated by their simplicity and long life. As a teenager, I began my search for every available piece of information about people who live long and healthy lives. I was, and still am, willing and prepared to incorporate healthful living into my own lifestyle. That is why I have kept my copy of this work at my bedside for many years. It reminds me, daily, of the vigor and health I intend to maintain throughout my long life. This volume carefully and succinctly instructs the reader to follow the approach to life as the Hunza live it, as best one can in western society. Be happy, enjoy the happiness of others, eat well but not too much, exercise vigorously, preferably on hills, avoid envy, keep busy, love your friends, don't worry, play. And my addition, read more books!

the reports on the hunza tribe in the north of kashmir (north-pakistan)are from 1964, and they still teach us(the modern cultered people) how to eat,drink,behave,in order to live a better life in the sense of the health matters.the book is more facinating then a science fiction book,and the most important thing is:this book is a reality, wich we can make it real for us (the modern people)today at the year of 2000.learn the secretes from a true living legend tribe that in his living area in that specific way of life, to pass the age of 100 in (good health), is not just a wishfull thinking, and not the prevelage of only one person.