This is without a doubt the most beautiful love story I've ever read. God really did amazing things in Eric and Leslie's lives because they trusted in Him. They left their lives in His hands, and He gave them the most precious, beautiful love story. This book changed all my views. It proves that He will bless us abundantly if we put our lives in His hands.

Wow, what an amazing story! Eric and Leslie Ludy inspired me and my (now) husband to walk in a courtship relationship instead of dating. In our courtship process, we read this book together and were blessed to know that respect and honor can still exist in relationships! As a result, my husband and I had a very romantic courtship and just like Eric and Leslie - enjoyed our parents in the midst of it. We stayed open and honest with each other and had a lot of fun! God has richly blessed us with Eric and Leslie's story!

Eric and Leslie have the most amazing love story I've ever even dreamed of. And that's all because they let God write it for them. Their book shows how God wrote the most romantic love story for them, and how He can and wants to do the same for you. Eric and Leslie's story has turned my whole world around; I don't think at all like I used to. They challenged me to let God be number one in my life, and to let Him invade my whole being, and since I've done that, He has done miraculous things in my life! If you are truly searching for ways you can please God and make Him not just a part of your life, but actually make HIM your life, you HAVE to read this book. It is very well written, you will never want to put it down once you start. It'll make you laugh, cry, and long for God's best for your life. Read it and see for yourself. :-)

This book contains three short works that provide a wonderful example of the Russian approach to romantic literature. The form is wonderful, the characters perfectly created and the plot shores up the authors ideas with an most resonant clarity.

First love shows the blend of comedy and tragedy that is so prevalent in Russian works of the period. The events portrayed are those that could occur in daily life even to today. The emotions that are evoked are real and timeless. It surely adds proof to the argument that Russian works of this period age so much better than do those authors from other countries whose works have survived.

Spring Torrents is the longest of the works and still provides a feel that the length is exactly perfect for the tale. If the prologue does not pull you into the story you have an absences of a great concern that plagues many of us. How many of us fear reaching that point (or have reached that point)in life where we recognize all of the great loss of opportunity which has occurred in our life. From this prologue the story races along explaining how one of us has reached the position when the concern has become a reality. Wonderful feelings are evoked on the path.

This book is highly recommended for all and is a must read for the Tolstoy, Chekov, Gogol and Dostoevsky fans.

First love is a wonderful evocation of youth, love and life in 19th century Russian life. I challenge anyone not to be moved by this book, which is both humorous and touchingly melencholic.

If reading in translation has proved difficult for you in the past, Freeborn's translation of Turgenev's short stories will suprise you in a wonderful way. There were times when I forgot that I was in the process of reading, but rather felt that these very scenes were being lived out before me, a bodiless and voiceless viewer.

Turgenev's understanding of and ability to capture the complete emotional processes of people in love in this collection touched me in its sincerity and genuine clarity. All the insane, skipping-over-themselves thoughts and quick jealousies that people experience are completely captured in stories like "First Love" and "Diary of a Superfluous Man."

Turgenev is a great introduction to Russian fiction. I'm sorry that I didn't discover him earlier.

This book, though technical and flowery was a joy to read. It brought new creativity and vigor to my sexual life. A MUST for sexual dullards.

This book is built around the most important ancient Chinese work on sex, the Ishimpo. It has been approached in a careful, scholarly fashion. The book is composed of introductions to the chapters of the Ishimpo, a translation, and drawings. The result is sensitive, very practical and concrete, and poetic.

I drafted the Supreme Court petition questioning the legality of a people's initiative which purportedly sought to amend the 1987 Philippine Constitution which was our first democratic constitution after the dictator President Ferdinand Marcos was exiled (Santiago v. COMELEC). One of my main references for the petition was this book of which I am deeply indebted for valuable research in U.S. constitutional law and legal history. It discussed exhaustively and in a very provoking manner, the challenges posed by amendments to the immutable nature of the constitution as fundamental law of the land. Our petition, which sought to deny the proposed amendments by way of a people's initiative, differentiated between piecemeal amendments and a revision of the Constitution. I argued that if the amendments sought would ultimately change the form of government, then it should be considered a revision. Our petition was granted by the Supreme Court and became a landmark case in Philippine history. It also found its way as a bar exam question. This book was my guidepost as I drafted the petition in the wee hours of morning in view of the urgency for a Supreme Court ruling on the matter and to avert an impending national crisis and another coup d'etat. The legal luminaries of this country have hailed Richard Bernstein and Jerome Agel's book as the most persuasive and thought provoking treatise on the subject.

Emily Dickinson is often a religious poet, and more often than many think, an erotic one. She is famous for her mysteries and contradictions and elusiveness. She died and left more than l700 poems, many almost indecipherable, and a number of them "uncertainly finished." Her sister Vinnie wanted the works to see print, but could not persuade her brother Austin's wife Sue to get the job done, so she turned to Austin's mistress, Mabel, who was also married. This is the lovers' story, told through 13 years of self-justifying letters and diary entries. More importantly, it is the story of how Mabel took on the job of copying and editing the poems to please her lover, and perhaps to irritate her enemy, Sue. Emily became famous about five years after she died due to Mabel's efforts. Polly Longsworth did a fine job condensing love letters and diary entries to give us a picture of these tormented souls, whose relationships all ended badly. The actual love letters between Austin and Mabel clearly show that neither had Emily's literary talent, but both had her passion. Where Emily apparently suppressed carnality, her brother and his "other woman" reveled in it. If you are as fascinated by Emily's life as you are by her poetry, this part of the tale, while largely occurring after she died, is essential to know. A very worthwhile addition to the saga of Emily Dickinson.

Apart from the reading plaesure "Mary's World" provides, I immensly enjoyed this book for the following reasons: foreign history, in this case the American Civil War history, can be daunting for outsiders. Mary's World eases the foreigner not only into the life of the Pringle family but also into history of southern plantation life years prior to the war. This circumstance greatly facilitates the amateur's understanding of the time leading up to the war and the war itself. What I particularly appreciated was the southern view of that history. Even in Switzerland we are familiar with the northern issues of industrialism vs. agriculture (prominent geographically in Europe at that time also), the slavery issue etc. Rarely do we hear about the life and thoughts of Southerners other than the great military men. The history of Mary Pringle written by Richard Cote transports you into a Charleston household in two seconds flat. It is all so lively and easy to imagine that it is hard to put down the book. I felt I knew Mary Pringle and her children! And I felt I had never learned more about the South.

Before "Mary's World" I had not been privileged to read a meticulously-researched, scholarly work that moved along like a novel. When I was forced to put it down from time to time, it took me quite awhile to re-enter my own world, so caught up was I in a time so different from the present that I find myself, while reading, totally captivated.

Mary Motte Alston Pringle may have been the last of the legendary Southern Women. Truly born to the manor and accustomed to every luxury as a young woman, she rose to challenges during and after the Civil War that would have destroyed a lesser human being. The letters that she wrote just after the war to her adult children who were scattered from California to Europe would have left me in despair if they had not held such a powerful message about the durability of the human spirit.

She had no money, her beloved family home was occupied by Union soldiers and she was separated from many whom she loved, yet there is such courage in these letters that the book left me filled with inspiration. Men and women today can find much to admire and emulate in this indestructible family. "Mary's World" has a permanent place on my bookshelf and in my heart.

Mary's World is a well-written, wonderfully researched narrative of a wealthy and prominent family in nineteenth century South Carolina. The backdrop is the family's generational home, Charleston's Miles Brewton House, built in 1765, where family members wrote many of the letters used by Mr. Côté to reconstruct their lives. A chapter devoted to this historic site, now restored, plus frequent references, literally bring the reader into the Pringle home to observe the many lives that began and ended there. Mary Motte Alston Pringle (1803-1884) is the focal point of the story and the vehicle the author uses to familiarize the reader with the extended family and their various adventures. Mr. Côté draws on a rich mixture of personal letters, journals, and business and family records, plus a variety of secondary sources to piece together the lives of multiple generations and branches of this aristocratic planter family. His informed insight and objective analysis of Mary's fascinating world allows family members to speak for themselves and the reader to become virtually acquainted with them across the years. Their personal accounts reveal their lives in the antebellum South and how the Civil War affected them during and after the conflict. Interspersed throughout the book is information about their relationships with and attitudes toward their slaves before the war and the Freedmen after the war. Through this woven tapestry of emotions, beliefs, activities, customs, and culture people long dead speak again, explaining what it was like to live in their world, now long past.

The intriguing philosophy of Beyer is an immediate delight to the reader. One wants to keep turning the page to see what next the artist is up to.

I loved this book. Such a variety of resources for sculpting. The great illusions and texture were fantastic, and its not just because I am related to this fantastic artist- it's just that I LOVE his art!!!

I have been hearing about the drug, Ecstasy, in the news lately. It has been described by some as being a "medical miracle", and by others as "potentially deadly". I decided to find out about this drug and further my knowledge with regard to the behind-the-scenes of what's going on surrounding this substance. I ordered a copy of "The Love Drug", by Richard Cohen. I found the book to be to be incredibly informative. I found myself learning more and more tid bits about the drug as I turned every next page. I was surprised to see that this drug Ecstasy was once actually legal, and actually patented in the early part of the twentieth century. I was intrigued by the legal testimony surrounding Ecstasy, which the author describes in detail. The book also discusses the connection between rave or circuit parties and MDMA. It's obvious, as the author portrays, that this drug is much more than a passing fad. I recommend this book highly to those wishing to further their familiarity with this rather fascinating compound. The chapter concerning adverse reactions will raise a few eye brows of those who use.

The Love Drug mirrors a lot of what we have been recently hearing via the mass media. This book tightens it up dramatically. What other books spend chapters to report, this book says it succinctly and intelligently. I particularly liked this about 'The Love Drug'. I will say this, The Love Drug is definitely a balanced and well written book. The book describes the pros and cons of MDMA utilization within both recreational and professional fields. I expected the author to report more information on the benefits of MDMA in psychiatric settings, including marriage counseling. But, the author may have limited reporting on this partially due to the fact that such benefits have not yet been scientifically substantiated. Go ahead and by the book. It has great medical information on the beneficial and adverse effects of MDMA in humans. It also doesn't condemn MDMA - in fact, the book dedicates several pages to the mixed messages our culture sends out. It is a very neutral text. It is an interesting read, nonetheless, for people interested in find out all about this very enticing compound, Ecstasy.

Whether one is interested in the chemical configuration of Ecstasy, the chemistry involved in manufacturing the pill, or how Ecstasy emerged upon the rave scene-- you will find THE LOVE DRUG to be useful. I particularly enjoyed learning about the many legislative facets that have never before been revealed leading up to the banning of Ecstasy. The book describes something that was unbenownst to me in that Ecstasy was legal up until 15 years ago, and used within psychotherapy. The book also delves into the rave event or circuit parties pointing out the intimate relationship between such parties and Ecstasy. The book is definitely well-researched, and very resourceful for anyone trying to go behind the scenes to truly learn about this rather tempting drug. The chapter pertaining to adverse reactions will sure make people think twice about experimenting with the substance. Of course there are chances and risks that we take throughout our life. But at the same time; internal bleeding, convulsions, hyperthermia, kidney failure, and liver damage don't sound too inviting either. The fisthand accounts of ravers and individuals who have had medical trauma keeps one glued to the book.

I spent three years doing research on Thai bar girls and this book pretty well sums it up. I, myself, helped women write letters to their Western "boyfriends," and they were exactly like some of those in the book. Read the book and you'll understand what's really going on in their minds. Besides that, this book is HILLARIOUS. You will fall off your chair laughing (unless one of the letters was sent to you)

Australian men bitten by the love bug after a dalliance in a Bangkok bar can take heart -- you are not alone.

It seems Thai bar girls are objects of genuine desire from many overseas strangers.

And they have stacks of love letters to provite it.

Two writers, American Richard Ehrlich and Canadian Dave Walker, won the confidence of several women to gain an intimate slice of the sex trade that rarely gets seen.

The result has been a bestseller..."Hello My Big Big Honey! -- a collection of love letters to Bangkok bar girls and their revealing interviews.

Letter-writers' names were omitted for privacy though all the texts begged one questioon -- could love survive in these conditions?

Ehrlich says it can, but the odds are against it.

He and Walker trawled Bangkok bars for more than two years before cataloguing selected letters in a tome of tryst and mistrust.

"Prostitutes told us a lot of men fell in love with them and went back to Australia, America and Europe and sent back love letters, putting money in envelopes," Ehrlich said...

"That proved they were in love because they were no longer having sex."

Some letters were from Australian factory workers.

Cash was often intended to put the girls through school and some letters mentioned marriage.

"The girls would have large manila envelopes stuffed with love letters from many guys from many countries," he said.

"Most were fairly juvenile expressions of lust but there were some genuine love letters."

It was the genuine letters that gave rise to the book.

Ehrlich and Walker quizzed the girls about AIDS, the status of prostitutes in Thai society and their advice to fresh recruits.

"One girl had several guys all sending her money and she was telling them all she would marry them," he said.

"Yet she was placing adverts in New Zealand. She was more mercenary.

"Her dream was to get enough gold to open a shop.

"Another girl had slash marks on a forearm from a suicide attempt.

"She fell in love with a foreign guy and really believed he loved her but one night she walked into another bar and found him with another bar girl. So she slit an arm."

Then there was another girl taken on by feminist agencies and non-government organisations who toured the world to lecture about prostitution and the dangers of AIDS.

"Although she knew everything about AIDS and safe sex, she said she would go without a condom if she needed the money," Ehrlich said.

He discussed the mechanics of long-distance love affairs with a Thai academic who concluded: "A foreign man having sex is in control but the moment he falls in love she is the boss."

Two fantasies are commonly played out -- he is her proactive saviour and she passively will be saved from her lifestyle and move to the West.

"In reality he may beat her or take her back home and use her as a prostitute there," Ehrlich said.

Money was an enduring part of a relationship, he said.

For her, it demonstrated true love.

For him, it shouldn't buy love.

This led to the seeds of mistrust.

Ehrlich saw Bangkok bars as a conduit for tourists and expats to meet normally conservative Thai women who would avoid scandalous associations with foreign men.

Prostitution is illegal in Thailand.

About 95 per cent of the trade is between Thais, only 5 per cent with foreigners.

About two million of the 65 million Thais are thought to have HIV.

Ehrlich said some foreign men did marry Thai bar girls and lived happily ever after.

by Torrance Mendez, West Australian, Perth

That there is prostitution in Thailand is a fact.

I want to mention one book about the subject, because it really is special.

The title is "Hello My Big Big Honey" and it consists of love letters written by former "clients" to Thai prostitutes as well as interviews with some of the girls.

This shows you the differences between prostitution in Thailand and in Western countries, as well as the attitude of the girls who work in that business...

Rene Hasekamp, Patent Examiner at the Dutch Patent Office, and deputy judge at the District Court ("Arrondissementscrechtbank") in the Hague, Netherlands