Only my closest friends are given the privilege of borrowing this delightfully written true story; the long out-of-print and (before the days of the internet) irreplaceable book has been one of my most closely guarded treasures since childhood. Any family with several small children, of course, will have a store of hilarious anecdotes; children raised with love combine insouciant joy with freedom from adult assumptions and habits of thought, so that any house full of love and children is a house full of unpredictability and laughter. But Helen Doss, unlike most parents, can capture her children in her writing and pass the joy on to us. I don't know anyone who has managed to read the book through without at some point laughing to the point of tears.

But the book is much more than a connection of Readers' Digest anecdotes strung together. Ms. Doss reveals, through deft and honest touches, her own weaknesses and struggles, her impetuosity and her grit. She communicates with power the pain that can come in so many different ways to a woman with a tremendous need to love, especially when obstacles - infertility, unreasonable adoption agencies, poverty - rise up to keep her from satisfying that need. And the portrait of her husband Carl, who changes as much as the children do, is vivid and telling. The Carl who says, "Let's take 'em all" at the end of the book is a very different Carl from the one who agrees to the first adoption largely to humor his wife and to keep her from moping weepily and endlessly about the house, and whose annual refrain for many years is, "This is the last one!" You expect him to come on board, of course; but his path is a bit surprising and most revealing of the essence of the man. In particular his ability to close ranks against outside inteference shows the degree to which his love for his family is as strong as his wife's, however differently it might be expressed.

As a family memoir alone, it would be a classic. But because the children were of mixed racial ancestry - in the 'forties and 'fifties - the Doss family became an unwilling catalyst for the ignorance and prejudice of the time. It is part of the Doss magic that the love in the family was strong enough to triumph over the unpleasant incidents, so that those incidents enriched, rather than poisoned, the Doss childhoods. (Not that this made them less unpleasant, of course.)

The book is never preachy. Nevertheless, it is a vivid documentary of how racism was built into the attitudes of even "nice" people of that time. It is a sermon of a kind, a sermon lived out in the lives of the Doss family. It is a primer on how to overcome evil with good, a standing lesson to a nation still struggling with racial resentment.

But the genuinely remarkable thing is that, despite the frequent intrusions suffered by the family from racially prejudiced outsiders, the book is not about race. No doubt this is because the Doss family was never about race. When the book crosses your mind in the days after you've closed it - and it will, frequently - it will not be as a book about race. It will be as a book about a uniquely special family and about the triumph of love and joy and grace and laughter over whatever might vainly try to overcome them.

I read this book about 30 years ago, when I was in elementary school, and I loved it. I reread it several times, and when I left home, I think Mom sold it in a garage sale. I've thought about it often over the years, and would love to have a copy again, so that I could reread it. I'm amazed that so many other people felt the same way about the book as I did. I can't believe that it's out of print!! What a wonderful story for all time!

I first read this book at the age of 10, after ordering it from Scholastic book services. I have since read it uncountable numbers of times, each re-reading bringing warm feelings at the familiar passages. This reprint has been highly anticipated, as I had wondered for years what had happened to the Doss family after the end of the book. It is the story of a man and a woman, and their desire for a family. But it is also much more. It is the tale of the strength found in a loving family, a family made by love and not biology. It is a reminder that we are all family, flesh and blood or not, skin color and ancestry aside. And it is filled with the humor that only small active children can provide! I highly recommend this book for readers of all ages, and would suggest it to families to read aloud together.

CLASS-29 takes you back to 1963 as a few 19 year old boys take on the "Toughest School on Earth." From their hands being so cold they can't even light a match until their nasal cavaties exploding blood and mucus into SCUBA masks, John Carl Roat and his "Team" engage in "Hell Week" as Basic Underwater Demolition SEAL Training unfolds. Only a chosen few have the "fire in the belly" and" burning in the brain "needed to become a U.S. Navy SEAL/Frogman.

In the words of Rush Limbaugh, "War is about killing people and breaking things." Personally, I think Rush Limbaugh is a jerk. And I assumed that John Carl Roat's book, CLASS-29: THE MAKING OF U.S. NAVY SEALS would be about training a bunch of 20-something jerks with inflated egos and terminal testosterone poisoning. I was wrong.

The candidates for SEAL training may well have started out that way, but by the time the few survivors had graduated (a minescule percentage of the original applicants) they were very different men indeed.

In an odd sort of way, Roat's CLASS-29 is a love story. We watch as the young trainees learn from their own experience that no matter how tough they think they are, they can only survive with help from the guy beside them. Soon this evolves into a sort of reliance, as they learn that they will only survive as a team; and then into genuine affection and respect. These kids come in all puffed up and clueless, and they come out as men who would lay down their lives for the good of the team, for the survival of their teammates. That they are superbly conditioned fighting machines is secondary - vitally important, but secondary none the less. Now that macho attitude has a vital core of respect and integrity.

It's a wonderful story. Roat spins a good yarn. The physical challenge of the training will make your hair stand on end. That these guys were able to joke in the midst of it is a tribute to their resiliance. That they came out of it imbued with absolute respect for another as well as love of country is a tribute to the training.

Absolutely fantastic book! I have read alot of books on SEALs and this book is the best book you can have if you want to know how SEALs are trained. It goes through each phase and tells what they are about and he felt going through them. SEALs are the toughest men in the US Miltary and one of the toughest groups of men, if not the toughest, in the world and this book tells how they weed out the ones that dont have the "fire in the gut," as he calls it and pick out the ones with the determination and mental toughness to be in the group. It is a fantastic book. If I could get ahold of John Carl Roats email address I would write him a email telling him how much I enjoyed this book. It should be read by anyone with interest in the Navy SEALs.

I picked up "Parasite Rex" for the "yuck factor", the impulse that drives most of us to watch horror films, look at photos of car crash victims, etc. I came out of it educated, enlightened & impressed.

Carl Zimmer acknowledges the "yuck factor" right away; his opening chapters discuss some of the more gruesome aspects of tapeworms, blood flukes, malaria & so on. But as the book progresses, the reader is drawn into a more objective view of the life cycles & natural history of the parasite; by the final third of "Parasite Rex", the reader discovers that without parasites planet Earth might never have evolved multi-celled creatures, sexual reproduction or immune systems! We learn from Zimmer that scientists are not only learning to use parasites to re-balance the ecological disasters mankind has wreaked, they are beginning to believe many modern maladies such as allergies & colitis are caused by the lack of parasites in urbanized humanity!

"Parasite Rex" is clearly written for the layperson, with enough graphically gory details & photos to satisfy the most juvenile amongst us. It is in the way Zimmer turns the readers viewpoint around, from disgust to wonder, that is the real achievement of this book. Any person interested in the future of our planet should read it.

You really should buy Zimmer's book Parasite Rex. I did and I thoroughly enjoyed it. You'll find it chock full of fascinating facts and details of the lives of those we seldom see yet, who Zimmer argues, direct our lives and the lives of most living things around us.

I had no idea how efficient those little fellas can be. I imagined that most of a parasite's wanderings through a host's body was all random; Zimmer elegantly describes how Fasciola hepatica's migration to the liver is as purposeful, focused, and orchestrated as any business trip that we might undertake.

Among the many jewels, he has brought to the public the fascinating speculation that Crohn's disease is a direct result of our freedom from parasites. His account of the impending eradication of guinea worm (possibly river blindness too) all makes for a great read. Its easy style and engaging facts make it hard to put down. True, sometimes I found Zimmer's proposals a little too far fetched-I really don't think he would convince many sheep farmers to let parasites control (decrease) their stocking density when they can easily do it themselves by simply selling some sheep.

Read Parasite Rex and you'll have a whole new appreciation of life as we know it. Zimmer will convince you that parasitism is an acceptable way to make a living-no mean feat!

Morgan Morrow

Carl Zimmer, author of Parasite Rex, writes with all the authority of a practicing parasitologist, despite the fact that he is actually a science journalist. In addition, and invaluably, his account is heavily informed by his deep understanding of the processes and mechanisms of natural selection. Evaluating Parasite Rex purely as a knowledge-delivery device, it is simply not subject to criticism.

But the book is so much more than that. Zimmer is a very Stephen King of pop science, by which I do not mean to damn him with faint praise; Parasite Rex kept this reader on the edge of his seat, in an agony of suspense and terror, for the weekend it took to devour it from cover to cover. Zimmer knows what he is doing.

The first sections of the book relate a series of parasite life histories, examples of the complex, delicately-balanced, highly-specialized strategies modern parasitic organisms have evolved. The organizing principle behind these stories is clear, and it isn't based on the taxonomies, strategies, or environments of either parasites or hosts -- Zimmer has selected these particular accounts, and the order in which he relates them, in order to bring the reader efficiently to a crescendo of visceral horror.

Most people tend to experience a strong reaction of disgust and aversion when presented with information about parasites; apparently we cannot help but empathize with an infested host, and to sympathize accordingly. Zimmer lays the examples on so thick, each more horrifying than the last, that reading his book becomes a sort of intellectual equivalent of hunkering down in a war zone.

My own particular favorite is the parasite Sacculina carcini, which makes its home inside a crab. It begins by sterilizing its host if it is female, and if the host is male, both sterilizing it and forcing it to produce hormones that render it behaviorally female. It then begins to infiltrate and replace the crab's body, including much of its brain. The crab continues seeking food, which it feeds directly to its parasite. When Sacculina reproduces, it places its offspring in a pouch where the crab's offspring would go (if the host is male, the parasite forms a pouch in the appropriate location). The crab acts to protect the parasite's offspring just as it would its own -- and even carefully disperses them when it is time to do so, just as it would carriers of its own genetic heritage. This is the stuff of science fiction, a parasite that takes over everything and leaves only its host's outer shell intact.

Nevertheless, it is perhaps still more horrifying to learn that many parasites of vertebrate hosts have evolved to produce (or cause their hosts to produce) neurotransmitters that tend to create behavior patterns that serve the parasite's interests far more than the host's. For example, if a parasite lives in a fish in one stage of its life cycle, but wants to be in a bird for the next, it makes its piscine host less afraid of shadows on the water, and more interested in feeding near the surface. Indeed, psychologists have found distinct behavior patterns -- different in males and females -- associated with being a human host to cysts of the parasite Toxoplasma. Toxoplasma wants its host to be eaten by a predator, so it makes males tend to be loners who resent authority, and makes females tend to be outgoing and overly-trusting. By the way, if, like me, you grew up with cats, you almost certainly host Toxoplasma yourself.

Having shattered his audience with such ghastly memes as these, Zimmer next begins to put some of the pieces back together. He mitigates the naked horror of the first chapters with an exploration of the role parasites and parasitism have played in the evolution of multi-cellular organisms. To a degree he overstates his case; if it is true that parasites are a third and in many ways causal factor in the well-known phenomenon whereby wolves cull the weak out of the caribou herd, it is not accurate to claim that the parasites are "the" drivers of evolution. It is, however, accurate to say that parasites co-evolved with both caribou and wolf, and that the role parasites generally have played in all natural selection has been consistently and systematically over-looked and under-considered in the evolution literature.

There is much of interest in the evolution section which I will not discuss here; rather I will confine myself to the final punchline: since medical science has begun successfully eradicating many kinds of parasites from the post-industrial human experience, new disorders have begun to emerge to replace the "missing" organisms.

Many parasites have the ability to reduce their hosts' immune responses. If the presence of such parasites was, on average, an evolutionary constant, then we can expect humans to have evolved immune systems that operate optimally only when the chemicals these parasites produce are present. Remove the parasites and the human immune system becomes too strong for its own good, and begins treating harmless material as pathogenic (consider the epidemic of allergies in post-industrial countries versus the nonexistence of allergies in the third world) or begins attacking its own body (i.e., newly-developed bowel ailments such as Crohn's disease or irritable bowel syndrome).

The reader is obliged in the end to adjust to life with the relatively abstract and alloyed horror induced by the knowledge that we in principle should not seek to eliminate parasites from the human experience. We might engineer them, subvert them to serve our interests just as they have done to us for millennia, but we ought not to eliminate them. Every gardener knows that it is clearing an area of its naturally-balanced flora that creates an opportunity for hyper-infestation of weed species; let's hope medical science doesn't continue forcing us to learn the same lesson with our own bodies.

I first saw the series COSMOS on TV in about 1980 when I was about 12, and have been searching for similar material ever since. Carl Sagan is able to capture the mystery and the beauty of astronomy, science, art and religion in a way that most poeple can follow, and in a way that is interesting and invigorating. He is a very clear thinker and presenter. And this book, based on that very popular TV series of the same name, I found in an old book store, which I immediately grabbed. Here was something of my childhood, and something very special. The book did not disappoint. It is filled with stunning images, photographs, illustrations, diagrams and so on. And the text is fun, enlightening, clear, visionary, and precise. Not surprising, since it is written by an atronomer at heart.

Carl places the earth on the shores of the cosmic ocean-the title of the first chapter. He traces religious, artistic and scientific investigations into the 'cosmos' throughout the millenia, and the amount of useful historical information he brings up is quite extraordinary. He draws together the thoughts of ancient cultures like the Greeks, Babylonians, Stone Age man, Renaissance thinkers, poets, artists, and famous scientists, and ties these in with many modern discoveries concerning the nature of the universe. One can see his strong leanings on the likelihood of extraterrestial life and the SETI project between the lines, as well as his views on religion and its place in the human psyche. One particularly interesting peice describes the downfall of the old greek science and the destruction of the library at Alexandria, and how these tie in with his views on history, science and religion in general.

Carl Sagan is a very clear and thoughtful writer. It is obvious that his knowledge of human nature and science is vast and humane. He worries much about the mususe of science, and the future of man. This book is a must for lovers of general science, human nature and destiny. As such it is a timeless classic. I'll close with the books closing words:

"For we are the local embodiment of a Cosmos grown to self awareness. We have begun to contemplate our origins:starstuff pondering the stars; organised assemblages of ten billion billion billion atoms considering the evolution of atoms; tracing their long journey by which, here at least, consciousness arose. Our loyalties are to the species and the planet. We speak for earth. Our obligation to survive is owed not just to ourselves but also to that Cosmos, ancient and vast, from which we sprung."

Carl Sagan's Cosmos, tells the strory of 15 billion years of cosmic history like no one else can.

The book shows how broad and deep Carl's interests extend and draws the reader into a world of fascination. Although the book is primarily about how science has developed in our society the book touches on subjects such as history, philosophy, religion, cultures and so fourth. The book is written in simple terms and is understandable to those without a background in science.

Carl has an amazing ability to write with such enthusiasim and sincerity. Although the book was written at the height of the cold war it reflects an overall optimisim and hope for our species and planet. Carl Sagan is a remarkable human being and humanitarian as is reflected in all of his books. Cosmos is in some way his manifesto and I believe his best book. Carl's death was a loss not just to science but also to our species.

Carl Sagan is my favourite author and Cosmos my favourite book.

I recommend Cosmos to all of those who can read! *****!!!

Although I read this book some ten year ago (at that time I was only 11 years old!) it still continues to fascinating me! Carl Sagan, one of the world's most famous astronomers (may his soul rest in peace), made, with this book, something that would no one else will be able to do: to bring the space science to every home, to every human being! With simple and very interesting language and style he describes the Solar system, from its early days to its end in the next couple of billions, its exploration with robotic probes (Voyager and Viking missions), developing of life on Earth, he thinks of possible life on other planets (Mars and Jupiter).He made the reader to think of stars, evolution of stars, galaxies, quassars and even of black holes! This book is full of exciting pictures of new worlds: from our Solar system to distant nebulas - these pictures will make you wish to be imortal, just to see it with you own eyes! The book is fully recomended.

For someone like me, who is lazy, but interested in physics, this book is superb. It does away with all the mathematical nitty-gritty to leave the mind-bending ideas intact. In this way, one can get a grip on how the universe works without needing to know hard maths which would take years to learn.

Reading this book gives you a powerful insight into the most fundamental aspects of existence, such as what is the universe's eventual fate, and does there need to be a god to create it? If you're interested in big issues like this, Stephen Hawking gives you ample food for thought. He is like a supplier of hard fact into the realm of philosophy, which is otherwise completely theoretical. With these hard facts and well thought out scientific theories, big questions like the meaning of life and the existence of god can be more meaningfully discussed; actual scientific evidence can be cited to support arguments about whether a Creator God is needed in this universe. With the t! heories Hawking writes about, maybe one day the creation of the cosmos could be attributed to a natural force, say, like gravity. A creative force. But then, that leads onto the question, what created the creative force?.....

Whatever, A Brief History of Time is a brilliant achievement, containing fascinating large-scale science that piques the reader to think of 'higher things'. Absolutely fantastic!

I am a college student, well versed in mathmatics and physics, and I stand in awe of the manner in which Hawking presents the most difficult concepts of science in a way that a layman can understand. This book should be required reading for all students of astronomy, physics, astrophysics, and even geology. Hawking's ability to explain abstract concepts in a clear, concise manner, without resorting to higher mathmatics is uncanny.

If you have ever wondered about the nature of our universe,and thought that it was beyond you, then this book is a must read.

I'm a student of Physics and Astronomy, and when I first read this book, I decided that I want to become a theoratical physicist, as it was so extremely fascinating. The second time I read the book, I again made a decision. Since then, I study Astronomy.

In short, Mr. Hawking perfectly knows how to wake everyone's interest for the fundamentals of the universe. And moreover, he explains the most difficult theories of our days in a style so that everyone can grasp the basic ideas.

At some point in my life, much of what Sagan wrote became "common knowledge" and much less interesting to read, because I stopped learning from him.

Then I realized: he had done his job. Sagan excited me, thrilled me, MADE me go out and learn more because I couldn't stand not knowing.

Carl Sagan was a master at distilling science to the masses; he made physics, biology, cosmology, math...he made it all so thrilling that the masses barely knew they were learning.

If you're not already a Sagan fan, try starting with his fiction (Contact--the book is a thousand times better than the movie), and then moving on to his nonfiction. You'll discover from Sagan why we are where and who we are.

Read it. Learn it. Then outgrow it. You'll be honoring Sagan, and you'll be honoring your own humanity.

Dr. Sagan was an extraordinary teacher. He could explain things in such an easy way that anyone can understand. This book tells how most of the time scientist do not have the time to educate people and by failing to do so let people in the hands of the pseudoscientist. Since science developes so fast, there is no way to buy an up to date book. Anyway all Dr. Sagan's books are fun to read and a good tool to inspire us to keep looking for more information. I will recomend any of his books.

Carl Sagan established his reputation as a writer with three works: Cosmos, Broca's Brain, and Contact. Cosmos is renowned as one of the century's best non-fiction works and Contact became a top-grossing, award-winning film. Broca's Brain meets the standard of Sagan's more famous pieces. Even were you to only read one chapter, the book would still be worth purchase. I especially recommend this book to those who have read John F. Haught (theologian) or Stephen Hawking (physicist) and assume that science and religion are locked in a death match.

I was expecting a recipe book full of the best recipes for both baking and cooking. What I got was a book full of great baking, but extremely simple, cooking recipes. The Best Recipe is innovative in that it explains why the authors choose to use particular cooking methods. As a beginner, I learned quite a bit from these explanations. While The Best Recipe does do a fabulous job of teaching you how to cook various types of dinners, the recipes left me wanting in flavor. Almost every recipe looks like this: ", salt and pepper". Here is their prime rib recipe: "1 3-rib standing rib roast, salt and ground pepper". I hope I didn't breach any copyright laws there. Seriously, almost all of the cooking recipes look like this. Granted, some have a "master" recipe of salt & pepper, and include "variations" that have actual ingredients in them, but this was less common. I really don't understand how everyone can give The Best Recipe 5 stars. I suppose everyone else is using the book for baking, for which it does excel - their coconut chocolate chip recipe was indeed the best. I was quite disappointed with buying a "best recipe" book full of salt & pepper recipes. The Best Recipe should be renamed "Modern Cooking Explained", or some other educationally-focused title.

I've been buying cookbooks for decades. I'll buy cookbooks for just one recipe I'm dying to learn. The funny thing is, I'm really not that good of a cook, but I love working in the kitchen.

This cookbook just blows me away. Just like the Cooks International PBS television series, it explains the why of cooking. Lasagne without ricotta? Beef marinade without acid? How could that be? The explanations are there, and they make total sense.

I sit in my bedroom reading this book at night. I read about the things I already know how to make, looking for the subtle ideas to make them perfect. It's really not a cookbook even though it's got hundreds of recipes. It's more a book about cooking, and it's got me more inspired than all of the scores of books I've bought before.

I'll give these guys the best compliment I can think of: I wish I had written it.

... but in the case, this is one of the rare books that has truly earned this moniker.

The editors of cook's illustrated have tested and retested recipes and cooking techniques for many of your favourite recipes. They have distilled the results of these experiments into a series of easy to follow, sure fire recipes that rarely fail to delight. Even if you using a different cookbook, the description of the techniques (what worked versus what failed) will help you modify your recipe for even greater success. The descriptions of the testing process and the science behind the results are fascinating reading that will make you a better cook. If you have ever wondered if there is any truth behind some of those "kitchen secrets" that people swear make a difference, then this book is for you.

The book covers all types of food preparation (soup, salads, vegetables but not vegetarian, pasta, meats), grilling, baking (pizza, breads, cakes) and desserts. It is also liberally sprinkled with the results of taste testings and equipment reviews which I have found to be pretty accurate.

Like many people, I usually only try 2 or 3 recipes out of the cookbooks that I buy. I have tried 2-3 recipes out of each of the twenty chapters in this book. This is a "must have" cookbook.

This was an excellent fast pace read and I recommend it to other bookclubs.

Baby Momma Drama consists of several Main Characters. Jasmine who is dealing with her Drug Dealer Boyfriend Derrick and his Baby Momma Wendy. Jasmine finds herself falling in love with Dylan while Derrick is in jail but Dylan has drama of his own by dealing with trying to get over his ex-girlfriend Monica. Then there is Travis who is dating Jasmine's sister Stephanie who can't seem to stay away from her baby's daddy Malek. Stephanie risks her securee future with Travis by constantly getting tangled up in lies concerning her relationship with Malek.

Will anyone be happy in the end? Hmmm .... You'll just have to read this hard to put down book. There are so many twists and turns it will have you glued to each page.

Carl Weber has definitely done it again . I am looking forward to the sequel to Married Men in 2004 called Player Haters.

I brought the book baby momma drama on Januarythe 6, I have just started reading it and it is great I can't put it down to eat and I fall asleep with it in bed. Jasmine, Stephanie, Dylan, Derrick,Travis, Malek and I can't for get Big Momma will win your heart over.The book is the bomb if you have not read this book you should. I also read looking for luv, and married men which they both was great Please keep up the good work mr Weber because you are an great writer.

This book was GREAT!!! Mr. Weber has a talent for bringing modern day situations to life. All of his books are so detailed and vivid. I read the book in three days. Now I find myself looking over my girlfriend shoulder while she's reading it. The book is so real. If you can't relate directly then you'll be saying something like "oh my goodness so and so did the exact same thing" or "My friend wouldn't listen to me when I told them don't go there." Also, I'm glad "Player Hater" has the fellas in it. I can't wait to catch up with the guys from "Married Men". In short the man is an awesome writer. Please support his work so we can continue to be engrossed with his great writing. "Lookin For Luv, Married Men, Baby Momma Drama" Get them while you can. TRUST ME

A fantastic book, equally informative, fascinating, and insightful. It serves as a very good introduction to Jung's works, which can at times be heavy reading for non-psychologists. You will be impressed by not only the genius of this man, but captivated by the story of his life. This book should a must read for anyone interested in unravelling some of the mysteries of the psyche.

This is to me the most important book I have ever read in my entire life so far. It has been my companion book for over 25 years now. The first time I read this book was a Brazilian 1975 Edition. A memorable translation. I did the mistake of lending it to someone else and I have never had it back. Then, three years ago, I found that Brazilian Edition and I bought it. I read it over and over, particularly when I needed someone to teach me something really important to my life. Then, I decided to taste the English (American) Translation. I bought this one. I wasn't disappointed. The translation seems to be very carefully done. But although it is a good edition it misses few paragraphs and letters if compared to the Brazilian edition I have. Was this English translation "censored" in any sense ? I doubt that. I simply think the translator just "missed" some pages of the original (in German) edition. I hope one day I will be able and have the opportunity to read the original in German to find out what Jung really meant by writing this monumental book.

Oh, by the way, I have never read any of Jung's "scientific" books. This is by far everything I had to have to face Life and people and myself confidently. Jung is by far the wisest soul of the 20th Century.

By all means, buy this book and read it! You will understand what Life is all about. I would give it 10 stars if I could.

This is a warning to anyone who reads this book. Yes, the book is excellent. Yes, it contains invaluable thoughts from Jung. Yes, it is a must read for any Jungian or anyone else for that matter. However, there is something that should be taken special note of. If, when reading the first few chapters on his early years, you find yourself identifying very closely with his experiences, beware. It is well known that many people experience synchronicities while reading this book. Example: a person may have a dream, and the next day find that very dream explained in the book, wherever that person left off reading the day before. These synchronicities can have a very large effect. If you are one who finds yourself identifying with jung's thoughts and feelings to a high degree, you may experience more than just dreams. The book becomes an integral part of your life. It won't let you skip around or stop reading it for too long. You will be bound to the book to finish it in order. When you reach the 10th and 11th chapters in which he describes his afterlife experiences and thoughts, be extremely careful. You may enter into that same "shadow of the valley of death" while you are reading this part. This is not a book to be taken lightly. It gives you knowledge coupled with experience, not just knowledge. Do not bother opening it unless you want to embark on a serious psychic journey, which will result in increased wisdom and understanding through many unforseen experiences. I highly recommend this book for anyone who DOES want to go through this. I'm glad i did.