Being a writer myself, I probably tend to look at the books I read with more of an analytical eye than the average reader. I was quite impressed with Chi Kung Master, Luk Chun Bond's The First 16 Secrets Of Chi, Feng Shui for the Human Body, so much so that I would give it a 5 star rating. It contains a wealth of information and even includes a diet chapter, yet it is neither boring nor technical. The personal information on Master Bond is quite fascinating and his instructions on how the exercises are done are exceptionally clear and well illustrated as they are shown in the sitting position as well as standing so that even handicapped individuals can learn the exercises. It is well organized and even indexes specific ailments, telling which exercises target them.

Chi Kung is a very beneficial form of exercise for everyone, regardless of age or fitness level. It teaches proper breathing techniques, increases strength, and improves balance and flexibility.

Master Bond encourages everyone to do his or her best, moving only the pain-free range of motion. He explains the purpose of each exercise movement and how it promotes a healthy lifestyle. In his book, "The First 16 Secrets of Chi", Master Bond includes an extensive list of ailments and conditions, which exercises will be optimal for their healing, easy to follow instructions on how to perform them, and detailed illustrations of those exercises. During practice sessions he provides modifications for those who are incapable of performing the exercises that are being demonstrated.

Not only are there physical benefits to Chi Kung, but there are mental and emotional benefits as well. It helps to calm and focus your mind, it enhances your sense of well being, and the social atmosphere helps to develop close friendships. Even though classes may be as large as 100 participants, each person can still get personal attention and assistance.

I feel that Chi Kung has had such a positive effect on my life, that I can honestly say that I will continue practicing it for the rest of my life.

I joined Master Bond's Chi Kung class because of my chronic high blood pressure. I do my chi kung exercises every morning for an hour.
Last year, my 3 visits to my internist, pressure was 138/76, 128/76 & 132/78. My pressure is great now; thanks to chi kung.
There's a book "The First 16 Secrets of Chi" by Master Bond. This book has illustrations of Master Bond doing different exercises for different ailments.
There's also the Green Diet Section. In the green diet they say to eat more yin and nuetral food to balance the yang foods. There's a list of yin, yang and neutral foods.
I recommend this book to all. It's a must read book.
Janet

I can't believe this wonderful book is no longer available in the English language. Fortunately my son and I speak German (where Lindgren is held in high esteem and this book continues to be reprinted) but I'd love to give away copies to his friends who only speak English. It is one of the best children's books ever written and movingly deals with issues such as loss, loyalty and courage in a way that is timeless and appeals to all ages. Could some English language publisher please reprint it.

I recieved this book as a young girl and did not read it until on the edge of adolescence and now I regret the time lost, in fact now in my mid twenties I find myself with out a copy and feel my life is lessened. This book exemplified the the best and worst that could happen in my life and I grew with the boys, losing my naivete with them, forming my own alternative world where loyalty and peace and love are held in the highest regard. I feel that this should be required reading for all school age children. Thank you Ms. Lindgren.

This story is, well, brillant. It's a saga of brotherly devotion, high adventure, scary places, and glorious times. It's through the looking glass, over the next mountain and around the corner to the place in time where you most want to be, with the people you love the best. It fills a space in your heart and leaves an ache at the same time. And it's good. You know those books that you can't BEAR to have end? The ones where you want just one more page? Well, move this to the top of the list - because the ending, while absolutely perfectly satisfying, leaves you on the edge of your seat wondering what happened next. That's one (of a long list) why it's such a perfectly brillant children's book - your imagination takes it from there. This is not a story to read just once, but over and over, and to share with the people that you love the best.

An intricate story with a hidden satire on the birth of the fast-paced, all business society, told threw the eyes of orphan Momo, who loves her friends as her only family, she follows a turtle past the reaches of time to figure out why her friends do not come to talk to her anymore. This book is about time--stolen and hidden from people in constant motion, the dreams they had, and the gigantic love of one little girl. Micheal Ende magically weaved a subtle wit, humor, bravery, friendship, love and loss all together and created a story that I could not put down until I read it all the way through. Any generation can learn from this book--all you need is to take a bit of time!

Momo is an interesting commentary on society, with the aid of some grey gentleman, a tortoise who can communicate in an interesting fashion, a wise elderly man, a roadsweeper, a young storyteller and a little girl who appears from nowhere. I loved all of the characters, especially Momo - You'll want to sweep her up and adopt her! The little comments on daily life and work will make you stop and think. Anyone who is fascinated with the concept of time and/or loves The Neverending Story - READ. THIS. BOOK.

Have you ever think of finding a book that capture you from the first page until the end. Beautiful story like fairy tale with supurb narrative style that you want to re-read it many times. Moreover, the book that contains a wonderful idea about life. If yes, try to read this book. Story of a little girl and her friends seemed to be a simple plot. But it isn't like that when it is in Michale Ende's hands. It's about people, friendship and time. Please read this book to your children and you will enjoy this beautiful story as well. If you still don't believe me, Let go through other's people comment for this book. The best way is to find out by yourself. In Thailand, this book is reprinted so many times and I am so glad that I can own this precious book. Another "Gem" from Michale Ende is "The Never Ending Story" both are equally supurb.. I guarantee.

When I was eight, I was a book worm. I am ashamed to say, however, that I wasn't reading exaclty the most edifying books around. My library consisted mostly of RL Stein, Hardy Boys and the likes. (Which I'm nto trying to put down, but to be honest, they're not that well written and they have very little plot.) So one weekend, my mother and I went to visit my aunt, and she noticed what I was reading. She was less than impressed and kept trying to intrest me in some of the different books she had. (She has a fabulous collection of children's books, I might add.) I turned down every one, either saying they looked boring or too young for me. So finally on the eve of our last night there, she convinces me to read this old tattered book. (You guessed it, it was Swallows and Amazons. The origeonal Johnathan Cape Edition, something you just can't find any more...) Being int he middle of "The Secret of the Old Mill" (For the third time) I put it off until I had finished. I assumed I'd read a chapter, not like it and then go to bed. Needless to say I got no sleep that night. By the time I got to the last page and put the book down it was well into the morning. After that I had to get the book for myself, and my (very patient) mother and I scoured the bookstores for it until finally we found one that could order a copy. I counted the days until that book came (One of the Penguin Press Editions, god knows where they exhumed an old edition like that from). When it came I had to read it again and again. The worst part though, was this little listing at the end of the book. It was a listing of all the other books in the Swallows and Amazons serries. It was horible because here were all these tantalizing titles and little blurbs about these books and I couldn't find them anywhere. In a heroic feat of book-shopping, my mother was actually able to find most of them (Thi was before the Goodine edition, so they were out of print), though she had to special order from England and Canada for a few of them. When they came, I don't think I did anything except read until I had read them all. It was horibel, though because some of them refered to event that happened in the books I hadn't read. Finally, however they were re-published and I was able to make my collection complete.

After reading these books, I became enchanted with the sea and sailing. My library has becaome a lot more nautically oriented, and I take partial credit for my local book-store stocking the S&A serries. =) Even today, I still will read them occasionally... Just to allown myself to forget about the present and be drawn into the most wonderful past imaginable. These are a must for any young reader, I have yet to find one that hates these books, and wonderful for adults, too. All I can say is buy them, you won't be disapointed. I just wish Ransome had written more.

I am an eleven-year-old girl who first found Swallows and Amazons at a library booksale - even before they were republished! Don't let the title fool you - Swallows and Amazons are two groups of siblings. One group has a boat called Swallow.The other group has a boat called Amazon. The Swallows and Amazons start out enemies, but become friends rapidly. Their adventures are similar to what I have often dreamed of - getting a boat and having adventures on and around an island!But their adventures are not limited to the island, they evenvisit "the natives" back home. What's best about their adventures is that all of them are possible! They don't do impossible things like ride on drangons or become invisible. Their adventures really could happen! I loved this book from the start, and have read it again and again. I would also reccomend the other books in this series. They are all super, and will become treasures to pass on to later generations. Thank you, Mr. Ransome, for writing such a wonderful book!

This series appears to inspire fanaticism in those of us lucky enough to read them as children. Included with a bunch of Enid Blytons from my grandmother this was one of my favorite books of childhood and has become an odd literary touchstone in my older friendships. An interesting adventure story that remains rooted in reality yet gives life to the childrens' fantasies this is a book I can always retreat into. I only wish my vacations had been like those of the Walkers and Blacketts. Their camping and sailing adventures in the English Lake District are not overly dated(considering they were written in the 1930's) and probably the least sexist childrens books from that era and from today- the girls and boys have equal responsibilities and the most charismatic character is Nancy Blackett, captain of the Amazons. I don't understand how these books have remained in such relative obscurity for so long.

The Diamond in the Window is the start of Jane Langton's Concord series (for children, unlike much of her writing). It is, without question, one of the true classics of children's literature, fit to stand next to E. Nesbit, Edward Eager, and J.K. Rowling.

In The Diamond in the Window, Eleanor and Edward discover a boarded up room in their attic - and with it, a family mystery. Their Uncle Ned and Aunt Nora disappeared, years ago, from that attic room, and a few days later, so did a houseguest. While investigating the disappearances, they find a poem written on the stained glass window of the attic, which leads them to adventure and treasure.

One of Langton's great strengths is the amount of adult references she can pack into a book without alienating her child audience. Diamond is full of Transcendentalism and the history of Concord, but the information is presented in a way that makes it accessible to readers of all ages. This is an ideal book for reading aloud to an older kid (6 - 10) - sure to promote discussion, and able to hold interest for both adults and children.

This book is abosolutely great! I read it about a year ago, and I've read at least five times since then. It's about two kids named Eleanor and Eddy, and a riddle they stumble upon in their own house. They got all sorts of clues, such as real dreams, to find the treasure described in it. They end up learning that it was right there in front of them.

I read this book for the first time when I was five or six years old, and 25 years later it stands as one of my favorite books of all time. It's a beautiful fantasy story about two children who experience wonderful and frightening adventures seeking treasure in a dreamworld created by magic, but corrupted by evil. It has adventure, mystery, fantasy, and a little romance, too.

We have an inexpensive paperback version (see our reviews) of this classic poem, and we said that's enough for us. That was before we looked through this beautifully illustrated (by Bruce Whatley) edition of The Night Before Christmas.

The lyrics are the same, from book to book, but the fanciful illustrations in this one are enough to engage adults and children as they read this book together.

The perfect gift for any family whose Christmas tradition includes reading this classic!

I discovered this book 31 years ago, for my daughter and it is still loved by all the family. The illustrations are wonderful, warm, charming and delightful and bring a special meaning to the story. We still read it to all the young children on Christmas Eve and for adults we read the story and pass a grab bag gift every time the word THE is mentioned. It would not be Christmas without this book. It is magical.

This beautiful book was in my family as a hard cover edition for many years and was a Christmas Eve tradition for my four sons when they were growing up. It's poor battered body disappeared some time after the last of my little ones went off into the adult world. I am so delighted to see it back again, though this time as a nicely affordable soft cover. Clement C. Moore's enchanting story poem already provides an atmosphere filled with warmth and joyful expectation and with the addition of Tasha Tudor's quaint, nostalgic water-colors from an antique New England the Christmas magic is complete!
The winter landscapes fill our senses and Tasha's own gray tabby cat and Welsh Corgi welcome us into this charming world.
Tasha's Santa that you will meet in this book has been portrayed as the poem describes him...a right jolly old elf. He's not that much larger than the corgi and his team really consists of eight "tiny" reindeer. His pointy ears and his Eskimo mukluks add to the delightful ambiance of the book. He dances with the toys and with the happy animals and we can truly believe it will be a happy Christmas for all.
I hope this book becomes a Christmas Eve tradition for many, many more families.

Louisa May Alcott is a trustworthy author - you know what you're getting. Although I hadn't read An Old-Fashioned Girl, I gave my sister a copy, thinking it would be a nice way to get her to continue reading. Not only did it get her reading, she got me so into it, I was waiting to read it for myself. Alcott is a good writer with some great books that have beautifully stood the test of time - this is one of them.

Polly Milton is a country girl visiting friends in the big city. Her quaintness charms the Shaws, especially the adults. As much as the Shaw children also love Polly, they think she is unfashionable and even embarrassing. They are shamed by her unaffected wholesomeness and act as children do, by being unkind and unjust. Polly's innocence and pride are bruised by the careless Fanny, spoiled Maud, and gruff Tom. Her modest ways are tested by the temptations of living with the wealthy Shaws, but her sensitivity to this only supports her personal credo to be as good as possible.

Polly is old-fashioned even by Victorian standards, but her honesty and cheerfulness are contagious. Even as a pragmatic adult, every time I read her story I feel a surge of inspiration and affirmation that it's still worth being good. Her charismatic personality will both beguile and challenge you. A moral, but not moralistic character, Polly leads by example by having fun, (eventually) blooming in the face of adversity, and always being true to herself. Polly's gentleness is layered around a steely core. She doesn't aim to convert you, but won't let others convince her to do what she feels is wrong, as Fanny and her trendy group find out. This is the sort of girl every parent wishes for, every girl needs for a friend, and every guy is looking for.

"Good" heroines usually ring false and are burdensome to the reader. Alcott creates a real girl, who happens to be extremely loving. Polly embraces the world with wise, but accepting arms. She's magnetically sincere, drawing out the best in others. It's hard not to be affected. The Shaws and their friends become interesting and layered characters due to her quiet influence. I didn't like the children intially, but as they became increasingly complex and conflicted, I found them nearly as dear as Polly. There isn't much of a plot per se, but small episodes tied together over the course of a few years, often very funny in the end. The last part in particular will be a surprise - even this experienced reader didn't see it coming!

Read this and feel Polly's (er, Alcott's) magic for yourself! A real treasure you'll want to pass on. It will only get better with age. A few books are part of a journey of a lifetime and I've found that An Old-Fashioned Girl is one of them.

I am 18 and have read this book at least 30 times. Its simplicity and reality seem to reach into my soul and I seem to have found a "kindred spirit" in the heroine. No other fictitious character has ever moved me as has Polly, an old-fashioned girl. A country girl named Polly is visiting city friends and comes to realize that this world is quite different than which she has left. Here people are judged according to their dress and manner of speech rather than for their honesty and hardwork. Yet all who meet Polly cannot help but be enamored of her; her sweet simplicity is unlike any that they have ever seen, and soon everyone comes to realize that Polly is not someone to be laughed at and ridiculed, but someone to put upon a pedistal for failing to become willing prey to the cynicism of the times. Polly is the most understanding and genuine character I have ever read about. Her love for others and her unwillingness to lower her standards and morals for popularity are an inspiration to people of all ages and prove that nothing is wrong with being "an old fashioned girl."

I was introduced to An Old-Fashioned Girl when I was in fourth grade, and I must have read it hundreds of times since. Now that I am in college, I've read Plato, Aristotle, Dante, and other famous authors. But none of these authors have impacted me as much as this classic by Louisa May Alcott. This book gave me the confidence I needed to hold true to my values, and whenever I am tempted to give in to peer pressure, I just think about Polly and her bronze boots. I love this book, and I'm sure I will continue rereading it until the time I die. A definite classic that leaves you feeling warm inside!

Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom is truly a work of art. Over the past three years, I have been working on discovering myself through self-help books, 12-step programs, religious study, and personal introspection. This book summed up everything I have learned (the hard way) during this time, and presented it in a beautiful package that was invigorating and thought-provoking to read. It was a pure joy. I began reading it in January, and have only just finished it last night, because each sentance was a ponderable morsel. Sometimes I would read a phrase five times over in order to fully grasp and apply it's meaning to my life. This is not a 70 mph trip through the McDonald's drive-thru, this is a seven course meal in Vienna, and every bite demands that you hold it in your mouth to savor it.

Anam Cara is one of the best non-fiction books I have ever read. I plan to read it again in a year or so, because I know I will get new things out of it. I am already loaning it to a friend, and have a couple of others in mind I'd like to loan it to. I can't keep this from the ones I love.

Reading this wonderful spiritual book has embedded into my soul all the valuable insights and gifts that these powerful words envelope. I will treasure this book. There are many lessons to be learned about soul and one needs to read over and over again these valuable lessons to digest the depth of this profound celtic wisdom.

I shall use this book as I glide into much celebrated old age and intergrate it's beautiful spiritual power into present moments. Anam Cara states....'Once the soul awakens, the search begins and you can never go back.....the eternal makes your urgent..'

This insightful book by John O'Donohue is a moving and irrevocably inspiring view on living, dying, loving and becoming closer to your own soul with the companionship of your Anam Cara, or soul-friend. It speaks of the incredible beauty of the Celtic tradition and views on such ethereal subjects as religion, our own divinity, and the power of transforming your life. It is truly a book to learn from.

I was given this book by a friend and was surprised at the well-balanced combination of story, locale and apt descriptions of riding events.

Buck Jones: a rodeo cowboy who becomes seriously ill and must get rid of his beloved horse. I liked Buck a lot, and so did his friends in the story. He raised Old Black from a colt and only became a rodeo star after Old Black came on the scene as his roping horse. The day he got rid of his beloved pal was a heart-rending scene.

Small things impressed me. The arrival at the Bradley's farm with Jim's new horse -- he so wanted to show him off to the old black couple down the lane, but he had to wait. Things to do on the farm. Getting on the horse took some imagination for 10-year-old Jim Bradley, but he solved THAT! Then got an extension for his stirrup. Small things, but so important to the story.

Jim's first real horse show was an adventure for me. The hospitality suite he and his mother came upon, and got acquainted with the Robertsons and their daughters. Jim's performance in that western riding class was beautiful, as written.

I adored little Alexandra Meridith, her father. Her grandparents, Oscar and Ruby, were fine old people, and dearly loved by that little boy.

The series of chapters dealing with the rescue of the sheriff out in the woods was as stirring and exciting as could be. And it reeked of realism. That long episode was brought to a perfect conclusion, even if some concerns still were left dangling. But they were wrapped up later.

The funeral of a black lady was a fine piece of descriptive writing, touching.

The ending of the story was purely satisfying. The indignant lady in the stands was a good, good touch. How she finally came around to applaud Old Black after accusing him of hurting her daughters chances in the class. The unlikely but understandable award to Old Black. Then, something I can't tell because it would ruin the ending for readers, but it was just exactly what should have happened. Even if it caught be completely by surprise.

A great story.

Old Black is the most wholesome, absorbing, exciting, touching book I have ever read! And that's going back through a lot of books! Everything in the world that should be in it is there. Old Black the horse was as wonderful as his master, Jim Bradley.

I loved the old black couple, the Jacksons, who lived on the lane to the Bradley's little weekend ranch, and was truly touched by the genuine friendship between that couple and the Bradley family. All of the characters in the story, and there are quite a few, come vividly to life. You never have to think back and ask yourself, "Now just who is this walking on stage?" You know every one of them as if you had known them a long time.

The chapters involving the visit of Jim's Aunt Hazel and Uncle Harry are precious. Aunt Hazel has Alzheimer's disease and Uncle Harry is allowing her condition to get to him. It took the intuitive therapeutic interaction of a boy with compassion for his ailing aunt to show Uncle Har! ry, by examples, how to mitigate her suffering, how to lift her spirits. There was hilarity galore in those chapters, much of it at Aunt Hazel's expense, but it was never once in bad taste.

The rescue of Sheriff Martinez in the woods by Jim and Old Black, which consumed several chapters, was an endless stream of excitement that continued to escalate right up to the very last page of chapter 24. It was a tough job for both the boy and his horse that almost proved to be impossible, but every bit of it was entirely credible.

Old Black is a beautiful piece of creative writing. The story moved. It had a start, a middle, and definitely an ending, an ending that swept along through several chapters in such a rewarding way for the reader. Briggs never takes the writer's easy way out of a single scene or event, but works his plot with fascinating detail and excellent execution. The story was a fine blend of happiness, sadness, tragedy, and humor. Every aspect of the ending was perf! ect -- all the little loose ends that had collected along t! he way were neatly tied up in the most satisfying ways one could imagine -- even better than I ever imagined.

Without giving away the REAL treat at the very end, I will say I loved the way the jealousy toward Jim by the boy on the flashy horse was disposed of. That scene was a magnificent stroke! Then there is a very nice vignette involving that same boy at the very end that had best be left for the joy of reading it first hand. At that last horse show in the Astroarena, I swear I could hear the bawling, cackli! ng, mooing, crowing, grunting . . . of the animals, I was aware of the constant announcements over the loudspeakers, I smelled every aroma of the place, saw and heard the hay carts buzzing around, felt the presence of the activity going on all about -- I was THERE!

Old Black is a fairly long book --387 pages of text -- but I flew through it way too fast to suit me. We should be able to give an extra star to special books for appearances. This one is a beauty, with a nice oil painting for the cover, a pretty full-color map of "Old Black Territory" on the front and back endpapers, and at least five dozen gorgeous illutrations, which is why I presume the book was printed on such fine paper.

When you buy Old Black, you may as well buy two and get it over with. You'll just HAVE to let certain friends read it, and you'll sure not want to part with your own special copy.

(This review was provided by the reader, who does not have a computer, to the publisher for sending on to amazon.com.)

A wonderful story, and told in just the right voice. When I began the book I thought it was only a contemporary boy-and-his-horse story. But unlike most of the genre, it is much, much more. The boy and his horse are the cornerstone, but the story expands way beyond them to involve an interesting variety of people. This is not a children's book, but my 11-year-old daughter was soon captivated and sailed through it in good time. ("Is Old Black going to die?" she asked, teary-eyed. "Read on," I said.) One does not need an interest in horses to love this book. Readers with a keen eye will savor the precious little clues planted along the way, like Easter eggs hidden for the purpose of being discovered. The dozens of illustrations are simply marvelous. Early in the story, Old Black, the horse, is being readied to go off to his new life with the boy Jim Bradley. The part where the cowboy Buck Jones (I just loved him!) is stoically, silently bidding farewell to his dear, longtime friend, the horse displaying his own feelings about their parting, is as touching as any scene I've ever read. It was some minutes before I could go on. You will not miss the absence of profanity, sex, or unnecessary violence here, although that long, dreadful scene in the woods ends with violence aplenty. I found it completely called for and applauded when the criminals got what they deserved. I was drained at the end of the ordeal in the woods, and Aunt Hazel and Uncle Harry strolled onto the scene just when I needed an uplift. I still laugh when I replay that scene in the bathroom: a furious, hissing snake, two grown men and a boy "overcome by the most sustained and idiotic laughter Norma had ever heard." Like another reader, I felt that the scenes arising from Aunt Hazel's Alzheimer's disease were handled with sensitivity and good taste. My grandmother had the disease and I really believe I could have applied some of Jim Bradley's instinctive strategies to bring her some happiness if I had read OLD BLACK while she was still alive. Uncle Harry's exasperation with his wife's condition, his inability to deal with it effectively until Jim showed him the way, was sadly familiar. I feel sure that the author has experienced the anguish of being close to someone with Alzheimer's, to write about it with such delicate insight. The scene at Richter's store where likable old Walter Mehlmann gleefully rehearses how he will waltz through his theoretical last days was a fine piece of humor. Walter's influence on the other men present was hilariously realistic. So realistic, in fact, that after reading that part I found myself rummaging the kitchen for junk food, the more cholesterol laden and otherwise unhealthy the better! I wish I knew where to get some real country cracklings. Fat ones, Reinhard. I like FAT ones! Every character in the book played an essential role. They were so well developed that I could clearly see them in my mind as they came onstage, always true to their distinct characters in actions and speech. Old Black was not a superhorse, as so many fictional horses are. He had limitations and faults, which only made him more "human". OLD BLACK breathes with vibrant life, and did so even while I cried during that sorrowful part with the death and the funeral. It was an experience that gave Jim Bradley (and me too) a better, if bitter, understanding of life. The story is uplifting, happy, dreadfully sad and hilarious, and the ending is just perfect. Throughout, this intricate novel is entirely credible. I agreed to some extent with one critic below - that the book suffered a little in organization. But that defect was overwhelmed by a superb plot, clearly drawn characters, vivid action scenes, settings (I was right there in every scene: seeing, smelling, feeling), and the author's often touching insight into people and horses, especially that lovable Old Black. This is the kind of literature (I call this book literature) that can put a teeny edge on the reader's good side. It is the kind of story (too rare, today) that can open the eyes of young people to the reality that being good, responsible kids can be rewarding, and they can still have fun. This story is much too special to be confined to adult fiction. I would love to see an edition of OLD BLACK written especially for young readers.

The content of this book covers such currently unpopular and irrelevant topics as: logic, responsibility, force, time, space, energy, motion, infinity, cause and effect, and survival. The author states: "Scientology is the science of knowing sciences. It seeks to embrace the sciences and humanities as a clarification of knowledge itself."(pg. 22). Heady stuff! Proceed with caution: there is actual philosophical content here. Is your idea of a "meaningful discussion" the banal banter of afternoon "talk shows"? Is the last "philosophy" book you read "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus?" If you admit to being this much out of intellectual shape, don't pick up this book. Buy a Harlequin Romance and a bottle of suntan lotion. This is serious philosophy, not soppy self-help. If you're still a sincere seeker of knowledge (not one to be dissuaded by that "D" you got in your college philosophy course), you will find this work contains challenging spiritual and intellectual concepts that make sense and are well worth exploring and re-exploring. A past reader suggests dusting off your "thinking cap" and reading Hubbard's "Scientology 8-8008".

I have read this book a number of times since the 1960s. It contains more distilled truth about life and the spiritual nature and capabilities of people than you will find anywhere. You read it carefully, cosidering each line, and WOA! it dawns on you that what Mr. Hubbard says is TRUE with a capital T. But you have to have the courage to really look at what he says and the smarts to really grock exactly what he did say. Everyone you meet treats you like a hunk of meat. Like people all in cars with no consideration there even is a driver. This book adresses the driver! YOU, not the meat. You will be well rewarded with knowledge of your true potential and how to achieve it if you read this book.

I first read L. Ron Hubbard's master work, "8-8008," in the spring of 1970. In retrospect, it was a welcome, first major step into a certainty of knowledge that we are all immortal spiritual beings. What I learned in this book has been of continuous use and has guided all of my subsequent steps into understanding my abilities and responsibilities as a spiritual member of the society of man. This is true technology. By application of what I learned from Mr. Hubbard in 8-8008, my own certainty and understanding of myself and others as spiritual beings has been enhanced imeasurably beyond any expectations I had when I first encountered Mr. Hubbard's book. Having worked with, and been around others who have used this data and true technology for over a quarter of a century, I know that it has wonderfully positive application and use for all of mankind, and that, for all time to come. The tools he has given us in "8-8008," are all workable and of use in our daily lives. L. Ron Hubbard's, "8-8008," is a true gift to mankind