My initial impressions were good. This is a large, weighty cookbook. It has a lot of information in it, and lots of recipes. I especially like all the background information on the ancient cooking techniques. I have a great many cookbooks from the Middle East, and almost all of them have a section on Iraqi food, but never before have I seen such depth and completeness.

Possibly the most important thing in a Middle Eastern cookbook is its recipe for Baklawa. In this fine cookbook, the section on Bawlawa stretches from page 465 through page 477, and the pages are large (8"x11")!

The author is an academic, so there are references, and the bibliography in the back looks like a great place to further any Mesopotamian food intrests.

On the downside, many of the images inside are rather poor resolution, and in one case an image overlays some text, but don't let that bother you. This is agreat book, and well worth the price.

Nawal Nasrallah has given us all a gift in writing this book. It is a treasure of the first rank. In the midst of all the war and destruction we are witnessing in Iraq, this book has been a wonderful palliative. She reviews the fascinating series of civilizations that have left roots in Iraq including recipes, some of which she has revised for the book. Among the recipes she has embroidered folk tales, jokes, and intriguing historical notes. I read right through the book as soon as I received it. For the last couple of months, I have been cooking almost nothing else but these recipes, and each one is a new and (for me, jaded palate that I am) freshly seductive experience. Please don't neglect to make her spice mixture, Baharat, which perfumes my whole cupboard and is a revelation.

What a shame that Nawal Nasrallah was forced to self-publish, but what wonderful good fortune for all of us that she was not discouraged by publishers' rejections. The time and dedication she put into the work without a guaranteed outcome is amazing. You'll love it.

Newsweek, May 5, 2003:
"Now we know the taste of the cradle of civilization."

You might plan, but only action will influence the future! In their strategy JOURNEY, Eden & Ackerman takes this seriously. Therefore they abandon normative strategy-approaches and show us instead the possibility to exploit cognitive diversity, tacit knowledge and emergent strategy. They also stress the importance of negotiating with stakeholders, powerbrokers and personnel to come to decisions, actions and insights that shape the strategic future of an organization. This is not an ideal picture - it's a realistic conclusion from decades of practical work with companies and non-profit organizations trying to create their future in a context of the messy problems of every-day life. Each organization has to find it's own way. The authors give us an inside-view of these experiences and explain in detail the methods and tools used.

Although "Making strategy" has a practical focus on how to make the JOURNEY of strategizing happen and it easily can be used as a consultants handbook, the theoretical foundations are not neglected. Eden & Ackerman make a clear stance that the world that counts in strategizing is the one we percieve, and that decision-making in organizations involves more than one logic. The authors emphazise the process of strategizing and leave the ontological question open - if we learn from our actions, we will also get to know whether or not we were right in our assumptions about the world. Since we cannot forecast the future with enough precision to make long-range action plans in advance, we have to learn while we strategize. Continuously we have to question our assumptions, redraw our plans and consider how new directions influence the social order in which action takes place. These experiences and insights are convincing - and the methods and software tools are immensly useful. If you want to get things done.

Eden and Ackermann have written a book based upon there experiences of working with management groups in industry. The book is an excellent contribution to our knowledge of 'developing and managing strategy'. The book takes the student through the process of building strategy, putting the student in the centre, enabling the student to build strategy of a company or organisation. This approach is unique and a fine example of how to teach and learn about the subject. The book uses models as a process to develop strategy, i.e cognitive mapping and Decision Explorer. The book is aimed at students that are final year undergraduates or Masters students. When using the book, students need a knowledge base in 'modelling skills'.

On the downside, the book has a complex indexing system which takes a while to 'get the hang of'. The book promotes Eden and Ackermann's approach to developing strategy, which is based upon a 'reasoned thinking' style. There are other approaches.

But taking everything into consideration, this is simply the best book on the market!!!!

I have therefore decided to adopt this book as the main reader for my students at Napier University.

Ian Yeoman Napier University Business School Edinburgh

I had always believed that UK had a few business schools like London, Strathclyde and Cranfield comparable to the top US schools. The quality of this book, by two Strathclyde academics, re-confirms that. It very clearly establishes that "Strategy" is not just the pre-occupation of the board, it is every manager's business. And it shows HOW that business has to be handled. Very useful for consultants like us.

This book was given to our family by friends when my father in law passed away. My children were young and would ask "Where did Grandpa Go?" What a great way to explain to children in a way that they could understand. My kids are grown, the book has been shared with everyone of their friends, including my daughters third grade class. When we see butterflies we say, "That's Grandpa", when we see the stars at night we find grandpa. It has allowed him to live on in everything we see and do. My grown kids are all proud owners of their own copies. I wish they'd reprint, I'd love to have a supply to pass on to others for this same reason. Thank you Eden Cooper. OUR favorite book.

... I discovered the book when I was 50 and have given it to so many folks... The illustrations are whimsical and beautiful and the thoughts remind me to remember the beauty and love I have known in this life. It was especially meaningful as I was one of those folks who denounced love for financial security and when I was visited twice with terminal lymphoma decided love and beauty are more important...I read children's books (once again) for my personal imposed therapy.

This book is one of my fondest childhood memories. My mother read it to my sister and i countless times. In fact the book has fallen apart and i am very sad to see that all of the editions are either out of print or out of stock. However if you need a book for a child or one for any age in fact which touches the heart in a delightful way please buy this book. I love it, i read it to my friends, write it in e-mails when someone i know is feeling sad and remember it when i feel like i just can't take it any more.

This book will show how to turn a cold clinical facility into a warm, caring home. A place families want to visit, not make exuses to avoid. This truly can be revolutional. Anyone placing a person into a nursing facility should make sure they have Edenized.

As a Regional Ombudsman, responsible for a large county in N. CA, I used this book to inspire people to form a "Family Council" in a sample nursing home and to lobby for the changes that Thomas recommends. The home adopted several of the changes and they transformed the home, once known as the worst in the county into the best. Several people emerged from years of depression, others simply took a whole new interest in life, others simply had whole-hearted laughter reenter their lives for the fist time in years. The Eden alternative is indeed the "recipe" for making one's years in long term care "worth living."

I am a Regional Ombudsman for a county in Northern California with responsibility for 970 Skilled Nursing "beds", so I see first hand what happens even in the "best" of Nursing Homes. This book, if taken seriously represents such a profound, yet so seemingly simple approach, that nursing homes would become "homes" for the first time - places where one could look forward to living out one's last years still growing and still having a reason for living. One nursing home in my district is beginning to implement it and one example will suffice. There was a woman who was so severely depressed, nothing could reach her - no drugs, no therapy, nothing! Then the facility put a cockatiel across from her room (part of Thomas'"Eden Plan.") Ever so slowly, she started to take an interest in that bird. Then she got out of bed on her own for the first time so she could see it better. Then she crossed the hall and started talking to the bird. Then she started talking to other residents and to the staff. Her depression was gone. A simple bird had done what no drugs, no therapists, nothing else could do. And that is but a tiny part of the picture. This particular nursing home has gone from what many considered to be the worst home (it's name among the people outside was "Hellhaven")in my district to, in my opinion, the best, and they are just getting started! Read this great book. You won't be able to put it down and it will change the way look at nursing homes forever. Rev. Wayne Bradley Robinson, Ph.D., Regional Ombudsman for Placer County, California. wayner@cwia.com

Portraying Marie Antoinette as an "average woman," as the title of Zweig's work provocatively suggests, is a debatable proposition. On the one hand, as Zweig shows throughout this study, Marie Antoinette was no prodigy: she was flawed, egotistic, intellectually limited and ... indiscreet. Her greatest passions were for clothes, vast flowery gardens, [fancy] jewelry and good looking Swedish men; she was a compulsive spendthrift; her political self-awareness was zero and her policy meddling was uniformly disastrous. Her indiscipline at court was flagrantly exploited by her political enemies - notably her jealous and ambitious brothers-in-law Louis and Charles (the later Bourbon Restoration kings) - who portrayed her as a modern day Jezebel. In all of these respects, her life was far from "average". But the "ordinariness" within, argues Zweig, left her ill-equipped to deal with the challenges of an extraordinary life.

Once the Revolution happens, however, Zweig's "averageness" argument makes a dog-leg turn. Under the extreme pressures of her imprisonment, her husband's guillotining, her separation from her beloved children and her state trial for treason, she rose above the "average," drawing on her Habsburg dignity and treating her Committee inquisitors with the contempt they deserved. In death, if not in life, she proved herself to be a true daughter of Maria Theresa. Even ordinary people can be martyrs, Zweig seems to be saying.

Zweig is a natural storyteller, and the fact that he, like Marie Antoinette, was Viennese gives him insights into her sensibilities and predilections. Another Viennese voice can be heard in this narrative: the psychological narrative owes much to Dr. Freud - particularly when we come to her early womanhood. Can it be, as Zweig dares to suggest, that Louis XVI's early impotence, and young Marie Antoinette's consequent frustration, fueled her shallow materialism? Was her scandalously profligate lifestyle an outlet for ... frustration? Did one man's "shortcomings" thus cause the revolution? And what of the bizarre Strasbourg ceremony whereby the newlywed Marie Antoinette was forced to [unclothe] at the frontier, lest the new Dauphine of France cross the border wearing foreign clothes? Surely an emotionally scarring experience? Her tale is a gift for the Freudian, and Zweig milks it for all it's worth.

Marie Antoinette... many things go through one's mind when thinking of that name. Many say she was cruel, pampered, and spoiled, and that she was the main couse of the French Revolution, yet, she was just a woman, a woman born a princess in the Austrian court, married to a French boy whom she had never met by the age of 15, crowned by 19, and beheaded by 35.

Life went by so fast by Marie Antoinette!!, and never gave her a chance to choose what she wanted out of it.

Stefan Zweig is a marvelous writer, and manages to gives us an intimate portrait of at times very hated, at others very loved and admired woman, an ordinary person who only wished for a normal life with her family, a little place of her own, where she didn't have to adjust and adapt to the many different rules impossed on her.

He describes the life of the French court as only he could, and you feel like you are part of the story, hearing about Versailles, Louvre, the revolution and the people involved, which makes this an excellent book to learn about history, about life in the French court, and about France's last great queen.

So, was she cruel, spoiled, and ignorant? read and decide for yourself....

Zweig's biography is so fascinating, I can't believe it's been allowed to go out of print. He does a remarkable job of delineating a light-headed, pleasureseeking woman who was thrust into circumstances she couldn't have anticipated or coped with. Marie Antoinette becomes a real woman, not a figurehead or a scapegoat. No one could ask for anything less.

It's such a good feeling knowing how things happen. Kim Todd has written an engaging, interesting, well researched eye opener of a book. And, just imagine, we (so called evironmentalists and experts) haven't yet learned the lesson of not "Tinkering with Eden". Truly a must read.

Tinkering with Eden: A Natural History of Exotics in America written by Kim Todd is a reading pleasure as the prose flow with a charm and delight. The book is written so well that each chapter feels like you've read a short story, but upon finishing the book you realize that everything you've been reading in the book all comes together.

Ever since Europeans and others have been arriving in North America they've been bringing flora and fauna from where they came from and brought back flora and fauna from North America to their homelands. When this occurs, there can be some dire consequences, some native species are crowded out of their natural environments as the new species takes over with no natural predator... that is no checks and balances.

The author is a storyteller, as she brings us these tales and others she interjects humors along with the science making for a very enjoyable read. Reindeer, lamprey, gypsy moths, starlings mosquitoes and pigeons can all be traced to other locations, but are now part and parcel of the American landscape.

I've enjoyed reading this book as I know you will. The author's writing style is excellent and has won the Pen/Jerred Award, so I'm not alone when I say that this book is illuminating and entertaining and the author has a terrific storytelling technique. There are a few illustrations added to this book to give it just the right amount of detail.

All in all, this was a very profound read that is wonderfully written, indeed.

A wonderful work that combines diligent scholarship with a fluid and literary prose style. As each section informed me of the circumstances leading to and the effects resulting from the introduction of non-native species to a virgin environment, I found myself enchanted by the beauty of the language and the strength of the narrative flow. Each chapter reads like a literary short story.

Lacking knowledge of the Architectural issues involved, I had to approach "Athena and Eden" with my experience of ancient and classical Greek literature. I was shocked by the strength and cogency of Mr. Johnson's arguments. Though not yet fully convinced of all of the conclusions Mr. Johnson has reached, "Athena and Eden" has definitely given me some ideas to chew on while Mr. Johnson writes his second volume.

Many near eastern/mediteraenean cultures exhibit shared memories of a common prehistory. From Gilgamesh in Mesopotamia to early tales of Osiris in Egypt, echoes of the Genesis and Flood stories abound. If Mr. Johnson is correct, than Greek mythology is a very twisted (possibly Satanic) retelling of the fall of Man.

As far as particulars--

I found his arguments about the true identity of the Zeus figure extremely compelling. Yet the Athena/Hera division is still a little muddled in my mind (probably more my fault than the author's).

Overall, "Athena and Eden" is a very intriguing book that deserves a lot of attention. It gets my recommendation.

The focus of Greek civilization, the Parthenon captures viewers imaginations even as it conceals its true meaning. In his ground breaking work, Robert Bowie Johnson, Jr. author of ATHENA AND EDEN: THE HIDDEN MEANING OF THE PARTHENON'S EAST FACADE demonstrates that when Athena is seen to be Eve, then Greek mythology becomes narrative art. Consequently, the marble sculptures on the east pediment of the Parthenon relate the story of the origin of mankind, matching the Genesis account in detail.

Johnson asserts that scholars have previously been unsuccessful in identifying most of the figures in the east pediment because they have failed to connect Athena with Even and the story of Eden in the Book of Genesis. Through careful research, Johnson demonstrates that we do have the literature and art to serve as a source of reconstruction. Painstaking comparison demonstrates shows that the sculptures of the eastern pediment depict the Garden of Eden, the birth of Eve, the Great Flood. Furthermore, the goddess Athena, whom the Greeks worshipped as the one who brought the serpent's wisdom, is the same person the Book of Genesis calls Eve.

Johnson, a West Point graduate, author, teacher and public speaker based his research on surviving sculptures, the ancient writings of Homer, Hesiod, Pindar and others, plus myths, vase art and the work of numerous experts. His controversial approach will certainly garner attention from all who are interested in the classics, religion, art, and mythology. Indeed, Johnson's unique perspective will provoke avid discussion among academics for years to come, yet is easily approachable by any who hold an interest in our origins.

Athena And Eden: The Hidden Meaning Of The Parthenon's East Facade by author and educator Robert Bowie Johnson, Jr. offers the non-specialist general reader a unique, accessible, and provocative look at classical artwork and human spirituality. Athena And Eden focuses on the majesty of the Parthenon and its mystical connection to the Book of Genesis. Illustrated with numerous black-and-white photographs of Greek artistic treasures, sculptures, and pottery, Athena And Eden is an original, seminal, ground breaking, unforgettable, and highly recommended perspective that will be of particular interest to students of Hellenic art, architecture, mythology, and religion.

The Pitiful Gardener's Handbook would be of great use to a beginning gardener - someone who just moved into a house or someone who has largely ignored the garden and now wants to tackle it. I would have loved to have a copy when I moved into my home five years ago. Still there are things in it to help someone who has been gardening for sometime. I learned a lot about tailoring my garden to suit me, how to shop for plants, and how to manage my garden so my plants keep healthy and in shape. This book doesn't tell the reader about the plants or about garden design. It is the basics of what you have to do as the gardener. It is a great companion book to my other garden book, Sunset's Western Garden Book. It has a few minor regionalisms, but they don't hamper its message. I am already using some of its ideas.

I received this book for my birthday from my best friend whose niece is Connie Eden, one of the authors. The book gives me the courage to garden. It takes the mystery out of growing plants and is great for the reluctant, tentative would-be gardener.

This is the Zig Ziglar of gardening books. It gave me the courage to jump in there. Just enough information to get my feet wet, without an overwhelming amount of information, choices, and decisions. Plenty of encouragement for a truly pitiful gardener to try again. This is the bare necessities to get you started, and pointers on where to go next. Very basic gardening book complete with cheering section!

I saw this author give a talk at Powell's sometime in the fall, so I was very excited to see the book available. In person she was fabulous- very funny and interesting, talking about how she wrote the book. Then I read the book, and I was not disappointed! It is kind of dark and yet funny at the same time, set along the coast of, I think, BC. The main character looks back over her life and eccentric family (including crazy cousin Mick, an Elvis fanatic) as they search for her brother, missing off of a commercial fishing boat. There are visits from Big Foot and other "ghosts," and, all in all, I loved it. It was one of those reads where I hate the book to end, and I miss the characters! Really excellent.

A very descriptive book of the B.C. North Coast, also very descriptive of the Native American (Canadian) spiritual beliefs. Woven into an easy to read novel it provides a glimpse into the life of young people today growing in a society where they are learning to adjust the ways of today and integrate the beliefs of their ancestors into their daily life. This is a book from which todays parents and educators may learn a great deal to assist them in bringing forth the best from their children and students.

Robinson's book is a great "modern" fairy tale that deftly weaves the sad truth about Native Americans such as reserve life, alcohol, poverty and residential schools with an interesting twist of old mythology. There are liberal doses of hard reality such as broken lives due to substance abuse and hard living mixed in with flights of fancy about the "sasquatch" said to be living in the coastal area in the Queen Charlotte islands.

The book captures the crisis moment for a native family when they are told their son's (who is portrayed as somewhat of a golden child) boat has disappeared off of the coast. The family's story, along with most of the village, is told in a series of intertwined flashbacks that really demonstrate Robinson's excellent narrative skills.

I won't spoil anything else in the fine tale but would highly recommend the story. Anyone who has read Silko, or even De Lindt, will likely enjoy this tale. Those who have recently taken "authentic Indian names" and are looking to exploit more "Indian culture" will likely be disappointed by the fact that Robinson's book really fits in with more "mainstream" works such as Pynchon and Nicholas Christopher. Perhaps we need a new "cubbyhole" called "Native American Dark Urban Fantasy"?

Buy a copy and support real talent!

Hey Amazon! I need more stars!

This is a book for your keeper shelf. With its fast pace, fresh plot, and steamy setting, a hero to die for and a heroine who commands respect, this book has it all. It's one of the best reads to coming along in a while.

Glenna grabs the reader right from the start with two compelling questions. What happened to change Dr. Will Travers from respected Harvard botanist to jungle heathen? And what happened to Dr. Annie Parrish after the Wooly Monkey Incident? (And what was the Wooly Monkey Incident anyway?--okay that's three questions.) Even after the questions seem to be answered, deeper and more elusive questions come to the fore making for a non-stop action-packed pleasure of a read.

The only disappointment was turning the last page and having it be over. Which leaves me, the humble reader, with a question of my own. --When's the next book coming, Glenna?

I'll be waiting.

P.S. (By the way, LOVED your last trilogy, too. Particularly Prince of Time. I can't wait for more.)

I can't write a better review than the first two readers already have for this terrific book. So let me just say this:

RIVER OF EDEN is so much fun!

Ever thought of taking a trip up the steamy, mysterious, Amazon? You'll feel as though that's exactly what you've done after reading this book. You'll be reaching for a fan and hearing the calls of colorful tropical birds. You will never look at an orchid in quite the same way. If you don't have a hammock strung up somewhere, .....you'll want one!

RIVER OF EDEN is everything I hope for, and seldom find, in a romance novel. William Sanchez Travers, and Annie Parrish are the best contemporary hero and heroine I've read in ages! Even the bad guys are exceptionally well written here.

Annie is smart and brave, but with her wistful moments. Just delightful!

Will is a man who will stay in your thoughts for a long time after you finish the book. Delicous and dangerous, he is absolutely every thing you could hope for in a hero. Sigh,....is he ever!

I already knew that author Glenna Mc Reynolds writes gorgeous Romantic Fantasy. How wonderful for all of us that she does just as well with modern characters. It takes an exceptionally talented writer to do more than one genre well. I can't wait to see what this author comes up with next!

Bursting with an exciting, mystical adventure, and showcasing intelligent, enormously appealing characters, RIVER OF EDEN is an especially lush and sensual romance. This book just has it all!

Turn up the air conditioner, get a nice cold drink, and get ready for some non stop reading. You won't want to put RIVER OF EDEN down until you finish the last page. This one is a keeper!

WOW! Sorry that doesn't tell you anything. I'll let the story line synopsis of previous reviewers and ... description help you decide if this book is your cup of tea. However, think Linda Howard's RIVER OF FIRE. I loved that book and this one (sorry, Linda) is even better. Well - since I gave them both 5 stars - just as good. Strong characters who also have their share of fears and flaws. Romance, adventure, snakes. . .brrrrr. . ., bad guys, and the beauty of the ... are all waiting for you in this book. I agree with another reviewer - it was over too soon. Let's hope Mad Jack gets his own story. A keeper and a great escape book.