Rajinder Singh has done it again! In this book, he brilliantly explains why meditation is so utterly important and helpful in many ways for everyone of us. This book appeals both to the scientifically-minded and the more esoterically inclined reader. Rajinder Singh, a natural scientist and a master of yoga, finds words that appeal to everyone, whichever background he or she may come from. More than meditation, the author offers compelling views on ethical living with chapters on themes like non-violence, thruthful living and selflessness. This book touches you deep down in your soul, entices your intellect, and makes you want to become a better person. It is definitely one of those three books I would take with me to that famous lonely island.

Very easy reading, very practical. A must for seekers after peace, it is food for the soul. Looking foward to reading his next book.

This book is clear, concise, practical and spiritual at the same time. Indeed quite a combination! The author, a foremost mystic of our time, shares with us a simple meditation technique of contacting the inner Light at the so-called 3rd eye, which has so far been revealed only in personal encounters (chp. 4). He also gives very down-to-earth excercises to improve the physical, emotional and mental life. Do not miss this one! Wulfing von Rohr, German author and TV producer

The Spice Box can be used as a concise, informative introduction to the many spiced adventures of varied East Indian vegetarian cuisine. The Introduction contains definitions of Curries and Dals as well as descriptions of many of the most popular spices, in addition to mixtures of spices, such as garam masala, and basic procedures, such as roasting cumin seeds, grinding dals or spices, or breaking open a coconut. The Indian name for each ingredient or dish is always given after the English in parentheses, a practice to encourage the uninitiated.

Chapters are offered on Appetizers and Snacks, Soups, Vegetables, Dals, Egg Dishes, Rice Dishes, Indian Breads, Yogurt Salads (Raitas), Fresh Chutneys, Pickles, Indian Sweets, and the Finale, which is paan, or a betel nut spiced sweet wrapped in betel leaf. Classic curry recipes abound, including Pumpkin Curry, Tomato Curry, Turnip Koftas Curry, Mashed Zucchini Curry, Chickpea Flour Curry, and Pink Lentil Curry. The chapter on breads also contains many classic Indian bread recipes, including Raised Bread (Naan), Chappatis or Roti, Paranthas, Puri, and Fried Bread, or Bhatura.

The Yogurt Salads suggested provide a cooling note to the spicy curries and vegetable main dishes, and the Pickles and Chutneys add further authentic flair to the Indian feast. If the reader prefers, the Introduction contains a list of sources or places to buy Indian foods in the United States organized by region. But it is also incredibly fascinating to see the list of spices that go into a coconut chutney or a sweet mango pickle, for example. The Desserts chapter includes Rose Syrup Milk Balls (Gulab Jamun), Sugar-Coated Cookies (Sakkaarpara), and many wonderful vegetable puddings.

In all, The Spice Box packs a lot of stimulus into a slender package. It's appeal rests not only in its authenticity, but also in its accessibility. It is surely a classic.

Nancy Lorraine, Reviewer

This is by far the best Indian cookery book I have ever come across. It is a pleasure to use - I am delighted by it. The recipes are easy to follow and only require easily found ingredients. Everytime I cook from it my husband says "I feel like we've just eaten at a restaurant" we are so impressed! There is plenty for the vegan too.

Our favourites so far are the Whole Eggplant Curry (page 75), Hyderabadi Chili Curry (page 69) and the Pink Lentil Curry (page 112). There are so many wonders awaiting us - we haven't even tried any of the soups or apetizers yet.

My only criticism is the lack of photographs - it is nice to see photographs for reassurance if nothing else!

If you like delicious, authentic Indian food you'll love these recipes!

Definitely a great cookbook to have. The recipes are quite tasty and very straightforward. The book has the following chapters: appetizers, soups (great ones!!), vegetables, dals, egg dishes, rice dishes, breads, yogurt salads, chutneys, pickles, sweets. I was glad to see the mulligatawny soup since that can be a tricky recipe to find a good one and this one is. There are also some really great eggplant dishes like the whole eggplant curry that has peanuts, tomatoes and coconut in it. yum. Glad I bought this book!

"Nothing great was ever accomplished without passion." (Freidrich Nietzsche) Proof that this truth applies to parenthood courses through the selections in "A Father's Poems" by Ajit S. Dutta. Honest and intimate, meditative and lighthearted, the 55 poems in this collection examine perhaps the deepest and purest of all loves, the love of one's own children. The book's themes relate the author's journey into parenthood: learning from his children and learning to guide them; wanting to protect them while at the same time respecting and nurturing the innocent perfection of youth. Scenes and reflections both frivolous and profound will ring true to any parent, or aunt, or even family neighbor. I recommend two copies of this wonderful collection of poems: one to read and reflect upon, and one to share as a gift.

This is lush, generous talent. Ajit Dutta moves the reader, whether yound, old or casual. A Father's Poems is a book to treasure, explore, read and read again. The writing is contagious, no one remains indifferent. Instead, be ready for a journey from the imaginary to the riches of daily life, with all its nuances: awe, enchantment and laughter.

Ajit Dutta has created a real jewel of a poetry book in A Father's Poems. No one could read these lovingly poignant poems without being deeply moved. Ajit has captured both the spiritual and temporal nature of childhood - its innocence and experience. His deep love for his daughters shines through the poems as he speaks in beautiful language of how much he has learned from them. Cheerios, rice krispies, and childish impatience are delightfully juxtaposed with powerful personal thoughts on the feelings of humility at the privilege of being part of the miracle of fatherhood. As Ajit says in his author's note, the poems are "highly personal" yet also "universal. It would be hard to pick a favorite, but I think "Dinner Conversation with a Six-year-old" captures the essence of the poems. "...But if God is everywhere, how come I don't see him? Do I really have to finish my chicken. I'm really, really full you know." This lovely little book would make a wonderful Father's Day gift.

This book is yummy. The health-conscious authors offer lots of alternatives for the non-beef eaters among us and their burger toppings are great. The factoids and restaurant mentions that garnish the pages are fun, too. Highly recommended.

Although I have eaten my share of burgers, I have always thought of them as boring. You grill them, slap on a slice of cheese, a tomato slice, whatever sauce you like and eat on a soft and often tasteless bun.

Well....along comes The Great Big Burger Book and with it a whole new dimension on just what constitutes a burger. Certainly there are the traditional meat (beef, pork, veal and even lamb) burgers, but my interest was piqued by the chapter entitled: Burgers That Take Flight: Chicken, Turkey and Duck. Using ground poultry allows you to cut the fat content of a burger and the recipes don't cut the taste and flavor. I have always enjoyed Chicken Marsala and when I saw the recipe for Chicken Marsala Burgers, I immediately tried it. Your family and guests, not to mention yourself will really like that one. The photo of a Bolognese Turkey Burger with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Green Olives looks delicious, and I'm happy to report that it also tastes as good as it looks.

But the book doesn't stop there. There is an entire chapter dedicated to burgers made with fish and shell fish. I haven't tried them yet as the weather here in Maine has been just awful this spring, and this type of burger should be cooked outdoors. But there are recipes for lobster and scallop burgers and since I love both, I plan to try them as soon as Mother Nature cooperates.

For vegetarians, there are recipes using portobello mushrooms,falafel, quinoa, tofu, eggplant and chickpeas, to mention a few. That chapter fittingly is entitled: Redefining the Burger.

Admittedly, there are ingredients that may be unfamiliar to the reader. For those people (and I am one), there is a glossary of ingredients and an ingredient source list which tells you where you can find the products that may not be available in your area.

This is a wonderful resource for entertaining. Your guests will be amazed by your culinary expertise when you serve them a healthy burger packed with new flavors. Your backyard menus will never be the same or 'boring' anymore!

Talk about variety! I'm a teacher and I save most of my large-group entertaining for the summer, so I HAD to have this book. Now I can get excited about backyard barbeques! This is a must-have for cooks from novice to expert. I'm going to have to buy another one just to lend out to friends.

Not only is the art work in this book simply georgeous, but the story pulls you in. It is a story of kings; and all of the love, betrayl, polotics, and friendship that goes with that. A balanced story of the human condition and the grand wonders that become of it. I highly recommend this book.

This book is by far the best and most engrossing description that I have read so far about the Taj. Many have tried to write about it but none with such consummateness. I couldn't put the book down once I got started. The descriptions are both colourful and vivid. The reader feels as if he/she is there witnessing the actual turn of events. All emotions of Shah Jahan have been captured perfectly - from his love to his grief. An atmosphere of the Mughals has been built slowly and the reader is captivated by its realism and beauty. The best scene in the book is without doubt the one in Meena Baazar. This beautiful and thrilling saga is a must read.

Ms. Singh Devji serves as a tour guide through the generations of exotic characters who begot Emperor Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal. I could taste the dust and blood on the battlefields with Babar the Lion. Together with the Persian Princess and her female relatives, I explored the Meena Bazar and flirted demurely with the young noblemen. The author treated me like a member of the extended family as I witnessed the royal wedding, peeked in on the wedding night and watched the birth of the first princess, Jahanara.

Ms. Devji described the labyrinth of politics within the medieval harem, the opulence of the royal family in every day life, and the cruel punishments meted out to anyone who dared to displease the Indian Royal Family.

This book provides so much more than just the love story behind the construction of the Taj Mahal. The author takes us through thirteen decades of history from the steppes of Mongolia across Asia to Agra and Delhi. She filled the book with facts, and thankfully, a map, genealogy, and a glossary explaining Indian words and phrases. The only things missing on the tour were the cameras and tourist stands for souvenirs. However, Ms. Devji thought of that too. The book itself is a work of art-from the luxurious cover to the watercolor paintings of scenes depicting significant events.

For history buffs, fans of romantic novels, or the reader who enjoys an adventure story, this story does it all. It also looks great on the bookshelf.

I never knew caterpillars had to find a specific plant to turn into a butterfly. That's amazing to me. I always thought they just ate leaves, twigs, peat moss, floor junk, or whatever. Maybe what a person does with his or her life is as important as the "food plant" is to the caterpillar. If the caterpillar doesn't take the time to find its food plant, it will never turn into a butterfly. Likewise, if a person doesn't take the time to discover his calling maybe his or her soul will never grow. I love the message that we're all here to grow and I especially loved how the author showed how the things we think are set up to help us (government, schools, corporations) are really there to distract us from our true calling. And the idea that smiles reveal the genuine soul is just a really nice idea. But it's true, isn't it? You can tell a lot by a smile. You can tell if a person is satisfied or dissatisfied with his or her life. The smile really is everything. And those who are dissatisfied are in fact "smile-holes" and like black holes swallow planets and stars, smile-holes swallow the happiness and joy out of everyone around them. Well, that's been my experience. In the end, I just loved this book! There is something really important being said here and I wish everyone would read it.

The author has the heart of a child! He made me realize how absurd the rat race is and how frantic life has become where we hardly have time to know our children, our friends, ourselves. How we forfeit our chance to become a real butterfly for a mere butterfly suit in our retirement. Makes you wonder if our reason for being is to jump headlong in a race our parents ignorantly put us in or to take a step back and set off on a journey of discovery? To race or to discover, that, my friends, is the question! Really enjoyed this book and you will, too.

Mickey Mouse, Harry Potter, Shrek--not really; but this fable would make a great Walt Disney flic! My children can't stop reading it. A real page turner!

The author integrates ancient wisdom and time-tested healing techniques with modern science in this informative and practical book on self-healing. The interesting foreword is by author Joan Borysenko. The purpose of medical meditation is to balance the mind, body and spirit into a powerful whole, for a better, healthier life. It provides specific medical meditations for physiological effects, including special movements and postures, mantras and breathing exercises. How to activate the healing force via the chakra system is discussed in detail and the book includes a section on staying young with the help of nutrients and maintaining endocrine health with meditation. It concludes with a list of sources, recommended reading and an index. Helpful illustrations demonstrate some of the exercises. Khalsa goes into very specific detail and provides information that I have never encountered in similar books on spiritual and mental healing. I recommend this book to all practitioners of alternative healing therapies and to all people who wish to take responsibility for the own health.

The book said that it will change the reader's life. I wondered when I read that. Then just going along with the book, I chanted a mantra. It instantly made me feel so good. From there on, I was hooked. Just try it.

Especially if you are facing illness, this book will give you a new outlook on your life through Dr. Khalsa's meditation techniques. I was diagnosed with a minor neurological disorder, and this book taught me to deal with the symptoms without medication, while healing my mind and spirit as well. I highly recommend this book for people facing serious illness, as it will provide hope and positivity, and I recommend it even if you are perfectly healthy! It is easy reading, nothing too scientific. It will change your life.

TEN YEARS AGO ROSE'S ORIGINAL FACE READING BOOK WAS GIVEN TO ME. MY HUSBAND AND I TOOK IT ON VACATION TO A CAMPOUT WITH SOME FAMILY MEMBERS. WE TOOK TURNS READING SECTIONS AND LOOKING AT EACH OTHER CLOSELY . WE HAD SO MUCH FUN LOOKING AT AND DISCUSSING FEATURES THAT WE BEGAN TO SHARE IN MORE PERSONAL AND MEANINGFUL CONVERSATIONS. I HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOUR BOOK FOR YEARS. THIS BOOK WOULD BE ESPECIALLY GOOD FOR INITIATING CONVERSATIONS WITH TEENAGERS WHO ARE SO VERY AWARE OF THEIR LOOKS AND LIKE TO TALK ABOUT THEMSELVES . THANK YOU, ROSE FOR THE NEW EDITION AND THE PROMPT REPLY WHEN I ORDERED SEVERAL MORE COPIES.

As a physiognomist (face reader) I read every book I can find on face reading, but nothing I have seen comes close to The Power of Face Reading, except, perhaps, Rosetree's previous book, I Can Read Your Face.

Based on the premise that "God Don't Make No Junk," Roestree's insightful, humorous, lively and, above all, loving, system of face reading is a welcome and refreshing approach to a subject so often treated in a negative and judgmental fashion.

The Power of Face Reading offers an easy to learn, invaluable tool for men and women desiring to know and appreciate one another, for salespeople trying to meet the needs of their customers, for parents and teachers wishing to understand and communicate effectively with children and teenagers discovering who they are and want to be - in other words, for everyone.

This book was so much fun to read! Rose is an insightful and delightful author. She is a great "wordsmith, making this a book that is enjoyable to read not only the first time, but to refer to time and time again. I've purchased several books as gifts to family and friends, and even as door prizes to several organizations I belong to. I would recommend it to anyone!

"The Code Book: The Evolution of Secrecy from Mary Queen of Scots to Quantum Cryptography" by Simon Singh is a wonderful book about the history of code-making and code-breaking. What is most impressive about Singh is he is able to take the most complicated mathematical information (in my opinion) and explain it in layman's terms. Another more suitable name for "The Code Book could be Code-Making and Code-Breaking for Dummies: A Historical Perspective". Singh covers the history of encryption, tracing its evolution throughout time and outlining the impact cryptography and cryptanalysis has had on the world. World War II, the Enigma machine and how the fate of the world rested upon whether or not secret knowledge would fall into enemy hands, is discussed in great detail. From Singh's perspective, it would seem that the outcome of all military battles could be pre-determined by who had employed better cryptanalysis, as the most powerful weapon, is secrecy. Personally, what interested me most about "The Code Book" is its discussion about the Navajo Code Talkers, hieroglyphics, Linear B, and quantum cryptography. I also thoroughly enjoyed the author's humor and wit, ability to break things down so that a non-technological mind could grasp some of the most complicated of codes and his affinity for making the personalities who discovered the codes as well as the personalities who broke the codes, come to life. I would highly recommend "The Code Book" to anyone who is interested in cryptography, cryptanalysis, security, telecommunications, math, science, history or simply a good read.

Simon Singh can describe tails of drama, history, and common mathematical sense into a great book. While most people take cryptography for granted, Singh provides historical and simple examples to illustrate it's importance to mathematics and history. He details it's use in wars, especially World War 2, and commerce. He even delves into the political ramifications of strong versus weak encryption when discussing PGP.

Singh also provides easy to understand ways on how encryption works and even more intriguing, how to break it. He shows how all various encryption algorithms are done, and then how code breakers can decipher them, both in practical and historical consequences.

In the end, he even provides a challenge for would be decipherers out there. Granted, it's already been solved, it's still education and exciting that he offered a considerable amount of money for this challenge....

All in all, it's a fascinating book that will capture anyone's imagination, even if they hate history or math.

THE CODE BOOK is a beatuful overview of the history of cryptography. The book takes the reader from the simple ciphers of history (this is where Mary Queen of Scots comes in, but I thought that story was fairly far in the background), through the fairly radical improvements of the rennaisance, and truly shines in the discussion of the WWII Enigma machine and the truly amazing response of the English decoding aparatus. It appears that much material only recently became declassified, allowing Singh to discuss Enigma and the English code-breaking operation. Finally, Singh gets to the efforts to produce computer cryptography and the recent innovations that culminate in the "public key" encryption and the controversy over the PGP (pretty good privacy) program. This book was so exciting that I could not put it down. It is easy to read--no math in the text and plenty of appendicces with the formulas--yet reveals so much. On top of the beautiful exposition on cryptography, Singh also visits the public policy conflicts between national security and privacy. Not that those have any easy answers, but the conflict is very palpable.

This is by far the most exciting, beautifully and sensitively written work on the subject of spiritual transformations that can occur during the dying process and around death (and at other times in our lives if we are ready) that I have come across to date. The information contained herein needs to be disseminated throughout our "spiritually impoverished" culture in an attempt to decimate the illusions under which the majority of mankind continues to needlessly suffer when thinking about death and dying. Singh draws upon, and very nicely (and relevantly) assimilates, the knowledge and wisdom culled from both depth psychology and the "wisdom traditions" of the world, referencing Ken Wilbur, Joseph Campbell, Phillip Kapleau, Abraham Maslow, Steven Levine, Sogyal Rinpoche and multiple other Buddhist masters, creating a splendid literary compilation, brimming with insights and explanations, and delivered with humility and compassion, in an extraordinary choice of words. For those working intimately with the dying, this book is a beacon.

Unless you believe that when we die, we cease to exist (period, end of life), and whether or not you work with the terminally ill, this book is a must read. This book does not tell us other people's stories, nor is it for those who are dying, or dealing with the immediate death of a loved one. It is for the rest of us. Be advised - this is not an easy read - my copy of the book, which took 5 times longer to read than my usual reading choice - is riddled with scribbled comments, question-marks, exclamation points, and words circled and underlined. Let me also add, this is not my style. I'm a lazy reader.

This is a well-written course in the evolution and retrogression of our individual lives, for (deny it though we might), you and I are going to die. The questions that worry us most are most probably "when" and "how." Singh cannot answer the former, but this book will help with parts of the latter.

Much of what Singh tells us is based on experiences of those who have worked with those who are terminally ill, in addition to her own observations. Whether we believe in Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed, a Higher Power, Nature, Singh maintains that the point of dying is to return us to the place from which we came.

She reminds us that we come into the world thinking we are the center of the Universe. Perhaps we were right, for it may be that at birth we are as close to the Creator as we will get, until death takes us back. She describes how we spend our youth and young adult life developing, then defending our sense of self. We live, often most pleasantly, in constant denial of our own mortality, a truth that seems too bleak to accept.

In the latter part of life, we may hold tightly to our ego, but our body begins to betray us. If we are slowly dying of cancer, AIDS, or the illnesses of old age, we can grow into acceptance of the insulting truth that our ego is not the true "us." One dying woman described it as having an "ego-ectomy.

Singh presents us with additional stages of dying, expanding on Elizabeth Kubler-Ross' denial; anger; bargaining; depression; acceptance. Kubler-Ross' stages dealt with the affects on the ego, or mind; medical science gives us physical stages. Singh offers the theory that we go through necessary spiritual stages before dying, whether or not we have been looking for spiritual transformation. Dying offers us a crash course, the equivalent of a spiritual shotgun wedding.

When we are stripped of everything we thought made us unique, a universal specialness is revealed. Regardless of when it happens - years, months or seconds from our death - we will come to realize the unimportance of what was once important. And despite ourselves we will stumble upon our own unity with that Force we call many things - God, Universe, Light.

I feel more convinced than ever that death is not a negative, dark force I must flail against, but the other side of living, a door I must go through. That I'll figure it out at the end doesn't encourage me to stop seeking now - perhaps my exit/entrance will go better if I stop running from my fear of death, and truly live my life. This book is an excellent start in learning now how to make our own living fuller, so we will be closer to home when we die.

I found "The Grace in Dying" to be an invaluable book that will assist me in my volunteer work with hospice patients--and also in my own life. It is a masterpiece of knowledge and wisdom that can open our awareness to the magnificent potential for growth that lies buried within each of us. It helps us to discover who we really are--we are Spirit. "The Grace in Dying" is so timely, so important, and so needed in our Western world. It will ease our fear of death and help us to integrate death and dying in our daily lives. While never for a second making us believe that dying or living with a terminal illness is easy, it allows us to find the beauty, and some peace, in the process.

"The Grace in Dying" illuminates the the great transformation that takes place at the time of death--and how we also might find the way, through contemplative and spiritual practices, to this wonderful transformation amidst the living of our lives.