"Bitter Pills" is the real-life version of "Strong Medicine" by Arthur Hailey. With a very personal beginning resulting from his wife's near death and slow recovery from taking ONE PILL (Floxin), author Fried went on to find whether there were other victims (many), and why the drug was approved in the first place. Interviews in profusion show why the FDA has its problems. Examples are given of the tendency of drug companies to defend their drugs at any cost regardless of evidence. The end of the book contains addresses of many drug companies, organizations to whom to report adverse drug reactions, and a sample form to send to the FDA. Well thought-out advice for patients (or their helpmates) to investigate drugs are given. A number of other good books on the subject are listed.
Fried is to be congratulated for doing a very accurate job with a minimum number of accusations. I did not find a single technical error in the entire book, and I have about 12 years exploratory drug development and teaching about it as a professor of medicinal chemistry.
Even Fried may not have realized how many drugs not discussed in his book shorten life, because they are tested and accepted based on surrogate endpoints for short periods. This may not be so bad for antibiotics that are taken for two weeks, but can be very destructive for drugs intended to be taken for 20-40 years.

Five cheers! Have you ever taken a prescription drug? Has your doctor ever given you free samples and said, "Let's try this; it's new." Fried takes his wife's severe neuropsychiatric reaction to a new antibiotic as the jumping off point for a spell-binding review of the US drug approval process. I have some first-hand knowledge of the process, and found the book to be right on target (with a quibble over his account of his own emergency department visit). The book is especially timely this year, given the recent withdrawals of dexfenfluramine, fenfluramine, mibefradil, and bromfenac from the market,the growing realization of the dangers of troglitazone, and the push to force the FDA to move more quickly on drug approvals. Mr. Fried is to be commended for this stellar piece of work! We all send regards to his wife, Diane.

I didn't know about Stephen Fried and "Bitter Pills," much less quinolone antibiotics, until I myself was, like Mr. Fried's wife, "Floxed," just a few weeks ago. I began my search for information on reactions to quinolones after four days of gatifloxacin (brandname Tequin) left me with tingling and weak arms and legs, difficulty swallowing and breathing, visual disturbances, headaches, dizziness, and more. I seriously thought I had a stroke or Guillain Barre syndrome or rapid onset multiple sclerosis, I was so sick.

Let me say that first, Stephen Fried's book is an excellent overview of the circumstances of adverse drug reactions to quinolone antibiotics. And with the increased visibility and use of Cipro, and the ease with which doctors dispense heavy-hitting antibiotics like Levaquin and Tequin, I'm sure I'm not going to be the last person to suffer a reaction and end up being "Floxed" and needing the information and reassurance provided by this book.

But it is also much much more. It's an expose of the pharmaceutical industry's fast and loose way of dealing with drugs, drug safety and the American public. This is not a rant -- it's an impeccably researched and detailed presentation of the intricacies involved in drug approvals and tracking of adverse reactions that exposes the limitations of the system, and the dangers those limitations present to us as patients and consumers.

As a patient advocate and spokesperson for thyroid and autoimmune disease patients, I know all too well the feeling of being held hostage to big pharmaceutical companies at the expense of my health and wellness.

Stephen Fried has finally exposed and explained -- clearly and without rancor -- how the drug industry really works, and his book, including the excellent appendix on how to contact pharmaceutical companies, report adverse reactions, protect yourself against bad drugs, and generally protect yourself as a consumer -- is must-reading for every empowered patient or health consumer.

I highly recommend this book to doctors, patients, and anyone who prescribes or takes prescription drugs.

Few days ago I finished my fourth reading of this book and I experienced exactly the same mixed feelings I had after my first reading.I was sad to witness such a human tragedy and I was happy because in this book I found a real treausure of human mind. Even though located in the Balkans dark age the story still sends a universal human mesagge where philosophical exsistence of good and evil live in eternal confrontation. The final sentence (...death is nonsense,the same as life) rather than lament sounds to me as an invitation for reflection about our existentialism and values we blindly follow and promote today. Finally, with all respect to the people who translated the book I find myself extremely lucky being able to read this book in its original version in bosnian language which is obviouslu much more authentic and colourful. P.S. I would not like to open a political debate in this place but I found the Cyprys' reader final comment about Selimovic's "Serb's" background extremely offensive, inaccurate and inappropriate. By the way, the biographic data about Selimovic, that I as a Bosnian know , are completely different but I have no intention to place his genius in a shadow of political triviality.

For the first time I read this book when I was in the forth grade of the High School. What impressed me most was the personality and strength of Ahmed Nuruddin, a sheik of a tekka and the way he coped with reality. In this case it was a guilt for not trying too much to save his brother. On the other side, it was guilt for doing things that he was not supposed to do as a sheik of tekka. It is a philosophy of life - all in one in a wonderful book written by Selimovic. How did I fell after I read this book? I felt I had cleared my soul and I found a new approach to problems in life. It is a source of human feelings, from fear to joy. What is good and what is evil in every human being? What is it that makes people commit crime? The evil of the twentieth century comes to our souls once we read the book. We cannot escape it. It is a history of humankind. It is both our treasury and guilt. Selimovic made a picture of one soul. We make a picture of ourselves when we finish reading this great book. It might be time to ask yourself about your life.

After all of these reviews that I have just found here, there is no sense of talking about the characters of this great book, but I would like to write some things that maybe not all readers know. Mesa Selimovic was born in Tuzla, Bosnien and Herzegovina, same like me. My high-school name was Mesa Selimovic and I am very proud of it. The messages from "Dervis i smrt" are universal, but they are also the picture of bosnian tradition and society, and the most important fact - they represent the mirror of bosnian soul. If you want to learn something more about Bosnia, its people and history, than you should read this book. As a Bosnian I can't think of a better book. And I don't think that it's bad to say that Selimovic was Bosnian (according to Mazedonian reader ), because he was. It was not mentioned in the review was he a Croat, Muslim, or Serb, and it doesn't matter. I think that we after all that happened in my homeland at least have right to say that we are Bosnians without mentioning the nationality. Bosnia is home for all of us. Don't denial this right to Selimovic.

One of the most fabulous reads ever! Turning pages you realize what you have always known but couldn't quite put your finger on - what makes people sick, how to prevent it and how to fix it! I highly recommend this book for those who have illnesses that doctors couldn't quite diagnose or cure. And best yet, using the techniques taught in this book will allow you to show your friends and family love in a way they have probably never known before - through the gift of healing that is within us all.

I've been a student of Author Master Co for about 4 years now, and have applied the Pranic Healing techniques taught in this book on myself and others with astonishing results. I was not new to "energy medicine" before this, and when I found Pranic Healing and experienced its beneficial and consistent results, I knew I had "struck gold". Now Master Co and Dr. Eric Robins, board-certified urologist, have set these techniques to print in the similarly easy-to-learn, step-by-step process that is taught in Pranic Healing classes worldwide.
One can easily learn through following the authors' simple instructions how to heal themselves and also others of many common health problems. I personally have used these same techniques shared in this book on others to effectively alleviate problems ranging from backpain/neckpain, headaches, ulcers, minor injuries, burns, asthma, all manners of aches and pains, to even mild anxiety and depression and more. The focus of this book is showing us how to heal ourselves quickly and effectively, to make us proactively aware of the mechanisms by which our negative thoughts and emotions can create disease, and give us effective tools to counter these. However, the same techniques can easily be applied to others without additional references needed. More importantly, step-by-step routines are included for practically and incrementally incorporating the book lessons into our daily routine with time management being a priority. If you have never done or experienced any form of "energy medicine", this book is designed for you. You will not receive any misinformation within these pages. Skeptical minds are also welcomed by the authors. You will be able to learn these techniques properly from the book alone. If you are a Master of Reiki, Qigong, or some other form of energy healing, this book is designed for you as well. It will take your healing abilities to the next level, and allow you in many cases to perform successful healings on yourself and others where your current modality has failed. Your clients will find the pranic healing modality non-invasive, as no contact with the physical body is involved.
For all readers, regardless of experience level, you will greatly benefit from the powerful energy generating breathing exercises and meditations provided within. I have personally found through experience that these are of the highest caliber and return the greatest benefit for the amount of time invested. Some of these techniques take as little as 5 minutes a day to produce tremendous results. Not only do they increase my physical energy levels, vitality, and endurance, but they also cleanse my mind of negative thoughts and emotions allowing me to experience a greater sense of inner peace and well-being. I've found that this leads to increased work productivity.
Now please, don't take my word for anything I've said here--these are my experiences and those of my pranic healing clients. I highly recommend you buy the inexpensive "Your Hands Can Heal You" book, practice the techniques, and experience the truth of what I've written here for yourself through your own eyes. I'm sure you will find it to be one of the best investments you've ever made.

This is a well written and well researched book. Your Hands Can Heal You covers most types of healing modalities and looks into what works and how, to give an insightful look at healing. Through this book you can learn how to heal yourself, loved ones and stay healthy. The book explores breathing and physical exercises to keep you healthy and young. What is unique to this book's approach is that it is thoroughly researched and explained as to how alternative healing works and how anyone can do it themselves.I am not a born healer, but through this book I have been able to "heal" insect bites to migraines, and understand how this has worked. There are many healers out there who can heal but do not understand how they heal. Through this book I have been able to heal and understand how by understanding the principles of the body's energetic health and functioning. I strongly recommend this to everyone, from all walks of life as an at home manual to good health and long life.

S. P. Cammick has an excellent command of the English language. His engineering knowledge is extensive and has made this book, LAST BREATH - SPACE STATION RESCUE, seem like a true story rather than fiction. It is unusual for a young man raised in the age of computers to put such value on people skills and experience.

I'm sure every reader will feel the same way. The story line kept you guessing. This book should be right on the shelves beside Clive Cussler's action/adventures...In fact it might very well deserve a shelf of it's own! Thank you for a very enjoyable book...keep'em coming

Cammick has created a spell-binding story, reminiscent of early Heinlein. He blends the perfect amount of story-line, hard sci-fi, adventure, and likeable characters. I highly recommend this book and eagerly await the next installment of the adventures of Jake Marshall.

I first read this book in college. A friend of mine was an avid Stephen King fan and had this book on the shelf. I just picked it up because I was bored, and started to read the Shawshank Redemption. I couldn't stop! I ended up reading the whole story in one sitting. When I later saw the movie, I believe it to be one of those rare movies that is very true to the book. A must read, the movie is a must see.

An amazing, inspirational story. This book laid the foundation for the movie, and since I am not the biggest Stephen King fan, this was obviously his best work in my mind. Andy Dufresne is sent to prison for murdering his wife and golf player Glenn Quentin, although he did not actually commit this crime and was framed. Andy's experience in prison includes encounters with desperate gay men, an evil warden, and other obstacles, but most importantly, his friend Red. He and Red go through the struggle together and become a dynamic duo. Also, fanatics of the classic film remake beware: there are a couple of facts kept secret in the movie that may surprise you in the novel. Though the book is a mere 106 pages it's definitely one you will want to read again and again. There are also a few other differences in the book compared to the film, such as no murders or suicides in prison. Shawshank is described very well. Eventually, Andy seeks his revenge and opens some eyes, and all he needed was a rockhammer and a poster of a model (he changed the posters every few years). If you have seen the movie but haven't read the book, I highly recommend that you check out the book as well, because it tells a lot about the characters. There is even a devastating secret about Brooks that was not revealed in the movie version. A definite keeper. If you can find this book, do not let it go.

This novella is an incredible story. It follows one man through his life at Shawshank State Prison. The story is full of life, vivid characters, a wonderful and original plot, and more. I recommend this book to anyone who wants a good read. Read the book that inspired an oscar nominated movie!

Who would have thought that a movie of this caliber would have derived from the mind of Stephen King? What's just as profound is the movies ability to maintain and expand upon the integrity of the original story. This screenplay contains the entire shooting script as well as many scenes that didn't not make it past the final rewrites. Frank Darabont also reserves a couple of chapters to explaining his process of getting the movie made. Stephen King also lends his thoughts on Franks vision for the movie, an outstanding achievement for a first-time director.

This is a great read. This book doesn't just contain the screenplay to one of the best movies of the 1990s. It also has a delightful introduction by Stephen King which explains his relationship with Frank Darabont and describes his "dollar baby" policy concerning his short stories and novellas. There is also a sort of short foreward by Darabont briefly describing how the movie came into being. This book contains the complete shooting script (deleted lines and all) and a bunch of notes by Darabont illuminating why certain scenes were cut, lines where changed, etc. Anyone interesting in filmmaking would really benifit from reading this. For those who aren't even in the least bit interested in how a movie is made, this is still a delightful read. It is a good thing, perhaps one of the best of things.

The shooting script contains forewards (by Stephen King by Frank Darabont), the screenplay, changes from the screenplay to the movie, some final thoughts by Darabont, and the credits.

It's fascinating reading the screenplay after seeing the movie, then reading the changes made in to the screenplay and why. For example, in scene 36, Andy approaches Red to buy a rock hammer and they agree on ten dollars. In the movie, it just happens and we overlook the question on how Andy would have gotten the money in the first place.

In the screen play, we find out in scenes 40 and 41 where he got the money (brought in with him ... internally). However, later, the book explains how the scene read well, but didn't work well on the screen. In retrospect, we don't really *care* that he had money anyway, so the scene is easily dropped without sacrificing clarity.

The book adds some interesting "inside" information. For example, when we first see Red meeting with the parole board, the file has a picture of him when he was younger. This photo is actually a cameo by Morgan Freeman's son, Alfonso, who also provided some of the background voices during the "Fresh Fish" taunting in the early part of the movie.

Overall, the book adds depth to an already excellent cinematic experience.

Just as Howatch's family sagas were written in a multi-person first-person narrator format, so was the Starbridge series, but this time each narrator gets a whole book instead of only a section of one.
Glittering Images is the first book in the series. I had already read all five of the family sagas before I had the courage to start on Starbridge; I was afraid that a whole series of books set in the Church of England could not help but be stuffy and priggish. But this of course is Susan Howatch, a master storyteller. And these books are considered by many to be an enormous development fromthe sagas.
In fact, I found the depth of character found in all the Starbridge even more impressive than in the sagas. She shows not only an extraordinarily deep understanding of the human condition, she also shows great compassion and warmth for all her characters so that even if they have weaknesses and make mistakes, we can nevertheless forgive and love them.
IN the first trilogy of books, set in the 1930's and 1940's, each of the three narrators is stripped down and turned inside out, so that the reader knows all there is to know about them.
In this first book we first meet Charles Ashworth, who will be a major player in the series. Charles has conservative leanings and a Middle Way churchmanship. As ever, Howatch succeeds in giving us an in-depth portrait of a very likeable and sincere man, and sets him in the middle of a story that simply pulls you through, unravelling secret after secret. A wonderful book, which made me immediately want to start on the next one in the series - Glamorous Powers!

I chanced upon Susan Howatch's series on the Church of England after enjoying Castlemara. I quickly purchased all the books in the series and even sent a friend the first two. She explains much of the debate within the church in a very personal way--through the struggles of the characters. Her books pull no punches, but in the end are not negative or depressing. Being a person who has spent my life involved in and studying Christianity, her knowledge of a range of church doctrines is surprising for a novelist of the late 20th century. This is an author I would truly like to meet.

1937: Charles Ashworth, young charming former Chaplain to Archbishop of Canterbury, Cosmo Lang, is asked to discreetly investigate the private life of the Bishop of Starbridge, Alex Jardine, an aggressive liberal. What he finds seems to horrifingly mirror what lurks in his own private life of hurt, tragedy, and guilt all hidden behind Ashworth's carefully crafted 'Glittering Image'. A brilliant novel about pastoral care and fundamental morality and Christ's grace and redemption.

There are three things you should be aware of when buying this book:

First, if you have less than one year of folding experience, hands off! Rather try out some of the less complex origami books out there, e.g. "Origami from Angelfish to Zen" by Peter Engel.

Second, ordinary origami paper as you can buy it in craft stores won't get you very far here. For several models in this book, standard paper is simply to small in size for the elaborate folds. Rather go for florist's paper or tissue foil (my personal favorite).

Third, this book contains SOME OF THE VERY BEST ANIMAL FOLDS out there! The Praying Mantis, of course, which is improved a lot over Lang's first Mantis that is published in the internet. But there are a lot of other great folds in here, e.g. a very realistically looking Bear, a Rabbit, several nice color-contrast explorations like the Panda and the Skunk and one of the best crabs out there.

A must-have for any serious folder!

This book contains dozens of origami animals, ranging from med to highly-complex. At first we may doubt this is just another routine four-leg animals. However, two authors give us models unexpectedly various, and most of the figurations are wonderful. We have some of the most beauitful modeling here: A crab, a eagle in full-spread wing(with the feathers!), A dog in the doghouse(single paper), A very vivid rabbit. And the folding steps are full of wonder. The only disadvantage in this book is that for a new folder the diagrams are very neat and succinct, usually Several steps combined in one diagram. But this deserves since this book contains so many models and they are arranged by level of difficulty. This is a must for any origami fan.

Even though the final models are *extremely* complex, the book begins with very interesting texts about origami origins, evolution and approaches to creation; and the models go in progression from the very simplest ones. So actually this is an excellent "transition" book - if you have some experience with origami and have the ambition to try more complex stuff, there cannot be a better book than this one to guide you. The diagrams are crystal clear, and so are the indications. I got this book when I was 11 (I'm 24 now), and it is still every bit as amazing an enjoyable as back then!!

This is where it all begins. When the first story in this collection ("The Anatomy Lesson") was published, the industry and fandom was completely blown away. Alan Moore took a throw-away character (the Swamp Thing) and a forgotten villain (Jason Woodrue, the Floronic Man) and founded an entire genre of comics that had been long forgotten (or at least neglected) since the 50s or so.

DC's Vertigo line, the Sandman series, and very likely, Watchmen all would have likely never happened without the series of comics reprinted here. There is some truly frightening material in here that is unlike most comic fare aimed at younger readers (or at least sanitized for younger minds), but the writing was revolutionary for its time and holds up well today. The artwork maintains the high standards of excellence Moore establishes. The partnership of Alan Moore and Stephen Bissette is one of those magical pairings that occurs so infrequently in comic history (I compare it to Stan Lee and Jack Kirby on the Fantastic Four, Chris Claremont and John Byrne on X-Men, and Marv Wolfman and George Perez on Teen Titans). This is truly a treasure to add to your collection.

Alan Moore used his break into the American market to take a third-tier monster book and triple its sales within a year.

How did he do it? By chucking all conventions and expectations. His first issue in this volume, "The Anatomy Lesson" (reprinted from Saga of the Swamp Thing #21), gives Swampy an entirely new origin and background, and outlines Moore's plans for the character; a complete dissection and rebuilding, from the ground up.

In successive issues, Moore continues to defy expectation, with his poetic method of writing becoming the reference point for everyone who wanted to prove to their buddies that comics "weren't just for kids". Coupled with the wonderful artwork, this volume should earn a place on even the most discriminating of bookshelves.

Granted, Saga lacks the the sheer genius of Watchmen, the power of V for Vendetta, or the disturbing atmosphere of From Hell, but its a smorgasbord of Moore, with attributes and positive characteristics entirely unique unto itself.

If only the rest of his run would be collected as well...

When Alan Moore came to DC to write SWAMP THING, he had already made a name for himself in England with 2000 AD and his early works, including "V For Vendetta," "The Ballad of Halo Jones," "Marvelman" (later renamed "Miracleman" when published here in the States), and more. But it was his legendary work on the SWAMP THING series that broke him into the big time and made the name "Alan Moore" synonymous with "genius" amongst conic book fans.

SAGA OF THE SWAMP THING is a reprint of Moore's first story arc of the series (issues #20 through 27), the groundbreaking series that shook the entire comics industry. This was the first mainstream series to defy the archaic, outdated Comics Code (Marvel had done it earlier with Spider-man's drug issues, but this was the first series to abandon the Code completely); it was the first step towards "serious" mainstream comic books that catered more towards adults (and gave birth to DC's "Vertigo" line); it took an old has-been DC character that no one knew what to do with and breathed new life into him; and it also gave us a pair of wicked stories that are a sheer delight to read. Swamp Thing discovers his "true" origin in the saga of "The Anatomy Lesson," and he meets a horror from beyond death in "The Monkey King," while encountering several "minor" DC characters who had never been cast in the way they appeared in this series. (Moore's virtual re-writing of Etrigan the Demon sparked a new interest in the character, leading him to several spin-off books of his own.) And we mustn't forget the fantastic, haunting, beautiful, terrifying artowork of Steve Bissette and John Totleben, who made the pages fairly glow with life, as they turned the "swamp" world of the Swamp Thing into an eerie, beautiful, mysterious realm where life and death hide in every pool, waiting to spring out at you.

This book comprises the first half of an unforgettale comic book saga, laying the groundwork for a horrific tale that would cliax with a journey into Hell itself. When paired with the second reprint volume of the saga, "Love and Death," SAGA OF THE SWAMP THING shines as an early example of the genius of Alan Moore, the man who nearly single-handledly took the genre of mainstream comic books and turned it into a "serious" literary art form.

After receiving this book from my adult daughter, I began filling in the pages. So many wonderul memories were relived with each question that I answered. I began thinking, this book would make a true heirloom if given as college graduation gifts. The graduates are at a turning point in their lives. They have lived most of their youth and they have experienced a great many trials and tribulations. What better time then now to enscribe them in this wonderful thought provoking book. Yet, they have so many good years ahead of them that they can record not only yesterday's memories, but today's and then tomorrows. In essence this is a running account of their lives.

What a fantastic gift to pass on to one's children.

I received this book for Christmas - my friend knows I have kept a journal since I was 12 - so it was a "just perfect" gift for me. What I like about it is that it lists all the questions you would like to ask, but have never got around to asking of anyone precious in your life. I am going to send a copy to my 89-year old godmother - because there is so much I would like for her to tell us. We're also going to use it as a tool for the video we are making of her - the questions and segments are perfect for a project like that. In a future edition, I would recommend more questions or segments for those with non-traditional lives - multiple marriages, foster families, gay relationships, etc. But this is definitely a start in the right direction and there are plenty of blank pages to fill in your own unique events, life experiences, and thoughts.

I discovered the story of a Lifetime book in a quaint little store in Chicago and bought 3 copies for friends and relatives. The response I received was unexpected, each individual seperatly shared with me that it was either the nicest gift or the most touching gift they had ever recieved. I opened a unique store of my own in Michigan in Dec. 2000 and decided to carry The Story of a Lifetime book as one of my gift items, 8 months later the book is still my # 1 selling gift item! Enough said!?!