Otto, an author, poet and photographer, creates a beautiful tale for ages 5-8 about a confused little girl who only wants to belong. Her mother tells her she's a mess. The kids in the neighborhood won't play with her because her hair is too brown and her eyes are too blue. Even her teacher calls her incorrigible, a word she doesn't know but is sure means something terrible. Just when Cassandra feels her lowest, an enchanting angel appears to tell her to look within to find light and beauty. The tale, written in a rhyming cadence, is a subtle lesson on self-esteem. Children will relate to Cassandra's feelings of hurt and anger. Grown-ups will be reminded that sometimes what they say can cut deeply. Children and adults alike will be awed by Joost's exceptional airbrush illustrations and use of perspective. Her caricatures of adults are fabulously funny.

Cassandra's Angel is a powerful picture-book. Written in lyrical rhyme by Gina Otto and strikingly illustrated by Trudy Joost in full color, it tells the story of Cassandra, a young girl who is constantly being told by adults that she can't do anything right. But after she endures repeated verbal assaults that wear down her spirit, her very own angel visits her and gives her a new perspective on herself and others. Cassandra's Angel is a truly wondrous and uplifting story which is very highly recommended for both children and adults.

Trudy Joost's illustrations light up each page of this wonderful book for children aged four to adult with beautiful colors and pictures that see life through a child's eyes. Author Gina Otto encourages children (and us) to find our own story of who we are. Most of us have created our self-image (our story) based on what others have told us. Are we smart? Are we lovable? Are we supposed to exist?

As children, we decide the answers to these questions through our experiences, how we are treated, and what we are told. When we were growing up, did anyone tell us to find our own story, to know who we truly are? Cassandra's Angel encourages us to treat what others tell us about ourselves as their understanding, which often comes through their own sadness and fear. The angel that comes to Cassandra shows her how to see herself through different eyes.

Many children today, and all children being born now, are "Indigo children" (see the book Indigo Children, edited by Lee Carroll and Jan Tober). These are children who come into life knowing who they are, powerful and able beings in the human situation. The stories others tell them about themselves make these children angry and rebellious, for deep inside they know it is a lie, and one thing Indigo children cannot stand is a lie.

Cassandra's Angel can help Indigo children feel affirmed in their inner truth that they are bright lights that have come here with a purpose. We need to help these children claim that they came here to be, and this book is a useful tool toward that end.

I first read this book when I was a kid, and have re-read it several times since. I gave it to my husband as a gift, and although usually he is not too thrilled with the books I pick, he loved this one.

Krabat, the protagonist, is a young orphan who starts working as an apprentice at a mill where black magic and witchcraft are at work. The miller has made a deal with the devil, and each year one of the apprentices has to be sacrificed by the miller to keep his side of the deal. Some of Krabat's friends end up dead. Krabat, however, finds salvation through his love, a singer from the nearby village. She is able to rescue him from certain death and put an end to satan's reign, even when the miller casts an evil spell, because her love for Krabat is stronger than witchcraft.

Otfried Preussler accomplished a miracle with this book: It has a captivating storyline which has the power to keep even adults fascinated, while at the same time the book sends a strong ethical and moral message about temptations and the power of love.

There aren't too many children's books out there which can bridge the gap between adult readers and children. This one does. And it does it exceptionally well.

It is a shame that this book is out of print... find a copy if you can! Although it contains very little gore or violence, it is one of the creepiest books I have ever read. It is an excellent account of the manner in which evil attracts and then enslaves the will. Krabat learns to use extraordinary power at the mill, yes, but only at the price of enslaving his being to the evil miller. The manner in which the miller dominates the wills of his workmen is truly horrifying. Since magic is ultimately about power and domination, it can only be defeated by its opposite, self-giving love. Krabat finds this salvation in the humility of a village girl.

This book is the alternative to Harry Potter that I have been looking for as reading material for my kids. It is surely creepy, but not too creepy for 12 year olds and up. The Potter books treat magic and evil as something trivial that can be toyed with impunity. The Potter kids find they can defeat the most horrifying evils with a few magic tricks and a little cleverness and courage. Evil deserves more respect than that, because it is far more dangerous and powerful, working primarily through corruption of the will. Preussler is a master at depicting this process, with the miller breaking the wills of his apprentices through pointless work. Eventually, the men are so dominated that they acquiece in their own deaths, literally digging their own graves.

This is a wonderful book. It leaves the reader with a lasting impression of the dangerousness and horror of evil, as well as the power and joy of agape - self-giving love.

I read this years ago, as a child and in Russian, and I still remember the feeling of genuine dread (and triumph) this story inspired. Even as I think of it now, I feel the hair rise on the back of my neck. The evil in the book does not chase after you--it waits for you to come to it, and invariably, you do. In that sense, the title THE SATANIC MILL is unfortunate--you expect the mill to be Satanic; in Russian translation, the book was called simply KRABAT (the main character's name), and you did not quite know what to expect.

The story begins as a young boy named Krabat, somewhere around present-day Eastern parts of Germany, falls asleep wandering, and dreams of ravens crowing. Their message is for him to go to the mill some miles away, to sign up as an apprentice. Which he does, of course, and soon learns that it is no regular mill. (Nor is it quite Satanic, actually--for it is not Satan who runs it). He may stay, or he may go; if he goes, he will learn magic from the Miller himself. Of course, he stays--and becomes one of the apprentices, who turn, at their Master's command, into black ravens. All peachy so far--until the cleverest (and the kindest) of all the apprentices dies an unnatural death--but not before having made his own coffin and dug his own grave.

In the (happy) end, of course, Krabat will have to choose between love and good and fairness--and magic. Between being a regular boy and a powerful Miller himself; but such a choice will not come to him easily--and he will have to fight for his life, and that of his love.

My favorite characters in the book were the idiot Yuro and the Great Pumphut, who gives the Miller a run for his money. The story is very creepy (or I think it would be for a 13-14 year old; I know it was for me), poignant and beautiful.

As a reader of APO 96490 I must say Stahl held my interest throughtout the entire book. I found myself feeling somewhat guilty all snuggled up on my couch with the fireplace burning, while Stahl vividly describes being shot at while in a bunker.
Stahl does an excellent job of educating the reader in regards to military terminology and jargon which provides insight into how the military functions and operates.
I especially enjoyed Stahl's ability to recreate the sights, sounds, smells, and feel for the surroundings he was placed in. As one reads, the mind can capture the very situation being described.
APO 96490 takes the reader on a journey through the life of Stahl as he experienced Vietnam. One rides the roller coaster of emotion as you experience the highs and lows of military life during war.
After reading APO 96490 I have a much healthier respect for all of our servicemen and women who have served our country and fought during wartime.
GOD BLESS AMERICA !!!!!!!!!

From page one through the entire book I felt like I was on an adverture with the arthur. I felt like I got to know him as a person and to appreciate the experience of being in the army. The vets got a raw deal coming out of the war and he portrayed that very well. It is both entertaining and and informative. Good fast read.

As a reader of APO 96490 I must say that Stahl held my interest throughout the entire book. I found myself feeling somewhat guilty all snuggled up on my couch with a fire burning, while the author vividly describes being shot at by enemy fire while in a bunker.
Stahl does an excellent job of educating the reader in regards to military terminology and gives one an insight into how the military functions amongst the ranks.
I especially enjoyed Stahl's ability to recreate the sights, sounds, smells, and feel for the surroundings he was placed in. As one reads, one's mind can capture the very situation being described.
APO 96490 takes the reader on a journey through the life of Stahl as he experienced Vietnam. One rides the roller coaster of emotion as you experience the highs and lows of military life during war.
After reading APO 96490 I have a much healthier RESPECT for all of our service men and women who have served our country and fought during wartime.
GOD BLESS AMERICA !...

I highly recommend that you buy all three of Otto Skinner's books: The Best Kept Secret; If You Are the Defendant; and The Biggest Tax Loophole of All. You can order all three from his website for a cost of about $90. He also has newsletters that are valuable.

Skinner lays out exactly what the "income" tax is all about. Using Supreme Court decisions and other highly authoritative documentation, he reveals the truth: the income tax is an excise tax; an excise tax is a tax on privileged activities; and a person's right to earn income is a right that can't be taxed as a privilege. The only reason that the taxes are called "income" taxes is because they are measured by the amount of income resulting from the activities. The tax is not on the income itself.

I started in the "tax movement" about 11 years ago and wish that I had read Skinner's books first; it would have saved me much trouble. After you read The Best Kept Secret, you'll know that you never need file an income tax return again, or submit a W-4 Form to get a job (unless, of course, you're involved in an activity that is truly taxable; but if you're earning a living at a harmless activity, you won't have any such obligation).

I ordered this book last summer in the midst of sitting down and attempting to learn about the income tax and Congress's power of taxation. This book has been a godsend. Best of all, his conclusions are based on Supreme Court rulings and cites the documentation in which the reader can verify.

Otto has clairified all of the misconceptions about the tax laws. There are many false ideas about what is law and what can be harmful to your freedom. Read Otto's book "The biggest tax loop hole of all" and you'll see what I mean. There are many lies going around. Read Irwin Schiff's books and follow them and you will go to jail (just like Schiff). Otto takes on these lies one by one.

»Traumnovelle« is the book on which the fantastic movie »Eyes Wide Shut« is based. It is written as early as in 1926, and it does not take place in New York but in Vienna.

A VERY beautifully written short story which is much more a poetic dream journey than an erotic story. Very interesting book!

Die Traumnovelle is a psychological novel (in fact Schnitzel and Freud were often in touch) who deals with the need for transgression. The two main characters, married, get bored with their everyday life and routine and so they start longing for what I'd call "adventure". But eventually, they understand that adventure isn't what we really want, it's just a temptation and once we satisfy it, it seems much less exciting than we thought. In fact what the two characters really want is exactly their everyday life and eventually they get back to it... I'm sorry, I could have explained this a lot better in Italian ;-)

"Traumnovelle" is a fine novella which masterfully employs the epic mythological structure to send it's main character Froidlin on a psychosexual odyssey. The character struggles with an attempt to engage in meaningless sexual debauchery in order to cuckold his wife. He finds, however that he can not divorce himself emotionally from sexual activity. Schnitzler is a masterful hand at creating an adult fairy tale the moral of which remains poignant today.

This is without a doubt one of my favorite children's books. The book is for 4-8 year-olds, but most 4-5 year-olds might not understand the artwork's quirky, abstract nature.

Mr. Lunch is a dog, but a very intelligent dog who gets invited to appear on television for his bird-chasing abilities. Mr. Lunch and his bird-pal Ambrose have many great and goofy adventures along the way (especially on the plane) to the television appearance...which doesn't go exactly as planned...

'Mr. Lunch' gives kids a whole cargo plane full of wonderful learning opportunities in: aviation, identifying animals, how to say "goodbye" in several languages, city and country life, airport procedures, music, science, cooking...you name it! A very imaginative, wacky, fun book!

Ages 4-8
30 pgs.

This is a wonderful and imaginative book. Children will enjoy the sweet simple story of Mr. Lunch (a dog who loves to chase birds, but not catch them)and the adults will certainly not mind reading the story again and again. The illustrations alone are fabulous, I would highly recomend the entire Mr. Lunch series. This is the first in a series of three books starring the "professional" dog. I would also check out, "Olive, the Other Reindeer" and "Monkey Buisness" if you want books both you and your child can enjoy together! I also think they are just fine to have in your collection, if you don't have any children, you'll enjoy them just the same.

We thoroughly enjoyed this book, from the wonderfully implausible story to the extraordinary Matisse/Braques-like pictues. The story concerns a dog's flight for a television appearance--to demonstrate his bird-chasing skills. (No animals were injured in the writing of this book.) The pictures are very detailed and a bit abstract, but not unrecognizable or too cluttered for our 4 year old.

A very unique and funny book, it's great for children between about four and nine. It's a lot of fun for adults to read as well: Highly recommended!

Cute, modern story about a dog named Olive who thinks he is "Olive the other reindeer" and thinks he should be up at the North Pole helping Santa. Story is short and innocent. This story is nothing like the video (see my separate review of that). There is no negativity in this book, no hurt feelings, no "bad guys", no threat of "no Christmas", (unlike the video). Olive saves the day: the problem is that there is a hole in Santa's sack and there are several times where toys or candy fell out of the sack and Olive helps retrieve them. A very happy little story. I recommend it for those looking for a cute, innocent modern story about Christmas. Illustrations are very unique and there is a lot going on in the illustrations. If you love the book, please preview the video before buying the video as the video is very different. If you disliked the video, give the book a chance as it is different in content and tone.

Olive the dog was listening to the radio and singing along to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, as she wrapped her Christmas presents. The radio sang, "All of the other Reindeer", Olive sang, "Olive the other Reindeer". Oh my, she hadn't realized that she was a reindeer and decided on the spot that she'd better get to the North Pole right away to help Santa. Arriving just in time, she took her spot on the sleigh. Santa noticed her and wasn't fooled, but he just asked Comet to tie her on extra tight, since he knew that dogs couldn't fly. Off they went, into the night, to deliver Santa's presents. But it doesn't take long before the sleigh and reindeer run into trouble and Olive, with her canine ways, saves the day.....The dynamic duo, Vivian Walsh and J. Otto Seibold have collaborated once again, to give us a humorous and endearing holiday story. Their simple, gentle text and bold, expressive illustrations combine to delight and amuse children, young and old. And as they watch Olive receive the best present ever, from Santa, youngsters will want to hear this story again and again. This book makes a wonderful gift and a terrific addition to all bookshelves.

I'm 24 and I worked at a bookstore this past holiday season, and when I saw this book I bought it even though it's a children's book! It's so much fun to read and I read it out loud to my parents and they loved the adorable story as well! I recommend it to anyone who loves the silly things in life!

"The Good Old Days-They Were Terrible!" is a sharp and unflinching overview of day-to-day living from the end of the American Civil War to the turn of the century, which employs contemporary sketches, cartoons and photos to make its point that these years were not the idyllic times we think them. Otto L. Bettmann uses his vast archive of illustrations to not just show us just how hard and fraught with danger this period of time really was, but also to give us a fascinating look into a vanished time. While his main purpose is to show us that these times weren't peaceful and carefree, Bettmann also illustrates the mundane aspects of any period of time, IE health, work, education, crime, housing, etc. All aspects of a routine day are covered here, which makes this social history at its best. We discover that the inhabitants of this period had the same concerns and problems that we do today. It's all here: garbage in the streets, dirty drinking water, prostitutes protected by cops, child-beating, etc. Definitely not a simple, beautiful time. It's life like any other period, and it's captured here. Bettmann's commentary is concise and mainly supports this book's real strength: it's expressive, contemporary illustrations. As journalism is the first draft of history, these illustrations serve the same purpose in telling us how things really were and how the inhabitants of these times saw their lives. Excellent social commentary.

People often like to think as our past being absouletly perfect. Good Old Days takes a look at American life in the late 1800s and early 1900s and examines what life was like for the common person. The book provides a documentation of the probelems of the era such as air pollution, bad traffic, poor housing and education. The book is extremely easy to read and provides a great deal of useful information.

What an incredible book! Interesting, informative, eye-opening, and unflinching. Tells the grim truth about life in nineteenth century industrial America, focusing on the cities (especially New York), but touching on the hardships and unpleasantness of rural life as well. The illustrations are as valuable as the text--and Bettman's list of sources is outstanding. Social history at its best!

I purchased this book when it first came out, during the
initial wave of popularity of fractals and chaos theory.
Although the fadishness of chaos and fractals has died
down, a number of solid applications for this theory have
appeared in areas like computer graphics, finance,
modeling computer network traffic and data compression.

I have purchased a number of books on fractals and chaos and
how these concepts can be applied in a number of areas. I
have yet to see a better introduction to the topic. This is
a core reference and I keep coming back to it again and again.

In the spectrum of popular science books, this is definitely
on the technical end. You do not need an advanced background
in mathematics as you do for some books on chaos and fractals,
but the authors do not shy away from equations. However, the
ideas are clearly presented. I have used this book as a
reference for developing software for fractal brownian motion
and Hurst exponent estimation.

"Chaos and Fractals" covers a great deal of material. On a few
occasions I found that the algorithms or explaination were
difficult to follow. In some cases, like the generation of
Gaussian random numbers, I found better, simpler algorithms.

When this book was written, fractals and chaos were fairly new.
It is difficult to avoid comparing this book to an even thicker
book, "A New Kind of Science" by Stephen Wolfram. Although
cellular automata, the core topic of "A New Kind of Science"
are not exactly new, Wolfram claims new and profound
perspectives. Many, including this reviewer, feel that Wolfram's
claims are overblown and egotistical (he has a bad habbit of
claiming credit for innovation, even as he cites other work).
The authors of "Chaos and Fractals" do not make exalted
claims for this work. Yet without any fanfare, this book
really does deliver profound ideas. This is simply a
fantastic book. I recommend it for anyone in the applied
sciences (e.g., computer science, quantitative finance,
geology, etc...). Even for the mathematically sophisticated it
will provide an valuable overview, which is difficult to obtain
anywhere else.

This is possibly the best and most thorough of all books on fractals. The discussion is excellent, the illustrations superb. After all, these are the guys who developed the computer art exhibits that toured Europe and parts of the US in the 1980s.

The mathematics is somewhat advanced, but not so advanced that most persons with a thorough background in high school mathematics cannot understand it. After all, I used it as a primary reference for my book Fractals in Music!

This book is a great entertainer for anyone who wants to spend many evenings "playing with chaos". The code in the book is a little dated (BASIC), but you won't have problems to use it as a good reference. The book will guide you through the understanding of the exciting realm of chaos and its hidden monsters.

Chaos and fractals are subjects that sound modern, interesting and eye-catching in the most of the cases. However, the applications and implications of chaos in the real world constitute the great achievement of human knowledge that the concept represents.

The lecture of this book doesn't require an extensive knowledge of math (but it would be helpful), it requires many will and passion for rediscovering your conception of the universe instead.

Before reading this book I'd recommend "Chaos: the Making of a New Science" by James Gleick and for those who are looking for a more compact but challenging material "Fractals, Chaos, Power Laws: Minutes from an Infinite Paradise" by Manfred Schroeder will be just fine.

I rate this classic in Christian Mysticism not for what it is or says but what it is not and certainly does not say. First of all it is not a Jungian mythology text nor does it have anything in common with works by(the likes of)Joseph Campbell who was an avowed and proud atheist. Studying works...often profound as they are...of Mircea Eliade will construct and fortify the very obstacles that obscure/prevent radical Grace Experience Otto terms "The Mysterium Tremendum". Would-be adepts are often quick to criticize theological genius of(a)saint-like Thomas Aquinas. Yet conveniently they forget he himself dismissed The SUMMA as little more than preparatory Guide for sincere faith desperately in need of REASON's crutch(from Crux). Medieval theologians often taxed the would-be Pure of Heart with a nominalist/semantic riddle: God was NO-THING...therefore totally beyond knowledge categories and expressible human experience. So what? Ants have no categories for "religious" illumination regarding humanity nor individuals. Yet the realities are; sometimes they CROSS paths. The point: Otto's book is not a place to begin. (Maybe a term in prison; a tour of combat; or a long isolation among uncorrupted children might do). St. John of the Cross' DARK NIGHT
OF THE SOUL might do because it may just discourage foolish meddling about where "angels fear to tread." Is this a warning? Of course.

Padre Pio was stigmatist who spent most of his life hearing Confession(ie: ministering to the reality of Sin).And celebrating ultimate Christian Mystery:HOLY MASS-- where Christ --LOGOS and Second Hypostasis of the Divinely Revealed Trinune God--humbly "empties" Himself into simplest signs of Bread & Wine to COMMUNicate not merely the Idea of the Holy, but Holiness (Himself).Protestants deny this.Many would-be gnostics defy it in absurd paradox of desiring...like Eve...fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil; rather than of Life. Mother Theresa was undoubtedly a mystic. She said...to my knowledge...little about "numenous"experiences, because she was too busy (ad)ministering moments of Grace to destitute poor. However: she is said to have said she could see the Face of Christ in these otherwise abandoned. Is this MYSTERIUM TREMENDOM at its most ironic, absurd and True? Again: Otto's book is what it is. Don't forget what it isn't, or shouldn't be......

For those of us in professional ministry and studying in seminary, we spend an inordinate amount of time focusing on the rational element in religion- we can't seem to avoid it in the West. But no amount of Aquinas will ever serve to explain the true meaning of religious experience. Reading Aquinas is like studying a technical manual of spirituality- it destroys the very meaning of it. Otto writes a brief work here outlining the main points of his theory- that religion can't be understood and never can be as an empirical study- it is beyond our sense horizon. Religion is to be savored, felt- not thought about or deconstructed, like, taking an engine apart. What Otto, in other words, tries to do is to, rather than studying how a flower produces a pleasing scent and how we perceive it, says STOP and just smell the rose- and you'll understand in an instant. As a Lutheran, he understands Catholic sacramental theology very well-that a sacrament is an outward sign of an inner grace or reality, and that signs and symbols work hand in hand- a sign points to a reality ahead, like a clap of thunder signifies a storm. A symbol conveys within itself the very reality it is expressing- for example, perhaps the greatest being a kiss between husband and wife- the reality is perfectly conveyed in the symbolic action itself, without further clarification. THAT is experience, true spirituality, what he means by the numinous, as applied. It is thus existential. Too much wasted time and energy could be spared by reading this classic. Five years of theology could be distilled to the contents of this book, perhaps the most influential book one can read in seminary. Do yourself a favor and get it!!

Living as we do in an age where religion in general (and Christianity specifically) has been largely co-opted by those who consider it to be "morality touched with emotion", "The Idea of the Holy" offers a alternative view towards religion and spirituality. Otto introduces a way of approaching the subject that avoids the twin traps of emotion and intellect, allowing us to understand "religious feeling" as a phenomenon all it's own, as a "sense' with its own attributes.

For those who can (through scholarship or patience) penetrate the sometimes dense and dated prose, this book has the potential to remove the debris of thousands of years of so-called theology and philosophy and to find the experience of God without intermediaries. It is indeed, a revelation.