Book Description
"A book that should join those few that every literate person will have to read."
THE BOSTON GLOBE
Pearl Tull is nearing the end of her life but not her memory. Ever since 1944 when her husband left her, she has raised her three very different children on her own. Now grown, they have gathered together--with anger, with hope, and with a beautiful, harsh, and dazzling story to tell....
From the Paperback edition.
Customer Reviews:
a dysfunctional family expertly dissected != fun read.......2007-06-23
To be sure, Anne Tyler is an excellent writer. She has a fine grasp for prose and a keen eye for detail. In her 'Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant' we have a single mom and her brood of three kids growing up, and eventually apart, in inner city Baltimore. We witness how family squabbles fester, adults are haunted by childhood traumas, and how this one particular family doesn't exactly exactly live happily ever after. It's mostly a sad, 'oh, I've been there too"-type of read.
This well-crafted yet depressing read does have a few technical demerits. The author doesn't delve deeply enough into the psyche of the several main characters. Just when I think I understand one character there is a context switch to another scene and, well, I find myself forgetting about the character for the next fifty or more pages. This patchwork effect left me somewhat unsympathetic to the main characters, which surely wasn't the author's intention.
Bottom line: one of those books where a "fine read" doesn't equate to "fun read". Nonetheless the many Anne Tyler fans out there should give it a try.
The World's Greatest Living Author.......2007-04-16
You know I've read most of the 8 books that preceded this -- two are on order -- and I've raved that she could've just ended her career right there and remained relevant for centuries. But instead, she raised the bar even higher, merged every theme and every technique she'd shown previously, and wrote with enough skill and mastery to simply blow me away. An astounding number of layers, complexity woven tightly, yet so accessible that you'll enjoy it when you read it and you'll continue to enjoy it months or even years later. Please tell me it can't get any better than this.
A Modern Classic.......2007-04-05
Live through a few generations of one family and see how time affects the family members. The characters are flawed, but thoroughly human.
Would Recommend.......2007-03-27
Item arrived in a timely fashion, in good condition. Packaged well. Would order from this seller again.
Time in a Timeless Classic.......2007-03-18
This wonderful novel is now a quarter century old, and it is just as fresh and enjoyable as when it was first published. In fact, of Anne Tyler's large body of work, seventeen novels to date, I would put this one at the top of the list along with Breathing Lessons, Back When We Were Grownups, Earthly Possessions, and Searching for Caleb.
The novel is the story of the Tull family over nearly half a century--Pearl, who tries to pretend everything in the family is normal after her husband deserts her and her children, and the children, Cody, who cannot understand why his father left, Ezra who tries to keep things peaceful in the family, making them sit down to eat together--although they can never finish a meal at his "Homesick Restaurant", and Jenny, who cannot seem to stay in a successful relationship.
The novel is put together as if it were a collection of short stories, each told in third person but concentrating on a specific character's viewpoint. We begin with Pearl being sick and having to go to the hospital, then going back to remember her marriage and the disappearance of her husband. From there, the viewpoints shift to each of her children and her grandson.
As with many of Tyler's novels, this one concentrates specifically on the effects of time upon people. Tyler's novels are continually filled with images of trying to capture time: old photographs, home movies, recording events in diaries. This theme is summed up in the novel by Cody talking to his son Luke:
"Everything...comes down to time in the end--to the passing of time, to changing. Ever thought of that? Anything that makes you happy or sad, isn't it all based on minutes going by? Isn't happiness expecting something time is going to bring you? Isn't sadness wishing time back again? Even big things--even mourning a death: aren't you really just wishing to have the time back when that person was alive? Or photos--ever notice old photographs? How wistful they make you feel? Long-ago people smiling, a child who would be an old lady now, a cat that died, a flowering plant that's long since withered away and the pot itself broken or misplaced...Isn't it just that time for once is stopped that makes you wistful? If only you could turn it back again, you think. If only you could change this or that, undo what you have done, if only you could roll the minutes the other way for once."
The pain of time in the novel is the sadness of the father's disappearance. Cody more than anyone else is effected by it, and consequently, he wishes for that time of innocence before his father left. He wishes he could go back and understand why it happened and if anything could have been done to stop it.
Pearl is also deeply concerned with time. As she approaches her end, she asks Ezra to read her old diaries to her, diaries written during the first couple decades of the twentieth century when she was a young lady. She is equally trying to wish time back, to remember the lady she was back then and the happy moments she knew, and equally, Ezra is astonished to find the wrinkled old woman beside him was once the active young lady of the journals.
Jenny equally deals with time, especially when she finds herself remembering her favorite movie, "A Taste of Honey", only to find when she watches it years later, that it no longer means what it did to her because time has changed her.
Homesickness does not have to relate to a place. It can relate to a time. Tyler's characters suffer from a homesickness for their past; Ezra cooks meals to try and resolve that homesickness for them by recreating the happy family which never really existed. "Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant" is Tyler's most poignant novel, and if one of her saddest, it is reaffirming of life when in its conclusion, Cody finds that happy spot of time to hold onto.
It is almost impossible to describe the feeling that comes over a person when he finishes a Tyler novel. Read "Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant". It is a book that will remain in your memory no matter how much time passes.
- Tyler R. Tichelaar, author of "Iron Pioneers" and "The Queen City", available on Amazon
Book Description
Term paper due tomorrow? Need to cram for a test? Or just looking for the best information about a favorite literary work?
Turn to "Novels for Students" to get your research done in record time. Brought to you by Thomson Gale--the world's leading source of literary criticism and analysis--this e-doc contains: plot summary; character analysis; author biography; an overview of the novel's themes, style, and historical context; a compendium of in-depth critical material; study questions; suggestions for further reading; and much more.
Why choose "Novels For Students"? Because no other source offers so much in such a compact package. Trust the experts: Thomson Gale--and "Novels for Students."
Download Description
Term paper due tomorrow? Need to bone up for a test? Or just looking for the best information about a favorite literary work?
Turn to "Novels for Students" to get your research done in record time. Brought to you by the Gale Group--the world's leading source of literary criticism and analysis--this e-doc contains: plot summary; character analysis; author biography; an overview of the novel's themes, style, and historical context; a compendium of in-depth critical material; study questions; suggestions for further reading; and much more.
Why choose "Novels For Students"? Because no other source offers so much in such a compact package. Trust the experts: The Gale Group--and "Novels for Students."
Book Description
Caterer and small-town minister's wife Faith Fairchild might never have accepted the job teaching a course on Cooking for Idiots at Mansfield Academy had it not been for Daryl Martin. An African-American student at the prestigious prep school, Daryl has lately become the target of a series of vicious and anonymous racial attacks -- and Faith is determined to put an end to the injustice. But Mansfield, she finds, is a seething cauldron of secrets, academic in-fighting, and unspoken rules that complicate her task. When someone tampers with her classroom cooking ingredients -- and then the remains of her prime suspect are discovered smoldering in a campus bonfire -- she realizes that a monstrous evil is stalking both Daryl and the school. And suddenly Faith's own life is in serious jeopardy as well!
Customer Reviews:
Interesting Plot.......2006-03-24
This was my first Fath Fairchild, and I wasn't very sure about it. But after finishing the book and looking back upon it I found it quite enjoyable, and look forward to reading the entire series, hopefully before the newest comes out! If you love food, mystery, and intellectual women, then you've got to Have Faith!!
First Faith Fairchild.......2004-12-29
I borrowed this book from my father who has read most of the Faith Fairchild mysteries. It had a good premise, good character interaction, excellent story line and nice character analysis. The whole book was well written and had some very nice twists that I was not expecting. This is the first Faith Fairchild novel I have read and I am most definitley going to be reading the other ones.
A 3.4 on a scale of 1 to 5, Good not Great.......2003-08-07
"The Body in the Bonfire" once again features the indomitable sleuth, Faith Fairchild, minister's wife and suburban Boston caterer by day, Nancy Drew by night.
In this installment, Faith teaches a cooking class at a second or third tier boarding school in her New England town. She has a secret assignment, which is to find out who is sending racial slur messages to the one black student. The school is filled with a cast of colorful characters: a way too preppy good boy/bad boy student, the Russian wife of the headmaster, an intense guru like professor and so on. The plot thickens when someone shows up dead in the school's annual bonfire.
I always enjoy these books. However, I have found-particularly in this one-Hall throws out a lot of cliches. She does not offer much depth in her characters or in her story. For example, most private schools in New England today (even second and third tier ones) have more than one black student (many whose parents pay) as well as a number of Asian, Hispanic and other ethnic and religious minorities. Her depiction of Aleford,the boarding school, does not ring true in the early 00's. In addition, she loves to poke fun at the down-to-earth, Yankee frugality and sensibilities of her neighbors. Yes, her observations were true about 25 years ago. However, most New England towns are filled with a more diverse and sophisticated population in the early 00's than in her books. Finally, while she seems ever so concerned about political correctness throughout the novel vis a vis ethnic and religious minorities, she is beyond condescending to the blue collar female police officer. At the end of the book, Faith offers to help her with her makeup. Please, talk about noblesse oblige.
Still, this book is an enjoyable read. Plus, you get some very good recipes at the end.
I'd recommend this book to those who enjoy cozy mysteries and previous Page books. I wouldn't recommend this book to those who require too much depth in their mysteries (a la Elizabeth George) or books.
COOKING FOR IDIOTS COOKS UP MURDER!.......2002-05-25
This is my first visit to the world of Catering Capers with Faith Fairchild and I found it very enjoyable. The book opens in the middle of January when no one is in the mood for social affairs, which in turn makes Faith's catering business less than bustling. So she agrees to go undercover (in the guise of teaching a Cooking For Idiots class) at a boys' prep school to investigate some racist attacks against the school's sole African-American student.
Unfortunately, the only thing her class cooks up is theft and multiple murders - one being that of her prime suspect in the racist attack who turns up well done in a school rally bonfire. But we know all the incidents have to be connected someway. And Faith will figure it all out in the end with some surprising results.
Faith is a very likable heroine - her adventures make for fun reading and her recipes at the end of the book are quite tasty. The Smothered Pork Chops were first rate, but her Peanut Butter Cookies couldn't compare to the ones my mother used to make.
Faith teaches a cooking class and solves a murder.......2002-04-08
Faith Fairchild is asked by her friend Patsy, to teach a course called "Cooking for Idiots" at Mansfield, a local private school. There is an alterior motive, an African American student has been the victim of an anonymous harrassment campaign, that is getting progressively more sinister. The main suspect is an apparently perfect senior named Sloane. Sloane ends up as kindling for the annual bonfire and the harrassed student, Darryl, is the main suspect. Pix is also having problems with her youngest son Danny, and Tom's parents are having marital problems.
I was looking forward to this novel, and was not disappointed. The characters of Aleford are as colorful as usual and Mansfield provides many new ones. The red herrings obscure the solution, adding to the fun.
Average customer rating:
- Great book, great messages, lovely narrative
- I Once Was Blind, But Now I See
- A life changing read...!
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Bonfire Lessons: How to Leverage the Magic in the Universe to Reach Your Goals and Dreams
David Ruuskanen
Manufacturer: Trafford Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Dreams | Mental Health | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Dreams | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Occult | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 141204104X
Release Date: 2006-07-06 |
Product Description
There are laws that govern our universe that are far beyond the material world that we experience. Over time the world's leading scientists, astronomers and physicists have uncovered what the general public would perceive as magic but are in fact the basic laws of our universe. By understanding these laws we can tap into the magic that is available and manifest our goals and dreams.
Bonfire Lessons is written in a story fashion built on fact. This is done so that the reader can readily understand some of the more complex concepts presented. Uncle Jack is a 79-year-old friend and mentor, who provides lessons about the
universe, relativity, E=mc
2, quantum mechanics and manifestation in nightly bonfire chats. Three people receive timely invitations to join him for a week that will ultimately change their lives.
Customer Reviews:
Great book, great messages, lovely narrative.......2005-05-16
Through the storyline David manages to make us notice the wonder of the world and universe around us and then he does the really clever piece. He creates a compelling case that all of us as individuals can shape our own lives and in so doing actually contribute to the shape of the world around us and through that the universe. This book will give hope and energy to everyone who feels that they are stuck or that their life should amount to more.
I Once Was Blind, But Now I See.......2005-05-03
As the old saying goes "I Once Was Blind, But Now I See" is probably the most fitting for "Bonfire Lessons" by David Ruuskanen. It certainly has opened my eyes to a whole new world of possibilities. Simply, "Bonfire Lessons" has given me the tools to tap into my full potential. If one only reads one more book in their life, then "Bonfire Lessons" by David Ruuskanen is the book to read. Get ready for an energetic ride!
A life changing read...!.......2005-02-10
This book made me look at my life, and so called obstacles, in a completely different way. Totally empowering.
Product Description
multiple books ship as one item. save on shipping/handling charges.
Average customer rating:
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Squire's Honor (Squire Trilogy, No 3)
Peter Telep
Manufacturer: Harpercollins (Mm)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Telep, Peter
| ( T )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Fantasy
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
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Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
| Adventure
| Alternate History
| Anthologies
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| Graphic Novels
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| Series
| Short Stories
| Space Opera
Similar Items:
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Squire's Blood (Squire Trilogy, Book 2)
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Squire (Squire Trilogy, Book 1)
ASIN: 0061054771 |
Customer Reviews:
Squire's Honor.......2006-03-15
The book is rather great but has some flaws such as skipping from plot to subplots and then back again. It gets rather confusing in how Christopher keeps on romantically going after Marugween and then in the middle of the chase quits only to go after her again, then Christopher forgets to bring his sword when he goes after Marugween even though he knows Seaver (the Saxon that kidnapped Marugween because of their rivalry) is near and willing to kill him in a moments notice.
Average customer rating:
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For honor's sake;: A sequel to "The squire's daughter," (Millbrook library)
Lucy C Lillie
Manufacturer: Porter & Coates
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
Children's Books
| Subjects
| Books
| Baby-3
| Ages 4-8
| Ages 9-12
| Animals
| Arts & Music
| Books on Cassette
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| Authors & Illustrators, A-Z
| Computers
| Educational
| History & Historical Fiction
| Issues
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| Obsessions
| People & Places
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| Reference & Nonfiction
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| Science, Nature & How It Works
| Series
| Sports & Activities
ASIN: B0008BLPKA |
Average customer rating:
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SQUIRE'S HONOR
Peter Telep
Manufacturer: Harpercollins (Mm)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OEREU6 |
Average customer rating:
- Excellent source of information
- New Treatments in an Environment of Understanding
- Terrific educational tool for the patient with breast cancer
- BE A SURVIVOR reviewer is 76 year old author, surviver, now thriver
- A 'must' for any breast cancer sufferer - especially the newly diagnosed
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Be a Survivor: Your Guide to Breast Cancer Treatment, Third Edition (Book and DVD)
Vladimir Lange
Manufacturer: Lange Productions
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Breast Cancer
| Cancer
| Disorders & Diseases
| Health, Mind & Body
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General
| Cancer
| Disorders & Diseases
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Healing
| Alternative Medicine
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Similar Items:
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Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book:4th Edition 2005
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Breast Cancer Basics and Beyond: Treatments, Resources, Self-Help, Good News, Updates
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Living Through Breast Cancer
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The Breast Cancer Survival Manual: A Step-By-Step Guide for the Woman With Newly Diagnosed Cancer
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The Breast Cancer Book: What You Need to Know to Make Informed Decisions (Yale University Press Health & Wellness)
ASIN: 0966361083 |
Book Description
PRODUCT DESCRIPTION Be a Survivor - Your Guide to Breast Cancer Treatment - book with DVD - 3rd ed. By Vladimir Lange, MD A unique book-with-DVD combination that informs and empowers Dr. Vladimir Lange is a Harvard Medical School trained physician, nationally recognized for patient education programs. When his wife, also a physician, was diagnosed with breast cancer, both were overwhelmed by the complexity of the information they had to process. Be a Survivor was inspired by their desire to make the journey easier for others. Be a Survivor is the "must read" book for every woman diagnosed with breast cancer, and for those who care for her. The book is: COMPLETE - it covers all aspects of the disease - from diagnosis, to breast reconstruction, conventional and complementary therapies, and life after cancer. It also includes a chapter for the woman's husband or partner. ACCURATE - rather than reflecting a single specialist's point of view, the book is based on the combined experience and wisdom of 28 experts in various fields. REASSURING - written with compassion and understanding, the book also includes candid stories by survivors and their partners. USER-FRIENDLY - hundreds of color photos, graphics and diagrams help clarify important concepts. UP-TO-DATE - the book covers the very latest developments, including brachytherapy, perforator flaps, skin sparing mastectomy and much more. UNIQUE - Be a Survivor is the ONLY book on breast cancer that comes with a DVD, so the reader can see videos of procedures, hear survivors' stories, and enjoy the animated 3-D graphics. See the DVD for a clear overview. Read the book for additional details. Use both as a valuable source of information that will help you assume an active role in your treatment and recovery. \\\\\\\\\\\\ This Book Will Help You
• Assemble the best team of experts to ensure successful treatment
• Decide whether mastectomy or breast conservation is the right choice for you
• Evaluate your breast reconstruction options
• Understand why you may not need chemotherapy
• Learn about new treatments, such as brachytherapy
• Consider appropriate complementary therapies
• Communicate effectively with your partner. //////// PRODUCT DETAILS LIST PRICE: $24.95 Paperback: 180 pages plus DVD Publisher: Lange Productions (June, 2005)
Customer Reviews:
Excellent source of information.......2007-08-06
I was introduced to this book at work and am now giving it to women newly diagnosed with breast cancer. I am on oncology certified nurse in the radiation oncology department of my cancer center. In January 2007 I also became our Breast Cancer Patient Navigator. I find this book gets excellent reviews from patients and their families alike. It is a great source of information, covering all the topics from diagnosis to living life 'after cancer'. I only wish I would have had this book when I was on my personal breast cancer journey! I highly recommend this book for someone newly diagnosed with breast cancer.
New Treatments in an Environment of Understanding.......2006-06-11
"Many experts believe that Herceptin represents the future direction of breast cancer drugs, because it targets a particular protein on the cancer cell, rather than attacking all cells at random. As research progresses, scientist hope to make all anti-cancer drugs as specific as possible." ~ pg. 97
Designed to compliment the book, the DVD provides an environment of understanding with explanations for all the procedures and various situations that will occur after a diagnosis. New treatments like Immunotherapy are discussed and there is an extensive resource section with additional CD options, including a CD-ROM program that is an interactive guide to treatment.
Helpful up-to-date information about why you may not need a mastectomy and only a lumpectomy is encouraging and gives hope. Radiation and Chemo is also discussed in detail. Throughout both the DVD and book, women tell their stories and that gives a sense of the range of experience. There are over 150 color photographs and graphics to illustrate important points.
A variety of questions are given in each section so you know what to ask your doctor. The stages of breast cancer are given so you know exactly what your doctor is talking about. The main sections include:
Facing Breast Cancer - Your feelings, support groups, healthcare teams and overview of treatment options.
Breast Cancer Basics - Types of Breast Cancer
Diagnosis and Staging - Tumor Testing, the Pathology Report, Additional Tests, How Stage is Determined
Surgery - Reconstruction, Lumpectomy and Mastectomy options, Lymph Nodes
Reconstruction - Choosing a Plastic Surgeon, External and Internal Options
Radiation Therapy - How treatment is given, Brachytherapy
Chemotherapy - Side Effects, Common Chemotherapy Drugs
Hormone Therapy - How Treatment is Given, Who should be Treated, Side Effects
Immunotherapy - Future Therapies and Herceptin
Clinical Trials - Participation Ideas and getting the newest treatments...
Life after Cancer - Emotional Recovery, Physical Recovery
The Guide for Your Partner is a special section your partner can read. If possible, watching the DVD together would be ideal because it explains all the basics in the book.
Be a Survivor is an excellent resource because it gives you all the questions you need to ask and answers a number of pertinent questions any woman will be asking the moment she is diagnosed.
Vladimir Lange, MD is one of the most respected doctors in this field of study and this book came into being after his own wife was diagnosed with breast cancer.
~The Rebecca Review
I can also recommend "Reconstructing Natalie" by Laura Jensen Walker.
Terrific educational tool for the patient with breast cancer.......2006-03-30
Be a Survivor was chosen by our women's health professional group as the educational tool of choice to use with patients diagnosed with breast cancer. The book offers excellent graphic examples to reinforce the information provided and enlightens the reader through documented personal experiences with breast cancer. As a health care practitioner who has never experienced breast cancer it is an excellent tool for education and a take home reference for the patient throughout the breast cancer experience. The accompaning DVD is an excellent way for the patient and / or family to view the information when they are at home. The DVD also allows for a different learning medium for those visual learners.
BE A SURVIVOR reviewer is 76 year old author, surviver, now thriver.......2005-11-13
BE A SURVIVOR is a clear, sensitive rendering of the whole breast cancer treatment process. It is upbeat, reflecting my attitude: "Been there, done that."
The diagrams were my first close look at what happened in my breast and lymph nodes, and the sidebar questions to ask were vital. Even if I wrote them down ahead, I often would come out of doctor's offices not knowing answers.
I did wonder if a male breast cancer patient would get all he needed from this book since the main thrust is on women and the pictures are of women in relationship to men, though Dr. Lange is generally sensitive to using 'partner' instead of assuming the sex of a partner.
I would have liked to see on page 73, more emphasis placed on Chinese herbs as big aids in dispensing with nausea. They saved me from misery. And to swimming as both psychologically relaxing and a large help in stretching the arm to prevent lymphedema. I call myself a thriver now--nice word to put at the end of his next book edition. Fine book, I am giving it to someone today.
Lynn Scott, Author of the Memoir: MY MOTHER, MY ALZHEIMER CLIENTS, AND ME.
A 'must' for any breast cancer sufferer - especially the newly diagnosed.......2005-10-14
The third updated edition of this classic is out - fully revised, and with a free DVD containing patient interviews. While Dr. Lange regrettably notes the need for a revised updated edition did not come from the elimination of breast cancer as a threat; he does offer a new approach to educating women about breast cancer. Dr. Lange's wife, also a physician, was diagnosed with breast cancer 17 years ago: even as doctors it took them weeks to understand all the information surrounding it. BE A SURVIVOR culls all the details into an easily-understood format to help educate readers, providing a DVD which contains voices of survivors and videos of the procedures. A 'must' for any breast cancer sufferer - especially the newly diagnosed.
Books:
- Drop City
- El amor en los tiempos del cólera
- Faces at the Bottom of the Well: The Permanence of Racism
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Other American Stories (Modern Library)
- Final Appeal
- Flashman and the Angel of the Lord
- Flashman in the Great Game: A Novel (Flashman)
- Glamorama (Vintage Contemporaries)
- Handling Sin
- In Danger's Path: Corps 08 (Corps)
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Harry the Dirty Dog
- Voices from Legendary Times: We Are a Bridge Between Past and Future
- The Flanders Panel
- The Allies of Humanity: Book Two, Human Unity, Freedom & The Hidden Reality of Contact
- The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World
- Thermal Analysis and Design of Passive Solar Buildings
- Unarmed and Unafraid
- The Uncanny: Experiments in Cyborg Culture: Experiments in Cyborg Culture
- The Flag: My Story : Kidnapped by Red China
- Correspondence, 1858-March 1863
Breathing Lessons: A Novel
The Accidental Tourist: A Novel (Ballantine Reader's Circle)
Back When We Were Grownups
Saint Maybe
Ladder of Years
