The Most Beautiful Woman in Town and Other Stories

Book Description

These mad immortal stories, now surfaced from the literary underground, have addicted legions of American readers, even though the high literary establishment continues to ignore them. In Europe, however (particularly in Germany, Italy, and France where he is published by the great publishing houses), he is critically recognized as one of America's greatest realist writers.

Charles Bukowski was born in Andernach, Germany in 1920 and brought to America at the age of two. Eighteen or twenty books of prose and poetry, Bukowski, after publishing prose in Story and Portfolio, stopped writing for ten years. He arrived in the charity ward of the Los Angeles County General Hospital, hemorrhaging as a climax to a ten year drinking bout. Some say he didn't die. After leaving the hospital he got a typewriter and began writing again-this time, poetry. He later returned to prose and gained some fame with his column, Notes of a Dirty Old Man. After 14 years in the Post Office he resigned at age 50, he says, to keep from going insane. He now claims to be unemployable and eats typewriter ribbons.

Customer Reviews:

Short Story Freedom.......2007-04-12

This title is a collection of the disturbing and the disappointing; it should be read by anyone with a brain and a sense of humor.

Most Beautiful Woman in Town/Tales of Ordinary Madness.......2007-01-22

Bought these as Christmas gift but very familiar with content since had original one volume copy of works published years ago by City Lights. Bukowski is a wonderful - although definitely different - story teller. His humanity and humor are unparalled. Not for the thin-skinned, if the reader can suspend routine expectations, he'll take you to wonderous places you've never been before.

Spotlight on the seamy side of life.......2006-09-10

Bukowski tends to, as far as I can tell, polarize readers something fierce. There are those who claim that he belongs among the highest pantheon of American writers for his no holds barred writings and ability to tell it like it is. Others will say that his stories aren't worth the paper they're printed on, full of trash writing and vulgarity, appealing to only the basest of emotions. While I don't think he's a literary genius, I certainly don't think his writing can be dismissed totally out of hand, at least not from the representative sample presented in this collection. Most of the stories focus on a male character, who may or may not be Bukowski, going about his day in some fashion, which will generally include drinking, picking up women or otherwise seeing whatever bizarre things lie at the edge of society. His style is deceptively simple, never flowery or ornate but somehow getting the point across anyway, at its best his words take on a Hemmingwayesque sparseness, the short declarative sentences forming a terse rhythm that gives them more resonance than you would otherwise think. Strangely enough a lot of those moments come at the end of a story, he's good at wrapping tales up, often finishing with a paragraph or two of sobering observation, capping it with some variation of a fatalistic, "well, whatever." At their heart the stories strike me as honest, they're rough and unadorned, but sincere all the same. The most honest ones may be the autobiographical-type tales, not knowing a whole lot about the man I can't tell how much is totally invented and how much was real but those ones (such as "Life and Death in the Charity Ward") have the ring of stark reality about them. He depicts life in the sideways corners, the people who hold the odd jobs, who need a drink to get through the day, the greasy squalor of it all, seen briefly admist the mess of neon lights and burnt out streetlamps, dirty apartments, sweaty desperate couplings, the hope of betting money at the race track and praying that this time, maybe, God willing, you might hit it big. Not huge, but just enough to live comfortably for just one more day. Bukowski depicts them, and by extension himself, unflinchingly and with equal parts contempt and sympathy. The people in his stories are just trying to live, the same as anyone else, and this is how they live. For all the vulgarity and whatnot, nothing in here really shocked me, even the most abrasive act is rendered somehow touching, either through his dry commentary or a dark bit of humor. Even "The Fiend", probably the most disturbing story in here, is balanced by the main character's fate at the end. This collection is by no means perfect, reading too many of these in a row could drive you mad, as a lot of it can strike you as variations on a theme. But read in small chunks, these stories act like the best kind of punk rock music, it says what it has to say and gets the heck out, with not a single word wasted. For those capable of stomaching what amounts to kicking over a rock in the forest and seeing what kind of slimy insects crawl out, this is probably worth checking out. For the rest, you may have to build up your tolerance in other places first.

Pushes the Boundaries of What Good Literature Is.......2006-03-22

The Most Beautiful Woman in Town challenges the reader. At times, Bukoswki seems to be asking, "How much can you take? How far can I go?" No question, he's at the top of his form as a writer here. The objections I have are not with his artistic skill, but with his choices in material. "The Copulating Mermaid of Venice, Calif.," is a disturbing tale of necrophilia. Bad enough. But "The Fiend" is perhaps the most repellent short story I have ever read--a morally repugnant tale of child rape. And after reading a biography of Bukowski, I discovered that the story was not simply a fictional take on sexual depravity, but a variation of an actual sexual fantasy Bukowski had. The author goes too far here. All writers must face their demons, and some do well to write about them. But what is so objectionable about the "The Fiend" is that Bukowski sets up the rape scene for a laugh. "The Fiend" is the largest stain on a very good writer's body of work. That said, this book contains some of Buk's best work, such as the title story, which might be the best introduction to Bukowski's short story style. Also great is "Life and Death in the Charity Ward," about Bukowski's near fatal drinking bout. If I had to recommend one short story of his, it would be "Most Beautiful" or "Life and Death." "Kid Stardust on the Porterhouse" is also great, a retelling of the half-day that Buk spent working at a slaughterhouse. Given the varying quality of this book, Bukowski fans might come away from it with mixed feelings.

I'd read this book a thousand times.......2005-10-08

I get sort of cranky when I hear and read reviews that say Bukowsi's stories are "too fake" or "exaggerated". Umm, the last time I checked, his books were in the fiction section.

Most Beautiful Woman In Town, The & Other Stories

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True Grit

Most Beautiful Woman In Town, The & Other Stories
Charles Bukowski
Manufacturer: City Lights
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KW6DQI

Customer Reviews:

True Grit.......2007-04-16

A book that is hard to put down, hard to stop reading, despite its grit, hard-edged nonsense that spells life in the gutter. Since my first read, many years ago, I have been addicted to Bukowski like he was to sex and booze. You will laugh, you will cry, you will cringe reading these stories, which are not easy to define as genre - are they literary, science fiction, crime fiction????

Just give it a read.

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Most Beautiful Woman in Town
Charles Bukowski
Manufacturer: CITY LIGHTS (AILI)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K2SG36

Book Description

Tristan Wemyss, Earl of Trentham, never expected he'd need to wed within a year or forfeit his inheritance. But he is not one to bow to the matchmaking mamas of the ton. No, he will marry a lady of his own choosing. And the lady he chooses is the enchanting neighbor living with her family next door. Miss Leonora Carling has beauty, spirit and passion; unfortunately, matrimony is the last thing on her mind . . .

To Leonora, Tristan's kisses are oh-so-tempting, but once bitten, forever shy, she has determinedly turned her back on marriage. But Tristan is a seasoned campaigner who will not accept defeat. And when a mysterious man attempts to scare Leonora and her family from their home, Tristan realizes he's been given the perfect excuse to offer his services—as protector, seducer and, ultimately, husband.

Download Description

The first book in a new series from bestselling author Stephanie Laurens! Meet the Bastion Club: seven English secret service members who've defeated Napolean to inherit land, titles -- and wives. Tristan Wemyss, Earl of Trentham, never expected he'd need to wed within a year or forfeit his inheritance. But he is not one to bow to the matchmaking mamas of the ton. No, he will marry a lady of his own choosing. And the lady he chooses is the enchanting neighbor living with her family next door. Miss Leonora Carling has beauty, spirit and passion; unfortunately, matrimony is the last thing on her mind... To Leonora, Tristan's kisses are oh-so-tempting, but once bitten, forever shy, she has determinedly turned her back on marriage. But Tristan is a seasoned campaigner who will not accept defeat. And when a mysterious man attempts to scare Leonora and her family from their home, Tristan realizes he's been given the perfect excuse to offer his services - as protector, seducer and, ultimately, husband.

Customer Reviews:

Rather Boring for a Ms. Lauren's Novel...........2007-03-21

I used to think that Ms. Laurens was a brilliant romance novelist & used to buy all of her newly published books, but lately, all of her works R rather boring & uninspired, & unfortunately, this one's no exception either....

Far, far too long.......2006-12-03

This book has the same problem that afflicts most of Stephanie Laurens' books -- it was about a hundred pages too long. The romance plot (Plot A, if you will) just couldn't sustain itself for that long, by that point becoming just absolutely ridiculous that the heroine wouldn't marry (I mean, they've had sex just about every way and everywhere with no thought to birth control -- why NOT marry?), and she didn't have what I feel were suitably compelling reasons to keep resisting (other writers like Eloisa James can write a good "I love you but I can't marry you" reason, Laurens just really can't).

Then, the mystery plot (Plot B) completely died on the table. I had no interest in it, and it just didn't have anything close to the force needed to drive the back end of the story. The book was over on page 300, but it kept going and going for another 100. Don't buy this book -- get it out of the library, and be prepared to put it down early.

great concept awful awful book.......2006-04-16

Who does not love the idea that a bunch of handsome, heroic ex-spies would form a club and just be manly. I know I believed these books would be great especially with all the good reviews. I forced myself through 5 of her books thinking they had to be good with those kind of reviews. Don't do it! All her books contain are love scene after love scene with bad writing, unbelievable and dull plots. I don't know why I thought this book was so bad, I was just so bored. I gave this book two stars only because I loved the idea of the Bar Cynster. For entertaining historical romance you actually enjoy reading try Julia Quinn, Judith McNaught, or Gaelen Foley and save yourself hours that feel wasted.

Bo-oring!!! If you must read, get it from the library. .......2005-07-20

Usually, these sort of books make me stay up all night to finish. I knew that this wasn't going well when I kept thinking, "oh, I should go to sleep" and when I looked at the clock, I realized it was an hour before my bedtime!

The plot is ho-hum and the main characters are quite annoying. Well, Leanora is annoying -- Tristian is not well sketched enough to be annoying. He's just "blah". I had no interest in the two of them getting together - and, frankly, there was no reason for them NOT to get together. The only conflict in the book was the break-ins taking place in their neighborhood and that plot was not compelling at all.

There were certain things I didn't understand -- Leonara just casually walks everywhere by herself, without a chaperone and justifies it by saying she is 26. Well, I'm not history expert but I don't think that the rules were lax on older women back then - most novels set in that period state that only widowed women were allowed freedom to travel without chaperones - and even then it was frowned upon.

The mystery is so-so and not very engrossing - in fact it just detracts from the Tristian/Leanora story. The book is also way too long -- I found myself skimming through pages of dialogue about the mystery, etc.

The reason I have to give it 2 stars is because I did actually finish the book (which I cannot say for all books) and because I enjoyed the premise - 7 men coming back from war and thinking that the Ton is worse than Waterloo.

I will probably may try to read at least one more "Bastion Club" book, but only because I can get them all from my library. I would never buy this set.

THE LADY CHOSEN-Tristan and Leonora-SPOILERS.......2005-02-01

Favorite scene with Leonora-
Going into danger when she wasn't supposed to, then bringing the enemy back to her house to get the truth.

Favorite scene with Tristan-
Confronted by Leonora about the reason he has to marry.

Together-
Going after the enemy at the park in disguise.

What did you like about Leonora-
Her strength and courage, even in the face of danger.

What didn't you like about Leonora-
Her same strength and courage making her unthinking. She can put herself, and the others, in danger by stupidly going where she's not supposed to go. Not wanting to marry. OK with just having sex. Angry with Tristan because of his reason for having to marry.

What did you like about Tristan-
Very intelligent. Able to solve anything. His love for Leonora and his aunts (though he pretends not to want to be near them.)

What didn't you like about Tristan-
Only that he thought of his aunts at first as a duty and a burden.

If I had to cast Leonora, I'd cast Kate Winslet.
If I had to cast Tristan, I'd cast Julian McMahon.

The Lady Chosen & A Gentleman's Honor (2-in-1 edition) (Bastion Club, Books 1 & 2)

Average customer rating:

Definitely and excellent romance, but lacking for plot

The Lady Chosen & A Gentleman's Honor (2-in-1 edition) (Bastion Club, Books 1 & 2)

Manufacturer: Avon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0739437038

Product Description

Six ex-spies return from the Napoleonic Wars to discover the threat of matrimony looming large. In response, they create the Bastion Club, a retreat for exchanging intelligence and escaping from matchmaking mamas. Lady Chosen is the story of Tristan, fourth Earl of Trentham and Leonora Carling, a neighbor to the club. In A Gentleman's Honor (book 2), Lord Anthony Blake meets the widow Alicia Carrington at a soiree just after she has stumbled upon a dead body.

Customer Reviews:

Definitely and excellent romance, but lacking for plot.......2004-10-15

No offense to Laurens, but I'm a new fan and a better plot would've pulled me in more. Spy plots are usually good, but the tediousness of their search, in both books, is distracting when you keep asking yourself when they're going to solve it and move on, not to mention how in almost all spy novels the villain is out to get the heroine. That can definitely wear on your nerves when it's constantly repeated.

On the other hand, the actual romance parts were some of the best I've seen. With Leonora and Tristan, their role reversal of reluctant to marry was a pleasant twist. In this case it was the woman who had to be convinced to get married and Tristan trying to compel her to do so.

Tony and Alicia's romance was a little more standard, bad communication and different ideals, but it all came together in the end. There was a lovely scene in the rain near the end that seemed like the perfect romantic confession setting.

If you like Laurens, go ahead and read this. It'll keep you hooked and wanting to see what happens to the other members of the Bastion Club, I know I can't wait for Charles' story!

America's Twelve Great Women Leaders During the Past Hundred Years As Chosen by the Women of America (Essay index reprint series)

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America's Twelve Great Women Leaders During the Past Hundred Years As Chosen by the Women of America (Essay index reprint series)
Ladies Home Journal Editors & Christian Science Monitor Editors
Manufacturer: Ayer Co Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Genealogy | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0836912020

CALL BACK YESTERDAY: A BOOK OF OLD LETTERS CHOSEN FROM HER COLLECTION WITH SOME MEMORIES OF HER OWN.

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CALL BACK YESTERDAY: A BOOK OF OLD LETTERS CHOSEN FROM HER COLLECTION WITH SOME MEMORIES OF HER OWN.
LADY CHARNWOOD (PREFACE BY SIR JOHN SQUIRE)
Manufacturer: EYRE & SPOTTISWOODE
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SIFD3S

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The Chosen Highway
Lady Blomfield
Manufacturer: George Ronald Pub Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Memoirs | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 085398509X

Product Description

Sara, Lady Blomfield began to take written notes of the spoken chronicles of the ladies of the Family of Bahá'ú'lláh during her first visit to Haifa in 1922. In the first days of mourning for the beloved Master's passing she listened to the Greatest Holy Leaf telling the story of her childhood and youth during the terrible imprisonment and exiles of Bahá'u'lláh, and began what she describes in her immortal book as an attempt to indicate some phases of a great historic moment in the life of Spiritual Civilization, which have not been elsewhere recorded.

No reader of The Chosen Highway or of the description of its author in the Preface by H. M. Balyuzi can fail to appreciate the qualities of warmth, spirit and faith that enabled her first to elicit and then to faithfully chronicle the stories told to her by Bahíyyih Khánum and by Abdu'l-Bahá's wife and daughters. No professional historian would have been taken into their confidence in the same way. Her presence gives us much joy, wrote the wife of Abdu'l-Bahá. We look upon her, not only as a friend, but as one of our own dear family.

These accounts, together with Lady Blomfield s own description of Abdu'l-Bahá s visit to London when she welcomed him as a guest in her home, have ensured the lasting interest of The Chosen Highway since its first publication in 1940.

Frondes Agrestes. Readings in Modern Painters. Chosen at Her Pleasure, By the Author's Friend, The Younger Lady of the Thwaite, Coniston

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Frondes Agrestes. Readings in Modern Painters. Chosen at Her Pleasure, By the Author's Friend, The Younger Lady of the Thwaite, Coniston
John] [Ruskin
Manufacturer: John Wiley & Son
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000QXVB6S

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Frondes Agrestes. Readings in "Modern Painters," Chosen at her pleasure by the author's friend, the Younger Lady of
John Ruskin
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000VUM07K

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The Lady Chosen
Stephanie Laurens
Manufacturer: Avon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000RN6O6Y

The lady who lived on ladders: The story of the famous sculptor who was chosen to make the death mask for Winfield Scott Stratton

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The lady who lived on ladders: The story of the famous sculptor who was chosen to make the death mask for Winfield Scott Stratton
Inez Hunt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0006QJXXS

THE SHATTERED SPHERE - SANCTUARY: The Dead of Winter - Soul of the City - Blood Ties: Hell to Pay The Veiled Lady or A Look at the Normal Folk; Keeping Promises; Armies of the Night; Down by the Riverside; The Color of Magic; The God-Chosen

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THE SHATTERED SPHERE - SANCTUARY: The Dead of Winter - Soul of the City - Blood Ties: Hell to Pay The Veiled Lady or A Look at the Normal Folk; Keeping Promises; Armies of the Night; Down by the Riverside; The Color of Magic; The God-Chosen
Robert Lynn; Abbey, Lynn (editors) (Janet Morris; Andrew Offutt; Robin W. Bailey; C. J. Cherryh; Diane Duane; Diana L. Paxson; Robin Wayne Bailey) Asprin
Manufacturer: Nelson Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GVSULE

Customer Reviews:

Mortal Kombat at it's... almost best........1998-08-24

Mortal Kombat Annihilation, putting the competitive context of the movie aside, is an overall average book. Since it was never said whether the book was based on the video game or the original storyline, I will have to judge it as a regular fan of Mortal Kombat in general. The plus sides were the things put into the book that were missing from the original, such as Sub-Zero and Scorpion actually fighting eachother, instead of teaming up to fight off the good guys. Extra kombatants were finally added into the story, such as Jax, Cyrax, etc. Even some fatalities make appearances in the book. The minus sides, however, are almost equal to the plus sides, for example, Mortal Kombat's popularity is not as much a result of it's fighting content, but of it's controversial blood. Putting it simply, the book has no real bloodshed, taking away from the Kombat genre. Another downside was the climatic ending... I cannot go into detail on that one simply because I don't want to ruin the book for anyone. Let me just say that the ending was great, but it could have been written a little differently... I hope you have a good imagination. In closing, I have to say that Jerome Preisler is an overall average writer who has written a well-done story. This book deserves my 3 stars. May the kombat kontinue...

pretty good book.......1997-11-12

It was a good book. It didn't follow all of the elements of the games correctly, but all in all, it was pretty good.

Mortal Kombat Annihilation: Annihilation

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Mortal Kombat Annihilation: Annihilation
Jerome Preisler
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K3QRGS

Book Description

Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling by John G. Kruis has been a strong-selling Baker title for more than a decade. Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Women is a reference book with a similar format, written to meet the unique and specific needs of women and those who counsel them. This concise, topical resource of Scripture references covers approximately ninety topics that today's women face, including abortion, aging/menopause, bitterness, career, co-dependency, divorce, empty nest, flirtation, hospitality, marriage, past memories, prodigal children, self worth, and an unsaved spouse. Everyone who uses this reference will see how God's Word is relevant to life's problems and sufficient for creating wholeness and healing in women's lives. Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Women was written as a personal reference guide for women, but it is very useful for counselors, pastors, and women's ministry leaders as well. Scripture quotations are from the popular NIV.

Customer Reviews:

A great resource.......2007-03-26

This quick reference book is a great way to help others when they come to you with questions or even for those who have questions themselves. It has helped me tremendously to find the answers in the bible to the concerns that I have and also a way to further my prayer life.

What I Think.......2007-01-04

I like the fact that this book uses scriipture references. The mental health workers in this world all need one of these. It's handy, too. It will be helpful in my bible studies.

Every Christian helper should have and have read this wonderful..........2006-11-22

In a sea of raging opinions, in the Christian helpers ranks, comes a perfect little tool. Whether you are a Christian Psychologist, Senior Pastor of a large church or a lay-volunteer in a tiny assembly, this IS THE must have!!

Practical Tool for Biblical Counseling.......2005-12-26

The third edition of "The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling" uses the NIV, organizing pertinent passages according to topics useful for pastors, counselors, and lay people in helping others to grow spiritually. With this well-organized tools, spiritual friends can develop the art of scriptural exploration where they explore with their "counselees" how a specific passage relates to their lives. They can also use biblical "trialogues" in which the counselor, counselee, and the Holy Spirit through God's Word form a three-way spiritual relationship. John Kruis has produced a must-use volume.

Reviewer: Bob Kellemen, Ph.D., is the author of "Spiritual Friends," "Soul Physicians," "Biblical Psychology," "Martin Luther's Pastoral Counseling," and "Beyond the Suffering: The Story of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direction."

Excellent reference.......2005-09-27

This is an excellent reference. Easy to use with a broad range of topics. I would recommened this for anyone.

Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Youth

Average customer rating:

Great resource.

Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Youth
Patricia A. Miller , and Keith R. Miller
Manufacturer: Baker Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0801066085
Release Date: 2006-08-01

Book Description

Relevant Bible passages made accessible for teens, youth leaders, and parents. Provides biblical references to kick start discussion on issues like drug abuse, cutting, eating disorders, suicide, and sexual purity.

Customer Reviews:

Great resource........2007-08-03

This is a great tool if you work with teenagers. It covers almost every topic that they struggle with in today's society. Many scripture references for each topic. I highly recommend this book for anyone who works with youth in a Christian setting.

Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Women

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Counseling

Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Women
Patricia A. Miller
Manufacturer: Baker Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Spiral-bound

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0801091381
Release Date: 2002-07-01

Book Description

Drugs and alcohol. Self-injury. Eating disorders. Puberty. Suicide. Sexual purity. These are just a few of the challenges facing teens and young adults today. With these and many other issues commanding their attention, parents and youth pastors are left looking for resources they can use to help their kids through the pressures of middle school, high school, and even college. "Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Youth" is just what they need. In a convenient spiral binding, this helpful resource makes the power, encouragement, and hope of Scripture accessible to parents and youth workers as well as teens. A concise, topical guide to the Bible, this book is the perfect tool for providing Scriptural guidance to youth regarding the issues they'll face in their formative years.

Customer Reviews:

Counseling .......2006-09-23

The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling Women is a great book. I have use this in counseling sessions and the needed information was easy to find. I have also purchased this book as gifts for other counselors.

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Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling
John G Kruis
Manufacturer: BAKER BOOK + HOUSE
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000SIFGUS

Average customer rating:

Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling
Patricia A Miller
Manufacturer: BAKER BOOK + HOUSE
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000SIDFJM

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