Average customer rating:
- Great for a First Novel
- Good plot gone wild
- emotionally gripping, but ultimately disappointing
- Inescapbably Captivated......
- The juxtaposition of myth and reality
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The Icarus Girl: A Novel
Helen Oyeyemi
Manufacturer: Nan A. Talese
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 Contemporary
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ASIN: 0385513836
Release Date: 2005-06-21 |
Book Description
“The Icarus Girl is an astonishing achievement.” —Sunday Telegraph (London)
Jessamy “Jess” Harrison is eight years old. Sensitive, whimsical, possessed of an extraordinary and powerful imagination, she spends hours writing haiku, reading Shakespeare, or simply hiding in the dark warmth of the airing cupboard. As the child of an English father and a Nigerian mother, Jess just can’t shake off the feeling of being alone wherever she goes, and the other kids in her class are wary of her tendency to succumb to terrified fits of screaming. Believing that a change from her English environment might be the perfect antidote to Jess’s alarming mood swings, her parents whisk her off to Nigeria for the first time where she meets her mother’s family—including her formidable grandfather.
Jess’s adjustment to Nigeria is only beginning when she encounters Titiola, or TillyTilly, a ragged little girl her own age. To Jess, it seems that, at last, she has found someone who will understand her. But gradually, TillyTilly’s visits become more disturbing, making Jess start to realize that she doesn’t know who TillyTilly is at all.
Helen Oyeyemi draws on Nigerian mythology to present a strikingly original variation on a classic literary theme: the existence of "doubles," both real and spiritual, who play havoc with our perceptions and our lives. Lyrical, haunting, and compelling, The Icarus Girl is a story of twins and ghosts, of a little girl growing up between cultures and colors. It heralds the arrival of a remarkable new talent.
Customer Reviews:
Great for a First Novel.......2007-05-14
Oyeyemi finished this novel before her nineteenth birthday, and it proves to be a hypnotic, thrilling tale. Some of the plot and characterization are a bit flawed, and I was disappointed with the ending, as I thought my fervent reading should have been a bit more generously rewarded. All in all, though, Oyeyemi seems to have a bright future ahead of her. Very absorbing and in some cases really frightening.
Good plot gone wild.......2007-04-29
This story is a little strange
although rather compelling
Right from the start it draws you in
with clever storytelling
Jess is only eight years old
and prone to misbehaving
Her parents think she needs a change
to stop her bouts of raving
Her mom is from Nigeria
Her dad's from the UK
They take a trip to Africa
for their next holiday
She meets her mother's kith and kin
and then there's TillyTilly
Who knows things Jessy doesn't know
but doesn't call her "silly"
When they return to England's shores
along comes her new friend
Although the grown-ups think she's real
she's mostly just pretend
The story takes a spooky twist
a family secret's shared
Her friend's demeanor starts to change
and has Jess really scared
Although the plot is really good
some characters don't flow
The ending's rushed and not that great
there's too much you don't know
The author wrote this as a teen
so I'll cut her some slack
The first part is the meaty bit
The ending's just a snack
(Rated: 3.5 stars)
Amanda Richards, April 28, 2007
emotionally gripping, but ultimately disappointing.......2006-12-07
I was really hopeful as I started to read this book, because I found that I cared about Jess and her family. If the goal of the author was to be completely creepy, she definitely met that goal - I had nightmares all night upon completing the book (and I'm not easily scared). The writing was very good, especially as regards developing characters, but the story was uneven and a bit wandering at times. I was left with several unanswered questions (and not the good kind, where you are OK with not having enough information). I will be giving this book to Goodwill, but I would not be opposed to reading another effort by this author, who clearly has potential...
Inescapbably Captivated.............2006-10-14
I could not put this book down. Immediately connected to the character Jess and her struggles, I felt a unique connection to her. Desperately wanting her to be ok, and wanting the author to provide me more, as she did. While the other characters were a bit underdeveloped, especially her grandfather, the main focus was around Jess as it should have been. Although the end made me feel as though, there is more to this story and there maybe something more the author will have to tell us about Jess.
The juxtaposition of myth and reality.......2006-08-06
Eight-year old Jessamy Harrison has never been like the other girls at her school in Bromley, England. Daughter of a Nigerian mother and a British father, Jessamy is gifted, difficult, even peculiar, given to screaming tantrums and strange, febrile fevers. Jess spends hours alone, reading and drawing, seemingly content in her own company. Early in the novel, the family visits Nigeria, where a bevy of aunts, uncles and cousins await and, most significantly, her maternal grandfather, who believes in the ancestral ways but is a devout Christian. It is on this visit that the solitary Jessamy meets a new friend in an abandoned building, Titiola, whom she calls TillyTilly. Jess is delighted to have a playmate, drawn into the intimacies of young girls sharing secrets. Titiola's true identity is unclear until the family returns home, where she appears once more.
TillyTilly knows all of Jess's secrets, the girls at school who ridicule her difference and lack of social skills, anyone who disturbs or makes Jess angry. But eventually Jessamy realizes that no one can see her new friend; she is invisible. It is at this point that the novel shifts from fiction to fable. Is this girl a figment of Jessamy's imagination, a panacea for her emotional turmoil, or is there a darker source, in the roots of African folklore, where spirits have the power to enter the physical realm? As the disturbing incidents increase and Jess realizes she can't control TillyTilly's appearance or her actions, fear presides, those closest to Jessamy affected by the sinister presence of this sister-friend who does or doesn't really exist. The tale beings to make sense when Jessamy's parents take her to a therapist. It is through the girl's response to Doctor McKenzie that the real image of this tormented child takes shape.
It is TillyTilly who tells the shocking secret of Jessamy's birth: she was born a twin, but her sister did not survive. TillyTilly yearns to take the lost sister's place, but all is twisted around her own identity as the missing half of another twin. TillyTilly wields her power, controlling Jess, whose fright grows in proportion to escalating events. As a twin, Jessamy is a child of three worlds: "this one, the spirit world and the Bush, which is a sort of wilderness of the mind", according to Jessamy's mother. In a desperate struggle for dominance, Jess returns to Nigeria with her family, there to confront her confusion. It is here that the battle for Jessamy's soul is engaged, a fight waged between two realities, the physical and the spiritual, the living and the dead.
The novel was written by Oyeyemi before her nineteenth birthday, capturing both the innocence and the deviousness of an unhappy child who cannot find a comfortable place to inhabit, a place where conflicting emotions are allowed to coexist; instead, folklore mixes with reality, the half-life of the spirits begging recognition. The Icarus Girl is imbued with the language of otherness, a fairy tale in which anything is possible, ancestral rituals in Nigeria, lost twins and imaginary friends part of the warp and weft of the fragile fabric of Jessamy's existence. Luan Gaines/2006.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Black Issues Book Review, published by Thomson Gale on November 1, 2005. The length of the article is 1743 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Me and my shadow: a remarkable first novel from a young Brit haunts the mind and soul.(Helen Oyeyemi)(Critical Essay)
Author: Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu
Publication:
Black Issues Book Review (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 7
Issue: 6
Page: 50(2)
Article Type: Critical Essay
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
Get in on Christy’s Senior Year
The last three books, collected in one page-turning volume, conclude the bestselling Christy Miller series with hope and promise! At the start of her senior year, Christy looks forward to growing closer to Todd, but her friendship with Katie is on the rocks, threatening the year she was certain would be a time to cherish. With Sweet Dreams comes the start of a romantic summer. She’d be entirely swept off her feet if it wasn’t for the most difficult decision she’s ever had to make. And in A Promise Is Forever, Christy discovers foreign adventure is just her cup of tea. Follow Christy Miller as she stays true to her identity in Christ, drawing closer to God for help in realizing her dreams and dealing with her disappointments.
Whether you’re meeting her for the first time or have known her for years—
Christy Is a Forever Friend
A Time to Cherish
For Labor Day weekend, Christy Miller is on a houseboat at Lake Shasta. What could be better? She’s about to find out! Before they know it, both Christy and her best friend, Katie, are receiving some unexpected male attention. But somehow these best friends are at odds just when they should be having the most fun together. Christy soon realizes that sometimes you have to stand back and let people make their own decisions, even when they’re headed for a fall. And although life is never perfect, this is definitely a time to cherish.
Sweet Dreams
Christy Miller’s senior year is delicious, especially the time she spends with Todd. But her best friend, Katie, is struggling—she’s realized she needs to break up with Michael. It’s not easy! Fortunately both Doug and Disneyland help Katie to cheer up. Christy is learning to let go and get out of the way so that her friends can become who they’re meant to be...even when it jeopardizes her own sweet dreams.
A Promise Is Forever
Christy Miller’s going to Europe! It’s a three-week missions trip with Doug, Katie, and Tracy. First stop: London for some sightseeing, and then a castle in the English countryside for group training. Christy is so excited to be headed for Belfast with her friends—despite some tension among them. But when plans go topsy-turvy at the last minute, Christy must face her fears and realize that some things are more important than her own comfort...and that even when she can’t foresee the end result, a promise truly is forever.
Story Behind the Book
“The Christy Miller series was actually born when a group of thirteen-year-olds challenged me to write a novel. I’d been questioning the content of their favorite books when they said, ‘Why don’t you write a book for us?’ I told them no, I only wrote picture books. But they persisted: ‘How hard could it be? We’ll even tell you what to write! We want a love story with teenagers at the beach.’ And there you go. Summer Promise first released seventeen years ago and is now translated into five languages. I continue to hear from readers all over the world, many girls saying that they gave their life to Christ after reading Summer Promise . I love that!” —Robin Jones Gunn
Customer Reviews:
christy miller series.......2007-09-01
My 19 year old daughter loves these series. She's been reading them since she was 10 years old and still thoroughly enjoys them.
The Christy Miller novel that fans have been waiting for.......2007-06-27
Christy Miller has been waiting years for longtime love interest Todd to make a commitment. In A TIME TO CHERISH, the 10th installment in Robin Jones Gunn's Christy Miller series, Christy and her friends set off on a summer adventure onboard a houseboat, which just might help the on-again off-again couple take the next step in their relationship.
Sure enough, the romantic scenery and lots of pushing from Christy's overbearing Aunt Marti do the trick, and Christy and Todd finally declare themselves a couple. Naturally, Christy could not be more excited. As she revels in the joy of being able to call Todd her boyfriend, plans for the future go into overdrive. While Aunt Marti begins thinking ahead to college degrees and their wedding, Christy attempts to simply slow down and enjoy the moment.
However, even this proves to be tough, as best friends Katie and Doug do not necessarily share in her enthusiasm. Doug has had a crush on Christy for years, so her relationship with Todd has put an end to his hopes. And while Katie is happy for the new couple, it only reminds her that she is still missing a significant other in her life. Determined for Katie to be just as happy as she is, Christy begins a series of disastrous attempts to set her up with Doug.
As it turns out, though, Katie might not need Christy's help at all. When they return to school for their senior year, Katie immediately becomes infatuated with an intriguing exchange student from Europe, and he is certainly returning her attention. Christy tries to warn Katie that the relationship might be dangerous, but Katie refuses to listen to her and their friendship reaches a breaking point. Is Christy just jealous, or is Katie really heading for trouble?
A TIME TO CHERISH is the Christy Miller novel that fans have been waiting for. After nine books filled with "will they or won't they" drama, Christy and Todd finally decide to make it official and begin dating. Avid readers of the series no doubt will be relieved to see the long, drawn-out drama come to an end. The book also manages to deal with complicated relationships between family, friends and significant others in a realistic and positive way. At the same time, Gunn leaves A TIME TO CHERISH with an open ending that certainly will have readers eager for more adventures with Christy Miller.
--- Reviewed by Jennifer Crosby
Best volume yet!.......2007-03-28
This is my favorite volume of the young Christy Miller books. I cried over the last two so much. I love when Christy and Todd are together, they're so perfect for each other! I've read all of the Christy books, and all of them made me want a hero like Todd.
Incredible!.......2007-03-25
No two ways about it, I love these books, and having a three-in-one version makes it all the better. This book contains the concluding volumes in the Christy Miller series, and it's interesting to see how she's progressed from Summer Promise.
In a Time to Cherish, Christy's relationship with Todd couldn't be better as they offically define that they're boyfriend-girlfriend. However, Christy's relationship with her best friend, Katie, on the the other hand, isn't going so well when Katie, desperate for a boyfriend and feeling left out, begins dating Michael, a non-Christian. This story was enthralling, and included some very sweet moments between Christy and Todd. It really inspired me to 'hold out for that hero.'
In Sweet Dreams, after Katie's painful break-up with Michael comes slow healing, and Christy's beginning to think that everything is good again. However, she has no idea that she'll soon be faced with one of the hardest decisions she's ever had to face. I cried at the ending of this book, yet it hit me hard, making me wonder if I could make the same sacrifice as Christy did.
A Promise is Forever would have to be one of my favorite books in the whole series. A large period of time has elapsed since Sweet Dreams, and we find Christy traveling to England for a mission's trip with Doug who's her new boyfriend, Tracy, and Katie. She expects the trip to be a good way to serve God, but she doesn't anticipate any of the speed bumps along the way, such as conlict in her group and trouble with Doug, but most of all, being sent to Spain to serve, away from the rest of her friends. This book will have you in tears at it's touching ending. A fun thing was that we're introduced to Sierra Jensen, Robin Jones Gunn's next book series. Having read the Sierra Jensen books already, it was interesting to see Sierra from Christy's point of view.
Check these books out!
Christy Miller Collection, vol. 4.......2006-06-26
I love this series. Robin Jones Gunn fills each book with drama, adventure, romance, and mystery. Every time I get one of Gunn's books, I can't put it down. I would definitely reccomend this book and all her other books to any teen girl.
Average customer rating:
- Outstanding
- A Sweet Romance
- Something lacking?
- Average
- Spencer Perfection
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A Promise to Cherish
LaVyrle Spencer
Manufacturer: Jove
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0515138576 |
Book Description
Previously published with Forsaking All Others in Jove's A Heart Speaks, A Promise to Cherish is a story about falling in love, and finding the courage to follow your dreams.
Starting life over in a new city, Lee Walker falls head over heels for her new boss. Now, she must choose between protecting her bruised and battered heart--or trusting it to a man whose quiet strength just might heal it.
Customer Reviews:
Outstanding.......2007-06-26
This book is wonderful, exciting to the very end. Like all of LaVyrle Spencer's books, a must.
A Sweet Romance.......2005-09-14
The pace of this book is quite fast - the entire book is focused on the romance of Lee & Sam (the couple). Unlike most romance novels - there is no real background plot. The story deals with how Lee Walker, a divorced mother of two boys (they don't live with her) struggles with working in a male-dominated industry (she is a construction estimator) with a pig of a male boss. She meets Sam Walker, a man who co-owns his own construction firm when the two accidentally swap suitcases at the airport on a business trip unbeknowst to either of them. She meets him later on when they end up bidding for the same construction job. Recognising each other's names - they each collect back their respective suitcases after having opened them with surpise earlier (and investigated the contents!). With a massive chip on her shoulder about her Indian heritage and lost confidence in what she believes as her failure as a wife and mother, Lee is antagonistic towards Sam Walker from the moment they meet. Suspicious of his motives, dubious of his character after discovering a porno mag in his suitcase Lee has no intention of giving Sam the time of the day. Sam sets out to charm her and slowly but surely wins her over. After being forced to quit her job, she is offered a position from Sam at his firm. Wary, but aware the deal is a generous one, Lee accepts with reservations. After all, he is by all indications, interested in pursuing a relationship with her. Can she take the risk of an office romance? Will she risk her wary heart again? Can she trust his motives? Lee struggles with her personal issues as Sam ardently pursues her headlong into a relationship.
The story is a good one but is left with an unanswered question which I'm sure many a reader would like to know the answer. After the fast pace of the book, while there is a happy ending, the reader is feeling incomplete because of it. The ending should have been better constructed. It is rather light-hearted and while that is okay, it would have been nice to have a deeper scene where the two exchange tender words as well, and reaffirm their love.
Something lacking?.......2005-07-23
Generally I found this book a very good read. I just felt at the end the reader is left hanging. As anothers have mentioned the book maybe just too short to develop the plot fully.
Average.......2005-05-17
I have read almost all of Lavyrle Spencer's books and, in comparison to her other writings, this one leaves something to be desired. Keep in mind that I am only comparing this to Ms. Spencer's other books, not to all other romance novels in general.
I just felt that the character's relationship was not as well developed as those of some of her other storylines. By the time they have declared their love for each other, Sam and Lee have barely spent any time together. It is hard to conveive that they could have fallen in love over nothing more that a short weekend. On top of that, Sam seems so nonchalant and unaffected by Lee that it is a surprise that he has any real feelings for her at all, much less that they apparently run so deep. As the male lead, he is so different from any of the other's in the books that I have read by Lavyrle. He comes across as almost unpassionate about anything that might be developing with Lee. Part of the problem might be the length of the book -- most of her others are fairly long and this one was about half the normal length. By far, not the worst romance novel I have read but, this book cannot even begin to compare to the powerhouses that are "The Gamble", "Vows", and "Seperate Beds".
Spencer Perfection.......2005-01-20
LaVyrle Spencer is perfect in her craft. She brings you into a story from moment one and leads you through the next 6 months or so of a person's life with no detail left unturned.
Lee and Sam meet on a business trip in a very funny way and their relationship takes off. Spencer fills you in on the details of their life, their homes, their jobs and their relationship unlike any other writer I've ever read. I adore reading her books. This one is set in the early 80's and is so precise in it's decor and style of that genre. The intmacy is hot yet done in the classy style of Spencer and appears at all the right times. Not too much, not too little.
Again, she takes all the right elements and blends them together the way we want to read it.
Buy this book. It's definitely re-read material.
Book Description
A volume containing three of the author's early romances: "Separate Beds" - the story of a marriage of convenience; "Forsaking All Others" - set in the fashion world and "A Promise to Cherish" - a woman's attempt to make it in the man's world of construction.
Customer Reviews:
Heart warming love strories.......2000-07-02
All the strories actually are heart warming ones, but the last two are spoiled by the description of foolish behavior (too scared to trust a new love) that seems ridiculous at a few last chapters, but in overall, they are nice to be read. Separate Beds tells the story of a 19-year-old girl who got pregnant by a rich lad in a blind date, and eventually married to him under circumtances to save his reputation. They made a deal, but the unexpected arrival of love and the child at last joined them in a real marriage. Forsaking is a story of a female photographer cheated by her lover, also her model, vow not to fall in love again, but did fall for her book cover model. Fortunately this one is worthy, but she was still haunted by her ex that she behaved foolishly, but at the end they are united again. A Promise tells the story of a divorced woman working in man world (construction) to earn money to provide her kids, got the wrong suitcase in airport, and ended falling in love with the suitcase owner although they did quarreled at the first and a few chapters at the end because she was to afraid to tell him that she had kids, but true love conquered everything, even her foolish acts.
Average customer rating:
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A Promise to Cherish
Manufacturer: Second Chance At Love
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000H9YQ3Q |
Book Description
A new era of exciting adventures and shocking revelations continues to unfold, as the legendary Star Wars saga sweeps forward into astonishing new territory.
Civil war looms as the fledgling Galactic Alliance confronts a growing number of rebellious worlds–and the approaching war is tearing the Skywalker and Solo families apart. Han and Leia return to Han’s homeworld, Corellia, the heart of the resistance. Their children, Jacen and Jaina, are soldiers in the Galactic Alliance’s campaign to crush the insurgents.
Jacen, now a complete master of the Force, has his own plans to bring order to the galaxy. Guided by his Sith mentor, Lumiya, and with Luke’s young son Ben at his side, Jacen embarks on the same path that his grandfather Darth Vader once did. And while Han and Leia watch their only son become a stranger, a secret assassin entangles the couple with a dreaded name from Han’s past: Boba Fett. In the new galactic order, friends and enemies are no longer what they seem. . . .
Customer Reviews:
Still worth the read. .......2007-09-18
Even though the parts of the book where Fett is the narrator can at times read like bad fanfiction this is still a worthy addition to the series. The only thing that drags the book down for me are the parts where Fett has to talk about his feelings.
There is a confrontation one bad guy gets killed but in a nine book saga you know that this will not be enough to stop the war or the manipulations of Jacen's new Sith teacher. For as many problems as I have with the pacing I like when they write the books in cycles it makes for a stronger narration.
I am in fact liking this series better then the New Jedi Order. The books in that series too often focused on the brutality of the Vong for no other reason then to add shock value,
Interesting questions are still being raised about the nature of the light side v. dark side of the force maybe Jacen is beginning the downward slope to Sith and maybe he isn't. Untimely the only way to tell is to continue to read more of this series.
Moderately Entertaining.......2007-08-09
The primary focus of this book is on character development. Traviss does a nice job of continuing Jacen's progression towards the dark side. The continuity with Betrayal is very good in this regard. Everything that Jacen does is believable, given his arrogance, and I like the way the author explores Jacen's continuous rationalizations for his behavior. Ben's character development is also excellent. He is beginning to think on his own, and I have no doubt that he will become a central player in the SW saga by the end of this series.
The book spends a lot of time focusing on Boba Fett. As with Jacen and Ben, Traviss does an excellent job of exploring the motivations of Fett, revealing him to be an almost pitiable characater. Personally, though, I have never found the Fett character especially interesting. Moreover, it isn't clear right now how Fett and the Mandalorians fit into the primary storyline. Fett seems more like a pet project of Traviss'. Hopefully, Fett will become a key actor at the conclusion of this series to justify the heavy attention given to him in this book.
The biggest downside of the book is that it is relatively low on the action scale. The action scenes are largely limited to Jacen and Ben rounding up the Correllians. The endless meetings and conversations slow down the pace considerably. Another HUGE point of objection for me is the incredible weakness of Luke's character. Instead of going with his gut and pulling Ben away from Jacen, he simply shies away from confrontation, even though he knows the direction that things are headed. For the Jedi Grandmaster, he sure seems impotent when he allows Jacen and even Ben to walk all over him. Luke is the wisest and most powerful man in the galaxy, and for him to appear so weak seems unbelievable. Hopefully, Luke will show some strength later in the series (the cover for Inferno seems to suggest as much).
Overall, this book deserves 3 stars. Despite the criticisms levelled at this series, I like the general direction of LoF. The first two installments are very polished; the level of prose is excellent for mass-market science fiction. I look forward to reading Tempest, which I hear has more action.
Disappointed.......2007-08-04
I really enjoyed the first book in the series but had a tough time with the 2nd. I just didn't feel the characters hit home at all. I ended up speeding thru the last half of the book so I would have the content but really didn't enjoy reading it. I hope the next ones better.
Inscrutable SW ethics strikes back.......2007-07-28
As other reviews have mentioned, the overall premise for this series is flawed to begin with, but the authors had before them the opportunity to explore the dark side of the Force in a nearly unique way in Jacen Solo. Jacen's exploration of the dark side could have been a reflection of the training that he received from non-Jedi force adepts, and we could have seen the dark side used by someone with both intelligence and a firm grasp of rational ethics and morality.
This does not happen in the book.
Instead we see a character who undertakes a series of rational and justifiable, if distasteful, political actions, who suddenly goes off the deep end by brutally killing a prisoner as a result of his interrogation methods, which consist of using the Force to bash the prisoner's head onto a table. Utterly confusing and irrational considering the character's telepathic and precognitive abilities, this scene serves to reinforce only the inanity of Star Wars ethics and character development.
One can always recognize a poor book by characters who act out of character. Character change is fine, when it follows a sensible progression, but when an ethical character suddenly turns psychopath, or a mass murderer suddenly learns compassion and empathy, suspension of disbelief shatters.
Unfortunately, Star Wars authors are constrained by the arbitrary and absolute decree that any dark side user *must* inevitably be not ally, but enemy and betrayer. Until a crack is put in that restriction, until it is conceivable for a dark sider to be moral or ethical (or even rational, in this case), Star Wars cannot be a vehicle for coherent exploration of human nature.
Bloodlines Reviews??.......2007-07-16
I see that the reviews for Bloodlines are STILL messed up!
Is anybody paying attention to this problem at AMAZON??
Product Description
Editorial Reviews
Book Description
A new era of exciting adventures and shocking revelations continues to unfold, as the legendary Star Wars saga sweeps forward into astonishing new territory.
Civil war looms as the fledgling Galactic Alliance confronts a growing number of rebellious worldsand the approaching war is tearing the Skywalker and Solo families apart. Han and Leia return to Hans homeworld, Corellia, the heart of the resistance. Their children, Jacen and Jaina, are soldiers in the Galactic Alliances campaign to crush the insurgents.
Customer Reviews:
Star Wars, the choice of the next generation.......2007-08-05
Fett has Always been a favorite of mine. He's also woven into each of the characters backstories so that you'll inevietably run across him. He's old now. Heck, Han and Luke are OLD. I enjoy how this series seems to be headed, which would be aptly named Legacy of the Force, in the direction I'm hoping. A changing of the guard. With heirs to many characters being well developed, and I liked Traviss' development of Ben in this, as well as references to 'older' characters, this book is a great story. You do have to have some background, though, as not having read the Dark Nest Trilogy, I've found myself googling alot. That's in both Betrayal and Bloodlines. Anakin Skywalker still plays an active role in the galaxy, and Han/Luke/Leia and even Mara will pass their Legacies on...so, old fans like me will still dream about the golden years...but a new generation of fans can grow with their characters, like we did ours. I hope the series is seen in THAT light, as I've found many readers seem confused.
Customer Reviews:
A "must have" book.......2007-01-09
My favorite Ellsworth Kalas book!! I loaned my first copy to several friends over the years until the last one did not return it. Because reading the "backside" of these parables gave me present-day insight to people, personalities and predicaments, I had to purchase a new copy. Needless to say, this one is not for loan. I direct friends to Amazon where they can purchase a copy of their own.
The "Backside" books give a different persepctive from the one we have always learned. They exemplify that there are two sides to every story; and, I have learned from Ellsworth Kalas to try to see all participants in a parable and consider their feelings. This has also been helpful in my own life.
I recommend all the "Backside" books.
Creative sermon spark-ers.......2006-04-24
Because the parables are stories with the kind of twist that can completely undo our usual ways of living our lives, I appreciated Pastor Kalas' attempt to tell us the story of these stories from a fresh angle. The 12 chapters in this volume are basically sermons. This, in fact, is the value of the book. If you are a pastor who has gotten a little too predictable in the way you create messages, this book will help you climb outside the 3 alliterated points box in a thoughtful, application-focused way.
Though I didn't find it especially helpful when I was writing my own books on the parables (Parablelife: Living the stories Jesus told in real time - FaithWalk, 2005 and Uprooted: Growing a Parablelife from the Inside Out, scheduled for release in late 2006) in terms of information, I did find inspiration in Kalas' pastoral approach and welcoming tone.
An easy read and study.......2004-11-12
This book offers an easy read and a great study. The book allows you to think of other perspectives, and is great at breaking the uniformite so many were raised to follow.
A Different Look at the Parables.......2001-09-25
With so many different books written about the parables, Kalas takes the reader on a lesser travelled route. Have you ever wondered what we can learn from the victim in the story of the Good Samaritan? Have you ever realized how many times the parables end with a joyous celebration? Have you ever asked what if God threw a party and no one came? If you have never considered any of thse questions, but find them to be intriquing, then definitly pick up this book and prepare yourself for a strong, thought-provoking set of studies. I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a refreshing take on learning new insights into the parables.
Wonderful guide for 12 week series of adult lessons.......1999-08-10
Mr. Kalas has the class yearning for more. Open your eyes to a different angle without losing the original or main message of your favoriate parables.
Books:
- The In-Between World of Vikram Lall
- The Last Crossing: A Novel
- The Miracle Life of Edgar Mint: A Novel
- The Moor's Last Sigh
- The O. Henry Prize Stories 2005 (Prize Stories (O Henry Awards))
- The Oxford Book of Jewish Stories
- The Purloined Clinic: Selected Writings
- The Pursuit of Love & Love in a Cold Climate: Two Novels
- The Sacrifice of Tamar (Readers Guide Editions)
- The Summer He Didn't Die
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