A Gentleman in Charleston and the Manner of His Death

A Gentleman in Charleston and the Manner of His Death
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A Gentleman in Charleston and the Manner of His Death
William P. Baldwin
Manufacturer: The History Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1596290870

Product Description

In his latest novel, Southern writer William Baldwin calls upon the true story of famed Charleston newspaper editor Frank Dawson to tell a tale fraught with romance and intrigue. Dawsona larger-than-life personality revered throughout the nineteenth-century Southwas murdered while defending his childrens governess from the advances of an unscrupulous doctor who lived next door.

Baldwin artfully intertwines details pulled from the personal accounts of those involved in the dramatic series of events with his own inimitable prose. The result is a captivating meld of fact and fiction, set in a tumultuous period in the history of the Holy City.

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As good as it shall be

Tallgrass Prairie Wildflowers 2

great book!
Tallgrass Prairie Wildflowers 2: A Field Guide to Common Wildflowers and Plants of the Prairie Midwest (Falcon Guides Wildflowers)
Doug Ladd
Manufacturer: Falcon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Flowers | Plants | Biological Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
General | Plants | Biological Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books
Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Prairie Plants of the Midwest: Identification and Ecology

Invasive Plants of the Upper Midwest: An Illustrated Guide to Their Identification and Control

Prairie in Your Pocket: A Guide to Plants of the Tallgrass Prairie (Bur Oak Guide)

A Practical Guide to Prairie Reconstruction

The Tallgrass Restoration Handbook: For Prairies, Savannas, and Woodlands (The Science and Practice of Ecological Restoration Series)

ASIN: 0762737441

Book Description

Tallgrass Prairie Wildflowers is the ultimate field guide to wildflowers of the midwestern tallgrass prairie. This valuable reference enables all prairie enthusiasts to quickly and accurately identify hundreds of tallgrass prairie plants. Fully revised and updated to reflect new trends in conservation and plant identification, this remains the classic guidebook for prairie enthusiasts.

Customer Reviews:

As good as it shall be.......2007-10-09

As true virgin prairies are certinly rare, so rare that it takes an extrodinary effort to find one, I have been blessed. Previous to buying this book,I,on a whim decided to visit Hayden Prairie, in Iowa, listed in this book, some of the photos may have been from there. I visited and took pics with my new camera with the macro and ring flash(my book is coming)but didn't know what the photos were of. This book will straighten you out on the ID section of flowers. I was disappointed on the lack of leaf differentiation-palmate vs pinnate in the leaf ID. I have found flowers in the undergrowth that were not covered in this book. Things like this cannot be restored. Stand on a hill at Hayden Prairie, look around, and try not to be depressed, as the vista used to be as dynamic and intricate as what you are standing on.

Tallgrass Prairie Wildflowers 2.......2007-10-05

This is an excellent field guide. Great photos to help with identification. I would purchase it again without hesitation!

great book!.......2007-01-12

This book is full of wonderful information and great pictures. It has helped me identify many plants and weeds. I especially love the section on weeds that seems absent from many other books.

Average customer rating:

Think Twice!
Not my Favorite Henley novel...
Mmm...
NOT GOOD!
eh its average

The Falcon and the Flower
Virginia Henley
Manufacturer: Dell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Romance | Subjects | Books

General | Historical | Romance | Subjects | Books

General | Romance | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

The Dragon and the Jewel
The Raven and the Rose
The Hawk and the Dove
The Pirate and the Pagan
Tempted

ASIN: 0440204291
Release Date: 1989-08-05

Book Description

Astride her white palfrey, surrounded by a nimbus of silver-blond hair, Jasmine was a vision to strike a man mute with desire. But the violet-eyed love child of King Richard's half brother had vowed that no man would ever rule her heart. Until she saw the face of the Devil himself in her crystal ball--the dark, brooding knight who would kill to make her his own. She would risk a dissolute court and a maddened, lustful king to keep destiny at bay, anything to keep her from the hypnotic eyes and burning caresses of...The Falcon.

A wickedly handsome warrior who lived by blood and the sword, Falcon de Burgh wanted to wed no woman--until he laid eyes on the exquisite Jasmine, and he vowed to possess her, to teach her all the wondrous ways a man could love a woman, no matter what it might take to conquer her fiery, unyielding heart. Falcon knew only blind, reckless passion as he swore to tame, at the risk of his life...The Flower.

Customer Reviews:

Think Twice!.......2007-09-27

Illegitimate Jasmine is THE FLOWER. Falcon de Burgh is THE FALCON. As the heroine, Jasmine spends most of the book changing her mind. She is childish, she hisses, she snaps, she hates Falcon, she marries Falcon, she vows distance, she fantasizes, she wants, she changes her mind, she hates! What can I say? "Jasmine is a difficult heroine to like!" What an understatement!

While the hero isn't much better - as heros go - at least Falcon de Burgh deserves some credit in dealing with the very annoying Jasmine! That is . . . until . . . he strikes her!

Unfortunately, this is my first Virginia Henley book. I only hope THE FALCON AND THE FLOWER is not the normal Henley standard!

MaryGrace Meloche.

Not my Favorite Henley novel..........2006-11-09

I agree with many other readers, the heroine Jasmine is very annoying. I was very irratated by the constant references to her being so "delicate" and "ethereal." She is small and petite, I think it is obvious. I thought the hero Falcon was ok. I did like how her gave her a run for her money by actually bedding someone else. You almost wish he ended up with her instead of Jasmine.

I was very disappointed because I loved "The Dragon and the Jewel" and "The Marriage Prize." I only read this book because I had read the other two and thought I was missing something. I don't even think it set a very good stage for the other novels.

I love Virginia Henley but, this one is just not on the same level as the others that she has written.

Mmm..........2006-07-31

I'm undecided.I don't like it and I don't hate it.Falcon was a pretty good hero up to the point where he hit Jasmine.Jasmine was totally unsuitable to be the wife of a great lord she had no knowledge of the duties of a chatelaine.Falcon had other suitable women to choose but he wanted no one else but Jasmine because he was strongly attracted to her.To give Jasmine some sympathy she did not want to marry him she was practically forced.She didn't like him and that transferred to when he tried to make love to her she froze him out.Normally hero and heroine can't keep their hands off each other once they make love for the first time.This a first for her where the heroine does not melt at the hero's touch.Falcon even got to the point where he was so desperate for a spark of desire or affection from that he went from wishing that she could love him to wishing that she desired then finally thinking that he would be happy if he could make her climax when he made love to her.I felt somewhat sympathetic towards him then.But my feelings for Jasmine remained ambivalent throughout the novel

NOT GOOD!.......2005-08-17

OK, I usually enjoy reading Henley's books because of the strong-willed heroines. But, the heroine in this book is simply childish! Plus for 75% of the book it appears that she just REALLY DOESN'T LIKE HIM, for no reason too. For most of the book she never expresses any attraction to him, not even secretly in her own mind. Reading the book was really stressful because it was entirely evident that the heroine harbored no feelings for the hero until 3/4 of the way into the book she gets pregnant then all of a sudden she loves him. It really comes out of nowhere. Then on top of this, the King is a pervert and so is his 14 year-old Queen. The shenanigans that go on at Court are ridiculous and take up too much of the book along with shallow battles, which last only for a paragraph or 2, that are fought over land/castles. The other characteres have no depth. The hero is good enough, I suppose. But the heroine is just completely absurd. I could not beleive how childish she was. She even really thought he was the Devil for a while and then her silly magic...PLEASE! Not to mention, when she finally did make love with the hero, she would "withdraw her spirit and mind" from the act and actually not enjoy it! If you are looking for her to come around, you'll have to read at least 75% of the book.

eh its average.......2005-01-27

i was expecting something more from the book. i knew that it was lacking something when i got half way done. so i was rather dissapointed

Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers: A Guide to Common Wildflowers of the Coastal Regions of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Northeastern Florida (Falcon Guide)

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Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers: A Guide to Common Wildflowers of the Coastal Regions of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Northeastern Florida (Falcon Guide)
Gil Nelson
Manufacturer: Falcon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

East Gulf Coastal Plain Wildflowers: A Field Guide to the Wildflowers of the East Gulf Coastal Plain, Including Southwest Georgia, Northwest Florida, Southern ... Southeastern Louisiana (Wildflower Series)
Field Guide to the Rare Plants of Georgia
Wildflowers of Georgia
A Guide to the Wildflowers of South Carolina
Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Wormsloe Foundation Publications, No 20)

ASIN: 0762734337

Book Description

The savannas, pinelands, and hardwood forests of the Atlantic Coastal Plain constitute one of the eastern United States' richest wildflower destinations. Botanists, naturalists, and wildflower enthusiasts alike are drawn to the region for its stunning array of flowering plants and for its extended blooming season. Few regions of the country match its ecological diversity. Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers will serve as a guide to the botanical treasures that can be found in this fascinating landscape. Perfect for both novice and professional, this valuable reference will enhance any visitor's next journey into the Atlantic Coastal Plain. This easy-to-use guide features: detailed descriptions and color photos of more than 300 plants, an introduction to the area's habitats and ecology, a tough, water-resistant cover and extradurable binding, made to withstand field use, a glossary of botanical terms, and a primer on plant characteristics.

Tahoe Wildflowers: A Month-by-Month Guide to Wildflowers in the Tahoe Basin and Surrounding Areas (Falcon Guide)

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Tahoe Wildflowers: A Month-by-Month Guide to Wildflowers in the Tahoe Basin and Surrounding Areas (Falcon Guide)
Laird R Blackwell
Manufacturer: Falcon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
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Wildflowers of the Sierra Nevada and Central Valley
Sierra Nevada Wildflowers
Great Basin Wildflowers: A Guide to Common Wildflowers of the High Deserts of Nevada, Utah, and Oregon (Wildflower Series)

ASIN: 0762743697

Book Description

With gorgeous, full-color photography and simple, easy-to-use identifying descriptions, this is a guide to nearly 300 of the most common wildflowers of the Lake Tahoe region, organized by the month in which they are most likely to bloom. This book includes driving and hiking directions and tips on the best places to find displays of wildflowers throughout the year.

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Wild Flowers of America (Tiny Folio)
Mary Vaux Walcott , Harold W. Rickett , and Dorothy Falcon Platt
Manufacturer: Abbeville Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1558595643

Amazon.com

Using the famous full-color paintings of Mary Vaux Walcott as illustrations, this tiny gem of a book depicts 400 wildflowers and plants from all over the country. Some were chosen for their beauty or rareness, others because they are old (and familiar) friends. Either way, Walcott's exquisite paintings capture the delicacy and diversity of America's flowering plants. Wildflowers of America also provides an index with distinguishing characteristics to aid in identification, making this the perfect pocket companion for hikes and nature walks.

Wild flowers of America: 400 flowers in full color based on paintings by Mary Vaux Walcott, with additional paintings by Dorothy Falcon Platt ; edited ... and detailed descriptions by H. W. Rickett

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Wild flowers of America: 400 flowers in full color based on paintings by Mary Vaux Walcott, with additional paintings by Dorothy Falcon Platt ; edited ... and detailed descriptions by H. W. Rickett
Mary Vaux Walcott
Manufacturer: Crown Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

A Traveler's Guide to Roadside Wild Flowers Shrubs and Trees of the U S Describing Over 700 Plants in Flower

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A Traveler's Guide to Roadside Wild Flowers Shrubs and Trees of the U S Describing Over 700 Plants in Flower
Kathryn S (editor) Taylor
Manufacturer: Farrar Straus and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NQ5PHO

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Wild Flowers of America
H.W. Rickett
Manufacturer: Crown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000JQM5DA

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Wild Flowers of America. 400 Flowers in Full Color Based on Paintings By Mary Vaux Walcott, With Additional Paintings By Dorothy Falcon Platt; Edited With an Introd. and Detailed Descriptions By H.W. Rickett
Mary Vaux Walcott
Manufacturer: Crown Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NBJC32

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Wild Flowers of America: 400 Flowers in Full Color

Manufacturer: Crown Publishers, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OSD4W4

Return to the Whorl: The Final Volume of 'The Book of the Short Sun' (Book of the Short Sun)
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A double-edged sword: rewards and frustrations of Wolfe's Sun series

True 21st Century Literature

Challenging--but as brilliant as it gets

A powerful capstone

Don't give up after one reading!

Return to the Whorl: The Final Volume of 'The Book of the Short Sun' (Book of the Short Sun)
Gene Wolfe
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Wolfe, Gene | ( W ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Adventure | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

In Green's Jungles (Book of the Short Sun, Book 2)

On Blue's Waters: Volume One of 'The Book of the Short Sun' (Book of the Short Sun)

Epiphany of the Long Sun: Calde of the Long Sun and Exodus from the Long Sun (Book of the Long Sun, Books 3 and 4) Epiphany of the Long Sun: Calde of the Long Sun and Exodus from the Long Sun (Book of the Long Sun, Books 3 and 4)

Litany of the Long Sun: Nightside the Long Sun and Lake of the Long Sun (Book of the Long Sun, Books 1 and 2) Litany of the Long Sun: Nightside the Long Sun and Lake of the Long Sun (Book of the Long Sun, Books 1 and 2)

The Urth of the New Sun: The sequel to 'The Book of the New Sun' (New Sun)

ASIN: 0312873646

Book Description

Gene Wolfe's Return to the Whorl is the third volume, after On Blue's Waters and In Green's Jungles, of his ambitious SF trilogy The Book of the Short Sun . . . It is again narrated by Horn, who has embarked on a quest in search of the heroic leader Patera Silk. Horn has traveled from his home on the planet Blue, reached the mysterious planet Green, and visited the great starship, the Whorl and even, somehow, the distant planet Urth. But Horn's identity has become ambiguous, a complex question embedded in the story, whose telling is itself complex, shifting from place to place, present to past. Perhaps Horn and Silk are now one being. Return to the Whorl brings Wolfe's major new fiction, The Book of the Short Sun, to a strange and seductive climax.

Download Description

Gene Wolfe is back with another multiple volume novel, the Book of the Short Sun, that follows the narrator, Horn, who appeared in the earlier Book of the Long Sun, as he journeys across two planets and returns to the Whorl, the giant ship still inhabited by the civilization that brought settlers to the new worlds, Blue and Green. This three-book work is now generally considered the best thing Wolfe has written in nearly twenty years, maybe the best yet.

Customer Reviews:

A double-edged sword: rewards and frustrations of Wolfe's Sun series.......2007-08-19

I've finally finished reading the last of Wolfe's twelve Sun books. I've been waiting until I finished them all before writing a review, since they stand as one monumental, labyrinthine sf/fantasy epic adventure (although the New Sun books could be read by themselves). Here's what someone considering reading these books should know, in my view. The series is uniquely both rewarding and frustrating. The rewards come from Wolfe's unique genius at creating complex, mysterious narratives. The characters are well-realized, although it's hard to form strong emotional attachments to them, especially in the Short Sun trilogy, because of the disjointed narrative. This isn't to say, though, that I didn't feel for the main characters and was sad when it was over. For anyone who doubts that these books bear all sorts of interpretation, see the discussion forum at: www.urth.net/urth/ . There are many spoilers in those discussions, so don't visit that internet site unless you've read all the Sun books or are willing to read spoilers.

But the series is also frustrating--especially the Short Sun and Long Sun books, because of Wolfe's austere approach to telling the story. Instead of holding the reader's hand, Wolfe unfolds the plot in a perfectly concrete way, never breaking from the narrators' perspectives. Moreover, there's some Christian subtext to Wolfe's approach. I'm not talking about the Christian themes, but about Wolfe's penchant for immersing the reader in the details of drawn-out, relatively unimportant scenes, while passing over crucial revelations in the story very quickly, counting on the reader's alertness so that the reader doesn't entirely miss them. This style of writing sets up symbols of a kind of platonic dualism in the books. There's the material world which is a mere shadow of the spiritual, immaterial world. The concrete details in the story are like the shadows of the material world in which a person can get lost, while the important moments in the text are like glimmers of a hidden, spiritual world which only a willing, attentive person can perceive. The upshot is that there are pacing problems in some of the Sun books. The New Sun books have the least problems in this regard, and the most action.

But it's not necessarily a fault if the Sun books don't provide the cheap thrills of an average space opera. Fans of the far-future, dying-sun subgenre of sf/fantasy should certainly read the Sun series, but so should those who are intrigued by Wolfe's unique writing skills. Many weird things happen in the story, but they don't seem weird because of the lack of editorializing on Wolfe's part; I mean that the whole story is told from the narrators' perspective, and the narrators and the other characters don't often regard the events as weird, since the characters are part of these far-future, alien worlds, and Wolfe is a master of writing from his characters' perspectives. Again, this is a double-edged sword, since the reader has no author-given guideposts or formulaic structure as crutches. Instead, there's a wealth of details which hang together, making up an unbelievably complicated, intellectually dizzying set of adventures.

True 21st Century Literature.......2005-06-02

It has taken me about 3 years to get through the books of the Long and Short Sun by Gene Wolfe. Just finished Return to the Whorl and was totally blown away. There are other reviewers here at Amazon, who have made convincingly cogent arguments in favor of this magnum opus of Mr. Wolfe's. Of which, I would equal to James Joyce's Ullyses or even Homer's Odyssey but on a much more cosmic and grander scale. The saga starts out with Patera Silk a priest, who serves the gods of mainframe. The question of who are the gods and the instrumentality that enables them ends with a wonderful character, Horn. The conclusion sadly ends in this final Volume of the Book of the Short Sun. The odyssey is complex yet coherent. The questions asked were many. The answers were clear and subtle at the same time. A wonderfully personal work that is well written and honest. The book bears repeated reading and will be a Classic for years to come. As one reviewer aptly put it. Good Fishing! Good Fishing! Good Fishing!!!

Challenging--but as brilliant as it gets.......2004-08-23

NOTE: This review is for all three books comprising The Book of the Short Sun

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS:

The Book of the Short Sun will be one of the finest reading experiences of your life... if you can get through the thing. The difficulty in extracting those rewards out of the text is considerable and not to be lightly discounted. Reading these books will require supreme effort. Willing readers will have to be intensely interested with how individuals relate to historical and semi-mythical figures, religion, and their own personality as influenced by these themes. These books are about as far as you can get from the popular concept of "space opera" and thrilling, "page-turning" fiction. An analogy to Moby Dick is probably very appropriate as that work due to the very slow pacing, the introspection, and the great literary symbols stomping through the setting reified and alive. Any scholar of literature should be deeply fascinated by these books.

WHY YOU SHOULD PASS:

There is no shame in not reading these books. They are terribly difficult and an exercise in stamina though we feel most people should at least try once. If you have attempted Shakespeare and been turned back because of the language; if you have attempted Moby Dick or novels by Henry James only to be turned away by the lack of progression in the plot; if you have attempted James Joyce's Ulysses but been baffled by the interior monologue, then Short Sun is probably going to daunt you as well. But we feel the rewards of this book are equal to those giants in literature.
(...)

A powerful capstone.......2002-05-13

Every work of Gene Wolfe's that I read further increase my admiration of his writing. _The Book of the Short Sun_ (I feel the three volumes are best read as a single novel) is easily the most thought provoking piece of fiction I have read in years. RETURN does not explicitly answer many of the questions that have been raised throughout the trilogy, but the questions themselves are what is important.
Even direct statements from Horn (the narrator) are often nothing more that guesses or even self deception. This book doesn't simply tell a story. What it does is provide half of a conversation. If there are answers, then they are for readers to determine for themselves. If this sounds needlessly philisophical, I can only say that I am still fresh from turning the last page of this extraordinary work and under it's spell.
Within the next year or so I plan to set aside a large chunk of my free time to re-read all of the "Sun" books (The Book of the New Sun, The Urth of the New Sun, The Book of the Long Sun, and The Book of the Short Sun) to give myself the full impact of the entire sequence. Anyone who looks down on the genre of science fiction need look no further that the works of Gene Wolfe to have their preconceptions blown away.

Don't give up after one reading!.......2002-01-11

Gene Wolfe has done more for the potential of speculative fiction than anyone else. After I read this book for the first time, I was impressed, but I wasn't sure if there was as much beneath the surface as I expected from a Wolfe book.
After re-reading it and pondering it at great length, I think that Wolfe has done such a good job making supposedly secret things obviously hinted at in the text that we stop looking for the right questions to ask because we THINK we know all the answers. If you think you have figured out everything on one reading of this text about the changes in an individual and in a home that render it impossible to go home again, here are some questions that I have found the answers to (at least, I think so)on a close re-reading (I wouldn't advise reading these questions unless you've read the text at least once):
When exactly does the majority of Horn's essence leave the narrator to go ride a beast with three horns? (and what is that beast?)
Why are plant genetics important to the story?
Why does the narrative technique and tone change so drastically between On Blue's Waters and In Green's Jungles? Why is that island on Blue made up of big trees, and why is it important? Who and what are the vanished people, and why do the animals with doubled limbs seem so similar to the ones we have on earth? Why does the narrator travel (a debatable word) to Urth, and what is the REAL importance of the secret of the inhumu, which is no secret at all? How many fair young girls in the text are spies? What is the fate of Urth? What really happens to Horn when he falls in the pit, and why do the Vanished People appear to him at that particular time? Why is the fact that Urth's sea is saltier than Blue important? How can we know that there will probably be no more New/Long/Short Sun books? What does the Cummean have to do with the inhumu and the vanished people? Is Chenille really stuck in Sinew's basement on Green? Why does Babbie look more human than Cillinia (Scylla)in the narrator's "dream" travel?
The didactic message of this text has been exposed on the surface, but the real conflict has been hidden by the master. You have to learn to look for the right questions (as with any Wolfe story) to ask the text (I've tried not to spoil this fine work; but I feel it is impossible to spoil a Wolfe book.) Remember to ask why, and you will find that Wolfe makes much more sense and has plotted out his universe with far more reason and surprising skill than the surface message would indicate.
I have managed to answer all of the above questions to my satisfaction (but perhaps not to everyones) and hope to find more of the right questions to ask of this masterpiece, Gene Wolfe's best work since The Book of the New Sun (and I believe it MIGHT even contend with that as my favorite book). Never stop asking the text questions, and it will not fail you; believe me.

Book Description

Contributors include Barbara Kingsolver, W. S. Merwin, Charles Johnson, Patricia Hampl, Mary Gordon, and others.

Customer Reviews:

getting better.......2007-09-29

I found last year's collection, and its debut, to be a bit dull. But 2005 is getting better (and 2006 looks even better). They essays cover religion and spirituality, the poems are hit and miss though (but you have to read Haxton's poem, it's the best piece in the collection). This new edition has yet to hit its stride, though it took Mystery Stories a few years before it really became the best in the series. I look forward to the next couple of editions to see it gel together.

more religious than spiritual.......2006-02-02

I have loved this series, look forward to the book every year. I found this one disappointing. I felt like the selections were more religious than spiritual, with emphasis on moral values and Christianity. If that's your preference, you'll like this book better than I did. I'm a mystic, and not really interested in long academic discussions of what Kirkegard really meant.

A Great Collection of Varied Spiritual Writing.......2005-10-20

Every fall I look forward to the release of THE BEST AMERICAN series of books. I always purchase three of the collections: Spiritual Writing, Short Stories, and Non-Required Reading. This year I've also purchased Essays. What I enjoy most about the collections is not that they contain "the best": that is a matter of opinion and it's probably safe to assume that there are many pieces not included in these volumes that would qualify as being "the best." What each volume does contain is a great variety of writings that can appeal to a wide range of readers. It also makes available great writings that could only be collected by people who subscribe to a wide range of periodicals and have more time than most people to devote to reading.

This volume, like the other collections of spiritual writings from previous years, represents a wide variety of spiritual traditions and do not subscribe to any one set of religious values. Each piece does, in some way, challenge us to look within ourselves and at our world. While it is not a self improvement book, it doe shave the potential to challenge and change the reader. What I enjoy most about the pieces included in these collections is that many are true to a specific religious or spiritual tradition, yet they also have a way of transcending that tradition and speaking to all people. A piece that comes to mind in this collection that does this is David James Duncan's "The French Guy." The piece tells of the author being asked to give a talk about the ecological meaning of St. Francis of Assisi's life, which the author contends was never a part of his life even though he is considered so by many in the ecological movement. Johnson discusses Francis' life from a Catholic perspective, not taking him out of the context of his time, and presenting a figure who may be at home in the Catholic tradition, but has elements that can speak to people from a variety of traditions.

As in the past, there are some well known names in spiritual writing such as Harvey Cox, Brian Doyle, Kenneth Woodward, Richard John Neuhaus, and Heather King (what makes them well known? I own and have enjoyed copies of books they have written) as well as some whoa re emerging writers and the original writings were published in a variety of periodicals, some religious or spiritual and other secular. While I always rush through the volume as soon as I purchase it, I often find myself rereading favorite pieces throughout the year and find that so many of the pieces have a great deal to say.

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