Dream of the Blue Room: A Novel

Average customer rating:

Very good, but

exquisite storytelling...

sad and lovely

A vivid journey through China

An erotic literary masterpiece!

Dream of the Blue Room: A Novel
Michelle Richmond
Manufacturer: MacAdam/Cage Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | United States | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1931561249

Book Description

On a warm night in July, 32-year-old Jenny finds herself sitting on the deck of a Chinese cruise ship next to a charming but secretive stranger. In Jenny's lap is a tin containing the ashes of her best friend, Amanda Ruth, mysteriously murdered fourteen years earlier in a small Alabama town.

In this foreign landscape, filled with ancient cities that will soon be inundated by the rising waters of the Yangtze River, Jenny must confront her haunted past and decide the direction of her future. As the ship moves slowly upriver, from one abandoned village to another, Jenny journeys deeper into her own guilt and eroticism.

Dream of the Blue Room explores the nature of friendship and the intimacy that exists between young girls as they struggle toward adulthood. Set against the impressive landscape of the Yangtze, this stunning novel reflects on the human desire to control and tame what is ultimately untamable.

Customer Reviews:

Very good, but .......2006-12-21

I really enjoyed reading this novel but what kept me going was wondering how the death of Amanda Ruth was going to be resolved. Did the main character do it? Would there be a confession, or was it some unexpected person or the girl's Chinese father. The problem is that nothing ever really happened. Nothing was resolved. I was disappointed with the ending, with everything hanging up in the air, people left with other strangers, trying to drudge up something, but never really having it come to the surface.

The writing was interesting. The short paragraphs and chapters helped to propel me through the book, but my opinion is that there was no real story here, just a listing of feelings, observations and events. I agree with other reviewers about the delightful dream-like quality of some portions of the book.

I was also disappointed with the depth of her observations on China. I mean, I was hoping to actually learn something, to come away with something I didn't know before, but no. I got about the same amount of info that I'd get from reading a Wikipedia piece or some travel book.

Maybe I'm being too harsh, but I gave it 4 stars, and I'm not related ...

exquisite storytelling..........2005-07-21

Reviewed by Joanna Pearson for Small Spiral Notebook

Foreign travel is about learning to exist in a dreamy state of in-between-ness. Unknown and ungrounded, you wander through strange environs seeing strange faces, and yet the ever-resourceful mind manages to seize upon vague familiarities, constructing a hybrid place that has the eerie quality of a dreamscape. So we find our main character, Jenny, on a cruise ship in China in Michelle Richmond's debut novel Dream of a Blue Room. Tense and insomniac, Jenny has traveled here on a dual mission: to resolve her collapsing marriage one way or the other, and to scatter the ashes of her murdered childhood best friend. As in all good stories that unfold on a plane, train, bus, or ship (with a nod to the Hitchcockian principle), Jenny soon finds her task complicated by the pull she feels towards Graham, a fellow traveler she meets who has his own reasons for making this voyage.

Redmond excels in conjuring that state of heightened, dream-like awareness fueled by lack of sleep and periods of intense emotional stress. Her deft descriptions of the Chinese landscape and Yangtze serve as a context for Jenny's extended meditation on her own riverside childhood in Alabama and the history of her failing marriage. The two settings and time periods are ambitiously and successfully interwoven, much to Redmond's credit. She is as en point in her descriptions of Chinese river dolphins, funeral ceremonies, and elderly tea shop ladies as she is in her descriptions of tubing, Sunday School, and watermelons in Mobile. Much more than travel fiction, this is instead a story of growing up as an outsider in the South, revealed through contrast-like looking at the negatives of a series of photos in order to see what you couldn't have noticed otherwise. In this way, China triggers a reflection on Jenny's life back home, proof of the idea that one understands home the best when away from it. We realize very quickly that Jenny's relationship with the murdered Amanda Ruth was more than a mere friendship. Redmond beautifully describes the intimacy, both physical and emotional, between two girls during the pivotal period of late adolescence, as well as the grinding forces of Southern culture and religion that threatened this intimacy.

For the most part, Redmond's prose has a lovely lyricality. She is at her best when describing situations with clarity and simplicity-she has a keen sense of place, an eye for details like how the raindrops fall at a particular instant. Redmond is a sensual writer and on occasion, her writing can veer towards the overripe, particularly when describing erotic moments. There could have been fewer oversignified descriptions of sex, and the book would have been none the worse for it. Throughout most of the novel, however, Redmond's touch is far subtler, allowing a memory of a summer afternoon in a boathouse or a Chinese funeral procession to do no more symbolic load bearing than warranted.

As the cruise ship eases down the river, the reality of Jenny's ending marriage becomes apparent even as her relationship with newcomer Graham rapidly progresses. It is through this new, albeit short-lived relationship with Graham and the drastic act he requests of her that Jenny is ultimately able to exit her suspended state. With the slow build-up of a mystery, the exquisite pain of a coming-of-age novel, the masterful images of a travel writer, and a darkness that is true to the Southern Gothic, Dream of a Blue Room is a work of wonderfully chimeric form. And through this, a novelistic form that skillfully defies a single genre, Redmond, quite fittingly, tells the story of a woman finding her way out of the boundaries of singular categories, out of limbo, out of the in-between.

sad and lovely.......2003-12-13

Michelle Richmond's novel is an impressive, impressionistic vision of a woman suffering one loss after another, and growing incredibly strong along the way. There's a vivid evocation of China, almost a secondary character in the novel. And there's even a villain or two for the reader to hate. There are many moments of luminous writing, reflecting the dreamlike quality suggested by the title. And, oh yeah, there's some really good sex too.

A vivid journey through China.......2003-10-01

This novel takes you up the Yangtze River during the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. The descriptions of abandoned villages and bustling riverside cities are lush and unforgettable. But something more is happening in this novel. While the main character, Jenny, travels up the Yangtze, her marriage is falling apart. The dissolution of the marriage is captured with painful accuracy, and the memories of Jenny's adolescent relationship with a girl named Amanda Ruth are both sensual and poignant. Jenny and Amanda Ruth were so close and Jenny's love for her was so strong that, even though Amanda Ruth is dead, she is a constant presence in Jenny's mind.

If you've ever been to China, or if you ever plan to go, this book should be your travel companion!

An erotic literary masterpiece!.......2003-07-06

Finally, an erotic novel in which the story and the writing are just as good as the sex scenes. My book club spent half an hour discussing the scene in the cave...Richmond combines lush, poetic prose with page-turning suspense. A book club winner!

Average customer rating:

In a Blue Room
Jim Averbeck
Manufacturer: Harcourt Children's Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Bedtime & Dreaming | Baby-3 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 015205992X

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

A Constellation of Cats (Daw Book Collectors)

Average customer rating:

cat lover
A nice collection
Stories to make you purr
13 short stories: 10 fantasy + 2 SF + 1 mundane

A Constellation of Cats (Daw Book Collectors)
Various
Manufacturer: DAW
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Anthologies | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0756400163
Release Date: 2001-11-07

Book Description

Fantasy's finest tale-spinners present a brand-new collection of four-legged fiction that will catapult our favorite felines into space, time, and the many realms of the fantastic.

Edited by Denise Little

Customer Reviews:

cat lover.......2006-03-10

This is an enjoyable book that should entertain cat lovers and non cat lovers alike. The stories are well written and fast moving and I did not want to put it down once I had started reading.

A nice collection.......2006-01-30

Who could resist a book with thirteen short stories all featuring cats? I know I couldn't, and I'm glad. This anthology of short stories has a little something for everyone, from urban fantasy, to pure fantasy, and science fiction. I loved how each story gave the cats within it a unique personality, as those of us with cats know that no two cats are exactly alike.

I'll be honest, and some of the stories I would have liked a bit more fantasy content to the story. A few of them felt rather modern-dayish without the element of urban fantasy (ala Charles DeLint) or any fantasy at all, but more a story about a cat without any real fantasy trappings at all. And, I would have liked a more uniform presentation to the stories. The title implies astrology or stars, and several of the stories tried to hold true to this theme by using stars or constellations in the cat's names or behavior.

But, for a book to while away the hours, I found this collection more than adequate, and some of the stories are real gems.

Stories to make you purr.......2003-08-16

Cats and fantasy have a long-recognized relationship, and this themed anthology continues the tradition well. Most of the stories are fantasy, set in environments from Ancient Egypt (10,000 temple cats summon the goddess Bastet to help beat off the Persian invaders) to modern times (an inept witch and her two children settle into their new neighborhood with the help of a stray cat), but there's also a science fiction story that takes place on a traders' starship, and a touching, quiet tale that could have been lifted from today's headlines. This book would make an excellent no-occasion gift for a cat-loving friend as well as an addition to your own collection. (And if you like it, I very strongly recommend the five volumes of "Catfantastic," edited by Andre Norton and Martin H. Greenberg.)

13 short stories: 10 fantasy + 2 SF + 1 mundane.......2002-12-07

Five from the viewpoint of a cat (one in first person).

Haber, Karen: "Under the Sign of the Fish" Timandra has one misguided hope: she'd like her cat to *get along* with her goldfish, not just fantasize about eating him. Her next-door neighbour, the wizard, indulges her wish for the two pets to swap bodies for a day.

Hoffman, Nina Kiriki: "Star Song" follows July's viewpoint during her first week in her new house - she left her commune with her younger children since her soon-to-be-ex was staying. Martin was the serious spellcaster, so the family familiar stayed with him; July and her children need to summon a replacement. But both kids are unhappy, and 10-year-old Orion wanted a dog...

Jocks, Von: "Ecliptic" follows the viewpoint of Magdaleine, a medieval village healer who, having saved a man on the point of death, asked only that the people cease killing cats - bringing a mob down on her, shrieking 'witchcraft!' (She *is* a witch - both Wiccan and magic-user - but not evil.) This is told in a nonlinear, braided fashion - one thread following Magdaleine's flight into the forest, the other her earlier arrest and imprisonment.

Luzier, Pamela: "A Light In the Darkness" Gail, hunting for the cabin where her husband has taken their daughter (and his girlfriend) has a very unrealistically constructed encounter with a Wiccan in a nearby cabin, going along with all his suggestions in an unquestioning manner. The Wiccan persuades her (under the comes-back-on-you-threefold rule) to petition Bastet for what's best for her daughter, rather than for custody outright.

McCay, Bill: "Death Song" Tom has always protected his humans from Banes - those disembodied evil things that seek ever to possess a physical body. But in killing possessed vermin in a new apartment, he has been poisoned by insecticide - weakened before a greater Bane is due to appear.

Norton, Andre: "Three-Inch Trouble" follows the viewpoint of Raven, crew member of the Free Trader _Horus_: the ship's cat. During his combing of a fair for new trade items, the Cargo Master bargains for a sealed collection of Survey artefacts. Unfortunately, they contain live pests...

Nye, Jody Lynn: "Purr Power" Almost SF. Horus-Semnet, the general assigned by Pharaoh to defend the chief temple of Bast from the invading Persians, is frustrated. His forces will be outnumbered 6 to 1. The great festival of Bast is underway, and the priests refuse to evacuate. (Finally, Horus-Semnet doesn't care for cats, although he respects them as a proper son of Egypt.) Why is the high priest so confident that the temple will be safe?

Pack, Janet: "Praxis" is Lucien's cat - and despite the ban on astrologers, they've reentered Athens despite the government's fear of this Egyptian art. The ending's too pat.

Putney, Mary Jo: "The Stargazer's Familiar" actually begins with 'It was a dark and stormy night'. :) Leo, the title character, narrates; he learned the family business from his father, just as the royal astrologer was trained by his. Lord Klothe, threatening death, wants to know the most effective moment at which he can assassinate the king, fulfilling a prophecy that he can reach the highest place in the kingdom - taking the Stargazer's wife hostage to ensure truth in reporting.

Reichert, Mickey Zucker: "Every Life Should Have Nine Cats" After one too many groups of sorcerers attempted to take over part of the country, M-squads are busily seeking out anyone with suspicious signs of magic; this story follows the junior member of one such pair investigating a very nice old lady. On the plus side, the presentation illuminates how easily a profile can be used to trap the innocent; on the minus side, the resolution of the story is too pat.

Rusch, Kristine Kathryn: "Star" was the name of Anna Jarrett's cat in New York City; an attack on Star by Anna's abusive boyfriend was followed by a vicious assault that left Anna hospitalized for months, to learn that Star was dead. Now Neil is in Attica, and appears to have found a target close to Anna for his slimy letters: her next-door neighbour says he's been seeing a cat hanging around her place matching Star's description.

Scarborough, Elizabeth Ann: "Mu Mao and the Court Oracle" See the various volumes of _Catfantastic_ for other Mu Mao stories; this time he's been reborn in an animal shelter. He wants to know why he never seems to be reborn into a nice, cushy life as a pampered pet. :) Great events are afoot - the King of the Cats is dead, and since he never appointed a Court Oracle (and didn't keep track of the kittens he sired), the succession is muddled.

Stuckart, Diane A.S.: "Once, We Were Worshiped" Thomas Moonraker doesn't believe the old cats' tales of witches familiars - *he's* not superstitious. But he's uneasy tonight - his kittenhood companion Selena is attempting to reanimate a long-forgotten mummy from the old professor's collection, to find out how humans got to be in charge. (Thomas isn't keen if it means *he'll* be responsible for his caretaker's wellbeing instead of the other way 'round.) Of course, it's a *cat* mummy... (If you'd like a different treatment of Selena's problem, see 'Dream of a Thousand Cats' in Neil Gaiman's DREAM COUNTRY collection.)

Customer Reviews:

Impressive but not as good as the first.......2000-05-12

The second collection of gay male erotica from Circlet Press is not as good as the first. I found the stories less unique and the plots slower, less sexy even. However, there is still plenty of action, plenty of plot and plenty of variation to satisfy most readers of the genre.

GURPS Ultra-Tech 2: Hard-Core, Hard-Wired Hardware (GURPS: Generic Universal Role Playing System)

Average customer rating:

GURPS Ultra-Tech 2: Hard-Core, Hard-Wired Hardware (GURPS: Generic Universal Role Playing System)
David L. Pulver , and Dan Smith
Manufacturer: Steve Jackson Games
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Graphic Novels | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 155634337X

Average customer rating:

Practical and Pragmatic Church Management Guide

The Key Word Is Delegation

Leading and Managing Your Church
Carl George , and Robert Logan
Manufacturer: Revell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Church Institutions & Organizations | Ministry & Church Leadership | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Church Administration | Ministry & Church Leadership | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0800715756

Customer Reviews:

Practical and Pragmatic Church Management Guide.......2002-05-15

Carl George and Robert Logan have written a good church administration primer. This book is a condensed practical, pragmatic, and easy-to-follow church management guide. I first read the book in 1989 but recently reviewed it again and was reminded of its valuable suggestions, ideas, and principles. "Leading and Managing Your Church" would be an exceptional book for those lacking quality training or effective habits in practical self-organization and church administration. It also serves as a good reminder and encourager for efficient church veterans desiring to enhance or expand their skills.

The self-descriptive chapter titles include: Leadership and Church Growth, Using Spiritual Gifts to Focus Ministry, Managing Time More Effectively, Goal Setting and Project Planning, Skills for Effective Ministry Management, Building a Leadership Team, Developing People Through Delegation, Using the Pastor's Planning Workbooks, Obtaining Goal Ownership, The Berry-Bucket Theory (George's theory on pastor/member control), and Faith Can Be Learned. The 192-page book includes an appendix filled with examples of management worksheets, charts, forms and tools for the teachable and enthusiastic church leader. Many of these items are now more easily designed and utilized with common computer technology.

The Key Word Is Delegation.......2001-02-08

"When a pastor primarily does the ministry in the congregation, rather than leading others to do the ministry, growth potential remains small," contend George and Logan. It is obviously for this reason that the majority of churches never exceed the status quo. One man cannot do it all, nor was it ever intended to be that way.

The authors make four assumptions on which their book is written: (1) God wants churches to grow, (2) God gifts believers for the work of the ministry, (3) Pastors must equip the believers for the work, and (4) Ministries grow as leaders are developed. In other words, God has gifted pastors to fulfil very particular roles in the church. They should spend the majority (the authors suggest 60%) of their time on those areas, and then build a team around them to compliment their gifts.

The key word is delegation. Delegation simply is a pastor identifying his responsibilities and assigning a portion of them to others, so that people are developed and the ministry is accomplished. The authors cite two biblical examples of delegation: the Jethro Principle (Exodus 18) and the Deacon Principle (Acts 6).

George and Logan divide their book into three broad subject areas: (1) goal setting, (2) goal ownership, and (3) people equipping. Goal setting should be the pastor's hallmark. For Christians, the authors purport, "a goal...is a statement of faith." So planning allows church leaders to get vision and direction from God. They encourage churches to aim high enough in their goals so that God must work through them and He alone will receive the praise for it.

The problem, however, is that most pastors are not willing to prioritize their time to allow good goal planning. The authors maintain that the urgent, rather than the important, encumber church leaders. They suggest this question be asked: "Is what I am doing important enough to exchange a day of my life for?" In other words, there are few really important things that must be done-and one of them is planning.

In addition, church success is linked to goal ownership. The congregation should never refer to the "pastor's goals," but to "our goals." The language of the people is vital. "His" and "their" should be converted to "we" and "our." One way to accomplish such a monumental task is to actually allow the congregation to help set the goals. Pastors should not bring ready-made plans to the people, but room should always be left for their input and suggestions.

The final division concentrates on equipping the believers. Leadership, the authors insist, can be learned. It is a set of skills one must be trained in and employ. The authors note the importance of communication skills, budgets and controls, time management, and problem solving abilities. Some natural bent helps, of course, but to the diligent student these skills can become routine.

Throughout the book the authors offer several useful models to understanding church dynamics. Two of the most outstanding is the Barn Raising Model and the Berry Bucket Theory. Each of these illustrations is examined for their practical applications on the ministry. For instance, in barn raising the people (1) anticipated the work to be done, (2) performed the work that needed to be done, and (3) celebrated the work that was done.

My favorite quotes and ideas are these:

 "A goal...is a statement of faith." Some suggest that goals are a lack of faith and dependence on the leading of the Holy Spirit. Yet, I would agree with the authors; it is during planning that we can get vision from God. In addition, "A great goal is worthy of great effort."

 When dealing with people in the ministry understand there are four basic types: VIPs (Very Important People), VTPs (Very Teachable People), VNPs (Very Nice People), and VDPs (Very Draining People). I had never thought of people in these terms, but echo a hearty "amen."

 In regard to delegation, the author's advice in keeping the proverbial ball in their court was priceless. I am often tempted to delegate then fix the problems myself when they return. This statement helped me realize how often reverse delegation takes place in my ministry and to my detriment.

While there are small points that I would take issue with, Leading and Managing Your Church was a benefit to me in the area of administrative ministry. I would recommend this book to pastors or church leaders that wanted some practical insights into these issues.

Average customer rating:
Leading & Managing Your Church
Carl F. And Logan, Robert E. George
Manufacturer: Fleming H. Revell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GR7VF4

Average customer rating:
Leading and Managing Your Church

Manufacturer: Fleming H Revell Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0800752554

Average customer rating:
TRUSTEES: Managing church property, equipment, and investments to support the vision and mission of your church (Guidelines for Leading Your Congregation)
Frank Dunnewind
Manufacturer: Cokesbury
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0687035341

Product Description

32 pages. Like New!

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