Book Description
Did rebel angels take on human bodies to fulfill their lust for the "daughters of men"? Did these fallen angels teach men to build weapons of war?
That is the premise of the Book of Enoch, a text cherished by the Essenes, early Jews and Christians but later condemned by both rabbis and Church Fathers. The book was denounced, banned and "lost" for over a thousand years-until in 1773, a Scottish explorer discovered three copies in Ethiopia.
Elizabeth Clare Prophet examines the controversy surrounding this book and sheds new light on Enoch's forbidden mysteries. She demonstrates that Jesus and the apostles studied the Book of Enoch and tells why Church Fathers suppressed its teaching that angels could incarnate in human bodies. Contains all the Enoch texts, including the Book of Enoch, and biblical parallels.
Fallen Angels and the Origins of Evil takes you back to the primordial drama of Good and Evil, when the first hint of corruption entered a pristine world-earth.
Contains Richard Laurence's translation of the Book of Enoch, all the other Enoch texts, including the Book of the Secrets of Enoch, biblical parallels
Customer Reviews:
Cant stress enough.......2007-10-03
Please don't take anything this woman says seriously. Just for fun is what I would call it. No not even that, Dangerous stupidity and conjecture for anyone who is uneducated I have read some of her stuff in the past and was in disbelief to hear her say that Jesus, God himself came to earth to learn from certain mystical religious groups in India and other places Give me a break. There are only three things God cant do, Lie. Die and Learn.
Here again, more of the same BS.
Quite interesting.......2007-08-21
Filled with interesting materials and ideas, however the author's writing style puts me right to sleep. A great writer can turn even the act of watching paint dry on the wall into a remarkable journey. Those authors that wrote Holy Blood Holy Grail should've written this book instead.
Great reference book.......2007-08-18
This book is a great reference book. If you have read the book of Enoch and any other fallen angels books, there are many crossovers, and some indifferences, overall though, this is the book that's easily readable.
This book covers many other books, so you can single handily buy one book and read 2-3.....
Definitely worth putting into your collection
Hard to Read, Author is bias .......2007-07-09
I bought this book because I thought it would help me with an understanding of the Book of Enoch. I am so disappointed that I wasted my money on this book. It is hard to read and the Author has way too much bias in her own "new age" ideas.
Fallen Angels & the orgins of evil.......2007-03-09
I could learn all ahe had to say by just re-visiting the Bible. Nothing new or thought prevoking in this book
Book Description
J. M. Barrie, novelist, playwright, and author of Peter Pan or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up, led a life almost as magical and interesting as his famous creation. Childless in his marriage, Barrie grew close to the five young boys of the Llewelyn Davies family, ultimately becoming their guardian and devoted surrogate father when they were orphaned. Andrew Birkin draws extensively on a vast range of material by and about Barrie, including notebooks, memoirs, and hours of recorded interviews with the Llewelyn Davies family and their circle, to describe Barrie's life and the wonderful world he created for the boys. Originally published in 1979, this enchanting and richly illustrated account is reissued with a new preface to mark the release of Neverland, the film of Barrie's life, and the upcoming centenary of Peter Pan.
Customer Reviews:
Lovely and sad, the story behind "Peter Pan and the Lost boys".......2007-07-27
Having found this little book before the advent of the film "Finding Neverland" I was able to read it originally without comparing it to the film, always a good thing. The film, of course, changed much of the true story as films usually do. This book standing alone as far better, but note, it is not a happy story with a happy ending, it is a tragedy, and no one is left unscathed.
The photographs, almost all, were taken by Barrie himself, and are absolutely wonderful. He had a natural artistic sense, and his unposed photos of the five Llewelyn Davies boys, Michael, George, Peter, Jack, and Nico at their play, stay with you. They are dressed in the Edwardian clothes of the time, or in costumes they wore in the elaborate make-believe games they played with their childlike grownup friend Mr Barrie, and those are truly memorable in themselves. Often they are playing with J.M. Barrie's large dog, and one can't help but think of the big dog, Nanna, in Peter Pan, it's acutally quite eerie, seeing that the play "Peter Pan" itself wouldn't be written yet for years.
J.M. Barrie came from a lower class Scottish family, and in childhood lost an older brother to illness. His mother took to her bed griefstricken, for a long period, and once, trying to cheer her, young Barrie put on the older brother's clothes and went to see his mother. For just a moment she thought it was the older brother, and he seemed to see happiness in her eyes; for all his life, the message stayed with him, the boy who would never grow up was the loved boy.
He was a strange, brilliant, gentle, childlike man. Highly regarded in his own time, considered a great playwright, equivilent to George Barnard Shaw in his day; and very prosperous due to his books and plays, married, but childless, and probably not very happy in his marriage which would end in divorce, one day in Kensington Park he saw one of the five young Llewelyn Davies brothers. They struck up a friendship, based on Barrie being quite willing to talk to a child on the child's level. Soon after, he met the rest of the family, who were impressed to meet the famous playwright. Their family was also upper class, well to do, but would soon lose their father to cancer, they would thenceforth be in precarious financial straits. Barrie immediately became a combination father/ big brother to the boys. He also became close friends with their mother Sylvia Llewelyn Davies, but not, I suspect, to the degree the movie implies. It was all about the boys, their innocence, and something he wished to capture and hold on to. His obsessive photography of them makes that clear.
Tragedy struck again, unbelievably, when their mother died of cancer as well, at a young age, after a relatively brief illness. By then Barrie was such a part of their lives that his continued influence, and the benefit of his money in seeing to it that all five boys finished school in the manner befitting their "class", was accepted by the boys' extended family. He stayed involved in all their lives indefinitely, though it is interesting that he had his favorites, and the two who were not favorites resented and disliked him as they grew older.
The book stops with the boys' growing up, though he did stay involved with them as a surrogate parent. Tragedy did hound the family, but unlike some reviewers I am not sure that it can be blamed on JM Barrie's role in their lives. In fact, without him, financially they would have far worse off.
It is true the boy named Peter resented that the play was named "Peter Pan", and of course he was teased at school, and Barrie probably should have thought of that. (Of course without Barrie he most likely wouldn't have been at Eton to be teased.)
Two footnotes: all the proceeds of the play went to the Children's Hospital in London for 100 years, until recently with the 100 years anniversary, the copyright ran out, and now it is in the public domain. No proceeds of his biggest success ever went to Barrie.
Also, the girl's name: "Wendy", was first used in the play. It was an unknown name before that. Barrie used it in memory of a young daughter of a friend who was named Wendy, and who died at age 5. (Not known where that family got the name from, or if it was a nickname.) It was not a name known previously and "Peter Pan" popularized it.
Its an excellent book, an opening via the photographs into another long-gone time, a sad story, but not I believe, due to Barrie. I believe he meant well, and tried his best to be a friend to that unfortunate family. He had his demons as do we all, but to "love" children, in that era, to befriend them, and even play with them when they were pre-teens, could still occur without any implication of perversity; and even to sleep with a child, the concern of one reviewer, was, at the end of the Victorian world, seen as a pure and innocent act, like a parent and child might sleep together...I think it is hard for us in our cynical age to see things as the late Victorians/Edwardians did. No whisper of scandal or of anything improper ever came from any of the five boys, their family, servants, or anyone else connected with them; and I think had there been it certainly would have come to light. I believe he truly loved the boys, and they in turn, after he knew them several years, and had observed their play and their natural talk and style, influenced him to write his masterpiece "Peter Pan".
J.M.Barries and the Lost Boys: the real story behind Peter Pan.......2007-03-08
This is one of the bases for the movie "Wonderland" but reading this book will creep you out on J.M.Barrie. You might never really like Peter Pan again. Author had access to his papers, letter, diaries etc. Very weird stuff.
Sheds a new light on Peter Pan.......2006-11-03
I found this book to be a well-researched and moving account of not only Barrie's life but also the lives and deaths of the original "Lost Boys". After reading this book, I read Peter Pan again in a whole new light and enjoyed it even more. I think reading this book is essential in order to fully appreciate the entire Peter Pan experience as it truly helps to bring the characters alive.
Tragic loss of dear illusions . . ........2006-09-12
I read this book over 15 years ago in an attempt to find out who the author of Peter Pan really was, and what his life was like. It was not a pleasant or easy read. I wanted to forget all about it and just have the enchantment of "Peter Pan," but as with the real life of the author and photographer of "Alice in Wonderland," the truth can wound deeply. But lies and half-truths can never reveal the relationship between biography and art, so one must often face much disturbing information in order to understand the art itself. This is not to say that art is reducible to biography; it is not. There is, nevertheless, a kind of dialectic (God, I do hate to sound so gawdawful jargony, but when it so plain, other words just do not work) between the life of a genius and the art of the same individual. The truth of art can only come from the struggle between an artist's vision and the life that made such a vision a necessity. Yes, a necessity: there are those artists whose lives were so fraught with sheer catastrophe that revelation through a skewed fantasy can be so powerful as to take on a "life" of its own. And this is why it is so grievous to "paint-over" the unpleasant details of such a life. There was a recent film with an appropriately disturbing title: in the attempt to not really "find" Neverland in Barrie's life, the art itself is drained of its truly tragic roots. At the time such "nice" little fantasies are presented, they seem so harmless, but they are not. Successful attempts to eradicate truth can also eradicate the depth of the art itself. "Neverland" is a word that begs a little attention: a land where children "never grow up." This is not to say that they physically die - no - instead they live their lives, as did Barrie, in a desolate, lifeless, and desperately lonely "land" and try, from within their internal isolation, to bring others along for the rides to nowhere and "never." Where else could such a person bring another? If one lives in "Neverland" of the mind, there is nowhere else to lead another - nowhere else to go. And if we do not face unpleasant truths as they are revealed in the crucible where life and art meet, we learn nothing further from the art. It is better, actually, to know nothing of an artist's life than to be fed untruths. I would suggest the readers either read this book and/or see Peter Pan, but would urge them *not* to see Peter Pan after experiencing a false represenation - no matter how "well-performed" the falsehood is presented. The play or story would be meaningless. The truths, whatever you choose to make of them are here in this book, like it or not. And once the genie is out of the bottle (such as when you have been fed a disingenuous Hollywood film or other disingenuous account), to refrain from the truths of an artist's life is a violation of the art. No one can any longer understand or be truly moved by Peter Pan, much less try to interpret it based upon a sugar-coated Hollywood paint-job. And the effect goes on: if other artists were inspired by Barrie's work (perhaps because it touched the nerves of their own catastrophic lives), and all we have is a candy-coated film, their art and whatever in their lives might have inpired their interest in Barrie's work is also distorted. I do not know if truth sets anyone "free," but I do know that untruths distort and harm. And then the distortion goes on . . . This book cuts deep, but struggles for truths, which is what a biography of an artistic genius should try very hard to do.
Tragic and Beautiful .......2006-02-01
Prompted by the movie "Finding Neverland" I wanted to learn more about the Davies family and their relationship with Barrie. My research lead me to this book. The tragic story of the boys and Barrie was an eye opening read. Birkin is an artful weaver of ancedotes, interviews and history. While I was reading the book I got lost.I started feeling like I was an intimate friend of the families, instead of curious observer. Furthermore, Birkin's website has been updated with more pictures and media files. The website coupled with the book really saturates you into the life of the 5 boys and the mindof the man who loved them very much. A beautiful account of a flawed and tragic life.
Average customer rating:
- how Ellis became a bore
- What a lovely read...
- Coming of Age through personification
- Great book, very enjoyable read
- More than just pot and farting goats
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Goats
Mark Jude Poirier
Manufacturer: Miramax Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 Contemporary
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NAKED PUEBLO
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ASIN: 0786866802 |
Amazon.com
In Goats, first novelist Mark Jude Poirier brings us an oddly compelling story of two men, one a teenager, the other about 40, both committed adolescents. Fourteen-year-old Ellis lives with his mom in suburban Tucson, Arizona. Goat Man is, for lack of a better definition, their pool man. He takes care of the pool and the garden, and "in exchange, Ellis's languid mother Wendy gave him food, the pool house, and a meager salary. She also provided him with a place to keep his goats." When he's not caring for his herd, Goat Man spends his off hours growing pot and getting high. And every so often, he heads into the desert for a trek with the goats, walking at night in the cool dark. In many of these pursuits--especially the getting high part--he is joined by the confident, easygoing Ellis. This apprenticeship is interrupted only when Ellis heads off to Gates Academy, the Pennsylvania prep school attended by his absentee father. The novel then follows him as he journeys from his unconventional home into the real world.
There are plenty of reasons Goats shouldn't work. For one thing, Ellis is a strangely perfect protagonist. He's good at everything, smart, responsible, too cool for school. Also, the central mystery of Goat Man--how he became Goat Man--remains unsolved. Meanwhile, most of the other characters are one-dimensional: Ellis's slobby roommate at Gates, his spacey mom, his hardliner crew coach. Yet the author has been savvy in choosing his material. The familiar rigors of prep school make a fine foil for the evocative descriptions of Ellis's desert treks. Poirier also cleverly inverts the coming-of-age formula--rather than encountering a strange new world, his tender protagonist emerges into a merely normal one. Most important, Poirier never judges his characters. Ellis doesn't become better than Goat Man or his mother; he simply discovers that he has options besides smoking pot in the pool house, which gives an upbeat twist to this charming and assured debut. --Claire Dederer
Book Description
Fourteen-year-old Ellis is getting ready to leave for a boarding school in the East. This means leaving behind his mother, and Goat Man. Goat Man and Ellis will take a trip during Elliss spring break across the border. When they embark on their cross-desert trek, they are forced to reevaluate a relationship they thought was the only thing that would never change in their crazy lives.
Customer Reviews:
how Ellis became a bore.......2006-02-23
The novel started out strong. I immediatley became immersed in the life of Ellis, Wendy, Goat man and Barney. I wanted so much for Ellis just to keep his cool composure and not sell out to the stuffy persona that his prep school embodied. I did want him to become more responsible than his parents, but I feel like he never really got to have a child hood and then he started becoming a jerk and I was never really sure why. I thought that the novel ended abruptly and didn't give proper explanation of certain details. Like Why was Wendy so crazy? Why did Frank really leave? Did she always love him? Why did Ellis start acting like a spoiled brat? Was Goat man really doing anything with the goats?@! It might have been more of a coming of age novel for Wendy than it really was for Ellis
What a lovely read..........2003-12-31
I'm no critic. Just know what I like when I read it, and this is a lovely novel. What a cool movie it could be. (Sounding like a teenager is cool, too.) I hope Poirier publishes another novel soon.
Coming of Age through personification.......2003-11-15
Goats is an off the wall coming of age story, that brings with it the emotion and depth of a classic novel. The writing style of Mark Jude Porrier entrances the reader and creates an excitment that makes this book impossible to put down. Some of the subject matter may be extreme, but it suits its purpose of being a down to earth coming of age story. The goats that are so vividly described are so personified you begin to associate with them as much as you do the main characters. This book is a great example of a lazy summer read, and will bring a smile and possibly a tear to anyone who reads it.
Great book, very enjoyable read.......2003-07-06
I have been reading all the previous reviews of this book and I don't want to be redundant, so I will simply say that this is one of the most enjoyable, easy and fun to read books of its type. Its a real shame that it is not more well known as people are missing out on a good thing. If you havent already done so, read it now. You wont be disappointed!!
More than just pot and farting goats.......2003-02-06
when my friend told me about GOATS, i thought it sounded like a series of one-liners: farting goats, marijuana jokes, aging hippies, prep school dorks. it's not. somehow poirier manages to write a real novel with multidimensional realistic characters and an intriguing plot.
Book Description
n her second Christmas story, author Karen Kings- bury offers a heartwarming tale of a woman who no longer believes in love....and the man who helps her learn that miracles really do happen. When she was 13 years old, Megan Wright spent a summer with a boy who shared with her his special definition of love. After college, though, Megan settled for a relationship based more on convenience than true feelings. Now, years later, a widowed Megan is looking for help with her lonely young son. Across town, CaseyCummins is still dealing with the tragic loss of his wife. His search for meaning and hope leads him to the ManhattanChildren's Organization, who connects him with Megan's son. Now life is suddenly taking a series of unusual twists: Megan's prayers are answered with the long-ago promise of the miracle of love-in a way that only heaven in all its glory could have brought about.
Customer Reviews:
Christian reading.......2007-01-04
I buy these books, after reading them myself, for my great-granddaughters
who are 11 and 13.
They are actively involved in their church activities and love the books.
The 13-year old is an avid reader and the 11-year old is quickly becoming
one with Karen's books.
Thanks to Karen Kingsberry for wholesome reading and the gift of believing in miracles!
Great book.......2005-12-14
Okay I am not plugging another book, but if you read "Tuesdays at Morrie's" you will love this book. It is for anyone that lost hope in God, Love, or just life in genreal. Faith is what it all boils down to. I picked it up and read it in a day. I had no idea what it was about but after the first page I could not put it down. As you read you feel for the character and their pain/joy. I especially loved the part that she incoporates Sept. 11th into the story line. I have ever intention in reading more of Mr. Kingsbury books. I look forward to the eye opening experience.
An enjoyable Quick Read.......2005-04-20
The nice thing about the Red Glove Series is that they still have an interesting plot and a testimony of faith, but they can easily be read in one sitting. This book was easy to get into. I didn't read the bookjacket before reading the book and so was surprised at how the story progressed. Megan is a bitter widow who overworks herself, since her job is what she loves. But Megan has an eight year old son who misses his father and how they used to play together. Megan reads about a mentorship program that matches grieving children with adults that are willing to offer the services to play with and support the children. She quickly signs up her son Jordan and waits for the response from the agency.
Meanwhile Jordan is waiting for a letter he wrote to God to be answered, praying for a Daddy like the one his friend has. Both of their wishes seem to be granted when Jordan is matched with Casey, who owns a cafe in town and so has flexible hours. Casey becomes a significant part of Jordan's life, and when Megan takes the opportunity, a significant part of hers as well. It takes a lot for a heart as hardened as Megan's to love and believe again, but Kingsbury makes it work out. Though this book is a quick read, I wouldn't really call it a light one, but it's definitely worth reading.
A Very Sweet Book.......2004-07-08
This book was about Megan, a high powered lawyer who didn't believe in love due to a series of events in her life. Then there is her son Jordan, who prays for a new daddy and who wants her mother to believe in love again. Then enters Casey, who is matched with Jordan through a Healing Hearts program. Casey is struggling to overcome the death of his wife and baby.
This book was very short and to the point. But in such a short book, Karen Kingsbury was able to fully develop the characters, so that we saw why Megan didn't believe in love.
I loved the characters in this book, especially Casey. He is struggling with his grief, but he is able to help someone else out. I also loved the "Red Glove" theme in the book, about red being the color of giving. And I loved how Megan was eventually able to believe in love again.
I really enjoyed this short little book. I haven't read Gidean's Gift, but plan to get a hold of that book, too.
The Red Glove series gloriously continues!.......2004-02-12
The Red Glove series has added another success to its name!
This novel, though short, has a lot of life within its pages.
Though the ending wasn't really a surprise, it was such a 'feel-good' book it doesn't matter if you're surprised. I found myself grinning during the happy times, as the climax built up, and getting teary eyed during the 'looking back' phase of the book.
No matter what, you will finish the book and be grateful you have a heavenly Father that looks out for you ....... in bad times and most especially in good.
Thanks Karen Kingsbury, for your dedication to providing quality fiction to readers that like a good, clean book to relax with at the end of a long day!
Average customer rating:
- Not as good as I had hoped...
- It isn't necessarily what you think...
- Excellent S/M Reader
- One of the best S/M collection of stories ever!!!!
- sexy fantasy, uneven treatment
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Doing It for Daddy: Short Sexy Fiction About a Very Forbidden Fantasy
Manufacturer: Alyson Publications
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Leather Daddy and the Femme
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ASIN: 155583227X |
Customer Reviews:
Not as good as I had hoped..........2002-01-02
Whilst I will rush out and buy *anything* Pat has written, it all rocks my socks, I was a tad disappointed with 'Doing it for Daddy'... I didn't really get into much of the bio-male content (but then I'm a ...) Having said that, it was all very well written, with fantastic imagery. I loved 'The Leather Daddy and the Femme', that was maybe my favourite story.
It isn't necessarily what you think..........2000-12-28
Okay I picked up this book thinking that it was an erotic book on a taboo subject. It's just S/M in a role-playing set up. Did I think it would be incestuous fiction? Yes I did (I'll admit it). Unfortunately I didn't get that. So if that's what you're thining this book is and why you're buying it, keep on moving... unless you like big sweaty men disciplining and doing othe rbig sweaty men while being called 'Daddy'. There were a few heterosexual stories in there which were hot, but they were exception not the rule. So if you enjoy gay fiction, pick this up. If I had known I would have skipped it cuz that's not my thing. (no offense to those who like it, it's just that I don't)
Excellent S/M Reader.......2000-04-25
The very first time I read this book, I was shocked... the second time, I was intrigued, and now, I could read it cover to cover repeatedly and never get enough. This is some of the best S/M erotica I have ever read. Not surprising though coming from Pat, she has never let her readers down before. Looking forward to Doing It For Daddy 2!
One of the best S/M collection of stories ever!!!!.......1998-10-17
I read this when it first was out on the market and continue to pick it up and read it from cover to cover very often....I can't wait for "Doing it for Mommy"......Go Pat
sexy fantasy, uneven treatment.......1998-06-25
the Daddy/boy or Daddy/girl fantasies are hot, scary, and still extremely taboo. that's probably one of the things i like so much about them, and i think having a book of erotica strictly about this fantasy is a wonderful idea. unfortunately, not all of the stories in this collection gripped me as much as i'd hoped they would. the best one, in my opinion, was a two-part story called "The Leatherdaddy and the Femme," which tackled role reversals, gender play, and hot sex all at once. many of the other stories didn't stand out as much, to my mind, and one or two of them seemed to push the line of where consent gets withdrawn, which made me a little uncomfortable... of course, this is why it's so good that amazon.com gives discounts on everything; this book may not have been worth $10 or $11, but for $8, it's worth having.
Book Description
Sydney’s not so sure about her handler at SD-6. Wilson seemed on the level. He acted as if he really cared.
But a new assignment has given her serious doubts about the man she trusts with her life.
Is her boss a double agent? And if he is, what will he do if he discovers Sydney knows the truth?
Download Description
Sydney's not so sure about her handler at SD-6. Wilson seemed on the level. He acted as if he really cared. But a new assignment has given her serious doubts about the man she trusts with her life. Is her boss a double agent? And if he is, what will he do if he discovers Sydney knows the truth?
An original prequel novel based on the hit TV series created by J. J.Abrams.
Customer Reviews:
Reveals Key Details About SD-6.......2005-07-15
"Father Figure" is one of the best books in the "Alias" series. This book explores Sydney's relationship with both her father, Jack, and her handler, Wilson. In addition, "Father Figure" reveals key details about the nature of SD-6 and introduces Arvin Sloane. Laura Peyton Roberts has written several Alias books and I would recommend those as well. A must read for any Alias fan!
Great for Alias Addicts.......2004-06-29
This book is a great look at Sydney's life and missions before the start of the TV series. Great fun for die-hard fans like me, but would probably not be of interest to those not familiar with the show.
great book for alias fans.......2004-01-05
yes great book for alias fans. I helps to get to know sydney and francie better and learn more about their lives before the series began. although my favourite book was a secret life this was the second best. It might not be as appealing to non-alias fans but still would be worthwhile reading. It is directed towards young adults and this makes for an easy read but I found it to be a nice change from the books I normally read, (Stephen King etc.)Let us all convert to the bartering system!
money causes problems!
Running on All Cylinders.......2003-11-17
Sydney Bristow's life is packed to the brim. Not only is she trying to catch up on home work from her mission to Hawaii, but she's also trying to find time for a social life. Not that's she'd doing to well with it since both Francie and Burke are mad at her. In fact, Francie seems to have moved on with other friends, which is making Sydney jealous. Meanwhile, she's off on another mission, this time in LA. She's the new intern at SpaceSoft, trying to determine if they are working on a new missile guidance system and who the client is. And if that weren't enough, her father is in town between trips, and demanding Sydney's time. Unbeknownst to her, he has a secret agenda all his own. Just when things couldn't get any worse, she begins to suspect her handler and recruiter is hiding something big. Is she right? If so, what is it?
This prequel novel best captured the early days of the show. There are several different plots and sub-plots working their way through the story, with never a dull moment. Keeping the action in LA allows more things to be developed then we have been getting in these novels. Yet everything is juggled well, with the story divided between family, work, and friends. If only Sydney could juggle her real life as easily.
The book is also filled with irony on several different levels because we know what is really going on behind the scenes and how Sydney's life will change in just a few years. I especially enjoyed getting a chance to watch Sydney and Jack interact before Sydney knows his secrets. His actions make perfect sense to us, even if they don't to his daughter. The ending packs quite a wallop, and I loved it.
For anyone who's been enjoying these prequels, this one is a must. Fans of the TV series will enjoy it as well for a glimpse at Sydney before the show began. While people not familiar with the show may enjoy it as well, they will miss much of what I enjoyed about the book.
Average customer rating:
- A Different Perspective
- Way Beyond His Years
- Way Beyond His Years
- Father Figure is a must to read book.
- A Wonderful Book about growing up and dealing with change.
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Father Figure
Richard Peck
Manufacturer: Puffin
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ASIN: 014037969X |
Customer Reviews:
A Different Perspective.......2006-02-24
This book was particularly interesting because of the great insight it gave into the male psyche. Being of the female portion of the population, this was entirely new to me. Richard Peck's impeccable (please excuse the pun) ability to bring us into the main character -Jim's- feelings, makes Father Figure a must-read for all those who enjoy down-to-Earth stories filled with emotion.
Jim and Byron's father walked out on them eight years ago, and now, after their mother's suicide, he's back, ready to take them home with him. Florida is all new to these two brothers, with wonders like palm trees, white sand, and Marietta, the beautiful woman with the southern accent whom they all three love. Through conflicts and struggle Jim forms a reluctant `pact' with his father to last through the summer, after which he can return to New York.
This touching story explains the troubles, obligations and, most of all, the pain of finding your place in a changing world.
Way Beyond His Years.......2001-12-01
I enjoyed this book thoroughly. I thought is covered a great deal of real life situations and occurances for a person so young. The story moved at a good pace from one event to the next and kept the reader interested by changing scenes so quickly. Jim Atwater is forced to grow up in a hurry and assume so much responsibility for just being 17 years old. His father leaves at an early age, his family must move in with his grandmother and his mother commits suicide to end a life of suffering. He and his brother, Byron, are then reunited with their father and forced to move to Florida for the summer. He matures even more while in Florida and becomes better aquainted with his Father. Jim plans to leave to return to New York but then discovers that Byron decides to stay with his Father. Even though it is a long 8-9 year period that is covered, the book itself moves quickly from one event to the next and keeps the reader highly interested in what may happen next. A good, solid, entertaining novel about Young Adult Literature and one that I would recommend to all young readers to follow the tough emotional life of a young teenager, Jim.
Way Beyond His Years.......2001-12-01
I enjoyed this book thoroughly. I thought is covered a great deal of real life situations and occurances for a person so young. The story moved at a good pace from one event to the next and kept the reader interested by changing scenes so quickly. Jim Atwater is forced to grow up in a hurry and assume so much responsibility for just being 17 years old. His father leaves at an early age, his family must move in with his grandmother and his mother commits suicide to end a life of suffering. He and his brother, Byron, are then reunited with their father and forced to move to Florida for the summer. He matures even more while in Florida and becomes better aquainted with his Father. Jim plans to leave to return to New York but then discovers that Byron decides to stay with his Father. Even though it is a long 8-9 year period that is covered, the book itself moves quickly from one event to the next and keeps the reader highly interested in what may happen next. A good, solid, entertaining novel about Young Adult Literature and one that I would recommend to all young readers to follow the tough emotional life of a young teenager, Jim.
Father Figure is a must to read book........1998-06-24
Father figure starts when Jim and Byron, his younger brother, are picked up after school by their grandmother. At their grandmother's house they see many peple inside crying, and a group of cops writing the personal notes of jim's dead mother. Jim stil can't imagine why his mother would have committed suicide. Usually he tries imagining being Nathan; who found Jims mom dead in her car, and see his mother. Jim keeps and takes care of his brother, by working as a coach in school, one day his grandmother phones Byron to come to her house with his brother. Jim goes to Florida to start a new life with his father. Jim doesn't want to do this because his father left them when Byron was just born. On the plane they meet Adele, they become great friends. Throughout his time in Florida, Jim and Byron meet new people, friends, some that he would like to meet more. Throughout the long summer Jim misses his mom. He also meets this new friend called Marietta, and shares all his secrets. I really liked this book because its similarity with real life situations. It is a good idead to write about issues because they give an idea of how hard life can be from one minute to another. As the book is written in first person, I felt as if I'd been Jim, moving to Florida, and having all these problems he has to solve with his father. It was really a good book, which I recommend to teenagers, I give it an eight out of ten.
A Wonderful Book about growing up and dealing with change........1998-06-01
I first read this book when it was serialized in a magazine called Co-Ed which was primarily a Home Economics Magazine for young people.. It was the story about two brothers who go to spend the summer with their father after their mother kills herself.
Neither one of the Atwater Sons Seventeen Year Old Jim and Nine Year Old Byron want to visit Florida but since they are still minors they have no choice. Their father Howard works as a Real Estate Agent who lives in a Two Bedroom Bungalow but their first night together is far from amicable. Jim blows up at his father for walking out and Howard's feelings are understandably hurt. The next day, Howard sets the rules down. What he did wasn't right but he still doesn't deserve to be disrespected in his own house. They reach a pact and as time goes on Jim and Byron grow to love Florida, especially Jim who loves everything from the Palm Trees, The Weather but most of all, Marietta, a Waitress who works at a nearby diner whose southern drawl could melt the heart of any Yankee, but when he insults her by insinuating a "Relationship" between her and his father, she reminds him sternly about how selfish he's been acting. She knew all about the family situation way before they came down to visit but all she did was try to make their stay more pleasant and most of all, it wasn't her fault that his mother died and that his father left and in that moment Jim realized how selfish he was acting. He was angry at his mother for dying and his father for leaving but what he didn't realize was that he expected every person to make up for what he felt he had lost. Eventually, he talks to his father about why he left and his father explains that when he and his mother got married, it was because of Jim's oldest sister Lorraine who "was born" before he and his mother got married. They tried to make a go of it but somehow they couldn't. He also knew that it was best that they were raised by their Maternal Grandmother and Great Aunt Alma who took excellent care of them. As the summer progresses, Jim develops a bond with his father and even works as an assistant at his office but when Howard asks if Byron can stay, Jim says no but as time goes on, he realizes he can't deny Byron a chance to have a father when he himself didn't have a father. So Jim agrees, Byron stays and by the end of the summer, the three Atwater Men put differences aside and reestablish a bond.
Book Description
The classic tale of a female Huck Finn, Peter Bogdanovich’s film version of the book was nominated for four Academy Awards. Set in the darkest days of the Great Depression, this is the timeless story of an 11-year-old orphan’s rollicking journey through the Deep South with a con man who just might be her father. Brimming with humor, pathos, and an irresistible narrative energy, this is American storytelling at its finest. Paper Moon is tough, vibrant, and ripe for rediscovery.
Customer Reviews:
Classic American novel.......2007-02-26
Worldly-wise yet innocent 11-year-old girl works with her con-artist "father" during the Depression. This is a classic in the long tradition of American fiction. The author masterfully creates an authentic voice that bowls the reader over. The story verges on the sappy at times, and the "con man with a heart of gold" conceit is rubbed a bit thin by the end of the book. The author also trucks out certain phrases a few too many times. But overall it's a great story filled with vividly memorable characters.
A real gem of a satiric American novel.
Addie Pray, One of the Great Young Ladies of Literature.......2006-02-23
If you've only seen the bittersweet comedy film Paper Moon, you're in for a treat. The novel, formerly known as Addie Pray (the "moon incident," incidentally, which gives the film its name, is NOT in the book), is about a streetwise eleven-year-old Southern girl who travels around with Moses "Long Boy" Pray, a con artist who may be her father (her "mama being fast and all"). It is Depression-era Alabama, and the two make their living selling embossed Bibles and dropping wallets and running other cons to make their living. Only once are they distracted, by a sweet-talking hoochie-coochie dancer who has Long Boy on his toes until Addie "takes care of her man." Their written adventures continue past the movie as they go into partnership with a larcenous Colonel and plan to bamboozle a rich old lady out of her fortune (with the help of the woman's mercenary nephew). But as in the rest of the book, there's a twist to this, too. Paper Moon contains rich characters and settings, and memorable events. Highly recommended.
Splendid!.......2005-12-08
This is one of the best books I've had the pleasure to read in a while. I was already familiar with the basic story, having seen the movie "Paper Moon" (which I recommend highly!). When I started reading this, I was uncertain whether I'd be able to adjust to the change in location and dialect from the movie; the movie was set in the Midwest, the book in the Southeast. My doubts were quickly put to rest just pages into the book, when I became completely engrossed in the story and Brown's easy-going writing style. I plowed through the book in a couple days and enjoyed it thoroughly!
The book follows Addie Pray, a young orphan, as she travels around Alabama, Tennessee, and Louisiana with Long Boy, a con artist who may or may not be her father. During their travels, the two are always devising schemes to weasel money ouf of those who can afford to lose it. First it's the famous Bible-selling trick, but it quickly becomes so much more. There are plenty of deliciously eccentric characters, exciting chases, "heartwarming" moments, and a healthy dose of laughs.
If you liked the movie, don't miss reading the book. The movie plot is drawn only from the first 90-100 pages of the book; the remaining 200 pages present Addie and Mose (a.k.a. Long Boy) in entirely "new" situations. The book is a delight from beginning to end. Highly recommended!
Paper Moon.......2005-11-08
Paper Moon is a comical, enticing, interesting, and beautifully written novel about a young girl, Addie Pray, and her father, Long Boy. That's not really his name of course, but that's what everybody calls him. Addie's mother had died when she was six and so Long Boy takes her with him to do business deals. Doing business just suits the pair, Addie gets so excited, she gets the chills. At first they have a simple strategy of selling bibles to people who have just lost some one. They go around from town to town selling bibles and pictures from or of loved ones. Their rouitine always started with Addie acting way more pathetic and younger than she really was. Long Boy's infallible ways make Addie adore and look up to him. As she gets older, she teaches tricks to Long Boy that just barely save their lives a few times. When the team decides to pick up a business deal with a millionaire, Addie has to change identities in a tedious plot to keep a crabby woman's financial amounts from her fortune-hungry nephew. Throughout the book, Addie's character transcends to a much higher level and her clever mind pulls you in. This book is written by Joe David Brown and is written in first person. I like books that are written in first person just because I feel like I can put myself in the person's shoes and really get a hold of what is happening.
I loved this book because it was intriguing and the author created such great characters that even though they are cheating people of their money, your heart travels to their side. I also picked up this book because they made a movie of it awhile back and I like to compare books to their movies. I always read the books first thought. This story is like a roller coaster with a fast pass, you don't have to wait in line for the ride. You get hooked on the first page, which I know is a feature for people who get bored easily. The dialogue that is used is old fashioned and not contemporary, more slang. It is kind of hard to follow but you get used to it, it is actually a big part of the characters overall because it determines the amount of education that person had. I also love this book because there aren't a lot of books written about this exact storyline and subject. It makes it fun to read because its an unknown story and you don't really have andything to compare it to.
Excellent and complementary.......2004-09-04
Written in the style (and context) of Steinbeck, this book is excellent.
The remarkable thing about the book, though, is that it is one of the few instances where you should read and see both the book and movie. If you liked the movie, the book provides more stories and adventures; if you liked the book, the movie brings the characters, setting, and geography to life.
The book is very readable; in fact, I read all 300 pages in a day! I highly recommend this book; the movie only makes a very good story better.
Customer Reviews:
Capps' novel is rare treat.......2007-07-31
The basis for the film "A Love Song for Bobby Long," this novel by Ronald Everett Capps is a languid, halting look at the depths to which a man's soul can plummet from such great heights. While by no means a hero, but not quite a scoundrel deserving of such heartbreak, Capps' view of Bobby Long is a rich tapestry of wordplay, images -- surreal, carnal and otherwise -- that evoke episodes of longing, lamentation and, ultimately, just desserts. By no means a plodding read, but not a fast one, either, this is a work to be savored and enjoyed. If you've a front porch and a comfy chair, by all means, use them. If not, just be sure to take your time with this piece of contemporary southern literature.
A must-read for those who loved the movie AND a great book in its own right!.......2006-11-30
I bought this book because I really loved the movie "Love Song For Bobby Long." I, too, was an English major and I totally identify with Bobby and Byron, both in their high-falutin dreams and in their failure to move forward in their fields (writing, teaching, etc.). And I have a deep love for and knowledge of the city of New Orleans, which I felt the movie did a fair job of depicting. So, for me, the book had large shoes to fill.
The first part of the book disappointed me because [SPOILERS TO FOLLOW:::] it differed SO MUCH from the movie. Lorraine in the book is the polar opposite of the person described in the movie; not only did she not own a house or leave anything to her daughter in her will (including a dress that her daughter could wear), but she was far more pathetic than the the boys she left behind: Bobby and Byron.
But once the book introduced Lorraine's daughter into Byron and Bobby's lives, it started to loosely resemble the movie and, as I'd originally hoped, provided more insight into and a different perspective on the main characters. That's when I fell in love with the book, and I swear, from that point on, I literally could not put it down until I'd reached the end, and even then I didn't want it to stop.
I guess that's how I know I've read something really special -- the end of the book feels to me like the loss of a dear friend, and I mourn for it.
I can honestly say that I love this book every bit as as much as I love the movie based on the book, and I can't recommend one over the other. I DEFINITELY recommend that everyone read Capps' book AND rent the DVD. This story is a Love Song for Everyone, not just Bobby Long.
Great Book - If you read with open eyes.......2005-07-29
I struggled with this book at first, but time spent with the characters ends up being well spent.
Yes, it is an unusual book.
Yes, it blurs the boundries on what is considered "decent".
Just one thing to remember... the author puts a few clues in front of us at the beginning...the Tao is what it's all about. If you have any interest in taoist "philosophy" then you will easily understand.
No the book is not like the movie "A Love Song For Bobby Long". In its own way its far more moving.
Capps captures the world he intends to capture in this book.......2005-07-13
Meaning that he almost perfectly portrays the characters he writes about. He captures the setting, the southern element, the drunken states, the misery, the intellect, and the love that the main characters have to offer. This book is depressing but at the same time eye opening and somehow inspriring. This book offers a great, accurate picture of what New Orleans can be to folks outside the tourist realm. I've met the author and can honestly say this guy has some stories to tell...and has done quite well telling this one.
Worth reading.......2005-03-24
I enjoyed this book and got through it quickly. It's dark and sometimes depressing, but the writing is excellent. I felt I knew the characters and fell in love with them all.
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