Average customer rating:
- Great Book!
- Giving Peace to My Loved One
- prisoners soul
- Another Winner!
- Extremely Pleased and Thankful!
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Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul: 101 Stories to Open the Heart and Rekindle the Spirit of Hope, Healing and Forgiveness (Chicken Soup for the Soul)
Jack Canfield ,
Mark Victor Hansen , and
Tom Lagana
Manufacturer: HCI
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ASIN: 1558748369 |
Book Description
Previously available only through free distribution to prisons, this life-changing book is the result of charitable donations from sales of Chicken Soup for the Christian Family Soul and gifts from thousands of individuals. In the spring of 2000, over 100,000 copies of Chicken Soup for the Prisoner's Soul were distributed to prisoners, prison libraries and prison ministries throughout the United States. The hope was that this collection of stories would touch the hearts of prisoners and offer them hope and encouragement, as well as inspire them to transcend the limiting thinking and behaviors of their past. The book was so successful that the co-authors soon found themselves flooded with requests for the book from family members, correctional officers, prison volunteers and others. Because of this huge demand, the decision was made to also release the book to the general public.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book!.......2007-10-17
This is a great book for anyone who is involved with prison ministry. It is full of stories about redemption, forgiveness, and restoration. It's easy to think of inmates as something other than people, formed in the image of God. This book reminds me that prisoners are still people, with hurts and emotions. This book has helpled me to grow in my ministry.
Giving Peace to My Loved One.......2007-05-14
This book has really touched my loved one who is incarcerated. He has really enjoyed it and stated that the stories really give the extra step he needs sometimes.
prisoners soul.......2007-01-30
I sent this book to my son who is incarcerated. He has read over half the book so far. He said the book is great. That it really gives him something to think about. He says the book should be manatory reading for everybody who is in a jail. He thinks the officers in charge of the prisoners should read it also, then maybe the harassment would stop.
Another Winner! .......2007-01-09
Great recreational read! I sent it to my husband! I cried through some stories and smiled through others, just as I have with any other Chicken Soup book!
Extremely Pleased and Thankful!.......2005-10-27
I personally did not read this book, however, I sent it to my 27 year old son who at the time was incarcerated as a result of a mix up with stolen identity (his ID having been stolen and used for criminal activities). It was an extremely difficult & spiritually frustrating time for him! This book made a tremendous difference and impact on his decision to rededicate his life to the Lord and allowing Him (Jesus Christ and God our Father) to "help" my son. My son derived much strength from the life stories of others, such as Chuck Colson, as well as all those that contributed their personal stories, in knowing that God is still on the thrown and has not forgotten those in the judicial prision/jail systems and that they are loved as much as those on the outside. My son said I could not have sent him a greater gift at the time. He also has shared it with many of the inmates who were interested in knowing how much the Lord loves them REGARDLESS of their circumstances, what we have done in life, as well as what we have not done in life to please the Lord. It helped many men and I am very grateful for the book and how quickly it was shipped!! That was a very important aspect as well since my son was in such a state of depression and needed some inspiration, hope, guidance and just plain down to earth stories about life in this difficult world. It helped him to keep on keeping on and having faith that God has a purpose for everything. Life catches us by surprise most of the time, however, it never catches the Lord by surprise. My son needed to know that it rains on the just and the unjust in this world, and it shines on the just and the unjust in this world (taken from the Bible). God is no respector of persons and this book clearly reveals that, but, he is a God of LOVE and he loves all his creations, including those that don't necessarily need a "hand out" but a "hand up" which are usually those incarcerated. Not all in the prison system want a get out of jail free. They just want justice done and this book allowed them, through the stories of those individual lives to know there is a "just God" in this world. Thanks for allowing me this opportunity to share my opinion/review and I hope it will benefit anyone interested in possibly purchasing this book!
Book Description
A significant and unique contribution to World War II literature, this book chronicles in meticulous detail the building and operation of the largest German prisoner-of-war (POW) camp in the United States in Aliceville, Alabama. This history discusses how the residents of Aliceville helped build, operate, and supply the camp, as well as become inextricably intertwined with camp life and the 6,000 German POWs held there. Focusing on the relations between the captured Germans and local Americans, this title investigates the nature of war, peace, and the principles of human dignity.
Customer Reviews:
relevant story told with great accuracy and skill.......2007-07-11
I grew up in Aliceville in the 1950's and 60's; I also spent a lot of time in Germany in the 1980's. I swam in the POW pool, I played baseball and football on the fields at "the camp", I went to VFW meetings with my father in the old officer's club and I know almost every local person mentioned. I did not find a detail incorrect. It is an astonishing job of research.
The books tells a great story and is expertly written. It manages to keep the reader's attention from start to finish. There were so many interesting and enlightening details that I was never aware of until I read the book. It's only shortcoming is that it does not have enough photographs of the actual camp and even the town at that time. I wanted to see more muddy "streets", pullman cars, tarpaper baracks, jeeps, jazz bands, and violins made from popcicle sticks!
But I guess I will just have to wait for the movie which will be made. It's just too good a story and too relevant for our times not to be communicated more widely!
Thank you, Ruth. You really did a great job.
More Than Factual Lessons..........2007-05-09
Thoroughly enjoyable and fascinating book! 'Guests Behind the Barbed Wire' is an important story not just for history's sake, but for it's ability to perfectly capture a unique snapshot in time when adversaries were able to co-exist with dignity during the violence and turmoil of WWII. Ruth Beaumont Cook meticulously details and reconstructs the story of Aliceville, taking the reader through the despair and confusion of the time, and ultimately arrives at a place of hope. A must-read for history buffs!
Book Description
Against All Hope is Armando Valladares' account of over twenty years in Fidel Castro's tropical gulag as a result of his philosophical and religious opposition to communism. He gives a picture of the Cuba that he lived in and tells of how his deep Christian faith kept him from abandoning hope during the most evil treatment.
Customer Reviews:
Makes Shawshank seem like a Club Med.......2007-10-15
Another Amazon reviewer got it right when he wrote that this book should be given to all one's deluded friends sporting hip "Che" T-shirts. This eye-opening, stomach-churning account of the author's 22 years in Cuban prisons, the conditions of which make Shawshank seem like a Club Med, demolishes the romanticized memory of "freedom fighters" like Che and exposes the lie that Castro's Revolution created a socialist paradise. And it highlights Communism's inability to understand or erase one of the most important traits of human nature: our hunger for individual freedom and personal dignity.
Valladares wastes no time plunging us into a hell Dante himself could barely have imagined - on page one he is abducted in the middle of the night by the political police on trumped-up charges (having been denounced, he feels, by a jealous coworker for his disapproval of Castro's embrace of Communism), and before his prison odyssey is over, he endures and observes the worst extremes of totalitarian repression. The tension and the drama never let up, and often reach the breaking point. The litany of sadistic human rights abuses goes on page after page, every page; the degree of physical and psychological cruelty is so incomprehensible as to nearly defy belief. And yet Valladares and others maintain an almost superhuman strength of character and will to live that are inspirational and humbling. Amazingly, there are even flashes of humor and an ultimate triumph in this maddening and disturbing memoir.
Against All Hope is one of the most gripping books you will ever read. It has a compelling social conscience and an inspirational message of hope, faith, courage, determination, and even love, and it will leave you with a changed perspective on yourself and the world.
Cuban paradise.......2007-07-05
Give a copy of this book to all your friends wearing Che t-shirts. After so many descriptions of beatings and hunger strikes, you become numb to the next ones. I recall the AI campaigns in the 70s-80s to send letters and postcards to the Cuban and Soviet embassies just to remind them that the world was watching. Sadly today AI has degenerated into just another wacko outfit. The UN comes in for a beating of its own in this book, as it just sat back and closed its eyes, passing resolutions against Israel and other nonsense instead of putting pressure on Cuba. This continues today with Zimbabwe, NK, and others.
Take a look at "The Aquariums of Pyongyang" for a look at the same song, different verse.
A conscience's prisioneer life in Cuba........2006-03-19
I read this book, translated to the portuguese, here in Brazil, some years ago.It's a book about the decades, who this Castro's victim was under prision in Cuba.A nightmare's life and for more then two decades.
The failures of this book really exists.At first, the author don't tells you nothing about cuban revolution.In fact, never there existed a battle in cuban revolution.Fulgencio Batista simple scaped, without a single shoot.A mafia's man, whithout a single drop of moral or courage.This was really the true Fulgencio Batista.
At second he doesn't tells you nothing about the sucess of castrism in latin America and the catholic church "liberation theology".Having nothing of liberation and nothing of theology, the catholic church in latin America became a marxist organization.
A Great Chronicle Of Castro's Achievements .......2006-02-19
Castro has now ruled across the terms of 10 US Presidents. The secret of his longevity is not his popularity with the Cuban people, but rather his ruthless suppression of any dissent or competition. Valladares provides a keyhole view into this world of true terror and depravity.
Behind the warm white beaches where libbies from around the world find paradise there exist prisons where the brutality is only equaled by that of Stalin, Saddam, Mao and a few others. Any yet, like the American press' refusal to admit the terrible atrocities of the Soviet Union, these are happening in our back yard.
Those who claim to be against abuse of prisoners or the imprisonment of those whose only crimes are peaceful protest or political unreliability should take an evening to read this book.
It is not a comforting book and evening reading may lead to sleepless nights for the routine horrors of Castro's prisons are the stuff of nightmares. Without assurances of its validity, this book reads like fiction in that it is difficult to conceive that so much could be inflicted on another human who poses no threat.
Highly recommended
should be read alongside orwell and wiesel.......2005-11-14
This is a great book. It should be given to every sap and sucker who somehow finds merit in Castro's Revolution. Valladares chronicles the absolute repression at the core of Castro's regime. The torture and executions at La Cabana and Isle of Pines prisons are among the most brutal and extensive cases of barbarism any government has ever devised. The next time some Oliver Stone or Michael Moore type tells you about Castro's achievements such as a "high literacy rate," give them this book. And remind them that this is one book you'll never see in Cuba, or in an American college classroom that romanticizes Castro's oppression. This is the real "Animal Farm," folks: a powerfully written nightmare of tyrannical cruelty and the deep spiritual resilience needed to pull through.
Average customer rating:
- The Prisoner of Zenda
- Zenda-A Classic Romance
- Fast-paced, well-written, light adventure novels
- Who names their kid "Rudolf," anyway?
- The book that started it all for me!!!
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The Prisoner of Zenda and Rupert of Hentzau (Penguin Classics)
Anthony Hope , and
Gary Hoppenstand
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 014043755X |
Book Description
Anthony Hope's swashbuckling romance transports his English gentleman hero, Rudolf Rassendyll, from a comfortable life in London to fast-moving adventures in Ruritania, a mythical land steeped in political intrigue. Rassendyll bears a striking resemblance to Rudolf Elphberg who is about to be crowned King of Ruritania. When the rival to throne, Black Michael of Strelsau, attempts to seize power by imprisoning Elphberg in the Castle of Zenda, Rassendyll is obliged to impersonate the King to uphold the rightful sovereignty and ensure political stability. Rassendyll endures a trial of strength in his encounters with the notorious Rupert of Hentzau, and a test of a different sort as he grows to love the Princess Flavia. Five times filmed, The Prisioner of Zenda has been deservedly popular as a classic of romance and adventure since its publication in 1894.
Download Description
On a jaunt to the small European nation of Ruritania, an English gentleman discovers thai he bears more than a passing resemblance to the King. Through a series of intrigues and adventures, he finds himself impersonating the king to defend him from a treacherous plot...and falling in love with the king's love. Princess Flavia.
Customer Reviews:
The Prisoner of Zenda.......2007-05-08
This book is the basis of the movie. The story of a happily apathetic Englishman, descended of a scandalous affair between one of his ancestors and a member of the Ruritanian Royal Family, who decides on a whim to visit Ruritania to see the coronation of their King. The king and our hero turn out to be as like as a set of twins, which comes in handy when the king is kidnapped by his evil half brother and the fate of Ruritania lies in jeopardy. Throw in a beautiful princess, the dashing villain Rupert of Hentzau, and plenty of intrigue and you have one of the great adventure stories. FYI the book is written in the first person, which gets you more personally tied up in the action/emotion. It was a great read. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys adventure stories.
Zenda-A Classic Romance.......2007-03-09
The Prisoner of Zenda is a fast-paced adventure romance that rewards the reader with clearly defined characters and moral values. If you want a story that leaves you feeling good at the end, this is a good one to read. The language is a bit archaic at times and some of the dialogue is stilted. But these failings do not materially interfere with enjoying the book.
Fast-paced, well-written, light adventure novels.......2006-09-27
This is a quick review of the Penguin edition, which contains both the classic original novel and its sequel. Both are good reads though quite different. Personally, I preferred the darker and more dramatic sequel; in "Zenda" everything just kind of works itself out and I thought it was just a tad campy.
Well, they're light adventure novels set in the mid-19th century or thereabouts. Not sure where exactly the fictitious kingdom of Ruritania is supposed to be, but I would guess in the neighborhood of Austria or Hungary. The novels feature swordplay, gunfights, romance, and plenty of plot twists (especially the sequel). Very well penned, written in a direct style with outstanding word choice.
In both novels, Rudolf Rassendyl gets himself neck-deep in Ruritanian politics despite the fact that he's a foreigner and total stranger to the people. What enables this is that he's a spitting image of the king, also named Rudolf. This remarkable coincidence is at the heart of the plots of both novels.
It's interesting comparing these novels with "The Count of Monte Cristo" by Dumas, which I'm now reading. "Count" is deeper, more descriptive, paced much slower, and requires more thought. Well, in my book, those elements are part of what it takes to make a five-star novel. "Zenda" and "Rupert" are too on the light side to hit the top of my scale. But I still enjoyed them and recommend them to those looking for a fast-paced yarn set in bygone times.
I finished this book on a flight to Bulgaria a month ago and just left it in the seat pocket. I hope someone found it and is enjoying it now!
Who names their kid "Rudolf," anyway?.......2005-10-06
A good swashbuckling novel is indispensable. Fencing, fighting, swimming across moats, humor, true love, red hair... and of course, there's a sad ending, so we've got all the essential elements of good literature here.
The book that started it all for me!!!.......2005-08-17
I have been an avaricious reader since I was in the second grade; a bout of mononucleosis and the discovery of the Hardy boys in the third grade sealed the deal for me, and I have been reading furiously ever since. This book, perhaps more than any other I had read in those formative years, thrilled me to my bones and forged me into a lifelong committed adventure reader. They say you never forget your first love, and I have never forgotten the Prisoner of Zenda. It has EVERYTHING a young boy could desire in an adventure book: travel to a distant country, nefarious villains, royalty, beautiful damsels, dashing military officers accoutered with flashing sabers and charging steeds, castles, kidnappings, escapes, swashbuckling....my knees buckle a little bit just thinking about it again. This book literally imprinted me for everything I have read in the genre since then and stirred in me a desire for travel and adventure that has led me all around the globe several times in my life. I do not think it is a stretch to say that this book may very well have changed the course of my life, nudging me into certain dreams and hopes that I have happily chased ever since. I've ordered it today, desiring to read it again and compare it to my 8 year old memories of it, but, more importantly, I also wish to present it to my son and hope it opens the world to him the same way it did for me.
Book Description
The gripping and inspiring story of two extraordinary women--from their imprisonment by the Taliban to their rescue by U.S. Special Forces.
When Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer arrived in Afghanistan, they had come to help bring a better life and a little hope to some of the poorest and most oppressed people in the world. Within a few months, their lives were thrown into chaos as they became pawns in historic international events. They were arrested by the ruling Taliban government for teaching about Christianity to the people with whom they worked. In the middle of their trial, the events of September 11, 2001, led to the international war on terrorism, with the Taliban a primary target. While many feared Curry and Mercer could not survive in the midst of war, Americans nonetheless prayed for their safe return, and in November their prayers were answered.
In Prisoners of Hope, Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer tell the story of their work in Afghanistan, their love for the people they served, their arrest, trial, and imprisonment by the Taliban, and their rescue by U.S. Special Forces. The heart of the book will discuss how two middle-class American women decided to leave the comforts of home in exchange for the opportunity to serve the disadvantaged, and how their faith motivated them and sustained them through the events that followed. Their story is a magnificent narrative of ordinary women caught in extraordinary circumstances as a result of their commitment to serve the poorest and most oppressed women and children in the world. This book will be inspiring to those who seek a purpose greater than themselves.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews:
Okay........2007-05-12
This was an interesting story about two Christian, foreign aid workers in Kabul, Afghanistan. I appreciated the background on what got them to Kabul and also the descriptions of their trials and frustrations while in captivity. Too often I've read bios or diarires that depict everything as "pie in the sky". Few people live that kind of life, so I appreciate it when people can be true, even if it means not being portrayed in a positive light. My biggest complaint about the book is its stilted language. For example, the use of "I was not" instead of "I wasn't" or "I did not" instead of "I didn't". This book was written in a conversational tone, though every time a contraction wasn't used when it should have been, it jumped off the page at me. It was distracting. Also, it would have been nice to have gotten more about their interactions with their fellow captives. This isn't a page turner. But it is an interesting story of faith put to the test and lived out in extreme circumstances.
Loved it!.......2007-03-02
I do a lot of reading, and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. It is very well written and does a good job of showing the reader what daily life was like for those living in Afghanistan. I appreciated the honesty, and the portrait of faith displayed by these courageous, Godly ladies!
Haiku Review--Prisoners of Hope.......2006-12-31
Dayna and Heather
think they'll die a martyr's death
for talkin' 'bout Christ.
Well-told story of arrest and rescue in Afghanistan.......2006-10-15
Heather Mercer and Dayna Curry were Christian humanitarian aide workers in Kabul, Afghanistan, who had been arrested by the Taliban shortly before September 11th for proselytizing the Christian faith. Their 105-day detainment captured the attention of this nation as well as the attention of the world. This is the story of their arrest, imprisonment, and rescue (with assistance from freelance writer Stacy Mattingly).
I initially approached this book with low expectations. The previous reviews were mixed while I imagined that this book was a "rush job," one that was taken to press as quickly as possible while people still remembered who they were. To my surprise, the book was excellent! The book is divided into four parts (further divided into chapters). Part One is brief autobiography of Mercer and Curry and their pre-arrest activity in Afghanistan. It was interesting to read what an aide worker actually does and the description of Afghanistan culture under the Taliban captivated me. Part Two is about their time at their first prison, "Reform School" in Kabul. Here, they describe their conditions (relatively mild compared to those of Afghan prisoners--the world was watching), their interrogations, and the realization that they would be tried in Taliban court (and the Taliban would seek the death penalty). Part Three concerned itself with Curry and Mercer's time at their second and third prisons, their eyewitness accounts of attacks on Kabul from the Northern Alliance and the United States, and the increasing anxious actions of their Taliban captors. Part Four deals with their liberation at the hands of the Northern Alliance, their "hiding out" in a wealthy Afghani's compound, and their rescue by the United States military.
Positive aspects of this book included the story itself: fast paced and actually suspenseful (even though I know how it would turn out). Descriptions of the culture were fascinating and the descriptions of the various people they met also made for enjoyable reading. They appeared candid about their experience as well. They didn't necessarily try to put themselves in the best light, but referenced Heather Mercer's stress-fatigue and deteriorating mental state, Dayna Curry's out-of-place concern for make-up, and fights that broke out among the women (two German and two Australian women were detained as well).
Negative aspects included the use of foreign words. I do not object to their use, but they were often defined once and then used as if the reader would remember what they mean. This reader, for one, didn't remember most of the terms. Another disappointment was the authors' portrayal of Jesus Christ. Jesus was only described twice as the one who takes the sins of the world away, once as the giver of eternal life, and never as God himself. However, he is frequently portrayed as the one who changes lives, heals souls, and is a faithful friend. While Jesus is faithful healer of bodies, souls, and relationships, all this stems from his forgiveness of sins by grace alone through faith alone. A testimony of their Christian faith being an important component of this book, Curry and Mercer should have worked harder to make the role of Christ in the Christian faith more clear.
Nevertheless, the negative aspects of this book do not outweigh the positive aspects. Even though the events are "ancient history" by modern American standards, the story is told very well. Highly recommended.
Arrogant and selfish.......2006-08-26
Read this book and see Christian zealotry at its worst. Let's see, we have two amazingly naive girls who want to help the needy and change the world. Hey, that's good. Hummm, well, there just are not enough needy folks here in the US, so let's be world travelers! Yeah, that's the ticket! More, let's go where it is illegal to preach our religion! Yes, let's live dangerously! More still, let's endanger folks who are so poor they consider clean water a gift and let's preach our illegal stuff to them. These two nitwits are shameful, silly, and - make no mistake - dangerous. Their selfish acts endangered innocent people - poor, destitute people. Sadly, when one considers that they were treated as "heroes" upon their rescue (which endangered military personnel), we are in bad shape and things are getting worse. Thank God that we are not a theocracy ............... yet.
Customer Reviews:
Exciting Adventure Novel.......2006-04-25
This is an excellent novel by Sir Anthony Hope. I first read it at school as a young man and I loved it. I particularly enjoyed the fast moving action which kept me wanting to read more and more to see how this remarkable story unfolds. I rediscovered this book at a second hand book recently and immediately grabbed it. Reading it again confirms that this is a timeless adventure classic novel.
This is a fantastic adventure novel that is well written and has a very interesting storyline. This is recommended reading for adventure lovers.
A Grandfather to James Bond.......2006-04-01
The Prisoner of Zenda, by Anthony Hope
Sir Anthony Hope Hawkings was a successful London lawyer who wrote this 1894 novel about foreign intrigue and an Englishman in a fictional Balkan country. It inspired many such stories, and was filmed four times. It may have appealed to the growing interest in Continental politics and the future effect on Britain.
Rudolf Rassendyll is a 29 year old bachelor gentleman with red hair and a nose that is unusual for his family, but comes from the Elphburg side (the royal house of Ruritania). This came from an 18th century scandal. Rudolf had been to a German university, and spoke French as well as his English. He then decides to visit Ruritania for the Coronation! Rudolf stops at Zenda rather than the crowded capital of Strelsau, and stays at a small inn. There is a conflict between Prince Rudolf and his half-brother Duke Michael. When walking through the woods, Rassendyll meets Prince Rudolf. But a problem arises that will prevent Prince Rudolf from appearing at his Coronation that day. Colonel Sapt thinks of a solution: Rassendyll will double for the Prince at the Coronation! We learn that the poverty-stricken people of Old Town favor Duke Michael. The Coronation succeeds with no one suspecting a double. But when Rassendyll leaves to return to England a new problem arises. Rassendyll must continue to act as the King of Ruritania.
The story tell show Rassendyll, Sapt, and the others succeed in rescuing Prince Rudolf from captivity, and restore him to the throne and marriage with his cousin Princess Flavia (also of the Blood Royal). Duty triumphs over love, Flavia will stay and Rassendyll will go, never to return. [Is this story a simplified version of "The Man in the Iron Mask?] It recalls pre-WW I Europe when no passports were needed to travel freely. This swashbuckling tale of adventure is well suited to a film where there is more action that talk. The limited number of characters would keep costs down.
The book "Royal Babylon" by Karl Shaw tells the uncensored history of European royalty, not the bowdlerized version in this novel. The earlier reference to a position in the Diplomatic Corps suggests Rassendyll may have joined the British Secret Service and been assigned to work on the Ruritanian succession. His job is to eliminate Michael from the throne (the masses liked him) and ensure Rudolf's succession (a weak man given to drink, and controllable by his British friends). There was no mention of Ruritania's importance as an ally or commercial partner to Britain.
Beautifully written escape novel.......2005-08-22
Being in my mid-fifties, I initially thought this book would be too silly for me. Boy, was I wrong! Not only is the text fast-paced and thoroughly engaging, it is splendedly written in a style befitting the aristocratic adventure-romance it portrays.
Somewhere between Don Quixote and Harlequin novels, "Prisoner" offers an affirmation of the noble in each of us, particularly in our own day of ethically-flat efficiency.
The book that started it all!!!.......2005-08-16
I have been an avaricious reader since I was in the second grade; a bout of mononucleosis and the discovery of the Hardy boys in the third grade sealed the deal for me, and I have been reading furiously ever since. This book, perhaps more than any other I had read in those formative years, thrilled me to my bones and forged me into a lifelong committed adventure reader. They say you never forget your first love, and I have never forgotten the Prisoner of Zenda. It has EVERYTHING a young boy could desire in an adventure book: travel to a distant country, nefarious villains, royalty, beautiful damsels, dashing military officers accoutered with flashing sabers and charging steeds, castles, kidnappings, escapes, swashbuckling....my knees buckle a little bit just thinking about it again. This book literally imprinted me for everything I have read in the genre since then and stirred in me a desire for travel and adventure that has led me all around the globe several times in my life. I do not think it is a stretch to say that this book may very well have changed the course of my life, nudging me into certain dreams and hopes that I have happily chased ever since. I've ordered it today, desiring to read it again and compare it to my 8 year old memories of it, but, more importantly, I also wish to present it to my son and hope it opens the world to him the same way it did for me.
Customer Reviews:
Remarkable Story of Faith & Humility in This Century.......2007-03-21
This is one of those biographies that is difficult to put down-even if history has made you aware of the ending. The sory is told in a very descriptive manner and gently informs the reader of the amazing place this family had on Vietnam and her history. The parts are divided into major events of Cardinal Thuan's life and was written while he was still among us.
Do not anticipate a super description of his POW days- it is obvious Cardinal Thuan conjoled the author into tempering and playing down that experience. There are amazing stories about his acts of courage and faith but they are not told here and are played down -perhaps too much for us, the faithful who thirst for those heroic stories in this century.
"Biography of a Man of Faith".......2005-12-04
Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan was part of the Christian community of Vietnam, member of a prominent family of national renown, nephew of assassinated leader, President Diem, and an integral voice in the decades of conflict during the tragedy of Vietnam's fall to communism. His great spirituality, his imprisonment and torture for his religious and political beliefs, and his ultimate rise to become a Cardinal in the Catholic Church, are inspiration to readers of all faiths and nationalities.
The author provides a decent examination of the late Cardinal's life (he received the red hat from Pope John Paul II in 2001) with a solid background of his family ancestry, a look at his formative years, a chronology of his ministry and trials with an increasingly antagonistic government. Later exiled, his work at the Vatican and his writings have served to inspire Catholics around the globe.
Although the writer packs a lot of information into the 300 pages, in my opinion, the book lacks the sufficient critical thinking and analysis regarding the various issues that contributed to his ultimate suffering and sacrifice. The tone is respectful, even worshipful, but left me wishing for more information regarding the issues held by his opponents. As Bishop, Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan inspired a great love and affection by the faithful. However, the fear in the hearts of his opponents could have (in my opinion) received a greater examination. Further, his sufferings seemed to be somewhat sanitized in the book. While not seeking lurid details of his experiences, the book did not convey the true depth of his suffering. Additional information in this regard would have actually fostered a greater appreciation of the man's depth and character.
That aside, THE MIRACLE OF HOPE presents a good introduction to the late Cardinal's life. His own writings - THE ROAD OF HOPE, and TESTIMONY OF HOPE - taken along with this biography, will provide the reader with a more comprehensive understanding of the man and his Catholic spirituality.
amazing, truly a remarkable holy man.......2004-07-03
This man have suffered so much, he is the truly lived what Jesus told us, to love our ememies and he did. He suffered in jail for 13 years and never felt any hate or anger toward them. He is such a good role model for us, it wouldnt suprise me he would be made a saint one day, cuz he truly was one when he was here on earth, a living martryr.
Book Description
The Soul Knows No Bars is a unique book, co-authored by Drew Leder, and inmates at the Maryland State Penitentiary. Taking off from the texts by Foucault, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Buber, Cornel West, and others, the men speak of the impact within their lives of power, violence, sexual and racial identity, incarceration, and the liberation of spirit possible even in a maximum-security cell.
Customer Reviews:
Philosophy and Crime meet face to face..........2000-11-02
What does one get when they cross a Philosophy Professor with a group of inmates sentenced to life? The answer is, not surprisingly, an incredible, tour-de-force read. I came upon this title, "The Soul Knows No Bars: Inmates Reflect on Life, Death, and Hope" quite by accident, and what a treasure of a read it is.
Philosophy professor Drew Leder - with quite a life story of hid own - has compiled a rich and varied dialogue between himself and a handful of inmates from the Maryland Penetentiary. How he came to teach a philosophy class inside the prison walls is a story in itself, but it is the discussion and debate that broke forth in the midst of those classes that make this book a jewel.
As Sister Helen Prejean put it, "Put a philosophy professor into a locked room with incarcerated thieves, drug dealers, and murderers, throw in Socrates, Nietzsche, Cornel West and Heidegger - and what do you get? Conversations that knock your socks off. A book you simply can't put down." I'm in agreement with the good Sister.
The book explores the dynamics of power, violence, race, and sexuality, as well as the flights of spirit possible even from a prison cell. The inmates (and Leder) took the texts of some of the greatest philosophical minds known, used those texts as springboards, and reflected on their life experiences.
The average law-abiding citizen will be surprised to hear what these men have drawn out and declared. This book is a rich exploration of our present-day's criminal mind. What got them to where they are, how they came to be of the mind they were when in criminal activity, and where they've come since incarcertaion is a fascinating journey through the soul. The book serves as a clarion call for society at large to re-examine our very fabric of social interaction, governing, and penalizing of our fringe members.
The discussions are enlightening, powerful, and (at times) disturbing.
What struck me most as I read through the words of this book is the incredible waste of intellect and potential - that which has been lost to poverty and drugs is nothing short of heartbreaking.
Though author Leder didn't set out to do this, he has shone the spotlight on the need for prison reform - to salvage and restore broken lives is nothing short of a necessity. Some of the greatest minds of our time could well be locked up behind bars.
This is a tremendous read and I recommend it to anyone who loves to explore life from a philosophical bent (Leder uses phenonmenology most often) and who wants to better understand the criminal mind. And it is for those who continue to hold out hope that reformation is possible even for the most hardened criminal.
Excellent read, from start to finish.
The Philosophy of Crime..........2000-09-10
What does one get when they cross a Philosophy Professor with a group
of inmates sentenced to life? The answer is, not surprisingly, an
incredible tour-de-force read. I came upon this title, "The Soul
Knows No Bars: Inmates Reflect on Life, Death, and Hope" quite by
accident, and what a treasure of a read it is.
Philosophy professor
Drew Leder - himself with quite a life story - has compiled a rich and
varied dialogue between himself and a handful of inmates from the
Maryland Penetentiary. How he came to teach a philosophy class inside
the prison walls is a story in itself, but it is the discussion and
debate that broke forth in the midst of those classes that make this
book a jewel.
As Sister Helen Prejean put it, "Put a
philosophy professor into a locked room with incarcerated thieves,
drug dealers, and murderers, throw in Socrates, Nietzsche, Cornel West
and Heidegger - and what do you get? Conversations that knock your
socks off. A book you simply can't put down." I'm in agreement
with the good Sister.
The book explores the dynamics of power,
violence, race, and sexuality, as well as the flights of spirit
possible even from a prison cell. The inmates (and Leder) took the
texts of some of the greatest philosophical minds known, used those
texts as springboards, and reflected on their life experiences.
The
average law-abiding citizen will be surprised to hear what these men
have drawn out and declared. This book is a rich exploration of our
present-day's criminal mind. What got them to where they are, how they
came to be of the mind they were when in criminal activity, and where
they've come since incarcertaion is a fascinating journey through the
soul. The book serves as a clarion call for society at large to
re-examine our very fabric of social interaction, governing, and
penalizing of our fringe members.
The discussions are enlightening,
powerful, and (at times) disturbing.
What struck me most as I read
through the words of this book is the incredible waste of intellect
and potential - that which has been lost to poverty and drugs is
nothing short of heartbreaking.
Though author Leder didn't set out
to do this, he has shone the spotlight on the need for prison reform -
to salvage and restore broken lives is nothing short of a
necessity. Some of the greatest minds of our time could well be locked
up behind bars.
This is a tremendous read and I recommend it to
anyone who loves to explore life from a philosophical bent (Leder uses
phenonmenology most often) and who wants to better understand the
criminal mind. And it is for those who continue to hold out hope that
reformation is possible even for the most hardened
criminal.
Excellent read, from start to finish.
Customer Reviews:
Another View of the Holocaust.......2000-07-28
This thin little book contains some of the memories of Genevieve de Gaulle Anthonioz (niece of Charles de Gaulle), from the time she was imprisoned in Fresnes Prisons during World War II. A young Catholic, she was jailed because of her efforts as a resistance worker.
She watches a co-worker being beaten to death for trying to wash out her underwear. One of her jobs is to sort through huge piles of dirty, bloody prison uniforms from those who are murdered, to find scraps and buttons that can be reused. Her single cell is flooded with smoke from the ovens. She spends much time in solitude, reflecting on how she will handle her own early death which she is sure is imminent.
She is never marked for extinction, and so has a slightly different view of life in the camps than the tellers of most books I've read. Life in one of the worst prisons in France during WWII is not pleasant, although through she can receive mail, smuggled in Christmas presents, and medical care when sick.
In her isolation, she survives by befriending the cockroaches in her cell. She secretly makes a Christmas handkerchief for the Jehovah's Witness who brings meals around. She observes the lives of those destined to die, and is deeply moved.
Realizing that the only way to bear witness is to survive, she does. It took 55 years for her to be able to write her story - she spent those years raising her children and working to improve the lives of the homeless.
Translated from the original French, the tenses used are a little unsettling, without any obvious reason. The text switches from past to present sometimes within the same paragraph. It could have used more editing after the translation.
However, for those interested in the Holocaust, this is a very quick read, and offers a look from the eyes of a young non-Jewish girl. A worthwhile read.
Moving.......2000-07-15
A most moving book. You learn of the terrible sufferings experienced in a concentration camp, and the later fruits they would bear.
Books:
- Childhood's End
- Crime Novels: American Noir of the 1950s: The Killer Inside Me / The Talented Mr. Ripley / Pick-up / Down There / The Real Cool Killers (Library of America)
- Desert Solitaire
- Destined to Witness: Growing Up Black in Nazi Germany
- DietMinder Personal Food & Fitness Journal (A Food and Exercise Diary)
- DK Readers: The Story of Anne Frank (Level 3: Reading Alone)
- Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance
- Dry: A Memoir
- Eagle Strike (Alex Rider)
- Essential Cases on Human Rights for the Police: Reviews and Summaries of International Cases (The Raoul Wallenberg Institute Professional Guides to Human Rights)
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