3 comments about The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur: The Woman Whose Goodness Changed Her Husband from Atheist to Priest.

1. There are many excellent books written about Catholic Christian spirituality by saints who were priests, monks or religious sisters. "The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur" is unique because it is the spiritual diary writings of a married woman. There are many married women today seeking holiness in their lives as wives and mothers. This is a book for them! They will find profound and useful spiritual direction in the words of Elisabeth Leseur, whose love for God gave her a steadfast, faithful and fruitful love for her husband. I can't recommend this book highly enough to women who are seeking holiness in their vocation of marriage.



2. The joy and hope that many evidently find in atheism is a puzzle to believers. For such, the In Memoriam written by Elisabeth Leseur's husband is worth the price of this book. He was a militant atheist for most of their 25-year marriage, while she grew in her faith and from love for him kept her prayers for him secret. Both were highly educated; Felix had lost his faith in studying medicine, was later a journalist and an insurance executive. They were childless, due probably to Elisabeth's many health problems. However, she was able to travel and to entertain until stricken with cancer and dying at the age of 53. The Elisabeth Leseurs of the world are usually unsung. But this diary, rescued by her sister from the burnpile, converted her husband Felix not only to Christianity but to the priesthood. It is a true love story.



3. 'My Spirit Rejoices'& 'Light in the Darkness'
   or 'The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur' - Sophia Institute Press

   It is not often that one finds a book of such vital import that it changes one's life. But the journal kept by Elisabeth Leseur is surely one of the most compelling books I have read in many years. It ranks with the great works of the Carmelite Saints: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, and St. Therese of Lisieux.

   For many years now I have kept Elisabeth as my companion during Lent; a great Spiritual Director in an age of darkness. She holds the light of Eternal Truth and points out the way with calm assurance.

   Elisabeth experienced an extreme degree of spiritual isolation owing to the timbre of her times in Paris high society. Her husband was aggressively atheist, as were many of his friends and associates. She kept the love of God deep in her heart, and it was to the Heart of Jesus to whom she turned for daily solace.

   At Elisabeth's death her husband, Felix, found her secret journal; and as he read the pages of the journal, his heart turning to remorse, the last vestige of his hatred for the Catholic Church was swept away in the tide of his beloved wife's counsel. Reconciling to the Church, Felix Leseur entered a seminary and became a Catholic priest. Elisabeth's cause for Canonization is now open at the Vatican.

5 comments about Going Overboard: The Misadventures of a Military Wife.

1. I was so excited to read this book, especially after meeting Sarah Smiley when she was a guest speaker at a military spouses group I was a part of. However, after reading the book, I was disappointed. While I admire her honesty (although I wonder how much of that "honesty" is driven by the need to spice up the book to improve with sales"), I would be so embarrased if I were Sarah. I am a military brat AND a military wife and have dealt with my own deployments. My husband deployed when our son was just 5 weeks old and our daughter was 2 1/2. I DID NOT FALL APART!! Nowhere near!! It's difficult, yes but there's no honor in the way she behaved! I'm teetering between sympathy for Sarah and disgrace. What a mess! I really expected more from the book though! I'm glad I didn't spend much on it!



2. I love Sara Smiley! This book is so refreshing after reading so many serious or do this and not this military wife books out there. I think my experiences with military life and deployment are funny. It is what it is but I knew that getting married to my soldier. This book entertained me so much i bought it twice (one to pass around) and the other I have to keep to read again. Thanks for the great book!! HIGHLY recommended. You can find a lot of how to's and guides online but for entertainment on what it is REALLY like to be a military wife is right in the book!



3. This book was written for idiots! Should be considered a fiction novel. Don't waste your time if you want to read a book about military wives read either "Under the Sabers" or "Home Fires Burning". This author should stick to writing magazine columns.



4. Sarah Smiley does a wonderful job of relating military family life. It's great to know that there are other women and families out there who are dealing with the same everyday issues. I love that she's unafraid to put her feelings and actions out in print for the rest of us to read. It's great knowing that I'm not the only one who hates waiting at Pass and Tag or who has family and friends who have no clue about our lives as military spouses. I can't wait to read more from this entertaining writer!



5. Awesome, funny quick read, could not put this book down. I loved it and wanted more, write more!!! It is great to hear or read about other peoples "adventures" with military life and put a humorous spin on it instead of dwelling on the negative! I loved it and would love a sequel or more stories!!

5 comments about Butch Is a Noun.

1. This book was recommended to me and i enjoyed reading it. I would definately recommend it.



2. I purchased this book not knowing what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of the author's emotions. Bear is very articulate as ze describes the warmth, comfort, and safety within the queer community versus the dangerous and painfully hurtful rest of the world. This book is educational but delightfully entertaining at the same time. I highly recommend it.



3. I loved this book and highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in understanding the unique mystique of the butch woman.



4. I found this book absolutely delightful. The author did a wonderful job of delving into topics that are generally spoken about, and ze did a wonderful job of painting an undiluted portrait of butches in general. A must read for all, especially parents with butch daughters.



5. As a self-identified femme who has always loved women of the butch persuasion, I have been asked a million times, "If you want to date a girl who looks like a boy, then why don't you just date a boy??" This book finally gave me the words to explain what I already knew I loved: the compassion, the cockiness, the fear, the struggles, the toughness, the sensitivity, and the oft-hidden inner world that makes butches who they are. My very favorite paragraph explains it best... a butch is "someone who has taken on the best gendered characteristics of both woman and man, left a lot of the stuff born of misogyny and heterosexism behind, and walked forward into the world without apology."
   
   I think that from now on, THAT will be my answer to the question I am sure I will never stop hearing.
   
   Thank you, Bear, for this great book!

3 comments about Madonna: Like an Icon.

1. I've almost reached the end of this book. I feel kind of cheated. This was supposed to be the "definitive" Madonna biography. Instead, what you get are the same old stories re-hashed with maybe a bit of extra totally extraneous information. For example, I don't really care to know the exact address of Madonna's family home in Pontiac, but would've liked a bit more insight into what really makes her tick. This book basically runs methodically through every album release, every tour and throws in comments from some people who knew her. It's lazily written, there's no real analysis going on here. O'Brien makes statements about Madonna and just leaves it hanging (or makes comparisons to herself). I did kind of enjoy reading the book anticipating some new information - and there were a few morsels, but not nearly enough. Her family are barely mentioned, but we get what seems every detail of every album she's ever recorded! It just feels impersonal - I wanted to read about Madonna, not about everything I already knew about her career. Only buy this if you know almost nothing about Madonna's life and career. You'll end up knowing alot about her career and chart positions etc. But you'll learn almost nothing about the woman herself. This is the biography of a career, not a person. I think I'll wait for the autobiography....



2. 
   Who can properly explicate the woman who is arguably the most famous female pop artist of our time? Many have tried; some have failed. Music critic Lucy O'Brien has a good go at it with Madonna Like An Icon.
   
   O'Brien has been researching the phenomenon that is Madonna since the 1980s, fascinated by what appears to be unbridled ambition and the ability to repeatedly reinvent her image. This biographer's summary judgment is "The only place where she seems truly herself is when she is doing her work. Away from that she can be self-conscious, status-conscious, everything-conscious. Only in performance are those layers stripped away and it's just her."
   
   Whether or not we agree with O'Brien's assessment this biography is meticulously written and researched, taking readers from Madonna's childhood in Detroit, Michigan, where she later danced at gay clubs to her almost fearless pursuit of success, through her tumultuous marriage to Sean Penn, to her Like a Prayer video, her movie roles, her stage appearance as Evita, her embrace of Kabbalah, and finally her marriage to Guy Ritchie.
   
   Noting that Madonna's theatrical shows have made her a "quasi-religious icon", O'Brien cites friend and actor Rupert Everett who called Madonna the "Immaculate Conception." He describes his impression upon first meeting Madonna: ".....there was an energy field around her, like a wave, that swept everyone up as it crashed into the room"
   
   Madonna once said of herself, "I am the work of art."
   Who is the "real" Madonna? The answer may not be found in Madonna Like An Icon, but it is fascinating reading and sure to be devoured by her legions of fans.
   
   - Gail Cooke



3. Tamara Conniff Billboard Magazine Editorial Director 10-14-2006-reports that Madonna set the touring benchmark for a female artist with her Confessions Tour which grossed $193 million, beating Cher's $192.5 million gross- "however, Cher remains one of the top diva's"
   
   Ray Waddell Billboard.com 5-13-2005 -reports that Cher's Living Proof Farewell Tour became the top-grossing trek ever by a female artist, playing 280 shows in North America, selling 2,880,726 tickets, playing to 92% capacity and realizing 90% of her gross potential. He goes on to state that Cher's Worldwide tour had 325 shows, grossing well over $200 million.
   
   BILLBOARD has never explained why Cher's touring statistics were changed.
   
   --Pollstar reports Cher Farewell Tour's average ticket price at $68.34 and Madonna Confessions Tour's at $183.76.
   
   Pollstar reports that Cher's Farewell Tour played 275 North American dates, earning $188.7 million and selling 2,840,151 tickets at an average ticket price of $68.34 (leaving 50 Worldwide dates not included in this tally)
   Pollstar reports Madonna's Confessions Tour played 34 North American dates earning 85.9 million with an average ticket price of $183.76.
   -- Ray Waddell in Billboard Magazine 8-12-2006 -reported that Madonna's Confessions tour played 34 North American shows earning $85.8 million and selling 467,312 tickets. He goes on to state that Madonna is likely to POST the top grossing tour by a female artist and make $200 million -"and history"
   
   Nielsen Media Research reports the television ratings for the concerts-
   CHER: FAREWELL TOUR NBC 4-8-2003 9-11pm
   #7 with 16.6 million viewers
   #10 and a 5.9/15 rating in the 18-49 demographic
   Cher was aged 56
   
   MADONNA CONFESSIONS TOUR NBC 11-22-2006 8-10pm
   #73 4.6 million viewers
   #72 and a 1.8/5 in the 18-49 demographic
   Madonna was aged 48
   
   THE BEAT GOES ON

5 comments about Woodswoman: Living Alone in the Adirondack Wilderness.

1. This book surprised me with how enjoyable a read it was. I enjoy the outdoors and camp several times a year but have had no burning desire to have a log cabin, or visit the Adirondacks, until reading this book. She knew what she wanted, made it happen and did an incredible amount of the hard labor herself. Have also read the subsequent volumes.



2. This book is one that cannot be put down, both literally and physically. I see that the author has been put down, often called a "Barbie Doll". I find that hard to swallow on many levels. Whatever title you may give her, she above all is a women who can right an amazing book, live in the woods, and teach important lessons.
   I would fully recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the woods, Upstate NY, survial, and a good book. I am very happy I purchased this book in the heart of Upstate NY. My only regret is not reading it sooner.



3. I read this book when it was first published and I have carried it around in my head ever since. My copy has "gone missing" and now intend to repurchase and read it again. I will always recall Anne's adventures warmly. Her statement about using the wind as a dryer has stuck with me. She is a remarkble woman.



4. Her first - WOODSWOMAN - just captivated me from the first page to the last. Then, every other book in the series - WOODSWOMAN II, WOODSWOMAN III - was like watching a movie. I couldn't wait to see what would happen next. WOODSWOMAN IV is the most exciting yet - her walk across Black Bear Lake in February through three inches of ice water over one foot of snow is riveting. The chapters about her German shepherd, Chekika, who was quadriplegic for two years, show the deep love the author has for her dogs. When James Herriot published his books, I didn't think anyone could come close to his writing. But, Anne has. I love her books as much as his!



5. WOODSWOMAN IV - Book Four of the Woodswoman's Adventures.
   Anne LaBastille ISBN 0-9632846-3-0
   
   
   Strong and independent, Anne LaBastille has chosen to live very simply as an ecologist and an Adirondack wilderness guide. She loves the solitude of the mountain lakes and woodlands. Fortunately for us she shares her vision once again in this fourth book of the WOODSWOMAN series. She seeks solitude and revels in everyday miracles of nature. She lives a contemplative, traditional life in an increasingly technological world. In this book she shares vignettes of life in her log cabin next to the Adirondack wilderness; a frugal, yankee approach to publishing; a "Deliverance-like" adventure in Appalachia and much more. Her style is conversational and easy. Delve into a chapter and into the book's 50 photos and you are there, alongside her. It is a fast and delightful read.
   I really didn't want this book to end.
   
   
   Ellie Horwitz
   Concord, MA

1 comments about Working Sex: Sex Workers Write About a Changing Industry.

1. A trip down into the backwoods entering into a thought provoking revolution all penned by extremely fascinating artists!

3 comments about East Toward Dawn: A Woman's Solo Journey Around the World (Adventura Books).

1. I bought the book after hearing an excerpt on public radio program Sound and Spirit. I was drawn to buy it because the experience of the author in the loss of her son. I had recently had a loss of a grandson due to suicide and was interested in reading more. I found the author had an interesting story but I really didn't glean anything more profound than what had been quoted. I gave it 4 stars because it was still well written. It just didn't really give anything to me.



2. When I saw the title and description of the book I jumped at it because I turned 60 this year and have yearned to do something special to mark the passage. When I saw that she had bought an around the world airline ticket good for a year, I expected a nomadic sort of ramble to strange countries and adventures. I was disappointed to realize that this trip was relatively short and had a set itinerary. Even though she went to exotic places, she had been to some of them before, and she had friends or acquaintances in all of them who put her up and took her around. A nice middle class academic on vacation. Her introspective moments were sometimes moving, but I tended to skip over the poetry quoting and philosophizing. This isn't really a bad read. I guess I was expecting something more exciting and insightful.



3. I found this a fascinating book on two levels. The journey around the world visiting and sometimes traveling with friends was an absorbing story in itself. But the inner journey-the "solo" journey- was a moving and uplifting experience. Everyone has those special birthdays-30, 40, and in the author's case, 60, when one tends to take stock of one's life. The trip was a chance to both see a part of the world we rarely get to see as well as to look back with the author at the process of becoming the person who is taking this trip. I believe a great many people will enjoy taking these journies with Ms Watkins.

5 comments about Voodoo Queen: The Spirited Lives of Marie Laveau.

1. Another reviewer here has stated that the author should perhaps have written a historical fiction influenced by Leveau, like what Atwood did with Grace Marks in "Alias Grace".
   
   To be honset, I wouldn't have read the book then either. That's because I can't read this book without feeling... well... search inside and read a brief excerpt. The writing reads like a freshman comp paper. I can't take it seriously because the author's put so much fluff into it.
   
   Check it out for yourself, but read the excert before you go out and actually blow some scratch on this book. Who exactly is she qouting in that first chapter?
   
   Bah... if you're interested in Marie Leveau, a topic worthy of interest; then I recomend Long's investigation into the who Marie Leveau was. It too, has it's short-comings, but I assure you that it is more worth your time than this.



2. Great book , loved it, thought it was wonderful



3. Many people have fallen in love with the women who is known as Marie Laveau. Not much is truely known about her, but Martha Ward does an excellent job in giving it's readers an inside look at the "Spirited Life of Marie Laveau". This book is a must for anyone interested in the subject of New Orleans folklore.



4. Martha Ward deserves great kudos for this incredible work of love and devotion, Finally bringing the enigma of "Marie Laveau", BOTH of the Marie Laveau's to us in this day and age where she is so very much needed again to Bless her 21st Century Children now as a bona fide "Lwa"! Excellent!!! May the Good Mother Bless Martha Ward, And ALL of Us! So Be It!



5. I have always taken great interest in the history of my home town, New Orleans. I read whatever I can find about the corky characters that made this city so unique, and Marie Laveau has always been one of my favorites. Unfortunately, this book was a terrible disappointment.
   
   Much of the insights about Marie Laveau in this book are not new but drawn from other sources that Martha Ward, the author, often fails to acknowledge and what is actually new here contains considerable mistakes on nearly every other page or is blurred with unsubstantiated fiction. Ward also displays little familiarity with Voodoo practices and Catholicism. To make matters worse, Ward makes painfully racist statements such as the best hotels in town "held tasteful slave auctions in their carpeted lobbies" (p.80). In my view, there is nothing "tasteful" about a horrendous ordeal like that, at least not for the men, women, and children who ended up on the auction block. Sadly, Ward, a white woman from Oklahoma, identifies here with the perspective of the slave buyers who indeed must have considered fine hotels to be a more "tasteful" environment than the dingy slave pens filled with stench.
   
   The abundance of fiction and incorrect data makes me wonder whether Ward should have considered writing a historical novel instead, because her passion seems to be in the fiction not in caring about complex historical data. That way it would have been more honest and less confusing for the reader. As it is, Ward's book is both entertaining and an easy read, but should not be mistaken for a meticulously researched serious academic work despite the fact that it appeared in a scholarly press. Even major plots in this volume cannot be backed up historically. For more reliable sources on Marie Laveau see for instance Carolyn Long, Spiritual Merchants, and Ina Fandrich, The Mysterious Voodoo Queen, Marie Laveaux.

3 comments about 100 Women Who Shaped World History (100 Series).

1. I think this book is a wonderful book to read. It shows how women changed the world history by what they accomplished and how they stand up from their troubles. At the end of the book there's a really interesting trivia quiz. On top of each page, there's a map that shows where the women lived/lives. The only flaw in this book is that the pictures are not well drawn.



2. The pictures in this book are very off putting. Yuck! If I had realized what the pictures looked like I would never have bought this book.



3. I think this is an excellent book for girls to read because it shows them that there are women who changed or help change world history.The author tells about the troubles the women went though and what they accomplished. This book does not just talk about queens and princesses, but also includes less privileged women who made important changes. It goes all the way back to Queen Makare Hatshepsut in 1530 BC and ends with Rigoberta Menchu. This book includes a trivia quiz and maps to show you where the women lived/live. Overall, I believe this is an excellent book because many of these women have been left out of school history books.

5 comments about Every Woman In The Bible Everything In The Bible Series.

1. Every Woman in the Bible is an excellent companion reference to any Bible study. The authors not only discuss each specific woman, but also delve into the culture and religious practices of the times in which these women lived. Everyone in my Bible study joins me in recommending this book!



2. I received this book as a Christmas gift from my sister-in law and fell in love with it so much that I bought several copies for several of my close friends. All of my friends feel the same way about it as I. It goes into excellent details of each woman's life and is backed up by scripture. The author really does lots of research on each of these women's lives and presents the information in such a way that is neither boring nor documentary-like. I recommend it for all women, not just Christian women.



3. This has alot of women that are in the Bible. It does not have alot of information about them. I was expecting more information on the women.



4. condition geat
   recommended if you are interested in the subject
   highly recommend



5. Every Woman in the Bible is an eye opening book on the use of women's stories in the bible. Richards does an excellent job of explaining and guiding the reader. I would highly reccommend this book for anyone interested in studying women in the bible and how their stories apply to us today.