5 comments about In Search of Hope: The Global Diaries of Mariane Pearl.

1. An inspiring journey, an amazing story and beautiful photos as well. I would recommend this book to anyone. I would especially reccomend it to Women everywhere.



2. After having read Mariane's book "A Mighty Heart" and after have seen the movie as well, what else could I say but this : Mariane is a great person who would have all the reasons to hate the whole world but instead of that, she tries to understand people in distress, people confronted to huge problems. This book perfectly shows us that if there is goodwill, there is hope for solutions, there is hope for a better world.
   I really recommend this book to those who believe there is no hope for a better future !



3. Many people know Mariane Pearl only as the widow of Daniel Pearl, who wrote a memoir, and had a movie made about her life starring the megastar Angelina Jolie. People forget that Mariane Pearl is a journalist and a good journalist at that.
   
   Pearl has been faced with the kind of hatred that makes it easy for someone to give up. Mariane Pearl never gave up and she disarms her enemies by writing this book, filled with beautiful, moving photographs, and earnest, honest accounts of women all over the globe making a difference. There's women fighting against human trafficking, oppression, violence, disease, and injustice...this book is inspiring and it opens the eyes we can no longer close.
   
   Read this book, be inspired, and act on it. Pearl has shown us that we can change the world in small ways and it is all up to us to make the difference. Call it cheesy, cliché, what you will...but it's the complete truth.



4. I was very impressed when I received this book in 2 days instead of the usual week or so. I love the book too! It is a beautiful book, and very inspiring. I gave it to a best friend who is lending it to me and then will lend it to others to see. The author made a beautiful book and her words are very touching. Women and men need to read this book! The world needs to get inspired by women who have made a difference in this war-like civilization we live in!



5. I ordered 3 or 4 of these for Christmas gifts for women I knew of all ages, and the hardcover version is a really nice gift, large enough in size and quality made to make an excellent gift. They all were quite honored to receive them.

5 comments about Fearless Women: Midlife Portraits.

1. I purchased this book, along with several other photo essay type books. As an avid photographer, I like collecting the work of others. This book was easily the best of the bunch - it will not disappoint. The photography is captivating, and extremely well printed on quality paper stock (a rarity in these days of cheap self published books). The accompanying text is inspiring and motivational. I highly recommend this book.



2. Babyboomers are not the only ones who will identify with the stories of the famous and "not-as-famous" FEARLESS WOMEN in this book. Included along with short bios of fifty incredible women are beautifully done black and white photos showing them in their "hayday" as well as now. Not just a coffee table book, but one which gives interesting stories of accomplished, humanitarian, courageous people. This is an inspiring book which leaves the reader wanting to know more about these "fearless women."



3. This review comes from a post I made on 21 July 2005 on an actors' forum, in honor of one of the amazing, fearless women profiled in the book.
   
   I have a story to share.
   
   Yesterday, my husband came home with a stack of mail from our post office box. As usual, the stack was pretty thick and was mainly headshot submissions, postcards from actors, invitations to shows, and a few bills. :\ At the bottom of the stack, however, there was a very thick express mail package. Heavy. Large. I know that Keith had to wait in a line to pick it up, as the post office would have put a yellow slip into our box so that we'd know we had something waiting.
   
   Filled with curiousity, I began opening the package. Inside the first envelope, there was a second. Inside the second, there was a third. My excitement was building. "What *is* this?!?" Couldn't wait to find out!
   
   Imagine my delight when I saw the gorgeous photograph on the cover of this book, immediately alerting me to the fact that the amazing Pamela Jansen had sent me a copy of "Fearless Women: Midlife Portraits" by Nancy Alspaugh and Marilyn Kentz, with photos by Mary Ann Halpin.
   
   First, the book is simply gorgeous. These women are, in fact, fearless and their portraits are breathtaking, their stories inspiring, and their courage outstanding. But what touched me the most is the letter Pamela wrote. I won't share it here, as it was personal and beautiful, but I have to let you know... I cried.
   
   I read the letter, I turned to Pamela's chapter, I read the inscription, and I cried some more.
   
   Keith said to me, "I want you to keep that letter out. Anytime you need to be reminded of the beauty that is GRACE, you read that letter and continue on."
   
   Pamela, after reading the letter again and placing it into the book for safekeeping, I pulled out your headshot, held it up, and said, "I WILL find a way to cast you someday."
   
   And that is for sure. It is probably the only gift I could give back to you, for having shared so beautifully with the WORLD by being profiled in this wonderful book. I am humbled and honored that you sent this book to me. I am forever on your side and will be sure that others know what a gift LIFE is, as evidenced by your amazing story.
   
   Everyone... GET your hands on this book. You will be blown away, inspired, delighted, and motivated to live your dreams like only you can.
   
   I hope you don't mind the plug, Pamela. I just had to share my thoughts. Much love,
   -Bon.



4. This book contains photographs of some of the women I admire most. Unfortunately, the women are posed holding a large sword as a prop to indicate their fearlessness.
   
   I suppose that this was the feature that "sold" the book idea, but I would much prefer portraits of my heroines without the sword. The sword is a symbol of much more than fearlessness, and detracts from the book. It makes the book corny.
   
   My husband bought it for me for mother's day last year; I'd guess from an amazon recommendation -- but it was a most disappointing gift -- one that I would never leave out for others to view. This wouldn't be true if the swords weren't in every photo.



5. After looking at three of the photographs and reading the first page of the introduction, I immediately purchased three copies of this book - one for myself, and one for each of my sisters. Now halfway through looking at these amazing women and reading their inspiriational stories, I am empowered and inspired. Life is long, and the middle of it is fabulous! My first book was published when I was 53 and my next one is due out when, God willing, I will be 57. So take heart all you "women of an age." The best is yet to come, as the authors of this book and the women in its pages will show you. You, too, can join this company in making this the most delightful time of your life! Give this book to every "Boomer Babe" you know.

1 comments about Women in the Bible: Examples to Live by.

1. This book has given me a deeper desire to walk closer to the true image that God has for his women.It probes your mind,and provides excellent examples to whom one can relate.Even though the women in the book lived in times unknown to us one can identify with their struggles and their victories. Not only does she look at the biblical times she provides a modern day example that helps you gain an even greater understanding of the message being taught. This is a great tool to help any woman take a look at their life and strive to follow the footsteps of her father.

2 comments about Paralyzed but Not Powerless: Kate's Journey Revisited.

1. Kate Adamson's "Paralyzed but Not Powerless" truly inspired me. Her story is a riveting example of just what's possible with perseverance and belief. I give this book my highest recommendation. Read it and you'll be glad you did.



2. ANY HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONAL WOULD BENEFIT FROM READING THIS BOOK.
   WHAT AN INSPIRING STORY! KATE'S STORY WOULD TRULY BE INSPIRING FOR ANYONE TO READ.
   VERY WELL WRITTEN. IT WAS NICE TO HEAR KATE'S EXPERIENCE AND, HER HUSBAND ALSO SPEAKING OF HIS EXPERIENCE. WHAT A GREAT ADVOCATE HE WAS FOR HER. HAVING A NEUROLOGIST SPEAK THROUGHOUT THE BOOK TO EXPLAIN WHAT KATE WAS GOING THROUGH WAS A GREAT PART OF THIS BOOK TOO!
   IF YOU LIKED KATE'S FIRST BOOK, YOU WILL ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS BOOK.
   THIS BOOK WOULD HELP FAMILY MEMBERS CARING FOR THEIR LOVED ONES.
   KATE IS AN AMAZING WOMAN WHO WILL SHOW ANYONE THAT WE ARE ABLE TO OVERCOME OUR OBSTACLES WITH THE "POWER OF OUR HUMAN SPIRIT". AS KATE MENTIONS "FOCUS ON WHAT WE CAN DO AND NOT WHAT WE CANNOT DO."
   KATES COURAGE AND DETERMINATION ARE A LESSON TO ALL!

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.

5 comments about I'm Still Hungry.

1. First, I admire Carnie Wilson. She is talented, gutsy and outspoken, as well as intelligent and poignant, not to mention very humorous. She prides herself on telling it like it is, which I really appreciate. She's been through a very public ordeal with her weight (and is still going through it, and probably will for as long as she remains in the public eye). I find Wilson's weight struggles to be fascinating, and some of that is because she is almost brutally honest about her failures (as well as her triumphs), not to mention her extremely complicated, extremely deep dependence for, and love/hate relationship with food. I can certainly relate to much of what she has gone through.
   But, the fact is, "I'm Still Hungry" is, at heart, a very shallow book. I have to ask myself why, since Wilson, herself, is anything but shallow. I can only conclude that Wilson, having undergone the very drastic, life-altering surgery of gastric bypass, must now feel that it is simply Not possible to allow herself to view this operation as anything but wonderful. Oh, sure, she Does talk about several of the downsides of the surgery, but she always gets back to how *great* it was to have it, and have *fabulous* it is to now be so much thinner (despite some conflicts). I believe her - but not completely. Her giddy tone cannot hide something even more trenchant: the deep and abiding love of food she (still) harbors. Weight-loss surgery has *not* taken this love away, nor, one feels, an even more troubling desire to binge on the very goodies she is not really permitted to have anymore, save for the tiniest of amounts. The book's title says it all: Carnie Wilson is *still* hungry and, lest you believe the form this hunger takes is mainly symbolic (for new life experiences and so forth), the book opens with a striking dream Wilson had, in which she is running through fields and streams of...food. I've had similar dreams, myself (prior to going on major bingeing sprees). Not only that, but Wilson dedicates her book to the "old fashioned buttermilk donut". She's tongue-in-cheek about it, which, for me, only serves to undermine her seemingly flippant, jokey dedication. The fact is, Wilson is strongly attached to food, always has been and, I think, always will be. Therefore, I take great interest in her struggles and the road she is on. She chose gastric bypass because she truly felt she had no other choice. I honor that, of course, (and the courage it took) but I also think that for a person who loves food as much as Wilson does, it might end up being a decision that comes back to haunt her. Perhaps WLS was the Only decision that she *could* make, if she wanted to survive (Wilson's first book, "Gut Feelings" definitely paints this portrait). "Gut Feelings" is, in many ways, a much more serious, in-depth book than this one is. Yet, Wilson is much further along on her gastric bypass journey at the time that this book came out. She knows, in fact, that she really Is still hungry (very hungry), and frankly, all the glee and glamour (and dishy photographs of Wilson) in this book Cannot disguise a sense of something very much like desperation coming through. A woman who is desperate to control and reign in her driving appetite for food. A woman desperate to believe that she really Really has made the absolutely Right decision by going for the surgery (and, perhaps she Has, but the right decision does not always mean that things, in fact, will always turn out just right - or even close to it). Yes, she lost the weight, but now she must eat really tiny portions - much more so, than if she had been able to lose weight by being not bingeing on food. Of course, without this operation, she probably would not have lost 150 pounds. Or got to pose for Playboy (I'm certainly ambivalent about this particular "triumph", but I can well understand a formerly fat girl's desire to "show them all" that she can be beautiful and desirable...and *thin*). I'm sure she honestly believes that the surgery has been completely worth the pain and setbacks. I really hope, for her sake, that it will continue to be so. She is now, at the time of this review, struggling to stop gaining more weight, and trying to lose the weight she has already gained. Clearly, gastric bypass does Not take away cravings - not for life, anyway. I came away from this book with a hollow feeling inside. It's almost like the after-effects of a food binge. There is crazy/giddy energy, and then: a real let-down. Carnie Wilson truly got to have the thin body she always wanted (it must have often been hell to always be the "fat sister" next to slender, fashionably-attired Wendy, whom she loves dearly, it must be noted). Carnie Wilson got to pose for a famous men's magazine. Moreover, Carnie Wilson knows what it is like to lose half a person, in terms of weight. But now, Wilson has to struggle with regain (something whcih almost All morbidly obese people experience after weight loss) and she also has to force herself to eat like a mouse. For life. This, for a woman who could and did eat with gusto. She is *still hungry* and I think she always will be, even if she manages, somehow, to get back down to her lowest weight, after the surgery. Gastric bypass is, after all, at the end of it, just another diet. And we know that diets more often fail than not. I think her story, far from being the bon-bon of glee this book tries to present, is, instead, a very sad one in many ways. I think Carnie Wilson is a strong, strong woman and I admire her for that. However, I wish that someday, medical science will have alot more to offer fat people than the miseries, compromises and limitations of gastric bypass surgery.



2. Great book. Carnie Wilson's experiences, obstacles, bariatric suggestions and emotional ups and downs are presented. It gives a realistic view about what to expect, how to feel and the journey after weight loss surgery. Highly reccommended!



3. I recommend this book to anyone interested in WLS surgery, or knows someone who is having it. Carnie gives great information on what to expect after surgery, how she coped with issues the doctors don't talk about and kept me uplifted and excited about having my surgery. It was a quick easy read and I plan on having my husband read it so he will understand how and why I am choosing to do WLS.



4. As with her first book, I was dissappointed. There is little quality in this book when it comes to GBP. While there is information in there about some struggles and what it was like for her, the "meat" of the book was about her posing in playboy, and being in love. The crude language remained, although it was not as bad as her first book, "Gut Feelings." I was going to sell these on eBay, but I think I will just give them away!



5. I really enjoyed reading about Carnie's experience because I have also had WLS. She offers great ideas, although I caution you that one should always talk to his/her own Dr. and not just taking her advice. Anyway, my complaint with her book is that she is sooooo inlove and sooooo happy all the time. It seems as if this was a panacea. Yes, I am happy and I have had great results from WLS, but it isn't all peaches and cream. In fact, there are many days that I don't even want to face the world. She seems to glamorize the surgery too much and she talks about her wonderful, fantastic, amazing husband too much! Enough already- we get it you're happy!

5 comments about Eurydice Street: A Place in Athens.

1. Brilliant!! I was raised in America of Greek parents. I too went to live in Athens as an adult. This book is well written and spot on. Captures the Greek psyche, way of life and ethos. Truthful depiction of life in Athens and its populace. An unbiased, concise history of modern Greece. Tackles all the historical and modern issues relevant to an understanding of today's Greece and its people. Doesn't avoid the touchy issues of attitudes towards Americans, Turks and Albanians. Reintroduced me to the many traditions of my childhood but added rich cultural and linguistic underpinnings and significance. I loved the etymological explanations of common expressions and words - so many of which I use but now have a deeper understanding of them. All that and a great read too. Bravo!!



2. An expat in Athens myself, I eagerly devour any accounts written by others in hopes I might find a kindred soul or nuggets of wisdom I've somehow overlooked. I did not find either in this book.
   
   Consulting with other expats whose opinions I value, they concurred that this book was boring and the author used every opportunity to name drop or prove how connected she is, so I was shocked to find so many glowing reviews here. Everyone I know tried in vain to get through a chapter at a time, nodded off, then put this book down for good. That's what I did. The only person I met who liked this book is a trailing spouse of a wealthy Greek with children, much like the author who comes from a well-to-do family and is married to a diplomat. This is not how the majority of real people live in Athens or anywhere in Greece; this is an account of a privileged life in which the bureaucracy and infrastructure so ingrained in Greek society have been removed.
   
   I know how difficult it is to write a book and really wanted to like it, and I'm sure people will vote 'no' on whether this review was helpful to punish me, but I believe in being honest nevertheless. This was not a page turner and will end up being sold since I never intend to pick it up again. Sorry!



3. Good book, well-written, broad in its scope of the mass of contradictions we call Greece. The author describes her first year in Greece, where she and her daughters and husband have taken up residence. She describes the key events during this year and uses each as a launching pad for forays into various aspects of Greek life. There is a fairly strong anti-American and anti-Brit tone always beneath the surface -- some legitimate, stemming from western support of "The Generals", the junta which unpopularly ruled Greece for a period. But I sense that the author is at heart a lefty who wants to take a few ideological shots as she goes along. Zinovieff is a masterful writer, who knows when to be blunt and when to be lyrical. Her anthropological insights serve her well -- well enough to dampen some of her left-wing passion.



4. I read this book on the strength of the reviews. I did not find it a bit charming after the first chapter. What I found it to be was startlingly Anti-American. And what is worse, I found it incredibly boring after the initial chapter. I found myself skipping pages, then chapters, trying to find something "charming" or remotely interesting. Save your money on this one.



5. Ms Zinovieff has written an entertaining journal-style "letter from Athens" about moving her family from the UK to Athens and integrating herself and her family unit into contemporary urban Greek life, circa 2002. There are certainly parts of the book that dragged, challenging the reader to continue. For example, her reflections on her earlier trips to Greece with her boyfriend as a graduate student were actually quite boring and her reminiscences as a late adolescent lend little to the experience of reading this book. A prepossessing style when you have little to say is actually quite hollow. On the other hand, the last chapter, in which she travels to the countryside with her husband and daughters to view her late father-in-law's home and confronts the question of whether or not she will make the long-term commitment to keep it and repair it is quite touchingly rendered. Ms Zinovieff, like many "ex-pats," highlights the many negatives in Athens life, but she makes a fine attempt to highlight some of the positives, too. She is best when she leaves her English anthropological interpretations aside and gives direct quotes from real Athenians -- something she does quite a bit. If you are thinking of an extended stay in the city of Athens I would recommend this. As a history of the capital of the modern Greek state, as a tourist guide, or as an "anthropological study," I would not.

3 comments about Tell it All: A Woman's Life in Polygamy.

1. Once in a long while you will find a book so compelling you can not lay it down and this is such a book! I felt like I was pulled into the story and suffered with Fanny Stenhouse as she fought the good fight against the Mormon Church and her enemies who wanted to shut her up.. This was not an off shoot of the Mormon Church but the original Church and it is a chilling example of an organization gone astray and exploiting women to satisfy men's lust. She quotes Brigham Young and how he received from heaven the exact dogma of plural marriage and as she says so well... "with bad grammar and all." It is a must read for those who enjoy history and want light shed on the issue of plural marriage and of women really felt of this practice, no matter how hard the church will try to define it. You will never forget this story and never defend this church with it's brutal and nasty past. Thank God Fannie did get out of Mormonism, but at a great risk to her life and limb.



2. This book is written by an educated woman who lived in polygamy in the mid 1800s in Utah. Although she was a strong Mormon, she felt that God would not make women live under such a terrible "principle", as polygamy was referred to. Because of her husband's work for the Mormon church, she was in the highest circles of the Mormon elite which makes her writing very compelling reading. She was very brave to write this book and suffered the consequences.



3. For those interested in finding out the real truth about polygamy in early Mormonism this book is wonderful. I have read many, many books on the subject and I put this first-hand account at the top of the list.

5 comments about Daughter of the Queen of Sheba: A Memoir.

1. Daughter of the Queen of Sheba by Jacki Lyden October 2007 Amazon
   Heartbreaking, hilarious, lyrical, this memoir is a mother-daughter story of the most unique and dramatic kind, a testimony to obstinate devotion in the face of bewildering illness. Lyden recalls her calamitous childhood with a child's aching regret and an adult's keen wisdom. An abusive, rich doctor became her step-father for a time and she describes tragic physical and mental abuse. Lyden, an extremely descriptive and imaginative writer, is a foreign correspondent for National Public Radio and has spent much of her adult life on the frontlines of dangerous war zones in the world. Her childhood was a war zone of a different kind. Her mother suffered from mental illness and in the days when medical help for this was surreptitious, she was often labeled crazy. "By the time I was fourteen," Lyden writes, "religious epiphanies were occurring in our house fairly often, and not only to my mother. I loved Communion because I liked the idea of taking a bite out of Christ Jesus. ...I was armed by this tribal ritual, the fallen comrade who has died and given me his vital flesh to live. ... In church, we could all go a little crazy. ...My teen group was taken into Milwaukee to hear an evangelistic speaker, a Mr. David Wilkerson, who blessed us by touching our forehead if we came up on stage, as I did. He talked about all the juvenile delinquents in New York City and how he personally was saving them... You could read about his exploits in his book, The Cross and the Switchblade, available in the lobby." Lyden documents her travels, letters home, and the devotion to her mother.
   Trish New, author of The Thrill of Hope, South State Street Journal, and Memory Flatlined.



2. I basically just skimmed the last half of the book as she lost me early on. Too bad. A fascinating subject, just extremely badly written.



3. I trudged through 40 pages and basically determined that this whole family must be nuts and we read this for book group and everyone agreed this was not an easy book or an enjoyable one



4. I bought this book after watching Ms. Lyden's appearance on Larry King Live, in which she spoke engagingly and eloquently about her childhood, her mother's illness, and the effects it had on the family. Sadly, she speaks more effectively than she writes.

   Big words taste and feel good in our mouths, and it's fun to string a bunch together (this I know from personal experience), but after reading that style through a couple of chapters it got tiresome. Ms. Lyden seemed more interested in demonstrating her command of the English language than in telling her story.

   I was also disappointed by too-frequent and too-lengthy sidetracks into other aspects of the family's life (for instance, the whole trip to Mexico story could have been told in a couple of pages). I had the impression Ms. Lyden was trying to flesh out the book.

   For those interested in the subject matter, this is worth a try if you can find it second-hand or in the library, but not worth full price.

   I do recommend watching Ms. Lyden if you ever get a chance to see her being interviewed - she is an excellent communicator...just not on paper.




5. I am saddened to find so many unfavorable reviews of this memoir. Reading it, I was reminded of "Angela's Ashes," "A Beautiful Mind" and "Growing Up." I found Lyden's prose both poetic and evocative. I thought she portrayed her own family and herself with remarkable journalistic perspective, but also with compassion. I am amazed at the extent of Lyden's success in her attempt to describe her mother's mania, as well as the author's candor about her own life. There's no self-indulgence in these pages, only a long and difficult distance bravely traveled and recounted for us, so we can see the terrain through her eyes. To the critical reviewers, I say, "Let us read your life," and to Ms. Lyden an unequivocal, "Bravo."

5 comments about Running With Champions: A Midlife Journey on the Iditarod Trail.

1. I really enjoyed reading Lisa's book, "Running With Champions". I thought it gave a great "insiders look" at what it really takes to run the Iditarod. As a reader, it was overwhelming to read about the physical preparations it takes just to get your gear and dogs ready... the endless hours of running the dogs, and of course, learning how "NOT" to do things. That is ALL before you get to the Ceremonial Start in Anchorage!
   
   I thought that her writing style was engaging, and she was more than willing to share the ups and downs of her adventures. I enjoyed her sense of humor about the goof ups, and accidents she had during training. I thought her insights into living with and training with one of the "Big Dogs" of mushing, Jeff King, was fascinating. I have often wondered what makes these mushers tick.
   
   I have read other books by other female mushers, and by far, Lisa's book was the most engaged, and engaging. Very thoughtful, warm and fun... Thanks for writing this book for us middle-aged gals!



2. Lisa was the tour guide on our 9 hour Tundra Wilderness Tour in Denali NP in September and did a great job. Great on stories, history, and of course her dogs. The book is just like talking to Lisa. She has a very outgoing personality and a true love of Alaska - this comes through clearly in her book as well. This book also makes a great gift.



3. As others who reviewed this book, I too met the author and her husband, but not in Alaska, but in Belize, Central America of all places! After a sailing trip in a group, my friend and I had breakfast with them one morning. Off-handedly, she mentioned the experience and book. 7 months later after looking at some photos, I was reminded of it, and sent for it.
   What a nice surprise! I Loved it! Not only was it interesting and inspiring, but the girl can write too! I cried several times and cheered her on. I'm passing it on to my neighbor for her trip this weekend. My only regret is that I hadn't known about her or her book before we met briefly. I would have talked her ear off with questions. So, when's the movie coming out!



4. On a recent trip to Alaska's Denali National Park, my wife and I were fortunate to have an extremely knowledgeable tour guide who had spent the last 27 years in Alaska, first as a commercial fisherman(or fisherwoman) and now as a dog trainer/fisherman/tour guide. Only in passing, at the end of our delightful 8 hour tour, did she mention that she had completed the Iditarod (at age 42). Seeing this obviously healthy, energetic, and outgoing person and hearing this rather incredible story certainly piqued our interest. As we were leaving, she also mentioned that she had written an account of her adventure "Running with Champions". At our first stop, at the Denali Wilderness Center, we found the book and both of us read it in the next three days. I only hope that Alaskan travelers can have the pleasure of Lisa's company on the Denali tour and share in her story and extensive knowledge of this great state and National Park. If Alaska isn't in your plans, please read this book and share Lisa's love of life, dogs, and the challenges of the Alaska frontier.



5. I visited Alaska this year in early March during the week before the Iditerod and went to Lisa Frederic's book signing, bought the book, and absolutely loved it. She has the insight, humility and sense of humor to convey the exhilaration and the strain of this adventure. She was also very accessible and easy to talk to, brought her dogs with her, and read just enough of the book to make me want to buy it and read it. This book helped me understand and appreciate the race and the time I spent in Alaska. I can not recommend it enough.