5 comments about Heaven's Harlots: My Fifteen Years in a Sex Cult.

1. It was an enjoyable read and interesting to gain insight into the life of a cult member. The language flowed and the book was easy to get wrapped up in.
   
   It amazes me that so many people fell into line with the cult's ideology and actually raised children in such an environment.
   
   For all that the author divulged I felt that there were certain aspects of life within the cult that she was not willing to be open about. Namely the prevalence of child abuse. She touches upon the subject briefly and at the same time appears to defend the cult when talking about the abuse, as if she is doubting what she heard and saw.



2. Well, this isn't your usual book about religion. Miriam was a young lady just out of high school and planning to attend college and then she decides to join a religious cult called "The Children of God" and later "The Family".
   
   To learn more about this cult, do a Google search where you can find much more about this group.
   
   Miriam's book is interesting in that it illustrates that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely and just because it's done in the name of GOD doesn't mean that it's not corrosive to your spirit.
   
   Many younger readers may not realize the "free sex" of the 60's or the hippie and drug scene that existed at that time and the drug scene and therefore not understand how a cult could establish itself and find willing members, especially pretty young female members who would be willing to share their bodies with other members and even to go out ffishing for new members and raising money for the cult through sexual activity.
   
   Perhaps some readers will recall the cults such as the Hari Krishna's who's members hung out at American Parks and air ports and begged for money.
   
   The members of the Children of God went out into the public selling the writing of their Leader, "MO", and each member had quota's that they had to meet or they were penalized in one way or another.
   
   In addition, the cult developed and encouraged some of the talents of their members by using them to perform musical events in Paris and also in Southern France. Appearently, Miriam was quite a singer and dancer and as an attractive and young woman, her value to the cult was all the more so she could attract the attention of "high value" men such as Salim who she writes about as one of her customers.
   
   The cult would not allow their women members to use birth control and as a consequence, Miriam had five children. Some of the cult members contracted STD's due to the restriction on protection.
   
   A husband was chosen for Miriam against her own will as they were for other members and she never felt love for this man all though he dearly loved her. Later, he decides to marry another woman and Miriam shares her husband with another "wife" who eventually steals her husbands complete attention.
   
   Eventually, Miriam decides to leave the cult after they begin to promote sexual relations between adult members and children. She returns to the U.S. to live with her mom and returns to academia and earns her B.A., Masters and eventually her PHD. She is a professor at Kennesaw University just North of Atlanta and I wish her well.
   
   It is wonderful that this lady was able to discover her right path and turn her life around and away from the false message of the cult that had attracted her during her youth.
   
   It is becoming more and more clear that women have been treated as second class citizens by many major religions, not just cults, even blaming "Eve" for the original sin.
   
   Along the same vein, I suggest the following book as well:
   
   A Thousand Splendid suns by Khaled Hosseini.



3. Well I thought I had seen it all - i have been abused all my life - friends relatives ministers and I guess that is why i was interested to read this book. I was hooked on drugs for years becasue of what I went through - I got clean and then got hooked on oxycontin for so long - i couldn;t ven tell the time of year sometimes becuase i was in a haze so much and peopel would coem along to my house and do sex to me and I woudln't even know it my husband at the time was also an addict but he had a job and he woudl lock me in the house with no car keys when he left for work. He said it was to keep me from driving but I know it was to keep me from escaping to myself and to freedom. I got free and got a job and cleaned up Now things are better - I have two full itme jobs and manage to make ends meet most of the time I tried to join a church a while back and I think maybe it was a church like this. I went a few times but then peopel were always being asked to take off their clothes and do sex things and that made me uncomfortable. I lost my sponnser becuase i said I wouldn;t go back to this place with her - her name was Rochelle - but she said if I didn;t iek the church i didn;t like her. This lady in this book stuck around way too long I had to do lots of dirty things in my life but I wastrying to survive and was also high most of the time. she was not high and just did it becasue of the minister;s orders. One thing I have learned from books and groups is never to let a man have oer over you - they will do you dity and laugh to their frinds about it . Even if a man is a man of God they will still do it. Mymother got hooked up with a minister and we were run out of town by a whole group of angry Christians. My mother died of shame - and an alchoholic liver. So stay away from cults and men.



4. This book is a real eye opener for those that are unfamiliar with religious cults, it explains many different reasons as to why one would join one and why they would stay. This books gives a personal account for how and why one can be easily persuaded to join a cult, it also gives great inspiration for those that are trying to re-connect with society after being a part of a communal cult for many years. I really enjoyed this book and admire the author for telling her story! This book is a great journey into one's self discovery and triumph!



5. 
   
   I have never heard of this author..but I loved this book..
   I am a avid reader of books about the sex industry, and
   have read many...Ivy League Stripper is great,,and the new
   book "Dance to Despair (Memoirs of an exotic dancer) by
   Rebeckka Sathan Black are both excellent memoirs that you
   should read......

5 comments about A Perfect Union: Dolley Madison and the Creation of the American Nation.

1. I had read that Dolley Madison is probably one of the most interesting, lesser known first ladies in our nation's history. This book definitly prooves that. Although there are a few inaccurate facts surrounding the Yellow Fever experience by Dolley's family in Philadelphia, Allegor seems like a trustworthy source on the topic. Hopefully she will release later editions in order to correct those inaccurate facts. It is also a shame there is not more information about her life before James Madison, with her first husband. But then again, that is not the main theme of this book. Recommended for both the amature and scholarly historian (I have a little of both in me).



2. I am very pleased with the time of delivery and the condition of the book.
   Aleene Wilcox



3. I picked up a copy of A PERFECT UNION: Dolley Madison and the Creation of the American Nation, by Catherine Allgor as research material for a novel set during the War of 1812. I had already read The Velvet Glove: A Life of Dolley Madison, by Noel Bertram Gerson, but I wanted more detail and insight regarding President and Mrs. Madison. I wasn't disappointed.
   
   A Perfect Union is packed full of information for a novelist wanting to add verisimilitude to a story. For anyone with more than a casual interest in the War of 1812, it provides fascinating insight into behind-the-scenes Washington City and a struggling new nation. Unlike most accounts, it illuminates the war and the political scene from a feminine viewpoint.
   
   For the most part, the facts presented by Ms. Allgor were consistent with my other sources. I noticed only a few factual glitches. I believe British atrocities were committed on the raid of Hampton village, not the battle of Craney Island a few days earlier. And I understand that the Capitol was still in two parts, separated by a wooden walkway, when the redcoats torched it.
   
   Overall, A Perfect Union is a fascinating look into the life and times of Dolley Madison.



4. This is a comprehensive biography of Dolley Madison and her role in James Madison's presidency. It was all right, but far too detailed for a biography on someone who was not a substantial contributor to American History. There were endless descriptions of the type of furniture used in the rooms, etc. which got a bit tedious. It was as though someone wrote a 1000 page biography of Jacqueline Kennedy and her role in JFK's administration; this would suffer from the same problems. The book needed good editing and abridgement, in its present form it is just too detailed.



5. Catherine Allgor serves up a great examination of not only Dolley Madison but a revealing picture of early politics in early America in A Perfect Union. I think she does a wonderful job in exposing how the Madison's, primarily Dolley, countered Jefferson in the way they operated in the young capitol. Allgor also gives us an entertaining glimpse into how an eighteeth century wife supported her husband, perhaps even out-shining him a bit. Allgor also shows us the private Dolley; the Dolley who managed a home but also liked to play cards and was pretty good at it. She also liked to drink....just a bit. These and other facts are great counterpoints to the public Dolley we've all learned about.
   
   I'm always a sucker for any book that deals with this period of American history. Early conditions in this country, especially during those years immediately following the revolution, allowed for a great deal of movement, especially socially and politically. Dolley truly shined during this era and Allgor does a wonderful job in painting that picture.
   
   As you read this book it becomes quite obvious that Allgor loves to do research. Her facts aren't in question though some other reviewers believes she goes too far. Perhaps. However, the greater value in A Perfect Union is the fact that the whole story is here
   
   A worthwhile read for sure.

5 comments about No More Words : A Journal of My Mother, Anne Morrow Lindbergh.

1. Reeve surely has Ann's gene for writing. This book should be read by all who still have parents alive and will be faced with their eventual death and by those who have already lost a loved one. Alzheimers and dimentia are a death before dying. It is hardest on those left behind and gilt and worry are only some of the emotions one has to deal with during the dying process. Reeve caught the essence of her mother and was fortunate to be able to have 24/7 caregivers to help her through this ordeal.
   This book is a tribute to Ann and to Reeve's Sister.



2. This is a touching memoir of the time when Reeve Lindbergh was helping to take care of her aging mother, the famous Anne Morrow Lindbergh in the last year(s) of her life. This book is a look inside the private lives of a very well known family during a difficult transition in their lives.
   
   The story is about how Reeve is trying to make sense of this time. It contains her thoughts and reflections and fears about the change in her mother's condition. I appreciate the honesty in which this book is written, I feel like the author held nothing back in relating her story. I was surprised and delighted at the openness of it. She wrote about things in dealing with this situation that people think, but would rarely admit to.
   
   I found this book to be very comforting, as I recently experienced a similar situation in my own family. There were so many times, as I read this, I was shaking my head thinking....I know exactly what you're saying. Throughout the ordeal, there are sad times, but there were also light and funny times as well. Dealing with the aging and decline of a loved one that you have known so well all of your life is difficult. They change, and when it happens, we don't always know how to deal with it or what to think, and we wonder what they are thinking. It's hard and it's confusing when you are trying to guess at what is going on in their world. Reeve writes beautifully about it all.
   
   I had not picked this book with the intention of experiencing what I did...the comfort of reading about someone else going through a similar situation as me. I initially picked this book because I love Anne Morrow Lindbergh's book 'Gift of the Sea' and I wanted to read more about her life. Once again, as I am a firm believer of...the right books come along at just the precise moment that we need them and so often they come in an unexpected way as this one did for me.



3. Reeve Lindberg has succeeded in giving us a marvelous journey through the last two years of her mother's life. It is also a very helpful description of what it is to deal with someone who is deep in the fog of an Alzheimer's like state. I plan to give copies to many of my friends, most especially those with elderly parents. Reeve's language is lovely and crisp in the strokes of its portraits. It is easy to see she that is her mother's daughter. I am so happy to have discovered this book and I would recommend it to anyone who is seeing or will see an elderly parent or friend through his or her last days and months. Tasha Halpert



4. This is a fast reading book concerning Mrs. Charles Lindbergh's last few years of life. Written by youngest Lindbergh sibling, Reeve, she tells of living on her own farm in Vermont, with a smaller house on the property her mother lived in during that time. Reeve Lindbergh is a wonderful writer - she doesn't need the famous last name to prove that. When she isn't writing about her mother, which is riveting for some reason, her writing of anything else in the book has such a fresh, emotional spirit behind her words. Anne Morrow Lindbergh, a legend in her own time both in flying, her husband, and her many published works, did not talk much in her last years. It is a story of how the family felt and coped with her condition, letting go of the vibrant mother they once knew. An excellent book for those who have been a caregiver to a parent or sibling. Anne M.L. was such a famous figure, it was both interesting and heartwrenching to have the privilege of reading about her day to day living. Thank you, Reeve Lindbergh, for sharing this story that you could have kept to yourself, but chose to share. It's a book that will be remembered long after it's read.



5. I have read Reeve Lindbergh's work before in her memoir, "Under A Wing". I was surprised at her candor regarding her father, and what was equally clear was her fondness for her mother. "No More Words", which records the last 17 trying and rewarding months of her mother's life, is a tender tribute that is notable for what it includes and for what it omits.

   The only photograph of Mrs. Lindbergh is the one that appears on the cover. The photograph depicts a young woman at the start of what would prove to be a life as fascinating as it was lengthy. The closing months of this woman's life are chronicled above all else with a great deal of respect. This is a most private family event, and just as the book is devoid of any pictures for the voyeur, the narrative too is informative without taking away any of the dignity of her mother. This would seem to be an obvious manner to write of one's parent, but a person does not have to look far to find books written with sales as the first goal, and exploitation of the subject left unconsidered.

   Reeve Lindbergh is a poet, she is reflective, and these aspects of her personality provide a narrative that is unique. This book is not simply a diary; it is not a chronological description of the systematic health decline of her mother. It is more of a story that is driven by the limited interactions she was able to have with her mother, and the memories that were either hers or recollections of her mother's life. This is not a sugarcoated story of what was a very trying time. The book is a balanced memoir about how difficult it is to deal with not only the death of a parent, but also the very real difficulties and frustrations that caring for an elderly, ill parent involves. Mrs. Lindbergh had the best care available which took much of the moment-to-moment care off of the family. It did not remove many of the difficulties, and the reader can easily imagine what it would entail to care for a parent with little, or no outside help.

   This is a very contemplative book that moves at an associated pace.

5 comments about Twice As Good: Condoleezza Rice and Her Path to Power.

1. This really helped me to understand our Secretary of State. The book also provided a good review of what was happening in Birmingham during the 60's.



2. This is an interesting look at Rice, her work and her life. But it leaves a lot of unanswered questions. I didn't feel as if I knew her any better after reading the book than I did before.
   
   At times she seems cold and uncaring. At other times, she seems warm and interesting. But I guess that could be said for all of us.
   
   This is a book worth reading. But don't expect to understand the subject. Perhaps she won't let anyone understand her. But this author certainly did not.



3. This is the first time I have ever reviewed a book. I felt compelled to
   compliment Mr. Mabry on the thorough research he so painstakingly did for
   this book. The book is easy to read and it keeps the reader interested in
   the subject without getting bogged down in minutiae.



4. The author describes the life and times of Dr. Condoleezza Rice with
   both personal stories and historical events. Many of the childhood
   personal stories and recitations are quite moving. For instance, the Secretary's assimilation into Stanford University was discussed . The historic contention between the State and Defense Departments was highlighted. This inter-agency competition may limit the Secretary's
   options-particularly during times of war. A strength of the work highlights
   areas where the organizational design of the cabinet itself could be
   reconfigured or enhanced to benefit future presidencies.
   
   Several great crises presented early in the current Administration.
   For instance, Hurricane Katrina left thousands homeless in the USA.
   The Asian Tsunami left thousands dead with billions of dollars in
   property claims.
   
   The aftermath of terrorist attacks in New York City cost many lives and displaced people and businesses . Sunni insurgents destroyed the Golden Dome of the Askariya Mosque- one of the holiest places of Sh'ia Islam. The Hezbollah kidnapped an Israeli soldier and the Hamas prevailed in open elections to become a voting majority.
   
   Add to this the current Iraqi difficulties in coordinating internal security with an iterative withdrawal of the United States at some future time. The current fear centers around control of Baghdad when the United States leaves or withdraws to a position outside of the daily skirmishes between the Sunni, Sh'ia and protagonists outside of Iraq.
   
   The peacekeeping forces (whether American, Iraqi, United Nations or a
   combination of the above) in Iraq must manage historic contentions between warring factions while hoping that the conflict does not spill over into neighboring countries like Turkey or Iran. There have been significant border clashes between the Turks and the Kurds, as well as Iranian involvement in the conflict.
   
   The challenges ahead deal with the role of the United States in the region,
   as well as the transitioning of the American peacekeeping forces to
   Iraqi security forces and possibly United Nations forces for the long term.
   The long term vision involves the mix of security forces.
   
   Preferably, these forces will be Iraqi with a permanent contingent of United Nations forces concurrent with an iterative phasing out of U.S.A. involvement over a rational time horizon. The work could deal in more detail with the future role of the United States in Iraq and the Secretary's current work to re-shape that role.
   
   To obtain a verifiable ceasefire, the Sunni, Sh'ia, Kurds and mixed
   communities must come to believe that they could lead a better life in
   a loosely knit governance with a fair economic resource-sharing
   arrangement. Right now, these parties have not internalized this goal.
   And so, they are jockeying to gain the upper hand.
   
   This process will continue until the Iraqi security apparatus develops with some assistance (preferably) from the United Nations Peacekeeping forces.
   If the country ever gets to the point of a verifiable ceasefire, the next
   step is to deal with governance and the return of thousands of professional
   persons who fled the country for their lives and careers. These people
   need to return in order to reconstitute the country from the present
   disorder and destruction.
   
   All of these events rose and continue to rise in unison to present the Secretary with an unparalleled series of challenges not seen in recent years. The work discusses the Secretary's career in government and
   academia with carefully chosen events which provide a unique profile
   into the experiential domain over the previous decades of service.
   
   The author combines the Secretary's personal dynamic with the job
   of Secretary of State. In these times, the job of Secretary of State
   requires a facilitative persona with considerable practical and academic
   acumen. Dr. Condoleezza Rice is such a person.
   
   The book is highly recommended for students of government, politics,
   journalism and academe everywhere. Events are happening so quickly
   in the Middle East that a sequel to this book could be contemplated .



5. 
   Mabry brings some interesting information to his reader of one of the most despicable, incompetent, false and ruthless atavists ever to occupy the planet earth, moreover public office.
   
   Rice's scheming adoration for saying and doing whatever it took/takes to get on the top dais of a given colosseum, in her continually pathetic and aforementioned ruthless attempt to be the cynosure-at-all-times is beyond legend. Just one glance of her souless and vengeful countenance is all it should take of any observant soul to realize the monster who lies within............ This book delicately refers to same, but, alas, not enough to adequately educate its reader.
   
   Tragically, Rice's plan has worked to her proverbial Joesph Goebbels success and whether it's directing national/internation policy that gives new meaning to the word ignorant and imperious and, as a consequence manifesting the death of thousands and the ruination of a pragmatically imperfect (read : managable) world for the future, suppressing the truth - lying outright before the public or, eternally looking beyond embarassing in the face of various world politicos, starting with her speech impediment and then her eternal practice of obsfucation by using several thousand words to answer a simple yes or no question................, this poster child of an affirmative action poseur dilettante is a study, be it by Marcus Mabry of what "worst case scenario" truly is.

3 comments about Great Jewish Women.

1. This book has a great amount of commendable material in it. It writes of Jewish women of great distinction in short yet clear autobiographical sketches. It however diminishes its own value but including a too large number of present- day celebrities and lightweight figures. It too displays a certain political bias and there are a number of very left- wing politicians here whose contribution to Jewish life is extremely questionable. I also would have like to have seen many more of the great Jewish women intellectual figures, and heroines like Avital Sharansky , Ida Nudel and others who risked their lives for the Jewish people. A very large share of the entries are of people who have no real positive connection with Jewish communal life, and who just happen to be born Jewish something a few of them are not so happy about.
   There is much good stuff here.But a work of this kind could have been done with far greater emphasis on real Jewish values.



2. While there are some genuinely great Jewish women in this book, there are too many whose claim to greatness rests solely on fame and left-leaning politics. How is Barbara Streisand a "Great Jewish Woman"? Is it because she is a great Democtratic fundraiser? And How does Shulamit Aloni get to be great? By being an anti-Israeli Israeli? Diane Arbus (eeww) hated being Jewish and would be uncomfortable to see her name in this book if she hadn't killed herself, and Estee Lauder became a Roman Catholic........not exactly a "Great Jewish Woman".

   If your idea of greatness is actresses and singers or anybody Jewish who managed to get her name in the paper than this is your book. Rosalind Franklyn and Judy Resnick constitute real greatness, while Goldie Hawn is merely famous. I would never put them in the same category.




3. This book makes a great graduation gift or other gift for any jewish woman, young or old. It illustrates the accomplishments of women and shows the adversity that they overcame to achieve greatness. Enjoyable for woman of any age.

4 comments about A Woman's Civil War: A Diary, with Reminiscences of the War, from March 1862.

1. Cornelia Peake McDonald's diary shows us what life was like for the South during the Civil War. This inspiring story shows the noble character of Mrs. McDonald and the people of the South in general as they fought for their homeland and their beliefs. Most of us can only dimly imagine the hardships they endured with courage, authentic trust in God, and sacrifical help from neighbors and friends--hardships which included battles being waged in their yards, the death of loved ones, cruel treatment, and women with children being driven from their homes as refugees.



2. This book provides a glimpse into the struggles and mindset of a southern wife & mom and her family during the civil war. Cornelia McDonald's fortitude and faith under extraordinary trials and tragedies is inspirational. We are a homeschooling family and I think this would be an excellent supplement to a high school student's studies of this time period.



3. I stumbled on Cornelia Peake McDonald when I discovered she was a relation. Of course I had to obtain this book when I was surprised to find her diary(or in this case an edited form of it) still in print.
   
   This book is not for the light hearted history buff that wants the stories of battle. It is the diary of a woman living through extra-ordinary times. A diary that her husband asked her to keep when he announced that their town was going to be taken by the union while he had to go to Richmond. Col. Angus W. McDonald organized the 7th Virginia Cavalry and served on the staff of his friend Jefferson Davis.
   
   The town of Winchester changed hands a few times. As such Cornelia was on the front lines. She had to deal with the union occupiers who were not too gentlemenly with seccesionists. Cornelia refused to turn over her house several times. Food was hard to obtain as access was denied to people that did not take an oath to the union. Yet she talks of union soldiers that violate orders and trade for flour and bread. As a good conferate she does not like the union forces as she describes life on the occupation. Yet she finds decent people that help her to what extent they can. In fact she even spoke up for a doctor that stayed in her house and did not bother her too much and kept soldiers from pillaging too much.
   
   She speaks of fears of the occupation as everyday more and more mistreatment happens as people are forced from their homes. Some dropped in the middle of nowhere without food or money. The fact that women are accosted if they walk around in pairs. You feel hear heart ache at the loss of her youngest child.
   
   Eventually she and her family become refugees to Lexington. You learn of her hardships as she deals with starvation and tried to get firewood for the family. Creating Confederate Candles, spinning wool for clothing. She even had to beg a man to make shoes for her boys.
   
   She was faced with breaking up her family. Especially after the Col. died. She decided to keep them together no matter what. After the war, they learn their homestead was unusable and decide to stay where they are.
   
   You also get to hear about the personalites of the war. She sits in a pew near Stonewall Jackson in church. Dinners with the Ashby brothers, meeting Robert E. Lee after the war. There are others that I will leave for you to find. :)
   
   Cornelia is an interesting woman and a product of her era. She speaks out against slavery and yet is offended by actions of freed slaves. She speaks of the short lived effort of reconcelliation of the North that was destroyed by John Wilkes Booth. At first she is happy with Lincolns death as she thinks he got what he deserved. And yet on reflection she realizes it was a big mistake that will hurt the South. She talks about the abuse of Jefferson Davis and the fact an innocent woman and her innocent son go to the gallows for the assassanation.
   
   It should be mentioned this is not the full diary and the fact she lost some of it as she moved around. Yet her memory is rather good as she rewrote events that were lost. She eventually penned a copy for each of her children.
   
   All in all a facinating read about a tough resourcefull woman struggling to keep and feed her family.



4. I read this journal/reminiscence during a short period in whichI read several other Confederate women's diaries and reminiscences,and something that made this one particularly significant in my opinion was that unlike some of the other southern women whose writings I read, Cornelia McDonald lived along a major battlefront of the Civil War from the early months on. Thus, although she definitely preferred to have the Confederate forces around her and appears to have retained some bitterness toward the Union government after the war, she had a more complex view of Union soldiers than did some other Confederate women who lived further from the warfront through much of the war. She mentions the kindness of a shoemaker in her town who sympathized with the Union cause but made shoes for her large family of children even though she could not pay him, and at one point she even has a good word for the Union general who heads the forces occupying the town where she lives. The story of her struggle to feed and protect her children, help nurse soldiers, maintain tense but somewhat peaceable relations with soldiers who occupy her home, and support her family when she is eventually left alone is a story of courage, resourcefulness, pain, and gratitude. Cornelia had not lived only the life of a sheltered belle before the war, and despite the chaos around her, she manages to combine practicality and a love of beauty to keep enough sanity to survive the war and go on with family life afterward.

5 comments about A Piece of My Heart: The Stories of 26 American Women Who Served in Vietnam.

1. I read this every once in a while to gain perspective and to make sure I hear the stories of these women. To make sure I'm aware of, and to acknowledge their sacrifices. They touched so many lives then, and are still making a difference in other ways now. I think this should be required reading for every woman.



2. "A Piece of My Heart: The Stories of 26 American Women Who Served in Vietnam," by Keith Walker, is a powerful addition to the large body of writings about the Vietnam War. Walker's technique for compiling this book was to interview the featured women and turn the transcripts of the interviews into chapters. One chapter is drawn from a dual interview of two of the women, and another chapter consists of a letter written by a woman whom Walker did not get to interview. The book is full of black-and-white photographs that further document the women's service in Vietnam. Also noteworthy is the stirring foreword by entertainer Martha Raye, who briefly discusses her own experiences in Vietnam.
   
   Most of the women featured were Army nurses, but the book also includes women who served as WACs, Red Cross personnel, a civilian flight attendant, a USO worker, and more. There are some significant recurring themes that connect a number of chapters: the experience of being under hostile fire; men, women, sex, and dating in the war zone; encounters with the Vietnamese people; fun and recreation in Vietnam; challenges the women faced in doing their jobs in a war zone; and personal and psychological problems some of the women faced after returning home from Vietnam. Also, two of the women discuss possible Agent Orange-connected health problems faced by children they had after serving.
   
   There are some extremely graphic and disturbing accounts by some of the nurses as they recall the horrific injuries suffered by their patients, as well as their own struggles to deliver compassionate care in the combat zone environment. There are many other noteworthy memories, some heartbreaking, some funny. Army nurse Pat Johnson describes painting the barracks "red-and-white striped with pink polka dots." Entertainer Bobbi Jo Pettit recalls touring Vietnam as part of an all-girl band called "The Pretty Kittens." Navy nurse Maureen Walsh delivers a vivid account of an enemy rocket attack at Da Nang.
   
   The voices of these women strike many tones: feisty, introspective, proud, caring. I was especially moved by the memories of post-war reunions and experiences at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. I consider this book to be an absolutely essential complement to the many fine works, both fiction and nonfiction, written by male Vietnam veterans. Recommended as a companion text: Wallace Terry's "Bloods: An Oral History of the Vietnam War by Black Veterans," which is similar in both format and impact to this book.



3. Written in 1985 when many of the wounds of Vietnam still bled fresh, Keith Walker interviewed 26 women who served in country in a variety of capacities. The result of this ambitious and courageous project is a heartbreaking, captivating and ultimately transcendent oral history.
   
   The stories here filled with an evolution that mirrors the changes of perception that accompanied the war. This is not only a history of women in Vietnam (a history all too frequently too overlooked)but also a history of America as well. Each woman, in her own way experiences the journey from ambition to horror to disillusionment to healing. Many of the women interviewed (as of 1985)are still works very much in progress- as our Nation is as well.
   
   This oral history depicts not only depicts the immediate horrors and consequences of combat but most importantly the post combat experience as well along with the living conditions and political environment as seen in the first person.
   
   Later adapted (by Shirley Lauro) into a powerful dramatic event, A PIECE OF MY HEART makes for a must read for anyone interested in either Vietnam history specifically or American history in general.
   
   A classic.



4. ... for all of the women who served in Vietnam. Read this book, plus the late Lynda Van Devanter's Home Before Morning and you'll see why.

   While Lynda's book is a hauntingly graphic record of the triumphs and tragedies that the ANC nurses and Army surgeons experienced in Nam, A Piece Of My Heart gives the reader a very broad perspective of the contributions of women in many other areas.

   The foreword to the book was written by the wonderful Martha Raye, whose unflinching commitment to the men and women who served in Nam led to her being a two-time Purple Heart recipient. That even an entertainer could be wounded twice in the line of duty speaks volumes about the risk level In Country.

   Equally, Civilian Flight Attendant Micki Voisard almost met her end when her airliner almost collided with a B-52 that was maintaining radio silence during an airstrike.

   Yet even though the Red Cross Donut Dollies, such as Penni Evans and "Sam" Bokina Christie and WACs such as Doris Allen all have compelling stories to relate, it is the experiences of the nurses that really stay with you, long after you have put the book down.

   For most of her post-Nam life, former ANC nurse and author Lynda Van Devanter (Home Before Morning - available through Amazon.com) was haunted by the memory of a young soldier who had no face, and who eventually had to be left to die because of the extent of his injuries.

   When you read the piece by Anne Simon Auger (91st Evac. - Chu Lai) you realize that injuries of that magnitude were not as uncommon as you might hope and pray. Anne also described a young soldier whose face had been shot away, leaving him blind and in her words, "a vegetable".

   While my own view is that people in such terrible physical condition should be given enough morphine to shut down their breathing, or in the absence of that, on the battlefield, a mercy round from an M-16, I fully accept that however you have to deal with such shocking injuries, it will stay with you for the rest of your life.

   Let us not forget that while the cowardly Stalinist flag burners were calling the returning troops "baby killers", thousands of true blue American women were risking their own lives to support the largely teenaged US soldiers in a war that increasingly made no sense to the people who were being asked to fight it.

   These women were Vets. These women were heroes. These women were angels.

   We must constantly seek ways to honour them. Their sacrifice must never be forgotten.




5. These stories are so heart-wrenching I had to take a break while reading simply to keep from falling to pieces. These women are so amazing and strong - they're inspiring. I Loved this book and GREATLY recommend the play with the same title by Shirely Lauro that was based off of these stories. It's so unbelievable and so real it makes you feel for those 6 women more than you'd ever imagine!

5 comments about Zoya's Story: An Afghan Woman's Struggle for Freedom.

1. Zoya's story begins with her childhood in the war torn country of Afghanistan as the daughter of brave and free thinking parents who tried their best to make life better for women. Unfortunately, they were murdered by Muslim fundamentalists who were trying to put the country back in the dark ages after the Russian occupation. Much to the detriment of not only women but then entire world came the infamous Taliban who's immense cruelty is shocking and who today are regaining their foothold not only in Afghanistan but Pakistan too.
   
   Today Zoya follows in her mothers footsteps and has dedicated her life to RAWA-Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan. Her life is in constant danger but despite it all she continues to live and work in the repressive and violent environment of the Middle East. For this she must be commended.



2. If you've been unable to make sense out of the conflicting regimes and wars in Afghanistan during the past 2 decades, this intimate account of one young woman's life will help put it in a human prospective. Zoya is the nom de guerre of a 23-year old Afghan woman who fled her homeland after her parents were murdered on orders of the thuggish Mujahideen.
   
   I found the first part of the book more interesting than the last, as Zoya describes her life as a lively little girl playing in the streets of Kabul and as the beloved only child of educated parents. She becomes gradually aware that her parents are involved in clandestine activities to undermine the increasingly repressive political regime. One day her father, and somewhat later, her mother simply disappear. As more women are victimised in the streets and in their own homes, Zoya and her grandmother decide to take refuge in Pakistan. There Zoya grows to adulthood and joins the Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA).
   
   Zoya is involved in assisting Afghan refugees and later becomes a spokeswoman and fund-raiser for the organization. There are brief accounts of secret travels to Afghanistan to photograph Taliban activities such as the cutting off of hands. I wish Zoya had been less vague about the work of her organisation and her actual role in it, but it is apparently necessary for reasons of personal security. Considering the venomous hate-mail she & RAWA received from American supporters & former friends after 9/11, it is understandable and very sad that they cannot afford to trust anyone.



3. I read this story about Zoya, the young Afghan woman and her story of refuge in Pakistan and trips into Afghanistan. This is an OK story, although I prefer My Forbidden Face, another Afghan woman's story. Zoya's comments about the Mujalideen being as bad as the Taliban has some truth. Her resistance to these two regimes through RAWA is brave and principled. It goes to show that Afghan society is very traditional in the sense of repressing woman throughout society. The Soviet regime was probably the best in representing women in the society, but of course they were invaders and Zoya was not happy about their occupation of the country.
   
   This is a pretty basic story detailing the crimes of the Mujalideen and the Taliban. Zoya loses both parents, probably to the Mujalideen. Then she is forced to flee and her opposition to the Taliban makes up the latter part of this book.
   Hers is a difficult position. Friends in RAWA place her in a school and she becomes liberated with knowledge. She refuses to leave her countrymen and lives in a refugee camp. Her life is spent for the betterment of her countrymen, including women.
   
   I like the other book better, but this is an OK read about the difficulties faced by Afghan women.



4. Having grown up with the priviledges of living in the United States one can only imagine the devestation this amazing young woman has gone through in her short, inspiring life.
   At the tender age of 7, this courageous girl already started her early beginnings helping her mother work for RAWA (Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan). Living in a country that had been overtaken by the Russians in what they called "the puppet regime", one couldn't imagine that life could get worse in this destitute country, ravaged by war and poverty. "The bleeding wound" Gorbachav called it.
   Zoya's graphic, heroic and saddening story told with such detail brings you to a life, I would say you "could just imagine", but I can't imagine that life. orphaned at a young age, under two controlling fundamentalist Moslem regimes, life in Afghanistan only seems to grow worse. Under the control of the Taliban, you will read of the most inhumane, torturous treatment. The taking of lives. I always knew how awful the Taliban was, but I never knew from an individual's personal experience what it was REALLY like to live there.
   This incredible young woman has done so much for the woman and people of Afghanistan, helping refugees, teaching women to read and write in a country where 90% of the women are illiterate, spreading the words of freedom, where her life can be taken at any time. Zoya is a true hero and inspiration.
   There is one line in the book that I will never forget, and I believe it is how Zoya truelly loves and feels for her country. It is a line from an old Afghan folklore "I am ready to die for my love, but I want my love to be ready to die for my country." This is the passion Zoya lives with on her crusade to make life better for people in Afghanistan.



5. zoyas story is a tale of one girl whose mother was an advocate for womens rights, and she followed suit after her mothers death and after discouraging life changes. living under the taliban was a historically tragic event for all women who endured this horrific regime that ruled afghanistan without mercy or compassion for women or their rights. zoyas entire life has been uprooted and yet she has such a strong heart and mind and will not let her people suffer alone, he courage and strength is a guide to those who have equally or more suffered and lost all theyve ever had. an example to live by, a great inside look into an awful time in afghanistans history. this book will also take you into pakistan where many refugees fled, and zoya continued to be a help to many people.

5 comments about Stick Figure.

1. Honestly, I'm still struggling with my eating disorder I've had for 6 years, and for some reason I'm falling into a rough patch. So I picked this book up looking for some triggering material. I didn't really get anything out of it. Not even psychological explanations that normally come with a book on eating disorders. The book is cute, to say the most, and I would recommend it for seriously bored human beings. I wouldn't call it triggering really, so I might let my niece read it one day when she's old enough to understand the concept of an eating disorder, and when I know that she over the age of aquiring one. So I suppose this book is for the mature audience who has been through that part of her life. Very easy reading also.



2. I couldn't help but be a bit offended by this book. I mean, I read the whole thing and it wasn't terrible, but it didn't portray eating disorders in a way that I would want individuals who have not suffered from the disorder themselves to see. "Wasted" by Marya Hornbacher is much more realistic and a better use of one's reading time.



3. I'm first of all very upset at some of these reviews. When people say "an adult trying to sound like an elevn year old." and "this isnt by an eleven year old"
   
   The women who wrote it IS an adult, relating to her journals FROM the age of eleven.
   
   With that being said, I very much enjoy this book. Lori is a very humerous and clever eleven year old dealing with the struggles of becoming a women and poor self imagine. The emotional neglect from her parents is very present and you start feeling for her.
   
   I think this book wa sa good idea for the author. Because it takes her back to her childhood and painful events that took place. She trys to make peopel understand what a real person suffering from anorexia is like.
   
   I own this book, and it's one of my favorite books about anoreixa. It's not a self help book, nor an educational one, a small bit of autobiograpghy is in play
   and thats it, which I would ceratinly say go ahead and read it, besides it's not very long



4. I loved this book, it made me laugh so hard that people sitting around me probably thought i was "unique"



5. I read a few snippets from this book - but put it down.
   
   To a male, this sort of thing is very shocking. Why would a young woman starve herself rather than simply going out and meeting guys? It makes no sense why these girls convert the natural impulse to flirt into a desire to starve or otherwise hurt their bodies.
   
   On one end, we have the extreme of anorexia - where girls hurt their bodies by not eating anything, to the point of not being attractive. On the other end, we have obesity, where women hurt their bodies and justify it with some hogwash about how 'beautiful' they are for loving their body! Perhaps a psychologist should look into the problem and try to unearth what makes these women compulsively opt for a nonsolution, rather than simple excercise and dieting - as well as a healthy, outgoing social life.

5 comments about Friends: A Love Story.

1. A journey to love that readers familiar with this Hollywood couple will likely enjoy. The couple takes turns narrating their lives from childhood to adulthood - from college at Yale to the New York theatre to the Los Angeles Hollywood scene. We read about their romantic relationships. We read about addictions and issues with their parents. We read about their own struggle to become parents. The book wraps with Angela and Courtney's views/tips on becoming a better you/strengthening and maintaining your relationships. Readers are sure to come away from this with a greater respect for this couple's views on life and love.
   
   *NOTE: There are WAY too many typos in this book. Would I buy it? Hmmm, nah - not something I'd want to read again.



2. I really enjoyed reading Angela's contributions. Courtney's grew on me. The book was a thorough journey down the path(s) that led them to become [such] great lovers, and it's a very insightful and candid story. Alot of passion I felt through their recounting, and it even made me look at some things in my own life differently. Would recommend to men and women-- whether single, married, divorced.......or dating! I think it may change the way one looks at the opposite sex [a little bit]--



3. Oh... I just got this book and within three days I'm almost finished Angela and Courtney bring you into their world.. I want more more more.. I love their story it is so touching.. thumbs up...



4. Like most others, I highly enjoyed Angela & Courtney's story. I loved how the author alternated from her story to his bringing completion to the whole novel. I admire them both more seeing how they put their personal tragedies & demons out in the open but yet came out on top.



5. I'm not completely done this book. Bought it because I heard Angela Bassett and Courtney Vance speak on Oprah. The writing isn't very good, but I am enjoying very much hearing about their individual lives leading up to the point where they become interested in each other. I have started many books in 2007, but this is one I haven't been able to put down and will definitely finish!