literature

Many children can relate to this simple and beautifully illustrated story. Two young girls, Elizabeth and Sarah discover a secret about their cat, Charlie Anderson, when he doesn't return home one stormy night. Charlie has TWO homes. He stays with them during the night and spends the day with another family. Both families dearly love and care for the cat. The two families realize that Charlie Anderson should be shared because of their mutual love for him.

A Note for Teachers: This is a wonderful book to read to children when discussing the family units. Children of divorce and separation can quickly identify with Charlie Anderson. Just like Charlie, children can find reassurance that they are still very much loved even though they are shared by two families.

My 10 y/o daughter received Charlie Anderson several years ago for a present. We read it over and over, identifying with the book because we are also cat lovers. Charlie Anderson gave my daughter a sense of what it is like to love a pet and be responsible for its well-being. In addition to a wonderfully told story, the illustrations are beautiful watercolors you will enjoy looking at again and again. Even though my daughter is a little bigger now, Charlie Anderson is still talked about in our house. A new cat here will surely be named Charlie Anderson.

This is a wonderful story about a cat, Charlie, who saunters into the life of two girls. One stormy night, Charlie doesn't come home and the girls make a surprising discovery. They learn that having two homes and two families that love you can be pretty great! The illustrations are fabulous and capture the personality of the cat. You will fall in love with Charlie!

This is my favorite Christmas story. It speaks to the hopeful child in all of us, who wants to believe in the unseen magic of a jolly old elf. It touches me every year since I first discovered this gem. Its power comes from the fact that it's a true story. Do something nice for yourself and read it.

This little book was used by the minister of our Presbyterian church as part of his Christmas eve sermon and it made everyone feel the true spirit of Christmas

I read the story "A Christmas Story" and as a 33 year old I have been through some tough times myself but reading the story just made me cry like a baby... This is what Christmas really means. GOD has definetly left some Angels here on earth.

Whoa! I was totally unfamiliar with the works of Oscar Wilde, until I bought this one on a friend's recommendation. It's huuuuuge, yet incredibly beautiful. Dorian Gray must be one of the greatest stories ever told, his poems are razor-sharp, his letters not less, and every line he comes up with is quotable. If you want to make sure you don't miss a thing, this is the book to get (and try his biography, especially the part about the trial).

Oscar Wilde wrote some of the most brilliantly crafted, witty plays of all time. Get this book and read everything in it! You're really missing out if you haven't read any of his work. His humor is so wicked and will have you cackling evilly at the genius of his dialogue. "The Picture Of Dorian Gray" is also one of the most unforgettable and captivating stories I've ever read. Highly recommended.

Oscar Wilde is one of my very favorite writers. He wrote some very interesting stories such as "The Picture of Dorian Gray". He also wrote very good dialogue. I place him second only to Shakespeare where the dialogue is concerned. Wilde also created well-developed and intriguing characters. I would highly recommend his works.

"Surviving Peer Pressure for Teens" is a wonderful guide for educators! As a teacher of Middle School children this is an enlightening guide to the inner workings of their lives. You may not think Middle School students faces 'these' issues but unforuntately today they truly do!The book deals with everything from acting cool, to dressing cool and includes a poignant chapter on drinking and drugs. The authors, who openly admit they are just 'two chicks' use phrase and 'lingo' that I hear from my students in school--language that kids will enjoy hearing and would be able to relate to. The authors also adequately note and encourage teens to seek out help, beyond the confines of the text. The book also has sections called 'Kids with a Clue', where real teens open up about their personal experiences and how they were dealt with.
I recommend this book to any educator teaching middle-high school. Although some of my Middle School children aren't offically teens you can be assured they are experiencing this pressure ten-fold. As teachers we must understand our students, just like parents. This book is certainly able to provide a greater understanding of the pressures that "our" children face each day. I would also agree that giving this book to a Teen, for whom it truly is designed, would be most appropriate! Perhaps, teens would be intially frustrated by receiving such a text but would change their opinions as soon as they begin reading Chapter 1. Kudos to the authors. Thank you for helping me gain a greater insight into the lives of my students.

I bought this book for my 14-year-old daughter and wish I had gotten it two years sooner. She read it quickly, couldn't put it down, and laughed out loud more than once. She said the humor in the book really made it easy for her to accept the "messages" that the authors were trying to deliver. She especially liked the "Kids with a Clue," and wants to take the book to her Health class at school for the teacher to recommend to other students. We both feel that the book approaches a difficult subject with humor as well as great advice (Yes, I read the book, too, BEFORE I passed it on to my child). Well worth the read!

Very informative...loved it and will recommend it to all my friends!

Lois Tyson's Critical Theory Today transformed the 200-level Intro to Literary Studies class that I teach at Aquinas College. Other texts have frustrated and silenced students, but Tyson's book has made my class come alive. Tyson assumes that her readers are intelligent and capable people who need information, examples, and guidance (whereas other texts assume that readers should be crushed and abandoned), and she gives them all that they need in friendly prose. The clear explanations and applications made my students lively and willing to try new ideas. They not only understood the methodologies but also could apply them. I didn't change my teaching style; the credit for the improvement in my class goes to Tyson's excellent text. Please read it.

From teacher to teacher: Gretchen S. Cline, Muskegon Community College professor of English. I've used Tyson's book for the introduction to literature and composition course that I teach at an open admissions community college in Michigan.

Lois Tyson's Critical Theory Today: A User-Friendly Guide (1999) is a godsend. Professor Tyson's book is the answer to what I've long envisioned as the ideal reference book for teachers wanting to introduce their students to critical theory, to increase their repertoire of literary "readings," and to implement diversity issues in the college classroom. This much needed reference guide has helped me to better understand and apply different critical approaches to literature, as I prepare, create, and develop meaningful classroom activities and writing assignments involving analysis and reading comprehension for both new and seasoned students. Indeed, Tyson's succinct overview of the different issues each theory raises along with the extremely helpful questions at the end of each chapter is truly user-friendly. Specifically, her book has helped me to raise issues and create questions for such works of literature as Ibsen's A Doll's House, Miller's Death of a Salesman, Wilson's The Piano Lesson, Bambara's "The Lesson," Le Guin's "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas," and Chopin's "Desiree's Baby" to name a few.

While some of my colleagues might think that "this critical theory stuff" goes over the heads of community college students, frequently I encounter students who are curious and want to know more about "those critical essays" that already appear in their "introduction to literature" anthologies. In fact, most of the "introduction to literature" anthologies that I've reviewed contain cursory, vague, and overly complicated excerpts from a wide range of "established" academic critics. Tyson's book helps students and teachers create a "cultural" context for the different theories with language that is accessible to those new to theory. Furthermore, as a pedagogical tool, Tyson's book helps teachers help students to make connections between different kinds of value/belief systems that underlie the way they interpret literature and, more importantly, how they think about the world.

Honest and straightforward, the tone of Tyson's book reflects a teacher who loves teaching and is thoroughly dedicated to her students; I will be forever grateful to her for sharing this huge and extremely important undertaking. Any community college, university, and even high school instructor wishing to incorporate lively discussions, multicultural/diversity sensitivity, and creative assignments into the classroom will benefit from Tyson's phenomenal book. You owe it to your students to read this one.

I think that most undergraduate students will appreciate being wisely and gently shepherded into the wild fields of literary theory by professor Tyson's 1999 study. In fact, so will most lay reader lambs who innocently venture into what they thought were safe fields of, say, the Times Literary Supplement in hopes of deepening their appreciation of the classics and literary creativity. So many "academic" surveys cloak in academic wool their lupine ideological teeth, Tyson keeps a strong, healthy overview of the various schools (packs?) of critics. She appreciates the concerns and contributions of the various critical approaches without being co-opted; she shares their thoughtful contributions in "user-friendly" fashion without resorting to the cutesy "for dummie sheep" approach.

An excellent guide through the tangled weavings of modern critical writings, analyzing with respect, exploring with optimistic skepticism. GENERAL READERS: Don't leave this "textbook" in the classroom; it is a most comfortable armour for venturing forth into the 21st Century literary world. If you were not fortunate enough to be one of Tyson's students, study with her here!

La novela es una narración en retrospectiva que describe la muerte de un habitante de una ciudad pequeña cerca de Cartagena de Indias en Colombia, llamado Santiago Nassar. La novela describe completamente los días anteriores al asesinato, las horas anteriores y posteriores del asesinato, además el narrador entrevista a personas involucradas o testigos del crimen varios años después del asesinato. La historia inicia cuando Santiago Nassar despierta y el narrador recuerda lo sucedido el día anterior en la boda de Ángela Vicario y Bayardo San Roman un personaje adinerado que había llegado a la ciudad hacia muy poco tiempo. Santiago Nassar después de despertar se dirige a desayunar y encuentra a su madre y la cocinera, la cual ya estaba enterada de que estaba en peligro de muerte. Santiago Nassar aunque era descendiente de Arabes era de religión catolica y esperaba el día de su muerte al obispo de Cartagena de Indias por lo cual salio hacia el puerto de la ciudad a las 6:05 de la mañana. El obispo llegó al puerto pero no baja de su barco. Lo que Santiago Nassar no sabia era que Angela Vicario después de su boda había sido devuelta por Bayardo San Roman debido a que no era virgen, después al llegar Angela Vicario a su casa le dice a su madre, Purísima Vicario que ella había tenido relaciones sexuales con Santiago Nassar, pero nunca nadie en el pueblo los había visto solos o juntos, provocando que los hermanos Pedro y Pablo Vicario enfurezcan y busquen recobrar el honor de su hermana, por lo tanto deciden matar a Santiago Nassar. Y durante el resto de la noche y la madrugada los hermanos Vicario van diciendo a toda persona que ven que ellos van a matar a Santiago Nassar. La mayor parte de las personas en el pueblo sabia que los hermanos Vicario iban a matar a Santiago Nassar, las unicas personas que hacen intentos por avisar a Santiago Nassar son Clotilde Armenta, la dueña de una tienda de abarrotes y cantina en la plaza de la ciudad la cual avisa al jefe de policía y al alcalde de la ciudad, el Coronel Aponte el cual desarma en una ocasión a los hermanos Vicario pero ellos de nuevo buscan armas, en este caso cuchillos para matar a Santiago Nassar. Otra de las personas que tambien tratan de advertir a Santiago Nassar es uno de sus mejores amigos pero por una confusión no puede, además de que uno de los familiares descendiente de Árabes, pero no logra advertirlo. Después de la llegada del obispo Santiago Nassar se retira y entra a la casa de su novia Maria Alejandra Cervantes la cual también cree que Santiago Nassar había tenido relaciones sexuales con Angela Vicario, ella lo rechaza y le devuelve sus pertenencias a Santiago Nassar y el padre de Maria Alejandra Cervantes le avisa que lo quieren matar pero Santiago no comprende debido a que se encuentra confundido por lo de su novia, entonces el se dirige a su casa, y por un error de su madre con respecto a las puertas de la casa de Santiago Nassar en donde evita que su hijo pueda entrar por la puerta principal y por esto los hermanos Vicario encuentran a Santiago y lo matan a puñaladas y cuchillazos en presencia de todo el pueblo, el autor da una descripción detallada de los cuchillazos que le propinan los hermanos Vicario a Santiago Nassar, pero en realidad la muerte se produce porque nadie del pueblo avisa a Santiago Nassar sobre las intenciones de los hermanos Vicario. La novela es un misterio y según García Márquez es un hecho real pero en realidad nadie conoce realmente quien es la persona que viola o que tiene relaciones sexuales con Ángela Vicario, Garcia Marquez siembra la duda sobre si realmente Angela dice la verdad sobre quien es la persona culpable.

Sin duda una de las novelas en las que Garcia Marquez demuestra todo su talento en la narracion y especialmente en la descripcion. Es la historia de un hombre que va a ser asesinado, y a diferencia del resto del pueblo, el no lo sabe. Pero mas alla de la originalidad de la historia es la capacidad del autor al escribir la que lo lleva a uno a meterse por completo en el libro. Asi como lo hace en otros libros como ¨La Hojarasca¨, juega con los tiempos y esto hace que el libro tenga una dinamica especial y no sea denso o ¨lento¨.

I might as well write this in English. Since this site is viewed mainly by english speaking readers.

This book is not surprisingly a Very good work by G G Marquez. It is well crafted throughout, and does not bore easily like other books in Spanish (there are lots). It is so well written that you will remember it 5 and 10 years from the first chance.

The othern reviews tell very well what happens in the story. It tells our Latin American cutlure very well, from its names, sounds and traditions/folklore. I am going to purchase 'Amor en tiempos de colera', which is sadi to be a book created as sort of sequel to this one.

Santiago Nasar , and the Vicaria family, along with the rest of the inhabitants of the Colombian town in which the book takes place will startle you as one of the best cronicles written, at 105 pages only.

This book in an account of the strange events in the French town of Loudun in the early seventeenth century. It's a tale of religious hysteria, sexually frustrated nuns, scheming in-fighting clerics and ambitious politicians. Huxley describes the hyprocisy of the time, and the uses to which apparent devil-possession and witchcraft were put, not only by the exorcists, but by the "possessed" themselves.

The first 100 pages are interesting, yet merely set the scene for the rest of the book, and as such the reader has to be prepared to read in anticipation of a quicker pace and more gripping account later on.

But this is not a tale along the lines of "The Exorcist" (though Huxley does not spare the reader the grisly details) - it's a more reflective and scholarly work than a mere sensationalist entertainment. Huxley relates the history of the events in Loudun, but tries to place those events in a wider historical context, examining what they meant to contemporaries, and contrasting them with later attitudes, and the common beliefs of his own era. Huxley's standpoint is that although the events in Loudun appear gruesome and unacceptable now, beneath what we consider our own "culture" and humanity lurk more sinister latent tendencies:

"Few people now believe in the devil; but very many enjoy behaving as their ancestors behaved when the Fiend was a reality as unquestionable as his "Opposite Number"."

No doubt Huxley's psychological and historical analyses will appear out-of-date to modern experts, but his approach is nontheless a deeply humane one - seeking to understand some of the most base and basic features of the dark side of our behaviour. Given the present state of the world, who would disagree with:

"Montaigne concludes with one of those golden sentences which deserve to be inscribed over the altar of every church, above the bench of every magistrate, on the walls of every lecture hall, every senate and parliament, every government office and council chamber. "After all" (write the words in neon, write in letters as tall as a man!) "after all it is rating one's conjectures as a very high price to roast a man alive on the strength of them"."

Write them in the East and in the West too.

This book received some attention when Ken Russel's movie came out in the early 70's. Before and since it's been pretty much neglected, which is a shame. In my estimation, Huxley is one of the foremost masters of prose writing in the English language. Those who are unfamiliar with his essays should seek them out. His was a mind that ranged far and probed deeply. The incidents portrayed in this book are indeed bizarre. It will remind some of Arthur Miller's The Crucible, in that a group of young women, in this case nuns, fall victim to mass hysteria. A local priest, Father Grandet, becomes the fall-guy and the true victim of a superstition-riddled Inquisition.

I'm sorry to see that this book is currently unavailable. It's really one of the most interesting historical accounts that I've ever read. Actually, Whiting's play, based on the same incident, is also excellent. I have mixed feelings about Russell's film. I thought Vanessa Redgrave was remarkable and Oliver Reed was very good, but Russell went too often over the top as is his wont.

If you can't find this book online, perhaps you will come across it in a used-bookstore or, if you are luckier than I am and have a well-stocked library, you can find it there. You shouldn't pass up the opportunity if you want to have a satisfying and unusual reading experience.

The Devils of Loudun is a wonderful study of state, society, and spirituality in 17th century France. By closely examining the events surrounding a case of satanic possession of a cloister of nuns in the village of Loudun, Aldous Huxley writes knowledgably and entertainingly about French history and Roman Catholicism of this period.

The book begins with the coming of a new priest, Urbain Grandier, to the village church. He is young, handsome, intelligent, and sophisticated. Grandier is a worldly priest who has the village women enthralled, and he is not committed to a life of celibacy. After a series of affairs, he falls in love with and "marries" in a secret ceremony Madeleine de Brou.

One of the women who has become infatuated by Grandier is the Mother Superior of the Ursuline convent, Sister Jeanne des Anges, an ambitious young woman who is unstable emotionally. She starts talking of her dreams and obsessive thoughts about Grandier to the other nuns and to her confessor. He sees the influence of the devil in these compulsive thoughts and begins an exorcism that lasts for six years.

Fantasies about the local priest turn into accusations that he is in league with the devil. Huxley describes Grandier' powerful enemies and their motives for wanting him punished. Grandier is accused of witchcraft, found guilty, and burned at the stake.

The close relationship between Sister Jeanne and her exorcist, the Jesuit mystic Joseph Surin, rounds out the book. Huxley presents a learned and intriguing discussion of christian mysticism and its relationship with the concept of satanic possession as it was understood at the time.

Although it is the basis for the Ken Russell movie The Devils, the book provides a much more detailed and less sensationalistic approach to the material than the movie. An excellent study that continually compares the 20th century with the topics under discussion, this book is a wonderful view into this period. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in the history of France, witchcraft, mysticism, or the Catholic Church. Huxley doesn't believe in the nuns' possession, but provides a well-reasoned explanation of his own interpretation of events.

This book provides a wonderful compilation of five great Victorian novels. While Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights are well-known classics, many people are not aware of Charlotte's three other novels : Shirley, Vilette and the Professor. Shirley is my absolute favorite with its brilliantly satiric dialogue. As far as the Brontes go, Shirley is as close to being humorous as one can get. The reason I give this book four stars is because it is missing a key component: Anne Bronte. Although her talent is equivalent to that of her sisters, Anne Bronte has been unfairly marginalized as a writer. The addition of Anne's two novels Agnes Grey and The Tenant of Wildfell Hall would truly encapsulate the essence of the close-knit Bronte sisters.

Villette has recently become my all time favorite book. Although it is lacking somewhat in plot as compared to Charlotte's Jane Eyre, it is far superior in character development. Those of you who have read Jane Eyre know how incredible this statement is. I have never become so involved and emotionally tied to a character. Charlotte Bronte has put more of herself in this novel than any other author I am familiar with. If you loved Jane Eyre, you will adore Villette.

After many years of placing "Jane Eyre" at the top of my "favorite stories of all time" list, I was glad when my husband gave me this book so I could read some of Bronte's other novels.

What I found was that I liked "Villette" even more than "Jane Eyre" - and, although it was arduous at first, I found "Shirley" was better yet.

"Jane Eyre", for anyone who hasn't read it, is a wonderful gothic romance, moralistic and spiritual, a very good read and fascinating tale.

"Villette" is more mature. The author explores a deeper sort of love - not based on mere physical attraction or infatuation, but based on deep, abiding friendship and respect. This story, too, has its lessons.

The character development in "Villette" was more complete than in any other novel I've ever read. I became fascinated by the unattractive little professor, and by other characters as well.

Unfortunately, there is a lot of French in this story, and what appeared to be the most pivotal moments were written in French... dialogue that I really wanted to understand was just lost on me. That was truly unfortunate. I'll have to find someone to translate for me sometime.

"Shirley" is the best of all. The beginning is arduous. I had to use my dictionary throughout, but the beginning is particular difficult. Shall I say.. boring, even. I found that, once I forced myself through the beginning, I was very much rewarded.

This story is a gem. The female heroines - Shirley and Caroline - were wonderful to get to know. Shirley is not the sort of female I would have thought Bronte had had occasion to know, so this was enlightening for me.

Truly an eye-opening look at 19th century feminism! And incorporated into these wonderful romance stories.

"The Professor" was a bit more dry than the others, although it was fun to read a romance story strictly from the male viewpoint. For a first novel, this was really incredibly well written.

As for "Wuthering Heights", it's been a number of years since I've read the story, so I won't attempt a review here.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes "Wuthering Heights" or "Jane Eyre". All these stories are wonderfully written, with complex characters and interesting plots. The work of true genius.

I bought this book because of a deep and abiding interest in all things Roman (an exception - Roman Catholicism) and I could not put it down. Mr. Wilken is, first of all, an engaging writer who makes each page a delight. The amount of information he includes in this book is tremendous - Galen, Julian, Porphyry, Celsus = they're all here in living color! Most of us are used to the Christian side of the story concerning the church's origins and the pagans never come out unscathed. This book shows that the Roman pagans were not superstitious twits but philosophers who delved into their religion with as much depth and passion as any church father ever did. Mr. Wilken lays out in detail the weaknesses in Christian theology that the pagans used against them. The chapter on Roman burial societies, which served as social clubs, gave a new perspective on the church as a fellowship group that was often seen as no different from other societies. It is also nice to know that the Christians then acted as arrogantly and obnoxiously as they do now toward those who disagree with them. Every student of western religion and every Christian who thinks they know the history of their church should read this book.

Early Christian folklore is permeated with the idea that the
"saints" merely had to tell the story of Jesus and all who heard it believed. The story made perfect sense and all that was required was someone to tell the story and all of a sudden all the clouded thinking of the listener was cleared away. The rapid growth of Christianity during the first four centuries of the Common Era confirm this.

For readers who have such an idea of early Christianity, this book may be an eye-opener, perhaps one of the most significant books one ever reads. Robert Wilken does an excellent job of describing the attitudes of the Romans toward Christianity as it grew. Pliny the Younger, Tacitus, and Seutonius saw Christianity as a "superstition," a foreign cult whose practices stood outside the accepted standards of religion in the Greco-Roman world. Galen saw Christianity as a philosophical way of life but found its members dogmatic and uncritical in their thinking. Celsus saw Jesus as a magician and accused Christians of magic. (See _Ancient Christian Magic_ by Marvin Meyer) Celsus was also concerned about Christians becoming a counterculture that
"drained their energies away from the larger society." Porphyry was considered by Augustine the "most learned of scholars" yet when Porphyry heard Origen attempt to reconcile Christianity with the Greek intellectual tradition, he thought it an
"absurdity." The last Roman persecution of Christians took place under the reign of Maximin Daia, an emperor who took piety seriously. A later emperor, Julian, earned the name "apostate" for being raised as a Christian and then rejecting Christianity.

Since it first began, Christianity has not only been championed by intelligent people but questioned seriously by some as well. Adolf von Harnack once wrote that Porphyry's objections had not yet been answered in his own day. Christianity did spread rapidly, but that the message of Christianity was readily accepted at face value is not the reason for this growth. For that one must look elsewhere.

An excellent book on the early days of Christians. An interesting
look at where Christianity came from, and how the Romans
thought about monotheism. I did purchase several other
books mentioned in this one. It is good and I do recommend
it. I often buy or don't buy books based upon these kind of
reports, so let me say, you will not be disappointed in buying
this one.

It is interesting to me that every person who has a near death experience tends to have an experience that validates his own belief system. If the belief system happens to be Christianity, there will invariably be an experience of meeting Christ, experiencing heaven, hell, etc. & a validation of belief in the Bible. I know of two people who had the same near-death experience--they come from Eastern and New Age belief systems, and they experienced no such thing as what the author reports. They reported experiences of "Bardo"--self-judgement where they reviewed their lives from the perspectives of all people whose lives they touched, etc., and it was purely for evaluation & learning. There was no hell or judgment associated with it. There are many world religions that believe there is no "Absolute Truth", and we actually "Manifest" whatever "reality" we believe--in this life and the next, which might account for so many people who experience exactly what they anticipate experiencing after death.

This is by far, the most inspiring NDE book ever written and I've read them all. Dr Eby's description of heaven and hell and his encounter with Christ will have you reading this book in awe, over and over. Every Christian should read this book.

This book is phenomenol. I have reread it several times in less than a year, and will continue to enjoy rereading it through my life. Each time I get something new. If I had one book to give showing what heaven and hell are really like, this would be it. The reason is because not only is the author, a former professor and obstetrician, highly credible, but his experience in both heaven and hell go into great detail and explanation over what he encountered. I have read all of Dr. Eby's books, but this one goes into the richest detail concerning his trip to heaven following a serious injury, and then, five years later, the equally fascinating journey he took to hell on the command of Jesus, not during a near-death experience, but while Dr. Eby had been in the middle of a group tour in Israel, inside of Lazarus' Tomb. The descriptions of heaven are wonderful and uplifting, while the glimpse of hell is chilling. This book is definitely worth the money.