Easter Books

I had high hopes for Trinity, Leon Uris would tell the story of the Irish Rebellion with the style and excitement he showed in Exodus. The book started well, Michener has shown me how valuable 200 pages of background and story development can be in a historical novel. I was however at first surprised and then dismayed when the book developed the story line of an afternoon soap opera, the characters become caricatures and the story line ends up melodramatic and contrived. I wanted to understand the history of the Irish, Catholic Church, Scotch Irish, and English; and I get a set of late 20th century values, morphed into this late 19th, early 20th century story. As always, Uris's writing is clear and stylish, but the story he tells is far below expectations.
This is Tripe, not Trinity.

I love to read. My dad would see me reading and say how it's one of the best things you can do in, life, the more you red the smarter you get. I'd always go for Stephen King, Jeffery Deaver, John Sanford... and such. My father would tell me that if I wanted to read a good book I should read 'Trinity', and learn about my ancestors. My father is half Irish. His grandparents came over during the potato famine. It's a great book if you want to learn how hard it was for your ancestors, when they had to leave their home and come to America. I finally got this 'Epic Novel' and I gotta say I love it. It was very moving. Every page drew me lin closer and closer. It's not the type of book I normaly read, but I am so glad I read it. The young boy that you meet at the beginging, you really start to see things through his eyes. I loved "seeing" how things were in that time period, the customs and hardships.
In all, if you like learning about history, and/or you have any type of Irish blood in you, you have to read this book. Learn more about how things were for your Grandparents or Great-Gransparents and so on.

Inspired by Trinity, I finally visited Northern Ireland -- recommended. Then I reread it, and of course it made much more sense. I learned so much, and it's such a shame about the writing. Examples: 1) Going overboard on the exclamation points! Like he needs them to get across to the reader that a fire in a sweatshop is a bad thing! Ditto for a squadron of freedom fighters getting blasted inside a cave! 2) He's got non-sectarian flopping of arms all over the place. I still can't conjure up an image of one flopping one's arms. 3) The dream sequence in Blackpool...cheap. I could go on and on. I'd kill to get my hands on the manuscript and edit it for a new edition. I could turn this from a good story into a fine piece of writing.

Yes, this story is a wee bit over-the-top, but what a yarn! For those Americans of Irsh descent, notice we do not say the hyphenated Irish-American, for part of being Irish is being an uber-patriot, and America is now our first love, with our homeland only a distant memory, which is what causes us to devour this book, to be inspired by it and more understanding of our heritage. This is the only book I have read three times, each time about ten years apart, and God willing will read another three times. With each passing understaning "us Irish" a bit better. Erin go brough and America forever!

This great novel captures the deep feeling of a heroic and sorrow-filled life.

I have met men my entire life who claim this is by far their favorite book. And I know many men who named their first-born son Conor, because of the boy and man depicted in this book.

It's heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time.

Uris was a man possessed when he wrote this.

Read this book.


("Gates of Fire" by Steven Pressfield has written a book with similar eternal themes, and one that I have seen have the same effect on many men who have read it.)

Book as I expected, although I remember the story being a little longer. But, new condition.

This is a very wonderful version of the classic story by Margery Williams. The illustrations by David Jorgensen make the book especially inviting and personal. It is the only version we would ever buy for gifts.
Thank you,
Nancy Martin

I read this book years ago at the home of a child for whom I was babysitting. Recently I remembered it and read it to my 9 year old granddaughter and my 7 year old grandson, and we all enjoyed it very much. Its message spans the generations.

This is my favorite childhood book EVER! I have it stashed in my bookcase and when ever I feel nastalgic or sentimental I open up its worn pages and let the happiness seep through me. The truth and pureness in this children's novel will bring tears to your eyes. Read this book to your children and you will get constant: "Oh, what happens next?" and/or "Don't stop reading NOW, I have to know the next part!" I love this book, it will warm your heart and the illustrations are sweet, too. Thank you mom for reading this book to me, it was a real experience. :)

"The Velveteen Rabbit" is a parable, a story about that refining fire: redemptive love. The Velveteen Rabbit gave himself in love to the little boy. In return, the little boy loved the rabbit completely. This love caused the rabbit to begin to look around and question what was real. In questioning what was real, the rabbit ultimately believes himself real and wishes himself real. Once real, he achieves a new life and he revisits the little boy in his new form. Despite this new form, a quiet act of recognition passes between the little boy and the rabbit. By the conclusion of the story, the reader is led to believe that the rabbit will continue to watch over the little boy protectively and love him as the little boy continues to grow.

First published in 1922, this was Margery Williams (Bianco)'s first children's book. Spanning a career of nearly 40 years, "The Velveteen Rabbit" was the most successful of her approximately 25 works. The dedication, "To Francesco Bianco from The Velveteen Rabbit" is addressed to Margery's husband. Margery collaborated with artist and illustrator, William Nicholson (Sir William Nicholson (1872-1949)), who was better known as a portrait painter in his later career, but was also known for the woodcuts and poster work he produced in partnership with his brother-in-law, James Pryde.

The illustrations were executed in pen and ink with watercolor wash and, for the most part, appear as full page illustrations, or in some cases, a two page spread. The illustrations of the rabbit, standing very tall and inert, with his paws stuck out straight in front of him, are very touching evoking feelings of sympathy for the rabbit just on sight. The use of strong light and contrasting shadow is also very convincing in conveying a feeling of melancholy and, in some spots, unreality. My favorite part of the book is when the rabbit sheds a real tear and at the instant the tear touches the ground, a mysterious flower begins to grow. That, too, is conveyed so well by way of illustration. This is a very lovely story well illustrated.

I discovered this novel in Listmania under gay fiction, and as I'm always on the hunt for well-written gay fiction rather than the soft-porn that parades itself as fiction, my interest was piqued. I feel so fortunate for this discovery.

I consider this achingly tender book one of the finest novels that I've ever read and would recommend it to anyone who searches for excellent writing. Though the story and characterizations are exquisitely drawn, I was most impressed with the prose. It seemed that every word was written with the utmost care to leave a rich impression. The style of writing is very unusual but the author trusts himself and never condescends to his readers with explanations or excuses. Reading this novel was like floating (or swimming!) to me. It was like floating in and out of the characters' thoughts and witnessing a little-known (at least to me) time in world history.

I encourage everyone searching for great writing to read this novel. I must caution you that the style of writing is different, so please be patient to find the lyrical qualities and rhythm of the writing. I re-read the first three pages numerous times with little comprehension. But the beauty of the words kept me reading. I realized it is the author's intent to create an atmosphere and language unique to the novel and understanding always arrives in a very short time. In other words, just push forward. The reward is tremendous. I expect the characters will haunt me for ages to come and the almost cinematic ending nearly shattered my heart. I was deeply, deeply touched.

In what language is this book written? This book could best be described as a word salad...I found it too confusing to read and certainly couldn't determine a theme.

It is a rare novel that allows one to run the entire gamut of human emotions. It is rarer still the novel that elicits such an emotional attachment to the characters that the reader not only feels for them but feels with them.

The love that is shared by Jim and Doyler is the kind of love that all people strive for, pure, passionate, undying and true. You feel their love grow and blossom through the beautiful images that O'Neill paints with his confident wielding of words and phrases.

True, this novel does not belong to one genre but the main themes of love, passion and reconciliation of self is what touched me the most. The love of Jim for Doyler, Doyler for Jim and MacMurrough's love for both boys. The passion that they share for the things that are most important in their lives and the slow but profound finding of the place where the were truly meant to be, and their life-changing coming of age, rang as truly with me as any of my own life experiences.

The ending is poignant, achingly horrifying and more than enough to make the stoutest of hearts break with overwhelming grief... more than once. (Believe me, I cried three times and for about twenty minutes all told)

This book is a must read for one and all.

Despite its daunting length and (at first) unfamiliar vernacular, this book will creep steadily up on you, just like an old blanket would, as one gets swept into its compassionate core. Foremost it remains a love story, with every wrenching shred of angst one might expect - but like all great art it refuses a single category. Meditations on History, Politics, Religion, Family, Community, Friendship, and of course Love between Men are right at home beside a stirring narrative of events leading up to the 1916 Easter Rising, where Ireland begins its painful tumble toward independence.

But it's in the characters that a novel lives by (least thats what I hear), and it's in their brutal yet loving portrayal that this story really shines. The particular yearnings of Jim and Doyler for each other, of the wounded MacMurrough for a spirit at peace, of Ireland for her dignity, even of Jim's father for the 'good life' - ring as true for them as for any of us.

Reading 'At Swim' has made me believe that it is still possible a book can come along and change your life. For each to find a nation of one's own, is this story's great hope for its readers, and I'm inspired to find mine.

I rarely review anything on this site--not books, not movies, not CDs. I never feel that strongly about a product. But this book is different. When I bought it, I was skeptical about all the hype. Usually with a book that is so universally loved you are setting yourself up for a disappointment. Not so with this. It surpasses the hype in so many ways.

First of all--yes, the three main characters are gsy, but this is in no way a "gay book". It is a romance novel, a war novel, a coming-of-age. It is epic, and purely Irish in its nature. Don't give up after the first few chapters. This definitely isn't American English. It isn't even British English. It's *Irish* English. The prose is dense but lyrical, and reads like a song or a poem. Even if you absolutely hate the characters or plot, I can't imagine anyone who bothers to read past chapter two not completely awestruck by Jamie O'Neill's use of language. This book was ten years in the writing, and it shows.

You probably already know the plot, so I won't annoy you with that. But this book will break your heart into a million little pieces and haunt you for the rest of your life. So read it. Right now.

Looking through this book reminded me of the movie "A Beautiful Mind". A brilliant mathematician constructs a fantasy world complete in every detail. The only problem is that it doesn't exist, and that he's as mad as a hatter.

Just two examples of the many "possibilities" suggested by our schizoid author:

(1) The Biblical flood and the Trojan War were the same event because Noah was Aeneas, who fled Troy to found Rome. (Noah and Aeneas had names that sound alike. Thus it is proven.)

(2) Nine kings fled the fall of the Tower of Babel and seven kings founded Rome. Therefore, Rome was founded by the kings who fled the fall of the Tower of Babel. (In the author's words, the Biblical figure of nine is "close enough" to the Roman figure of seven.)

Need I go on?

this book is absolute garbage. the author has no concept of history and completely disregards the archaeological and historical record. If you you want to know more about ancient history, go to the experts. heck, even Livy is better than this guy!

The professional historians faint as prominent mathematician Doctor Fomenko et al research the known historical data and come to fairly controversial conclusions.

For example, the English historians rage at the suggestion that the history of Ancient England was de facto a Byzantine import transplanted to the English soil by the fugitive Byzantine nobility. As the sign of recognition of the special role of the English historians who consider themselves the true scribes of World History, the cover of the present book portrays Tintoretto's Jesus Christ crucified on the Big Ben.

The Russian historians brand it as pseudoscience because Dr Fomenko asserts that there was no such thing as the Tartar and Mongol invasion followed by over two centuries of slavery, providing a formidable body of documental evidence to prove his assertion. The so-called `Tartars and Mongols' were the actual ancestors of the modern Russians, living in a trilingual state and aspiring Global Empire with Arabic and Turkic spoken as freely as Russian.

The ancient proto-Russian state was governed by a double structure of civil and military authorities and the hordes were actually professional armies with a tradition of lifelong conscription (the recruitment being the so-called `blood tax'). Their `invasions' were punitive operations against the regions that attempted tax evasion.

Fomenko proves for a fact that official Russian history is a blatant forgery concocted by a host of German scholars brought to Russia by the usurper dynasty of the Romanovs. Their ascension to the throne was the result of conspiracy, so they charged these German historians-imports with the noble mission of making Romanov's reign look legitimate.

Dr Fomenko et al prove Ivan the Terrible to be a collation of four rulers, no less. These rulers represented the two rival dynasties - the legitimate Godounovs and the ambitious Romanov upstarts.

The European historians fume not only because Fomenko blows consensual Russian history to smithereens, successfully removing a crucial cornerstone from underneath the otherwise impeccable edifice of World History but for asserting that all medieval European Kings and Princes were but breakaway vice-regents and vassals of the Global Empire who badly needed glorious and very `ancient' past in order to legitimize their new independence from the Empire.

Dr Fomenko adds insult to injury, wiping out one by one: the Ancient Rome: the foundation of Rome in Italy is dated to the 14th century A. D., the Ancient Greece and its numerous poleis, which he identifies as the mediaeval crusader settlements on the territory of Greece, the Ancient Egypt: the pyramids of Giza become dated to the 11th to 14th century A. D. and identified as the royal cemetery of the Global Empire, no less.

The civilization of the `ancient'' Egypt is irrefutably dated to the 11th to 15th century A. D. following the breakthrough in decoding of the ancient Egyptian horoscopes cut in stone and painted on the temple walls.

Arabic historians may find some consolation in the crucial historical role of the Ottoman Empire as a part of the Global empire in the 15th - 17th century. The trouble is that this Empire was initially a proto-Christian state, with Hagia Sophia identifiable as Temple of Solomon, but built in 1550-1557 A.D. by Sultan Suleiman according to Fomenko and Islam with all its key figures is datable to 15th 16th century A. D.!

The Chinese historians are also an unhappy lot because Fomenko wipes out the Ancient History of China outright. No such history. Period. The compilation of the so-called Ancient Chinese History is reliably datable to the 17th 18th century only. It is perfectly recognizable as the Ancient European history, reworked and transcribed in hieroglyphs as yet another historical transplantation.

The Divinity excommunicates Dr Fomenko because the history of religions according to Fomenko looks as follows: the pre-Christian period (before the 11th century and Jesus Christ ), Bacchic Christianity (11th to 12th century, before and after Jesus Christ), Jesus Christ Christianity (12th to 14th century) and its subsequent mutations (15th to 17th cy) into Orthodox Christianity, the Catholicism, Protestantism, Islam, Buddhism, and so on..; and The Old Testament written after the New Testament in xiv-xvi cy A.D., if you please! Everybody served? Saint Augustine was quite prescient when he said: "be wary of mathematicians, particularly when they speak the truth."

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/RAZQNMXM4M9CL Has history been tampered with? Yes, it has! Did events and eras such as the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the Roman Empire , the Dark Ages, and the Renaissance, actually occur within a very different chronology from what we've been told? Yes, they certainly did!

The history of humankind is both drastically shorter and dramatically different than generally presumed.

Why is it so? On one hand, it was usual custom to justify the claims to title and land by age and ancestry, and on the other the court historians knew only too well how to please their masters. The so called universal classic world history is a pack of intricate lies for all events prior to the 16th century. World history as we learn it today was entirely fabricated in the 16th-18th centuries. It's likely that nobody told you before, but

there is not a single piece of firm written evidence or artefact that is reliably and independently dated prior to the 11th century.

Naturally, after what you've learned in school and university, you will not easily believe that the classical history of ancient Rome, Greece, Asia, Egypt, China, Japan, India, etc., is manifestly false.

You will point accusing finger to the pyramids in Egypt, to the Coliseum in Rome and Great Wall of China etc., and claim, aren't they really ancient, thousands of years ancient? Well, there is no valid scientific proof that they are older than 1000 years!

The oldest original written document that can be reliably dated belongs to the 11th century!

New research asserts that Homo sapiens invented writing (including hieroglyphics) only 1000 years ago. Once invented, writing skills were immediately and irreversibly put to the use of ruling powers and science.

The consensual chronology we live with was essentially crafted in the 16th century by the Jesuits.

The world history was compiled from contradictory mix of innumerable copies of ancient Latin and Greek manuscripts and other irrefutable proofs delivered by late mediaeval astronomers that were cemented by the authority of writings of the Church Fathers.

Early in life, we learn about ancient history. Children love the magical lessons of history - they are like fairy tales. Teachers recite breathtaking stories; very soon We learn by heart the names and deeds of brave warriors, wise philosophers, fabulous pharaohs, cunning high priests and greedy scribes.

We learn of gigantic pyramids and sinister castles, kings and queens, dukes and barons, powerful heroes and beautiful ladies, emaciated saints and low-life traitors.

Ancient history is based documents, manuscripts, printed books, paintings, monuments and artefacts - called primary sources.

The problem is that neither these ancient documents, nor events described therein can be irrefutably dated, moreover they contradict each other for the most part.

When a school textbook tells us that Genghis Khan in year X or Alexander in year Y, have each conquered half of the world, it means only that it is so said in some of the written sources.

There are no answers to simple questions:

When were these primary sources written?

Where and by whom were these sources found?

It is wrongly presumed that ancient and medieval chronicles, written by Genghis Khan's or Alexander the Great contemporaries and eyewitnesses, are readily available. Actually, only sources written hundreds or even thousands of years after the events are there, compiled mostly in the 16th 18th centuries, or even later.

As a rule, these sources suffered considerable multiple manipulations, falsifications and distortions by editing. At the same time,

innumerable originals of ancient documents under various pretexts were destroyed in Europe under various pretexts.

The names of persons and geographical sites often changed meaning and location during the course of the centuries.

Geographical locations became clearly defined on maps only with the advent of printing.

This made possible the circulation of identical copies of the same map for purposes of the military, navigation, education and governance tasks.

Historians from Oxford say: "hey, everybody knows that Julius Caesar lived in the first century B.C.

`Julius Caesar' statement is only a point of view as

there is simply no irrefutable documentary proof that Julius Caesar or any other great name of antiquity ever existed.

Better than that - extremely rare sources that can be reliably dated back to the 10th-14th centuries A D, do not show the polished picture of classical history.

They show a picture both contradictory and confusing.

All methods of dating of ancient sources and artefacts are erroneous:

Radio-carbon C14 method produces dating with exactitude of plus minus 1500 years, therefore it is too crude for dating of events in historical timeframe!

The Almagest tractate, which lies as corner stone contemporary chronology, compiled in the 2nd century A D by Ptolemy, the founding father of astronomy, contains astronomical data of 9th to 16th century!

The Bronze Age,that has supposedly began 5000 years ago. Bronze is made of 90% copper and 10% tin, but the technology for tin extraction dates back to 14th century A D!.

All eclipses contained in manuscripts, like Thucydides one, relating 'ancient' events have exclusively medieval dating. All horoscopes cut in stone or painted in Egyptian temples, like Dendera have exclusively early medieval dating solutions.

Not quite what you have learned in school? Open your eyes, and, you will find sufficient proof to reach step by step the inevitable conclusion that the classical chronology is false and therefore, that the history of ancient and medieval world universally accepted today, is also false. Have a fresh outlook on everything said or printed about "ancient" and "enigmatic" Roman, Greek and Egyptian, medieval as well as all other "lost and found" civilizations.

Antiquity and Dark Ages are phantoms invented in the 16th 18th and polished in 19th 20thcenturies. Human civilization is in fact barely 1000 years old!

This book will change your perception of History forever!
What if Ancient Rome, Greece and Egypt were invented during Renaissance?
What if The Old Testament was a rendition of events of the Middle Ages?
What if Jesus Christ was born in 1053 and crucified in 1086 AD?
Sounds Unbelievable?
Not after you've read "History: Fiction or Science?" by Anatoly Fomenko, the genius mathematician.
Armed with astronomy and computers Anatoly Fomenko turns History into a rocket science.

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun (ie. closer), different tilt on its axis (ie. less than 23.5 degrees), different orbit (ie. more circular), different rotation (ie. in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different relative positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently from how we would today? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history or geography is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

This was my daughter's favorite book. Her 5 year old daughter found it in the bookcase and loved it but none of the scents were left. I found it still in print at Amazon and it is now my granddaughter's favorite book. It is still really cute and smells just as good.

My son and husband love to read this sweet little story before bed and share the smells together. I'm not sure which one enjoys it more! I recommend this book to any child at any age!

My daughter loves to smell everything like flowers, food, candles, soap - you name it. When I saw this book was a cute bunny story combined with 6 scratch and sniff stickers, I was sold. Unlike other reviewers I was never lucky enough to know the original book, so I can't say how much it's gone down hill since I was a child. All I can say is that for right now, not 30 years ago, this is one fantastic story.

The scents are all very strong, and they go great with the tale of a bunny spending the day outside "following his nose". My daughter can't get enough of this book. The first time I read it to her I think it blew her mind. She looked at me, smiled and said, "Daddy, why does this book smell good like food?" She made me read it back to back, then she held on to it smelling the pages as I read her other books. I've read it to her every night since.

The only thing that bothers me is that the whole "scratch-and-sniff" sticker and book concept seems so 80s now. It is hard to find any decent books or stickers since this "fad" is now a thing of the past. That is too bad, because this is something most adults still remember and cherish from their childhood.

I remembered this book out-of-the-blue today after not seeing/smelling it for nearly 20 years. This book brought me so much joy as a kid and I loved the novelty of smelling all the different scents while reading the story; made it come alive. I remember the chocolate mint cookie (my favorite!), pine needles, jam, rose, and there were 2 more. I bought it for pure nostalgic value and look forward to sharing it with my friends and see if they remember it too!

Cute story, cheap round stickers. Maybe they're there to help the child to know where to scrach but i'm sure there are better, less cheap-looking ways to do it.

I thought this would be more of an intimate perspective. It's good for people that know absolutely nothing about what happened, but it is very pro-Catholic, and ushers non-believers into Catholicism.

This is a great book for those who want to only "play around the edges" of the Paschal Mystery of Jesus Christ and mistake a Hollywood blockbuster for authentic catechesis. If you simply want to "understand" the film without having to do the hard work of actually thinking about it, then this is the book for you. Filled with circular reasoning and inconsistent proof-texting, this book is a deceptive promotional tool that does not represent official Church teaching on the meaning and proper interpretation of the Passion story. The overwhelmingly predictable questions are set up for trite, facile answers. It will comfort and excite you if all you want is to be confirmed in your love of this troubled, troublesome film and of Gibson's own idiosyncratic Catholicism. But if you have real questions about the REAL thing, look elsewhere. For starters, try "The Bible, the Jews and the Death of Jesus," for a more sober and grounded look at how Catholics are to approach this precious story of our salvation.

Yes, I am a Catholic. I had an intensely ambivalent response to the film, neither loving nor hating it and being moved by many moments in it. But I have been deeply saddened by so much of the hoo-ha and hype surrounding it, especially the self-serving attitude of Christians, especially Catholics, who claim to love the teachings of the Church yet who make no attempt to find out what those teachings actually are (teachings which Mel Gibson categorically rejects), and who are often quite vicious in their response to other believers who raise serious questions about what Gibson is showing us. The film is a late-medieval Passion play that benefits from skillful direction and modern special effects. It is not "THE" teaching of the Church, but a high-quality work of devotional fiction. No problem with that! But let's call a spade a spade, shall we? How is Christ honored by the disingenuousness of the maxed-out defense of this film? Love the film; hate the film; be indifferent to it. But do not mistake it for what it is not, even when it seems that your case can be "proven" by things like this shallow, misleading book.

This wonderful little book takes one hundred questions, primarily pertaining to the film "The Passion Of The Christ," and gives solid and Biblically based answers to each. A couple of the questions are more follow-up to previous questions that explain with a little more depth certain Catholic beliefs and teachings than outright explanations of happenings in the film.

The author is quick to note that some of the things happening in the film are portrayed with plenty of artistis license. However, the freedoms taken by Mel Gibson in the film are meant to enhance the actual occurrence of the Passion.

If you are Catholic, this book is a wonderful guide that opens the door for further study, primarily thanks to the three appendices and the resource guide at the back of the book. These appendices include the five Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, the Stations of the Cross, and the Seven Last Words of Christ. The resource guide includes recommended books on apologetics, Bible study, personal experiences, and, of course, the Passion.

If you aren't Catholic, you may be turned off by the "Catholic"-ness of the book. That has to be taken into consideration, however, since Gibson based the movie on the events in the Bible, illustrated by the Stations of the Cross, and the personal writings of Venerable Anne Catherine Emmerich and Venerable Maria de Agreda. Though some of the things mentioned in this book go against most Protestant beliefs, this Catholic has to say that at least we can agree that Jesus did die for our sins and our salvation.

Recommended to Catholics who are looking for a good springboard to further their studies on the Passion and the Catholic Church in general. Also recommended to Protestants wanting to comprehend some of the Catholic symbolism in the film and any one interested in learning about the Passion.

This movie simply put is a religious meditation on the Passion of our most Precious Lord. This book will bring you to a deeper understanding of the movie, so it is a very valuable resource. It is a wonderful investment & at a fair price!

This book makes a great gift for any body who is interested in the movie. It is easy to read and is sutable for any age group!

This is an ok book. There are lots of pictures of ducks, which is why I bought it- my kids can identify ducks. But the whole premise is a little odd, a duck gets stuck, and other animals make noises at it to unstick it. Kinda odd.

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3D7R9OW2KD5TF Cullen of CullensAbcs.com reviews this book and gives you ideas on how to use to use it interactively with your child. For you I have more video book reviews, free children videos and free activity idea videos at the CullensAbcs.com website. If you have a children's book you would like me to review and offer ideas on how to use it interactively with children please send an email to CullensAbcs@gmail.com. Also, feel free to to add me, Cullen Wood, as a Facebook friend.

I've had this book since the five year old niece was a baby :)

It's one of those repetitive books so loved by toddlers, very calming. The one problem I have with it is that, for the format and age group, it's a little long.

An excellent book for preschoolers. I teach preschool and the book definitely captured the children's interest. After reading the book, we did an art project based on the book. The children painted a piece of paper brown, then added a pre-cut duck shape, and then surrounded the duck with green strips of construction paper to represent the grass. The children giggled as "the duck got stuck in the muck."

This is a great book, especially if you have the tape. Children enjoy this book, I reccomend it for any early childhood program. A great way to introduce numbers.

I was introduced recently to Yates after reading a tribute to Revolutionary Road. That is a superb novel, yet it is Easter Parade which moved me more. It's an incredibly well written book - not a word is wasted and 60 years or so flow by effortlessly. Yet it is only gradually that we realise how the sisters' early promise fades into a haunting and desparately sad tale of the effects of alcoholism.

Recommended to anyone, but I can guarantee that those who like their own company and a drink won't forget this book in a hurry.

David Sedaris recommended "The Easter Parade" by Richard Yates on his latest book tour. He really made it sound like a bitter, sour adventure into the lives of two sisters that could satisfy everyone's sado-masochistic side.

Perhaps my review falls under the category of false pretenses, because I found "The Easter Parade" to be pretty vacuous. A majority of it was an easy read, but the character of Emily has fling after fling after fling with these rotten men who do nothing to advance the story. Just when I start to get tired of her pointless relationships, she has a few more. Tedious!

I'm not complaining that "The Easter Parade" is no fun, but it's not devastating either. It doesn't seem to be much of anything, just lying there moving neither forward nor back. This is my first Richard Yates book and it's possible that it's not indicative of his style, but I was overall glad to be done with it.

In reading THE EASTER PARADE, focus on the seamless craft of Richard Yates, not on his bleak story. This story features Sarah and Emily Grimes, who, in youth, seem positioned to enjoy promising, albeit not spectacular, futures. But too little money, too many children, and too much booze erode Sarah's marriage while Emily's good start--a scholarship at Barnard--leads only to bad-luck relationships with troubled men, mediocre jobs, and alcoholism.

What Yates accomplishes with this gloomy material is amazing. Somehow, he manages to make the inexorable and parallel glides downward of these sisters into a riveting tale, where childish competitiveness, pride, or selfishness keep the sisters from reconciling or helping each other. Throughout, Yates never points fingers or explains their isolation. Instead, he simply shows the slow collapse of two lives. Only at the very end does he offer an observation that sums up THE EASTER PARADE. "When terrible things happen," says Emily's nephew, "there usually isn't anyone to blame."

A good book. (And tonight, I'll skip that nightcap.)

I agree with Orrin Judd's excellent review found elsewhere on this page, but there are a few more things I would like to say about Richard Yates' "The Easter Parade." In his fine biography, A Tragic Honesty: The Life and Work of Richard Yates, Blake Bailey writes that if you believe in family, or people can learn from their mistakes then this novel isn't for you. That's an exaggeration, but Yates' book is a dark dissection of the disintegration many American families went through in the mid-20th century. The Grimes sisters have nothing to cling to because no one, especially not their family, has given them a way to figure out their lives. As Yates writes in his other classic, Revolutionary Road, the people who knew how to live apparently weren't sharing that information. The concision and power of this novel remind me of Saul Bellow's Seize the Day (Penguin Twentieth Century Classics), another book about how one can utterly fail at one's life. Throughout the novel Emily Grimes' mantra is "I see" but of course she sees nothing, and drifts in and out of relationships with hideously inappropriate men. Although one of them, Jack Flanders (who is a washed-up poet) is a scathing self-portrait by Yates. Emily Grimes is, in one sense "one of the first women's libbers" as her nephew Peter puts it (because of her stubbornly defended single life) but she pays a terrible price for her solitude.

You can marvel at just how much Yates packs into a short 229 pages of elegantly written prose. "The Easter Parade" is a kind of social history of America from the 1940's to the 1970's as reflected in the unhappy lives of two sisters. It's also homage to Yates' beloved F. Scott Fitzgerald. In a way it resembles The Crack-Up in that it's an attempt by a writer to come to terms with his own hard experience. (For clues of just how chillingly autobiographical this novel is, read Bailey's book on Yates.) It is different from much of Yates other work because it leaves open the possibility of redemption. Images of spring, Easter, and resurrection haunt the novel, and the book's end features a priest named Peter who literally holds the keys of a possible new life. And there's a final confession of humility which truly stands out in American literature (something else it shares with "The Crack-Up.") Lest anyone think it's a complete downer, it's often grimly funny in the way rather harrowing irony can be. I snickered and squirmed all the way through the Andrew Crawford episodes; they're like horrible outtakes from "American Pie" movies. If you can take a high dose of tragedy, that burns as it heals, then "The Easter Parade" is for you.

There is nothing that I can say about Yates that has not been previously articulated adoringly on this site. Suffice to say that it is a true tragedy that his works are not more easily available for consumption by the public.

I assess a bookstore's quality by whether or not it shelves one of Yates' works. Read this book and you will know why.

This is probably one of the best children's books ever written! It's a charming story full of plenty of peril and surprising personality for a rabbit and the artwork is stunning. Instead of being truly innocent and plottless, Miss Potter plays on the fears and actuality of being a child--children get into trouble. Beautiful edition.

This is the original Potter story. I prefer this illustrator to all that I have seen try to update the classic. I used this with Kindergartens to teach story grammar. It is still a winner with little kids to this day.

I bought this for some young friends of mine (3 and 4.5 yrs), knowing that it is a classic that they should know about and will enjoy--just as I did at their age.

The story of a young, gregarious and voracious rodent who can't stop himself from pigging out in a human's vegie garden. Lucky for him, he avoids the usual and deserved case of rabbits when they become pests, and no shotgun pellets for this little critter, as he finally wises up to himself a bit.

That is, until Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen 2, anyway.

THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT, by Beatrix Potter, has enchanted both children and adults for generations. An exciting adventure book for the wee ones, THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT is the story of Peter, who is very naughty. Peter disobeys his mother, and goes to Mr. McGregor's garden, where he gets into all manner of trouble. While Peter does eventually make it home, he is wet, sick, and has lost his clothes (his second set of clothes in a fortnight!), and his mother gives him chamomile tea for supper. His sisters, Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail, who are good little bunnies, get bread and milk and blackberries for supper.

THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT gently teaches children to mind their mothers - good little children are given rewards, naughty children get into trouble. This simple tale engages and captivates youngsters who can easily relate to Peter's mischievousness. And while that lesson and Ms. Potter's story are both timeless, it is Ms. Potter's charming illustrations that are the true star of this book. Peter is drawn to look like a real rabbit; a rabbit that wears a very dapper jacket and a little pair of shoes. The soft colors and rich detail of the original drawings continue to delight children throughout the ages.

My three year old adores hearing this story. Whenever we read it together, she loves to shout "Stop thief!" with Mr. McGregor and to sneeze "Kertyschoo!" with Peter. She clearly gets great fun and joy out of this classic tale, as do I. All of Beatrix Potter's tales are delightful to share; however, THE TALE OF PETER RABBIT holds a special place in our hearts.

I went on Amazon to purchase this book for...oh, I'd say...probably the 6th time. I first read it as a new Christian over 25 years ago. I since have purchased it and loaned it out so many times that I now must buy yet another copy for myself. Originally I read it once a year but it has been at least 10 years since my last read. Pick it up and you will find that it gets right to the point with the first chaper entitled "Brokeness." You will be glad you did.

I wish I had known about this book when I first became a Christian. Hession's words are truly God-inspired. Must read for Christians at any "age."

I was 16 the first time I read this book and it greatly impacted my life then. It was the first stepping stone to walking in freedom in Christ, showing me that the fears, insecurities and shyness that I never thought of (and even blamed others for, "If only they'd do this...") were from my own sins, and Jesus could free me from them.

Life has taken many paths and I forgot much of what was talked about in the book, and more recently the old fears and insecurities crept in again. I picked up the book again and the Lord exposed the places I'd tried to hide - where I'd tried to be strong, able, and just proud, trying to prove that I was okay, rather than agreeing with God that I'm not good without Him, and letting Jesus be my goodness. I discovered that the thing I was running from (conviction, brokenness, and humility) is the thing that has brought me the peace I otherwise hadn't been able to find.

I found this book to be very helpful in my Christian walk with the Lord. Roy Hession makes everything so interesting the way he talks of living in a constant life of brokeness. His writing style draws you in. This book will help anyone- christian or a backslider to keep coming and come to the foot of the cross, where his blood cleanses our sins.His way of explaining about having constant revival in our hearts, and a fervent love for God burning that is never doused, is so captivating.As I read this book I found myself totally surrounded with the truth, that we are sinners in constant need of a Saviour! Praise His Name!To live a broken, humble life that is in constant revival(by the way, if revival seems hard it is us that is the problem)we need to come to the cross where we will find Jesus waiting. I would definitly recommend this book!

This book is a wonderful reminder of the basics of Christian living. First we must be humble and broken, seeing Jesus for who He is, and ourselves for who we are. Then we must ask for cleansing and renewal through His precious blood, and, walking in the light, go on in fellowship with Him and with one another. The Christian life isn't based on dutiful observance of ritualistic procedures, like praying, reading the Bible, and going to Church at the right times. It's based on God, and what He becomes to us when we put our trust in Him.