Customer Reviews (1)

This book put me in 201 DeWaters......
The author, Gail Griffin, did the unimaginable and put me in room 201 DeWaters Hall on October 17, 1999.

I had heard about this crime in 1999 when it made national news.I imagined how hard this would be for the friends and family of Maggie Wardle.What I couldn't imagine was how it would affect the small Midwestern college, the students (past, present, and future), and staff.

Gail Griffin guides us to "The Events of October" through interviews, records from instant message, and her narration.And even though I knew the nature of the story, I found myself thinking, "dear God Maggie, don't go to his room...." But of course, Maggie was the kind of woman who would go to a friend in need.

The details of this crime were gruesome.VERY. GRUESOME.And a stark contrast to Maggie herself who brought friendship, hope, and love to those around her. Through this story I distinctly feel the absence of Maggie and all that she would have been.We are all victims of the crime committed against her.

This was Maggie's story to be told.I'm glad that Gail Griffin took on the responsibility to see that it was told accurately and completely.I know I will never be the same after learning it.How can there ever be a "Return to Normalcy" after something like this.......

Kelli Stapleton K95 ... Read more

Product Description
Whether you are struggling with fresh grief at a loved one’s death by suicide or your loss happened years ago, you should know that you are not alone. 5 million Americans are affected—directly or indirectly—by this tragedy each year. And it sends us on a lifelong search for answers, both to the practical questions and the deepest question of all: Why? In this definitive guide book, Michael F. Myers, MD, a leading psychiatrist, and Carla Fine, author of the acclaimed No Time to Say Goodbye: Surviving the Suicide of a Loved One, combine their perspectives as a physician and a survivor to offer compassionate and practical advice to anyone affected by suicide. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Highly Recommended for ANY Survivor
I recently lost my Mom to suicide.Before this experience, I had little to no knowledge of suicide.This book has helped me tremendously with the many questions, emotions, feelings, thoughts, and basic understanding of such a horrific experience.Losing my Mom is hard enough, but this book has opened my eyes to understanding the many other emotions that have come my way.Carla provides first hand insight, and Dr. Myers gives medical insight.Both provide guidence and open the door to healing.Thank you for this book. ... Read more

Product Description
Includes a new Afterword

Finalist for the Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Book Award

One of the world’s foremost authorities on the subject of suicide terrorism, the esteemed political scientist Robert Pape has created the first comprehensive database of every suicide terrorist attack in the world from 1980 until today. In Dying to Win, Pape provides a groundbreaking demographic profile of modern suicide terrorist attackers–and his findings offer a powerful counterpoint to what we now accept as conventional wisdom on the topic. He also examines the early practitioners of this guerrilla tactic, including the ancient Jewish Zealots, who in A.D. 66 wished to liberate themselves from Roman occupation; the Ismaili Assassins, a Shi’ite Muslim sect in northern Iran in the eleventh and twelfth centuries; World War II’s Japanese kamikaze pilots, three thousand of whom crashed into U.S. naval vessels; and the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, a secular, Marxist-Leninist organization responsible for more suicide terrorist attacks than any other group in history.

Dying to Win is a startling work of analysis grounded in fact, not politics, that recommends concrete ways for states to fight and prevent terrorist attacks now. Transcending speculation with systematic scholarship, this is one of the most important studies of the terrorist threat to the United States and its allies since 9/11.

“Invaluable . . . gives Americans an urgently needed basis for devising a strategy to defeat Osama bin Laden and other Islamist militants.”
–Michael Scheuer, author of Imperial Hubris

“Provocative . . . Pape wants to change the way you think about suicide bombings and explain why they are on the rise.”
–Henry Schuster, CNN.com

“Enlightening . . . sheds interesting light on a phenomenon often mistakenly believed to be restricted to the Middle East.”
–The Washington Post Book World

“Brilliant.”
–Peter Bergen, author of Holy War, Inc. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (53)

Insightful study of suicide terrorism, but not wholly convincing
"Dying to Win" is the catchy title of Robert A. Pape's thorough study of suicide terrorism and its background. By compiling and making use of a large number of statistics about suicide attacks as a method of terrorism and/or warfare by non-state actors, Pape has been able to draw some important and significant conclusions about the background and meaning of this phenomenon. Most importantly, he emphasizes that 1) suicide terrorism is not specifically a product of Islam; 2) it is not undertaken, even in majority-muslim countries, mainly by the most intensely religious; 3) it correlates not with religious fundamentalism, but with nationalist movements against foreign occupation and oppression. Based on these facts, and analysis of the biographies of major suicide terrorists and their organizations, Pape suggests that we should see the phenomenon as the final weapon of choice of nationalist organizations. Although often using religious differentiation as a source of nationalist ideology and recruitment, these essentially nationalist groups are very weak against the military power of their opponents and are forced to choose this method to do maximum damage or simply give up. As a result, the average suicide bomber, if there is such a thing, fits not the profile of the crazy loon or the suicidal loner, but rather the profile of the educated working class or professional lower middle class political activist - in other words, the constituency of virtually any broad political movement, in particular left-wing ones.

Pape makes his case well and much of it is highly convincing. It is especially important to disprove the notion that suicide terrorism is an entirely new phenomenon and that it is 100% correlative with fundamentalist Islam. In fact, as Pape shows, in the suicide terrorism campaign against the Israeli occupation of South Lebanon in the early 1980s, a majority of the actual volunteers were from left-wing organizations and secular backgrounds, even though Lebanon is a (small) majority muslim country. As the author's dissections of the known biographical facts about suicide bombers show, it is not possible beforehand to estimate who will become a suicide bomber, nor is there usually some major trauma or event that causes them to 'switch' to a willingness to give up their life for the cause. This makes any counterinsurgent strategy based on the notion that one can identify and eliminate suicide bombers before they undertake the attack completely pointless, and it greatly limits the use of profiling for security reasons.

Not all of the book is entirely persuasive, however. Although I think Pape is right that suicide bombing is an ultimate weapon of the weak in national liberation struggles (or ones seen as such), it is a bit of a stretch to fit Al Qaeda into a 'nationalist' pattern. Pape notes that the point of Al Qaeda is precisely to unite the different local sunni Islamist struggles in the respective countries of the Middle East and North Africa, but the pan-Arabism and pan-Islamism of Al Qaeda have only very weak support and cannot really count as coherent and popular enough to work on behalf of a sunni Arab 'nation' at this time. What is also interesting in that context is that Pape ignores entirely the small suicide bombing campaign of the Turkish Communist group DHKP-C, which had already started its suicide bombings before the first edition of this work was published (so presumably was known) and which explicitly profiles itself as opposed to Turkish nationalism. I think therefore that a better framework, although very similar, is to see it not as a weapon of nationalism as such but more broadly anti-imperialism. That allows it to include not just direct perceived occupation and oppression by a foreign entity, as in the case of Palestine or the Tamils, but also campaigns where the issue is not a nation-state to be but rather a sense that an existing nation is being controlled by foreign imperial entities (as in the Turkish case) or a multiplicity of nations are made puppets in this way (as for Al Qaeda). This preserves Pape's basic framework, which seems to me correct, but I think increases its explanatory power.

The last chapter contains a series of recommendations for American national security strategy based on Pape's analysis. This is an odd mixture of the wise and the foolish. The author very sensibly underlines the importance of withdrawing as much as possible all American combat troops from the greater Middle East, because they are the number one cause of resentment against America in the nations where suicide bombers disproportionately come from - it is much more rare to see them from nations which do not have American troops on them. At the same time, however, Pape does not at all mention American support for Israel, which surely is about equal a source of irritation in that part of the world; even if it does not immediately produce suicide bombers the way American 'occupation' does, it surely greatly increases the appeal of Islamism and nationalism generally and aimed against America in particular. This is all the more true since the United States otherwise is acceptably popular in the Middle East, because of the relative freedom of its citizens and laws compared to their own. Since Pape is a student of John Mearsheimer, one would expect the 'Israel connection' to not be overlooked. It also strikes me as rather bizarre that Pape stresses the importance of building border walls and stricter immigration controls in the United States itself as a short-term solution against the already existing terrorists-to-be. His own book exactly makes it clear that one cannot predict or profile a suicide attacker with any real meaning, all the more since neither socio-economic background nor religious affiliation of itself can be succesfully used for this purpose. At most one could 'profile' relatively well-educated working class people from the Middle East and other war zones, but there are so many people who potentially fall in this category that only a complete shutdown of tourist visas and the like could have the desired effect, and the cure would be much worse than the disease. In any case it may be the somewhat dubious nature of the last chapter is because the author sees it as his task to formulate a strategy to "defend America's core interests" in it, such as occupying nations in order to safeguard the flow of oil to the United States, whereas I have no interest whatsoever in defending 'America's interests' or those of any other nation (in fact, it is by no means clear that nations actually have interests).

This is an excellent and must-read analysis of the nature and background of suicide terrorism since 1980, but one would do well to take the author's conclusions somewhat skeptically.

Solid research, warped conclusions
Now that Tamil war is over, who else is doing suicide attacks other than Islamic bombers? Nobody. Also, if suicide attacks are all about removing occupying forces, please explain the spate of Taliban attacks in Pakistan in fall 2009. This book's argument is dated and wrong headed. With regard to NY Times article of 10/15/09, how can the US fight cave dwelling Taliban/AQ fighters from the sea and air only, and not the ground? Research seems valid, but to call suicide terror logical is warped. Effective maybe in the short term, self-defeating for sure. Logical, no way. All who have tried are losers. Just ask the Kamikazes or Tamil Tigers.

Good study but hardly all the answer
I thought this book was a good study but some of his arguments overstated.

What the writer did was make a database of suicide attacks. He then analysied them to make a pattern. This is a form of analysis that I do like. His results, I found surprising.

The writer's argument is that suicide terrorism is a weapon in the arsenal of many organisations. That suicide terrorists are not a malcontent. Finally the tactic is developed by a weak force to fight back.

He identifies three main conditions that encourage suicide terrorism. The region is perceived as occupied, that this perceived occupying power is a democracy and this perceived occupying power has a different religion.

His definition of occupied is if it is perceived that existing government in an area would not survive if not for another power, then that power is the occupying one. An example would be say you thought the Iraq government only survives because of the US, then US is to you the occupying power in Iraq.

He further argues that most suicide terrorism are not Islam and that such attacks to continue need popular support from the locals.

Finally the writer is dubious on whether suicide attacks as a strategy works. When he goes though all the so-called successes that this tactic is suppose to have gained, he found it accomplished little.

The book certainly gave me much food for thought but I do agree with much. However one advantage I have is that I am reading this book in 2009, so I have more data then he does to examine.

Since he did his study, we have seen in the West suicide bombing in London and Bali. Neither which fit into his theories as neither London nor Bali is under foreign rule.

I found his discussion on Al-Qaedabeing motivated by US troops in Saudi Arabia because they are an occupying power doubtful. If all US troops there which are not many suddenly left the Arabian government there, I doubt the government there would fall.

Nor is it as clear-cut as he suggests that suicide attackers are not malcontents.A recent US 2007 study in Afghanistan found that 80% of the suicide attackers there had physical or mental disability. Most came from a poor part of society. Nor are they there admired by their society.

A French film-maker who recently interviewed many failed suicide attackers and their families reported that they were generally young people with many complexes, including an inferiority complexes. They lacked developed personality and were impressionable idealists. They constantly battle against their own death anxiety. He felt they were principally motivated by religious conviction.

Of course there are conflicting studies and his examples of such people are valid

Finally I do not agree with his solution of withdrawing troops. These troops do encourage suicide actions but they also do much good. In fact, the only example he shows of a non-Muslim organization the Tamil Tiger that practiced this tactic was defeated by a massive assault of the Sri Lankan military. Later in Iraq much of these suicide attacks were reduced by the US surge. Similarly in Israel most of these attacks were stopped by a combination of fences, police and military assaults.

Having said this, I still feel it is a good book with many good points one that I hope politicians thinking of sending troops into a region will consider.

If updated for 4 years of events since Pape wrote it...
[...]
For those not inclined to read the article above, entitled "Obama's Inheritance: Al-Qaeda in Retreat", it details the al-Qaida leaders eliminated in the course of the Bush administrations much maligned and misnamed "war on terror" and the fall in popular support for al-Qaeda and Muslim extremism in Islamic countries and populations. The results? Not only have many of al-Qaeda's leaders met their virgins, many of those who remained in the jihadist movement and much support has turned against the organization. Popular opinion in most of the Middle East has dramatically turned against jihadism, extremist Wassabism, and life under fundamentalist Sharia law.

Pape's thesis is that the presence of foreign troops fuels nationalism, manifested as suicidal terrorist jihadism in Muslim nations. He specifically cites Israel's occupation of Lebanon and the US presence in Iraq and Afghanistan. Also included in his analysis is the Tamil Tiger movement in Sri Lanka, which appears oddly anomalous and gratuitous, as the only non-Muslim organization practicing suicide terrorism in modern times. Its inclusion against the multitude of Islamic extremist groups employing suicide terrorism seems only intended to show that suicide terrorism is not a uniquely Muslim pathology. Ironically, the Tamil Tigers lonely anomalous example seems to prove the opposite.

The evidence of the last 4 years drastically undercuts that thesis. US troops are still in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet the level of resentment that, according to Pape, should result from occupation (the presence of infidels in the Umma al-Islam), has subsided. Iraq under Nouri al-Maliki has stabilized. And even the Tamil Tigers are now defeated and Sri Lanka is peaceful.

Hindsight is 20/20, and Pape's thesis would have appeared far more plausible from the vantage point of 2005 than it does at present. That's why I give the book 2 stars.

Pape's inclusion of the ancient Israeli Sicarii of the 1st centuries BC and AD, along with Japanese Kamikaze from WW2 and the Shiite Ismaili (Assasins) of the 11th century as examples of pre-cursor suicide terrorist movements seems gratuitous. What do an ancient movements with no modern antecedents have to do with the thesis, except that this group was Israeli? It seems only to serve as a device to morally stain modern Israel and Jews as equally susceptible to the same tactics used so ubiquitously by their Muslim extremist enemies.

For that reason, I believe, as some allege in these reviews, that Pape's analysis is deliberately skewed and conclusion is reached to prove a preconceived notion about occupation, especially with regard to American and Israeli policies in the Middle East. It tinges the analysis with the whiff of anti-semitism, since the historical background in the preface seems of little purpose in the service of proving his thesis. However, it is not provable that Pape has that preconception.

Even if Pape is guilty of designing his analysis to fit preconceptions, "Dying to Win" can be viewed as a plausible historical analysis and thesis. Nonetheless, in light of subsequent events, the book should be close to discredited today.

Understand What Terrorism is...
This book has brought an enormous amount of understanding to the true causes of terrorism around the world. This book is a must read for anyone wishing to write or understand these problems from an intellectual position. ... Read more

Product Description
In our lifetimes 85 percent of us will have some up-close experience with the suicide of someone we know.  And more than 20 percent of us will have a family member die by suicide.  Journalist Eric Marcus knows this better than most people.  In 1970, his father took his life at the age of 44.  In 2008, his 49-year-old sister-in-law took her life as well.

In a completely revised and updated edition of the landmark original WHY SUICIDE?, Eric Marcus offers thoughtful answers to scores of questions about this complex, painful issue from how to recognize the signs of someone who is suicidal to strategies for coping in the aftermath of a loved one's death.  

No matter what the circumstances, those of us who are affected by suicide are left with difficult and disturbing questions:

* Why did they do it?
* Was it my fault?
* What should I tell people when they ask what happened?
* Is someone who attempts suicide likely to try again?
* What should I do if I'm thinking of killing myself?

Drawing from his own experience, as well as interviews with people who have been touched by suicide, Eric Marcus cuts through the veil of silence and misunderstanding to bring clarity, reassurance, and comfort to those who so desperately need it. ... Read more

Product Description
Terrorist organizations have been able to market mass murder under hysteria’s banner of alleged martyrdom. But when it comes to understanding Islamic suicide terrorism in particular, there is much more to it than martyrdom. In this groundbreaking book, Nancy Kobrin dismantles the psychological dynamics of suicide terrorism to help the reader gain a new perspective on one of the most destructive forces the world has witnessed to date.

Until now, no one has explained why the mother-child relationship is central to understanding Islamic suicide terrorism. The Banality of Suicide Terrorism exposes the very ordinariness of one of the deepest yet most poorly understood causes of the suicide bomber’s motivation: a profound terror of abandonment that is rooted in the mother-child relationship. According to Kobrin, this terror is so great in the would-be suicide terrorist that he or she must commit suicide (and mass murder in the process) in order to fend off that terror of dependency and abandonment. Suicide terrorists seek a return to the bond with the mother of early childhood— known as maternal fusion—by means of a “death fusion” with their enemies, who subconsciously represent the loved (and hated) maternal figure. The terrorist’s political struggle merely serves as cover for this emotionally terrifying inner turmoil, which can lead down the path of ultimate destruction. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

horrible and disappointing
Not the most profound work on this subject, the author frequently misses their mark. After having read some of her interviews in the media, I should have probably known better but the source of the publication is a think tank and not an academic press which tells you much about the quality of the book.

The Banality of Suicide Terrorism
I agree with one of the author's premises that women are devalued in Islam and are victimized too readily. To explain terrorism mainly from the psychoanalytic perspective, however, is quite dangerous, as it emphasizes the causality of terrorism from the terrorist's relationship with his mother. The explanation of suicide terrorism is considerably more complex. While psychotherapy, in general, is a helpful mental health treatment modality, especially when also taking into account biochemical/genetic factors, the specific psychological theory of psychoanalysis has been disproven for decades by research in determining human behavior. Human behavior is influenced by many social, environmental, and genetic factors and cannot be explained by, for example, displaced rage against the mother. Suicide terrorism is probably the most dangerous threat to humanity and to the future of our civilization. It is irresponsible to use a highly subjective theory to explain and rationalize the despicable act committed by extreme religious fanatics of mass murdering innocent civilians.

The relation between islamic terrorism, psychoanalyze and the Borderline DSM IV diagnostic
I have been deeply interested in reading this book.
First to appeal to me, Doctor Kobrin shows deep analyzing insights
and sensitivity to some very important societal issues.

After reading this book, it may sound very reasonable to believe
that Islamic suicide bombers share some symptoms with Borderline Personality Disorder.
Borderline diagnostic seems to point to a sense of a psychological black hole
that may be caused by an early emotional sense of abandonment between mother and infant
that are very deep and frightening for any infant victim.
One of the only way to sustain this lifelong terror is to act it out through a very destructive rage.
Islamic girls are abandoned by their family and their entire society
in the way they are made ashamed of their own body, identity, and sexuality.
Those women are the black holes, hidden behind veil and burkas.

In quoting Doctor Kobrin, the terrorist is not in contact with the terror inside but has
become her/his own terror in projecting it outside onto victims.
This is, I believe, one among other truly fascinating ideas inside this book.

I also admire many different other ideas, the huge research work
and also all the different knowledge exchanged with different helpful and insightful persons
that this book reflects throughout.


Laurence

A fine survey for any college-level psychology or social issues library
The Banality of Suicide Terrorism: The Naked Truth About the Psychology of Islamic Suicide Bombing belongs in any library strong in terrorism issues and science. It explains how the mother-child relationship is key to understanding Islamic suicide terrorism, analyzing the psychology behind terrorist suicide actions. A fine survey for any college-level psychology or social issues library.

The Banality of Suicide Terrorism
The writings of Dr. Kobrin was courageous to say the least.The in depth knowledge that she brings to light is a lesson for all those that either want or need to know about the inner mind of the middle eastern terrorist.It is hard for a western mind to fully grasp how a male is reared in the middle east but she brings this to light better than anyone thus far.I, personally benefited from reading this book. ... Read more

Product Description
"For the individual in the throes of responding to the....suicide of a loved one, this book provides valuable insight into the experience. This kind of cognitive knowledge can actually alleviate suffering by being a reliable guide through the process".---The Theological Educator. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

excellent resource
Ordered several copies to have when needed.Excellent resource for those dealing with suicide of family member or friend.Books arrived quickly and in good condition.

Great resource
I bought this book to share with my brother and sister-in-law after the death of my niece.Although it was written 30 years ago, it seems consistent with current postvention thought.Some readers might need a gentler approach, but this book tells it the way it is and gives survivors the information they need to know.The book had been recommended to me by a counseling professor of mine who had lost her father to suicide, so I had no qualms in getting it for my family.

It will help.
I didn't know what I was getting into when someone suggested I read this. Anyone who is facing a situation of sudden loss will get something out of this quick read. It's easy to read, thought provoking and may settle some of your wonders and fears.

Manditory for survivors
A most helpful book for survivors, counselors, clergy.This book addresses every aspect of the aftermath of a suicide and provides survivors with information they desperately need to cope with this devastating loss.The book is concise, specific, and cuts directly to the issues by which survivors are overwhelmed.I have given copies to several people who needed it and will continue to recommend it.

It did help me.
My son's suicide was 17 years ago.After all of these years I still have my copy although the pages are yellow and full of highlighter.Everyone is different, especially at a time like this but, I do recommend this book.

... Read more

Customer Reviews (16)

My Son My Son
The best and most helpful book I have ever read on this subject.It has helped me and my family immensely.

the best!!
This book targets those that are left behind. The author, Iris Bolton, whose experience with the suicide of her son led her into finding a way back to life as a survivor. The makings of a survivor are describled in her book in a way that helped me to want to be one of those survivors, and even help others survivor. This is written with compassion and an honesty that so touching, it resounds with the my feelings of grief and hope at the same time. It is not a long book, but the content will stay with you for a long time.

MY SONMYSON
Anyone who has lost anyone by suicide should read this book.
It will help you to know that you are not alone and everything
will get better. It helps you to learn to express your feelings
to those who cared for your love one as well as those who
care for you.

Written by an authoritywho has been there
Written by a mother and counselor, Iris Bolton is also a survivor and triumphant veteran of the most unimaginable grief there could be.Her son died of suicide.She used what she learned in her own grief to help others, especially in the case of the child of a suicide death.The book is an eloquent and well-rounded combination both of the sharing of a broken and questioning heart and the helpful information and resources for others trying to find any light of hope in the tunnel-vision of grief.Packed full of straight-forward honesty and truths, here are a few jewels from the author's troves of wisdom on the subject.

An experienced grief counselor tells Ms. Bolton after her son's death, "There is a gift for you in your son's death.You may not believe it at this bitter moment, but it is authentic and it can be yours if you are willing to search for it.To other eyes it may remain hidden.The gift is real and precious and you can find it if you choose."

Reference to the insensitivity of others at a time of a mourner's greatest sensitivity:"To my amazement, I jerked my arms free. `I'm not ready yet!'Such assertiveness was foreign to my nature but now it was the product of a growing awareness that many others were assuming that they knew what was best for me."And this:"Many loving people who want to help will be giving you advice about what to do.Some will say snap out of it; some will urge you to take it easy; some will say it's God's will.At a time like this, everybody becomes an instant expert.But you do what you want to do.You do what feels right for you.Even if nobody else approves and you still decide for it, you do it."

Regarding the usage of pills and the detrimental effects of numbing the pain that must ultimately be gone through to get through to the other side:"Normal grief is not an emotional illness.It is a process that must be experienced.Sorrow must be accepted and allowed to mature and then, hopefully, be laid aside."

A sample of instructions for ultimate healing:"Cry wherever you are.It is natural and healing.Grief is not something you can bottle up and screw on the cap.That way guarantees future pain and disaster.Instead, throw the cap away, and one day your bottle of pain will be emptied and you may know peace.You will never be the same, you will be different, but you can know joy again."

For those whose beloved died in any way, this book is an excellent help.

If your dealing with guilt,here is the book you need
For all of us who lost a loved one to suicide, we automatically feel guilty for not seeing it coming, or being able to stop it.
Here is a book who's author is a thearpist and her son is in a treatment plan and he succeeds, in his suicide..
Her book helps you see all aspects of suicide, and if possible see how with all our efforts, we couldn't stop it..
It's excellent and my support group all found it extremely helpful.. ... Read more

Product Description

Suicide is an event that cannot be ignored, minimized, or left untreated. However, all too often mental health professionals and health care practitioners are unprepared to treat suicidal clients. This text offers the latest guidance to frontline professionals who will likely encounter such clients throughout their careers, and to educators teaching future clinicians.

The book discusses how to react when clients reveal suicidal thoughts; the components of comprehensive suicide assessments; evidence-based treatments such as crisis intervention, cognitive behavior therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, and more; and ethical and legal issues that may arise. Case studies, exercises, quizzes, and other features make this a must-have reference for graduate level courses. An Instructor's Manual is also available with sample syllabi, PowerPoint presentations, and other useful resources.

Key topics:

Product Description

Customer Reviews (24)

We are at war and they know it
-----Islam is at war with the west and we pretend they are not.
----With oil money Iran is fronting Islamic Jihad like no other State.
----Sadly, Obama is negotiating with a hated regime that his own people want to throw off.Tough talk has weakened the regime but Obamas soft touch with them emboldened the leadership structure into pushing for a crooked election.After the election the people who knew the west abandoned them panicked and rose up only to be crushed while Obama and the West split hairs on carefully worded statements so as to not defend our enemy.
-----Irans people must wake up and throw off their backwards masters. Their leaders have threatened to wipe out israel and are in pursuit of nukes.Meantime they back the revolts in Afghanistan, Irak and Palesinte with thier money and IUD's.Soon Israel will stop their nuclear program and it will get ugly.Irans people need to throw off their government before its too late.
-----The West needs to push nuclear power in its own nations, mass transit, and at the same time pressure terrorist sponsoring states as harshly as they can to while encouraging dissenters within.Its either that or direct intervention and that is much more expensive in terms of blood & treasure.Obama needs to work hard as hard to undermine terror supporting states (overtly & covertly) as he is instead foolishly trying to nationalize our economy (nationalization was the euro modela, it didn't work and they are all backing away from it).

tribal fanaticism will win unless we change
The beginning of this book is excellent explaining why the societies of reason will loose in this battle with tribalism.I understand a lot more now.The middle of the book was way too bogged down for me with a history lesson about the Frence Revolution etc etc. I thought it was very boring.The last of the book was interesting but frankly he states we have lost in Iraq which may have been true when the book was written but if indeed the surge keeps working, it seems to undermine many of his main 'assertions'.
An interesting read at least at the beginning.

Guaranteed to put you to sleep
A real bore. This guy quotes so many people from the beginning of time to the present, that you wonder if he's at all original. In fact, if you took away all his quotable quotes, this book would only be half as long a bore as it is.

The usual drivel about Islamic fanaticism vs. Western thought and the [our] "way of life." This hack takes us back for a history lesson and calls us "actors;" in which will soon grate on your nerves when he does that one too many times. Of course we "Westerners" are just a bunch of ignorant, materialistic "actors" who will never understand what makes the fanatic tick. Like he's the only "enlightened one." Run-of-the-mill "know-it-all" that may put you to sleep just by reading the Preface. I did....fall asleep, that is. Don't waste your time or money on this one.

"Believe what I believe or die!"
An important book changes your view of your world.Harris' "The Suicide of Reason" succeeds in doing this and points out serious threats to the survival of Western Civilization from the inside and the outside.Harris shows that the most important message that America's leaders have failed to grasp is that not everybody sees the world the same way.Harris' "rational actors" act to change their culture out of enlightened self interest whereas his "tribal actors" act to preserve their culture.Nominally the conflict is presented as fanatical Islam's tribal actors versus the West's rational actors, but his paradigm applies to groups within the West as well.As you read this book you will recognize "tribal" views in many rabid Democratic Party supporters, Chicago Bear's fans and Intelligent Design advocates, among others.These people have ceased listening to any counter-positions.

The "tribal mind" dominated Earth until The Enlightenment.How did this revolutionary change come to occur?Harris invokes Hobbes, Spinoza, Condorset, Locke, Marx, Huxley, Voltaire and others to show how it took root in the time of the French Revolution and came to fruition in America.

Is it inevitable that the rational actors' democratic ideal will come to dominate the world? It looks like it will be unlikely to survive without a prompt change of direction by the West.Recent western generations have ceased acting in ways to protect their hard won culture. They are now dissipating this monumental asset in the name of political correctness."Right thinking has replaced real thinking."

Harris' rephrased titular question, "Does reason commit suicide when it blinds itself to the reality and the power of the irrational?", presents the West's primary problem: its leaders live under the delusion that everybody looks at the world the same way.They must consider that different groups have very different perceptions of the world.All problems can't be resolved by win-win positive thinking; inevitably testosterone will enter into the equation.The most rational among us must accept that in the world of the blind the one-eyed man isn't king by divine right.

This is an exceptionally insightful book that deserves to be read by serious people seriously concerned about the survival of their political and cultural traditions into the next generation.

Nonsensical whitewash of non-Muslim religious fanaticism
The author offers --very briefly-- a fairy-tale version of Orthodox Judaism, whitewashed by Martin Buber and explained away as totally assimilationist in America. He dares not speak the words "rabbinic fanaticism." He's never heard of the Shas party rabbi, Ovadia Yosef, who demands the annihilation of the Palestinian "Amalek" on Talmudic grounds, or of the settlers in the occupied territories motivated by religious fanaticism and hatred. He doesn't want to go there because his audience of neo-cons, who are not really interested in stemming the tide of fundamentalism and advancing reason, would drop out of his cheering section if he did. As Evelyn Kaye ("The Hole in the Sheet") and Israel Shahak ("Jewish History, Jewish Religion") have testified, the world's most ironclad dictatorship over the human mind is the rabbinic dictatorship. There is nothing reasonable about supremacist Talmudic religion, but the author will not countenance these facts. During the Enlightenment era, Judaism was classed with Islam as a black hole of tyranny. The "West" of this book is a sanitized version in which the Orthodox rabbis and Voltaire are united in defense of reason. Preposterous! ... Read more

Product Description
This uniquely designed resource for those left behind after a suicide (loved ones, friends, siblings, and extended family) provides encouraging, practical help and hope. Also includes features designed for SOS support groups, pastors, Christian counselors, and church leaders with the goal of helping the church function more fully as the healing community it could be for the survivors of suicide in its midst. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

"Finding your way....."
I did not read this book, as I sent it to someone, but it was recommnded to me by one who conducts a Grief-Share program at her church.

Finding Your Way after the Suicide of Someone You Love
This month marks the 4th year since my son's death through suicide. He was 23.

This is the only book I read. I decided that my mind was much too tired to read all of the books written on suicide.

Perhaps the most glaring issue for those of us who have faced the suicide of a loved one, is how we could have prevented it. The authors helped me to think in ways I hadn't considered. I felt comforted after reading each chapter.

The book is also helpful in working through the process of grieving regardless of what caused the death of a loved one.

Since I believe we often make life more complicated than it needs to be, this book addresses suicide simply and with compassion, allowing the reader to learn and at the same time be comforted.

Suicides, the most difficult of deaths
"Finding Your Way After the Suicide of Someone You Love" is the most relevant book I have encountered on suicide. As a bereavement coordinator/facilitator in a large church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I occasionally run into suicide situations and this book seems to express what families have shared with me. I believe it captures many emotions/feelings of the person who commits suicide that can explain reasons and perhaps reassure the family to help alleviate some of their guilt. These things can lead to their one day finding peace again.

Best book
This book was extremely helpful to me after the suicide of my youngest son. I would recommend it especially to those who have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is so good that I am buying a copy for another mother who just lost her oldest son to suicide.

Same as all the rest
There are some really good books and then some that just copy the same text as others, this is a copier. ... Read more

Product Description
Deadpool's latest job has gotten him into a world of trouble. Everyone wants a piece of him - and for a crime he didn't commit! That's right: Someone's framed Deadpool, and it just might be the same guy who hired him in the first place, a guy who just might be using the mouthy merc as a wild card in a twisted wager. If Wade's going to clear his name and serve up some revenge, he's first got to avoid getting captured - or killed - by some of the Marvel Universe's heaviest hitters: Daredevil, the Punisher, and Spider-Man. Plus, see what happens when Deadpool goes behind the scenes of "Pain Factor" - the reality TV game show so controversial, it's been banned around the world! Collects Deadpool: Suicide Kings #1-5 and Deadpool: Games of Death. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

My Favourite TPB
Suicide Kings is definitely my favourite TPB. The art is amazingly gorgeous, the action had me on the edge of my seat and my jaw down on the floor, and Deadpool's antics were in full swing.

No, Suicide Kings is not particularly focused on comedy- although there are plenty of moments to be had. It instead puts the emphasis on the action, and certainly delivers.

A great mini-series featuring the Punisher, Daredevil, and Spider-Man for an all around great time.

All-around superb!
Deadpool is back and his antics are as funny as they ever were.Pairing up with the likes of Daredevil, Iron Man, and even Spider-Man, the witty dialogue and thrilling action comes at the reader in rapid succession without overwhelming.The frequent Deadpool asides fail to derail the cohesion of the story, which makes it quite uncomplicated without pandering to a simple audience.Filled to the brim with bon mots, hilarious one-liners, and fantastic artwork, Suicide Kings is sure to satisfy any and all Deadpool fans who manage to get a copy in their hands.Highly recommended for even the most stoic of comic fans, as I can guarantee that you will find at least one thing worth chortling over.

Good book for a great character.
If you enjoy comedy, action, and wackiness, Deadpool is the comic book character for you.Suicide Kings is great for anyone who enjoys the comedic side of Deadpool or for those who enjoyed the UDON run of the character.And guest appearances by Punisher, Daredevil,Spiderman, and many more, make this a fun read for comic fans.

Excellent Deadpool mini series.
The title pretty much says it all. But this is a great read if you're a Deadpool fan. And it has some awesome appearances by Spiderman, The Punisher, and Daredevil. This comic isn't AS funny as "Deadpool Vol 1. Secret Invasion" But it still has some funny moments, especially one dream sequence, it's just hilarious. The art is great too. It's the same artist from "Secret Invasion" which I thought had amazing art.

-The cover amazon has listed isn't right. It's Deadpool holding a teddy bear with bullet holes in it. Not that big of a deal, but I thought I'd just let people know. ... Read more

Product Description
Too often attempted suicide leads to unintended consequences, because ignorance is deadly and desperation can be fatal. In this morally courageous book, Geo Stone sets out to diminish the lack of awareness about suicide, from the tragedy of teenage suicide to the debate over assisted suicide. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (38)

Suicide and the issues
I felt rather spookey when ordering this book - a bit like sending off for pornography!There is also such shortage of easily available information about this topic, so relevant to the experience of everyone.As someone who suffers from periodic depression and has reflected at length at the implications of getting off the bus, this volume has brought a sense of comfort and perspective, in the most practical and reasonable manner.The human race is extraordinarily inept at looking after its own and seems unable to respond effectively to its equally extraordinary capacity for suffering, both innate and self-imposed.The author must be congratulated on successfully hitting the target with an aspect of human existence that is so controversial, difficult to grasp and in need of attention.In reading, I felt I had a friend in Mr Stone and a companion to take me through the challenges that will come along during the remainder of my time in this world.

The Power To Choose
When I was 11 years old, my brother and I were walking to our favorite swimming spot on the Colorado River. We passed through a dusty, overgrown lot where an old man had been living in his trailer. We saw him working around his car, with a tube that he'd taped to his exhaust pipe. He looked up, smiled and waved. When my bro and I were done with our swim, we walked home the same way we'd came. We noticed the old man's car running...amber smoke in the car, the long tube taped from his exhaust pipe to the rear window...his head was leaning against the passenger window. We knew then that he'd killed himself.
The thing that strikes me about that memory is the peace that I saw in the old guy's face prior to his making his exit. He wasn't obviously tormented - he looked happily resolved. And if my life was deteriorating in an uncomfortable and irreversible way for myself, I'd like to think I have the backbone to go ahead and pull the plug like he did. Why is there so much stigma attached to this act? I guess the key word here is "irreversible". Some dire situations, certain emotional pains - seem to have no end, so suicide appears to be the best solution to some people...in the moment. If they'd just work through the pain of a temporary situation...they can go on to a happier existence. Is this a dangerous book for people at that threshold? My life partner reacted badly to the mere idea of my owning this book, and brought that point up. I reminded him that he and I come from a generation that was used to hiding all the smut and dirty little details of reality...the new generation is the "Information Age". If a person really wants to learn how to do something, they can research it on the net and forums dedicated to certain controversial topics. But this book DISSUADES someone from making a foolhardy gesture - going into detail about the consequences (pain/crippling) of certain common methods of trying to "dispatch" oneself. It's presented in a very realistic, responsible way. If I had to lose my entire library and only keep one book - this would be the one book that I would keep - tucked safely under my arm - as a valuable reference for the moment I might need it in the (hopefully distant) future. Throughout the tumultuous journey that is life, I find great comfort in having my guidebook, my "map", of how to gracefully, and with dignity, be able to find my final resting place - should I need it.

XXX...As a final note to this review; I found out later that the old man my brother and I saw commit suicide had been pining for his life-long sweetheart, who had died the previous year...in addition to facing grave health problems of his own. I used to go into his abandoned trailer to play "Go-Fish" with my little friends, and never felt weird about what I'd witnessed. I felt like he would have welcomed me being there.
I wish people would start giving up their fear of death in our narrow-minded little western society. Other, comparitively primitive societies have much healthier and more realistic attitudes than we do.

Geo Stoned, more like.
Whenever I feel helples and awfull (which is SO offen) I look up at the stars and wonder why, GOD, did you put me on this earth to suffar?I suffar SO MUCH!i just want to thank you, geo, for helping poeple liek us (the depresed) realize that there is really so little to live for.i might as well die.geo... i'll shake your hand in hevven!i <3 <3 <3 geo!

i have never read this book.

Geo's Tome
This does not help anyone. Everyone around me is committing suicide to this book. It's awful... awfully good... awfully good to die to.

Kill me if I pay this much for a book!
Anyone who pays a thousand bucks for a $20 book deserves to die.Give me a break! ... Read more

Product Description
Societal Suicide is a cultural-racial analysis of the enduring legacy called Animus Americana, which affects the psyche of Mexicans in the United States, specifically Los Angeles. This work is a compilation of factors, experiences, and realities that make a person suicidal both from a societal and familial perspective. This timely and deeply personal exploration into the roots of suicidal tendencies in Mexicans living in the United States is a revealing study of culture, assimilation, social pressures, and identity. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Two locked room murders!
Carr has long been known as the king of the locked room mystery, and in this book we get two actual locked-room mysteries.One appears to be a suiciide and one is a murder, but neither one is straight-forward.In true Carr fashion, he keeps us guessing until the very end.But thank goodness crime fighter extraordinaire Gideon Fell is on the scene and he finds his way through the maze.This book has Carr's trademark black humour as well, and kept me laughing all the way through.The antics when the characters get into the famous in "Doom of the Campbells" (which happens to be a particularly strong whiskey)are incredibly funny!I love the way Carr plotted his stories.His mysteries are highly intelligent, complex and he is the unrivalled master in his particular genre.

High-Style Wit And A Clever But Gimmicky Plot
Among the most popular mystery novelists of the 20th Century, John Dickson Carr was famous for his "locked room" plots--and the 1942 THE CASE OF THE CONSTANT SUICIDES presents us with no less than three locked room, two mysterious deaths, and one equally mysterious assault.

Angus Campbell has plunged to his death from a tower of his home in Scotland.But was it suicide--or murder?This is an important question for the Campbell family: a verdict of suicide will void Angus' life insurance policies, and the financially strapped family needs every penny it can get.In an effort to clear up the matter once and for all, the family calls upon the famous (and in some respects notorious) Dr. Gideon Fell.But no sooner is Fell installed on the premises than there is a second plunge from the tower heights.

In addition to his way with a plot, Carr was also noted for his wit, and THE CASE OF THE CONSTANT SUICIDES crackles with laugh-out-loud incidents and dialogue.And fortunately so: this is actually one of his more gimmicky novels in terms of plot, and while Carr is able to hold all his elements together for most of the novel, Dr. Fell's final solution rings false on several levels.Even so, the charm of his characters and the wit of his style make the journey more than worth the effort.

GFT, Amazon Reviewer

The Doom of the Campbells
"The Case of the Constant Suicides" (1941) is a fun read and one of the author's more interesting mysteries--three men die and the reader must determine who committed suicide and who was murdered.This book is very much of a howdunit as well as a whodunit. Carr's serial detective, the humungous Dr. Gideon Fell, galumphs into view about a third of the way through, after one man is already mysteriously deceased.Old Angus Campbell meets his end after plunging out of the window of his locked tower bedroom. The door has to be broken down in order for the deceased man's bedroom to be examined.The only unusual object in the tower room is an empty animal carrier, its wire-mesh door tightly shut.

Professor of history, Alan Campbell and his second cousin Kathryn Campbell meet on the train taking them to Scotland and immediately dislike each other.Too bad, because they are forced to share a sleeping compartment on the crowded, blacked-out train.They bicker all the way to the Castle of Shira at Inverary where Angus had jumped or was forced from his bedroom window the previous week.

Here they meet the insurance agent, the Castle's lawyer, and Angus's brother Colin arguing about whether Angus was murdered or done himself in.Carr's serial detective, Dr. Gideon Fell wheezes and chuffs through the castle like an off-the-track steam engine, dropping mysterious hints as he goes.Colin decides to spend a night in his brother's former bedroom, just to lay rumors of ghostly goings-on, and he too defenestrates himself.

When a third man is found hanging in a locked fishing cabin, Dr. Fell sorts out the murder and attempted murder from the suicide, rewards the innocent, and sets a murderer free if only he will sign a fake confession.

John Dickson Carr takes a turn to heavy-handed humor in "The Case of the Constant Suicides."Most of the roistering is caused by a malt whiskey called 'the Doom of the Campbells.'A pesky American newspaperman is drenched, shot at, and hunted from the castle grounds whenever the Doom is flowing through the inhabitants of the castle.

This isn't my favorite Gideon Fell mystery--for one thing, I'm not sure the murder weapon is really quite as effective as the author seems to assert--but it was fun to read.There were more smiles than shudders, which suits me fine.

LockedRoomPuzzle
There were airstrike warnings.Alan Campbell, professor, found his sleeping compartment on the train to Glasgow.Campbell was involved with another person of the same name in a dispute currently lining the letters pages of an historical journal.He met his adversary, a woman as it turned out, on the train.Unwillingly they had to share the compartment since there had evidently been a mistake in the booking of the train and no other seats were available. They were both going to the Castle Shira.A distant cousin, Angus Campbell, had been murdered.By accident they took a journalist named Swan with them to the castle, they had believed that he was also someone distantly related to Angus.

Angus would not have committed suicide, he had insurance policies with suicide clauses; nevertheless, it seemed that he could not have been murdered, either.Angus had had a common law wife, but she was so filled with the idea that she must be respectable that she had probably filched Angus's diary to prevent others from seeing his private musings and discovering his relationship with her.

Not finding the diary impeded the investigation of Dr. Fell and others called to the scene.Amusingly a journalist, a lawyer, and an insurance agent were all present to sort out the details of Angus's death.In the course of their highly interesting stay at the castle, the two Campbell cousins become interested in each other to a great degree.Two other men encounter danger and the death of one ensued and the near death of the other occurred prior to the ultimate unraveling of the mystery.

The story is clever and highly satisfying to the reader.The Scots atmosphere is delightful.

a really good novel by a great mystery writer
I read this book a few years ago.This book is one of my favorites of all his novels. This is a masterpiece of '40 mystery novel and it has its unique flavor.The scene in which a murder happens is a lony castle in Scotland.This murder also belongs to the so called"impossible"crime that no one dares to reason out why suchunbelievable murder case could happen in our real world.And the maincharcters are simply three person.The old man who occupies the old castleand his daughter and her lover. As there are few characters you would thinkit is easy to find who is the murderer.But not at all.That is the power ofhis craft. The scene is wildy like a description in a novel "WutheringHights".Carr's description of the scenery is always remarkblyoutsupassing.He makes a scenery never forgettable. I think this book is oneof his three greatest ofDr.Fell series with "the three coffin"and "the crooked hinge". ... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
After a Parent’s Suicide: Helping Children Heal focuses on how to help children and teens in the aftermath of a parent’s suicide.The book provides an overview of current thinking/research on suicide and explores the increased risk of mental health issues for child survivors.In addition to information about how children grieve at different developmental levels, it also offers comfort to the bereaved, specific coping strategies for families facing this trauma, and insight into what promotes resiliency. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

After a parent suicide.
Excellent book....I have three grandchildren ages 12, 11 and 9...there father commited suicide and this book gave us great insight on how to handle each child.The book also is great because the stories help them to understand that so many children have gone through the same tragedy.

A must read!
After A Parent's Suicide is an easy and comforting read for anyone dealing with the loss of a loved one to suicide. Requarth helps answer the question "What to say to the kids?" and offers helpful information on how to explain suicide to children. The author clearly describes the grieving process of children and adolescents and provides tips on how to help them cope.Crossing 13

Wonderful Resource
As a nurse, a survivor of the loss of my son by suicide and facilitator of a survivor of suicide loss support group for the last 15 years, I find this book one of the best I have found over the years. It is beautifully written and is an excellent resource, especially for helping children deal with the death of a parent by suicide.It is also an excellent resource for anyone dealing with any loss of a loved one by suicide, be it parent, child, sibling, spouse, partner, friend.The author through her own personal loss of a parent by suicide and her professional experience of many years as a Marriage and Family Therapist, has written a gem to assist people move through the grief and devastation of a suicide death.I highly recommend the book for parents, mental health professionals, support group facilitators, educators, clergy, caregivers and friends.

Long awaited help for surviving parents.
This book is just what the caregiver of a child, who has lost one of the most important people in their life, needs. I know this because I lost my husband to suicide when my kids were very young.There are so many questions that we must be prepared to answer, often at the least expected moment.The stories are compelling and give insight to what a child may experience at every age. Ms. Requarth's background in grief therapy, woven with her own personal struggle growing up without her birthmother, make this a truly unique guide for navigating the shoals of childhood and adolescence in the aftermath of a parent's suicide.I am particularly pleased that the author aptly addresses the feelings and needs of the surviving parent. ... Read more

Product Description
If it weren't for mitochondria, scientists argue, we'd all still be single-celled bacteria. Indeed, these tiny structures inside our cells are important beyond imagining. Without mitochondria, we would have no cell suicide, no sculpting of embryonic shape, no sexes, no menopause, no aging.
In this fascinating and thought-provoking book, Nick Lane brings together the latest research in this exciting field to show how our growing insight into mitochondria has shed light on how complex life evolved, why sex arose (why don't we just bud?), and why we age and die. These findings are of fundamental importance, both in understanding life on Earth, but also in controlling our own illnesses, and delaying our degeneration and death. Readers learn that two billion years ago, mitochondria were probably bacteria living independent lives and that their capture within larger cells was a turning point in the evolution of life, enabling the development of complex organisms. Lane describes how mitochondria have their own DNA and that its genes mutate much faster than those in the nucleus. This high mutation rate lies behind our aging and certain congenital diseases. The latest research suggests that mitochondria play a key role in degenerative diseases such as cancer. We also discover that mitochondrial DNA is passed down almost exclusively via the female line. That's why it has been used by some researchers to trace human ancestry daughter-to-mother, to "Mitochondrial Eve," giving us vital information about our evolutionary history.
Written by Nick Lane, a rising star in popular science, Power, Sex, Suicide is the first book for general readers on the nature and function of these tiny, yet fascinating structures. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (31)

Interesting overview of current theories
This is the second book by Lane that I've read (the first was Oxygen, the Molecule that Made the World), and I've found both to be informative and easy to read for someone with a technical, but not intensive, knowledge in the subject material.He covers the history of molecular biochemistry and evolutionary theory with great clarity.Lane does have a tendency to "lead you down the garden path" with a fascinating theory, only to show why it's probably wrong.I have a disproportionate number of bookmarks on my Kindle for his books, because I'm always marking passages to find that they are only a preamble, not a conclusion.After setting up and knocking down a variety of straw man arguments, he tends to nicely pull together the disparate bits and pieces of theory to give a cogent overall summation.For example, he discusses the theories regarding the evolution of eukaryotes and makes a final good case for the Hydrogen hypothesis.He does a good job of not making claims with adamantine certitude and offers his opinions as opinions, leaving pointers for the reader to further research a topic and make his or her own judgement.Overall, an excellent read for scientifically minded lay readers who do not have a degree in biochemistry and the ability to wade through the scientific journals on their own.

very interesting
Full of extremely interesting information and easy to read. It was a very fun read that deals with a very thoughtprovoking topic. I read this after reading "What Is Life?" by Lynn Margulis and Dorion Sagan, reading both together helped me understand each more.

Excellent, thorough, fascinating account.
This is a impressive book: it is very clear and well-written, extremely wide-ranging, provocative and thought-provoking and provides detailed information on an absolutely fascinating subject. I would recommend it to scientists who are not experts on microbiology, as well as to lay readers. It manages to live up to the high standards set by Lane's other wonderful book, Oxygen.

Excellent overall
This is a very good book on the mechanics of life. The author does an excellent job of explaining the the fundamentals of how we work at a chemical level. He writes in a very clear but sometimes lackluster style (given the obvious "affection" he has for the material). Plus he occassionally repeats the same point in consecutive sentences, which often made me feel like I was "fighting" this book.

One other item that the author probably had no control over: the print (in the paperback edition at least) was tiny. I'm 40 with pretty good vision, but still occassionally had to put this down for a few minutes to get my eyes to focus again.

One of the very best biology books
This is an earlier book (2005) by the author of "Life Ascending" (2009). I read it because I liked "Life Ascending" so much. This one expands on the role of mitochondria, and is full of amazing stuff I didn't know. I read a lot of biology, evolution, and genetics and this is definitely one of the very best. Lane keeps up with the very latest research, which I wouldn't be able to understand, and weaves it into a coherent story of our best current understanding of what life is and how it works. Highest recommendation. I have just started reading his even earlier book "Oxygen" (2002). ... Read more

Product Description
Renowned singer/songwriter Judy Collins's deeply movingmemoir chronicles her journey from pain to survival following thesuicide of her son, and offers comfort to those who struggle insuicide's aftermath.

In Sanity and Grace, Collins reveals with unflinching honestythe events leading up to and following the death of her only child,culminating when she picks up the pieces of her shattered heart andgathers the strength to move forward. An elegantly written testimonyof a survivor, Collins strives at first just to exist, and then tofind solace in the face of grief and untimely loss. With this book,she breaks down the barriers of helplessness and secrecy to openlydiscuss the aftereffects of suicide, and explains how she found a pathto hope and clarity.

Sanity and Grace speaks to all who have endured the sorrow oflosing a loved one before their time. In the depths of her sufferingCollins found relief by reaching out to others for help andsupport. Now, she extends her hand to comfort other survivors whoselives have been affected by similar tragedy. This inspirational bookwill serve as a balm to help soothe and heal those wounded by suicide. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Collins Remains Clear-Headed Through Her Grief
I have a thing for Judy Collins:I love her voice and her music, and I've read four of her books--two prior volumes of memoirs, and her mediocre novel which I also liked.Her son took his own life in 1992 at age 33. One of the things she is trying to do with this book is to break through what she says is a taboo of talking about suicide.She writes that a few decades ago the word "cancer" was also taboo--something only whispered about, and society has progressed since then.She hopes to do the same for her topic, so that people can study and discuss causes and prevention.She approaches her own study of the subject diligently, collecting books and starting a correspondence with Edwin Shneidman, founder of the American Association of Suicidology.I would have liked reading more about her relationship with her son--in this and her other books the reader has a sense of Collins' relationship with each of her parents (her manic father who was a performer, and her mother who reached out to her grown daughter to repair their rift, and, over lunch that day, became a friend--a beautifully written episode in the book) but her son Clark, who was her only child, remains a bit of a cipher.

Fine product
Quite insightful and revealing, Ms. Collins is quite candid with her feelings about her son's suicide.Comforting to us in the loss of my wife's son.

Sanity and Grace
A moving account of how many lives are touched by a single moments mistake.

a book as beautiful as her voice
I purchased this book while in Boulder CO because Judy Collins, one of my favorite artists, was doing a talk and signing at the bookstore that night. Her book is an amazing memoir of life before and after her son completed suicide. She manages to put his life into context by sharing her background. I was mesmerized as I read, and I continue to be impressed by her strength and ability to put her life on display and speak out on so many issues that we as a society would prefer to ignore. The beauty of Judy Collins' singing voice is echoed in her written words. Reading her book is like having a private concert in your home.

The truth is:You Never "Get Over It"
I didn't experience suicide of a loved one, but did experience the murder of my mother by a psychotic patient who came for treatment where she worked as a social worker, over 40 years ago when I was 9.There are many differences, but also commonalities in suicide, murder, and all sudden, violent death where there is no opportunity to say goodbye.And the major truth is this:you never "get over it."You can go on, and even laugh again and love again and experience great joy again, but part of your heart is permanently ripped out, and you feel it forever, and you never "get over it."The challenge, for survivors, is to try to create a loving, full life in spite of it. This is a key message of Ms. Collins' book.
... Read more

Product Description
With this book James Hillman initiated the "soul movement" in psychotherapy forty years ago.

Soul and suicide are dominant issues of this new millenium; soul because it cannot be reduced to genes and chromosomes; suicide because it raises fundamental religious, political, and legal conflicts. As Hillman writes in the postscript to the second edition: "The individual consists of more than his or her personal individuality. Something besides 'myself' inhabits the soul, takes part in its life and has a say in its death . . . We need a . . . definition of self as the interiorization of community. Suicide, literally 'self-killing,' now would mean both a killing of community and involvement of community in the killing."

This new edition is introduced by the eminent psychiatrist and pioneering social critic, Thomas Szasz. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Profound and insightful
This is the most influential book I have read regarding clinical practice. After reading it, I was in awe of how anyone can think let alone write so profoundly. It is not just about suicide, but speaks of how experience and developmental transitions shape our existence. Although breathtakingly compassionate and sophisticated regarding the joys and pains of living, I didn't find the content at all sentimental. This book is highly absorbing, frequently moving and extremely original in its perspective on various concepts. Ideas are introduced well, with examples that make it accessible to anyone regardless of their professional or personal reasons for reading "Suicide and the Soul". It can be a challenge in terms of the concepts, beliefs and emotions related to the material as would be expected. I am astounded at the age of this book; given how contemporary its viewpoints are on the matter. There is just as much value in this book to learn more about living and life, as death and suicide. Obviously, I would recommend reading the book.....at least once.

When Nothing Makes Sense
If someone close to you has taken their life, you need to read this book.There are no cliches here.No pap.This is an in- depth report, based on years of study and experience in the field, on the clinical route that ends in suicide and why your intervention may not have made a difference.

Dr. Hillman shows us the path the soul took to the brink and explains why they could not turn back...unless they stood at the edge and chose to turn away.

I have read many books that sought to confort the bereaved.This book allows us, as the tormented survivors, a smidgeon of insight.The kind of insight that makes some sense of the senseless act.I don't know Dr. Hillman, although I certainly read some of his other work after reading this book; but I owe him a dept.This book is a gift.I hope you find it as remarkable as I did. ... Read more

Product Description
On Halloween 2002, Jan Andersen’s 20-year-old son Kristian found a permanent solution to his misery. Suicide.He wrote two suicide notes, took an overdose of Heroin and died on Friday 1 November 2002. Chasing Death attempts to put candid, but heartrending words to the often incommunicable pain that the surviving families endure, not only through the telling of Kristian’s story, but through the experiences of other families mourning the loss of a child, stepchild, grandchild, sibling, friend or relative to suicide.Although this book will break your heart, it will also provide solace to other child suicide grievers in knowing that their thoughts and feelings are normal and that they are not alone, in addition to being helpful to anyone who has lost a child or has been bereaved in any way. This book clearly demonstrates how debilitating the grief can be and how it can still cripple a survivor, ten, twenty, thirty and even forty years or more after the event.The audience for Chasing Death extends beyond grieving families and those who deal with them and will provide a compelling, touching and enlightening read for anyone interested in emotional true life stories. It will also help people respond with greater understanding and sensitivity to the surviving families’ grief. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

When you just don't know where to turn
Jan Andersen has written abeautiful, compassionate book that will help those who have suffered the loss of a child to suicide see that they are not alone in their hurt or anger.
For those of us standing by watching,Chasing Death: Losing a Child to Suicide not knowing what to say, read it, please.
It will make you grateful for what you have; mourn the many who have been lost; weep for those left behind and understand a little more, how fleeting and delicate the lives of those we love can be. ... Read more