health Books

This book is really about the relationship between the American medical establishment and Americans. We've grown up trusting doctors, the FDA, AMA, and other agencies to help us stay healthy and fight disease. Robbins writes about the betrayal by these agencies. Three-fifths of the book is about women's health including pregnancy, osteoporosis, menopause, and x-rays. He also writes about children and Ritalin, the AMA against chiropractors and midwives, its close relationship with the tobacco industry, and its persecution of "heretics," such as health practitioners offering cancer cures. Included are our backward attempts to control bacteria and viruses, which are actually helping them to grow stronger and flourish. Knowledge is power and in this book you will learn many things that hopefully will push you to make better, more responsible health choices. He also includes a wonderful resource guide in the back. This was the first book of his I read. Not only is the book incredibly well researched, but his subtle wit--impeccably delivered--is refreshing. He's a fabulous writer!

I have been a "health nut" for years and wary of the medical establishment, but I always hoped that the mainstream approaches, though ineffective, were a result of ignorance or narrow mindedness.

In Reclaiming Our Health, John Robbins has exposed the greed and pride of a male-dominated medical community in bed with the pharmaceutical companies. Reading about the witch hunts (past and present) against alternative healing practices outrages me, but what hurts more is reading how modern medicine treats its patients. People, at their most vulnerable times, are trampled upon by doctors and nurses.

The section on how medicine has historically regarded women is eye opening (or would be if you had never dealt with a male obstetrician). Having just given birth to my son, accompanied by a midwife, and knowing what an amazing and challenging time that can be, I almost cried reading the horror stories of children's births.

John Robbins has written a phenomenal book. And as always, he has brought his caring, compassionate passion to an issue that is literally crippling our nation. Thank you, John.

New Age Retailer, November/December 1996
Have you ever watched a friend or loved one die? Did you wonder why they had to endure so much, especially at the hands of those you had expected to help? Have you ever wondered why it is taking so long to find a cure for cancer or AIDS? Have you ever had a baby in this country? Have you every tried to tell your healthcare provider something and been told he or she know best and not to worry? I believe these questions would elicit at least one affirmative answer from just about everyone in our country.

The title is descriptive and, I believe, correct - we will feel an explosion from reading this book. People will be shocked and angered. I certainly was! John Robbins has let the cat out of the bag - the cat being the way Americans are manipulated by the American Medical Association, the tobacco industry, pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies, and by the multi-million dollar industry we call healthcare.

Robbins reveals the cover-ups, the scandals, and the greed that feed on the most vulnerable segments of our society: women, children, the elderly, and those who are already struggling with health issues. He exposes the ridicule and outright lies broadcast in an attempt to eliminate chiropractic and other alternative healing practices, not because they were not helping those who sought out alternative care, but because they were taking money from those who would rather line their pockets than cure millions of ill individuals.

Robbins outlines a practical approach using both conventional and alternative care so that we can benefit from the best of both resources. This book is well-written and researched. It has an extensive notes section that documents facts and a resource directory that give pertinent information about where to obtain more information on womens issues, parenting and children, healthy diet, alternative medicine, consumer rights, and much more. I would recommend this book to any adult, especially someone who is dealing with medical issues. Reclaiming Our Health is a must-read for any person who strives to be well-informed.

Over the past thirty years I have read about 100 books on the subject of health. Among the very best of the books I have read are two of John Robbins' other books, Diet for a New America and The Food Revolution, but I don't feel the need to review these remarkable books; they have been well reviewed by others, and I recommend you check them both out in Amazon. However, I simply had to add my voice to the reviews of Reclaiming Our Health.

This book is predominantly about the medical establishment, what has gone wrong with it, and what you can do to protect yourself and your loved ones (if you can get them to listen to you). It is not a condemnation of all things conventional nor an endorsement of all things alternative. Some of the greatest heroes of the book are M.D.'s practicing both conventional and alternative therapies. This book seeks to guide us to the best of both worlds while warning us about the dangers to be found in each. However, the worst dangers by far appear to be in the conventional medical establishment where the admonition "first, do no harm" seems to have been long forgotten.

This book made me cry. This book infuriated me. It is filled with one outrage after another. But wouldn't you rather read about them than be subjected to them (or watch your loved ones be subjected to them) by not being informed beforehand? I know I would.

This is one of those rare books that is truly empowering. That's what John Robbins does so well. He does the intensive research that most of us neither would nor could do. We are blessed by his enormous contribution to mankind.

And my fellow women, you will be shocked to read some of the material in this book on how women have been treated in society and how this has influenced the way we have been treated by much of the medical community. I have shared a bit of the information with co-workers and have actually seen jaws drop open. We have not been told the complete story of how dreadfully many women have been treated in our history. It is an abomination. (Written with apologies to all of the sincerely wonderful men out there.)

Rest assured that among the very bad news of this book is a good deal of hopeful news about prevention and treatments that are out there now, but this information will probably be a long time coming to the general public. It is only through leaders like John Robbins that we are blessed to know about it now.

Read this book before you or someone you love becomes ill. Read it and pass it on.

I read this book first in sections, but then decided to read the whole thing as my interest progressed.

I already knew some of the persecution of the chiropractic industry by money-hungry conventional doctors, but some of the stuff totally shocked me. I've seen some of the statistics that chiropractors have come up with, extensive studies that show that it has extremely low health risks and helps a lot more with lower back pain than conventional "give me the pill" medicine. However, this book totally blew the cover off the...American Medical Association, an organization I once took for granted to be dedicated to my health and well-being.

If everyone in the waiting room of a doctor's clinic were to read this book, all health care in America would be for the better.

Furthermore, the interesting sections on women and fertility totally blew me away. I was furious at the stuff they were doing to hurt and control women who went to doctors for real health reasons, hoping to get better, only to be subjected to the standard system of running tests and being tied to one position. I myself was delivered by C-section, and having been abandoned by my mother, I can also attest to the ugly and disgusting nature of conventional birth documented so well by John Robbins. The persecution of midwives, who have near-flawless records for safe delivery of newborn babies was also shocking. I had no idea that women giving birth at home do better than in hospitals, in terms of mortality rates.

The final section is worth reading alone if you have cancer. It states very clearly using facts and actual experiences how deliberately and unfortunately the medical establishment has been "treating" people (if I may use that word) with cancer, without realizing that the only goal of a person with illness is wellness and wholeness, not merely to eradicate and destroy an organism that seems foreign and toxic. It also exposes the "fact" that there have been cancer treatments with possible cures, existing for decades, which have been blocked by the cancer establishment out of hope for conventional therapies, blind ignorance, or fear of malpractice suits (you can be sued for not using "technology" to treat an illness ... but what if you just want to get better?).

The beauty of John Robbins' words inspire me. It's hard not to be moved by good stories of good doctors helping to make things better. It's hard not to believe that things could also be better if we changed our current system. Always true to form, this book discusses ways in which to reform health care that would truly work, and at minimal cost.

If you're a nonbeliever of universal health care, low-cost medicine, or just out of luck with personal illness, I highly recommend this book.

I can see how too much intellect and not enough Mystery can be most impressive and seductive: results are achieved; the furniture is successfully rearranged. And still, the man is a good interior decorator!

If you've ever found yourself wishing that Bandler would share a little more material for your conscious mind, it's here. Bandler, for perhaps the first time in print, explains many of the things he kept to himself about how he does certain things, and the thinking behind it. A nice and necessary addition to your NLP library.

Richard Bandler is the godfather of NLP and Hypnosis. This work is exceptional and it provides insights into the effectiveness of hypnosis in a therapeutic role. Anything from Bandler is worth owning. Great work!

Dr. Bandler just keeps getting better and better.

I recommend this for anyone that wants to change their life for the better.

Please keep products like this coming!

This goes down as one of the best writtern books I've read on anything. Expecially NLP and Hyponosis. Everything is very clear and easy to understand. This book, to me, is the equivalent to an NLP training. I have a lot of NLP and Hynosis material but nothing comes close to the content in this book. This filled in every single hole and question I had.

After reading this you will know exactly what to do to create the changes and have a foundation for doing so allowing you to be creative because Richard teaches how all of this works and how he developed it.

Richard Bandler really is the real deal because I've gotten more out of this book than the several NLP and hypnosis training I've taken. I keep this book on my desk in from of me all the time, because I use it as reference as well. It really has everything you need to get started or freshen up your skills.

Highly recommened!, I rarely right reviews but this is worth it. if your're reading this, don't short change yourself by not atleast giving it a try. The book cuts through all the othe NLP junk that fluds the market. The book alone can make you a lot more effective than someone who goes to some random NLP seminar and certification training by some guy that not in the Richard Bandler camp...and that's one of the reason he's says he created this. It's for those who haven't had the chance to train with Richard but want to learn from him as if they did. Here you go....

This is a great book!!! I encourage all adults who want to be more informed about the health care industry to read it. You will be able to make better decisions about your own treatment. A great challenge to the conventional wisdom about routine testing.

This is a great little book. In a little over 200 pages Welch reviews the science and data about cancer screening and concludes that it is not worth doing it. Cancer after cancer (prostate, skin, breast...) he shows that screening has very little benefit if at all in terms of life expectancy (I recently saw a scientific article defending mammography on the basis that it added 3 days of life to women having one regularly...) .
The main justification for cancer screening is the belief that a cancer caught early is not lethal. The problem is that a lethal cancer is in general not caught early. A lethal cancer is usually very aggressive and by screening time it has already spread (unless as Welch points out you are willing to be screened every other day...).
What screening is very good at is catch cancers (and Welch explains that the definition of cancer is not clear cut) that are growing slowly if at all and will probably never kill you... Have you noticed the epidemic of breast cancers or is it just me?
The only thing missing from the book is the broader implication of generalizing cancer screening. By devoting so much money to an irrational health policy the general population is deprived of many services that could really impact its health and improve the sorry health statistics of the United States.

Before reading this book, it had never occured to me that there were pros and cons re cancer testing. Welch has excellent credentials.He is on the staff of Dartmouth Medical College and writes articles for JAMA. In this book (which was also favorably reviewed in JAMA) Welch succinctly explains the perils of cancer testing in asymptomatic patients. He provides ample numerical data to support his contentions.The book is short and interesting and easy to read.

This book is truly an eye opener. Millions of people are being screened for cancer every year, but is it really necessary? Is it really making a difference? Are people harmed by these tests in anyway?

Dr. Welch explains brilliantly, in my opinion, what these cancer screenings really mean. He argues that we are taking healthy symptom-free individuals and looking for cancer.

What most people do not know and I did not before reading his book is that:

1-There is no evidence that these screenings have actually saved lives. In fact despite increased detection of early stages of prostate cancer and breast cancer, the death rate for prostate cancer has stayed the same and the rate of late stage breast cancer has increased over a 25 year period.

2-Autopsies of people who have NOT died from cancer have shown cancer in the lungs, thyroid, kidney, etc. This means millions of people are living with cancer and die of other causes and not even know they had cancer.

3-If the screening finds cancer, it does not necessarily mean that it is the type that will grow rapidly.
a-It could regress on its own as our immune system eliminated abnormal cells, including cancers regularly.
b-It may stay the same for many years and never cause a problem
c-It may grow so slowly that cause no health problems and the person dies of something else before it does

4-Studies conducted by John Hopkins, Harvard, and others have shown that different pathologist give different diagnosis for the same tissues. They may look at the same tissue and some think it is cancer while others think it is not. Especially when it comes to the a few abnormal tissues found from screening a healthy individual.

5-Also between screenings it is possible to develop a fast growing cancer. So how often do we need to do mammograms and colonoscopies?

6-The statistics, such as the five year survival rate, are not always reliable and maybe calculated in a misleading manner.

So you have a mammogram, PSA test, colonoscopy, fecal occult test, etc done. This is what may happen:

1-You end up with a false positive, depending on the test, 10 percent false positive is the average.
2-You get the cancer scare unnecessarily.
3-This can begin a cycle of retesting, biopsies and other tests. Some can be very unpleasant and have side effects.
4-If they find an abnormal tissue, what does it mean it mean? May the pathologist made a mistake; maybe it has been there for many years; maybe it is a slow growing one; maybe it will go away on its own; maybe it is a fast growing one! Of course, your doctor can't take a chance with your health, and also does not want to get sued for malpractice, so most likely she recommends the most safest (which could be the most aggressive) course of action!

Here you were living a relatively healthy symptom-free life and now you are told you need surgery, radiation, and/or chemotherapy.

BUT once you or I know about they have found cancer, it is hard to know what to do, not to speak of the emotional toll. That's why Dr. Welch believes sometimes it is better not to know. However, as Dr. Welch cautions: If you have any unusual symptoms and your doctor recommends screening for cancer, make sure you are screened.

After reading the book I decided I do not need any screening. As long as I am symptom free and healthy, why put myself through tests that may or may not extend or save my life. I think as long as we don't do anything to harm our immune system, such as smoking, and do the things that enhance the immune system, such as exercise, there is no need to become a patient.

We all need to make the decision for cancer screening based on our priorities, family history of cancer, and other factors. Perhaps a good course of action is to read the book and consult your doctor for best options.

Thank you Dr.Welch for an excellent expose: Well researched and well written.

If I could give this book 10 stars, I would. This is possibly the most valuable book you will ever read regarding your health. Dr. Welch has impeccable bona fides, and his arguments are well-reasoned and well documented. He is a wonderful writer who makes sense of complicated, nuanced statistical analysis for the rest of us.

Of particular importance to this 53 year old woman is his detailed analysis of mammography and breast cancer. He completely debunks the hysterical coercion of women to have this test, and points out why declining to have one is a completely reasonable decision. This is of particular importance now in light of Elizabeth Edwards doing public penance for "letting down" the country and her family by skipping a mammogram! Elizabeth, honey, read this book! It is doubtful that mammography would have made any difference in your outcome.

Welch's dicsussion of DCIS, which is probably the most horribly overtreated fake "disease" in the history of modern medicine should be required reading for every woman over the age of 20.
Just buy it - I plan to give a copy to every person I love. It's that good.

Simple treats has a lot of variety and good recipe ideas, but almost every recipe I have tried I have to alter in some way the next time I make it so that it turns out well. It is almost like the authors did not actually bake the treats before putting the recipes in this book! As an experienced baker, I know how to alter the recipe so that it works, but it would be hard for someone who does not have experience in the kitchen to do this. I would not recommend this book to a novice baker!

i'm not vegan, but sometimes break out if i eat too much dairy, so i decided to buy this book. i was skeptical because a lot of vegan stuff you buy from health food stores tastes really flavorless. seriously though, the blondies are better than any blondies i have tried. the brownies are so yummy too. none of my friends believed me that they were dairy free. this book is great and the recipes pretty much use a lot of the same ingredients in different ratios, so you don't have to buy tons and tons of ingredients. i really love this book.

I have tried all kinds of vegan and wheat free baking, and most of it tastes awful. Not so with this cookbook. The highest praise came from an 86 year old master baker, who LOVED the carrot cake. And she eats everything. So far, only comments are: 1- Be careful with the oats which she has you grind into a course flour. How you do this makes or breaks the cookies. 2- we live at altitude, add 5-10 minutes to all cakes and breads if you do not want them mushy.
Overall, very impressed. Wheat and Dairy eating friends gobble this stuff up, and it is overall so healthy.

I've made multiple recipes from this book. Although barley flour is used in almost every recipe, with some experimentation, I'm sure other flours will be good substitutes. The barley flour does result in darker final baked products. The baked goods do not come out too sweet (a lot of maple syrup is used) and the recipes recommend date/prune sugar, which I have no idea where to get. Instead, I use regular evaporated cane sugar or brown sugar, which is less preferred, but more accessible. Plus the recipes I've tried did not require a whole bunch of dry sugar. Very versatile book, ENJOY!

I bought this cookbook 8 months ago so I could make a cake for my daughter's 2nd birthday that she could eat--she has been off dairy and wheat since her first birthday. From chocolate cupcakes to zucchini bread, every recipe is delicious and "real" enough to serve to friends and family. Our favorites are the blueberry muffins, zucchini bread, coffee cake and the almond butter and chocolate chip cookies that are AMAZING! My daughter loves every recipe we have tried, and I feel great knowing that she is eating such healthy food. So far everything freezes really well, too.

I love the fact that this is wheat free, not gluten free. If you don't have to worry about avoiding gluten...you have a lot more tasty options. And this cookbook has plenty of examples. The authors also do not use white sugar and you don't miss it at all. They do a great job with easy recipes for moist, yummy baked goods. I no longer eat white sugar, wheat or dairy so we are relying on this cookbook even more now.

The cornbread recipe has a typo that I noticed way too late--tablespoons instead of teaspoons for baking soda and baking powder.

I bought this book and The Smoothies Bible. The Smoothies Bible, I don't really recommend because it was too redundant and the recipes were too similar. This book is the best book if you want smoothies like you get at juice bars.

Now in a second printing, Smoothies!: The Original Smoothie Book by nutritional advocate and "smoothie" expert Dan Titus, is an excellent recipe guide for making smoothies that are just like those of such famous smoothie stores as "Jamba Juice" and "Smoothie King". Profiles of famous smoothie companies, basic "how to" instructions, detailed recipes for smoothies of every flavor, and a balance of quick-to-prepare recipes as well as recipes for more complex yet exotic tastes make for a first-rate guide for anyone who truly loves a smoothie. If you like smoothies, than you want to add Smoothies!: The Original Smoothie Book to your kitchen or barroom reference shelf.

I purchased this book based on what I saw at Amazon.com. The book delivers what is promised. I really liked the history of and profiles of the juice and smoothie companies that contributed recipes. As for the recipes: yum! Now I'm the smoothie pro in my apartment complex and smoothie parties happen at my place all the time!

`Smoothies, The Original Smoothie Book' by Dan Titus is the sixth book on smoothies I am reviewing. These six fall into three different categories. The first, with titles such as `The Smoothies Bible' by Pat Crocker and `The Ultimate Smoothies Book' by Cherie Calbom claim to be `everything you wanted to know about smoothies. In this category, the first is far superior to the second. The next category, with titles such as `Ultimate Smoothies' by Donna Pliner Rodnitsky and `The Best 50 Smoothies' by Joanna White are quick references, presumably with a selection of the best recipes. Again, the first of these two titles is the better in this class.

Mr. Titus' book may seem to belong to the first category, but I think it really belongs in a third with `Smoothies for Life' by Daniella Chace and Maureen B. Keane, where these books claim to offer things which may not be in other books, without pretending to be a `complete' reference on the subject.

Dan Titus' angle is that his book includes recipes from six major smoothies and juice bar chains, with the claim that this means you can make them at home just the way they are made at these chains in your local mall. This `feature' has some serious shortcomings, as I describe below. Mr. Titus does give us something unusual in a little history of the smoothie and the leading smoothie franchise chains. He also gives us some rather nice tips on smoothie technique, including an explanation of the phenomenon of cavitation, so well known and loved by fans of the movie and novel `The Hunt for Red October'. While cavitation makes it easy to detect submarines by sonar, it spoils the action of a blender rotor, which, on close inspection, looks suspiciously like a submarine screw, hence, the common effect.

All this material in the early part of the book gives the reader a good feeling that this is a worthwhile book. Especially interesting is Mr. Titus' scheme for rating smoothie recipes based on the freshness of ingredients and the extent to which they are prepared at the time one places an order.

Many of these recipes rely on juiced vegetables. This is a good thing, since vegetables contain some nutrients not found in most fruits, but I don't rank it too highly, as it means some of the recipes require a juicer, which narrows the suitable audience for the book.

I was pleased to see nutritional information on many of the recipes, but this effort is not as valuable as it could have been if the nutritional analysis was done for ALL the recipes, and, like Ms. Rodnitzky in `Ultimate Smoothies', put all the nutritional analyses at the same place on the page, so you could easily buzz through the pages to find a high potassium or low calorie recipe to fit your needs or whim of the moment.

Mr. Titus includes other worthy nutritional information, especially a no nonsense description of various important ingredients. The Appendix contains some good recipes for milk substitutes from rice and nuts. This is useful since I just discovered that soymilk is not as unalloyed a good thing as some make it out to be. This appendix also gives some quick guidelines on which smoothie ingredients are good to aid in treating which ailments. This is nice, but not nearly as good as Ms. Crocker's index of smoothie recipes by ailment in `The Smoothies Bible'.

Mr. Titus presents recipes by type, consistency, and by commercial originator. These recipes are missing my most important criteria for smoothie recipes, which are both English and metric units. I also give demerits for not including the nutritional analysis for many of the recipes and for not applying his very clever rating system for smoothies to these recipes. I also find some of the recipes to be almost worthless for the average reader as they include proprietary nutritional supplement ingredients marketed by some of the featured franchise operations. There are instructions for ordering these products but if you are put off by having to find a local GNC for protein powder, you will have no interest in spicing up your smoothies by something you need to order from the Internet.

This isn't a bad book. It just does not deserve five stars because there are several other books in the same price range, which are better. My overall favorite is `Ultimate Smoothies'. The most complete is `The Smoothies Bible'.

This book is one of the best, if not the best book on smoothies. Getting more fruit into our diets is something we all aspire to, but few achieve. Between having to shop for it, getting it home, and it spoils one day later, makes the recommended daily levels fruit consumption a lot more difficult to achieve. Then along came smoothies, and now we freeze our fruit. Chop it up into little squares as soon as you get it home, and place it in zip loc bags. Then the smoothie is always ready; no more spoilage.
My favorite is to take banannas, honeydew melon, cantaloupe, strawberries, and blueberries to make an all fruit shake. In this book you see a lot of varieties of the smoothies.
It's worth it just for the redipes. Highly recommended.

Have you actually seat down and read a book? What all kinds of books do you like to read daily? Me I like all kinds of books. Such as romantic, mystery, and sad stories. That's all about what I read. But there are lots of interesting stories out there in the world.

There is this one book I read a couple of weeks ago. It was one of my favorite books I have read. Its sad, happy in some parts, has love in the book in a way. Nice and interesting. I think you should read it but first let me tell you about this book. I'm sure you will like it.

This book is by Lurlene McDaniel. She is a good author I think. I have read one of her books before. The book is called one Last Wish Someone Dies, Someone Lives. This is about a young man that writes Katie O' Roark A letter while she is in the hospital. In that letter there was a certified check for one hundred thousand dollars. On that letter it was stamped OLW meaning One Last Wish Foundation. Also it said your friend JWC. She didn't know what to think a guy that gave her money and she had no clue why. She was puzzled for days.

Then in this book a guy name Josh watched his brother on the football field go down cold. Scared to death Josh runs to him takes him to the hospital. No longer they were there. Josh and his grandfather heard the bad news of their brother/grandchild. The doctors came out and asked if they would like to donate his organs. That was the hardest mistake they have ever made in their lives. They said there last good byes, and there was no more of him. But Josh went to meet the girl that his brothers heart was going to Katie O' Roark. Did they become friends? Was he mad? Who had wrote the letter? To find more information on this book. You can check it out at Lincoln County Library.

This book was sad, but happy too, it was a great book and I think you and your friends would enjoy this book. Not just these book but also all of Lurlene McDaniel books. She is a great author.

I believe that some of the books I read as an adolescent have truly shaped my outlook on life as an adult, and few more so than this book. I picked it up by happy accident at a garage sale, and was immediately hooked on this author. Even though I still consider this one to be the best, I also loved all her others. This made me more sympathetic to people with illnesses where before they tended to make me uncomfortable. It also made me realize that I wanted to be an organ donor, and that I needed to tell my family this, in case something happened to me. Though I'd prefer to be using my own organs for a long time, if something happens to me, then it is a very great comfort to me to know that my death could mean life to others. If I have children, I will be sure to encourage my girls (or boys, though they probably wouldn't dig them) to read these books, because I think if more people read these then more people would become organ donors, and in turn more people would live.

Someone Dies, Someone lives, Is a great book it kept me hooked on to each word till the end of the last page. Its weird how a death can make a huge impact on two people. Aaron's death might have been good for both Katie for keeping her alive with his heart and heart breaking for Josh for loosing his only brother who got him as far as he is in life. This book is a type of book that will keep you guessing till the end.

At the beginning of a quartet of books starring Katie, the running champ that steals the pages of this book, Katie is plagued with a fatal heart disease. She won't survive without a heart transplant... and how many people have spare, healthy hearts to pass up? Despite getting a good transplant, Katie is down in the dumps. Will she ever run again? Will she reject the transplant? Then Katie meets Josh... she's more connected to him then meets the eye. Read this book! It's another one of McDaniel's fabulous books.

I've read quite a few books in the One Last Wish series and along with She Died Too Young, this one is my favourite. It is very realistic and with very believable characters. The story just takes you along with it. The main character in this book is Katie who desperatly needs a heart transplant after a virius has severly weakened her heart. It switches between scenes with Katie and Josh, who's brother Aaron dies and ends up being Katie's donor. After her transplant Katie had to fight to become a track runner again. I like the ending of this book because it doesn't all end 'happily ever after' but it's inspiring and uplifting. I recommend this book to anyone.

This book is an excellent example of just what a tutorial should be: readable, accessible, and well illustrated.A great, must- have book!

Excellent book, very well designed and organized. This is the best book on this subject.simple and concise.Perfect for anyone and everyone.A Must have!!

If you want a real-world, practical guide, this is it. I found it hard to put down. Packed with great advice and "usable" examples.

This author does an excellent job of explaining the concepts, where other authors do not explain, because of space limitations. He doesn't just give one illustration like many other books would do.I highly recommend this book. I will definitely buy other books by this author!

This undoubtedly is one of the greatest books I've ever read.Very well-written and very easy to understand.and the info are to die for.Kudos to the author.Well Done!

This is a book about how to connect with people. Steve Nakamoto explains how "private speaking, as opposed to public speaking" is the key to achieving success in our lives. He describes how becoming aware of how we communicate on a one-to-one basis with others, and improving our skills in this area, allows us to connect more with the people in our world, and improve our chances of success in all areas of our lives.

The book offers a systematic approach to what constitutes good communication, as well as examples (many from his life) on what mistakes people make when trying to connect with others. You have to admire someone who is not only brave enough to share the many communication mistakes of his life, but who has the tenacity and commitment to analyse these mistakes, and translate them into 21 simple rules of successful communication.

Each of the 21 rules presented has a clear easy- to- read chapter dedicated to it. The rule is defined, followed by a precise objective of the rule, so that you are aware of exactly what you need to achieve. A set of guidelines are then presented offering good and bad examples of communication, and explanations for why they work or don't work. There are easy to do exercises for learning each rule, as well as ways in which you can practice in everyday conversation with others.

As Steve says in his book "Many people believe you're either born with the gift of gab or arrive into this world without it. In reality, brilliant conversationalists have developed and refined the skills of expression over the course of their entire lives." Instead of acquiring the skills through trial and error over a lifetime, this book offers you the basic rules in becoming a brilliant conversationist right now.

Some of the points mentioned are common sense, but with the prevalence of relationship breakdowns and cultural conflicts in our world today, it seems that common sense is not so common after all. Nearly all of us can fall into bad habits when conversing with others and Steve reminds us, not only what these may be, but how to correct them.

This book sets out the basic tools of communication that many great conversationist may take for granted, but many other people are totally unaware of, and therefore left wondering why they just can't seem to connect with others as well as they would like.

For those wishing to improve on their communication skills and learn how to build rapport with others, this book is a great resource. For those who have already mastered the skill of good communication and ever been asked how it is done, it is worth taking a look at the principles, as here is a manual offering sound advice you can share with friends, family members or anyone who has ever asked for help. The book is a `teaching manual' and `dictionary' of conversation as it sets out many techniques you may already use intuitively, but may not yet have identified or articulated.

Communicating well isn't as easy as it sounds. Most of us know this from sad experience as we open our mouths at work, in our relationships, with strangers and with family and friends.

How often do you wish you had said something different or expressed yourself in a different way?

Now you can learn to be more effective and those you interact with will love talking with you.

The wonderful pictures (cartoons) in this great book are part of the great learning style the book utilizes to let you learn and practice your new skills.

I've been a workshop leader & writer for years and still found many new ways of looking at my communications because of "Talk Like A Winner".

If you ever feel like your communications could use a bit of skill building, then this book should be your next gift to yourself!

In today's world, a civilized conversation almost seems like a lost art. Steve Nakamoto's book "Talk Like a Winner" puts civility and enjoyment back into conversing with your fellow man. Nakamoto has organized his book into easily understandable chapters of 21 rules. The rules are so common sense, it makes one wonder why everyone isn't a good conversationalist naturally. I recommend reading one chapter/one rule a day and applying that knowledge in the next day's conversation. You will be amazed how quickly your new skills will become second nature. Now enjoy the good life with good conversations and being a winner!

By Sofia Steryo-Bartmus, Author, "Paws of Wisdom-Valuable Lessons We Can Learn From Our Pets"

If you want to have success in life you have to become a great communicator, and this book will teach you that. "Talk like a Winner" is full of great ideas that are simple, yet powerful. This book is fun, well organized, easy to read and understand. Each chapter starts with a humurous cartoon that will bring a smile to your face. Steve gives suggestions on how to use the book in a way that will fit your needs and learning style, so that you can get the most benefit from it. Using these powerful ideas in your daily life will help you build strong and healthy relationships with your friends, family, co-workers and business associates.

Most people may want to become great "public speakers", but Steve teaches you how to become a great "private speaker". After all, we do most of our speaking all day long with people around us and people we interact with. So, the better we become in our personal communications the more success we can achieve in all areas of our lives. It is not how much you know that matters, it is how well you connect with your audience, whether it is hundreds of people or one person you work with. Creating an emotional connection is what makes the "simple rules" conversation successful, and Steve gives you 21 ways to do that! This is a book you need to read and then re-read as reference, until you can master and apply the 21 steps he teaches.

Steve Nakamoto, overcame his fear of public speaking by practicing certain skills (and the more we practice the better we become), because his courage exceeded his fear of humiliation. If we too can master our everyday communications and "start talking like winners", we too can overcome our obstacles and become happier individuals.

I recommend this inspiring and motivational self-help book to anyone who is ready to take charge of their life and start designing their own positive future!

After years of being a devoted amazon shopper, and heavily relying on listmania and reader reviews for credible information, I have finally had it with this guy's deceptive practices in self-promoting. So I am today "reviewing" his reviews, and his dumb books. This guy has written SEVENTY EIGHT (!!!) "listmania" lists, and in every one, he recommends his own stupid books with their own fake (or so I highly suspect) reviews. I bought two of his books (including "Fish" and "Dating Rocks") based on amazon reviews I now believe were fabricated. Both were just regurgetations of the material in other peoples' books. That's fine, I guess, but stop polluting amazon with your fake reviews and bombardment of listmania lists, where actual, objective readers' listmanias and recommendations might otherwise be viewed in place of your, de facto, "advertisements." Check out any book on dating or relationships amazon offers, and this guy has somehow inserted his name on the page, his name constantly appearing in the reviews as an "author" reviewer, or as an "award-winning" "author" contributor on listmania. (By the way, his "awards" are "honorable mentions" in self-published books. Wow!!!) Enough, already!! A more productive use of time might be taking a few writing classes rather than spending so much time "reviewing" other writers' relationship books - especially while using the "review" as an opportunity to just shamelessly self-promote. Maybe then he can get a REAL (rather than vanity press) publisher and stop writing fake reviews of how "fabulous" his books are. I totally resent having wasted my money on 2 vanity press, recycled material other writers have executed far better. Also, notice how his OWN books are always "recommended" on his listmania lists?!! Pathetic! Hey Steve, go away already, would you???!!

I gave this book to a child named Nydia who had been neglected. She didn't use play dough until I gave her some, but she used what she had at hand. I never read this book to her, but I sent it through a social worker. I hope she got it and knew that I loved her in 1983. Neglected kids have a hard time learning manners. I think about her and wish I could have adopted her.

This is one of my favorite books of all-time. I remember reading it as a child, and now, I use it to teach manners through puppet shows.

OK, I bought this based on the 15 other 5 star reviews. I just don't understand them. Yes, the concept is cute. But the book is so poorly written! I think it's confusing for young children who are just beginning to develop their capabilities for logic (I assume that is who it's geared for, since it's a board book). For starters, it's non-linear...on each page, it jumps back and forth between what not to do (the Thingumajigs) and what to do; between the third person "they" for Thingamajigs and the first person "I" for well-mannered children. But they have these silly drawings of perky children, which I assume is who supposedly is saying the parts on good manners, so it's confusing as to whether the perky children are saying they have good manners or the child you're reading to. Then, it's not really clear until the last page that these are behaviors you DON'T want your children engaging in. They make the drawings of the Thingumajigs quite entertaining, and the narrative is merely descriptive, without really stating "DON'T do this" so I suppose it's helpful to view the contrast, but really...I just want my kid not to pick her nose. Maybe I'm being nitpicky, but I don't think this is a great book for the younger crowd. My daughter is 4--she gets it, but I just was annoyed by the book.

My grandmother and I were recently discussing how she would read to all her grandchildren the "Thingumajig" books and how we all loved them. I am now 29 years old and still remember how vivid and wonderful they were. I just purchased them for my god sons, I hope they love them as much as I have.

This book was a chilhood favorite of mine, so I was very excited to find it!

What's unique about this book is that it is as comprehensive as they come as regards the Buddhist path and Buddhist way of life, but at the same time, it is incredibly easy to read. Like all of Geshe Kelsang's books, its language is clear, direct, and easy to understand, without flowery analogies or flippant remarks. From my perusal of the "Eastern Thought" bookshelves in stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble, Transform Your Life stands out as a beginner's book on Buddhism that doesn't "talk down" to its reader. But at the same time, this is no beginner's book: You can read it in just a few days, or you can read it for the rest of your life, because every time you read it, you can unearth yet another layer of meaning.

Here is a short paragraph from one of my favorite parts of the book:

"When we want a cup of tea, our main wish is to drink tea, but to fulfill this wish we naturally develop the secondary wish to find a cup. In a similar way, the main wish of those who have great compassion is to protect all living beings from their suffering; but to fulfill this wish they know that they must first attain Buddhahood themselves, and so they naturally develop the secondary wish to attain enlightenment. Just as finding a cup is the way to accomplish our goal of drinking tea, so attaining enlightenment is the way to accomplish our ultimate goal of benefiting all living beings."

This book is amazing to me as a Buddhist because it is at once a very advanced primer on Buddhist principles for developing profound inner peace but at the same time it is perfect for the beginner.

I know multiple people who have given this book as a gift to many non-Buddhist friends without fear of being preachy or sanctimonious. This book is an extremely practical, light, simple, beautiful, extremely powerful feat of pure wisdom.

I feel we all, Buddhist or not, can recognize ourselves in this book and be able to finally get a glimpse of our real, vast potential. This pure, naturally and blissfully happy us is our potential - Transform Your Life shows us how to recognize and awaken this potential in all our daily actions.

This is the book!

This book is ideal for Buddhist practitioners at any level. It is precious because it gives the reader invaluable practical guidance along the Buddhist path. It is written for people who want to deepen their experience of Buddhism beyond intellectual understanding alone. I would highly recommend it to all readers interested in "transforming their lives" in a meaningful way.

This book is amazingly comprehensive of Buddha's teachings. If you read 100 books on the Dharma, you'll find everything in here in some way. It is also presented in easy-to-read and accessible language. Whether you are a beginner looking to understand the Dharma or whether you are an experienced practitioner

I've been meditating for about 7 years now and continually turn to this book to find inspiration and insightful teachings. It can be read front to back or you can reference certain sections if you need clarity or inspiration.

I HIGHLY recommend this book. Enjoy!

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, in this transformational work on life (from the perception of the Buddhist path), brings before us the core issues that we normally avoid in life such as pain, suffering, and death.

Each of us constantly try to run away from these facts of life rather than embrace them. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso brings us face to face with these issues and brings them up in such a way as to evoke clear-seeing on all of these topics as well as bringing compassion to the way things are.

This book is true to its name as it brings about a transformation of our mind, with practical meditations and pure teachings, so that we can accept the reality of what is and be in peace with it.