Book Description
The Simplest Path, Step One: Free Your Mind delineates, in one slim volume, a complete system for achieving personal spiritual awakening, along with a straightforward, no-nonsense plan individuals and groups so enlightened can follow to awaken Humanity en masse and positively transform the world. This book contains keys to awakening. Awakening from our personal dream shatters the solid "box" of limitation memes have built around our lives, and frees us to fluidly craft our personalities, environments, relationships, careers, etc. as an artist paints a landscape or a sculptor teases form from formless clay. All of us awakening together from the shared dream of the planet will mark the birth of our species out of our current global nightmare of decline into a limitless future literally beyond our present ability to imagine, even in our "wildest dreams," indeed.
Customer Reviews:
Way Beyond "Socrates Revisited".......2007-08-22
After reading the commentary attached to the one star rating given by the young man from Texas, I feel compelled to step forward in defense of this very fine book. With only one exception, every point made in that negative review is simply wrong. Just not factually correct. The reviewer identifies himself as a young man (... "to my young mind"), and since all of his other Amazon reviews are of TV episodes on DVD, video games and rock music CDs I take him at his word. Well, I am an "old man," closing in on my sixty-third birthday, and I came to Mr. Casspriano's book after six decades of life experience, the last three of those decades a zealous practitioner of Zen Buddhism. I say this not to "brag," but simply to qualify myself as a reviewer before beginning.
I'll start where the one star reviewer closed his argument, with his statement that the simplest path reduces to two Socratic concepts: "Admit that you don't know anything" and "know yourself."
The first part is nominally true (the exception). Like Zen Buddhism, a central tenet of the simplest path is working to release the false notion we all hold that we know ourselves, other people, the world around us. But identifying and releasing our attachments to our illusions is a life's work, not some brash "I don't know nothin'!" as the young Texan seems to imply. Under normal circumstances, we go about our daily lives with no idea we are deluded about anything, as Maya (the illusion of the phenomenal world around and even inside us) is so convincing that most of us never even think to question its validity. Casspriano did not invent the notion of human beings being trapped in illusion, as this truth was known to the timeless authors of the Hindu Vedas and is central to all schools of Buddhism (not just Zen). But his scientific/spiritual exploration of the mechanism by which Maya ensnares our minds and can, with effort, be overcome is among the best "plain English" explanations of this process I have read. There is no "inscrutable mystery" in the simplest path (a criticism that has been accurately leveled toward Zen Buddhism, as a lot of Eastern thought truly does come off as "inscrutable" when translated into English and/or the metaphors of Western culture). Casspriano lays out in no-nonsense American English exactly what our brains are doing when they create the illusion we mistake for reality, then shows the reader in the same clear terms how to train his or her brain to break free of illusion and taste reality as-it-is. In just 216 pages, that is no mean feat. After thirty years of Zen practice and numerous kensho experiences (of varying depths and intensities), I can say from personal experience that Casspriano is correct. Enlightenment comes as the fruit of a long, incremental process of retraining the mind to touch reality in a new way, and the process described in the simplest path is the same as that followed in Zen practice, especially Rienzi Zen koan study (I'll have more to say about this in a later paragraph). Casspriano's approach and language is very different from traditional Zen (more "scientific," and no sitting meditation is required), which I think would appeal to Americans and other Westerners seeking to experience "awakening" without necessarily committing themselves to a religion like Buddhism, but the internal mental/spiritual process and final destination are the same.
"Know yourself," on the other hand, is not in this book at all, at least not in the way the young reviewer, or Socrates for that matter, uses the phrase. As in Buddhism, Casspriano takes pains to demonstrate that "self" is as much of an illusion as our misapprehension of the phenomenal world, and is a byproduct of exactly the same mind process that creates outer Maya. A core teaching of Buddhism is that our "self," our personality/ego, is nothing more than an aggregation of outside influences that cluster together in our minds like shiny stones gathered into a pile, and which we mistake not only for something "real," but tragically, for our essential selves. Yet this "pile" has nothing really to do with who we are at all. Buddhism teaches "no-self." Belief in the illusion of a unique and independent "self" is our greatest obstacle to enlightenment. Wasting time and energy getting to "know yourself" in the Western sense is foreign to Eastern thought. Casspriano again does a great job of translating the Buddhist concept of "no-self" into Western scientific/spiritual terminology. He shows the process by which our ego/personality aggregate "piles up," as well as how to take the pile down, stone by stone. Enlightenment is what the pile was covering up, and so it naturally appears as soon as the pile is removed - but oh how we cling to our personal pile of stones! "Self" is what we must trade for enlightenment, what must be surrendered, and Casspriano returns to this truth many times in the simplest path. My point is that the one star reviewer's reduction of the simplest path to "know yourself" has no basis at all in the actual book.
As to the book being "gimmicky": Yes, the words "The Simplest Path" recur frequently throughout the book, but not in reference to the book itself (at least that's not how I took it), but rather to the system of understanding the mind and working toward "awakening" Casspriano is describing - and it is a complete system that deserves to be considered as a whole, on its own. At times the repetition does have a feel of "branding" in the commercial sense, so I understand where the reviewer may have taken his impression. But the simplest path, while resonant with Zen Buddhism (and apparently, according to Casspriano, with the Toltec philosophy espoused by Carlos Castaneda, of which I have no personal knowledge, so I'll have to take the author's word for that) is far enough different that it needs its own "name" to set it apart from other schools of similar but not identical thought. The reviewer's criticism is like saying that every use of the term "Zen" in a book called "Zen Buddhism" should be taken as a reference to the book, and not to the larger practice of Zen Buddhism as a spiritual discipline that the book is describing. Casspriano's point in repeatedly linking The Simplest Path, Zen Buddhism and Toltec Shamanism throughout the book, at least as I understood it, is to highlight these three spiritual practices as related reliable paths through a dark forest of illusion, a forest in which many apparent (and more popular) paths, including most (all?) religious beliefs, actively vie to mislead travelers toward deeper ensnarement in the dream, rather than leading them toward "awakening."
I want to say a word about koan study in Rienzi Zen and how it relates to the simplest path. Koans are those quirky Zen sayings and stories like "what is the sound of one hand clapping?" or "what was your original face before you (or your parents) were born?" that have no rational answer, and which Zen students turn and turn in their minds like the tumblers of a combination lock until their imprisoned psyches "explode" in a "super-rational" experience of reality beyond the illusion ("irrational" would be the wrong term, as that implies "nonsense"). That "super-rational" vision of reality is called "kensho." I have experienced it myself, more than once in my lifetime. I have come to think of Casspriano's "Key Questions" in the second half of the simplest path, especially the later seven of the ten, as "cultural koans" designed to trigger "collective kensho" for the whole human race at once. Like "what is the sound of one hand clapping?", unflinching consideration of the value of human life, of how our beliefs about the future shape the present, of the true origin and destiny of life on Earth, etc., especially as seen through the lens of Casspriano's "Key Question Technique," reveals that none of these questions have rational answers, yet all require our active and immediate response. Successful resolution of these larger riddles that impact everyone will require us all to eventually "explode" into reality, together, in a "super-rational" way. We'll have to break through the illusion and wake up together, as one (which has been the goal of Mahayana Buddhism, of which Zen is a sect, since around 200 BCE). That is the "Planetary Awakening" addressed in this book, and I believe Casspriano's "Key Questions" are a concrete step in that direction. I'm glad I spent my fifteen dollars.
This is my "old man" take on the simplest path, having encountered it after 30 years of Zen Buddhist practice (I'm not veering off my chosen path here, just bowing respectfully in passing toward Casspriano's). From a Buddhist perspective, the simplest path is true Dharma, though I do not get the impression from reading his book that Vincent Casspriano is himself a Buddhist or a follower of any religion. That to my mind makes his book all the more interesting.
True, but gimmicky.......2007-08-09
Casspriano's book is scientifically and philosophically sound as best as my young mind can tell, but I don't recommend this book. Its scattered with numerous pages of advertising about how his "program" works and how it compares to other religions and spiritual movements. Why must this author physically write out "The Simplest Path" in reference to his book every other page, and talk about his second volume? Perhaps because he's not out for pure truth, but for our money.
All this book comes down to after you strip away the nonsense is two things. First, admit that you don't truly know anything. Second, know yourself. Do those two things (they essentially both mean to question EVERYTHING), and you'll have Casspriano's "Planetary Awakening," with 15 bucks still in your pocket. And you'll be following the fundamental truths already said by Socrates.. so do yourself a favor and pick up Plato's "Apology" and read up on the Socratic dialogue on how to live a good life. And don't stop there, because you can't be sure he's right.
And I have 10 bucks that says these other couple of reviews were written by the book publisher. In any case, ignore the hype.
A Unique and Inspiring Wake-up Call.......2007-05-15
This is one of the most clear-headed books I've read in years on the subject of real, nitty gritty, get your hands dirty spiritual development (as opposed to the fru fru New Age variety). So much of what passes for "spirituality" in our time amounts to some author, celebrity, priest, philosopher or self-appointed guru telling us what to "believe," sight unseen, if we want to reach heaven, attain enlightenment, achieve "ascension," etc. Casspriano takes an at times startling opposite approach. For Casspriano, such unquestioned/unquestionable beliefs are not only NOT the path to spiritual awakening, they represent the chief obstacle blocking our realization of higher consciousness. And it's not just religious beliefs ("faith") he's talking about, but all our beliefs about reality, especially those that enclose our thinking in "boxes" that limit our freedom to find solutions to real-world threats like Peak Oil, overpopulation, Global Warming, etc. Though much of the book focuses on individual enlightenment, for Casspriano, these larger planetary issues are "spiritual," as well. Whether the issue is our personal inability to find happiness or Humanity's collective rush toward physical extinction, the cause is the same - our wrong-headed beliefs about what's real. The solution is the same, as well - continuous, deep questioning. Using Richard Dawkins' concept of "memes" as a central metaphor, Casspriano first breaks down the basic process of belief, showing the mechanism in our brains by which beliefs misdirect and control our psyches, then he walks the reader through an exploration of a series of ten "anti-meme questions" aimed at breaking down the walls of our mental "boxes" and setting our minds free. With each question, he supplies an exercise designed to allow the reader to attain a personal taste of reality "beyond the box," especially as flavored by that chapter's "Key Question." For the most part, this formula works very well (with a few rare moments of over-exuberance on the author's part, as already described in other reviews, though as a card carrying vegan environmentalist, I can't say I particularly minded), delivering a cumulative series of death-blows to some of the most basic "pillars" of our present human consensus reality. Beyond the walls those pillars supported lies real reality, where we are all interconnected and interdependent, and, in Casspriano's view, mutually destined for greatness, if we can just wake up and grab the reins of our runaway culture in time. This is not a book for spiritual "feel gooders" seeking soft assurances that they're perfect just they way they are and everything's going to be all right, no matter what. This is a wake up call, a tool kit and a concrete action plan for becoming individually enlightened and collectively saving the world, all rolled up into one. That, I think, is a cause well-worthy of exuberance.
Challenge Consensus Reality!.......2007-05-10
This is a thoughtful book that addresses how we may go about developing a process to question our everyday consensus reality. I suppose if I have learned anything in 49 years of life, it is that all personal and social problems stem from our fundamental views on the nature of reality itself. Vincent Casspriano uses the concept of a "meme" as a fundamental unit of ideas, assumptions, etc. that often block our understanding of reality itself. One such meme, for example, may be that we have to "fight for our freedom" or the world's a "fearful" place and hence, we have to be ready to kill to protect ourselves. I suppose you could also use the word "paradigm" here as well, but the essential point of this book is that we "unconsciously" function in our life with many limited points of view that block our ability to solve problems on both a personal and a social basis.
While Vince Casspriano is to be congradulated for producing a book that presents both a methodology and a motivation for personal transformation, there are a few pitfalls here that the potential reader should be aware of before tackling this material. The author has some rather strong views on fossil fuel consumption, meet consumption, and the role of humans in the cycle of procreation. While I generally agree with his analysis on fossil fuel consumtion and meat consumption (as I have viewed large tracks of deforrested grazing land in developing countries), these viewpoints can distract the reader from the essential point here which is to rigourously question consensus reality. Since I am single, and have no motivation to have children, I definitely disagree with his views on the necessity of human procreation on this planet, but here again, it is important to extract the essential meaning rather than get caught in the specific political/social debates that these issues may spawn.
If you are serious about personal transformation with the potential for changing our global consciousness, than this book can be an invaluable tool. I do agree with the Author that a world population of "high functioning" people can resolve every planetary problem we face today. As we systematically question our consensus reality, we will see our problems in new ways, and with this new perspective, problems can often be quickly resolved or transcended.
A Simple Cure For What's "Eating Us".......2006-11-13
I considered titling this review, "Stop Whining, Wake Up and Get Busy Saving the World," but decided "Eating Us" would be more attention-grabbing - which matters because I believe Vincent Casspriano, Jr.'s "The Simplest Path, Step One: FREE YOUR MIND" is an important book, and I want to do whatever I can to draw your attention to it. Pick the title you like best. Both very fittingly describe what you will find within the pages of this remarkable new release from New Paradigm Press.
I have selected three short quotations to explore in this review that I think best summarize Casspriano's overall message:
From Chapter One, "The Boxes We Dream In":
"Right now, this very moment, you are asleep... Even if you are reading these words in broad daylight - sitting at your desk or beside the kitchen table, your feet firmly planted on the floor, eyes open, senses alert, feeling the weight of this book in your hands as sounds of life rise and fall rhythmically around you - you are deeply asleep, and dreaming furiously"
Now, the idea that Humans are sleeping, and must therefore "awaken," is by no means unique to Casspriano's "Simplest Path" spiritual system, being the root observation underlying pretty much all Eastern religion, and a lot of Western Occultism and New Age metaphysics, as well. In fairness, Casspriano makes no claim to this as an original insight, openly supporting his assessment of the human predicament with quotations taken from Animism, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam. He then flows seamlessly into a list of complementary illustrations from the secular realms of Quantum Physics, brain/consciousness research, and most to-the-point, the study of memes and memetics, ala Evolutionary Biologist and world's best-known cheerleader for scientific atheism, Richard Dawkins.
If you've never heard of memes or memetics, a quick Google of those terms will reveal hundreds of serious, information-rich websites devoted to this now thirty-year old science. In a nutshell, a "meme" is a sort of contagious thought-form that spreads between people by way of imitation. Obvious memes in our environment include advertising jingles, fads and fashions, etc. Casspriano somewhat radically extends the concept to include just about everything that makes up the contents of our individual brains and shared human culture. While he resists redefining the word "meme" wholesale, he decidedly expands its definition to make memes and "memeplexes" (what you get when a number of memes band together into an organic, relational unit, like a religion or cultural or political movement) the basic, fundamental building blocks of everything we habitually label "real..."
And then he demonstrates, in at times excruciating detail, the complete emptiness of the "apparent-reality" that is a byproduct of memetic activity in our brains. What we call "real" is not real at all. It's an illusion spun up by our memes. And our memes are not original to us. They are "viral invaders" assailing our minds from without. Worse - and, while even this thought is not wholly unique to Casspriano, he certainly gives it his own very effective spin - memes are by no means mere passive beliefs or simple "harmless ideas." They are, Casspriano believes, actively predatory psychic parasites whose survival depends on our buying into the illusions they create in our minds. Think of illusion (Samsara, Maya, etc.) as a web we're caught in. Memes are the spider. We are the fly. Gotcha.
One thing I like very much about Casspriano's book is that he never asks us to take anything on faith, least of all this rather ugly depiction of the human psychic/spiritual condition. He not only challenges readers to test his hypothesis firsthand in order to experience what is real and true for ourselves, he spends a large chunk of the book outlining specific exercises anyone can do to escape memetic interference and personally experience reality as-it-is. The exercises in Part II of the book are powerful medicine... But this is a digression, so let me return to the point.
Memes are the spider, and we are the fly. A better metaphor might be that memes are the farmer, and we are the cow. Domesticated and docile, we allow memes to milk us daily, to extract from our minds the potent human psychic energy which, if reclaimed by us and put to proper human use, would quickly and positively transform our lives and our world. This transformation is awakening, ascension, enlightenment, metanoia, the Buddha-like change of consciousness most religions and spiritual systems on Earth hint at, but few ever actually deliver to followers. In this analysis, Casspriano's "Simplest Path" is very much in line with Gurdjieff's "Fourth Way," Carlos Castaneda's Toltec sorcery, and a few other well known spiritual practices inhabiting a somewhat darker, though perhaps more realistic corner of the New Age. But unlike most of those other systems, Casspriano's prescription for escaping illusion and awakening to reality is remarkably, well... simple.
From Chapter Three, "Waking Up":
"The simple truth is that we are sleeping because we lack sufficient energy to wake up."
And later in the same chapter:
"The real work that brings about awakening, rather than merely granting the external appearance of "being spiritual," while actually embroiling us ever more deeply in the dream, is a rigorous, daily commitment to the identification and elimination of every self-serving belief from which our personal dream-lives are constructed."
For "belief" in the quotation above, read "meme/memeplex." Casspriano certainly does, treating the terms as largely interchangeable. In the end, this genuinely simple - at least in the sense of being uncomplicated and pragmatic - spiritual practice amounts to discovering reality as-it-actually-is less by searching for a glimpse beyond the illusion, than by systematically withdrawing our participation in, and identification with, the dream. When we disentangle our psyches from memetic illusion, only reality remains. We don't have to chase it; to a meme-free mind, reality just appears. This is "Satori" in Zen Buddhism. This is "stopping the world" in the Toltec sorcery of Castaneda and others. Casspriano's genius lies in his talent for exposing the core mechanism behind such complex and often inscrutable spiritual systems, and for putting into plain language clear instructions for unraveling the dream and achieving personal awakening. The virus-like process by which memes take over and control our human minds, as described by Casspriano is, to my mind, very complicated (but well worth struggling through). What is genuinely simple about "The Simplest Path," however, is Casspriano's prescription for breaking those bonds, once you've made the effort to understand how they are created and maintained. For Casspriano, remaining a victim of spiritual sleep and energetic exploitation by memes is a complex activity in which we unconsciously invest enormous amounts of psychic energy every day of our lives. Awakening is the product of a simple act of withdrawing that investment, which automatically re-energizes of our minds and lives. Or as Casspriano cleverly phrases it when closing Chapter Three, "Waking Up":
"Unweave the tapestry of the dream, and awakening happens."
Anyone can do this. Spiritual awakening, in Casspriano's view, may be hard work, but it is not complicated work. The path to enlightenment is really rather shockingly simple. Fall out of love with the dream. Reclaim your psychic energy. Wake up to reality.
The ten "Key Questions" Casspriano explores in the second section of the book are designed to put the theory laid out in Part I to practical and immediate use. Essentially, I think Casspriano sees these ten issues - why we treat enlightenment as an "airy-fairy" ideal instead of a measurable transformation of brain functioning, the excuses we make for avoiding personal responsibility and integrity along the lines of Castaneda's "impeccability," the fallacy of belief in a "separate self," etc. - as pillars of both our personal and collective human dreams. They are by no means an exhaustive listing of the memes twisting our minds. But they are primary keystones on which layers upon layers of the grand illusion are built. Topple these ten baseline pillars and the larger structure crumbles.
Casspriano explores some "Keys" more successfully than others. One downside to the book is that, especially in the "Keys," Casspriano's own memetic prejudices shine at times rather glaringly through, as when, in his discussion of the American "What Would Jesus Do?" religious fad, he characterizes the Evangelical Christian purveyors of WWJD as, "ultra-conservative, right wing ideologues." Even should the reader personally agree with such pronouncements, its hard to resist thinking, "Hey Vince! Your memes are showing!" But where he nails his point, Casspriano's prose can be downright inspiring, as with the "Key" cosmological study "Is Earth the Center of the Universe?," which explores the gap between what we know, scientifically, about the Universe and what our daily choices and behavior says we really believe, about the cosmos and about ourselves. His closing "Key" "Are We Alone?" so poetically frames the true stakes of our global human predicament - species survival VS extinction - that its hard to imagine anyone keeping their gaze glued squarely to their own self-involved navel in the wake of reading it. Of course we are not alone. There are six and a half billion of us on Planet Earth, and whether we awaken to what's best in us or follow our darkest drives over History's cliff into oblivion, we do so as one. One planet, one fate.
This notion of "oneness" and of a common, intertwined human spiritual and biological destiny is a core theme in The Simplest Path, Step One: FREE YOUR MIND that sets it apart from any spiritual book in recent memory. My final quotation from the book returns us to the opening lines of Chapter One, "The Boxes We Dream In":
"We are all aware of the challenges facing us as we enter together into the 21st Century:
· World oil supplies are running out.
· Global warming is transforming the Earth into a steamy greenhouse.
· Even as our technology connects the world, ideological extremism, terrorism and militarism divide us as never before.
· Headlines bombard us with news of war, famine, pestilence and death until we feel overwhelmed and unable to respond.
· Time is running out..."
Vincent Casspriano, Jr.'s "The Simplest Path to Personal and Planetary Transformation, Step One: FREE YOUR MIND" does not offer easy escape from these very pressing real-world human ills, but rather, a down to Earth, workable prescription for their cure. Yes, we must awaken as individuals, and, rest assured, "The Simplest Path" shows spiritual seekers exactly how to do that. But a prime message of "The Simplest Path" is that, for personal awakening to have meaning, it must occur within the context of a complete re-visioning of global culture, and a mass wrenching away of the wheel of History from the control of viral memes, that we might create a common cosmic human destiny worthy of our highest potential as a species.
Now that's a meme worth feeding.
Book Description
Here they arethe series explaining the spiritual world from a Christian perspective. In this series Harold R. Eberle deals with issues such as:
- What exists in the spiritual world
- Discerning things in the spirit
- Out-of-the-body experiences
- Angelic and demonic visitations
- The Christian perspective of holistic medicine
- Spiritual impartations and influences between people
-Understanding supernatural phenomena from a Biblical perspective. -How people access that realm - Activities of witches, psychics and New Agers - Interpretation of dreams - What the dead are experiencing Now you can have answers to the questions you always have wanted to ask about spiritual phenomena and the supernatural world.
Average customer rating:
- A hard to put down, stylish romp
- Good "Out-Loud" Read
- A Man On The Run
- Word and Adventure Lovers Apply Within
- Escaping Reality is unreal!
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Escaping Reality
Geoff Nelder
Manufacturer: Brambling Books
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Download Description
The squashed nose on a wet pavement, followed by a brutal yet comic internment lead our hero to a gut-wrenching escape. A dangerous winter trek across the Northumberland Moors, even with a shocking surprising amorous interlude to raise the temperature a little, helps our criminal to survive however he can in the backstreets of Cumbrian towns. But he can't just hide, he has to find out who is after him and what he discovers is more than is good for him. Keeping just in front of a devious assassin, his frequently changed identity crosses to Amsterdam where he gets his friends into trouble. Can he find out what is really going on? Can you find out before him? The clues are all here.
Customer Reviews:
A hard to put down, stylish romp.......2006-09-21
The title says it all. Geoff Nelder's
Escaping Reality is a lighthearted romp which will drag the reader away from any mundane reality into the slapstick pleasure of his saxophonist protagonist Gerry Rickett's world. Although the coyish self-deprecating Ricketts accuses himself of being gormless, he manages to survive a range of boys-own adventures on his way from the bottom up with "jack-the-lad" cunning. The story puts the reader in the picture immediately as the book opens with Rickett's arrest for jewellery theft and murder.
As the novel is written in first person, the reader is immediately sympathetic to the cocky Ricketts, whose innocence is accepted by the reader without question. His dawning sense of the unreliability of those around him, along with the odd but effective combination of humorous sarcasm mingled with incredulity makes Ricketts an excellent protagonist, keeping the reader involved through the force of his personality. Ricketts refuses to feel sorry for himself, and hatches a plan to break out of prison and clear his name. Bubble wrap sex, a computer virus, and a white van are all part of the serendipity as Rickett's works his way out of prison and away from his Dickensian fellow prisoners, who steal his phone cards and lumpy porridge.
At times the plot does strain credulity, and Ricketts' sexual exploits, however well drawn, are about as likely as his eventual victory over bureaucracy, a drug cartel, and to a lesser extent, the forces of ennui. He almost makes being on the run sound easy, although there are plenty of cold, wet nights, brakeless cycle rides, smelly sheds, and a little farmhouse nookie. Because this is such a fun story, and Rickett's such a compelling character, verisimilitude is the least important thing about Escaping Reality. Nelder builds suspense well, using foreshadowing, pacing and rhythm to speed up the book where necessary.
Never do we doubt Rickett's story, since the first person narrative places us on the road with him. The reader wants and expects Ricketts to find the real criminal and get his compensation. Rickett's crimes are small (stealing a prized motorbike, humiliating his girlfriend and putting his friends in danger), especially in comparison to the real bad guys, and he never intends to do any harm. Like his friend Preston, whose name he uses while on the run, his mal-used wife, and his (reasonably mal-used) moll (who has a few secrets of her own), the reader is prepared to not only forgive, but support Gerry Ricketts, making this a very satisfying read.
The unlikely heroism is also bolstered by an authentic and well drawn setting. Nelder's prison avoids cliché, as it focuses, with great humour, on the day to day details of life.
Nelder's description of Amsterdam is rich with detail, taking us around the docks and deep into the heart of Westerdok. The mystery reveals itself bit by bit through a number of straight and crooked policemen, along with a few cases of Glod beer, plenty of camaraderie, and another continental shift. Well written, clever and full of black wit. Escaping Reality is a hard to put down, stylish romp. There are laugh outloud moments, in prison, on the run, and back in prison again, plenty of twists, a compelling cast, an evocative setting, and heartbeating drama. This is the kind of book you can read in a few days or less, and then pick up again for another round, solely for the pleasure of it.
Magdalena Ball is the author of Sleep Before Evening
"There is so much beautiful writing here, soaring passages." Ruhama Veltfort, author of The Promised Land
Good "Out-Loud" Read.......2006-03-15
If you like a book that is a good "out-loud" read to your Significant Other, this is it. From motorcycles in the living room, sleeping under troughs, camping out in a old boat, wallowing in bubble wrap or decorating Christmas trees, it's a hilarious read. Never know what will happen next to our so-called "innocent" hero but still it all flows together. Not for the young but definitely for the young at heart!
A Man On The Run.......2006-02-14
Geoff Nelder's Escaping Reality opens with the main character, Ricketts, finding himself in a truly precarious situation. When a professional musician is charged with theft and manslaughter, the next stop isn't his usual booking at a local nightclub, it's a place called Stonelodge Prison. Unlucky Ricketts is given a choice-patiently await the outcome of a slow moving appeal, or take matters into his own inexperienced hands. From the title alone, any reasonable person can guess which option the character opts to select. In hopes of finding adequate evidence to prove his innocence, Ricketts trades fear for hopes of clearing his name and embarks upon an action-packed journey that proves to be much more than he may have bargained for.
Although Ricketts illustrates that his fair logic begins to dip and waiver, he manages to concoct various ambitious plans to escape his most recent reality as a convict. A sexy siren named Wendy proves to be his enabler to move forward toward his chosen path of escape-a bridge to assist him making his first major move, and many other that soon follow. Although trouble finds the man on the run at mostly every turn, occasional sizzling sex scenes lighten his troubling load, while also feeding his carnal desires. From camping excursions and bike rides, to living in an abandoned home, and hiding out on a houseboat, the plot continues to advance with many more adventurous activities. Staying committed to fighting his personal fight, Ricketts manages to secure a job, map out routes, and dodges a close call with Asian exotics. The man on the run proves there is no rest for a weary, wanted man. His stamina, nerve, and ability to progress as far as he does without being captured sometimes proves to be on the edge of unimaginable, but these items simultaneously allow for resolution to build to a boiling point, in the last third portion of the book.
The author allows Ricketts to encounter a character named Grootebroek, who coyly parts with many pieces to the puzzle. The thing is, when they begin to assemble during a discrete meeting, Ricketts hits a brick wall in his "detective act." A sudden twist complicates a long journey and causes it to become a bit longer. At this point, the man in the spotlight is forced to explain some of his behavior to Sergeant Cuyphoven and Detective Hals, of the Amsterdam Police. The pressure the pair adds to an already intense situation that will either ultimately lead Ricketts to earn his freedom, or accept that his ship has sunken for good, only with a host of added criminal charges.
Nestled in between of the pages of Mr. Nelder's novel, all of the answers await those who enjoy original reads speckled with mystery, complex hypothetical situations, and mind-boggling riddles. The author obviously took great care in inserting international destinations that can appeal to readers who enjoy details of this nature. Indulge in this journey if you dare to escape reality. Then and only then will you find out if becoming a man on the run proved to be worth all of one man's very ambitious efforts.
Reviewed By: Andrea Blackstone, Black Butterfly Review
Word and Adventure Lovers Apply Within.......2005-11-29
Escaping Reality By Geoff Nelder
As soon as I read the dedication in this book, I had a feeling I'd like it. It says: "To Tibor Fischer for his inspirational novels." Now, first off, I thought, "This guy knows Tibor Fischer! Damn, what a lucky guy!" That thought, was followed by, "Oh, dummy, maybe he just really loves Fischer's work." And, after reading the book, I suspect that Mr. Fischer did indeed inspire Mr. Nelder.
If you'd like to play with words, become a better punster, and toy with phrases just to hear how they roll around in your mouth (remember the "bowl with a soul" in the Collector's Collector?), then this book is for you.
If you'd like to learn about Cumbrian villages, pubs and the upcountry of the UK, garden spot of the winter-worn moors, and the place most likely to freeze your tootsies off as you're running like hell after escaping from prison after being convicted for something you didn't do, then this book is for you.
If you like naughty bits about sex on bubble-wrap with a librarian who helps a wrongfully convicted prisoner escape, or being tied up on a bed and in various other exotic positions and locales, then this book is for you.
If you want dull and boring, this book is NOT for you.
If you want any genre, other than adventure/suspense/thriller/humor, this book is NOT for you.
If you want to use this for a book report for school, this book and this review is NOT for you.
Escaping Reality is unreal!.......2005-11-28
ESCAPING REALITY - GEOFF NELDER
If you like your prison escape stories written with ironic humour, your international jewel theft books full of quirky musicians and your librarians sexy, this is the book for you. If you're never considered any of these apparently jarring concepts, now's your chance. Ostensibly a straightforward "I've been framed and I'll prove it" novel, Escaping Reality itself escapes reality and turns into a tour-de-force of plot-twisting, fell-walking, identity-hiding computer-hacking riotous turmoil. As a stiff-necked literary critic might say, it also underlines the existential meretriciousness of solipcism. The rest of us might say that it reaffirms the fact that we are all, ultimately, on our own. But don't let that get you down - the protagonist (he's no hero!) triumphs, gets his own back to some extent and even manages to have a surprising amount of naughty stuff on the way.
The book reads as if it has two parts - the opening mystery/who-dun-it set-up during which you think "That's couldn't have happened" and "That's just unlikely" and the second half - more of a thriller - in which you see that "Ah! THAT'S how it happened" and "Of course, that makes sense", all laced with quips, humour and an acceptance that bicycles sometimes have minds of their own. The action takes in prison life, what it's like to be a jobbing musician, good cops, bad cops and atmospheric, detail-drenched settings in Cumbria and non-tourist Amsterdam. Any more would give it away, and the plot deserves to be discovered as you read (and re-read, because you just won't get all the darker and complex undertones first time around).
Comparisons are invidious - and there's no other book to compare it to, anyway - but imagine an Alistair Maclean novel written by Robert Rankin after looking at too many Salvador Dali paintings on a rollercoaster. Or something like that. Better still, buy it and read it - you won't be disappointed.
But you might wish all librarians were a bit more like Wendy.
Book Description
This recording shows why Deepak Chopra is considered one of the great pioneers in the field of mind-body medicine. Here he offers compelling answers to the eternal questions of identity, origin, and meaning. Chopra’s thesis is that people rely on their senses to define their experience of reality — limiting their experience of the material world and making them prisoners, out of touch with realities that lie beyond the material. He explains that there is no difference between observer and observed; it is all one shared experience. Realizing this truth, says Chopra, frees people from their sensory-created prison to experience a more nurturing and fulfilling life. The author’s calm, uplifting voice gives these ideas heft and power, and his inclusion of relaxed guitar interludes let listeners pause to contemplate more deeply. Chopra expands the discussion by citing T. S. Eliot, Nietzsche, Rumi, Tagore, and Patanjali, as well as scientific experiments and spiritual texts.
Customer Reviews:
He explains things SO well....this is a great CD.......2007-09-26
Deepak Chopra is a fascinating man. His books are in my library each and every one. His knowledge and unique way of presenting his various subjects, is always most informative, interesting to read, and simply put. If I can wrap my mind around quantum physics and visualize how it works and see how it is functioning around us, then you too can read and better yet listen to this CD and gain a perspective on Life that is totally unexpected yet so believable that it makes one smile and say "I get it!!!"
Nothing special.......2006-11-10
I have listened to D. Chopra's books and they all seem to be the same. So after you have read one or two there is nothing new to be gained from additional readings.
Excellent.......2000-11-28
This is a wonderful work to listen to. I will listen to it again and again in long car rides. He has many profound insights into the Spirit and Science.
From Beliefs to Knowing.......1999-09-12
This cassette tape takes you on a journey through the mind into what infuses it with unconditional love. Chopra masterfully weaves through various concepts determining a person's destiny. Our beliefs create patterns in the mind revealing a path eventually manifesting itself into material reality. Hidden behind our thoughts is "the thinker of our thoughts" able to choose paths leading us into our ultimate desires. Thanks, Deepak Chopra, for reminding us of what we already know inside us. These words free us to co-create the life we truely want. - Samuel Oliver, author of WHAT THE DYING TEACH US: LESSONS ON LIVING.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Sojourners, published by Sojourners on December 1, 2004. The length of the article is 1162 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Rolling to overcome poverty: reading passionately isn't about escaping reality, but about plunging further into it.(FROM THE EDITOR)(Call to Renewal)(Rolling to Overcome Poverty pilgrimage)(Editorial)
Author: Jim Wallis
Publication:
Sojourners (Magazine/Journal)
Date: December 1, 2004
Publisher: Sojourners
Volume: 33
Issue: 12
Page: 5(1)
Article Type: Editorial
Distributed by Thomson Gale
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