Burned

Book Description

I do know things really began to spin out of control after my first sex dream.

It all started with a dream. Nothing exceptional, just a typical fantasy about a boy, the kind of dream that most teen girls experience. But Pattyn Von Stratten is not like most teen girls. Raised in a religious -- yet abusive -- family, a simple dream may not be exactly a sin, but it could be the first step toward hell and eternal damnation.

This dream is a first step for Pattyn. But is it to hell or to a better life? For the first time Pattyn starts asking questions. Questions seemingly without answers -- about God, a woman's role, sex, love -- mostly love. What is it? Where is it? Will she ever experience it? Is she deserving of it?

It's with a real boy that Pattyn gets into real trouble. After Pattyn's father catches her in a compromising position, events spiral out of control until Pattyn ends up suspended from school and sent to live with an aunt she doesn't know.

Pattyn is supposed to find salvation and redemption during her exile to the wilds of rural Nevada. Yet what she finds instead is love and acceptance. And for the first time she feels worthy of both -- until she realizes her old demons will not let her go. Pattyn begins down a path that will lead her to a hell -- a hell that may not be the one she learned about in sacrament meetings, but it is hell all the same.

In this riveting and masterful novel told in verse, Ellen Hopkins takes readers on an emotional roller-coaster ride. From the highs of true love to the lows of abuse, Pattyn's story will have readers engrossed until the very last word.

Customer Reviews:

Moved.......2007-08-15

I would like to respond to those of you who were offended by the use of a specific religion in this book. I assume those of you who were disturbed most were LDS yourselves. I understand Ms. Hopkins did not shed the best light on the faith, but that is what makes the book even more raw and emotional. The question I pose is this: If Pattyn had been Catholic, or Protestant, or Jewish, would you have felt better? Because that would be hypocritical, to say the least. I grew up in the LDS church, and although I was never subjected to what the character in the book was, I can assure you, there are evil and ignorant people in every religion, every culture, every class. Knowing the male "hierarchy" of the church only aids in understanding Pattyn's desperation and confusion over her own worth and importance. The LDS church does suppress the role of a woman, and I believe Ms. Hopkins chose the perfect institution to place Pattyn in. It only adds to her depth as a character, and makes the question of her own value even more believable. Although I was deeply saddened by the finale of the book, I again understood her reasoning-she truly believed there wasn't a place for her in the world, and that is what is truly heart-breaking about the book.

I loved it so much I nearly cried!!.......2007-08-06

I love this book!! Out of all her books, I could hardly contain myself for this one. The love story was so sweet, and the ending was kinda unexpected. I mean all her books have sad events or are just sad all together. But I hate how the ending left you with this BIG cliffhanger!! I think she's coming out with another book that will continue from where she left off. Which is good because I really want to know what happens.

In the last few pages, I was in tears........2007-07-28

I absolutely love Ellen Hopkins style of writing. It brings on two perspectives. I've read her other books. [Crank and Impulse - also great books] She is a great author and I can't wait for her new book Glass to come out in late August. I've already pre-ordered it.The way she writes the books actually paints a picture in your head about what these characters are really like. You feel like you're there, right along with them going through their tragedies and feeling their pain. I definately reccomend people to read her books :).

Glorious.......2007-07-17

Burned was a really good book. Its about a girl living a very controlled lifestyle. However like all families has is problems. In her case, an abusive controlling obnoxious father. When things begin to get overwhelming she is sent to live with her aunt. This is where she meets the love of her life, and when things really start to spiral. I think this a good way to show how some fathers are overbering. The only way to go is out. The things her father has done will horrify you. He doesnt understand anything about anything. He wont listen and truly hurts the people he loves. With all this background the daughter is still able to find love and that something that cant always be found. The format is similar to that of Crank but, takes the power of love to the next level. It makes you question whether or not you know or have known what is love. The sacrifices made will inspire you. This is a must read!

50/50.......2007-07-04

Well, it didn't seem very interesting at first-- heck, I had to force my self to read it. It took a long time to get into it, and it only got interesting when she finally went on her little trip. I'd say after that, things were actually somewhat interesting. I'm a bit more satisfied with this book then I was with her book "Impulse" but I have to say I'm wondering where the author of "Crank" has gone.

I am a bit dissapointed...

The Friend Who Got Away: Twenty Women's True Life Tales of Friendships that Blew Up, Burned Out or Faded Away

Average customer rating:

Chicken Soup for the ex friend's soul
Could not put this book down . . . !
The Crucible of Women's Friendships
Nurture Your Girlfriends or the Frienship Will Die
the best collection out there at this time on women's friendships

The Friend Who Got Away: Twenty Women's True Life Tales of Friendships that Blew Up, Burned Out or Faded Away
Jenny Offill , and Elissa Schappell
Manufacturer: Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Relationships | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Interpersonal Relations | Relationships | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Psychology & Counseling | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Women's Studies | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0385511868
Release Date: 2005-05-17

Book Description

Losing a friend can be as painful and as agonizing as a divorce or the end of a love affair, yet it is rarely written about or even discussed. THE FRIEND WHO GOT AWAY is the first book to address this near-universal experience, bringing together the brave, eloquent voices of writers like Francine Prose, Katie Roiphe, Dorothy Allison, Elizabeth Strout, Ann Hood, Diana Abu Jabar, Vivian Gornick, Helen Schulman, and many others. Some write of friends who have drifted away, others of sudden breakups that took them by surprise. Some even celebrate their liberation from unhealthy or destructive relationships. Yet at the heart of each story is the recognition of a loss that will never be forgotten.

From stories about friendships that dissolved when one person revealed a hidden self or moved into a different world, to tales of relationships sabotaged by competition, personal ambition, or careless indifference, THE FRIEND WHO GOT AWAY casts new light on the meaning and nature of women’s friendships. Katie Roiphe writes with regret about the period in her life when even close friends seemed expendable compared to men and sex. Mary Morris reveals how a loan led to the unraveling of a lifelong friendship. Vivian Gornick explores how intellectual differences eroded the bond between once inseparable companions. And two contributors, once best friends, tell both sides of the story that led to their painful breakup.

Written especially for this anthology and touched with humor, sadness, and sometimes anger, these extraordinary pieces simultaneously evoke the uniqueness of each situation and illuminate the universal emotions evoked by the loss of a friend.

Customer Reviews:

Chicken Soup for the ex friend's soul.......2007-01-25

Eh, it was ok.

It's a great topic but I didn't like the way it was done. Even though some of the stories were gripping in their sadness or inevitability, I agree with the reviewer who found the stories largely elitist.

My principal complaint, though, is with the sameness of the writing. I felt like I was reading the same contributor again and again--checking the author bios, they are all professional writers, which assures a quality of narrative but also makes the stories strangely "of a kind." (In this way, the also-introspective "Chicken Soup" books are superior; no matter what the topic a variety of lifestyles--a variety of "voices"--is represented.) If somehow some teachers or pipefitters or cartoonists or singers or somebody other than introspective writers had contributed, it would have been a more interesting title.

Could not put this book down . . . !.......2007-01-04

The topic of the book's collection of essays was especially relevant and important to me personally, having had a few friendships break up over the years. I loved all of the various perspectives from each essay writer from their personal filter of the series of events and issues that contirbuted to the demise of a friendship. I loved the fact that the essays covered a wide range of issues between friends (death, marriage, divorce, money, distance, careers etc.) and representative of various life stages in women's lives (school-aged, teenagers, young adults, 20-something, 30-something and beyond). This book captures the emotionally charged, intense and often complicated relationships that women have with one another. A very worthwhile read for anyone who has been puzzled by a friendship gone awry for one reason or another. Really terrific book, well-written, well-organized and well-conceived.

The Crucible of Women's Friendships.......2006-12-19

This is a wonderful book that most readers will enjoy. I think the vignettes or more illustrative of the vagaries of women's friendships, than, say, a more academic analysis of love, jealousy, betrayal and hurt feelings among friends.

My one and only complaint is that I hope she does a follow up book that looks at the same issue, but one that also includes online "friendships." I think that the increased use of myspace, facebook, and other bbs and online forums also provides fodder for this genre.

Nurture Your Girlfriends or the Frienship Will Die.......2006-06-04

Sometimes we grow apart, or our values radically alter, or the common interests die, whatever the case there are those relationships that whither away but are not a cause of discomfort in sudden run-ins. The ones that are, are sad.

The best piece of advice: NEVER let a man ruin a real love with a beloved girlfriend. Boyfriends are a waste of time compared to a true blue friend.

the best collection out there at this time on women's friendships.......2006-04-22

The best collection of objectively written yet heartfelt stories written by intelligent people. It's about women's secret, unspeakable competitiveness and inability to be truthful and/or tactful enough to stay friends.

I was struck by how nuanced and complicated women's friendships are: helped me see my own failed friendships under the light of inevitability, blamelessness, and hopelessness.

Most of the essays deal head on with the ugliness of competition, and not in a Glamor magazine type of glib way, but in a helpful, analytical yet readable way.

Average customer rating:

Two Thumbs Down
Burned is a great book!
Just fine
Fun to read!
Kept my interest...

Burned (Regan Reilly Mysteries)
Carol Higgins Clark
Manufacturer: Pocket Star
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Hitched (A Regan Reilly Mystery)
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ASIN: 0743476662

Book Description

New York Times bestselling author Carol Higgins Clark's trademark light touch, humor, and quirky characters make for another wonderfully unpredictable mystery. Say "Aloha" to an unforgettable Hawaiian adventure!

L.A.-based private detective Regan Reilly gets a call from her best gal pal, urging her to come to Hawaii for one last girls' weekend before Regan ties the knot with Jack "no relation" Reilly, and so she happily packs her bags.

At the Waikiki Waters Playground and Resort, the body of Dorinda Dawes, the hotel's gossipy PR woman, washes ashore wearing a valuable lei that once belonged to a Hawaiian princess and was stolen from a museum in Honolulu thirty years ago.

The resort manager doesn't believe that Dorinda drowned accidentally and persuades Regan to take on the case. The more she starts digging, the more danger she is in. Can Regan find out what really happened before it's too late for her and the other vacationers at the Waikiki Waters?

Customer Reviews:

Two Thumbs Down.......2007-05-05

What a waste of time! The plot is not even worthy of a book for fourth graders, and the writing is worse than that of an average twelve-year-old. If you have an IQ over 80, avoid this piece of fluff.

Burned is a great book!.......2007-01-26

It is an very enjoyable fun read. I would recommend this book for anyone looking for a light mystery.

Just fine.......2006-12-05

While you read this book you'll laugh a couple times. This is a story to read while in vacation and it'd be awesome if that trip is to Hawaii. Everything in the book'll keep you reading...except the end. I think that CHC didn't know how to finish the book and just made a fairy tale out of it. That was very disappointing because she could written 50 more pages and get a much better end.

Fun to read!.......2006-10-14

If you are looking for something deep this may not be your book but ... if you just want a good easy read to while away a few hours then dig in. I, as always, enjoyed the characters and was sad when it was over. Another good afternoon's reading.

Kept my interest..........2006-06-25

To be honest I got this accidentally. I was at the store grabbing my "basics" (gum, snacks, book, hand sanitizer) for my trip to South Dakota. I saw "Higgins Clark" and thought it was Mary. When I got home and actually looked at it I thought oh poop. I took for my flight anyway, and I must say I am glad I did. It was very entertaining. I didn't want to get off the plane I was so in to it. I finished it before the flight back home so I went to the store and got the only CHC I could find for my return trip. My only negative thought is that I wished I had started from the Beginning of the Regan Reilly Mysteries. I have now started back- tracking. I can't wait to get finished all of them so I can move forward to "Hitched"!

From Burned Out to Fired Up: A Woman's Guide to Rekindling the Passion and Meaning in Work and Life

Average customer rating:

A Must Read!
A book that easily catapults you into the next level!
Life Changing Book
Warm & Energizing Antidote for Today's Busy Women
Refueling for the depleted!

From Burned Out to Fired Up: A Woman's Guide to Rekindling the Passion and Meaning in Work and Life
Leslie Godwin
Manufacturer: HCI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Motivational | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0757301959

Book Description

As a recovering workaholic, psychotherapist and author who has helped thousands of professionals find meaningful work, Leslie Godwin knows the effects of stress and job burnoutphysical, mental and spiritual exhaustion. For the millions of struggling women who wear many hats, Godwin offers real solutions it's not about balancing or multitasking; it's about making true life changes that result in a renewal of passion and meaning. For corporate professionals, budding entrepreneurs or stay-at-home mothers (and yes, that's work, too!), Godwin's compelling case studies, helpful tips, quizzes and worksheets will change their lives.

Customer Reviews:

A Must Read!.......2007-01-09

Leslie Godwin hits home in her book "From Burned out to Fired Up". The format is easy to follow and packed with advice, exercises and motivational thinking. It is not only helpful to me but also a recommended read to clients and friends.

A book that easily catapults you into the next level!.......2005-04-16

I found Leslie's book accidentally a year ago in an airport bookstore. I had no idea what the book was about, only that I was burned out working in a small job in a toxic work environment. It was so inexpensive, I bought it. When I began to sift through it, I wondered how these little simple worksheets would be able to do anything like the cover promised - rekindling the passion.
I could not have been more wrong. Once I started reading the book, so simple in language, and did my first worksheet - I realized in just a few questions- deeper issues that I was unaware of that were driving my passion and also fueling my fear. I had a lifelong dream but was hiding out as a passionate workaholic in smaller jobs.
Leslie's book not only gently and simply will dig things out at the root but will inspire you to get up, take step by step, and will make sure that this time, you will do it with BALANCE.
This book is so incredibly healthy, and it has become my companion over the last year. The worksheets are a wonder (especially the Synergy Plan worksheet). I recommend making an electronic version and updating it as you progress (and you will progress through those steps with Leslie's help).
Because of this book, I left my old toxic workplace and opened my horizons to being on my path. I am now in a new position I love for the timebeing, have balance, and am pursuing my lifelong dream career in parallel. I carry the Synergy Plan Worksheet with me in my organizer and refer to it regularly to take the next steps. Step by step, this book will lead you there. It's worth every penny and more!

Life Changing Book.......2005-04-11

Without a doubt this book has changed my life for the better. I have gone from deadend job to deadend job for the past 15 years now, but while reading this book it was like the fog finally lifted. I realized I needed to find the job I loved, not the job that simply paid the bills. Now I am on my way - finally. The exercises seem simple and I really didn't see how they would help me, but they did. They get right to the point and you discover things you didn't even know were an issue for you. I would reccommend this book to anyone who is in this situation.

Warm & Energizing Antidote for Today's Busy Women .......2004-11-14

Leslie Godwin's advice will hit home for so many of today's women, and, I believe, inspire them all. With case studies, e-mails, and lessons from a variety of women of different ages and in different careers, Leslie shows how to deal with the burnout that so many of us experience in different phases of life. From parenting issues to workplace challenges, there are many parts of the book that may speak to you.

Her exercises and worksheets show you how to take action and point you in the right direction to find the path to your passion. Her insightful comments will make you stop and think about things that you may never have reflected on before, and get you to see things in a new and productive light.

I highly recommend this book, and am confident you will find it worth many times its price! This is a book to keep, savor, and refer to again and again as you reach for your goals, even as those goals change over time.

Refueling for the depleted!.......2004-08-03

Anyone with the slightest ambition can get caught in the trap of the energizer bunny... you keep going and going and going. Before long you've lost sight of not only where you were headed, but why you were headed there. This fog of confusion is lifted after following just a few of the easy but profoundly helpful exercises Ms. Godwin offers to readers who want to feel refueled. Clarification and newfound energy will be your reward for reading this straightforward, and accessible read.

Shacking Up: The Smart Girl's Guide to Living in Sin Without Getting Burned

Average customer rating:

repetitive
An essential!
Obnoxious.
A Guy's Review.
Not bad

Shacking Up: The Smart Girl's Guide to Living in Sin Without Getting Burned
Stacy Whitman , and Wynne Whitman
Manufacturer: Broadway
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Interpersonal Relations | Relationships | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Love & Romance | Relationships | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Unmarried to Each Other: The Essential Guide to Living Together as an Unmarried Couple
Living Together: A Legal Guide for Unmarried Couples (13th Edition)
Money Without Matrimony: The Unmarried Couple's Guide to Financial Security
Before You Live Together
Prenups for Lovers: A Romantic Guide to Prenuptial Agreements

ASIN: 0767910400
Release Date: 2003-03-18

Book Description

The must-have guide for any woman who’s ever thought about saying “yes” to the other big question: Will you move in with me?

More and more couples are choosing to live together before tying the knot—for convenience, to save money and, most importantly, to see if they’re compatible. While living together can be an exciting way to take your relationship to the next level, it can also present a host of new questions and challenges.

With its fresh, girlfriend-to-girlfriend manner, Shacking Up walks you through every step of the cohabitation process, from making the initial decision to breaking up or getting married. Beginning with a readiness quiz to help you decide if you and your honey are prepared to take the plunge, authors Stacy and Wynne Whitman provide a wealth of hands-on advice from lawyers, psychologists and financial planners as well as entertaining, true-life stories from couples with shacking up experience. Topics include: breaking the news to your family; managing and merging your finances; protecting yourself legally; real-estate decisions; and day-to-day dilemmas such as chores, privacy, and keeping the spark alive. Whether you opt for wedding bells or decide he’s not the one for you, Shacking Up is a stylish, empowering handbook for staying smart, savvy, and true to yourself along the road to happily ever after.

Customer Reviews:

repetitive.......2007-10-02

If you are in love with your man, skip the first hundred pages, which simply asks the reader: Are you sure you want to be with him? Assuming the answer is yes, you can move on to the actual shacking up part. This has some good info, but is drawn out for far too long. You can pick this book up in the store and skim the few useful chapters to get the main ideas. I gave up reading this book towards the end. I also read Unmarried to Each Other, which I enjoyed. Check out that book instead.

An essential!.......2007-03-30

This book is absolutely *essential* for anyone shacking up. Whether or not your family (or your significant other's family) objects, this book offers helpful hints on cohabitating for you and him. It is written from a young, insider point of view by a magazine author and an attorney knowledgeable in this area. This is NOT a boring book on cohabitation trends, but rather is an exciting exploration into issues to come as you embark into living with your significant other. I appreciated the authors' depth of knowledge and ability to relate.

Obnoxious........2007-02-23

Everything reviewer Lisa A. Lassner said below and more. This book is written like a neverending, obnoxious Cosmo or Glamour article. It tries to be "girlfriend to girlfriend" and it just comes off as ridiculous. Everything positive that I got out of "Unmarried to Each Other" was shaken by this book because of its "no legal marriage = no commitment" attitude. Devoting ONE chapter at the end of the book to alternative couples is just insulting.

It's light on research, light on footnotes and light on reality.

Seriously, get "Unmarried to Each Other: The Essential Guide to Living with Each Other as an Unmarried Couple" instead. Pair it with "Living Together: A Legal Guide for Unmarried Couples" and you have a winning combination that blows this book out of the water.

A Guy's Review........2007-02-02

My girlfriend and I decided to move in together a little while back and she asked me to read this book which she had recently purchased in anticipation of our decision. She said it would be a great conversation starter and a way for us to talk about things that we hadn't discussed before. I said "sure", and read it, and thought it was well worth my time.

It is written by women, and for a woman's point of view, but I thought it applied equally as well to guys.

From my point of view, the advice in the book was very good. I especially liked how real life examples were brought into play every time the author wanted to illustrate a specific point -sometimes for better, and sometimes for worse.

I like how the author talked about the financial commitments of a move-in (which can be as important as the emotional commitment). Couples often have a hard time talking about money, like it sort of debases the relationship, or is a taboo subject. But I believe that if you love someone, you should want to protect them, and you would want to make sure that if anything ever happened to you (or your relationship) that you'd both want to emerge whole to start again. No you can't plan for disaster, but you can plan for what the author calls "a bonk on the head which changes your personality forever which then leads to a parting of ways". It makes sense.

Does anyone ever intend to leave a relationship if they make the decision to cohabitate? I doubt it -but that's exactly the point. The book speaks about all the things you need to consider about timing, about commitment, and the views of your relatives. I would hope that no one ever broke up because they took a couple of months longer to rent a place together while they were sorting these issues out. Take a deep breath, read this book, and compare your experiences to those inside. If when you read it you feel closer to your partner, then great! But if you get a scrunchy feeling in your belly, then stop, take a step back, and wait a few more months while you talk through some of these issues.

And finally, I wanted to share some of the notes that I jotted down while reading the book...

"Be accountable for your feelings. A person isn't MAKING you feel sad, angry, or frustrated; you're ALLOWING yourself to feel these things. By taking responsibility for your actions and emotions, you'll give yourself the power to change the situation".

"When faced with a stalemate, evaluate whether the issue is more important to your beau, or to you. If it means more to him, give in. If you, don't back down."

"With problems, focus on solutions rather than the stuff that can't be changed."

Sound advice, and highly recommended!

Not bad.......2007-01-20

I feel that this book, though it brings up some interesting points (I was especially appreciative of the legal and financial advice), I found much of the covered topics to be for people with little common sense. Several of the women interviewed lived and stayed in relationships with men for years and years before even bringing up the idea of marriage, and then are devastated when they admit that they're not the marrying type. I am also of the opinion that if you are in a stable and serious relationship that is moving towards cohabitation, you should already know where your partner stands on marriage, children, or any possible future plan concerning your relationship. I get the feeling that this book is geared towards women who might not really know their significant others all that well.

Burned Alive: A Survivor of an "Honor Killing" Speaks Out

Average customer rating:

Burned Alive....tragic but true
Souad is a shero for surviving a modern-day Holocaust
How can anyone say this is not true?
HORRIBLE...
Humpty-Dumpty takes a Middle Eastern twist and Souad takes a great fall

Burned Alive: A Survivor of an "Honor Killing" Speaks Out
Souad
Manufacturer: Grand Central Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0446694878

Book Description

At once harrowing and moving, this international bestseller is the first true account ever published by the victim of an 'honor crime.' Souad was a 17-year-old woman living in a small village in Jordan when she made the mistake of falling in love-an event that would lead to unspeakable acts of violence and a lifetime of exile from her homeland. Desperate to leave her abusive childhood behind, Souad begins a relationship with a neighbor-one that would leave her pregnant, and her family shamed. Now, Souad faces the only punishment her society deems acceptable: death. Her survival of her family's attempt to kill her, leaving her with burns over 70% of her body, her dramatic escape, and her resolve to build a new life is a tale of heartbreaking drama and remarkable courage.

Customer Reviews:

Burned Alive....tragic but true.......2007-09-20

This book held my interest and at times made for shocking reading. A country with beliefs so foreign to us made it almost abhorant. The true tragedy is how women in other cultures suffer and we are powerless to do anything to stop it. This book was written by a very very brave woman.

Souad is a shero for surviving a modern-day Holocaust.......2007-09-08

"Burned Alive" is an insightful account of a heinous and violent crime, that is unfortunately rather common.

Souad describes thoughtfully how she was treated worse than an animal while she lived as a slave; owned by her father in a primitive West Bank Village. On a daily basis Souad was the victim of beatings and horrible abuse. Why is that?

Because like virtually all third-world/Islamic States, women are property; not human-beings. Souad is nothing if not honest and brave as she describes in detail how it is a sin simply to be born female. She even describes how her mother murdered her own newborn baby daughters because of their gender!

Souad was forbidden to ever speak to a man and could only go outside to work her long daily chores. When she was still a teenager one of her neighbors raped her repeatedly. She was young and vulnerable and this pig told her that he "loved" her and would "marry" her. But after Souad became pregnant this rapist abandoned her!

Poor Souad goes into detail about how she tried to hide her pregnancy because she knew that it would surely mean her execution. When her family was finally aware of her pregnancy (more than 6 months,) they had her brother-in-law douse her with gasoline and set her on fire. Soaud bravely describes how this felt and how she was treated.

This story is very sad, shocking, tragic but also hopeful. There are millions and millions of women who have been victims of these horrible honor murders. Souad is unique because she is a survivor. She survived her attempted murder. Her family left her for dead, but she survived. And she was able to start a new life!

My hope is that this book will be passed around in the Islamic third-world villages where women are treated worse than garbage. Proper education is the solution. No one deserves to be treated the way Soaud was; there is no justification for this.

Souad is a very courageous woman, not just for surviving, but for also telling her story. She still feels guilty, but if I could speak to her now I would tell her that she is a shero and has nothing to be ashamed off. Souad is a survivor.

How can anyone say this is not true?.......2007-09-02

I read this book when it first came out in hardback and admit I was blown away although I am someone who is VERY familiar with the challenges so many women face worldwide. I am disappointed with reviewers who state that the book is not true and only have one question: HOW CAN YOU KNOW THIS FOR A FACT? CAN YOU PROVE WHAT YOU ARE SAYING? The truth is that you cannot possibly know and that you are simply angry and making unfair statements. Life is stranger than fiction and no one but the author of this book knows for certain, but I suspect that this story IS true. There are many people who believe that such book exposures are meant to attack a culture or a religion. This is not true. You should not take these true stories as an attack on you or your country or your culture. These are individual stories that do not reflect on you, yet should be made known. This does not mean that your culture or your land does not have many wonderful aspects. I, myself, write about women's issues and just so happen to write about the Arab world because that is where I lived for much of my adult life and that is what I know, and women from the area come to me oftentimes asking that I tell their stories. Although I write true stories of women in the Arab world, and those stories are heart-wretching, I am still aware that there are many women living happy lives in Arab lands, and that there are many wonderful things about Arab culture and lands...things that we westerners can learn from and better ourselves. But the issue of abuse on women is one that should concern every caring person. Even if most women live in safety in the Arab world, it does not mean that ALL women live without abuse. Every life is different and readers from the Arab world should be glad such stories are exposed and work to stop the abuse of women, rather than gripe when stories are made public. I am from the United States yet am not ashamed to admit that we have many abuses of women here. I myself know some professional women (doctors, lawyers) who live in abusive relationships, which is horrifying. Yet I have found that a very important difference is that women in the USA who have an abuse problem CAN seek help from society and generally will find help. Sadly, in the Middle East when a woman complains of abuse, society generally BLAMES HER for the abuse rather than the man who is abusing her! Few people will step up and try to help. Why? Because they are worried that they themselves will be targeted. Also, to expose abuse is considered a huge shame on the country. This should not be the case. No one blames an entire country for a few bad people. If anyone in the area will be honest, they will admit that abuse of women is a genuine problem. Rarely will anyone help a woman in need. The area is still a part of the world where men are more valued than women, and until this attitude changes, a lot of women will pay the ultimate price, and will live miserable lives. For example: I still have very educated Arab friends who mourn at the birth of daughters and express openly their desire for sons only. Even the educated women I know keep this attitude ongoing, which is shocking considering the fact they are women and they should work to make the status of women high. It is a huge problem. When will the world acknowledge the truth that a baby girl is no less than a baby boy, both are precious and there should be rejoicing at the birth of either. So, those of you who make statements that this story is not true, perhaps you should look around the world and know that cruelty upon women knows no bounds. I believe that anything is possible and nothing in this arena surprised me anymore. Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia;Mayada, Daughter of Iraq: One Woman's Survival Under Saddam Hussein[;[ASIN:0470067292 Love in a Torn Land: Joanna of Kurdistan: The True Story of a Freedom Fighter's Escape from Iraqi Vengeance]]

HORRIBLE..........2007-08-10

This book was a big waste of both time and money. It is absolutely the worst thing I have ever read and, for someone who is interested in and has studied Islamic culture, religion and history, this book is a complete disgrace. Yes, some things that the author maintained happened to her do really happen. BUT, she did not experience just one bad thing, but ALL of them and, quite frankly, nobody is that unlucky. And even if someone can be that unlucky, there is no way such person could just randomly be saved by some European aid worker. Not after she was left to die. Although, I, too, was skeptical about the claims that Souad's story is a fake, after reading the first 20 pages, I was sorry I didn't listen to the people who wrote the negative reviews.

OK, in the words of Therese Taylor:

"An important point to note is that Burned Alive is a work of recovered memory." ... "There are similarities in most works of recovered memory and unreliable memoirs. The authors' stories are extreme, they are the victims of every conceivable circumstance, and everyone they meet tends to be a sadist. Their survival is always a miracle."

Also important to note is that such works are found to be fictional 90% of the time. Basically, in my opinion, this is yet another work of anti-Muslim propaganda that is becoming oh-so-popular these days. So, if you don't care about the truth, this is an excellent book for reinforcing your hatred of the entire Muslim world. But, then again, ignorance is bliss...

Humpty-Dumpty takes a Middle Eastern twist and Souad takes a great fall .......2007-05-03

It is highly suspenseful and I especially liked the evil telephone motif. This was back in the days before calling features when the phone still had enough mystique to sometimes in still fear.

Several reviewers have impugned the credibility of this story. The basic premise, unfortunately, is highly plausible and not just confined to Muslim countries. Someone also expressed contemptuous disbelief that Souad's mother would actually suffocate her baby daughters. This story takes place about three decades ago. Today gender (almost always female) infanticide has been made obsolete by ultra-sound. In countries like India (majority Hindu) and China (majority atheist) female fetuses are aborted at such a high rate many young men have difficulty finding wives. Many baby girls who manage to make it out of the womb alive end up in orphanages. This perturbing aspect of females helping to perpetuate their own subservient status is an irony usually overlooked by readers.

Burned Alive is a timeless story. This version just happens to take place in Palestine. Souad lives a very isolated and abusive life. Instead of her parents building self-esteem in their daughter, and warning her about the archetypal Humpty-Dumpty, they treat her as some sort scourge turned servant as compensation for not having been born male. She is kept locked up behind walls so that she won't escape and no one will use her. When she eventually manages to sneak out she is putty in the hands of a wily older man looking to score. He showers her with "kindness" and flattery, tells her he loves her and wants to marry her, etc. He gets her pregnant and then leaves the country for an extended vacation. It also turns out that he's already married or has a fiancée.

This creates an embarrassing quagmire for Souad's family: It makes the men look like a bunch of weenies who can't control their women. It also spoils their cash crop since in many cultures the groom must pay a bride price to the male head of household. Ergo, pregnant Souad must be annihilated in order to punish her and save face.

In the US murder is the leading cause of death among pregnant women, usually perpetrated by the husband or boyfriend who wants to be relieved of his paternal responsibility. Fortunately, defending one's so called "honor" is not a defense for murder. So, Charles Stuart, who fatally shot his pregnant wife and superficially shot himself blamed it on a non-existent black man. Rae Caruth denied shooting his pregnant girlfriend and if this had been prior to the advent of DNA testing he could have simply denied paternity. Scott Peterson blamed it on a band of marauding Devil worshippers. His trial was a death penalty (which is rarely carried out) case and he was convicted of two murders.

I am very grateful that in America women enjoy a status, economic power, and legal protect that exceeds that of many nations. Unfortunately, these advances haven't eradicated misogyny, which fuels violence against women.

FYI: For those interested in this subject I also recommend The Garlic Ballads by Mo Yan. It takes place in the Chinese countryside in 1987. A young woman, Jinju, is forced into an unwanted marriage with a much older man in order to secure a happy marriage for her older brother. Corrupt officials refuse to help her and she runs off with her true love. It is also a brutal story and its premise is basically the same.

Burned: A Regan Reilly Mystery (Regan Reilly Mysteries)

Average customer rating:

Wonderful

Burned: A Regan Reilly Mystery (Regan Reilly Mysteries)

Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster Audio
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

Series | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Women Sleuths | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Mystery & Thrillers | Books on CD | Audiobooks | Formats | Books

General | Books on CD | Audiobooks | Formats | Books
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Hitched (A Regan Reilly Mystery)
Twanged
Popped : A Regan Reilly Mystery
Fleeced : A Regan Reilly Mystery
Iced

ASIN: 0743536746

Book Description

Regan Reilly and her best friend, Kit, are on vacation in Honolulu, intent on having a Hawaiian adventure. They won't be disappointed!

When we last saw L.A.-based private detective Regan Reilly, she'd recently become engaged, but before the big event Kit convinces her to come to Hawaii for one last girls' weekend.

At the Waikiki Waters Resort, the body of Dorinda Dawes washes ashore. Around her neck is an exquisite and historically valuable shell lei that had been stolen from the Seashell Museum in Honolulu thirty years before. Will Brown, the manager of the resort, doesn't believe that it's an accidental drowning. In the three months Dorinda had worked in Hawaii, she had become a controversial character who had a reputation for pointing out the very worst in people. Will is afraid that she was murdered and that the murderer might still be in their midst.

Lucky for Will, he meets Regan Reilly in the hotel lobby and convinces her to get on the case. Can Regan find out what really happened to Dorinda before it's too late for someone else? Before it's too late for her?

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful.......2005-09-25

I loved it from the first disc to the last...but it ended too soon.

Why I Burned My Book (American Subjects)

Average customer rating:

Great book, great author, great teacher!
Why does Govt Train Disabled to be Disabled?
A Book Burning I Can Support

Why I Burned My Book (American Subjects)
Paul Longmore
Manufacturer: Temple University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Reference | Books & Reading | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Public Policy | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Disability | Specialties | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Allied Health Professions | Medicine | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The New Disability History: American Perspectives (History of Disability)
Nothing About Us Without Us: Disability Oppression and Empowerment
No Pity : People with Disabilities Forging a New Civil Rights Movement
Claiming Disability: Knowledge and Identity (Cultural Front Series)
Make Them Go Away: Clint Eastwood, Christopher Reeve and the Case Against Disability Rights

ASIN: 1592130240

Book Description

This wide-ranging book shows why Paul Longmore is one of the most respected figures in disability studies today. Understanding disability as a major variety of human experience, he urges us to establish it as a category of social, political, and historical analysis in much the same way that race, gender, and class already have been. The essays here search for the often hidden pattern of systemic prejudice and probe into the institutionalized discrimination that affects the one in five Americans with disabilities.

Whether writing about the social critic Randolph Bourne, contemporary political activists, or media representations of people with disabilities, Longmore demonstrates that the search for heroes is a key part of the continuing struggle of disabled people to gain a voice and to shape their destinies. His essays on bioethics and public policy examine the conflict of agendas between disability rights activists and non-disabled policy makers, healthcare professionals, euthanasia advocates, and corporate medical bureaucracies. The title essay, which concludes the book, demonstrates the necessity of activism for any disabled person who wants access to the American dream.

Customer Reviews:

Great book, great author, great teacher!.......2005-03-09

Brilliant book by a fabulous writer, historian, activist and educator. Prof Longmore for years has been teaching, writing and championing disability history -- in fact he is just this week receving an award from the American Association of People with Disabilities for his ongoing scholarship and his role as "an intellectual force and passionate spokesperson for all disabled people's right to dignified supports for independent living and self-determination." With solid logic and accessible language (pun intended), he demonstrates how social prejudices and institutional discrimination shape the lives of disabled americans as much--if not more--than any physical frailties or limitations. This work is simply too good to pass up! An excellent introduction to disability history and disability rights -- and a welcome antidote to the willful ignorance evident in the last review by "mipater."

Why does Govt Train Disabled to be Disabled?.......2004-03-01

I just cannot accept the fact that the truly handicapped have the demands that authors such as Longmore states. It's as though only a small number of disabled (and a large number of their lawyers) yell, scream, and whine for "rights" that are never denied from them in the first place.

As Disabling America taught me (ISBN: 0785262253), the disabled did not want to be turned into victims but that's exactly what the ADA did.

A Book Burning I Can Support.......2003-12-04

Paul K. Longmore is a historian. He wrote a well reviewed book on George Washington. In 1988, in front of the federal building in Los Angeles, he burned a copy of his book. Longmore saves the essay about the book burning until the end of Why I Burned My Book; Longmore needs to take the reader on a long and instructive journey through the history, imagery, and ethics of disabilities and disability rights so that the reader will understand why someone would burn their own book. Longmore's perspective as a historian with excellent writing skills and a physical disability probably isn't unique, but it certainly makes him more than qualified to write on the history of the disability rights movement. I enjoyed the history essays [which make up slightly less than half the book] the most. I found the essays on assisted suicide to be the most challenging. I support assisted suicide in principle, but I found Longmore's arguments in opposition well stated and troubling, and they've been swirling around my brain ever since I read them. I highly recommend Why I Burned My Book to anyone wanting a deeper understanding of disability and the disability rights movement.

Average customer rating:

A Pleasing Book for the Mind
A Dazzling Journey into Metaphor and Myth
Profound. Simple. Human.
Not Atwood's best poetry.
Spare, unsparing poetry, as contemporary as laser.

Morning in the Burned House
Margaret Atwood
Manufacturer: Mariner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Anthologies | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Selected Poems II: 1976 - 1986
Good Bones and Simple Murders
Selected Poems: 1965-1975
The Tent
The Burden of Memory, the Muse of Forgiveness (W.E.B.Du Bois Institute)

ASIN: 0395825210

Book Description

These beautifully crafted poems - by turns dark, playful, intensely moving, tender, and intimate - make up Margaret Atwood's most accomplished and versatile gathering to date, " setting foot on the middle ground / between body and word." Some draw on history, some on myth, both classical and popular. Others, more personal, concern themselves with love, with the fragility of the natural world, and with death, especially in the elegiac series of meditations on the death of a parent. But they also inhabit a contemporary landscape haunted by images of the past. Generous, searing, compassionate, and disturbing, this poetry rises out of human experience to seek a level between luminous memory and the realities of the everyday, between the capacity to inflict and the strength to forgive.

Customer Reviews:

A Pleasing Book for the Mind.......2007-05-11

Margaret Atwood has once again delivered a simply wonderful collection of her works. Being an avid reader of her work I delight in each new book she puts out. Her writing is so real one can almost feel, touch, taste, or be wherever she is writing about. There is a maturity and higher level of writing expertise that she possesses. I would almost dare to say she is a class of her own. An excellent book. I look forward to more in the future!

Dorothy Krusky
Author The Chrismas Cat - A Child's Christmas Story 2005
Life's Ride - A Journal of Poems 2007

A Dazzling Journey into Metaphor and Myth.......2000-04-04

An avid poetry reader and writer, I was introduced to the sparklingly new and innovative metaphors found in Atwood's book, MORNING IN A BURNED HOUSE, by a teacher. The poems certainly illuminate the ancient hidden core of individuals that yearns to beleive in something greater and more powerful...the human spirit. A great addition to a poetry library. Profoundly clear and imaginative.

Profound. Simple. Human........1998-11-04

This book is very aptly titled. The poems feel like waking up in a pile of cinders that used to be a house. Not sad really. Just sort of empty. As if everything has been reduced to stark facts with a few flowers sprouting here and there out of the ashes. There is something profoundly touching about these poems. They do an amazing job of conveying the spent feeling after the huge emotional turmoil of losing a parent. One line from the book that runs through my head sometimes: "After a pause, she says--he hears her say--'I love you like salt.'"

Not Atwood's best poetry........1997-05-08

While it's always cheering to find literary poetry on the bestseller list, this seems to have made the (Canadian)bestseller lists merely because of the author's name. It's not *bad* poetry, just not great, and Atwood at this late stage is forcing the humour: she's funny in her novels without being coy or whimsical, which she does to excess in this collection. Maybe it was an off-year for Atwood as poet--she's currently stronger as a novelist, in a reversal of her early career. This book is not representative of Atwood's best poetry; unfortunately, it is extremely difficult to find Atwood's best poetry in the United States

Spare, unsparing poetry, as contemporary as laser........1996-07-10

Margaret Atwood is an unnerving poet. The poems from her latest collection, Morning in the Burned House, slip into the dark spaces of the heart and probe the truths hidden there with a surgeon's calm attention and impersonal compassion. Nothing frightens off her surgical pen. And, to stretch the metaphor, there are the same displays of black, laconic humour with which every surgical team challenges death to another round. While many of the poems maintain a cool detachment, more or less amused, Atwood is equally adept at embracing the intensely personal with both love or anger. The most poignant poems in this collection deal with the death of the poet's father - and indeed, as the title of this collection suggests, a sense of loss is at the heart of many of these poems. Atwood's poetic vision of the world is often sharp and bleak. She speaks of this in "Owl Burning" when she writes, "You have soft feet./You don't know what it's like/so close to bedrock'. This is contemporary poetry at its rock hardest - and it's most memorable.

Not Quite Burned Out, but Crispy Around the Edges: Inspiration, Laughter, and Encouragement for Teachers

Average customer rating:

Just Starting

Not Quite Burned Out, but Crispy Around the Edges: Inspiration, Laughter, and Encouragement for Teachers
Sharon M. Draper
Manufacturer: Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

High School | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Pedagogy | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Education | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0325003653

Book Description

This book of inspirational stories and essays is designed for any teacher who has survived the first week of the first year of teaching. It offers memories of the joy of teaching, tells compelling tales of tragedy as well as survival, and provides opportunities for laughter, which is sometimes the only remedy for difficult situations.

Faced with low salaries, overcrowded classrooms, and dwindling public support, teachers are expected to improve student performance, answer public scrutiny, and solve society's problems - with just a stroke of chalk across a blackboard. It is easy to become discouraged, and many do. Not Quite Burned Out helps remind teachers of the reasons they entered the profession in the first place. Without disguising the heart-breaking realities, Draper nonetheless celebrates the joys and very real rewards of teaching. Her clear-eyed compassion and wry humor will offer inspiration to novice and longtime teachers alike.

Customer Reviews:

Just Starting.......2002-08-14

I left teaching for a job in Biotech a few years ago. If I had read this book first, I might not have left. I might have found the courage to finish my student teaching. Now times have changed again, I find my self in the credential program to be a guidance counselor. One of my assignments was to review a book about Philosophy of teaching, it was by chance that I came across Mrs. Draper's book. I believe that any form of art that invokes an emotional response in me to be brillant. Mrs. Draper's experiences placed in print brought me to tears, made me smile and most of all challenged me to think. I just wish I had read it sooner.

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