Hungry Ghosts: Mao's Secret Famine

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This first authoritative expose of the 1958-1962 famine prompted by China's collectivization plan, "The Great Leap Forward," comes at a time when the cult of Mao is alive and well inside China, and while agents of Chinese influence are able to arrange audiences with a President. Via his painstaking research and reporting that included two treks through interior Chinese provinces, Becker tells how the famine occurred because ill-trained peasants were forced to undertake a gigantic and centralized industrial and agricultural expansion. The new factories, canals, and irrigation systems failed spectacularly, and in contrast to propaganda boasts of having economically outstripped the U.S., when in reality the populace was driven by starvation to cannibalism, slavery, and madness.

Book Description

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the Chinese people suffered what may have been the worst famine in history. Over thirty million perished in a grain shortage brought on not by flood, drought, or infestation, but by the insanely irresponsible dictates of Chairman Mao Ze-dong's "Great Leap Forward," an attempt at utopian engineering gone horribly wrong. Journalist Jasper Becker conducted hundreds of interviews and spent years immersed in painstaking detective work to produce Hungry Ghosts, the first full account of this dark chapter in Chinese history. In this horrific story of state-sponsored terror, cannibalism, torture, and murder, China's communist leadership boasted of record harvests and actually increased grain exports, while refusing imports and international assistance. With China's reclamation of Hong Kong now a fait accompli, removing the historical blinders is more timely than ever. As reviewer Richard Bernstein wrote in the New York Times, "Mr. Becker's remarkable book....strikes a heavy blow against willed ignorance of what took place."

Customer Reviews:

Worthwhile.......2006-02-25

I find this book a most fascinating one . . . and a "required" reading for those interested not just in China's history but modern genocide, mass media control by state press, Communist theory development, among many other topics. It is easy to read and gruesome aspects of the famine are dealt with respectfully and with sensitivity.

I give it only four stars (rather than five) because I feel there is, at times, repetition of facts. All in all I highly recommend this book. Every person should read it to better understand and bring to light shameful acts against humanity.

A must read book.......2006-01-24

This book isn't especially well written from a literary perspective. In the reviews below you will find one or two criticisms such as an incomplete understanding of ancient Chinese history, which may well be valid. Unfortunately some people have obviously got hung up on the "30 million" deaths claim, but Becker does little to independently research the size of the death toll. He just summarises the various research that has been carried out, with what looks to me like a fair-minded commentary of the problems of estimating an accurate number.

However this is not the point of the book, which is firstly to gather together evidence that this famine did happen and secondly to piece together the complex strands explaining why it happened.

Ultimate blame is placed at the foot of Mao who firstly was the architect of the radical and in some cases barmy social and agricultural reforms which initiated the famine and secondly put in place a regime of terror which led most non-heroic subordinates to feedback the information they thought he wanted to hear regardless of the reality on the ground. Most of those who dared to tell the truth, ultimately paid with their life, either immediately or a few years later in the Cultural Revolution, which itself is seen by Becker as the way Mao sought to regain control of the party from the more moderate voices who had eventually managed to put in place the reforms to Mao's policies which ended the famine.

To his credit, Becker spends some time discussing the previous famines and periods of war and unrest which provide a backdrop to the situation. He also recognises, though does not emphasis some of Mao's achievements. His overall thesis is I think not, as some seem to suggest, that Mao deliberately and consciously murdered his own people in the way that Stalin did. It's more that Mao though he might have been a master political and military tactician had little understanding of human nature or science and was so drunk on his own propaganda that he refused to see how he could have been mistaken. Becker leaves open the morally important question of the extent to which Mao had deluded himself about the suffering of his people, and the extent to which he believed that such suffering was of little consequence in the greater scheme of things.

Becker also correctly lays considerable blame at the doors of those western commentators, China watchers and academics who were duped by Mao's propaganda - way up until the early 1990s, thus paving the way for a series of disasters around the world as various third world governments from Cambodia to Tanzania tried to emulate the apparent achievements of Mao's China with disastrous policies of their own.

I believe that Becker puts forward a fair minded and highly plausible analysis of what happened during this period, and given its importance not only from a moral perspective but in understanding the history of China and the world during the subsequent 50 years, it's a book that as many people as possible should be encouraged to carefully and open mindedly read.

More excellent information here..!.......2005-08-23

After reading this book, I also went to this website http://www.theepochtimes.com/jiuping.asp and read its articles entitled, "Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party". The information is very in-depth and goes steps further in exposing the CCP during its bloody rise to power and its current efforts to maintain absolute control. I would highly recommend checking it out.. All the materials are FREE and they even have free audio book format mp3's

World's best kept Communist tragedy .......2004-10-03

The tragedy of the massive famine that devoured untold numbers of lives in China during the 1959 - 1961 "Great Leap Forward" campaign was that the official stand of the Chinese Communist Party refused to acknowledge it as a man-made mistake.

This book acts like Spielberg's "Shoah Foundation", it's a testament to a fatalistic catastrophe of biblical proportions. It contains testimonies of survivors which the author had interviewed. Simple as it may seem, but some of the testimonies are indeed moving, touching and shows how hunger can reveal the bestial and the monstrosity of what a human being is capable of.

The greatest peacetime disaster of the 20th century.......2003-12-26

-----------------------------------------------------------
A horrifying and well-researched history of how Mao's "Great
Leap Forward" became the worst famine in history, killing
perhaps 30 million Chinese (1958 - 1960) -- it appears
unlikely an exact fatality figure will ever be known. Which
adds to the horror, I think, that millions of people, with hopes
and dreams like our own, could vanish without leaving
a trace, even a number, in the world outside their homes.
Not to mention uncounted millions of children whose lives
were blighted by brain-damage from malnutrition....

FWIW, Jasper concludes that Mao's Great Famine was more
omission than commission (in contrast to Stalin's): Mao's
absurd ideas of backyard industrialization, plus turning
loose the Red Guards chaos, ruined the harvests. Then
Communist Party officials simply denied the problem, and
concocted elaborate coverups -- even painting the tree
trunks to hide that the bark had been eaten by starving
people -- when Mao or senior officials were to visit famine
areas. And a smiling-peasants "Big Lie" for foreigners,
which worked for years.

It's a remarkable, and depressing, account. Highly recommended.

review copyright 1999 by Peter D. Tillman

The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts: A Riveting Investigation Into Channeling and Spirit Guides

Average customer rating:

Siren Call to Read The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts
A rare investigative treatment of the subject
A book more important than the Bible, Koran, and Talmud
Treacherous Waters
Not a Review As Such...

The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts: A Riveting Investigation Into Channeling and Spirit Guides
Joe Fisher
Manufacturer: Paraview Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Channeling | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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Parapsychology | Occult | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1931044023

Book Description

Mediumship dates back to the Greek Oracles and beyond, but millennia later nobody yet knows for certain what transpires when a medium enters a deep trance. Today, the practice of channeling spirit guides through hypnotized mediums is hotly debated. This strange phenomenon is either dismissed as a dubious parlor trick, or regarded as a form of communication between this world and the next. Many view "the guides" as a source of love and wisdom…but are they?

For five years, Joe Fisher painstakingly investigated the claims of channelers and the mysterious voices that speak through them. The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts is his gripping journey into a realm of darkness and deception.

Customer Reviews:

Siren Call to Read The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts.......2006-04-25

The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts is a spell binding paranormal detective story, elegantly written, and as
haunting and irresistible as its title implies. The implications of what British paranormal investigator and writer Joe Fisher discovers, at the apparent cost of his life, are staggering, and have such profound implications for all inhabitants of this particular plane of reality that as over the top as this may sound, this book may be one of the more important ever written.

The title capsulates, in perfect microcosm, the subject of the book and also the effect of the book on the reader...
at least this reader. This book is itself a rabbit hole, a rabbit hole with a certain suction, an undertow pulling you in as the author is pulled into an ever more high stakes involvement with the phenomenon.

Joe Fisher experiences the classic pitfall of the paranormal researcher. He begins as an observer, but becomes ever more obsessed and affected, even over-powered by the object of investigation.

This is the sort of book that has an irresistible allure like an over ripe fruit hanging lowly on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, a fruit I found myself reaching for at the very first moment I heard mention of the book's title.

Essentially, this book pulls back the veil on the channeling and spirit guide phenomena and compels you to look, through a glass darkly, at evil in one of its more beautiful, complex, seductive, ingeniously manipulative forms.

While it is dangerous to be unaware of such dark possibilities and manipulative entities, it may also be dangerous to cast your attention in their direction. Attention is not just internal, it is also a beacon visible to others, and not all of those others are visible to us.

In case I've been too luke warm in my praise of this book, let me add that it has intense entertainment value to read, finely crafted sentences, perceptive details of people and places, observations that are nuanced and multi-layered, a narrator who earns his reliability as a witness even as he descends into the most unreliable of circumstances. The flowing succession of events and realizations has a haunting, gothic effect on the reader, like a Palantir that compels and obsesses your attention, but without excessively distorting your view. And if that wasn't enough praise to make this book shimmer darkly in your mind's eye, and compel you to read it
with the obsessive attention it deserves, I don't know what else to say....

A rare investigative treatment of the subject.......2006-02-26

When I began reading this book, I simply could not put it down, and I ended up staying awake all night reading. Quite simply, it is riveting. A seriously ill woman with no interest whatsoever in occult or religious matters is put under hypnosis by a neighbor, in an effort to relieve some of her pain. Surprisingly, while she is under, her "guide" reveals himself, and begins a highly philosophical dialogue. It seems the woman, unbeknownst to her or anyone else, is an excellent channel of those from the other side. An informal group gathers around her, and in time they each meet their guides through her, who all seem to know extraordinarily personal information about those gathered. A rapport quickly develops between the guides and the members of the group, and the guides regale the members with accounts of former lives spent together, the nature of earthly existence, the karmic ties being played out among the members, etc. Sometimes the guides give information on the guides' own most recent past lives. The information is highly detailed, including place-names, names of people, specific landmarks in obscure places and times, etc.

Joe Fisher, one of the group members and the author of this book, wants desperately to have some sort of tangible and objective proof that the information coming from the guides is verifiable and factual. His quest takes him around the world, and into the realm of a kind of ghostly smoke and mirrors, where, in every case, the evidence is highly compelling and accurate...and yet genuine confirmation is *just* beyond Fisher's grasp. His journey also takes him into the realm of other channels, and their specific entities, some quite well-known. What he finds is both tantalizing and even mind-boggling.

The implications of the author's discoveries are far-reaching, regarding the reality of earthbound souls, the true origins of channeled entities (despite the entities' own self-proclaimed origins), the smokescreens that channeled entities use, and the possible reasons behind it. If you are at all interested in "A Course in Miracles," the Abraham books, the Seth books, the Michael books, Ramtha, etc., I strongly advise you to read Joe Fisher's "The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts" first. As other reviewers have noted (accurately, in my opinion), this book truly is one of the most important books on the subject of New Age phenomena; it is a pivotal and important work and I can't recommend it highly enough.

A book more important than the Bible, Koran, and Talmud.......2004-07-25

With all our 'advances', and history to learn from, why are we still imprisoned on planet Earth ravaged by poverty, disease, and wars, and looking Armaggedon in the face every day, instead of 'Star Trek' exploring the universe in space ships ? Read Joe Fisher's book about Hungry Ghosts, and realize why his book is more important to humanity than the Bible, Koran, Talmud, and Hindu Vedic Texts combined, THE most important book ever written. (Thank you Joe Fisher, Be at Peace).

Treacherous Waters.......2003-11-04

To fully understand The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts (1989), it is important that readers know that author Joe Fisher committed suicide about the time this Paraview Press edition was issued in 2001. According to Paraview's website ("Troubled by personal problems - as well as by the spirits he claimed to have angered in writing The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts - Joe Fisher took his own life on May 9, 2001"), Fisher's tragic suicide resulted from late complications involving his investigation into the world of "channeling and spirit guides," which makes the book's dedication ("This book is dedicated to my dear mother, Monica, who has always insisted that demons do exist") all the more ominous.

The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts recounts Fisher's fraternization over a number of years with a diverse group of people who meet weekly to "channel" the disembodied "guides" who speak to them through a non - professional, fatally - ill trance medium. Eventually coming into verbal contact with his own personal "guide," "Filipa," a Greek woman who claims to have been his devoted lover in a former life, Fisher slowly becomes emotionally dependent on their apparently sincere and forthright communications. Fighting paranoia as he discovers that "Filipa" seems to know his every thought and action and is even able to intervene in his daily affairs, the author sets off to England and Greece to prove to himself that "Filipa" was in life who she claims to be in death.

The Siren Call Of Hungry Ghosts is a disturbing book on many levels, not the least of which is Fisher's initial failure to establish any sort of sanity - preserving rational guidelines to help him discriminate between, understand, and classify his perceptions, insights, and experiences. Though Fisher had written two earlier books on the subject of reincarnation, and appears to have humbly considered himself somewhat of an expert and skeptic, readers will readily discern Fisher's amazing lack of objectivity, as well as his broad credulity and emotional desperation as his experiences with "Filipa" devolve from the surprising and inexplicable to the harrowing and destabilizing. The book is full of indefinite suppositions like "throughout recorded history, many people have been sensitive to an accompanying presence in their daily lives" and "humanity has always been attended by invisible beings," which make it clear that bedrock intellectual ballast was a quality the author lacked. As a result, Fisher seems headed for serious trouble even before the events of the book begin, especially since "gullible" is an adjective the author feels applies only to other channeling enthusiasts. Sadly, though familiar with the work of William James, Carl Jung, and Julian Jaynes, Fisher never seriously considers the dynamic role human psychology may play in the complex channeling phenomena.

Since the author was clearly experiencing a remarkable series of extraordinary events, readers may find it difficult to sympathize with his literalizing desire to hold the "discarnate" presences absolutely at their word, as if the content and nature of their pronouncements were his to command. As the book progresses, the author's "need to believe" becomes increasingly frantic, barely concealing an unsubtle will for power that Fisher fails to acknowledge or discipline. Addicted to "Filipa" and the romantic fantasies he has spun around her, confused, and manipulated on all levels by an increasing variety of "entities," Fisher pays a heavy price for his hunger for "self - knowledge," preoccupation with the dubious notion of "eternal love," and needy willingness to place his emotional and mental welfare wholly in the trust of apparent unknown super - normal agencies. Obviously, Fisher should have questioned whether his fervent desire for an all - powerful and transcendent guardian figure did not disguise his own unresolved parental complexes.

Fisher did realize that his interest had become an unhealthy obsession, but rather later in the game than readers will. By that time, he was moving unsuccessfully from channeler to channeler, attempting to prove that "Filipa" could manifest identically through different mediums, or that other entities could blindly identify her as his true "guide," and thus offer some evidence of her objective reality. In one bizarre episode remarkable for its audacity, Fisher flies to England in hopes of obtaining an audience with a newborn infant who he believes to be the reincarnation of "Ernest," one of the disembodied personalities whose given history has proven to be false. Meanwhile, the author's human relationships fail, and he finds that "no matter how hard I tried, I could not shrug off a cloying sense of contamination which could neither be pinpointed or explained. Life had rarely been so fraught with uneasiness."

The book's last chapter and newly - added epilogue find Fisher wiser, paraphrasing Goethe ("Whatever liberates our spirit without giving us self - control is disastrous") and Jung ("We die to the extent that we fail to discriminate"), but still anxious, paranoid about the "invisible" forces around him, unsure of the order of things, and fearful that the retribution of the "spirits," his "unseen enemies," may lead to his demise. The Siren Call of Hungry Ghosts is an intelligent book that Fisher partially intended as a warning to others; it is also a sad and educational commentary on human fallibility, hubris, recklessness, and the tragedy that can arise when "the abiding human need for greater meaning in life" goes awry.

Not a Review As Such..........2002-12-11

I want to confess up front that I haven't read this book-regardless of that, I would like to point out that Fisher wound up jumping off of a cliff in 2001, in spite of his convictions that suicide was never justifiable. You have to wonder how much the dealings with "spirits" had to do with his suicide. The moral of his book seems to be that people are better off not communicating with "spirits", and I would imagine that his suicide makes point more profoundly than anything that he wrote would. Having said that, I'm ordering this book and I plan to read it immediately.

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Hungry Ghosts: China's Secret Famine
Jasper Becker
Manufacturer: John Murray General Publishing Division
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Social History | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0719554330

Hungry Ghosts: A Novelization (X-Files (Juvenile))

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Want To Play
Just cant put it down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Comment on the research done for this story
Non stop thrill of action
Hungry Ghosts

Hungry Ghosts: A Novelization (X-Files (Juvenile))
Ellen Steiber
Manufacturer: HarperEntertainment
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Popular Culture | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Teens | Subjects | Books

Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Teens | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0064471780

Book Description

It is Yu Lan in San Francisco's Chinatown, the Festival of the Hungry Ghosts -- a time of year when offerings are made to appease the ghosts roaming the earth. Only this time several murders have occurred, and the last victim left behind one message: the Chinese character meaning ghost.Locals fear that perhaps the Hungry Ghosts have not been appeased, and are seeking revenge. But when Special Agents Mulder and Scully are asked to investigate, they stumble upon a deadly lottery run by a secret society of Chinese immigrants. The winner receives a large sum of money -- but the cost of losing could mean death.

Customer Reviews:

Want To Play.......2003-03-15

I just read the book The X Files THe Hungry Ghosts by Ellen Steiber. It was a great book.
It's about a man named Johnny Lo. he was murderd in a crematorium by ghosts. Agent Mulder and Scully investigated the crime. It only gets more interteristing.They meet a man named Glen Hisen. They find out that he was involved in a game. If you get a good draw you win lots of money. If you get a bad draw you will die. This book was very exciting and it is a hard book to turn down. Read this book and find out what happens next.

Just cant put it down!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.......1999-06-19

This book is about a chinese holiday which ghost come to look for food.A man named Xin gets into a gaming game which can cause him his life.He did lose one eye.If you want to know the whole story then read the book is very good.

Comment on the research done for this story.......1999-05-15

The author has clearly done his work or he himself has known about this Chinese festivals long ago. I'm a Chinese and found that there are some parts of the story about the Hungry Ghosts Festival quite true but some far from reality. the Hungry Ghosts Festival is not about the dead coming back to take revenge. Instead the dead just rises and comes back to recieve their loved ones. Actually it's just a festival celebrated and prepared by us, the Chinese. Not really as scary as in the book.

Non stop thrill of action.......1999-01-13

This book has a good climax the book suspence you. It has alot of action and some sad parts.About when Hsin has a daugther that has cancer and he does not want her to die not like her mother.I do recomend this book to others that like mystories because it has a litle mystory you must find out in this book.

Hungry Ghosts.......1998-12-20

In San Francisco's Chinatown it is Yu Lan Hui, the Festival of the Hungry Ghosts which is a time when people give stuff like food and hell money to please the ghosts roaming the earth.But this time several of murders have happened,and the last victim left behind a clue which was one message:the chinese character:Ghost. The people of Chinatown are afraid that thier offerings weren't enough and it didn't please the ghosts. They also think that they are seeking revendge on Earth.But when Special Agents Mulder and Scully investigate they find a life risking lottery run by a secret society of chinese immigrants. And the one who wins, wins a large number of money. But if you lose it could mean losing your life.

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Deep and intense story of human nature.
Friendships and Deep Hidden Secrets of the Psyche

Hungry Ghosts
Susan Johnson
Manufacturer: Washington Square Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Friendship | Women's Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Memoirs | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0743437772

Book Description

At once a love story, a riveting tale of suspense, and an illumination of the artist's psyche, this searing novel introduces one of Australia's most acclaimed authors to American readers. A seductive work of vast geographical and psychological scope, Hungry Ghosts follows two young painters from Sydney to London to Hong Kong, probing the raw terrain between love and friendship, creativity and madness.

Emerging from Susan Johnson's hallucinatory evocation of late twentieth-century Hong Kong -- a fading colony bathed in neon, teeming with political and emotional refugees and evaporating dreams -- are the overlapping stories of two best friends and the man who comes between them. Rachel Gallagher is careful, inhibited, and achingly self-conscious. Anne-Louise Buchan is fearless, charismatic, and intent on wresting meaning from life's chaos. Polar opposites, they are bound together as artists hungering for experience. Martin James Bannister, exceptionally handsome, is a futures dealer with a talent for reinvention and a menacing hunger of his own.

Through this trio, Johnson explores the fragility of the unquiet mind and love's capacity to glean redemption from even the darkest malignancies. In Hungry Ghosts she presents a vision of life that is eerie, passionate, and affecting.

Customer Reviews:

Deep and intense story of human nature........2004-07-29

A Fabulous book. I totally enjoyed the intense depth of this book. Initially, I was a bit taken aback by the sexual preverseness of one the characters but it was very well handled without being too graphic and matched the painful confusion of the novel's political setting and characters' personal conflicts. The author's style of writing was easy to read, very realistic yet, almost poetic and at the same time ... taking you on an emotional sweeping journey with the characters and through the recent political transitions of Hong Kong.
A Great style of writing not easily found in much of today's fiction; this should have been on the Best seller's list.
Looking forward to more of the same intensity and depth from this author. A must Read!

Friendships and Deep Hidden Secrets of the Psyche.......2004-05-29

Bought this book solely by the recommendation on the jacket cover based on the quote from the UK Guardian "The best thing to come out of Australia since Peter Carey". Another positive statement on the inside cover, from the Who Weekly, "...combines emotional power with assured artistic polish", that clinched my decision to buy the book. Interested in other cultures, I had no idea, *not* a clue ... about the deeply disturbing subject matter of this book. A word to this wise, there are a few explicit disturbing descriptions of s*x*al perversion. Frankly, I would not have read this book had I known. Nothing in the title or cover descriptions (inside or outside) leads one to suspect. While I give it 5 stars for drama, suspense, characterization, artisic and creative writing, the author's extraordinairy ability to write about deep psychological problems ... still, I feel I was tricked into reading the book. However, as a reviewer, to new readers, I am upfront about its contents. Oddly enough, I do highly recommend this book,if one does not mind reading about this topic.

Rachel Gallagher and Anne-Louise Buchanan, two very different personalities who were born and raised in Brisbane, Australia, become best friends as they share similar artistic careers at a fashion magazine. They escape their mundane existence in Brisaben, to explore artistic career options in London, UK. Each gets odd jobs, one in a women's clothing store; the other as a waitress. They dreams of making it big in the world as famous artists. Oddly enough for one of these two, the dream comes true. The author alternates the stories and lives of each main character in subsequent chapters. We are first introduced to Martin James Bannister, a handsome stock broker and trader in Hong Kong. We learn of his career climb after graduating from the London School of Economics. He kept his social background suitably vague so that although he was from a working class background, no one knew or suspected. The author reveals and explores different psycholiogcal aspects of the main characters by reviewing how they were raised and the impact of key familial relationships on their personalities. This clever writing device gives the unsuspecting reader clues to future problems, however innocent the early life experiences sound, they carry the seeds of destruction ... in the future. The book is riveting and eerie ... the bonds of friendship link these two friends and pull them down deeper and deepr into a whirling abysss of unusual life experiences of chaotic and destructive proportions. Only in later chapters does the reader connect early developmental experiences and family relationships that lead to personality and behavioral patterns. These culminate into major problems that are woven as the main themes of this book. These three lives are trapped because of their past ... not by lies ... but somehow their life experiences and personalities interlink and hook in the most twisted ways ... unimaginable except by the author. Uniquely interesting book. Erika Borsos (erikab93)

Mooncakes and Hungry Ghosts: Festivals of China
Average customer rating:

A useful reference

Mooncakes and Hungry Ghosts: Festivals of China
Carol Stepanchuk , and Charles Choy Wong
Manufacturer: China Books & Periodicals
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Holidays | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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Customer Reviews:

A useful reference.......1999-04-11

This is a nice book, useful as a reference for all the major Chinese holidays.

Average customer rating:

Interesting novel with metaphysical insight
A LITERATE, Character-driven Page-turner!
Sadly Flat
Sad to have finished it.
Hungry Ghosts

Hungry Ghost: A Novel
Keith Kachtick
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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Buddha Da

ASIN: 0060523913
Release Date: 2004-07-20

Book Description

Carter Cox is a talented but dissipated freelance photojournalist living in New York City's East Village with his sad dog and bad habits. Though he travels to exotic places taking pictures of models and celebrities, he yearns to do more meaningful work and to mend his womanizing ways. He also wants to put into practice the lessons he learns from his Buddhist betters, but he continues to carry with him his “seduction kit”: a chessboard, cigarettes, and a Cormac McCarthy novel.

At a Buddhist retreat, he meets Mia Malone, a beautiful, smart devout Catholic determined to remain a virgin until she is married. Carter falls hard, and Mia nervously agrees to join him on a photo shoot in Morocco. With both of their souls hanging in the balance, they quickly go from the ocean to hot water: crashing their car, getting arrested, running afoul of a sadistic gendarme, and trying to flee the country. Over the course of their adventure, they discover that karma and the human heart work in very mysterious ways.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting novel with metaphysical insight.......2004-09-25

This is the first novel I've read that uses the second person POV and I was skeptical that it would work in such a lengthy (322 page) book without becoming annoying, but what a pleasant surprised it turned out to be. It works brilliantly, a deliberate choice by the author for the underlying spirituality of the novel.

Some critics have complained about the author's frequent mention of brand names, but I also believe that was intentional, because it became less of a focus for the protagonist as the novel progresses. What we see is a portrait of a shallow, womanizing, materialistic Manhattanite and his new introduction and struggle with the non-materialistic philosophy of Buddhism. There are plenty of basic Buddhist concepts mentioned early on and he meets an interesting young Catholic woman at a meditation retreat.

The descriptions of Manhattan are excellent. The writing overall is exceptionally well done. The novel even has an interesting twist that reminded me of the film "The Devil's Advocate". I liked the brief glimpse of the bardo state, a warning to the reader what our unquenchable material desires might lead us to in the afterlife. I was interested in reading more about it, but I guess we only get a glimpse.

The weakest point of the novel occurs 2/3rds through the novel, when the main characters take an unplanned detour. While it heightened the terror and urgency of the novel as well as danger level for the characters, it seemed a bit too convenient and unecessary for me. I actually feared the direction the writer was taking us in the novel, but the resolution of the climax was a relief and saved the story, highlighting the main point of what our life on earth should be about. The ending came a little bit sooner than I liked, but I understood the underlying spiritual message of the novel, the metaphysical insights that we only truly live when we've faced death head on and survived. After such harrowing experiences, we see the shallowness of a materialist based life and appreciate our relationships with other people. I'd recommend this book to anyone interested in spirituality, the search for deeper meaning in life, and an introduction into basic Buddhist beliefs. I hope the writer will continue to write novels of a metaphysical bent. I look forward to his next work.

A LITERATE, Character-driven Page-turner!.......2004-01-07

I stayed up way past bedtime to finish this story! It left me with a wonderful satisfied feeling I wish I got from more novels. I feel I know the characters really well--their good points and quirks, the tiny details of their minds and hearts and environments, their blind spots and flaws--although one of the things I most appreciate is the way Kachtick never judges these flaws, but remains consistently compassionate toward his very human characters.
So far this review makes Hungry Ghost sound like a character-driven novel, and it is that, but it is also an exciting can't-put-it-down page-turner with twists and turns that surprised me again and again. Not too many novels I have come across are so strong on both plot and character. It's moving, it's inventive, and it's funny--I was often laughing at the scrapes these characters found themselves in, their take on things, and the author's clever structural decisions as well.
All of this comes to us through a beautiful, fresh, accomplished prose that is a pleasure in itself. This is a wise, charming, entertaining and generous novel, highly recommended for fans of smart adventure, for lovers of good writing, and for spiritual seekers of all stripes.

Sadly Flat.......2003-12-01

I really wanted to love this book. I ordered it hoping that it might work for a class I teach on Buddhism. Ultimately, I found it silly and rather self-aggrandizing. I don't like how Tom Robbins now writes thinly veiled didactic books: he tells you he has the coolest tastes and the coolest worldview, and spends the length of the text telling you all about this. In some ways I feel that Kachtick may have fallen into this trap: I got the sense that he was writing just to convince us that his ways are the coolest ways, and that we should adopt them: his character development is weak--he writes characters to symbolize stereotypes, making judgments about most of them as he goes. His female protagonist is a wimpy virginal character who tags along with the male protagonists' ideas and mood swings (gender conscious folks will probably cringe at the character). The main character himself is so internally unhappy and unlikable that I felt relieved when the book ended. Kachtick made the embarrassing mistake of adding a James Bond escape-from-prison-hero-type-scenario that was so ridiculously out of place and cliche.
I admire Kachtick for what he seemed to be going for--to show us a character imprisoned in his own consumerist appetites, as well as a character who successfully works toward transcendence of these appetites. We need more of this, more fiction that portrays the ills of our times, as well as the medicine (according to Kachtick, Buddha Dharma). This book, however, just felt far too flat, and with far TOO clear of a point, to really hit. I will give him this credit: the book had me drawn in enough, like a sugary t.v. show, to keep me reading until the end. Also, his portrayal of the state where one fully drowns oneself in sense pleasures was right-on.
I know that the author does amazingly valuable work with the Lineage Project, teaching meditation to incarcerated youth,so,ultimately, I thank Keith for putting himself (and his tastes and worldview) out there.

Sad to have finished it........2003-10-21

This is a remarkable book that makes a lasting impression and leaves us to consider our own shortcomings, but with faith. Beautifully written and almost impossible to put down, I recommend this book to anyone searching for something better.

Hungry Ghosts.......2003-10-18

Jacqueline Kolosov....
Review of Hungry Ghost by Keith Kachtick
New York: New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2003

What immediately drew me to Hungry Ghost is Keith Kachtick's use of second person narration. In my experience, it is a very difficult point of view to sustain. Yet Kachtick makes it work brilliantly. As Carter Cox struggles (often bungles) toward his Buddha Nature or higher Self, the second person narrative makes the reader a fundamental part of that struggle by placing the reader in Carter's position. When Carter muses on the reasons for coming to the Woodstock retreat, the second person implicates the reader as well: "If for no other reason, you're here because you're tired of not knowing how to connect with people, tired of believing that intimacy, by definition, is a killjoy." Carter becomes a kind of mass culture Everyman.
To further enliven and enrich the narrative, Kachtick plays the intimacy of the second person against an omniscient narrator who really is all-knowing. This is a risky strategy. Yet again, he carries it off because it feels very much like that higher Self speaking: that Buddha Nature which, we learn, is inside all of us. Omniscience allows the narrative to explore past, present, and future, a strategy that makes sense in a novel devoted to exploring the consequences of karma.
As you've probably guessed, Hungry Ghost is not a morally timid novel. Carter Cox's challenge is to abandon his sensual, compartmentalizing ways and surrender to the higher Self. As his mentor Christopher puts it: `Burn the self until it's no longer there. Incinerate the self, Carter. Then there'll be nothing to separate you from the Great Perfection.' (I'd like to find a teacher like that!) Carter's out-of-control spending sprees, his substance abuse, and his penchant for quick sex, are the obstacles that Kachtick-often hilariously-throws in his path. But on another level, his protagonist's situation is deadly serious. Carter's life is at stake. Because the narrative places the reader in Carter's position, so are our lives: present and future.
Although we are not given the same access to Carter's love interest Mia Malone (nor are we led to believe that she is prone to the same self-destructive tendencies), we do become intimately involved in her quest for that higher Self. As she tells Carter: `I'm a very hungry young woman, and I find inspiration a powerful delicacy.' Both she and Carter are truth seekers. Although other contemporary writers are writing morally ambitious fiction, Kachtick's novel offers a particularly vibrant, inspiring example. In all honesty, I haven't read anything quite like it.
Hungry Ghost is not just morally ambitious; it's didactic also. (The two tend to go hand in hand). In fact, on many levels, the novel provides a user friendly, highly entertaining introduction to Buddhism and the practice of meditation, simultaneously showing that Buddhism can coexist with other religious traditions. The fact that Kachtick accomplishes all of this-and makes the novel entertaining while never letting go of the instructive elements-is a major and much needed coup for spiritual fiction. Hungry Ghost inspires us to learn more about religious traditions and asks us to investigate and develop our own spiritual lives. One of my favorite lines is simply: "We will sit here, the Buddha and I, until only the Buddha remains."
As further motivation to read Hungry Ghost, I'll stress Kachtick's humor as a strategy for inspiring change as well as entertainment. In many ways, Hungry Ghost is a deeply critical-and much needed-book about the dangers of contemporary American culture. (I just read an email alert on how to avoid "ghastly gas prices." In my opinion, we need to start paying for our SUVs and indulgent driving habits-and start realizing new alternatives.) So, Carter takes us to a world we know well, at least through magazines, advertising, and movies. It's a supposedly glamorous world of modeling, money, travel, and beauty. Yet he gives us the shadow side, and boy are there cobwebs and goblins.
One of the most powerful moments in the novel is the chapter exploring Carter's photography-what he loves about it; how he got there. Here, he realizes what's become of his art. Instead of a man who strives to make the best photographs he can, he's become "a cold, gray gun for hire." Another author could present this same context and make the reader very depressed. But Kachtick makes us laugh, simultaneously implicating us in Carter's tendencies. After all, we're in the position of the "you." We love designer clothes, technological toys, luxury ice creams, flattery. (Even the chaste Mia admits as much.)
Kachtick criticizes, but he gets us to do so by laughing, and so the critique becomes instructive. After all, if we can't laugh at ourselves, we'll get very depressed. And depressed people don't tend to work towards positive change. As the omniscient narrator tells us more than once: "The universe wants us to be strong."

Jade Dragons and Hungry Ghosts
Average customer rating:

I wouldn't pay list price...

Very nice new monsters that trigger adventure hooks

Solid Addition to Oriental Monsters

Good and bad

Jade Dragons and Hungry Ghosts

Manufacturer: Green Ronin Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
General | Role Playing & Fantasy | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0970104898

Book Description

Forest demons, heavenly dragons, shapeshifting foxes, and hungry ghosts thirsty for revenge-all stalk forth from the legends of Asia! Surprise players with bell spirits, bat-ninjas, demonic oni, the Chinese Phoenix, and the legendary Monkey King! These all-new monsters thrive in every environment from bamboo forests to samurai castles, from raging oceans to mist-enshrouded mountains, and from the depths of Hell to the harmony of Heaven.

Jade Dragons and Hungry Ghosts includes more than 50 fully-illustrated monsters from the legends of Japan, China, Burma, Vietnam, and Malaysia, brought to life by such renowned artists as rk post, Quinton Hoover, Michael Phillipi, Tony DiTerlizzi and Toren "MacBin" Atkinson. Authors include ex-Dragon editor and TSR designer Wolfgang Baur, Dragon Fist designer Chris Pramas, Greyhawk guru Erik Mona, and Forgotten Realms stalwart Steven E. Schend. The book also boasts a special introduction and featured monster by original Oriental Adventures designer David "Zeb" Cook!

A must for any DM, Jade Dragons and Hungry Ghosts lets players tangle with the beasts from the east. Your Asian adventures start right here.

Customer Reviews:

I wouldn't pay list price..........2005-01-09

Contains 50-60 monsters but feels like a lot less. Basically very few of these monsters jump out at or inspire me. I might use two or three of them at most. The Monkey God was a fun read though and the highlight of this book. Save your money for larger and more interesting monster compendiums and put an asian twist on them yourself.

Very nice new monsters that trigger adventure hooks.......2002-12-09

First the bad,
If you are looking for more then monsters, tough break, there is nothing but monsters here.

The good,
Though black-and-white, the artwork is very nice and the presented monsters do all have a decent picture. To make life easy on the DM, all monsters have a well enough documented past. Monsters come in all kind of varietys, from CR 1/2 to well over 20. Combining this with the Oriental Adventures book, gives you some great possibilitys.

Solid Addition to Oriental Monsters.......2002-05-03

Green Ronin hasn't disappointed me yet. This is a collection of creatures that haven't been done to death, and that are fun to play. I like the dragons (there's only two, and one is very different from the traditional, European dragon). I like the mechanics (new twists on the undead, on spirits, and on "friendly" monsters), and the good/bad ratio of the art is about 75% good to 25% bad. Better than a lot of d20 game stuff.

It's a decent mix of aggressive, friendly, city and wilderness creatures. It includes two gods (the Monkey King, and the Ryushin, the Dragon God), both of them usable as patrons or sponsors for expeditions. Finally, it presents one new PC race (the tanuki, sort of a Drunken Monkey type, but it's more like Drunken Badger).

Good and bad.......2002-04-28

Let's start off with the good:

Some really cool new monsters (mostly undead and shapechangers).
Some really cool artwork.

Now the bad:
Some not very usable (although interesting) monsters.
Some old monsters just redone (zombies, giants, dryads etc...)
Some really bad artwork.
Too many dragons (yes I realize that "Jade Dragons" is part of the title, but my characters just don't fight that many dragons)

I would suggest this for anyone running an oriental campaign setting. But if you're just looking for new monsters, it may not be worth it.

Hungry Eyes
Average customer rating:

Not His Best Work

This one isn't your everyday, run-of-the-mill revenge story

A NOVEL THAT CRACKLES WITH SUSPENSE!!!

Leaves one unfulfilled.

Light-weight puffery

Hungry Eyes
Barry Hoffman
Manufacturer: Leisure Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Hoffman, Barry | ( H ) | Authors, A-Z | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Judas Eyes

Eyes of Prey

ASIN: 0843944498

Customer Reviews:

Not His Best Work.......2006-05-21

His short story, TIME FOR ME which is found in the Borderlands 5 anthology impressed me so much that I went out and bought this puppy.

Can't honestly say this did the same for me. The prose is average, and even as a "character study" this was pretty average. The suspense is minimal, and the reader's overall affair with the characters will more than likely leave a bit to be desired.

Still, it was a fairly entertaing read, but I went in with higher expectations. The writer seems to have great insights into female characters, but didn't really develop them as much as I know he could have.

Just my 2 cents...

This one isn't your everyday, run-of-the-mill revenge story.......2005-02-28

The first of the "Eyes" Series, Hungry Eyes, is a noteworthy effort. Hoffman digs deeply into the minds of his characters and, whether or not you agree with their actions or not, they're still interesting. You don't always have to agree with the actions of the protagonist(s) to enjoy a book. These characters are not stereotypical, they are purely three dimensional, unusual, and fascinating.

The suspense really isn't that strong, it's not THAT type of thriller. Everything's intriguing though, there's lots of action going down, and the subject matter hasn't been touched upon in this way that much. Much of it is soaked with mental thoughts and ambitions, a very character driven story.

Hoffman has a powerful voice that should be listened to.

A NOVEL THAT CRACKLES WITH SUSPENSE!!!.......2001-08-21

The first book in the "Eyes" series by Barry Hoffman is HUNGRY EYES. This is the story of Shara Farris (a.k.a. Renee Barrows) who was kidnapped by a neighbor, Edward Costanzo, when she was ten-years-old. Costanzo supposedly held Renee prisoner in an isolated cabin for six long days, during which time she was tortured so that the facial expressions of her torment could be photographed. When Costanzo was finally caught and Renee was freed, he ardently denied doing anything other than taking her to the cabin. He went to jail and Renee was placed with foster parents for her protection. Months later, though everything appeared to be going okay, something traumatic happened to Renee that forced her to make a vital decision regarding her life. She decided to leave her foster home by faking a suicide and then risking the dangers of living on the streets of Philadelphia as a homeless person. Everyone soon thought she was dead, and Renee felt safer than she had in years. Thirteen years have now passed, and Renee calls herself Shara Farris. The citizens of Philadelphia, however, know her as the Vigilante...a person who's been killing sexual predators left and right. There's only one person in the city, Deidre Caffrey, who actually knows the Vigilante's true identity. Deidre--a reporter who interviewed and then befriended Renee after the kidnapping--is now working for the Mayor's office and has been assigned to the Task Force that is hunting the Vigilante. When she sees the words "NO MORE HUNGRY EYES" written in lipstick on the bedroom mirror of one of the murdered predators, Deidre immediately knows whom the killer is. Though she has a hard time accepting it at first, it isn't long before she realizes that Renee is indeed alive and still haunted by the hungry eyes of the man who tortured her as a child. Deidre understands that Renee is a killer, but has no intention of turning her in. Instead, she intends on tracking Renee down and openly confronting her, hopefully before she kills again. Renee knows that Deidre is coming after her. The real question is what are Renee's intentions as she carefully lures Deidre into her tangled web by dropping clues for the ex-reporter to follow? Does our killer have a hidden agenda; and, if so, what is it? I found HUNGRY EYES to be an excellent first novel by a new author who has since proven his talent with a track record of three additional bestsellers. The story is skillfully woven with flashbacks to Renee's life as a child, her eventual kidnapping, and how Deidre first met her and developed a bond that survived the ravages of time. Both women feel an extremely strong connection to one another. Renee sees Deidre as a big sister who sincerely cares about her, and Deidre views the younger woman as someone who has never experienced love, nor been able to trust the majority of people in her life. In the creation of Renee and Deidre, Mr. Hoffman clearly demonstrates his skill and imagination at writing vivid females characters that are richly textured with complex personalities and who have suffered; yet, still manage to carry on. Not to be forgotten are the secondary characters that shine with their own uniqueness. Loretta Barrows, the mother of Renee, is realistically portrayed as a hard woman with little compassion, except for herself. The brother of Renee comes off as a real piece of slime that deserves exactly what he gets and none too soon. Jonas, Deidre's father-in-law, reminded me a lot of the actor Dennis Farina: strong, determined, realistic, and caring. The author also knows how to weave an intricately layered plot, structured with increasing levels of suspense, that quickly draws the reader in and propels him down a meandering path filled with twists and turns and subtle inclinations that something isn't quite right. This is a master craftsman at work. Barry Hoffman knows the meaning and power of the written word; but, even more so, he knows how to spin a good yarn. Not only do I look forward to reading the rest of his books, I can see that this gifted writer has a long and prosperous career ahead of him. Now, it's time to pick up a copy of EYES OF PREY and see how the rest of the series continues.

Leaves one unfulfilled........2001-08-05

HUNGRY EYES is a so-called thriller that is really more of a character study. Although there are a couple twists much later on, there's no mystery or suspense. And like Dean Koontz, Barry Hoffman lacks any kind of flair in his writing. The prose is often clunky and reads awkwardly. This is a short novel, but tedious to get through. Remniscent of the trashy pulp novels of yore.

Light-weight puffery.......2001-07-03

This book was dissapointing; from some of the reviews I have read, I expected a far better book.

Average customer rating:

An Interesting yet culure-based flawed book
Timely expose of dangers of channeling and mediumship

Hungry Ghosts
Joe Fisher
Manufacturer: McClelland & Stewart
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0771031467
Release Date: 1991-06-01

Customer Reviews:

An Interesting yet culure-based flawed book.......2000-08-19

Joe Fisher is a respected writer on the paranormal and takes us through a fascinating personal case study in `spirit deception'. The book is essentially flawed however, as Fisher (in the later chapters) appears to take a biased Christian-based view of the phenomena. The `experts' quoted on spirit deception are the hard-line Christian evangelicals who spend their time attacking the so-called `New Age' as well as all Eastern religions. The Christian bible is quoted as an authority on the issue. There are also the Christian-based comments; `Jesus Christ had nothing good to say about spirit contact'. What did Buddha have to say on spirits? Mohammed? Does it matter in psychical research what historical religious figures said? There is no reason that Christianity cannot have a say on the phenomena but why is it assumed that its authority is final?

Timely expose of dangers of channeling and mediumship.......1999-11-05

As one who has lived in societies where contact with the dead and experience of the paranormal is quite common, the different approaches to these phenomena between those societies and the West is remarkable. The 'materialistic' West is rediscovering and experimenting with a whole range of areas which used to be regarded as 'esoterica' but is now loosely subsumed under the term 'New Age'. But by contrast, the approach in the West to communications from the other side via mediumship or channeling is to be from "Masters", or the benevolently disposed disceased who have suddenly become enamoured with qualities of wisdom and understanding never approached during their lives on earth. Joe Fisher was already a well known journalist and writer on the occult and new age when he had the opportunity to meet his 'spiritual guide' on the other side. His eager interest aroused from these encounters soon led to entranced fascination, and a subjugation of his own responsibility for life descisions to the advice of the loving guide. After losing an important relationship and then discovering gaps and inconsistencies in historical information, he began to be more meticulous in his communication with the guides. Supported by copious transcripts of sessions, and historical research, he innocently challenged them over some clear inaccuracies, still naively thinking his own 'darkened' state made him incapeable of perceiving their wisdom in these matters. The transcripts of these questioning sessions show that these benevolent guides, from being initially cajoling and dismissive, soon move to emotional blackmail and finally to threats. The benevolent love disappears and we see behaviour as manipulative, deceitful and malevolent as from the lowest of earthly miscreants. Fisher's methodology of taping sessions (originally to preserve the wisdom) allows him to return to the material and pursue intelligently and determindly the irregularities and deceits. What gives this book some of its dramatic power is how the sessions show Fisher still trying to overcome his perceived inadequacies of comprehension in the face of the self incriminating lies of the guides, long after a sceptical reader can see through them. Fisher's experience, not merely recounted but supported by copious transcrpts, leads him to question who these beings are, and what purpose they fulfill in their contacts with the still living. He suggests that these are the so called "hungry ghosts" (as described in Tibetan lore), still earthbound, who use mediums receptivity for their own ends. The West's new plunge into the esoteric should not be undertaken "When spirits begin to speak with man...things are fabricated by them and they lie". Swami Bhakta Vishita warned of "a mischevious class of entities who impersonate other spirits". Iamblichus, the leading neo-Platonist of his time, unmasked an alleged Apollo speaking through a medium who was only the ghost of a gladiator. Is it any wonder that John, the forth Evangelist urged "Test the spirits"? - an injunction that anyone reading "Hungry Ghosts" will not forget.

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