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The Art Of War

Sun Tzu

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 22 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

NOT THE BOOK 1 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

This is just the cliffnotes to the book. This is not the actual book. Also, very poorly published.

the art of war 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

The book was very interesting. It really made look at issues in a totally different light. I love this book.

Ancient Timeless Knowledge 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

While this book is barely 70 pages long, the classic strategies in it are concise and valuble, quite timeless. The book was written 2500 years ago as a basic primer on strategy - and has withstood the test of time. It won't take long to digest the book - but that gives you more time to implement its strategies. There are sections on strategies, planning maneuvers, deception, etc., Together with Robert Green's book on Strategy it is a fine combination.


Michael Mandaville, Author of the upcoming "Citizen Soldier Handbook: 101 Ways For Every American To Fight Terrorism"

Editorial Review:

Twenty-Five Hundred years ago, Sun Tzu wrote this classic book of military strategy based on Chinese warfare and military thought. Since that time, all levels of military have used the teaching on Sun Tzu to warfare and cilivzation have adapted these teachings for use in politics, business and everyday life. The Art of War is a book which should be used to gain advantage of opponents in the boardroom and battlefield alike.

When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times (Shambhala Classics)

Pema Chodron

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 129 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

esoteric drivel 1 out of 5 stars.
2 of 13 people found this review helpful.

It is an indication that something is wrong if you have to go read another book or two on history and philosophy of Buddhism in order to understand the esoteric dogma she is talking about.

Now to put all this in simple terms the jest of the book seams to be:

We are all going to die and we should think about it all the time.
There is no hope and we should not even try
All is suffering and we should not try to do anything about it
All is pain and we should try to find more pain.
We do not have a soul and if you think you do you are deluded

These are not good messages for someone who is really in a state of depression or flux
I can not see what anyone gets out of this book

Her point if there is one is almost un-understandable through all the esoteric drivel

Editorial Review:

The beautiful practicality of her teaching has made Pema Chödrön one of the most beloved of contemporary American spiritual authors among Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. A collection of talks she gave between 1987 and 1994, the book is a treasury of wisdom for going on living when we are overcome by pain and difficulties. Chödrön discusses: Using painful emotions to cultivate wisdom, compassion, and courage Communicating so as to encourage others to open up rather than shut down Practices for reversing habitual patterns Methods for working with chaotic situations Ways for creating effective social action

Sex and the Perfect Lover: Tao, Tantra, and the Kama Sutra

Mabel Iam

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 247 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Your dreams of sexual pleasure are about to come true. No age, time, place, or body constraints can prevent you from becoming the perfect lover you desire to be for the rest of your life. These pages unlock all of the essential elements for attaining this goal.

• Learn and develop sexual magnetism and secrets that few lovers have ever known.

• Become an irresistible, fascinating, unforgettable lover.

• Overcome sexual blocks and inhibitions.

• Achieve multiple orgasms.

• Discover how to stimulate a woman¹s G-spot.

• Practice Kama Sutra techniques with amazing illustrations and personal tips from the author.

• Make your relationship sacred; feel inner divinity while making love.

• Find and attract your soul mate.

A bestseller around the world, Sex and the Perfect Lover has become the definitive guide to improving your sexual experience. So effectively written by author Mabel Iam, this book will become your eternal companion and advisor; all of your needs and doubts about eroticism will be eased by Iam¹s tried-and-true advice. From your first kiss to sexual ecstasy, Mabel Iam sheds light on your being and guides you along the path to an intense pleasure that only love and sex can bring.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values

Robert M. Pirsig

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 528 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Self-Absorbed, Self-Pitying Rubbish 1 out of 5 stars.
6 of 14 people found this review helpful.

I agree with many of the other one-star reviews, this is actually the worst book I have ever read, out of thousands read, in my entire life. The worst book designation goes to Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance because it is extremely, extremely, over-rated. I found it to be one of the most self-absorbed, self-pitying, whining complaints I had ever been exposed to - and I know about those, because I'm a former junior high school teacher.

Not only did it not contain any philosophical insights whatsoever, the book is just plain boring and badly written. The only book I have ever thrown in the garbage can - it's just rubbish, and that's where it belongs. I'm sure the author is a fine human being. I just think he wrote a very, very, bad book. Please don't waste your time on this book.

Editorial Review:

A narration of a summer motorcycle trip undertaken by a father and his son, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance becomes a personal and philosophical odyssey into fundamental questions on how to live. The narrator's relationship with his son leads to a powerful self-reckoning; the craft of motorcycle maintenance leads to an austerely beautiful process for reconciling science, religion, and humanism. Resonant with the confusions of existence, this classic is a touching and transcendent book of life.

This new edition contains an interview with Pirsig and letters and documents detailing how this extraordinary book came to be.

This P.S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.

The Prophet

Kahlil Gibran

By: Alfred A. Knopf Amazon Marketplace: 2 new & used starting at $9.88

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 262 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

The Best Book Ever Written? 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I keep a copy of this book nearby at all times for quick reference, my personal copy home to numerous marks and marginal notes. Every line reads as the most delicate of poetry, honed and refined to the purest and most undeniable words of truth and wisdom.
This may be the height of human understanding, bringing a peace and solidarity which encompasses the many to make us all one.

Eight Decades Later: Still Relevant, Insightful and Eloquent 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

These days, Kahlil Gibran's "The Prophet" often gets dismissed as "hippie" literature. Yet, this book had been a bestseller LONG before the 1960s. Originally published in 1923, it almost instantly became a hit and even did well through the Great Depression. Today, Gibran's claim to fame is being the third best-selling poet of our time, behind Shakespeare and Lao Tzu... and pretty much entirely based on sales of this book. When his publisher, Alfred Knopf was asked who the audience for the book was, he flippantly dismissed the question. "It Must be a cult," he retorted.

Yet there is no such cult. What's incredible is that there's absolutely no marketing hype behind the success of this book. Gibran himself is long gone. There is no political, religious, or commercial enterprise attached to his name bent on winning souls and/or profits. The Gibran estate has merely been licensing copies year after year in response to the demand - a demand fueled pretty much entirely by word-of-mouth and chance discovery. The fact is, the twenty-six poems in this book have a surprising and suprassing relevance, insight and compassion. Broken down into several topics ("On Love", "On Work", "On Joy and Sorrow", etc.) the book itself recounts the sermons of a fictional poet leaving behind the gift of knowledge before he leaves his homeland.

I first found Gibran through a setting of his poem "On Children" by local Washington, D.C. singers Sweet Honey in the Rock on their album, "Breaths."

"Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you."

At the time I was about to leave for college and eighteen years of living under my parent's roof had made me restless for autonomy. That poem eloquently expressed everything I was yearning to say to them in my hours of frustration and adolescent angst. It later proved to be a reference to turn to in times where I needed confidence to live an independent and fulfilling life, while still maintaining respect and compassion towards the parents who had raised me.

I am not exaggerating when I say that the poems in this book have kept me grounded and sane throughout some of the most troubling times in my life. Our modern lives are ever hectic, stressful and busy - wrought with drama, frustration, depression, etc. The knowledge in these poems brings me back to a "middle ground" - there is a sage wisdom and clarity in the poems that has often been helpful for me in "unwinding" and coming back to earth. They bring me back to a place of clarity from whcih I can see my life from a wider perspective.

Though Gibran himself was a Christian and despite the title and conceit of the book, this is not really a religious book. The insight in this book would be applicable to your life even if you are an atheist. What's more, the poetry is mostly imagistic. Do not expect the academic poetics of Gibran's contemporaries Eliot or Pound or even Frost. They are written with the aim of being accessible and immediate to the reader and rely mostly on clear metaphors and vivid imagery.

Copies of "The Prophet" are not hard to come by. Perhaps check out the book's table of contexts either using Amazon's "Search Inside" feature or in your local bookstore and see if it addresses a problem or issue you are dealing with. That's a good a place as any to start with. Chances are, you will find something that speaks to you on some level.

The Art of War

Sun Tzu

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 280 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle....

These are the words of ancient Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu, whose now-classic treatise, The Art of War, was written more than 2,500 years ago. Originally a text for victory on the battlefield, the book has vastly transcended its original purpose.

Here is a seminal work on the philosophy of successful leadership that is as applicable to contemporary business as it is to war. Today many leading American business schools use the text as required reading for aspiring managers, and even Oliver Stone's award-winning film Wall Street cites The Art of War as a guide to those who strive for success.

Now acclaimed novelist James Clavell, for whom Sun Tzu's writing has been an inspiration, gives us a newly edited Art of War. Author of the best-selling Asian saga consisting of Shogun, Tai-Pan, Gai-jin, King Rat, Noble House, and Whirlwind, Clavell first heard about Sun Tzu in Hong Kong in 1977, and since then The Art Of War has been his constant companion--he refers to it frequently in Noble House. He has taken a 1910 translation of the book and clarified it for the contemporary reader. This new edition of The Art Of War is an extraordinary book made even more relevant by an extraordinary editor.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

The Tibetan Book of the Dead: First Complete Translation (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A Perfectionists' Translation of Not Really Accessible Death-Transition Rites 4 out of 5 stars.
20 of 33 people found this review helpful.

To begin with: Whatever you do, do not touch the upper and lower ends of the spine of the 2007 Deluxe Edition, or it will look like a shabby edition ugly quickly. The cogwheelish cutting of the page edges are nice and unusual to look at, but it is a nightmare to quickly leaf through the book that way in order to find a specific page. Which you are supposed to do, as the book is very footnote ridden (32 pages of small print). That in itself wouldn't be the problem. But from there, you may get directed further into the glossary of key terms (85 pages). One glossary entry may include, say, 16 more terms to be looked up in the same glossary... and so on so forth. From there, you might get directed to Appendix One or Two (together 22 pages). You get the drift: Major obstacle reading. My advice: Read the glossary before you read anything else, attempt to remember it all and check the footnotes only while reading the book. And remember: While you are paging forward and backward - don't touch the edges of the spine or the fancy color will come off!

So much for what is more easily rated. Originally published in 2005, the many centuries old "The Great Liberation by Hearing in the Intermediate States" - as the literal translation of the Tibetan title really reads - had been translated into English in part and faulty at that in 1927. The Dalai Lama and other dignitaries thought it would be about time to introduce a complete and better translation. That work is comprised of 14 chapters (379 pages), including even three chapters which aren't really part of the book but fit in neatly for further overstanding. The XIVth Dalai Lama provided part of the introduction (14 pages). Altogether, there are 51 introductory pages. Together with the bibliography, index and 16 full color picture pages (which are actually two related subjects only, but each enlarged in sections on the respective following pages), this book is 607 pages heavy.

The theme of the book is the myths and rites approaching, during and after the transition from one body to the next as in the context of reincarnation. The book is best for those who would like to really delve into Buddhism, as the translation is done for perfectionists, students of religion and of course Buddhists in the English speaking world. The more generally interested may be put off by the concentration on utterly unexplained rites. As in: How do they know all those things from the intermediate states? By remembering? By a prophesy? By divine telling? The rites (of reading texts) are extremely repetitive. Which has the function of conditioning in a positive sense: The neophyte is supposed to automatically recall certain passages as only then the right behavior has a chance in the dream-like states of "death". Even more difficult to read are the many Tibetan words still included. There is no chance of even guessing how to pronounce them correctly. Many are unavoidable names, but many are also regular words. Even if difficult to translate, neologisms overstandable in English would have been my choice, such as this one Iyaric term in this sentence. And let's put it this way: Tibetan words do not easily roll off the tongue such as "Mandala". There are others such as "Sarvadurgatiparisodhanatantra", not even including the many potential accents unproducable on my current keyboard. In other words, this book may be appreciated most by those who already have some prior knowledge.

The rites are a lot about veneration of and prostrating to a caleidoscope of deities. Who are one, but splintered at the same time. I was hoping to find a bit more mysticism in this book. Well, at least the chapter on the confession of sins in the beliefs of dualisms are rewarding. If you are a mystic (no matter of what branch of religion), that is. There were more traces of mysticism in the introduction than the book itself, though.

Many words of advice from Buddhism I can take, no matter wether everything corresponds to my door which leads to the same room or wether the same door shines in my light. I find the book Mind of Clear Light: Advice on Living Well and Dying Consciously by the XIVth Dalai Lama on the same subject much more accessible, if I am correct on the English title of a book I read in another language. If I would follow "The Tibetan Book of the Dead", I would think of myself to be occupied with "death" way too much. As a mystic I don't believe in death anyway, therefore I am less obsessed with checking myself for potential advance signs of death all the Imes as suggested here. The book works under the premise that life is a very bad thing anyway which should be avoided by all means. That is not my approach. Maybe there's suffering in the everlasting cycle of life, but that's fine with me, for there are some nice moments in between all the suffering. Besides: What if God/the universe/Jah/etc., which we are all part of in the mystic overstanding LIKES to experience life in the forms of various bodies, accepting the suffering along the way? Wouldn't it be egoistical to refuse life? What if "everybody" would refuse "rebirth"? I had a lot of questions like that popping up while reading this book. Other Imes, the book put a smile on my face. For example, when I imagined another religious leader, such as the Pope, giving the advice, in a certain context, to inhale one's semen through the nose, while the former is still warm. I am not that sure, wether I will ever follow THAT advice either. But it's refreshing that we can talk about any possible body function and unorthodox use. I forgot: In Tibet, that IS orthodox...

Editorial Review:

The first complete translation of the classic Buddhist text

One of the greatest works created by any culture and overwhelmingly the most significant of all Tibetan Buddhist texts in the West, The Tibetan Book of the Dead has had a number of distinguished but partial translations. Now the entire text has not only been made available in English but also in a translation of remarkable clarity and beauty. Translated with the close support of leading contemporary masters, this complete edition faithfully presents the insights and intentions of the original work. It includes one of the most detailed and compelling descriptions of the after-death state in world literature, practices that can transform our experience of daily life, guidance on helping those who are dying, and an inspirational perspective on coping with bereavement.

How to See Yourself As You Really Are

His Holiness the Dalai Lama

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA REVEALS THE KEY TO ACHIEVING HAPPINESS AND A MEANINGFUL LIFE.

In How to See Yourself as You Really Are, the world's foremost Buddhist leader teaches listeners how to recognize and dispel misguided notions of self and embrace the world from a more realistic -- and loving -- perspective.

Step-by-step exercises help listeners shatter their false assumptions and ideas and see the world as it actually exists. His Holiness sets the stage for discovering the reality behind appearances. But getting past one's misconceptions is only a prelude to right action, and the final section describes how to harness the power of meditative concentration to the service of love, and vice versa, so that true altruistic enlightenment is attained. Enlivened by personal anecdotes and intimate accounts of the Dalai Lama's own life experiences, How to See Yourself as You Really Are is an inspirational and empowering guide to achieving self-awareness that can be enjoyed by spiritual seekers of all faiths.

The Art of War

Sun Tzu

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Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Bare but Flawless 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 4 people found this review helpful.

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R20YM6VZTDJYEB This is a magnificent book that tells as much about psychology as it does military strategy.

Editorial Review:

Conflict is an inevitable part of life, according to this ancient Chinese classic of strategy, but everything necessary to deal with conflict wisely, honorably, victoriously, is already present within us. Compiled more than two thousand years ago by a mysterious warrior-philosopher, The Art of War is still perhaps the most prestigious and influential book of strategy in the world, as eagerly studied in Asia by modern politicians and executives as it has been by military leaders since ancient times. As a study of the anatomy of organizations in conflict, The Art of War applies to competition and conflict in general, on every level from the interpersonal to the international. Its aim is invincibility, victory without battle, and unassailable strength through understanding the physics, politics, and psychology of conflict.

Autobiography: The Story of My Experiments with Truth

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi

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Total reviews: 73 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A Review by Nicole 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Gandhi An Autobiography: The Story of my Experiments with Truth, is a culmination of the life of one of the most famous peaceful revolutionaries and supporters of non-violence. The book is basically an entire list of the life experiences of Gandhi, all of which prove to contribute to his spiritual growth, and in turn, each go to influence his way of thinking. Gandhi's autobiography reveals a vast array of experiments he performed throughout his life, leading to his praise of truth as the ultimate underlying principal, contributing to his adaptation of celibacy (brahmacharya), adherence to fasting, and development of Satyagraha: his concept of non-violent firmness.
Gandhi's autobiography stretches back to his youth in exploring all of his life experiences. Gandhi's inclusion of all aspects of his life in his autobiography illustrates the idea that each and every experience becomes an influence; which, in Gandhi's case, means influences leading to the development of a concept of non-violence to spear-head the Indian journey for Independence.
The strength in Gandhi's autobiography lies in his adherence to truth even as he tells his life story. Gandhi hides nothing, allowing this display of raw truth to help readers examine Gandhi's uncensored ideas and thoughts, making it possible to understand what Gandhi was thinking in even some of the most significant moments in his life.
The main weakness in Gandhi's autobiography, however, is his obvious omission of information where the information is most definitely needed. In order to fully understand a large number of chapters, an understanding of India and its culture is necessary, but not provided. Gandhi also seems to assume that readers have knowledge of the political situation in India, so if you lack any historical knowledge, you will find yourself somewhat confused. Because Gandhi's autobiography radiates the idea that every experience is an influence for the person he eventual becomes, it obviously is a challenge to include every experience and spend an adequate amount of time discussing them. But his choice to omit quite a few particularly significant experiences will not go unnoticed. He does not, for example, spend any time describing his experiments in South Africa, and instead instructs readers to consult other works. Lack of background information regarding people who Gandhi introduces and lack of historical information on the movements he involves himself in, may lead to an incomplete illustration of Gandhi's life.
At the conclusion of Gandhi An Autobiography: The Story of my Experiments with Truth, you are left with the desire to take a trip to the library, because you have surely reached the conclusion that there is much more to know about the teacher and leader who made the world aware of India's struggle for independence. The autobiography gives you an in-depth look into the mind of one of the most influential non-violent role models that the world has seen, with a detailed understanding of the steps necessary to try to follow in Gandhi's footsteps if you so desire. Gandhi's autobiography leaves a lot out, but it also leaves you with a strong desire to find out more.

Editorial Review:

Personal account of the life of the man who freed India from colonization through the Satyagraha — nonviolent protest — movement. His early boyhood life, legal studies, purification, and ultimate salvation of his homeland is carefully recounted in this inspiring and critical work of insurmountable importance.