Book Description
Jennifer Weiner's talent shines like never before in this collection of short stories, following the tender, and often hilarious, progress of love and relationships over the course of a lifetime. From a teenager coming to terms with her father's disappearance to a widow accepting two young women into her home, Weiner's eleven stories explore those transformative moments in our every day.
We meet Marlie Davidow, home alone with her new baby late one Friday night, when she wanders onto her ex's online wedding registry and wonders what if she had wound up with the guy not taken. We stumble on Good in Bed's Bruce Guberman, liquored-up and ready for anything on the night of his best friend's bachelor party, until stealing his girlfriend's tiny rat terrier becomes more complicated than he'd planned. We find Jessica Norton listing her beloved New York City apartment in the hope of winning her broker's heart. And we follow an unlikely friendship between two very different new mothers, and the choices that bring them together -- and pull them apart.
The Guy Not Taken demonstrates Weiner's amazing ability to create characters who "feel like they could be your best friend" (Janet Maslin) and to find hope and humor, longing and love in the hidden corners of our common experiences.
Customer Reviews:
Not the Jennifer Weiner book I was wishing for-DREARY.......2007-10-06
I purchased this book because I have so enjoyed Jennifer Weiner's other books; funny, touching and bright. When I see a Jennifer Weiner book on the shelf I automatically purchase it! It was actually after reading several chapters that I realized these were short stories which are not my favorite- I prefer greater character development but it was my own fault for not reading the back cover of the book. I figured out the short story format when I realized the chapters kept having the same theme; depressed female, "woe is me" tone, overweight females, grandmothers, messed up mothers, swimming etc. but the character names changed - aha! Personally, I read fictional novels for an uplifting fun experience not to get depressed. I will probably be more selective before picking up another of her books. It is hard for me not to finish a book but with this one just couldn't do it.
Fun, thoughtful travel reading. .......2007-10-04
I purchased the book for a three-day weekend, and it was perfect reading. Short stories are great for reading on a plane or in the airport while I was waiting, or during a short lunch in a coffee shop in New England. I don't usually read short stories, but I am a big fan of Weiner's so I really wanted to try these. The stories aren't the most memorable that I have ever read, but the characters were real and interesting, and are still lingering in my head. I hope that she writes or publishes another collection of stories -- I won't wait so long to buy that collection.
Jennifer Wiener The Guy Not Taken.......2007-09-30
I am a huge fan of Jennifer Wiener as an author but did not like this book at all. I am not a fan of short stories (as another poster stated). I did not feel that the book flowed, and honestly did not finish it.
I would highly recommend her other books over this one. She overall is an excellent author though.
Such Great Starts.......2007-09-06
I love Jennifer Weiner and so far I've really loved all of her books, but the short story thing really doesn't work. Each one starts our so great and I got really into each of them, but then they just end, very abruptly. I didn't get much of a point or plot to most of the stories. At the end of the book she wrote a little afterthought about why they each wasn't written into an entire novel, but then I think why bother at all. I feel like some of them, especially the first couple about the same family, really had the potential to be a novel - but just kind became a dud. They were, however, entertaining until you get to the end and realize they lead nowhere.
I hated it.......2007-08-31
Im a huge Jennifer Weiner fan and have read all of her books. unfortunately, i hated this one. it was very boring. everytime you thought the story was about to peak, it would end and go to another story. it was very unfulfilling and disappointing..
Customer Reviews:
"Keep it light or it will not be light at all.".......2000-05-23
A conservative Episcopal priest, Capon is to theological reflection what stand-up comedy is to an academic lecture. Both may be true, but which one will you spend money to hear on a Friday date?
His lighthearted style belies the depth of his thought, and his passion for the truth. I have a theological degree myself, and found that his style resonated with some of the most meaningful theology I have encountered. That he makes it accessible is even more to his credit.
In sequence he deals with quite serious themes: our common priestly office as human beings, the nature of and reason for evil, and the will of God. He is always creative and original.
"We have forgotten, you see, not what reality means, but how it smells and what it tastes like. The work of theology in our day is not so much interpretation as contemplation. God and the world need to be held up for oohs and aahs before they can safely be analyzed. Theology begins with admiration, not problems."
Any pastor who expects me to sit weekly to hear him preach should spend time with Capon. Maybe some of it will rub off on him, too.
Average customer rating:
- Breaks contract between Romance writer and reader-Deserves 0 stars
- Too Bizarre
- This book made me stupider
- very good
- Get This Book Out of My House!
|
Divine Evil
Nora Roberts
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
General | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Roberts, Nora | ( R ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | Subjects | Books
Paperback | Roberts, Nora | ( R ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Contemporary | Romance | Subjects | Books
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Roberts, Nora | ( R ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Paperback | Roberts, Nora | ( R ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Contemporary | Romance | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Romance | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:
-
Carnal Innocence
-
Brazen Virtue
-
Hot Ice
-
Genuine Lies
-
Sacred Sins
ASIN: 0553294903
Release Date: 2005-03-01 |
Book Description
With blowtorch and steel Clare Kimball has sculpted a personal vision that commands the attention of the New York art world. But success can not burn away the vague, troubling memories, the half-remembered nightmares that have plagued Clare since childhood. These phantoms of the past have drawn her home to Maryland, to the small town where she grew up and where her father died in circumstances never really explained.
Emmitsboro is just as Clare remembered—the same familiar faces, the same chatty gossip passed over the counter at the local diner. Nothing much has changed—except Cameron Rafferty. Once the high school bad boy, he landed on the right side of the law and is now the town sheriff. The only clue to his wild, passionate nature is the light in his eyes when he looks at Clare. In Cam's strong arms Clare is seduced into falling in love. And into believing her small-town world is safe.
But within the dark woods of Emmitsboro something evil spreads its poisonous power. Now the once-peaceful town is wrapped in a cloak of terror, hiding a teacherous heart. And now Clare must pay the price for digging up the secrets of the past. . . and confront an evil that may be unstoppable—because those who practice it may be divine.
Customer Reviews:
Breaks contract between Romance writer and reader-Deserves 0 stars.......2007-09-16
The guarantee of the romance genre is a happy ending so the reader ends the book with a sigh, full of hopeful, positive feelings. The ending of this book was depressing, stomach-turning, and eradicated any hope of good prevailing. It should have been issued with a warning sticker on the cover -"If you love Nora Roberts, DON'T READ THIS BOOK!"
Too Bizarre.......2007-07-29
I picked this book up at the library-thank goodness I didn't buy it! Within the first couple pages I knew I could not justify filling my mind with a book on devil worship and animal (and eventually human) sacrifice let alone sexual rites. This was just too much. I skimmed a little throughout and read the last chapter and was glad I didn't waste my time on such garbage especially after the ending. I have liked a lot of the other books by NR such as "Northern Lights", The Quinn Series and etc. I'm not criticizing the writing style, just the subject matter.
This book made me stupider.......2007-01-11
I love genre fiction, but I usually avoid the Romance genre because of its cliches. Maybe Nora Roberts fans will like this book. John Saul fans might also like it. Personally, I found everything about it to be simplistic and downright idiotic.
The bad guys--Satan worshippers--fill every cliche and leave nothing original. They even call for Jesus when they die from stupidity. The main character, Clare, is a modest, rich, supermodel artist. Very realistic. The love interest, Cam, is a modest, rich, supermodel sheriff. Uh huh. Their chemistry together is a series of cliches taken from 80s movies. You know, I'm all for a dash of romance in a book, but please make it believable. I feel as if Nora Roberts is following a formula that made her successful long ago, in the 1970s or 80s, and no longer works for people who pay attention to modern TV, film, and books.
very good.......2006-04-08
I thought Nora Roberts' DIVINE EVIL was very well written. It was one of the best books I've read lately. Roberts' writing style is awesome and her characters are very complex and dark. Jean-Paul Le Beau is definitely one of my favorite characters as is his wife, Angie. The two are so sarcastic and I love that. Cam Rafferty is by far my favorite hero. The rebel turned sheriff of a sleepy little town who finally gets the girl he's loved for a long time. This book is great.
Get This Book Out of My House! .......2006-02-07
I have been reading Nora Roberts for years now, and I came across "Divine Evil" for the first time last week. The subject matter seemed to be just like many of Roberts' novels, with a tale of romance intertwined with a tale of trial, heartbreak and action. Only, once I got into this book, my opinion changed. All in all, this book creeped me out. I don't know if Roberts was going through some cult phase or whatever, but this book was certainly not like any of the others she has written. If you are a person who is not bothered when reading about sexual rites and animal sacrifices, then go ahead and read it. Otherwise, stick to Roberts softer stuff.
Average customer rating:
|
Divine Evil
Nora Roberts
Manufacturer: Books on Tape
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette
Roberts, Nora | ( R ) | Authors, A-Z | Books on Cassette | Audiobooks | Formats | Books
ASIN: 1415900930 |
Product Description
Unabridged on 12 cassettes.... Sculptor Clare Kimball has captured the attention of the New York art world. But big-city success cannot burn away the half-remembered nightmares that have plagued Clare since childhood. These phantoms of the past have drawn her home to Emmitsboro, Maryland, to the small town where she grew up and where her father died in circumstances never really explained. Not much in her hometown seems to have changed, but within the dark woods of Emmitsboro something evil spreads its poisonous power. Now the once-peaceful town is wrapped in a cloak of terror, hiding a treacherous heart. And now Clare must pay the price for digging up the secrets of the past...and confront an evil that may be unstoppable - because those who practice it believe it is divine.
Book Description
While such staples as Anselm’s ontological argument, Hume’s criticism of the design argument, and James’ “The Will to Believe” appear in this anthology, about half the selections in Philosophy and Faith do not appear in other introductory texts. The books offers fresh topics, such as biblical literalism and “demythologization,” poetic imagery and religious belief, forgiveness, divine “vanity,” the hiddenness of God, heaven and hell, ritual, divine action, religion and the social sciences, and science and religion. The material on the familiar topics are fresh – Howard Wettstein on religious language, Jerome Gellman on religious experience, David Johnson on miracles, and Avishai Margalit on religious pluralism.
To help concretize abstract issues Philosophy and Faith presents selections that deal with vivid cases – such as how to explain the patterns on the Shroud of Turin and how mystical experiences might be explained by a contemporary, scientifically-minded observer. The collection contains articles written from the standpoint of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, and non-theistic religion. The introductions are genuinely helpful, the study questions are challenging and useful for writing assignments, and the selections have been edited to reduce digression and assist students to understand main issues.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book!.......2007-07-12
I used "Philosophy and Faith" by David Shatz for my semester long philosophy of religion class and found that it was quite good, actually. Shatz's short essays before the main argument was very helpful, and I thought that the range of subject matter was very good.
There were several texts in the book that we skipped over because we didn't have enough time to cover them all, so keep in mind that my class did not cover every essay in the book. We just covered the ones relevant to the fallowing topics: referring to God in univocally or equivocally, the ontological argument, the cosmological argument, the teleological argument, and several reasons why belief in God is rational besides a guarantee of God's existence (like Pascal's wager).
Keeping the two paragraphs above in mind, "Philosophy and Faith" didn't have what seems to be the most famous single essay regarding the existence of God, William Paley's Watchmaker analogy (actually I believe the essay is an excerpt from a book that Paley wrote). The essay would have fit in wonderfully in the teleological argument section. It seems quite odd that this essay wasn't in the text.
Another complaint, this one just an annoyance, is that some arguments are titled with a certain number of points and then the last few points aren't even mentioned in the excerpt given by Shatz. A perfect example is Thomas Aquinas' argument "The Five Ways." You would expect there to be five ways, right? But in fact there are three--that makes a lot of sense. I would also like to see a few of the shorter arguments completed for their own sake.
As far as physical complaints go, the pages in this book fall out too easily. Once your book starts to age a little bit, you have to be really have to be careful that you don't pull on the pages or they'll fall out.
The good out ways the bad in this case so I give it four stars. It's a great text book for any philosophy of religion class. There are some problems but it was a good book and I was very happy to use it.
Average customer rating:
- A Good Tree Only Bears Good Fruit
|
The Enigma About Divine Love and the Creation of Evil: The Lost Belief Among Early Christians About a God of Total Compassion
Ray Embry
Manufacturer: Writers Club Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General | Theology | Reference | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Education | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Theology | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Education | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Theology | Reference | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
General | Theology | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0595136923 |
Book Description
The greatest puzzle in Christian theology is the difficulty encountered when someone makes an attempt to account for the strength of evil in the presence of an almighty God of love. How could corruption permeate the kingdom of such a perfect Creator? Many early Christians solved this dilemma by believing that the Designer of the old man is not the same One who fathered the new, spiritual man. The theologian’s most difficult question is this: How could the God of love kill babies? This book solves this difficulty by documenting many distinctions between Israel’s God of wrath and the Christian God of Love. Many early Christians were able to see that Abba, the Heavenly Father of Jesus, actually bore little resemblance to Israel’s fearsome God. These early Christians believed the Heavenly Father was only revealed for the first time through Jesus, just like it is stated in Matthew. They also were aware of Jesus’ assertion about his Heavenly Father that he never desired the death of even one child. When they learned that Jehovah once killed a multitude of babies in Egypt, this became a significant example of one of the many clear contrasts between Jehovah and Abba.
Customer Reviews:
A Good Tree Only Bears Good Fruit.......2007-02-08
Ray Embry says that in our society, if a man went through a village and systematically killed people, it would be very difficult for him to prove himself to be good and loving, yet Jehovah committed this exact atrocity in Egypt and Canaan, and yet there are many who claim he is both "good" and "loving". Embry continues, confrontingly;
"With such an inconsistent application of words, the distinctions between good and evil become unclear. We can say: The devil is evil because he might hurt people. What are we saying if we claim: Jehovah is good, even though he hurt people? Until we insist on more consistency in our use of language, we remain susceptible to a system of governance that subtly blurs semantic distinctions until in the end evil is being called good. ...and it is possible that we might wind up holding up as our highest ideal a murderer if we fall victim to the subtle trick of switching definitions." (p 49)
Shocking words, yet so vital that we hear this message in the world we know today! The book contains a beautiful message about a God of pure love - no punishments, no snakes, no storms, tsunamis or earthquakes; just pure compassion! Rather, it is humankind which projects its revengefulness and sinfulness onto God and onto the NT, which is not the true picture of God himself.
My only complaint is that the text could have been worded and worked in a tighter way, but it still gets 5 stars for its message and uniqueness.
Product Description
5 massmarket paperback Titles by Nora Roberts - Homeport - Lawless - Hot Ice - Carnal Innocence - Divine Evil
Product Description
In the present book an attempt has been made to give rational and logical explanations ofrelationship between human deeds and destiny. It explains how events of good fortune andmisfortune, happiness and suffering in human life are results of ones own deeds. It is hoped thatthis booklet will provide satisfactory answers to the queries relating to the role played by theconsequences of an individuals deeds in the making of his destiny.
Book Description
This paperback edition brings to a wide audience one of the most innovative and meaningful models of God for this post-Auschwitz era. In a thought-provoking return to the original Hebrew conception of God, which questions accepted conceptions of divine omnipotence, Jon Levenson defines God's authorship of the world as a consequence of his victory in his struggle with evil. He traces a flexible conception of God to the earliest Hebrew sources, arguing, for example, that Genesis 1 does not describe the banishment of evil but the attempt to contain the menace of evil in the world, a struggle that continues today.
Customer Reviews:
A Theological Thriller.......2003-02-19
Biblical scholarship and theology is often quite dry, but Levenson keeps his reader on the edge of his seat. Having read his other work on the significance of the sacrificial son in Christianity and Judaism, I was quite eager to dig into this book when I purchased it about four years ago. I was not disappointed. It's aimed at the lay reader, so it is not particularly difficult to approach. A fascinating argument.
Bold, persuasive, and thought-provoking.......2000-08-12
Creation and the Persistence of Evil is a startling and challenging book. Levenson makes a compelling case for the idea that the act of creation consisted (and consists!) of God's mastering preexistent forces of chaos rather than the simple, unopposed production of something out of nothing--and that these forces were not vanquished but continue to exist under restraints that are subject to fluctuations in God's vigilance. In this view, creation is neither static nor finished but is, as the subtitle suggests, a drama requiring ongoing application of divine attention and energy. And creation was, and is, a process of ordering reality by separating things, by establishing and maintaining boundaries.
This is not an easy book in any respect. I thought I had a fairly workable theological vocabulary until the list of terms I had to look up filled an entire page. The section about the heptadic structure of creation and the Temple as an idealized microcosm of the created world was particularly difficult going. But it was well worth the effort; this is one of the most exciting and insightful books I have read in a long time.
Provocative in proposing that God fails and can be faulted.......1998-11-03
Jon Levenson, unable to hide behind God's goodness and omniscience has written an erudite and ponderous examination of theodicy in his work, Creation and the Persistence of Evil. He avoids a quick solution and bravely faces and retains both his belief in God's goodness and God's justice when both are juxtaposed with the "enormous suffering with which humanity seems forever cursed". Ultimately Levenson vindicates God by postulating the belief that God purposely limits His intervention and power to eradicated evil while showing that God continues His march towards the "reign of the perfect justice He so ardently desires". No small feat.
At the core of Christian/Jewish Theology is the belief that God is the creator of all - absolutely all - and he continues to be in complete control of his creation. The firm belief in the absolute deity of God has given rise to Levenson's view of the universe. The problem confronting Levenson is the concealment or hiddenness of God when Evil not only persists but prevails. Levenson, wrestles empirically with the questions "What kind of God is this God who fails to do what he is obligated by character to do?" and "Is a concealed God, a nonexistent God?". Because of the dreadful cognitive dissidence between faith and fatalism Levenson is forced to come up with an answer that a least adequately helps him and us get through our despair, pain and injustice and survive the respective nights of isolation.
The Theology of the Limited God....
Provocative in proposing that God fails, that God can be faulted and even goaded Levenson push his readers to consider the theological construct - the theology of the limited God. Levenson in his reflection on "creation theology" sees God as the creator of both the world and all forces of evil that oppose him within the world, IE: disorder, injustice, affliction and chaos are to viewed as much a part of God as is His creation. He goes on to say "God is the author of everything, even of evil." God created these forces to demonstrate His dominant mastery over them. For God's Lordship is meaningful only if the powers he subjugates are formidable. Levenson underscores this thought by comparing God to an emperor who has vanquished his foes, "No emperor will achieve heroic status in the eyes of his subjects if all he forces to march through his streets is a sunken-chested weakling."
To Levenson, God created this world out of disorder, injustice affliction and chaos; and thus when "justice replaces oppression, when disease and death yield to vitality and longevity, this is the creation of something out of nothing." For Levenson creation still goes on each and every time good prevails and evil fails, thus "we are a junior partner in his continual ordering of the world".
In the face of evil, when the suffering does not end, when God's silence and inactivity prevails, when all the "how to" books fail and the popular confessional theologies are but vain and useless incantations Levenson gives us three options... 1) Argue with God in the hope that God maybe "cajoled, flattered, shamed or threatened into action", 2) Abandon God and find another god that may resolve your suffering, 3) Retain your confession in God, believing that God's deliverance of you from your suffering is not a precondition of your faith as exemplified by Shadrach, Meshach and Abend-nego (Dan. 3:16-18) when they entered the flames of the king's furnace. Thus, to retain your confession you must also be willing to face and even embrace imminent suffering and possibly death.
In Levenson mind we can become co-creators along with God when we partake in reordering the world, by creating good out of evil, or creatio ex nihilo. We are enabled by faith in God to not only cope with evil but to transform evil into good. It is through our obedience and confession of allegiance to the divine creator that we too become co-creators, even gods. Our continued faith in God, a God who may even be absent from us in the face of evil, is part of the confession of a co-creator. We, in our frail humanity, are called to partake in the creative reordering of this world and ultimately witness, celebrate God's victory. Chaos and evil are dependent on God and God alone will annihilate them. He will do that by transforming rather than destroying chaos and evil and we are called to be His witnesses.
This is THE book on creation theology!.......1996-10-03
This book challenges commonly held beliefs about creationtheology by examining the background in which creationtheology developed. Readers will come away from this book with a new understanding of creation and the Old Testament. If you enjoy the intelligent study of the Bible, this is a book that will fill your mind with pondering material! - Ed Courtney, New Hampshire
Average customer rating:
|
The Demonic and the Divine
Daniel Day Williams
Manufacturer: Fortress Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Eschatology | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Angelology | Theology | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Inspirational | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Angels | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Theology | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Process Theology | Theology | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0800624319 |
Books:
- The Highest Tide
- The House of Scorta
- The Last Jew: A Novel
- The Last King of Scotland
- The Red Sea Rules The Same God Who Led You In Will Lead You Out
- The Shadow Lines: A Novel
- The Stones Of Summer
- The Tale of the Unknown Island
- The Talented Mr. Ripley, Ripley Under Ground, Ripley's Game (Everyman's Library)
- The Turning: New Stories
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Quantitative Conservation Biology: Theory and Practice of Population Viability Analysis
- History: Fiction or Science
- Blue Christmas
- Companero: The Life and Death of Che Guevara
- History: Fiction or Science
- From Molecules to Networks: An Introduction to Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
- Hiding My Candy: The Autobiography of the Grand Empress of Savannah
- Kerry James Marshall: Momentos
- Exploring Pacific Coast Tidepools
- Chaplain Davis and Hood's Texas Brigade: Being an Expanded Edition of the Reverend Nicholas A. Davis
American Girls About Town: They're Not Just the Girls Next Door....
Goodnight Nobody: A Novel
Little Earthquakes : A Novel (Washington Square Press)
Good in Bed
Baby Proof
