Review of Hyper-chondriac: One Man's Quest to Hurry Up and Calm Down (Hardcover)

Okay, I'm a sucker for a memoir but let's face it, a lot of them are not great and most of them are not funny. Somehow Brian Frazer managed to hit the trifecta of painfully honest, brave and hilarious on his quest to stop being so angry all the time. Personally I related to this book a little too much - Zoloft, irrational irritation and a desire to get better were themes of mine as well. But I definitely didn't go to the lengths that Brian did. He shares stories of silence retreats, Tai Chi with old people, therapy and other undignified ways to spend an afternoon with such rare humor that you will find yourself laughing out loud even if you can't relate at all.

I highly recommend this book and if you don't love it, you can personally ask for your money back from Brian Frazer. He's so calm now I'm sure he'd give it to you. Okay, maybe not. But buy the book.



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Review of Mommy, Why? (Paperback)

Ms. O,Neill's book is one of my daughter's favorites!!! It deals with the hard issues of race in a very sensitive manner. After reading the book a child will understand that everyone is different, not necessarily "better" but different and that different is GOOD. This book should be on all the bookshelves in every school(children need to learn to be tolerant of one another, not hateful or envious or inferior)!!! This book is a good find.


Product Description
wrote this book to inspire children and parents to be open-minded and to respect diversity.The conversation between seven-year-old Anna and her mother who are Asian covers differences in appearance, family, culture, disability, marriage and love.The dialogue is direct and loving; Anna learns to understand and value her being different from others, and that appreciating their being different is a good way to grow up.Children, parents and teachers will enjoy reading this book.

About the Author
Lin Fong-O'Neill left her native Hong Kong for America at seventeen. She had a successful management career in New York's JPMorgan Chase & Co., where she was selected as a member of the Diversity Council within a major business sector. She retired in 2001 to pursue creative writing. Her work has appeared extensively in New York's Great South Bay Monthly magazine, and New Jersey's Asbury Park Press. This is her first children's book. She hopes to pass along her love of different cultures, and to promote unity through diversity.

Lin lives with her husband, Ben, and their two cats, Maxi and Tommy, in Colts Neck, New Jersey.

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Review of You'll Never Eat Lunch in This Town Again (Paperback)

In her Oscar acceptance speech for Best Picture, Julia Phillips described herself as a "nice Jewish girl from Great Neck."Well, she got 2/3 of it right.But nice?No way.

This book is one of the greatest acts of literary self-immolation ever published.It's hard not to feel sorry for Phillips at first, suffering as she does from a toxic mother, a workaholic father, insomnia and a Talmudic intellect.

But you get over that feeling in a hurry, as Phillips bullies, maneuvers, sleeps and stomps her way to the top, winning an Oscar for The Sting at the unheard-of age of 29.Her motto: overcompensate; overachieve.If you can't be best, be first.

As she notes, no young person is ever ready for massive success, and her career crashed just as quickly.After being more or less fired from Close Encounters by Steven Speilberg, her life became a broken record of drug abuse, failed relationships, financial problems and closed doors gleefully slammed by those she used and abused on the way up.Through it all she makes it all seem like a big game, but the human wreckage strewn across the landscape will give the reader pause.

It's hard to know whether Phillips' broadsides at anyone and everyone with whom she had contact are simply through spite, or whether we'd all be better off if Hollywood simply disappeared in the next big quake.Phillips claims that she's just being honest, but snide remarks about a crewmember's physical deformity make her seem only nasty.

Hate it as she did, Phillips revelled in the politics, the backstabbing, the lies and shallowness, the feeling of power that came with the title of Producer.She learned fast ("Always negotiate the height and WIDTH of your [on-screen] credit," she advises, after her on-screen credit for The Sting is "willow thin.") Her films (Taxi Driver, The Sting, Close Encounters, among others) were good, though one gets the sense it was in spite of her take-no-prisioners approach.

One wishes at the end that Phillips would "get it," but instead she reaps what she sews.There was to be no Hollywood redemption for her.Phillips' death this january was untimely, but no human being could possibly survive for long carrying around so much bile.Very much worth the read, even only as a cautionary tale.

Product Description
Oscar-winning producer Julia Phillips's work on Taxi Driver, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and The Sting made her famous. This is the memoir that made her infamous-a downfall chronicle of a private hell that could only have been written by someone with nothing left to lose.

"The hottest book of the year." (Newsweek)

"A hell of a story." (San Francisco Chronicle)

"One of the most honest books ever written about one of the most dishonest towns ever created." (Boston Globe)

"Gossip too hot even for the National Enquirer...(If your name's in here, take two Valium and read on)." (Los Angeles Magazine)

"A blistering look at la la land. A biting tale." (USA Today)

"Fuel-injected dishing." (New York Newsday)

"This no-holds-barred autobiography dissects Hollywood...in scathing detail...will no doubt bring Hollywood to its knees." (Mirabella)

"The ultimate Hollywood chronicle...the story of a life at the top." (Anne Rice)

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Review of American Film Institute Desk Reference: The Complete Guide to Everything You Need to Know about the Movies (Hardcover)

"In Hollywood, anything can happen. Anything at all." ~Raymond Chandler

If you are looking for a one-volume source containing the information about movies and the people who produce them, this is an excellent reference manual. If information makes you high, this book will make you feel slightly heady. There is information on everything from film history to the biographies of major players. I enjoyed the hundreds of photos, quotes and factoids.

This desk reference is divided into five main sections:

1. Movie History - Take a journey from 1830-2002, decade by decade.

2. Movie Basics - An outline of who, what, when and where. This includes information on studios, creative people, how to break into the movies, buzzwords and coveted salaries.

3. Movie Crafts - The hands-on aspects of movie making. Producing, directing, writing, acting, cinematography, production design, costumes, makeup, hair, special effects, sound and music, editing, distribution and critiquing films.

4. People in Film - Profiles of historical and contemporary film-industry producers and players.

5. Films - Dream lists for the movie lover in you! See if you agree with the AFI's 100 Funniest movie list or read about the top 50 all-time box office hits. The movies are listed, then listed again with additional information. You can also read about the movies again in various parts of the book and page numbers are given for easy reference. Like "Some Like it Hot" is listed in AFI's Top 100 American Movies and while it is listed under AFI's 100 Funniest American Movies, they save space by referring you to pg. 383 for the detailed information.

This section also has a collection of "movie quotations" like: "I'd love to kiss you, but I just washed my hair." ~Bette Davis (Madge), Cabin in the Cotton (1932)

If you enjoy watching Foreign Films, this chapter has information about films around the globe. There are lists of films from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Greece, India, Iran, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Senegal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.

Sources - Addresses, phone numbers and websites for every facet of the film world. If you want to know about film projects in development, there are places you can find this information online.

You can find out information on:

What you have to do to sell your screenplay to Hollywood.
Where you can rent cameras if you wanted to make a film.
Why films get chosen for the Cannes Film Festival.
How the Oscar got its name.
The stars names found on the Holly wood Walk of Fame.

The main features in this book include: Lists of movies, essays, articles giving information about who's who, detailed cinema history, fascinating anecdotes, gossip, trivia and quotes from film personalities in side columns. Information on "screenplay formats and terminology" is a real bonus. It is pretty amazing to find all this information in one book! If there is another book out there that can compete, I haven't seen it.

Essential reading for any film critic and movie lover. If you are looking for movies to add to your must-see list, this book will have you adding hundreds of movies to your list. The Index is very helpful for finding movie information super fast (although I think they should consider expanding the index even further in future editions) and the AFI has gone out of their way to make this book a dream to read.

The perfect gift for anyone who loves movies.

~The Rebecca Review



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Review of Planning a Wedding to Remember: The Perfect Wedding Planner, Sixth Edition (Spiral-bound)

I have bought about 5 different wedding planning books and countless wedding magazines, and none of them had EVERYTHING in them like this one.This planner has wedding music suggestions (actual songs) for the firstdance, bouquet toss and garter throw.It also includes a list of not tomiss photos for your photographer. It gives information aboout formationsof the bridal party in the procession and recession. Also it has a list ofattendants responsibilities. There are worksheets for vendors andquestions to ask each vendor.If I could give this book 6 stars I would, Idefinately recommend it to all brides-to-be.I gave it as a gift to mynewly engaged friend and she adores it also.Good luck!

Product Description
This indispensable wedding planner reminds brides and grooms to enjoy themselves as they prepare for their wedding. New to the sixth edition are new tips, quizzes to help couples identify their personal styles, and suggestions on how and when to compromise in decision-making. The book also points the way to wedding planning tools available on the Web. Details about invitations, flowers, budgeting, etiquette, music, photographers, and apparel are all presented in a way that informs - and inspires - the bride and groom. Planning a Wedding to Remember, with charts and illustrations, is completely updated for a new generation of engaged couples.

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Review of The Instant When Everything is Perfect (Paperback)

What does one call a book like this?Is it a contemporary romance? It's a story of love, to be sure, but doesn't follow the rules of the romance genre.Is it women's fiction? Perhaps, but there's plenty of meat here for men to enjoy as well, if they care to look. Is it literature? The language isn't rich enough, the themes too transparent.

But in the end, who really cares what you want to call it? All that really matters is this: Jessica Barksdale Inclan's 'The Instant When Everything is Perfect' is a good book, the sort of deceptively simple story that will keep you thinking about it and its characters well after you've turned the last page and closed the book.

There's nothing really astounding about the story by itself. Inclan's tale of a failing marriage, the tragedy of cancer, and new love is one that has been told before, both in the pages of other books and in the days and years of lives lived. What made this book stand out for me as I read it, what kept me coming back to it again and again were the characters. Inclan's ability to create full-bodied, flawed, vibrant, human characters made this a story worth reading, even through the parts that were predictable or too easy.

My reaction to the book was surprising at times, and I think it had everything to do with the strength the characters. At one point I was banging my hand on the arm of my chair in frustration at the inaction of one character, at another I found myself thinking something just before another character said almost exactly what I had been thinking. In these brief pages, somehow I came to know the people within them: Mia, mother of two older boys, wife in a marriage that has never satisfied her. Robert, lonely and frightened, but kind and giving as well. Sally, Mia's mother, victim of breast cancer and rediscovering what her life means to her. Not only did I come to know these people, I came to care about them. Their story mattered to me, and when it ended I was a little sad. It ended where it needed to end, but I found myself wanting to know what came next too.

There are moments in life that seem flawless. Taken and recognized for what they are when they happen, they are wondrous and rare and beautiful, and they can sustain us through much. Jessica Barksdale Inclan sees those moments through the eyes of her characters, and she shares that vision with us in this book. For these moments alone, it is a story well worth reading.

Product Description
Mia thought she had everything-a thriving career, a wonderful husband, and two beautiful sons. But illness shakes her out of her comfort zone when her mother is diagnosed with breast cancer. At her mother's bedside, she meets someone whose presence seems to fill a void in her, a void she wasn't even aware existed.

Robert is happily convinced he's going to spend his life alone until he meets Mia, who makes him question everything. As a surgeon, he's helped many women put their lives back together. And despite his compelling feelings about Mia, he doesn't want to make hers fall apart.

About the Author
Jessica Barksdale Inclán teaches writing, mythology, and women's literature at Diablo Valley College in Pleasant Hill, California.

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Review of How to Do Everything with Windows XP (Paperback)

Great book, learned the in's & out's of XP in no time. I found the book to be well organized and easy to understand.Each chapter gives step by step instructions to do just about everything imaginable with Windows XP.It appears the author has taken extra effort in providing a well referenced index, so finding applications and definitions can quickly be found.Great as a reference tool. I highly reccomend this book.

Product Description
Get the most out of Windows XP using this friendly, solutions-oriented guide. See how much you can do with the world's most popular operating system--including making movies and playing music--and learn about all its new updates such as networking for both home and office, faster boot features, better security, and improved Web browsing.

From the Back Cover
Learn to run this sophisticated operating system with ease and enjoy the many features that make XP an efficient, rock-solid computing environment. Tap powerful functionality like home and small-office networking, Media Player, system security, and privacy protection. Manage files and folders, searches, and taskbar grouping with the simplified visual design. Communicate through text messaging, voice, or video through Windows Messenger. View, store, and organize digital photographs with My Pictures. Quickly change custom desktop configurations with fast user-switching. How To Do Everything with Windows XP will help you accomplish more in less time than you ever imagined.

• Operate effectively in the Home or Professional environments
• Configure the XP desktop and master the XP Control Panel
• Use the innovative features of Internet Explorer 6 and Network Setup Wizard
• Access and run a virtual desktop through Remote Desktop and Remote Assistance
• Capture, edit, organize, and share home movies with Windows Movie Maker
• Play DVDs, store digital music, or burn CDs with the media player
• Unleash greater networking capabilities
• Bridge networks, create firewalls, and use new security features
• Play games with greater stability and support features
• Learn the advantages of Windows 2000-generation code

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