[O]ften acerbic journalist Hitchens enters the fray. As his subtitle indicates, his premise is simple. Not only does religion poison everything, which he argues by explaining several ways in which religion is immoral, but the world would be better off without religion. Replace religious faith with inquiry, open-mindedness, and the pursuit of ideas, he exhorts. Closely reading major religious texts, Hitchens points to numerous examples of atrocities and mayhem in them. Religious faith, he asserts, is both result and cause of dangerous sexual repression. What's more, it is grounded in nothing more than wish fulfillment. Hence, he believes that religion is man-made, and an ethical life can be lived without its stamp of approval. With such chapter titles as "Religion Kills" and "Is Religion Child Abuse?" Hitchens intends to provoke, but he is not mean-spirited and humorless. Indeed, he is effortlessly witty and entertaining as well as utterly rational. Believers will be disturbed and may even charge him with blasphemy (he questions not only the virgin birth but the very existence of Jesus), and he may not change many minds, but he offers the open-minded plenty to think about.

June Sawyers

One of the best coffee table books I've ever read. It's full of detailed backgrounds on every mythical creature you have ever heard of, and plenty you haven't! Great for reading cover to cover or just open it randomly and get lost in georgeous drawings and paintings. It's a must read for anyone who loves the fantasy genre.

Official description:
Hardcover sales of more than 70,000 copies have made the Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were a classic illustrated reference to myths and legends from all corners of the world. Here--culled from mythology, literature, and folk tales--is the mystical realm that has populated humanity's imagination for centuries. Over 400 entries, engagingly written and organized by type of entity, make this a complete source of information and a visual feast. Among the entries are: from "The Cosmos," Quetzalcoatl and Scorpio; from "The Ground and Underground," centaurs, elves, and unicorns; from "Wonderland," Atlantis and El Dorado; from "Magic, Science, and Invention," flying carpets and the Trojan horse; from "Water, Sky, and Air," Pegasus and Moby-Dick; and from "The Night," a host of shuddersome creatures from vampires to the golem. This is a wild and wondrous gift for any visionary.

In the rush of modern life, we tend to lose touch with the peace that is available in each moment. World-renowned Zen master, spiritual leader, and author Thich Nhat Hanh shows us how to make positive use of the very situations that usually pressure and antagonize us. For him a ringing telephone can be a signal to call us back to our true selves. Dirty dishes, red lights, and traffic jams are spiritual friends on the path to "mindfulness" -- the process of keeping our consciousness alive to our present experience and reality. The most profound satisfactions, the deepest feelings of joy and completeness lie as close at hand as our next aware breath and the smile we can form right now.

Lucidly and beautifully written, Peace Is Every Step contains commentaries and meditations, personal anecdotes and stories from Nhat Hanh's experiences as a peace activist, teacher, and community leader. It begins where the reader already is -- in the kitchen, office, driving a car, walking a part -- and shows how deep meditative presence is available now. Nhat Hanh provides exercises to increase our awareness of our own body and mind through conscious breathing, which can bring immediate joy and peace. Nhat Hanh also shows how to be aware of relationships with others and of the world around us, its beauty and also its pollution and injustices. the deceptively simple practices of Peace Is Every Step encourage the reader to work for peace in the world as he or she continues to work on sustaining inner peace by turning the "mindless" into the mindFUL.

"This book of illuminating reminders bid us to reorient the way we look at the world...toward a humanitarian perspective." --Publisher Weekly

When he was a young man, Olympic athlete, gymnastic coach, and author Dan Millman met Socrates, an eccentric mentor who delivered him from a young man's hubris and heartless pursuit of victory. This moving, largely true, story, with details admittedly drawn from emotional rather than factual memory, is told here with loving respect for the old man and his timeless ideas. "The warrior's life is not about imagined perfection or victory; it's about love," the athlete is told by his mentor. Living in alignment with the heart in the moment, free of striving and performance pressure, is the valuable lesson that channels through this somewhat long but well-told story.

A Lama Foundation Book. Describes one man's transformation upon his acceptance of the principles of Yoga and gives a modern restatement of the importance of the spiritual side of man's nature.

It tells a gripping story of adventure and discovery, but it is also a guidebook that has the power to crystallize your perceptions of why you are where you are in your life-and to direct your steps with new energy and optimism as you head into tomorrow.

Ender's Game is a science fiction novel that tells the story of Andrew Wiggin (nicknamed Ender by his sister, Valentine.) The story takes place on Earth in the future. Earth has been attacked
twice by an alien species called Buggers, nearly destroying the human race. Mankind begins training young geniuses to become soldiers and commanders to fight in Earth's defence if the Buggers should
ever attack again. Ender is extremely intelligent, and at the age of six years old, he goes to Battle School to be trained. Ender quickly rises to the top in Battle School and begins training in order to command Earth's fleet.