End-of-Life Books

It is sad indeed when educated scholars preach of a pre trib rapture that was invented by the Catholic church (look it up) when the truth is that yes Christ is returning for a second time..."in that day" every eye will see Him, with a large trumpet blast etc...at the very last day, not a second sooner...there will not be a third coming....I'm disappointed to say the least.

There is scarcely a more passionately debated topic within Christianity than Eschatology (the study of future events). John MacArthur admits this in his book The Second Coming: Signs of Christ's Return and the End of the Age. MacArthur comes across as one who is convinced of the value of what he has to say but is nonetheless irritated by the persistent irrelevant chatter that too often surrounds the topic. As a result he does expose the folly of the half-baked future snoopers who are consumed with making the UN the one world religion as they sit in their lawn chairs waiting for the rapture.

In addition, MacArthur takes aim at preterism, the view that the prophecies of Matthew 24 were all fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. He also distinguishes between partial preterism and hyper preterism. The main difference between the two here is the denial of a bodily future return of Christ and a literal bodily resurrection of the dead (this is denied by hyper preterists not partial preterists).

The book is not an active assault on preterism (of any form) however, it is a passive engagement of these systems through a promotion of a literal premillennial return of Jesus Christ.

The book is in large part an expositional teaching through Matthew 24-25, also referred to as the Olivet Discourse. Along the way MacArthur maintains three helpful features that make this book a helpful and worthwhile read:

-1- Clear: MacArthur has come to be known as the guy who can take a complex passage or concept and easily explain it. You cannot help but understand the Second Coming better after reading this book.

-2- Consistent Hermeneutic: the book is also a study in hermeneutics. The author regularly pulls you aside to confirm why he concludes what he concludes. Over and over again he says things like, "if the simple sense makes the most sense seek no other sense." For example in discussing the oft debated passage of Matthew 24.34 referring to "this generation" MacArthur interacts with the Preterist view that this generation was those whom Jesus was speaking to:

"But if verse 34 is to be understood with such wooden literalness, the rest of the Olivet Discourse must be spiritualized to otherwise interpreted figuratively in order to explain how Christ's prophecies could all have been fulfilled by A.D. 70 without His returning bodily to earth" (p.80).

-3- Ethical Eschatology: Too often people (particularly futurists) get so caught up in charts and graphs that the real issue gets lost. The reality of the Second Coming is that it should radically change the way we live now. The author regularly revisits this need. In good homiletical fashion MacArthur finds regular application necessary in this book. The final chapter is even a concise call to be ready, How to Prepare for Christ's Return.

As is the case with MacArthur's preaching this book is an edifying tool. The reading level is not difficult even considering the subject. I would recommend it both to folks who want to get there feet wet studying eschatology as well as a tool for those who are seeking answers to intermediate level questions. To this end the glossary at the end most certainly will prove helpful.

If you've ever wondered about eschatology, MacArthur's got a very simple book here. Written on the level of those who've never dealt with anything dealing with the end times, he gives a very sobering and balanced view (representing the premillennial, pretribulational rapture). He decries 'newspaper theology' and goes to great lengths to steer believers away from the kooks and loonies like Jack Van Impe, the Lalondes, Hal Lindsey, John Hagee and others. He encourages believers to work as though Christ could appear at any moment to take them away, yet at the same time work as if He is afar off, redeeming our time while here on earth.

The book also serves as MacArthur's volley on full preterism (a heretical view which teaches that ALL prophecy has been fulfiled, including the second coming of Christ), with a few smacks and jabs at partial preterism (which teaches that MOST prophecy was fulfilled at 70 A.D. and we still await the second coming of Christ), since both use the same hermeneutical system.

This is another great work of expository teaching by Dr. John MacArthur, pastor of Grace Community Church and the president of Grace to You radio ministry. In this book, Dr. MacArthur examines the Olivet Discourse (in particular, Matthew 24), which focuses in on the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, the Tribulation, and the coming of the Son of Man. Using the other passages of the Bible to explain and elucidate the Matthew passage.

Overall, I found this to be a fascinating and wonderfully informative read. Dr. MacArthur eschews the all too often taken path of trying to suggest that the events are right around the corner, and instead explains why it is important that Christ returns and how to view the imminence of the return. Now, as you would expect with Dr. MacArthur, he does take an unapologetic premillenial, pretribulation, dispensational view of the text - but, he does examine the preterist view of 24:32-35, and shows how it is out of step with their view of the rest of the passage.

Yes, I must say I really enjoyed this non-sensation, highly informative look at the Olivet Discourse. If you want to read a truly mind-expanding view of that passage, then I would highly recommend that you get this book. I give it my highest recommendations!

Good book for a christian just wanting to know the general details on Christ's 2nd Coming. Doesn't get into an in depth study. Good for a new christian.

I am reading this book in 2008 during training to deploy to Iraq, nearly ten years after printing. I found the book amidst stacks of fiction novels people donated to the troops. This is my first encounter with the visionaries of Medjugorje. What I discovered inspired me to talk about this book, to talk about faith, to pray for wisdom, and to question.

Not understanding the history I felt lost at times in the beginning of the book. I think that Wayne Weible is overly promoting himself as a renowned chronicler of these events. Others I have previewed seem to be more objective. I feel that he exaggerates the world-wide importance of the apparitions.

Some of the messages seem rather short, leading me to believe the impressions of transmission could be more important to people than the content. While my faith allows me to believe that God can communicate to Catholics via a personage they would understand (Mary) I do not believe Mary's role in the universe is as she describes.

I am not convinced about the authenticity of the messages by this book. What impresses me is the impact.

Set aside the religious and existential debates for a minute and think about how people's lives have changed. I asked myself, have I had that kind of impact on people? Is my Christian walk so convincing, so in step with what I believe that people receive inspiration to get to know God? Not to this degree.

God has used my own book to change lives. I have spoken to thousands of people, brought hope, strengthened faith, yet all of that is humbling compared to God's work on display in this drama I do not comprehend.

I intend to read more about these visions and use these mysteries as a discussion point with others. Above all I intend to pray. If the visions and Mary are real as described, perhaps she will smile on my unbelief and recognize a step in the right direction.

Examine the evidence in the book? Sure. Critic the author? Of course. If you read this book be prepared, above all, to examine yourself or you have missed the entire point.

I am a historian at a university in Ohio. I am currently writing a history of the events in Medjugorje, Bosnia-Herzegovina since the 1980s. I would like to point out a few things for you to consider. First, Wayne Weible does NOT produce the best histories or summations of the events that occurred in Medjugorje. I suggest you pick a different author. Second, the bishop of Mostar COULD NOT have issued any official and binding statement regarding the alleged apparitions in Medjugorje until the apparitions are reported to have ceased by the visionaries. His opinion is not binding, as of yet. Third, there are a series of U.S. state department documents that have been declassified in the last few years regarding the verisimilitude of the Bishop of Mostar's decision. They are incredibly interesting and regard the bishop's decision as dishonest and politically swayed by the communist government. As you remember, the bishop of Mostar publicly expressed his belief in the apparitions immediately and it was not until he was questioned by the government that he changed his stance. It may be beneficial for you to take these things into consideration. You may also want to study the history and context surrounding the formation of the commission which examined the apparitions in the early 1980s. It is downright corrupt, in my professional opinion. I also want to caution you in regards to that which is published on the subject of Medjugorje. In my studies and in preparing my manuscript, I have read around 2/3 of the secondary literature on Medjugorje. I would say that so far at least, AT LEAST, 50% of the literature has substantial inaccuracies as to the history of events and the messages of the alleged visionaries. The most "acclaimed" authors, Weible and Janice Connell included! I suggest you read Randall Sullivan's "Miracle Detective" or anything written by Sr. Emmanuel (she is a little sappy, but she gets the details correct).

You must remember that there are many instances in the history of the Church in which the Church (even Popes) made politically corrupted, incorrect decisions that had been only later rescinded (for example Clement V during the Templar persecutions). This happens because the Church is made up of human beings. It is not something to be ashamed of, but should be brought to light so the Church can cleanse itself of the corruption. Corruption which occurred in this commission investigating Medjugorje and in a certain clerical line in Mostar and surrounding Herzegovina should not be hidden, but brought to light and cleansed. This is how the Church remains pure. It will become absolutely EVIDENT to you if you study the history of the Bosnian and Herzegovinian churches and the specific clergy clashes in Mostar and Medjugorje before the 1980s, exactly why the Bishop of Mostar developed the story that he did.

Other than that, I really hope you actually get a chance to take a look at some of the scientific studies conducted by the Vatican, just recently, and by independent scholars (Italians and Germans) over the last two decades. There are also many theologically sound works (Mark Miravalle, Rene Laurentin, etc.) that should be considered in your ultimate conclusion.

Basically, I blame a lack of correct interpretation of events that has become the consensus in the general secondary, American literature on Medjugorje. Correcting this mistake should not be hard for a scholar, such as yourself, it just takes a careful analysis of the author and his or her credibility.

I would strongly suggest, again, that you read another author's work on Medjugorje. Heather Parsons, Randall Sullivan (editor for Rolling Stone Magazine and probably the most objective opinion on the matter), Mark Miravalle (Steubenville professor, Mariologist, on the Vatican's official commission for investigating Marian apparitions), Sr. Emmanuel. You can find all of their books right on Amazon.com.

It is pointless to continue making accusations without correct or accurate knowledge, which is not your fault. Every accusation made in your comment about Medjugorje can be orthodoxly and successfully refuted. It is only your responsibility (and really, your Catholic duty) to make sure you accurately assess the facts before you make assertions.

It's very sad that fans of Medjugorje overlook, sometimes willfully, certain key facts of the matter. It is inexcusable when a priest does it.

For one thing, those who insist on following Medjugorje ignore the fact that canon law puts responsibility for deciding on the creditworthiness of reputed apparitions with the local ordinary--the bishop or archbishop in whose diocese the event is reported. That the Holy See does not involve itself with these matters and has no bureau, no agency with which to do so.

That the local ordinaries of Medjugorje have pronounced definitively that the reputed apparitions did not qualify for creditworthiness, that they do not establish themselves as being of the supernatural order. That there has never been any official declaration that has said one positive thing about the reports--that every single document has been entirely negative (read them again, Medjies! They couldn't be clearer.)

That the ordinaries have repeated this finding many times and forbidden people to come to Medjugorje on the pretext of these false reports.

That the content, as well as the nature, of these reports, and the conduct of the self-proclaimed visionaries, is very obviously inconsistent with the Catholic Faith and the whole history of creditworthy apparitions.

That if you convert to something that the Church has declared false you have not converted to the Church.

This is a sad business.

Wayne Weible is one of my favorite writers of Christian Inspiration, with his work on the apparitions of Medjugorje. He writes with an openness that is relatable and genuine. He demonstrates a sincere process of spiritual discernment in his first book: Medjugorje- The Message. His detailed account of his first encounter with the visions, and his ultimate belief in their authenticity left one with a strong sense of spiritual hope. Unfortunately, his new book, The Final Harvest: Medjugorje at the end of the Century, does little more than rehash information I've read and reread and reread countless times over the years in his and other works on the subject. Its presentation is dry and ends in a virtual desert. I've had it with his account of flights to various speaking engagements and his experiences thereof. This goes on and on and on. The best part of this book is a compilation of messages given by the Madonna as a reference at the end of the book, updating her messages to the end of the Century. This is handy to have, but is available easily anywhere. What people want to know when we by a book like this is What is next? Where is the world now in the grand scheme of things? What evidence is their that we should believe in... hope for...cling to? Weible can take a lesson from Michael H. Brown's approach to inspiring people to conversion through his writing on Medjugorje and other apparition sites throughout the world. Brown's The Final Hour, The Last Secret, and The Day Will Come are incredible! He ends his books with amazing insight and intense inspiration. He does not let you go until you feel loved and empowered. He sees to it that you are convinced of God's presence in the world, and that you are moved to action! People want their lives to change when they buy a book like this. They want someone to give them a reason to hope that they are not alone in the universe.

interesting book but with all religious works you must compare the contents to the only book inspired by God himself, the Bible. Yes buy this book from amazon and read it, it is put together nice but read the holy bible and buy that now from amazon as well. As a former catholic of 31 years i can tell you the way to heaven is through Jesus Christ NOT the virgin mary- this is not my opinion it is the word of God. You should purchase (from amazon of course) A vhs movie titled "messages from heaven" (eternal productions, copyrite 2000 / ISBN# 1-57341-119-1 which is an investigation into the catholic dogmas and messages from a spirit claiming to be mary as they compare to gods word. You will be shocked at the deception the catholic church has fallen for , totally disregarding the warnings in the bible. Check amazon first for the video, any problems email me for assistance.

Dr.Swenson has put forth an interesting proposition. Man's greed,avarice, propensity towards violence,and moral decline, along with natural economic and progressive forces have assured that the rapid maelstrom of mankind's destruction will continue unabated. Profusion,irreversibility, exponentiality, and the fallenness of the human race are the critical factors being overlooked by most in the fields of long range global forecasting. All of these elements, according to Swenson, are things that we neither desire to change or are incapable of changing at this juncture of recorded history.The author is not a pessemist in the true sense of the word's definition, but a realist based on current trends he sees around the world.

Thankfully those, like Swenson, who put their faith and trust in the God of creation and His Son who paid the price for our salvation need not worry or fret. God is preparing for those who believe a place in His new heaven and new earth. The end may be near, but there is new beginning beyond this present life.

This book is disturbing, sobering, and fascinating all at the same time. While some may choose not to believe "fundamentalist" religious views that say the world will soon come to an end, this book essentially says the same thing in a different, perhaps more rationalistic way. The author, Dr. Swenson, methodically presents his case, showing that mankind is on a path to almost certain self destruction. It's a fairly easy read; Swenson gives good, scientific explanations for his conclusions, but the book isnt weighted down with too much scientific jargon. The book is also hard hitting in a relatively compact size, lengthy enough to convincingly make the author's case on multiple fronts, but not too long that it becomes tedious. If you've ever felt that our world may be heading towards a catastrophic end, this book makes the case for you, giving rational, logical, and scientific reasons for anyone to be convinced that mankind has long been sowing the seeds of his own destruction. Well worth the price, and then some.

The other reviews listed here have pretty much covered this great book quite well, so I can only add that the graphs, which are simple, and seemingly accurate, show his points exceedingly well! They demonstrate exponentiality, and include: life expectancy, health care expenditures, Gross Domestic Product, Gross Federal Debt, Air Miles Traveled, Volume of Advertising, Third Class Junk Mail, Total Mail-Surface & E-mail, World Population, Explosive Power of Weapons, Data Transfer During War, One Soldier/Defensible Area, and more. Graphs such as these speak a thousand words! A very thought-provoking book!

I initially became familiar with Richard Swenson after reading his excellent book "Margin." Having heard him speak on the margin concept several times, I increasingly came to respect his gift for analyzing a problem and prescribing some potential solutions. It is this affinity for Swenson's work, rather than any sort of specific interest in end-times or apocalyptic propositions, that drew me to this particular book, and I was left sorely disappointed.

At just over 100 pages, Swenson doesn't have space to waste much time. He quickly dives into his thesis, that the world is speeding along toward its ultimate and permanent demise. He draws this conclusion based on such realities as the exponential growth of all things. As he deftly describes, our society is all about more stuff, more gadgets, more money, more activities, more pollution, more war, more technology, more people, and so on.

My frustration with the book is that he seems to take a huge leap from his data to his conclusion. It is indisputable that our world is experiencing explosive growth in many, if not all, major categories. While never explaining how this perception will inevitably lead to the destruction of the world, he speaks as if the connection is obvious and indisputable. He suggests that the slowing and eventual ceasing of these explosive growth trends is utterly impossible, yet he specifically cites one reputable author who made that exact claim and provided evidence of several such slow-downs. I was never convinced and Swenson didn't bother to provide evidence that exponential growth must continue indefinitely until destruction ensues.

One other minor complaint is strictly mathematical. Swenson takes pains to explain that he has a degree in physics and is a person who studies the data from an analytical, scientific perspective. Unfortunately, he includes many charts throughout the book that purport to demonstrate exponentiality, yet they show straights lines. Obviously, these lines demonstrate linear growth, with a constant slope. That is not exponential!! It seems sloppy to fail to actually use exponential curves and seems to discredit the author's indisputable mathematical prowess.

Ultimately, I found this book to be repetitive and unconvincing. Swenson has some important insight to provide, and there is value in much of what he says. Unfortunately, he overextends his conclusions without providing sufficient validity to his rather alarmist claims. I agree that much of the modern human experience is unhealthy and unsustainable, but I remain unconvinced that the world is coming to an end.

We had a name for a guy in college that kept telling us what we already knew - Moto for Master of the Obvious. Dr. Swenson is Moto. He writes about his study of the culture for the past twenty years and comes to the conclusion that mankind is on a collision course with destruction - and that this inevitable crash is going to happen soon...real soon. As a Christian, Swenson writes having one eye on Scripture and one eye on the world, but unfortunately his eyesight is a little hazy on both. The first problem is that Swenson associates the concept of sin or "fallenness" (his word) with the problems of the world...and then concludes that because there are more people, there is more fallenness. Simple logic, but unfortunately not supported in Scripture nor in the annuals of human history. For example, before the flood, the bible tells us that mankind was incredibly wicked, so much so that God grieved for His creation and His wrath eliminated all but a small handful of humans. Also, when you look back at the depravity of Sodom and Gomorrah and see how God brought swift and severe destruction upon their sin, one can logically conclude that although there are more people, mankind is just as depraved now as it was at the beginning. And while we have continued to invent new ways to destroy life, we also continue to invent new ways to prolong and enhance life - as Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes nothing is new under the sun.

But, according to Swenson, something is new - a new "era of progress" that is not like the rest of human history; everything is different now, he claims. Everything is economics, and the beast of modernity who is controlled by economics cannot be fed enough to alter its destructive force on mankind. Swenson then gives a bunch of large words and interesting mathematical equations and again reaches his same conclusion - the path to destruction is a downhill road and mankind is rolling down faster and faster and faster. Again, though, Swenson forgets about the biblical narratives in the Old Testament that demonstrate first that God is in control, not the laws of nature or the laws of mathematics and secondly that God has given man a chance for repentance in the past and may well do so again in the future. While Sodom was destroyed, Nineveh repented and was spared (much to the chagrin of Jonah).

Swenson tries to reduce God to a formula so that the negatives and the positives of life can be weighed against each other. Of course this exercise is completely futile as if man knows the ways of God. God has been glorified greatly even in the midst of horrendous human suffering - ask anyone who has gone through the trial of cancer only to come out on the other side with a deeper relationship with the Lord and a greater appreciation for their family, friends and life in general. Swenson's "negative" is actually a positive in the spiritual sense. And this is Swenson's greatest error - reducing all things in life to the physical realm effectually eliminating the sovereignty of God from the lives of man.

While the argument may well be logical, I found it flawed at the core and learned that Swenson told me nothing that Scripture hasn't already made perfectly clear - there is a day of judgment coming, a day when this earth will be destroyed and a new earth will be the dwelling place for the redeemed. The only question for man today is the same was it was thousands of years ago - in whom do you trust, in the wisdom of man or of God?

Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins, and others in the Pre-Trib circle, such as Ed Hindson, Tommy (Thomas) Ice, Chuck Missler, Zola Levitt, Thomas McCall, John Hagee, Grant Jeffrey, Marlin Maddox, Perry Stone, Texe Marrs, John Walvoord (deceased), etc., continue to put forth the same deceptions that Hal Lindsey popularized decades ago. The notion of a pre-tribulation rapture is foreign to scripture, it is foreign to the teachings of the early Church, and it is grooming the Church for destruction through ignorance and lack of preparation for what is really coming. These men are novices and not prophecy "experts" or "scholars" by any stretch of the imagination; they are those who tickle the ears of gullible Christians. Why continue to be deceived? Tim Cohen, in his excellent book, "The AntiChrist and a Cup of Tea," provides biblically sound and testable evidence to show that the coming AntiChrist is known NOW. Not only that, the same author (Tim Cohen) has now put out the strongest presentation on the whole issue of the rapture EVER offered to the saints of God in Christ: "The REAL Rapture". If you really want to know the truth about the timing of the coming rapture, then you need to hear Tim Cohen's "The REAL Rapture" (based on a volume in his forthcoming "Messiah, History, and the Tribulation Period" series (see Prophecy House's site for details on these items, which are also available via Amazon).

I find this book very interesting and good. It keeps you on the edge of your seat! This book will tell you about what is to come and will let you experience what lies ahead, as well as learn more about God.

1. Three kids are on the run from the GC, and they don't know what to do. Vicki goes down south, and teaches belivers more than they could handle. Judd and Lionel are stuck at New Babylon.
2. This Book was awesome it had me going the whole time, esically when the locust attack.
3. Irony represents this book because it makes you think that the locusts are going to bite everyone.
4. I would recommend this book to christians

This book was incredible! Attack of the Apollyon wasn't my favorite, but it was sure good. It's a must read. While Lionel and Samuel stay in Israel, Judd and Mr.Stein go to North Africa.

This is definitely going to happen, and it it is going to happen soon! In this book, the "locusts" attack unbelievers who are not sealed with God's mark and cause them terrrible pain. Even in the midst of this situation, the Antichrist is still finding ways to trick people into believing in him. But will people finally see the truth?

The Rapture and all of the judgments and things that you hear about Jesus Christ are true. This is not a made-up thing to scare people into becoming Christians. It will happen someday. No one knows the hour or the time, all we know is that it will happen-so don't fall asleep. This book is very informative. There are no hidden things in this book. You should read the whole series and learn anything that you can about the Rapture. The Rapture is a subject that everyone should know about, but unfortunately everyone won't because people will be left behind. I encourage you to tell your friends about this book and the series. This is not a prank, joke, or legend. I am sure of it. This book will tell you more about the end times than I can. You should read these books in sequence, so that they will make sense. This is a very good book and everything about the Rapture and the judgments, the Tribulation, and the Great Tribulation is SO true. I hope that you will consider what I have said and buy this series.
Book #1 The Vanishings
Book #2 Second Chance
Book #3 Through the Flames
Book #4 Facing the Future
Book #5 Nicolae High
Book #6 The Underground
Book #7 Busted!
Book #8 Death Strike
Book #9 The Search
Book #10 On the Run
Book #11 Into the Storm
Book #12 Earthquake!
Book #13 The Showdown
Book #14 Judgment Day
Book #15 Battling the Commander
Book #16 Fire from Heaven
Book #17 Terror in the Stadium
Book #18 Darkening Skies
Book #19 Attack of Apollyon
Book #20 A Dangerous Plan
Book #21 Secrets of New Babylon
Book #22 Escape from New Babylon
Book #23 Horsemen of Terror
Book #24 Uplink from the Underground
Book #25 Death at the Gala
Book #26 The Beast Arises
Book #27 Wildfire!
Book #28 The Mark of the Beast
Book #29 Breakout!
Book #30 Murder in the Holy Place
Book #31 Escape to Masada
Book #32 The War of the Dragon
Book #33 Attack on Petra*
Book #34 Bounty Hunters*
*February 2004-Release Date.
You can pre-order these books from Amazon!

Out of all the Left Behind Kids' books, I found this book to be the most enjoyable. It is full of action and doesn't bore the reader with so many details he or she is lost.

Get this book. You won't be sorry!

I think that the left behind books are great. they're educational and action packed. I love all the characters especially Judd and Lionel. The only thing I dont like about the books is that the plot is unrealistic. if suddenly all the christians dissapearred into thin air everyone would convert. let alone them screaming at the top of their lungs that theres going to be a worldwide earthquake, hail the size of golfballs mixed with a shower of blood, a giant meteor crashing to earth, another giant meteor crashing into earth that pollutes all the water a worldwide freeze, and finaly a giant cloud composed of millions of tiny invincible demons with the body of a lion and the head of a human that leave all the believers alone but chew through walls to sting the unbelievers, which after they are stung they expereince so much pain that they want to die for five months. All of which happens almost exactly as they said it would. But still the vast majority of people follow Enigma Babylon one world religion. Come On!

This book is really good with the exception of Nada.I HATE NADA!!! she,s (in my opinion )not a good addition to the Young Trib Force.And I can't believe that Judd could like her.She's too weak.Anyway since i hate her I won't spend so much time on her.i really like vicki.I wish they could trade Nada for chaya.
In my book it was supposed to be Vicki and judd!!!!

I love the Left Behind:The Kids series and I liked this book too. The only thing I don't like about this book is Nada (if you look at the reviews it's pretty much unanimous-she stinks!). I'm really writing a review for the whole series-it's GREAT and I would recommend it to anyone who's willing to try it. I do recommend that you read the books in order, though, because if you miss something it can get confusing.

It's not many bird books where a story of the Baal Shem Tov (18th century Jewish Mystic) is interspersed with Walden, and Frost's "The Oven Bird". Along with birding trips to Central Park, the southern U.S. to look for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker and Israel, Jonathan Rosen, gives us insight into our relationship with nature. Rosen has unique perspectives on Audubon, Walt Whitman, Thoreau, Robert Frost, Teddy Roosevelt, and clergyman/naturalist Henry Baker Tristram. Rosen's insights seem most clear, when following a specific historic story line, such as Alfred Russell Wallace's search for a bird of paradise (which to him was more important that his proposals of evolution). Perhaps the book sputters when Rosen does not have a historic narrative, such as on the difference of Male and Female brain. Rosen " offers no grand synthesis" on many topics (science and religion, hunting, poetry) but the book works well at presenting a blend of philosophy, history, literary reference, and birds.

Pro - thoughtful reflections on birdwatching, environmental crisis and parenting
Con - some of it has appeared in the New Yorker and the Times
Very good list of sources, from Emerson to E.O. Wilson.

Jonathan Rosen's book The Life of the Skies has been given little publicity and is not easy to find simply because it does not fit into the usual categories. It is not a nature book per se. It is not a biography. Rather it is about nature, about philosophy, about reflections on life in general. It is one of those large books that makes one think and reflect on life. Rosen writes well and draws from a wide range of sources, linking birdwatching in Central Park in New York City of all places to a huge number of other topics. It is a book that I came upon totally by chance. I heard a review of it somewhere and decided to go and find it and was amazed that no bookstore had it in stock. I have now passed it on to a number of friends, all of whom say that they have never heard of it. I would highly recommend it to almost anyone, regardless of whether they are a birder or not. Maybe it will convince them, like Rosen himself, to begin to watch birds and in turn to look at the earth that we live on in a new and different way.

This book spoke to me. I've been a birder for over 20 years now, and after reading "The Life of the Skies" I understand at last why I enjoy it so much.

Author Rosen's central view is that humans need to affiliate with the natural world to be happy and fulfilled: "More and more I realize that to be bored with birds is to be bored with life. I say birds rather than some generic `nature,' because birds are what remain to us." He makes the point that birds are the only truly wild creatures most of us see.

Many of the pages include interesting history. The chapter about the ivory-billed woodpecker describes how after Alexander Wilson, the father of American ornithology, captured one in the 18th century, he noted that its cries sounded exactly like "the violent crying of a young child."

A must for anyone who loves birds, "The Life of the Skies" will make its reader want to go outside and look up.

I often get a book from our local library and then decide after reading it or reading part of it whether or not to purchase the book. This is definitely a book to purchase. It has a vast amount of information written in a poetic and beautiful manner. One reviewer wrote about a few grammatical errors. That person certainly lost the point of the book which was to make you appreciate nature and life in general.

This is a fascinating book but also hard to describe. Rosen writes about so many things besides birding.
(Birding is serious birdwatching). He brings in some Jewish content in his book and a few chapters are about birding in Israel.

Rosen also spends quite a bit of time writing about birding in Central Park in NY City and looking for the Ivory Billed Woodpecker in Arkansas. There are many quotes in the book from various poets and writers and early American birders such as Audubon and many others.

Here is a little quote from the end of the book just to give you a little flavor of the writing of Rosen.

" Looking for the Ivory-billed woodpecker, I inevitably found myself jotting in my notebook "I.B. Woodpecker," linking the bird to I. B. Singer, like Sutzkever a great Yiddish writer steeped in loss, obsessed with diminishment and survival. As if the bird I sought kept a culture alive in its song, though it doesn't even sing; it drums and makes a thin tinny ank, a language that remains haunting and obscure.

But birdwatching is a world of small gestures that reflect larger worlds. My favorite place to watch birds in Central Park is Tanner's Spring, a humble little area not even located in the park's wooded interior but just off Central Park West, a hundred yards north of the Diana Ross playground..."

Anyway, I loved the book, being a birdwatcher and a Jew myself.

I was in a bad place when my husband found this book and ordered it for me. I took it along with me on our "vacation" with my 3 year old. As it turns out, it helped. I was able to turn my frown upside down, and I think Kelly Nault's method of positive reinforcement is definitely worth a shot. Nothing works on all of the kids all of the time, but this book has some worthwhile advice.

This book has a lot of good suggestions to be a better parent, but I've yet to see how it deals with the issue of stress. I have two year old twins, and was hoping for more guidance on dealing with frustration and stress that inevitably comes from being with my kids 24/7. They are good kids, but constantly having to be patient wears me thin. This book is like most...it suggests being "patient." Being patient is not my problem, it's handling the pent-up frustration! I will concede that the author has suggestions such as getting help, making friends, etc. All of these things are a good idea, but if you're like me you find it hard to muster the energy to parent full-time and do all of these other things and do them well. I guess you just have to see it as a work in progress. Strive to achieve these goals and don't beat yourself up if you're not doing it perfectly.

I was really disappointed in this book, but I should not have been. I read all of the reviews and decided to purchase anyway. It seems that the the 5-star ratings are given by credentialed professionals (are they colleges or friends helping another?), while the mothers who truly need strategies to implement at home are not finding this book helpful, and giving the lower-star rating. I fall in the latter category. As the mother of three under the age of 5, I get angry with my children and I truly want to learn how to break this cycle of anger in my family. More "me" time isn't the only answer.

I agree with the other reviewer - "not as helpful as I would have liked." Disappointing. Basically, a lot of suggestions when you can hire babysitters often. Also, not practical advice for hectic lives today.

For starters, I was not happy to find on the first page that the author is not even a parent herself, but a part-time caregiver.
That aside, I appreciate that moms (myself included) certainly do need to make time for themselves and let more things go. Unfortunately, this book does not relate really well to a working mother of 2 very small children, who can't just let everything go, and have lots of Mom-time. My kids still need a lot of care at this point, and I prefer to spend most of my non-working time with them. Also, I found the cutesy tone of the book annoying and distracting from the substance and content.
Maybe this book is helpful for parents of older children, but it just doesn't work for me

The author doesn't dumb down the facts and science, making this a great book for those who want more than a "pop medicine" understanding of the inner workings of stress. Fascinating, cutting edge information.

This is an outstanding work on a most topical issue. Dr. McEwen, of Rockefeller University in New York City, has the gift of communication, articulating the work of neuroscience and behavior to all, particularly accessible to the public. This kind of work serves the public, an extremely important audience, very well. It led me to invite him to speak at the upcoming symposium of The Foundation for Human Potential (FHP), Mental Health and the Brain:Implications for Lifelong Lifelong Learning, Nov. 15-16, 2007, in Chicago., which will include presentations by many outstanding scientists and others with like communication abilities. I recommend it to all and have bought it for everyone I know!
[...]

Bruce McEwen, a brain researcher, combines the big picture, stresses of life in our society, with a very thorough background of supporting research. The book explains how stress normally sets off adrenaline first, and afterwards, cortisol. These are healthy reactions, but later, when they don't know when to shut off, they become detrimental. This book is both informative to the layman, and also college text book material. For this reason, it has earned its way into my stack of books that I plan to reread at least once again.

Through his research, Bruce McEwen has made great contributions to our understanding of stress and health. His work has inspired a lot of progress on the social causes of illness. I will use some of his material to explain the connection between stress and diabetes in my new book, "Diabetes as a Turning Point."

Unfortunately, I did not find "The End of Stress as We Know It" to be as valuable as the research that inspired it. It's pretty dryly scientific, a lot of "studies show this," and "studies show that," without many examples or stories to illustrate his points. He says we can do a lot to prevent stress-related illness, but mainly repeats "low-fat diet, exercise, and social support" as his advice. These may be useful suggestions, but people would need a lot more specifics to be able to use them effectively in our toxic environment. Those are the kind of suggestions they'll get from my book.

The main new point here is the terms Dr. McEwen coined to replace the word stress. He talks instead about "allostasis" to mean our bodies' natural stress response, and "allostatic load" to mean the problems that arise when the response gets overloaded. Some social scientists have started using these terms, because the term "stress" does mean a lot of different things. But this new terminology, IMO, does not require a whole book to explain it.

I'm grateful to Dr. McEwen for his important research. His book is worthwhile, but there's nothing here that isn't done better in Robert Sapolsky's Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers.

David Spero RN, author of The Art of Getting Well: Maximizing Health When You Have a Chronic Illness (Hunter House 2002).
Nurse at davidsperoRN dot com

This is a very thorough and easy to understand book on the effects of chronic stress on every major body system, memory, mood, etc. It presents many of the same concepts as Dr. Sapolsky's excellent book, "Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers." However, this resource is aimed more at laypeople.

Dr. Sapolosky's book is very dense for most people without a background in biology, however, he has an excellent sense of humor and goes more in-depth than Bruce McEwen. In short, if you didn't like taking science in school, you will probably get more out of the "The End of Stress As We Know It."

I also found that Bruce McEwen took more time and space to explain essential physiological concepts such as allostasis. This a key concept and Sapolosky seems to take the reader's understanding of this basic concept more for granted.

Overall, this book is well-organized and does a good job explaining the "fight or flight" response, the role of the endocrine system in stress and the impact of chronic stress. It does not, however, have much to say about how to overcome chronic stress that most people already don't know. For this, I would turn to other sources such as "Full Catastrophe Living."

Although this book does not address how to combat stress in great detail, I think it provides essential context for anyone trying to change their lifestyle. In fact, I think it should be required reading for anyone who works in a high stress environment.

If you want to read another good book on the societal and psychological factors that lead to being chronically stressed, then check out "American Mania" which was written by a UCLA psychiatrist and is complimentary to this book in some very good ways. If you read "American Mania" and this book, it will probably change your attitude toward the damaging effects of stress forever!

If you are familiar with preterist doctrine then you won't find anything new here. If you don't know what preterism is then you might want to read this book. Half of this book consists on an appendix of historical citations, which are the writings of Josephus.

This book does not contain anything that you can't find online or by asking a pastor. If you look carefully at the "product details" listed on amazon.com, it says 112 pages, this is WRONG. It only has 86 pages, of text, which include 2 title pages, a dedication page, a 3-lined page defining Eschatology, Table of Contents, Foreword, Preface, Acknowledgements, Introduction, Conclusion, Epilogue, an About the Author page, and two pages of other worthless books written in this "series." There are only 3 chapters in the book, the first one 4 pages long, the second 7 pages long, and the third 9 pages long. The Appendix of Historical Citations follows the work of Josephus, a nobody Jewish historian born in 37 AD. Besides the meatless content, this book is mostly fluff. The appendix, 53 pages is by far longer than the actual text of the 3 chapters combined (20 pages). In those 20 pages, the author consistently repeats the same ideas and even text over and over again as if the reader has a 5 second memory. For example he repeats an excerpt from matthews 24 in chapter 3 THREE TIMES within a few pages (probably why chapter 3 is a lengthy 9 pages). This book wants you to ponder over other sequences of end time events other than those set in the LB timeline, but the only thing i pondered after reading this book was how i could've just wasted $12 (or $5 for shipping since i returned the book the next day). By the way, did you know that this book is just one of 12?! If they were all compiled into 1 book, then it MIGHT be worth $12. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK! YOU WILL REGRET IT! THIS BOOK IS A NECESSITY...FOR WASTING $12!

I agree completely with the reviewer who said that the Appendix was worth the price of the whole book. And the text itself, aside from occasional obvious typos, is a most engaging, highly intelligent approach to this difficult subject. The author clearly READS the text, and allows the text to speak its message first, before trying to interpret the meaning. By patiently engaging the text this way, the author has produced for us a fine, very balanced guide throught these teachings. Too bad for the other "goofy" interpretations so many people have swallowed. They might give this book a careful, patient read for recovering a balanced and much sounder approach to eschatology.

I especially like the way this author engages the reader with simple, yet sharp, questions and without "preaching" just leaves his reader with the gentle nod, "just a question for further thought," or some such phrase, to encourage our continual thinking about his well-made points. A fine job, and a book of very lasting value in trying to reach a sound interpretation of these not-so-easy-to-grasp texts. Highly recommended for any layperson reading for individual study, or for groups studying together. I, too, want to see the other volumes in the series. And don't forget to look carefully at the Appendix material, where he suberbly draws out Josephus' help in clarifying much of the New Testament text. Sharp observations. Well done.

I hope future editions will weed out the typos.

Do you find yourself questioning what you've been led to believe about the Rapture? Then, order this book. Tim Kirk know his stuff--in this case, scripture, and how to intrepret it. He offers references and explains how they led him to his wish to be "left behind." While reading his book, I found an alternative explanation of how the "end times" will be. For me, it has provided a comforting intrepretation of what, I, a Christian, believe in.
Tim Kirk expresses his ideas in a way that intrgued me and got me to pause and rethink what I grew up believing.
I have a question for the author--how long before your next books is published?

Finally, an author who gently and brilliantly offers his viewpoints on an important facet of the Christian faith.
I grew up Baptist and scared of the predictions of the last book of the Bible--or, at least, of the intrepretation of such offered by my church. And, later on in life, as an adult, still scared, but of another belief--the "Rapture." After some experienced hypocracy within the church I'd been a dedicated Sunday School teacher of for 4 years, I "woke up" and realized that perhaps I had blindly been following the "wrong" intrepretation given by men of God, Jesus, and Heaven and Hell and how it all pertains to us.
Finding this book, written by an author who so eloquently educates the reader while guiding us to question what intrepretations we believe in and where they come from, opened up a whole new perspective to me of the "end times."
I still have more research to do, in part from the author's request to do so, but, thanks to Tim Kirk's fine authoring prose, I find myself--as well as the author-- wanting "to be left behind!!"

Tim LaHaye, Jerry Jenkins, and others in the Pre-Trib circle, such as Ed Hindson, Tommy (Thomas) Ice, Chuck Missler, Zola Levitt, Thomas McCall, John Hagee, Grant Jeffrey, Marlin Maddox, Perry Stone, Texe Marrs, John Walvoord (deceased), etc., continue to put forth the same deceptions that Hal Lindsey popularized decades ago. The notion of a pre-tribulation rapture is foreign to scripture, it is foreign to the teachings of the early Church, and it is grooming the Church for destruction through ignorance and lack of preparation for what is really coming. These men are novices and not prophecy "experts" or "scholars" by any stretch of the imagination; they are those who tickle the ears of gullible Christians. Why continue to be deceived? Tim Cohen, in his excellent book, "The AntiChrist and a Cup of Tea," provides biblically sound and testable evidence to show that the coming AntiChrist is known NOW. Not only that, the same author (Tim Cohen) has now put out the strongest presentation on the whole issue of the rapture EVER offered to the saints of God in Christ: "The REAL Rapture". If you really want to know the truth about the timing of the coming rapture, then you need to hear Tim Cohen's "The REAL Rapture" (based on a volume in his forthcoming "Messiah, History, and the Tribulation Period" series (see Prophecy House's site for details on these items, which are also available via Amazon).

I have always enjoyed the adult series of Left Behind books. The kids books are just as good. The kids interact with the characters from the adult series, experience the same events, etc. However, since the main characters are teens, these books can appeal to younger readers. So far, the stories haven't had the ups and downs that the adult series has had. The adult series has books that are a lot more boring than others. The kids series seems to be good in every book. These are not for really young kids, but would be appropriate for young teens. I enjoy them and I am an adult.

I think it is fair to warn you that this IS a Christian book series that is written about the end times. God never told us that the end times were always going to be hunky-doory so please don't expect these books to be like a fairy tale where everything always turns out ok. Some people is this series actually do die. Don't get me wrong, I think these books are awesome. I just want to make sure that you don't expect the books in this series to be whishy-washy fluff books. These are the kind of books that make you rethink your own faith. Are you ready for the challenge?

To "A twelve year-old-reader": The downpart of this and all the other Left Behind: The kids books, as well as the adult version of Left Behind is not that it's a Christian book, it's that the facts in them are not taken seriously. To "A reader": Your sarcasm will lead YOU to be left behind. But even worse than that, it will also lead your children to be left behind. Pleae, take heed.

..I love these books! I don't give a diddly-squat 'nevahmin'' that they are written at a 10th grade level..That just makes them a 'fast read' while soakin' in the tub. Happens that I AM a Christian, but that doesn't mean I consider the series to be 'fact' based. My studies of the bible include "Through the Bible" series by Dr. J Vernon McGee and I think his interpretation of the 'end-times' is probably more accurate. ... I don't read these stories for anything but entertainment...

Children shouldn't be scared by characters killed off in a book...

Read these books, they will get you thinking about something grander than yourself...