MY FAVORITE CASHEW

Name: MY FAVORITE CASHEW
Author: C.B. Anderson
ISBN: 978-1449757953

by C.B. Anderson ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 19, 2012

My Favorite Cashew is replete with irresistible charms. While its pages are informed by Tom’s traditional faith, the book...

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A sweet reflection on the limitless nature of love. Anderson’s debut is at its heart a tribute to the author’s husband, Tom, a country doctor who seemed simultaneously a saint amongst men. Still, beyond the goodness he embodied as a community leader and unapologetic Christian, Tom’s days were sometimes clouded by memories from his past. A survivor of childhood sexual abuse, Tom was frequently given to bouts of depression, manifest occasionally in manic behavior. Despite these challenges, he managed to achieve incredible personal and professional success. He worked first as a travelling missionary, then put himself through medical school with the specific goal of benefitting small towns. Having experienced so much confusion and darkness in his youth, Tom had come to appreciate lived faith beyond all earthly distractions, and yearned to nurture strong families in communities which embodied traditional values. These pages recount his growing family’s struggle to make ends meet despite the financial pitfalls of medical school; they recall jobs lost because Tom couldn’t stay silent in the face of abused patient trust. They find him earnestly searching for a church community in which to center himself and his family, and locate him in the fight to treat mental illness against stigmas from even within his own religious communities. Always, these recollections are deepened by the necessary, devout support of his equally impressive family. All impediments are navigated with a grace which will impress readers. High and low moments alike are recounted with humor and affection.

My Favorite Cashew is replete with irresistible charms. While its pages are informed by Tom’s traditional faith, the book avoids sanctimony. This is the story of a Christian who strove to embody kindness and generosity, and whose work was always refreshingly devoid of connected judgment. Having once been comprehensively broken, Tom worked to be a doctor who comprehensively healed. His story will inspire readers in multiple ways. It is at once a challenge to approach mental illness with more nuance and a call to love each other, and our neighbors, with unwavering care. A triumphant response to the worst impulses of human behavior which should fill readers with hope.

Pub Date: July 19, 2012

ISBN: 978-1449757953

Page Count: 138

Publisher: Westbow Press

Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2012

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

PHILOSOPHY & RELIGION

ROSE BOOK OF BIBLE CHARTS, MAPS AND TIME LINES

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ROSE BOOK OF BIBLE CHARTS, MAPS AND TIME LINES

by Timothy Paul Jones ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 1, 2005

Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.

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A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.

This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is â€œHow We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.

Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.

Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005

ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8

Page Count: -

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

PHILOSOPHY & RELIGION

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THE MYTH OF SISYPHUS

AND OTHER ESSAYS

by Albert Camus ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 26, 1955

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This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.