Elsewhere (Ala Notable Children's Books. Older Readers)

Book Description

Is it possible to grow up while getting younger?

Welcome to Elsewhere. It is warm, with a breeze, and the beaches are marvelous. It’s quiet and peaceful. You can’t get sick or any older. Curious to see new paintings by Picasso? Swing by one of Elsewhere’s museums. Need to talk to someone about your problems? Stop by Marilyn Monroe’s psychiatric practice.

Elsewhere is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall ends up, after she has died. It is a place so like Earth, yet completely different. Here Liz will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby again and returns to Earth. But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver’s license. She wants to graduate from high school and go to college. And now that she’s dead, Liz is being forced to live a life she doesn’t want with a grandmother she has only just met. And it is not going well. How can Liz let go of the only life she has ever known and embrace a new one? Is it possible that a life lived in reverse is no different from a life lived forward? This moving, often funny book about grief, death, and loss will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.

Customer Reviews:

"Elsewhere" takes you on a magical journey...elsewhere!.......2007-09-23

Everyone asks the question, "what happens when people die?" Elsewhere, by Gabrielle Zevin will make you think twice on this subject. Reading this book was very addicting, and I nearly cried when I turned to the last page because I never wanted the story to end!

The author paints vivid pictures to help the reader feel like a part of the story. By using strong, descriptive words, I was allowed to imagine myself in Liz's shoes. For example, this was proven when Liz, who was killed in a bicycle accident, first goes to Elsewhere, the afterlife and watches her family from Observation Deck, or O.D., through binoculars because she misses them.

I noticed that the author likes to describe people surrounding the main character. I believe that the author does this so the readers can connect themselves with the characters in the book. The first time I read Elsewhere, I thought the author did this just to help readers "get to know characters", not connecting with them. The second time I read this, I realized that she actually connects with the characters by not only limiting the point of view for Liz only, but she shows her other friends' perspective, too.

One of the themes in Elsewhere is death. When Liz died, she's transported to Elsewhere and eventually learns to deal with the fact she died, and may never see her loved ones again. Liz realizes how she is an angel watching over Earth when she frequently goes to the O.D. I figured that Liz thought death is like a new beginning because she has a backwards life in Elsewhere. Her time there is like a human life on Earth, except she ages backwards, and Liz discovers that "a life lived forward isn't too much different from a life lived in reverse."

This book is hard to put down because of the brilliant descriptions, interesting themes, and makes you think about death and the afterlife. Elsewhere has something for everyone: some fiction, non-fiction, mystery, fantasy, and science fiction, this book has all. This is a beautiful book, woven and crafted straight from the heart. I now hope that the spiritual world is like Elsewhere, because someone I knew had recently moved on, and it is believed "she is O.K. in heaven." The idea of Elsewhere is a source of comfort for me whenever I am upset about her death. I hope that she's living her death like the one Liz does in Elsewhere, so she will be watching us from some kind of O.D., and knowing that we miss her a lot. The author takes a normally depressing subject, and turns it in to a hopeful book on this fifteen-year-old girl, which is hardly sad at all! If you enjoy any type of story, be sure to read this ten-star book!

"Elsewhere" takes you on a magical journey...elsewhere!.......2007-09-23

Best quick read that leaves you wanting more.......2007-09-17

After reading a few reviews on Amazon I decided to purchase this book. I am so glad I did. I read this in one sitting and could not stop thinking about it after I finished. I went to bed and dreamed about it!

Zevin takes this life after death subject and presents in such a way that you can't help but want to discuss it with others. You begin to think about all the possibilities of what really does happen after death.

I laughed, I cried. I was moved. READ THIS BOOK TODAY!

Your Attention May Drift Elsewhere.......2007-09-08

This YA title will probably earn 5 stars from girls, especially girls with Lurlene McDaniels-type affinities for the topic of death, because this novel is all about the living end (read: "the afterlife"). In truth, the whole concept of death being life in a mirror world is great, and ELSEWHERE kind of, sort of had me hooked at the get-go, but then it LET go as the chapters wore on.

Don't get me wrong. Author Gabrielle Zevin gets "A" for effort. Her earnest protagonist, Liz, is a likable 15-year-old who gets killed by a hit-and-run taxi cab driver. She "wakes up" on a cruiser heading for an alternate world that looks suspiciously like our world except you can't die there (because you already are) and the dogs talk (more than just "woof," I mean). Lizzie is upset because she missed the prom, misses her best friend Zooey, loves her mom, dad, and brother Alvy, and will never a.) get her Massachusetts driving license (a.k.a. "License To Kill," if you know anything about Massachusetts), b.) lose her virginity, and c.) grow big boobs (you know, all the real important stuff in life).

The catch about Elsewhere is that everyone ages backwards until, on their birthday, they are sent down a river to be reborn as another baby on Earth. The Buddhists are clapping, and it sure beats Hell (with all that smell of smoke), Heaven (with all those harps and angel feathers), or Nothing (with all that depressing "nothingness"), but still, it's a bit too sweet to swallow.

The side characters include Lizzie's grandmother Betty, who takes her in, a girl named Thandi who was shot in the head the same day Lizzie was hit, a drug-overdosed rock star named Curtis "Surely You" Jest, and a love interest named Owen who died at 26 but has "backed in" to being just two years Lizzie's senior. Oh. And the bad news is, all these living dead folk in Elsewhere can pump "eternims" (coinage of the realm) in a binocular-type set up to watch us living alive folk do things like wash dishes, scratch our elbows, and use the bathroom. (Yeesh.)

Not a lot happens in this book, and the large amount of dialogue and short, simple sentences begin to take their toll after awhile. Throw in a few unrealistic plot turns plus characters acting like you wouldn't expect them to act, and you see why some readers' attention might drift elsewhere. Nevertheless, the book's a gamer, quite unique, and recommended for girls of a sentimental drift. Otherwise, my advice is to look both ways before crossing the street...

Great Concept, Poor Execution.......2007-08-25

I began reading this book with high hopes because of the back cover. However, the more I began to read, the more ANNOYING the way it was written got to me. There were many many times when I wanted to rewrite the parts for the author for the sake of the book's moment. I have never even thought that a book might not be worth the money but this one certainly was not worth my money. I think I just might return it. It's in well enough condition seeing as how little it took me to read it. I loved the dogs, though. Aldous Ghent was also quite hilarious. I give this book two starts, though because I do believe it had some good moments. Overall, I give it a huge PUHLEASE and I WISH I LIKED YOU MORE.

Average customer rating:

A new voice reminiscent of Baldwin and O'Connor
Regretful
Real and Raw
not bad for a debut collection of short stories
Uneven collection, skip ahead to the gems

Drinking Coffee Elsewhere
ZZ Packer
Manufacturer: Riverhead Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1573223786
Release Date: 2004-02-03

Amazon.com

An outstanding debut story collection, Z.Z. Packer's Drinking Coffee Elsewhere has attracted as much book-world buzz as a triple espresso. Yet, surprisingly, there are no gimmicks in these eight stories. Their combination of tenderness, humor, and apt, unexpected detail set them apart. In the title story (published in the New Yorker's summer 2000 Debut Fiction issue), a Yale freshman is sent to a psychotherapist who tries to get her--black, bright, motherless, possibly lesbian--to stop "pretending," when she is sure that "pretending" is what got her this far. "Speaking in Tongues" describes the adventures of an Alabama church girl of 14 who takes a bus to Atlanta to try to find the mother who gave her up. Looking around the Montgomery Greyhound station, she wonders if it has changed much since the Reverend King's days. She "tried to imagine where the 'Colored' and 'Whites Only' signs would have hung, then realized she didn't have to. All five blacks waited in one area, all three whites in another." Packer's prose is wielded like a kitchen knife, so familiar to her hand that she could use it with her eyes shut. This is a debut not to miss. --Regina Marler

Book Description

With stories in The New Yorker's debut fiction issue and in The Best American Short Stories, 2000, and as the winner of a Whiting Writers' Award and a Rona Jaffe Foundation Writers' Award, ZZ Packer has already achieved what most writers only dream about-all prior to publication of her first book.

Now, in Drinking Coffee Elsewhere, her impressive range and talent are abundantly evident. Packer dazzles with her command of language-surprising and delighting us with unexpected turns and indelible images, as she takes us into the lives of characters on the periphery, unsure of where they belong. With penetrating insight that belies her youth-she was only nineteen years old when Seventeen magazine printed her first published story-Packer takes us to a Girl Scout camp, where a troupe of black girls are confronted with a group of white girls, whose defining feature turns out to be not their race but their disabilities; to the Million Man March on Washington, where a young man must decide where his allegiance to his father lies; to Japan, where an international group of drifters find themselves starving, unable to find work.

Drinking Coffee Elsewhere is a striking debut-fresh, versatile, and captivating. It introduces us to an arresting and unforgettable new American voice.

Download Description

"""The most acclaimed literary debut of the year Discovered by The New Yorker, Packer """"forms a constellation of young black experience""""* whether she's writing from the perspective of a church-going black woman who has a crisis in faith, a young college student at Yale, or a young black man unwillingly accompanying his father to the Million Man March. This universally appealing collection of short fiction has already established ZZ Packer as """"a writer to watch"""" (Baltimore Sun). "" Chosen by John Updike as a ""Today Show"" Book Club Pick. "

Customer Reviews:

A new voice reminiscent of Baldwin and O'Connor.......2007-09-13

It's been several months since I read the eight stories in "Drinking Coffee Elsewhere," and I can still recall the precision and beauty of ZZ Packer's prose, the building tension in several scenes, and the uniqueness of the outsiders who populate her stories. Although hers is a vibrant, new voice all its own, Packer echoes the rawness of Baldwin's stories in "Going to Meet the Man," while her alienated protagonists recall the redemption-seekers of Flannery O'Connor's fiction. Like both of her literary predecessors, Packer doesn't always feel the need to elucidate why her characters behave as they do; instead, actions and their consequences are burdened by personal histories, human emotions, and social expectations that are often beyond explanation. "I don't know why I said it," Dina reflects in the title story. "Until that moment I'd been good in all the ways that were meant to matter."

What Dina said, during her college freshman orientation games, was that the one "inanimate object" she'd want to be is a revolver--a response that launches a chain of events that insures her status as an outcast. One imagines that if she had been a white, football-playing fraternity brother, her quip would have been taken as a cynical if inappropriate attempt at sarcasm. But she is a young black girl from a poor part of Baltimore, and her retort is filtered through the alien prep-school eyes of her new classmates and teachers. She is doomed not to fit in.

In "Brownies," another story with a similar theme, the tables are turned: a Brownie troop plans ways to taunt the summer camp's "Disney characters," a group of white girls with "complexions a blend of ice cream: strawberry, vanilla"--only to find that their would-be victims are not who they seem to be. In Packer's world, as in the real one, behavior is predicated not only by personal choices but also by social pressures, societal prejudices, and the near-inevitability of misapprehension.

In addition to the title story, there are two other stories here that rank among the best I've read in recent years. "Speaking in Tongues" describes a 14-year-old runaway who escapes to Atlanta from the confines of her religious rural upbringing, falls under the sway of a streetwalker and a hustler, and becomes part of their sensual, harrowing existence. The "Ant of the Self," the story from The New Yorker that introduced me to Packer's world several years ago, concerns a young man, Spurgeon, whose father, freshly bailed out of prison, corrals him on a journey to the Million Man March to sell exotic birds to the crowd (selling birds!?! --the eccentricities again evoke O'Connor). Here, an exasperated son's destiny is limited by his love-hate relationship with his father; it's easy enough for an "outsider" to say what Spurgeon should have done but family ties can mess up anything. (" 'Why you gotta act like everything I ask you to do is gonna kill you? You my son. I tell you to do something, you obey.' I do obey, and hate myself for it....")

I've outlined my favorites, but there's not a rotten apple in the bunch. Savored one at a time, they most clearly bear out Mavis Gallant's advice for readers: "Stories are not chapters of novels. They should not be read one after another, as if they were meant to follow along. Read one. Shut the book. Read something else. Come back later. Stories can wait."

Regretful.......2007-08-30

I tried so hard to read this book. I really did. I trudged through several chapters and then gave up and donated it to my local coffee shop library.

Real and Raw.......2007-07-27

Real and Raw.
I think that describes this work. I could easily take these stories and understand the how and why of the characters. Life is messy & dirty, and sometimes not very fair. Thus you see that played out in these stories. They are as real as some of the stories from our lives. You'll find yourself thinking about the character and saying to yourself, "why she'd do that". I don't know about you, but, anytime I find myself involved enough to think about the characters..... well then you know you've got a book that works.

not bad for a debut collection of short stories.......2007-05-30

ZZ Packer's first book is a collection of short stories called
Drinking Coffee Elsewhere. I had heard so many wonderful
things about the stories and I was very excited to read them.
There are two standouts,two literary gems in the collection:
Our Lady of Peace and Speaking of Tongues.

Other than that, the rest of the stories seemed thrown
together. In one story, "Geese," the author spends more time
rehashing her encyclopedic knowledge of Japanese culture
rather than tell a story about the strong black female
protagonist and why we should care about her being in Japan.

ZZ Packer graduated from the Iowa Writers' Workshop which
probably explains for all the critical acclaim her work has
received and she is also an alumni of Yale and I believe
another Ivy League school. Graduating from the RIGHT school
at the RIGHT time is certainly not her fault but it doesn't
make for a great writer either. Some stories were slow, and
drawn-out and then other stories were refreshing. ZZ Packer,
although talented, is going to need to write more stories that
speak more to people buying her work and not the literary elite.

Uneven collection, skip ahead to the gems.......2006-11-05

Though I did enjoy a few of the stories - namely, "Drinking Coffee Elsewhere" and "Speaking in Tongues" - I was a little disappointed in this much-hyped collection. ZZ Packer has a transparant and fluid writing style, her stories are nicely understated, and the characters all have an accute sense of political and moral consciousness (the Civil Rights Movement serves as a backdrop in several). But what the two stories I mentioned above have that the others lack is a well-developed sense of tension (internal or plotwise), leaving many of these stories feeling quaint and unremarkable and flat.

Puerto Rican Poverty and Migration: We Just Had to Try Elsewhere

Average customer rating:

Puerto Rican Poverty and Migration: We Just Had to Try Elsewhere
Julio Morales
Manufacturer: Praeger Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Emigration & Immigration | Administrative Law | Law | Subjects | Books

Emigration & Immigration | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

All Amazon Upgrade | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books

Business & Investing | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books

Law | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Amazon Upgrade | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0275920208

Average customer rating:

Milan Kundera, one of my favorite authors
Spend your time elsewhere.
Among Kundera's most inspired
Life is Elsewhere
A quiet meditation on life and art

Life Is Elsewhere
Milan Kundera , and Aaron Asher
Manufacturer: Harper Perennial
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Literary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Eastern European | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0060997028

Book Description

The author intially intended to call this noel, The Lyrical Age. The lyrical age, according to Kundera, is youth, and this novel, above all, is an epic of adolescence; an ironic epic that tenderly erodes scarosanct values: childhood, motherhood, revolution, and even poetry. Jaromil is in fact a poet. His mother made hima poet and accompanies him (figuratively) to his love bed and (literally) to his deathbed. A ridiculous and touching character, horrifying and totally innocent ("innocence with its bloody smile"!), Jaromil is at the same time a true poet. He's no creep, he's Rimbaud. Rimbaud entrapped by the communist revolution, entrapped in a somber farce.

Customer Reviews:

Milan Kundera, one of my favorite authors.......2006-10-29

I finally borrowed another of Milan Kundera's books to read from the university library. I didn't enjoy it as much as I did The Unbearable Lightness of Being. However there were still a lot of incisive and thoughtful passages.

What I like most about Milan Kundera is his marvelous skill in capturing the essence of his thoughts in words, and also the thoughts themselves which reveal a kindred soul in deep contemplation of human and life. Whenever I read his books, I feel a longing to write something as deeply revealing as his books.

Life is Elsewhere is about the life of a young poet named Jaromil. The viewpoint is erected at his demise, as the writer tells us. The poet and his mother's relationship are one of the main subjects in this book. The writer says he meant to name the book The Lyric Age but changed the title at the last moment because the publishers worried that no one would buy a book with such an abstract title.

Many critics see this book as a satire of literature, of literary talent, and of life. However, as I read the book, I didn't perceive it as a satire. I felt it to be honest, sometimes brutally so, but still with sympathy and self-pity wrapped around it. Every aspiring artist is bound to go through some of what Jaromil went through.

It especially makes one wonder how literary genius can be defined or if it even can be defined. The writer himself writes in the preface that Jaromil is not a bad poet. I kept that in mind as I read the book. Jaromil is in fact a very sensitive though naive and immature poet. Nobody can be the absolute judge of literary talent.

Spend your time elsewhere........2006-03-09

I bought the book after reading the 1st chapter where "the Poet is conceived". Unfortunately, it was downhill from there.

This book tired me out so much with the way it rambled on and on. It seemed far too self righteousness and preachy; it was almost pretentious. It was also difficult to empathize with it's main character who was a pathetic, untalented, mama's boy poet.

Having read and enjoyed a few other Kundera books, I really tried to give this a chance. It was a struggle to finish it. If you don't like ending up hating the protagonist, your time is better spent reading something else.

Among Kundera's most inspired.......2006-03-04

Although 'Life is Elsewhere' is not one of Milan Kundera's most celebrated novels, it is without doubt one of the most intimate and beautifully written.

Detractors and critics of Kundera often gripe that his characters are unpleasant, underdeveloped and shallow human beings. All these critics need to do is read this novel to see how incorrect this assertion is. Within 'Life is Elsewhere' we see an intimate account of the life and development of a young poet named Jaromil, with a specific focus on his relationship with his mother. The beautiful manner in which this relationship is rendered allows us to appreciate a subtle interplay between the poet's relationship with his mother, and his relationship with the female sex in general.

When one hears of a novel about such a relationship, one is tempted to picture the story of a man who is utterly dominated by a controlling and posessive mother, however this is not how Kundera develops their bond. Here what we find is the story of a mother and child relationship whose closeness transcends the usual maternal bonds. Intertwined with this relationship is the poet's passion for his art and his use of it to express and promote his socialist political ideologies.

The skill, beauty and dexterity with which Kundera interweaves the many facets and relationships of this novel, as well as the depth of character present, should be enough to assuage even the most ardent of his critics.

Life is Elsewhere.......2005-05-27

In Kundera's book you meet Jaromil at the moment he is concieved. His mother loves him so much and has so many great hopes for him. She wants him to become a poet. Once Jaromil grows old enough to write, he starts writing poetry. Throughout the novel, you meet all of the people that change Jaromils life: the Painter, the Student, the Redheaded Girl, the Man in his forties, Xavier, and many others. I rated this book three stars because, although it was a great read, it was a little hard to follow. By the time I reached the end of the book I had forgotten what happened in the beginning. I enjoyed that not all the characters had specific names, they were only called what they were, a painter or a poet or something like that. I have never read a book so filled with poetry and thoughts like this before.

A quiet meditation on life and art.......2004-01-16

Life is Elsewhere is the first novel by Milan Kundera that I have read, and it was the first he wrote. The edition I have, however, was edited and touched up to confirm to the more accurate French translation with the help of the author, so I am assuming it contains a little more maturity than when he wrote it thirty years ago.

The story is very simple, it is about a struggling young poet's first twenty or so years of life, from birth to death. He is the only named character (excluding Xavier, but don't worry about that), and this adds to the sense of familiarity we feel with him.

Another important character is his mother, and we are often privy to her emotions and thoughts away from her poet son. She is quite obsessive about him and wants to make sure his life is how he wants it poetically, but as he grows older, she becomes rather jealous of his growing attraction to females that aren't her.

I really enjoyed the narrator's tone of voice, at times he was an impartial observer, at other times he made little comments about the characters/predicaments, and at other times he threw all that away and started having a one-sided discussion with the reader - even indulging in little flights of fancy away from the main story. I have no idea if this is a Kunder staple or not, but it really worked in this story and I wouldn't mind seeing it again.

The poet is a selfish character, moreso as he becomes older, and this can sometimes be hard to read. He treats his girlfriend very poorly, and looks at life and love with the obsessive attitude of a teenager, which can sometimes be a little difficult to read. He considers his art and drive to be greater than any others, and this makes him arrogant, but he truly is a great poet so this is moderately understandable.

Book Description

Mathematics Elsewhere is a fascinating and important contribution to a global view of mathematics. Presenting mathematical ideas of peoples from a variety of small-scale and traditional cultures, it humanizes our view of mathematics and expands our conception of what is mathematical.

Through engaging examples of how particular societies structure time, reach decisions about the future, make models and maps, systematize relationships, and create intriguing figures, Marcia Ascher demonstrates that traditional cultures have mathematical ideas that are far more substantial and sophisticated than is generally acknowledged. Malagasy divination rituals, for example, rely on complex algebraic algorithms. And some cultures use calendars far more abstract and elegant than our own. Ascher also shows that certain concepts assumed to be universal--that time is a single progression, for instance, or that equality is a static relationship--are not. The Basque notion of equivalence, for example, is a dynamic and temporal one not adequately captured by the familiar equal sign. Other ideas taken to be the exclusive province of professionally trained Western mathematicians are, in fact, shared by people in many societies.

The ideas discussed come from geographically varied cultures, including the Borana and Malagasy of Africa, the Tongans and Marshall Islanders of Oceania, the Tamil of South India, the Basques of Western Europe, and the Balinese and Kodi of Indonesia.

This book belongs on the shelves of mathematicians, math students, and math educators, and in the hands of anyone interested in traditional societies or how people think. Illustrating how mathematical ideas play a vital role in diverse human endeavors from navigation to social interaction to religion, it offers--through the vehicle of mathematics--unique cultural encounters to any reader.

Customer Reviews:

refreshing!.......2004-01-25

there are very few books on ethnomathematics
out there (another good one is Mathematics
Across Cultures, Selin (ed.))

This book has the plus of smooth and enjoyable
reading, WITHOUT wattering down in content

Advisable for teachers, historians, and, in
addition, persons interested in the epistemological
problems in science.

Plese keep on writing, Marcia!

Excellent!.......2002-10-08

This is an excellent book. It sounds like an odd premise for a book - look at ideas in 'other' cultures and see how these are in essence mathematical ideas (in the western sense). However, what the author has done has turn what could be 'worthy but dull' material into a fascinating read. If you teach math (school, college or university) you will find lots of great topics to illustrate your lectures. If you just like math then this is a good read. The author has a nice style too - very easy to read. I loved this book. If you have any interest in math ideas then you will too.

Average customer rating:

A very reflective read
A Gift to Wanderers
From Elsewhere: Being E.T. in America
A life-saver for wanderers
A handbook for wanderers

From Elsewhere: Being E.T. in America
Scott Mandelker
Manufacturer: Citadel
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Movies | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

Curiosities & Wonders | Fun Facts | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Controversial Knowledge | Religious Studies | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Unexplained Mysteries | Occult | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1559723041

Book Description

From Elsewhere takes a close look at the most radical New Age group--those who claim extraterrestrial (ET) identity. Adapted from the Ph.D. research of Scott Mandelker through 25 interviews, From Elsewhere follows the lives of 25 'Wanderers' from their unusual childhood to the rare events that lead to an extraordinary sense of self. Detailed case stories trace their growth from confusion to clarity, dealing with society, intimacy, and life-mission. Their ideas on UFOs, human history, and the fate of planet Earth make fascinating reading.

Customer Reviews:

A very reflective read.......2006-08-30

After reading From Elsewhere I have this book an excellent read!
Very reflective and I resonate with many of the stories told by the 25 people in the book. I especially love Soren's story we are both very similar.
I highly recommend this book. Each time i read it I discover something new!

A Gift to Wanderers.......2006-02-24

After my own "awakening" I went searching for others like me. I quickly found Scott Mandelker's book, "From Elsewhere." It was a relief for me to know that I was not alone. Reading the experiences in this book helped me a great deal as I have also told Scott. This book is helpful to all of the Wanderer's, Walk-ins and others that know they are "From Elsewhere." Thank you Scott for such a wonderful gift.

From Elsewhere: Being E.T. in America.......2002-03-14

Almost everyone is still asking the question: are we alone in the universe?
But almost every metaphysician knows that the answer is simply "No" From elsewhere is a book that proves that we are not alone in the universe and it gives the reader a lot of valubale information about the extra-terrestrials amoung us. I found this book to be very interesting and I am certan that you will too if you read it!

A life-saver for wanderers.......2000-07-25

Synchronicity brought "From Elsewhere" my way and I am eternally grateful. It is very difficult going through life as a lonely observer with a growing stack of unanswerable questions. This book addressed those gnawing issues for me. The answer to all of them: I am a wanderer. I agree with the Knoxville reviewer about the book probably being unpalatable to most non-wanderers/walk-ins. That is simply because few people are open-minded enough to ask the questions that Dr. Mandelker poses. These questions shake the very foundations of society's cherished beliefs about life. It is a tribute to Mandelker's courage that he dares ask them.

As a wanderer, I particularly appreciated the author's personal story in the appendix. That autobiography plus the quiz that the other reviewer mentioned, convinced me of my origins. I really wasn't surprised that I'm from Elsewhere. That was probably the most stunning discovery of all. I hope sincere, open-minded people will delve into this book. It deserves the attention of all devoted seekers of truth. Dr. Mandelker's sincerity, courage, and solid, though unconventional reasoning make this work a stand-out. Thank you, Scott.

A handbook for wanderers.......2000-04-29

I must say this book was an eye opener for me. After 50 years of life I would have thought I would know my roots and why I just don't seem to fit into this world. After reading a quiz that I found on the net that suppose to indicate if one is a wanderer, I found that I answered virtually every question yes. So I ordered this book, and boy does it ring true. It has given me a new outlook on life, and at last I know my mission. For wanderers it is a must read. For those who are not wanderers it probably is of little interest.

Book Description

When Ron runs away, he ends up in Bordertown, a grim city that lies between the real world and the world of faerie, a place where elf and human gangs stalk the streets side by side, and where magic works better than technology. If the city doesn't kill him, it just may teach him what it is to be human.

Customer Reviews:

Well it's no shakespeare but..........2006-05-31

...I thoroughly enjoyed the book. Maybe it's my enjoyment of teen angst that did it. Shatterly made a pretty cool kid here, tough big mouth, little body...I did occasionaly get the feeling that the whole angry teenager(grr) thing was a bit over the top but there wasn't much that stuck out sorely (besides -some- character interactions)

The end was little problematic. Be warned, the ending seems to have been written with the sequel Never Never in mind. I ended to book with the feeling that there was never a plot, just this place called the Bordertown and this kid called Ron who's learning about it as I am.

That was good enough for me though. The world and the people were fantastic enough that I ignored the disregard for linear tale. Overall, it's just a fun read.

Height of my Teenage Years.......2003-03-20

I still remember seeing this book on the shelf of my high school library. I picked it out, read the back, checked it out of the library, and took it home. The very moment I opened this book I knew it would be great, and it was. After I took it back to the library I didn't see it till today. I feel like I have found and old friend. Definatly a good read for ANYONE who enjoys a good fantasy about elves, humans, magic, street life and how they all collide.

Height of my Teenage Years.......2003-03-20

if you liked elsewhere...........2000-03-13

If you liked elsewhere you are my new friend. This book was a very good book. It shows how when you are traveling through worlds you have to stick to your gut and go with what you think is right. I loved the magic and the fantasy about the whole thing. If you liked elsewhere you should read the sequel called Nevernever which is equally good

Adolescent prose.......1999-10-31

This book snags you by the soul from the very first sentance. Its lyrical prose conveys the struggles of lonliness and fear that haunt the non-conformists of society. Although the roiling neo-punk language is harsh at times, the intricate characters and settings leaves a bitter aftertaste of beauty and pain. This book is a stark must-read for cynics, poets, fantasy-lovers and mutants of all ages.

Lewis families: Primarily of Montgomery County, Maryland but including members of the family found in other counties of Maryland and elsewhere (Our Maryland heritage)

Average customer rating:

Lewis families: Primarily of Montgomery County, Maryland but including members of the family found in other counties of Maryland and elsewhere (Our Maryland heritage)
W. N Hurley
Manufacturer: Heritage Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

General | Genealogy | Reference | Subjects | Books

Portraits: Talking with Artists at the Met, the Modern, the Louvre, and Elsewhere

Average customer rating:

Artists On Art
Superb reading....a real joy
Quote from Robert Hughes of Time Magazine

Portraits: Talking with Artists at the Met, the Modern, the Louvre, and Elsewhere
Michael Kimmelman
Manufacturer: Random House
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | History & Criticism | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Criticism | History & Criticism | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Contemporary Art | Schools, Periods & Styles | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0679452192
Release Date: 1998-08-11

Amazon.com

"One can only speak properly about paintings in front of paintings," Paul Cézanne once said. It is usually, though, critics who speak in front of paintings, not artists. With an eye toward rectifying that situation, Michael Kimmelman, chief art critic of the New York Times, constructed Portraits. He invited individual artists to meet him at museums, then tagged along on their peregrinations through various galleries--sometimes the most unlikely ones. At New York's Metropolitan Museum, the late Roy Lichtenstein, papa of pop, stopped to praise some frou-frou Fragonards. Who knew? "Clearly there's something wrong with me," Lichtenstein said.

Kimmelman's knowledge of art is astonishingly broad, and he has a way with questions that ignite each artist's memories, reflections, and opinions. Otherwise, he inserts himself only to offer enough biographical data or physical description to bring a reader up-to-date and up close. For the most part, he simply listens. Closely. The result is a series of interviews so cozy readers may feel they're eavesdropping. Few readers will ever make another foray through the Metropolitan or the Museum of Modern Art or London's National Gallery completely alone. After devouring these "portraits"--most of which appeared originally as articles in the Times's art pages--they will be accompanied forevermore by the lively, eccentric, thoughtful, unguarded voices of Jacob Lawrence, Kiki Smith, Wayne Thibaud, Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud, Elizabeth Murray, Cindy Sherman, Richard Serra, Leon Golub and Nancy Spero, Brice Marden, Hans Haacke, and Chuck Close. --Peggy Moorman

Customer Reviews:

Artists On Art.......2000-06-06

What could be better than going through art museums with artists and listening to their comments about the art on display and the artists who created that art? Michael Kimmelman, a distinguished art critic, had the great good fortune to do just that, and he wisely put himself in the background and let some very articulate people express themselves concerning things that they have thought about their whole lives. These are people who are passionate about art and who know all about making art. Some of the comments are educational and some are funny and, depending on the artists you like or dislike, some you might find irritating. For example, here is Chuck Close at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC: "About some of the other artists he passes along the way he is dismissive. Renoir is "Italian restaurant painting and unless you're having pizza you wouldn't want to look at it." He doesn't care much for Titian or Tintoretto either." But before you dismiss this as a comment by somebody saying something to be outrageous, you should know that at the age of 48 Mr. Close had a spinal artery collapse, which left him what is called an incomplete quadriplegic. He had to relearn to paint, with brushes strapped to his hands. (An irony, not mentioned by Mr. Kimmelman, is that in his later years, due to very bad arthritis, Renoir also had to have brushes strapped to his hands!) Listen to Mr. Close again, talking about a trip to The Met after his disability had struck him down: "So I went to look at the Petrus Christuses and Holbeins and realized that everything I loved in the history of painting, and portrait painting in particular, is small and tight and the product of fine motor control, which I had lost. I was depressed for days, but then I ended up with a cathartic experience because I found myself in my studio feeling so happy just to be working again that I was literally whistling while I painted and at the same time tears were streaming down my cheeks." My heart sank when I read that paragraph! Another artist expresses his opinion that the greatest artist of the 20th century was not Picasso and not Matisse, but rather Pierre Bonnard. A very large statement to make! What I found especially interesting was that 3 or 4 of the artists, with different styles, all agreed on the greatness of Ingres and all were angered by the commonly held opinion that although he was a master of line, Ingres was not a very good colorist. These artists felt that Ingres was not only a good colorist but that he was a great colorist! Even better, they tell you why they feel he was a great colorist. This is a wonderful book and I wish I could have been a mouse in the corner when Mr. Kimmelman was walking and talking with these artists!

Superb reading....a real joy.......1998-10-24

Tuck this book into your weekend bag and stow away to some cozy spot, then dive in and enjoy. This one's a huge treat. As the editor of a new art series from Abrams and as someone who does not know Mr. Kimmelman personally, other than as an anonymous admirer of his work, I rejoiced when I read this book, because it teaches, it refreshes, it challenges, and, more than all else, it inspires. Bravo!

Quote from Robert Hughes of Time Magazine.......1998-05-20

"Michael Kimmelman is the most acute American art critic of his generation, and Portraits, his first book, is a fine debut. Patiently, inquisitively and with remarkable insight, he coaxes from artists a whole range of responses to art that take us, in their own words, to the heart of their own work. A valuable book and a great read."--Robert Hughes

Off Ramp: Adventures and Heartache in the American Elsewhere

Average customer rating:

Stuever is always funny
Off Ramp: not an adventure...more of a headache....
Insight into off-rampia
Wickedly funny and devastatingly insightful look at the pale
Master of the Quirk

Off Ramp: Adventures and Heartache in the American Elsewhere
Hank Stuever
Manufacturer: Picador
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Popular Culture | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Essays | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Classics | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0312424884
Release Date: 2005-06-16

Book Description

'Subversive and a little bizarre around the edges....Awonderfully original and confident voice.' -Augusten Burroughs, author ofRunning with Scissors andDry In his unique, funny, and haunting reports from 'Elsewhere,' Hank Stuever records the odd and touching realities of modern life in everyday places. Elsewhere might be revealed in the tract-house adventures of a home-dcor reality show, at a discount funeral home in a strip mall, or in the story of an armed man named Honey Bear in the hunt for his beloved but now missing sleeper sofa which he left in a store unit. Off Rampshows us America through the humorous gaze of Hank Stuever, who finds beauty in the midst of the most unlikely and invisible lives and places.

Customer Reviews:

Stuever is always funny.......2006-08-02

I've been a fan of Hank's since his days at the Austin American-Statesman. Before and after I lived in DC, I've always searched the Washington Post's website to find his work. He is a rare talent, able to suss out the story from even the most bland of subjects (discount funeral homes, vacant parking lots, collectors of kitsch, Catholics, Miss America and, even, Willmington, DE). It's always funny, sometimes moving and consistently amazing.

Off Ramp: not an adventure...more of a headache...........2006-05-30

This book looked like it may be pretty funny to read, but unfortunately it was not. I generally try to be kind in my reviews but I found this book to be so nauseating that I just had to write a negative review. Mr.Stuever may be a talented writer technically, but the content of his articles is pretty pathetic. He spends so much of his time being critical of others, that it leads me to wonder why he feels it is necessary to degrade others to help his own cause. If you enjoy reading articles that are a constant derision and mockery of others, then this is the book for you. If not, there are plenty of other funny reads out there.

Insight into off-rampia.......2004-09-29

Off Ramp - Adventures and Heartache in the American Elsewhere

Washington Post staff writer Hank Stuever (his work appears in the Style section) collects his articles about the almost-mainstream. Stuever enters the stories as a journalist, but he stays because they resonate with him. Whether he's talking about the creator of Wonder Woman, the owner of a skating rink, or the Murrah building bombing, he finds the anecdote that explains the people, not just the situation.

Stuever understands the nature of strip mall America, and it's where he focuses his attention. Although many of his subjects are ridiculous, he treats them with respect. He's the same age as I am, so he feels nostalgic in the same ways for the same cultural icons. His cadence stays with me for hours after I finish reading.

Who Should Read it:
Anyone who likes the radio program "This American Life". Anyone who wants to better understand that "other America" (i.e. not the big coastal cities). Reading it in two sittings was, for me, a mistake -- the stories tend to be between wistful and sad. I would have been better off reading just one essay at a time.

Wickedly funny and devastatingly insightful look at the pale.......2004-09-09

Welcome to the crazy world of storage unit subculture, Texas weddings and the discount funeral industry -- before Six Feet Under made it cool. Off Ramp is a delightful read; Hank Stuever's insight and dry whit shine through in this book. Comparisons to David Sedaris are inevitable, as both will make you alternatively laugh out loud and wince from stinging observations. Stuever's background as a journalist -- in the best sense of the term -- makes him a keen commentator on the bizarreness of our world, with little glimpses of his personality, bias and foibles mixed in. As a reader of the Washington Post, I have often found myself in the middle of a hilarious piece, only then remembering to look at the byline to find Stuever's name. Read this book for the humor, recommend it for the reflection of yourself you can't share with anyone else.

Master of the Quirk.......2004-07-14

Stuever has a unique voice, at once hilarious and compassionate, with a great eye and ear for the odd, off-beat and comic detail that most people breeze past on their way somewhere else. Whenever I stumble across a new Hank Stuever story, I drop everything else and read the whole thing through. He's just so damn good. Terrifically human stuff that captivates.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books