Mari Flores Flores itibaren Llanvaches, Caldicot NP26 3AY, UK itibaren Llanvaches, Caldicot NP26 3AY, UK

Stephen Gaskin and his bus caravan appeared at Grinnell College out of the night en route from California to what became The Farm in Tennessee. There being little to do in the middle of the Iowa cornfields, I went to Darby Gymnasium to hear his presentation and receive a copy of this book. They were giving them out for free. The book, while a little too much out there for my tastes, was pretty good, combining, as it did, Eastern religio-philosophical concepts with psychedelic experience within a socially conscious and activist context. At this point in my life religion, but not Christianity, was starting to make experiential sense. I was reading a lot of stuff inspired by Chinese, Japanese and Chinese traditions, beginning to study depth psychology and taking a lot of LSD, cactus and mushrooms. What was missing generally was attention to how to put these insights into practice on more than just a person-to-person level, to actually begin a peaceful revolution to end the causes of unnecessary human suffering. Gaskin addressed these concerns in his book and I appreciated it. There was a poignant footnote to this encounter--poignant for me. I'd recently met two female roommates, one of whom, name now forgotten, was, as they say, hot, the other of whom, while a little plump and not notably sexy, had impressed me with her kind and considerate character. Her name, Aletheia, Greek meaning "truth", I do remember. I'd been drawn to their room by the former, but it was Aletheia who kept me there, my interest in her growing through our conversations while my interest in the other declined. This wasn't unusual, this free-floating erotic obsessiveness ranging from lust to ethical aspiration. Aletheia inspired the latter with which I was more comfortable in any case, just having lost my virginity in less than ideal circumstances, and was becoming daily more beautiful in my eyes. Ironically, however, the very characteristics that made her so attractive to me made the caravan attractive to her. She left with them.

The innocent whose parents turned a blind eye & how by association they themselves felt guilty and the effect on their lives. A different view. Interesting, fast read.

My Summary: In the future, Chicago is separated into five different groups, each with a different virtue or focus. Once a year, all the sixteen year olds gather to pick which faction they will belong to for the rest of their lives. Growing up in a place where selflessness is held above all else, Beatrice knows the right thing to do would be to choose to stay with her family. But what if she doesn't belong? Her struggles with her families way of life seem to be telling her that Abnegation is the last place she should be... or is it? After taking a test designed to tell her which faction she is most likely to succeed in, Beatrice is more confused than ever. Deciding to put what she wants first, Beatrice makes the choice to leave - a choice that will alter her in ways she can't even imagine. My Thoughts: I am seriously disappointed in all of you! *Points to readers* Why did nobody tell me how freaking awesome this book was?! What happened to "friends don't let friends not read the most awesome books ever?", hmm? I finally picked this book up from the library a few days ago because I'd read almost everything in the YA section except Divergent and figured it was time to give it a try. My first clue that it was amazing came when the librarian asked me how many times I'd re-read it. I told her it was my first time reading it and she actually gaped at me. Full-on mouth open in shock and horror gaped. So I ran home and started reading. Two hundred pages later I had to tear myself away to finish some homework, but all I could think about was getting back to the book. It is that good. The story gets stuck in your head and even though horrible things are happening all you want to do is immerse yourself in the atmosphere and the story. The characters were great - they had so much depth (especially Four, love him!) and Tris was anything but predictable. I loved the whole idea of factions based on virtues (and pretty much everything about this book). The writing flowed really well, and the pacing was perfect. Final Thoughts: I recommend this book to anyone who likes a good YA novel and is looking for something new and refreshing. If you haven't read this book yet, do yourself a favour and get a copy. ASAP. And if you already have and loved it like I did, go pre-order Insurgent!