Eurythmy - DVD
Balance of Body and Soul

Mark Neil, Beatrice Gwinner, Friederike Heinsdorff

12 Exercises for Harmony of Body, Soul and Spirit - Gentle and appropriate for all ages

$39.95 retail price

One of the most frequent questions we have heard over the past 10 or so years has been, "Is there any book or video that teaches eurythmy?" Now we can answer, "yes." Australian eurythmist Mark Neil has taken up the challenge and answer the need beautifully. In fact, what you'll find on this DVD goes far beyond anything we dared even wish for - even someone as naturally ungraceful as I am can follow the simpler exercises successfully, notice improvement over time, and emerge from each session feeling invigorated and happy (that's a testimonial - I have actually been doing them).

Every exercise is presented more than once, with clear movements for you to follow. My favorite, recommended for the evening, but I do it whenever I feel the need, is Hallelujah! Try it when you're feeling a bit frazzled - it's like seeing the sun come out on a rainy day.

The exercises are gentle and appropriate for all ages, though some of the more complex exercises may be best for teens and adults. As with all eurythmy instruction, there is no spoken instruction so as to be able to go from the act directly into body and soul without detouring through the intellect. As someone who loves to detour through the intellect, I must (reluctantly) confess that the approach works beautifully, once you just do it. It's not the way we are accustomed to being taught, but the results are something we can all love.

And, what will you gain from this? The list is enticing and in my experience, accurate: strength, flexibility, balance; you'll find you're more relaxed after a while and that you feel more alive; you'll sleep better and your ability to focus and percieve will be heightened; best of all, you'll rediscover your playfulness, you'll smile more often.

Contents:

Exercises for the Morning

• I take the warmth of the sun
• Rod exercise

Exercises for the Day

• I think speech
• I A O
• Looking for love
• Five pointed star (A E I O U)
• I'm happy, I'm sad

Exercises for the Night

• Hallelujah

Further Exercises

• I A O with jump
• Second rod exercise
• Evolutionary sequence
• Contraction and expansion

Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles
A manual of elegant knitting techniques and patterns

Cat Bordhi

Softbound

$16.95 retail price

Click image for a larger view of the socks

Cat Bordhi's first book has changed the landscape of handknitting socks. I'm someone who has never really minded using 4 or 5 double pointed needles to knit small items in the round; on the other hand, I have never really looked forward to it, either. Never once in my knitting experience have I gone out of my way to find an excuse to use double pointed needles. Needless to say, my interest in knitting socks was minimal at best.

All that has changed now: In addition to enticing me with terrific designs, Cat's technique, which replaces the 4 or 5 double pointed needles with 2 circular needles, makes sock knitting fun, fast and much, much easier to do well. Her instructions are crystal clear and well-illustrated and her techniques are elegant and sure.

Additionally, she is very, very funny to read -- the only trouble I had when trying to follow her instructions was that it's hard to keep track of where you are when you are laughing so much. However, even with that challenge, I did manage to move forward and can now zip along through a pair of socks as though I've always known how.

Cat Bordhi is also the author of Treasure Forest, the best juvenile fiction I've read in years, and A Treasury of Magical Knitting, above.

A Treasury of Magical Knitting

Cat Bordhi

Softbound

$26.95 retail price

Click here for a sampler of what's inside.

I cannot more strongly express my delight and excitement over your knitting book, A TREASURY OF MAGICAL KNITTING. After so many long years of the ordinary in the world of knitting texts, you have provided me with renewed vigor and almost compulsive interest with the contents of your book. Every pattern revives my anxious fervor to make it whether I have someone to give it to or not.

Nino M Esposito

A Treasury of Magical Knitting instantly became one of my oldest and best knitting friends. I've hardly put it down since it arrived and will bet that you won't tuck it neatly away on your bookshelves, either.

Cat Bordhi has done nothing less than blaze a new trail in knitting -- a trail that leads along pathways amazing, tantalizing, exciting and, yes, deep and meditative. She takes us far into the fascinating world of the Moebius, that truly magical form that has only one side and two dimensions, yet appears in our three dimensional world.

Cat plunged into the Moebius and has emerged with a knitting technique that is as magical as the form itself. It begins with a new sort of casting on -- using a long, coiled circular needle! Then, on the first round the stitches magically double; voila!, you are immersed in the center of a Moebius, knitting along, discovering that your creation is proceeding from the center outwards, toward both edges at once.

And, here's another piece of magic: the result of your joyous creation (we certainly can't call this "labor") is one of the most elegant pieces of clothing imaginable. These scarves, hats, capes, evening shawls, and more are beautiful, stunning even, and will look great on anyone who wears them. Once you've begun, you'll find that you're inventing your own original Moebius and discovering your own new ways of emerging with a finished product that is as much a pleasure to wear as it was to create.

A Treasury of Magical Knitting is the sort of knitting book that sets my hands tingling, so eager are they to get started with the next magical project. Whether you treat yourself to the world's most scrumptous knitting, or give it to a teen who has lost interest in the craft (or better still, leave it lying around for them to find themselves), you will love what the Moebius can do!

Cat Bordhi is also the author of Treasure Forest, the best juvenile fiction I've read in years, and Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles, below.

A Second Treasury of Magical Knitting

Cat Bordhi

Softbound

Retail Price: $26.95

Click on cover for larger view of sample creations

The adventure continues!

A Second Treasury of Magical Knitting has left me nearly breathless with inspiration and amazement.  A quick glance sent shivers up my spine; a closer look had me seeking needles and yarn, eager to explore the captivating magical creations. This delightful book is the stuff of knitters' dreams -- bold, breakthrough techniques and cutting-edge, delicious designs, all within any knitter's reach. 

I have loved playing with and thinking about Moebius strips since I first learned about them at about age 9. Cat has made it possible for me to find them magically appearing between my knitting needles, and then to watch as they transform into all manner of things I never thought they could be -- well, it really is better than chocolate! The Second Treasury takes us deeper into the world of magical forms, and introduces us to baskets, bags, hats and, oh, so much more -- all created from a two-dimensional form that has somehow contrived to enter our three-dimensional world. Oh my!

This isn't just knitting at its best -- this is life at its best!

Treasure Forest

Book One of the Forest Inside Trilogy

Winner of the NAPRA 2004 Nautilus Award for Young Adult Fiction

Cat Bordhi

Hardbound

$21.95 retail price

Treasure Forest is flat-out the best juvenile fiction I have read in years and years. It has the page-turning adventure of the Harry Potter books (the difference being that it is carefully written and well-edited) combined with the heart-warm depth of C. S. Lewis's Narnia series. In the midst of all this depth and excitement, Cat Bordhi brings something more: a crystalline clarity, a sparkling delight with the World and Creation, an understanding of nature and of people that shines with great love. This is a story not to be missed, one destined to nourish generations of children and adults -- a story that ripples outward, like the rings after a pebble penetrates the water.

It begins with a question, the bequest of beloved departed grandparents:

How can you retrieve a treasure from the bottom of a pond without disturbing the water?

The question is Ben's, but his quest for the answer involves his sister Sarah as well.

Immediately on the heels of the bequest, which also includes Grandmother's house by the forest, the villain of the story creeps into the scene, disrupting and destroying as he goes. Daggett is one of the most complex, modern villains to ever intrude upon the lives of fictional characters. Daggett knows, loves and understands nature, but can't in the least comprehend the world of people. As a result, he frightens and harms even those people whose love he longs for -- a villain for the 21st century, to be sure.

The mystery and magic which follow take us into the nooks, crannies and catacombs of life; into Nature as it exists in the Forest, and into the nature of the human heart. On the way, there are memorable characters, exhilarating discoveries, courageous deeds, and a treasure more precious than gold.

I would recommend this book for all children and adults over the age of seven. Even teenagers love this book, and I know that you will be as melancholy as I was to turn the last page. (The good news is that Book Two is underway!)

Cat Bordhi is also the author of A Treasury of Magical Knitting and Socks Soar on Two Circular Needles. Although she promised to behave herself and leave knitting out of Treasure Forest, she didn't quite manage it. On her website, you can find patterns for the forest socks her mother knits Sarah and the knitted treehouse (really!) Ben learns to make www.catbordhi.com

Auragole of the Mountains
Book One of the Auragole Quartet

Shirley Latessa

Softbound

$24.95 retail price

Shirley Latessa has created a terrific fantasy saga that is unlike any other I've ever read. We enter a world that has been shattered by 500 years of warfare, where most people live lives of fear in semi-tribal conditions, and only a very few have been sheltered enough to remember what it is to be fully human. Into this torn world comes a youth upon whose actions the destiny of humanity will turn.

Auragole has been raised in isolation, away from the soldiers and roaming gangs, away from regional superstitions and laws; but, also away from any knowledge of, much less belief in, the spiritual world and the gods. When he emerges from his remote valley and encounters the world of people outside it, he arrives as a free human being. It is what he makes of his freedom, how he chooses to shape himself, that will determine whether he will aid the cause of humanity, or become its doom.

Auragole of the Mountains follows Auragole as he leaves the valley of his birth for the first time and encounters both friends and enemies in the wider world. He and his friends come at last to the Valley of Agavia, where a small group of people have preserved the knowledge of the gods and where it is known that the Last Battle, the battle against the Nethergod, will be fought, and fought soon. The future of all humanity will be determined by the victor. As Auragole leaves Agavia, it is still very uncertain which course he will choose and what role he will play in the Last Battle.

The author tells me she created The Auragole Quartet with both adults and teenagers in mind. I agree that teens are likely to love these stories. As for adults, well, I was barely able to put my copy down once I started reading. This is the first fantasy fiction I've read that has some real substance to it, that seriously considers some of the most pressing questions we humans face. Very, very highly recommended.

Auragole of the Way
Book Two of the Auragole Quartet

Shirley Latessa

Softbound

$25.95 retail price

Where Auragole of the Mountains told a story woven around dire but straightforward issues of survival, and thus had a semblance of simplicity, in Auragole of the Way Auragole encounters not just other people, but diverse societies. As he does so, the fabric of the story takes on a rich pattern and a complexity that echo his multi-layered experience. This richness makes for compelling, satisfying reading -- I surprised myself by finishing Auragole of the Way in about half the time it took me to read Auragole of the Mountains.

Auragole of the Way picks up where Auragole of the Mountains left off -- Auragole has chosen to keep his commitment to see his friends to the city of Mattelmead, where they hope to find a cure for one of their party whose life is threatened by illness. In so choosing, he declines Agavia's offer of deep training toward a personal awareness of the gods.

Almost immediately, disaster and death strike Auragole's little band and his course is irrevocably changed. Hiding, fighting, and running for his life, Auragole eventually comes upon the mountain camp of the only soldiers who fight on behalf of human freedom and love, and who prepare for the Last Battle. It is here that he decides to go to the aid of a friend rather than follow orders he considers not his affair. But, what he thought he saw proves to be very different from reality , and he nearly pays for his error with his life.

Yet, even as chaotic war is waged all around him, he also discovers art and beauty in the form of True-Singing. A True-Singer is trained to sing so that the listener hears the voice within whatever object of nature the singer embodies. Such singing is achingly beautiful and deeply healing -- and it becomes Auragole's chosen calling. Out of the depths of his earlier errors, he discovers his teacher. Auragole of the Way closes as Auragole follows his teacher to new adventures in Mattlemead.

Auragole of Mattlemead
Book Three of the Auragole Quartet

Shirley Latessa

Softbound

$29.95 retail price

As Auragole of the Way closed, Auragole had found his heart's calling - True-Singing - and was preparing to leave with Lorenwile, his teacher, for the only real city in his torn world, Mattlemead. Lorenwile is known as a True-Singer only among the few who have kept the deep knowledge of the gods -- in Mattlemead he is a celebrity performer. Auragole will join him in that role and train secretly as a True-Singer.

Mattlemead simply glistens in Auragole's eyes -- there are wonders on every street corner and marvels awaiting behind each door so far as he is concerned. It is not hard to see that the young man is simply awestruck.

A feeling of awe can open the heart to all that is good and true -- but it can also open the way to seduction and a loss of purpose. And, of course, as the clouds of the Last Battle gather menacingly on the horizon, the overriding question becomes what Auragole will do with his awe. Will he allow it to open his heart to service of the Creative Gods and thus tip the scale in their favor, or will he plunge into the sensations Mattlemead offers and become an ally of the Nethergod?

Auragole and the Last Battle
Book 4 of the Auragole Quartet

Shirley Latessa

Softbound

$19.95 retail price

The Last Battle has begun -- and it's outcome hinges on Auragole's choice; and upon Auragole's wisdom.

After the dizzying opulance of Mattlemead, followed by a dance of reversals and recoveries of astonishing order, Auragole comes again to Agavi. It is there his heart calls him, there he wants to be. But amid the battle preparations he soon discovers that even knowing what his heart wants is not enough -- not enough to know what to do, where to go, how to respond. Not enough to be sure. And the whole world waits upon his deed.

* * *

Shirley Latessa's final novel of The Auragole Quartet brings us to a seat-of-your-chair finale, one that will keep you turning pages every step of the way. Having followed Auragole's entire journey, I have to take my hat off to Shirley -- she has told a great story that in many ways we all live, asked all the questions we ask and then some, and brought her characters to a truly heroic finish the measure of which I don't think any reader will guess before the end. This is wonderful reading -- and a tale told from a vista seldom revealed in literature.

Eighteen Days Till Home

A Novel by Shirley Latessa

The first of the "Elizabeth Layton" books

Softbound

$12.00 retail price

Discover a refreshing presentation of Anthroposophy: united with life, highly enjoyable, unentangled!

Eighteen Days Till Home is just the sort of novel I like -- it's an engaging story that beckons you to turn just one more page and keeps you coming back as often as possible; at the same time, woven into its well-written and entertaining text is an invitation into realms much deeper than the surface of the tale, realms of soul and angels, of life and death, of love.

In short, it's a practically-perfect novel: great reading without being mere entertainment.

Here's a synopsis of the story:

Unable to reconcile hereself to the deaths of her husband and her eldest daughter, poet Elizabeth Layton is teetering on the edge of an emotional abyss. To keep her from excessive mourning, her sister and brother pressure Elizabeth into going on a museum sponsored trip to the Aegean. This becomes a journey of healing, self-discovery and spiritual awakening. Against a background of ancient and exotic settings, Elizabeth meets Paul, a fellow traveler and lifelong student of Anthroposophy, who helps her understand her life in ways she never imagined; and Eric, who brings with him the challenges of love.

Dancing in the Fire

A Novel by Shirley Latessa

The second "Elizabeth Layton" book

Softbound

$15.00 retail price

In this second story, Elizabeth Layton is confronted while standing in Chartres Cathedral with both dream and waking experiences that lead her to the Holy Land, to Israel. She is pursuing an experience her deceased daughter had when a child, that of having been present at the Crucifixion -- and pursuing something, anything, that confirms for her a spiritual reality - a reality in which she longs to believe, but can find no reason to think exists.

Of course, to do this, she must be very much a part of the world, in this case the world of modern day Israel. She is followed from the moment she leaves Ben-Gurion International Airport -- by a handsome, rather dashing Israeli whose turns up at all the right moments; and also by darker, more shadowy sorts -- the kind of fellows who dress in grey and wait in parked cars to watch as she leaves and enters her hotel.

Dancing in the Fire is another feast of a story, one of those books that leaves you with a taste of sorrow that it's over when you finish the last page. Engaging, thought-provoking, heart warming.

**Shirley Latessa's two "Elizabeth Layton" novels accomplish something that I have felt for some time was very needed; and felt equally that it was unlikely to ever be possible. Namely, they present the basics of Anthroposophy in a form that is attractive, accurate, united with normal daily life, and far, far from being pedantic or dull.

If you enjoy reading novels and have wanted to learn more about Anthroposophy, they are a wonderful place to start. They present the basics of Anthroposophy in a form that is attractive, accurate, united with normal daily life, and far, far from being pedantic or dull.