New and expanded edition of Kossy's bizarre sourcebook to the outer limits of human belief. Packed with amazing facts, theories and some just very weird ideas, there is something for everyone here and lots more besides! Will drilling a hole in one's head cause enlightenment? Can a person's soul be captured in a hairnet? Is there scientific proof of God? All is revealed. Illustrated. 'Donna Kossy boldly blazes new trails in the vast intellectual wilderness of American writers, thinkers and philosophers who were or are completely nuts.' - Bruce Sterling
After falling asleep in math class, Guy is sentenced to one week of Kitchen Patrol. He quickly discovers there's something rotten in the school cafeteria -- and it's not the food! Guy makes meals (and messes) as he investigates why the head cook, the big bad Mrs. Wolf, doesn't help with the work. It's a recipe for trouble -- can he uncover her secret before it's too late?
DIV Rav Abraham Isaac Kook (1865–1935) was one of the most influential—and controversial—rabbis of the twentieth century. A visionary writer and outstanding rabbinic leader, Kook was a philosopher, mystic, poet, jurist, communal leader, and veritable saint. The first chief rabbi of Jewish Palestine and the founding theologian of religious Zionism, he struggled to understand and shape his revolutionary times. His life and writings resonate with the defining tensions of Jewish life and thought. A powerfully original thinker, Rav Kook combined strict traditionalism and an embrace of modernity, Orthodoxy and tolerance, piety and audacity, scholasticism and ecstasy, and passionate nationalism with profound universalism. Though little known in the English-speaking world, his life and teachings are essential to understanding current Israeli politics, contemporary Jewish spirituality, and modern Jewish thought. This biography, the first in English in more than half a century, offers a rich and insightful portrait of the man and his complex legacy. Yehudah Mirsky clears away widespread misunderstandings of Kook’s ideas and provides fresh insights into his personality and worldview. Mirsky demonstrates how Kook's richly erudite, dazzlingly poetic writings convey a breathtaking vision in which "the old will become new, and the new will become holy." /div
Move over, dude! The Kook’s Guide to Surfing shows what it means to be a real surfer. This clever, often hilarious guide shares with kooks (those guys on surfboards who just don’t get it yet) the truths and know-how of a lifelong wave-lover. The secret: surfing responsibly and sharing the waves. You don’t have to be “too cool for school” to be cool in the water. But surfing like a pro isn’t just about courtesy, and neither is The Kook’s Guide to Surfing. The ultimate guide to great surfing, it’s got tips on choosing the right board for the right wave, stances and paddling, avoiding injuries and staying safe, and—once all that has been mastered—how and where to show off your skills in the big competitions. Other topics include: First lessons and helpful tips Physical fitness Types of waves Surf etiquette Buying surfboards An index of the best surf locations Filled with witty illustrations, a glossary of surfing terminology, and fun “Hey, Kook!” trivia, The Kook’s Guide to Surfing will turn even the greenest beginners into knockout surfing pros.
With grit, poetry, and humor, Peter Heller, acclaimed author of The River and The Whale Warriors recounts his remarkable journey of discovery—of surfing, an entirely new challenge; of the ocean’s beauty and power; of the strange surf subculture; of love; and, most of all, of how to seek adventure while crafting a meaningful life. Author of the New York Times bestselling novel The Dog Stars Winner of the National Outdoor Book Award for Literature Having resolved to master a big-hollow wave—that is, to go from kook (surfese for beginner) to shredder—in a single year, Heller travels from Southern California down the coast of Mexico in the company of his girlfriend and the eccentric surfers they meet. Exuberant and fearless, Heller explores the technique and science of surfing the secrets of its culture, and the environmental ravages to the stunning coastline he visits. As Heller plumbs the working of his own heart and finds joy in both love and surfing, he affords readers vivid insight into this fascinating world, with all of its perils and pleasures, its absurdity and wonder. Exhilarating, entertaining, and moving, Kook is a love story between a man and his surfboard, a man and his girlfriend, a not-so-old man and the sea.
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Boston Bruins’ 1970 Stanley Cup championship season by reliving all the moments in Kooks and Degenerates on Ice. While the United States seethed from racial violence, war, and mass shootings, the 1969-70 “Big, Bad Bruins,” led by the legendary Bobby Orr, brushed off their perennial losing ways to defeat the St. Louis Blues in the Stanley Cup Finals for their first championship in 29 years. In Kooks and Degenerates on Ice: Bobby Orr, the Big Bad Bruins, and the Stanley Cup Championship That Transformed Hockey, Thomas J. Whalen recounts all the memorable moments from that championship season. Behind the no-nonsense yet inspired leadership of head coach Harry Sinden, the once laughingstock Bruins became the talk of the sporting world. Nicknamed the “Big, Bad Bruins” for their propensity to out-brawl and intimidate their opponents, the team rallied around the otherworldly play of Bobby Orr and his hard-hitting teammates to take the NHL by surprise in a season to remember. Kooks and Degenerates on Ice brings to life all the colorful personalities and iconic players from this Stanley Cup-raising team. In addition, the season is placed into its historical context as the United States struggled with issues of war, race, politics, and class, making this a must-read for sports enthusiasts, hockey fans, and those interested in twentieth-century American history.
Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook (1865-1935) was the first Ashkenazic chief rabbi of mandatory Palestine. Admired for the incredible diversity of his talents and interests--talmudist, halakhist, kabbalist, mystic, theologian, moralist, poet, and communal leader--Rav Kook's world outlook extolled breadth and derided narrow specialization. More than any other Orthodox thinker in modern times, he addressed, squarely and boldly, the confrontation between Judaism and the modern world. Kook serves as a natural model to those Jews who seek a religious understanding of and response to the culture and politics of the modern age. These essays, most published here for the first time, offer a range of analyses and interpretations covering, in an accessible, systematic, and comprehensive fashion the major areas of Rav Kook's thought. Among the issues discussed are: his relationship to the Jewish mystical, philosophical, and halakhic traditions; poetry and spirituality; harmonism and pluralism; tolerance and its limits; Zionism, messianism, and politics; and Rav Kook today.
This is the first comprehensive philosophical-theological study of the mystical thought of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook (1865-1935), the Chief Rabbi of Palestine prior to the establishment of the state of Israel, and the great representative of the most significant renewal of the Jewish mystical thought in modern times. Rav Kook was the spiritual and hallachic authority who laid the foundation of religious Zionism. Discontent with "Hamizrakhi" political pragmatism, he envisioned Zionism as a movement of return and all-encompassing Jewish renaissance. This book dissolves the mist enveloping Rav Kook's writings and offers an understanding of his spiritual world. It presents and analyzes the systematic elements in his teaching and reveals the spiritual interests and fundamental approaches of his religious thought.
