Monday, May 31, 2010

Wesak 2010 At Kajang, Sungai Chua

Nice weather 

Look how beautiful the weather for that evening. An hour before, the sky was cloudy and it seem like it gonna rain.

 Gautama Buddha

Before the lights was on, this float looked so simple and dull. But after that, it changed into the most beautiful among the others. Moreover, the Gautama's Buddha was smiling compassionately. A beautifully decorated  float, affixed with decorative bulbs, carried the statue of Gautama Buddha and the 1Malaysia logo. The committee members doing the last checks before the procession starts.

Gautama Buddha

 Holy Water
The fragrant coming from this pool of holy water smell too good.

After taking chunks of pictures at the temple's ground, we rushed to the town to wait for the floats. Having plenty of time and we decided to have our dinner while waiting for it. By 9:30pm the procession reached the town. There were thousands of viewers standing by the road just to watch the floats. I was waiting at the junction where the procession will make a turn into the main road so that I can snaps better pictures. It was a sea of people participates in the procession with holding a pink lotus attached with a candle lights.

It was hot and stuffy due to the massive crowds. By just watching the procession at the town, it took about 30minutes to watched the whole long stretch of crowds from the procession to came to the end. There goes the day of pre-wesak 2010 official opening.

Next stop is to visit Buddhist Maha Vihara National Wesak Day open House in Brickfields. The Prime Minister will attend and Ramsay Gordon, the Hell's Kitchen chef will personally prepares vegetarian lunch for the PM.
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Sunday, May 30, 2010

Pure Feng Shui

Title: Pure Feng Shui
Author: Joey Yap
Publisher: Ryland Peters & Small
ISBN: 9781906094966



Back Cover text
Don't like the sound of windchimes? Loathe idea of lucky Chinese figurines littering your coffee table? Tired of tripping over your crystal? Then it's time for Joey Yap's refreshing new approach to the ancient practice of feng shui. Let this well-known feng shui master practitioner, renowned author, and trainer show you the quick, easy, and most importantly, effective ways to harness the power of feng shui.

  • No-nonsense, easy ways to improve key life areas: health, career, relationship, and wealth. 
  • Common-sense approach debunks the feng shui myths and shows what works and what doesn't.
  • Full of tips and techniques that will work for any home from one of the world's master practitioners. 

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Wednesday, May 26, 2010

The Buddha Said

Quotations from the Buddha:

“Teach this triple truth to all:  A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity.”

“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.”

“In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true.”



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New Books Released In May 2010

A Chinese schoolgirl emigrates with her mother to an impoverished life in Brooklyn where she works in the sweatshops. This is a story of hardship and triumph baased upon Jean Kwok's own experience as a Chinese immigrant to the U.S. Through Kimberly's story, author Jean Kwok, who also emigrated from Hong Kong as a young girl, brings to the page the lives of countless immigrants who are caught between the pressure to succeed in America, their duty to their family, and their own personal desires, exposing a world that we rarely hear about. 

Written in an indelible voice that dramatizes the tensions of an immigrant girl growing up between two cultures, surrounded by a language and world only half understood, Girl in Translation is an unforgettable and classic novel of an American immigrant-a moving tale of hardship and triumph, heartbreak and love, and all that gets lost in translation.

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Lisbeth Salander, the heart of Larsson’s two previous novels, lies in critical condition, a bullet wound to her head, in the intensive care unit of a Swedish city hospital. She’s fighting for her life in more ways than one: if and when she recovers, she’ll be taken back to Stockholm to stand trial for three murders. With the help of her friend, who also a journalist, Mikael Blomkvist, she will not only have to prove her innocence, but also identify and denounce those in authority who have allowed the vulnerable, like herself, to suffer abuse and violence. And, on her own, she will plot revenge-against the man who tried to kill her, and the corrupt government institutions that very nearly destroyed her life.
The third in Stieg Larsson's Millenium Series. The final book to the trilogy that includes The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire.

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The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ is the remarkable new piece of fiction from best-selling and famously atheistic author Philip Pullman. By challenging the events of the gospels, Pullman puts forward his own compelling and plausible version of the life of Jesus, and in so doing, does what all great books do: makes the reader ask questions.

In Pullman’s own words, “The story I tell comes out of the tension within the dual nature of Jesus Christ, but what I do with it is my responsibility alone. Parts of it read like a novel, parts like history, and parts like a fairy tale; I wanted it to be like that because it is, among other things, a story about how stories become stories.”

Written with unstinting authority, The Good Man Jesus and the Scoundrel Christ is a pithy, erudite, subtle, and powerful book by a controversial and beloved author. It is a text to be read and reread, studied and unpacked, much like the Good Book itself.

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Hilary Thayer Hamann’s Anthropology of an American Girl touched a nerve among readers, who identified with the sexual and intellectual awakening of its heroine, a young woman on the brink of adulthood. A moving depiction of the transformative power of first love.

Centering on Evie’s fragile relationship with her family and her thwarted love affair with Harrison Rourke, a professional boxer, the novel is both a love story and an exploration of the difficulty of finding one’s place in the world. As Evie surrenders to the dazzling emotional highs of love and the crippling loneliness of heartbreak, she strives to reconcile her identity with the constraints that all relationship, whether those familial or romantic, uplifting to the spirit or quietly detrimental, inherently place on us. Though she stumbles and strains against social conventions, Evie remains a strong yet sensitive observer of the world around her, often finding beauty and meaning in unexpected places.

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The year is 1970, and the youth of Europe are in the chaotic, ecstatic throes of the sexual revolution. Though blindly dedicated to the cause, its nubile foot soldiers have yet to realize this disturbing truth: that between the death of one social order and the birth of another, there exists a state of terrifying purgatory or, as Alexander Herzen put it, a pregnant widow.

Keith Nearing is stuck in an exquisite limbo. Twenty years old and on vacation from college, Keith and an assortment of his peers are spending the long, hot summer in a castle in Italy. The tragicomedy of manners that ensues will have an indelible effect on all its participants, and we witness, too, how it shapes Keith’s subsequent love life for decades to come. Bitingly funny, full of wit and pathos, The Pregnant Widow is a trenchant portrait of young lives being carried away on a sea of change.

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Julie Orringer's astonishing first novel, The Invisible Bridge, eagerly awaited since the publication of her heralded best-selling short-story collection, How to Breathe Underwater. The invisible Bridge is a grand love story and an epic tale of three brothers whose lives are torn apart by war.

In Paris, 1937, Andras Lévi, a Hungarian Jewish architecture student, arrives from Budapest with a scholarship, a single suitcase, and a mysterious letter he has promised to deliver to C. Morgenstern on the rue de Sévigné. As he becomes involved with the letter's recipient, his elder brother takes up medical studies in Modena, their younger brother leaves school for the stage and Europe's unfolding tragedy sends each of their lives into terrifying uncertainty. From the Hungarian village of Konyár to the grand opera houses of Budapest and Paris, from the lonely chill of Andras's garret to the enduring passion he discovers on the rue de....
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Jataka Tales 4 - Lies Are Like Dirty Water

Rahula was the son of Gautama Buddha. When only nine, he renounced the household life. At that age, he could not fully understand the Buddha's teachings. Although he had a mild temperament and behaved well, he enjoyed telling lies just for the fun of it. One day, when a royal visitor came looking for the Buddha, Rahula attended to the visitor. Since the visitor was from other country, Rahula could not fully understand the visitor's language. So Rahula directed the visitor to different locations thus while the visitor kept doing the wild goose chase looking for Buddha, Rahula playfully watched.


When the Buddha learned about Rahula's mischief, he called a special assembly. When everyone arrived, the Buddha asked Rahula to bring him a basin of water. Stunned by the Buddha's serious demeanor, Rahula quietly prepared the basin of water. Then the Buddha asked Rahula to put mud into the basin.

Seeing Rahula putting in, the Buddha asked, "Rahula, is the water in this basin suitable for drinking?"

"No, Buddha!" Rahula said, "The water is too dirty after being mixed with mud and it's not suitable for drinking."

"Do you know, you are just like this water, which was initially clean, clear and pure. You have chosen to become a monk, yet you have not worked hard to pursue the the eight precepts, to purify your mind and body, and to be prudent in your speech. The filth of telling lies has defiled your mind, just as the initially clean water in the basin which is now dirty," said the Buddha.

Lowering his head, Rahula was ashamed to look at the Buddha and remained silent. Moreover Buddha was saying so in front of the thousands other monks. The Buddha then told him to throw the water away. Rahula did it obediently. After this Buddha asked Rahula again, "Now Rahula, would you use this basin as your rice bowl?"

"No, Buddha!" without waiting Buddha to ask why, Rahula continued, "The basin is not clean as it has stains on it and therefore cannot be used as food container."

"You are now no different from this basin," the Buddha continued. "People call and treat you as a monk, but you have behaved so nor have you purified your behavior, speech and thoughts. How can your mind hold the food of the great dharma?"

After saying so, the Buddha stood up, with a very serious gesture and kicked the basin, causing it to roll around. Rahula looked scared. "Rahula, are you worried that I might break the basin?" asked the Buddha.

Rahula remained silent as he felt the Buddha is very serious about his mischief. The Buddha raised his voice a little bit and asked the same question, "So tell me Rahula, will you worried I might broke the basin?"

"No, Buddha! It's only a stained basin" said Rahula.

"Exactly, Just as you do not care the basin as the basin is just a crude container, being a monk that likes to tell lies are no much different from this stained basin. Rahula, people will not even care about you either if you're a mischievous monk. You choose to be a monk, yet you do not pay attention to your own conduct. The more you play trick and tell lies eventually, nobody will ever care about you, and at the end of this life, you'll remain lost, being sidelined and no one will ever bother and respect you at all."

After the Buddha's admonition, Rahula completely reformed all of his misdeed tendencies. He strictly upheld the precepts and diligently cultivated his mind. Day after day he practiced discretely and finally became one of Buddha's greatest disciples.
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Impure speech lead to an impure mind. The consequences of constant wrongful speeches are like the dirty water where others will neglect and ignore you. As the stains on the basin resemble that when you're telling lies, talking wrong and harmful, is like the stains in the basin, where not only contaminate your mind but also the physical you, being "brands" one as a liar. Heard of the story of "The Shepherd Boy and the Wolf?" Read it HERE. So, how can we not be careful about our speech?
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Monday, May 24, 2010

The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas

Title: The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas
Author: John Boyne
Publisher: RBooks
ISBN: 9781862305274


Back Cover text
Lines may divide us, but hope will unite us....

Nine-year-old Bruno knows nothing of the Final Solution and the Holocaust. He is oblivious to the appalling cruelties being inflicted on the people of Europe by his country. All he knows is that he has been moved from a comfortable home in Berlin to a house in a desolate area where there is nothing to do and no one to play with. Until he meets Shmuel, a boy who lives a strange parallel existence on the other side of the adjoining wire fence and who, like the other people there, wears a uniform of striped pyjamas.

Bruno's friendship with Shmuel will take him from innocence to revelations. And in exploring what he is unwittingly a part of, he will inevitably become subsumed by the terrible process.

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See the various cover of the book HERE 

Here is the trailer for the movie The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas 

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Celine Dion - Through the Eyes of the World DVD & CD

Celine: Through the Eyes of the World DVD has released in 21 May 2010. The DVD is now available in major video stores.  Celine: Through the Eyes of the World DVD recounts the extraordinary journey of the Taking Chances World Tour, which took Celine on the road from February 2008 to February 2009. Discover a Celine that you've never seen before, as you to travel with her, around the world in Asia, Africa, Oceania, Europe, and North America.

"Celine Through the Eyes of the World opens the backstage door to the tour that brought her show to 25 countries and 93 cities. This DVD offers an extended Director's Cut (one hour longer than the theatrical release version) of the acclaimed documentary with previously unseen footage. You'll be right there with Celine both on and off stage. Watch Celine perform 21 of her biggest hits such as "All By Myself", "I'm Alive" and "The Prayer". The DVD shares 3 hours of intense personal moments revealing Celine as multifaceted woman" - CelineDion 


Here are the Tracklisting on the DVD features over 40 songs including


All By Myself
Alone
I Drove All Night
Taking Chances
My Heart Will Go On


And Many More......

Tour Segment Includes
1. Africa
2. Asia Part 1
3. Oceania
4. Asia Part 2
5. Europe
6. America

DVD: Three-hour movie DVD includes
  • behind the scenes and performance footage from 21 of Celine’s greatest hits with an additional hour of extra footage previously unseen in the original two-hour theatrical release
  • plus an eight-page booklet of new, never-before-seen photos from the Taking Chances World Tour
Selling price - RM40.90

This film is a must for every Celine fan. It could have certainly been used as a bonus DVD with the concert film.

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Beside the world tour DVD, the DVD + CD version also released. Celine accompanied by musicians and dancers, Celine performs her greatest hits on stage. From the energetic opening track "I Drove All Night" to the moving and emotional grand finale ballad "My Heart Will Go On", it's the concert event you'll want to watch and listen to again and again. A full 80 minutes of Celine belting out 25 incredible performances. The DVD and audio CD were recorded during Montreal and Boston concerts in August 2008. This DVD/CD set shows once again that Celine is a true show-woman - on stage, she gives herself entirely to her audience. - CelineDion 


Here are the tracklisting from the album

DVD/CD - (ENGLISH VERSION)
  • 80-minute live DVD features 25 show-stopping performances
  • plus the audio version Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert companion CD recorded live in Montreal on August 31st and September 1st, 2008
  • and an eight-page booklet of new, never-before-seen tour photos
Disc 1 - DVD
1. I Drove All Night
2. The Power Of Love
3. Taking Chances
4. Hits Medley  (It's All Coming Back To Me Now, Because You Loved Me, To Love You More)
5. Eyes On Me
6. All By Myself
7. I'm Alive
8. Shadow Of Love
9. Fade Away
10. Alone
11. My Love
12. The Prayer (Duet with Andrea Bocelli)
13. Pour Que Tu M'aimes Encore
14. Tribute To Queen Medley (We Will Rock You, The Show Must Go On)
15. Soul Medley (Sex Machine, Soul Man, Lady Marmalade, Sir Duke, Respect, I Got The Feelin', I Got You (I Feel Good), 
16. It's A Man's Man's Man's World)
17. Love Can Move Mountains
18. River Deep, Mountain High
19. My Heart Will Go On

Disc 2 - CD
1. I Drove All Night
2. The Power Of Love
3. Taking Chances
4. Hits Medley  (It's All Coming Back To Me Now, Because You Loved Me, To Love You More)
5. Eyes On Me
6. All By Myself
7. I'm Alive
8. Shadow Of Love
9. Fade Away
10. Alone
11. My Love
12. The Prayer (Duet with Andrea Bocelli)
13. Pour Que Tu M'aimes Encore
14. Tribute To Queen Medley (We Will Rock You, The Show Must Go On)
15. Soul Medley (Sex Machine, Soul Man, Lady Marmalade, Sir Duke, Respect, I Got The Feelin', I Got You (I Feel Good), 
16. It's A Man's Man's Man's World)
17. Love Can Move Mountains
18. River Deep, Mountain High
19. My Heart Will Go On
     Selling Price - RM49.90
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    Compares the two album above, the first is only a documentary film dvd featuring the journey of Celine Dion's on her world tour around the five continents. Wherelse the DVD+CD version only shows the real concert from the world tour.


    Here is the special deluxe edition of Celine Dion's 2-DVD set album

    Deluxe 2DVD Includes
    • three-hour Celine: Through The Eyes Of The World movie DVD
    • 80-minute Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert live DVD
    • 52-page hardcover case-made book of beautiful photos from the Taking Chances World Tour with foldout postcards
    • Available on May 25th
    Tracklisting from the deluxe album
      Opening
      1. I Drove All Night
      2. Love Can Move Mountains
      3. Because You Loved Me
      4. I've Got The Music In Me
      5. I'm Alive
      6. We Will Rock You
      7. To Love You More
      8. Soul Man
      9. It's All Coming Back To Me Now
      10. River Deep, Mountain High
      11. The Show Must Go On
      12. The Power Of Love
      13. Pour Que Tu M'aimes Encore
      14. A Song For You
      15. The Prayer (Duet With Andrea Bocelli)
      16. I'm Your Angel
      17. Sil suffisait d'aimer
      18. My Love
      19. It's a Man's Man’s Man’s World
      20. All By Myself
      21. My Heart Will Go On
         Selling Price: NA
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        Friday, May 21, 2010

        Justin Bieber

        Caught one very nice song from OneFM this morning when I am on my way to office. At first, I seriously thought that the singer was a female, I mean he really sound like Rihanna. After the song being played, I only managed to heard the dj said Justin something something, and the word, Baby. When I reached office, turn on my PC and the first thing I did was Googled "Justin Baby" to get the full title and the singer name and  I YouTube it, oh.... "she" is a he.

        The song is really nice. Love the music and the rhythm.....searching for more on Justin Bieber's then this very cute video came up on the recommendation bar. I think I should share this with you'll. You might have watched them already but still, just watch them.....



        A 3-years-old cried over Justin Bieber



        This is the full video of Justin Bieber, Baby

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        Who is Justin Bieber?
        Read it HERE
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        Thursday, May 20, 2010

        Animal's People

        Title: Animal's People
        Author: Indra Sinha
        Publisher: Simon & Schuster
        ISBN: 9780743259200


        Back Cover text
        "I used to be human once. So I'm told. I don't remember it myself, but people who knew me when I was small say I walked on two feet just like a human being...."

        Ever since he can remember, Animal has gone on all fours, the catastrophic result of what happened on That Night when, thanks to an American chemical company, the Apocalypse visited his slum. Now not quite twenty, he leads a hand-to-mouth existence with his dog Jara and a crazy old nun called Ma Franci, and spends his nights fantasizing about Nisha, the daughter of a local musician, and wondering what it must be like to get laid.

        When a young American doctor, Elli Barber, comes to town to open a free clinic for the still-suffering townsfolk, only to find herself struggling to convince them that she isn't there to do the dirty work of the 'Kampani'. Animal plunges into a web of intrigues, scams and plots with the unabashed aim of turning events to his own advantages.

        Compellingly honest, entertaining and entirely without self-pity, Animal's account lights our way into his dark world with flashe of pure joy from the very first page all the way to the story's explosive ending.

        Animal's people is a stunningly humane work of storytelling that takes us right to the heart of contemporary India.

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        New And Cheap From BookXcess!!

        Just this week alone, I've already went to BookXcess twice. The new shipment came in last week and here are the books that you don't want to miss. Check out the prices.

                        1. The Boy In The Striped Pajamas - John Boyne RM35.90 (RM12.90)
                        2. Witch & Witches - James Patterson RM49.90 (RM14.90)

                            3. Twenties Girl - Sophie Kinsella RM79.90 (RM19.90)
                            4. Goodnight, Beautiful - Dorothy Koomson RM35.50  (RM17.90)


                           5. The Children's Book - A. S. Byatt RM69.90 (19.90)
                           6. The Book of Tomorrow - Cecelia Ahern RM69.90 (RM19.90)


                                       7. Dear John - Nicholas Sparks RM34.90 (17.90)
                                       8. 2666 - Roberto Balano RM75.90 (19.90)


                           9. Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell RM44.90 (RM17.90)
                         10. Ford County Stories - John Grisham RM89.90 (RM24.90)

         
                             11. The Woman Next Door - Barbara Delinsky RM34.90 (RM17.90)
                             12. Her Fearful Symmetry - Audrey Niffenegger RM65.90 (RM19.90)


            13.Sidney Sheldon's Mitress Of The Game - Tilly Bagshawe RM65.90 (RM19.90)

                        15. The Greatest Show On Earth - Richard Dawkins RM79.90 (RM29.90)

        There are more new books on Michael Jackson's, Princess Diana, Heath Ledger, cookbook by Gordon Ramsay, and National Geography's coffeetable-books.

        Visit BookXcess website for more.
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        Wednesday, May 19, 2010

        Letters From Burma

        Title: Letters From Burma
        Author: Aung San Suu Kyi
        Publisher: Penguin Books
        ISBN: 9780141041445



        Back Cover text
        In these unforgettable letters, Aung San Suu Kyi reaches out beyond Burma's borders to paint for her readers a vivid and poignant picture of her native land.

        Here she celebrates the courageous army officers, academics, actors and everyday people who have supported the national league for Democracy, often at great risk to their own lives. She reveals the impact of political decisions of the people of Burma, from the terrible cost to the children of imprisoned dissidents, allowed to see their parents for only fifteen minutes every fortnight, to the effect of inflation on the national diet, and of state repression on traditions of hospitality. She also evokes the beauty of the country's seasons and scenery, customs and festivities, that remain so close to her heart.

        Through these remarkable letters, the readers catches a glimpse of exactly what is at stake as Aung San Suu Kyi fights on for freedom in Burma, and on the love for her homeland that sustains her non-violent battle.

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        Rean an extract here

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        Tuesday, May 18, 2010

        The Million Shades of Gray

        Title: The Million Shades of Gray
        Author: Cynthia Kadohata
        Publisher: Simon And Schuster
        ISBN: 9781847388230



        Back Cover text
        At twelve years old, Tin is the youngest elephant handler in his village. He loves nothing more than spending his days looking after his elephant, Lady, and dreaming of being an elephant trainer when he grows up.

        But as Tin dreams of his future, the world around him is being changed dramatically by the events of the Vietnam War, and when Viet Cong attack his village, Tin's life is turned upside down. Suddenly held hostage by soldiers who don't care if he lives or dies, Tin has to harness all his courage to escape from his captors and save not only his own life, but his precious elephant's too.

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        See Inside The Book

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        What I've Bought (16.05.2010)


        1. To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee
        2. The Catcher In The Rye -
        J. D. Salinger
        (From Popular Bookstore World Book Day promotion (buy 2nd@50%) - Ikano)



        3. A Million Shades of Gray - Cynthia Kadohata
        4. Letters From Burma - Aung San Suu Kyi
        (From MPH bookstore OneUtama)



        5. The Fly10 Book - Irene Ang
        (From Borders bookstore The Curve)



        6. Becoming Enlightened - Dalai Lama, translated by Jeffrey Hopkins
        7. Animal's People - Indra Sinha
        (From BookXcess bookstore)



        8. Jason And The Golden Fleece
        9. The Voyages of Sindbad
        (From BookXcess, RM3 only)
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