[.ca] Hot Chocolate For The Mystical Teenage Soul (ISBN 0452280702)

The title is deceiving:
I bought this book with the intention of giving my teenage niece something spiritually inspiring and interesting to read. She has many questions about spirituality and eternal life, and she loves the sensation of goose bumps on her neck. I wanted to reconcile these interests into something healthy for her soul and psyche. At first this book appeared to fit the bill nicely, touting its stories of "Angels, Miracles, and Healings," but the old cliché "never judge a book by its cover" holds true! Having read a few of the stories myself, I can only conclude that this is NOT the gift to give my impressionable and daring niece. While many are first or second hand accounts with angels and miracles, several others revolve around experiments in the occult (ouija boards, witchcraft rituals, etc.) that are not meant as cautionary tales. If this book is a gift for a teen in your life, you might want to think twice about buying it.

Really fun and spooky stories that made me think!:
Ever since I was really young I have been fascinated by the unexplainable. These stories were really cool to read and made me feel like I could finally understand some of the unusual things that happen in my life.

Grandparents teenage children:
I am priviledged to have 10 grandchildren 8 of whom are teenagers. Being a lover of books, I always read what I send to my family. These 101 stories are so interesting and diverse that I keep a copy in my home for young visitors. I think every grandparent and school should have a copy for all to read.

Common Ground Spiritually:
What can you do when your teenager comes to you and asks about Spirituality? How do you answer their questions? We are not experts on spirituality, though we do walk a very different path than others. Some of us are fortunate enough to have support at these trying time, through the elders of our covens. But many of us do not, either because of choice or unavailability. So how do we answer our teenagers questions? Hot Chocolate was so much fun to read. I found it to be as entertaining as it is thought provoking. And this makes it a great choice to offer a teenager. We all know how bored they can get so fast. This book is one I can honestly say I did not get the least bit bored with. Hot Chocolate is a collection of personal experiences in small autobiographical format from people who have experienced, in one way or another, a personal spiritual touch or awakening. Most stories are told in the first person, and this makes it easy to relate to the story on a one to one level. Each story is well written for the most part, and does not go over the head of the reader, nor are any of them so "way out" as to be unbelievable. But each story does provoke thought, questions and ideas. From the "spooky" stories to a biography of Joan of Arc to Vision Quests and Angels, each story relates personal experiences on a variety of spiritual paths. As I read, I found myself contemplating the stories, looking at each of them as a basis for discussion between parent and teenager. What grand discussion some of these stories would make in an open forum with a group of teens, or, for that matter, a group of adults. As a tool, this book would be of value to the average pagan parent seeking a "common ground" platform with which to discuss spirituality with their teenager. I would recommend it to parents following any spiritual path as a book to inspire as well providing good conversational material for themselves and their teenage.

Charmless Imitation of the "Soup" Books:
My mother got me this book as a gift...and it is a truly interesting idea for a book. This book lacks the charm of the "soup" books...most of the stories are drawn out from the one sentence in which they could be summarized. It seems as though Ford, in trying to solicit stories, accepted the first 101 and did not edit or improve any submissions at all. Some of the stories, granted, are interesting, engaging, and even a bit spooky. Unfortunately, the majority seem contrived and more the fare of late-night campfire chats or urban legends than genuinely inspiring stories of the "other side". In future editions of this book (which I am sure there will be), Ford could, should, and for her own integrity as a writer, must be more selective in choosing her stories. And.. just *perhaps* she could make the parody title a tiny, tiny bit less obvious.