Directors Books

[This review is actually for the Second Edition of this book which I read at B&N on Saturday, February 09, 2008. See ISBN 0471715271.]

This is a gem of a book. I have a financial background, so it was a pretty easy read for me. Like the author I too hold the CPA designation. But unlike the author I don't use that designation professionally any longer. The book has the following 8 chapters:

1. Introductory concepts
2. Structuring the organization for fiscal strength
3. Financing the dream
4. Budgeting
5. Asset management
6. Nonprofit accounting
7. Special financial tools
8. Obtaining and maintaining tax-exempt status

For two years not too long ago I worked as a consultant to nonprofits that needed help with multi-million-dollar capital campaigns. The nonprofit world was new to me then, except for the time I spent in Washington DC a number of years ago as a staff auditor auditing trade associations for E&Y. As a result of my fundraising experiences I found it necessary to read lots of books about aspects of nonprofits. I read books on nonprofit management, nonprofit fundraising, nonprofit capital campaigns, nonprofit endowment campaigns, major gifts, grant proposals and writing, and nonprofit strategic planning.

I didn't read nonprofit books on nonprofit accounting, bookkeeping, or financial planning since I basically knew that stuff. But some people who are not well versed in such subject matter would do themselves a favor to get a copy of Ms. Blazek's book on nonprofit financial planning if they want a well written and well outlined book on the subject. CEOs and CFOs of nonprofits should be adept at their organization's (1) operations, (2) financial planning, and (3) fundraising efforts and abilities. By getting a copy of this book the nonprofit executive can get a good handle on the second leg of the three-legged stool. 5 stars!

This is a wonderful book. I liked it very much much. I think a better title for it would have been either (1) Leadership in a Nonprofit Organization, or (2) The Nonprofit Organization Management Team. I say this because it is not just about the leadership team. But instead it is about both the players that manage a nonprofit and how to be good at leading AND MANAGING a nonprofit.

The book is very well written and organized. It is split into four parts:

I. The qualities of shared leadership (chapts 1-4)
II. The responsibilities of shared leadership (chapts 5-12)
III. The special challenges of shared leadership (chapts 13-18)
IV. Resources (A-E)

The chapters and resources provided are as follows:

1. What a Board expects of the Executive
2. What an Executive expects of the Board
3. What board members and the Executive expect of the Chair
4. The importance and challenges of personal relationships
5. Hiring and evaluating the Executive
6. The mission, vision, and strategic planning
7. Program direction, oversight, and support
8. Financial management and governance
9. Marketing, promotion, and public relations
10. Fundraising
11. Enhancing Board effectiveness
12. Administrative activities
13. Program evaluation
14. Information and communications technologies
15. Exploring different governance and management concepts
16. Using consultants
17. Special challenges facing the leadership team
18. Accountability
A. Board-staff "contract" for financial accountability
B. Sample terms of reference for governance committee to follow
C. Some guiding principles for nonprofit Board self-assessment
D. Code of ethical online charity practices
E. Standards for charitable accountability

So many nonprofits that come into existence are started by people who don't really know what they are doing when they form and start their "nonprofit baby." They usually know what they want to do for the good of the community or society, but they don't know how to lead and manage. They don't know what the CEO is supposed to do. They don't know who to put on their Board. They don't know what to require of their Board's members before they put them on the board. They don't know how to have the Board do what it needs to do to make the nonprofit successful.

If you think you fit the description of someone just described in the previous paragraph, then this book is for you. You will really be glad you got a copy of this book, read it, studied it, and implemented what it has to say. 5 stars!

Stories that are very Warren Miller like, just like you would expect from his film narrations.

The biography of Brad Washburn makes a terrific yarn, even for us armchair adventurers. This is a well-told tale, with a transcribed "oral history" from Mr. Washburn, interspersed with the narrative supplied by Mr. Smith. The significance of Mr. Washburn's life, and what makes this book worth reading, is that his mountaineering adventures were part of the 20th century's final conquest of high places in this world. The high mountains were the last frontier, and Mr. Washburn lived it, wrote about it, mapped it, and (more importantly) photographed it. Fortunately, National Geographic chose to include a variety of Mr. Washburn's best photographs. His friendship with, and admiration for, Ansel Adams is apparent. Buy this for the read, but also buy it as a coffee table book.

This book is, in a word, fabulous. The text is concise, yet flavorful, and of course the subject matter (Orson Welles) is ALWAYS interesting, but the real wealth here is in those delectable photographs. The barrage of images starts with the cover and doesn't quit until the last page. All of them are tasteful, well-chosen, and evocative. A must for any Orson Welles fan...

I'm a big fan of Orson Welles after recently watching the movie "Citizen Kane". I was blown away by the movie, but also by the great actor.

I decided to delve deeper into his career, and I chose this book for a great starter.

I found the book to be very good. It goes through the career of Orson Welles from movie #1 (Kane), throughout his death.

The book is filled with great photos, and movie stills, each with a short caption.

Please be aware though, this is a visual history, with very little text.

It does include a bibliography,filmography, and a short roundup of his career, including a time line.

I really enjoyed this book for the broad overview. I will now probably dig deeper with other books.

For the price, I would not hesitate to pick this book up. As they say a picture is worth 1,000 words, and this book is chocked full of them!

I will be picking up more books in this "Movie Icons" format.

Happy reading/viewing!

On the heels of Antony Beevor's perfervid THE MYSTERY OF OLGA CHEKHOVA: WAS HITLER'S FAVORITE ACTRESS A RUSSIAN SPY? comes this interesting portrait of Chekhova's former husband, Michael Chekhov of the Moscow Art Theater.

Charles Marowitz has written a splendid biography, which gives the layman an idea of the schisms behind the development of the Stanislavsky "Method" of acting and directing. In particular, we gasp at the perilous journey Chjekhov, the nephew of the playwright Anton, took when it became clear he had turned into an enemy of the Soviet state. It makes you wish there was a full-dress biography of Beatrice Straight and her parents, the chatelaines of Dartington Hall in England. The talent they assembled there, including Chekhov, Kurt Jooss, and Benjamin Britten, turned the estate into a splendid arts factory, training Hurd Hatfield and Yul Brynner and many more.

When Chekhov went to Hollywood, he appeared in nine films of varying quality, including SPELLBOUND and the SPECTER OF THE ROSE, both written by Ben Hecht who had an affection for the old rascal who came dripping "Russian sugar." The young actress Mala Powers, seen as Roxanne in the Jose Ferrer film of CYRANO, makes a prominent appearance here, as the keeper of the flame. She is the executrix of the Chekhov estate.

Chekhov somehow evaded the scrutiny of the House Un American Activities Committee but maybe it would have caught up to him had he not died--oddly enough on the very same day as James Dean did, so his death slipped out of the public's consciousness and many think he is still alive.

A marvelously written tome. I saw only one mistake, Marowitz--himself a famous director and theorist--apparently thinks that Orson Welles appeared in John Farrow's THE BIG CLOCK; it only seems that he did, for it was actually Charles Laughton.

If you have an interest in classical music, then the name Otto Klemperer will be well known to you. Here is a beautifully presented two volume biography, very much a labour of love on the part of the author. A great read, and I particularly like having the notes at the foot of the page, not in an appendix.

Both volumes can be bought separately, but together come in a handsome slipcase.

I have read many biographies of famous conductors, and this ranks alongside Richard Osborne's book on Herbert von Karajan, and (best of all) Michael Kennedy's masterly and moving 'Barbirolli, Conductor Laureate', which I fear may be out of print.

Everything you'd expect and hope to find in a scholarly work on film and queer theory, and a good many surprises. Ellis Hanson's well edited collection has found its way onto numerous college reading lists and will doubtless stay on them for years to come as this is indeed a seminal volume in the history (brief as it is) of queer theory and film. Academic yet readable and engaging, these essays leave behind discussion of queer films in terms of whether or not they contain "good" or "positive" representations of gay men and lesbians, and rather celebrate what is illusive, problematic, complex, and interesting about the queer themes and characters that have appeared in film since its earliest days.
Hanson's own essay tackles lesbian vampire films, a genre which most critics and film theorists have seldom taken seriously. By the time he's done with it, however, you can't imagine how lesbian vampires could have been igorned for so long. The book, like Hanson's essay, invites us into new and unfamiliar territory and rewards us with fascinating perspectives and analytic energy that can only come when scholars are turned loose on fresh subject matter.
Although talking about anything "queer" is apt to offend certain constituencies, these essays cannot be lightly dismissed. The book is challenging, provocative, and absolutely essential reading for anyone who is interested in queer theory, film, or both.