Resources Books

Whether you're an avid traveler or a dreamer, this book has something for everyone. Plan your trip online or simply look at places across the world-no matter what, this book makes navigating the web easy. I especially loved the sites on currency conversion, ATM location, subway navigation, the translators, and the speed trap detector. It was all so useful and had so many sites I had never dreamed of. Thanks for making my travels so much fun to plan!

This incredible travel guide is like no other I've ever seen! With sites offering limitless possibilities on how to pick the perfect vacation spot and the best way (and price) to reach your destination, this book is a must have. I've been in the process of planning a trip of my own, and I honestly don't know how I would have ever survived without it! I've been able to find sites offering everything from theatre listings on Broadway to music festivals all over the world--not to mention a site offering all the best secrets from seasoned travelers who are available to help you with any travel question. Even if you have no travel plans in your near future, this book is a guarantee to have you packing you bags! Thanks and happy traveling!

I haven't done a great deal of traveling for the last two years but after perusing the book "300 Incredible Things for Travelers on the Internet" I am definitely more excited about traveling! I disagree with a reviewer who stated that some of the links in this book are inactive. Yes, some may be have been in accessible when he tried to click on them but what website isn't from time to time? I found that each one I clicked on worked beautifully.
Thank you so much for giving me that extra boost to get out there and travel! I can hardly wait now!

This incredible travel guide is like no other I've ever seen! With sites offering limitless possibilities on how to pick the perfect vacation spot and the best way (and price) to reach your destination, this book is a must have. I've been in the process of planning a trip of my own, and I honestly don't know how I would have ever survived without it! I've been able to find sites offering everything from theatre listings on Broadway to music festivals all over the world--not to mention a site offering all the best secrets from seasoned travelers who are available to help you with any travel question. Even if you have no travel plans in your near future, this book is a guarantee to have you packing you bags! Thanks and happy traveling!

Whether you're an avid traveler or a dreamer, this book has something for everyone. Plan your trip online or simply look at places across the world-no matter what, this book makes navigating the web easy. I especially loved the sites on currency conversion, ATM location, subway navigation, the translators, and the speed trap detector. It was all so useful and had so many sites I had never dreamed of. Thanks for making my travels so much fun to plan!

All people, team members as well as their leaders, simply want to feel appreciated and recognized. Everyone wants to feel important. We want to know that what we do makes a difference that goes beyond the numbers on the financial reports. This book can show you how to do that. Because the fundamental truth is, it's not the money you spend on rewards, but your ability to connect with your employees in a meaningful way that really makes the difference. This book can help you do that. You may also want to see Motivation at Work: Transform Your Business in 6 Extraordinary Steps

365 Ways to Motivate and Reward goes the extra mile in providing an understanding of the difference between the Band-Aid approaches to employee motivation and the understanding of true motivation from the employees' perspective. Podmoroff provides statistics from studies that looks at the employees reasoning behind needed recognition, acceptance and that good ole pat on the back. Inspired and motivated employees from management to the janitor foster a highly motivational workplace and this resource provides example after example of tips and techniques that help to create the motivated employee.
Helping the employee to claim ownership in his/her, organization is paramount to creating the positive workplace environment necessary for healthy, growing organizations and Podmoroff has provided 365 ways to do this.

Excellent book! Dianna Podmoroff's book "365 Ways to Motivate and Reward Your Employees Every Day: With Little or No Money" is a must have more every organization. I would recommend this book to everyone in management. As someone who has to watch the bottom line very closely in my company I found that Dianna's book has several excellent ideas to tap into peoples feeling of being acknowledged and rewarded. I have already passed this book on to my Executive Team for us to get started on some of Dianna's great ideas.

'365 Ways to Motivate and Reward Your Employees Every Day--With Little or No Money' is a terrific book for all managers and business owners. This book teaches you how to think like an employee, rather than thinking like a big wig. Then it gives you all the suggestions you need to motivate your employees and keep them motivated for an infinite amount of time. And that last part is really the key to this book. You don't want to motivate your employees for a day or a week. You want to keep them motivated for as long as they work for you.

I enjoyed reading the parts of the book that explained the importance of motivation, but I was even more impressed by all of the great techniques. This book is written in a fun, easy manner that made me excited to get to the `good stuff.' The gift ideas are all very clever (like supplying morning coffee for a year) and so are the suggestions on how to make the office fun (like adding a "Whine Cellar"). I especially liked all of the ideas on how to give employees time off of work, because it honestly never even crossed my mind to reward productivity with down time.

Overall, I think this is a terrific book and I can't wait to implement these ideas in my workplace. If you are a business owner or manager, I strongly recommend that you read this book. Even if you only follow a few of the suggestions, I think your company is bound to improve.

This is one of those books where you expected one thing and are pleasantly surprised to receive something else. Well, not entirely something else, there certainly is a list of 322 (not 365!) ways to motivate your employees, but that's the last half of the book. The first half is a great business book on motivation and the necessity to create a motivational work environment.

In fact, I found the fist half of the book more interesting than the second half and I say that without knocking the second half whatsoever. 365 covers motivational theory, internal and external motivational factors, management methods and also provides a series of motivational questions to ask employees and new hires to ensure you are able to provide the best motivational environment for their needs.

The second half of 365 covers a number of easy-to-do motivational rewards. While most businesses won't be able to do all of them there are a number of cheap and easy ideas that every business should implement. Not stopping with their own list, the book concludes with a monthly calendar of special days that will allow you to make your own motivational rewards.

Regardless of your work environment, every company can use a few motivational tips. 365 provides 322 of them and a framework to create hundreds more of your own. This is a book that won't be put on my bookshelf, but will remain close by as a reference for things I can do to reward my employees.

This product helped my grand daughter who was having math difficulty better understand math concepts. She was having fun at the same time.

I'm a private math tutor and am using this book as a Friday reward for two sixth grade girls who are studying algebra one with me. It is challenging in some interesting ways. It is full of story problems to be unraveled, about two kids who are detectives. I had given it to my daughter, who was the first year teacher and she said her kids loved it more than any other part of math. They can be solved alone or in groups. I really recommend this book.

This is a book your kids will enjoy, as far as you would ever expect your kids to enjoy a math workbook. The puzzles do build up a bit of suspense, and I like the problem solving approach. Recommended!

Nice and challenging. My kids are happy with it. I give them one challenge from this book on the drive to school every morning and give them 10-15 mins to complete. It's nice to have books like this. They're only 8&9 but they cover most of it.

I used a couple of these mysteries in my 5th grade classroom. The students enjoyed them because it was different then the way they usually practiced problem solving. The only downside to this book is that I think it is more challenging than the ages suggested. There were only a few stories that were appropriate for my 5th graders and those were still very challenging for them. I wouldn't reccommend this book to someone with a general ed. 4th grade classroom but it is perfect for junior high (6th, 7th, 8th) students!

I am a parent and bought this book for use with my children. I would recommend it to all parents. You never know when it would come in handy.

I must say that this is one of the better graphic organizer books that I have purchased. I have many of them but this one seems to be one of my tried and true graphic organizer books. I have used it for different stories, different subject areas, and different grade levels. This is a book that will not have time to collect dust! I recommend this book!

This book is a great resource for any teacher, of any subject. I had it recommended to me in a grad class on reading recovery, but after purchasing it, it's quite apparent that these organizers can be used for any subject and grade level or skill level. The book has some fabulous graphic organizers, as well as suggestions for designing your own organizers, encouraging student-designed organizer use, and more. It also gives some good ideas on how to raise or lower (by grade or skill level) the organizers in the book. Well worth the money!

This was a handy little teacher's aide. I used several of the organizers and it was nice to use something premade rather than make them up myself.

As a reading teacher, I use graphic organizers a great deal with my K-6 students. Although I own several graphic organizer resource books, this is the one I use most often. The organizers are unique, fun, and very easy to use. If you are going to purchase just one graphic organizer resource, this is the one I most highly recommend.

This book provides great insight to being a successful team member/leader. If you have aspirations of becoming a manager of any sort or even if you are one and are looking to improve, this book is a valuable collection to your bookshelf.

Wachter's book has had a tremendous impact on my business. It uncovers the truth about teamwork. As a result, my teams have grown exponentially more productive. In addition, my staff and I have learned how to better manage and support teams. A must read!

As a recent MBA graduate (and one who's landed a job in this market), I found 8 Lies an excellent source for "real world" examples. Wachter's book is filled with useful anecdotes from his years of business experience. I'd recommend this book to any business school student as an opportunity to learn valuable management techniques that are not often taught in the classroom, nor practiced in countless inefficient organizations. Wachter's insight will open your eyes to a refreshing different perspective not offered by more traditional textbooks - an excellent tool for spurring on discussion in the classroom!

Michael Wachter's book reveals the magic you need to release the full power of teamwork. This book is a "must read" for everyone from Executive Sponsors to each team member who is charged with achieving results. It reveals ways of removing barriers and freeing team members to succeed. These essential concepts need to be shared throughout the organization. Refuse to work on any team if the Executive Sponsor has not read this book!

Wachter's'8 Lies.. is to Teamwork, like Realistic Job Preview (RJP) is to hiring systems, both improve the results for the organization and the participant. This book is written in a clear and accessible format. Mike provides useful operational definitions and case examples that drive home the key points of what makes Teamwork work. While the Lies perspective captures one's attention, the value to the reader resides in the Truths offered as the actionable items to raise the bar of team performance and hold at bay those forces seeking to sabotage team productivity.

Having danced with lip service support for quality circle teams who's' mission was to "pick low hanging fruit" in the early Eighties, I have both spread lies and worked to reverse their legacy. Anyone working in team based business processes will find this a book to make you cry, make you smile, and most importantly, make you question the culture and expectations you hold for your teams. It holds the opportunity to take your efforts up a notch.

Joseph P. Murphy
Principal
Shaker Consulting Group
Business Results, People Solutions

I'm glad I bought this book, it is very informative and it applies to anyone. The web links on the sides of the pages are very useful and can be put to good use. Searching for a job can be daunting and overwhelming, but with the advice and the skills learned in this book you can persevere and be successful. This book is very well thought out and gets right to the point, I would recommend this to anyone who is searching for a job, including skeptical people.

The Internet and Web keep changing, and as [...] Job Search editor since 1998, Alison Doyle knows what is going on and she shares her knowledge in this book. This book is up-to-date and extensive, and Alison's advice is straight-forward and practical (just like her section of About).

The book is an easy read - points and additional resources are highlighted in the outer margins, chapters and sections are clear and logical. It covers everything from "Choosing Career and Job Options" (Chapter 1) through resumes and cover letters to interviews and evaluating offers (Chapter 14) and more.

This is an excellent book!

I am about to leave a career that I've worked at for 38 years. This wonderful book arrived just in time for my second career search. When you only know one job it can be hard to know how to find a new career. I can honestly say that now I have several opportunities that I'm ready to explore. This book offers help and advice for everyone, no matter what their age or work situation. I am going to purchase several copies for my friends, some want to work for the first time, and others would like to start new careers. This is the book for all of us!!! Sandy ( a retired teacher from NJ )

The author expertly integrates a solid print presentation of job search strategies with specific references to helpful online resources which will support job searchers those various phases in the process.

The book is clearly written in simple, jargon free language yet it reflects the sophisticated perspective on an experienced professional in the career devlopment field.

The About.com Guide to Job Searching should be an instant classic in the world of job searching books. What makes the book special is that the writer, Alison Doyle combines her years of experience as a career services professional with current, solid Information Technology knowledge. That's a winning combination for today's job searcher who is Internet savvy and technology-oriented. Unlike some of the long selling job search manuals that seem to have added online job searching as an afterthought, Doyle's book makes online tools, job boards, e-mail, and cell phones an integral part of every aspect of job searching.

I write the Human Resources site at About.com so I have first hand experience of the job searching site which is fully integrated with this job search guidebook. The book really does cover everything you need to know to conduct a successful job search - quickly. And, as an added advantage for the reader, it provides links to all of the rest of the best online resources for job searching.

As an employer, I'd advise job searchers to follow the book's advice. It's on target, demonstrates common sense, and will get your resume and application looked at by potential employers. Written in an engaging style, job search advice is offered with lots of stories from Doyle's years of helping people job search. Doyle's been covering job searching online since 1998 and job searching, in general, for over fifteen years. After reading Doyle's guide, I'd highly recommend it as your one stop guide for job searching.

I bought this book because my little brother decided that he wanted to enter this crazy industry and become an actor. I bought it because it never hurts to have a guide to look back at, plus, maybe there was some info in regards to kids that I already did not know. This is a great book. That only reason I gave it a four is because I did not really learn something new, but then again, I plan on working in the entertainment industry once I graduate so I already know alot in regards to breaking into it. But it is a great book. Also, it's an easy ready. Seriously, I read it in less than 45 minutes (and that's with me watching tv at the same time).

I Have been in show buisness for over 20 years, and my greatest fear has always been parents [paying too muchy for] acting teachers, photograghers and agents. This book will prevent that from happening. And save you many hours of frustration and regret. If your starting out, and even if you've been at it a while, this book is a MUST. Simple and straight forward.

As the mother of a young performer and a producer and performer myself, I am familiar with all the pitfalls, perils and pluses of having a child in "the biz". Lucia has accurately addressed the most important issues and then some. This is a MUST READ for anyone contemplating getting their child started in the business. Run, do not walk and buy this book. This book is easy to understand and covers all the major topics needed to make good decisions. Thank you Lucia it is about time someone wrote this book!!

This great "how to" book provides the information you need to get your children into show business. Clear, succinct information....and forms to walk you through your own experience.

This is a great resource for parents whose kids are eager to tap into their talents. In detailed and nicely organized chapters, it covers everything from how to deal with your child's aspirations and dreams in the business world to how to find and deal with representation. It's comprehensive, easy to follow and most importantly, stresses the "fun" factor for kids. Stage moms beware! This is a MUST READ for every parent with a future star in the family or a very expressive child.

What I love the most about Jeff Wilhelm's reading strategy books is that I always come away with ideas I can use the next day in the classroom. This book has ideas you can use in the classroom on EVERY page. Teachers, myself included, don't have all the time in the world and can't read all the articles and books on new research that we wish we could. But make the time to read this one. It is worth every minute!

This book arrived in excellent condition. It arrived much better than I thought it would. Thank you so much.

I have not found a better book to help students really get into literure and LOVE IT!!!

It is exciting, informative, and has great ideas for teaching literature!

Wilhelm's book, Action Strategies for Deepening Comprehension is one of the most valuable teaching resources I own. I've had phenomenal success with the hotseating and tableaux activities, only two of the terrific resources in this great book. Kids of all ages love hotseating in particular because it's so much fun. In a nutshell: one kid gets in front of the room (I drape a piece of red fabric across the stool) and "becomes" the character. He/She may have a "helper" of their choosing by their side. The rest of the class are "reporters" who ask the character any question they choose. The student in the hotseat may confer with his "helper" in order to answer as the character would...and therein lies the beauty of this. As the questions and answers unfold, everybody is thinking and when an answer doesn't ring true, the majority
will know it and question it.

We've done this with multiple characters as well as the "author." The questions are nearly always completely authentic; as kids, most would feel stupid speculating about motive, etc., and asking questions, but as
"reporters" it feels completely natural. I love to see the light bulbs go in everybody's head when new ideas--synthesis!--occurs.

One of my best hot-seating moments was after reading "The Gift of the Magi," a difficult work for my 8th graders. We'd hotseated the two main characters as well as O. Henry, and it was the question to O. Henry that did it. A girl who had a real problem with making inferences asked him why he'd written the lines about Della being afraid that her new short hair made her look like a Coney Island chorus girl. My student, Tony, clearly had paid no attention whatsoever to that description--in fact I was surprised that anyone had-- and he really had to think. Finally, he answered, saying, "I wanted Della to be a little bit afraid that maybe she didn't look like a (and he stressed thsi)nice girl."

The book also offers a number of other "action" activities that you can use. For my money, these are terrific
for any age! I encourage you to check this out. I also had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Wilhelm present his research and findings on his new book, Going with the Flow, and I was wowed to hear him in person as well.

I took a workshop with Wilhelm this summer. He demonstrated these techniques and I quickly bought the book.
This book has revolutionized my teaching and I am going back to school this year incredibly excited about using it in my classroom. I teach kids that struggle and this is going to be great for them.

Wilhelm is a dynamic speaker. If you can, snag him for your school's professional development or run to any workshop he is giving.

Enjoy!

I like the concepts in this book - semester based small group experiences, definite start and finish date, clear timelines for recruitment, leader development, content planning and promotion/sign-up months. They certainly make you think if you've only read a handful of Small-group books, and take on some assumptions that are incorrect about the how-to and why of small groups.
The only things I didn't like were the sometimes infomercial style of writing, a couple of places where they seemed to explain things that didn't need explaining but left off things that needed more expansion, and the belief that the concepts were an "entirely new approach" to small group ministry - unique would perhaps be a better word(agian infomercial wording).
All-in-all, I highly recommend this book to anyone thinking about small group ministry.

This is by far the best book I have ever read on building authentic and meaningful community in the church (and as a Pastor of 11 years - I have read a lot). After reading this book I bought four more copies for other people in my church to read.

This semester based system that Searcy and his staff has come up with makes complete sense and is something that any church no matter what the size could implement. Also what I like about this system is that it looks to take care of both the "attendees" and the leaders. Also, the focus on spiritual depth and being missional, makes the small group system very healthy.

I got the opportunity to spend a week at this church with Nelson Searcy for a Masters class and he is the real deal. If you are looking for something fresh in the area of small groups and a system that is simple and not overly complex, you need to check this book out.

This book is awesome. The first chapter alone is worth it's weight in gold. I found myself having a continual "A-Ha" moment. It has been a complete paradigm sift for me and my staff. It's so obvious and yet almost exactly opposite of anything I had been taught before on Small Groups.
Our entire staff had been through Nelson's small group seminar and we totally revamped our small group ministry. We immediately went from dozens in small groups to Hundreds literally. The book goes into so much more detail and explanation than the seminar.
I would strongly encourage anyone who is serious about Small Groups to get this book. You will be glad you did

What I loved about this book is that it doesn't just tell us "People need to be in community". Instead, it tells us how to lead people into a small group experience and how to manage the groups system as a staff. Nelson and Kerrick have written a book for people in the trenches of the local church because that's where they are as well. I highly recommend this you buy this book for yourself and for your entire church staff!

Searcy and Thomas have written an outstanding book on starting or developing a small groups program within the local church. The material presented demonstrates a depth of insight that only comes from experience - it's easy to see how Journey Church in New York City went from a handful of people to over 1100 in worship attendance and over 1200 people in almost 100 small groups in just a few years. The book is easy to read, very well organized, very practical, yet gives the important `why' behind each of the main ideas presented. (I would characterize his other book Fusion: Turning First-Time Guests into Fully-Engaged Members of Your Church in the same way.) The material is covered in several sections within two parts: the Activate Mindset, and the Activate System. The first half talks about several novel principles and shares some solid insight in sidebars and examples. The second half is really nuts-and-bolts on how to apply this approach not just as a set of disconnected ideas, but as a complete system that can be put in place. It doesn't tell the reader what needs to be covered or try to set an agenda for the groups, so there is still a lot of freedom for application and customization of the system to best match the needs of the church.

Part One: The Activate Mindset
* Rethinking Small Group Methodology
- Think Inside Out... Not Outside In
- Think Larger... Not Smaller
- Think Friendship... Not Intimacy
* Rethinking Small Group Structure
- Think Short-Term... Not Long-Term
- Think Promotion Months... Not Ongoing Sign-ups
- Think Church of small groups... Not with small groups
* Rethinking Small Group Strategy
- Think Easy... Not Hard
- Think Ahead... Not Behind
- Think Full Staff Participation... Not Staff Specialist
* Rethinking Small-Group Leadership
- Think Apprentice... Not Expert
- Think Decentralization... Not Staff Control
- Think Leader Multiplication... Not Group Multiplication

Part Two: The Activate System
* Focusing Your Groups (with 5 Focus steps)
* Forming Your Groups (with 3 Forming steps)
* Filling Your Groups (with 11 Fill factors)
* Facilitating Your Groups (with 5 Principles)

Some may be put off by the subtitle `An Entirely New Approach to Small Groups'. That type of marketing line seems to be best left for readers and reviewers to decide, but the material in the book is not as self-promotional as the title. I had previously read several books by Donahue and others stressing being a Church of Small Groups (not with). What I particularly liked about Activate was that several foundational principles were in common with these other books, while several aspects of the approach were quite different - and Searcy and Thomas discuss the reasons why. (For example, the approach to sign-ups and promotion is different in the Activate system, but with a good rationale.)

I would strongly recommend that pastors and/or those responsible for starting or growing a small groups ministry read `Activate' in addition to the excellent books from other successful practitioners in small group ministry (e.g. Bill Donahue and Andy Stanley, including Building a Church of Small Groups: A Place Where Nobody Stands Alone and Creating Community: Five Keys to Building a Small Group Culture).

Bought this for my Homiletics class and found it to be very comprehensive and full of ideas. As preaching is more of an 'Art' as the title suggests, the diversity of inputs is greatly appreciated and is invaluable to finding a style that suits me and also to learn from where others have found success. Highly recommended.

I'm getting my Doctor of Ministry degree in preaching, and so I've read lots of books about giving sermons through the years. This is one of the best. Dozens of scholars have written articles divided up into different categories (style, delivery, preparation, application, illustration, introductions, conclusions). Timothy Warren has several articles defending the topical expository sermon. He is strongly committed to expository preaching, but he doesn't necessarily feel that this always has to be from just one passage per Sunday.

Haddon Robinson has a convicting article warning about plagiarism, and he also has a great article about planning your sermons ahead of time.

Rick Warren has a good article about purpose driven titles for your sermons. The title should clearly communicate what the message is about without giving too much away.

John Ortberg discusses the use of illustrations, and there are also articles about outlining and discovering the main point of the scripture passage you are preaching on (frequently referred to as "The Big Idea").

Don Sunukjian has some contributions to the book, and one article warns about using too much alliteration, which is often the result of the preacher forcing his outline on the text.

You could read this book straight through, or you could pick out the articles that interest you at that moment in time. Many of these articles were first made available only to those who had an online membership to a certain website. But now these sterling pieces have been compiled into this thick volume. The book also comes with an mp3 cd. Highly recommended.

This is an A-1, first class book. Very inspiring and worth every bit you pay for it. We need better preachers and this book will for sure help you be one!

this was an excellent book on preaching. it taught me so many things. i do not agree with everything, but most of it was excellent. i would strongly encourage you to buy it.

This is a thoroughly exhaustive resource in the toolbag of the pastor. The multitude of author's writing on a variety of topics from one end of the field of homiletics to another adds a fresh view to bringing a Holy Word for God to affect the "Fallen Human Condition."

The reviewer had to read the book for a seminary preaching class. It was somewhat tedious reading this long book cover to cover. This is expected when there is such a vast number of author writing, but this cross-over isn't necessarily bad. It does give weight to techniques that are shown to be pragmatic. None of the authors are claiming that "their-way-is-the-best." They are merely showing what's worked for them and what is tried and true. They are passing their perspective on...because everyone has something to learn.

So from the lay minister to the scholar, this is a worthy resource to be in your homiletical arsenal.