Z Books

Jeff has long been an expert in the home office and telecommuting field so its little surprise that this book is a 'must read' for anyone looking to locate and hire productive teleworkers. One of the questions we receive most often at SOHOjobs is 'what do I need to set up a telework or telecommuting program' and this book is the answer. It covers keeping mobile workers and remote teams connected to the office, security issues and resources for the virtual workplace. There are even sample telework agreements that are very handy. For the job seeker, this book offers a handy Telework Aptitude Test to see if you're a candidate for remote work.

To put it succinctly "Teleworking and Telecommuting" is a must-have guide to anyone considering either of these working paradigms. The author provides and extensive analysis of all the benefits and pitfalls of working from home. He covers the personal characteristics necessary for successfully working from home, home office furnishings, balancing problems with family life and work life when at home, strategies for getting the employer to accept the proposition of working from home, and many other things that are critical to your success but often overlooked when considering working from home. The book ends with four appendices that provide a teleworker aptitude test and three sample contracts. I've been involved in teleworking for some time where I spend some time at the office and some time elsewhere providing work product. This is the most comprehensive book on the subject that I have read and so is a highly recommended read for anyone who is thinking of changing their work style to a teleworking paradigm or who is thinking of taking a job where teleworking is required or an option.

I thought this was one of the better written textbooks from my years at Georgia Tech in the mid 1990s. Very user friendly with good examples that were clear and easy to understand. Complete opposite of Incropera-DeWitt, 3rd edition, which I thought was the worst textbook.

I actually was a student of one of the authors (Dr. Hartley) at Georgia Tech about five years ago. He was one of the most interesting and informative professors I had at Tech. His skill in teaching shows in the layout and content of this book. I keep this book at work as a refresher and reference. The software included with the book is also very useful. I recommend this book for any thermo class

I first discovered Carlos Fuentes in college with The Death of Artemio Cruz and Where The Air is Clear and he has been a touchstone ever since. Although many of his subsequent novels have fallen short of my expectations, this autobiograophical collection of essays on a variety of subjects is intellectually engaging and insightful into the development of Fuentes the man and the author. A thousand stars!

I have read both the English and original Spanish versions of this tour de force and have found the book totally captivating. When Mr. Fuentes addresses a subject he expands the dinmensions and your perceptions of said subject to the point where you become enlightened beyond your initial understanding. His literary skills are beyond measurement. Mr.Fuentes begins with a simple enough concept of using the alphabet to share with the reader about his personal memories but along the way ventures into political musings, literary forays and comments on contemporary society and global perspectives on a variety of subjects. It is not a "preachy" book but rather one of insights into a brilliant mind and his beliefs. It is a very personal book that exhausts the reader intellectually. However the book is simply a delight in it's eloquence and commanding structure to the point where you feel you have been on a literary and cultural journey and Mr. Fuentes has been your tour guide. He treats his chosen subjects with that rare ability to capture your imagination where you become lost(or found) in his use of language to convey his prowess and understanding of a wide variety of topics. Mr. Fuentes begins with Amor(love) and usually gives each letter several subjects, for example, the letter C has Christ , Children, Cinema and Civil Society as topics. He ends with Zebra and Zurich. One might wonder what could Carlos Fuentes have to say about zebras? He uses his subject as a launching pad for his poetic explorations. What begins as an exploration of the zebra and his stripes and what differentiates him from a horse suddenly begins to explore zoology and all it's marvelous manifestations. Suddenly the animals found in the sea by the early explorers are being discussed. From here Mr. Fuentes takes twists and turns on a variety of subjects including Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein," with stops along the way into other diverse writers and their works like Ray Bradbury, Issac Isimov, Voltaire and Beckford. Dracula, Edgar Allan Poe, Kafka and Mexico-Tenochitlan are all fair game within the letter Z and what began as an exploration of the zebra. He ties all the subjects together by weaving a brilliant narrative that leaves you spellbound. I would highly recommend this book along with many of his other books that is written by the best writer Mexico has produced. As Mr.Fuentes states, " We think we know the world. Now, we must imagine it."

MAN, This Dude says it LIKE IT IS!
IT IS A GREAT BOOK.
ANYONE IN THIER RIGHT MIND SHOULD READ IT!

This book is definately a challenge to both sides of the environmental debate. Both conservatives and liberals are given plenty to chew on when the author reveals what Scripture has to say about our planet -- God's creation! This is an excellent research tool for Christians and non-Christians alike, when preparing any kind of document, article or manuscript regarding the environment and environmental ethics. I highly recommend it to college libraries and bookstores and professors! No matter where you "stand" on the issue of environment, this book will most likely challenge your position and possibly enlighten you to a new way of thinking.

This is a magical book that always works for school-aged kids, even the ones that think they are too cool to have someone read to them.

When I read it to a group, I ask, "Have you ever not gotten what you wanted, even if you thought you really needed it? How did that make you feel?" Even the "privileged" kids can relate.

Without being syrupy, this is the story of a kid who is just getting by; he wants the cool shoes the other kids have and knows he can never have them. He finds them--sort of, they are too small--in a consignment shop and manages to buy them, desperate to fit in. Meanwhile, the only kid who didn't laugh at him a few days ago doesn't have any shoes, either. Without giving too much away, I'll say the story ends with compassion and dignity. It's also miraculously brief; every word is important.

Since I am a librarian, I often have parents or teachers asking me for books on friendship. I've never seen one as well-written as this, and the illustrations round out the story perfectly.

Everyone at school has a certain pair of shoes (Chuck Taylor style hi-cut sneakers) and Jeremy wants them too. He just can't afford them. His sneakers fall apart and he has to go to the guidance counselor's office to pick new ones from a bin - embarrassing and disappointing. He finds a pair of the coveted shoes at a thrift store and buys them although they are really too small for him and they blister his feet. After a short while he gives them to another boy in his class (whose soles of his shoes are taped together) who truly fits into them.

Empathy is the big word here. Some lucky children may not understand about the scene in the guidance counselor's office. Someone can't afford shoes? Other children will come to understand that they ar not alone in their needs.

This is a book about sharing that reaches out especially to boys! Kicks are important to them.

Everyone I have shared this book with has been touched by it. I highly recommend it for all elementary school age children.

This can be used both as a foundation for a quiz and a "go-to-sleep"-lecture as you scroll through enormous amounts af information. Like it.

Old and new fans alike will love this Bruce Springsteen resource. Everything you've always wanted to know about the Boss...and more! If you like Bruce, you have to have this book.

Books about GIS are usually quite technical, surveying the applications and computer potentials of geographic information systems, so it's refreshing to note that A TO Z GIS: AN ILLUSTRATED DICTIONARY OF GEOGEPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS is something different: a simple set of geography and cartography definitions designed to defines values, coordinates, reference systems, representations, and GIS data processing methods and routines. Students of GIS will find this essential to understanding the terminology of both computer and geography worlds.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Have you rummaged through a GIS textbook for half an hour looking for a simple definition, never to find it? Have you wondered why a $100 "introductory" textbook has loads of extraneous information but not a simple glossary, or how it can be written so obtusely and still get past an editing staff? Well, this is the Allen Iverson of GIS books, "The Answer." It gives you GIS concepts clearly and succinctly, with great explanatory illustrations for the "visual learners" out there, which are many in geography I would think. This has been a "go to" book for me in GIS but also in Remote Sensing; there's no question whether to get it, only how much the bookstore will pay you to buy back that unused textbook that you blew $100 on.

This third updated edition of Encyclopedia of Infectious Diseases is recommended both for college-level health libraries and for any public lending library where health is a strong part of the reference collection. Over 30 new germs affecting human health has emerged in recent decades, making this update necessary: over 600 entries provides the latest information, from new treatments and research to rising disease threats. These are more than just definitions: discussions include risk factors, outlook, diagnostics, and the latest treatment options.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Easy to understand then other similar books. Informative for the lay person in regard to todays common illnesses and prevention ie, Lyme disease, food borne illnesses, childhood diseases.

An A to Z Walk in the Park is a charming, softcover children's alphabet picturebook featuring colorful illustrations of over 200 zoo animals. The result is a fun way for young animal lovers to learn their ABCs! Especially recommended for parents to read aloud with children, as some of the alliterative verses are virtual tongue-twisters in their own right. "Ambling about the park for the letter Aa approaches an Alligator allying with an Aye-aye and a host of affable walk-alongs."

Take your young reader on a walk through the alphabet, and take them for a walk through the park at the same time! This wonderful little book is an A-to-Z in the form of a walk through the park. Each page has brightly colored illustrations, and zippy text that links the letter with a group of animals in the illustration. For example, "Hinting that it might be their turn now, the beasts from Hh put forth a Horse, a hungry Hippopotamus, and a Hedgehog." And each of those animals, and more, can be found right there.

Now, how do you know that a children's book is a good one? I would say that when my four-year-old brings the book to me, ignoring the TV, and asks me to read it to her for the FOURTH time, that that is a good children's book...no, a great children's book. I read the words, and she looked at the animals, trying to identify each one. Yeah, this is a great book, one that she really likes, and I really like as well. My hat's off to the author - well done!

Tommie Turtle's Secret is indeed a "delightful" book. I enjoy reading it myself! The rhyming is fun for all. The illustration's are wonderful. But the best part of the book is Mr. Hicks ability to get across lessons to children that are so needed in our society today. Those lessons about being a friend to others and finding the special qualities you have and can use in life are priceless. You will love Tommie!

As a retired teacher, who can't stop teaching, I substitute with PreK through 8th grade students. I take in my bag a copy of Tommie Turtle's Secret by Robert Z. Hicks to read. Children of all ages love Tommie. They enjoy the mystery of Tommie's secret, the author's autograph and picture, and the questions at the end of the story. These questions promote various levels of thinking.

Within the pages of the book are lessons on values; accepting limitations; recognizing and developing abilities; tolerance; friendship; etc. Seems each time I read Tommie another lesson is evident.

I recommend Tommie for Children of all ages. Tommie would be a great gift to find under the Christmas tree this holiday season.