Resources Books

Hockey fans will love this book. If you are not a hockey fan, you may want to read this book. It could change your opinion!

The best part about this book is that it's in the players' own words. For anyone who enjoys stories about old time hockey this is a must read.

Inside stories, inside thoughts, the hows, whys, and wherefores of hockey goaltending. Not just the stars and legends, but the back-ups, the crazies, the philosopher-goalies speak on the art, zen, and fun that is goaltending.

If you are a goalie in any sport, whether hockey, lacrosse, soccer, water polo - you will gain useful insight into your game by hearing how these athletes describe their vocation.

Irvin knows how to preamble and then just let the goalies speak their piece. An excellent read.

This is an excellent look at goalies from the present and recent past. You'll learn more about your favorites and get a welcome introduction to others (many of whom are still playing) you haven't heard as much about. You can open the book, start reading at the beginning, middle, or end, and you'll have a good time!

As a parent of a goaltender, who of course wants to make it to the NHL, I found this book to be very encouraging. Every goaltender can and does have bad games. If you have the heart, you have a chance to make it.

Learn how to save time and money through a guide which shows how to use the Internet to locate the best travel bargains and save money. Internet Travel Planner goes beyond pinpointing the latest sites: it tells how to join online discussion forums, how to gain access to newspapers and reviews, and how to use online resources to create your very own custom made traveler's guidebook.

For all of you web travel fans, the Second Edition of Internet
Travel Planner has been updated with the best and newest web travel sites. As a former travel industry employee, I find this is the most complete and easy-to-read internet book now that all the large travel suppliers and surviving internet travel businesses have improved their online booking sites.

Using Michael Shapiro's book as a guide, a newcomer to researching travel can click through a website with ease. An interesting new appendix was added on digital photography. Do any of us world travelers leave home without a camera! Of course we love finding a good discount and each chapter lists sites known for the best deals. Travel sales are still down and businesses are reducing prices or adding incentives to get customers. I would highly recommend buying the book for yourself or giving it as a gift for the holidays.

Michael Shapiro's Internet Travel Planner isn't just another listing of Internet sites to be obsolete in a few months time: it provides some important tips linking travel to the Internet, from creating a custom guidebook to using the internet to see pictures of hotel rooms and connect with other travelers through travel chats and forums. And for those worrying about the book's longevity: free updates are offered online!

I found this book to be both informative and useful even though I had already used the internet for travel purposes. My husband found out about free email accounts and signed up for one within a few minutes (Chapter 14). After reading Shapiro's Internet Travel Planner, I realized that by booking airline tickets on line, I had only begun to scratch the surface of the possibilities for travel planning on line. What I found most useful for both `arm chair travel' and trip planning was Shapiro's chapter on discussion forums and bulletin boards. Search engines are great but I find the results to be catch as catch can. In Chapter 13 I got a clear sense of which sites were worth my time. Shapiro covers everything from frequent flyer miles to vacation package sites, from weather to medicine abroad. The book is easy to use-it offers an index and appendices that allow you to find websites quickly. Read this book even if you wouldn't book a flight or make a reservation on line. The web is too great and too vast a resource to skip and you'll be glad you have this guide as you surf.

My favorite thing about this book is this. You've got a specific question on your mind about doing something travel-related on the Net. And then you just look in the table of contents, and I swear, Shapiro has covered it to some extent. Like, a dependable site for car rentals, or where to find opinions and reviews from other travelers, or getting train passes, dealing with frequent flier miles...and lots of other stuff.

This book isn't a list, or directory, of travel Web sites. Shapiro picked Web sites he considers to be the strongest ones for each topic. And he goes into the details of what to expect for each one. This helps you decide which site is best for your particular needs, for instance, whether you're seeking a last minute hotel bargain, a night in a B&B or a homestay.

This also means that he's willing to be critical. For example, right now Priceline is quite the rage. In the budget travel section he describes how to get the most out of it while also going over the unsexy fine print... that you can't pick an exact flight time, tickets are non-refundable and you don't earn frequent flier mileage. I don't know about you, but that's the info that nobody ever tells me.

A bonus is the First Person section of various chapters. Basically, Shapiro includes interviews, emails and other stories from folks who've used specific sites. You get to see what worked, what didn't and why -- all with opinions.

Hey all you AOL users: Shapiro's got you covered. In many sections he includes a blip, customized to you, that goes over how you use certain sites specifically on AOL.

I'd say that Internet Travel Planner is especially friendly for someone new to the Net. However, it's also helpful for folks who already know Web travel. I know a decent amount about various travel Web sites, yet I find that Shapiro highlights certain features I didn't realize existed in sites I thought I knew well. And on top of it all, you get some non-Net travel advice, like seven tips for finding cheap airline flights. The stuff you'd otherwise have to find out the hard way.

On top of it all, if you have questions or comments, he leaves his email in the introduction for you to contact him. Now that's service.

If you are as new to the computer world and online investing as I am, then reading this little "Blue Book" is just the tool for you. It will take you through the entire process from useful internet terms to buying and selling securities on the internet. It's amazing how much information is compressed in that little "Blue Book". A must-have book for beginners.

I loved this book. Not only is its information concise and pertinent, but its illustrations make it a feast for the eyes. Its numerous lists of Web-sights are practical and resourceful, its information is up-to-date, and even for the computer-savvvy Investor, its helpful tips and hints are a time-saver. Plus, since its format is that of a 'guidebook' , its very handy to carry around or to pass to a friend. And I liked the fact that the book is durable and artistic; two features that make the book a keeper and/or a great gift. I'd recommend this book for anyone who is interested in looking into the opportunities of investing on-line seriously.

People seem to fall into two computer and internet categories: those who have an ever-deeper understanding and appreciation of that world, and those of us who feel intimidated the instant we hit "enter". What a gift INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERNET FOR INVESTORS is, making the complex simple, the ambiguous clear. Its cleverly and attractively done - amazingly easy to read - and something I can work through step-by-step. Thank you, KSI, for giving us a tool us neophytes can use with enthusiasm.

Well, it is about time that "normal" folks like myself have access to something that can really help them. "INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERNET FOR INVESTORS" goes a long way toward helping me get a grasp on what all my friends have been talking about for so long. Finally I feel like I can join in because I was able to learn so much from this book. It is easy to read and so well illustrated that its like having an instructor in the room with me. The pictures of the windows screens were very easy to understand. It dares you to not follow along!

The best kept secret in this book though might be the chapter that lists search engines and worthwhile sites. I have no doubt that reading this book has made me money. What better endorsement is there than that!

A wonderful resource to help anyone get started investing on the Internet! Very concise, step-by-step instructions as well as helpful hints and directions to resourceful web-sites, bring confidence to the investor using the Internet for the first time. Even "seasoned" Internet investors with find this book a valuable resource and reference. "introduction to the internet for investors" is a must for every Internet investor!

As a senior myself I found Invent Your Retirement to be an excellent resource guide providing me not only with information in areas where I have an interest like prescription drugs, memory loss and continuing education, but also web sites and books where I can find more detailed information on these and a host of other senior related topics. Great find!

Very highly recommended and informative reading, Invent Your Retirement: Resources For The Good Life by Art Koff is a quality reference for soon-to-be retirees searching for a "user-friendly" guide in preparing for retirement. Educating readers on all aspects and foresight into retirement, Invent Your Retirement covers a decision process consisting of tips and tactics to determine an ideal residential location, longevity via exercise, working, volunteering, further schooling, dietary adjustments, adopting a pet, understanding memory loss, beginning a business or home office, becoming computer literate, protecting credit, funding retirement, estate planning, investment strategies, insightful health matters, prescription drugs, assisted living, long-term care insurance, nursing homes, and understanding how Social Security and Medicare. Invent Your Retirement is a superb collection of useful and instructive material for successful retired living.

As an RN I found Invent Your Retirement to be a very informative book. It is an excellent resource for those thinking about retirement as well as seniors who have already retired. The book is clearly written and provides concise information. We don't just stop when we retire. Art Koff understands this and explores ways seniors can stay intellectually active, keep health care coverage and medical costs down and, suggests places where seniors who want to work can apply to get part time or temporary employment. This book is filled with web sites that yield valuable information. It sensitively but thoroughly explores emotional issues such as assisted living, memory loss and, estate planning. It is very easy to read and is written is an uncomplicated and straightforward manner. I found it insightful and educational. I highly recommend it if you either are a senior, have a loved one who is a senior, or are approaching your retirement. I give it 5 stars.

Reviewed by Robert Watson for Reader Views (4/06)

Retirement! Some can't wait, some hold off as long as possible and some have no clue what retirement really means to them.

Art Koff has designed a concise and positive manual for the senior who is facing the challenges of the next phase of their life. A guide to nurture that new business, develop new social ties, make a difference with all that new available time, or just become computer literate, it's all there. Any aspect of life that could possibly effect or influence the retiree is detailed in this hand book, allowing the reader to develop a renewed attitude towards retirement.

Approaching the retirement zone myself at sixty-five years, I had many questions needing answers and Koff provided the necessary tools to find the positive direction I needed to continue. He also inspired me to stretch and look outside the box for the real answers. This encouraged me to remain in the working world for an additional, maybe five, possibly ten, more fulfilling years.

Koff's style and simplicity in creating this book make it a joy to have on your shelf for a future reference as well as being an informative read.

If you are retired, close to retirement, or have family members or friends close to retirement, this book is for you. Author Art Koff (a senior who surely knows how to keep busy) has compiled a wealth of readable and informative material that covers almost every conceivable subject and question a senior or retiree can have.

Retirement, says Koff, doesn't mean sitting back in the rocking chair and watching the world pass you by. Seniors today have more choices and more opportunity than ever before. But a multitude of choices also means a multitude of questions. Are you puzzled about social security and health costs and insurance questions? Are you thinking of going back to work or volunteering? Do you want to learn how to use e-mail? Are you concerned about memory loss?

This book provides you with the answers to these and other questions. Koff has brought together information from numerous sources, including federal agencies such as the Social Security Administration and Medicare and the Departments of Agriculture, Labor, State, and the Food and Drug Administration, plus private individuals and organizations like the AARP and the Alzheimer's Association.

If you want to become computer literate and a proficient Internet user (and Koff strongly thinks seniors should do this), the book supplies an understandable computer primer. This gives specific commands to do everything from forwarding e-mail to playing music CDs to renaming Word documents.

You may not have thought about many of the topics Koff discusses, including protecting your credit, setting up your home office, the best employers for part-time workers, and choosing a pet. (Learn why Koff thinks long-haired cats are good choices for retirees.)

Throughout the book are numerous references, websites, addresses, and phone numbers to help you get more information. Presumably this material will be updated in future editions.

Invent Your Retirement is an invaluable and readable resource for seniors. Don't retire without it.

This book came in the nick of time. Sometimes I thought I knew what was going on in the market, but I didn't understand why. Other times I was clueless. I gained practical insight into how to approach investments, including a better understanding of the whys behind investment decisions.

Victoria Collins' latest book is for the investor needing crucial information about the high-tech market. Because of the global economy this book is relevant for the present as well as the future. Collins has indeed created a valuable guide.

This book is so Victoria Collins! It adds yet another precious new-comer to my books of online wisdom. Reading though the pages tells more and more about the real world of online business. How the Internet has changed things forever. It's just like listening to a preacher who only talks about wise things. There is always another side in the day-to-day life of e-businessmen, and in the today's media, unfortunately we are only told about the up-side. Victoria so passionately tells us about where and when caution is as important as ambition. How to weigh factors in the winds on change. Why there are more to the Internet business than what's already there. And last but not the least, how it can be really the best tool a businessman could ever wish for if he only knew how to work it out.

You can feel a warm voice whispering in the screaming world of the Web. Holding the map to an uncharted territory. Showing us the way in the mid of shear forces pushing us back and forth, left and right. When you'll read Invest Beyond.com, you can easily tell the person who wrote this book is equipped with so much knowledge, expertise and courage to talk about what's beyond this still-mysterious phenomena to most of people. As if she has this overview that we are all missing. Above doubts and speculations. Enter the reality of living online every single day. Sail to the other shore confidently and wisely. It takes a thousand words to draw one picture, and it takes many years and effort to picture those scenes of the "Internet back-stage" - if you like! Easy plain language, suitable for highly professional people the same way as to others. If you are about to invest some money on your Internet gear, don't miss Invest Beyond.com, the book. It would prove that it's beyond it's value.

This book is so Victoria Collins! It adds yet another precious new-comer to my books of online wisdom. Reading though the pages tells more and more about the real world of online business. How the Internet has changed things forever. It's just like listening to a preacher who only talks about wise things. There is always another side in the day-to-day life of e-businessmen, and in the today's media, unfortunately we are only told about the up-side. Victoria so passionately tells us about where and when caution is as important as ambition. How to weigh factors in the winds on change. Why there are more to the Internet business than what's already there. And last but not the least, how it can be really the best tool a businessman could ever wish for if he only knew how to work it out.

You can feel a warm voice whispering in the screaming world of the Web. Holding the map to an uncharted territory. Showing us the way in the mid of shear forces pushing us back and forth, left and right. When you'll read Invest Beyond.com, you can easily tell the person who wrote this book is equipped with so much knowledge, expertise and courage to talk about what's beyond this still-mysterious phenomena to most of people. As if she has this overview that we are all missing. Above doubts and speculations. Enter the reality of living online every single day. Sail to the other shore confidently and wisely. It takes a thousand words to draw one picture, and it takes many years and effort to picture those scenes of the "Internet back-stage" - if you like! Easy plain language, suitable for highly professional people the same way as to others. If you are about to invest some money on your Internet gear, don't miss Invest Beyond.com, the book. It would prove that it's beyond it's value.

Investbeyond.com is a very useful book, in that it tells the reader what to do, and maybe even more important, what NOT to do in today's investing. It has some pithy comments about over-confidence, and other maladies that investors may be subject to, especially in the recent go-go times, which may (or may not) be over. The information is presented clearly, in an interesting fashion. It defines some terms that we often hear, and may not understand. Read it -- and profit!

Gostick and Elton have captured the essence of good management. They have given their readers clues to what makes employees tick and highlighted the dangers of not rewarding exemplary behaviour. This book makes a great companion to my book, "Always Remember: If it ain't fun, it ain't worth doing!" which also provides managers with the keys to making good employees out of virtually every staff member. Well done Adrian and Chester! Wayne Kehl

I am a huge fan of Chester and Adrian and my hat is off to them for writing a great New York Times Bestseller. Parables are huge these days and business people love 'em.

If you want an enjoyable read that is heart warming and informative this is it. And what's more, you might just learn something about how NOT to treat people who work for you.

Please understand I am biased in my opinion because if have gotten to know Chester Elton as a fellow author and he is simply a "stand up guy." You don't find people in this business like Chester, class all the way.

Mick Hager, author of MONKEY BUSINESS
7 Laws of the Jungle for Becoming the Best of the Bunch!
A Short Tale of a Company That Gets It! Gibbs Smith Publisher, March 2007

fantastic reading, clearly written in a jovial manner that gets the point across without confusing the reader. I urge everybody in a management position of any kind to read this book and discuss it with staff at your meetings. If every manager read and implimented a fraction of what is in this book, what a fantastic workforce America would have.

Thanks for a fantastic product.

Like the previous carrot books, this book gives great advice to help manage your employees. This is a must read for any manager wanting additional pointers to help in the difficult process of keeping your people motivated and engaged. As the head of HR for a major corporation I think this book can help all managers at all levels.

I came across the co-author Chester Elton at a seminar last year. He is very entertaining but most important, his message is one for all managers. It's up to managers to make their employees feel rewarded and recoginzed. The Invisible Employee tells us that this concept is one of the easiest and yet most overlooked aspects of our jobs. Using a fable format the authors drive home the point that happy employees do in fact perform better and contribute more. A great read for every manager!

I admit I agreed to review this book with at least a tad of trepidation, not only because I'm now barely entering the second half of the 20th Century as far as technology, but also because I've always secretly nurtured a philosophical resistance to any form of human interaction that smacked of science fiction. For me this category included cloning, telepathic sex, and computer dating.

So for two weeks I pretended not to notice this manuscript to which I'd committed myself, lying there among my gardening books on the bedside table. But finally I bit the bullet and opened to the Table of Contents. I became immediately, astoundingly engaged. Those clever chapter titles! "Oedipus Seeks Older Woman," for starters. Wow. This was not your typical book about love on the Internet. I tell you it was a page turner -- a finely researched, entertaining and convincing argument in favor of computer dating.

The authors are themselves persuasive examples of the validity of the much maligned phenomenon of cyberlove, having met through the Internet personals when Kenneth was living in San Francisco and Beverly in Tennessee. As if the glow of their personal relationship is not testimony enough (they could be the happiest couple I've met), their book includes perceptive recollections from other intelligent folks who found their own soulmates in cyberspace.

It includes interviews with owners of reputable online dating services, offers advice on how to choose an appropriate matchmaking service, and provides tips on writing effective personal profiles. The book outlines precautions taken by dating services to protect the privacy of their clients, and guidelines to attracting sincere people.

But it's not as simplistic or one-sided as that. The pitfalls are investigated and unsuccessful attempts examined. Participants describe their first-hand experiences with online dating. The characters are familiar and human, with all the usual flaws and fears we recognize (embracingly or otherwise) as our own. It's a page turner, I tell you. It's drama.

The Appels have written a fascinating book about love and human contact on the Internet personals. This is not about the flirtations of the chat rooms. This is about a serious presentation of self in which a person says this is who I am, this is what I stand for, this is the way I lead my life, this is my passion and spirituality, and this is what I want from another human being. Unlike the usual ways of meeting a person-at church, on the job, through friends--these presentations of self on the Internet reach across time and space like a beacon. The Appels are both serious psychotherapists and their guidance is gentle and accumulative, and, from the first page on, deeply optimistic. They have made contact with over 1000 people who have used the Internet personals, and they recount their stories on virtually every page. This is, in a very real sense, a book of love stories. I was astonished by the wisdom of this book. I love the human speech contained in it. The Appels believe that in time millions of people will use the Internet personals and meet their beloved in this fashion. This notion astonished me.

It Takes Two.Com should certainly be a prerequisite for anyone placing or responding to an ad on an Internet personals site. The many stories shared by people who have used the personals demonstrate how we must know and love ourselves--our games, our illusions, our fears, our desires, our dreams--so that we may more fully experience genuine love with another. These stories validate that there are unseen forces ever present guiding us, and that LOVE is really all there is, even when brought and given to us via the Internet. Sharing the strength and hope from first-hand accounts is a very powerful learning tool for those willing to have an open mind and heart. The authors' descriptions and explanations of what composes the essence of a person, how our persona/archetypes are lived out in our lives, and how these then come to dictate who we meet when it becomes our written ad or email is right on! Even the stories of fantasy, constant courtship, married and flirting, and disappointment can teach us. For the reader who is willing, the catalyst is there to help see how our superficial actions are not conducive to an intimate, trusting, accepting, committed relationship--if that is what we truly desire. Of course, to have faith and be open to accept and recognize our destiny when it meets us face to face is also required.

The authors are both psychotherapists who came together via the Internet. Their online love story is transcendent, inspirational, and, yes, even magical. The Appels' book is most noteworthy for its emphasis on the powerful aura of spirituality which is evident when soulmates connect. There's no way to predict it. If there were a way to manufacture it, I'm sure it would sell better than Viagra. In 1979, psychologist Dorothy Tennov coined a term by calling this attraction limerence. In her book, Love and Limerance: The Experience of Being in Love, she speaks of this soul-to-soul connection and how it can enter one's life. Suddenly a stranger is known. Not only does the Appels' work reflect this wonderful state, but it permeates their romance and that of the couples who were also blessed in discovering their spiritual partners online. It Takes Two.Com is a book about spirituality, persistence, hope, faith, and the uniquely human need to be loved. Thanks to reading their book I am better able to recognize when a person I am corresponding with online is sincere about wanting an enduring relationship; able to identify those who are simply looking for someone to play a role in their fantasies; and how to spot those who prey on the unwary. I was one of a 1000 research volunteers who participated in the Appels' study prior to the release of their book. Although I have yet to meet my soulmate, I believe it will happen. And thanks to Beverly and Kenneth, I'll know and see him before I meet him.

When I was searching for a book of information about online dating, I bought four books from Amazon. Three of these were silly and superficial in their approach. IT TAKES TWO.COM was strikingly different. Not only do the authors have the first-hand experience of meeting online themselves, but also in helping people resolve relationship problems. What I really enjoyed about this book were the many specific examples and directions for how to be successful online, and how to learn more about yourself in the process. Through accounts from people who have lost as well as won online, the authors explain ways to protect yourself as well as avoid hurting others on the way to finding a partner. IT TAKES TWO.COM was a very meaningful book to me personally, and I'm sure it will help many people in their online search.

This book is a valuable addition to the ever-expanding collection of conversion testimonies written by Evangelical Protestant converts to the Catholic Church.

"Journeys Home" is a trustworthy roadmap, complete with biblical and historical signposts, that shows the way out of the wilderness and into the Catholic Church. Good for the mind, great for the soul.

Journeys Home by Marcus Grodi and a "host of others" is a very inspirational book that details the religious experiences of converts who accepted the Catholic Church and her teachings as the one true Church. Having "come home" myself as a lay person through my baptism in April of 2004, the many experiences as detailed in this book resonated quite piercingly, and I found it to be of immeasurable comfort, for there is often an array of painful struugles that converts go through, especially in respects to family opinions. And perhaps in light of the clergy sex scandal cover-up and other reprehensible happenings that rocked Massachusetts not too far back, the proverbial, "You're converting to Catholicism! What a mistake!" comment would be somewhat understandable. And those comments could get far far worse. However, Journeys Home offers wonderful written testamonials by many stimulating converts. And though their stories are different, they are individually moving in their sincerity and profoundness and are interlaced by one common denominator: the love of Jesus Christ.

Profiled in this book is a vast array of individuals who crossed the "Tiber" from the Jewish, Muslim, Mormon, Episcopal, et cetera, faith. In their witness, they write about their upbringings and the imbued misconceptions that they held regarding the Catholic faith, about our Blessed Mother Mary, the rosary, confession and especially the Holy Eucharist. Each recounted experience deals with what is the most accurate scriptural interpretation, as well as the incorrect evangelical belief of sola Scriptura and sola fide, that Scripture and faith alone will save you. Yet, it is not exclusively limited to academic or theological interpretation, but for me, I found that to be one of the best parts of all these testimonials, because it gave a constant affirmation of what the Bible teaches and what the early Chrurch Fathers advocated, long before any of the other religious denominations (you name them) ever came into existence and which later splintered and splintered and splintered. And I believe the splintering is still going on. With the logical and intellectual, there are also ample examples of the gift of Grace which are movingly recounted.

For anyone who is seriously drawn to the Catholic faith but just can't make the leap, it can indeed be most unsettling, especially when you fear the loss of all that which is familiar, but the articualte and intelligent proofs as contained in Journeys Home illustrate the various trials that these converts went though, and they go through the gamut of loss of friends, jobs, self-doubt, to a vast array of issues. But they trugged on, as Jesus Christ did, and ultimately persevered, and that makes each individual witness have a somewhat overly "happy" ending. That may sound zealous and euphoric or too sentimental, but when you go through the cultural, political, sociological and even spiritual mud that life has to offer, you are indeed grateful to God, the Father, for cohesiveness, consistency, history, stability, tradition and roots. And the Catholic Church, though its millions of members are flawed in every conceivable way imaginable, it is that one special gift for all of us.

"Journeys Home" is a collection of articles which originally appeared in the newsletter of the "Coming Home Network," an association of Protestant clergy who have "come home" to the Catholic faith.

Many of the narratives echo themes in traditional conversion stories such as Thomas Merton's "The Seven Storey Mountain" or John Henry Newman's "Apologia Pro Vita Sua." The conversion process can be at once exhilirating and confusing. It can result in pain and grief, especially when one is separated from loved ones and friends.

One of the chapters in the book is my own account of how I journeyed from the Seventh-day Adventist faith in which I was raised, through Lutheranism (including ordination as a Lutheran pastor), to Catholicism. My wife, however, remained a Seventh-day Adventist.

The book will be of particular interest to those with an interest in Catholic apologetics. It will also be useful for those interested in the dynamics of the conversion process.

If you're struggling to convert to the Catholic faith, or just love reading the stories of others that have then you will particularly enjoy this book.

Marcus Grodi, founder of the Coming Home Network and host of the EWTN television show "Coming Home" contributed to and edited this fine book featuring the conversion stories of many (Lutheran, Jew, and Evangelical Protestant) and how they came into the Catholic faith.

Many of the stories come directly from the Coming Home Network Journal.

The book is helpful in that it provides suggestions particularly for former Protestant clergy that have converted to Catholicism. Faced with a decision which means losing their job and a means of providing for their family, the Coming Home Network offers valuable suggestions and linkages that can help such individuals find employment. The book also includes some survey results from converts.

As an added bonus, the Appendix features the popular Catholic Answers booklet, "Pillar of Fire, Pillar of Truth" - a tract that has been helpful to hundreds of thousands in explaining the misconceptions that so many have about Catholicism.

Marcus Grodi of the "Coming Home" network has put together this wonderful collection of conversion stories that have appeared over the years in his network newsletter. Included is his own story and that of his wife Marilyn. The stories in this book vary from conversion to Catholicism from Islam and Judaism to conversion from various Protestant denominations to stories of those who left the Church for what they perceived to be greener pasture only to eventually come home. The title of both Grodi's network and book are extremely appropriate because when one makes this journey there is an intense feeling of finally being home.

As is to be expected in any collection of essays such as this one there are going to be chapters that are better than others and there are going to be stories that appeal to one reader more than another. The first section of the book is dedicated to conversion stories from former Protestant clergy who have often in the process of conversion lost their very livelihood. The second section is made up of stories from lay converts who seldom faced the loss of their profession but did often face the loss of friends and family ties. I found from reading this book that I was one of the lucky ones because my family was very supportive although I am the only one so far to make the journey.

Anyone who has made the journey home is well aware of the ridiculous misconceptions that many non-Catholics have about the Catholic Church and many of the people who have added their story to this collection have faced the same misconceptions both from family and friends and in many instances from within themselves. Becoming Catholic as an adult is really a life-long process because there is so much to learn and absorb that we can never take it all in but this book is an excellent resource because so many of the stories are written from the perspective of people who have walked the same road and can speak to converts in ways that those fortunate enough to be cradle Catholics never could. In other words, they speak the lingo that we who were raised outside the Church understand. For those who are considering coming home the same applies, as you will find in this book people who have already trod the path that you are considering and who have faced every conceivable issue that you now face. They made the journey successfully and have graciously shared their stories for the benefit of others. Even cradle Catholics will benefit from reading this book because they will undoubtedly learn some things about the Church that they didn't already know and will also gain a clearer understanding of what a convert faces as he/she makes the most important decision of their life. This one is a gem and belongs in every Catholic library. RCIA directors in particular should take special note of this valuable resource.

I've heard a lot about this writer from one of my friends, and my opinion is that he deserves world wide attention. This book is the first I read by him, and it made me want to read more of his books. That is a sign already. Being a linguist I pay a lot of attention to the context, pretext, inner, hidden ways of expressing the main idea. The language, as one of the main extra-linguistic means of self-expression, is on a very high level. There might be not much of a story line in the book, but this is not a disadvantage. If you are looking for some kind of a thriller oriented novel, then you are on the wrong way. This is a book not for reading, but for understanding (which is not the same at all), for living it through oneself, and on finishing it, saying "modern literature does exist, it has revived on a high level".

The Jungle is a work of a master. One can feel it when he reads. Sanjay Sonawani is not known to the western world. I wonder how such author could be incognito for such a long time...though he has been writing for last twenty years. (This information is printed on cover) The novel deservs far more than just commendation.

This novel is of four unfortunate people, stooped in the agonies and follies of their own past...their own misdeeds and trying to rise above their ownself. There are heinous tragedies in store of the past. Ketumal, mere a bodyguard of emperor-in-exile Yashovarman is in suffering of his pains of unrequitted love. Sinhabhadra is a man of impassioned phiolosophy and Ballav, a cook, a man of his own abundant stupidity. King Yashovarman is a man, undecissive, victim of his own nature, when on that mysterious island and through self-brutal-probing arrives at long waited decision. And the very decision shatters his own world, Ketumal's world and what ultimately happens is a opportunist person like Singhabhadra emerge as asvantageous.

Written like an epic, having elements of Shaksepearian drama, philosophical deliberations far more brutal than of Emmanuel Compte. This novel is simply fantastic.

The novel has its inherent problems, though. I have failed tounderstand whether there ever was real KIng Yashovarman or not or if it was the case what was his significance in Indian history. The novelraises more questions than answers. May be this is style of Mr. Sonawani, but better if he could have answered them,no matter in complete or partially.

Even then, when we end up with the novel, there begins self-probe...and for me that is what is desired from a master author.

"The Jungle" by sanjay Sonawani is a great novel ever I have read. The novel is too poetic and philosophical and dramatic. Needless to say when all these three elements come together in a perfect blend, it forms a greater work. Four people stranded on an island in self-exile are symbolic characters, representing different perspectives of life. They are victim of their torturous past. A gloom that has shadowed the island turns violent one day changing ages-long nourished perspectives of the life. It turns in a macabre tragedy...telling us a brutal truth we always love to neglect.

Characters are larger than life and so real they are. For example Sinhabhadra, who all the time is a pacific preacher of good and bad turns out to be a sever opportunist. "Sinhabhadra Complex..." I would love to say. It still haunts us.

A great work from our Indian author.

The Jungle is an astounding novel ever I have read. The novel discuss the fundamental,brutal issues on ethics creating a new myth that we hardly find in new generation authors. The novel has strong elements of Shakspearian Tragedy, it grills you, shocks you as you go on turning pages. The characters are larger than life and most importantly it reveals startling human traits.
I strongly reccomend this novel to every reader.

"Ahead lay the vast sea. The roaring sounds emanating from it indicated its presence. ONe could feel its vastness but could not see it. The waves of fog were floating above the sea. It had surrounded him too. For the first time he became aware of the surroundings. He looked all around. He saw a new world out there. Nothing seemed familiar. the place where he stood seemed unfamiliar. The waves of fog were sliding forward and backward. They would take many shapes and then merge into each other again. He felt as if he was living a moment on the borderline of dream and reality."

and thus, on a mythic Indian island, the stage is set for a tragedy that will remind western readers of Oedipus and Antigone, with all the drama, passion and pain of human beings torn between instincts and ethics. The author argues back and forth the good reasons and bad consequences of religions and social heirarchies and puts these dialogues into the mouths of characters who appear in authentically and exquisitely painted archtypal masks. The imagery is so vivid that the experience of reading this novel is like the experience of witnessing a play, or even participating in it. Every part is a juicy one: the bit players are as intriguing as the main players: the kindly Ballav, the cynical boatman. Even a carrier pidgeon is given a small and meaningful role: "He touched the cloud edges gently and felt the immense satisfaction of realizing one's wildest dreams. Below, the faint images of splashing sea could be seen. A few rays of light were shining through the clouds as though the journey of dreams had started. . . . . He felt that his life would be successful if, even for a moment, he could become the silver lining of the clouds . . . .that was the true moment of knowing the freedom within freedom."

The story is one of a double incest, but unknowingly committed, and the responsibility of punishing this sin against society and religion. The backdrop is a nature filled with overpowering beauty and danger. Everywhere you can hear the storm brewing, and finally, thrashing.

This is a short book on Management By Objectives (MBO). It covers goal setting, incentives, and follow up in a lot of detail but is still an easy read. If you need help coming up with well defined goals, this book provides a great set of questions that you can use to refine employee and department goals so that they are practical. The questions will speed your creation of goals.
The book doesn't cover any other management topics.

If you're about to become a manager for the first time and don't have a clue about how to get your direct reports to do what you want them to do, use this book as a step-by-step primer. It explains what to say, when to say it and how to follow up. It teaches you why meeting and connecting with employees individually is so important if you want to keep them accountable and get results. Author Brian Cole Miller's advice will help you develop your coaching skills. It will also save you a lot of headaches if you're struggling with problem employees. Miller shows you how to work with difficult employees in a way that is supportive, yet puts the ownership of results squarely on the employee's shoulders - where it belongs. If you've just promoted someone to manager, or if you are a new manager, we suggest that you make this book a part of your on-the-job training and development curriculum.

This is fantastic. Miller (great name!!) uses the same style from his first book (also good-Quick Team-building Activities for Busy Manager) and applies it to something much more important: holding your employees accountable. The book is organized so well for the busy manager, that it's almost more like an outline than a traditional book...it's easy to breeze through it, gleaming the points you need, glossing over stuff you already know (and not fear that you're missing anything). BUT, you can also dive deep into detail whenever you want it, or learn from the many examples provided. The steps here are concrete and logical. The flow makes sense...you learn quickly that this is not rocket science...or is it just that Miller knows how to make things seem simple, so the average manager "gets" it and can do it?

Like he warns in the intro, there's not a whole lot of theory here-just the how-to steps with examples and checklists of how to apply them, and then just enough theory to support them without ever bogging you down. So if you accept that up front, you wont miss the theory (which weighs down most other books on this subject, anyway). You'll just appreciate the simple process (which is cool, since he was able to make his 6 step process fit an acronym SIMPLE). If you need some help on holding your employees accountable, and you just need the quick and dirty "just tell me how to do it!" version, this is the book for you! A quick read, to the point, well organized. Miller packs a lot of punch into very few pages. A great resource for the harried manager who wants some help, but quick.

As managers, we work at top speed all the time and often we simply assume (and hope!) our employees are getting the job done. This book offers an easy to implement way to ENSURE employees are getting the job done. What a relief to have found this book. THANKS!

Accountability is essential to individual and organizational success, but few leaders know how to make it happen. Consequently, accountability remains at too high a level-far away from the people who really should be accountable for their work. Managers spend far too much of their valuable time chasing after details, progress reports, and hope-it-got-done worries. If there were a way to calculate the value of managerial time wasted because of our accountability deficiency, the cost would be astronomical. If you could calculate the cost to you, personally, it would far exceed the price of this book.

Miller presents his advice in a design that's easy to grasp-complete with anagram. He offers a SIMPLE system: Set expectations, Invite commitment, Measure results, Provide feedback, Link to consequences, and Evaluate effectiveness. Each of these components is explained in its own chapter, following the same format. The principle is presented, followed by an explanation of why it is important, then the how-to. Examples and checklists (good ones at the end of each chapter) strengthen the book's value.

You will gain a considerable amount of worthwhile knowledge, technique, and advice reading this book from cover to cover. However, the strongest benefit will come over time as you use this volume as a reference book, a handbook to return to for refreshers and reinforcement.

Idea: copy relevant items from the end-of-chapter checklists and use them as daily reminders that you're doing what must be done to build and maintain accountability. This is a book you'll want to keep close to your desk as an important companion.

PS-the principles will work in non-business situations, as well.