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I am still reading this book; there are so many insights that I find myself highlighting and writing them down; then I go back to review them over and over. For the person who wants to be an Effective Executive or just an effective individual I would recommend you read this book. You can just read this book you have to put the information into practice. It is a text book for the effective leader in you. You will go back to it over and over again to ensure you are doing the right things to become more effective.

Skip all the "hype" about leadership theory. Drucker is the king. Years since this book was written - it is all about Executive Effectiveness. Well isn't that the same as "leadership" but just without all the hype? You bet. Buy and read this and burn your leadership mental masturbation books.

If you're looking for concise, simple dialogue on what it means to be effective and how to parlay that into your work life, here it is. If you are looking for a fashionable, faddy, flashy Seth-Godin-type mantra to chant, you will be vastly disappointed and fantastically bored.

To those who are serious students of business and it's execution and are willing to do what it takes to be leaders, this is one of probably 3-5 books on the required reading list. Read through it quickly at your own peril, for amazing gems are buried mid-paragraph in the most seemingly innocuous paragraphs.

Now for the love of effectiveness, please buy, read and apply this to yourself so I don't have to do business with you sloths anymore!

Very good book on the true management skills required by any and every manager. Drucker clearly points out that not all great managers were created the same....but most share certain traits. An excellent, must read for any and all managers everywhere!

Excellent advice from a incredible coach. From time management to management contribution this book offers what you need to achieve management positions. A must.

This is a very solid, practical manual with good, specific guidance on raising a pup to be obedient, manageable and secure. The behavior or a dog can be a joy to itself and its owner or a disaster and this book will show you the steps to raising a pet you can love and enjoy and one that will be happy and safe with you.

This book is a MUST for all new puppy owners! It will tell you when to do what with your puppy so you can raise a puppy that you will be happy to have around and proud to own. Also great for all breeders- it goes into the first 8 weeks as well and what should be done to raise well adjusted puppies.

i thought this book was easy enough to read. it explained everything you needed... gets straight to the point and has good explanations of your puppy at a certain level or age. im planning to get a puppy and after reading this book, i know a lot more about how to take care of one. i feel ready.

This book is invaluable in the way it describes each stage of the puppy's development (both physical and psychological). It eqips you to answer the age-old question: Why is my puppy behaving this way???

Also, after reading this book, you will understand why you should always purchase your pup from a breeder ... and NEVER from a pet store.

This is the best book I've found on raising a puppy. Especially helpful is the week by week detailed description of what a new owner may expect developmentally from the puppy, and what the puppy needs for each stage of growing. I've given this book to every new puppy parent I've known!

I'm normally for the classics; but this variation to the original rhyme is sooo much better - doesn't focus on buying something to please a child, but focuses on sharing experiences related to those things. Highly recommend.

My wife and I have purchased six of these books with the bunny doll. The reason we have bought six is my little girl has literally hugged them to death. This is her favorite doll, bar none. No other one competes. She takes it to bed, to the store, to the doctor.

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This is a must give present for any baby shower. I learned of this book from a pre school teacher. The familiar tune with all the consumerism taken out. In its place instead are lessons about teaching your child about the awe in nature and quiet moments bonding with Mommy. I love this book and at 3 years old, my son still insists that I "sing me the song book" to him before he goes to bed. We sing it together before he goes to bed. What a wonderful lullaby to sing your child. Illustrations are a little too "vintage" for me but the lesson is wonderful. My son seems to love the pictures though.

Good concept, but still very old-fashioned---I don't know anyone, let alone a mom, who plays a banjo!

"If that lighning bug won't glow, Mama's going to play on her old banjo."

I thought it was going to be more up-to-date. One the plus-side, the board book seems good and sturdy...

Really well drawn and written - nice updated version of the nursery rhyme. Its a wonderful story to sing and definitely a favourite bedtime book.

I love the Laura books, I can remember my mother reading them to me when I was young. Since then, I've read then again and it never ceases to delight me.
My only complaint though, is that the illistrations are pathetic. They don't even look real, so I had a hard time seeing Laura as a real person. For me, when I see lifelike drawings, it really makes get in touch with their character. The drawer, Garth Williams, is someone I wouldn't want to be doing my book! I like the illistrations for The Caroline Years. Oh well...still love the books.

I usually buy CD's but this time got the tape version, the first tape didn't even work. I ended up buying it again on CD. Stay away from tapes.

I love most of the Little House on the Prairie books, as well as the stories of Laura's great-grandmother, Martha, her grandmother, Charlotte, her mother, Caroline, and her daughter, Rose. I've read every one I can get my hands on. My all-time favorite of the all the series is These Happy Golden Years. This tells of Laura and Almanzo's courtship, and it is so chaste and sweet.

This book definitely belongs on my 10 favorite children's books.

I would rate this book 4.5 stars. It tells of Laura Ingalls years between the age of 15 to 18, and her first teaching job where she goes to live with a family where the wife doesn't treats her shabbily. It's a good story but it mostly told more of her and Almanzo than her teaching.

Now fifteen-years-old, Laura Ingalls can't help but crave getting a job in order to help her family. Ever since her first taste of earning her own money, she is determined to find another position that complements her skills. Besides, with Mary away at college, as much as Laura misses the companionship of her beloved sister, she can't help but feel compelled to assist her family in keeping Mary in a place where she is learning, and happier than ever. To do that, however, she'll have to do what she can to find the perfect job. Now that she has her teaching certificate, she'll be able to do just that.

It seems like only yesterday that Laura Ingalls was racing around the schoolyard with the boys, playing ball and sharing secrets with her friends; now she is basically all grown up, and beginning her career as a schoolteacher. But being a teacher isn't as easy as Laura hoped it would be - especially when many of the students are older than she is. And, to add insult to injury, she's forced to contend with boarding with a couple who spends the late nights hurling insults at one another, and living in miserable conditions. The only consolation is that Almanzo Wilder drives in to town each and ever Friday, to pick her up and bring her to her folks house for the weekend, before she must start another grueling week. It is during these long rides that Laura begins to spend more and more time with the older man. But it also makes her question why he is so willing to drive the twelve miles to her aid each week. Laura is unsure of his motives. She is also too tired and busy to spend much time thinking about them. Instead, she thinks of the paycheck that will soon come her way; and the beauty and splendor of the items she can buy for her family as time goes by.

With each and every book in the LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE series, I have seen Laura get older and older. I have also grown to love her as much as an old friend. Laura is such a responsible, mature individual - quite different from the little rascal she was during her younger years. She seems so caring, and eager to assist her family, and see that her sister gets the education she has always craved. It is so refreshing to see a character who puts others ahead of herself. Like in LITTLE TOWN ON THE PRAIRIE, the reader has the opportunity to learn more about Almanzo Wilder; however, the more you learn, the more you see just how much older he is than Laura, and how strangely the relationship between the two of them develops. Another winner from Ms. Ingalls-Wilder!

Erika Sorocco
Freelance Reviewer

I first had this book read to me when I was in the first grade, now I am 25 and still remember the book! Recently I bought it to give to a friend as a baby gift. I read it again and loved it all over again. Its so creative I love it and would recommend it to everyone! Great for a gift for your own children or others.

I teach preschool and used this book as an introduction for our post office theme. The reading level is a bit high for my age group, but they really enjoy seeing the different types of mail that pull out of the "envelopes" in the book. Very interactive and fun to read.

I bought this for my daughter and later I bought it for friends' children. I'll probably search for it for my grandchildren too. You can probably guess that I like it! Buying for kids is such fun because you get the wow factor, and then you get to see whether they really take to it by reading/playing with it. Kids don't fib about this stuff, do they! I can report 100% success. The enthusiam they have for all the hidden messages, cards, games is so sweet. This truly is a gift that grows and grows on them. See also the Christmas Postman - 5 Stars!

Note - if you have to get a used one, verify all the bits are included. The book wouldn't work without those.

I had this book when I was a little girl and Ive been searching for it for 17 years. Its amazing drawings and creativity in the letters, opens up a little girls imagination so big!!! I absolutely love the story and all the characters. Its a MUST BUY!

The anniversary book is significantly larger than the original and so loses some of the charm. However this shallow dip in nursery fairy tales is fun for both the listener and reader. New shrink wrapped books include stationary and 'postage' to encourage the young to build a habit of writing and mailing notes. The story is from a UK perspective and follows a postman who delivers the mail in a community of fairy tale characters. Some of the humor is dated (good for grandparents). Children will enjoy having the book read to them and opening the many envelopes to extract their contents. This book was a favorite of my children back in the late 1980's.

I haven't actually read this book in many years but it was a favorite of mine as a child. I remember my mother reading it to me night after night after night and then taking a trip into Boston to see all of the places mentioned. It's a great story and the illustrations are beautiful. I now use it as a gift for new moms to read to their children.

Prior to a planned trip to Boston, I purchased Make Way For Ducklings for my grandchildren who were three and a half and five and a half at the time. Their mom was running in the Boston Marathan. Knowing that we would be taking them to the Public Gardens and they would see the "ducklings"..this was a perfect history lesson written so well for little ones and adults to learn...Highly recommended

This book is simply sublime. I had it as a child, got it for my own children over 25 years ago, and now am buying a copy for my new grandson. Everything about this book is wonderful!

This classic picture book details the lives of the Mallard family in the Public Garden of Boston. This is an excellent read for kids of all ages, and is a good introduction to Caledecott books.

Make Way for the Ducklings by Robert McClosky has become a classic in children's literature since it was first published in 1941. Children's books have changed a lot over the years, but this particular work is substantial proof that change is not always best and more importantly, that quality will always stand the test of time.

The work has a lot going for it. First there is the story. Two Mallard ducks, Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are trying to find a safe home to start a family; one that is safe from foxes and turtles. As they fly, several locations are considered and after a lengthy journey they settle upon a small island in the Charles River, Boston, Mass. Before settling here and starting their brood, they visit the Public Garden in Boston, where at first the find food rather hard to find, but after they encounter the "Swan Boats" and the people riding these boats throwing peanuts to them, they decide that the park is a good place. After checking the area out, the settle on the small island in the Charles River where Mrs. Mallard hatches a number of ducklings; eight in all. At that time, Mr. Mallard decides to take a short trip to check the area out. In his absence, Mrs. Mallard cares for her young and one day, after the little ones can walk, swim and learn to line up in a straight line, she takes them to the park.

The story of the friendly policeman and his coworkers, the journey through the city and their eventual arrival at their new home makes for a wonderful tale. Actual place names are used in the story and are depicted quite accurately in the illustrations. Louisburg Square, Charles river, Mount Vernon Street, Beacon Hill, The Book Store and several others sites allow visitors to more or less trace the journey of the duck family.

The second thing this story has is the marvelous art work. All is done in charcoal, with wonderful shading and great detail. The buildings, cars, people, dress and stores all are accurate to that particular era. This does not distract from the story in the least, and indeed, adds to the charm.

This is a wonderful read along book and is suitable for ages four through eight. I have personally "kid checked" it with these age groups and get asked for many rereading.

This book received the Caldecott medal in 1941 and it was well deserved. Other children's books by this author include Lentil, Blueberries for Sal, One Morning in Maine and Time to Wonder. All of these are excellent choices and should be included in any child's library.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

In general, this is the series that hooked me throughout my jr. high career and some of my high school. I still feel that the earlier books in the series were the most entertaining, and I still think fondly on this particular novel as it brings in a new character, the wonderful world of the ocean, and the still-developing group. I'm saddened to say that not all of the later books were quite this standard, but this one had great charm that appealed to me.

According to my 9-year old, this book is the bomb for kids between the ages of about 9 and 13 (maybe older). The author tells a vivid story and sucks children right into the book! It's great, and my 9-year old would buy it again in a heartbeat. Have a great time reading!

The fiction book I have read is Animorphs The Message. In this book a girl named Cassie and her friends try to save whatever is calling Cassie in her dreams from the bottom of the ocean. At first the others dont believe her but one of their friends Tobias also says he's having the same dreams.The kids morph into dolpins and go into the ocean and try to save what they think is a andilite. They incounter a life threatning battle with sharks and Marcoe gets injured so badly he almost dies. They try to finish what they started before it's to late and Visser Three finds them. I reccomend this book to a 5th or 6th grader. Also for whoever likes suspenseful action filled books. If you do like this book I inspirer you to read the whole series.

I am a sixth grader.The author of the book is K.A.Applegate. The characters names are Cassie,Tobias,Jake,Rachel,Marco,Tom,and Chapman.I liked this book because it has kids who can turn into any kind of animal.It is about friendship.It is also about a mission that they have to go on.My favorite part of the book is when Cassie turns into a dolphin to get to the ocean.What I dislike about the book is that they can not tell us there last name because if they do they will be killed or be made slaves.

I thought this book was really good, the Animorphs took a good underwater adventure. I thought the whole book was fast paced, my favorite part was when they were in dolphin morphs and faught that shark.

This is a well written comprehensive guide for almost any piano. It is written by some one that has spent years as a piano technician and literally knows pianos inside and out. You can find a reference to almost any piano produced over the last 100 years. It gives useful information regarding problem areas and attributes of the pianos mentioned. It is essential for any one considering buying a used piano.

I looked for pianos for quite some time before reading this essential primer and then looked again after reading it. The difference is like looking through fog vs a very clear day. Larry Fine does a super job of explaining the workings of a piano and why a buyer or seller may want to be tuned into how they work (sorry for the pun). My once naive eye is much more critical in its piano search with Larry's info in hand. Many pianos that were of interest to me would have been serious mistakes after reading the book - thats the best perspective I can give. On the other hand, Larry aptly points out that there isn't a perfect brand name in piano's, voicing and tuning can bring many brands into a well heeled instruments for most purposes. My perspective on pianos has broadened greatly. Worth the read just for the great information and coverage of the subject.

Larry Fine's book is invaluable for those who plan to purchase a piano. This book has loads of information regarding the manufacturers, the quality of the brands and the history of the pianos. Save yourself some money by purchasing this book before you shop for a piano and you could save yourself a few thousand or more. Buying a piano is like buying a car, you have to "test drive" them first, and then negotiate. Read this book and walk into the showroom knowing you are getting the best deal and finest piano you can afford.

...which is pretty far. Fine's book is legendary and important, and if you are thinking of buying even a relatively expensive piano, you should read it. It should come as no surprise that the standard "grand old names" are rated at the top, and things stair-step down from there until you arrive at the bottom of the Asian barrel. No surprises there. And many feel that Fine is too hard on some very fine pianos, giving a skewed impression of the many very good Chinese pianos that are coming on the market. What is instructive is that you will learn what is made where, which can be a very hard thing to find out on your own. If you're walking into a store and don't know Young Chang from Hailun, and perhaps think that a Boston might have been made in Boston, and that a Steinlager is made in Germany, you really need to do your homework first. If you're seriously shopping for a Bosendorfer or Bechstein or Steinway new off the floor, then you don't need this book. But if you want to get a good piano for a fair price and need to learn your way around this odd landscape, start here. IMPORTANT - get the updated supplements! A lot has changed in even the last 5 years, and advice on certain models no longer holds true. Some names have dropped in quality, others have risen considerably. You won't learn this in the piano showroom!

Essential resource if you're buying a piano or just want to know more about this wonderful instrument

Prior to September 11, 2001, the burning of the General Slocum was New York City's worst disaster in terms of casualty rate. An estimated 1300 Lower East Side residents, most of them members of St. Mark's Lutheran parish, boarded the steamer on the morning of June 15, 1904 for the annual church picnic at Eatons Neck, Long Island. Barely two hours later, a blaze broke out in a storage compartment, possibly ignited by a carelessly thrown match or cigarette. The steamboat immediately became a floating death trap: although the Slocum had passed a recent safety inspection, the life preservers were rotted, the fire hoses were damaged, and wires immobilized the lifeboats. The captain, William Van Schaick, had also never put the crew through a fire drill. By the time the ship was beached on North Brother Island, over a thousand passengers had been burned to death or drowned. The public and the 321 survivors demanded justice, but never got it. The inspector who certified the Slocum as safe and the ship's owners, who had shied from the expense of maintaining the safety equipment, were not punished for their negligence. Only Captain Van Schaick received a prison term of ten years, but the federal parole board released him after three.

Edward T. O'Donnell has done a first-rate job in his coverage of this forgotten calamity. In addition to recounting the final moments of the doomed ship and its passengers, he explores the corruption of government officials, the callous arrogance of Gilded Age big business, and other factors that contributed to the tragedy and its aftermath. He also helps the reader understand why, considering the high death toll, the General Slocum disaster was forgotten so quickly. His research sources are impeccable: he interviewed elderly survivor Adella Wotherspoon and obtained access to a detailed scrapbook that her family maintained for years. In my opinion, O'Donnell's fast-paced writing style and attention to detail has rescued this story of devastating loss, incomparable heroism, and appalling institutional arrogance from its undeserved obscurity.

"Ship Ablaze" helps fill in gaps of history that for one reason or other our parents, grand-parents, uncles and aunts. I grew up in that neighborhood and attended the LCMS (Trinity) Lutheran Church on 9th St. and Ave. B., yet I had to wait until late in life to learn of this disaster and the long term impact it had on the area. While the congregation I belonged to was not in worship fellowship with St. Mark's, I am certain that one would find a history of humanitarian fellowship at the time. But, these would be in the old records of that congregation written in German script. We need not only researchers, but multilingual researchers, in this incident as although there were those born in America, they lived a German life. My generation was the first not to speak German from birth. When I went to Germany to live for a while, I find myself very much at home despite the fact that this was post WWII Germany. If there are researchers interested out there who are fluent in German, a place they might want to look at is the resources of the NY Public Library and Concordia Historical Institute, St. Louis (records of the original Trinity on microfilm).

An excellent book about the General Slocum disaster, a 1904 steamboat fire that killed more than 1,000 people, mostly women and children on a church outing. Absolutely mesmerizing from start to finish.

I think this is the year as a reader, as a watcher of television and news, that I've finally reached my endpoint as concerns human disasters. I've always been interested to an extent of this type of story...if we weren't newspapers would not fare well. But I started picking up more of these books after the making of the movie, Titanic, and it's about 7 years later, and I am pretty sure I've had it. Nothing about the writer's abilities, just between the constant onslaught of real life disasters with the hurricane season now ending, the tsunami of last year, constant reportage on this ridiculous war in Iraq, and normal everyday life, I cannot take on any more sorrow and of course, the stupidity and greed that goes with these stories. I didn't even finish this one. If you like this genre, and this type of reading doesn't depress you deeply, as it did me, then this book is for you.

This is not the 'ostrich' burying it's head. It's rather I decided to stop rubbernecking in this manner. I don't do it when there are fires or car accidents, so I don't know why this should be anything different. If I am interested in it from an engineering or scientific view of things, as occurred with the 1927 dynamiting of the New Orleans levees, then I'll go for the history. I know this stuff happened, and where it is absolutely necessary to know more for family research or whatever, fine, I can look it up online. This is not the type of reading that I consider as being of benefit for me, nor is it entertaining to read about the needless deaths of so many. There are other things I'd rather do and read than books of this genre, though it is obvious that as with true crime, this is a popular genre which will not be going away soon.

Karen Sadler

This disaster has been hidden from historical references better than anything I've ever come across. Over 1,000 people die horribly, mostly women and children, and the following has occurred:

The 2004 Microsoft Encarta DVD Encyclopedia makes absolutely no reference to this event.

The book "New York Times Page One" does not show this as one of it's important front page dates.

The book "Chronicles of the 20th Century" (1300+ pages) only makes mention of the ship's owners being found negligent, not the event itself.

The largest loss of life from a single disaster from 1904 until 2001 and they can't mention it! Thankfully, this book does it justice and brings the hidden truth to light.

This book was great. It was a little difficalt because it went back and fourth between the characters and things that went on in the past. This book is a gory one so it would be good for 7th grade and up. It tells the tall of the twins very good. but only read it if you read the first one time of the twins.

An excellent book and a great series quickly sent by seller very happy

Dragonlance series is beyond doubt one of the best known and loved works of heroic fantasy. Written with an exceptional honesty and story-telling talent, it sparkles with the authors' love for their characters and the world they created. The Twins Trilogy is a dark tale following all the patterns of heroic fantasy, but it still manages to be fresh and exciting like the best folktale. Raistlin remains one of the most striking tragic characters eagerly awaited to reappear in subsequent Dragonlance novels.

The Legends Trilogy- the Time of The Twins, the War of the Twins, and Test of the Twins, is the sequel to The Chronicles Trilogy- Dragons of Autumn Twilight, Dragons of Winter Night, and Dragons of Spring Dawning, which brings to life the ultimate battle between Good and Evil in the magical World of Krynn. The books are so incredibly well written that the reader feels that they have been transported to another plane of existence and are actually present among the characters, seeing what they see, feeling what they feel, sensing what they sense. The authors Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman have truly outdone themselves and have presented us with a masterpiece of literature the likes of which we have seen only in JRR Tolkien's work and RA Salvatore's The Dark Elf and Icewind Dale trilogies. Duty, honor, bravery, magic, dragons and heroes are all about. One should seriously start thinking about maybe turning them into movies...

War of the Twins is one of my absolute favorite books to come out of the Weis-Hickman machine. Mind-bending concepts of time travel and of the future locked in place combined with world-altering events makes for a dramatic and intense read that will keep you up late at night. It is also perhaps the most emotionally tense book in all of Dragonlance. The interactions between Raistlin and Caramon and Crysiana and Tas are fantastic. The strange love triangle between the brothers and Crysiana makes for interesting reading and also helps the reader really appreciate the emotions of the characters. Of all the characters, Raistlin in particularly really starts to reveal his true self: merciless and determined. While at times you feel like Raist must be starting to actually feel for the people that love him, it is quickly revealed that he only cares about his ultimate goal. Caramon comes into his own in this book, leading an army and realizing that he doesn't need his brother in order to live his own life. Crysiana doesn't evolve too much in this one but does grow in her sense of purpose and in her faith. Tas kind of gets left by the wayside for much of this novel, but comes back for dramatic impact on the overall story.

The only complaint I can think of is that the Dwarfgate wars were sort of skimmed over, not revealing too much detail as far as the actual battles are concerned. The leaders of the various armies and factions could have been better fleshed out, especially Kharas and the leaders of the plainsmen and hill dwarves. These are minor regrets thought and Weis and Hickman leave much to the reader's imagination which probably enhances the overall effect of the story. They focus on the main characters and the emotional battles they are going through, and that would have been taken away from some if they had included too much detail about the side stories and characters.

Overall I'd say this is one of the more mature and grim of the Dragonlance novels, without very much humor at all and a lot of tense and dark moments. The vivid characterizations of the book sold me. I'd recommend this entire trilogy to anyone in for a good emotional story.