Reviews Books

This book gives excellent advice on taking the NCLEX-RN with strategies on how to answer questions. Excellent review test included.

THIS IS A GREAT BOOK TO GET YOU READY FOR BOARDS. I WOULD ALSO RECOMMEND TAKING A REVIEW CLASS. THIS DISC IN THIS BOOK IS HELPFUL.

Take it from someone who has passed the board. You only need two books Lippincott & Kaplan. I'm selling both mine. Whatever you score in the practice tests will be almost equal to what you will get on the board. Good for sizing yourself up before taking the board. I cut off at 75Q. Take my advice if you are running out of time. Study concurrently x 5hrs QD x 6-8 weeks. Mosby & Davis are good while your in school, but not for the NCLEX exam.

This book is great--it shows how to take the NCLEX-RN, and gives example questions with each test-taking point. It even compares it to possible questions we had while in nursing school. It does have one drawback--you can only use the test on the CD once; if you don't finish the test you may use it again, but that is it. Kaplan shows HOW to think through the questions and answers, with an NCLEX mindset.

This is the ONLY review book that you will need to prepare for the NCLEX-RN. Forget those huge comprehensive review books, they don't work. This book is very fast and very easy reading. The book outlines 10 different stratigies to answering ANY and ALL types of NCLEX questions. Very, very informative, the chapters are well written and very easy to understand. The CD-ROM has 180 questions that are similar to what you will see on the NCLEX, and it gives you a detailed analysis of your performance to determine your weaknesess. The book also contains a practice test of 265 questions. Answers and rationales are in the back of the book also. I did not pass the NCLEX the first time around. I read one of those 1400 page comprehensive review books, answered 1000's of practice questions, and took a three day review course, it didn't work. The Kaplan NCLEX-RN 2000-2001 book is the ONLY book I used to prepair for the second go around, and I passed thanks to the strategies outlined in this book. I read this book over and over--it worked great!!! I can't say enough great things about it!!! BUY THIS BOOK!!!!

This book is perfect for ARRT test prep. Make sure you get the book with the internet access. With the internet, you get to do all the practice tests you need to prepare for the ARRT boards. There are quite a few questions in the book and internet that are verbatim.

I haven't taken the registry exam yet, but for those looking for a good book to review, I recommend this one. I haven't made it through the whole book yet, but there are a lot of questions with such detailed explainations for every section. The questions are difficult, but I have been told by numerous people that these questions are harder than that of the actual ARRT exam. There are questions designated to each section, way more than what the real test will be, but the end of the book contains 2 practice tests combining all of the sections. VERY HELPFUL!

I used pretty much just this book to prepare for the Registry exam in 2006. I did every question in it over the 2 weeks before I sat the Registry, and passed it with a score of 97. What more can I say? This is the only prep book you need.

This is a great resource!!! I recently took the ARRT board exam in Radiography and I used this prep book to prepare for it. I scored a 98% on the exam. I would recommend this guide to anyone who wants to rock the boards. AsB

With this book comes free access to an online testing web site. This online, create-your-own exam feature is what got me through the registry test. It allows you to select any number of questions (there are more than 1,400!), from any of the 5 main categories (and the myriad sub-categories), those you've already seen or not seen, or to use only the ones you've previously gotten wrong. And you can use the web site as many times as you need to during your allotted access time (details with the book.) The author was very responsive to my questions when I needed clarification, and there's a link right on the web site making it easy to ask.

Unlike other test-prep resources I've seen, the questions are equal to or HARDER than those on the registry exam! The service tracks your averages in each of the five categories, and reports results for an individual exam upon completion as well as your cumulative average. You can interrupt taking an exam and resume it at another time. And, speaking of time, your test results also include how long it took you to complete your custom-made exam, as well as the average number of seconds per question. The registry exam is timed, so knowing your time in advance can help you focus where you need to.

I could go on, but you've got the picture by now: I can't say enough about the positive contribution this resource made to my success!

I grew up in neighboring Illinois not far from `Pig Boy'. So, in reading this lovely memoir I found myself transported back into my own childhood memories of growing up. I was tired of reading at the time and therefore hesitant to give this memoir a chance. When I finished, I found that the author had reignited my passion for reading. This memoir will make you want to read again...to write again. The author truly captured the very humorous and.... yes poignant business of growing up, families and the unique value that every person brings to this world. Get this book, you will be glad you did.

There is a distinct nostalgia in Pig Boy's Wicked Bird. The peculiar power in this depiction of an American family is relevant to anytime, place, or condition. The author uses beautiful language and rhythmical sentences to creat a compact telling of this humorous and poignant memoir. The business of living can be lonely. The reader can make profitable use of the insights illuminated throughout this story.

First of all, I really enjoyed this book. I was skeptical going in, thinking it was just another outbreak in the rash of memoirs that has erupted on the best seller lists. This one is different. On the surface, it's a coming of age story, a story about self worth, self awareness, and the impact of family (the family in question being "the seven D's" - all of Doug Crandell's brothers, sisters, and even his parents have names that start with D.) But it turns out that what the story is really about is the three D's: disability, disfigurement, and just being different.

Two of the author's fingers are essentially severed in a childhood farming accident, leaving the boy disabled, disfigured and different. This leads to an awareness and an appreciation of those three D's -- that turn out to be everywhere in young Crandell's world: his mother who is "no longer a woman" due to a hysterectomy, a man with cerebral palsy who connects with the author, the runt pigs destined to be destroyed but saved by Crandell, a grandmother with a humped back, a sister with scoliosis, even the oldest brother is left changed by a never fully explained abduction reminiscent of Mystic River. (Most everyone in the book is marked in some critical, defining, and not always obvious way. Some, like the landlord's son, are, to quote John Lennon, crippled inside.)

Sherwood Anderson and his collection of grotesqueries, Winesburg, Ohio is the influence pointed out by Doug Crandell for helping him sort out his confused world of being marked different as well as leading him on the path to becoming a writer. What I noticed were the influences of William Faulkner, Flannery O'Connor, and in particular Carson McCullers. For a story of the Midwest, Pig Boy's Wicked Bird has a distinct Southern Gothic feel. (One person's physical characteristics are described as "crooked," "twisted," and "warped" in the space of a single paragraph). Like The Member of the Wedding, or even Truman Capote's Other Voices, Other Rooms, these disabled, disfigured, and different people will live with you forever.

There is a wealth of people out there who have grown up in a family that doesn't seem just right. Television for a lack of decent material exploits the dysfunctional family as it exaggerates the flaws of family life in America. "Pig Boy's Wicked Bird" by Doug Crandell tells a different side of the story. Yes, life is full of absurdity and tragedy but what comes out of this book is a recollection of our own past growing up and as weird as it seemed...it was wonderful too. Intelligently written and a delight to read I give it 2 thumbs up and a nub for good measure! This is a great life story!

Doug Crandall, former little Pig Boy of the Heartland, brings us a heart-rendering, oftentimes snorting food-out-the-nose-from-laughing memoir of friendship with farm animals and dealing with life's tragedys. Poetically written by the now grown up Mr. Crandall, even city girls like me can appreciate his love of family, roots and Jimmy Carter. If you love crusty old men, goofy dogs and little piglets, you'll love this story as I did.

The best book in this area. It has everything you need to know in respiratory physiology and some basic principles are also useful in cardiovascular physiology. The organization is perfect, the thought questions and the questions at the end of each chapter are very well elaborated, you need to think to answer them and apply what you have read, not just memorization. The writing style is also very good, conversational. And I don't have words to describe the CD, is also perfect, the animations are extremely helpfull. If all medical books were organized like this book, no one would need to go to medschool.


ATTENTION! The CD does not work on Windows Vista.

This book was a pleasure to read and very good at walking a beginner through the concepts of respiratory physiology. Everything is presented in a logical way and it's surprising how much you can learn from this little book.

I am a pulmonary fellow who needed some review on respiratory physiology. i read the book cover to cover and found it an excellent resource to understand and correct my previous misunderstandings. the illustration in the CD were great and i recommend it to all fellows.

ghazwan acash

I ended up looking at a bunch of my friends' books, including West, before picking out this one to help me with the resp portion of my pathophys course. I loved this one. It was so easy to read - you know, it felt like someone was talking to me and just explaining things in a really plain, easy to understand way.

S&P is a lot more than just a book. I bought it because it was a recommended text for our class, but I had no idea I would be getting a whole web site that goes with the book. For most of the books I buy, the CD is pretty worthless with some junk pictures, but this book has a web site with diagrams where you can do things like adjusting O2 and CO2 levels or shunting percentage and see what happens. The picture actually changes right there in front of you! It's like having a little lab to illustrate the book topics, and the book even tells you how to use the diagrams and what cases to try. I'm a visual learner so this is where it's at for me. I wish they had the same thing for renal physiology.

I saw Seven Brides for Seven Brothers for the first time after reading about it in John DiLeo's Screen Savers. I would not have bothered to see it had I not first read DiLeo's analysis and insights regarding this underappreciated film. His essay led me to a much fuller understanding of its beauty, craft and surprising depth, making me want to see what I had previously considered an old-fashioned and uninteresting musical. Upon completing each chapter, I find myself scanning the upcoming programming for Turner Classic Movies, hoping they will soon be showing one of DiLeo's selections, so that I can use my new "behind the scenes" information while watching the film. It is clear that the movies the author selects for rediscovery are on a personal list of favorites, they moved or inspired him. But while he clearly loves movies, the tone never sinks to that of a fawning fan. He backs up his choices with detailed analyses and thorough research, convincing the reader of their rightful rank among films that should be reexamined. The joy of this book is that he educates the reader while imparting some of his obvious infatuation and love for his subject. And like any satisfyingly juicy critical discussion, the author allows a dialogue to develop with his reader. You may even find yourself disagreeing with him about a favorite star or director (c'mon, Lana Turner wasn't that untalented) and that is part of the fun. This book has rekindled in this reader a new enthusiasm for older and "gently used" movies. I can't wait for my first viewings of The Man Who Laughs and The Iron Giant.

This book is a joy to read. Aside from John Dileo's amazing scope of knowledge about film, he is a terrific writer. Dileo has an uncanny ability to fully and clearly describe story lines, performances and a variety of other details about each movie. I guarantee that anyone who reads this book will come away wanting to see most, if not all, of the movies discussed here so eloquently.

Having purchased Mr. DiLeo's previous books, I was delighted to discover he had a new one on the shelves. After planning some time off for the holidays, I overnighted this book -- eager to reacquaint myself with this author's clever and keen insight into classic motion pictures. By the time Christmas came, I had gobbled it up -- cover to cover. And... what a surprise to see my co-worker bought the very same book for me at this year's Secret Santa. I didn't let on that I had already purchased it but loved that fact that he was so eager to tell me that "SCREEN SAVERS is the type of book that all the TCM watchers should love!" Do yourself a favor and buy John DiLeo's new book.

I was thoroughly delighted to read John DiLeo's third book, Screen Savers.

His quirky takes on actors and directors are refreshing and novel. He opens new insights when viewing and reviewing films that have been forgotten or have never received the accolades they deserved.

Mr. DiLeo has a wonderful way with words, a lovely sense of humor and a pleasant and breezy style.

Screen Savers makes for terrific reading whether sitting in front of a fireplace on a cold evening or while enjoying an iced tea on a summery afternoon.

I highly recommend Screen Savers to any movie buff or would-be movie buff. It opens new paths to understanding the magic of film and the skills of the actors and directors involved.

Netflix should send a thank you note to Mr. DiLeo for his artful awakening of our appreciation for some half-remembered and some totally forgotten films.

I bought this book because I've enjoyed John DiLeo's other books for their informed, but casual, approach to movie love. At a time when so many movie books are either earnestly academic (you know, political readings of gender performance in Nikkatsu gangster movies of the 60s,) or infinitely culty-geeky (do I really need the whole history of Philippine horror movies?), DiLeo assumes the existence of a readership that is, like him, informed and serious, but not obsessive-compulsive, and in it for the entertainment.
The book is divided into eight chapters, each devoted to a separate genre. (For the record, the eight genres are "Musicals Written Directly For The Screen," "Film Noir and Variations," "Love Stories," "Westerns," "Fantasy and Horror," "War," "Vintage Comedy," and the vague catch-all "Life and Times in America," which basically means "drama." The focus is exclusively American, but the time frame is from the silent era to the present. The presumption is that you've already seen the rote classics, and he therefore offers five movies in each genre that he feels have received insufficient attention, and that you therefore might have reasonably overlooked.
You can agree or disagree with the choices, but none are eccentric, deliberately provocative, or contrived to display mere cleverness. The real joy of this book, though, is in the wealth of background information. DiLeo will, for example, in describing "Comanche Station," give an overview of Randolph Scott's career, the placement of his "amiability and lean beauty" in two decades worth of decent but unnoteworthy roles in diverse genres, as a way of positioning the surprise of his late-career flowering in the films of Budd Boetticher, and their collaboration on seven morally complex westerns. Being a movie fan, DiLeo doesn't fail to mention the final triumph of the comic hommage to Scott in "Blazing Saddles." This precise positioning and career review is done not only for stars and directors, but screenwriters, cinematographers, character actors, even the evolution of genre conventions themselves. And it's presented in a chatty, highly readable style. The net effect is that "Screen Savers" is like an encyclopedia in friendly conversation.
I expect that I'll be using this book as a reference work for a long time to come. It is, I think, DiLeo's best book yet.

I read this book first in the 1980s, while I was actually working in the theater (and I had met a few of the people talked about in the book). What I like about it so much is that Goldman expresses his opinions, especially about the fare on Broadway at the time (not so good), the deficiencies of some of the actors and actresses and his sweeping view of the whole milieu. I don't always agree with him, but he's so incisive that you gain enormous respect for him, particularly when he's writing about Judy Garland, Sandy Dennis and Tom Stoppard. Students of theater history should turn to this book to find out what a bygone era (before huge corporations and nonprofits took over Broadway) was all about.

This book is it. It's just it. If you have any inclination at all to work in the theatre in any capacity, this book is required reading. Do not move to New York without it. I did, and I barely barely survived the few days it took me to find a copy. Order it now while you still have time! I'm serious!

William Goldman is not only a great screenwriter, but a wonderful writer of prose/criticism, as evidenced by "The Season," probaby the smartest, if not funniest, book ever written about the (sorry) state of Broadway. Here he tells you all you would want to know about the making of a Broadway show--all the compromises, betrayals, fits of ego, and under-the-table deals that keep the "fabulous invalid" (a phrase, by the way, that makes Mr. Goldman want to vomit) alive for another season. As a lover of theater, you may become depressed at the cynical machinations that go on to get what is, after all, usually pretty mediocre material to the stage; however, Mr. Goldman's prose is so crisp and entertaining that your spirit is ultimately lifted by his keen analysis. Although the patient is very sick, here's a doctor who has a prescription to offer. And all through the book, he does offer suggestions on how Broadway can better serves us, the theatergoers. Alas, the advice wasn't followed then (the late 60s), and it's not being followed today.

This is an extraordinary book. It is written by an author with a first class mind and genuine curiosity about his subject. Whilst one may not agree with all of it, the writing is a delight and he does not shirk dealing with controversial issues such as the influence of homosexuality on the stage and the corrupt financial practices in relation to theatre tickets, etc. Even though it was written for the 1967-1968 season, it still resonates and viewed in retrospect, it provides crucial evidence relative to the aetiology of the culture wars.

William Goldman's groundbreaking book The Season is all it's cracked up to be and more. Though a number of the people he deals with are no longer with us, many of the shows have been forgotten, and the ticket prices are quite a bit higher, it's astonishing how much the Broadway of the late 1960s resembles the Broadway of today. The same problems, the same headaches, the same disappointments, and the same triumphs are all still a part of the Great White Way. No Broadway enthusiast should be without this book; The Season is a stunning history--and current events--lesson on Broadway theatre.

This is definetly the best book on Star Wars I've ever read...

The beautifully designed coffee-table book takes the reader through the process of creating the Star Wars galaxy and then turning it into one of the most successful toylines in history. There are tons of photos depicting vintage Kenner toys as well as other merchandise.

The illustrations come with quite an informative text by journalist and collector Stephen J. Sansweet -- truely an expert when it comes to Star Wars toys.

A beautifully written book -- Sansweet is the reigning expert on Star Wars (have all of his book, with the Scrapbook and Encyclopedia being my favorites). I just had some quibbles with some of the design elements in it but it's a wonderful edition to my library nevertheless.

A must own for fans of the collectibles spawned from the greatest space fantasy of all time. Sansweet takes you through the entire process that brought about the Star Wars experience and gives details about little known information surrounding the film's creation, collectibles and magicians who brought it to life. A nostalgic trip into the past to relive three great films accompanied by crisp, clear photos. Check it out.

If I were to teach a class on the history Star Wars and Star Wars collectables, I would definitely use this as one of the textbooks. It is a very well written and interesting book. It contains lots of great pictures, including early drawings of movie characters made before the movies were ever created, as well as pictures of a variety of collectables (including both prototypes and finished products). Also contains lots of interesting factoids. This is not a price guide or a comprehensive guide to Star Wars collectables (so if that's what you are looking for, this is not the book for you). But if you want to learn about the Star Wars universe (literally from concept to screen to collectable), this will be a great addition to your library.

I have been a big Star Wars fan since the first film was released back in 1977. I used to own many of the old action figures and played with them all the time up until my grandmother gave them away to the Goodwill. I picked up this book in 1997 just as I was getting back into collecting Star Wars figures once again. This is a very detailed book with lots of great color photos. Seeing the pictures of all of the older toys brought back a lot of memories. And it makes you stop and think about how much your old collection would have been worth if you had saved it. I recommend this book to anyone who is a true Star Wars fan and collector. You will not be disappointed.

This book has a huge amount of films that Overstreet basically reviews and ties into each chapter. It is amazing how he connects so many seemingly secular films to Christian values. I'd recommend this book to anyone who thinks that every film not coming from Christian makers is garbage, because Overstreet has definitely found deeply religious themes in some very offensive films.

[...]

keen insight and well written. going to go back to movies thinking a little differently going forward.

Jeffrey Overstreet expertly guides readers on a cinematic journey, thoughtfully raising questions and broaching issues to help Christians and non-Christians alike challenge their traditional views on art, faith, culture and cinema.

Overstreet demonstrates remarkable skill in providing a comprehensive and thoughtful reflection on a wide variety of films. He discusses them in fresh ways, displaying cultural relevance in his interpretation while also dramatically illustrating the spiritual principles and biblical truths that surface in the themes of each film.

Overstreet's masterful work will offer you a fresh look at beauty, truth, evil and redemption in the movies. A must-have for any film lover!

What books were to previous generations, movies are to the present one; their ability to teach and shape our view of reality is unparalled by any other medium. Christians can't afford to be ignorant of the content and power here, and "Through a Screen Darkly" provides an excellent guide.

As a filmmaker and a Christian I am always striving to find an articulate voice able to handle the spiritual as well as the cinematic. With Jeffery Overstreet's Through a Screen Darkly I have found a strong one. The book traces Overstreet's own experience with cinema as an artist, a Christian and a human being. The book serves to open readers' eyes not only to their own experiences, but to the larger questions of artistic as well as moral excellence. Highly recommended.

the most detailed read on so many artists&there impact on the charts.it covers Artists from A-Z&everything else in between.a very fun kind of read for folks like myself that just love Music.and also great to understand the changes with Charting&also how songs got as far they did&whatnot.a Great Read.

In recent years, the RIAA and its member record companies have bemoaned the decline of music sales, blaming digital music piracy and other hobgoblins. One look through this informative tome will tell you the real problem - the industry has destroyed its entree for the fans to new and talented artists - the hit single!! At $$$ a pop, not too many buyers are willing to try new or unfamiliar music, but at $-$, if an artist or group has several "hit" singles (established by radio air play), the subsequent investment in an album seems less risky. The music industry, in it's zeal to maximize profit by selling full length CDs instead of priming the demand pump with singles, has contributed to its own decline. If you peruse the shear breadth of music styles listed in Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles that have been able to make the "Top 100" over the years, you realize just how rich and exciting music WAS in the 50s through the early 80s. As the corporate entities who owned the stations became fewer and fewer due to mergers, the current blight of narrowcast programming blossomed. It worked - for a while. But a steady (and excessive) diet of your favorite food will ultimately become boring. This book is not just a dry list of song titles, artists and dates. It's our lives writ large in song - teenage crushes, first dates (and dances!), first automobile, leaving home, possibly time in military service, marriage, kids - all of these events punctuated with the musical nuggets listed in this volume. Here's hoping that a bright future continues to exist for the indelible impact of the "hit single".

This is a great collection for the music lover and for anyone who wants to get to know their favorite artist. This book features all of the songs from 1955 that hit the top 100. So if a song hit 92 you will find it in this book. the only problem I have with this is the price I think 50-70 dollars is high but it is worth it. I recommend this item to the music lover inside everyone.

You don't need to buy TOP POP SINGLES 1955-1999, because Joel Whitburn's own site (record research) will sell you the most up to date volume TOP POP SINGLES 1955-2002. I still have my TOP POP SINGLES 1955-1993. Essentially, it's the same book but updated by the year, by the inclustion of "B" sides, and Top Air Plays, making the new the edition the better buy. Why can't Amazon sell us the current most up to date record of this valuable resource? Any collector of popular music from 1955 to 2002, will find the TOP POP SINGLES 1955-2002, the best value. No school music library should be without this book as an addition to the curriculum. All songs the made the top hundred along with information on the artist is great as a resource book, a coffee table book or just for looking up your favourite song.

Joel Whitburn's book covers the pop charts from the Hit Parade era on up to the end of the century. This book is not just for collectors, but rather, it will satisfy anyone who loves music and has a desire to know more about the dynamics of the Billboard pop charts. Besides the easy, alphabetical listings by artist, the book includes features such as:

* debut date for each song
* a chronological listing, by peak date, of every song
* the peak position and weeks on chart for each song
* a listing, in the back of the book, of all song titles (listed alphabetically) in the artist selection
* assorted chart "facts and feats"

In addition, the book's typeface and bolding features makes it easy to read, without straining for particular entries. In total, this book is the most comprehensive source of info available for the music of this era. No one but Whitburn does anything close to this in terms of music factology. It's well worth the money, and if you intend on flipping through it over and over, the few extra bucks for the longer-lasting hardcover will be worth the expenditure.

This book was helpful, but not as much as I'd hoped. It would be best for someone new to writing reviews.

This product was a quick way to finalize a review. It has great phrases that are very useful. Ever have one of those days where you just can't think of the greatest way of putting a sentence together? These phrases help put everything together in a well written manner.

excelent book, easy to read and to understand.
excelent seller, quick shipping and great shape.

This is a great little book. It covers just about very situation. It gives, on the money, phrases. It also provide phrases to use for recommended improvements. I'm the newest member of management in my corporation. When my boss read first reviews, he was totally impressed. It is definitely worth the money. I highly recommend this book.

Excellent tool for assisting managers with written comments on the performance reviews they are required to do on their employees. It especially helps managers with new phrases for employees they have been reviewing for years.