Q Books

This is the best book on Peruvian Shamans that I have ever read. I have read many books on the subject of Shamanism and I feel this is the best yet. The interviews she has with the Q'uero and the translators, the culture of these people, all facts pertaining to their beliefs, simply an amazing read. I would recommend this book to anyway who is embarking on the path of a Shaman.

Kila

Was exactly what Iwas looking for. Book is in perfect shape and was shipped on time. Very pleased

This is the identical book by the same author as "Keepers of the Ancient Knowledge". I have had to send it back for a refund. I was not thrilled to find I had ordered a book that I already owned, but with a new title. Nowhere was there any mention of it to alert someone of that.

But, it's a great book, and I was looking forward to more insights on the subject.

This is an awesome book containing information that is very timely and much needed to save our planet. - Only one criticism - this is an updated version of Keepers of the Ancient Knowledge but the only way to find out is by reading the introduction. Unfortunately I ordered both books and had to return Keepers. It would be awesome if Amazon had a way of letting customers know about updates with different names.

Thank you.

Having recieved rites from the Q'ero I found Joan's book to be an impressive body of work.

Her intention to share the teachings of the shaman in an unbiased informative way felt impeccable to me. The work is devotional in presenting their truths as she struggled through two language translations. Her pointed questions allowed these masters to convey their wisdom within our frame of reference.

Her book is a reminder of our deep connection to the divine, at once a resource and a tool for our own work. I feel grateful to her for putting this divine mystery into words. I have not found any other resource to be as detailed reguarding the message the Q'ero wish to convey to us.

I recommend this book to anyone on the path of seeking more light for this universe.

DID I SAY I LOVED THIS BOOK,I CAN'T SEEM TO SAY IT ENOUGH, THIS BOOK WAS REAL!!! I DO BELIEVE THAT THERE ARE A LOT OF YOUNG MEN OUT HERE IN THE GAME THAT IS NOT BUILT FOR IT!!!! I AM DEFINITELY GOING TO GIVE THIS BOOK TO MY SON,SO THAT HE CAN SEE THAT FAST $$$ NOT ALWAYS GOOD $$$$ AND IT COMES WITH A VERY HIGH PRICE!!!!!! I'M SORRY IT ENDED THE WAY IT DID, I JUST LOVED THIS BOOK, IT'S A MUST READ !!!!

Wow, just, wow! I can't express enough to you all you must pick this one up. Erick did an amazing job in this one! This book in my opinion will make you upset, hurt, angry, and sad -- yet sending a powerful message to everyone that money may make the world go around but it's not the root of all happiness. I won't go into details about the book because I don't want to spoil anything for you all that haven't read it. But once you start you won't be able to put it down for a second. It's that good! This is my third novel I've read by Erick and his growth as author is becoming well known with each and every book hs puts out.

yo on the real all i gotta say is this book was HOTTTTTT steaming on fire and erick u did ur thing fo sure and i really like tht u can keep it real u feel me? anyways i do recommend this book to everyone even if u dont like 2 read at least consider it plzzz

Something about this book didn't sit well with me. As I was reading it, it seemed like it was written, not taken place, but actually written back in the 90's. You can tell when an author has their story set in a certain time period vs. WRITING IT in that time period. I was literally one more sitting away from chucking this book. But right about that time is when it started to pick up. It took about 1/2 way through the book for me to get interested. It's all just speculation but I suspect that he started this book, put it aside, and then came back to it after a while and finished it.

I was also wondering why I saw ratings on this title but when I clicked on the picture it told me that this title will be released on January 29th! Huh? Then I find out that this is a re-issue!! Ok, now I'm ticked!! I do some research and find out that the other book I ordered from this author, 'Booty Call' is also a re-issue!! This is just plain stupid! Nora Roberts has been doing this for years and has pissed a lot of people off. so much that now her books have to have a "Certified New Title" sticker on it! I think if you are going to re-issue a title then you NEED to let people know.

I bought this book on the strength of his short story in 'Flexin & Sexin'. This book DID NOT live up to that at all! I hope the other one I ordered makes up for this one. I really hate that I spent money on this one.

In MONEY POWER RESPECT by Erick S. Gray, we meet Ricky Johnson, a young man who has been hustling since he was a teenager. Practically raising himself because his mother abandons him and his father is always working, Ricky turns to the one place he feels at home, the streets. He is taken under the wing of one of the most notorious and feared hustlers in the city, Fat Tony. Being on Fat Tony's team automatically gains you respect with other young hustlers, you are not to be messed with and feared by many. Ricky is living the life, he is 13 years old and has the best money can buy.

Unfortunately Ricky gets caught hustling and has to do time in jail. During his time away, the only person that takes the time to visit him is one of his high school teachers, who sees potential in Ricky that he doesn't see in himself. He promises Ricky that if he straightens himself up and works on his GED he will do all he can to get him in college and on the right track. All he has to do is leave the fast life behind and live life on the straight and narrow. He opts to give the straight and narrow a try, after all, he is locked up in jail and currently has nothing but time on his hands. Will he continue on the right path and make Mr. Jenkins proud? Or will the streets call his name so loudly, he has no choice but to answer?

MONEY POWER RESPECT is a true-to-life novel. It shed light on how easy it is to get caught up in a life of crime and how difficult it is to do what's right. Although this is an urban fiction novel and profanity is expected, it was a bit distracting in this book. At times it took away from the story and I felt it was a bit overused. The writing, editing and character development were all on point. Overall this was an enjoyable, heartfelt read that showed the struggles and pressures of living in an environment surrounded by crime. It showed how the choices you make can change your life from bad to worse and how only the strong will survive.

Reviewed by Eraina B. Tinnin
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

Spock Vs Q CdStar Trek: The Spock vs. Q Collection (Gift Set) These presentations are sure to please all fans of the star trek series. The confrontations between Spock and Q manage to skillfully integrate philosophical debate with slapstick comedy in a wonderfully entertaining combination. The irascible Q juxtaposed with hyper-rational Spock makes for a mixture that truly exemplifies the priniciple of 'infinite diversity in infinite combinations.' I highly recommend these CD sets.

Its an epic battle of wits, on the dr. Faustus scale.
Truly a great and unique treat for any Star Trek fan.
Makes a great Christmas gift! :-)
Get it. You ain'T gonna regret it.

OK...I've never been to a Trek convention. I've never put on "the uniform" or "the ears". I've never sparred amongst my nerd friends (of which I have many) about how many Red Shirts bite the big one in episode 22 of Season 1 of TOS. However...I have been a fan (NOT fanatic) of all things Star Trek since the day I was born. OK...tehcnically it was one week after I was born (9/8/1966) that the first episode aired, but close enough, yes? I just found this and the first "Spock vs. Q" to be a bit too contrived. It was obviously playing to the over-enthusiasm of the crowd at the live taping. All the references in the first Spock vs. Q were cute at first, but then seemed like the story would do anything to find a reference to something in the small or silver screen stuff.

Don't get me wrong. I dearly love both Leonard Nimoy and John DeLancie. Two awesome actors playing great roles in nearly every instance. This performance however could have benefited from some of the superior writing of TNG or anything afterwards. The whole "swapping minds" thing...just didn't do it for me. If they were trying to pull off a personality switch on the order of Face/Off (Travolta/Cage in a brilliant performance), then they fell way short.

I suggest saving your cash and skipping these audio presentations. Better invest your funds in some other great work by these two (TOS, TNG, films on DVD...or even some of the great films Nimoy has directed...they are all awesome!) Or maybe even save up to attend a convention! You'll get more out of meeting one or both of them...and might actually score an autograph!

This was as good as or better than the first one. It was surprising and very enjoyable to hear the personality trade between the two. Spock doing all the singing and laughing like Q. John de Lancie wasn't too highly convincing playing a logical minded Spock, but who cares. He's one person who cannot downplay his personality too much. Highly enjoyable and hopefully there will be a third one.

In their previous duel of wits, Spock was able to best Q and now they are about to engage in a second round. However, as they are about to begin, there is an enormous surge of power and they suddenly find themselves in an unknown location. The situation is further complicated when Spock begins to take on the personality traits of Q and Q those of Spock. Since Q is robbed of his powers, and Spock does not know how to use them, there is nothing either of them can do to save themselves.
The personality transfer is very well played by Leonard Nimoy and John deLancie. The sound of Spock giggling and uttering Q-like witticisms was very entertaining. The dampening of the Q personality by applying overtones of the Spock persona was also very funny. Jokes fly back and forth between them as they continue their verbal sparring, although now their personalities are blended with the opposite dominant in the other's body. Of course, in the end, the situation is resolved and they save themselves.
Fun to listen to, this tape is an aspect of Star Trek that is just good, clean entertainment. I enjoyed it so much I listened to it twice.

Q was my favorite character in the Next Generation series, and his guest appearances on Deep Space Nine and Voyager were priceless. Therefore, to put Leonard Nimoy's Spock and John deLancie's Q in a "dueling senario" was irresistable. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to their "sparing intellects" and am glad I purchased such a unique gift from Amazon. Thanks.

i just got my copy of this gift set and although i'm not a "trekker" nor a "trekkie", this set is still great to have. the verbal sparring between spock and q isn't one to be missed.all through out there were lessons about acheiving out fullest potential as human beings and doing good wherever we can.

i would definitely recommend this to all star trek fans.

I am a star trek fan from way back. I enjoyed listening to the CDs, but from a purist standpoint, Q couldn't lose to spock, and the overall presentation was not as captivating as I would hve liked. Worth a listen, but probably cheaper to buy for your ipod

This collection of two live performances is a lot of fun. In the first, "Spock vs. Q," Spock has come back in time to warn Earth of an impending disaster (an asteroid is about to strike the planet), but Q shows up to prevent him from altering the space-time continuum. In the second, "Spock vs. Q: The Sequel," Spock and Q have just returned from dinner when they are suddenly zapped out into space -- and have switched personalities.

Plotwise, the first CD is better than the second. The jokes wear a little thinner in the sequel, and while it's great hearing Spock laugh and joke, the gimmick only carries the narrative so far. In the first CD, the Spock/Q banter moves at such a fast pace that I found myself missing bits of cutting insults or inuendo or ST references. It was great.

Don't be fooled, however. These CDs are about much more than a few laughs and paper-thin plots. Like the best of Star Trek, these audio adventures are morality plays in disguise. Beyond the banter, these shows carry wonderful discussions (and messages) about humanity, love, the environment, charity, and even that often-taboo (within ST) subject of the divine.

This is a great collection, and a joy for any Star Trek fan.

When I bought the "Star Trek: The Spock vs. Q Collection" I knew I was in for something special but what I didn't know was how special it was going to be. This collection is absolutely hillarious, both Nemoy and DeLancie are in great form and the interaction between the two is not to be missed.
Two masters at their craft.
The story itself is great and so is the writing, the dialog is intelligent and the delivery is fast pace, you can tell they were having a lot fun performing together.
As a bonus you get a cd with a short preview on the show, if the complete show is available on dvd please let me know I'd buy it in a second.
Also I recommend the other five cds recorded by Alien Voices, you won't be sorry.

Clifford the Small Red Puppy is about a little girl named Emily who gets a tiny puppy that she names Clifford.Her parents tell her that Clifoord might not make it because he is tiny but Clifford suprises everyone.It teaches that taking care of pets can be tough sometimes and that miracles can happen.I think the age level is maybe around 5-6 years.The book was good because it makes you want to get a small puppy and name it Clifford.

I feel that Clifford the Small Red Puppy was a good story. Even though Clifford was small, Elizabeth still loved him. So even though you may start off small you are still going to grow, maybe not in the same ways but you will grow.

Clifford the Small Red Puppy was a book about a puppy that was born a runt becoming a large (Very large) healthy full-grown dog.
The story starts out with the Clifford's owner Emily Elizabeth telling a friend the story of how Clifford came to be. The story goes when Emily lived in the city she didn't have a dog but their neighbor's dog had puppies and wanted to give some of them away. Among the puppies was a small red puppy but the owner said that she wouldn't live very long but Emily didn't care she loved that dog. One night she told Clifford that she wanted him to get big and not to die. After that Clifford grew to be extremely big and healthy.
I enjoyed this book because it showed no matter what there is always hope. I would recommend this book for the age level of a child just learning how to read.

This is a hilariously charming and educational story that tells about how Clifford, America's favorite Big Red Dog was once Clifford, The Small Red Puppy! Years ago, Clifford was adopted because he was the runt of the litter -- just so little and cute. But, he began to grow and grow to great big Clifford size, and the little girl had to adjust and learn to deal with those changes.

There is so much for children to take away from this story about the responsibilities of having a pet, changes in family relationships and so much more. Because the book is so funny, the message is so much more palitable, and it will be easy for parents to open discussions.

Excellent book with wonderful, eye-opening lessons.

One day Emilys neighbors dog had puppys and wanted to give some away. Emily went over to there house and picked out a little red puppy and the neighbor told Emily that puppy wouldn't live very long but Emily loved that puppy and kept it. One night Emily told her puppy that she wanted it to get bigger an not die. After that Clifford began to grow and he ended up very big and healthy.

I would recommend this book to children ages 3-8 its a very nice book for children learning to read.

This book teaches you should always beleave in anything like your dreams and keep tryig for your goals.

I like this book, but i still found another material to supplement some detail it doesn't cover and those are what I need.

The book is an excellent source for information on the relationship between the brain and behavior

This book is an excellent reference on neuropsychology. I am a graduate student in neuroscience and I was pleasantly surprised to note that this book was very thorough in its discussion of different topics. My research concerns aspects of activity in the temporal lobe and the authors have discussed some of the cutting edge literature.This book is definitely a cut above the normal neuroscience textbooks.

The authors have clearly taken the time to go through the literature and pick out interesting papers and placed them in a quick and readable manner. I would recommend this book to any student of systems neuroscience for a good introduction to the fascinating aspects of brain function. In fact I would go as far as saying that this book is an ideal companion to the now dated bible of neuroscience (Kandel, Schwartz and Jessel).

This work is titled "Fundamentals of Human Neuropsychology." The work provides a very nice perspective on what is know about the human brain and how it affects our thinking and decision-making.

One positive feature: it is well written and you do not have to be a doctoral student in neuropsychology to follow the book from chapter to chapter.

A second positive feature is the wide ranging coverage of basic subjects--from the evolution of the brain to its basic organization to the structure and function of the cortex to a discussion of higher functions (such as memory, language, emotions, and so on), as well as abnormalities that can occur in the brain.

All in all, a valuable volume that provides the reader with a good introduction (at more than a very basic level) to the structure and functioning of the human brain. It also makes us think a little bit about what it means to be a human.

I just wanted to point out a few things for those looking to find a deal on the editions pubished before the fifth. I bought the 4th edition for a class, saved some bucks, but I have been having to constantly check with folks who have the 5th edition because many chapter and heading locations have changed between the two editions. In addition to this, there are several new chapters that reflect the development of neuroscience in the years between the two editions, such and brain imaging and plasticity. Now after struggling with the earlier edition for two months I am having to biuy the fifth to get the assigned chapters that are not in the fourth.

So, the 4th edition certainly is a good text, but be aware of the changes if you are using this for classwork.

All the world knows that Dr. A. Q. Khan (Khan) stole but incomplete diagrams & he initailly thoughts he can make bomb with few technicians but this was his Deputy Dr. G. D. Alam (Dr. Alam) who told him that you can't do this without proper manpower.
Dr. Alam is the actual man behind this achivement for Pakistan and he is the man who achived this for Pakistan (Dr. Alam died on 5th December 2000). (This is Dr. Alam once said that "History don't lie" this is true.
This is the book 1st time mentioned Dr. Alam as his deputy, which means his investigation and research is very thorough, Dr Alam is the man who negotiated with all seller throughout the world for Pakistan's bomb, but refuse to help Dr. Khan sell the technology for personal gain)
Cheers'

I found it a fascinating of how one man could become a major dealer in nuclear technology.

The lax security in the European nuclear program allowed a Pakistani engineer Khan to steal the centrifuge designs. Khan took those designs to Pakistan to help create a nuclear bomb there. Soon Khan became the head of a major nuclear organization in Pakistan. Soon the Pakistani had developed centrifuges technology that could bypass the international controls on making nuclear bombs.

Here contrary to the writer, I am not so sure from his evidence the US atomic program for peace failed as he suggested. The appeal of Khan technology to rogue countries was they could bypass the checks here. So Khan sold this technology for large sums to Iran, Libya, North Korea and maybe one more.

Part of the problem stopping Khan was finding what was happening. Then it was his prestige in Pakistan. Plus the free world's need for Pakistani support both in the cold war and the war in Afghanistan after 911 but eventually in January 2004, under world pressure Khan was arrested and put under house arrest. So finally stopping Khan, leaving us with a problem of knowing how much damage Khan did!

Now it is a few years since the book was written. Iran is still trying to make a bomb. At best, Khan would have given it a boost. The Libyan spent much money for nothing and eventually gave up on nuclear bombs, so his contribution there was useless. North Korea appears according to recent information gave up earlier on this type of uranium enrichment technology and went back to the power reactor method. Maybe he helped with the bomb design. The last unknown country, I cannot comment.

Finally I am left wondering what happened to the money the Pakistani got from these countries? Khan lived a good life but he did not take much of the money. I suspect that it went to the Pakistan's nuclear program which I find a disturbing conclusion.

Overall if you are interested in this, you will find this a fascinating read.

George Tenet reportedly described A.Q. Khan as "at least as dangerous as Osama bin Laden." Corera adds that Khan has had greater impact on nuclear proliferation than any other individual - yet, his story begins simply as the right man in the right place. Trained as a metallurgist in Europe, he began work in '72 at a research lab in the Netherlands at the forefront of Europe's efforts to develop the latest centrifuge technology for nuclear fuel, providing independence from the U.S.

Next to the research lab was a plant holding thousands of tall, slender centrifuges connected by a maze of metal piping. Each machine only enriched the gas a tiny amount - thus, the need for a connected cascade. Each centrifuge consisted of 100 parts, many engineered to within /001 of a mm. and able to withstand very high speeds. One tiny mistake and the centrifuge spins out of control, often crashing into other machines and destroying the entire cascade.

Khan's first job at the research center was to translate documents for a new German-designed centrifuge - the P2. Security at the site was lax, and within three years Khan's co-worker became convinced Khan was a spy. Authorities were alerted, but according to most accounts, the CIA helped convince them just to watch Khan and remove his access to secret materials. Realizing he'd been found out, Khan returned to Pakistan, taking thousands of pages of documents and even discarded parts with him.

At about this same point in time the U.S. learned of Pakistan's intent to use fuel reprocessing (aided by France) to make a bomb. France as convinced to stop the program, leading Pakistan to instead focus on Khan's knowledge of centrifuges. (Other advantages of using centrifuges were that much less space and power were required than reprocessing or gaseous diffusion - making the program much easier to hide.)

Khan knew Pakistan lacked the manufacturing skills ("couldn't make a pin"), but he also knew who the component suppliers were for the research lab where he had worked. Thus, he utilized a network of Swiss, German, U.K., U.S., China (bomb design), North Korea (missile design), and Niger (yellowcake) suppliers. By 1987 Pakistan had the bomb. Soon after, Khan began marketing his/Pakistan's skills - North Korea, Libya, and Iran. Throughout this period and on to the present, the U.S. knew of Pakistan's activities but refrained from taking strong action because their cooperation was needed to help defeat the Russians in Afghanistan, and then after 9/11 in terror-reduction efforts.

An IAEA inspection in '03 found Iran with 160 cascaded P1-design centrifuges and evidence of uranium enriched to between 36 - 70%. Iran's original efforts began under the Shah in 1976, were known about in the U.S., and reportedly led Saddam Hussein in Iraq to press for his own program (began by purchasing a reactor from France). Iran, like its mentor, Pakistan, eventually also decided to go the centrifuge route after the U.S. pressed France to renege on an agreement to provide Iran with a fuel reprocessing (enrichment) plant. In addition, taking a lesson from Iraq's reactor being destroyed by Israel, Iran built its facilities in a dispersed, underground manner.

Currently it is not clear what Iran's strategy is. It may simply be building a large, legal stockpile of power-plant level fuel - ready to upgrade to weapons grade on short notice in only 20% of the time required starting from scratch. Or, it may have a parallel setup that is creating bomb-grade material at the present.

Pakistan's proliferation activities continued after 9/11 - however, dissidents in various countries provided information that led to finding enrichment centrifuges on a ship bound for Libya. Libya decided to renounce its program, and the information garnered from them and their suppliers helped prove to Pakistan's leaders that Khan and his associates were running amok.

A.Q. Khan has now been under house arrest in Pakistan for several years, unable to even use the telephone. Hopefully his proliferation activities have all been undone. However, his network suppliers have by now learned how valuable their offerings are, and it is also known that he also worked with those wanting to start a program in Saudi Arabia.

A.Q. Khan was the world's leading black market dealer in nuclear technology and a hero in Pakistan: Khan was known as the Father of the Bomb and built a global network selling nuclear secrets to Iran, North Korea and Libya. It's surprising to note that this is the first book-length survey of the rise and fall of the man and his role in spreading nuclear technology. It use interviews with politicians and key members of his own network to survey not only Khan's life and influence on the spread of nuclear technology, but the methods and intentions of the rogue states who bought from him. New details on how the CIA penetrated his network and broke his ring makes for a unique and eye-opening analysis which is a top recommendation for both general-interest collections strong in terrorist studies and military holdings.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This book is an excellent piece of work on Nuclear Proliferation. Things that I would have liked to see in this book :

*) Substantiated material with actual interviews with intelligence officers. Author uses lots of qoutes from private conversations, but how did he get access to those ? That makes me question a bit the authencity of the research.

*) The book keeps on jumping back and forth, which is an excellent case to muddy the presentation. I would have liked a chronological order maintained in the book so that thought processes can be collected and processed efficiently.

Overall it is an eye-opener.

i really didnt care for this book. i wouldnt say that it was a page turner b/c to me it wasnt. a lot of things made me mad about this book. i would have to say it was the mentality of the boys in this book. thats why i say that. the sad thing is thats the reality of todays world. it doesnt stop b/c the book stopped. A LOT of boys think like that. unfortunately their thinking doesnt change as they become men

Taking his cue from the harsh realities of the streets, author Mark Anthony has brought to life an incredible work of fiction that brings to the forefront the horrors of fast living and ill begotten money. In 1991 when the drug epidemic was at an all time high, many Americans, from all walks of life, found themselves in some way touched by the ever reaching evils that accompanied the use and selling of illicit drugs. However, no one seemed to be as hard hit by the trafficking, distribution and use of drugs, and the violence it spewed, than the youth of America's inner cities. Hordes of young men and women were ruined and corrupted by the fleeting power and money that drugs brought to the streets. The Fourth Crew of Queens, New York was such a group. Young, talented and intelligent, they were a group of African-American men who were seduced then betrayed by the false promises of street-life.

The Fourth Crew started out as a group of neighborhood friends whose bond was as strong as that of blood brothers. By no means innocent, they were however, just a group of friends who enjoyed life and were there for one another when the ills of Queens would rear its ugly head. Things changed for these young men in the summer of 1991. Fed up with being second class to the guys on the streets with money and girls, the Fourth Crew decided to become drug kingpins. Once and for all they were determined to get the things they wanted in life: money, street-credibility and women. In order to achieve such ambitious goals, the once seemingly harmless members of the Fourth Crew would have to transform themselves into hardened criminals. Soon the tight-knit group would find themselves torn apart by murder, prison and betrayal.

Told through the eyes of young Mark Holsey, the Fourth Crew member with a heart of gold, PAPER CHASERS is a page-turner that captivates from the first page. Mark Anthony takes you on a journey that is exciting and heartbreaking. Although street-life has been a popular theme in contemporary fiction, Mark Anthony's novel stands out from the rest. PAPER CHASERS is action-packed, sleek and intelligent. The novel delivers a true message about the ills of life on the streets, without being preachy or judgmental. The characters were non-stereotypical and believable. I found myself riveted and saddened by what eventually became of some of the characters. By novel's end I was captivated and touched by Mark Anthony's writing style and sense of story-telling .

Reviewed by L. Raven James
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

The Summer of 1991, a perfect back drop for this tale of ordinary guys tired of being just ordinary. But just where does the chase of the all mighty dollar lead this crew of life-long friends from Queens?

Holz the main character comes form a two parent home, has graduated high-school, has a job and a good girlfriend. But he will still fall to peer pressure and risk it all for material gain.

I've read a lot of books about friends venturing into illegal activites looking for the come-up. But what differs in Mr. Anthony's tale is the reality of the outcome of such ventures. Is there a price to pay for the fast life? Come follow the Fourth Crew and find out.

Excellent novel describing a very memorable summer in NYC and an unforgettable crew.

This book was execellent, definitley a page turner...I read it in two days.

This author makes the reader experience the story while reading the book. The excitement, the drama and the problems are so real! Mark Anthony communicates the art of telling a rich tale and bringing the characters to life. The writing is lighting quick, rough and unapologetic. This book is a essential for ALL book clubs! I truly enjoyed this book. When is the next???

great for people who love to doodle and who enjoy reaching inside and having fun with your inner self

An excellent variety of simple, but quite creative activities to start you thinking about yourself. I wish there were follow ups of this kind.

Spiritual Doodles and Mental Leapfrogs: Playbook for Unleashing Spiritual Self Expression
What a disappointment. If I had seen it before buying I would not have purchased it. It is written in poor hand-printing which makes it hard to read. The suggestions seem recycled, not new and not interesting. I would have returned it except for the bother of shipping it back to Amazon.

This is a great book to get you started in self-expressive journaling and doodling. There is such a variety of reflections and exercises- you can pick and choose the ones you're in the mood to do. I haven't finished going through all of the exercises, but it is a fun book so far. The pages are filled with doodles and drawings by the author. They invite play and spontaneity. It is a great way to get to know yourself better and explore a new means of self-expression.

This book is a wonderful tool for someone needing to find themselves. I also use this to channel my anger. It was very well done and I think everyone should have a copy!!!

The Web Testing Handbook is an excellent guide to `real world' testing of web sites and web applications. The book includes techniques, tips, checklists and - what I found really useful - lists of relevant URLs giving me instant opportunities to obtain up-to-date research, statistics and further expert opinion. The book also overcomes the problems many people have with endless acronyms by containing explanations of underlying web technologies. As a tester, I found the level just right - not over my head and not (like many Internet books) around my boots.
The book's approach is pragmatic and doesn't seek to give instant answers where none exist. Neither does it push academic approaches, which are never going to work in a high-pressure industry. I found the discussions of issues and solutions to be practical and useful. There is also a case study to reinforce the points made by the author - as well as making the topics more interesting. I would recommend this book to anyone directly or indirectly involved in web testing. It shows testers what to test and how. It gives test managers a framework and an approach to managing web testing - even including information on software tools. It is informative, understandable and, above all, readable.

This book is about web testing in general, not just performance testing, and is a must have for the professional testing engineer. Chapters 7 and 8, on performance and scalability give a very good introduction to the subject, and include a great sample performance testing plan.

Michael Czeiszperger
Web Performance, Inc. Stress Testing Software
http://www.webperformanceinc.com

When looking into books for any tech-related topic, I look for two qualities to assess the value of the book. The first is the depth of the subject matter of the work. I look for books that teach me new technologies, technique, or process. The second is the book's lasting value as a reference for future work. When spending money, I'd like to be sure that the lasting value of the book is at least potentially there. This book has neither of those qualities, here's why:

- Depth of Subject Matter -
It's difficult to determine who this book is written to educate. The forward identifies the audience as existing software testers looking for education in the finer points of web software testing. That's legitimate, but it falls far short of this or any other unstated goals. The delivery of material in this work is quick and dirty. There's no topic that extends beyond a single-digit number of pages. This makes plenty of sense in the early chapters where the discussion of things like hardware compatibility are discussed. Other areas deserve far better coverage. The topics of browser compatibility, performance testing, and scalability testing, for example, are scantly explained. It's a disservice to the reader, since these are paramount topics for the intended audience. Another downfall to this approach is its failure to discuss the organizational differences between an IT team deploying software frequently versus one deploying incremental releases on a yearly timeframe. To be fair, the authors touch on this topic, but it's nothing comprehensive.

- Reference Value -
The reference value of this book is almost zero. I run a test team for a web based business of considerable size, and I have to say I found some actually misleading advice in the work. A lot of the explanations of what's smart and what's avoidable fall completely off the mark. Even worse, and this is actually enough of a reason to start looking for a different book right away, is the poor quality of the references throughout the book. While they spend some considerable time explaining the difference between the time in a normal software development cycle and one that operates under 'web time', they cite sources from two and three years ago that are completely irrelevant considering the widespread and fundamental changes to the online software development domain. They establish 'web time' as an accelerated, hectic calendar where nothing is the same after two months of churning, but then cite references from 1999 market research studies to back up their points. Though definitely not intentional, it's very neglectful. I turned to the front of the book at one point to re-verify the copyright date. ...

So, for me and for my needs, this book is essentially worthless and I'm sad to have spent [$$] to learn this. The topics are covered only as summaries, but those that deserve and in some cases completely require a much deeper explanation are treated similarly. Regarding the intended audience, it's still a head scratcher because of the delivery of the material. It's not heavy in any one area, so it's difficult to determine if this is for a QA manager (can't work, not enough attention to process), the new tester (can't work, not enough detail on the actual testing), the converting tester (might work, but the high-level descriptions coupled with the indescriminate delivery of the subjects would confuse anyone without due insight), or the experienced web tester (can't work, too much of the data is elementary to those already functioning as a tester in the web space). I don't suggest it, and I wouldn't suggest it in a future edition if they work to update the references.

I've purchased and been reading this book. I've also reviewed the downloadable sample documents "Master Test Plan" and this is almost exactly what I need for the test plan I'm writing for our extranet site. Before finding this book, I spent hours searching for methods and techniques to use for developing a through test plan. Once I found this resource, my searching was over.

Testing Web-based applications and web interfaces is a new focus for many companies. Web-based application testing is different from the traditional client / server, PC, and / or mainframe system software products. Also factored in are code quality, browser compatibility, site navigation, user interaction, performance, and scalability.

Recognizing that companies need to conduct evaluation as they develop their "next generation" web sites and applications, The authors have written an insightful introduction to the concepts and techniques for conducting various tests. The book starts with an introduction to web programming, servers, architecture, and all those something 2 something terms (Business to Business (B2B) and Market to Market (M2M) for example). To select and conduct appropriate tests requires an understanding the purpose of the application and the architecture that supports it.

The authors reference a study by Creative Good during the 1998 holiday season on 10 leading Web shopping sites. The study found that for every US$1 spent on advertising generated US$5 in additional review while US$1 spent on "customer experience" improvements yielded more than US$60 in additional review. What more motivation is needed to ensure your Web site is usable?

This handbook guides you through the web testing process. The book is easy to follow and avoids dry "theory" talk that you find in many technical books. How often have you read such a book and found yourself unable to apply it to real world situations? You'll find a handy checklist of test conditions along with URLs for further references associated with the section to help you apply the test concepts. You can take the relevant items from the checklists and create your test case templates. The authors took another step and created a companion Web site using an imaginary company as a case study and included downloadable sample business requirements and test plans associated with the case study.

Covering all of the possible bases, the book offers guidelines and checklists for conducting all kinds of testing that applies to web-based applications, from interface usability to server functionality. It also includes common software development scenarios and provides possible options for handling them. For example, a team may require everyone to work on the weekend to test the Web site's ability to handle a large number of users. However, it may not be the best way to go functionally and financially. The authors explain the reasoning and present available options.

While traditional software developers are probably most familiar with concepts like load testing (determining how much load a server can handle) and software testing (making sure that all of the functionality works), human factors professionals have touted the concept of usability testing as a way of determining how well a user might be able to navigate and use a web site or application. Jakob Nielsen has been one of the most vocal in this. The book provides a variety of methods for testing usability.

The book provides something for everyone in a software development shop including developers, testers, managers, and project managers. Testers get help on how and where to begin. Managers can benefit from the test strategies and planning. Companies new to testing and not knowing which tools and resources to use will want to review the book's unbiased discussion and resources of such tools. You won't feel overwhelmed by the resources because it's organized by sections, which helps you focus on current needs.

The book is well laid out and it's a fast read. It would be difficult to miss its concepts. This well-rounded book would be a boon to any software development team's library even if it were only one person playing all the parts.