Quality Time Books

I read this book and thoroughly enjoyed it. Upon reading the reviews of others, I noticed a dichotomy. People either REALLY liked it or thought it was too simple. I also noticed that the reviews of the ones advocating its futility were by far SHORTER than the reviews by the "happy campers." While my judgement is, by far, not scientific, I am led to believe that those that thought of it as a simplistic work...simply missed the point. This book is very philosophical while still practical. Chaffee is well informed and "preaches" the virtues of a world where people who want to be informed, live as such. I'll keep my review short and ask you not to read this book like a novel, but, as Chaffee suggests, read it over an extended period of time allowing for the concepts to come to fruition.

This book differs from many of the other types of self-help books by dealing only with the "thought" process.

You can transform yourself through the 8 Steps- 1. Think Critically 2. Live Creatively 3. Choose Freely 4. Solve Problems Effectively 5. Communicate Effectively 6. Analyze Complex Issues 7. Devlop Enlightened Values 8. Think Through Relationships

The Thinker's Way is a must read if you want to improve yourself in any of the above 8 steps.

The author, John Chaffee, Ph.D., is the Director of the New York Center for Critical Thinking and Language Learning and brings to us many years of research into critical thinking. The result is a book that teaches how to think critically and then apply those skills to everyday situations. The world can be very confusing with the tremendous amount of information thrown at us every day. How do you make a decision or analyze information to see if it is valuable to you or not? This book details how to approach the various challenges of life by thinking clearly. With an eight-step process to critical thinking, he provides information and exercises to get you going in the right direction. Whether attacking problems, dealing with difficult people, deflecting propaganda directed at you or just bettering your life through better decision-making and fewer regrets, the collective knowledge in this text points the way to clear thinking.

In fact, its near perfect thickness of 1.25" (hardcover) is perfect for balancing uneven patio furniture.

John Chaffee encourages you to reach your full potential as a critical thinker and a creative thinker. He outlines ways you can improve your thinking and decision-making processes. It covers basic background information about the psychology of thought and encourages you to develop a rewarding, well-considered set of beliefs. The author discusses and evaluates stumbling blocks to critical thought, and then offers suggestions and activities for overcoming them. Though it is probably familiar to good communicators and occasionally repetitive, this material provides food for thought especially for those who are new to critical thinking. We [...] recommend this book to those who enjoy self-help books, and who want basic assistance in improving their thinking and communicating skills.

Simply put - I purchased this Astronomy book through Amazon because the price was the same as elsewhere but I would save on shipping. I expected a NEW book but received a Used Book in good condition.
The Book itself so far seems well laid out and interesting but the course I am taking has just reached the 1/3 mark toward completion.

The authors of this book say it is for the laymen. Bull. This book is not only exceptionally difficult to comprehend with all the manifold "big terms and measurments" they throw at you, but is also annoying, and does not provide answers. God it's annoying.

The diagrams for something you are reading are not even on the page you are reading, so you have to flip two or three pages to find which diagram they are talking about--as paradoxical as that sounds. They (diagrams) are difficult to understand, and sometimes just a damn mess.

I can't even tell you how many times I almost fell asleep reading their (the author's ramblings) piles of excess information--literally mountains and heaps of excess, useless, complex, redundant, information that only professional astronomers or math-adepts could understand.

This book is so not for someone who wants to take a casual astronomy course. After I am done with it, I'm going to set it on fire. Stay away from this thing.

I have had a lifetime love of Astronomy but have lacked the mathmatical background for a thorough understanding. Most popular books on the subject rarely cover the field in the manner that I desire. Astronomy Today is a textbook for a beginning course in astronomy at the college level and does, in fact, cover a great deal of information without the need for mathmatical knowledge. The authors express their ideas and information in clear, concise language and clearly manifest an enthusiasm for their subject. I have enjoyed the book immensely.

This is an excellent textbook, but I deducted one star (from a possible five-star rating) because of the absurd comments made by the authors in the beginning of the book. In this fourth edition of Astronomy Today, a textbook published by Prentice Hall for college students, the authors open the very first chapter with the following statements:

"Of all the scientific insights attained to date, one stands out boldly: Earth is neither central nor special. We inhabit no unique place in the universe. Astronomical research, especially within the past few decades, strongly suggests that we live on what seems to be an ordinary rocky planet called Earth, one of the nine known planets orbiting an average star called the Sun, a star near the edge of a huge collection of stars called the Milky Way Galaxy, which is one galaxy among countless billions of others spread throughout the observable universe."

Huh!? Earth isn't special? Compare the other planets in our Solar System to Earth and tell us it isn't special. And Earth is "...an ordinary rocky planet..."? It's the only planet we know of with vast oceans of liquid water, a breathable atmosphere, lush vegetation, and a spectacular collection of life forms. The authors of this textbook must have been "out to lunch" when they wrote that trite introduction, or... this is just another deliberate attempt by "philosophers of gobbledygook" to strip the Earth of its special place in the universe and to squash any special characteristics that may differentiate it from everything else in the cosmos. I strongly suspect the latter viewpoint is the correct one.

The fact is the Earth is indeed a very special place, and the Sun is a very special star. In fact, the Sun-Earth relationship represents a very special arrangement that permits life to thrive upon our planet. Mercury, Venus and Mars may be nothing more than ordinary rocky planets, but Earth is truly unique from all the other planets in our Solar System, and may be truly unique in all the universe.

I stand by my initial rating of the textbook: 4 stars and an excellent read. I just have a wee bit of a problem with blind astronomers.

This book is designed to be the astronomy book that non-science majors would use to meet their one-year of science requirement as part of their undergraduate degree. As such it is written without the mathematics content that would be normal in a course aimed at astronoly or physics students. In addition, this particular book has several advantages. To identify just a few:

1. Throughout the book there is an emphasis on teaching the scientific method. This area has been strengthened in this edition because (I'm guessing) the current attempts by the un-intelligent design people to disparage scientific theories.

2. Revised to include the latest discoveries being made by the Mars rovers and the down grading of poor Pluto to a minor planet.

3. Updating the current theories regarding dark matter and dark energy.

In summary this is a well written, well illustrated text, ideally suited for the non-scientists.

I had hoped this book would provide more detail on TPS, but it is very light on any detail and glosses over many points. After you have read The Goal and are use to its style of teaching manufacturing principles in the context of a novel, this book leaves you feeling really disappointed.

YES read "Andy & Me" for a quick overview and high-level understanding of the LEAN process. The book will not tell you how to create the LEAN process but will give you a basic understanding to build on and insight into the questions you may need to ask for your particular situation.

As soon as I had finished this book, I reread it - to get the most out of the material presented. It is the best written lean business novel I have seen (though I also like "Who's Counting" by Jerry Solomon - available on Amazon.com). The book launches straight into the lean journey and presents the issues and challenges well. It is a good introductory read to help you get to grips with the ideas. My problem with it is that it doesn't go into any detail. There is no explanation of how the culture is changed to support involvement on problem solving; or how to do 5S, or kaizen; or how to map the value stream. But it provides a great overview and it is upbeat in tone - great for getting your energy up on the start of the lean journey, or to refresh your spirits when problems arise. Easy to read on the train or plane too. Recommended.

The author, Pascal Dennis, also wrote "Lean Production Simplified" a very clear plain English guide to lean principles and processes.

I have read a few business improvement novels in the past few years, but this one blew me away. I picked it up and was halfway through the book before I was forced to put it down by some prior engagements. It had a wealth of information that someone eager to learn could consume and digest without trouble, as well as a story line that kept me interested and willing to keep flipping through pages. I highly recommend this literature to anyone interested in manufacturing, lean initiatives, or reading.

I wouldn't recommend this book to Amazon, because rather than buying the next book I'm probably just going to re-read this one.

This is another "Business novel." The author does an effective job of communicating the philosophy of the Toyota Production System, and discussing organizational transition.

I chose to stop reading this book in the middle of the first chapter. The author's writing style was very child-like. Even if there is a good story here, the author's presentation of it turned me off. Very unsophisticated prose and dialogue.
Sorry, I tried to love it since he is from my hometown. I wish him well on his newest book. I'll try it also.

"Never As Good As the First Time" made for interesting reading. My husband's boss gave it to me saying how good it was. Once I picked it up, I couldn't put it down. I asked my husband if I had to give it back.

The book was great. I am not a person who loves to read but when I read this book, I read it in one day's time. This book is really good. When you start reading, you wouldn't want to put it down. That's just how good it is.

Never as Good as the first time is the story of Jake, a playboy who's still in love with his ex-wife Indigo. Jake starts dating Kayra, but it don't works out because of his playing ways. Kayra end's up falling for her bestfriend Pam, who's always had a crush on Kayra. Pam end's up getting all of them in some serious trouble.

Never as Good as the first time is the story of Jake, a playboy who's still in love with his ex-wife Indigo. Jake starts dating Kayra, but it don't works out because of his playing ways. Kayra end's up falling for her bestfriend Pam, who's always had a crush on Kayra. Pam end's up getting all of them in some serious trouble.

I have enjoyed Leslie Glass' writing a great deal but have found that I need a break from reading her books too close together. I love reading a series in order as I like to see the character progession and development. I also like the feeling that I am getting to know the characters. In that vein though, I can get frustrated at the communication that the characters show. In most of the books I want to shout at April to just tell her mother how she feels! I know communication exists like that but I find it frustrating.

Overall the stories are engrossing and very interesting with a great focus on New York. I love books that show me a great deal about the area they are in. I would suggest these books to anyone who likes detective mysteries that are not graphic. Very solid series, just can't read them in a row.

first time i pick up a book from this author and i loved it.the storyline keeps you wanting more and more.good story but some facts about san diego are not accurate.

This was my first exposure to Leslie Glass - great first impressions! I really enjoyed the book, the characters were well defined and the plot was exciting and twisted. April Woo is a great character - strong, independent and smart! Other reviewers have correctly compared this author to Thomas Harris (Hannibal series) - April is similar to Clarice, the serial killer plot is well thought out and moves at a great pace.

I have already purchased Hanging Time and can't wait to get started!

Glass does a great job in getting the reader into the story, creating an interesting plot and intricate characters. Nevertheless, towards the end the action is too rushed and events unfold without a clear connection. It seems to me as if the author had to comply with a deadline and could not finish the book in the way it deserved. This series will get another chance from me, and hopefully the experience will be better next time!

I was made aware of Leslie Glass' novel by a Japanese friend of mine, who had read her translated books and thought that the Asianness of the book was great. We're both big mystery fans, so I quickly went out and bought whatever Glass novels I could find. Being half Asian, it is great to not only see a leading Asian character, but also see someone capture the Asian culture and essence so well. April's mother is somewhat like my mother (and definitely like many of my friend's Chinese mothers!), she always makes me laugh - especially her dialog, which is just so true to form. I would be very interested to find out how Glass learned so much about Chinese culture??

Compared to her other books (I'm afraid I haven't read then in chronological order), this one came across as a bit more gruesome and gory. However, I enjoyed it nevertheless. It's a good murder mystery, with solid characters, what else can one ask for?

I lived in Prague for a year and I referenced my Time Out nearly every week for restaurants, reliable maps, activities and historical information. I found the information to be well-written with clear explainations. Dress codes, crowds at certain bars and restaurants, prices were all accurate. I owned four guidebooks by four different well-known publishers, and the Time Out was all I really needed.

This guidebook has accurate and good recommendations for hotels, restaurants and basic shopping and is written with wit. It also links hotels, restaurants and shops (if in central Prague) to the maps in the back of the book which is a tremendous help to find places. In terms of covering the sites in Prague, it is good for a basic overview. If you plan to visit Prague for a weekend or a long weekend, this is a great guidebook. If you are looking for a deeper understanding of specific sites, take a tour or supplement with another guidebook.

I am a Time out travel guide user for life. Once again, the detail, accuracy and maps are superior; esp to other travel books. I highly endorse the Time Out travel series to my friends all the time. The Time Out guide series is not truly for backpackers, or those on a shoe string type of budget. But if you are one who wants to get everything out of a city...and experience the best the city has to offer, Timeout is for you.

I bought this book and the Rough Guide to Prague last week in order to plan my trip around Europe. The Time Out guides are okay but are more like directories of hotels, shops and sights than critical guides. They give you all the information you will ever need - but no information on what to see in the museums or at the sights it lists. This is why the Rough Guides are far superior. You get more criticism - really detailed commentaries on museums and galleries as well as the different areas and districts of Prague. The TO guide is also quite dry - with little on Politics, History and Culture compared to the Rough Guide.

I found the material dry and boring. The book tries to provide examples so much that it goes on and on about it.

I took a course using this book during my 2nd year & learned a great deal from it. As a PSYC major, I was interested in how fundamental Sociology is in creating a foundation for psychological studies. So...in short, a sociology text like this should NOT be used just by Sociology students. It was definitely fascinating (as well as current, relevant, & unbiased)!

This book has been used by many college institutions as the basis of their Sociology instruction. The book contains many real life sociological issues and presents them to the reader in a way that is both modernized and easy to understand. The author of this book has many years of experiance in the Sociological field and has authored and co-authored many sociological books. This specific book provides an extremely good fundemental basis for individuals seeking a strong basic foundation for a focus on Sociological education.

Some people who read 'Quality Is Free' observed that the title is somewhat misleading (because it oversimplifies the real message). This book's title is definitely misleading, because it suggests that the book is an update to "Quality Is Free'. This, however, is not at all the case - this book does not have anything to do with "QIF", except the author and his general attitude towards quality (which is quite convincing, however).

"Still Free" is just an account of Crosby's career from his earliest work experiences, through ITT to his own quality consulting firm. The focus, however, is almost always on quality philosophy and implementation, rather than personal matters - they are touched on only to illustrate the professional aspects. Generally, it is a good account but I doubt that this is a reasonable form of explaining author's quality philosophy because it's intrinsically simple and intuitive; as far as can be seen from the book, it has not evolved much over years of its application by the author. This being the case, it is not worth explaining in this particular form.

The book would be more valuable if it were written before "Quality Is Free", not after. Maybe they should be read in this order; doing it the other way round does not seem to be very useful.

An advantage of this book over "QIF" is its language: much more clear and readable. All in all, it may be worth reading if you only want to get a general idea of Crosby's quality concept. If you need a program for actions, better read "QIF".

Crosby wrote an excellent book that is very useful to managers, quality professional and any individual concerned about quality. The author clearly explains the meaning of quality, which is conformity to requirements. He also shows a useful way to measure quality in terms of cash and not just the usual metrics such as the number of rejects per specified number of units produced. The profits that would flow from producing quality products and services is a good measure. Crosby explains that adopting the cost effective practice of preventing errors will result in avoiding rework, scrap or servicing, which result in increased profits.

The author explains that quality processes should pervade the whole organisation, including areas like public relations or industrial relations, and not confined to customer specific areas.

The book is practical oriented with the author providing some suggestions on how to implement his philosophies in a manufacturing organisation. The book is a bit dated but this does little to diminish the quality of the author's message. The book is applicable to all organisations in any industry, although the author had a bias towards manufacturing enterprises. This is a classic book that is highly recommended.

When I volunteered at school, this was the one of the best books to read to a group. They quickly picked up that the title is repeated throughout the story to the main character. I'd stop the story and allow the kids to shout out, "Try again, SallyJane".

They loved that!

A wonderful book for children. This book helps children accept who they are while helping them to realize there are others out there in this big world who also have worries and concerns. This is a book that can help a child begin to think of others and their struggles and help them to be more open to the plight of those around them, helping them become less self-centered. The repitition of the text with each animal allows the child to interact with the "reader". "You think that's hard?" Kids can really get into this story and particiapte, what a great way to get them involved in reading at an early age!

I am currently doing an assignment on business process re-engineering. Many of the texts I have read so far have been thick on the theories and the benefits of re-engineering. As such, it comes across as cheap propagnada.

This book was different. In the first chapter, unlike other texts, it did not simply insists that TQM and other continuous process improvements are of the past and are not good enough for today's business environment. It explains how TQM has its place, if you are already a market leader. However, if you are way below, then TQM will not allow you to reach the apex before you are out of business. Re-engineering is the way.

This immediately pave the way for the rest of the book. The authors are balanced in their views and do not simply advertise the merits of re-engineering. They also cautioned throughout the text on the difficulties and pitfalls of re-engineering. I found their arguments more convincing than most authors.

The examples throughout the book were taken from different industries and prove a source for ideas for any re-engineering effort. The authors came across as extremely experienced in their work.

I would have given it five stars except the last chapter on the human aspect of re-engineering was rather dissapointing. I had expected to learn more from the authors about the very difficult human resource issues in re-engineering. Like most texts, the book mentioned difficulties and dished out textbook solutions without real solutions.

Still, it was one of the best re-engineering texts I have read and I believe it will help me greatly in my assignment.

I also believe that it is extremely useful for any managers or CEOs who want to re-engineer their business. Hammer's classic on re-engineering is not enough. You need to read this book for the practical advice and guiding framework if you are to have any chance for success in re-engineering.