Commercials Books

. . . an illuminating look at the risks involved in flying commercial airliners, from a line captain who spent his career doing just that. . . . Power-Waters uses his captain's eyes and mind to explain why things happen and what can be done to make the skies safer. . . .
Roy Boydston, General Aviation News

Once again Captain Brain Power-Waters had the courage to take on the FAA. I hope his effort is not in vain. The ALPA, IAM, and NATCA need to take a stand and do the right thing. We all know the FAA want. Congradulations Brian for your great book. This is a must read for everyone! Steve Goodman, Line Captain, A&P, I.A.

I thoroughly enjoyed Captain Power-Waters' latest book. Now the truth is out! What a great job of telling the truth, and in such an interesting fashion. Power-Waters' story telling holds the attention while putting out information that is valuable to all in aviation. Is It Safe? covers today's primary concern of the risky business of flying commercial airlines, and what can be done about it. I am recommending my friends read it. Captain Power-Waters continues to do a service for all aviation by telling it like it is. This is overdue in aviation.
Paul E. Stebelton, FAA Accident Prevention Specialist (13 years), Captain USAF Retired.

"Thank you for sending me a copy of Is It Safe? You obviously have done an extensive job researching this topic, and, more importantly, it is clear you have lived the issues. I congratulate you on your effort.
Robert Roach, Jr., General Vice President IAM, the International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers.
IAM has over 14,000 mechanics and flight attendants in their association.They also preside over 75,000 other airline employees.

Whether it's airline practices, the two-person cockpit crew, or just plain bad design, Captain Brian is all over it. He's particularly hard on the FAA, from a lot of different angles. He points out that they can't possibly do the job they're saying they're doing, and that their delegates (DERs and airline employee-supervisors) aren't as interested in safety as in keeping the schedules met. He points out that the FAA doesn't follow its own rules, and how, if you're high enough up in the bureaucracy, you can get away with all kinds of questionable actions. He even mentions how some (to his mind, as well as most others' ) "unqualified" FAA officials (they're all "officials") decided to "get" Bob Hoover. . . . .
He sounds alarmist, even -- until you realize he's quoting actual accident reports, actual cockpit recordings, actual GAO studies, actual facts. . . . .
The book reads like a hangar-talk bull session, where you're listening to a guy who knows his flying, knows his airplanes, knows his maintenance, and, well, knows what he's talking about. . . . .
Tim Kern, Aero-News Network

This important book reveals another dimension to Tolkien that remains obscured by his monumental storytelling. Tolkien was gifted with a many-sided creativity, as most artists are, and his visual creativity casts as vivid a vision of re-enchantment as his written work.

This book is much better than I thought it would be. Mostly I was curious to see more of Tolkien's art, but the text that goes along with it is wonderful. Christopher Tolkien asked the authors to write this book to showcase his father's art, and they do a wonderful job of describing the pictures, pointing out details that I missed, and putting them in context of when and where and why Tolkien drew them. Several versions of the same pictures are shown so you can see how Tolkien worked through a problem until he found the best final product. Plus the inspirations for some of the pictures are also shown, to show that Tolkien copied others sometimes, but in the end put his own mark on it. By copied, I don't mean plagarized. He drew his eagle from a book of birds to make sure he got it right, or was inspired by other artists particular works. Highly recommended if you are a Tolkien fan. If you are just into art and not a Tolkien fan, then I don't think this will interest you.

This book is a great way to collect some of Tolkien's best works of art and to get a glimpse behind the scenes of one of the greatest literary figures of the 20th century. Highly recommended.

Lleno de ilustraciones color, y algunas en blanco y negro. Me gusta porque es lo que Tolkien imaginó para sus obras... eso es lo que lo hace más hermoso. Además demuestra que Tolkien era un alma muy sensible, amante de la naturaleza, y esto se refleja no solo en sus libros sino también en sus dibujos. Me gustaría que estos dibujos estén incluidos en sus obras, no solo los dibujos de otros artistas. Hermoso, hermoso, para todos los admiradores de Tolkien.

This book features many of Tolkien's ink, watercolor, pencil, and colored pencil works. The detailed descriptions of each drawing include history, explanations, and dates. Quite a few maps are included, as well as illustrations for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. It is wonderful to see how Tolkien imagined Middle Earth and its inhabitants. The colors he used are very earthy and lovely.

My favorite drawing in this book is "End of the World" done in pencil and colored pencil on a sheet of notebook paper - you can actually see the lines of the paper. It is so simple; yet, the story it tells includes subtle intricacies and complexities similar to those in his writings. I also love the pencil and colored pencil drawing, "The Tree of Amalion," which obviously blooms with the flowers of Tolkien's imagination since they do not resemble traditional flowers. Finally, the hand drawn Christmas cards are beautiful mini-stories with dancing bears and penguins, and Father Christmas making deliveries.

This book is truly exquisite, full of details and surprises for those of us who didn't know Tolkien was an extremely talented artist. It is a worthwhile purchase in my opinion.

J.H. Sweet, author of The Fairy Chronicles

I burrowed this book from a public library and have loved the book, i actually had to purchase this book thru Amazon. Glad that it came back~
Has a wealth of information and very easy to understand and follow up on it

Excellent book to add to your bookshelf for breeding information. A must have for the reputable breeder or a newbie just starting out.

I have no down fall opinions of this book at all. "Excellent" ratings~

Excellent book a must have if you plan on breeding.Covers everything you need to know on breeding. I will always keep this book around.

This book is put in simpler terms than a text book & makes it easier to understand for the novice. Very informative.

This is an excellent book for basic canine genetics and picking a breeding partner as well as other aspects of Breeding for quality show puppies.

The absolute best information for breeders on breeding and caring for pups and mom. Written by a legend in dogs and her knowledge is extensive. I would not be without this book ~ I credit it with my being able to save many a pup & avoid many problems.

This was one of the 1st books that inspired me in faux. It is a must have in any faux finish library.


We used some of these clasic techniques and principles in the famous faux house captured in the hot new book "The House that Faux Built: Transform Your Home with Paint, Plasters and Creativity" The House That Faux Built

If you can't decide what to do to that plain ole drab wall look through this book!! Shows step by step exciting and new techniques that maybe one wouldn't' have thought of ((or have the nerve to do)). If you get get stuck in what to do, just flip through and it will get your " creative juices" flowing!!

I was looking forward to this book but was rather disappointed due to the extensive written instructions but the rather sketchy illustrative photos.

I bought this book more than ten years ago, I have an almost complete collection of books on painted finished, especially of wood and marble. The "Professional Painted Finishes" is absolutely the best I have, it is oozing QUALITY throughout. It is not for beginners but is The reference to return to again and again. It is also lovely just to browse through.

I liked this book because it contained great illustrations and it also had helpful information about the business side of faux finishing. The text is compact, so each page contains alot of data.

This is an excellent book for artists fo all kinds. Our company has a library we make available to Production Designers - this is a great addition.

A luscious collection of photographs of beautiful colors and textures to inspire any artist/designer and be used as reference again and again.

There are nice collection of the samples.You can enjoy to look through them.

This book is one of the best references for any designer and painter in the industry. Color Photos are amazing and complete. I have been wanting to purchase it for years now and am very glad to add it to my collection. All of her books are worth having in any artists library.

I think I was a little hard on Judy Juracek with reference to the included CD. What Ms. Juracek has done in the way of cataloguing is nothing short of miraculous and one should not expect that every image on the CD would be photographed dead on and shadow-perfect. I was just really irked by the image quality of a CD I had such high hopes for. I purchased this book when it first came out for a Hundred Dollars retail but the price I now see listed online seems almost a steal for the treasure trove contained within.

In any case, A recent search reveals that even more books in the series have been written by the author and I'm excited to purchase these as well--let's hope the image quality has improved on the included CDs for the new millenium we're in. I guess you could still expect "middlin'" quality for an image CD produced back in the "stoneage" of the 90's. The book is GREAT!

The Ultimate Commercial Book for Kids And Teens is an amazing resource for all ages who want to break in to the commercial business. The commercials in this book really allow me to get into so many different characters.Chambers is a genius for writing this book. By reading the information in this book anyone can tell that he knows what he's doing.

Chambers book is fun, funny and full of surprises. It really helps you prepare for all of your auditions!

Its a valuable source in preparing for commerical auditions. The book is easy to read and fun to work with. The commercials that Chambers had created were real life ones, and very clever situations. Its easy to pick up on them.

My daughter enjoyed memorizing a commercial a day from 24-Carat Commercials for Kids which got her "in shape" for auditions. The Ultimate Commercial Book for Kids and Teens provides more great material for learning and training-

Another great book in Stevens' series for teens. My daughter found "Sensational Scenes for Kids" very helpful in her speech class. Her teacher kept a copy in the classroom. Students found the scenes fun to learn, with timely topics, and language they could relate to. "Ultimate Commercials" will be a useful tool for aspiring actors or teens working on public speaking.

This book was a gift for my husband who works for Delta. He really enjoyed the book.

The book is an easy read. It is well organized and flows logically. In addition, it has slightly larger type with plenty of white space for improved readability.

The author writes in a style similar to Peter Drucker, one of my favorite business writers. He expresses valuable key management points in a succinct, easy to understand way.

The author brings his vast consulting experience together to very effectively relate to the issues that Delta faced. His perspective is how Delta's leaders - 7 CEOs and their Board - dealt with those issues and the leadership lessons we can all learn from the decisions of those leaders.

From this leadership perspective, he chronicles the company history, starting with C.E. Woolman, founder of Delta and a great leader during the company's early decades. Nolan then graphically shows how the roots and a culture that caused a growing company to flourish and thrive were damaged or abandoned by later leaders, ultimately leading Delta into bankruptcy.

The points made regarding the agenda of some management consultants are right on target. They deserve serious consideration by any CEO, Board or executive.

The book is a valuable, textbook case study in how a great company can go awry when the leaders lose focus and depart from the values and culture that made it great.

Once nationally recognized as one of the finest major corporations in the United States to work for, this book provides an insight into how a great company was led astray by an unfortunate string of incompetent leaders. This book should be required reading for anyone asked to serve on a company's Board of Directors or as a CEO/President. Lessons learned should be the ability to recognize a pattern of poor decisions and take decisive action before it is too late.

With a sharp eye and a keen analytical pen, Harry Nolan holds up a chronological mirror for the reader so we can see the step-by-step erosion of this once-fine company. It's a shame that Delta didn't hire advisors with his insight when the cracks in the company's armor started to appear. Acknowledging current CEO Gerald Grinstein's efforts now to 'row the boat ashore', Nolan does not cut him any slack for his past omissions/commissions as a member of this infamous Board of Directors. WHERE WAS THE BOARD? is a question asked often throughout the book. This book should be required reading for every Director, present and future, of every company, to witness what can occur when the Board relinquishes its responsibilities as Delta's Board did. A gripping story...and it's non-fiction too!

What an awesome book. I am a Delta employee with 18+ years and this is the best book I have read regarding my company. Although the Leadership would have us "little people" believe Delta is in bankruptcy because of us, this book places the Responsibility right where it belongs, with the CEO and Board of Directors. Thank you Mr. Nolan for disclosing the real facts! Those of us on the inside can relate to your book. It should be required reading, but instead, management at Delta has a prepared script to refute the truth disclosed in the book.

Effortlessly The Golden Age of Advertising--The 50's combines a crash course in visual arts, history, sociology and business, and does it without you even knowing it's happening! Like the other titles in the series, volumes which cover the history of advertising in the 1970's and 1960's, this book throws out so many glorious advertisements it's like time traveling. See full color ads for cigarettes (Doctors recommend Camels for calm nerves!), alcohol, clothing, foods, appliances, cars, and more. See how fashion, hairstyles, the very thought patterns of we Americans, ourselves, have evolved from where we were at mid-century last. You can stare at the pages of this virtually word-less book for hours and still see things you missed the fist time. It's a real treat!

Massive, beautifully produced, and very insightful in it's appraisal of 1950's American consumerism, this tome is perhaps the best collection of 1950's advertising ever assembled. Tons of beautiful illustrations and (in some cases) graphic design that are now relics of the past. In my opinion, this book should only have been published in harcover, due to its weight and number of pages. Sadly the hardcover is impossible or nearly impossible to find, unless you go for the abridged version issued as "The Golden Age of Advertising- the 1950s." This whole series of books which now span most of the 20th century are a great reference, and an important documentation of American history in visual form.

We were recent house guests of a couple who have decorated some areas of their beautiful home with a 50's theme. We gave them this book as a thank you for hosting our family. It was a unique gift, and one they will enjoy for years.

Probably the best ad book I've ever seen! Worth every penny it costs and believe me, it doesn't cost THAT much - not for a book like this! I was born in the 50s (in Russia) and Russians wouldn't even dream (or didn't even hear!) of products which are in this book - advertised in the US in the 50s. I'm now waiting for my All-American Ads of the 60s to arrive from Amazon - I spent my childhood in the US in the 60s and I can't wait to meet my "good old friends" - the American products - as advertised in the 60s. I'm hoping to collect the whole series of these fabulous books. Thank you very much, Jim Heimann and Benedikt Taschen -the guys who made this wonderfull series possible. Alexander Romanov, Moscow, Russia.

I loved this book! As a child born in the mid-50's, many of these ads fortunately carried over to the 60's when I was both better able to comprehend as well as recall them. It was also nice showing the book to our children, as it gave them a glimpse into some of what our own childhood's were like. If anyone reading this wants to take a trip back to a simpler, safer, saner era, this book is your "Time Machine". All for around $25 bucks too!

what can I say?
If you read five or more of Terry's hilerious DiscWorld novels, and ever wanderd how MR. Pratchett imegained them, you will get more than your fair share in exchange to the 20$ this will cost you. Sam Vimes, Nobby, Carrot, Angue, Rincewind, Detritos, RIdiculy and his group of loony Wizards, Twoflower and Death (and manny more) will all get amazing and detailed paintings and sketchas. scatterd among the pages of the book are amusing and sometimes fasnating comments from Paul or Terry.

only little problam I had was the abscence os Gaspod- how could they everforget him? I'm sure he would have been really angry if he ever found out (He is, after all, the only talking dog in the world, he will be happy to explain)

Like every Discworld fan, I've always had in my mind a good idea of what the characters looked like. I pictured Ridcully as Brian Blessed, Vetenari as David Warner, Granny Weatherwax as either Judi Dentch or Maggie Smith, Lady Sybil as Dawn French, CMOT Dibbler as Eric Idle, and Vimes as Russell Crowe. This book doesn't present the characters exactly as I've pictured them, but it's not far off and what it shows is certainly great!

Consider the picture of A'Tuin flying through space, or the picture of Granny Weatherwax smiling broadly. Look at Greebo, oozing feline malevolence (though too bad we didn't get a look at his human form, once described as being the sort of person who can commit sexual harrasment by sitting quietly in the other room).

All your favorite characters are here, and most of them are so well-done you can look at them and just KNOW who it is, without being told. Look at the totally gormless picture of Fred Colon, for example, or Carrot, looking quite noble... almost... regal...

Basically what it boils down to is that if you enjoyed, The Last Hero: A Discworld Fable you'll like this book. There's no story, just some lovely artwork. A definate must-own for any Discworld fan!

This book is a collection of Artist Paul Kidby's illustrations of the various characters in Terry Pratchett' Discworld. And boy howdy, what a good job he does. Personal favorites of mine are the picture of Discworld on the back of the elephants on the back of the turtle swimming through space!! Kidby gets it perfect! I am also very fond of his pictures of DEATH.. one of my favorite characters in the series.

If you are fond of the series, I highly recommend this book! I would also suggest that you check out The Last Hero: A Discworld Fable, which also features the art of Paul Kidby.

All the best,

Jay

"The Art of Discworld" is a beautiful collection of images by Paul Kidby - some are pen and pencil essays, others are more advanced sketches and many form completed paintings. They are grouped by theme and portray the Discworld itself, several landscapes (Ankh-Morpork, Lancre, Überwald...) and buildings (Unseen University, several Guilds, Night Watch HQ...) and almost every named character in the Discworld universe. In addition, Terry Pratchett adds interesting, lengthy comments on characters, how they came to be and his opinion on Paul Kidby's view of them.

There are a couple of inexplicable omissions (for instance, Magrat Garlick is barely shown in the background of a picture, even though she is mentioned repeatedly in the accompanying text) and several images have already been featured elsewhere (e.g. several book covers, the Mapps,the Calendars).

Finally, the illustrations and the text correspond to the Discworld situation as it was by 2006, which means there are some serious SPOILERS in the text for those who haven't read the corresponding books.

Overall, this is an absolute MUST for any serious Discworld fan. It's gorgeous to look at, interesting to read and at times hysterically funny like only something written by Terry Pratchett can be.

I would say that the art depicting the various characters of Discworld looks exactly like I had imagined them. This is a wonderful book that I highly recommend if you are a Discworld fan. The only thing missing in this book is a depiction of Sybil, Vime's wife. I would liked to have seen her included in "The Art of Discworld". All in all, an excellent Discworld resource for the Discworld fan!

The book has an excellent selection of art from the Noir period. I love every single page better than the last!

"The Art of Noir" is a big, beautiful book of 338 posters and lobby cards for crime films 1940-1960, plus a handful of later films. All the film noir greats are here, from A-list films to Poverty Row, though not every film represented is strictly "noir". "The Art of Noir" is 14 1/4" x 10 1/8" -too big even for oversized book shelves- but the results are stunning: Hundreds of full-page posters in bold, eye-popping color, along with a handful of 2-page spreads and some 2-to-a-page layouts. I could not overstate how great these posters look, and author Eddie Muller has made them more fascinating with informative captions and short essays. Each poster is captioned with the film's title, year, and studio, the size of the original poster, a brief analysis of the poster's style, and a little about the film.

The posters are divided into six chapters, each with an introduction by Muller. Chapter 1 introduces us to the distinctive styles of different Hollywood studios. Chapter 2 takes us on a tour of film noir poster art around the world, with examples and explanations of how artists abroad altered or redesigned the posters for their markets. Chapter 3 focuses on thematic and iconographic elements in the posters. The icons are guns, racy women, and automobiles. The themes include bad cops, private eyes, and femmes fatales, among others. Chapter 4 showcases posters that feature the prominent stars of film noir, 9 actors and 9 actresses, with an introductory essay for each. The art of Chapter 6 is organized by writer -not only the famed Hammett, Chandler, and Cain, but also prominent noir screenwriters. Chapter 6 features the films of prominent noir directors and cinematographer John Alton.

American and international posters are featured throughout the book. I had not seen foreign film noir posters before, and scrutinizing the posters and comparing the styles turned out to be a source of nearly endless fascination. Foreign artists departed from the bold color and lurid poses of American posters but created art from their own culture's perspective that is no less striking. "The Art of Noir" will absorb fans of film noir or poster art for hours. I am reviewing the hardback edition of the book, so I cannot comment on the reproduction quality in the paperback edition. But the color and sharpness in the hardback are excellent, on slick, white paper. This is Eddie Muller's best book yet.

This book is a must for all film lovers. It contains the most complete collection of film noir posters anywhere. And since the book is "cofee-table" size, the posters are big enough that you can appreciate even the smallest details. The text is also very interesting, giving a short but insightful review of each film. Get this book now!!!!

Film noir is a fascinating field with a deserved faithful and ever widening audience. Eddie Muller scored impressively with "Dark City Dames," a study of the women of film noir with intimate portraits of such notables as Jane Greer, Marie Windsor and Ann Savage.

Muller returns to a familiar theme here and achieves mightily in two respects, with glossy pictures which practically jump off the page at you, giving one a feel for time and place, as well as being a part of the scene, along with a text providing valuable information on the memorable films being showcased.

San Franciscan Muller is one of the genuine authorities of the genre. He has a real feel for the world of darkness beset by flashing neon lights, smoke-filled bars, detectives in trench coats, and dangerous women.

A feast for the eyes! Gorgeous NOIR poster repros and interesting factoids highlight this weighty tome. Fans will swoon, and the casual viewer will have his/her interest tweaked. As a NOIR poster/lobby card collector, this book is an essential library addition, because I need to occasionally check out pictures of posters I'll sadly never be able to afford(!)