Companies Books

If you want to know more about your subc.I heartily recommend these CDs

The Power of Your Subconscious Mind
The Master Key System
Thought Vibration or the Law of Attraction in the Thought World
The Science of Getting Rich
The Science of Mind
Think and Grow Rich: Original Version

I have read many books from Catherine Ponder, everyone is the complement of the previous ones. Very good job.

I originally bought this book three years ago. I had read the Game of Life by Florence Shinn and I was looking for more info about prosperity. WE have used the laws, specifically the law of vaccuum- giving things away freely,writing things down, visualization, affirmations and the most powerful law- tithing. I can't begin to tell you how using these laws have changed my family's life. It is like clockwork, everytime we use these laws wonderful things come about in unexpected ways. Actually, I have a list of things I wanted in life from three years ago when I bought the book and even though they seemed a bit unnattainable at the time, I can say that as of today, every single thing on that list (and more) have miraculuously came true. Now I stock up on copies of this and the Game of Life and give them to people who need and want to learn the laws.

This is the first Catherine Ponder book I have read and, while I normally read a lot of motivational material, I likely will not read any more Catherine Ponder anytime soon. Her message is certainly worthwhile: making affirmations in your own life will help you to draw upon God's assistance to achieve your goals. She is also a minister, which explains why she draws her approach from a sprirtual angle. While this effort is certainly worthwhile for a reader, her supporting examples are not specific enough to satisfy my need for "proof". In Ponder's book, her examples are full of "a woman I know...", "a businessman...", and other such vague statements. Contrast that with Napolean Hill's book "Think and Grow Rich." Hill's examples are specific and precise: "Thomas Edison tried over 10,000 times...". Napolean Hill and Catherine Ponder both have a similar message in their books. But while Catherine Ponder's message is meaningful and worthwhile, her examples are not down to earth enough to suit my tastes.

If I had known Catherine Ponder was a minister, I would never have bought (and returned) this book. If you believe prayer and positive thinking will bring you prosperity, I suppose this book will be fine for you. If you aren't a devout Christian, however, you might find this book hard to deal with.

C. S. Lewis is not only one of the 20th century's finest minds, he's also amazingly perceptive of human behavior. This well-written description explains so clearly the four kinds of love and with such accessible illustrations from real life. Most eye-opening for me was the chapter on "affection" where I began to understand for the first time why we moms think we are so misunderstood; in actuality, our "affection" (storge) for our family has gotten out of hand! You'll need to read in order to understand. I highly recommend this book.

This is in my opinion C.S. Lewis's best nonfiction work. The premise has been done before, but rarely with the sort of insight given here. His overviews of Affection and Friendship are much too often overlooked and glossed over as unimportant, but here they're given a status they really deserve.

The section on friendship, and the idea that people are bonded through mutual passions, and his grim statement that people who are just looking for a friend will never find one, was spot on. Friendships are formed as an extension of a passion for something bigger than the individual. A mutual cause drives people, whether they be sports fanatics, a tribe pining for survival, or art critics.

The pitfalls he explains for the loves such as lust, bigotry, elitism, etc. are self explanatory, but it's also practical. Friendships are exclusive by their very nature, and there's nothing intrinsically wrong with such a thing. Eros is most certainly exclusive. He emphasizes that we can't be friends with everyone, love everyone with Eros, but we can love everyone with Charity, the final section of the book.

One could write a book three times longer and not come close to the depth portrayed in this little book. Strongly recommended.

CS Lewis does a wonderful job defining the four Greek words for Love. I would recommend this book most highly to the man (women are less likely to make this error) who thinks he needs no friends. Lewis shows the importance of friendship to a good life.

It Is One of those books that should be sitting on a coffee table. It defines the various types of pure love: agape, venus, and storge to name some. It truly defines where the 'heart' is and perhaps defining the brotherly love, the parental love, or the true love...



Susan Saige

Within this work, Mr. Lewis is quick to point out the inherent difficulty with regard to the concept of love facing individuals whose native tongue is English. That is, it is easily recognized that there exists an extreme deficit when one applies the same word to describe the sentiment shared with one's spouse, as well as their favorite food. In such extreme cases of difference in terms of the word's application, clarification is hardly needed and might be written off as an embellishment about that which one feels about, say, strawberries or chocolate. However, other instances are more difficult to write off as a poor choice of words; such as, love for friends, family, a spouse, and God. One must surely agree that the sentiment in each of these instances of love can exist and be experienced in significantly different ways. While love is the umbrella under which all of these sentiments rest, they are, as far as most people can tell, very different things. That being said, it is lucky for the reader that Mr. Lewis, almost immediately, circumvents the language barrier and begins to illustrate the foundational understanding which must be apparent for further exploration of the concepts of love to proceed. For those who have struggled with this, even the simplest concept of love's significance, as this reviewer has, the first chapter alone is worth the price of this work's purchase.

Building upon a necessary base of knowledge, Lewis begins to explore the nature of love beginning with that love which might be the gray area between the words love and like, or either of the two, as spoken in the English language. Lewis continues his endeavor by tackling what people often consider the more significant forms of love such as friendship, erotic love, and the love of and for God. While no attempt will be made here to convey the significance of the final chapter regarding actual Love in fear of diluting a brilliant message, each of the chapters leading up to that point share common threads. That is, Mr. Lewis illustrates the difficulty which can be had with love in any form if left to our own devices. This illustration is achieved in the author's typical fashion of profound analogies and appeals to common experiences. One can be certain that while this recognition of the volatility of human love is of extreme importance, it is the overriding concept that only by surrendering these loves to Love that one can achieve happiness, solace, and purity in Love which makes this work unquestionably valuable to those that are fortunate enough to read it.

I didn't find this book all that special. The style seemed stilted and awkward. Characters seemed emotionally flat and I didn't buy the romance in the story. Not a bad read, but half way through I was ready for the book to end.

One of the things I like about this book is that it manages to retain an archaic feeling without sounding fake (you know, the type of dialogue that sounds like a bunch of college students roleplaying). Pope's choice of using modern language for the dialogue doesn't spoil the setting at all, whereas trying to force readers to jump back and forth between Elizabethan dialogue and modern narration could be annoying, e.g. Patricia Wrede's version of "Snow White and Rose Red".

Overall, Pope's characters are really well fleshed out, and she's also a master at describing atmosphere. The supernatural terror that Kate is subjected to in the underground halls kept me up at night for a while after both times I read this.

I didn't know the plot of "The Perilous Gard" was related to an actual legend till I stumbled across the name "Tam Lin" elsewhere on the Internet. Now I'm fascinated...

This book is beautiful. The proud elves! The historical drama! Probably the best theory for where elves/fairies came from, oh, and the answer will suprise you!
This books haunts you in that though there are mystical, magical elements in this story when you done reading you have to admit that it really COULD have happened. This book made me cry, I love it when books have the power to make you feel that much emotion. Do yourself a favour and read the book!

The Perilous Gard

The Sherwood Ring

The Perilous Gard is a book I still reread as an adult. The Sherwood Ring is good also. I just wish that Ms. Pope had written MORE.

The Perilous Gard is a wonderful rainy afternoon book. The characters seem real and the Elizabethan England that is described seems real and charming but none too easy to live in.

The best part of the story is the characterizations of the fairies themselves. Not the fluttery, glittery creatures beloved of Walt Disney, but a real, proud alien race at one with nature. The queen particularly is both admirable and cruel, pitiless and pitiable.

I enjoyed this book immensely once I got into it. The first chapter didn't impress me, but after that the book held my attention. The main character, Kate, was a great heroine that I enjoyed reading about and she had her own flaws, which I thought was great. Because most books in this sort of genre have the perfect, beautiful, strong, intelligent, courageous heroine, which I always found somewhat unbelievable. This book is adventursome, fantastical, and has some romance thrown in too. Its my kind of book! I plan on looking for more books by this author.

Someone gave me Sandra Boynton's Family Calendar several years ago as a gift. It was so useful that I buy it every year and I've also given it to my friends as a gift. There are only four of us, but it is large enough to keep the schedules for a family of five. It is vertical so every family member has a box for each day of the week/month. It comes with pre-printed stickers, like "concert", "dentist", "doctor" so that you can easily tag your days. I could use more tags so I purchased another set, but otherwise this calendar is a lifesaver. Everyone can clearly see what is going on and when!

This is just your basic calendar. Nothing special. There is enough room to fit a couple of people.

Those cheery Boynton characters star in a useful calendar. There's space each day to write appointments for Mom and up to four others.

We've used these for several years, and the blocks have provided enough room to write what we've needed. Meanwhile, the illustrations have brightened our days. We'll be back for another of these calendars next year!

I love this calendar more than any I've ever had. It takes some getting used to at first because you read the calendar vertically rather than horizontally. But other than that, it's perfect in every way. The stickers are really cute and add some pizazz to my scribbly mess. My life stays organized at a glance. It the first thing I look at when I come down to the kitchen in the morning.

I highly recommend this item to anyone looking for a easy way to get your family organized.

Words can't describe how usefull this has been for my family. We have 4 people in our household so the unused 5th column gets to be the Birthday notice - again, super useful. The stickers were ok, but not necessary. In a busy household with 2 realtors, 1 teenage girl who is vety involved in school and 1 old man with lots of doctor's appointments, this calender has been FANTASTIC. I'm going to recommend this to all my friends.

I only say that because you'll receive a free copy once you sign on with the company. I bought the book after I accepted a job there and lo and behold I had two copies of The Science of Success.

As far as the book goes, it was pretty good, the only thing that it was really weak on were examples of how Koch Industries actually used MBM to make money. After having worked there I really can't tell you how they have used MBM to make money either because during the two day MBM training you only hear one example and you'll be left saying, "Why of course we made money off of that because we're in oil!"

Other than that it does a very good job of outlining the economic principles that have made up the Koch management structure. Each company within Koch is very nimble and small and we really weren't bogged down in bureaucracy (mostly just accounting rules) like most companies are. The book also gives a very good look into the culture at Koch which was the strongest asset and the best thing I took away from working there.

I am so sick of nonsense books written by corporate thieves about the "secrets of success". Koch stole millions from American Indians. Google it, just google "Koch and Indian lands" The principle of wealth through theft is ancient. That's why "thou shall not steal" is one of the 10 commandments.

This is not a self-help book. It is an excellent slim introduction to free market economics and economic thinking masquerading as a business book.

While I picked up the "Science of Success" to see how he applied economic thinking to running a business, I was blown away the authors clarity and elegance in describing economic thinking.

I also found his business system - MBM (Market Based Management) The Science of Human Action Applied to Organizations - to be interesting. It was not a how-to guide though.

The Science of Success is going to be a business classic. If you're in business, especially if you want to make your business work better you need to read this book.

Check that. You need to read and re-read and re-read this book. And you need to try out what you learn in experiments in your workplace.

That was one of the first things I got from this book, the idea of seeing trials of new ideas as "experiments." It's a powerful concept because it immediately washes away all the "risk of failure" that makes it hard to try new things in so many companies.

Koch's idea is amazingly simple. When you try something new, you see your trial as an experiment. Then you measure the results and learn from them. Whatever you learn, you've succeeded.

It's like that old story about Edison trying a gazillion different things as a filament for the electric light bulb he was try to invent. Time after time he tried. And, one after another, the filaments he thought would work didn't. "I haven't failed," Edison told a person who questioned how he could stand all that failure. "I've found a gazillion things that don't work."

One reason this is a great book is that there are those incredible insight like that all through it. You find yourself thinking, "Wow. That sure makes sense." You reach for your highlighter. You drape the book in sticky notes.

The book is also great because it reminds you of basic concepts that you knew once. For example, you probably learned about "sunk costs" and "opportunity costs" in college.

Koch will remind you of the definitions, but he does something more and more important. He shows you how to use those concepts in your decision process. Let's see how he does that.

On page 33 he reminds you that a sunk cost is "an unrecoverable past expenditure." And he tells you "Such costs should seldom be taken into account when determining what to do in the future because, other than possible tax effects, they are irrelevant to what can be recovered."

The money you put into developing that new product? It's a sunk cost. It's not an investment. You won't get it back. That means that it's irrelevant to whether or not to kill the new product or put more money into marketing it.

Koch shows you how the economic concepts of sunk cost and opportunity cost ("the value of the most valuable alternative that must be foregone to undertake a given act") should affect your decision making.

Another reason this book is great is that it brings together a very intelligent business owner's lifetime study of economics and human behavior and how they apply to making a company work. This isn't an academic treatise either. Koch has used these principles to run his company, where he is the primary owner.

You many not be familiar with the name Koch Industries, but you surely know some of their brand names like Stainmaster, Dixie Cup, and Georgia Pacific. Koch Industries is the largest private US company. It got that way, in part, because Koch used the principles in this book to run the company. In 1960 Koch had revenues of about $70 million. In 2006 they were $90 Billion.

In other words, this is not just theory. Koch has actually, truly, really put his money where his ideas are. In The Science of Success, he lays out what he's learned over a lifetime of study, thought and, more important for you, experimentation. Here's how he's structured the book.

Chapter 1 is short history of Koch Industries. You'll learn about how the company evolved and get introduced to the experiments that worked and many that didn't.

Chapter 2 is about Market-Based Management (MBM), which is what Koch calls his system. That's something of a misnomer. He's not referring to "market-driven" management. "Market-based" refers to "based on free market principles." This chapter also introduces the Science of Human Action.

The Science of Human Action is "the study of how humans can achieve their ends through purposeful behavior." It's the action steps connected to economic principles and psychological truths.

In the chapters that follow, Koch defines five dimensions along which you apply MBM. They are Vision, Virtue and Talents, Knowledge Processes, Decision Rights, and Incentives. There is a wealth of good ideas under every single heading.

There are two downsides to this book. At times, Koch writes like the engineer that he is, but the ideas and concepts pull you right through the rough spots.

The other downside is a result of the value that's here. It took Koch a lifetime to write this book and you won't get more than a fraction of the potential value from it unless you read it more than once. I'm staring my fourth read.

No matter what business you're in, no matter where you are in your career, you should read this book. It's a new business classic, on a par with Peter Drucker's Managing for Results. It's got the same strength of intellectual underpinnings, the same solid logic, and the same rich simplicity. The biggest difference is that The Science of Success is written by a man who built a great company using the concepts he's writing about.

I have a bachelor's degree in business management and this book came out at the right time since I have been looking for books on management that match my philosophy and brush up on what I learned. My only complaints with this book is that it is too short and I would have like to have seen more real-life examples of how MBM was successful.

Essentially, Charles Koch outlines a management philosophy based on the economic writings of Ludwig von Mises. Koch's management style is one of employee empowerment by treating them like entrepreneurs while looking to retain and train the best people.

His no-nonsense style is clear throughout the book and he gave some interesting insights into how Market-Based-Management works. Koch Industries has been using MBM for years and, as a result, the company is the world's largest multi-billion dollar corporation. He must be doing something right with these kinds of results and I am sure if Professor von Mises was alive he would be gleeful at how his economics can be used successfully in other ways as well.

Best of luck to Mr. Koch in getting other companies to sign on to his philosophy. If Koch Industries with MBM is any indication, America's corporate culture will never be the same!

I am very glad that this book was the first book on management I have read since having graduated.

I only say that because you'll receive a free copy once you sign on with the company. I bought the book after I accepted a job there and lo and behold I had two copies of The Science of Success.

As far as the book goes, it was pretty good, the only thing that it was really weak on were examples of how Koch Industries actually used MBM to make money. After having worked there I really can't tell you how they have used MBM to make money either because during the two day MBM training you only hear one example and you'll be left saying, "Why of course we made money off of that because we're in oil!"

Other than that it does a very good job of outlining the economic principles that have made up the Koch management structure. Each company within Koch is very nimble and small and we really weren't bogged down in bureaucracy (mostly just accounting rules) like most companies are. The book also gives a very good look into the culture at Koch which was the strongest asset and the best thing I took away from working there.

I am so sick of nonsense books written by corporate thieves about the "secrets of success". Koch stole millions from American Indians. Google it, just google "Koch and Indian lands" The principle of wealth through theft is ancient. That's why "thou shall not steal" is one of the 10 commandments.

This is not a self-help book. It is an excellent slim introduction to free market economics and economic thinking masquerading as a business book.

While I picked up the "Science of Success" to see how he applied economic thinking to running a business, I was blown away the authors clarity and elegance in describing economic thinking.

I also found his business system - MBM (Market Based Management) The Science of Human Action Applied to Organizations - to be interesting. It was not a how-to guide though.

The Science of Success is going to be a business classic. If you're in business, especially if you want to make your business work better you need to read this book.

Check that. You need to read and re-read and re-read this book. And you need to try out what you learn in experiments in your workplace.

That was one of the first things I got from this book, the idea of seeing trials of new ideas as "experiments." It's a powerful concept because it immediately washes away all the "risk of failure" that makes it hard to try new things in so many companies.

Koch's idea is amazingly simple. When you try something new, you see your trial as an experiment. Then you measure the results and learn from them. Whatever you learn, you've succeeded.

It's like that old story about Edison trying a gazillion different things as a filament for the electric light bulb he was try to invent. Time after time he tried. And, one after another, the filaments he thought would work didn't. "I haven't failed," Edison told a person who questioned how he could stand all that failure. "I've found a gazillion things that don't work."

One reason this is a great book is that there are those incredible insight like that all through it. You find yourself thinking, "Wow. That sure makes sense." You reach for your highlighter. You drape the book in sticky notes.

The book is also great because it reminds you of basic concepts that you knew once. For example, you probably learned about "sunk costs" and "opportunity costs" in college.

Koch will remind you of the definitions, but he does something more and more important. He shows you how to use those concepts in your decision process. Let's see how he does that.

On page 33 he reminds you that a sunk cost is "an unrecoverable past expenditure." And he tells you "Such costs should seldom be taken into account when determining what to do in the future because, other than possible tax effects, they are irrelevant to what can be recovered."

The money you put into developing that new product? It's a sunk cost. It's not an investment. You won't get it back. That means that it's irrelevant to whether or not to kill the new product or put more money into marketing it.

Koch shows you how the economic concepts of sunk cost and opportunity cost ("the value of the most valuable alternative that must be foregone to undertake a given act") should affect your decision making.

Another reason this book is great is that it brings together a very intelligent business owner's lifetime study of economics and human behavior and how they apply to making a company work. This isn't an academic treatise either. Koch has used these principles to run his company, where he is the primary owner.

You many not be familiar with the name Koch Industries, but you surely know some of their brand names like Stainmaster, Dixie Cup, and Georgia Pacific. Koch Industries is the largest private US company. It got that way, in part, because Koch used the principles in this book to run the company. In 1960 Koch had revenues of about $70 million. In 2006 they were $90 Billion.

In other words, this is not just theory. Koch has actually, truly, really put his money where his ideas are. In The Science of Success, he lays out what he's learned over a lifetime of study, thought and, more important for you, experimentation. Here's how he's structured the book.

Chapter 1 is short history of Koch Industries. You'll learn about how the company evolved and get introduced to the experiments that worked and many that didn't.

Chapter 2 is about Market-Based Management (MBM), which is what Koch calls his system. That's something of a misnomer. He's not referring to "market-driven" management. "Market-based" refers to "based on free market principles." This chapter also introduces the Science of Human Action.

The Science of Human Action is "the study of how humans can achieve their ends through purposeful behavior." It's the action steps connected to economic principles and psychological truths.

In the chapters that follow, Koch defines five dimensions along which you apply MBM. They are Vision, Virtue and Talents, Knowledge Processes, Decision Rights, and Incentives. There is a wealth of good ideas under every single heading.

There are two downsides to this book. At times, Koch writes like the engineer that he is, but the ideas and concepts pull you right through the rough spots.

The other downside is a result of the value that's here. It took Koch a lifetime to write this book and you won't get more than a fraction of the potential value from it unless you read it more than once. I'm staring my fourth read.

No matter what business you're in, no matter where you are in your career, you should read this book. It's a new business classic, on a par with Peter Drucker's Managing for Results. It's got the same strength of intellectual underpinnings, the same solid logic, and the same rich simplicity. The biggest difference is that The Science of Success is written by a man who built a great company using the concepts he's writing about.

I have a bachelor's degree in business management and this book came out at the right time since I have been looking for books on management that match my philosophy and brush up on what I learned. My only complaints with this book is that it is too short and I would have like to have seen more real-life examples of how MBM was successful.

Essentially, Charles Koch outlines a management philosophy based on the economic writings of Ludwig von Mises. Koch's management style is one of employee empowerment by treating them like entrepreneurs while looking to retain and train the best people.

His no-nonsense style is clear throughout the book and he gave some interesting insights into how Market-Based-Management works. Koch Industries has been using MBM for years and, as a result, the company is the world's largest multi-billion dollar corporation. He must be doing something right with these kinds of results and I am sure if Professor von Mises was alive he would be gleeful at how his economics can be used successfully in other ways as well.

Best of luck to Mr. Koch in getting other companies to sign on to his philosophy. If Koch Industries with MBM is any indication, America's corporate culture will never be the same!

I am very glad that this book was the first book on management I have read since having graduated.

This book provides good, simple advice and interesting case studies that provide good examples of how to use the advice.

I have read hundreds of parenting books and this one is one of the best by far. It gives you concise, easy directions on things to follow. I keep it out to use as a reference all the time. You cannot go wrong with this book.

This book is priceless. All my friends who have a second child get a copy of this book. ****The trick to this book is to re-read it every 6 months.*** We all have a tendency to fall back into old habits. I always know when it is time to re-read it because my kids start fighting and getting on my nerves again. I stumbled across this book accidentally and it has made alll the difference in my life and my kids life. It won't solve all the problems your kids have with each other but it takes you out of the loop so it doesn't bother you so much and they learn to deal with each other in a healthy way.

This book sure helped me survive being a parent! It helped so much that the book was written in a way that I could pick it up, read quickly for the few uninterrupted minutes I could actually get, and then put it down. The cartoons were great- there were some that I copied and hung up around the house as reminders to myself, for the habits that I wanted to form. This book especially helped me learn when to step into sibling disputes, and when to let them work it out. Now that my children are pretty much grown, I'd have to say that this book was probably the most helpful in raising them. They get along quite well!

A wonderful book on helping siblings get along. But I also highly recommend for parents and teachers the book:Bully-Proofing Children: A Practical, Hands-On Guide to Stop Bullying. More than a bullying book, this really focuses on practical strategies,scripts, actual lessons and stories to teach children conflict resolution, friendship and communication skills; the importance of helping others and getting along with a great design for creating environments that foster love and peace.

This book is deeply moving, inspiring and challenging. Thomas a Kempis lays out what it means to be an authentic follower of Jesus, not just an adherent or a church-goer. The simulated conversations with Christ in the book are especially powerful. Aside from the Bible, no other book has touched and moved me like this. Highly recommended reading.

Why claim trinkets when you can read one of the best devotionals on the market. I use it to keep my daily life in check, to remember to have the right focus and to live what I believe. This is the top of the charts for a "Christian" work. Brother A'Kempis was a great instructor and a wise disciple. So much of todays mediocre fluff is twisted by society, self centeredness and lazy Christianity where the thinking is done for those who don't see the value in meditation and self examination. Next to the Bible, this is my favorite work.

This wonderful book was written by the priest Thomas a Kempis in the 1400's and is very reminecient of the Apostle Paul's writings by encouraging readers to live a simple spiritual life. It recommends that peace is found in the heart of the humble and that in overcoming the ego you overcome the world. Joy is found in a quiet conscience and you are only happy when you have done what is right. This may also be the original source of the advice to choose the less of two evils. It also warns that pleasure and desire carry the seeds of sorrow. This book is spiritual focusing on living the inner life and not getting entangled with the world. A must read for all Christians or anyone on a spiritual path.

This is one of the best books I've ever read. It's a slow read, but not difficult - there's so much packed into these 280 pages that you'll have to take your time to get it all.

This is not a review of the book per se (just got it, have not read it yet), but thought I needed to share this. Book arrived with another book (a textbook) in the usual Amazon box, each laying side by side. It was left out in the rain for most of the day by the local carrier until I brought it inside. The entire box was soaked and ruined, tape fallen off and box literally gaping open, all of the paperwork inside was falling apart in pieces and soaked, my textbook was completely ruined (soaked through, wavy wet pages etc - got returned), yet this book was absolutely dry - not a trace of even a microdrop of water - perfect condition. Take away whatever message you want...

Wonderful experience. Seller worked out all the details with me and I was so pleased with the purchase. Would definitely refer others to him and also buy from him again. Thanks so much.

Pictures. These will remind you. Haunting. Sad. Heart wrenching. Moving. These words won't do it for you. The book will give you more. Over 3000 people died that day. This book will help you to never forget what happened to them and us.

The point comes across, but I think there is plenty of other work that should have been included.

A message to each and every reviewer who takes time to add thoughts to a any media of memorial of 9/11, World Trade Center Towers tragedy... thank you from my heart.

My spouse and I resided on the Lower West Side, Battery Park City, Gateway Plaza, So. End Ave. As survivors of the 9/11 World Trade Center Towers tragedy... From our Gateway Plaza apartment, facing the street and 300 yards from the Towers, we helplessly witnessed all from our apartment windows. The closeness of the Towers viewed from our windows - gave an illusion that one could reach out and touch the Towers; their beauty with night lights reaching toward the sky promoted a contemplative emotion.

We viewed the planes entering the Towers, the overwhelming inferno, individuals jumping, the collapse of the Towers, the darkness as debris hit our windows with a fury. What occurred over a period of hours, seemed like a much shorter time span. The darkness was darker than an eclipse, darker than the darkest night; and then a momentary hush after the air cleared. Viewing the roof garden one floor below, with the human reaction of looking out to see if someone might be on that roof garden and in need of help. Debris strewn everywhere, recording tape and paper hung from the trees of the garden and oh, so much ash. The momentary hush, whether real or imagined, then the viewing of debris for a second, fantasized that a parade had just passed by on our short street. I now really understand the expression a "feeling of helplessness", I couldn't fix what had just happened.

We vacated our apartment finally at 5:15 p.m. that day, waiting for someone to knock on our door, with only a battery radio to keep us abreast of happenings. "In a New York minute", we evacuated via the stairwell touched with ash, the result of a first floor door left open. With a few belongings, gathered with a tad of thought of what was being left behind, we stepped out of the door onto the pavement, seeing and standing in ever so much ash & debris, I wanted to turn around and go back to our home. It was one moment of reality in time, I carry to this day.

We planned to walk up the East Side, glimpsed the tired fire, police, volunteers, and med techs in our immediate driveway and street, so instead opted to pass through the building in back of the apartment complex. We gained access to the Esplanade walking the short distance to reach the Hudson River North Cove dock. We were escorted to the New Jersey shore via New York Police boat. From the boat deck, we viewed even more damage to the Manhattan skyline, especially noting the zigzag shape of the side of the American Express building, housed in one of the World Financial Center buildings along with the glorious Winter Garden, as well as the fall of World Trade Center Building 7. We were taken to the Jersey City Hospital, attended to by compassionate staff. Then traveled by National Guard truck to Hoboken, NJ where we were housed by a wonderful family who with great trust welcomed strangers to their home.

On Friday 9/14, our eldest son & daughter-in-law drove from New Hampshire via New Jersey routes to Hoboken for transport us to New Hampshire for temporary residence with our daughter, who along with her friend and our youngest son, greeted us with open arms & the overwhelming feeling of not wanting to let go with each hug that followed. Our daughter and son had spent that Friday in New Hampshire collecting items of clothing and necessities which the Concord community generously opened their hearts and donated by churches, stores, individuals, employers, American Red Cross, et al.

One of our grandchildren -- he was 8 at that time - arrived home from a few days with his Dad. He hugged us so tight, understanding the depth of 9/11 events for someone so young and yet so wise. He told Grandpa & Babcia that he had something for them... his Mom was not even aware of his gift. He had spoken to his classmates about his grandparents' closeness in location of the World Trade Center Towers. Presented to us was a large envelope full of hand-made cards from each of his classmates. And if that isn't love and caring, I don't know what is - from the hearts and minds of children!

Residing now in New Hampshire, not because of 9/11 drove us away, but circumstances just went that way as we continue to put our lives into perspective.

We Miss - New York City deeply; events found nowhere else in the USA, the introduction to & interaction with so many wonderful cultures. There isn't a day or night over these years that we do not think of 9/11... the Lady of Liberty & Ellis Island both on the merge of the East and Hudson Rivers. And that Lady of Liberty wept, I just know it, & still stands with pride that the USA is a democracy that will prevail.

We Remember - the victims, the survivors, their friends and families, the workers from the public and private sector, the volunteers, our neighbors in Gateway Plaza and staff in the small group of stores on South End Avenue, Battery Park City.

We Remember - the places we visited, the book signings attended, the celebrities we met, the concerts and theater plays, the movies, the arts, the parks, the strangers we talked with, on streets, on subway and those while standing in line for an event...

We Remember - Always In Our Hearts, Forever In Our Souls, Heroes, Victims, Survivors One and All... We Were There.

Painfully, the lump in my throat and the twist in my stomach, the tears in my eyes and the pain in my heart, to the depth of my soul, forever reside.

LIFE has done a first class job of putting together a book covering this horrific act by such a cowardly enemy.Rather than to make the Americans cower as these fanatics probably thought and probably thought and hoped for;it showed what a good and strong nation it is.History will remember both 9/11 and Pearl Harbor for the terrible and misguided acts of hatred they were.
This act conjours up different thoughts for everyone who witnessed it ,in whatever fashion,but no more so than those who had friends and particularly those who lost loved ones.
To those who may turn a little soft on the War on Terror a review of this book should remind one of what we are dealing with.
A great book TIME and thanks.

It can be difficult to find a large calendar for a busy family with four children. I spend each December at the stores hoping to find the perfect blend of spaces for people with boxes big enough to write out their daily activities. This year I thought I'd try the Sandra Boynton calendar and am glad I did. With a space for each day, INCLUDING Saturday and Sunday and columns for four children it has been a perfect fit for us. So perfect, in fact, that I hope they are planning to do one exactly the same for 2009. If so, I'll continue to use this until we add another member to the family.

Greatest family calendar out there! Helps keep us organized and teaches the kids to track the calendar. Fits on kitchen wall. All you need to keep everyone knowing where they're supposed to be any given day.

I bought the 2008 calendar based on other reviews and I was disappointed. We have 2 young kids, but even with their activities (and mom's & dad's), the vertical column set-up leaves really small squares to write a few basic words. The stickers are cute but there's no room to put them because the squares are so small - and there weren't that many "sports" stickers suprisingly. Plus, I don't know if you're supposed to use a special pen with the glossy paper, but if you use a regular ballpoint, the impressions bleed onto the next page. The monthly pictures are cute because we really like the Boynton books, but other than that, I'm sorry to say that I'm going to look for a different calendar.

With the vertical arrangement of the month and numbers/ boxes that are large enough to be read from accross the room, this calendar is perfect for me. No more missed dental appointments and forgotten birthdays. The kids love using the enclosed stickers to decorate special days. I do wish this calendar came with a pocket or an easy way to attach important items for a month (tickets, coupons, etc.)

Love this product, it is so handy at keeping tabs on our busy schedule. The only drawback, I can see, is that it just fits our family size and we don't have a big family. If we had one more child, we would run out of spaces.