Resources Books

Excellent book with valuable exercises for classroom experiences. I recommend this book to help design communication and leadership curriculums.

I looked at a lot of books before I ordered this one from Amazon, and I'm glad I did. The training exercises are great and exactly what I needed to complement my planned training. The exercises are well explained, interesting, and provocative. The only thing I'd add is that as an HR professional, I'd make some slight changes to one or two exercises to not focus on physical characteristics.

Worth the investment and a great source even if you're just looking for icebreakers for other types of training.

The "Conflict and Communication Activity Book" is an excellent resource for trainers and facilitators in any organization. I particularly liked how Withers and Lewis formatted the book, defining up front the purpose as well as the equipment, prep and time needed for each specific exercise. The clear instructions and helpful advice provided for each activity make them a breeze for any professional to use. Well done!! As I read through it the first time, I found myself book-marking several of the activities to make a point of trying in the near future. I long ago arrived at the conclusion that no organization will EVER stop dealing with conflict and communication issues. They're universal. Thanks for giving me thirty more creative exercises to include in my bag of tricks!!

I have bought many books with hundreds of business games. Unlike the rest of the books I have read, it goes beyond the games, it gives you not only the materials and explanation on how it works but tells you what you may say and the theory behind the game. It also has different options for putting your own agenda depending on the time you have available and give you external resources.

If you want something practical and useful, this is the one

I recommend this book to people using experiential exercises to teach. I used one of the exercises from this book in a workshop and the students both had fun and got the insights. I have read many of the exercises and plan to use them as I develop workshops that center around conflict. In any case, the exercises are well designed. You'll get the purpose of the exercise and what it's intended to teach, equipment needed (e.g. handout or flipchart), precise directions for the students, what to expect, and insights to share for group learning. The book errs on giving you more information that you probably need to carry out the exercise.

This is an excellent business math book. It's easy to work with and has lots of examples for practicing. It breaks the subject matter down in a manner where it's easy to understand. Chapters 10 through 14 are really great for individuals to learn about their finances. Chapters 15 through 17 are excellent for businesses. There are other chapters that are really great in establishing the basic foundation in business math. Overall this is an excellent book to use for brushing up on math or just learning about business math for business or individual use. Another excellent book to read is "Trilogy Moments for the Mind, Body and Soul."

Im a college student and when I first started using this book I said to myself this is like H.S math. Little did I know it does get more complicated but its on a college level as you go on. It takes you back to the basic mathematics and then to a college level mathematics. I liked the book very much so. There is also a answer key in the book (but only for the the odd #'s)which is very useful as well.

I think this book is great, becareful not to get the instructors edition, I got that edition by mistake then ordered a student editon used, it did not come with the cd like it said it would.

This book was incredibly helpful for a college class in Business Math. Many of the adults in my class had not studied any sort of math in years. This book made the subject easy with great examples succinct and thorough summaries. Recommend it for other teachers in the same area.

There are several typos in this book, but don't let that get you down. This is an excellant review of business math. It begins with the basics of operations, and then progresses to more complex formulas. It will help everyone from business majors to consumers to better manage their money.

Not at the level for me of Tales of Old-time Texas but still an excellent collection of stories from J. Frank Dobie. This collection is focused, as the title should tell you, on buried treasure, treasure maps and things of that nature. The book is still a joy to read and I don't understand why more of the country doesn't know about Mr. Dobie.

The author, a premier folklorist from Texas, writes about the Southwest and the type of treasure with which nature consoles the seeker -- "shadows for want of substantials." Unlike Coronado, the author seeks the treasure that emanates from the heart and mind. This is a fine book written seven decades ago and improves with each reading.

Dobie talks about this land of shadows where we meet Alice Henderson, who faced down fifty cow thieves; Don Milton Favor, who built his own fort while making treaties with hostile Indians; and Cheetwah, a mystic Indian chief who vanished into the mountains to keep vigil over hidden treasures. These and other characters spring from the pages of Dobie's book with a vigor and purpose that makes the heart sing.

The Texas of the Big Bend country is where Dobie's prose satisfies, "Outlandish pictures painted down the sides of caves by aborigines which no white man can now decipher...a jagged and gashed land where legend has placed a lost canyon, its broad floor carpeted with grass that is always green and watered by gushing springs, its palisaded walls imprisoning a herd of buffalo...somewhere in this land credulity has fixed a petrified forest with tree trunks seven hundred feet long."

The author claims, "After I hear a tale I do all I can to improve it," and this is an understatement. Readers who possess a sense of wonder will enjoy this book. History often cloaks personages with dusty trappings, stuffy sayings, and mixed motives so time has faded the awe that Drake, Cortez, Raleigh, and Coronado experienced. Dobie illuminates the wonder of the children of Coronado as they chase their dreams and draws us into their world of enchantment.

Francisco Coronado never found his golden riches or the fabled Seven Cities of Cibola during his time in the Southwest. When he returned in 1542, and told the truth about his barren search, he wasn't believed. One person who did believe said, "Granted he did not find the riches of which he had been told -- he found instead a place in which to search for them."

And the search continues. For centuries Coronado's vision of wealth has lured countless thousnads to the Southwest where tradition and myth have marked mountains, rivers, and ancient ruins with boundless treasures. This book follows long forgotten Spanihs trails, buffalo trails, cow trails, and areas where there are no trails as searchers dig for riches which eludes their grasp. Others, rather than searching, have sat and told stories of lost mines, buried treasure and of ghostly patrones who guard the treasures -- adding layers to the myths that abound in the land of Coronado.

This book lovingly describes Spanish influence and tradition on the Sountwest and combines a terrific cast of characters, interesting situations, and Dobie's unmatched skill at weaving a tale. The author's footnotes are at the end of the text and are filled with tales and legends of lost mines and treasures. There's an interesting section on the elaborate Code of Treasure Symbols used by the Spaniards. An excellent glossary of idioms used in the Southwest follows that section.

There is more to the American West than gunfighters, farmers, bankers, cowboys, and miners. The author has given us the realm of the dreamers.

J. Frank Dobie was a folklorist of Texas and "Coronado's Children" may be his best and most famous book. He was born in 1888 and bridged the old west and modern times. CC was written in 1930 when many of the old timers, who knew how to spin a yarn, were still around. Dobie sought them out and recorded their stories of lost gold and buried treasure. He was also a serious scholar who rummaged through Spanish and American archives to give authenticity to his stories -- and he was not adverse to saddling up a horse and doing a little on-the-ground research.

"Coronado's Children" has inspired thousands of otherwise normal people to pick up a shovel and head off to some god-forsaken wasteland to dig in the ground looking for the "Lost San Saba Mine," the booty of pirate Jean Lafitte, or the $2 million the James boys supposedly buried in the Wichita mountains of Oklahoma. These are the kind of stories that dreams are made of -- and who knows? Some of them might be true.

Dobie has collected nineteen tales in CC and he tells them beautifully in prose that is conversational and colorful. He has enormous respect for the land and the Indians, the Mexicans, and the Anglos who live in the harsh, dry country of the southwest. An oft-used adjective to describe his stories is "magical" and so they are. "Coronado's Children" is an American classic.

Smallchief

Perhaps the best folklore book ever written about lost mines and buried treasure, caves full of gold bars, and Spanish silver. As in most of Dobie's writings, this is not straight history but Dobie's version of other people stories with a large dose of Dobie in all of them. A Texas classic.

I read this book 30 years ago. I am now 75, and I rank it as one of the most fascinating books of my lifetime. It opened up a whole world of places and things that are long gone, but which deserve to be remembered. I believe that I have since read almost everything that Frank Dobie has written, but believe this is still the best.

This book offers great insight into these valuable assets--- our MVPs. The practical advise on how to manage MVPs is a extremely important for the HR community in supporting the organizations they work with. The authors research an area of leadership that is critical in these challenging times.

There are just so many business books, and most of them are one-dimensional--taking a single theory and stretching it into a cure-all. Butterris and Roiter offer something different and refreshing here...a framework for how to think about the people around you, and how to build strong individuals and teams. The specific stories are great... I highly recommend this for one's senior staff.

The authors tell a tale of business success that has been recently repopularized by Jim Collins in his book, Good to Great: hire good people and nurture them to success. In corporate MVPs, the entire thesis is to find and support your biggest assets. I found the authors' perspective refreshing and bold. I thought their tips on how to ID and exalt your corp MVPs to be common sensical, yet not obvious. This is a very good how to book for managers who have accepted the fact that recruiting talent is a wise career move. This is not to be confused with the presidential situation where the DUMB are hiring loyal DUMBERs, so as not to be threatened.

This book provides new research into the whole concept of the few people that create the most value for an organization.

The concepts are clear and practical and are enhanced by the stories from the people interviewed

A business friend told me of this book and suggested it to me when one of my most important employees was thinking of leaving.

I run a decent sized company (1200 people) and I know that a precious few employees make up the heart of my business. If these 3 or 4 people left I would be up the creek. We have a good program to manage our talented people but have not felt that we really had a handle on how to manage these "MVP"s. Corporate MVPs really helped me to think about these people and what makes them tick. I now appreciate them more than ever, and now I am pretty comfortable that I know how to manage them. I am less on edge about my MVPs leaving.

Corporate MVPs is a good companion to one of my favorite business books "Good to Great". Good to Great looks at how organizations can move from good to great. Corporate MVPs looks at how individuals can move from good to MVP status.


I found the Chapter on "Managing the MVP" to be especially helpful. I have followed its advice and I have seen great results with my 5 MVPs. I also really liked the anecdotes and ideas from many successful business people that are scattered throughout the book. It adds a real life business feel to the research.

I have given the book to a number of my promising people so they could read "How to Become an MVP". It has created some very interesting discussions in my staff meetings on how we can all find ways to improve.

I have also found the chapters on recruiting MVPs and on managing difficult MVPs to be timely and extremely useful.

I have bought copies for my HR Director and for all my direct reports. Once read it becomes a good reference book as the needs arise.

This book is a wonderful read. I highly recommend this to pastors, teachers, and leaders!

Dr. Jones' book is a welcome addition to the field of Christian counseling. Without proof-texting or shallow explanations, he gives a clear picture of what Christian counseling can and should look like.

Excellent book! It is academic and practical. I've used it in class as well as in personal ministry. Dr. Jone's practical applications and illustrations of Biblical truth and Psychological theory are right on target. I highly recommend this book, especially to those in ministry.

In "The Counsel of Heaven on Earth," professor Ian Jones outlines the essential features of biblical counseling. He clearly demonstrates how from cover to cover, the Bible provides Christian counselors with the blueprint for developing an effective counseling ministry.

His primary model, not surprisingly, is Jesus, the Counselor of heaven on earth. In particular, he highlight's Jesus greatest commandment(s): to love God and others. This guiding commandment of redemption builds upon an understanding of creation (the starting place for biblical counseling), and the fall (lostness and the human condition). Jones fleshes out his CFR (Creation, Fall, Redemption) model through personal illustrations, counseling narratives, and descriptions of counseling in the local church.

This is a valued addition to the field of biblical counseling that is well-balanced, practical, and theologically-sound.

Reviewer: Robert W. Kellemen, Ph.D., is the author of Soul Physicians: A Theology of Soul Care And Spiritual Direction, Spiritual Friends: A Methodology of Soul Care And Spiritual Direction, Beyond the Suffering: Embracing the Legacy of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direction , "Biblical Psychology," and "Martin Luther's Counseling."

Dr. Jones does a wonderful job of presenting a form of counseling that is modeled after the ultimate counselor, Jesus Christ. It is a well written book with illustrations and good explanations. In a time of too many debates of the difference between biblical and Christian counseling, Dr. Jones gets it right. He presents the representation of a counselor who counsels with a Christian worldview, in accordance with the Bible and counsels in the most beneficial way for the client. The counselor is to find the client's "location" and meet them there, as Christ has met us.

Great and informative book. Puts a lot of the problems now faced in the west into their context. Covers a lot of land history in the west not generally covered in school, but definately not a dry read!

A very though look at the major issues dividing westerners today. Looks at ranching, water, and logging in a very readable style. Do not loan this one out because it NEVER get returned. The only downfall is that this book is already dated because of the rise of the Wise Use movement.

An excellent rendition of how western law had transformend the American West into a land for humans, filled with dam after dam. Wild salmon have no where to go. Laws seem to be more powerful than Nature!

Wilkinson offers a balanced account of the forces that created the law and policy of the American West, and also of the forces that keep those outdated policies active in a very different West. As a native of Colorado, it was apparent that Wilkenson has spent a great deal of time in the American West and truly understands the complex issues that the region faces today. Very well researched, very easy to read.

A very scholarly, but accessible, history of the development of the West and the social/political/economic structures that shaped land, water and resource rights there. In particular, Wilkinson is addressing the notorious Hardrock Mining Act of 1872 (still in effect), the distribution of land and grazing rights, the fisheries of the Pacific Northwest, and the timber industry. His analysis of the Lords of Yesterday - his term for the antiquated statutes that govern those industries - is very convincing. The book's only weakness is that this is a 1992 text (presumably researched in the decade previous) that doesn't reflect changes in the laws and political pressures over the past decade. It would benefit from a new edition.

Understanding that comes from this book is very helpful. You can then see that ADD victims don't need to be told "your a problem" - rather we can work with ADD victims to maximize their tremendous and actually unique potential.

It was a very helpful book. I would like to have seen suggestions about who to see about getting someone tested. Overall, a very informative book.

This is an eye opening book into my husband's heart. It reminded me of his true strength's and helped me to see the reality of how God created him. We've learned better coping skills, especially for day to day and our relationship. This book holds so much hope for the future. My husband now knows that he is loved and accepted.
This is a must read for anyone in relationship with an ADD person.

I always knew my husband was ADD, and tried to do things to help him. The book and authors really helped me to understand, and APPRECIATE my husband. He is my best friend and when he hurts I hurt. It is great to find a book that encourages and gives couples and families help. It gives them a way to deal with everyone else's negative view of ADD. Practical tips on how to help make their lives easier.
This book is a great positive resource to anyone's library. It is a book and audio tape that you will want to give to other people to read and listen to. Even if you have a bookshelf full of ADD books, and you think you know everything about ADD, this book will SHOCK you with new insight and help give you a better and uplifting view of ADD.
GET IT & READ it, the information has saved marriages and made marriages better.

An incredible resource! Based on over a decade of research and their own experience of living with A.D.D. This is a book of hope and it clearly provides answers and validation to those who have had to struggle with A.D.D.
Through this series, you will find that you are not alone-whether you are the one who has A.D.D. or the spouse, family member, or friend of an A.D.D. individual. A true glimpse into the world of somebody who is "Affectionately Designed Differently".

Go ahead - try some fun in worship! There is enough here to delight all ages and involve all levels of worshippers.

I love this book! Packed with resources and real life stories, it leads the reader to consider ways to faithfully and sensitively lead the congregation into experiencing the word authentically and engaging with each other in ways that will build community and hope. Also check out their other book, Talking Faith, which is similarly well written and full of useful ideas.

This book is filled with fantastic ideas that will have you thinking about your church's worship in new and different ways. There is true depth to this pool--"Dare to Dive In" dares preachers and worship leaders to go into the deep end of encounter with an unpredictable God. The authors challenge those of us who usher others into the presence of God on Sunday mornings to engage mind and body, left brain and right brain, as we present our worship. There are terrific ideas here, presented with deeply faithful rationale. Let yourself be inspired by this book to find a new freshness in worship.

How can we communicate the message of our Christian faith in ways that can be deeply heard by all generations of people? Dare to Dive In answers this question by utilizing creative ideas for the parish that will both excite children AND engage adults. As a pastor of a small congregation, I understand the difficulty of communicating the word of God in a way that can be understood by all ages of people. This resource provides a creative and intergenerational approach to worship. It is neither "contemporary" nor "traditional" but simply "creative." Once again, the authors -- both pastors themselves -- have come through with ideas to invite all ages of congregants into worship. I highly recommend this book for pastors and worship leaders who are ready for a change.

Think of this as an idea book for worship planning. Dare to Dive In is exactly what's needed by worship leaders who want to lead experiential worship services. The authors are creative powerhouses and their book is packed with one great suggestion after another. Whether you're looking for liturgical season planning ideas or ideas for special worship services, this book is a great resource. Best of all, reading Dare to Dive In spurred my own imagination and creative thinking for worship.

Our daughter loves this book and CD. She sings it beautifully and has learned the value of God always being by her side. When a classmate was sick in the hospital, she gave her this book to comfort her so we ordered another one!!

I purchased this book for my boys 2 and 4. They love it! They sing along with the song and love the pictures. The message the story brings to all readers/listeners is wonderful. I would highly recommend it to anyone.

My kids absolutely love this book. They like to take turns "reading" it with the cd. Beautiful music, illustrations, and message. I love that the music continues for a while after the story is read. Perfect when you want to mellow the kids down.

This book is an excellent companion to I love you this much.
My boys love to sing along to the CD

This is a short children's story about how God is with us any time we call upon Him. Some of the writing comes directly from the Psalms (i.e. Make my heart your own) and can be a good way to introduce children to the Bible by locating the same passage.

The authors emphasizes continuously throughout the book that God cares about all the details of our life including the most minor things you do and say each day. Written predominantly as a prayer it helps teach children the importance of prayer and how to pray. Dear God, It's Me is a recommended children's book.

The grandkids loved the book. They live in Tucson and see the Saguaros every day!

This book is very educational to use in a classroom or an education focused day camp and is not an easy read as a story book at bedtime.

I have used this book every year as a third grade teacher. It is wonderful as a read aloud for science to illustrate how animals and plants adapt to their environment and rely on other plants and animals for survival. This is one of the best books I have ever read to my class because it is not dull science jargon but presented as the story of the life of the cactus. Don't miss this one for teaching and learning about life science in the desert.

We have been reading many different desert books for a unit study. It seemed that we kept running across the same old information in every book. Then we read this one! It tells you things that you just don't find in other books. This turned out to be our favorite book. The pictures are wonderful and it is easily understandable by young children, thought adults will learn a thing or two as well! Highly recommended.

Our third grade loved your book. It gave us a lot of information about the desert. The illustrations were excellent. We especilly liked the use of author techniques such as diagrams, onomatopeias, catchy title and colorful illustrations. We would love to contact Barbara Bash.