Companies Books

I first saw this calendar at our schools Scholastic book fair. One of the reasons I purchased it because it starts in September of 2008 and ends in December 2009, for the money it's more than just a 12 month calendar.

I do like the way they broke every day down and you can label 5 small rectangles for each day. At our house I broke it down to Mom, daughter, Dad, Birthday and other. I also liked that also with the calendar came a magnetic phone list for the fridge and 500 stickers. It does take some getting use to looking across the calendar, but once you get use to it, it's easy. I do wish the daily rectangle areas where a little bit bigger for more information. A good deal money wise and to help you plan your child's school year and your families social commitments.

I have used the Boynton Mom's Family Calendar for the last 2 years and I can't live without it. It's perfect for organizing a busy family. It makes my holiday wish list every year.

This calendar is a great way to keep everyone's schedules together...very helpful and cute animal pictures

I purchased both Mom's Family Calendar and Plan it Plus last year and used them both and IMHO, Mom's Family Calendar wins out hands down. I could barely squeeze appointments or anything else in the Plan it Plus tiny squares. Not to mention if you have more than one thing to write on a certain day, you can forget it. The family calendar may be a little bigger, but I can live with it if it will hold all the information I need which it does and then some. I love that you can write different names at the top to section out different appointments and such. It's perfect for my family of four. And there is even an extra space for our family dog and her vet appointments or grooming! The only thing I give Plan it Plus over the Family Calendar is the convenient magnetic holder so you can hang it on the Fridge. Other than that, I would highly recommend the Family Calendar to keep any family organized and on top of things.

New item arrived promptly in New Zealand. Efficient and speedy service. Highly recommend.

This book is different than other books on relationships that have ended. It is the best book I have read on it and what they have you do really works!

When I found out about this book, I was yet again trying to recover from another failed relationship attempt. The question I kept asking myself was "why do I keep repeating similar relationships that end in similar fashion". Fortunately, it was also at this time that I met Russell Friedman, who encouraged me to read this book and do the work. Here I am, a little over one year later, happier and possessing a greater understanding of what was standing in the way of the relationship that I desired. Best yet, after several successful and fun dating relationships, I have MOVED ON and MOVED IN with the right guy for me. Thanks John and Russell for giving me the tools to build "it" right this time. Sara

I first learned about the Grief Institute through a raido program. I was intriqued and bought this book. WOW. Many concepts I needed to learn since, as the book points out, many of us learn myths about grieving. I too learned to be "strong" where people see us happy and able to deal...when that is only a cover up of our feelings and not dealing. I also like the STERBs concept. Short-term energy releasing behaviors. I was doing many things I thought were helping with grieving, but they were only short lived. This lead me thinking "Time would heal my wounds" which we now know isn't the case.

This book helped me in many ways and I recommend it and even buy it for friends. This is a must book for everyone. No...it isn't the complete all book as nothing in life is complete, but certainly a fantastic book in the journey of life and giving you some tools to help along the way.

This was a great book. I listen to the author on a radio talk show Audrey Chapman and had to purchase this book. The execrise along with the reading really helped me get with my most recent relationship. I have finished reading the book; however, I still review certain chapters weekly. I strongly recommend this book for anyone getting over a bad relationship and want to love to forgive.

Pennye James

Great book...better than great. I had several epiphanies about myself that made a real difference. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to grow and be free of past mistakes.

I would love to read this book, my great uncle died aboard the Leopoldville and though the family has been told stories from some of the survivors, it would be nice to have a researched account of it all. At $1,050 a copy, I fear it may take a while before that happens, but all the same, i'm glad someone took the time to find out the truth about this disaster. This month, my great uncle's 3 brothers are all being awarded medals for their service in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. These are the real heroes, these four brothers.

This true story of the souls lost and those who lived on from a World War II disaster is unequalled in military history. There is probably no other single incident in WW2 that compares to or involves so many lives in so many states, stories that continue on to this day. The stories Andrade provides, and his writing ability place you on the Leopoldville on Christams Eve, 1944, the day it was lost.

My father-in-law's brother perished in the sinking of the Leopoldville. I married into the family 20 years ago and never really knew what happened to Uncle Waldo. Now I am filled with a great sense of loss at never having known him--and that loss is compounded as I think of the nearly 800 families who lost sons, husbands, fathers, and uncles.

I am also filled with a great sense of appreciate and reverence for all those on board--for those who gave their lives and for those who survived the terror.

Allan Andrade did a great job of presenting the story and introducing those who involved. They are very real people to me now. I finished the book with tears streaming down my cheeks. This is a must read for anyone who had family involved in the sinking. It is an important piece of history for everyone. It reminds us of the price others paid for our freedom, but it also raises important questions about the mistakes or errors that contributed to the loss and the failure to acknowledge those problems.

Thank you, Mr. Andrade, for writing this important book.

I just put this book down and was astonished both by the tragedy of the disaster and by Andrade's insightful and meticulous reporting. I highly recommend it.

"`Hey, I'm alive!' Drew blacked out. When he came to, he found himself on a beach, naked protected only by a raincoat thrown over him. He heard a faint voice `Throw him in there too.' Drew, realizing that they thought he was dead, yelled." This is just one of many harrowing tales of a life and death struggle resulting from the sinking. "SS Leapoldville Disaster, December 24, 1944" is the story of this troopship loaded with American troops being rushed to the help in the Battle of the Bulge. It was sunk barely five miles from shore taking with it 763 American servicemen. The book consists of many short stories detailing individual accounts of the disaster. Even the Introduction has 38. These were compiled from hundreds of interviews and research. Andrade includes many actual copies of letters. Perhaps the most moving are letters from parents to their sons before they knew they were dead. One story in particular is very moving: "Lt. Gene Barwick died that night. They never recovered his body. Each Christmas Eve reminded Barwick's parents of his death. His young bride eventually remarried and had two children but 20 years after her first love's death, she took her own life on a Christmas Eve." Many who died were only 18 to 21 years old and came from 47 of the (then) 48 states. All are listed by state in the In Memoriam Section at the end of the book as are the survivors.

This disaster was kept secret for many years. It was understandable during the war but not so afterwards. Allan Andrade has done a service to the nation and to the families of those lost with his book. It is well done, and an easy read - well worth your time!...

This is a great review book. I really like how the book separates the subjects and has test questions as the end of each chapter. The CD is also easy to use. I would recommend this book for anyone preparing for the nclex exam.

We ordered this book to help our daughter study for her NCLEX exam. It was very helpful and we are happy to say that she passed the test and is now a Licensed Practical Nurse.

I had several different NCLEX study books but this is the one that I used most. It is my LPN BIBLE STILL! I also had the Saunders Q & A, which I liked, but this one is so well organized. I still carry it in my nursing bag for reference. This book was recommended to me by one of my clinical instructors and I'm glad I bought it. I passed NCLEX-PN with 85 questions in Jan 2008. My cd worked pretty well. I did 3000-4000 questions before testing which is recommended. I will be using it again to study for an RN Bridge program. I wish I would have used it more during LPN school.

Out of the study guides I used to prep for the NCLEX-PN, this guide's questions were the closest to the type and difficulty I experienced on the actual exam. I highly recommend this book.

Book received in a timely manner and in good condition. I am impressed with my Amazon.com purchases.

This is an excellent, straight-forward, sensitive book that deals with a topic that is difficult. It is written so that it can be easily understood and is incredibly helpful to victims as well as therapists who treat them. The author validates the victim's world and encourages the victim to get help and talks about the many males who have survived and are healing.

A thoughtful book re sexual abuse of people who are trying to get past the victim ideology. The writer has had much experience in treating these people and his suggestions are helpful.

As a spouse of a survivor, I read this book which also offered advice to partners and spouses. This book gave way too many examples and other info for the first 4 chapters. Most of us already have an idea of what sexual abuse against boys can entail, there were just way too many stories of survivors that were disturbing and difficult to read. It did however give important insight and ways to get help and help yourself but it came along with a lot of unneeded information. If you have the time and patience it is a good tool towards recovery.

I gave this wonderful book to my husband who is in recovery from childhood sexual abuse by his father. He cried and read , cried and read from start to finish. The book is empowering, healing and filled with truth that heals. I recommend it as an essential read for those in recovery and for those who love them. Kate

If you or a loved one have been the victim of childhood sexual abuse then this book is an excellent resourcee. It deals primarily with Male Survivors and provides great insight into how coping mechanisms have become a way of life. It allows survivors to carefully examine their feelings and relationship choices in a positive and affirming manner, and begin to make changes to a healty lifestyle. If you have decided to read this book, well done!!! You have taken the first steps to reclaiming your life!

Though I first read this to fulfill a requirement, every time I read it from then on is and will be to continue understanding the content. It's deep but able to be grasped, and simultaneously challenging and embracing. Speaking in a very real way, the author engages her audience, encourages, and introduces new ways of seeing things. I'd say new ideas, but they are probably old ideas with a new twist that makes them more approachable. When I recommended it to my mom, she'd just received a copy from a friend in her small group--apparently its dynamic and helpful to more than just me!

Well written, Biblical, and stimulating. We are considering using this book as a tool in a men's Bible study.

Theological sound. Encouragement for women to not be afraid of "Theology". The author is Biblically sound in her doctrine and how women can relate to other women and others in her life; whether a crisis or just daily living. A very much needed message in this post-modern world.

When Life and Beliefs Collide was suggested to be by a man. I was skeptical to say the least. However, it is one of the most faith affirming books I have ever read. It is inspirational, informative and interesting. It makes me laugh and cry all on the same page!! Our book club is reading it and while some were not sure at first about the topic of theology, by the third chapter they are all hooked. It is a must read!!

When Life and Beliefs Collide is one of (if not THE) best books I've read in a long time. Definitely worth your time.

For more information, my online review is available here.

The Complete Works of Shakespeare / 0-673-99996-3

Every play, every sonnet, every scribble is here - and much more. This volume includes useful background on the theatre, politics, morality, and social mores of the day. The level of detail here is absolutely stunning; the footnotes are numerous and incredibly helpful, especially to 'translate' obscure sayings or particularly unusual English usage. Each play is prefaced with an introduction containing the complete 'cliffs notes' of the play, providing useful insight into character motivation and development. I highly recommend this volume, both for Shakespeare enthusiasts and for students just wishing for enough information that they can passably demonstrate familiarity with the Bard.

This was the text for my college Shakespeare classes over 20 years ago (different edition of course) I still have it and still use it. A wonderful book for students and those who want not only the complete works but some well written and authoritative information about Shakespeare and the world in which he lived and wrote.

The texts of the plays are well foot-noted and the type is easy on the eyes. Well worth the investment.

While reading reviews of this edition elsewhere on the Web, I came across this review by David Allen White, professor of English @ the U.S. Naval Academy and editor (with Charles Boyce) of Shakespeare A to Z:

"Re-writing Shakespeare is nothing new. The Nahum Tate version of King Lear--with the happy ending--held the stage for nearly a century and a half. The great actors of the romantic age, Kean and Booth and Macready, not only spotlighted the heroes in the tragedies but felt free to beef up their roles. Directors began more than 50 years ago to monkey with the historical settings of the play, often with imaginative and instructive results. Scholars, critics, and directors have ridden various hobbyhorses through the plays for years, introducing us to Freudian Hamlets and Marxist King Lears and feminist Tamings of the Shrew.

"Recent Shakespeare production and scholarship, however, add a perverse twist to this long tradition. We no longer care what the Bard actually wrote. Years of deconstructionist theorizing have taught us that words are needy and we, readers or actors or scholars, have the right, indeed the obligation, to give them the gift of meaning--our meaning, the more bizarre the better.

"For the 23 years that I've taught Shakespeare at the United States Naval Academy, I have always used the same text, The Complete Works of Shakespeare, edited by David Bevington of the University of Chicago. Professor Bevington is an old-school scholar with a distinguished career. The book he edited had many advantages: large print, full character names before each speech, specific indications of settings, modernized spellings, solid introductions that connected the plays to the students' experience of love and politics, morality and order, passion and faith, and comprehensive but not overwhelming notes. Every few years a new edition would appear, and I would open it with interest and a little apprehension. But the changes would be minor--thinner paper (approaching the substance of tissue, a malady afflicting many recent books), hints here and there of encroaching academic perversity in the notes--nothing sufficient to make me seek another text. The 4th edition's introduction to The Tempest caused me to swallow hard: We learn there that Prospero's authority "is problematic to us because he seems so patriarchal, colonialist, even sexist and racist in his arrogating to himself the right and responsibility to control others in the name of Western and Christian values." But this is an imperfect world, and I soldiered on.

"Notified that a 5th Edition would appear this fall, I took time to examine it closely. Many of the introductions remain the same; but new editors and commentators have significantly altered others. Despite the myth of progress that reigns in all the disciplines of modern academia, "new" is often far from "improved." Apparently, Professor Bevington has either ignored the changes or allowed the young scholar-colts to have a romp. In some of the new introductory essays, especially under the guise of new brief histories of stage performance, questionable judgment, to put it mildly, has crept in. For example, the introduction to Othello ends with the following observation:

'In another recent development, Emilia has stood out in several productions as the raissoneur and heroic figure in the play, speaking as she does on behalf of maltreated women, urging Desdemona to stand up for her rights. One recent Chicago production went so far as to rewrite the ending: Othello and Iago both survive unpunished for what they have done, while Desdemona and Emilia lie dead as their innocent victims. This deliberate and provocative overstatement might seem extreme to some viewers, but unquestionably did signal the direction of recent performance history of the profoundly disturbing play.'

"It may be time to stop buying tickets to that great play.

"The current obsession in academia is "queer theory," and the homoerotic is everywhere, not just in Shakespeare studies. But this particular perversity fills the introductions to the new Bevington, especially the introductions to the comedies. Compare the following passages, the first from the introduction to As You Like It in the 4th Edition, essentially a carry-over from earlier editions:

'Rosalind's disguise name, Ganymede, taken from Jove's amorous cupbearer, has homoerotic connotations that are easily misinterpreted today. Shakespeare delicately acknowledges the suggestion, to be sure, both in Phoebe's pursuit of a young lady (but really a boy actor) in male attire, and in Orlando's courtship of "Ganymede" as though addressed to Rosalind. Yet this innocent titillation, found also in Shakespeare's source, is not meant to hint at homosexual attraction as we understand it. On the contrary, the point is that Orlando can speak frankly and personally to "Ganymede" as to a perfect friend, one to whom he can relate in platonically spiritual terms without the distracting note of sexual interest.'

"These are eminently sane and sensible remarks. Now from the Introduction to As You Like It in the 5th Edition:

'Rosalind's disguise name, Ganymede, has connotations that suggest ways in which human sexuality can be partly understood as socially constructed. If Rosalind in disguise as Ganymede wins the affection and eventually the love of Orlando, while her father and the others are equally taken in by the disguise, are maleness and femaleness chiefly matters of sartorial convention and superficial appearance? When Phoebe falls in love with Ganymede, is not her infatuation a way of showing that the roles of the sexes can be put on and off? Theatrically, the device of having a young male actor play Rosalind who then disguises him/herself as a young man adds to the witty confusion of sexual identities by introducing homoerotic possibilities. Not only can the roles of the sexes be put on and off, sexual desire itself is unstable...'

"This is ideology masquerading as interpretation.

"To be sure, the range of possible interpretations of Shakespeare's work is wide, for he encompasses all of humanity and tells profound and mysterious truths about human life. Such inexhaustible expansiveness invites discussion and dispute and differences. At the end of the Introduction to Richard II in this volume, for example, there is a brief but superb account of various interpretations of that rich role by leading actors. Professor Charles Forker of Indiana University provides that account; another old-school scholar, he knows more about that play than any other living soul. Too many of the revised introductions, however, are more interested in advancing the latest academic-political orthodoxy than in discovering and illuminating the natural and conventional moral order so abundantly on display in Shakespeare's works. Nothing is more orthodox--still--among contemporary literary critics than the alleged truth that there is no truth, that all interpretations are valid except the author's own.

"Thus Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream can be presented as "the denizen of a drug culture, with the love potion as the weed he gleefully distributes. The experience of the forest becomes a drug-induced 'high,' for audiences as for the actors. The fairies, sometimes played by adult and hairy males, can exhibit a streak of cruelty." And, indeed, in a recent production at the Shakespeare Theater in Washington, D.C., the fairies were hairy males who carried something like miners' lights. So much for lightness and charm and magic. This same Dream introduction gives the game away in words that are echoed in many of the other essays: "These modern interpretations are arguably neither more nor less 'true' to Shakespeare's text than earlier or more 'traditional' versions. What they do demonstrate is the play's remarkable permeability and openness to differing views."

"The new Bevington retails for $90; in good conscience, I cannot ask students to fork over such a sum of cash for a book that is now rife with nonsense. So next fall I'll assign The Riverside Shakespeare, which fortunately is still in its 2nd edition. I fervently hope it is not soon updated.

"Of course, the Bevington volume has come to reflect the universities it serves, where young students pay small fortunes to be taught that there is no enduring meaning or beauty to be found in the poetry of Shakespeare, no tradition worth preserving, no "truth" other than personal whim and innovative foolery. If the price of the new Bevington is petty theft, the tuitions charged by these institutions have become, at least for the study of the humanities, highway robbery.

"I know a father who gave his son the equivalent of a year's tuition and told the lad to go to Europe, to travel, to observe, to learn for as long as the money would hold out. The young man came back after two-and-a-half years, mature and educated, and instantly found a good job. The time has come for imaginative, alternative learning. I talked recently with a very intelligent young woman who loves literature; she is completing her sophomore year at Yale, where she had hoped to pursue an English Literature major. She informed me with sorrow that she was abandoning that plan. Her reason was quite simple: she had already sat through too many classes where lunacy prevailed. She mentioned the possibility of looking at traditional Catholic convents. Could this be the first refreshing drop of a wave of the future? It would not be the first time that civilization was preserved in the convents and the monasteries. Nymph, in thy orisons, be all of Academia's sins remembered."

(Allen, David White, "An Unweeded Garden," The Claremont Institute, http://claremont.org/publications/crb/id.959/article_detail.asp [originally published March 22, 2004])

I guess it's safe to say that, based on his review, Professor Allen'd give this edition 1 star...right?

I purchased this book as a birthday present for a graduating high school student who is a big fan of Shakespeare.
This volume has a lot to offer to both students and casual readers. In addition to very readable text of all the plays and sonnets, the fifth edition provides historical and literary context, including drawings and photos, as well as insightful essays on each of the plays. The essays include background, plot summaries and discussion of major themes and would be very useful to anyone seeing a play, especially for the first time. The helpful glossary is extensive, so the reader doesn't have to look up unfamiliar words or feel intimidated by the language. Professor Bevington's fifth edition of the Complete Works is a gem, authoritative and attractive. The birthday girl thinks so, too-- she gives it an A+.

This is truly a great book. Not only does it contain all of Shakespeare's works but it also has an enormous amount of information. There's a little bit on his life and a bit more about the theater during his time. There are also some great drawings in the beginning of the book.

I haven't read the book it was for my daughter who just raved about it

I ordered this for my granddaughter and she loved it. It's the 2nd book she's read by this author and eventually wants to read them all.

I know at first the writing style of the text in the book may throw some people off... but it is what gives the story the actual feel of being there and exploring the crazy chaotic world of meth... great book, wish it was a bit longer, i read it in 6hrs

If you read Crank. The first of this two book series or any other of this authors book. You know how amazing she is. This is just another amazing book to add to this wonderful authors collection.

The sequel to the popular novel "Crank" definetly strikes your heart. I found myself constantly doing things that books normally do not make me do. For instance I found myself yelling at the characters and raging on about what was and wasn't fair. The characters hit me with full force and now I'm more attached to them than ever.

All though "Glass" can be quite depressing it truly unleashes the truth about the drug meth or as Kristina/Bree calls it - the monster. This monster comes in different forms but the outcome is always the same - it will ruin you.

Something to note is that all of Ellen Hopkin's novels are written in poetry format. I was very surprised after reading her first book at how talented she is. The format is original and even though there aren't as many words as a normal book, it still puts a lot of things into those few words.

Kristina used to be a good girl - used to have real friends - until she met the monster. In this second book crank/glass/the monster has officially taken over her life. While trying to raise her baby boy, Hunter while dealing with her deadly drug addiction, life is rough as ever. Soon even a loving family and friends becomes scarce. But of course do you really need a friend while you're having such a blast with glass? Bree says no but Kristina says yes.

Bree is the part of Kristina that's wild, wreckless, and not well. Kristina is the side that is good, has common sense, wants to stop. Will this girl do what's right or will her bad decisions lead her into even more trouble?

We live about four hours from the Bay Area. We own two of the other Trailblazer books. Since we trust their accuracy and like their layout, that alone convinced us to try their Golden Gate guide. Just don't make the mistake of buying this older version. Click on the author's name and it will take you to the newest edition. It blows away all the other hiking books for the region. We use it for 3-day weekend getaways to where it's cool.
Golden Gate Trailblazer: Where to Hike, Walk, Bike in San Francisco & Marin

I just bought this book based on the reviews and will be returning it. We live in Sausalito and the Marin Headlands are essentially our backyard. I bought the book to find new areas in the Golden Gate area to explore but when I looked at the area I know well, the Marin Headlands, the information ( map and route description ) were inaccurate and misleading.

This book is excellent but readers should know the authors have recently revised it for 2004/2005. They've added more maps and photos and a section for family outings. The easiest way to find the new edition is to click on the authors name. Note the title has changed slightly too. It's now Golden Gate Trailblazer: where to hike, walk, bike in San Francisco and Marin.

My vacation to San Francisco lasted three weeks. I bought Golden Gate Trailblazer when I arrived and walked many miles with it as my guide. Treasured memories are Limantour and McClures beaches at Point Reyes National Seashore which I never would have found on my own. There's so much more to the Bay Area than Fisherman's Wharf and the cable cars and traffic. This book excels when it comes to organization with maps in every section and a very detailed index. I highly recommend it to hikers and walkers who have never visited this part of California's coast. Like me, you'll probably be surprised at all the places these local authors have packed inside.

Simply said . . . wow. What a find! High on my list for seeing all the offbeat and major sites around the City and along Marin's rugged coast and bay wetlands. For years I've been the chauffer when guests come and stay. Now I just hand my friends a copy of Trailblazer and tell them to begin at trail #1, The City. For trails in the Golden Gate National Recreation area and Mt. Tamalpais, this is the most detailed book. You really get a feel for northern California and its history by reading it. Maps are A+ too.

Herman and Gioia have done an excellent job of outlining successful strategies based on their own experience as well as the experience of successful organizations. Their simple, but complete, list of critical components for becoming (or remaining) an employer of choice provide a valuable guide. I particularly like the inclusion of examples and quotes from organizations that use these approaches and techniques. This is a complete "how to" guide. A must read...and, a must use book.

Herman & Gioia's EOC is a virtual quick-trip to understanding how the EOCs have achieved their elite status. Easy reading, practical advice supported by diverse cases from leading companies. The summaries of best practices alone are worth reading. Readers wanting more detail can refer to the chapter notes citing specific bibliographic sources.

The chapters on Culture and Enlightened Leadership contain insights into what leaders personally and specifically can do to create the kind of organizational environment that is attractive to employees. Those chapters would be useful to those leaders who sincerely want to "walk the talk." The chapters on Growth and Opportunity and Compensation & Benefits provide poignant "how-to" tips for addressing some of the key advancement, development and pay-related reasons that younger employees are defecting to other competitors. The chapters on Care of People and Meaningful Work would be useful to HR officers wanting to improve employee relations and job design to help reduce the skyrocketing cost of undesirable turnover.

In sum, Herman & Gioia's book is a cornucopia of pithy, actionable suggestions based on relevant EOC case examples. Any leader "worth his/her salt" should reap a significant ROI by effectively implementing even a few of those ideas to help attract and retain talented people.

How to Become an Employer of Choice was published in a year when the biggest problem most companies had was hiring and retaining talented people. Reading the book today it strikes me as a shame that companies are not as eager to pursue the excellent advice given in this book on building strong devotion to your company in the workforce. The problem may seem very far from your mind right now, but being an employer of choice has a tremendous value even when the labor market is easy.

The book starts with a good explanation of why you would want your company to be an employer of choice. One of the nice things in this book is that each chapter is peppered with sidebar anecdotes about real world examples of the concepts being discussed. Most of these anecdotes come from Herman and Gioia's personal research and consulting work, and they are quite helpful.

In the next chapter, there is a survey of the attributes of a company that is an employer of choice. This is probably the least prescriptive of the chapters, but it does offer useful ideas. The succeeding three chapters, on culture, enlightened leadership and care of people give very specific advice about things you can do to work on your company from the inside. There is a wealth of practical material here, and I find much of it as useful for smaller companies as for large ones.

The chapter on growth and opportunity gives excellent advice on nurturing your best people through education. I like the fact that the chapter gives an appropriate balance of suggestions about using both internal and outside educational resources.

The chapter on meaningful work emphasizes the usefulness of measurement and the use of culture to help employees get a sense of satisfaction from their jobs - no matter how small.

In the chapter "Compensation and Benefits" Herman and Gioia offer a wealth of ideas that go beyond the obvious "pay for performance". In particular, the ideas about making the benefits package fit well into your employees' lives are well founded. The whole chapter is a really good survey of ideas for rounding out your benefits package that I have found useful both for my own company and for my strategy clients.

The chapter on "Making a Difference" focuses on community involvement. This creates a strong sense of pride in the companies that do it, and the chapter has a number of excellent ideas for companies of any size or budget.

The last chapter, "Getting Started", unfortunately offers the least practical advice. This is a shame because I think for most of us, the challenge of applying the great ideas in this book will be daunting. Fortunately, there is a great appendix with some techniques for measuring your performance as an employer of choice, so we are left with what I would consider the most important tool for getting started.

Overall, this is a super book with good concepts, supporting anecdotes, and a treasure trove of useable, practical advice on becoming an employer of choice. Even if you are having an easy time with hiring right now, you will be much better off for applying the great stuff in this book!

(Robert Bradford is CEO of the Center for Simplified Strategic Planning and co-author of Simplified Strategic Planning: A No-Nonsense Guide for Busy People Who Want Results Fast)

Despite the "employers' market" created after thousands of layoffs since the tragedy of September 11, companies must work harder than ever to become an "employer of choice." Herman and Gioia have developed what is sure to become a standard for how to get and keep your most valuable employees.

With case studies from a variety of organizations that include actual accounts of what works--and what doesn't, Herman and Gioia have managed to walk the fine line between research and reality. In simple, everyday language, this practical, hands-on how-to guide explains the process of developing an "employee-centered culture" that allows employees and their businesses to thrive.

"How To Become an Employer of Choice" is a must-have for any business seeking an edge in today's ever-competitive marketplace.

Dianna Booher
Author of communicate with Confidence, E-Writing, and Get a Life

How to become an employer of choice is a well organized compendium of timely suggestions for things organizations can do to attract, retain and motivate high quality employees in this volatile labor market. The authors use clear, straightforward langage to identify the business rationale for creating and maintaining a work environment that invites and rewards the best and the brightest, and encourages them to stay, even in the face of other offers. The suggestions the authors make don't require a major overhaul or reorganization of your company. Instead they present common sense alternatives to the traditional business model that are relatively easy to implement. Good ideas here for all kinds of companies and other organizations.