Tools Books

While there are a "ga-zillion" books on travel destinations, there are relatively few manuals for what travelers require before, during and after their journeys. Knowing where you want to go is only the tip of the iceberg. Knowing how to go about getting there IS the iceberg.

This is why I think Travel Wisdom is so very important for any traveler. It is a tutorial on preparedness for travel. And, the emphasis is on "wisdom" which to me means first-hand experience and not simply theoretical deductions, conjecture, self diagnosis or guesswork. In short, both Lynne and Hank Christen have infused their wealth of travel knowledge into a concise and practical package for travelers of all levels.

The underlying theme of the book lies in the fact that following the events of 9-11, both domestic and international travel have been greatly impacted by new and greater issues regarding security. We no longer can take for granted many of the routine activities of yesteryear.

Furthermore, no two travelers have the same needs, wants, desires or questions. Yet, somewhere in Travel Wisdom there are easily located answers to almost every question that can be posed on travel preparations, expectations, etiquette, booking, lodging, shopping, and a continuing litany of relevant travel-related subjects.

I highly recommend this book to be read thoroughly by all novice travelers. For the somewhat experienced and veteran travelers, I suggest allowing for a few more ounces of carry-on weight to have Travel Wisdom close by on any trip as a handy reference companion.

I received this book a week ago. I think it is the best book of genereal travel info I have ever read (and I have read many!) The authors include lots of "travel tips" that I had never thought of, as well as some excellent packing lists and a great list of resources on the internet.

Travel Wisdom: Tips, Tools, And Tactics For All Travelers is a highly practical guide to packing like a pro, managing travel money, shopping smart, bargaining for goods and services, dealing with setbacks, enjoying traveling with a group or going solo, creating travel lasting memories, and so much more. Collaboratively written by Lynne and Hank Christen for anyone who needs to prepare for a long journey, Travel Wisdom offers no-nonsense health, safety, and financial advice and is enthusiastically recommended for those about to travel the country or around the world for business, pleasure, or both.

(...)
Very practical guide. Well-organized into helpful chapters on every travel subject imaginable. But not a dry read. Funny little travel predicaments and stories are interspersed throughout. Heavy on the cruise ship/group tours, style of travel; light on low budget treks. Geared a bit more towards the older traveler. An attractive couple. Lynne, a former Flight Attendant, their great love for travel comes through on every page. Attractive cover with a definite lazy tropical appeal. (...)

The authors have packaged checklists and practical advice that simply is not available anywhere else. As a writer and frequent traveler I found this book essential for the experienced globetrotter and a revelation for those who are novices. Anyone will find fresh and instantly usable info on planning, packing, shopping, and savoring their trip. Can't recommend it highly enough!

This book is well written and easy to read. A lot of books by woodworkers or contractors are hard to read but this one is an easy read. Its' very informative but its' not enough for a beginner to read and start carving. It only covers information about the materials needed to start carving. It is still good for a beginner to read as it has a lot of good material about the tools and materials. It really opened my eyes to a lot of possibilities.

This ought to be within reach if you love to carve in wood. Plenty of illustrations and easy to understand text. Having this book would keep you from having to own a lot of other related material. It covers it all, especially with vol.2.

Very comprehensive set about carving tools equipment etc.
Both books tohether really gives you all you will need to know to get started and going the rest of your life...
Chris Pye is very thorough in his writing with high attention to detail, as can be witnessed in his other books also.

i have both of chris pye's books, and i belong to his web page. his books are well written and illustrated, and are well worth the money. not only do you have the advantage of his writtings, but he is one of the few pros that you can send an email to and get a response. pro woodcarvers can be snobs. whether you are an experienced carver or a beginner his books are great and he is always very helpful.

THIS BOOK IS A TRUUE MUST HAVE. I DID NOT KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE CARVING PART OF WOODWORKING. BEING THIS MY FIRST BOOK I TRULY KNEW WHAT TO GO AFTER, WHAT I WANTED AND HOW TO GET THE BEST OF IT. WILL HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS READ BEFORE VENTURING.

Wow! This book is a godsend for getting yourself organized and creating a strategy for promoting your book. I found it to be extremely informative, providing a wealth of great tips and advice for bringing a book to your intended audience. The author's experience comes through with clarity, empathy and humor. Brava, and Thank You to Carol Hoenig! She has provided a tool I am sure I will refer to again and again as I prepare to bring my work and my audience together.

Mary Greenwood, author of award-winning How to Mediate Like a Pro: 42 Rules for Mediating Disputes and How to Negotiate Like a Pro: 41 Rules for Resolving Disputes

I love this book about planning book events. As an author of two books myself, I got a lot of great ideas about launching events both outside and in bookstores. In addition, the author gives detailed descriptions and templates that she used in her own book events. I can see why this book has won awards. All authors have to market their books and this book is a must to give authors fresh and new ideas for their PR for their own books.

Most people think that writing a book is the hardest part of being an author - it's one of the easiest! Selling the darn thing after it has been written is the toughest part. If you are an aspiring author know this: There is no book-selling fairy and publishers can't sell your work either. It's the job of the author to get his/her work into the hands of the public. Carol Hoenig's new book is the perfect guide to how it should be done. in this book you will not find fancy tricks and make-believe exercises that will make you wonder why you ever put pen to paper. Instead, you'll find great examples of how it should be done. Carol makes it clear that book signings alone will not bring you the revenue that your hard work deserves. You must be creative and learn who your audience is, catering to their likes and dislikes. If you're a newbie author this book will give you the knowledge that would take 3 years to learn. If you're a seasoned keyboard tapper you'll find out why your book is not on the best-seller list and you'll learn what to do to get it there.

As a first time author Question Of The Day - Where Truth Is The Dare, I find myself full of enthusiasm and ideas. What I needed was a foundation to work off of. Carol Hoenig provides a blueprint that any self promoting author will benefit from.

Most important for me was finding out what to prioritize. Carol takes you through every aspect of planning your book event from the ground up in an extremely user-friendly manner. Carol speaks with a unique authority both as an experienced event coordinator and an author herself. Her perspective in this area is indispensable.

Reviewed by Tyler R. Tichelaar for Reader Views (11/07)

Carol Hoenig's "The Author's Guide to Planning Book Events" is an excellent guide to the author about to be published, and seasoned authors may also find some good ideas for their own book events.

Hoenig makes it very clear in the book that an author cannot sell books unless the author is willing to promote the books. She cites many authors who are willing to sit behind a desk and quietly sign books, but she makes it clear that book signings are often not effective. Authors must entertain their audiences by having book events. As an author myself, I have found that even a book signing is going to require some public speaking skill. People will approach you and ask what your book is about, and you must be able to describe your book in a couple of sentences that grab their attention or they will walk off without buying. Hoenig tells authors not to sit behind the table but stand and talk to passers-by. She also suggests doing creative activities like bringing holiday paper and wrapping books for customers at the holiday season.

Hoenig is an excellent source for information about book events, not only because she is an author and can tell us what worked and did not work for her, but more importantly, she is the former owner of a bookstore where she had many authors come to sign books and give presentations. She has worked with everyone from bestselling authors and publishers to unknown and up-and-coming authors, and she provides many examples of what works and does not work.

The real strength of Hoenig's book is she makes it clear YOU MUST DO EVENTS if you want to sell books. She understands many writers are shy, so she makes suggestions to help them, such as finding other writer friends to interview you before an audience, or doing events with other authors, so you are not by yourself. She also suggests linking up with artists or musicians to cross promote the arts and provide your self with a new audience.

The only aspect where I wish Hoenig suggested more was in addressing authors' shyness. She provided many suggestions for book events, but I felt she needed to spend more time helping authors improve their public-speaking skills, such as providing more examples of successful speeches and ways to describe your book to make it interesting and ways to overcome shyness. She needed to address how authors can overcome shyness and improve their public persona and public-speaking skills. I am surprised she did not recommend authors go to Toastmasters or similar groups for public speaking.

Overall, I would recommend "The Author's Guide to Planning Book Events" to other authors, especially new authors. Then I would suggest they find a way to practice the activities Hoenig suggests and to get friends to come to their events and give them feedback on what was and was not successful. The bottom line: to sell books, YOU MUST DO BOOK EVENTS! And you must also figure out how to do them well.

Very good reference book! Will be very helpful to the ones who are interested in statistics.

I am process of getting my Black Belt certification through Air Academy Associates. I like the common sense approach to Basic Statistics.

Looking for a solid introduction to continuous improvement? This may be a better book to guide your effort than many introductory books. This book includes basic introduction to Design of Experiment, where most efforts and books would ignore in continuous improvement.

This book is really great, I reccommend it!

As a certified Black Belt, I have to perform statistical tests on diverse processes for both manufacturing and service industries.

I have found this book to be the best I know of to be my "desktop guide" when I have any doubt on the method or applicability of a test or tool.

I engourage any and all readers who are looking for a book to help them do Process Improvement or Six Sigma Process Improvement to get this book.

It is well worth the price.

This book has been very helpful in designing lessons for teaching students to become more proficient, creative writers. I highly recommend it for anyone who teaches upper elementary! The CD contains an abundance of great prompts!

This book is well worth the price!! I was able to turn average writers into stronger, self confident writers. Students buy into the ideas presented in the book, and take off in their writing. For the students who just need a little boost, for dramatic flair in their writing, this book is the ticket. Start today! Your students and parents will thank you for the metamorphsis they see in student writing. Share with colleagues and you'll be a star.

After my first year of teaching and experiencing the stress associated with preparing for the state writing assessment, I knew I had to find something that would help me know how to prepare my students for this important test. As I stood in the middle of a teacher's store, I spotted this book. I wondered if this would be of any help. Since I was open to any ideas, I decided to take the chance and make the purchase. Happily, I admit, this was perhaps the best purchase of my entire teaching career. Mrs. Kiester's simple four-step plan was a "God-send." She puts into print each step a teacher should follow to help her students became extremely proficient writers. I have followed her plan for several years and have had great success with my students. I believe my students truly understand the writing process, and it is all due to Mrs. Kiester's Blowing Away the State Writing Assessment Test book. Hooray, Mrs. Kiester!!! This is the answer we've all been looking for!

This book, along with other tools for your classroom, is yet another excellent source to turn your mediocre writers into advanced writers. The strategies are also excellent for empowering your students to pass your state writing assessments.

This is just what I was looking for: a step-by-step writing program that includes examples of student writing that I can share with my students. I couldn't be happier.

ITS GOOD IF YOU WANT TO KNOW IN SIMPLE WORDS WHAT IS THE LAW OF ATTRACTION. HOW TO USE IT.

If you are interested in the Law of Attraction, Creative Visualization, New Thought, Unity, Religious Science, Abraham-Hicks, Carole Dore or Rev. Ike, I think you will want to read and re-read this extremely well-written book. It is different from other New Thought books in that it not only has new techniques to apply, but it also explains in very clear English WHY we aren't getting what we are visualizing. The author explains why affirmations don't work - and gives a work-around to use - another technique to create your treatment (he doesn't call it that). This is a book to read, re-read and keep re-reading. The tone is friendly, not preachy or condescending. This book is too good to fall by the wayside like so many New Thought/New Age books. IMO, it is destined to be a New Thought classic.

I thoroughly enjoyed "Born to Manifest".
I love how the law of attraction is explained, in simple terms, that everyone can understand.
The step-by-step tools provided are clear, and very fun to use.
Tom's down to earth, personal style of writing is great. You feel right at home reading the wonderful message, like you're listening to a special teacher or friend share their secrets with you.
I also loved the analogies, which provided a couple "a-ha" moments for me. I highly recommend this book to both people new to the law of attraction, and those (like myself), who have been familiar with it for some time.
Great read!

This book takes the Law of Attraction and breaks it down into steps you can take to make this natural law work in your favor. Most of us don't realize that we think more about what we DON'T want instead of what we do want. Tom Murasso outlines the tools needed to determine what we really DO want and the simple steps we must take to achieve our goal.

"Born to Manifest" is a quick, easy read that is packed with information humans need to truly take control of their lives and prepare themselves for our next evolutionary leap. The emphasis of this book is explaining the Law of Attraction (aka Karma) in clear, layman's terms and offering practical ways to make it work in our lives. Author Tom Murasso details exercises that everyone can do to help them along this journey. His writing style is very conversational, and he uses relatable examples making his ideas easily understood. For myself, who was already versed in much of this information, I found it a useful reiteration strengthened by some welcome new perspectives. For someone desiring to learn about these principles, this is a fantastic start. Tom says in his introduction that you'll "read and re-read until the end," and his statement was very accurate. This book is a great tool to have in your library that I imagine will become familiar and often visited.

As a conservative, I'm not much for government doing much of anything. However, if the government actually wants to do something worthwhile, it could give this book to every new parent. And give Gary Smalley's book "If Only He Knew" to every new husband. This would do more good than almost anything else.

"The goal of discipline is a warm, harmonious relationship with our children." That statement alone has altered my perspective of how parenting ought to look and has freed me from forever trying to control my son (and losing my mind--and temper). Steve has helped teach me how to go after what really matters--my child's heart; his attitude. I am learning how to stay connected with my son through the conflict and to celebrate together when his heart is right, when harmony is restored. I can't imagine trying to do it any other way now.

There are other people who are doing the same sort of thing Steve Sherbondy does -- James Dobson, Gary Smalley and John Rosemond. While they all have good ideas (go ahead and read their books) but none is specific, and many a clueless parent needs to start with a script, showing EXACTLY what to say and do in specific situations. Steve gives you the script. He alone seems to consider what to do next when the last brilliant discipline idea just didn't work. And besides having experience with his family and children of clients as the others do, he has worked with some hardcore delinquents as a houseparent. There is is philosophical and scriptural discussion as you might expect but the core is practical step by step instruction in how instill a right attitude.

This book is so head-and-shoulders above all the rest, that I would call it virtually the ONLY helpful child-rearing book I've ever read (and I've read more child-rearing books than anyone else I've ever met). Most current child-rearing books and classes teach this namby-pamby "better communication," "love them more" stuff, which for most of us was never our problem in the first place, and it doesn't even touch the heart of the issue. This book teaches that our children's ATTITUDE is the most important issue. It gives a progression of tools for dealing with their attitudes, from setting expectations, to logical consequences, to assigning work, and more. It gets to a sort of "tough love for younger ages" approach, which is what so many of the shockingly rude and spoiled children in our present society (and their misled, abused parents) need so desperately. I can't recommend this book highly enough!

As a single mom, with too much to do and too little time for it all, I needed good advice on how to raise children with integrity, honesty and other desirable character qualities, in spite of their being raised in a single-parent home. This book has given me firm guidance and the results are: happier children who respect their parents, teachers, and peers. Following Steve's suggestions are not all fun and games, it's hard work, and sometimes a little scary but the results are phenomenal! I especially appreciate Steve's sense of humor and personal stories throughout the book, which make for easy reading. So Steve, when are you going to write your next book!?!!

Many books on influence and persuasion give "5 steps" or "10 laws." This book takes you beyond concept and anecdotes, or "the Walk" of inlfuence and gives you the tools to look and your own communication behavior, or "the Talk." In very practical ways, you can begin to assess your own communication choices and make simple alterations that can help you connect with others and talk about the practical matters of getting things done- together!

Exercising Influence is one of the most useul books I've read in years. I'm tempted to buy a dozen or so copies as gifts for some of the miserably untalanted negotiators I've encountered in my two decades of practicing law. The book taught me two things (at least) of significant personal value:(1)The skills necessary for selling one's point of view to others can be learned; (2) These same skills overlap and improve one's abilities in the related areas of mobilizing public opinion; motivating partners, employees, and family members; communicating authority; making an impact; exercising leadership at home, in business, and in the community; getting results with and through others; implementing ideas; and making a positive difference. This eminently readable book is filled with charts, graphs, examples, tips, and instructions. What the book teaches is practical and immediately applicable to real-world situations. Kim Barnes'20 years of studying, writing about, and teaching the subject are amply in evidence in Exercising Influence. It deserves, and likely will receive, a wide and receptive readership. Five stars.

Exercising Influence reveals many uncommon, unrecognized flaws of casual, ineffective influencing. The author approaches this skill, as you would a physical skill- build up your strengths, address your weaknesses, try and make mistakes. Repeat. Plus, every chapter concludes with application tips. Highly recommended for anyone trying to lead change- at work, home or in communities.

This book can make it a lot easier to deal with people. Not just difficult people, but everyone in your life. After reading the book and practicing the principles, I began to see how ineffectual many of my influence "tactics" were. They were ineffective in that they didn't help me to get what I wanted, or I did get what I wanted but in a way that made it much harder the next time to get something from that person.

You can apply these influence principles anywhere. I also enjoyed the focus on balance between "receptive" and "expressive" behaviors. It's amazing when you start to use new behaviors how soon you get new results that were near impossible the old way.

Exercising Influence is and excellent book! I have read many books on influence and power and this one tops them all. It is based on solid theoretical underpinnings while at the same time being practical, actionable, and straightforward. I plan to use it extensively in my executive coaching practice. It provides lots of models, action steps, and guidelines which can be used by executives at all levels as well as by individuals in other walks of life. I have been hunting for such a practical explanation of a difficult subject. Pleased to say, I have found it in Kim Barne's book1

Jenifer Renzel, President, The Aptos Group, Aptos, California

This book is awesome. If you only get one book on using hand tools, get this one.

As a neanderthal, non-electric woodworker, I found this book to be a boon of relavent information (not that there is anything 'wrong' with power woodworking). Lot's of books I've seen are geared to collectors of hand tools, but this one is about using hand tools. It's practical, accessible information for doing real work. Anyone wishing to get their arms around hand tools (sorry, bad metaphor) should own this work.

If you love hand planes this Book is for you.If you love or even like hand tools you will love this book.New or old tools this volume will let you know how to use ,care for them or rebuild them.Very good pictures and clear text as well as a little bit of tool lover in the authors.Any wood worker will like this book as I did and read it cover to cover.Good work people MM

This is a great reference book. While I learned allot just browsing, it was most valuable when I wanted to reference a couple things and found that they were there and in sufficient detail to answer my questions. For me, there is possibly a little much on various forms of sharpening, but then that is s topic that seems to have as many ways as there are people to talk about it.

I have a Stanley cabinet scraper and I became convinced that they didn't work worth a hoot. Then, reading that section, I learned I had prepared the blade wrong, changed it, and feel like I got a new tool out of the deal. Great value

Knowing that this was basically just a collection of Popular Woodworking articles, I was prepared to be underwelmed. Talk about disappointment! I HATE being wrong like this! In short, this is a truly impressive collection of information that looks more like a group of knowledgable hand tool experts put together, rather than just articles grabbed and put together in a book form.

The book is laid out in a logical way, starting with a "Why Handtools" section, going into sharpening (a must for any hand tool user), then saws, chisels, and the like. The last section are a couple of projects that blend hand tools and power tools well, and that will serve any workshop well for years to come. Honestly, the beautiful tool cabinet of Christopher Schwarz's is worth the cost of the book by itself!

This is a must have for, I believe, any woodworker. There's no preaching about hand tool supremacy, nor any reference to "quaint" ideas of woodworking. Instead, this book offers the modern woodwork a glimpse of the realms where hand tools still excel, and how they can be incorporated into the modern workshop. At the same time, it shows how a hand tool only shop can still produce quality work equal to that of the powered shop.

I tried this summer communicating with Amazon without success; maybe someone will read this. I purchased a copy of "The University in Ruins" last March. The copy is defective! Pages 152-153, 160-161, 168-169, and 176-177 are missing and are replaced by earlier pages (120-121, 128-129, 136-137, and 144-145; "doubled").
What can be done about this?
Thank you.
Dr. John Nichols

I am a junior-faculty member and have tried my hand at creating rubrics in an effort to be fair and consistent in grading. However, I struggled with breaking down each area so I felt my rubrics were weak. Thus, I was looking for a "how-to" book and this book did not disappoint! It was well worth every penny! The book was written by two college faculty members who are seasoned in developing rubrics for college courses (individually, departmentally, and university-wide). I read the book in a day and then began working through the 4-stage process. It took the better part of a full day to create my first rubric, working through the steps methodically and thoughtfully, but I trust the authors that when it comes to grading, I will more than save the time, and most importantly, students will have a clear picture of where their grade comes from. Also, I am confident that the time required in producing rubrics for other assignments will decrease as I gain more experience.
In addition to the 4-stage process, the authors discuss a continuum of 5 models to rubric construction ranging from the instructor creating the rubric with no input from students to a rubric that is created completely by the students (of course, as the faculty member, one always has the opportunity to make adjustments). The point being that there is more than one way to construct a rubric depending on instructor's style and developmental level of the class. The book has a chapter on constructing rubrics with others, such as TA's, colleagues and tutorial staff. Even though my university does not use TA's and I am new faculty member, I liked the idea behind involving colleagues, and especially, tutorial support, like a writing center. Another chapter was designated to show how rubrics could be used in different disciplines. For example, rubrics for laboratory work in the sciences or a portfolio review in art were demonstrated along with rubric examples for assessing classroom participation and assignments that may be submitted in stages, such as a research paper.
I have only two slight criticisms: 1) the book only spends a page and half talking about assigning a grade after completing the rubric. The book used primarily one example throughout the book (although showing how to modify the rubric for a First-Year course versus a graduate course) which was really useful, but then, when it came time for discussing assigning a grade, they used a totally different type of rubric and assignment. I wish they would have shown assigning a grade to the example they had been using. It seems that would have completed the process. And, 2) the publishers have a website on the book where you can download rubric templates. This was good. The complaint is that the authors also have a website which promises discussion boards, more templates, etc. However, it is essentially a shell that was set up when the book was published in 2005 and nothing much has transpired since then. For these two reasons, I give it a 4-star versus a 5-star rating, but the bottom-line is, get this book to learn how to create assessment tools that will help your students and YOU!

I would recommend this guide for rubric development. It clear and provides many good examples to get started.

At our college I purchased one copy, then 6 more, then 4 more, then 25 more... handed out to various faculty members along with workshops on rubrics. The book is very accessible to get faculty over the hump to actually writing and using rubrics for themselves/their classes.

I had a basic understanding of grading rubrics before I began, but it wouldn't have mattered, as the authors provide such a clear explanation that I think even someone with no prior knowledge would grasp the concept almost immediately. The book is loaded with examples and a step-by-step walk-through of how to build effective rubrics. Perhaps most importantly, the authors explain why just about everybody can benefit from rubrics and how course design ultimately could be improved by making effective use of feedback from well-constructed rubrics. I highly recommend this to any instructor of college students, especially if they have shied away from using essay type exams because they have been afraid they could not reliably grade them.