Organizations Books

This is a beautifully illustrated version of the 19th century hymn "All Things Bright and Beautiful." The illustrations follow a country girl as she explores the world around her. The illustrations propel the text's message to the next level, powerfully demonstrating the beauty of God's creation. It's worth pausing at every page-spread to admire the pictures for a few extra seconds, and it doesn't detract from the reading of the story at all.

Each 2-page spread has 2 lines from the hymn, and a 2-page illustration spread surrounding the words. The text is a nice large size. In the back two pages, the hymn is printed if you'd want to play it or sing it with your children.

I'd highly recommend this book to anyone with young children that they want to teach of God from their earlist days.

This is an easy review - the book is simply great! If parents are willing to sit down with their children and read, especially starting before they are two years old, this book will help to spark the imagination of practically any child. The song couldn't make a better subject for a book. The story should help form the foundation for a strong moral and religious background. The illustrations are beautifully done and our twenty-two month old picks out things that we hadn't even noticed. I recommend the book to all parents and encourage them to read it nightly, taking the time to discuss what they see in the pictures. I sincerely hope the author has more projects in the works!

All creatures great and small, all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all... This is a great hymn, one of my favorites (especially the arrangement by John Rutter). Reading (singing!) this book to my children has given them an appreciation for the beauty in God's world. The illustrations are the kind that a child is drawn into - the kind they can gaze at and imagine themselves in the scene.
A carefree country girl goes on a ramble as the hymn unfolds. My children (me too!) want to kick off their shoes and share in the child's absorption of the beauty around her.
Great way to children-ize a hymn.

James Popham's book "America's 'Failing' Schools: How Parents and Teachers Can Cope With No Child Left Behind" is an up front and simply written piece that argues why the No Child Left Behind Act is actually hurting our students and schools instead of helping them. Popham explains how school report cards are not an accurate portrayal of a school's credibility, just as standardized tests are not a fair judgment of a student's abilities. He goes on to challenge both parents and teachers alike to speak up against this unfair assessment and demand better tests and more indicators to determine the educational health of our nation's students and schools. Popham's book clarified all questions I had regarding the No Child Left Behind Act as well as broadened my outlook on the negative effects standardized testing has on our country. Although his book contains some bias, he supports his claims and (as a teacher himself) has the credibility to speak his mind.

W. James Popham has written the authoritative guide to understanding the controversial No Child Left Behind Act. He subtitles the book "How Parents and Teachers Can Cope With No Child Left Behind," but he goes beyond his mission by shining a sorely needed spotlight into the esoteric world of assessment in terms lay readers can grasp. In so doing, he explodes the myths surrounding the accountability movement that is affecting all stakeholders in public schools.

It's hard to imagine a more timely volume, given the far-reaching implications of NCLB and the media's inability to pierce the self-serving rhetoric from vested interests of all parties. Popham's impressive background in assessment makes this book a badly needed corrective.

Walt Gardner taught for 28 years in the Los Angeles Unified School District. He writes frequently on education.

America's "Failing" Schools: How Parents And Teachers Can Cope With No Child Left Behind by education testing expert W. James Popham focuses upon providing parents and classroom teachers with clear, precise explanations of the Bush administration's "No Child Left Behind" doctrine and the implications this policy has for standardized testing, as well as what it means for a school to be declared "failing", and concrete suggestions for what can be done in response to such a school (and school district) condition. America's "Failing" Schools is timely and welcome reading which is especially commended to the attention of concerned parents, classroom teachers, school administrators, citizen groups like the PTA, and governmental policy makers on the state and federal level in the field of K-12 public education.

Could extremist secularism be doing as much damage as extremist religions? "America's Secular Challenge: The Rise of a New National Religion" is an examination of secularism and its impact on America. Herbert London, president of the Hudson institute, lays out his argument against something that the country so often ignores in the idea of tolerance and political correctness. "America's Secular Challenge" is a top pick for anyone who thinks political correctness may be going too far.

This is a book you are going to think about for a long, long time. You are going to recommend it to all your friends. It highlights the essential tool we must utilize to defeat radical Islam and their terrorist methods-a return to our traditional values. London's brilliance is that he creates his air tight case in 97 very accessible pages. This one or two night read will arouse in you many years of thought.

Most people in the United States appear to have no idea what secular humanism is, even though they are surrounded by it every day. It is the only religion for many people, but they often cannot even recognize it as a belief system. This book is short and easy to read, but it conveys very important information. It ought to be assigned to high school classes to give the students a better understanding of modern culture.

The railroads, the first national industry, the industry on which giant battles were waged not just between the workers and the employers, but a major factor in farmers fight for land, and their continued fight for their fair share of the profits from their labor. This book talks about the railroad's real history in American capitalism, a history of class struggle, class war. This book also talks about how at a much earlier easier stage of the crisis of capitalism, the railroads themselves
were torn apart by economic crisis, thousands of employees lost their jobs, and the economy of this country was thrown amuck.
Read this now,
because the crisis of the railroads at they were when this book was written in the 1970s is nothing compared to the growing crisis. Read this now because it is written not as nostalgic lying history, or armchair economics, but as a contribution to the need for all working people, not just railroad workers, to know what is coming, know how our predecessors have shown the way to fight, know how to win!

Read this now because a crisis in the airline industry of exactly the same character with questions of nationalization is going on now. Here in Miami where the airlines are a major employer many of my friends and neighbors are afraid that their jobs will be lost. Read this book for them as well!

The labor movement today encounters calls for patriotic sacrifice as well as threats of employer bankruptcy and government attack. We need to be educated on these issues. For example, the Railway Labor Act has recently been used to deny airline workers the right to strike. This book by Dick Roberts tells you how this package of laws was first used against labor in the 1920s, to satisfy the needs of big business. Roberts tells the story of the rail barons' greed and the bailouts they got from bought-and-paid-for politicians. He also tells the story of the great struggles by rail workers. Throughout, the government has backed the railroad companies and called on rail workers to sacrifice in the name of patriotism, just as airline workers are today being pressured in the name of Homeland Security to abandon their right to strike and continue down the slippery slope of take-backs.

A short, lively study of labor and capital in one of the key industries in modern society. The railroads have been one of the biggest money-makers for their wealthy owners from the mid-1800s on, and also one of the scenes of fierce strike battles as bosses brutally resisted workers' demands for better wages, job security and safer working conditions.
I found Robert's detailed look at stock ownership of the railroads in the 1970s very helpful in figuring out how modern capitalism works, and an example that could be applied to other major industries. His discussion of why essential industries such as transportation cannot be left to the mercy of the profit needs of private capital is really relevant for anyone grappling with the economic crises of the 21st century.
Roberts also presents a lively history of capital-labor struggles over the past 150 years. I'd suggest reading it along with the more detailed books on working class leadership in the United States by Farrell Dobbs, especially his two-volume series Revolutionary Continuity.

With so little time spent on caring in the workplace, Giovagnoli shows us all that there are practical, powerful things we can all do daily to make a difference in our workplaces. The book was so well laid out and the stories brought me to tears as well as laughter. Great Angel Advice Corners at the end of each section really help bring the strategies she offers to life. I put the Action Strategies page up in my lunch room as Giovagnoli suggests and last week alone three people brought food treats for my department. For the first time in a long time, this Christmas at the office feels like there are people who care about each other. It's even getting to the point that I look forward to going to work to see what new idea someone has come up with--all from the strategies Giovagnoli recommends.

Angels in the Workplace is by far the best book to come along in years! Workers and employers all over America will improve their attitude and working environment by reading this book. In a time where the knowledged-based workplace is imminent, employers and employees alike are looking for ways to enhance their work life. This is the way! Using Giovagnoli's action steps, your workplace will become a more spiritual and fulfilled place to spend your 40 hours a week.

This is the perfect gift for family, friends, colleagues. I even gave a copy to my boss. I like the way each belief--faith,hope, charity, courage, truth, trust and love have not only stories, but strategies to make them work in your work place. I turn to the book once a day to get ideas and inspiration.

For executives searching for innovative ways to execute strategy effectively, Jim Haudan's "The Art of Engagement" is an excellent field guide for that journey. Many will want to keep it as a deskbook, especially for those dark days when strategy stalls, or never gets off the ground.

Haudan offers a refreshingly practical approach to executing strategy by engaging people to think and act much differently about strategy. It is about how to use strategic conversations and visualization of systems to accelerate strategy execution through people.

Loaded with innovative ideas and lessons learned from Haudan's 20 years of helping executives in some of the world's largest companies bring their strategies to life, the book also offers readers an opportunity to test some of Haudan's proven methods through free downloads of strategic learning applications discussed in the book.

Here is a caveat: Don't buy this book if you think you can execute strategy despite your people, and not through them. Quite frankly, it will waste your time.

But if you want to learn about proven methods to engage the hearts and minds of your leaders, managers and front line to execute a shared mental model of strategy, then grab a bunch of copies for your team and test the concepts.

Human capital is a concept that has been evolving to explain a major portion of the intangibles underlying market valuation of a company. Jim Haudan is providing the key to leveraging human capital. Investment of financial capital is routinely justified by monitoring the return on investment. Investment of scarce resources in human capital can deliver outsized returns, as Haudan clearly illustrates.

There is a difference in performance between a company whose employees routinely deliver discretionary effort and a company whose employees are marking time until the end of the work day, work week, or retirement. The contrasting depiction of engagement and disengagement in this book shows the path to energizing employees, who then deliver results.

The Art of Engagement offers an abundance of wisdom in how any organization can benefit from the hearts and minds of its membership. These incredible resources are all too often wasted, but the chances of that will be far less for those business leaders who embrace Haudan's lessons of engagement.

One of the most daunting accomplishments to which any one organization can aspire is breaking the code on how to create an environment where employees enthusiastically not only pour their minds and bodies into their work but also their heart and spirit as well.

Providing employees the opportunity to understand and influence their work and how they contribute to achieving the overall mission of the organization is highest form of recognition any company can give.

The Art of Engagement provides a terrific framework to begin thinking and acting on those participative management practices that if done well can elevate an organization to a whole new level of performance.

I recommend Jim Hauden's book to any entity who truly believes the people within their organization deserve the opportunity to understand and feel inspired about their job and the organization for which they work.

This book is a quintessential guide for hiring a new director and, if methodically followed, results in strengthening your organization in the process. Each chapter opens with its own synopsis. The responsibilities of the search committee are thoroughly outlined & fully enumerated in subsequent chapters. This comprehensive tutorial is followed by appended chapters that reinforce the process with Checklist/Reminders. This book is just about the best "How To: book I have encountered.

This well written and informative book is a godsend to those involved in the difficult job of hiring and keeping top people in the nonprofit world; my many years of doing executive search would have been made much easier had I had this book; Gilvar is great on both concept and details- -a much needed guide for a critical task . Mary K. Eliot

As a current non-profit board chair and veteran of two executive searches, I can attest to the value of Ms. Gilvar's book. Written in a clean, crisp, highly organized style and encompassing both big picture ideas as well as the mechanics of the search process (as well the preparation stage and post(transition) stage), this book provides invaluable guidance to anyone responsible for or interested in a non-profit executive search.

An outstanding reference for stewardship work. This book explores the role of money in the parish, why it's so difficult to talk about, and what needs to change.

A very good and comprehensive review of where stewardship in the church is in the last ten years. This will take you through motivation, understanding, and give you insights into how to resolve your stewardship dilemas. People who are strugling with stewardship will find this book most informative and helpful. You may not like all that is said but all needs to be said and thought about. Most thought provoking and insightful.

Without a doubt, this is THE best stewardship book I've ever read! Like you, I've endured many a stewardship campaign, technique, and gimmick--only to find it unsatisfying, ultimately. This book examines everything that has been done under the sun in stewardship (be it mainline Protestant, evangelical Protestant, or Roman Catholic), and discusses, rationally, why it is counterproductive in the long run. While it is a big book and does discuss research, it is easily accessible to all. Interestingly enough, I found it hard to put down--it is that good! Buy this one now.

The godliness of living a Gospel life when it comes to The Rule of St. Benedict, the nature of the author's intentions and set of mind, the understandings of The Rule itself, are a few of the rewards one gets from Terrence G. Kardong's, "Benedict's Rule: A Translation and Commentary." One thesis of Father Kardong's is, "...the Rule teaches a dynamic spirituality." A book for those interested in living a Gospel life, some areas touched upon by this book include, "progress and growth" in the religious and spiritual life, what's referred to as ongoing conversion in the life of faith, and humility.

The book suggests looking towards continued reading of "...the teaching of the Bible and Fathers." This last a recommendation of the Rule, and the book "Benedict's Rule" an endorsement and recommendation of St. Benedict's little book for beginners.

A reader interested in St. Benedict's Rule will find this 600 plus page work, published by The Liturgical Press a scholarly work. It can be used as a text for reading, as in study, or as a reference work (so I think). The book speaks of St. Benedict's sense of moderation, and his humility, an earmark of the book about the Rule itself, and a hallmark of the author who is a monk and priest.

Father Kardong writes at the very beginning of the book in a dedication that the work is, "To my brothers of Assumption Abbey who taught me how to be a monk and who freed me for the work of writing this commentary on the Rule of Benedict." This is a book for monks in the monastery, and also for lay people and Oblates of St. Benedict. This is a book for church goers. This is a book for people who practice the work of God, the daily office.

One needs to have patience and perseverance to read it. One needs to take this book as it comes, not hurry it along, and in many places reread both the Rule as translated by Father Kardong, and his commentary. A retired Episcopal priest, who used to give retreats for the laity introducing The Rule of St. Benedict, suggested that I read the book without a sense of time or looking towards the end of it. He thought the work a book to be savored.

Father Kardong has many good thoughts and suggestions; certainly his commentary is beneficial for the interested reader. That is not a statement too obvious to be made, for this is a worthy book by a wise and educated monk.

I will find a good quote from Terrence G. Kardong's writings, but first this description of the book from the preface by Father Kardong says he has produced "...a double-deck commentary with detailed philological material in notes and discursive material in the overviews." This is his interpretation of the Rule. He notes that much is experiential. For me, this added merit to the book. His commentary is part of his life experience and work. An attribute that adds to the authenticity and authority of, "The Rule: A Translation and Commentary."

The famous words of the Rule begin, "Listen, O my son, to the teachings of your master, and turn to them with the ear of your heart." After all, the Rule is a religious book, and religion is for the heart. These words for the heart have been around 1,500 years. What is meant by these few words of the Rule is made commentary in another quotation: "Let us open our eyes...is a possible allusion to the Transfiguration, where the drowsy disciples are startled by the shining forth of Christ, and instructed by the voice from heaven (Luke 9:32)."

At a preached retreat in Big Sur, California USA, at Immaculate Heart Hermitage, Brother Bede explained that the Rule is a holy book, an illuminated work that keeps on giving, like the Bible. I remembered his instruction when approaching "Benedict's Rule" and considered that the writer Father Kardong also approached it as such. This itself is an important point, for the work presented is exemplary.

In his commentary on the last part of the Rule, he writes, "...that observance of the Rule [Biblical theme of the Rule] itself is not enough; the Rule, like the Law, is to be `fulfilled.'" Though many believe the Rule is a way to perfection, and asks for that perfection, a serious consideration is that the Rule is also a book of love. Kardong believes it is mainly a book about love.

A major theme of the last chapter, love is described in the commentary: "...for the love that is preached in the penultimate chapter is essentially communal and public...selfless love for the other is a better way to end the Rule than the theme of `perfection.'"

It is the love in community; love for and of one another, the love that God offers and gives, that is central to living the Rule of St. Benedict. This alone is worth the price of admission. For as the monastery is a school for living, so the Rule offers a school for living the Gospel in ongoing conversion in one's life. "The Rule of St. Benedict" is a book inspired by the Gospel and written by a great holy man, Benedict of Nursia (St. Benedict).

--Peter Menkin, Easter 2007

The Rule of St. Benedict itself is a fairly short book - it can be done as a pocket-sized edition. It is a good example of the statement, 'good things come in small packages'. The rule is a guide of life, but not 'a rigid, brutal structure imposed legalistically'. Benedict was fully aware of human frailty, as true 1500 years ago as it is today. This frailty requires much to be done to give the person strength, and so Benedict's Rule is designed for an ever-increasing self-discipline which is supported by community worship and practice.

Benedict's Rule for life includes worship, work, study, prayer, and relaxation. Benedict's Rule requires community -- even for those who become hermits or solitaries, there is a link to the community through worship and through the Rule. No one is alone. This is an important part of the relationship of God to the world, so it is an integral part of the Rule.

Benedict's Rule was set out first in a world that was torn with warfare, economic and political upheaval, and a generally harsh physical environment. This Rule was set out to bring order to a general chaos in which people lived. This is still true today, and men and women all over the world use Benedict's 'little rule for beginners' as a basic structure for their lives.

The first word of the rule is Listen. This is perhaps the best advice for anyone looking for any guidance or rule of life. While Benedict's Rule is decidedly Christocentric and hierarchical (though not as hierarchical as much popular ideas about monastic practice would have one think), it nonetheless can give value to any reader who is looking to construct a practice for oneself.

Benedict's establishment of a monastery was in fact the establishment of a school for spirituality. In his prologue to the Rule, Benedict even states this as his intention. 'In drawing up its regulations, we hope to set down nothing harsh, nothing burdensome.' He sets forth in this brief rule a guide to individual life within community that will bring one ever closer to the divine.

Benedict explores the issues of charity, personality, integrity, and spirituality in all of his rules. From the clothing to the prayer cycle to the reception of guests, all have a purpose that fits into a larger whole, and all have positive charges and negative warnings. Benedict is especially mindful of the sin of pride, be it pride of possession, pride of person, pride of place -- he strives for equality in the community (as a recognition that all are equal before God).

Hundreds of thousands of pages have been written over the last millenium and a half on the Rule of St. Benedict, but it all comes down to this brief collection, which can be read easily in an hour, yet takes a lifetime (or perhaps more!) to master.

Open it for yourself to see what riches it may hold for you.

This particular version by Kardong includes the original Latin text (with minor editing and updating) as well as extensive translation notes and commentary. The Rule itself is very short, and can be (and has been) printed in 80 small pages; the fact that this volume is over 600 pages should give an good indication of the richness of the commentary. Good things do come in small packages, but the notes and additional material here is not to be missed, not to mention the interesting aspect of reading the text in the original language.

Over the past 16 years, I've become personally involved with Benedictine spirituality through regular retreats to the monastic cloister. Kardong's book has given me the historical perspective and linguistic insight into that deep well, "The Rule of St. Benedict", the life source of Benedictine monasticism. Through his scholarly exegesis of "The Rule", I've gained understanding of this way of life, and thus have better lived my own life and faith. I have referred again and again to "Benedict's Rule: A Translation and Commentary" in the writing of my own commentary on "The Rule" for parents, "The Family Cloister: Benedictine Wisdom for the Home". I am currently working on a companion volume, "The Family Cloister Workbook: 52 Benedictine Activities for the Home", and have continually opened the pages of Kardong's book to better understand certain chapters and phrases in "The Rule". Besides the monks themselves who daily live the Rule, Kardong's commentary is one of the most complete expositions of Benedict's Rule I've found.

Any small to mid-sized nonprofit that requires funding cannot afford to be without Andy Robinson's book. In a nutshell, he demystifies major donor fundraising and makes it accessible to busy board and staff members. In short, direct chapters he helps remove people's natural fear of the process and instills the sense that asking for money is not only honorable but also incredibly rewarding.

Robinson has written an excellent and pithy introduction to the art of soliciting gifts - it's a relief to have the advice written in a clear and concise manner that's just right for the board member who has any trepidation at all about asking for money but wants a quick primer on how to make a significant difference in their fundraising skills.

What I like most about this book is that it's so practical and seems so doable. I know that most ordinary citizens would probably choose a root canal over the prospect of having to ask someone for a big ($500 to $5000) donation, even for a cause they really care about. But with the help of this book, you'll feel confident that you could really do the things that the author, Andy Robinson, is suggesting. Why? Because Andy de-mystifies the process of fundraising by breaking it down into easily conceivable steps. And, you feel like you can trust him because he seems like a regular guy, not a superhero. If he's done it, then you can too. I like that he shares what's worked for him. An added benefit -- you can read this enjoyable book in less than an hour. (Of course, you'll want to pick it up again and again for its handy advice.)