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I haven't even finished this and I am already happier. I consider myself to actually be pretty happy and I know enough to know that happiness is not in material things. Nonetheless, I am pretty cynical, not very forgiving and I don't have that many friends. A lot of other happiness books and articles I've read insist that if you just look on the bright side, have a big social circle, and learn to forgive other people you will be happier. According to this book that is all good advice but it is not the only way to achieve happiness. There is plenty of room for lots of different approaches to happy. This evidence based book explains them all and give you concrete and specifics steps to work on all of them. Very very worth reading!

I must agree with the previous reviewer who said that reading The How of Happiness will not make you happier. The How of Happiness is an emotional how-to manual. Reading it will no more make you lastingly happier than merely reading a car-repair manual will tune your engine and change your timing belt. You have to do much more than read. You have to take action.

Fortunately, the book helps you identify for yourself the actions to take. Because it is grounded in evidence gathered from thousands of studies and systematically analyzed by researchers like Ms. Lyubomirsky, it can be trusted by even a diehard empiricist like me. Everyone throughout history has sought to be happy, many of them in misguided ways. But now science, in just the same way as it has uncovered the causes of good and bad physical health, has revealed many of the root sources of happiness, and, still more encouragingly, has revealed that they are greatly in your control.

This book will help you plot your course and steer you clear of many of the common pitfalls on the road to happiness. In my case, though I've read many of the ideas in this book before, I would try to apply them all at once, get overwhelmed, and end up back at square one. But The How of Happiness has helped me focus my initial efforts on the two or three happiness-enhancing activities that would work best for me.

Before I began applying these strategies, I was mildly depressed and every day seemed overburdened with nuisances. Where have they all gone? Since I began, on the book's recommendation, keeping a weekly gratitude journal, I find much more to appreciate in life, and have many fewer complaints.

I've also chosen to work on my optimism, using the book's "Best Possible Selves" exercise. I wrote of a future ten years from now in which I had the life I dream of. I was blissed out just forming a picture of this ideal future. But the book doesn't just leave the reader there, hoping for the possible. The next step for me in the exercise is to "remember" from the vantage point of that future how I got from here to there. It provides not only hope, but also a road map, so I can *act* optimistically too, and realize the best life I can. This simple exercise makes concrete the words of Thoreau: "If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost. There is where they should be. Now put foundations under them."

Inspired by The How of Happiness, I've also taken time to volunteer at a hospice service and begun sponsoring a child. Being happy, as Sonja Lyubomirsky shows in this book, both results from and results in greater generosity to others. Happiness isn't just a personal pursuit, but also a moral and spiritual one.

In the religious tradition in which I was raised (Mormonism), there is a teaching about happiness by the founder Joseph Smith: "Happiness is the object and design of our existence." Whatever else in this tradition may or may not be true, this teaching cannot be wide of the mark. Spreading happiness helps to fulfill the purpose and promise of human lives, and helps people transform themselves into kinder, more generous, more productive human beings.

This book is the Bible of happiness. And its work of empowering people to build happier lives is, even in my skeptical eyes, God's work.

I had my misgivings when I picked up this book becuase I've read before that happiness is one of those things that becomes elusive when you try to pursue it intentionally, kind of like humor becomes unfunny when you try to analyze it. Anyway, I think I'm wrong. The author presents a number of techniques that have been verified via psychology experiments to increase your happiness levels. Some of these we've heard of before, like "count your blessings", and others may be unfamiliar. In some ways, this book is a compilation of prior psychological, self-help and religious wisdom, but backed up by scientific studies. I do believe that applying the techniques should help the reader improve their happiness levels and I'm looking forward to applying them myself.

I do have some concerns, however: first, sometimes the author gives personal anecdotal evidence of how the techniques she recommends helped her in her own life. That's all well and good, but a detached, scientific advocate should not engage in this. In an odd way, this detracts from the evidence: why bolster good scientific data with your own personal stories? Second, in a few instances the author includes studies that have a very small sample or have not been run long enough. Again, why include this? Nevertheless, from my layperson's point of view, there appear to be enough solid studies to back up the claims. I highly recommend the book for anyone who is seeking to increase their everyday happiness levels.

Reading "The How of Happiness" became really an event in my life. It is written in a remarkably clear, clever and human the way. I read a lot of self-help books related to achieving a meaningful and happy life, but this one is an absolute champion. It is due to the scientific evidence behind it, witty and human writing style of the author and really practical advice and tricks on changing your habits to become happier. And achieving happiness seems so realistic after reading the book! I underlined nearly every second sentence in it, so now I can reread it comfortably to remind myself of the content. It is really worth having read and owning this book.

By titling this review, "Happiness for Dummies" I don't meant to insult readers or the author. I am thinking of that series of how-to books "_____ for Dummies". That is what this book reminds me of. It is an extremely tightly organized book. You can just see the outline format the author must have used peeking thourgh every few pages. Every idea has a number associated with it. There are twelve big ideas, two cross-references, X further activities, etc. It is also full of short quotes and brief references to scientific studies. Again, I could just see index cards with quotes on them and notes about this or that study being put to work by the author. In contrast, Jonathan Haidt's "The Happiness Hypothesis" with its various references to literary works, religious and philosophical thinking throughout the ages and more generally discursive style seems to me to be a more sophisticated work and may be better suited to some readers. Also, although I loved the 50/40/10 idea that is one of the book's principal arguments and the one that has probably attracted the most press, I wasn't as sold on the strength of the inference as I had hoped I would be.

I thought this book offered some different ways in the effort to learn more about myself. The exercises are thought provoking and easy to do and provide a good insight into my own thoughts, habits and self. I don't think it is ground breaking or the answer to the million dollar question "Who am I?" but it does offer exercises to learn more about self and I think it is an excellent read and book.

Wishcraft is divided into 2 parts: the wishing part and the 'crafting' part. The premise of the book is that you cannot get what you want unless you have done the wishing you need. So the first part of the book takes you through a series of exercises designed to get you to dream your wildest dreams about your life and what it could be. It is both powerful and freeing to do this. Barbara Sher also gives you ways to distinguish between 'real' dreams (the ones you really truly want) and fantasies (things you just think you want).

Once you have some clear ideas about what your dreams are, the second part of the book gives you great approaches to achieving them. One of the most fantastic aspects of this section is the focus on the problems list. barbara says that your list of problems are like gold. in the beginning i did not realize what she meant but once you have clearly articulated what problems you have then you can start attacking them one at a time. So the problems lead you to the dream.

Don't get me wrong, this book will require you to work hard but the exercises are great and her writing is fantastic. Having a dream (or 20 perhaps) is something I had forgotten about as I make my way through a busy and complex life. Now I feel like I am taking control of where I am going with the aid of her wisdom and direction.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants to make life changes, career shifts, or just wants more from their lives.

This was Barbara Sher's first book, but until now I'd only read (and loved) her follow-up books. I've read alot of other books on positive affirmations and projecting to the Universe what you want and was stunned to see that this "oldie, but goody" was really one of the most simple and straight-forward approaches to that concept.

Even if you've read lots of other self-help books, this classic is still one everyone should read.

I got the 1979 copy of this book about 4 years ago on a recommendation from a therapist who saw that I was drifting along with no real goals. I had tried college twice before (by this time I was in my late 30's) and each time quit because I didn't know what I wanted to do or to be. The "college career center" was no help whatsoever. The test I took there had me taking courses for industrial engineering, which I had zero interest in, but I figured maybe the test saw some hidden talent that I didn't know I had. Wrong. I started reading this book and doing the exercises and slowly discovered what it was that I wanted to be....an interior designer! I would have never thought of it in a million years without this book changing my way of thinking. I felt like it was a huge revelation! It was a relief to finally know, at the age of 38, what it was that I wanted to do! I started college again and had to quit after a year and a half due to a pay cut at my job. The old me, the pre-Wishcraft-reading me, would have just given up right then. Actually, I DID freak out for about a week. But the new me sat down and brainstormed like in the book and thought long and hard about what needed to be done to be able to stay in school and follow my dream. I'm happy to say that I only took a year off of school and am actually now in a better school. I've also been so inspired by the other reviews for this book. I have recommended this book to friends and will always keep my copy no matter where I go in life.

Growing up Asian without knowing I was an ADD scanner, I really struggled with "why am I so different?!" Reading Wishcraft in college was my first and best ray of hope towards creating a life I love, finding ways to learn and live that really work for me, and also coming to appreciate all of who I am.

In 8th grade, I thought that I had No Talent whatsoever and had no idea "what to do with my life", now I'm amazed at all the talents that keep showing up now that I know how to find what works for me!

I currently love teaching voice lessons 5 days a week, performing with my Global Jazz band, and I'm creating my first full 2-hour musical theater production with a Persian Iranian jazz singer friend of mine called "Memories & Media Myths of Iran & North Korea" -- for which we received a Minnesota State Arts Board / National Endowment for the Arts grant!

THANK YOU BARBARA!

Welcome to Mason County, where even the census takers were baffled when they came to a town where blacks looked white. Isabel is the main character in this story. Every one calls her Belly in Mason County. That all changes when a series of events after her childhood friend Teeny got pregnant, led her to Jamison county to stay with her Aunt Rachel. She takes piano lessons from a woman name Ophelia that calls her Isabel, shows her what a real lady is, wins over her heart, and also the heart of Uncle Avery, Aunt Rachel's husband. This causes a lot of problems in Belly's life and causes her to learn a lot life's lessons pretty early. This book was written very beautifully and opened my heart back up to my childhood. I won't tell the rest of the story but all of the characters were endearing and I'll never forget them.

Revisit childhood and relive it in a marvelous way! I felt that I grew up with Belly during the tale of "Miss Ophelia". After reading how her family interacted with each other, their personalities and histories, I felt like I knew them. I laughed out loud at their antics and conversations. You probably will too!

The book seems to start off a little slow in the beginning, but don't let that fool you. This is one to savor. It takes time to get to know this family and watch Isabel (Belly) come of age. While there were events that many of us could relate to, this book lacked the over-the-top, crazy drama that can be found in some other books about childhood family experiences. How refreshing! Belly actually had a good childhood! It was joy to read about. She also had some tough issues to deal with, and this kept the book grounded in reality.

Belly spent part of an important summer taking piano lessons from Miss Ophelia. Miss Ophelia left a powerful influence on Belly, and their time together was a "defining moment" in Belly's life. The way the author described their interaction and other aspects of Belly's life before and after was beautiful. I could picture everything, but the writing style wasn't too wordy. The style was very natural, and the characters seemed so authentic.

I took my time reading this book and looked forward to reading it every time I picked it up. I felt so contented while reading it and satisfied even after I'd finished it. I highly recommend this book. Reading it is time well spent.

This story is sooooo wonderfully written and told. This is one hot summer that readers will surely enjoy. The summer heat is not just in temperature, the heat also rises from the pages in the form of anger and passion.

This story of young Isabel (Belly) is very endearing. Each summer, Belly visits with her aunt and uncle in rural Virginia. She learns lessons that are never taught in summer school. When Miss Ophelia teaches Belly to play the piano, she also teaches her life lessons about love, friendship, responsibility, and accountability.

Though she appears to be very quiet, Miss Ophelia has deep passions about music and love which she eventually shares with others. You will enjoy the music as well as those who play it!

this book was an excellent read. it captured the whole time era and gracefuly put it into words. the author of this book seems to draw the reader into being a part of the novel. she gives you the sense of being there as a bystander, watching and understanding Belly's life that summer. i love the plot, the use of words and the key message. of friendship. i hope this isn't the last piece of work by this author. i highly recommend this book. you'll never want to put it down, and will continuosly find yourself hoping that it never ends.

This book hit me where the heart is!!! The characters: Belly, Willie, Miss Janie, Miss Rachel, Mama, Uncle Avery, Miss Pheenie, And of course, the lovely and dearest of all, Miss Ophelia. When I first got into the book,( first quarter of the book),It primarily focused on teen pregnancy and the main character (Belly's) best friend, Teenie getting sent away to get "rid of her problem", which hurt Isabel Anderson/Walker.
The way the book portrays Miss Opelia, and her warm and kind personality was so well-written, that in the end, I cried, thinking about the True love that could never be, between...
Oh!!!!! Youre just going to have to read the book and see why most of these people(including myself, of course) rated this book 5 stars.

The book is fantastic. Have a very long introduction to give you a better understanding of the food as a part of middle east culture. Although have very little photos (I personally like photos on cooking books), this book is full of great ideas. I think I will buy soon CLaudia Roden's Jewish cookbook.

I was amazed when I received this book. I had been searching tirelessly for a cookbook which would fulfill a demanding goal: how to satisfy the picky palate of a Jewish man raised in Israel but born of Moroccan parents. I had tried a variety of regional cooking styles, but finally this cookbook was it. As I began reading the recipes out loud to my boyfriend, I swear I could see the saliva forming at the corners of his mouth. He all but ripped the cookbook from my hands! Thank you Claudia Roden for also including the historical background information as to how to prepare recipes the traditional way, in addition to the modern short-cuts. Both will come in handy as I, a traditional Southern cook from South Carolina, learn a whole new world of cuisine.

This is the all time best. I just bought this latest, updated edition because I've worn out the one I've had for over 25 years! This book is my go-to reference for Middle Eastern food and culinary traditions. You can't go wrong with this. The bonus is that Ms. Roden includes several variations of particular dishes, and explains procedures very lucidly. I learned how to make many dishes using this book. I also gave a copy to my culinarily-talented nephew, who needed a cookbook that would give him all the basics of Middle eastern cuisine--food he'd experienced and grown up with, but hadn't really seen made at home.

Very well researched. Wonderful tales and fables mixed in, adding context to the recipes -- and sometimes conversation for the dinner table!

I especially appreciated the "variations" that follow most recipes, which allow for one to adjust according to the family palate.

Beautiful photographs.

Thank you, Claudia Roden!

After my gourmet food writer friend's recommendation, purchased this for a quality food fan husband as a gift. This book contains thorough recipes of Middle Eastern with history and original names. Some inserts of beautiful photos, as well (which is more restaurant ready than home ready). Can use out of this every day. Strongly recommended.

Here is a cookbook for people that like to eat well but do not have the time for long lengthy recipes. I have made several dishes in this book , they are delicious and simple. It is refreshing to use a cookbook that produces such flavorful meals without hours of labor and just a few ingredients.

The best cookbook author....easy and delicious recipes that are not too fussy or time consuming and are always fabulous. A must have. Dorick

New food Fast offers reader a vast amount of detailed recipes and easy to use foods to make quick and tasty meals for the whole family.Great photos to help with the cooking process.

I'm very happy with my purchase there. I would recommend this vendor. Thanks.

I love this cookbook! Great photos, great, varied recipes, and not dumbed down as with some seemingly "international" cookbooks (which recommend subbing soy sauce for fish sauce and the like). I've liked everything I've made from this one, and while I often take longer than the author suggests, it's because I'm slow on prep. I still consider this a "quick cook" cookbook, and one of the best.

The story of Olive shows us how we all have strengths and those strengths are important even if they are different from others. It can teach us to be creative on how we can best use our strengths. Most of all it is a sweet story about a very sweet dog named Olive. I loved reading it as an adult and gave it to someone who also enjoyed it very much.

this is a great edition of Olive. the illustration is as wonderful as the story. it's one of my husband's favorites and he wasn't disappointed. the look of this book corresponds with the latest movie edition.

No other Christmas carol has such a hold on children's imaginations as "Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer." (*see note) Even the youngest child understands the joke of this book's title.

When a little dog named Olive hears the lyrics "All of the other reindeer..." she thinks the line is, "Olive, the other reindeer" and concludes that she is in fact, a reindeer, not a dog. Hi-jinks ensue.

This tenth anniversary edition has scratch and sniff gumdrops, flaps to open, levers to pull and a pop-up scene at the end. Reading the "otto-biography" of Seibold on the Chronicle Books site, I learned that the names of his children (and their images) are tucked into the illustrations, shades of Marc Brown and his Arthur books.

Skip the video and enjoy this book. It is a charmer.

I got this for my 3 granddaughters, ages 6 and under. They loved it!

What a great book! My family and I loved the dog, Olive, that came with the book, too. I plan to read this book, and share the stuffed toy with the area school.

Playwright Peter Shaffer is an exceptional dramatist. His characters are unforgettable, and each one is dealing with a psychological struggle. In "Amadeus," Shaffer examines seventeenth century Vienna and the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and his rival, court composer Antonio Salieri. This play shatters the view of Mozart as an innocent child prodigy, and instead paints a picture of a childish, scatologically minded, yet ultimately tormented musical genius. Trapped by the financial demands that are placed upon him, and the demands of a domineering father, Mozart strives to make his music and to be excepted.
The main focus of the play is upon Salieri, whom the audience sees as a sweetmeat loving, conniving schemer who is appalled by Mozart's new ideas and manner. However, Salieri is not one demensional. He is a sympathetic character, who wrestles with his conscience. Feeling betrayed by a god who shows favoritism, he recounts his desire to make music that will provide him with unsurpassable fame. However, his music is ordinary when compared with Mozart's genius, and Salieri is fully aware of this whereas ordinary citizens of Vienna are not. Vowing revenge, Salieri decides to lash out at Mozart: "God's Flute," therefore providing an opportunity for a terrifying confrontation in which Mozart is driven into madness and early death. Everyone can relate to the character of Salieri because we have all felt betrayed when our own specific talents were regarded as inferior to someone else's.
Shaffer introduces us to two tortured individuals who are nevertheless sympathetic and unforgettable. Please give this play a chance.

When I was younger, I almost never reread anything. My hunger was so voracious that I gobbled up a book and then rapaciously moved on to the next. But as I've aged, I read less frantically, returning again and again to a few works that especially move me. At the top of the list of such works are the plays of Peter Shaffer. And at the top of that list is his masterpiece "Amadeus."

What I find remarkable about Shaffer's "Amadeus" isn't so much the title character, Mozart, as the character who becomes Mozart's nemesis, Antonio Salieri. Salieri is one of the great tragic figures in literature. He's an individual who appears to genuinely love musical beauty, and who genuinely wants to dedicate his life to it. (In an early scene, for example, he makes a deal with God. "Signore," he begs, "let me be your flute, your mouthpiece. Let me produce absolute beauty. In return, I'll be your slave.") But Salieri is also a hopeless mediocrity. He knows good music when he hears it, but he's simply unable to create it himself. His compositions are acceptable, and sometimes even pleasing to the ear. But when compared with the music of Mozart, they reveal themselves for what they are: technically proficient, but utterly uninspired. The awareness of his own mediocrity, coupled with his absolute yearning for beauty and his life-destroying jealousy of/admiration for Mozart, is the heart of the play. (Milos Forman's 1984 cinematic production of the play unfortunately rewrites the script to put Mozart rather than Salieri centerstage, thereby missing the whole point.)

When one thinks about it--and I believe that this is what makes Shaffer's play so poignant and profound--Salieri is everyperson. Let's face it: most of us are mediocre. We fall somewhere in that great middle zone of "average." We'll never be able to create artworks that express the yearning for beauty that even the dimmest of us occasionally feel.

As if that's not bad enough, the world, as Shaffer demonstrates in his play, is unforgiving of mediocrity when it comes to art. One can work like a demon, as Salieri does, but it's genius that the world wants, genius that the world demands, and genius that the world rewards. Moreover, the creative genius is allowed anything by the admiring world--in fact, the world expects its geniuses to walk to the beat of a countercultural drummer. The mediocre artist, however, is allowed no latitude whatsoever in personal lifestyle.

The paradox of this situation, as well as the horrible burden of mediocrity felt by artists like Salieri (and the rest of us), is the tragic message of "Amadeus." When Salieri at play's end tells us, in his decrepitude and madness, that we can pray to him when we feel the sting of our own shortcomings and he will bless us, most of us ought to shiver. For, after all, we don't want our mediocrity blessed, do we? And yet the tragedy of the human condition is that, blessed or not, it's what we are. And so Shaffer leaves us with this question: how do we overcome our Salieri-like resentment and frustration at not being able to create beauty long enough simply to appreciate beauty when we encounter it?

The best part of the book is the introduction, which tells of the changes made to the script over the years, based on on-going research by the author. I saw the movie and the play, then bought the script in order to compare the different renderings of this amazing story.

Peter Shaffer's award-winning and highly popular play AMADEUS is in many ways a morality play but seen through the eyes of a complicated postmodern villain. The play is called AMADEUS but the chief character of the story is Antonio Salieri. Salieri is the Court Composer for Emperor Joseph II of Austria during the end of the 18th Century. He is held in esteem not only by the Emperor and Court, but by the masses as well. Then Amadeus Mozart makes his way to the Austrian Court at Salzburg and Salieri recognizes in the young man a musical genius superior to anything musical he has ever heard. He becomes enraged with bitter jealousy. Feeling that God has abandoned him and given the talent that he has trained to develop and possess his entire life, Salieri declares a war against God that he will fight on the battleground that is Amadeus Mozart.

AMADEUS is a fantastic play. Author Peter Shaffer has revised the play several times since its first performance in 1979 and this version of the show (written twenty years later in 1999) is in my opinion the best because it is the one that portrays Salieri more than just an evil man, but as a human being that the audience and readers can relate to and actually understand somewhat. A must see play that anyone who enjoys theatre should be familiar with.

Like a newspaper article, theatre has to convey its story with an economy of words.

In this way, great playwriting is a rare skill much like land the penny toss at the carnival and Shaffer is that rare playwriter who accomplishes his task so seemingly effortlessly.

Deftly, Shaffer tosses his Amadeus and Saliere together and in so doing plays each against their type rendering his Amadeus into the simple squeezebox which provides the background for the languid single note of Saliere's mournful jealousy.

What's so amazing is that in telling us the story of Amadeus' art, Shaffer shares important insights about his own. Don't have too many or too few notes but just the right number. Don't be so flashy in being good that people concentrate on the flashiness instead of the point.

And don't become so engrossed in your art that you lose sight of the ultimate ends it was meant to service in the first place.

Whether we are each more Amadeus or more Saliere we can connect with this play.

Using this book a person can quite easily start to heal him or herself and sharpen the abilities one already has has. It is also great to use with children right before sleep at night. You will see a marked improvement in your child's behavior once you start to use this with them.

I have been using it in counseling others for 18 years & it gets great results for next to nothing when compared to years of expensive psycho-therapy in which one doesn't necessarily know if he or she is going to get better.

Get this book & enjoy!

This is another classic book written by Hubbard. It has simple easy to follow procedures that can be used by anyone to improve himself and others. This is something not only to read but to apply.

I applied the techniques given in the Self Analysis book by LRH to a friend of mine who is going through a rough period in her life. She became very cheerful, much happier and in more control of her life then she was ever before. Amir.

"Self Analysis" is a book that taught me about the natural laws of living a successful life. Just reading the first section of the book has made me happier, more confident and able to view life as a game to have fun with. Then by doing the exercises in the second section, I became able to solve problems faster and the "game of life" has become a joy to play. This is no book of "psycho-babble". Instead, "Self Analysis" tells you, with engineering precision, about the natural laws of life itself and then proceeds with exercises that permit you to recover your full potential to live life the way you want to. Like the author says: "May you never be the same again!"

I can't imagine why so many people gave exactly five stars to this book. The book is complete nonsense.

One of the best business books I've ever read. Danny really "gets it" as far as treating his employees and customers like family and VERY important people. THIS is why he is so successful with the top restaurants in NYC. A MUST read for anyone in sales or who deals with customers and employees on a daily basis

A great book that describes how to create customers for life, with "enlightened hospitality", creating an outstanding customer experience, based on a dialog with the customer. As he puts it "picking up the rocks" (to find the info) and "connecting the dots", a process that could and should be copied for every business.

His passion for food comes across the written page, its contagious.
I'm not a wine drinker but his passion made me want to give it a try.

I never been to one of his restaurants but I now see a trip to New York to visit his restaurants.

Highly recommended not only for restaurateurs, but for every business that has contact with customers.

This is one of the best books I have ever read on the hospitality business. Given that it is the industry that I am in, I probably found it more entertaining and insightful than many may who are NOT in the industry. Either way, a great read.

I was about to leave for vacation, and was looking for a beach read. Danny Meyer had been generous enough to supply an endorsement for my book, The Art of Client Service, so the least I could do was buy his book.

I am very glad I did.

Setting the Table certainly is a book on how to provide superior hospitality to customers, but it's more than that: it's the best book I've read on what it means to provide service to clients in ANY business. Its candor, humility, and generosity of spirit are reflected in all the lessons Danny learned, applied, and now recounts as he grew to be a leader.

My only quibble, and it is a small one, is that the book lacks an index. I assume this was a conscious decision on Danny's part, possibly because he does not view Setting the Table as a "how to" guide. But the reality is, the book is loaded with practical advice on how to build and sustain enduring client relationships. An index would help readers refer to lessons that inspired or motivated them.

My one regret is that I failed to include Setting the Table in my book's annotated bibliography of the 20 titles advertising people should read. I will, however, add it to the Art of Client Service website. And most important of all, I will recommend the book to all my advertising industry colleagues.

Love it, love it, love it. Finally an empowering business book for those of us who don't believe you have to be a soulless, emotionally retarded cheeseball prick to succeed in the business world. Danny Meyer's financial results give ample validity to his approach, so while you can still get rich the "traditional" way, his experience supports the fact that you can also get rich AND make the world a better place. Gets a little blah towards the end, but all of my stars, underlines and dogears throughout the beginning and middle parts more than make up for that. Others will do a better job of dissecting and analyzing the book in detail, so that's it for me. If you're tired of getting the beat-down for having the gall to have "feelings" at work, you'll love this book.

Atmosphere and a strong sense of place make this novel excerpt about early 20th Century New Orleans a delightful yet very dark treat. You can feel the magic swirling above the city's squalid streets and quarters, and Maistros gets the sound of people's thoughts and voices just right. The opening imagery turns downright unforgettable, setting the stage for what can only be darker events to come. Characters' moral struggles, only hinted at in this beginning section, will clearly take center stage in a tale that uses the sultry air and sound of the Big Easy to great advantage. Coupled with a dark yet evocative title, and lyrical prose, The Sound of Building Coffins is a promising start to the kind of book we expect to "break out" and bring the author to prominence. Based on the start, it would be highly deserved.

The music and the magic...and the gruesome details. What a fantastic book. Reading THE SOUND OF BUILDING COFFINS is like stepping through a portal into a dark yet tasty past. The sights, sounds, and scents of New Orleans are here, the real emotions of real people, and the compelling lure of jazz music.

And like THE BIG PUNCH, Maistros's first novel, this thing will knock the wind out of you.

I'm looking forward to his next one.

This exerpt is driving me crazy. It features profoundly haunting images (perhaps uplifting, perhaps disturbing), unique, believable characters, and a strong sense of place. It's an exerpt from a larger work, and it's stuck in my head like a moving song I can only remember the chorus of.

Amazon, why not provide a link to let me buy the complete novel - at least in in e-book format?

The Sound of Building Coffins by L. Maistros presents a masterfully crafted introduction to the world of Voodoo and mystical realism in New Orleans.

We begin by following Typhus Morningstar, one of a clan of siblings with 'sickly' names. At nine, Typhus works (so far) as a deliverer of unborn babies to their watery rebirth. The scene of transfiguration from dead fetus to live catfish is extremely thought provoking as well as paints touching and magical imagery. There is definitely something special about this boy.

Noonday Morningstar, father of Typhus' family and Baptist minister, hears God's voice every day; sometimes every minute. He has little choice but to follow the call. That's his lot. One call brings him to the home of an ailing one-year-old. While reading scripture to the child, the voice of Jesus calls out for Noonday to scram. What follows in the scene with the child is eerily provocative and telling of the mystical forces at work behind Voodoo.

The author does an excellent job a relaying this story through various perspectives. I was completely enthralled throughout. While there were a small handful of incomplete sentences (the subject was MIA), no other flaws were noted and nothing really comprised the overall flow of the story. Job well done.

Oh why did PW miss this? The opening's grand--a midnight ride in Storyville-era New Orleans. Can it get more moon-dark-midnight than this? A kid named Typhus on an errand with a burlap sack in his bicycle basket...

Of course, I wonder what parent would name their kid Typhus. Noonday Morningstar claimed naming his children for diseases was for God's glory.

Typhus isn't a complex kid. He doesn't appear to hate his name or anything else. He likes things simple and he hopes he never grows past the point of a simple cure for his problems:

"Typhus loved his midnight bicycle rides. The sound of the water, the feel of night air against his skin, and the acrid smell of burning tar; it all conspired into a comforting sense of oneness with his father's God. And that's all his child's heart had ever really pined for. Not much else, anyway."

On those rides, Typhus gives life to the lifeless--and catfishes to the river. His friend, Marcus, has a strange obsession with fishes, too. Sometimes he catches perfectly good ones and throws them back...

Oh, why don't I have the rest of this? The characterization is good. The feel is dark as 87% cacao and just as bittersweet. I don't know why Penguin or PW missed this excerpt, but I'm glad I saw it and had an opportunity to make note. The writing's submission quality and the story's quite different.

Congratulations, Louis Maistros, on an excerpt well done. I wish I had the rest and I will be looking for the book. I hope it hits my store's shelves soon.