Living History Books

This is based on my upcoming review in First Draft Magazine:

KEEPING HEARTH AND HOME IN OLD ALABAMA by Carol Padgett.
Menasha Ridge Press, Birmingham, Alabama. 2002. ISBN
0-8732-522-2.

At first glance, this seems to be one of those pre-packaged
books of old-time advice and recipes that could be reproduced for
each state in the Union--just change the name "Alabama" to
whatever state you want to insert.

However, though this is a wise marketing strategy, this book
is somewhat personalized for Alabama, making it worthwhile for
the historical footnotes it contains, as well as for its
entertaining recipes and bits of wisdom.

Where else would you be reminded that, because of the power
of "White Privilege," many old Southern recipes developed by
black slaves and domestics were credited to the white families
who passed them down the generations? This is something to
ponder.

Where else would you find advice from Harriet Beecher Stowe
on how to boil water properly? Where else would you learn that
asbestos is best in protecting your stove from setting the house
on fire? And you'll be grateful to learn that a dining table
"should be firm and solid and not so shaky that the guests fear
some catastrophe." So much for the advice I got from my wife:
always carry a matchbook to dinner, in case the table wobbles and
you have to level it.

In other words, this is a browser's book, a book for the
waiting room or the bath room. You can pick it up and learn
something totally useless almost anywhere in the book--and once
in a while you'll be startled with a useful piece of information:
"Many children form habits which are not nice, such as spitting
on the floor...and yawning." We have to be thankful for small
improvements over the past century.

--Jim Reed, author of DAD'S TWEED COAT: SMALL WISDOMS HIDDEN COMFORTS UNEXPECTED JOYS Learn more at: jimreedbooks.com

If you are curious on how your great grandmother, or great-great grandmother lived, this is a must read. Full of interesting recipes, household hints, protocol and family rearing tips of the 1900's. This book is one of a series (several different states have been written about) The book is written in an easy to read format, and would be enjoyable for anyone over 12 years old. This book has some humor and is written for the layman, and not the college student. This book may also be of value for someone writing historical fiction novels. If you are a romantic, and love reading books and watching movies set in the 1900's, this book is for you! Great Value! I am looking forward to reading more in the series. I give it 5 Stars!

Hooray! There is justice in the fact that a translator who has given us many fine translations of Far-eastern wisdom, has turned his attention to the wisdom of the ancient west!

This delightful book, full of wise and frequently ironic sayings drawn from classical sources, repays careful reading. Happily, if you were put off Greek classics by the rather boring approach adopted in modern-day college studies, this book will blow all such aridity away! It bridges the gap between between east and west and makes us conscious of the fact that - in antiquity, at least, there was much common ground between the wise men of the orient and occident. Though this text gives you the sayings of Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Diogenes etc. it was an inspired choice to select Greek material which had been preserved in Arabic sources. We often forget that the Arab universities in Spain provided Western Europe with its first complete sources of Plato, Aristotle etc. It also shows that - historically, the Islamic world has had open, intercultural dimensions, something not that easy to grasp in view of the contemporary focus on 'fundamentalism' and a perceived 'otherness' dividing cultures.

An appendix contains Greek aphorisms showing a close over-lap between eastern and western culture, if not direct borrowings.
All in all, this is an excellent source for our day and age.
Too many terms identified with Western philosophy have been corrupted by inadequate translation. The cover of this book, for instance, refers to the 'good life,' 'virtue,' and 'action' etc. But the 'good life' - 'eudaemonia' in Greek, means being guided by a 'wise guardian spirit' in regard to life as a whole. It also means 'blessedness.' Not quite the same thing as utilitarian economics, the illusion that wealth or the love of money is a good in itself - as many sayings in this book will confirm. 'Virtue' suggests something rather subjective, but in Greek, 'arete' means the pursuit of excellence, actualising the full range of human (and spiritual)powers. Cleary doesn't get that academic with these terms, so forgive the reviewer for taking that liberty!

The point is, we think we know what those terms mean - seeing them through the lense of indequate translation and long engrained misinterpretation.It might even be that Heidegger fell foul of this himself, given the fact that he shared Nietzsche's disdain for Platonism. Don't swallow, uncritically, the jaundiced view of the Greeks and their legacy, being touted today. Read Cleary's contribution, and you will appreciate the wisdom of your ancestors. East or west, the philosophy of antiquity has something valuable to teach us.

fairly good piece of work... it manages to show a lot of the wisdom of the ages without having to spend hours sifting though plato or socrates translations. I prefered Phanes publishisher's _Pythagorean Sourcebook_ though...

I was browsing among the impoverished English-language section in a local bookstore and this immediately caught my eye with both title and jacket photo. I grew up and went to college in New England and it will always be called home-thus the nostalgia. This lovely and evocative book combines photography that you can drink in (and be transported by) with a very readable text...I find very often in "coffee-table" photo books the accompanying text is either boring or excessively esoteric. This is neither. Dos Santos' impeccable technical skill is obvious, although there is a slight bias toward a stereotypical New England simple-and-spartan ethic as far as subject choice goes. Overlook it and give this book a once-through. You won't regret it.

What a wonderful book! Both the prose and photos are terrific. The authors have truly captured the essence of New England and country life. As a new owner of one of the 25 profiled homes, I can honestly say (o.k., I am a little biased) that this is a book worth buying. SRS

Life as it was meant to be. Rich and full of relationship. Takes on the traditional male position in a relationship and challenges men to move into deeper and richer relationships with themselves, their spouses, and their families. If you are a man you should read this book. If you are a wife or dating a man, you should pick this book up for your boyfriend, husband, father, friend, uncle, whatever..... It's like AMEX "don't leave home without it."

On a friend's recommendation I bought this book for a dear friend and though its not for woman, I read parts of it anyway. It gives insight and inspiration that I would want any man that I date to have read.

"My purpose...is simple: to share with you the experiences of three companies (HP, Glaxo Wellcome, and Motorola) and to review the wider body of research which together have convinced me of the prime role of people in organizational success. But that only raises the 'so what' question...so what if people are at the centre of organizational success? I believe that putting people at the heart of organizational success has implications on 'how we think' about organizations and 'what we do' within them. The first part of this book addresses the question of how we think about organizations if we put people at the heart of corporate purpose. For me it raises three basic tenets of being human: we operate in time, we search for meaning, and we have a soul. With this comes a set of nine organizational and managerial capabilities that support these tenets. The second part of the book addresses the question of what we can do to create living strategies that place people at the centre. Over the years I have refined a six-step process that puts people at the heart of corporate success. This, together with the workbook that follows, provides a frame for you to move from this as rhetoric to action-based reality" (pp.3-4).

In this context, Lynda Gratton firsty introduces the three tenets and the nine capabilities of new agenda as follows:

I. First tenet: we operate in time

* Past beliefs, hopes and commitments influence our current behavior: the 'memory of the past'.

* Current behavior is influenced by beliefs about what will happen in the future: the 'memory of the future'.

* Skills and knowledge take many years to develop.

* Human development progresses through a shared sequence.

* Attitudes and values are resistant to rapid change.

Capabilities:

1. Build visionary capabilities.

2. Develop scanning capabilities.

3. Create strategic capabilities.

II. Second tenet: we search for meaning

* We strive to interpret the clues and events around us, we actively engage with the world to seek a sense of meaning, to understand who we are and what we can contribute.

* Symbols, which may be events or artefacts are important in creating a sense of meaning.

* Over time groups of people create collective viewpoints, a sense of shared meaning.

Capabilities:

4. Develop diagnostic capabilities.

5. Create systemic capabilities.

6. Build adaptive capabilities.

III. Third tenet: we have a soul

* Each of us has a deep sense of personal identity of what we are, and of what we believe in.

* We can trust and feel inspired by our work-and when we do we are more creative.

* We can dream about possibilities and events.

* We can choose to give or withold our knowledge-depending on how we feel.

Capabilities:

7. Develop emotional capabilities.

8. Create trust-building capabilities.

9. Capability to build the psychological contract.

According to Lynda Gratton, to understand 'how' of putting people at the centre of corporate strategy, firstly we must understand 'why' this is crucial. Therefore, at the first stage she explores these tenets and capabilites as briefly mentioned above (more detailed discussion see Part II pp.25-94). At the next stage,to create a living strategy she developes a six-step process (build a guiding coalition, imagine the future, understand current capability and identify the gap, map the system, model the dynamics, and bridge into action) which goes from building commitment to moving into action (more detailed discussion see Part III pp.97-210). Finally, she presents a workbook to provide an opportunity to consider the philosophy and practice of a living strategy (see Part IV pp.213-229).

Highy recommended.

Ask the question above to managers of an organization and the answer will be "about 15%". According to a study by Lynda Gratton, Author of "Living Strategy", many of us are working in companies where neither our colleagues nor we feel inspired. A 1996 study showed that the percentage ranged between 19 and 8% for companies such as HP, GlaxoWellcome, Citibank, ... Similarly, less than 20% of people feels that the top management is well informed about what people at lower levels think and do. Answers to other questions are better but still: When questioned on integrity, 70% people at the best company of the tested group believed their employer has high integrity, whereas this figure dropped to less than 35% an the least "integer" company of this leading edge research consortium. It's the author's aim to create inspirational companies, which build hope, trust and excitement. When you see the figures above, this clearly is needed. In fact, I discoveed this book when a customer asked me to help them to work on their "integrity".

The least this book will do is serve as an eye-opener. Given what I came accross in companies, that by itself is already important. I have to agree with the author that very few companies understand the relationship between increases in revenue and employee emotions.

The approach the author presents for "tackling" this enormous task clearly has its advantages over "older" models of managing human resources. However, I recommend to complement this book with messages you'll find in Peter Block's "Flawless Consulting Fieldbook & Companion" and in David Cooperrider's "Appreciative Inquiry: Rethinking Human Organization". In these 2 books you'll find inspiration for better ways of implementing the path Lynda Gratton shows us. For that reason, my rating is limited to 4 stars. Still, you need to buy it to understand the "Why" of the path and to have an additional "drawing".

Anyway, start putting people at the heart of corporate purpose!

This review was written for the 7EQ.com Newsletter (Vol.4,n°4). Patrick Merlevede is co-author of "7 Steps to Emotional Intelligence"

This is one of the best books I've ever read on the topic of money. It's very well written and easy to read and the insights the author shares are mind-opening and yet logical. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to gain a fresh, godly perspective on our relationship to money and common-sense, practical ways of handling it.

I enjoyed this book from cover to cover, and each topic in between. I read this book in just 2 days as it was hard to put down andI was eager to get to the next subject. I waspleased with the author's use scriptures as they pertained to the subject at hand, and condensing them to "layman's" terms and simple analogies. Not only a new way to think about or to view money, but a new understanding of myself, relationships with others and with God.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. For anyone who appreciates the outdoors, I'd recommend reading this book. Very well written.

David Olesen takes us on a journey to northern Canada. With poetic verse he explains the hardships and the pleasures of living in isolation. David's love of the land and the way of life he has chosen comes through clearly as we are transported to the wilderness

These are people, just like you and I who were able to succeed because of their faith in God. It was a good resource for my annotated bibliography on what leaders can learn from people with disabilties or from having a disability.

Joni Eareckson Tada is one of the true giants of the Christian faith. She has written many excellent books, has inspired countless numbers of people with her life story, and has started and been involved with a truly wonderful international disability ministry that has brought hope to the hopeless throughout the world.

In this latest literary effort, Joni profiles a number of everyday people who have allowed God to use them in extraordinary ways. One might read this book and easily come away thinking that these are the kind of people that should be receiving earthly recognition in newspapers and on television for the amazing work they do and their amazing life stories. But it is the very fact that these folks go mostly unrecognized that adds tremendous authenticity to their lives. Each one of these folks have simply put their faith in Christ to lead them, direct them, and use them. These folks demonstrate the most powerful apologetic for the reality of Christ and the authenticity of Christianity - a life completely committed to serving God in positive ways for real people, regardless of the adversity and very real sufferings they have endured. This is something that simply cannot be argued with. Those who believe that Christ is a fake and Christianity a sham eliminate the only plausible explanations for the lives profiled in this book.

The folks Joni profiles here are a very diverse group in terms of background, race, geographic location, economic condition, ministry calling, physical condition, gender, and age. A number of folks profiled achieved victory in Christ over disabilities and other life changing events that were beyond their control. Others achieved victory in Christ over self destructive lives that they were very much in control of. Some folks have established life changing ministries that have accomplished amazing things by God's grace. Others have simply persevered through difficulties and have been used by God in more personal and informal ministries.

Each story is extremely candid, with many of the folks profiled being extremely candid about their sufferings, their feelings toward God at various points in their lives, and the present day realities they continue to face. Many of these stories, while having a happy ending in many respects, do not have fairy tale endings. When reading many of these stories, the reader is convicted not only by how incredibly God has used these people, but also about how much more needs to be done and how much more suffering there still is, and how many more Christians need to exhibit the kind of faith that these folks do, because there is no shortage of needs to be met.

This book struck me as being extremely authentic. It's one thing to be inspired by something we see on television or somethin we hear about on the radio. It's quite another to draw inspiration from real lives going through real difficulties, and emerging victorious because of real faith in a real God that is available to everyone. This kind of authentic inspiration can deeply penetrate the reader precisely because there's no fiction here. This is real life that is being discussed, and it is very likely that most every reader will identify with at least one of the stories profiled, due to the real life diversity of the people profiled and their struggles.

In conclusion, I highly recommend this book for anyone who is looking for authentic inspiration, a sense of purpose, a sense of shared experiences, and most importantly, someone who is looking for an authentic look at what's possible when we achieve spiritual wholeness with Christ.

I highly reccommend Partly Right to thoughtful Christians, or would-be-Christians. Great summaries of philosophies that challange the faith, and a great challenge to Christians.

Campolo says "A religious group matures and improves only by correcting its flaws, and usually the enemies of that group can help it to see those flaws better than its friends can." This idea is the force behind the whole flow of "Partly Right" and since I am in up-front agreement with Campolo's premise, I found his entire argument to be quite compelling, and very educational.

Christians can be notorious for their offhand dismissal of those who criticize their religion, while never really taking the time to study or understand the belief systems of their detractors. Campolo wants to address this problem, and while admitting that his book is not meant to be an exhaustive treatment, he selects several significant critics of "bourgeois" or "middle-class" Christianity and seeks to fill us in on where they are coming from.
He considers the worldviews of Hegel, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Freud (and the Neo-Freudians), Marx, and Dostoevsky.
The author presents (what I consider to be) a very fair summary of the philosophies of these great intellectuals, and clearly explains the main issues upon which their criticisms of the middle-class church were focused.
And wherever possible, the author adds that little dash of Campolo humor that his readers have come to expect from him.

Dr. Campolo, a world-class scholar, is professor of sociology at Eastern College in St. David's, Pennsylvania. He is the author of so many great books, all of which seem to appropriately challenge some aspect of traditional Christianity. Some readers tend to get offended at his "say-it-like-it-is" style. Campolo does not mind stepping on the choir's toes, and sometimes maybe goes out of his way to do so. But I, for one, am always grateful for his brutal honesty, and controversial, thought-provoking insights.

This volume contains exceptional philosophical articles on the philosophy of Sartre. It covers every and all aspect of his life and thoughts. The critiques pull no punches and omit nothing. This work takes a hard look at the soundness of Sartre's philosophy. To find out if they hold up, read this volume. p.s. The interview with Sartre durring his later years is worth the price of the book alone. If you like Sartre, you will love this book.

(I was introduced to philosophy through the work of Thomas Nagel and Jean-Paul Sartre.)

An excellent introduction to Jean-Paul Sartre's work, both chronologically and conceptually. Sartre has much to say about everything from love and art to consciousness and personal identity. His insights are profound and in many ways have much relevance to every day life. I would recommend his work to anyone, but especially philosophers, psychologists and ministers/priests.