Budget Books

Jazz Pedagogy: The Jazz Educator's Handbook and Resource Guide
by J. Richard Dunscomb is an outstanding resource for new music teachers and experienced professionals as well. It contains detailed well thought out articles by leading jazz educators in their fields of expertise...clearly outlined and easily understood examples descriptions. A must have guide for learning or for remebering things you already knew but needed a fresh perspective.

Another book with a great concept: include a DVD which shows what's inside the book. Here Dr. Willie Hill is shown in a clinic type format demonstrating to high school jazz band participants how to play jazz standards. The DVD is a documentary format of a live classroom setting of real students being taught how to solo. Dr. Hill also instructs the 4-piece rhythm section, telling the musicians to listen to the drummer's accents. Both a high school ensemble and a college ensemble are represented. This book also ties in with a great video set that shows the role of the drums, bass, guitar, and keyboards in the rhythm section called "Drums In the Rhythm Section" (also Piano, Bass, Guitar) with top caliber players like Steve Houghton.

The book does a good job of presenting jazz in a methodical way. It starts with jazz history and influential players. It then moves on to the development of jazz instrumentation and jazz styles. As to not overwhelm the novice, a blues tunes, "Billie's Bounce", is used as a starting point. Helpful pointers like scales, modes, and arpeggios are explained and written out. Since classical musicians will only be familiar with standard grand staff notation and unfamiliar with simplified jazz charts, time is taken to explain the anatomy of a chart. The book's expensive but one you'll keep in the library for reference, especially if you plan on being a jazz band director. Also, as a supplemental addition, get "Approaching The Standards" by the same author to practice what you've learned here.

this guide is very informative and well-written. it hits allthe major touristy places and a lot of out of the way sites too. ifyou've never been to new zealand, and are on a budget, this is the guide for you. good options for hostels and restaurants. lots of cheap walking tours and affordable things to do. thumbs up!

As a student traveler I found that this book helped out more than any of the other travel books. It gives good recommendations, lists cheap places to stay, and has more descriptions of the small towns than any other travel book. My next journey is to the UK and I have already bought a Let's Go book for it.

Thoroughly researched, well-organized, easy to use. This book saved me money, time, and lots of stress for my two weeks in D.C. Great nightlife coverage -- they covered all the really great clubs, bars, and the arts sections was the best of any othe guidebook I looked at. I traveled around Virginia afterwards, and the daytrips section at the back of the book proved very thorough and helpful. Thanks, Let's Go.

In the hustle and bustle of the Washington D.C. streets one needs a companion to find one's way. This exceptionally edited book provides the necessary assistance for all the hot spots and historical points of interest in our nation's capitol. If achieving maximum efficiency with vacation time is a priority then this book is vital. This book is simply a god-send for anyone interested in the rich heritage and unceasing fun that Washington D.C. has to offer.

Having traveled a great deal using a vast array of guides, this is one of the best guides I've ever encountered. Reviews are frank, accurate, and honest. The writers are friendly and assume you know little to nothing about the area itself. It features all the standard maps as well as many options for lodging, food, and entertainment in virtually all tourist destinations- even those off the beaten track. It is worth noting that if you are interested in staying in five-star hotels, this is not the book to consult. It is geared mainly for young travellers sticking to a budget, willing to stay in hostels and looking for cheap deals on food, drink and entertainment.

The editors provide lots of practical information, such as hours of operation and directions to places such as train stations, airports, bus terminals, places to buy traveler's checks, and where you can access the Internet. Their numbers, addresses, and prices are up-to-date, something of which other guides such as Lonely Planet would do well to take note.

Descriptions of hostels provide contact information as well as candid observations about the clientele, room quality, and quirks, such as resident dogs and friendly staff members. I found it particularly helpful since there were so many hostels in major cities - the descriptions give you more to go on than just the price and location.

I spent six months travelling around Australia, and the binding on my book was broken within several weeks. I always consulted it before hitting the road and found so much useful information. I later loaned it out to a friend who found it equally helpful. I always carry at least two guidebooks to a destination, but can honestly say the Let's Go guide was sufficient on its own to carry me through my travels. Australia is a wonderful country with much to see and do. I highly recommend this guide for getting around, particularly if you are travelling on a budget.

For student travelers, Let's Go is the only guide book you need. Perhaps for older travelers--or those wanting to aviod the youth hostel party travel adventure--Lonely Planet would be a better chioce, but Let's Go is a great book. I spent a semester at the University of Sydney, and Let's Go was indespenable. Since it is revised yearly by college students it contains up to date information that comes from a piont of view that I could easly identify with. It is important to reilize that no writing is without bias. That having been said, knowing that I shared much in common with the aothors of the book made it easy to trust Let's go as a guide book.

After taking over my mid-size firm's marketing committee and being assigned responsibility for a complete revamping of the firm's website and logo, this book provided a good, quick introduction to the basic concepts of marketing and branding our firm. Very helpful for the beginner - like me.

This book is a must for every law firm managing partner and marketing directors. To survive and prosper in 2010 and beyond these lessons are essential.

This book is authored very readably. The anecdotes support and reinforce the solid content and advice presented. It is based in reality and offers best practices rather than just offering theory. I don't find myself getting bogged down in terminology as I have with some other books.

This is one of the volumes in the Harvard Business Essentials Series. Each offers authoritative answers to the most important questions concerning its specific subject. The material in this book is drawn from a variety of sources which include the Harvard Business School Press and the Harvard Business Review as well as Harvard ManageMentor_, an online service. I strongly recommend the official Harvard Business Essentials Web site (www.elearning.hbsp.org/businesstools) which offers free interactive versions of tools, checklists, and worksheets cited in this book and other books in the Essentials series. Each volume is indeed "a highly practical resource for readers with all levels of experience." And each is by intent and in execution solution-oriented. Although I think those who have only recently embarked on a business career will derive the greatest benefit, the material is well-worth a periodic review by senior-level executives.

Credit Richard Luecke with pulling together a wealth of information and counsel from various sources. He is also the author of several other books in the Essentials series. In this instance, he was assisted by a subject advisor, Richard D. Austin, a member of the Technology and Operations Management faculty at the Harvard Business School. Together, they have carefully organized the material within 12 chapters.

1. Project Management as a Process (four phases)
2. The Cast of Characters (i.e. who's who in project management)
3. A Written Charter ("your marching orders")
4. A Framework for Action (i.e. important first steps)
5. Work Breakdown (i.e. from huge job to manageable tasks)
6. Scheduling the Work ("put the horse before the cart")
7. Adjustments and Trade-Offs (i.e. more fine-tuning)
8. Managing Risk ("scanning the hazy horizon")
9. Project Adaptation (i.e. dealing with what you could not or did not anticipate)
10. Getting Off on the Right Foot (i.e., project needs to keep in mind)
11. Keeping on Track (i.e. maintaing control)
12. The Closedown Phase (i.e. wrapping up)

I especially appreciate the provision of a "Summing Up" section at the conclusion of each chapter, and, the provision also of two appendices: "Useful Implementation Tools" and "A Guide to Effective Meetings." Re the appendices, all executives should possess and continuously upgrade a "tool kit" even if what is needed this week or this month requires entirely different "tools" later. One of the most important value-added benefits of the "Essentials" series is that each of its volumes includes a number of "tools" relevant to the given subject and an explanation of how to use them effectively.

With regard to the advice provided on meetings (probably the single greatest time-waster), it is sensible but sparse. Years ago, I became convinced that most meetings are convened to discuss what needs to be discussed rather than to discuss what needs to be done. And even when the latter, more often than not, the "PTD Principle" is ignored (i.e. P = person, T = task, and D = deadline). I now presume to share my own advice.

1. Schedule a meeting only when it is absolutely necessary.
2. Include only those who must be present.
3. In advance, inform everyone involved what the meeting's specific objectives are.

NOTE: No more than three objectives per meeting.

4. Limit the discussion entirely to achieving the specified objective(s).
5. Encourage dissent.

NOTE: If two people in the group agree on everything, one of them is useless.

6. Have zero tolerance of gabbers.
7. Strictly follow the "PTD Principle."
8. Follow-up with everyone re who must do what and by when.
9. Have zero tolerance of slackers.
10. If someone suggests another meeting, see Point #1.

Other than Appendix B, the material which Luecke and Austin provide is first-rate. I highly recommend it to decision-makers in all organizations (regardless of size or nature) and especially to those who are now preparing for a business career or have recently embarked on one. Effective and efficient management of work at all levels and within all areas of any organization is absolutely essential. However, what Peter Drucker suggested more than 40 years ago is even more relevant now than ever before: "There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all."

No political figure of his time was more eloquent than the author's boss, Mario Cuomo. When asked to explain his failure to run for President, Cuomo once replied "I speak in poetry, but I govern in prose." The author of this book was one of the key figures composing the prose during his years as Cuomo's budget director.

The author has written a manual targeted for graduate students seeking to get a handle on the art and science of state budgeting. It is good enough, however, for governors, gubernatorial candidates and their staff, budget directors, and key legislative leaders and legislative staff to gain some worthwhile insights from.

This is not the book to learn the ins and outs of the step by step negotiations in New York or any other state. The author is sparing in his use of anecdotes. What he does, and does well, is to take the reader through the long and tortuous process of compiling a budget from the governor's point of view, and allowing the reader to see the obstacles any governor must face in achieving his vision under the American system of checks and balances.

"(B)udget success is the key to re-orienting government," the author writes. "New programs, changed priorities, tax cuts or shifts in tax burdens, a larger or smaller role for government in the state's economy--all these objectives must be won in the budget arena....In these memos, a successful budget is one that delivers on a governor's programmatic objectives, and does so within financial constraints that help achieve or maintain structural budget balance....Budget success also requires careful consideration of long-term strategic goals, a clear understanding of the impact of the business cycle on state budgets, and effective negotiating tactics to get executive recommendations adopted...."

The author, a rather straightforward modern Machiavelli, prepares 8 memos for his protypical governor. He closes with a stern warning. "If you cannot use the budget to state your goals and move state government in the direction you advocate, you are not likely to make much progress towards these goals. As your term ends, voters and the press will find it difficult to say what you have accomplished. If you have mastered the budget and adoption process, you will have a solid list of tangible achievements. Effective use of the budget as a policy and political tool is a necessary, if not quite sufficient, condition of successful leadership in the statehouse. Do everything you can as soon as you can to grab hold of the budget process and make it work for you."

The author's memos are entitled "You and Your Budget Officer," "Budget Strategy," "Preparing the Executive Budget--the Technical Underpinnings," "Choices in the Final Phase of Budget Preparation," "Budget Tactics:Laying the Groundwork for Adoption," "Going Public With the Budget," "The Legislative Phase of the Budget Process," and "Budget Execution."

Anyone holding the office of governor would likely ensure at least moderate success by intensely studying the author's book. A cautionary note is that the author does not spend much time inquiring into, or advising on, the motives of non-gubernatorial actors in the budgetary drama. A governor who really understood the positions of the advocates, the legislators, and the media--and who was able to use that understanding to lead others to achieve common ends--would do even better than one merely following this book.

The author does understand that legislators have district needs, and that legislative leaders are responsive to individual legislators, especially those in swing districts. But the interplay of localized electoral needs with statewide public policy is minimized in the author's accounts. More detailed subsequent writings may correct this.

The author's writing style is dry but decisive, like that of many other budget makers this customer reviewer has known. Every memo is full of good advice, and subtle warnings of the dangers of uncontrolled idealistic fervor to make great changes. "Publication of agency performance measures," the author warns, "may lead to an improvement in service delivery, but public performance measures can also provide quantitative evidence of government's inevitable failures and mistakes."

The author is no Don Quixote. He is a grizzled veteran of budgetary wars.
He identifies with governors and wants them to succeed. He does not identify with legislators, interest groups, and the media. He does not want them individually or collectively defeating a governor's choice of priorities, or, even worse, causing a governor to be defeated. That makes this an excellent book for understanding the gubernatorial mindset as well as the budgeting process.

Dall Forsythe, former budget director to Gov. Mario Cuomo, has written an excellent book on how big policy decisions are made. It is written in an easy to read style in memo format for the new Governor.

If you are at this site, you probably have more than a passing interest in making an intelligent choice when you vote for president and Congress. So you're probably not the kind of person who votes whichever party line; or who believes the last television ad he sees; or just chooses by race, religion, sex or physical attractiveness, never mind the issues. You may already know more than the average American about U.S. history and the national debt. But if you are like me, you may have not put it all together into the answer to the question: what the heck is happening here?! And why?!

If you really want to know, Bob Kelly tells us, and in an interesting, even riveting format. My favorite section, under each recent president, is the list of paradigm-altering Supreme Court decisions. For instance, I finally found the answer to one favorite question: when were teenagers told they could defy speech-limit rules in public schools? (It was after my tenure as editor of my college newspaper).

Another interesting section states Mr. Kelly's opinions on certain social issues that he finds more relevant to the national debt than I do; but they always give me something to think about. Whether you share his Judeo-Christian viewpoint,or consider morality an innate absolute for the successful survival of our species, you will want our country to get its moral act together before it's too late to sustain our freedom. And bottom line, this requires addressing the outrageous national debt, starting with this year's election.

This book is under-titled. In addition to the analysis of debt, it provides a sketch of American and world history from Washington to Bush.

Well written and documented with numerous tables, this book makes a compelling case for limiting debt by reducing citizen's dependence on the government and supporting private sector growth. Recommended for informed general readers; upper-division graduates and up.

Every serious political activist should own a copy of "The National Debt from FDR (1940) to Clinton (1996) by C.L.T. member Robert E. Kelly, with a foreword by Jeff Jacoby, now available in bookstores. A fascinating read with evereything you really want to know about the federal government in one compact place.

I was lucky enough to go to Paris three times, each time carrying Pauline Frommer's Paris book with me everywhere. Twice I went for less than two days and the third time for five days. The layout of the book is great. She has it broken down by the arrondissements (or districts). In each arrondissement there are recommended places to stay and eat. She is not shy about her recommendations and you get the feeling she actually knows the owners and employees at each establishment. Paris is a huge city and with this book I felt that I had some little connections to the people when I went to the recommended establishments. I went on two of the walks recommended in the walkabout section and each walk I stopped at the recommended cafes and they were wonderfully Parisian, not cafes catering to American tourists but thankfully still spoke English. There is a chapter on Paris' 10 iconic sites but also easy itineraries for one, two, three or 4 + days in Paris, which was very helpful to me since my time was limited. The best recommendation for me was to stop by Quai St.Bernard on a summer evening to watch people dance along the Seine doing the tango, something I would have walked right past if it was not for the book. All of the advice given was worth the $16.99, I have some wonderful memories of Paris and can't wait to go back. I would highly recommend purchasing this book if you are going to Paris. I felt I was given advice from a friend to all of the great spots to see while visiting her city.

I can highly recommend this book for all visitors to Paris. I travel frequently and recently went to Paris with a friend who has never been to France before. We both found the book to be very useful and full of helpful hints. I especially appreciate the way the restaurant section is organized and I also enjoyed the author's personal opinions about her favorite (and/or least favorite) places and activities.