Boyd Books

I write reviews rarely, and only on occasion when I feel strongly enough about something and want to make sure others are aware of it. Despite the high ratings and raving reviews, this book disappoints. I bought this book because I want to learn how to apply OODA model to high stress situations where decision must be made. This is frequently the case in the business world. I expected the author to at least dive into each of the O-O-D-A step, draw its application in business terms, and provide case studies on when OODA was applies correctly and incorrectly. Unfortunately, that is not how the book is structured.

The book lacks organization, or word differently, it did not "start with the end in mind". Instead of start the book with OODA, the book dives straight into historical events, most of which are military based. Of the time when business organization were mentioned (e.g, Southwest, Dell), the author never drew the parallel or explained how the suppose strategic concept is applicable. If this is a book about business, then at least explain how Southwest or Dell adopted the strategy correctly, or how Chrysler or Enron did otherwise. As of page 100, there isn't a single business case study.

The first 100 pages of the book, out of 187 pages, were uses to convince you that Boyd's concept has validity, with the first paragraph on page 100 stating "In the previous chapters, I tried to convince you that the physical characteristics, such as....... do not guarantee victory in any highly competitive situation...". Unfortunately, I do not need to be convinced. This is not a common book shelved in bookstores. If the audience has to actively seek out of the book, then they have already been convinced the validity of the OODA loop, and is seeking for real world application. This means more than 50% of the book could have been better used.

Another distracting characteristic of the book is the author's writing style. Actually, the content flows more like a dictation, as if someone recorded a free flow lecture and typed it up. The writing style is verbose, and each paragraph did not start or end with a point, and often went off on a tangent and does a poor job, if at all, tie back to the original thought. The author often seem to be talking to himself. An example:

"Chapter III described four qualities, with roots down through history, that help an organization run at fast OODA tempo. The first of these is unity, cohesion, oneness, or, as I shall use in the rest of this book, mutual trust between the members of the organization. The German word Einheit conveys all these meanings, and I'll use it occasionally as well...".

The problem is, if the goal is to convey the importance of "mutual trust", then I already got it. I do not need to know it's also known as unity, cohesion or oneness. It's also unclear on why the German word "Einheit" is important enough to be introduced only to be used "occasionally" when it's already been explained as "mutual trust" - does English not have an equivalent word or something close enough that we much introduce a foreign word? This writing style is consistent through out the book, making it difficult to identify the key points and stay on track.

To be objective, different people respond to different writing style. My intent of writing this review is to provide some warning to those with similar learning approach. The raving reviews and high praises did not reflect this aspect of the book.

In environments that are marked by rapid and frequent change, such as battlefields and business, there have been a range of management processes to deal with that change. Generally, the approach has been tools and practices that attempt to control the rate or prediction of those changes - two things that are impossible to control. One cannot predict every possible future or every possible change and cannot therefore provide a plan that will fit every contingency. Attempting to plan for and control every contingency is inefficient and ineffective. What if you could learn, instead of how to control, how to thrive in rapidly changing environments? What if change could be made an ally instead of an opponent to your plans? Dr. Richards, a student of the late Col. John Boyd, has developed insights into just how to let go of the illusion of control in favor of learning to thrive in the apparent chaos of business competition. As a long time software engineer, I find Dr. Richards' insight especially helpful in facing the challenges of ever changing requirements, priorities, rapid design cycles, and intense competition. It sits well with the "extreme programming" theorists that emphasize the same approach to everyday software development that gets away from the structured and unbending schedule plans of most software development processes. I am certain the same approach will be helpful to more than just software business practices.

Most business practices assume that we can control our environment and mold it into the image we prefer. But control is an illusion; Dr. Richards can help you break out of the illusion into the real world.

Chet Richards does an excellent job illustrating and exposing the ideas and brilliance of John Boyd, especially as it relates to business. Chet was not only a friend and acolyte to Col. Boyd, he became an equal and co-creator of John's wisdom and philosophy. This probably explains why he understands and instinctively knows how John might apply his "O-O-D-A Loop" or "Building Snowmobiles" to the business challenges of today. The philosophy detailed in "Certain to Win" is the key to solving the most difficult problems of business, government and society. Organizations which can understand and apply the four components of "Maneuver Warfare" will succeed when facing uncertainty and unpredictable change. Once we develop an awareness of our own paradigms (Boyd's Orientation Phase), and an ability to rapidly change or reorient those paradigms (Speeding-Up Our Decision Cycle) we can literally practice "Guerrilla Warfare of the Mind." Decisions and organizational thought processes become intuitive, combining the inductive and deductive approaches. By speeding up our ability to analyze and synthesize near simultaneously, we effectively create our own "Temporal Distortion," that is time slows down for us. In business, as in war, speed and cunning beats size and strength every time. Chet Richards is On Target & On Time with "Certain to Win." Cheers!

Dr. Chet Richards' work is an extraordinarily fine piece of tight writing designed to take the mystery out of the O.O.D.A. Loop decision cycle itself and how one might apply it in areas outside of the battlefield where it is often applied. Despite the handicap of being a brilliant mathematician Dr. Richards approaches and covers the topic utilizing a useful layman's view.

With clear language Richards presents the fundamentals of Colonel John Boyd's revolutionary thinking on decision cycles - which thinking became the genesis for modern manuever warfare. Dr. Richards' real contribution lies in his knack for taking what some might consider arcane military theories and laying them on top of current business models and making the case - successfully in my view - for their incorporation as the new "best practices in business.

The book is a delightful read which re-informs military types regarding the enduring value of "Boydian Thinking" - it will also stretch the minds of our keenest business leaders. Should be in any thinker and doer's personal library.

Bill Hayes
Major, USMC (Ret.)

Sadly it is only after his death that we have come to have widespread appreciation of Boyd's great intellect. This book is another great step in finding broader application of some of what Boyd taught.Chet Richards has done a great job of bringing Boyd's message to the business world.

Some have questioned whether a view of decision making in combat was applicable to business. The answer is yes, sometimes and perhaps more often than you think. Boyd is probably even more applicable to political campaigns.

Were I still teaching MBA students, some of the material from the book would be in the classroom, replacing more traditional materials.

I would read Boyd first as a foundation for this book.

Highly recommended.

An appropriate title for this book. Paula Boyd makes her debut with funny, down-to-earth characters. As for Jolene, rarely does she make a trip home to Kickapoo, Texas, without some catastrophic event taking place. In this case, it happens to be that the local mayor has been murdered and her mother is on the suspect list. To top it off, Jolene is the center of much gossip at the local Dairy Queen. The personality of the protagonist reminds me a lot of Stephanie Plum of the Janet Evanovich novels, just without the gun. Sharp, witty, and frustrated with her mother, Jolene swarms through each day trying to keep her mother out of trouble and out of jail. Definitely a must read if you are looking for a quick and easy read that doesn't require a lot of sleuthing or thought.

If you enjoy Janet Evanovich or Kris Neri, you are going to have so much fun with Paula Boyd's Jolene Jackson mysteries. Jolene is such a realistic character and her mother is simply a stitch. There is just a little sizzle left in Jo's 25-year-past relationship with the sheriff.

With a gun-toting, purse-packin' mother like Lucille, what is a woman to do? Jolene does the only thing she can, find the murderer of the town mayor. Not just any town mayor, but her 72 year old mother's boy friend. Once Jolene gets involved, to her surprise, things do get worse! This mystery is filled with wonderful "Texas" humor. Those that don't call Texas home will find this mystery hilarious and action-packed. Native Texans will love this book! The humor is dry and sarcastic at times and will keep you turning the pages late into the evening. This is a great who-done-it!

Kickapoo, Texas. The name alone is enough to start you laughing. Add to that a purse swing widow who's romantic fling with the town's married Mayor is public knowledge due to his untimely murder, the widow's divorced daughter who must return to Kickapoo to bail Mom out of jail, a good looking sheriff who eyes the daughter with unsupressed interest, and a Dairy Queen full of gossipy characters, and you have a riot in the making. Paula Boyd had me in stitches with her tongue-in-cheek descriptions of life in a small town. This is a humorous first novel by a writer of great potential.

In this mystery you will meet a mother/daughter sleuthing team. Forty-six year old Jolene Jackson is a strong female sleuth and her seventy-two year old mother Lucille has a sharp eye and a sharper tongue, Jolene likes to cut to the chase, but Lucille has her own trick up her sleeve - or rather her purse (she likes to hit people with it). This fast paced mystery romps across my favorite landscape of North Central Texas. When the book starts out Jolene is getting into town (Kickapoo, TX) to get her mother Lucille out of jail for supposedly killing her boyfriend the mayor, Big John Bennett. The Dairy Queen is the local hangout and where Lucille was arrested. So when she's let go Lucille returns to the DQ as if nothing happened. Later when Sheriff Jerry Don (Jolene's high school sweetheart) is at Lucille's home asking questions, Lucille gets up from the table where they are seated to get a glass of tea, as she does a bullet comes through the window, goes through Lucille's arm and hits Jerry Don in the chest. Who was the bullet meant for? Lucille or Jerry Don? As Jolene and Officer Leroy discuss the shooting outside Lucille's home someone throws a brick at them, with Leroy getting the worst of it. Jolene starts sleuthing to find out who is trying to harm them and while all this is going on she is trying to figure out if and whether at all she fits into Jerry Don's life. Hot Enough to Kill has some comedic characters you'll just love. The author writes with a humor you can't resist. I can't remember the last time that I read a book as light and refreshing as this. You will love the ending because you are not expecting the surprise! Pam Stone

Douglas Evans should write more books for children. The Classroom at the End of the Hall is a page-turner.

The author of this book is Douglas Evans and he makes you feel as if you were in the book. He makes sound effects and thoughts. Evans builds suspense by making you want to read further and further. Once you start reading a chapter you wouldn't want to stop until the next chapter starts.
I think someone else would want to read this book because it's funny. Also because, when you want to put the book down, you just have to know what happens next. Especially when Roger smacks together the erasers and a chalk genie comes out....of course you would want to know what happens next.
I would most remember this book because it's funny and has a lot of childish scenes that kids my age would probably do.

This book is about many strange kids that go to this classroom at the end of the hall. Many things are weird in it and one thing is Frances is a very tidy girl until it comes to her desk and she gets a desk pest in it! There is also a book a kid finds and it tell what is going to happen to him the next so every day he reads a little.

I liked this book a lot because it is so funny when a girl named Frances gets a desk pest in her desk. The desk pest tells her a lot of answers. This book is also a very interesting because most of the stuff you know wouldn't really happen but it does! This book is a kind of book that makes you not want to stop reading it. I think that this book is one of the best books I have ever read! I think that kids in the 4th grade through 6th grade might like this book.

I liked this book a lot because it is so funny when a girl named Frances gets a desk pest in her desk. The desk pest tells her a lot of answers. This book is also a very interesting because most of the stuff you know wouldn't really happen but it does! This book is a kind of book that makes you not want to stop reading it. I think that this book is one of the best books I have ever read! I think that kids in the 4th grade through 6th grade might like this book.

This is a wierd and good book!It is about an unbelievable character name Roger.Every body hates Roger.He is a pain in the neck.He even wrote on the board with snot.The worst thing of all he have been a teacher and you wont believe what he did.
I would recommend this book to my friends.Why? Because my friends loves funny and a book that is unbeliveable.Also I know they will love this book.

Ok, I've *loved* this book since I was eight years-old... and I still love it!
This is really one of those novels that last you a life-time. It's loved as a matter of speaking by those ranging between 9 and 99 years-old. :)

As I've read the original ("Kruisstocht in spijkerbroek" - 55th edition), I don't really know how well the translation to English has gone - no disrespect to the translator - but I'm sure he/she has done a good job.

But really I'd recommend "crusade in jeans" to anyone wth a bit of imagination. It'll also make a great birthday or Xmas gift. ;)

This book was fantastic. Dolf's journey through medeval Europe was captivating, and I felt as though I went right along with him. Beckman's characters are wonderful and I was sad to realize they aren't real, because the way Beckman describes them, you would think it is based on a true story! I cried at every sad moment, laughed at every happy word, and was standing beside Nicholas when he stood in the Mediterranean. Join Dolf, Maria, Leonardo, and many more on the up and down adventure through the 13th century...get ready for the greatest book of all time.

The title of this review, was the original title of the Dutch version. I read most of Thea Beckman's books as a child, and grew immersed into the worlds she managed to recreate by words only, and a child's fantasy.

This book does the same to the reader who is willing to discard all logic ; the concept of a army consisting out of 8000 children leaving Germany for a "holy crusade", and a 20th century child who ends up in the medieval times by a transporter (material transmitter).

The image of 8000 children travelling to Jeruzalem by foot, is a hard one to conjure up, but she makes it work. There is a certain flow in the book, logic in the way things are shown to you, the reader, that makes it work. You see it, in the end.

Sadly enough, I do not believe this to be imagination - Beckman investigated historical events, visited each and every place that she described in her books; the preparation for a book easily could take over a year and a half.

This is a classic bit of Dutch literature - many a generation of children (my sister is 35, 12 years older than I, and she has read it as a child, herself) have read it, albeit for school, or private leisure. I was one of them. And when I saw an English copy - I snatched it up. And found that part of the magic had dissapeared tdue to too strict translation work.

I wouldn't have minded the words not to have corresponded with the orginal text - as long as the general feeling was kept. What there is left is a rather cold, but still entrancing, translation of the original book.

But for those who are not familiar with the Dutch language, this will have to do. And please people, read the book first, then see the movie.

I loved this book. I still do. I own it in two languages and that is my problem. I love, adore and admire the Dutch version. It is one of the best books ever and not just in the childres's literature section.
I wanted my BF to read it, but as he does not speak, nor read Dutch I bought him the translation. The book is still good but looses that edge that makes Thea Beckman one of the best childrens writers ever.
The scene where Dolf (Rudolf in translation) is accused of heresy just isn't exciting. The waves that do not open it does not give you that urge to read on what is next as the Dutch version does.

Still I give it 5 stars. I cannot do otherwise. It is the book that gave me my love for Medieval History and that is worth 5 stars in itself

This book is about a 15 year old young man named Rudolf who travels into the middle ages on a time machine a scientist of the name Dr Simiak was working on. Rudolf typically known as Dolf, gets sent back into the middle Ages thinking he is going there to watch an event then after a few hours stand on a certain stone and be transmitted back. However when things go wrong Dolf doesnt reach the stone in time and watches as a fellow young boy stood on the stone and dissappeared, being sent to the 20th century while Dolf is stuck in the Middle Ages. The Childrens Crusade was passing through the town at the time Dolf was there. Dolf joing the crusade and becomes a leader. With his 20th century knowledge and leadership qualities he becomes well loved. Read to happen what happens as Dolf takes the Children's Crusade into the mountains and attempt to go to Jerusalem.
This book is a great book. I think people will either LOVE this book or think it is so-so. I read this book as an assignment in school and the fellow stundents all loved it, including me. I love to read and to get 3 stars is typically a great review. This book has high points and then boring points. It starts out really interesting, gets boring, gets a little interesting, gets SUPER boring, gets SUPER SUPER SUPER exciting, to sort of good to interesting. However If i knew that the end of the book would end so interesting i would have been motivated to keep reading. So I hope im the motivation the people need to complete the book which is a fabulous book. This is a fictional book but at the same time teaches you lots about the middle ages, surviving and most of all, the Crusades, specifically the. Childrens Crusade. This Book does seem to have a choppy ending, it seems as if parts of the book could be taken out and nobody would notice nor care. Cannot wait for the movie to come out, it will indeed be a great movie, read the book BEFORE the movie.
This book is really worth your time, dont get frusterated with some of the complex word choices but focus on the unbelievable story behind it all.

I was in 2nd grade when my mother and father got me this book for Christmas. True, there is much labeling in the book, but William Green Hill was as comfortable with his black friends on the plantation as he was with Lina, Frances and Jimmy. The stories these children tell to each other, believing totally that these tales were in the Bible (and then 2 teddy bears came out and ate 420 children." It's a good book to discuss with your children while enjoying the innocence presented.

Yes, this is a delightful tale featuring traditional Southern humor and dialect -- if you don't happen to be one of the impoverished, uneducated black children who add so much flavor to the context. This tale comes from an unfavorable time in our past when racism was systemic in our society, when those of the racial minority were, when convenient, treated kindly -- but always as second-class citizens, and everyone realized that.

This book's value, now, is one of education. Read this book, and understand how differently our society once was structured (in law and in practice) from today. Put yourself in the place of those relegated to the back, always vulnerable to the caprice of the favored race. And be glad that (regardless of what many insist) our society indeed has gotten better than during Billy Green Hill's times.

I read this book as a very young child and, as I collect old children's books, ran across it in my searches. Of course, I read it again and enjoyed it even more this time. I suppose it is"politically incorrect" now, but that's the way things were then--right or wrong. I still find the book both funny and sweet. I had no idea that someone had created a series after Mrs. Calhoun's death. I would love to find some of them.

I purchased this book for my father who read it as a child. He exclaimed with delight when I took the book to him. He loved rereading it after 60 years and laughed hysterically thru most of the book. It's a quick read. I wish the press would publish the others in this series, there's certainly an audience for them.

I remember finding this book when I was visiting my grandmother at age 9, and just came across it unpacking a box of books.
I'd recently read it to my infant, to see if it still had the charm and hilarity that I'd remembered when my grandma had read it to me. So many times children's books fall flat when you read them again as an adult. To my surprise, it was laugh-out-loud funny. Although, the southern drawl written into text can sometimes be difficult, it added to the charm, and I found myself starting to speak in a southern drawl in between reading chapters. Sometimes the language can be a bit un-nerving, seeing as we modern folk don't use racial epithets, the children used them in a loving way, describing people they knew and loved. But in today's world, the text can sometimes be uncomfortable. When I was reading I substitued modern, politically correct terms, and when my husband heard me read, couldn't tell the difference and thought it was a great little book. I don't want to deny the reality and language of the past, only to promote the innocence originally intended by Mrs. Calhoun.
I was amazed and gladened to see that Amazon.com carried the book (printed originally in 1909), and that people still enjoyed it. I highly recommend it.

"Log of a Cowboy" is as advertised, a simply written narrative of a trail drive, as straight-forward as its cowboy hero. While not great literature (or is it?), it has a freshness that makes it fun to read. The sheer labor of the trail drives made them heroic! The image of hundreds of trail herds making their way north is awesome.
Many modernizations of Andy Adams' original novel have been made. This one is easily readable and very enjoyable. Jack Hannah's song based on it, "Trail Drive", is true to this story that tells of trail boss Flood and the trail hands' adventures in Dodge City, as they "trail 'em slow" to Montana.
If you yearn for a simpler time, love adventure, remember "Wagon Train" and "Rawhide" fondly, or just want to be transported to another life, this book will do it.

I was expecting a little more excitement in this book than what I read. I was a little disappointed, to the point that I almost didn't bother to finish it. I wouldn't buy this book again if I had the chance.

I'd give The Log of a Cowboy 5 stars as an excellent story of life on the cattle drive trails. It's a great read...
But, the quality of this particular edition is very poor.
Blurry print, ink blotches, and even some unreadable sections, makes this edition a poor choice. It looks as though someone just ran the text through a poor quality copier.
Given a price of $38.00, I would certainly expect better.
Try any of the paperback editions, and avoid this one.

I have completely lost track of the number of editions and printings I have seen of this book, over the years, and a quick search with Google will produce a number of different free e-texts available on-line. However, almost every edition known to me is missing an introduction; there is therefore (1) no information about the author, and (2) no information as to whether what we have is a novel written in documentary style, or an actual nonfiction account of a typical trail drive in the early 1880s.

Well, folks, it's a novel, as the largely symbolic names for the characters might indicate: Priest, Flood, Officer, Strayhorn, Forrest, Blades, Wheat, Straw, etc., etc. I finally got around to reading it, and enjoyed it. Nothing spectacular or overdrawn--- it would not be surprising to discover that every incident is based on something that directly happened to the author or one of his cowboy sidekicks during his trail-herding days. All the classic situations are here, including visits to Dodge City and Oglalla, fiendishly difficult river crossings, stampedes, rustlers, con-men and segundos, chuck wagons and remudas, saloon gunfights and card-sharping. The number of 20th Century western authors who turned to this 1903 novel to obtain some authentic details to insert into their own trail-drive sequences is probably also close to uncountable.

"The Log of a Cowboy" was published in 1903 and tells the story of a five month long trail drive that took the circle-dot long horns from just a little south of Brownsville up into the Indian territory of the Blackfoot Agency - a 'pasear' of nearly 3000 miles.

When I came to this book, I didn't exactly know what to expect. The only other western I had read since childhood was "The Virginian", a book that seemed very fictional (although I enjoyed it greatly). "Log of a Cowboy" is entirely different. It reads more like an autobiography -- which some historians have suggested it is. Certainly there is an authentic feel to the book that is unmistakable. Rather than being over the top, the stampedes and gun battles are underplayed, although they certainly maintain their own levels of excitement.

My own response to the book: I found it hard to put it down. The story was full of adventure and cow and cowboy trivia and it was just plain fun. I ended my read with a great deal more respect for the cowboy and his craft. Who knew that cattle liked to bed down on higher terrain?!?

Five Stars. Despite being fiction, "Log of a Cowboy" remains a wonderful historical resource. Persons interested in the Old West should find it a satisfying read, although they should not expect a overly polished presentation. And for those who are considering this book for younger readers it should be noted that there are some very non-PC(politically correct) speech and actions. This book was, afterall, written over one hundred years ago.

~reviewed by Pam T.~

While not written in the same style as Coram's "Boyd: the Fighter Pilot who changed the art of war," Dr. Hammond's book fills the gap between the mythology of Boyd (Coram's book) and the void of nothingness (OODA training provided by the US Air Force in professional military education). Hammond's book gives a sense of scholarly study to Col Boyd's work, without the bluster of personal anecdotes. Don't get me wrong - I have loved almost every text I have read on Col Boyd, personal and professional... but for usefulness in military strategy study, Hammond's book is head and shoulders above the rest.

Let's be honest - We're not going to become "Acolytes" by reading Boyd biographies - those positions are already taken. But understanding the difficulties Col Boyd had in trying to change the art of war and military establishment, we can open our minds to the realm of possibility... that everything is linked, and we might influence the next generation's John Boyd.

Shame on the United States Air Force for neglecting Col Boyd's contributions. If anyone needs a reminder about mavericks and warfare prophets, think of General Billy Mitchell; he was court martialed for his ideas on airpower and is now lauded in the halls of Air University.

Bolster your Boyd Background - buy Hammond's book, Coram's book, and download Boyd's print works from http://www.d-n-i.net

I have read both of the more well known books about John Boyd, Grant Hammonds book, the "Mind of War" and Robert Coram's book, "Boyd, the Fighter Pilot who Changed the Art of War."

Both are excellent works and I would suggest that if you are serious about studying John Boyd and his theories, first read Robert Coram's book which goes into more detail about John Boyd's life then if you are still interested, and you should be after reading Mr. Coram's book, I would move on to Grant Hammonds book which goes into more detail about John Boyd's theories of warfare.

All of the theories can be applied to almost any aspect of life, be it business, politics or just dealing with the general public and difficult people.

I was hoping for a better description of Boyd's ideas and less time spent on his life. This guy revolutionized some major fields, but the book doesn't really tell me the guts of the concepts. Disappointing.

If you want to change the world for the better or just keep your little corner of it from getting worse, then you'll want to read this book. It's what Boyd discovered about how conflicts are fought and won. Sadly, although he flew in two wars, most of Boyd's clashes were fought within the US military rather than with some foreign foe. As a result, one of the best USAF fighter pilots who ever lived is better remembered by the Marine Corps, where he is a hero, than by his own branch.

I'm not going spend time praising Boyd. The fact that I finished this book with a list of books and articles to read is praise enough. Instead, I'm going to offer a useful corrective to Boyd the man, by introducing someone else you should read.

That someone is G. K. Chesterton, an Englishman with a maverick, warrior personality every bit as fierce and unyielding as Boyd's. On June 1, 1941, on one of the darkest days in World War II, when the island of Crete had fallen to the Germans, leaving 17,000 British soldiers as prisoners of war, the Times of London, defiantly put these lines from Chesterton's "The Ballad of the White Horse" on its front page:

I tell you naught for your comfort,
Yea naught for your desire,
Save that the sky grows darker yet
And the sea rises higher.

Like Boyd, Chesterton understood that how we fight determines if we win or lose. He shared Boyd's contempt for those who believe that bigger is better. In a 1909 at the height of England's fears about new German battleships, Chesterton wrote precisely what Boyd would later say about fighter aircraft.

"Common-sense tells a man that indefinite development in one direction must in practice over-reach itself... If you perceive your enemy plunging on blindly in a particular direction, the real thing to do, if you have any spirit and invention, is to calculate the weakness in his course and advance yourself in some other direction. You ought to take advantage of his infatuation, not to imitate it; you ought to surprise his plan of campaign, not copy it laboriously. If he is building very big ships, the best thing you could do would probably be to build small ones; ships lighter, quicker, and more capable of navigating rivers."

But Chesterton understood something that Boyd never learned, an aspect of warfare that's so often forgotten today that the very word for it seems quaint--chivalry. Perhaps his best explanation of chivalry came in a 1906 article explaining why the Europe of his day dominated the world. Again Chesterton described a concept dear to Boyd, the power that comes from an ability to think new thoughts and imagine new ways of acting.

"The elements that make Europe upon the whole the most humanitarian civilisation are precisely the elements that make it upon the whole the strongest. For the power which makes a man able to entertain a good impulse is the same as that which enables him to make a good gun; it is imagination."

Boyd thought like a fighter pilot. He would have us understand a man in order to destroy him, knowing that a foe who's blown out of the air will never trouble you again. As a writer, Chesterton had a different perspective. He believed that understanding leads to restraint, writing in that same article: "For if you do not understand a man you cannot crush him. And if you do understand him, very probably you will not."

Chesterton saw conflict in broad terms. When he clashed with H. G. Wells over the latter's infatuation with a World State or with Bernard Shaw over pacifism, he took the time to understand what each was saying. His criticisms of the dangers and weakness of international institutions are among the best ever written. His description of the pacifist personality is so accurate that it applies with near perfection to today's pacifists. But having gotten into the mind of his opponent, he recognized in him a fellow human being. With few exceptions, he retained the respect and even friendship of his foes. Only when one crossed a critical line, demonstrating that without great pain he was beyond redemption, would Chesterton seek to crush him to prevent the evil he intended. What was for Boyd the rule, destroying anyone who disagree with him, was for Chesterton the rare exception. Boyd needs to be tempered with Chesterton

In short, I'd suggest that, as you read what Boyd said about war and conflict, you also read what Chesterton wrote. You'll accomplish a lot more and suffer far less grief if you do. And as you might suspect, I wrote a book on that topic, a collection of Chesterton's best articles on war and peace paying particular attention to his warnings about Germany. And when the necessity arose, Chesterton could be as tough-minded as Boyd. Chesterton used all his powers as a writer to crush those ideas in the German mind that Nazism would later exploit.

--Michael W. Perry, editor of Chesterton on War and Peace: Battling the Ideas and Movements that Led to Nazism and World War II

The OODA loop is an affirmation of my theorized belief that all we do in life follows a pattern. The successes and the failures of our endeavors is relative to the degree of our adherence to the said pattern and our familiarity with the task. God Bless the late Col. John Boyd.

This really has something for everyone. Beautiful photos and good instruction. I use it constantly for ideas as well as doing some of the projects inside

These projects are beautiful and a snap for people with a little experience. The pictures and instructions are clear and easy to understand.

I found the projects very easy to understand and even embellish if I want to change it somewhat. Also, there are both jewelry and decorative things to make that aren't too "much" that you just wouldn't use them or give them as presents. Some reviewers said this is a beginners book, which it is, but even an experienced beader can use these projects if they're good beaders. There were many more things I will make then I won't which doesn't happen all the time. I also liked the resources in the back that a lot a authors don't put in and I have had a hard time finding some materials.

Magazines like this are a great aid to the beginner in beading. The explanations are clear and easy to understand. It has helped a great deal.

I have not been beading for very long, but the projects in this book seem more for kids than adults. On the plus side, there is good information on tools and materials and instuctions are easy to follow with good photos. On the down side, of the 53 projects there are only 3 or 4 that I would actually make and a whole lot (30%+) that would appeal only to pre-teens. Factor in another 25-30% for "home accents" and "accessories" (candle decorations, napkin holders, etc.) and there isn't much left if you are interested, as I am, in jewelry.

I was looking for a book on video poker that covered most of the recent games and optimal strategy for those games. The book does just that, and more....

This is a very well written book for beginners. Other authors on this subject introduce their books as suitable for a beginner in the first few chapters but the following chapters are difficult for the novice to read and understand. Linda Boyd, perhaps because she is an educator, writes clearly and fully introduces new vocabulary before using new terms in her explanations.

Excellent, understandable and I'd rec. to any one looking for a 'how to' on video poker

An excellent treatment on Video Poker. Gives, as all these guides do, a quick overview of what is involved in playing Video Poker. Then she delves into the deeper aspects of choice of game which is based on the printed paytable and its implied "expected return" and volatility level. You see some games while having very attractive payoffs for those very rare hands, require a substantially higher bankroll to play with a reasonable expectation of achieving the theoretical long-term payoff while others with lower payoffs (but more frequent) require less bankroll. Lots of tables are included containing all the really essential stuff sought after by the serious Video Poker player. Now if you are NOT a serious player, this book can still be a valuable investment because there are removable strategy cards at the end of the book covering all the most common machines. Those alone were worth the price of admission.

This book doesn't provide much in strategy that you can't find on the net or elsewhere. I was looking for some well formated strategy charts for non-full pay games, and this book was not good for that need.

One positive section was the discussion of VLTs in many racinos and bars in several states (e.g. bars in Louisiana). VLTs are not VP machines based on random number generators.

The strategy cards are terrible and I think my copy was missing a page (there was a tear showing a previous perforation). If you play VP in large casinos on the strip, you won't be playing full pay games.

I'm sure this book is very useful for adults with Asperger Syndrome as well as kids with AS and parents with AS children! The main reason is that this work is quite easy to understand and practical. Although I'm still single, I can see that raising AS and/or autistic children has been very stressful for their parents. Ordinary parenting doesn't always work when it comes to dealing with people with AS and other developmental disabilities. I think it is because this is exactly what ordinary people have never experienced before, which makes them harder to cope with. Certainly, most developmentally challenged people seem or look almost the same as any other people around them. However, they have been feeling different and distant from ordinary people, which is likely to lead to social inferiority and low self-confidence. I'm not the exception because I was diagnosed as ADHD and PDD(=Pervasive Developmental Disorder) when I was 34.
That's why I strongly feel that Parenting a Child With Asperger Syndrome: 200 Tips and Strategies will apply to my daily life. I know it is so difficult to carry out 100% of what is written in this book. But I'll try my best to cope with my difficulties in my life by comprehending gradually what she is driving at.

Great book to have for moms of high functioning ASD kids. Much easier to read and more straight forward than other books. Good useful tips. Highly recommend it.

As a parent of a 7 year old with Asperger's, this was my first book purchase on the subject. This book has enlightened me so much and has made me more patient of his "quirks". They are such complex individuals who need to be treated with understanding and respect. This book taught me many ways to do that while still being firm with discipline. I highly recommend this book to any parent who has a child with Asperger's.

This is excellent as it is written from the viewpoint of an Asperger's person, gives an explanation, and relates situations which we all find ourselves in when we are involved with this syndrome. I'm a grandparent and purchased this book for my granddaughters as their brother has Asperger's. I read it first, gave it to my son and his wife to read, before passing it on to the grandkids. We all learned from this book, even though we have been working with professionals and educators for years. This is a must read!!!

I loved this book. It reinforced what I already knew about AS, and added a wealth of knowledge that I have found invaluable. The strategies and tips are great. I've used them many times now...and they work!!! It was such a relief when I read this book and learned that other parents go through the exact same thing I have been going through with my son. This author really knows what she is writing about, and you can tell it is from her own personal experiences. I recommend this book to anyone who has a child they even suspect of having some type of developmental disorder.