Brian Books

We were given this book as a gift when my daughter, at 3 1/2 yrs old, was diagnosed with Leukemia. It instantly became her favorite, and she had us read it to her over and over. It sent a positive message in such a well-written way that even a child her age could understand. She still treasures that book and last year read it to her 2nd grade class. It will always be one of our favorites!

I first read this book in the local pharmacy while waiting for a prescription to be filled. Written by a local author who meant nothing to me, I found it upbeat and reassuring but soon put it out of my mind. Several years later, when my youngest daughter was diagnosed with bone cancer, a friend gave us a copy of the book and suggested I contact the author. The story was an inspiration to my daughter, the first hope that a child with cancer could survive to have a story told about her. When she later met the subject of the book, a friendship formed. No other book about cancer is so directed towards children (with the exception of Goes' "My Book about Cansur" actually written by a 6-year-old with cancer) without talking down to them and putting an ugly disease into undeserved "pretty" terms of courage and bravery. This book should be given to every child upon diagnosis.

This book is the absolutely best book that I have ever read. Kathy's Hats is a book that is good for all age groups. Any person that has had to deal with cancer in their life will greatly appriciate this book!!

Subject: MANY CONGRATULATIONS!

Dear Brian,

I received your book ~ KEEP IT OFF! It is really wonderful! I'm enjoying it immensely. After reading your explanation and instruction on "self-hypnosis" I immediately went into a very deep pleasant space. Because of your suggestions, I produced much more than usual in my creative relaxation time.

I've learned so much from it already, Brian. It is clear, simple, positive, and totally supportive! You are such an encouraging teacher, healer, and a friend to everyone. And that comes through brilliantly on each page.

I now have a change of atttitude! I understand that while working on my so called "problem" of excess weight, I am letting go of emotions, patterns, and pains that were "weighing" me down! This book and this method are really an outline for growing more beautiful....physically, spiritually, emotionally - in every way.

CONGRATULATIONS TO YOU AND ALL INVOLVED IN CREATING THIS BOOK!

IT IS SO NEEDED AND WELCOME IN OUR WORLD!

Sincerely,

S. of San Diego, California

Dr. Alman's techniques have changed my life. I am no longer living with one foot (or two) in the past. I discovered feelings I didn't know I had. Great things are happening in my life because Dr. Alman has taught me how I can make them happen. What amazes me is how quickly and completely these changes have been effected since beginning to use the techniques detailed in this book. I am now aware of how poorly I'd been treating myself and have gained acceptance of myself. I have no desire for a "quick fix" solution to my weight problem and no desire to resist eating healthily and exercising. The pounds are simply melting away. I know that I am making it happen, but it seems effortless! This book makes the process of shedding emotional weight a breeze to follow. Thanks Dr. Alman!

I was reading the book and nodding my head! How does Dr. Alman know what I'm thinking and feeling?

The book is an easy read filled with great self-hypnosis suggestions that work! I'm amazed how much more in-control I feel -- less stressed. When I'm less stressed out I can look at all the emotional baggage I am/was carrying around. Why carry the past into the present? (The Oceana quiz results are amazingly accurate!)

I truly believe that extra weight is not about food; it's about the heart and the mind. Dr. Alman is very intuitive and skilled at walking the reader down the path to self discovery, relaxation, and elimination of emotional baggage. The breathing techniques work wonders (even in traffic!).

The changes are not just in my weight, but in my entire life and everyday outlook!

Don't miss this one!!

A beautiful book with over 100 pages of full-color maps of the "Kingdoms of Kalamar" campaign setting. All of the pages make up a portion of the map of Tellene, the world setting where Kalamar is based. This is fully compatible with Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) 3E and 3.5, and any future editions, because it is rules-light. It is just a very well designed atlas with a lot of information that will be playable and useable for years. One of the best features is that almost everything is reality-based. If you see it on the map in Kalamar, there is likely a real-world equivalent, or something comparable.

I recently reviewed the Kingdoms of Kalamar campaign setting book, one of the most detailed and comprehensive settings I've come across in 25 years of role-playing. Kenzer & Co., not content to rest on its laurels, have also provided a thorough and thoroughly enjoyable Atlas for the Kingdoms of Kalamar. The Campaign book came with two, large fold-out maps. The Atlas takes those maps, breaking them down into dozens of full page sections, and within each section, further divides them into grids which detail all of the cities, towns, and village within each tiny map section. Were shown a greater detail of the terrain and topography as well. About the first two-thirds of the book are dedicated to these full page maps.

From there we get into the appendices. These further define and shape the Kingdoms of Kalamar and the continent of Tellene. In Appendix A we get new maps which provide information on common trade routes, ocean currents, trade winds and air pressure systems, mineral deposits, industry, grain production, military deployments, and more.

Appendix B provides notes on pronunciation throughout the realms, Appendix C details the various land categories such as mountains, swamps, hills, lakes & rivers, etc... Other appendices delve into the various languages spoken on Tellene and where they are spoken. The last appendix charts every known city, town, village, or hamlet along with their population.

Combined with the Campaign setting book, this makes a wonderfully detailed world for players to adventure in. The designers have managed to give the GM a diversified and vigorous world, uniquely faceted, and yet ready for the GM to provide his own special touch. The maps are extremely well made and beautifully colored. The topography is accurate as well as the various notes on things like weather and currents. Few designers would think to include these items into their worlds. This is a handsomely illustrated 240 page hardcover book. A must have if you own the Kingdoms of Kalamar Campaign setting. Well done!

Kalamar is the best game setting out there, but I was never satisfied with the maps in the Core book. This Atlas takes care of that. Basically the main map is sub devided into 100 or so beautifully rendered tiles with a scale of 1" = 25 miles. There are also a bunch of maps with trade routes, wind patterns, food production etc.
Why only 4 stars? I would have liked to see a globe with the unknown continents. I was a little upset that there were no temperature, flora or rainfall data, but then again I'm a map geek. Keep in mind that this book is all about the maps, if you are looking for a game aid or adventure ideas, look elsewhere.

Excellent read. Brings a new appreciation for the job that our firefighters do everyday. Definitely reccommend this book and hope that Brian decides to write a few more.

This book, "Knights of the Red Cross", ia a good book about firefighters. It shows how firefighters live. It tells the story of a young firefighter, George Adams, that messes up just like anyone else would and another guy, Don French, that follows his dream to be a full-time firefighter.

George Adams, the rookie, goes into a basement fire and chokes when the smoke cuts his air supply. Later a fire gets worse and worse by the second and George must stop it.

Knights of the Red Cross is an exciting look into the fire service. The book starts with a 17-year-old boy with a dream of becoming a firefighter, and takes you through his career. You get to look inside the life of a volunteer firefighter both on the job and his family life. Although this is a fiction book fire call accounts, graphically and emotionally are real and at the beginning of each chapter you are taken through the growth that a fire goes through as seen by "the Fire". If you ever thought of becoming a fire fighter this is for you, if you are a firefighter, you will find yourself throughout this book

As someone who is passionate about the 18th century France, I purchased Mr. Dolan's book with great excitement and many anticipations. I am happy to say, it was a purchase well made. Ladies of the Grand Tour is an interesting look into the minds and hearts of European Women living during a tulmultuous times. Mr. Dolan deftly weaves contrasting views on society (ex: Burke and Wollstonecraft sound off opposing opinions about my idol, Marie Antoinette) making for a well-balanced read.
Though I have never been a huge fan of the unctuous Wollstonecraft, I found her quotes in this book illuminating and thought-provoking.
Christopher Hibbert published a wonderful book titled THE GRAND TOUR which reads like an 18th Century Tour Book of several of the finest cities in Europe. As fantastic as that book is, it does not deliver the human drama, the emotions of the female travelers, that Dolan's masterpiece offers.
Bravo!

Leah Marie Brown,
Author of Willing Captive

I am delighted to be able to "live" 18th century travel through the eyes of the woman that Dolan brings to life. I am especially glad not to be travelling like they did - airport security gates are a much aggravation as I can take.

Dolan takes his topic broadly. The book is not just a recounting of travel incidents -- it spends considerable time on the significance of being abroad, particularly for those women who spend time in France during the Revolution, eventually fleeing as it turned into the Terror. He conveys a good sense of the differences between that time and this, when views and videos of faraway places are immediately and widely available.

This book is particularly set apart by Dolan's sensitive examination of the women's status in their society. I was particularly touched by his discussion of the double-bind that made "frivolous" if they concentrated on domestic and personal matters, but "unwomanly and unnatural" if they attempted to broaden their horizons. I was aware that women were not usually well-educated in this era, but surprised to learn of the panic engendered if they attempted self-education.

An excellent book for those interested in this era, in travel, or in the historical situation of women.

Brian Dolan has created a masterpiece of historical narrative, highlighting the trials and tribulations of being an 18th Century British woman with aspirations to anything OTHER than domesticity. The characters he, in many cases, rescues from obscurity are brought to brilliant life through their own words, and immediately upon finishing this book (which I read during a plane flight from Europe to California) I wanted to run out and read all I could find on Mary and Agnes Berry, Elizabeth Carter, Lady Webster, Cornelia Knight, Elizabeth Montagu, and especially the exploits of Helen Williams and Mary Wollstencraft during the French Revolution. I admire Mr. Dolan's blending of historic documents, correspondence and a spritely, slightly unobjective narrative to create a work of nonfiction that reads with the ease of a novel. I unreservedly recommend this to anyone who is a fan of the Georgian period or of the works for Katie Hickman or Venetia Murray.

This is a book that brought back a great deal of memories for me. Brian's descriptions of his altar boy days, the priests, the tales of Garrison and Frank Rizzo sent me back to another day and time. I once again became that little girl in the fourth grade with an incredible crush (and a cracker jack ring). His own personal story of his pain as a parent dealing with his son's illness, to the joy of teaching a Sunday school class about faith, left me feeling that I wanted to hear more. Thanks, Brian, for reminding me of just what life is really all about! T.O'K.

While this book only had a brief chapter on the memories of this author and his experiences as an alter boy it brought back memories for me of similar early mornings full of dusty kneelers, bell ringing and fists full of hosts stuffed in your pockets. The true nature of this book is the spiritual journey a young man takes and how the things that were part of the formation of the individual shapes the man's belief system. As with all of us of that generation, as we age we become more aware of the really important parts of life. God, family and self are the relationships that are explored and defined through Doyle's eyes. His observations act as stimulus for further self examination of our belief system,

This is the third book that I have read by this author and would highly recommend them to anyone.

I picked up this book because the cover intriqued me, and ended up loving the book! This book is quirky, creative, and honest.

This book is absolutely astonishing. It is very insightful and I have learned so much through reading it. There are tons of great quotes from great people and questions (food for thought) at the end of each chapter. I recommend this book to everybody who has ever questioned or considered why they were created. This book will really make you think about life and certainly help you find the purpose that God created you for, to find the life that is truly worth living

I found this book to be a great guidence to me. It lead me to the place I was searching to be, it pointed me in the right direction to search for my purpose in life. The information in this book helped me to take an honest look at my life and to start me on the journey to find my purpose. I would suggest it for anyone who is searching for a reason to make life more meaningful.

I found this book very refreshing and thought provoking. It encouraged me to seek my God given purpose in life. I would hope that others would read this book and find for themselves the path that God has planned for them. It was one of those books that was hard to put down, I wanted to read it straight through.

Life's Little Lean Accounting Instruction Book

What a great book. Not to be read front to back (although I did) but in the same vein as the other "Life's Little Instruction Book" types but this one is for every executive, accounting person, finance person, and any manager that works with a budget, purchasing, or continuous improvement.

I have purchased over thirty-five copies over the last two years and have given as gifts to spark thinking and discussion about lean, continuous improvement, and the lean enterprise.

Non-threatening and entertaining but also a way to engage in lean thinking. Everyone that is thinking about lean; using lean; or should be using lean should own one; or more, copies.

Life's Little Lean Accounting Instruction Book is not an instructional text (see Practical Lean Accounting for that); rather it is a book of inspirational sayings for strategically focussed management accountants everywhere. The focus of the book is lean accounting but it will serve all accountants who want to use their skills as decision makers and change agents. Who can resist, for example, "every transaction is an opportunity for error" ? Or, "attention accountants: No one understands absorption" ! What about "basing decisions on standard costs leads to bad decisions". My favourite is "Most companies have no idea what their products cost, but they have them to 5-decimal precision".

There are 388 sayings in all and they are bound to raise a smile in any accountant who knows standard costing is folly and wants to make a contribution to strategy. Buy it for the accountant in your life; or maybe to shake up the attitude of the accountant that is holding your business back.It's fun, but it has a message too.

Yes it is a "little book", but it challenges you to think. Every organization on the lean journey eventually bumps into obstacles created by traditional accounting thought and tradition. Transitioning to lean accounting can be difficult and complex. This book boils the complexity down into 365 key thoughts... which makes it a great holiday gift for the traditional accountant in your organization! Lean accounting requires simplification (waste reduction) of the accounting process itself, as well as a change from standard costing to value stream costing. Tidbits like "Pay suppliers on monthly statements instead of individual invoices" can help with the former, and "Overhead absorption variance makes people build too much product and inventory" will help with the latter. A fun read on those days when you need a quick dose of inspiration.

my almost ten year old son and i read this book over and over..i still remember the phrases "momma's slippers whisper, daddy's bacon sizzles" and "sunlight melts like butter on pancakes" a wonderful book that you can easily picture in your mind...we love this book! also, "talk talk my crayons talk" yak yak yackity clack clack clackity!

Wonderful book, uttering the joy of waking to the sounds of Mom and Dad in the kitchen. Very pretty illustrations.

London captures the imagery of sunlight and moonlight as a child's day unfolds and awakens his senses to the world around him. One can almost hear the duet of the whistle of the teakettle and the sizzle of frying bacon as slippers "whisper" across the kitchen floor. This book begs to be read aloud, again and again. It is sheer poetry.

Brian Regan is super funny and even my 10 year old can listen to him. He comments on everyday things that just make you giggle! HE is a great comedian; highly recommended!!!!!

This comedy CD is a true treasure!! I have bought several to give to my friends & relatives - his 'good, clean' comedy passes the 'Grandma test' easily, but is SO funny everyone laughs together! I shared it with 2 fellow health care professionals, they loved it, and have decided to recommend it to patients to help them lift their moods - you can't NOT laugh at so many of his routines here!! I hope Brian will come out with a DVD of this and other routines!! Brian Regan is a heavenly gift to all of us who love to laugh but hate the 'blue' language too many 'comics' resort to in their routines.

I have listened to (and own) many standup comedy CDs but Brian Regan's "Live" CD is one of the funniest CDs I have ever heard. I nearly wrecked my car the first time I heard it because I was laughing so hard that my eyes were tearing up.

As an added bonus there is NO CRUDE SUBJECT MATTER OR LANGUAGE on this CD so it is appropriate for the whole family and the subject matter even entertained my teenagers.