Buck Books

Ok, before I explain the title of this review, let me make an embarrassing admission. I originally picked this book up at a library instead of purchasing it. I did this because I have wasted the rough equivallent of 2 wheelbarrels full of cash on copywriting courses that turned out to be complete and utter wastes of my time, money, and remaining hair waiting to be pulled out...

If you have invested any of your own precious time searching for great advice and material on how to make a great living as a copywriter, then I'm sure you understand exaclty what I mean.

As I cracked open The Well Fed Writer: Back For Seconds, I skimmed through the book as I always do when sizing up new material, searching for relevant chapters. I must say that it took only 1 chapter of reading for me to set the book aside, whip out my notebook and furiously scratch down good advice, valuable resources to check out on the web and even 2 clever quips that I wanted to use the next time I host a teleseminar. (The comparison of common marketing practices to camoflauge was a stroke of genius)

I realize that I may be dangerously close to sounding like a gushing teenager asking for his favorite celecrities autograph, but I cannot emphasize enough how 'right on the money' this book is. Perhaps the best way to illustrate how valuable the Well Fed Writer is to your success as a freelance writer would be to show you what 3 qualities I look for in a 'good' book:

1 - Straight forward - The author must not pull any punches. Tell it like it is. Don't paint overly rosey pictures or candy coat your advice. If there are landmines to my career that must be avoided, then by all means point them out! Thankfully Peter goes above and beyond by acknowledging traits that are common to most humans that could kill your progress before you even get started. Peter seems to have a talent for painting visual pictures and images that will stick with you. I hope he doesn't mind if I use a few of his analogies with my clients!

2 - Realistic - I don't know about you, but I'm tired of having my ears tickled. Don't tell me what you think I want to hear, tell me the truth! There's enough hyped up pie in the sky books, websites and emails floating around in cyberspace... I don't need to spend money on a book that will add to it! I found this book to be a refreshing change of pace as you are constantly reminded of the fact that we live and work in the real world, so results can and will vary.

However, Peter also takes the time to show you alternative paths to success should you find that your current conditions are less than ideal. Much appreciated!

3 - Easy to read - Ok, call me petty for listing such a seemingly unimportant feature in my #3 spot, but I couldn't resist. Regardless of how good the information is, if I feel as if I am plodding my way through a college biology text book, then chances are I'm more likely to use the book as a paper-weight.

I found this book to be entertaining to read as well as informative. Please do yourself a favor and purchase this book now. I returned my copy to the library and snagged my own personal copy, because this is a book that you will want to highlight and bookmark for continous future reference. You can thank me for the strong recommendation later!

All in all .. Peter Bowerman has one of the few "voices" that bears a ring of truth rather than hype to me. My aversion to hype is one of the reasons I struggle with even trying copywriting for real. Your books resonate with me because he is doing it everyday.

This is as opposed to those who have done it for a thousand years and might not have to work as hard as the rest of us in this day and age. That's not to negate their success or status but getting advice from someone who has already made their fortune and can sell on name recognizability alone is very different than having someone who's risen from the trenches in the same era that new aspiring creatives are coming from.

I say creative btw because much of what Bowerman advises should (will?) work for my design aspirations as well as writing.

Like Peter Bowerman's first book, this book is well worth the $20. He expands on concepts from the first book, goes into more specific detail and gives more examples. I found it very useful.

The market demanded this book so Bowerman put it out.

It's okay. It's mostly more of the same - it doesn't
much represent a leap from the first book so much as
it's like a 284 page appendix... useful material but much
of it would have been edited out or folded into the
first book if they were published as one volume.

Not particularly flawed - but like many business books
it's padded out with 3rd-party stories - enthusiastic
and informative vignettes from succeeding freelancers
who liked the first book and wrote in to Bowerman to
share their stories.

Major points - cold calling isn't so bad, marketing
isn't so bad if you think about it in a nice way,
professionalism matters, consistency pays off.

Fairly toothless, but inspirational. If you read the
first book and need a little more encouragement to
jump into the marketplace and do the business this
might be the push you need.

Worth reading but if you are already hustling work as
a freelancer you may find it redundant.

Peter Bowerman makes it seem like there`s FLCW (freelance corporate writing) work in abundance for everyone who could possibly seek to get into the game (and has a modicum of talent and is willing to work hard etc.) I love his style. I think he has some good tips. However, he skips the reality that content buyers are developing a Wal-Mart mentality and trying to get 50 articles for $2 each -- no attention to quality as long as certain keywords appear and it meets some sort of hi/lo age group. I know corporate writing is not like poetry or even essay writing. I accept that. As a struggling writer however I see the reality and that is that corporate buyers -- of writing or widgets or any commodity -- are trying to go as cheap as possible no matter what the sacrifice in quality. That`s why many website and brochures, annual reports and white papers you see today have frequent and horrifying grammatical and syntactical errors.

The Soul of Baseball illuminates what life can be. It would help anyone get past their bitterness and see that life is about what I can do today and not what happened yesterday or what will happen tomorrow.

Poz is one of the best writers in the business. Thanks for writing a really great book about a great baseball man. Buck's is a great American story and the way it's written makes you feel like you're on the road trip with them.

This book got to me, in a very good way.

Buck's stories are funny and poignant, and we as readers definitely learn some history if we pay attention. But even more than that we can learn from Buck O'Neil's outlook on life. He was patient, caring, outspoken in an articulate and positive way (something our politicians should learn how to do), and he had grace. More than anything else reading about Buck O'Neil was a lesson on how to live with grace.

I want to tell you the last words of the book, but I won't.

If you like baseball, people or life you will like this book.

Highly recommended!!

Sometimes a great author writes a 5-star book, and sometimes he must only get out of the way and let 5-star material shine through. "The Soul of Baseball" is one of the latter. This isn't a knock on Joe Posnanski. The decision to tell the story by reporting on a year in O'Neil's life, rather than interpreting O'Neil's history, was a brilliant judgment. The reader benefits from Posnanski's willingness to set his writer's ego aside.

Another good Posnanski decision was reporting O'Neil's occasional querulousness. Rather than seeing O'Neil as a mindless happy face, the reader sees O'Neil as someone who must work to maintain his positive approach. The occasional lapses serve to highlight the effort that O'Neil makes to bring the light into the lives of those around him.

But ultimately, the star of the book is Buck O'Neil. Not because he was a great ballplayer or manager. But because he was a decent, good-hearted human being whose attitude toward life is worthy of emulation.

I give few 5-star rankings, but this book deserves it several times over.

My son, Jeremy, always gives me good books. He doesn't just pick up the latest best-seller, but takes the time to choose something special just for me. He hit a home run with The Soul of Baseball by Joe Posnanski. It's the story of an extended road trip Posnanski took with legendary Negro League player and manager Buck O'Neil. The lessons learned along the way are great ones for sons and fathers to share.

Posnanski, an award-winning sports columnist for the Kansas City Star, chose not to write a biography of the irrepressible O'Neil, even though the story could bear to be told over and over again. Instead, he penned a moving memoir of the year he spent with the then-93-year-old O'Neil as he toured the country promoting the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City and the memory of those men who played the game in the days before whites and blacks could share the field. The trip takes them everywhere from Nicodemus, Kansas, to New York, New York, and O'Neil has a fascinating story to tell at every stop.

He talks about Satchel Paige, Willie Mays, and Josh Gibson, names that will always be enshrined in baseball's collective memory. But he also tells the tales of forgotten men like Dan Bankhead, the first black pitcher in the major leagues, who would have been a great hurler if he hadn't been afraid to pitch fastballs inside against white batters.

The key theme of the book is Buck O'Neil's spirit-lifting embrace of the best in every person he met. Despite years of back-breaking struggle, O'Neil never turned bitter, never condemned anyone for their prejudice, never had a bad word to say about the often ugly conditions the black ball players endured. Even when he failed to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, Buck O'Neil refused to be angry about it. To make up for the egregious mistake, the Hall awarded him a Lifetime Achievement Award after his death.

The lessons Posnanski drew from his experiences with O'Neil are well worth telling and the book he created from them is well worth reading.

Dave Donelson, author of Heart of Diamonds: A Novel of Scandal, Love and Death in the Congo

Another excellent Pearl Buck Book. A study of the Chinese culture and the role of women within the culture.

This book is wonderful--a captivating read, and Madame Wu is possibly the most dynamic, interesting, surprising and lovable character I've ever read. The story goes much deeper than you expect it to, and is ultimately an investigation into freedom, the spirit, and the nature of love and knowledge.

At 40, Madame Wu discovers what love is and what it is not as she invites a young village foundling into her home as 2nd wife. She is composed and beautiful and intimidating, but discovers that love is finding your true self. Beautifully written and a story that keeps me intrigued until the last page.

I love Pearl Buck's books. She is so adept at taking the reader right into a foreign world and making it understandable. One begins to see how we are all really the same underneath our outward appearances and social customs. In this book, wealtlhy Madame Wu changes the course of her entire family's lives because of her strong desires to ultimately satisfy self. At first, her actions appear to be somewhat self-sacrificing in a certain way. Some readers may find her attitudes and actions quite modern, but there are far-reaching consequences to those actions and one wonders how selfless those actions really are in the end. I found the surprise turn in Madame Wu's relationship/feelings for the exiled priest to be a bit far-fetched for a wealthy Chinese woman of her time, but life can take odd twists and turns. To me this book is a moral tale of actions and consequences. I do not belive she or her family were better off in the end in spite of her taking over the care of the priest's orphans. Very interesting reading...food for thought.

The movie was good but it doesn't follow the book and the book is much better.

Here is a book to kick start parents to stop spoiling and teaching kids that possessions represent love, personal significance or status.
The current generation of high school kids throws a tantrum when they aren't GIVEN 9 yes, given) a new car on their 16th birthday- and pay their own gas. well, theres only a parent to blame- stop buying and send them to work- thye truly feel entitled because they were raised on unearned praise and rewards- their language of love is things and they think their idientiy comes from having the right stiff. I see this in church kids and non-church kids. Wake up nation and reads this book

It's very nice to meet you here. I'm Jackie Ho from
Hong Kong. I'm just reading the book `Money Doesn't Grown On Trees'. It's really very useful. Actually I'm going to design and launch a class of `Money Education' to kids and teens. I want to tell them what the money is and teach them how to manage money, and also, make them more interests in math, logic, reading
comprehension, etc. This book gives me lots of ideas.
Thank you so much, Ms. Kay.

Ellie Kay has done it again. In this book Ellie lays everything out on the table when it comes to teaching your child about finances. Funny thing though, I learned a thing or two myself! Every aspect is broken down from age zero to eighteen and beyond!
I immediately applied what I had learned on my children and saw a dramatic change within one week. You must get this book along with her other books, "Shop, Save and Share" and "A Womans Guide to Family Finance". Your family will thank you later!

Ellie is a gold mine of information regarding saving money and spending what we have wisely. I have 3 children and was pulling my hair out trying to teach them that the way to earning money is not by holding your hand out to daddy. I have read this book more times than I can count and have found and implemented many ideas. My 13 year old daughter is not very fond of her actually having to do something now but she can't hold her hand out forever. We have to remember that what we teach them now greatly effects their future. To have anything when you become an adult, you have to work and be on a budget. With the ideas Ellie has in her books, you can teach your children now. I don't want to see my children have a rough time when they are older because I gave them whatever they wanted when they were younger. I have noticed since my 7 year old has been working for that "I gotta have it toy", he takes care of them better and doesn't forget where he puts it.

Buying Ellie's books has been the best investment I could make to our budget. Thank's Ellie!

I was looking for a book to help guide me and my husband to teach my child about allowance and money management. I had no idea that this is a religious based book. I am a Christian, but I don't believe that God is the answer to money questions. Furthermore, there is not any straight forward, helpful information. This book is mostly just vague ideas. I would not recommend this book

I like the writing style of Bob Buck better than that of Ernest K. Gann, but the two tell similar stories covering approximately the same time period. Bob Buck's career with TWA was longer than Erenest K. Gann's career with American and the short-lived Matson, so Bob's stories extend into the jet age, but it's the stories from the 30s, 40s and 50s that I find to be the most interesting.

Bob flew a specially-equipped B-17 during WW-II, looking for lightning and other severe weather. It was funny that he literally flew all over the world looking for bad weather, only to learn that there's no better place in the world to find it than at his home base of Kansas City.

Ernest K. Gann's "Fate is the Hunter" is the gold standard by which all other aviation books are judged, but, well, I like "North Star Over My Shoulder" better.

It would be heresy to suggest that you not read Ernest K. Gann's "Fate is the Hunter," but it would be a severe omission if you were not to also read "North Star Over My Shoulder."

This is one of the finest books, about an aviator's life, that you will ever read.

I am a professional pilot who has done the freight, airline and corporate thing and now calls instructing corporate pilots his gig. (It's my wife who has the sign in so F off!) This has been been my mecca of aviation history. I was born 30 or so years late and I missed the glory years so I found the fountain of youth, wanna fight about it!? This book is THE penultimate tome of written aviatory (Bush said it so it's a word!!) history and I read it many times a year!

Highly engaging. A chronicle of amazing change and progress in aviation in one man's career.

I found the book to be excellent. My father spent a career in what became TWA starting with TAT a few years before Bob Buck was hired into the merged airline. In fact, my father accompanied Bob Buck on the historic Rockwell polar flight. The book was so well written that I felt like I was getting a close up look at my father's environment over the years.

When this book showed up I was a bit overwhelmed. It is more of a reference manual than practical reading, but this volume has SO MUCH valuable information! I will consult this often!

I have used this book for everything from looking up recipes to researching diets, cleanses, learning about vitamins, minerals and diseases. Every household should have this book!

Delivery was immediate and product was in the condition as described. I would buy from this vendor again!

This is exactly the book I've been looking for! Objective, to-the-point facts on nutrition, vitamins, eating habits, and other topics such as preservatives, toxins, etc. I've seen too many "fad" nutritional books that are biased toward either vegan/vegetarian, low carb, low fat, high fat-low carb, etc. This book seems to be objective enough to allow the readers to decide on their own what diet path to take. This book, a good diet, and exercise can stand on their own and I feel this book can last a long time as a good reference book. Personally, I prefer a well-rounded diet (including some red meat), chicken, fish, fruits, vegetables, nuts. I lean toward organic or natural foods. Should readers decide to focus on another particular diet, they can supplement this book with one that follows their philosophy. I highly recommend this book as a stand alone or as a starting point to other diets.

This is an awesome book for anyone interested in nutrition. Very indepth text book style reading but worth every miniute!

I bought both 'The Buck Book' and 'The Joy of Origami'.
The illustrations in 'The Buck Book' were a lot more easy to follow than the directions/illustrations in 'The Joy of Origami' by Margaret Van Sicken.
In 'The Buck Book' there is an actual size dollar bill which makes it a lot easier to make the folds as you can line up the bill you are working on with the one in the book. I made all the folds after a lot of patience and practice. I am only a beginner origami folder. 'The Joy Of Origami' definitely leaves a lot to the imagination and I would not recommend it for a beginner.

I was hoping for a step-by-step detailed description of how to fold the dollar, instead I had to pass this book to my brother who is an expert in folding the buck to use this book. But even he found some of the directions difficult to understand. There also weren't that many ideas suggested in this book. There are more ideas for folding the buck online than offered in this book.

Having been at the beginner level of origami for many years--that is, I follow the ideas in the books and don't create my own--I have at least 30 books on subjects from origami boxes to modular (unit) origami to money origami. This is one of the best introductions to origami in general. Dollar bills are made of excellent paper with printing on them that helps you get oriented with the diagrams in the book. The projects make great gifts (and tips at restaurants, of course).

This book does not introduce you to the variety of "folds" (such as the outside-reverse fold and the rabbit fold) that are the vocabulary of the mainstream origami books, but eases you into the basics (including the inside-reverse fold without labeling it as such). You will enjoy the transition of your ordinary one-dollar bill into these little origami models, which are mostly three-dimensional (many origami books have you sweating and, 47 folds later, ending up with a flat two-dimensional depiction of some insect). Go to other books if this one inspires you to become an origamist. Or just stay here and have fun. And yes I know that insect origami seems to be viewed with a certain amount of reverence, but you get animals in this book also.

When you have folded your masterpiece, origami is fun in that you can unfold it and practice it again until you have it memorized, very useful for when you want to leave a "Dime-In-Ring" as a tip (this project will cost you $1.10--a bill and a dime).

I would not hand the book to a young child, as the activies probably work best with an adult helping those under 10 years old. The adult should have completed the model first.

I would recommend getting a bunch of new crisp bills from your bank. Ask the bank when they come in, as the book says they usually arrive around January. Just in case the US government has any plans to change the pattern on the one-dollar bill, that's another reason to hoard some of the old ones. However, bills that are fairly crisp but not necessarily brand new work very well, and you can find these regularly in change handed to you. When you receive nice crisp bills in change from a store, hand over a $5 bill and get five more crisp ones.

Lastly, as commented on already, the humor and the little facts about money are quite entertaining. Typical "Klutz book" excellence.

Happy folding.

Mike

PS Another book, also on an origami specialty but also for the serious beginner who wants to produce fun and useable projects is "Wings and Things: Origami That Flies."

Very cute book--fun for all ages, or for all ages of people with a little patience.

I got this for my 11 year old son. He already had some origami experience and really enjoyed it. He easily did the the first few projects, but had a little difficulty with the elephant and the peacock. After we looked at it closer, we were able to figure it out with little trouble. The book is very well written (and illustrated) and the projects are very clever. My son's main problem was that he was just using the pictures and wasn't taking the time to also read the directions. The spiral binding allows the book to lay flat while you work with the dollar. There are also fun facts included. All-in-all, it is entertaining and well worth the money. I only wish there had been a few more shapes to make.

Being pretty new to hunting and only having 2 full seasons under my belt I felt that I didn't really have the knowledge required to be an effective hunter. My confidence in the field wasn't all that high and I was looking for a good book that could fill me in on all the things that I didn't understand. After reading the reviews on this book I decided that this was the one I was looking for and WOW I was right!

Everything is covered in this book! After reading it I really feel like I have a much better understanding of whitetail behavior, plus, I'm much more confident. It's not just about deer either; it addresses so many other aspects of hunting. It covers, gear, firearms, proper shot placement, and that's just for starters.

I can't wait until this fall for deer season. I know the only way to become a true veteran hunter is to spend years in the field, but this book will certainly give you a boost if you're looking for some good knowledge!

Great book with alot of info and tips that should make anyone a better hunter.

this book is great. being new to whitetail hunting i found this to be very informative and hope to try out the tactics found within this fall. easy to read, lots of info, great buy!

Aimed more at the gun hunter this book is still among the best. Obviously written by a hunter that hunts wild free ranging whitetails there's something here for everyone. I own 60+ books on whitetail hunting . If you hunt whitetails on public land or big woods in north/northeast states and Ontario you should own this book.

This is my first book on deer hunting (or hunting of any kind for that matter so accept this review for what it's worth). Being new to hunting, I wanted to find a book that would give me enough knoweldge about the topic so as not to embaras myself too badly when I went hunting with my friends who invited me to go deer hunting with them this fall. From what I've read so far, this book is better than I expected. All the advise makes sense and is presented in a very straightforward manner. It goes through great pains to explain as much about what to expect when on a hunt as it does about deer and their habitat.

The author does a brilliant job making her book stand out amidst the plethora of parenting books available to new moms. Her title says it all. There are so many myths associated with motherhood and so many feelings of guilt that often follow suit. But the author reassures you that you are not alone and does it all with levity and wit.

Her examination of the stay-at-home mom versus the mom who works outside the home is wonderful. I really connected with Claudine and I can't wait to see more books from her!

-Tara Kompare

This book presents a collection of what an annoying woman down the street - you know the one who thinks she knows it all - might say. Her main attitude is that motherhood is drudgery and a woman should be as little inconvenient by it as possible. Breastfeeding? No, thank you, it is difficult. Baby eats too often? Enforce a schedule. Baby doesn't let you take a shower? "There is nothing wrong with letting the baby cry while you take a ... shower." Actually, "crying is a good exercise for baby's lungs." I won't say that motherhood is easy, because it is not, but I definitely will not describe it as drudgery. I can not help but wonder if those people who gave good reviews to this book are her family and such.

This book is a GREAT read for new mothers, especially ones that are sleep deprived, or will go back to work soon, and want honest, helpful advice. New-age stay-at-home moms who wear their babies and think that breastmilk and family beds are the only way to go will probably not like the book.

My cousin gave me this book after the birth of my daughter, and I am thrilled with all the useful advice it contained! As a new mom to a preemie I was "shocked" by motherhood--at times I found it frustrating and scary even though I love my baby with all my heart. This book not only validated my feelings, it also gave practical and helpful information for scheduling feedings, putting the baby down to sleep, and dealing with people who think you suddenly have loads of free time now that you are home on maternity leave. Thank you so much Claudine Wolk for guiding me through a tough time!

How can I articulate in words what this book meant to me? I met the author today, a LOVELY lady after I read this book a few months back. This book was many things : hilarious, informative, easy read, honest and just plain old fun! If you like the Jenny McCarthy books - you will LOVE this book!!! For women, due to lack of sleep, need some common sense in their lives - this is the book for you. For those who have the clairty to see past the fog - this book makes you feel not alone!!! And perhaps, like I, you can even learn a few things, I did! Thank you Claudine for taking 15 years out of your life to write this book (and raise 3 kids)! I hope you will write another one - about toddlers, tweens and teenagers - so I know what I am up against!!!!

I wrote my review a second time because I thought I'd done something wrong and you weren't going to post it. Please delete the review dated October 23 and leave the later version. Thank you.

Gardener's Soul is my first read in the Chicken Soup series. Had I an inkling that the series could evoke that cozy-fuzzy feeling, like a purring kitten warming your lap, I would have been reading them all.

Paula Silici's Nona's Garden stands as a fine example. I could smell the beef, garlic and tomatoes simmering in the kitchens of my childhood as I read of the life's lessions learned from her grandmother. I have more hope for the future after reading Beth Pollack's Planting Day,especially considering that such words of wisdom came from a 16-year-old. Good job,young lady! And A Bedside Story by Pat Stone reassured me that I'm not the only gardener who talks to plants.

No wonder the publisher has the name Health Communications. When the mind is calm, the body is better able to heal. This book is a fabulous choice for anyone feeling blue or for just anyone!

A truly good book evokes cozy images and sensations from the past. And this is a very good book, one that teaches us to stop and consider how wisely we spend on this earth.

Among my personal favorites was Nona's Garden by Paul Silici. I could almost smell the delectably heavy garlic, beef and tomatoes slowly steaming in my grandmother's kitchen, and felt a tug on my heartstrings when she shared the story of her grandmother's lessions in life. Planting Day filled me with hope for the younger generation when I saw that sixteen-year-old Beth Pollack had written such an insightful essay. It was good to learn in Pat Stone's A Bedside Story that I'm not the only person who talks to their plants.

There's something for everyone in CS for the Gardener's Soul.

I am a great fan of the Chicken Soup Books. They are a wonderful way for me to start my morning. Being an avid gardener, this one was truely special. Although many of the stories left me teary-eyed, the messages relayed were always positive and uplifting. -- Highly Recommend

This heartwarming, soul-satisfying collection of stories is a beautiful testimony to the special knowledge held dearly by every gardener, regardless of if they are first-timers or veterans. Even the smallest gardens have the ability to uplift our lives with the magical, unique understanding that they are living reminders of the potential beauty of the world.

Sharon Galligar Chance, Times Record News, Wichita Falls, Tx.