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Hall Books sorted by Average customer review: high to low .

The Tango Briefing

Published in Audio Cassette by Books on Tape (1973-01)

Author: Adam Hall

List price: $48.00

Average review score:

One of the Best Entries in a Vastly Overlooked Series

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2005-01-09

"The Tango Briefing" is certainly the fastest-paced, most entertaining Quiller adventure I've read so far. Elleston Trevor (using pseudonym "Adam Hall") reuses the same basic premise of his classic "Flight of the Phoenix" - a plane crashes in the desert - and adapts it remarkably well for his world-weary "ferret" Quiller. This is a return to form of sorts following the somewhat slower-paced, more Le Carre-esque atmosphere of "The Warsaw Document", which put Quiller in the field without an operator. Thankfully, in "Tango Briefing" Quiller is grudgingly reunited with Loman (who first appears in the somewhat lesser second novel, "The Ninth Directive"), and who, in Quiller's view, is both prissy and too wrapped up in bureaucratic protocol to be fully trusted. Their tenuous partnership matures and adds a shade of humor and character development often absent from the previous books.

Though I would certainly consider "Tango Briefing" to be a classic, it is not without flaws. In every novel, Quiller rambles on about "brain think vs. stomach think", "the organism" crying out to live whenever he puts his life in jeopardy, and uses the saying "no go" whenever possible. It probably made more sense when the books were published every couple years, but wears a bit thin for those of us reading the books now. Likewise, there are a number of loose ends that are never fully developed. Who was the "second cell" that was trying to murder he and the previous agents and what happened to the unseen marksman with the gun that was "really quite big"? Likewise, I'm not sure we are ever given a good explanation of how the "cargo" ended up on Tango Victor or who the "clandestine" group was that smuggled it aboard. It can be argued though that because the books are written in first person, Quiller himself never knows and readers can guess based on clues. It is frustrating though, especially since Trevor goes to such great lengths to reason out minute details and lend credence to a couple otherwise unconvincing moments in which Quiller dodges difficult predicaments. All in all, though, I think this is a great adventure and feel that the series should be given a faithful film adaptation - one at least in which Quiller is not portrayed as being American.

The spy of spies in the desert

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2002-02-05

You read Quiller & everything else pales in comparison. James Bond is embarrassing & LeCarre's characters are boring bureacurats. Quiller however is resourceful, brave & vulnerable at the same time. He doesn't need gadgets or even a gun, he is better, stronger & braver than most of us, but the plot & his actions still remain credible. He's also human: he doesn't hide his fear of going back "to those nasty birds", nor the fact that while determined to die, he'd rather avoid it. You never get the sense when reading that it's a character you can't relate to.

More info on Quiller series at www.quiller.net fan site

Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2004-07-09

There is a lot more info on the Quiller series at www.quiller.net, a fan site.

A fascinating look into the mind and mentation of an agent.

Helpful Votes: 2 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 1999-09-03

In this adventure, Quiller is first challenged to define his own objective. The geography is real; you can feel the heat and see the shifting sand and share his thirst. You also share his satisfaction when he succeeds - and then his determination when he is sent back to die.

Get inside the mind of a spy

Helpful Votes: 3 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2004-07-15

Quiller is back, and this time he's being pitched headlong into the deserts of Algeria with the mission of locating and destroying a downed plane with a cargo that could embarrass the British government. In typical Adam Hall fashion, the objective that the eponymous hero is asked to risk his life for is not world-shaking. The freedom of the world is not at stake, and failure will not mean that his closest friends or loved ones will meet a fate worse than death. Quiller is an adrenaline junkie, driven to risk his life but disciplined enough to adhere to rules and regulations of unthinkable strictness. (For instance, agents are not allowed to steal from private citizens, disallowing them from hotwiring a car to escape certain death.)

As with all Quiller books the real draw are the enormously telescoped action scenes, where a few seconds or minutes worth of action can take up an entire chapter. Hall tries to give us an insight into every factor that goes into the instinctive decision making of an intelligent and highly trained individual by creating an impossibly fast internal dialogue for Quiller at every decision point. We get to know why he choses a specific karate strike, why he positions his head slightly to the right or left of the steering wheel when a sniper is trying to gun him out of his car, and a thousand other details. The overall effect for the reader is that you can almost step inside these situations and feel that you have lived them.

This is, in my opinion, the best written book of the Quiller series, and it is well worth checking out if you like spies or action.

Teaching Special Students In General Education Classrooms

Published in Paperback by Prentice Hall College Div (2002-07-17)

Authors: Rena B. Lewis and Linda Smith

List price: $21.00

New price: $6.75
Used price: $1.97

Average review score:

Excellent Service!

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-09-24

The book I received was brand new at an excellent price and the delivery was surprisingly speedy! I would definitely recommend this seller!

Exceptional Service !

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-08-07

The book arrived quickly and in perfect condition. I consider this book to be a good resource for new teachers.
I have no complaints.

Great but Incomplete

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-03-22

I've been a faithful user of the Lewis & Doorlag book since its first edition. Each subsequent revision has added substance and useful information that makes buying it worthwhile. Of all the introductory texts on special education, this one is the most concise, reader-friendly, practical and up-to-date. It has invaluable teaching strategies and resources to inform the practice of special educators and diagnosticians. The only downside that is consistent across all editions is the unevenness of its content. In virtually every chapter about a given exceptionality, say mental retardation, more emphasis is placed on nature of the disability and teaching strategies than on its causes. Therefore, when using this book as a teaching tool in college, it has to be supplemented with other resources that do more justice to the etiology of each special need.

A must have for anyone who interacts with children!

Helpful Votes: 3 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2003-08-04

I originally purchased this book for an education courss. This book offered insight on the inclusion of Special students in a general education class. It offers insights on how to best teach students with various needs including learning disabilites, physical disabilties, and other disabilties. As a teacher it taught me what my resources are. I learned the benefits of inclusion and the positive results that special students need. If you are taking this class they also offer outlines for every chapter at the cwx.prenhall.website as well as testing resources. This edition is almost exactly the same as the 6th.

Informative and Easy-to-Read

Helpful Votes: 4 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2006-05-03

I am a contract instructor who uses this book for an undergraduate level "Exceptional Children in the Classroom" class. I chose this text because it is practical and not as dry as Heward, another widely respected author of special education texts. Many strategies are provided for meeting the needs of students with disabilities as well as gifted students, those who are at risk, and those who are linguistically and culturally diverse.

Teaching Writing: Balancing Process and Product (3rd Edition)

Published in Paperback by Prentice Hall (1999-06-11)

Author: Gail E. Tompkins

List price: $42.00

New price: $6.50
Used price: $0.38

Average review score:

Thanks~

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-07-10

Need this book for a class and I got it on time! Thank you!

Review

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2007-02-20

I received within a week. I was very happy with the service. Thank you

Teaching Writing

Helpful Votes: 1 out of 1 total.
Review Date: 2007-07-07

I already had an earlier addition of this book that I borrowed from a friend because I needed it for one of my graduate classes. Since books are soooo expensive we share whenever we can, but I really found this book to be useful so I bought my own copy. I highly recommend it for K-5 teachers...even upper grade teachers could benefit from it. It's full of ideas for writing in every genre. An excellent resource.

Super Book

Helpful Votes: 1 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2005-10-17

Certainly a good buy. This book is practical and inspirational. How education has advanced since the days I was in elementary school!

Good Stuff

Helpful Votes: 5 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2005-10-01

This book is an excellent resource for teachers. It is full of great ideas and of lessons for writing. It is also very helpful to those teachers who are reluctant to have their students write daily. The feature that I like best is that the author includes great trade book lists to assist the teacher in modeling good writing.

Tell Me A Story 2: Animal Magic

Published in Audio CD by Friedman & Danziger (2007-10-01)

Author: Amy Friedman

List price: $16.95

New price: $10.12

Average review score:

Tell Me a Story 2 : animal magic

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-12-25

We absolutely love this cd. Our kids LOVE it too. So inventive and fun to listen to the amazingly told stories. Great voices and a wonderful alternative to watching TV or movies for sure. Our kids want to go to bed listening to the CD and it is working wonders to get them settled and happy in the evening. We listen to it in the car too and the kids alwasy ask for it. A must have!

Book on CD

Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-05-15

This is a good CD. My son is very sensitive to "conflict" in stories. He's only three and not ready for the content. It's creative listening for older children.

Animal Tales With Much JuJu

Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2008-01-08

This review refers to "Tell Me A Story 2 - Animal Magic" by Amy Friedman(audio CD)

The first story you will fall under the spell of in this fabulous 2nd in the Tell Me A Story series, is a Nigerian tale of a drum with much "JuJu". The drum has the magic to spread a delicious feast when beaten. Amy Friedman has that JuJu as she spreads 7 delicious feasts for the senses that will not only enchant readers of all ages but entertains with descriptively scrumptious stories, all with a moral to them that would make Aesop proud!

The stories will have you and your young reader traveling the world, soaking up a little cultural atmosphere from Africa, China,Australia,India,Canada, Guatemala, and even a native American story.
The story readers will grab the attention of any listener with their wonderfully expressive readings and authentic sounding accents. Music and sounds from around the world puts the reader right into the settings.You'll delight to the sounds of African xylophone,maracas,flute,shakers and many others.

I often found myself smiling as loveable animals take center stage on this CD. Their stories have life lessons to learn without ever getting preachy. "The Tortoise and the Magic Drum"(Nigeria) as mentioned above has a greedy Tortoise becoming the owner of the magic drum, but there's a secret about it he doesn't know."The Poet and The Dragon"(China) is a beautiful story of a man who sees a loving goddess where ever one else see a fiery dragon. We may be reminded not to judge a book by it's cover in that one. "Kerplunk"(Australia) has the animals jumping to conclusions when one hears a strange sound and starts a panic among them. Included also these stories; "The Elephant's Reward"(India),"The Talking Cat"(French-Canadian), "Coyote's Gift"(Native American) and "The Cricket's Song"(Guatemalan) that teach working together has its rewards, that everyone is important in their own way and individuals can make a difference.

As in the first in the seriesTell Me a Story: Timeless Folktales from Around the World, the stories are engrossing and transcend age and culture. For over an hour they will take your child(and you) to far away places and will stir the imaginations of young minds.The animals will delight and it is a book that will soon become a favorite and can be listened to many times without losing it's charm. There is even a song or two that is so catchy, don't be surprised if you can't get it out of your head.

For the young and young at heart...highly recommended audio reading.
I wish you much JuJu for the new year..enjoy....Laurie

Tell Me A Story 2: Animal Magic will delight many attentive listeners, both young and old.

Helpful Votes: 1 out of 2 total.
Review Date: 2007-12-05

As long as humanity had a language, there existed storytelling where people exchanged myths, history, philosophical musings, etc.

In every culture and corner of the world there are storytellers who amuse, educate, entertain, spread knowledge, preserve their traditions and values, and in some cases even mislead with false facts.

Amy Friedman's second in her series Tell Me A Story 2: Animal Magic has once again reflected this art of storytelling as she presents in CD format with music composed by Laura Hall eight international tales from all corners of the world. As summed up by the CD's cover, "The multicultural rhythms and tales of Tell Me A Story: Animal Magic reflect the spirit of these words offered in 1854 by Chief Seattle: ...if all the beasts were gone, men would die from a great loneliness of spirit..."

Read by some of the most gifted screen and stage actors, Tell Me A Story 2: Animal Magic contains tales even the most TV addicted reader can listen to into without distraction. In addition, as pointed out to me by Friedman, one element that distinguishes this CD from the first one is that all the actors (or their families) hail from the story's land of origin.

Listeners are swept away to all corners of the globe where we can be enchanted with the Nigerian tale, The Tortoise and the Magic Drum, the Australian Tale, Kerplunk, the Chinese tale, The Poet and the Dragon, an East Indian tale, The Elephant's Reward, a French Canadian tale, The Talking Cat, a Guatemalan tale, The Cricket's Song, and a Native American tale, the Coyote's Gift.

As is the case with all stories, each one reflects a different theme, some may be humorous, perhaps inspirational or educative. For example, The Tortoise and the Magic Drum explains the origin of one animal's uniqueness-why it often lays hidden in muddy waters.

In the Chinese tale, The Poet and the Dragon, we learn that according to the traditional Chines calendar, Duanwu Jie-or the Dragon Boat Festival in English-takes place on the 5th day of the fifth lunar month. The origins of the festival are told in this tale of the poet, Qu Yuan, a great patriot, loved by his people and who warns his king, King Chu, of his impending removal from power.

Moreover, what all of these stories have in common is their knack of providing just enough clues to capture our imagination, intellect, and emotional response involved in figuring out what is going on in the story.

Children thrive in their need to hear a good story-something that will ignite their imaginations, and no doubt, Tell Me A Story 2: Animal Magic will delight many attentive listeners, both young and old.

As the American novelist, poet, dramatist, Reynolds Price stated in his book A Palpable God, "A need to tell and hear stories is essential to the species Homo sapiens--second in necessity apparently after nourishment and before love and shelter. Millions survive without love or home, almost none in silence; the opposite of silence leads quickly to narrative, and the sound of story is the dominant sound of our lives, from the small accounts of our day's events to the vast incommunicable constructs of psychopaths."

Norm Goldman, Editor Bookpleasures

Adults as well as children are sure to enjoy this engrossing audio anthology.

Helpful Votes: 3 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2008-02-07

Tell Me a Story 2: Animal Magic is an audiobook on CD comprised of fantastic retellings of classic folktales about animals. The stories have diverse origins from around the globe, and each revolves around a different amazing beast. The narratives are The Tortoise and the Magic Drum, a Nigerian Tale (5:38); The Poet and the Dragon, a Chinese tale (9:15); Kerplunk, an Australian tale (8:07); The Elephant's Reward, an East Indian tale (7:52); The Talking Cat, a French Canadian tale (10:36); Coyote's Gift, a Native American tale (8:52), and The Cricket's Song, a Guatemalan tale (11:28). Adults as well as children are sure to enjoy this engrossing audio anthology.

This Is Your Wake-Up Call: Live Your Dreams

Published in Perfect Paperback by Sovereign King's Creation, LLC (2007-02-14)

Author: Dr. Todd M. Hall

List price: $12.00

New price: $12.00

Average review score:

"Live Your Dreams, Indeed!"

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-16

This Is Your Wake-Up Call is easy to read,comprehend,and articulate.
As I read, I became engrafted in the pages. Word for word, piece by piece, I devoured as much as could digest in one sitting quickly returning for more. This book is so filling!! You will definitely experience an awakening that takes you deeper and deeper beyond the pages. As you read,This Is You Wake-Up Call,you begin to enter into the lives of each individual's experience of dream manifestation. While in return your dreams are being shaken and stirred until they began to rumble and flow out of you, causing an awakening from the deep sleep that so many of us fall into from time to time.You can't help but be encouraged and empowered to go forth and occupy, subdue the land, and live Your Dreams,INDEED!

It's Time to Wake Up!

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-15

I applaud the efforts of Prophet Todd Hall to provide funding for students to attend or remain in college. I initially bought the book to support that effort. After sitting down and reading, studying, and reflecting on the book my walk has changed, it has grown, and I am awakening from my sleep. I thank God for a word like this. I was taken aback, at first, by the conversational tone and humorous style of writing. As I read the book, I could hear Dr. Hall's voice enter my home as if he were preaching a sermon right there. It met me right where I was at the time. The enthusiasm that he had in writing this book jumped off the page as I read.

It is time for many of us to wake up and embrace our destiny. Our vision has become skewed oftentimes by the annointing and vision of others. It is time for individuals to embrace, walk in, and live what dreams God has given them. I pray God will continue to use Dr. Hall as His messenger of truth, deliverance, and restoration.

This Is Your Wake Up Call

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-15

This is Your Wake Up Call is a thought provking book that will wake your spirit from its sleep. Dr. Hall challeges you to remember the Dream in side each one of us. He gives practical tools for moving forward in destiny. He points out the fact that it is important for us to remember that "God is not obligated to function within the confines of man's ordinances". Once we truly get this revelation we are free to begin walking out our dreams. This book has truly been a blessing and I recommend that you share it with family and friends.

No More Bed Head

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-15

This Is Your Wake-Up Call: Live Your Dreams is of magnanimous import. I hope I have the proper words to really capture its quality. The book is an easy read, no long drawn-out rhetoric. At first, I was a little skeptical about the page length, which is under one-hundred pages, but as I started reading I began to realize that each and every page had tremendous value.

As I read, I began to realize that I had been sleeping on life, although I was mobile. I was accomplishing things, but yet sleep walking, instead of truly achieving the purposed value that my existence has to offer. This book helped me to see myself walking through daily life with a bed head. What is even more important is that it articulated and demonstrated how to get rid of the bed head (how to get rid of the spiritual and mental lethargy that so often weighs so heavily on us). Needless to say, no more bed head for me.

I highly recommend this book for its unending motivational integrity, as well as its ability to just cause others to go to another level.

This Is Your Wake Up Call: Live Your Dreams

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-11-15

This Is Your Wake Up Call: This is an eye opening and motivating book for the entire family. It is a call, a mandate, and a command on our lives to step into our purpose and walk out our destiny. After reading this book, you have neither an Excuse nor Reason to not become what all God called you to be in this earth realm. God created use for such a time as this and we as His people must be in proper positioning to receive what He has for us as well as for our families. Generations are connected and souls are on the line. I strongly recommend this book and not to be just a reader, but a doer. Sleep time is over; This Is Your Wake Up Call. Thanks to all of you who had a hand in this fantastic book.

Too Deep for Words: Rediscovering Lectio Divina

Published in Paperback by Paulist Press (1988-05)

Author: Thelma Hall

List price: $8.95

New price: $4.67
Used price: $3.96
Collectible price: $15.95

Average review score:

Interesting Bible Study

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-07-09

I have been interested in new and different ways to study Bible passages. This is a great way to deal with the study in a prayerful manner. I plan to use Lectio Divina with my prayer ministry.

BEAUTIFUL BOOK

Helpful Votes: 15 out of 16 total.
Review Date: 2002-01-09

I AM AN INCAPABLE OF WRITING A REVIEW THAT WOULD CAPTURE THE NATURE OF THIS WORK. THE BEST COMPLIMENT I CAN GIVE IS THAT I WILL RE READ IT OFTEN AND I HAVE GIVEN A COPY OF IT TO FRIEND. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN EXPANDING YOUR PRAYER LIFE THIS BOOK IS AN EXCELLENT AND READABLE RESOURCE FOR ANY CHRISTIAN, REGARDLESS OF DENOMINATIONAL BACKROUND.

Too deep for Words -- yet simply explained

Helpful Votes: 20 out of 20 total.
Review Date: 2003-04-11

I highly recommend this book. I have recently become interested in contemplative prayer, and as usual I purchased several books on the topic. This is the only book I found that bridges the gap between the depth of the topic, and the distractions of contemporary life. I have trouble quieting my mind, so I needed help in that area.
Thelma Hall proposes a four step process, in which you
-READ a Bible passage
-MEDITATE, or think about what it means
-PRAY about it,
-and then finally enter into CONTEMPLATION.

Somehow, this progression works. Try it. The book is very short. In fact, most of it is actually a collection of scriptures that have been arranged thematically for your convenience in finding a scripture to start reading.

An intimate book with prayer and lectio divina as goal...

Helpful Votes: 23 out of 23 total.
Review Date: 2005-06-20

For some time now I have owned the title, "Too Deep for Words: Rediscovering Lectio Divina" by Thelma Hall. I have used it for prayer, and I have used it for lectio. The hallmark use I have put the book to is its selections of scripture readings for prayer. This is not to say that the purpose of the book, lectio divina and its prayer form, its reading form of the scriptures is to be ignored. No, the author's writings regarding this method of intimacy with scriptures is worth the time to read.

A comfortable book, and by that I mean it is an inviting read, one can enter into the monastic method of prayer. Here, in the introduction, the author calls lectio an entry way to contemplation. It is "...generally accepted that contemplation was an extrordinary grace..." but here the intent is to open lectio and also contemplation to Christians as part of their spiritual life.

If I may interpret a little bit, the writer says that with this people can enter more loving relationships with others, and with God. A means to accomplishing this is through lectio divina. She says, "...we grow in love of God as we grow in any intimate love relationship..." A prerequisite is to trust God and know he is faithful to us. The practice of lectio divina is fourfold, and I have learned this method a number of times from others and Thelma Hall is right on the money as I know it. In fact, one may rely on her for this kind of prayer and relationship in prayer with God. The book has an integrity to it.

Though not specifically a how-to book, this is a mini-retreat and not so long of one in text form. The text part, not counting the scripture readings, is only 55 pages. Most people will find their way through that and find it fruitful.

The four parts to lectio: Read the word of God; reflect on the word; where the word touches the heart, or meditation on the word; and, contemplating the word of God. Through this we may come through the night to a new dawn. Or as I read it, we may leave behind some of our darker side and come to a lighter side of inspiration with scripture, and illuminated so gain a special relationship with God. This is reachable, to some degree, by most people who are so willing to be devotional.

To stretch the idea more, as an invitation, the writer says this is what to do:

"--To receive, and place no obstacle to the Holy Spirit.
"--Follow attraction to interior silence and remain in loving attentiveness.
"---Abandon all activity and let oneself be drawn into the darkness of God's love, forgetful of self.
"--When it becomes possible to meditate again, do so, until and unless interior silence becomes habitual."

The book is a traditional teaching, and Thelma Hall, a retreat leader is a religious (member of the Religious of Cenacle) in Bedford Village, New York. A book recommended to me by monks of New Camaldoli in Big Sur, the book is recommended by others interested in similar spirituality. The publisher is Paulist Press, a Catholic Church publishing house. I think anyone interested in expanding their horizons of prayer life and entering more fully into scripture will find this an interesting and worthwhile book that leads to a more fruitful life of the spirit.

An adequate introductory volume

Helpful Votes: 38 out of 39 total.
Review Date: 2004-01-02

Lectio divina has a long history as a methodless method of study and prayer in the Christian tradition. It has enjoyed a recent revival among laity as they seek Scripture study and prayer for laity (as opposed to within religious orders). Thelma Hall provides an introduction that fits within the revival with several references to Thomas Merton and Thomas Keating, themselves each important in the contemplative tradition.

The strengths of this book include Hall's excellent selection of quotations to promote her views, her emphasis on a loving relationship as the model which prohibits a method, and her selection of potential texts for the initial practice of lectio divina.

The primary weaknesses as an introductory text is that it presumes the contemplative step is a "mystical" experience. This leads to discussions of the false-self / true-self dichotomy and of "dark night of the soul." This places the volume with the same audience as Merton, Keating, Pennington etc.. This is an audience with less need for an introductory volume than the "typical Catholic."

St. John of the Cross's paraphrase of Lk 11:9 is an accurate description of lectio divina "Seek in READING / and you will find in MEDITATION; / knock in PRAYER / and it will be opened to you / in CONTEMPLATION." However, the description of Dom Marmion reflects more accurately Hall's approach: "We read (Lectio)/ under the eye of God (Meditatio)/ until the heart is touched (Oratio)/ and leaps to flame (Contemplatio).

In this context, Hall provides 500 Scripture texts that are suitable for the initial practice of lectio divina. The readings are divided into 50 topics such as "Accepting Love," "Anxiety," "Discernment of Spirits," "Following the Lord," etc. She provides a citation for the full passage and a key phrase "summary" to allow the selection of a particular passage. This allows the novice to select quickly topics and passages that will be fruitful.

In short, this is one of several introductory volumes for lectio divina. If you flourish reading Merton and practicing Centering Prayer, this is an excellent choice.

Tools for Thought: The History and Future of Mind-Expanding Technology

Published in Paperback by Prentice Hall Computer Pub (1986-12)

Author: Howard Rheingold

List price: $9.95

Used price: $2.00
Collectible price: $65.55

Average review score:

Rheingold 10, Gates 0

Helpful Votes: 11 out of 15 total.
Review Date: 2000-12-29

Howard Rheingold, former Editor of the Whole Earth Review and one of the pure-gold original thinkers in the Stewart Brand and Kevin Kelly circle, lays down a serious challange to both decisionmakers and software producers that has yet to be fully understood. Originally published in 1985, this book was a "must read" at the highest levels of advanced information processing circles then, but sadly its brilliant and coherent message has yet to take hold--largely because bureaucratic budgets and office politics are major obstacles to implementing new models where the focus is on empowering the employee rather than crunching financial numbers.

This book is a foundation reading for understanding why the software Bill Gates produces (and the Application Program Interfaces he persists in concealing) will never achieve the objectives that Howard and others believe are within our grasp--a desktop toolkit that not only produces multi-media documents without crashing ten times a day, but one that includes modeling & simulation, structured argument analysis, interactive search and retrieval of the deep web as well as commercial online systems, and geospatially-based heterogeneous data set visualization--and more--the desktop toolkit that emerges logically from Howard's vision must include easy clustering and linking of related data across sets, statistical analysis to reveal anomalies and identify trends in data across time, space, and topic, and a range of data conversion, machine language translation, analog video management, and automated data extraction from text and images. How hard can this be? VERY HARD. Why? Because no one is willing to create a railway guage standard in cyberspace that legally mandates the transparency and stability of Application Program Interfaces (API). Rheingold gets it, Gates does not. What a waste!

Essential reading if you want to understand computing

Helpful Votes: 3 out of 3 total.
Review Date: 2000-06-01

This is a must read for anyone who wants to understand computing all the way from the bare metal to the near-future. It ranks with Fred Brooks' "The Mythical Man Month." If you don't know this stuff, you don't really know what's inside the box, and how it got there.

It's also a pretty entertaining read, though I think the author gives a bit too much credit to von Neuman.

Informed and Thoughtful

Helpful Votes: 4 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2000-07-03

The Afterword alone is worth the price of the book. Rarely does a thinker with the acumen of Rheingold also exhibit a willingness to re-examine, refine, and, on occasion, reverse positions taken a decade or more ago. Rheingold does in a way that is informative and mind-opening. Aside from the mound of solid information and provocative observations about the Internet in human life, Rheingold's prose is as comfortable and welcoming as those toes tucked into the grass as he composes on his laptop. A must read.

Really good book

Helpful Votes: 5 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2001-06-05

Unwittingly maybe, Rheingold provides a really good account and even reference of the history of computing. He writes well and unlike some CS writers marries his subject with the real world. If you are studying the history of computing I really recommend this over Ceruzzi's book.

Learn from History

Helpful Votes: 6 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 2000-06-30

Entering the 21st century it's still amazing to find that so many of the pioneers of computing are still alive. Rheingold has interviewed many of them over the years and this book is an interesting and valuble contribution to the genre.

The novel feature of the book is the way in which past interviews are brought up to date and the interviewees give their opinions on the differences between what they predicted and what happened.

The writing is excellent and very accessible. The interviewees come across as very normal people (which indeed they are) but it is very easy to forget they were still amongst the movers and shakers of computing in the late 20th century.

I think this book is a valuble work for those who see technology are more than just a vehicle for making money.

Touch the Wind

Published in Hardcover by G K Hall & Co (1985-04)

Author:

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Wealth and glamour

Helpful Votes: 1 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2005-06-15

Janet Dailey, the New York Times bestselling author who has touched the hearts of millions, shines in this unforgettable novel. Sweeping from the wealth and glamour of a modern Texas city to the rugged majesty of Mexico's High Sierras, this is a magnificent tale of desire and destiny from one of the world's most beloved storytellers.
---------- Reviewed by Janet Sue Terry, author of the contemporary romance, "Set Me Free" series. Book 1 - Possibilities and Book 2 - Resolutions. Newest release is Just Our Best Short Stories 2005. www.janetsueterry.com.

Another Magnificent Love Story from Janet Dailey

Helpful Votes: 4 out of 8 total.
Review Date: 2001-11-26

All her life,cool, beautifu Sheila got what she wanted. Now she yearned for the raw passion of a man beyond her reach, a violent mysterious outlaw whose followers adored him. A lion of a man who held her for ransom-a man who would trade her for a fortune in gold. But Shelia wanted only him-with all the reckless longing her body and soul.

Good read

Helpful Votes: 4 out of 6 total.
Review Date: 2000-06-21

I felt that this novel, although it may not have ended the way I wanted it to, was interesting in nature. The characters were well defined and had a lot of depth. Even thought the story line was a little on the exaggerated side, it still kept my undivided attention. If you are looking for a good romance novel, this one will make an excellent read.

Touch the Wind

Helpful Votes: 5 out of 7 total.
Review Date: 2001-10-11

I loved this story. I have read it several times. I had read it in the past and lost my copy of it so reordered it. I would like to see Janet Dailey write another book and let us know what happened to the Rafraga? After all he was wanted by the law. She left it up in the air. However I still loved the story.

Great read!

Helpful Votes: 7 out of 8 total.
Review Date: 2001-04-17

I was riveted from the beginning till the end of the book. It's a pity that Sheila had to learn the lesson about men the hard way when her newly-married husband turned out to be a jerk.

I like Laredo, the American outlaw who joined the Mexican bandits. His whimsies about home, about eating cherry-topped sundae was really touching. You can actually feel his emotion, how much he missed home, and yet unable to return because he was a wanted man. I like Rafaga too, the outlaw leader, who was a very charismatic man. His mistress committed a crime which amounted to punishment, and despite his heavy heart and sadness, he continued on with the punishment.

Sheila, the Texan heiress, was rather petulant, for me. But I admire her survival spirit and courage. Not many would be like that in her position.

The ending, like all the Janet Dailey books I read so far was rather abrupt and left to the reader to contemplate further what happened next.

A great read.

The Truth About Being a Leader (Truth About)

Published in Hardcover by Prentice Hall (2006-11-12)

Author: Karen Otazo

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Excellent read...

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-04-15

Very down to earth, excellent for people moving into or planning to move into a leadership role. I strongly recommend this book... one of the best leadership books I have read to date. Every chapter has something worth remembering.

Plain Truths

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-02-27

I am continually impressed with Karen's leadership perspective. She makes it clear that leadership isn't about playing "King of the Mountain"; it's too easy to get knocked down that way. It's about working with and through the team in an accountable, positive, proactive manner. Karen has nailed it again. Simple, to the point. A good primer for those who think you can leap past good, basic principles and get to the top (and stay there) in a hurry -- you can't!

A Wonderfully Insightful, Humanistic and Practical "How To" on Leadership

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-02-25

The most useful reviews to any prospective reader of this book are undoubtedly the multitudes of insightful comments found in the book's opening pages, all of which are from CEO's of leading firms and management consultants. I would add that in more than 20 years of reading business books, this is the most engaging and importantly, practical guide to leadership I've read. Its scope is impressive. Each of the book's ten chapters contain five lively, concise and easy to grasp 'truths' that resonate as being just that: truths. The reader feels like this is the 'real thing' and that implementing Dr. Otazo's advice will either make them a leader -- or a more effective one. Dr. Otazo's flair for writing -- part of the instruction one can gain from the book -- makes this a highly pleasurable read. She has also included an excellent biography in the back. Susan Reingold

A Daily Devotional for your Core Team

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-02-21

Wonderful book that reads like a daily devotional for high level managers or potential corporate leaders. Her writing feels like a coaches speaking style; simple, powerful and direct. There are 52 short but brilliant chapters - and of course, not ALL of them are for EVERYONE, but each key point is strenghthening overall.

My favorite explanation? #12 (Impactful Leaders Speak Simply) is a smarter version of the KISS principle - Keep It Simple & Straightforward. Why? It underlines the most common thread in the book - communicating well with your core team and staff. Seems like everyone says it - but hardly anyone really does it.

My favorite tool? #39 (Succession Planning) We are revising this in our corporation - so I enjoyed the utility of a nine by nine box (2-dimensional array) for advocating and reviewing Performance and Potential. Makes perfect sense to have a team review in this fashion.

Obviously the author has learned and coached these leadership truths over time - and she shares them with us in wonderfully written nuggets. This is one of the few books I will read over and over because it is so easy to digest one or two powerful thoughts each day and rethink them over and over.

To Be a Leader or Not To Be a Leader...You'll need this book to answer that question!

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2007-02-20

My clients love Dr. Otazo's new book "The Truth about Being a Leader". The 52 Truths are designed for the executive attention span and can be applied to any management field. Dr. Otazo describes and gives examples of every situation that a leader can be faced with and the answers make total sense to me.
What I found most important is that you have to stay in tune with your surroundings at all times - people, body language and ALWAYS common courtesy. This is how business should be conducted and exemplifies the values that I was raised with. This book is a must read for anyone that is in or entering any leadership position.

Truth About Getting Your Point Across, The: ...and Nothing But the Truth

Published in Kindle Edition by Prentice Hall (2007-03-22)

Author: Lonnie Pacelli

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Another Great Book from Pacelli

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2008-03-16

This book really gets its point across! It provides all of the basics of clear and direct business communication, succinctly and effectively. If you are new to the business world, put this book in your library *now*! I can't think of a better college/business school graduation gift under $50!

Valuable and to the point...

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-03-26

If you're part of the corporate world, you should recognize that communication skills are at the top of the "must have" list in order to succeed. Lonnie Pacelli has written a compact guide that can help improve that area of your professional existence... The Truth About Getting Your Point Across... And Nothing But the Truth.

Contents: The Truth About You and Your Recipient; The Truth About Setting Direction; The Truth About Running Meetings; The Truth About Developing Effective Presentations; The Truth About Writing Status Reports; The Truth About Brainstorming; The Truth About Problem Solving; The Truth About Interviewing; The Truth About Giving Feedback; The Truth About Being A Good Listener; The Truth About Informal Communications; The Truth About Influencing Those Who Don't Work For You; The Truth About Communicating Globally; References

The book is divided up into 59 two to four page "truths" that cover an aspect of communication. For instance, in the Communicating Globally chapter, #59 is "Just Because They Can Speak Your Native Tongue Doesn't Mean They Understand Everything You Say". Oh, so true. He then relates an incident from his experience speaking in front of a Japanese group that appeared to understand what he was presenting. Only later he found out that he spoke too quickly and used a number of unfamiliar terms. From that, he came up with a number of suggestions to help you avoid that same problem. Short, valuable, and to the point. Personally, I really dug into the Developing Effective Presentations chapter. Some things I've already done right, like Truth #18 - Entertaining An Audience Breeds Effective Learning. But other things I need to take to heart, like #21 - Develop Content Once - Use It A Thousand Times. I need to make sure I have my presentation material organized such that it's easy to reuse and adapt to different audiences.

There's a lot of value in this book, and you'll walk away with a few new things to work on every time you read it. Definitely a good volume to have on your bookshelf.

A useful, practical book - a must have

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 0 total.
Review Date: 2006-03-01

Knowing how to communicate clearly is one of the most critical skills in management. Without clear communications you cannot lead. Lonnie boils down many great ideas into crisp advice. The points discussed in his book are not only practical but immediately applicable, and will increase the effectiveness of any manager when applied. I highly recommend this book.

FILLED WITH SOUND ADVICE!

Helpful Votes: 0 out of 4 total.
Review Date: 2006-01-31

Presents 59 "truths" about:
your recipients;
setting direction;
running meetings;
developing effective presentations;
writing status reports;
brainstorming;
problem solving;
interviewing;
giving feedback;
being a good listener;
informal communications;
influencing those who don't work for you;
and communicating globally.

Pacelli makes his points with clarity and brevity. Filled with sound advice. Highly recommended.

Everyone needs to read this!

Helpful Votes: 4 out of 5 total.
Review Date: 2006-01-26

The Truth About Getting Your Point Across...And Nothing But the Truth is an experience-based, practical guide for anyone who needs to get his or her point across in just about any setting. Whether you are a first-line manager in a large corporation, a CEO of a small business, or a president of a PTA, this book will help you navigate difficult communication situations and give you some very practical tips for dealing with a wide range of communications challenges.

The book contains 59 short chapters, or "truths", grouped into 13 real-life parts, as follows:

Part I: The Truth About You and Your Recipient

Part II: The Truth About Setting Direction

Part III: The Truth About Running Meetings

Part IV: The Truth About Developing Effective Presentations

Part V: The Truth About Writing Status Reports

Part VI: The Truth About Brainstorming

Part VII: The Truth About Problem Solving

Part VIII: The Truth About Interviewing

Part IX: The Truth About Giving Feedback

Part X: The Truth About Being a Good Listener

Part XI: The Truth About Informal Communications

Part XII: The Truth About Influencing Those Who Don't Work for You

Part XIII: The Truth About Communicating Globally

You'll find that some of the parts may apply and others may not; but there is enough breadth in categories that you will likely find at least a couple of the truths relevant and helpful to you. Each of the 59 truths is focused on a specific topic and contains a number of practical take-aways that you as the reader will easily glean from the reading. The truths are catchy, easy to read, and relevant to today. Here are examples of a few truth titles:

* "Truth 12: Watch the pontificator!"

* "Truth 30: Biased facilitators torpedo brainstorming sessions"

* "Truth 47: Don't hang out a therapist shingle unless you're a therapist"

* "Truth 52: Be accessible, not open-door"

* "Truth 59: Just because they can speak in your native tongue doesn't mean they understand everything you say"

Each truth is self-contained, so you can either jump around and read only the truths which you're most interested in or read the entire book, which will take you a couple of hours to get through.

Pacelli draws upon his over 20 years of experience at Accenture and Microsoft to develop a concise and relevant guide to help you with your greatest business communication challenges. You'll find very little in the way of heady or theoretical views here. It's just practical stuff that works. You'll want to keep "The Truth About Getting Your Point Across" handy to refer back to again and again.