P Books

This was one of my favorites as kid. Then, sadly, I forgot about it until stumbling across it in the school library. It is once again one of my favorites. Cynics might roll their eyes at this tribute to good ol' days gone by, but I personally appreciate the nostalgia and the house with its subtle face parts is adorable. You feel so bad for the cute little house! It is also an observation at the change of time. I don't know how intense that is as a theme, but I found it touching and Burton tells the tale with such heart and care.

We live in a very old house in the country and this book was such a cute story about just that. We enjoyed it.

Another timeless classic by this author. It's an amazing story about appreciation. Completely entertaining and like the other books in this series, the artwork is phenominal!!!

This was my favorite book as a child and I am so happy to find it again!! Now I will enjoy it as I read it to my grandchildren.

It was my favorite book when I was little, now it's time for my children to get know bout little house story. I got today from Amazon with free shipping. Great story book delivered to the door. Saving time to seaching at book store with carrying 2 little childrens especially summer hot day!
Thank god Amazon... I'm looking forward to reading this book tonight ^0^/

This book certainly has won praise by many amazon.com readers as witnessed by the numerous five star ratings it has received. True, it is written as a fast-paced narrative, and flows well. You might call it an "easy read" as a result. However, if we take it as a work of history, rather than a "war story," it has some faults. The chief flaw in this book is that it lacks context, as do so many of these modern war tales ("instant histories") we find rushed to print seemingly before the smoke has cleared from the ruined enemy vehicles in the wake of US armored columns. Mr. Zucchino unfortunately gives us VERY little background information about the reason for these runs, why they were important, how they were really supposed to topple Sadam, and what they really did. There's very little perspective from above. We get lots of shooting, good impressions of the men involved, and get a great picture of what these mostly young soldiers were required to do, but not much else to put things in perspective, esp. at the high command level. For example: Zucchino has a great description of when the task force's TOC gets hit by a missle or rocket, and the utter confusion and devastation this event caused for men and equipment. However, we never find out more details about the attack--where did the rocket come from? How'd they make such a direct hit? After the battle, did anybody in the Army figure out who fired it and were these "bad guys" taken out? Several places like this in the book make it limited in its scope.

I picked this up to read on a month long travel trip. I ended up reading it in one sitting! Consequently, Im very glad I had also purchased a few other titles on the same topic. I really good read, disturbing and terrifying at times with a great deal of insight, but a great read.

This is hands-down the most compelling book I've read so far on the war in Iraq. It made me late going back to work during several lunch hours because I just couldn't put it down until I finished another chapter.

I think too many people have this image of the invasion being an absolute cakewalk -- this book will put that notion to rest in a big hurry. The soldiers faced some ferocious fighting during their push into Baghdad and Zucchino paints a very vivid picture of it.

Outstanding account of the two Thunder Runs into Baghdad by TF 1-64 Armor (5 Apr 03) and 2nd Bde, 3rd ID(M). From individual tank/Bradley commanders and Soldiers to the brigade and battalion commanders, this riveting account of the battles gives a good view of the planning and execution involved. This shows the gritty side of war at the lower tactical level, bringing home timeless lessons on the battlefield. A great addition to any military professional's library!

Zucchino's book Thunder Run: The Armored Strike to Capture Baghdad seems to be one of teh best accounts of the 3rd IDs "Thunder Run" into Baghdad. I've recelently read a lot of literature on the invasion of Iraq, including excellent books such as One Bullet Away by Nathaniel Fick and Generation Kill by Evan Wright which highlight the Marine advance and feign that helped contribute to the fall of Saddam, as well as other books about the Army's advance, to include Rick Atkinson's excellent account on the 101st Airborne. However, there have been relatively few books out there that have been able to concentrate on a specific battle. That's not to say that its such a bad thing. Many of the books listed above provide incredible insight into the commander's thoughts and the experiences of the troops through the 23 day advance and even the pre-invasion deployments of the 3rd ID to camp Doha, then Yankee, etc.
Nonetheless, Zuccino's book is an excellent overview of the troubles and successes of the Spartan Brigades experiences in Baghdad, the ferocity of the battle, the trepidation and elation of the soldiers, and the brutality that goes with war and the loss of comrades. Immediatley the author is shot en-media-rez into the action during the night that the brigade receives the WARNO and then the hasty OPORD to go to battle. Zuccino then takes the reader on a harrowing adventure of the first Thunder Run which killed or wounded an estimated 1,200 enemy and then the brave decision to move the brigade to the center of the city and hold it.
But the adventure isn't as easy as it seems and the reader begins to understand the complexities of keeping this force alive, supplied, and preventing it from being isolated. Zuccino takes you to the brutal intersections of Larry, Moe, and Curly, Saddam's palace, and the staging point of BIAP, then Saddam International Airport. Zuccino's task, like Mark Bowden with the Battle of Mogadishu, was immense: to study and disseminate the pivitol battle of the war, and he succeeds magnificiently.

This story is the best I, ve read in all the series.It shows Stanton's pointo of view.You get to know him a little better and understand all the problems he faces as a follower because of his love for Serena.Stantons a dream guy.He's cute,mysterious, and has really cool powers.
I think the author should write more books on him and stop writing Sons of the Dark!!
-TLATKD

This was the book that made me keep reading after I read the first in the series. I wanted to get to the book that I knew would be focused on Stanton and his point of view. It wasn't as fufilling as I had hoped, however, it was not as dissapointing as the book told from Serena's P.O.V. What is great about this book of this series as all of the background information we are getting, Stanton's past, that of some of his fellow followers and more of the technicalities of following the Atrox. The book also does a nice job of leaving you wondering what is going to happen next. It doesn't necessarily leave you with a burning desire to find out what happened next, but a mild curiousity that could lead to me reading it, or not.
And I still don't get the attraction between him and Serena. I almost want him to hook up with Cassandra, she seems more interesting in many ways.

I read this book along with the Secret Scroll this week-end. I love Stanton. I can't believe what he did to save Serena. I liked seeing into his life and knowing what he thinks. The book held me captive and I couldn't stop reading until I had finished it.

The Lost One by Lynne Ewing is one book of a fantastic series. The book tells about a 5 girls who become close friends by finding out that they are all special in one way or another. Catty can time travel, Vanessa can become invisible, Serena can read minds, Jimena can tell the future,
and Tianna can move things with her mind. These 5 girls make up the Daughters of the Moon. "Tu es dea, filia lunar. You are a goddess, a Daughter of the Moon"(Ewing 271). These girls come together to try to help Catty who has gone missing. If they dont find her they will all be destoyed forever. Will they ever get Catty back in time? Will the Atrox finally destroy The Daughters of the Moon? To find that out you'll have to read the
book. I absolutely love this book. It is the kind of book that always keeps you on your toes. When you start reading this book you will never want to put it down. The Author mixes mystery, danger and love into this book. I would recommend this book to people who love mystery and adventures because that's all what the book is, a great big adventure.

...I really enjoyed the book. My 18 year old daughter brought the book home last year, and she can't get enough of it or the series of books under the Daughter's of the Moon series.

I wouldn't personally reccommend the book for the younger teen audience, as it deals with some more grown up situations than a 13 or 14 year old may really understand, and with the fantasy elements and the supernatural aspects of the book, a slightly older audience would probably be better able to read the books for what they are.

In all, the book has a great story, interesting characters, and seeing things from a point of view that is not what one would normally find in books of this nature really makes the book compelling.

I would recommend it for the young adult crowd.

I have read the 5 books of the series at least 10 times each, in German and in English, I am so fascinated with the story. The characters are absolutely captivating, and there is so much suspense and drama, you seriously can't put the books down when you start reading them. In the very first book, the little girl Ayla will capture your heart, as you go on this journey with her when she is growing up, and she turns into this beautiful and intelligent woman - i bet about every male reader would love to be with her and get to know her, whereas female readers will envy her and want to be like her. But it's not just her, all the characters have so much depth to them, and it is so easy to picture them in your mind, as they come across as very real. I grew to love each and every one of them, including all the animals as well. This is a great story about love and friendships among people & animals, and a story about survival in harsh conditions and encountering and fighting enemies. A story about a time when great discoveries and inventions were made, a truly fascinating era.
This is my favorite story of all times, and I know I will read all the books again someday. So if you are just bored and are looking for something very good to read - this is it! Too bad the fourth and fifth books - The Plains of Passage & Shelters of Stone - aren't included with this package, but I guarantee most people who pick up those books and read them will probably read them as well, since it is an ongoing story, and you can't wait to see what is going to happen next. I can't wait for the last book to come out... hopefully that is going to happen soon.

Unfortunately, I read them so long ago, I'm not sure I would want to read the next one because I have lost track of the story lines by now.

Each book does as promised, stand alone, and also as part of the larger story it melds into a great whole. I waited impatiently for each book as it came out, and because of the many years wait for The Shelters Of Stone, I was somewhat dissappointed in the book, because in my opinion all it really did was do a further buildup for the final book in the series, and I am so afraid that there will be another extended waiting period and let-down, but over-all I have to give the series a huge thumbs up and say that this series is definately part of my "Keeper" and "Re-readable" list and is now part of my personal Library.

the clan of the cave bear lay around our house for several years. i passed it by many times thinking it would not be my kind of book. at last due to the urging of my wife i began to read clan of the cave bear! from that time until i had completed all five of the books in the earths children series,i absolutly could not put them down.i have read many book series. but never have i been carried away so by an author.the depth of auels research will pull at a very primitive and forgotin place in your being.however i must warn you! when you have completed the series thus far the knowledge of the as yet unwriten or at least unpublished climax to this series will leave you feeling incomplete!! so please Miss Auel finesh the series soon

The author planned to write six books in the Earth's Children series, and I hope she sticks with the plan. However, I wanted to answer the question about which everyone seems to be confused--the fifth book. Its title is **SHELTERS OF STONE** ... . Anyway, the first four books are not only completely absorbing plotwise, but Ms. Auel's obvious research into the history of the periods about which she writes adds to the value of reading her books. Don't wait! Read the first four as soon as possible--at least in time to get a copy of her unpublished paperback.

So it is pretty much a fact that Bill Watterson is a comic genius! This collection holds with it the comics with which I grew up and remember from my childhood. Watterson is excellent with a pen, and his wit and intelligence shines through via his solid characters and humor. He balances boyish silliness with concepts bordering both on philosophical and just plain cynical. And somehow it all goes straight to the heart.

If you love C&H, you'll like this book. For me, Calvin is like pepperoni pizza... when it's good, it's really good, and when it's bad, it's still good.

Calvin and Hobbes has always been a good `grounding' read . . . Kinda Zen, kinda common sense, always funny.

This Calvin and Hobbes book is the best i've read by far. Its 250 pages long and each page contains 3 strips.
The strips in this book are especially funny and i am sure you'll enjoy them.
I highly reccomend this book.

I could relate to Calvin and Hobbes, from the moment I first started following the adventures of the devilish, eternal six year old (Calvin) and his scruffy, stuffed pal tiger (Hobbes). Though, many of the plots appear simplistic (example: Calvin makes a mess and his mother yells at him!), there is so much more to the little strips than meets the eye. For starters, Calvin and Hobbes ponders the meaning of life, the voicelessness of children in society, and self image (among other themes).

Though, this comic strip is something that definitely appeals to little children, because it presents a little boy that we all can relate to (or maybe spent time avoiding on the playground if he teased us), and his stuffed animal. Anyone who owned a stuffed animal and knows what an important bond that is for a child, knows the feeling when that toy crosses over from the identity of "inanimate object" to "lifelike being." The creature that we relate to truly embodies the qualities who want in a best friend and companion, and we aren't doing the talking for that creature, because it truly does have a mind of its own! (in the eyes of a child) Wonderful, very funny and beautifully drawn. I've had mine for almost fifteen years and I just went back to look at it today. It feels like no time has passed between now, and the time I first looked at it. Buy this today and make it a part of your collection.

This was my favorite book when I was a child so I bought it to share with my children. They love the repitition and simple concepts.

As a 6 year old, I received this book from my 9 year old sister as a present a birthday party. When I told every how much I "hated books and hated to read" she burst into tears. I spent the next year reading Mr. Pine's Purple house every day to prove to her how much I loved it...and I did. I recently purchase it for her 50th birthday and we all had a good laugh (and of course I read it again!) I love Mr. Pine and his thoughtful attempts to be different.

This is one of the best children's books ever written. While the drawings were created using a minimal number of colors, (purple, black and white) they are more than adequate to demonstrate what is happening in the story. This is in fact a plus, because the purpose of the book is to encourage reading and elaborate illustrations will distract from that goal.
Mr. Pine lives on a street where all the houses look alike, so he wants his to be distinctive. His first and second attempts are to plant a pine tree and bush respectively. However, the neighbors are so impressed with his improvements that they do the same things, so all the houses once again look alike. After some deep thought, Mr. Pine decides to paint his house purple. After a couple of mishaps involving an errant baseball and an even more errant dog and a cat, he manages to finish the job.
The result raises the eyebrows of the neighbors, (Mrs. Gray, Mrs. Green, Mrs. Brown, Mrs. White and Mr. Gold) and they decide to paint their houses as well. Mr. Pine is distraught, thinking that they will all also paint their houses purple. Fortunately, each of them has decided to paint their house a non-purple color that is different from their name. At the end, Mr. Pine still has the only purple house on the street.
A delightful tale about being the value of being distinctive, the lessons of life and learning how to read are ones that all children should learn.

We have had this book for our children and now are buying it for our grandchildren.....it is a keeper.....

This was my favorite book growing up and I was so excited when I found it again and could share it with my kids (my original copy was damaged.) My kids love it too!

Mr. Pine doesn't want to have the same house as everyone else on the block but they all keep copying his changes to his house, until they all discover that being individuals is a good thing!

Great read!

This was my favorite book as a child obsessed with unicorns (when even my dance teacher presented me with unicorn-themed because of the hair at the front of my head that refused to lay down). I read it over and over back then, but 20 years later couldn't remember much about it. So I found a copy and re-read it, finding it as charming and captivating as I always had!

It's a fabulous coming-of-age fantasy, complete with the requisite prophecies and dangerous journey for our hero, young Jan, prince of the unicorns.

Even though this is the first book of a trilogy, it stands perfectly well alone - the sequel wasn't released til 7 years later, so, as a child I never even realized there was more to the story. But I have the second in the series, "Dark Moon," at home, ready to be read! :)

I liked this book. It had a wonderfuly diverse vernacular portaying a delightfully detailed world. I read it first when I was 10 and didn't understand any of it and only remembered it vaugley, but it was the book that launched me into the world of fantasy art and writing. After many years I have found it again and it has proven to be everything I'd hoped it would be.

I've read plenty of books with unicorns portrayed as gentle creatures who are ridden by humans. While I have nothing against these types of books and enjoy reading them, this book brings out a different side of the unicorn, along with giving you characters you'll love.

Aljan (or Jan) is the unicorn prince's son. He has a wild, hotheaded streak about him that, unfortunately, gets him in trouble often. However, Jan longs to have his father look upon him with pride and vows to clean up his act.

Jan goes on a journey with other unicorns to the Hallow Hills, a place that belonged to the unicorns before the wyvens drove them out. The unicorns only hope to reclaim the land that was once theirs lie in the belief that a great warrior known as the Firebringer will come and fight the wyvens.

The unicorns make the annual trip to intiate new warriors. The road is long, and the dangers are many (gryphons, renegade unicorns, and storms, to name a few). At the end of the trek, Jan finds out that he is the Firebringer that the unicorns have long told of coming.

This book is different than most books about unicorns in that instead of gentle unicorns, they are pictured as great warriors who fight to survive. It is interesting to see them as such.

Overall, a great fantasy with interesting and strong unicorn characters.

Meridith Ann Pierce is Jah-lila.
this author has done what all of those other authors who write for Lewellyn can only hope to attain....she has explained Paganism in its simplicity and all of its mysterious complexity..and aimed the reading for young adults.
How many of us were children when we read the first "Birth of.."?

Now, how many of you feel that not only was it a birth of the firebringer, but also the birth (remembering)of our authentic selves? How many of you readers because of this trilogy can now see yourselves magic and a whole person who remembers their own Divinity?
I think we owe much thanks and gratitude to Meredith for helping us. Not only is she an author, she is a Midwyfe...a Priestess of sort.
Anyone who wants to discuss this more may email me at the_tisher@yahoo.com i welcome your thoughts.
Merry Meet

I've recently been reading a few of the books I really loved as a child, just for the sake of reminiscing and because the stories have stuck with me for years.

The Firebringer trilogy has a particularly important story for me. I first read the first book, The Birth of the Firebringer, when I was about 9 or so--I got it out from the library, and I think it only took me reading it once to get it to embed itself in my mind. I never found the other two, though.

Fast forward to high school. I was talking to a friend of mine, and we somehow got on the subject of unicorn-related kid's books. I had long since forgotten the title of the book, but I remembered the cover, with the multicolored unicorns on it, and that there were some words that had seemed a little odd to me, such as "hale" and "pash". She suddenly remembered "Oh, it's called 'The Birth of the Firebringer'!" and I never forgot again.

Fast forward again to a couple of years ago. The trilogy was still woefully out of print. I managed to find a copy of Birth fo the Firebringer used--I gladly put down $20 for it. A few days later I had the wonderful gratification of re-reading that wonderful story again and revisiting one of the most amazing alternate realities my imagination had ever visited.

Lo and behold, not long after, the series came back into print, and I was able to complete the story!

The Firebringer Trilogy is geared towards young adults, but grown adults who enjoy a good fantasy story will like it as well. It's also very well-developed, with a variety of characters and an interesting storyline. Plus it's nice to see unicorns that aren't all just sugar and spice and everything nice, and that live in herds and have social structures.

Highly recommended for all ages.

Would it be crass say this book is the answer to new couples wanting to conceive and raise children who will grow up to have straight teeth, model beautiful cheekbones and manly square jaws? ;)

I fear that is the only way we can get past our current culture obsessed with lowfat oversugared fake food.

This book changed my life and the life of my son. In a time where vegetables-lowfat-tofu eating dietary principles are held up as the answer to health we are eating beef liver and cod liver oil, pastured meat and eggs, wild seafoods and raw grassfed milk, butter and cream, bone broths, soaked grains and nuts and fermented vegetables to try to achieve the 10x the RDA of fat soluble vitamins and 5x the RDA of minerals and water soluble vitamins that protected people around the globe from disease and enabled them to achieve their full genetic potential (ie. the wide palates, model cheekbones and manly square jaws!)

I already know the 3 years following the principles in this book and the WAP Foundation has helped my son as his palate his widened and tooth spacing increased from age 2 to age 5. I'm excited to see if his secondary teeth will come in straight and avoid braces like I had!

Price was a DDS who was the head of research for the ADA of his day... someone very learned with the scientific method. His ten years of travelling the globe has given us most vital information on a natural human diet and how this relates to health and the growth of a child most especially.

I constantly look around me everyday and see the result of modern processed food: the weak chins, narrow palates, crowded teeth, narrow nostrils, "deviated septums" and underdeveloped faces. This is NOT a results of genetics, is is a result of your diet!! That is mind blowing!! As a relatively new mother, that is life changing to know that I can effect how my child will look by what I feed him.

I especially see the results of physical degeneration in the faces and teeth of my son's generation. Interestingly enough, I rarely see it in my parent's generation! (Both my parents were raised on cod liver oil btw.) This alone has been fascinating to consider and it spurred me on to learn more about how proper nutrition effects our bone structure and our health.

With respect to myself, this book inspired me to get tested for vitamin D deficiency, and supplement with cod liver oil. Learning how much vit. D can effect your immune system and breast cancer risk is only secondary to how good I feel... much less fatigued, happier and more resilient on this diet. I used to be a healthy vegetarian eater, but a traditional diet based on WAPF principles is hands down much better for me.

Viva Healthy Animal Fat!
(grass fed or wild)

I purchased this book as a gift for my friend.
It was shipped promptly, and I was able to give it to her as I intended.
The book provides a signficant amount of useful information regarding the impact of eating habits, the impact of food processing relevant to what is eaten, and the impact upon the human body that is incurred as a result of eating various processed and unprocessed foods. Although the author is a dentist and much of the perspective of the book provides information regarding how components of the mouth are affected, there is a great deal of information provided regarding foods, nutrition, and patterns.

This is the very most valuable book about nutrition that you will ever read. The pictures alone will cause you to decide to change your diet. Everyone, EVERYONE should read this book.

This book, although written in the early 20th century contains some of the most important health information ever recorded. Dr. Price was a pioneer in determining the relationship between nutrition and degenerative diseases. It is my opinion that all healthcare practicioners (traditional and alternative) should be required to read this text before graduation. I believe that it is that important to understand the implications of living in an industrialized nation...and of course what can be done about it.

Weston Price didn't write this book sitting behind a desk or doing research in a library. He also wasn't trying to reinvent the wheel in a laboratory. He went out and spent significant time in the field and saw with his own eyes the effects of the traditional and modern diet within members of the same families. This research was done in the 1920/30's, just when the traditional culture's were in their last thros of survival, if he had waited another 10/20 years he probably wouldn't have been able to make the comparisons. Today people try to make comparisons but at this point almost all the oceans are polluted and nearly all the soils are depleted and most of the water is tainted and most importantly, the western diet has overrun the globe with all it's pseudo science and mass marketing campaigns... you travel to the most remote corner of the globe and there's a native drinking coca-cola and eating wonder bread with powdered milk. lot's of critics say his research is outdated but this is sour grapes. The medical/chemical/pharmaceutical industry cannot make money on preventative medicine in the form of raw high-vitamin butter, cod liver oil, fermented grains, and seaweed. So, it's no wonder that all the Price research got swept under the rug. It's amazing this book is still in print.

Great book...good quality...arrived in record time. I will highly recommend ordering this book for a Christmas present for any age.

This story will rank among my all time favorite Christmas stories! It is heartwarming and humorous, and conveys the true spirit of Christmas!

This book is a GREAT human interest story that uses a man's skill-carving, with a family need for a nativity. In the process of carving the characters and the friendliness of a woman and her son, Jonathan changes from a bitter, lonely man to a believer.

Each year I buy myself a new Christmas book, looking for something unique..Just ran up on this book at a company book sale and stood in awe as I read the story. I knew this was "the one" for this year. Not only is the story heartwarming but the illustrations are perfect. My children are grown as well as my granddaughters and I plan to buy copies for all of them.

A friend and I are often comparing notes on wonderful new and old books and stories for children (and adults), especially at Christmastime. When I saw this book, I knew it would fill the bill as a perfect gift to her to add to her wonderful collection of children's books. I was right--she loved it. I'd never heard of this story before, but, in my opinion, it should be much better known and read. It's so sweet. I'm certainly sharing it. It's perfect for reading aloud. Again, a real good experience with you folks.

Very good book on the true management skills required by any and every manager. Drucker clearly points out that not all great managers were created the same....but most share certain traits. An excellent, must read for any and all managers everywhere!

Excellent advice from a incredible coach. From time management to management contribution this book offers what you need to achieve management positions. A must.

Peter Drucker was such a prolific and important writer, thinker, researcher, teacher, and philosopher! Although he is best known a the father of modern management theory, I find that his ideas are applicable to a wide variety of positions and enterprises.

The Effective Executive, like most of his works, is written with the assumption that the reader is part of an institution and needs to learn to function within the challenges of the corporate environment. I have never had a traditional job or position in a large institution, but can totally relate to the challenges of what Drucker refers to as executives and knowledge workers.

As a professional musician and holistic music teacher ([...]), I have worked to integrate the creative, intuitive sides of human nature with the organizational, rational aspects, both for myself and my clients.

Like many artists, I was never taught the principals of management and have had to adapt and educate myself along the way. I owe a lot to Peter Drucker for helping me make sense of the nature of effectiveness and management.

Drucker's wisdom transcends culture and industry. Just the acknowledgement that effectiveness is a skill in-and-of-itself, apart from intelligence, talent, charisma, or creativity, is a powerful distinction. His encouragement that it can be (and must be) learned is a relief!

His 5 basic practices for effective executives are invaluable insights. Here they are, paraphrased:

1) Be aware of and manage your time
2) Focus on results, not efforts
3) Play to and develop strengths, not weaknesses (yours and others')
4) Concentrate and align your actions and your purpose
5) Learn to make good decisions

The examples in the book are a bit old-school, but the principles still hold true. Thank you, Peter, for putting into words what so many of us were never taught at home or in school!

In the spring of 1980, I spent a full day with Peter Drucker.
He then made a full-day presentation at the University of
Southern California in Los Angeles. I made sure to arrive early
so I could sit front row, center. I spent a stimulating day
listening and watching as "the master" spoke on the subject of
managerial effectiveness.

Drucker, a true renaissance man, supported his points with
examples from the worlds of business, government, sports, music
and war.

In "The Effective Executive," Drucker likewise draws on his broad
knowledge. He writes that, to be effective, an executive (whom he
defines as any knowledge worker responsible for making decisions) must master five specific skills...

-- Managing time
-- Choosing what to contribute
-- Mobilizing strength
-- Setting the right priorities
-- Making the right decisions

About managing time, Drucker offers that the effective executive
eliminates time-wasting activities and consolidates time spent on
important projects.

On choosing what to contribute to the organization, he tells that
the effective executive asks "What can I contribute to
significantly affect the performance and results of this
organization"? And he stays focused on results rather than on
efforts.

Regarding the subject of mobilizing strength, Drucker councils
executives to hire and manage people with an emphasis on their
strengths rather than concern about their weaknesses. And
he advises executives to discover and mobilize their own
individual working style.

About setting the right priorities, he offers two important
thoughts. First, "It is more important to convert an opportunity
into results than to solve a problem -- which only restores the
equilibrium of yesterday." And second, "Concentration -- that is,
the courage to impose on time and events his own decision as to
what really matters and comes first -- is the executive's only
hope of becoming the master of time and events instead of their
whipping boy."

On making decisions, he advises stimulating disagreement among the
management team. For disagreement brings consideration of alternatives, in turn, brings understanding. He also reminds us that a decision isn't complete until it becomes a detailed work assignment. Until then, it is merely a good intention.

As with each of Drucker's books, "The Effective Executive" is
loaded with quotable "Druckerisms." For example...

-- "The truly important events on the outside are not the trends.
They are changes in the trends."

-- "He [the effective executive] always assumes that the event
that clamors for his attention is in reality a symptom. He looks
for the true problem. He is not content with doctoring the
symptom alone."

-- "One of the most obvious facts of social and political life is
the longevity of the temporary."

Upon finishing writing my own book, "Strategic Thinking: A Four
Piece Puzzle," I wrote to Peter Drucker asking if he'd write an
endorsement for the book. Sure, I knew it was a long shot, but
what could I lose except a postage stamp?

Sure enough, he turned me down. He mailed back my letter on
which he had scrawled four words, "I don't do that."

I've kept that letter. For two reasons... Not only is it the shortest rejection letter I've ever received, but, more importantly, it's a personal note from the master himself -- Peter Drucker.

Peter Drucker wrote this book back in 1966 and it is as pertinent today as it was then. It concentrates on a small number of practices to help executives manage themselves - a precursor to managing others. Drucker makes the point that, "No one is born an effective executive. No one is a natural... It must be learned...In addition, it is not exceedingly difficult." That's welcome news for all of us. We simply need to follow the practices outlined in this book.

The book is meant for a wide audience as Drucker's definition of the executive is broad - "Anyone that is responsible for a contribution that materially affects the capacity of the organization to perform and to obtain results."

The first step on the journey is to "know thy time." Too many managers have no idea where they spend there time. Drucker recommends managers start by recording their time to discover where it is being spent. Once identified, they need to stop wasting time on things that are not important and then work to consolidate freed time into chunks. Significant blocks of time of 2 hours or so are needed to complete important things.

Next executives must ask of themselves, "What can I contribute that will significantly affect the performance and results of the organization." This helps the manager look outward and to identify and prioritize those tasks that are most important to complete.

Then the managers should do the first things first and do them one at a time. "The secret of those people who do so many things and apparently so many difficult things is that they do only one thing at a time. As a result, they need much less time in the end than the rest of us."

Finally, Drucker outlines how to make effective decisions. He craftily breaks down the elements of the decision process and explains how managers can improve in this discipline.

The book is filled with examples and supporting information. Drucker writes in a refreshingly honest and straightforward style. Many refer to this book as a classic. It is worthy of the designation. So much of what is written today is borrowed from Drucker. Managers can not go wrong adding this one to their arsenal of tools.

-- Nick McCormick - Author, Lead Well and Prosper: 15 Successful Strategies for Becoming a Good Manager