Phillips Books

At a time when biplanes ruled the roost, Clyde Cessna "clung firmly to the concept that one wing was better than two."(34) The full cantilever wing was a significant improvement aerodynamically as well as aesthetically and became a Cessna tradition. But Cessna's production runs do not demonstrate that mass appeal was achieved. For example of the 1928 Model AA and AW series, no more than 65 units were built at a cost of approximately $6-7,000 each. From 1935-1938 only 104 of the C-34, C-37, and C-38 series were manufactured priced at between $5-7,000. The deepening depression was a reason for so few aircraft being produced; indeed the Cessna factory was closed from 1931 until 1933.

After WWII the government approved educational programs, including flight training, for returning veterans eager to get on with their lives. The post-WWII era was expected to usher in the "air age" and the Cessna 120 and 140 models were small two place monoplanes designed to serve as trainers. They incorporated new features and were reasonably priced. "Announced in the spring of 1946, the 140 represented a real value at only $3,385, equipped with a complete electrical system, manually-operated wing flaps, deluxe upholstery and rear and quarter windows. The wing incorporated aluminum spars and stamped aluminum ribs, greatly reducing both time and labor for these components."(127)

To meet demand a record number of general aviation aircraft were produced. From 1945 until 1956 a nearly 14,000 Cessna 120/140s, 170s, and 190/195s were built. These numbers are impressive but hardly represent mass appeal. Veterans, it turns out, settled down to raise families, complete their educations, and buy new cars and houses, not airplanes. Cessna's experience was not unique, but the company managed to survive. Many others did not.

Reviewed by Beverly Pechin for Reader Views (5/06)

Dr. Eaglin approaches the idea of teaching so that 'no child is left behind' in a way that I've never heard, or even thought of. He brings ideas and facts to the table to make one, especially one in a teaching profession, take a second look not only at how the system works but how they, as teachers, think and perform. His ideas, while not always main stream, definitely make one take a second look.

He brings to light that the reason for the drastic changes in the teaching system of the United States is because so many of the African-American and non-white children seem to have gotten lost in the system; the changes and theories proposed to change this problem simply don't add up. He brings to light that the average teacher is a male, European-American (white), educated person. The average teacher therefore has no clue what the non-white students truly need or think as he's given a very biased training that has been accepted and even applauded for too many years.

Dr. Eaglin doesn't scream racism. He doesn't cry poverty for the African-American child. He does, however, cry inaccuracy. He feels that most teachers aren't presented with a truthful approach of what the average black child needs to learn. They're taught that "all children are alike", look at them through non-colored glasses because everyone's the same. The harsh reality is, they are NOT all the same. They all have differences and instead of combining all the differences into one lump, educators should learn how to teach WITH these differences instead of against. He takes one teacher, Carl, and not only retrains him to think differently than originally taught (proving old dogs can learn new tricks) but actually watches as Carl not only change his methods of teaching but find enjoyment in seeing kids he would have otherwise cast aside as 'not interested' and somewhat 'unteachable,' becoming enthusiastic and motivated about learning.

In particular the science field is where many non-white children seem to be left behind. Dr. Eaglin's theory on why they are left behind is simple yet something most would not even think of. Most people think African-American can't learn because of their circumstances, whether that be poverty, lack of a good home life or lack of an educated parent. Almost as if we just simply expect the child, because of his color, to be less of a person. We accept, as teachers, that the black kid is going to learn slower. We expect less of them, simply based on what we were taught. One instance that stands out to me when I read this book is the comment made by one teacher to her teaching assistant that there are two groups of black children. She will find that there are the 'white-blacks' and the 'black-blacks', meaning that some act just like the white kids and come from middle class to wealthy families while others are basically unable to perform up to those 'white kids' standards. While most would look at this comment as not only very racist but very biased and inappropriate, it was completely accepted amongst her peers as she spoke the words in a teacher's lounge. It was an accepted thought... not that the black kids were 'less' but basically, they were expected to perform at a lesser level based simply on their 'blackness'.

Dr. Eaglin provides not only insight as to the problems of many of the teaching standards and ways of thought but helps to show that if we begin to EXPECT more and challenge ALL students more, in particular the African-American students, we will get better results. If they're expected to perform very little and learn only minimum amounts, that's what they will give us.

"Changing Expectations so that No Child Will Be Left Behind" is enlightening and informative. Any teacher, whether old or new, would not only fare well from reading Eaglin's theories and techniques but would end up realizing that while they may truly think we live in a colorless world when it comes to schools and teaching, we simply do not. There ARE differences and we need to not only encompass these differences by making the information we provide to our students something that ALL would learn from but acknowledge these differences and show how they can still be used in a positive way.

A favorite concept I enjoyed was an instance where another instructor was approached and asked, why do you focus on plants in this science class that most kids and in particular most all of these black kids would never even remotely see, let alone care about? Why, instead, do you not offer that everyone bring a plant in from their neighborhood to study and learn about. You will not only encompass a difference amongst the group of students but will keep everyone's attention as it pertains to not only finding out something new for the kids not of this ethnic background but learning about something FROM these different ethnic backgrounds. Think about it, a Russian immigrant is not going to grow the same flowers and edible plants and produce in their gardens as a white Anglo-Saxon or an African-American. Some may not have gardens but only weeds around but have not clue about those weeds. What Dr. Eaglin promotes is not only acknowledging these differences in life style due to ethnic background but encompassing them so ALL of the children in the class can learn.

I applaud the author for not only giving a very comprehensive view of the teaching world today but giving answers as to how to actually, truly create a "No Child Left Behind" atmosphere that can thrive.

Borrowing a phrase from Charles Dickens, for those involved in enterprise learning initiatives, these are "the best of times, the worst if times." Never before throughout human history has there been more and better information available than there is now, nor has it been easier to obtain or disseminate it. However, information needs are constantly and rapidly changing, especially in what has become (in Thomas Friedman's apt phrase) a "flat world," one without borders. Moreover, many executives have developed what Jeffrey Pfeffer and Robert I. Sutton so aptly characterize as a "knowing-doing gap." As a result, chief learning officers (CLOs) or their equivalent have an abundance of opportunities but they also face a number of significant challenges. In this volume, Tamar Elkeles and Jack Phillips provide information and counsel that suggest how to drive value within a changing organization through learning and development. They take various challenges into full account while responding to key questions such as these, devoting a separate chapter to each:

1. Insofar as the CLO is concerned, what are the most significant trends and issues?
2. How to devise a program that links strategy to learning?
3. How to set an appropriate investment level?
4. How to align the learning enterprise with business needs?
5. How to complete a transition to performance improvement?
6. How to create value-based delivery?
7. How to manage for value?
8. How to demonstrate and quantify the ROI of learning?
9. How to manage talent for value?
10. How to establish and then sustain productive management relationships?

Then in the final chapter, "The Voices of CLOs," Elkeles and Phillips include brief but insightful commentaries by 17 prominent chief learning officers, excerpted from interviews of them by Elkeles. (I wish it were possible to read each interview in its entirety.) "They are exceptional at what they do, well-known, and highly respected for their views. More importantly, they offer realistic perspectives about how the CLO function in the organization is managed. To varying degrees, the interviewees comment on some aspect of nine issues (listed on Page 287) that represent the focus of this book.

Readers will especially appreciate Elkeles and Phillips' skillful use of various reader-friendly devices, notably the provision of Figures (e.g. Figure 1-1, "CLO Roles to meet business challenges," Page 3), Tables (e.g. Table 3-2, "Turnover Cost Categories," on Page 62 and Table 5-4, "Core Competencies Associated with Performance Improvement Work," on Page 120), dozens of boxed quotations inserted throughout the narrative that are relevant to the given context, a "Final Thoughts" section at the conclusion of most chapters, and dozens of Checklists (e.g. "Steps for Needs Assessment and Analysis" on Page 98 and "Benefits of Management Involvement" on Page 276). These and other devices will facilitate, indeed accelerate a review of key points long after the book has been read.

Although this book was primarily written for chief learning officers (with or without a formal title), I think it is also a "must read" for other C-level executives and especially for board members and CEOs. I agree with Peter Drucker that everyone involved in an organization (whatever its size or nature may be) must be knowledge workers. Only then can effective leadership be developed at all levels and in all areas, thereby ensuring that the organization can achieve and then sustain a competitive advantage. The combined costs of failing to do that are incalculable. Hence my selection of Derek Bok's comment to serve as the title of this review.

Congratulations to Tamar Elkeles and Jack Phillips on a brilliant achievement.

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out Jay Cross's Informal Learning: Rediscovering the Natural Pathways That Inspire Innovation and Performance as well as Return on Learning: Training for High Performance at Accenture co-authored by Donald Vanthournout and his associates on Accenture's Capability Development team. Also Edward Lawler's Talent: Making People Your Competitive Advantage, Also, John Hager and Paul Halliday's Recovering Informal Learning: Wisdom, Judgement and Community, Dean Spitzer's Transforming Performance Measurement: Rethinking the Way We Measure and Drive Organizational Success, and Enterprise Architecture as Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution co-authored by Jeanne W. Ross, Peter Weill, and David Robertson.

John Phillips has done extensive, thorough research and presents a game-by-game, play-by-play summary of the Cleveland Spiders during 1897. That was the year a talented rookie named Louis Sockalexis came up from Notre Dame and electrified the baseball world with his speedy running, hot hitting, and spectacular plays in the outfield. A Penobscot Indian from Maine, Sockalexis attracted both admiration and derision from the crowds and sportswriters, who soon began calling the whole team the "Indians."

Phillips also details the fine work of the other Spiders-future Hall-of-Famers Cy Young and Jesse Burkett, Bobby Wallace, Ed McKean, and of course their colorful manager, Oliver "Patsy" Tebeau.

I recommend this book for any serious reader of baseball. (Copies can be found on EBay.)

It is 1974, and Ines has just turned thirteen. Her family, wealthy Portuguese colonialists in Mozambique, celebrate her birthday on their private island. The revolution, they believe, is still far away in the bush.

Within hours, all this will change, violently. With shocking yet poetic economy of language, Anthony Fleischer narrates Inesý tragedies and successes amidst the chaos and cruelty of war, in a compact novel you will not want to put down.

As Ines struggles to recover, survive, and literally come to life, we learn the horror and futility of a nationýs struggle to break down colonialism. The ýnew orderý is only a new elitism: it brings a complete breakdown that leaves the people starving amidst civil war. The mindless barbarity of the African soldiers is balanced by the selfless love and dedication of the Africans who surround and protect Ines.

Fleischer captures our imagination in this gripping, fast-paced adventure. He writes with understatement and rich irony. His portrayal of Ines is stunning in its empathy for her as a woman. As she reels from catastrophes and retreats to the brink of insanity, she comes to terms with her destiny. She resolves her once-unquestioned Catholicism with the spiritual beliefs of the Africans around her. Through her and her beloved Pedro, we learn of these beliefs and of the people indigenous to this splendid region. Then, we witness a rite of the Zulus of mystical Maputaland, further enriching our experience of Africa and bringing this beautiful book to a memorable close.

Fleischer is a South African who knows the people and places he describes. Adamastor is the god of storms: his "children" are fictional, but the world of their tempests, so accurately detailed yet so remote from our own, is entirely real. Real also is the utter humanity of his characters.

The chocolate cake is an desert and celebratory icon. Chocolate Cakes: 20 Fabulously Indulgent Cakes by British confectionary expert Tom Philips showcases twenty superb chocolate cakes, each of which would make any special occasion truly memorable. After providing basic introduction information on chocolate, techniques of cake baking, cakes and sponges, fillings, coverings, and equipment, the fully illustrated, "kitchen cook friendly" recipes follow. The selected cakes comprising this outstanding and highly recommended compendium of specialized recipes includes: Praline Chequerboard Torte; Hedgehog; Chocolate Flower; Choc Cherry Fondant; Square Box of Chocolates; Ultimate Chocolate Truffle Cake; Chocolate Panel Cake; Bitter Fruity Ganache Cake; Round Chocolate Box; Valentine's Love Heart; Vertical Layer Torte; Yle Log; Christmas Tree; Floral Trail; White Wedding Dream; Fairy Cake Tower; Chocolate Croquembouche; Forever Frills; Easter Basket; and Tower of Flowers. Enhanced with templates, a list of suppliers, and an index, Chocolate Cakes is an elegant, mouth-watering, palate pleasing collection of truly tempting confections.

This is one of those books that never stays on the shelf. In fact, it is almost always lent out. Which is why I bought this copy. My husband already owned a copy, but we wanted a second one so we could always have one on hand. It is a collection of spiritual readings from many sources. Selections include Socrates, Jung, Freud, Jesus Christ, Saint Francis of Assissi... The selections all have one thing in common, a search for Spiritual Truth.

Phillips has done an amazing job with this exposition of Ephesians 1. He works through the sometimes difficult yet obvious Biblical doctrines of election and predestination, showing how God works out everything according to the purpose of His will--for the sake of love! Phillips draws upon the Bible and historical context to show the extreme love of God for His adopted children and the blessed assurance of our eternal security. It really made Romans 8:28ff stand out in a new light for me. He also aims to show how this epistle of Paul's depicts who a "true Christian" is. I really think Phillips does an excellent job of blending scholarship and theology with clear communication and meaningful application--his years as a pastor aid this, no doubt. In all, it is an excellent resource that anyone wrestling with "Calvinism" (i.e. what the Bible teaches) or who is studying Ephesians should read--to the praise of God's glorious grace!

I am just starting out in Chow Chows and am building a library. I am interested in the Smooth coat variety and this book has some helpful research material.

The author is very knowledgable and the book is a quick read, but a good reference non the less.

This book matches the levels of Hal Leonard's Adult Piano Method Book 1, but can be used along with any piano method. The songs are progressively more difficult throughout the book, but don't go beyond the 'low D to high D' note range. It comes with a CD or MIDI disk, offering a full accompaniment if you don't have someone to play with you. But all the pieces can be played as solos. Standards like 'Ukranian Bell Carol,' 'Silent Night,' and 'Deck the Hall' will get you in the Christmas spirit!