Walsh Books

Book came ahead of scheduale, I believe 2 or 3 days after I ordered it, which was great!

Not the best book on the market, but has a comprehensive review of the essential theories and interventions.

Everything was satisfactory. I recieved the book on time and it hsa been very helpful.

This book is all about facing risks as individuals- which is fine, but it also makes sweeping political judgments based on the assesments. On the section about banning the use of Alar on apples and the politics behind it, he writes- "instead of NRC's estimated cancer risk of 1,462 deaths per million from pesticides on apples, the researchers found only 0.07 per million." Well, that may sound like decent odds for me when deciding to eat an apple, but is it really acceptable to for the unlucky person who does get cancer? The author points out several times that alar is not a pesticide, even while presenting numbers on the cancer risks of pesticides. Alar is a growth regulator,"so they are more colorful and crisp at harvest." I can understand the usefulness of some pesticides, but why should we accept ANY risks from a growth regulator? This isn't family values, or traditional values conservatism, but Dickensian, bean-counting, pure economic right-wing bias. I don't want bias from the left or right, or political interpretations, I just wanted straight facts. This book doesn't leave the findings to stand on their own. Are most popular books about risk assessment thinly disguised pro-corporate propaganda? I hope not.

Enhanced with an extended bibliography and an exhaustive index, True Odds: How Risk Affects Your Everyday Life by James Walsh is a very straightforward and practical look of the real odds that threaten people's lives or health. Rejecting anecdotal evidence and media scare tactics for solid, statistical, reliable information on what really are the greatest threats facing life in the modern world, True Odds comes very highly recommended for the non-specialist general reader as being a realistic source of information concerning everything from crime and accident rates to having sufficient money saved upon retirement.

Aims to discuss risks in everyday life at a level "between dense technical volumes
and daffy oversimplifications". Structured around 16 particular topics, from
concrete concerns of individuals (violent crime; cell phones and brain cancer; secondhand smoke) to more general topics (moral hazard of insurance; lotteries are a tax on the stupid). A main focus is on the interaction between scientific data, media reporting, legislation promoted by interest groups, and regulation by government agencies. By presenting these case studies from recent history (1975-1995), the author provides an insightful overview of the real-world interplay of the scientific, psychological and political aspects of dealing with risk. This book is implicitly a well-justified polemic in favor of rational quantatitive risk assessment and against the media scares, extremist environmental lawyers and inflexible "command and control" bureaucracy that waste billions of dollars whose diversion from more rational use causes unnecessary death and suffering.

Though serious, well researched and an engaging read, I do have some quibbles. The
lack of explicit citations makes it unhelpful as scholarship. By mixing several
styles (historical case studies, discussion of scientific methodology, polemic) the
book appears somewhat unfocused. And the unusual typography (a typical page has
seven two-sentence paragraphs separated by white space) reinforces the impression
that the author was assiduous in collecting information but put less effort into
organizing a coherent narrative. Finally, the subtitle is misleading: a reader
seeking a straightforward, detailed and explicit analysis of risks in everyday life
would be better served by Risk: A Practical Guide for Deciding What's Really Safe and What's Really Dangerous in the World Around You.

This book was an ok book, it took three evenings to finish. I thought the book was more about joy rather then JOY. By that I mean it was more about earthly things & relationships, ect. in life producing joy ~ I had hoped it would have been more about the JOY of the Lord. It is a good book for a brand new Christian or someone searching.

Sheila Walsh has done it again! I thought "Life is Tough but God is Faithful" was too wonderful to top, but "Bring Back the Joy" has possibly surpassed it and has truly shown me how to do JUST THAT! Her honest and real style allows the reader to relate to her in a way that she becomes like a dear friend. With this level of comfortability established, the reader is able to see clearly and learn how to dispel religeous myths, take inventory of personal and spiritual baggage, and apply God's truth, healing and love to their lives. By breaking the mold of the model Christian, Shiela has reinforced to me that: 1. God loves me for who I am, not what I do for Him. 2. It is okay to be "me". 3. Only through God's loving encouragement and my own acceptance of myself, can I be changed and strengthened to be the Christian woman that God desires me to be.

This book has miraculously enhanced my life A must read for all who have lost their zest for their faith and desire to "rekindle the joy in their relationship with God."

The poems are, as expected, very nice and clever,
but the description of the book promises "songs",
and I had hoped for some musical notation. Instead,
it's just straight text. You could sing it if you
wanted to, I guess, and if you already knew a song
with these lyrics, the book would be worthwhile, but
none of the songs I remember from my childhood were
included. I returned the book.

Maria Elena Walsh is one of the most talented writter, song-writter around. I grew up with her songs and stories in Argentina and wanted to pass this on to my children. Although her music is difficult to find in the US, this book contains pretty much all the lyrics, so to those of you who remember a tune or a verse, here are the actual words! Wonderful.

Gave me great ideas on involving families, setting up my classroom and setting developmental goals for children.

If you are looking for a cookbook of activity ideas, this is NOT the book for you! However, if you are looking for a good overview of appropriate practice with preschool children, this book does a valid job of covering the philosophy of early childhood education, setting developmental goals and the ages & stages between 3-5, involving families in the program, different areas of a classroom and how to put it all together.

Easy to read format, good examples & graphics, would be useful for staff inservice.

Reviewed by Neha Kashmiri (age 13) for Reader Views (8/08)

Twelve-year-old Maria Perez lives with her mother, Anita, in a poverty-stricken area in Monterrey, Mexico. Maria's father died when Maria was two leaving Anita to do everything she could to ensure their scarce survival. There aren't many jobs in the area and Maria and her mother have to walk more than three miles in the blistering heat to get jobs for the day. But even that is a fight and sometimes they aren't lucky.

When things start getting worse Maria's mother has to make a horrific choice. She chooses incorrectly, and Maria is left alone with nowhere to go and no one to turn to for help. Maria ends up in a girl's home, where she meets girls who had been in worse situations than her. Still, all alone, Maria has to learn to fend for herself and develops perseverance and courageousness in the hope of being reunited with her mother.

With their old life impossible to return to, what can they do now? How and where can they build another future? Could a better life be waiting across the border? Her honest, hard-working mother can't plan to go to the U.S. illegally, can she?

"The Crossing" by Taylor Joseph is a quiet, emotional story about a girl's determination to survive. The fact it was written by a 14-year-old girl in high school was impressive to me. The only two problems I had were that people were unnecessarily detailed and things were repeated. It's a story that hit close to home for me since I have had friends who ended up being deported back to Mexico. I recommend it to people concerned about the illegal immigration crisis.

The plight of a twelve-year-old Mexican girl and her mother is told in the debut novel of fifteen-year-old author Taylor Joseph. The Crossing takes an intimate look at poverty as a catalyst for desperate behavior. This story challenges perspectives on the issue of immigration with its human-focused view of illegal border crossings.

Maria Perez and her mother, Anita, live in a rural area of Monterrey, Mexico. The mother and daughter have existed in abject poverty since the death of Maria's father ten years ago. Anita works at a market a few miles away from their home, but makes very little money. She feeds her child mainly with the scrapes of food she is able to gather at the market. Maria assists her mother by getting work at a nearby farm during the summer and on weekends when school is in session. But the work is not consistent and goes quickly to any child who makes the three mile walk the earliest.

Food is scarce in the Perez house and when Anita is faced with losing their tiny home due to back taxes, she makes a decision that puts her family in jeopardy.

Joseph's story is quite impressive for such a young writer. The piece is highly descriptive, not only of the character's physical surroundings, but of Maria's inner struggles. While there is the occasional interchange of past and present verb tenses in the middle of a paragraph, this first effort is compelling. The reader gets an up close look at how poverty impacts a child's view of the world and herself. When Maria's mother breaks the law in an attempt to better their situation, Maria is sent to a group home. In the prayers and tears that pour from her body nightly, Maria juggles anger, fear, and longing. When she is reunited with her mother and the opportunity to cross the border into the United States arises, the pre-teen also wrestles with ethical issues that challenge her faith.

The Crossing will appeal to young and older adults. The story is honest and offers a view of poverty that many readers will have never been exposed to. There are lessons in this book that encompass love and desperation, hard work and unshakeable faith. I highly recommend it.

In this short excerpt, the writer has introduced the protagonist brilliantly. He's a teacher who hates grading papers, which makes him typical, and who talks to a mounted moose head in his office, which makes him different. Right away we are drawn into a drama when the father of a former student comes calling. The man is grief-stricken; his son is missing. The professor wastes no time getting out of the office, taking the student's father to his apartment to investigate his disappearance. The pace moves right along, bad guys pop into view, we grow suspicious of too-smooth characters, and the story's afoot. It's a great start to a mystery and I hope to get the opportunity to read more. I only gave the story four stars because of a couple of misused words and misplaced modifiers, but the story is solid and any flaws are fixable.

I enjoy mysterys - and I was sorry to see this one end without knowing what was going to happen. I could feel the father's pain and despair.
I was already looking for clues in the few pages written. I liked the simple dialogue and plot driven style.

Getting the claim paid is truly the most difficult part of the insurance transaction. But the insurance policy is a promise, isn't it? Why do the insurance companies make it so hard to get them to keep their promises? Simple...profits. The less you know, the more they make. This book is a good guide on getting claims paid. Read it!

As an overview it is interesting. It is difficult to distill a complex subject like insurance down to just a few pages - just as it would be to reduce the law and the knowledge of an attorney down to a few hundred pages. Many claim situations are unique and require specific details to analyze properly. While you might rely on general observations from this book, it was published in 1999 and insurance policy wording does change over time.

The author is not James Walsh, as indicated. The actual book shows, "...by the Silver Lake Editors." James Walsh is shown as the publisher.

My 4 year old has been asking about God, why he can't see him. This is a good book to peak his interest. We've read it several times since we received it.

My son loves this book. He is intrigued by stars and all things sky-related, anyway, and this book ties that in well with a simple teaching about how God never leaves us. The part about the toy being lost hits close to home, too, since my son knows what it's like to not be able to find his "stuffed friend!"

The only thing I wasn't crazy about is the strange bear-like character who actually tells the story. He is somewhat strange, and my son was a little bit turned off by him.

There is an updated version of this book available. This is more of a storybook with black and white illstrations inside. Much of the original story is the same. The new pictures are sweet and effectively depict the events of the book. Together they provide a glimpse inside the NICU that is informative and capture the gamut of emotions that siblings of premature babies experience.

This combination coloring book/ story book has been written for siblings of premature babies. Katie expresses her feelings of jealousy, sadness and concern after the birth of her premature brother, Christopher. Finally, Katie is invited to visit Christopher in the NICU and looks forward to his homecoming. Although slightly outdated this book does a nice job of addressing the feelings of siblings of premature babies. The illustrations are clear and simple for coloring by children of all ages.