Portland State University Books

This was a very professionally written account of the lives of 15 very diverse people who also happen to be professional lacrosse players. The book really makes you view these athletes as interested in their sport, valued members of their community, and very different from the multi-million dollar primma donnas who play other professional sports. I definitely recommend this book.

After the Duke Lacrosse scandal, it was refreshing to see an upbeat well-written book about lacrosse. These players truly honor their sport, and make the casual observer want to learn more. The stories were interesting, and it was a good overview of the NLL, and the players who make the league work. I really enjoyed it, and hope to see more books like it.

This book was interesting, insightful, and sometimes even funny when explaining the lives of 15 "ordinary" people who have jobs, wives, kids, and play professional lacrosse on the weekends. It makes you realize how different pro lacrosse is from other pro sports. (And I mean that in a good way.) The writing was clear and engaging, and I thoroughly enjoyed the book.

It was great to finally read a good book on professional lacrosse. The writing was interesting and insightful, and provided a good mix of lacrosse history combined with people who play the game. I would definitely recommend this book for the lacrosse fanatic, or even the casual observer. I enjoyed it!

This book is filled with stories of professional lacrosse players. The players are atypical from other professional sports players, who are often filled with self-admiration and greed. Yet, they are not exactly everyday people either. The players do have full time jobs and families, but many of them are in noble fields such as teaching, law enforcement, the armed forces, fire fighting... Of course, it takes a noble character to be devoted to such an underpaid and under-appreciated sport. The players sacrifice their bodies, time, and some family commitments for the love of their sport. The writing is clever, and the author gives good insight about the players' individuality, achievements, reminiscences, and dedication.

Proven Strategies Professional Use to Make Their Proposals Work is the rare book that delivers what it promises. It looks under the hood and tweaks the writing process in an insightful and cogent way. From developing a strategic approach, to researching to establish need, to using logic models to develop your grant application, to thinking through your evaluation plan, and using your budget to tell your story -- all the grant development building blocks are here in useful detail. Michael Wells has gifted the reader with street smarts and soul. My two thumbs are way up!

It is rare to find a book directed towards the experienced professional. The logic model section is especially helpful for planning more complicated applications including those to federal agencies. I found the information thorough, well presented, and usable, which is refreshing in a book about writing grant applications. I also found the case study exceptional. Seeing a winning proposal is always helpful but seeing the thought process behind the writing is a great way to get the point across. No matter how long you have been writing grant proposals, you can always learn more. This book gives excellent insight into today's funding world.

Michael Well's book is an excellent resource for grant professionals who have moved beyond the basics and are interested in expanding their knowledge and professional skills.

Michael has been actively involved as a leader in the developing grants profession, and his many years of professionalism and experience are evident in this work. He covers a wide range of topics that are faced when developing grant proposals, as well as managing and tracking grants. Further, he offers excellent real-life examples and samples.

I especially found the section on developing logic models to be useful. This is an area of grant proposals that many grantwriters handle poorly, and Michael has provided clear guidance and excellent examples that will help developing grant professionals take their work to the next level.

I would definitely recommend it to grant professionals interested in moving behind "Grantsmanship 101."

Although the title says that this book is to cover "Beyond the Basics," it will also serve as a good primer checklist to tell you what you need to get started. It begins with a general discussion on the rising number of nonprofits that are seeking grants from the rising number of granting organizations.

From there it goes into what it takes to make your grant fit what the grantor is looking for. It lightly covers each point of grant seeking including mundane things like accounting/budgets and the impact of various laws and IRS rulings like Sarbanes-Oxley. It also goes into what the reader is going to be looking for such as how the grant will be managed, why the foundation doesn't like to fund adminstration, operating costs and endowments, and other points.

Perhaps the most important part of the book is its discussion of where to go for more information on nearly every aspect of the grantwriting project. Many of these are web related at no cost, others such as the authors favorite books on grant writing have fairly nominal costs.

Should you actually wish to drive down either Westmoreland or Portland Places, expect an unnessecarily rude treatment from what must be the local rent-a-cop. It matters not the price of your car or attire- you might get (as I did) threatened to be "thrown in jail for trespassing", and lectured as if you were an idiot. Other students of architecture beware. It happened to me, and judging by the character of the "gentleman" in question, I'm just glad I'm not black. I escaped without kissing the hood of my car.

I love this book. It has tons of beautiful exterior photos but I would like to see more historical photos and more interior shots. I would also love to see more recounts by the people who lived there. There are a few stories and I read them over and over. I'd really like to give this book a four and a half but that's not an option.

Congratulations to all that contributed to this outstanding book. The history of the Places was carefully and completely researched and presented with beautiful photographs.

I have not yet seen this particular book, yet I give this man's work the deserved stars above from what I have seen about and around. He brought to me the same feelings that Abdul Mati Klarwein's work did when I first saw it. This man and Walton Ford are sending a message in different ways yet show us our fallible nature and perhaps prophecy some things to come. A good night would involve reading D. Quinn's Ishmael and perusing Rockman's images...

My Aunt was born and raised in Illasco Missouri where the book takes place. Her Father worked for the cement company in the book. I gave it to her for mothers day it brought tears to her eyes as well as many happy memories.

Salmon Chase is a most complex man and the age in which he lived his adult life is fascinating to anyone interested in U. S. History. Many historians have given us biographies of S. P. Chase, the editor Dr. Niven's being one of the best, but however good they are cursed with the author's inability to overcome his humanity and predjudices. It is forthis reason the collected works of an historic figure are so important. Chase led an active life as governor of Ohio, defender at the bar of abolitionists, anti-slavery senator with his congressional colleague Joshua Giddings, as Lincoln's Secy. of the Treasury, as intriguer in the war in Texas, and finally as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court upon the death of Taney (a break for which Lincoln had waited some time). To put preasure on Lincoln Chase offered his resignation as Secy. of the Treasury, Lincoln refused but kept the resignation letter and used it when the position of Supreme Court Chief Justice bacame available thus getting Chase out of the way and not offending radical republicans.

For a better understanding of the man and his tumultuous times I highluy recommend all the volumes of the Salmon P. Chase Papers.

Michael K. Wells has performed a hat trick for novice and professional grant writers alike. Books 1 and 2 covered all you needed to know so that with diligence you could advance your practice -- to a point.

Successful Program Evaluation propels the reader/writer through the arduous, yet necessary, sub-specialty in the grant writer's skill set of evaluation theory and practice.

For those, like myself, who put off statistical analysis to the last possible moment of my graduate program, the book comes as a revelation. Succinct clarity!

It will come as no surprise that Michael has written grants that have brought clients more than $50 million in program funds. This book is priceless!

Kent Layden, Principal
Second Wind Consulting, LLC

We have been using this series for years. My son has a lot of trouble writing, and it is very handy to have the arrows and dots to guide him on the direction and placing of his pencil. Both of my kids seem to enjoy it. The one with trouble wit handwriting is repeating Book C and it's coming along well (it is the last book before you really get into cursive. My other son is sailing with book E now and has a beautiful handwriting.

MY homeschooled DS10 HATED handwriting. He couldn't write legibly, and couldn't get his thoughts down as fast as he wanted. We were both horribly frustrated. Finally, I got a recommendation for these workbooks, and all I can say is WOW. Even their beginner books are not 'baby-ish' in any way. My son was quite comfortable using these books, and the improvement in his handwriting is remarkable. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Sarah Philips undertook this research in Portland, during the mid-1990s. She puts in print words of art models themselves, which surprisingly hadn't happened much before. In the book we can read four more or less extended interviews with models, but dozens of conversations took place. Philips relates the models' words with interesting theoretical issues. It's a very enlightening book, since we come to know a very ignored and undervalued occupation. The book raises questions such as:

Why are there more female than male art models?
Is the myth that a model is an artist's mistress true?
Is a model the same as a stripper?
Does modeling objectify or degrade the person (usually the woman), as some feminists say?
Why would nudity be empowering and boost the model's self-confidence?
Why would someone do this job, normally part-time, since they could earn more money elsewhere? (In Portland, in the 1990s, they earned from $8.50 to $10 an hour.)
Is modeling always passive?
Why do most models underrate photography as "less artistic" than drawing, for instance?
What's the role of pornography, especially on the internet, when handling photos of artistic nudity?
What specific boundaries exist in personal space, verbal contact or eye contact when posing?
What's the difference between a "sublimely" sensual pose and a blunt sex pose?
How do models handle cold, and physical stressful or painful poses?
How do models deal with erections and menstruation?

There are no definite answers, but the discussion is really fascinating. Not all models agree upon all issues, and age and gender usually influence the answers.

I think the core of the whole question is the fact that in art modeling there are new rules, for our everyday regulations are upside down: a person doesn't hide his/her nakedness, and the others ARE supposed to observe it. The boundary is the motto "nothing unusual is happening". Don't behave as if this situation is abnormal, surprising, sexually arousing or deserving lewd peeking. It's just natural for professional artists and models to work with nudity, which can make many newcomers and art students blush.

Nudity in art is not for a particular physical aesthetics that discriminates all other bodies. It's not for sexuality, either. It's rather a celebration of the natural, general beauty of every human body, no matter its shape, color, size or other specific characteristics.

I am a painter myself, and I always work with the female nude. I can say that I am grateful to my models for their good work and professionalism. They are the body of my art, and they inspire its soul. As the model "Michael" says in the book: "If it wasn't for us, we wouldn't have a lot of the greatest works of art." For all the curious, and all of us artists who work with models, this book is necessary to understand, not stigmatize this indispensable job, in the models' own words.