Resources Books

There Is No Place Like Work...is an excellent tool for an organizational tune-up! My company's vision and mission are current and consistent, we are not looking to start over. But we have many entry level positions and a limited career ladder so we are constantly bringing new people into the organization. Using the tools that are provided in the book helped us to sharpen our presentations (tell our story)better, internally and to outside audiences. Additionally, we use the principals in our strategic leadership team as part of our planning process. This book is a winner!

Do you want to change careers? Do you want to start a business venture? Do you want to be crystal clear as to the direction you want to go with your business? Then might I suggest you read this book. While it is a metaphor to the wizard of oz, it is written beautifully so as to make you decide where you want to go with your business.
The information was just enough to get the wheels turning as to what is important and more importantly why?
I spent the day pondering the message in the book and created a business model that I am looking forward to implement tomorrow.

Good Luck to you.

As a "headhunter" of 15 years, I have been a consultant to companies who are trying to attract top talent to their organizations. I have also worked with top-notch candidates who are searching to associate themselves with companies who are the best in their fields. What I have found is, that, which most excites quality, talented, qualified individuals to a new employer, is the company's leadership, their purpose, their culture and their core values. After reading "There Is No Place Like Work", I concluded that this easy-to-read, easy-to-understand, easy-to-follow and easy-to-implement guide is a "must read" for every business owner, CEO, executive, manager and human resources professional. Kudos to Drs. Margolis and Wilensky for writing a handbook that can help businesses be the best that they can be.

Whether you're starting a brand new business or have been at the helm for 20 years, Ava and Sheila's 5 P's put workplace culture simply and concisely into perspective. From the first page to the last, you will find yourself fascinated by how easily their insights can be plugged right into your situation. This book will absolutely increase your bottom line!

Excellent Reading! I thoroughly enjoyed it and see how it can be beneficial!!!! I plan to put it to good use!!!

This book opens up your mind to how simple & yet how great God & His plan is. When we wonder why things aren't happening like in Jesus' day we just have to seek Him & when we really see & know Him everything else will fall into place. The writer teaches us to seek Him, not for the things that He can do but just because we don't really see & know Him. This book really helps you to see who God is through His son Jesus. When we truly have Him we have everything that we need.

We have been reading this book every night before going to sleep and it has been great. Being written decades ago, I am so surprised at how relevant this book is for today. One main point is that everything we "need" is found in Jesus alone. That is a very relevant message for my materialistic and over-prescribed life.

A friend gave me a copy in college and I devoured it immediately. I like to underline the more meaningful passages and I found I was underlining the entire book. Roy and Revel Hession go straight to the heart of what is means to follow Jesus and seeing Him as all we need, as the truth, as the door, as the way, as the end and for others. The Hessions write in a powerful style that few modern day authors can emulate. The 96 pages make for a powerful book in a small package.

Building on the themes of "Calvary Road," the Hessions still focus on the believer's bondage, and show how Christ has freed us of the yoke which is around our necks (soul and spirit). If you haven't read The Calvary Road, you can still gain a great deal from this little book, and possibly then you can read the original.

A good read!!!

When you are composing a "must-read" list of books, you should keep it rather short. There are many excellent books, but which ones _must_ be read? The Bible, for one. After that, "We Would See Jesus" rises rather close to the top.
Why?
Because it is short, yet dense. It is easily read, yet takes time to digest. And although you can read it in a Saturday, you will read it repeatedly to enjoy all that is contained in such a small book.
- soli Deo gloria -

I was a little disappointed in this book, I thought it was a list of things to do. It was more like vague suggestions with web sites to check out. Several of the web sites were no longer working. I didn't find a lot of new information that I have not already read about. This is more of a beginners guide for going green. I would have gotten a lot more out of it several years ago. So if you are just starting to find options for going green, this is a book for you.

Most people want to do whatever they can to make the world a better place and protect the Earth. For them, marching in demonstrations or engaging in direct action is not an option. What to do? In subjects ranging from Air to Water to Food to Global Warming, this book lists many web sites with more information to get the reader involved in protecting the environment.

Perhaps the reader just wants to find out what sort of recycling facilities are in their town. One of their first stops should be to www.earth911.org. To look for reusable or biodegradable diapers, visit www.organicbebe.com. The Wildlife Conservation Society (www.wcs.org) has a very distinguished record in conserving endangered species. For those who have compost heaps, Starbucks will give you their coffee grounds. Details are at www.starbucks.com/aboutus/compost, or talk to your local manager.

A handy wallet card on produce and pesticides called "The Shopper's Guide to Pesticides" (bring it with you when shopping) is available from www.foodnews.org. A good site on global warming is www.climatestar.org. The Busy Person's Guide to Greener Living can be found at www.greenmatters.com. Do you have stuff you no longer need that someone else may want? Before that trip to the landfill, visit www.freecycle.org. Adopt a lobster (and help ensure a continued supply of lobsters) at www.lobsters.org, the Lobster Conservancy.

This is a wonderful book. It's small (it really can fit in your back pocket), it's well laid out, and the reader can pick their level of involvement. It is very highly recommended. Saving the environment does not get much easier than this.

Whether you are young or old, rich or poor, environmentally challenged or conscious, teacher or student, computer savvy or not - you will like this book. It provides real-life resources and contacts, anecdotal examples and insight on how YOU, the reader, can easily help sustain Mother Earth. Great for students of all ages!

As is the list of environmental problems so overwhelming and the scale so global, so is the feeling that one person can't make a difference. And, even in the trying, the choices are so many and the information so contradictory, that it's hard to know where to start. Here, at last, is the logical successor to "50 Simple Things...," better, more evolved, and yet easier. A wealth of choices that can be tailored to match what you feel you CAN do now, what you MIGHT feel you can do later, and what you SHOULD be telling your friends-- in short, a compendium of answers on a scale that any of us can comprehend.

This little book is simply amazing! It is a wealth of information,contacts and web sites regarding the environment and ways we can do our part to help. It is like the spark of desire, that hopefully, ignites the fire of action, encouraging us to seek out and "embrace a more environmentally friendly lifestyle". It is witty, informative and easy to navigate. A perfect gift and an exceptional manual for a meaningful life.

Many workplaces seem quite safe. There are no open mine-shafts to fall into, no baths of sulfuric acid to spill, no explosives lying about ready to be ignited. And yet, according to professional safety consultants Dan Hopwood and Steve Thompson, every workplace needs a detailed, current and well-documented program to protect the health and safety of employees. While the hazards have changed, the risk of injury remains. Rather than spiraling down a mine-shaft, a worker might get a repetitive stress injury. Rather than spilling acid in the doughnuts, a worker might pull a muscle lifting a heavy box. Rather than dropping a cigarette onto some dynamite, a worker might inhale an irritant that causes a chronic lung condition. In each case, the results can include missed work, disrupted lives, insurance claims that increase your premiums and fines for regulatory violations. This brief book will help you avoid all that, whether you are just starting your safety program or re-engineering it. Many checklists and useful appendices nicely complement the text. We feel safe recommending this sensible guide.

Steve and Dan have written a concise book that outlines step-by-step what all new safety professionals need to know in order to create a positive safety culture within their organizations. The Appendix, References and Resources sections are the best I have ever seen. For any person given the responsibility of safety management and who want to "save lives, prevent injuries and illnesses and protect their companies from financial harm", this is the place to begin. Thank you Steve and Dan for this contribution to protect our workforce, and help to ensure that everyone has a chance to go home safe each night to their families.

Dan and Steve successfully put together not just a well-written book loaded with many outstanding hints and ideas, they also included so many practical tools that the small to medium sized business can begin using immediately to improve workplace safety. It should be a "must read" for any business if they are really serious about this often overlooked issue. If just some of the ideas suggested by Dan and Steve are implemented, it can have a dramatic impact not only on employee safety and morale, but bottom-line profits as well. Thanks Dan and Steve !!

Finally . . . a user-friendly, efficient, and effective risk managment and loss control tool for everyday business. Workplace Safety will actuall save lives, prevent injuries and illnesses, and help every reader to avoid the financial hardship and administrative nightmare associated with any injury. Thank you Steve and Dan for bringing safety out of the classroom and putting it on the front line where it belongs.

Steve and Dan have written a book that is a "must have" for those looking for a comprehensive but easy to follow resource around which to build an effective workplace safety program. It provides the perfect mix of well-thought-out strategy and practical tools to address illness and injury in the workplace. It is an easy read but it has the depth necessary to make a difference. I strongly recommend it to anyone interested in creating a safe working environment.

This book is a good book to read, just don't expect it to be a one-stop reading type book. It gives you some good basics, but it's definitely not for someone who is trying to run a HR dept without any knowledge, only using this book. It helps give you a clearer idea of what track you are on and it's good for someone in the company that wants a general overview of their small business HR dept. I would recommend this book for a quick good read, but you will still need to supplement with other reading materials or research.

This book is an excellent resource for any small business owner who must also deal with human resources issues.

From developing a personnel policy, to interviewing, hiring and retaining employees, to dealing with work/life balance issues, this book covers it all. Especially helpful are the real-life case studies in which actual business owners describe how the book assisted them in handling certain situations.

Another helpful feature is the glossary in the back of the book. It affords the opportunity for small business owners to quickly research a term instead of reading through the entire book to gather more information on a particular topic.

So, whether you need advice on employee benefits, privacy or communication, this book should prove a usual weapon in your arsenal of information.

Let's face it - who wants to spend time worrying about human resource issues when you have a business to run? The hiring, the firing, the laws . . . it gives me a headache just typing it! In our litigious society an employer has to think not just twice, but 3 or 4 times before making a statement, sending out a memo, or creating a new policy. This book goes a long way to taking the fear out of the personnel arena and giving the business owner the necessary tools to hire the best prospect and retain that employee.

Holihan begins with explaining what human resource management actually is and walks you through creating personnel policies and handbooks. Creating job descriptions, organizational charts, recruiting, interviewing, hiring, and training are all covered in detail with additional sources for more research provided. Then Holihan gets to the truly sticky issues: communicating with employees; evaluating and motivating performance; discrimination and fair treatment; and the ever-nasty discipline and termination procedures. Nobody wants to fire someone, it causes as much emotional stress for the owner as it does for the employee. Holihan takes the pain out of the act by stating in plain language what the costs are for NOT firing an employee for poor performance.

If you are a business-owner with 100 employees or less, this is the book for you. It is easy to read, the steps are clearly outlined and explained, and enough additional resources are provided that you should never want for employment information again!

Don't miss out on this invaluable resource! Whether a new business owner, or a veteran looking for a refresher course on workplace law, this book is for you.

So what if you're not a small business owner? This book is still a valuable resource. Learn tricks for being prepared for interviews: what questions will the employer ask? How can you read the interviewer's thoughts on your performance without slyly sneaking a peak at his/her notes? After you are employed, what are your rights as an employee? You have questions; here are the answers.

Holihan breaks this complicated subject down into easily digestible chapters, and her conversational writing style won't leave you scratching your head and reaching for the closest dictionary. "365 Answers" is written in easy-to-read large type, and, for those innately difficult to understand concepts, the book contains a useful glossary of terms. From the comprehensive, bulleted table of contents to the easy-to-use index, Holihan ensures that this resource is one you will come back to again and again for all of your business needs.

Learning about this facet of running a small business is of utmost importance. This book answers questions from all different facets of human resources from recruiting and hiring to labor relations and performance standards. It is laid out in an easy to read format with large type, which makes it easy to read and learn from. It is simple to find your answer due to the bulleted table of contents, which will save you time when you need an answer to a specific question.

Whether you are just beginning your business or have been in business for a while, you will find the information in here to be helpful to you and your business. The handy glossary in the back of this book will help you with some of the terms that are used in human resources. The index that is also in the back of the book will help you find the answers to your human resources questions. If you are a business owner, I recommend that you purchase this book, as it will become your human resource sourcebook.

It has been said there are three approaches to dealing with mistakes: Dumb people make mistakes and do not learn from their mistakes; smart people learn from their mistakes, and really smart people learn from the mistakes of others.

Dr. Deryl Leaming provides that third approach in a way. This is not to say he made mistakes in his many years as a college administrator, but his excellent book does provide the reader the opportunity to learn from his significant experience.

He has been there, done that, so to speak, when it comes to leadership in heading a program.

His latest work deals with all the key aspects of being a university department chairperson -- legal issues, faculty matters from hiring effective faculty to dealing with faculty problems, and student matters.

Through the tips in his book he provides experience-based advice that can be of significant benefit to the new or even veteran department head.
He has been a university professor, department chairperson, director of a school of journalism and dean of liberal arts. The reader of this second edition of his academic leadership book can learn from his experience to avoid mistakes in leading a department.

He covers a great deal of advice on procedures, including a number of forms that will be useful.

This second edition is a good read and provides practical advice, particularly for the new department chairperson.

REVIEWER: Ralph J. Turner, Ph.D., professor emeritus, Marshall University
lph J. Turner, Ph.D., professor emeritus, Marshall University

This second edition of Academic Leadership: A Practical Guide to Chairing the Department is an extraordinarily comprehensive treatment of ways to address the variety of challenges facing department chairpersons in institutions from all types and sectors of higher education. The author, Deryl Leaming, provides an inviting and accessible style of writing that joins abundant references from relevant authorities with occasional episodes from his personal experience of several decades as chair and dean at some four different institutions. The result is a preeminently practical primer that will give new department chairs a valuable roadmap to success in a notoriously difficult position. It is excellent reading for those contemplating serving as a department chairperson or other academic leader. The volume is so comprehensive that even experienced chairpersons will find the book to provide a helpful review of ways to meet their responsibilities and challenges.

This new volume is almost twice as long as its predecessor, offering an expanded treatment of issues raised in the first edition and reflecting more emphasis upon the complexities of today's financial realities. Major sections deal with common concerns about leadership, handling matters of department vision and management, addressing legal issues, contending with a large variety of faculty and student matters, as well as attending to one's own career. The 30 chapters are compact and quite accessible. All are useful and contain lists of web and print resources. I particularly appreciated the units on sexual harassment and the implications of the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as the one on dealing with chronic low achievers. Some 17 appendices provide helpful examples of different policy guidelines and methods of communication.

Anker Publishing has a large variety of often-expensive volumes for academic leaders. Some overlap and others lack originality or comprehensiveness. By contrast, this is a stand-out value that will set a standard for some time to come.

Dr. Leaming is truely a gifted writer and instructor. He has given more to his students than some are capable of comprehending. The books he has written and his experiences throughout his life make him a special gift to all who read his work or get to know him. He is an extremely precious gift to his students. He goes out of his way to encourage and teach his students. He makes sure his students are preparing for life within their current level,but more importantly,for their future endeavors. A gifted person who only wants to share what he knows in the hopes of helping others.

I wish the dean had given me this book a year ago. It would have made my life much easier. The book is easy to read and has solid ideas on how to be a more effective chairperson.

If only I could get some of the administrators of my university to read the book!

I am not only new to academic leadership, but I am new to this country. Deryl Leaming's book has served as an enlightening guide for me, and has helped me earn the assistance and respect of my faculty. This book is among the best investments I have made in my academic career. Thank you.

This book is clear, concise and easy to follow, whether you are starting from nothing or you are bringing your current policies and procedures up to standard. This book is the second book in the series and should be used with "Establishng a System of Policies and Procures". It takes you through the steps of bringing your policies and procedures into compliance and into the Process and Procedure Improvement Cycle, based on Deming's PCDA cycle. This is a must read for the procedures analyst and for the CEO who believe in continual improvement.

For optimal result buy the set of 4 books:
1. Establishing a System of Policies and Procedures
2. Achieving 100$ Compliance of Policies and Procedures
3. 7 Steps to better Written Policies and Procedures
4. Best Practices in Policies and Procedures

You will not be disappointed. This set is well worth your time and money.

I bought and used all four of Stephen Page's policy and procedure books. From the very first day, I was able to get up and running on a project that was very demanding and challenging. Not only did he provide examples, but he was always there for advice when I hit a rough spot.

I HIGHLY recommend these books!

Dana Rosenboom

Of the three books that the author has published on policies and procedures this one is a masterpiece, and is essential to anyone who works for a company that employ TQM, ISO 9000 or FDA GMP.

Where his first book, Establishing a System of Policies and Procedures, provides a roadmap for new policy writers, this book takes the subject to a much higher level by providing a process that encompasses communications and training strategies, a compliance plan, and continuous improvement. These align seamlessly with ISO 9000, as well as FDA GMPs, and is consistent with the TQM Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle. In addition, the self-assessment and auditing approaches set forth will assure policies and procedures that reflect a mature organization that is focused on quality and continuous improvement.

Among the highlights of the book are the numerous checklists, real-life examples, and an underlying strategy for the development of a comprehensive and complete system of policies and procedures, and a means to assure compliance. I particularly liked Appendix C, Cost of Quality, and the succinct description of tools and techniques in chapter 11.

Another strong point is the complexities of marrying policies and procedures writing with a continuous improvement cycle and auditing are handled in a structured, logical sequence. This is no small feat for a writer, and it is one of the reasons this book is so valuable. This book sets a standard in the field and is one that I'll always recommend to colleagues and clients.

I was impressed with the amount of useful information included in this book; everything seems to have been well thought out. It would appear that the author has "lived" his words and this is what makes this make book so useful to me. Because I know that when I implement his ideas that they will probably work. His case study is also very meaningful as he very carefully explains how to go from a labor-intensive procedure and go through process improvement, metrics, and arrive at a streamlined, high cost saving, new procedure.

I have bought all four of his books on procedures and this book is what makes it all worthwhile. Though I found that each book is unique in its own way and that you really need all four to write a good system of policies and procedures.

I would definitely recommend this book. He has a 40-step plan of action at the front of the book that gives you an A to Z approach to the development of any policy or procedure or process. I have printed this list and I keep it tacked on my walls.

Jim T. Armstrong

Of Steve Page's 4 recent books, I found this one to be the most interesting. It contains all kinds of ideas for projects.

A communication strategy is obviously Steve's speciality. He knows how to use the various methods to the most advantage.

His idea for a compliance plan is a clever take-off on process control plans. He also adapts other quality tools, such as scatter and pareto diagrams to use with documentation. However, you would need another book for more details on the tools themselves.

Auditing is another of Steve's specialties which he shares with his readers.

I wish he had gone into more detail on determining the cost of documentation. He no doubt knows how to calculate it, as best as one can. He gives a detailed example on how a new (purchasing) procedure saved a company money, but not enough on the cost of producing the document itself.

I would definitely recommend this book to all who work with ISO 9000 compliance.

I have purchsed many copies of this delightful book for grandchildren and others. I have read it to first through fourth graders in our neighborhood elementary school who loved it also. Older children and adults appreciate all the double entendres in Deedy's stories.Illustrations are great,too.

I'm so glad a friend of mine recommended this book and that Amazon had a copy. I bought one for my new little niece. I only wish I had this book when I was a child. I would have read it again and again.

I've used this book in the classroom and have found students telling me when we've discovered where something comes from it's just like in Agatha's Featherbed. The book is remembered and students love the story. The ending comes as a wonderful surprise. What a wonderful modern day O'Henry adaptation for the Gift of the Magi. This book could be used for comparison to the O'Henry story. I read this book with my students year after year and each time I enjoy it a little more. It is too bad it is out of print. I think it's a remarkable book full of humor. It spurs students to inquire about where things come from. The author should know she's made an impression on me as well as my students. Thank you Ms. Deedy. The illustrations rank as a Caldecott. Thank you Ms. Seeley.

I love, love, love this book. I love to read it to children. I love to read it myself! I have given at least six of them as baby shower gifts and have just ordered another one to give. Children love it for its fun story; but,as they get older, they keep liking it on different levels--just for its beautiful illustrations alone, for its word play (which they understand more and more of as they progress so there is always some "new in it", for the side pictures that teach us where things come from, and so much more. As an adult, I never get tired of reading it as I do so many other children's books -- even good ones -- that I feel like I could recite in my sleep. If you were allowed to give 10 stars, I would give this book that many! I cannot say enough for it. Sadly, it is usually not available in bookstores anymore...BUT, Amazon has it!

If everything comes from something, where do the feathers in a feather bed come from? This dilemma (or rather the dilemma of six naked geese) confronts Agatha as she snuggles down for the first time in her brand new feather bed. The geese whose feathers she's sleeping on are not happy with the current state of events, and tell Agatha so. Seeing the justice of the geese's complaints, Agatha makes the geese warm, fluffy white coats to wear until their feathers grow back.

This story loses much of its charm in a summary. The best part of the story is the idioms it uses. Agatha is a spinner and a storyteller: "She can spin a yarn better than anyone I know". That quote is just one of the many examples of the common phrases that take on a new meaning when talking to geese. That is what makes this book so special. Other than that, the story is told well; it flows nicely and is easy to read out loud.

The illustrations are beautiful, but different. They abound with detail, and on each page is a box with a picture of a raw material, and what it is made into. (Cotton boll, cotton. Dinosaurs, fossil fuel.) The pictures are very expressive, very detailed, beautiful, and fun. A great story.

Loggie-log-log-log

Workers these days are like snow shovels in a South Carolina blizzard - not enough to go around. Some of the causes are simple statistics: economy up, unemployment down, working-age population falling, employers' demand outstripping supply. But others are cultural. Large corporations, the traditional source of jobs, are often perceived as uncaring engines of depletion, exhaustion, and downsizing. The young are choosing options, from lifestyle to stock, while workplace veterans opt for the dignity of early retirement over the desolation of forced termination. Employers' alternatives are stark: expand their supply, increase their appeal, or prepare for shortfalls and belt-tightening. Recruitment, retention, recession - remorse.

Were companies to examine their own assumptions on hiring and firing, they would find a pervasive and self-destructive premise: old is bad. But as Beverly Goldberg argues in _Age Works_, employers - indeed, society as a whole - have built this premise on an ill-considered, ill-defined congeries of prejudices and presuppositions. Believe it or not, Americans age 55 and above take fewer sick days, adapt to new technologies successfully, and are more loyal to their employer than are their colleagues thirty years younger. And perhaps more importantly, they may be the only untapped workforce available. As hidebound organizations throw fortunes at untested youth, others more far-seeing (including Travelers, GTE, and Baxter Health Care) actively recruit, train, and depend upon senior workers. In a shrinking labor market, corporations and their HR departments may find a surprising competitive advantage in coaxing older employees away from the brink of an often sterile and impoverished retirement.

Eager to dismiss this challenge to their standard practices, naysayers and doomsayers will demand proof. Fortunately _Age Works_ reads more like a position paper than a business book, and like any good position paper, it's loaded with facts. Age Works is the ideal volume for anyone itching for a statistical analysis of the American workforce 1950-2050, in all its hues and strata. Arguably Goldberg's love of statistics verges on addiction, but in the pharmacy of authorial dependence, statistics are a pretty benign habit. More distracting, although again less than fatal, is the book's policy-wonk style. Goldberg stands foursquare in the school of tell-`em-what-you're-going-to-tell-`em, tell-`em-, tell-`em-what-you-told-`em, and _Age Works_ sometimes reads like an executive summary that cannot bear to end.

Nonetheless, _Age Works_ is a cogent, serious, undeniably well-supported piece. Even those who resist the proposed solutions (admittedly the book's weakest section) will find the diagnosis difficult to dispute. Like it or not, America's workforce will continue to grow smaller and grayer over the next twenty years. And by the time the population bounces back, corporations' hiring practices will have appealed to all ages - or to none.

I read Age Works with great interest since I have been involved with this problem for 25 years and have recently published a web site exclusively for older workers. It is a free non- profit referral service. Go to seniorjobbank.org

For a decade we've heard a steady chorus of despair about the graying of America--that graying means paying, in the words of one leading credit. Beverly Goldberg, in this carefully researched, tightly argued, fluidly written, and ultimately extremely important book, shows us a different path. She demonstrates that older Americans are a potential boon to the economy and to the bottom line of forward thinking companies. She shows that they are a group that brings considerable experience and great stability to those that will make use of their talents. And she supplies a roadmap for how we can get there--as indivuals, as companies, and as a society. A great read and a great contribution to the growing body of literature about navigating what may well be the great demographic transition in our country's history, the aging of America.

Since the idea of totally retiring is not something that appeals to me, I found the suggestions for building different kinds of flexible work arrangements very thought-provoking. The numbers in the first couple of chapters will help build a compelling case for allowing those who want such arrangements to have them. I also found the stories of those who wanted out fascinating-they are an indictment of companies for the ways they handled downsizing and mergers. It clearly is time for all businesses to rethink their dealings with the people who work for them and to reconsider the value of older workers.

If managers think they have problems attracting and retaining human capital in today's economy, they haven't seen anything yet. Get set for the massive wave of retirements over the next ten (10) years. Beverly Goldberg conveys a compelling picture of why managers need to learn the value of recognizing, retraining, and retaining older workers. Age Works is a wakeup call to those caught up in the wastefulness of our "throw away" society. Older workers are a precious resource that can ill afford to be squandered. Ms. Goldberg demonstrates a better path and presents concrete ways for managers to benefit from the graying of America.

The Alphatales Library is a great tool for introducing letters to young children. Each book has extra ideas for parents and/or teachers, a practical page that asks to find items beginning with the letter, and a cheer for each letter as a way to review with energy and enthusiasm.

I teach students with various levels of social and cognitive skills. Alpha Tales stimulate and educate all! Alpha Tales and the suggested lesson guides printed on the back inside cover of each book benefit children of diverse learning styles. C. Hodgins

I bought this set for my preschool/kindergarten class to help them learn their ABC's. These books have short stories filled with fun characters which keep the audience entertained. The large pictures on each page make it easy for students to see them during story time. Even my own 6 year old daughter, who ALREADY knows the alphabet, enjoys reading these books.

If you are trying to teach kids the alphabet this is a fun way. They actually do have a seperate book for each letter. Some alphabet series combine some of the letters at the end, because they are more difficult to write about, but these have actually achieved what so many before have failed at, they make complete stories about even the most difficult letters (for example - X) and it is still fun. It doesn't seem like a stretch. I also love these because they read like any other story, not like something educational. This way it doesn't bore children. My daughter really likes them and she thinks they're funny. I always let her be my critic because she has a very short attention span and gets bored very easily.

I'm an intermediate elementary school teacher...I bought these books for my son, when he was three. He loved them so much that I also bought them on cd. He would fall asleep at night listening to these stories...I think he memorized them at first, but he was really reading by 4. In nursery school, and now in kindergarten, I send in the book which corresponds to whatever letter of the alphabet his class is learning. His teachers love them too. I also bought the handwriting book that goes with the series, but that seems more difficult, or for older children than the books themselves.