Services Books

This is a tremendous book laying out a systematic approach for better customer service. Predicated on the idea that customers want your product to "just work" and that they DON'T want a "relationship" with you, it challenges many of the customer service practices in most companies. The authors lay out a process with a number of steps:
- Challenge demand for service don't just cope with it. Act smarter so that the amount of support your customers need goes down
- Eliminate "dumb" contacts and stupid repeated contacts through better processes and information
- Create engaging self-service so people can help themselves
- Be Proactive, don't wait for trouble
- Make it easy to contact you, not difficult
- Fix ownership of problems so that you can fix them, not just blame on them on the customer service group
- Listen to your customers and learn from what they tell you
- Delight your customers when they do need help
The authors lay out a cure for the remote, impersonal organization where no-one in management ever talks to real customers. Any organization that has customer service "issues" could benefit from this book.
I would also recommend Chocolates on the Pillow Aren't Enough: Reinventing The Customer Experience for more on customer service and Smart Enough Systems: How to Deliver Competitive Advantage by Automating Hidden Decisions (my own book) for more on how to build the kind of systems you need.

This isn't your typical customer service book nor one that is full of theories. The discussions stimulate ideas and teach how you can improve or enhance your own service and support offerings. Most of the companies referenced in the book are identified, making it even more relatable.

The book is loaded with tools and techniques that can be used in your own business, no matter how small or large. Everything is clearly stated, organized so each chapter effectively ties to the next and is easily understood. The authors made the stories enjoyable to read and filled the book with realistic, do-able ideas. The diagrams, charts, figures, examples, step by step directions, statistics and more, make this book a useful tool and well worth the investment. The benefit from applying even a few of the ideas in this book will be realized by having highly satisfied customers.

Bill and David nailed this one - it is a superb, well-written book. Written from real world experiences with realistic and reasonable solutions for delivering great service and support makes this book an excellent value. Every call center and help desk professional, as well those who work in any form of customer relations, should have a copy of this book. This book offers a roadmap to follow to realize the best service possible.

I think reviewer "SamFan" misses a key point: eliminate the NEED for customer service by doing things right to begin with.
Not only cheaper for the corp, but more satisfying to the customer.

If you believe, as I do, that earning the trust of your customers is the most direct route to long-term success for a business, then this is the book for you. This is probably the single best "how to" book on earning customer trust that I've ever read - and I have read most of them, and written several of them myself, with my co-author and business partner Martha Rogers (our latest and greatest: Rules to Break and Laws to FollowRules to Break and Laws to Follow: How Your Business Can Beat the Crisis of Short-Termism (Microsoft Executive Leadership Series)).

So congratulations to Bill Price and David Jaffe for such a sweeping, carefully delineated guidebook for business people just trying to do the right thing for customers. Jaffe is a customer experience consultant operating out of Australia, and Price is the ex-VP of Global Customer Service for Amazon, which says a lot about their perspective, because Amazon (as everyone reading this review should know) is one of the world's true icons of great customer service. In the game of business, in other words, Price is not just a good coach, but a veteran player with a winning record.

Price and Jaffe concentrate primarily on how best to operate call centers, interactive voice response (IVR) units, Web sites, and other mechanisms for facilitating interactions with customers. The guiding principle for all customer interactions should be to reassure customers, empower them, and serve them well. The final objective, of course, is to ensure that customers find it as easy as possible to buy from you. But, as the authors persuasively demonstrate, no one is going to buy from you if they don't trust you and have confidence in your service. And customers will only develop that trust if they judge that their interactions with you were efficient and customer-oriented.

Now I judge the merit of a business book in terms of how many comments I've underlined or highlighted, and how many page corners I've turned down during the course of reading it. By these criteria, The Best Service is No Service earns five stars from me.

For instance, I LOVE the "bad examples" that permeate the book. They're so much fun to read, and it's such a gas just chuckling at how stupid so many businesses can be in real life. The bank that automatically routes calls from its best customers to sales associates, forcing them to sit through new product pitches before they have access to the simplest IVR tasks like transferring money, for instance, while "ordinary" customers get to breeze through the IVR and do what they want quickly and efficiently (p. 71), or the IT company that, in an amateurish effort to be totally honest with customers, offered them (kid you not) 30,000 phone numbers to choose from worldwide (p. 134).

But the real heart of the book, and its true benefit for the reader, is its numerous checklists of things to do and not to do when operating an interaction center. At page 155, for example, the authors talk about providing the right choices for customers at every point, including (among other things):

* At the web site, phone numbers on every page, "talk to someone" or "chat" buttons, and "contact us" buttons that make it easy to send emails, stating how quickly they will be replied to
* For phone IVR menus or trees, Web site alternatives clearly mentioned, options to leave a number for call back, ability to hit 0 at any point to reach an operator
* Emails that go out with a phone number provided, along with links to the pages on the site that actually help to explain the issue
* Branch operations that have phones for calling the contact center directly, self-service desks for information, and Web PCs for direct self-service online

Or consider his list of simple usability criteria (p. 91):

* Short menus on IVRs, just to make selection easy
* Consistency across IVRs and Web sites, allowing customers to know where things are and make their selections more easily
* Correct uses of silence on IVRs and white space on Web sites, so customers don't always feel crowded or rushed
* Multiple support levels for the user, meaning that IVRs, for instance, should kick into a more detailed level when the user has a problem, and Web sites should be designed to help users recover from mistakes or problems
* Standard navigation features, meaning ability to repeat IVR menus at any point or drop bread crumbs during your Web search.

There really wasn't much I didn't like about this book. I wish they had been able to name more of the companies they singled out as examples (most of the bad examples don't actually name the companies involved). And I suppose in some places the authors could have got to their point faster. They're not the most economical writers, in their use of words. But these are very minor drawbacks, as I still found myself drawn in to the ongoing story they tell, and the very smart and succinct lessons they convey.

The fact is that interacting with masses of customers, individually, is a complicated and difficult business service that most companies have only begun wrestling with in the last decade or so, because the Worldwide Web has finally forced them to. There are a handful of businesses that did a sterling job - prior to the Web's arrival - of using their call centers to inspire confidence and trust in their customers (USAA, for example, cited at p. 139). But for the vast majority of companies, prior to the rise of the Web, call centers were mostly treated as just one more cost of doing business.

"Customer interaction," in other words, is now one of the dominant forms of "service" offered by most companies, but it is still a brand new discipline for most business people, with lots of unknown complications and unappreciated benefits. So if you want to better understand the implications of managing the customer experience when it comes to your own company and your own customers, then this book by Price and Jaffe is far and away the best, most comprehensive and practical education you can buy today.

I loved this book. It is well organized and written. It starts out with a diagram that represents a picture of how the best customer service is no (or little) customer service. And then it uses eight chapters of text to explain why the best service is no (or little) service. Each chapter ends with a good summary of what was covered in the chapter. And after each chapter summary there is a list of survey questions that help the reader apply what they have read to their real-world situation. Very well done!

The book also includes wonderful appendix material: a Best Service Survey, a glossary and a blibliography. All in all, this book redefines traditional notions of what a small business needs to do to be successful. By reading this book you will be reminded that good customer service is critical to the success of small business. However, there is no need (nor is it ideal) to over supply customer service. Too much customer service can negatively impact on a company's profit margin because of the extra cost of payroll expense needed. And too much customer service can also be an opportunity to hurt customer relations (and relationships) rather than improve them.

The ultimate message included in this book is that small business will be most successful if they only provide customer service that is essential to doing business. Too much is not good and too little is likewise not good. Just keep the customers happy while keeping yourself happy and your business will be successful. 5 stars!

PS. The author has provided Search Inside material to Amazon that includes the Table of Contents for this book. I think the chapter titles explain a lot of what is covered in this book. Read those chapter titles along with my review to get the most out of it.

Finally, a resume book for jobs that do not require a college education. The book has 171 resumes for jobs such as master cake decorator, clerical office worker, plumber, cruise line customer service. It has a helpful section telling how to get around difficult problems such as job gaps, lack of experience, a spotty education record, and age discrimination. It is readable and encouraging.

This was adapted from the Annotated Bibliography of Learning A Living; A Guide to Planning Your Career and Finding a Job for People with Learning Disabilities, Attention Deficit Disorder, and Dyslexia

This resource is a gold mine. As an employment consultant I have found Parker's book to be practical, realistic and extremely helpful, especially since I primarily work with the Blue Collar sector. If you are experienced in writing your own resume, this book offers great tips on polishing it and if you are new to the resume process, Parker also takes you through it step by step in a manner both instructional and interesting. This should be on every employment consultant's bookshelf. Easy to read and easy to understand; simple but not simplistic.

We provide workshops on job searching, resume writing, interviewing, hidden job market etc. for a varied background of people. Some of our customers do not relate to resumes prepared for the executive or highly educated job seeker. These customers can now understand and see how their similiar skills can be marketed. We now use this resource in every district office. With many employers using the resume instead of applications for screening and with most occupations now requiring resumes, this book is essential for all job seekers.

In my position as a state and federal employment counselor, I deal with large numbers of displaced blue collar workers. Many have limited computer skills and writting ability. BLUE COLLAR & BEYOND has become my most used source book. (In fact I recently purchased a second copy as the first on was wearing out) Using BC&B to teach folks how to prepare their selves to re enter the workforce has raised my success in placement rate to over 75%. VERY EXCELLENT TEXT! Must HAve! Must Buy! Must USE! C. Baugh

This author produces the best resume writing materials on the market! This book fits perfectly for those individuals not targeted by many other resume writing books. Many of these skills are transferrable and I encourage clients to browse through the entire book.

Great book for anyone involved in the adoption process or those that have already adopted. Great to read of others experiences.
Would highly recommend this book!
Nicole

Born in Our Hearts is an uplifting and informative collection of stories from the adoptive triad and family, including birthmothers, adoptive parents and grandparents, and adopted children and adults. Adoption is viewed through the lenses of a virtual rainbow of participants, in different circumstances and situations, yet overall it results in a very positve and encouraging view - with twists and turns unlike any other. While prospective adopters (both international and domestic) will enjoy the variety of adoption journeys, the viewpoints of the adoptees and birthparents are especially informative and will be of interest to parents who have adopted as well as those considering adoption.

As an adoption professional, I found this book to be a wonderful blend of perspectives. Contrary to popular opinion, adoption doesn't speak with one voice. The wide range of issues raised in Born in Our Hearts illustrates that quite well. As an adoptive parent, I identified with so many stories and so many feelings-the over-the-top excitement, the nail-biting anxiety, the deeply-rooted fear and sadness, and the incredible, indescribable joy. I'd recommend this book to anyone whose life has been touched by adoption or anyone who hasn't but wants to know more about the life experience of an adoptive parent, an adopted person, or a birth parent.

Born In Our Hearts is a deeply honest book. A collection of adoption views written by the adopted children, the birth mother, the adoptive parents and grandparents. This book provides an insight and a true understanding into their world. It will leave you with a tear in your eye.

A MUST read for anyone dealing with children.

This book is so inspiring. As part of a family touched by adoption, I totally enjoyed these stories. Each one is better than the next! This is truly a book that will evoke many emotions; joy,fear,love,disapointment, and hope. Even if you have not been touched by adoption, this book speaks to everyone's heart. This is a great book to give as a gift or to share with a book club! The most important lesson to learn from Born In Our Hearts is that families are made from love, not biology!

I love all the books in this set. They are wonderful. I do believe in the "borrowers". I bought the whole set for my 11 year old granddaughter. Hopes she loves them as much as I do.

Being 13, I'm pretty picky, but this book was awsome! It's so in my shopping cart! I love how the Clocks are so smart, they can make everything out of anything! This book really appeased me, because I love models and mineature things, an the thought of moving, living, mineature people is so thrilling! I really liked how they made a hot-air balloon out of a strawberry basket, a fountain pen, and a plastic (or toy, as it says in the book) balloon. Soooo coool! I'm SO reading the other books (I've already read the book and seen the movie "The Borrowers").

Again great reading in this series of books. Couldn't put it down. Great for children and adults alike

I liked this book a lot. I like to read about how resourceful the Borrowers are when they use stuff humans don't need or misplace. It had really nice pictures, too. I recommend this book to kids five years and older.

In this, the fourth book in the Borrowers series (after The Borrowers, The Borrowers Afield and The Borrowers Afloat), the Clocks have moved into Little Fordham, and are starting their new life. Unfortunately, unknown to them, the greedy Mr. Platter has built a rival model village. Having seen the Borrowers, he kidnaps them to add them to his own model. How can such small people escape from a prison built by such huge human "beans"?

Ah, Mary Norton (1903-92) was a genius! Her Borrower stories are an excellent combination of suspenseful adventure and heartwarming drama. My children and I love this book, and highly recommend it to you!

I had a hard time putting this book down. It is so honest, and truly reflects the emotional and spiritual 'roller coaster' of adoption. As an adoptive mother I could relate to so many of the experiences and feelings that Kristin shares. The author's spiritual relfections are thought provoking and inspiring. This is a much needed resource for Christian adoptive families and will be especially helpful to those just beginning their adoption journey.

Christine Mitchell, author and illustrator of Welcome Home, Forever Child
Welcome Home, Forever Child: A Celebration of Children Adopted as Toddlers, Preschoolers, and Beyond

We hear about so-called designer adoptions involving Hollywood stars, and while the press they receive helps bring attention to the need for adoption, the truth is that there are many people who would like to know more about the actual experiences of real people. Kristin and Phil Wong were parents of two natural children when they made the decision to adopt two Korean boys. This is their story told from a Christian perspective, because it is important for anyone interested in adoption to know that it is an act of Christian love and not just a spur of the moment, politically correct thing to do in order to get good PR. I doubt if anyone reading this book will not be deeply touched by the experiences of the Wongs.

I can not recommend this book highly enough for Christian adoptive parents. The author describes her journey, and that of her family, through the adoption of two Vietnamese boys. She details God's development of her character through the waiting and uncertainties of the process, and shares about what she learned about such topics as prayer, fear, waiting, God's goodness, pain, and worship. Mrs. Wong's story has been a chief means of encouragment and exhortation for my husband and I as we have felt the refining fire in our own hearts during our own adoptive journey.

Here is a scriptural roadmap to aid those who wish to adopt. The story is told from the experience of a Christian family who recently went through the process of adopting two boys from Asia. Through many trials and frustrations Kristin Wong shares her struggles in keeping faith and the Biblical lessons she is taught on the way. She speaks with an honesty and beauty that allows the reader to witness precious moments of joy and love. A heart warming and faith building book.

This book has applications for any Christian in understanding his/her own adoption as God's child. I plan to recommend this book to my friends, especially those that are adopting children into their family or who have been adopted into a family themselves. My favorite aspect of the book is the author's honesty about her own faith struggles in waiting on the Lord throughout the adoption process.

I thought that this book was great. This book is about a young girl named Molly in 1944 that is when WWII was. Molly's father is a doctor for wounded soldiers in England. The most important part of this book was when Molly was chosen to be Miss Victory in the big Red Cross show. She was very excited because now she can prove to her father that she had changed. Then she wasn't able to do that because she got sick. While she was at home in bed resting, a certain someone walked in the door...

I have read the othre books in this series and I can't wait to read this one!

Molly lives in 1944 and wishes to be Miss Victory in the tap dance recital. Her older sister helps with her hair and when it comes time for auditions, Molly takes off her glasses because she wants to look the part of a star.

MOLLY GETS THE ROLE!

Right before the big show, Molly catches a cold. She can't be Miss Victory. However, on the day of the show, Molly gets a surprise that is better than tapping in the sparkling Miss Victory costume.

This is the best Molly book.

The last chapter of the book explains what it is like in 1944 with the war and the efforts on the home front.

This is another in the American Girls series about Molly McIntire, a ten-year-old girl living on the home front during World War 2. In this book, Molly gets the good news that the U.S. Army is reassigning her father stateside. To make matters even better, she has a real shot at winning the starring role in a dance production being put on at the local Veterans' Hospital. But, Molly wants to look her best for the role, and she wants to show her father how mature she is. So, Molly begins a war of her own against her straight and unattractive hair, but all wars have their casualties...

I must say, I now think that this is my favorite Molly book! The story is uplifting with a happy ending, and the illustrations are excellent. My twelve-year-old daughter is a fan of Molly, and so am I. We both highly recommend this book, and this series to you!

Changes for Molly

Molly McIntire and her friends, Linda and Susan, are trying out to be Miss Victory, in their big dance program. Molly practices every day, and thinks she has a pretty good chance for the most important part. She is worried that she won't look pretty with her hair "as straight as sticks". Linda and Susan have an idea to help Molly. They put their money together to buy a home permanent. The girls hide out in Molly's garage to begin the perm. Molly finds out at the last minute, her friend Susan doesn't really know how to roll a perm. She has seen someone with a perm before, but it couldn't be that hard.

Molly's family gets news that her father will be coming home from the war. This makes Molly even more determined to get the part of Miss Victory, and to show her father how grown-up she has become, while he was away.

My daughter Karen saved her own money to buy her 18 inch, Molly, American Girl doll. She enjoyed endless hours reading the American Girl books, and playing with her two cousins who had Kirsten and Samantha dolls.

Kirsten Mini Doll (American Girl)
Molly Mini Doll (American Girl)
The American Girls, Molly, Doll Dress PatternsPaper Dolls: Kirsten, Samantha, and Molly in Their Old-Fashioned Clothes (The American Girls Collection)
Molly's Paper Dolls: Molly and Her Friends With Outfits to Cut Out and Scenes to Play With (The American Girls Collection)Molly's Short Story Collection (American Girls Collection)

Jill Ammon Vanderwood
author: Through the Rug
Through The Rug: Follow That Dog (Through the Rug)

I love this book! It is a sweet story with enchanting pictures. I have used it to review color words with my young students.

I had never even heard of this book until I stumbled upon it at the library. This book can be only be described by plucking a word right from the title and thats "LOVELY". My daughter could not get enough of it! The conversations between Mr. Rabbit and the little girl are simply so realistic I'm almost shocked cause I found myself wrapped up in it as well. It is too cute! The only negative observation I have is my daughter found Mr. Rabbit a little creepy but Maurice Sendak has a slight darkness to him so maybe thats it. Don't let that stop you from buying this though!

I had originally given this book a 4 star review, but in hindsight, I think it deserves 5. (The site wouldn't allow me to edit my star rating- sorry). This is a book that I would like to have discovered earlier, but my four year old boy enjoys it anyway, and I would gladly add it to our family library. A 2 or 3 year-old would easily appreciate this story as well. Both the author and illustrator are accomplished and well respected, and the proof is in reading it to a child. Children love the idea that they can converse with the animals, and Mr. Rabbit and The Lovely Present all but makes it seem possible to the reader. A valuable life lesson is well taken from a well meaning and sympathetic rabbit, in a young girl's search for great gift ideas for her mother. A tiny bit redundant from a grown-up's point of view, but the audience gets the bigger vote (children love repetitive stories and gain much from them). I'm hoping that demand will bring this book back to the printers for the next generation of readers, Especially considering the copyright date (1962). Judging from the illustrations, I would have placed it somewhere in the early 30's 40's. This book must have been very popular in the sixties with parents looking for wholesome stories and rich, high quality artwork for their children.

I received this book today and am so pleased that I bought it because it's a stunning book. It's a lovely little tale (already explained by other reviewers!) that contains subtle repetition for early readers and would be great for teaching colours to a younger child. The illustrations are lovely and have a 1960s feel about them - subtle but intricately drawn and enhance the text perfectly (they don't look anything like the illustrations of We're The Wild Things are but are equally as fantastic!). I think you'd be really hardpressed to find anything faults with this book - a totally charming must have classic for your children's library - don't pass this one up. It's one of those books that totally enchants you the very first time you read it.

As a student at West Virginia State College I was required to view a Calecott honor award winning book. I chose this book because of the beautiful illustrations. A little girl asks the assistance of Mr. Rabbit in deciding what to get her mother for her birthday. Mr. Rabbit suggests some rather foolish gift for each of the colors the little girl says her mother likes. He suggests such things as a red roof and a blue lake. Each time he also suggest a fruit of that color. The little girls says her mother likes that fruit but she needs something else. After they go though a few colors the little girl relizes she could make a fruit basket. Mr. Rabbit says he has a basket.

This is an excellent book. All African-American women should read it to understand their position and purpose in the Kingdom.

This book makes us look within ourselves to find the God that lives within us as well as helps us seek deliverance from things that hinder God's plan for our lives. Such an annointed book! This guide helps us to seek the holy spirit as our guide daily in all areas of our complex and sometimes stressful lives. Talk about spiritual growth and maturity - it's ours if we choose it! This books shows the map and gives directions on how we get there. I highly recommend it to both young and old women of every race and walk of life!

This book is the only one of it's kind. It is a spiritual bible, in a sense, for women of color. Buy this book, my sisters! You won't be disappointed! You will be enlightened like never before!
It answers many unanswered questions.

The teachings in this book is so touching and timely for African American women who seek to allow Christ to live through them and to make a better world for themselves, family, friends, church and the world. Every person of African descent should read this awesome book filled with holy scriptures to guide the reader. My profound thanks to the author!

This book will truly change your life if you consistently apply the principles taught. The author is empathetic, clear, and inspired. She tells you exactly what you need to do in order to experience the peace and purpose of God in your home, work, and life in general. Read this book more than once, and be prepared for a challenge. Some of her words are hard to take, but they're true and Bible-based.

Cisco ISP Essentials is the ideal book for those responsible for ISP networks, whether big or small. The authors mix in practical examples, along with industry standard methods to describe ideal network setups.
The book follows a logical step by step look at ISP networks, first by examining basic router setup and maintenance. Here topics such as memory and backup issues are discussed. The wonderful thing about this book is that it covers in detail many books simply leave out and unnecessary. There are detailed examples of the Network Time Protocol and configuration management. Along with the how, is the very important why for the various techniques.
In the routing protocols section, most of the space is dedicated to BGP, as would be expected in a book dealing with ISP networks. The authors did not forget about internal protocols and laid a foundation for the rest of the book. There is in depth coverage of BGP setup, and the various features and setting to further enhance your network based on its requirements. Examples are provided to show actual running configurations proving the practices out.
Security is a hot topic right now, and it seems to not receive as much time in its chapter of the book. What you will find however, is the constant minding of security issues throughout the rest of the book. Securing routers and routing protocols is followed by discussions on ACL's and network filters. Every area of the book touches aspects of security at some point.
The fifth chapter is entitled Operational Practices, and takes the detailed ideas presented so far, and applies them to actual situations seen on ISP networks. The chapter starts with design ideas, and follows with discussions of ISP services such as DNS, Mail, and News. A detailed discussion of IPv4 addressing covers the basic structure of addressing history. There is a detailed example of an allocation plan for an ISP's needs, as well as any customers. It shows the steps to plan for the present as well as future growth in your network.
There follows an extensive survey of external routing topics. A few examples for interior protocols are given, but the main topic is exterior protocols. Scaling route protocols is discussed for both interior and exterior protocols. This talk leads in to peering practices involving BGP. Multi-homing is the last topic covered, and is done in great detail. The authors describe the various options available for stub networks, single and multiple ISP connections, as well as load sharing designs.
Here again security and the management tasks talked about in earlier chapters are placed into the ISP network and their use described. Tools and sample configurations follow in appendices to wrap up the discussion on best practices.
Overall, the detailed examples and well thought out explanations of the various practices will serve your ISP for a long time.

Good work and a must have for people dealing with networks daily.

I totally agree with the other reviewers. Reading this book is an enjoyment.

Better yet, this book has both to-the-point explaination _and_ example on all topics.

I would say, if you wanted to learn tricks to doing things, this is for you. Don't forget this book concludes with full examples/templates showing how people configure their ISP core and edge routers/switches.

What I love about this book is both the way the authors explain complex technologies simply and also (and more importantly for me) add a very real-world/practical slant to everything. Not much more I can say except do yourself a favour and buy this book.

Written especially for network engineers by Cisco experts Barry Raveendran Greene and Philip Smith, Cisco ISP Essentials is a 428-page, matter-of-fact, "access friendly" guide to the many versions of Cisco IOS Software, and cogently explains how to ensure the best configurations that provide Internet access, as well as having a reasonable expectation of security. Offering a wealth of detailed technical information at the expert level, configuration diagrams, examples, and much, much, more, Cisco ISP Essentials is an indispensable and recommended guide, serving the Cisco using community as a much-needed supplement to the often confusing documentation of the Cisco IOS Software itself.

The book deals only with the time frame from when Col. Johns (then Major) inherits the 1st of the 115th until they capture St. Lo. During this time period, we get to see how hedgerow combat was (from the battalion commanders perspective), how German Fallshirmjagers fought, and the pressures higher command applies to their combat organizations. While Col. Johns was a battalion commander, this book does give a feel for front line combat, but no where near as directly as books such as Currah! or The Forgotten Soldier.

Col. Johns tells the story of how the 1st of the 115th (his unit) led the way to St Lo. In his telling, Col. Johns uses the third person familiar to describe the events his unit experienced rather than a first person account. This is very refreshing because story takes on more of a story tellers point of view rather than that of a person telling us how great they were.

This book is a very good re-telling of Col. Johns experiences in Normandy. If there's a weakness to this book, it's the fact that Col. Johns focuses his telling on the capture of St. Lo rather than his total exerience with the 1st of the 115th. Because of this, I found the book slightly lacking because I really wanted to know what happened to the unit later in the war and also to Col. Johns!

I'll recommend this book to those who've read Beyond the Beachhead, have an interest in the Normandy Campaign, or how a battalion commander operated during WWII. Overall, I'll rate this book 4.5 stars (out of a 5 possible). The reason I can't give this one 5 is because I preferred Company Commander by Charles McDonald for telling the struggles of command in combat at the lower levels. Since Amazon doesn't give half stars, I'll give the nod to 5 stars since Col. Johns' book is a compelling read.

I greatly enjoyed reading this book. It not only held, but increased, my interest as I progressed through the story. "The Major" is a very credible author, and I had no trouble picturing what he described in my mind's eye. My understanding of how American soldiers in WW II fought the campaign in Normandy is now greatly enhanced. Good show!

My mother, Mrs. Glover S. Johns, Jr., who recently celebrated her 84th birthday, called me today to advise that a friend had just stopped by her home in Austin, TX. with word of this site and the fine reviews of "The Clay Pigeons of St.Lo", written by my father Colonel Glover S. Johns, Jr. We would like to thank those of you who have treasured this book - a labor of love, pride, dedication and, at times, agony - as much as we have. I want to take this opportunity to salute and thank all those who served with my father and those have shown support for my mother since the Colonel's death in 1976. My father lived "The Clay Pigeons of St.Lo" and gave the book what he gave battle and his men: his very best. It is, indeed, a timeless and monumental work - monumental in its testimonials, monumental in its anonymity, and monumental in its unheralded magnitude. Lee Johns, son of Colonel G.S. Johns, Jr. - one of America's finest Fighting Sons.

This is the best single book on American infantry fighting in World War II that I have read. Then Major Glover Johns recounts his personal participation in one of the toughest fights our GIs faced; the struggle through the hedgerows from the D-Day beaches to St. Lo. More importantly, Johns' book demonstrates the critical importance battlefield communications played in achieving victory. As a Battalion Commander in the 29th Infantry Division, Johns' ability to manage his units was directly related to how fast phone lines could be restrung after each mortar attack or how successful his radio operators were in linking to artillery support units. Despite his relative remoteness from the foxholes, you feel every attack and suffer every loss as if you were shoulder to shoulder with the heroes who defeated Hitler's vaunted 2nd Parachute Division.

This isn't rehashed third-hand research, this is war as it was fought by one of our best combat commanders. Read it.

This memoir is unlike any other memoir of World War II that I have ever read. Johns relates the stress, the worry, the fear, the exhaustion, the humor and the camaraderie with the ease of a seasoned storyteller. For the unseasoned reader, Johns's device of telling his story in the third person will take some getting use to, but that's done after only a few pages. More telling was Johns' own reasons for using third person, "people who fight wars up close to the enemy are not the same while they are fighting as they were before and after...His (Johns) life during that time always seemed that of another person." After that, "Clay Pigeons" is a fast read. Sadly, Bantam books never reprinted this now forgotten classic. Let's hope someone will do such a service and bring this book back. It demands a reprint.