Sales Books

Coggins wrote some excellent books and his extremely valuable and accessible text was always made even more clear by his wonderful illustrations. This should be the first book anyone buys on the equipment of the American Civil War and even in an extensive library will often be the last book needed to answer questions, from the most general to highly specific. It isn't the most in depth or the most wide ranging but is certainly the most generally useful and is solidly rewarding from cover to cover

This book, although not very large, contains a wealth of information on varous Civil War supplies. It is highly detailed and Jack Coggins provides illustrations with virtually everything so the reader can get a good feel for what an item really looked like. Many of these items are cut away pictures giving the reader a visual account of the operations of the items described. This is a wonderful book for anyone interested in the equipment and weapons of the Civil War.

I first discovered this book when I was a kid, it was origionally printed in 1962. I checked it out of the library so many times, my Dad ended up getting me a copy for my birthday. This was one of my favorite sources on specifics of unit tactics, engineer job, etc.. The text is concise and too the point and the illustrations further clarify what is described in the text. Unfortunatly, my beloved copy was lost, much to my chagrin. In studying the Civil War I often though of this slim volume and how Coggins clearly laid things out when reading more obtuse textss that didn't quite measure up. While searching on Google on individual unit tactics a link for this book came up. I felt as if I discovered a long lost part of my childhood, I immediatly ordered it from Amazon and it was delivered. I went through it and rediscovered the classic drawings and text that I loved as a child and remembered the richness of this volume.
Although I loved it as a child, this is not necessarily a childrens book. It is great for all ages and should be part of any casual or serious student of the conflict.

I would recommend this book to every amateur Civil War historian. The scope of the text is limited to equipment used in the Civil War and reads quickly. I found a lot of interesting information that I had not seen in all my other Civil War readings. Also the drawings are very detailed just plain fun to look at.

Alas, there is - or was - only one Jack Coggins. A matchless illustrator, a good writer, and a man who did exactly what he set out to do, and did it completely. I suppose it would be possible to put together a better book on the arms and equipment of the Civil War. I just don't know how. Great illustrations, clear and lucid text, thorough. If you like this, try his book on Guadalcanal, or the Campaign in North Africa; they're cut of the same cloth.

It stood the test of time for me anyway, since I used to read this book in bed every night when I was about 14 or 15 and marvelled not only at the world of the Beatles but at the way that Schaffner's words opened up a realm of ideas whose breadth I could only intuit at the time. I just finished rereading the book again, 25 years later, and it still strikes me as elegantly written, passionate, honest, insightful and at times very humorous. (The way he speaks about McCartney's solo career is particularly funny). In 1977, he wrote, "As usual the wild card of the lot is John Lennon."

I think this is the book about the Beatles we all wish we had written. My copy is in tatters, and has a torn-up dust-jacket with the Rubber Soul fish-eyed lens photograph. I will never part from it!

This book is one of a few that every Beatle collector must have. Along with "The Beatles" with covor work by Andy Warhol, "The Beatles Forever" is a must have. If you are interested in owning the 1977 and 1978 soft and hard back copies of "The Beatles Forever" in near mint condition contact Seth at henry23@home.com

I have the pair listed under Yahoo auctions, "music," THE BEATLES, "The Beatles Forever." Look it up via search or let your fingers do the walking. I will ship upon receiving certified funds and you must pay shipping however it should not cost but $7 to $10 max to ship and you can see what the current bid is in Yahoo auctions.

This book must have taken Nicholas Schaffner all his energy to write. It's a wonderful account of the lads music from their rise to fame in 1964 to their solo careers in 1977. Schaffner cares most about the music and he definetely knows his stuff. He's not escatic about Sgt. Pepper, which is an overated album, and he mentions a forgotten George Harrison masterpiece, "It's all too Much". Schaffner writes in a dry witty factual style focusing on the Beatles albums, their influence on rock music, the ups and downs of their solo careers, and anaylizes their lyrics. There are pictures of all the Beatles singles and rare pics of the beatles infamous butcher cover. This is my favorite Beatle book.

I have loved this book for years. Nick Schaffner has done a superb job of sharing his personal love for the Beatles from both an objective and subjective standpoint. Not only does he make personal references in re the Beatles, he also details the history of the band and the recordings they had released up until this book was published. Certain references, such as the Beatles' hair length being comparable to then-president Jimmy Carter (1976-80) are what "dates" this work; other than that, this excellent book is a timeless classic.

When I was in the 9th grade, I wrote a paper on the breakup of the Beatles entitled "The Gestalt Beatles: The Whole is Greater than the Sum of its Parts" and smile today as I think of how much I wanted to be a paperback writer. There is no doubt that Mr. Schaffner has inspired countless hordes of fans in this manner. I think of my old term paper because the writing in this book is greater than the sum of its parts - the combination of objectivity and subjectivty make for a very well rounded presentation indeed!

I had the pleasure of meeting Nick Schaffner at a Beatles' convention and he graciously autographed my copy of this book. He also shared stories about the Beatles and offered words of solace to fans still mourning John's death. This book deserves a place of honor and is a must-have for the avid Beatles' fan. Please read this book and share it with somebody. You will be glad that you did.

I own over 150 books about this lot....and this is one of the 4 or 5 best. Track this down

The title to this book says it all. It really is the Best IT Sales and Martketing book ever. NUFF SAID!!!!

YOU NEED TO BUY THIS BOOK if you want to turn your IT Business into a profitable one.

I cant wait for Ericks next book, hopefully he wont keep us waiting too long :-)

At a recent VAR meeting I attended, several successful IT services CEOs were asked what one thing they did to build a stable successful business. Every single one of them said marketing was the key to their business' success.

Most small IT services firms don't market. That's why they stay small. If you want to grow a consistent services business, buy this book and start marketing now. You will recoup several times this book's cost with your first marketing campaign.

Received this book at approximately 10:30am read the first few pages and cancelled my schedule for the day (first time I've done that in 13+ years in business) to read it from cover to cover in one sitting - and then again before the weekend was out just to ensure and assure I had gotten as much as I could before starting out on this amazing adventure. - Two (2) suggestions for you the reader of this review: 1) buy this book today - you would not be reading this review if your were not considering it - just do it. You will NOT be dissapointed. 2) Do Not skimp on the shipping you will kick yourself for every day you wasted!

This book is jam-packed with valuable insight to assist IT VAR's in selling and marketing to Small Business. It is required reading for my company's sales and marketing staff. I highly recommend it to anyone whether new to the business or an old veteran.

I am a business owner interested in the Managed Services market space. I have read so much about Managed services but have not found a step by step guide on how to implement the managed services business plan or sell those services to clients. What I needed were step by step guides on both the topics. I was introduced to Erick's books by another associate. This book and "The Guide to a Successful Managed Services Practice" by Erick were exactly what I was looking for. Erick is not just a subject matter expert in Managed Services but has practiced and implemented his teachings and recommendations. He explains several key concepts and best practices on Managed Services, Deliverables, Pricing, How to identify clients, sell, support and maintain the services and build a long term win-win relationship with the clients. The coverage on How to Hire and Train your sales staff is worth its weight in gold. Included along with these 2 books are several forms, analysis tools and documents which make the sales process a whole lot easier with predictable results. These are the bibles for my managed services business and I refer them frequently. If you are serious about building a profitable managed services business, you must have these books.

Through the years I've read heaps of marketing books, some great, and some not so great. This book falls into the category of great books!
As always Jack Trout makes tough and complicated things easy and comprehendable. As all of his books this is a great read, but if you haven't read 'positioning' and 'marketing warfare' I would highly recommend you to read them first.

Since you are not tasting an apple I can Not Help you to feel it, have one and you will see the result, THIS BOOK IS A MUST FOR ANY ONE WHO IS LIVING ON THE PLANET OF EARTH, In this Book You can learn either LIFE lessons OR Business Lessons, So if you are looking for others idea like ME, Invest on it, IT IS WORTH 10,000,000,000 MORE than its price, God bless JACK TROUT!

Few marketing books has the enjoyable read character. it is safe to say that Big Brands...Big trouble leads the pack. Concise yet informative, the book focus on the notion that marketing is about winning your customers' minds and hearts.

By going through ample examples of famous brands, Mr. Trout dispel some of the conventinoal strategies most companies blindly undertake. Line extention according to him, has done nothing but damage to At&T and Miller Brewing. The giant P&G has lost big on the toothpaste line becasue they forgot what made their brand a hit. Fashionable outlets such as Levi' and M&S needs to rise out from the past and look more into the future by developing their own unique "brand lifestyle".

On the dark side, the book is relatively redundant and by the end of it, it looses out. Also, the recurring negative remarks on another business guru "Michel Porter" was needless and hence lost the book the full the mark.

¡§Big Brands Big trouble¡¨ is a very interesting and comprehensive book. This book have a clear organization which comprise several types of popular mistakes with different big brand cases, how to select a board of directors and how to be a good CEO. I think this book is suitable for anyone who is interested in Marketing or Branding because you could gain a lot of insight from it. After reading this book, you will understand why some brands cannot be established well even they have spent a lot money on advertising, introducing many new products.

This book impress me the most is that Jack Trout illustrated all mistakes clearly by showing how the big brands, like Levis, Burger King, AT&T and Marks and Spencer made in the past. Then you may discover that some of the existing well-known brands are actually making mistakes for their marketing strategies. Moreover, you may get surprise that some of the popular marketing strategies, like line extension, benchmarking cannot promote your product, conversely, they will hurt your company seriously. So you must read this book if you want to surpass your competitors by using appropriate marketing strategies for your company.

Overall speaking, this book is easy to read and understand because Jack Trout delivered a concise and important message in the book ¡V ¡§Marketing is a battle of perception, not product¡¨

¡§Big Brands Big trouble¡¨ is a very interesting and comprehensive book. This book explains several types of popular mistakes with different big brand cases, how to select a board of directors and how to be a good CEO. I think this book is suitable for anyone who is interested in Marketing or Branding because you could gain a lot of insight from it. After reading this book, you will understand why some brands cannot be established well even they have spent a lot money on advertising, introducing many new products.

This book impress me the most is that Jack Trout illustrated all mistakes clearly by showing how the big brands, like Levis, Burger King, AT&T and Marks and Spencer made in the past. Then you may discover that some of the existing well-known brands are actually making mistakes for their marketing strategies. Moreover, you may get surprise that some of the popular marketing strategies, like line extension, benchmarking cannot promote your product, conversely, they will hurt your company seriously. So you must read this book if you want to surpass your competitors by using appropriate marketing strategies for your company.

Overall speaking, this book is easy to read and understand because Jack Trout delivered a concise and important message in the book ¡V ¡§Marketing is a battle of perception, not product¡¨

Janelle Barlow and Paul Stewart got it right. Having spent my entire 30 year professional career in the services industry it was clear the book was based not only on comprehensive research but also on practical experience. Their theories and advice can and should be applied in organizations of all sizes.
The book is entertaining and convincing. The reader will be able to relate to the real life examples the authors describe. They explain in easy to understand detail how to brand your organization from the inside out, effectively defining your organizational DNA. In addition, I have seen their advice work in numerous organizations. Implementing their processes is the equivalent of a Super Bowl ad.
Branded Customer Service is not only the best brand development book I have read, it is also the best business book I have read.

Written by chief executives Janelle Barlow and Paul Stewart, Branded Customer Service: The New Competitive Edge is a no-nonsense guide filled with strategies, exercises, and real-world examples to teach the reader how to harness the power of branded customer service. Unbranded customer service can potentially harm one's business, even when it is of good quality; branded customer service helps foster repeat business and word-of-mouth referral, among its many other advantages. Chapters discuss how to link the world of branding to one's customer service, how to embed on-brand service into the DNA of one's organization, tips, tricks, and techniques for supporting one's brand from within, and much more. Accessible to readers of all backgrounds, Branded Customer Service is a "must-read" especially for business executives, marketers, and even small business owners with the power and need to foster lasting improvements in this dimension of their chosen enterprise.

The authors are really clear on the differences between "generic customer service" and "branded customer service". You still get the impression that it would be difficult to apply in certain areas / industries, but it is important to take a look at what should everyone do in order to continuously support your brand promise. Worth a read!

Branding has been inside the marketing thinking pattern for so long that this refreshing look, coming from an innovative perspective, gives the reader an insight on the true meaning of a brand. Like every other dimension of your company, it's your people who will make it or breake it. Barlow and Stewart guide us through new models for (re)thinking and developing a brand. Having employees with "on-brand" behavior should be the main concern of every company. Read this book to learn how you can achieve it.

I have been working on a branded customer service project for a few years now, and was looking for some research or reference material when I came across this book - it was like I found my "tribe"!

The authors do a brilliant job defining the concept of branded service, and offer great tools and ideas that you can use to start getting your organization "on-brand." It's easy and fun to read with real-life examples of what it's like to experience on-brand and off-brand service.

If you believe that branding only belongs in the advertising or marking department - think again. It's the job of the entire organization to not only represent your brand, but to also make it come alive!

Once you read this book you will never be able to look at an organization or service experience again without thinking... hmmm...was that off/on brand or what!

I highly recommend this book for anyone who is working in this field, or thinking about how to gain a real competitive advantage for their organization.

This book is a very well written and an easy read, I was born and graduated highschool, in Spokane,(then I moved on).
I had spent time in all the areas mentioned in this book, but I still learned alot of good history about the Spokane area reading this book.
The book perked my interest and even inspired me to look up family tree information, from the time frame of the book. I had an Uncle that hung out at Mothers Kitchen during those times. I wish he was alive now, I would ask him a lot of questions..... Very Interesting.

I read this after "The Worst Hard Time". I liked this book much better. It's interesting on many levels. Tim paints a great picture of life in the 30's, and the life of the sherriff. I felt like I knew the characters. I have a theory that sometimes a book/author deserves an award, but the book gets passed up, so the next book gets the award. ;)

This was a great story and a very interesting read, because it was a real case that a lawman solved.

Mr. Egan has become my favorite non-fiction writer. I've reread The Good Rain several times, and read The Worst Hard Time as soon as it became available in paper back. I live in the Pacific Northwest and have come to appreciate the history that surrounds me. Mr. Egan's hero, Sheriff Bamonte, faced Herculean obstacles, and Mr. Egan presented it beautifully in Breaking Blue. After I finished reading Breaking Blue, I quickly mailed the book to my son who graduated from Gonzaga in 2005 and recommended that he read it since the story takes place in the Spokane area. The Spokane River which runs through downtown Spokane has a new meaning for me now!

One of my best recent reads. Part crime story, part historical and cultural biography, and part present-day human drama. All parts are addressed evenly. Great for anyone interested in the sometimes strange land of Eastern Washington and Spokane's Wild West past.

Excellent book! Well written! Well worth reading! Also read her book/bio expose of the Mormons...it is excellent as well...she is/was a professor & writes very well!

This book is fantastic--I've never read anything that explained so clearly why women feel so miserable about their choices in the land of infinate choice. It explains why feminism has never resolved basic life issues and why the alternatives to feminism are so unsavory. This book is for any woman who finds herself confused about life choices. Martha, you're the bomb!

I've read her most recent works and have immensely enjoyed the bright and kind wit of Martha Beck. This book is scholarly, hard-hitting and wise; I found myself nodding deeply more than once with a deep "Aha!" of recognition. She is nothing short of wonderful and her books are excellent!

Apparently this book did not have the success that Martha Beck's subsequent books have had - perhaps the reason why it is out of print. I have read most of her books, but this one, in my view, surpasses them all; I regard it as a superlative working manual. I agree with previous reviewers that Beck is both scholarly and humorous, but I think the book's greatest strength is the way the author brings together so many women's stories - the rites of passage that we all need to know about for our own sanity. I go to this book not only for validation, but also for much needed refuelling. Beck's analogy of the chrysalis (although other authors have used it) is especially lucid, and is sufficiently empowering on its own. If, as a woman, you are on a personal "vision quest" this book is a great map. Find a second hand copy, and never let it go.

I came up against conflicts and obstacles in my life as a 20-something woman--smart, good-looking, well educated, successful. I had no idea what kept hitting me. There were the reasons everybody cites, but there was something deeper that was insoluble, it seemed to me. I couldn't figure out why I was the only woman I knew who was stopped in her tracks, overwhelmed by the horror of people's expectations and everyone's acceptance of the fact that these expectations all contradicted each other. It was even worse in my 30s. Late 30s, I gave up.

Yup, this is it. This sidesteps all the quick-fix, superficial explanations about how to feel better and be more successful at X, Y, Z as a "modern woman". Most people who write those books have no idea what that is, even though they think they do. This book is funny, smart, honest, well-researched. It sidesteps the typical cliches and categories used by 99% of all who write about women's lives. For that alone, she should get a medal.

A lot of money, time, effort, and grief wasted over the decades in trying to come to the very conclusions Martha Beck describes, but at least that means I know the real thing when I see it. I'm so grateful I came across it. When you've identified the real problem, the solutions you come up with have traction. They work. What a gift, to be pointed in the right direction.

The dream of the electrical vehicle was first inspired by the success of the sunraycer, a vehicle capable of 41 mph and able to traverse the US on five gallons of gas. EV technology faced two signicant barriers: the DC to AC inverter and the 100,000 mile battery life. AC motors were lighter and but the electricity had to be chopped or inverted. Alan Cocconi had built a inverter for his SunRaycer and also designed and built regenerative braking. At Aerovironment, Brooks used the Sunraycer power design and built an EV with a more power inverter and AC motors and battery pack. Cocconi built two inverters which each powered a 50 kilowatt motor.

The GM impact prototype solved both of these problems. Alec Brooks was assigned to study Paul MacCready in the offices of AeroVironment and his efficient motors. MacCready had built an Electric Vehicle prototype for GM - with its streaming lines; the initial idea was too make the rear wheel base shorter than the front creating a tapering effect. The car was to be built from aluminum rather than steel. The Impact had a fiber glass body.

It was Baker's job to bring the EV car to market. Baker reluctantly took the task, a task he dreaded because of early failure with the electrovette.

Lead Acid batteries were a problem, but they were cheap and they worked. Lead acid batteries needed water replenishment; engineers tried to devise methods and these batteries could not be 100% discharged and recharged for a 1,000 cycles. Heat and cold affect the electrical output of the battery. The batteries weighted about 900 pounds. Nickle Metal Hydrid was proven but not used immediately; Baker didn't want any delays; Baker needed to get the EV quality to production status: heater, air conditioner, radio, and suspension system.

The impact could accelerate from 0-60 seconds in 7.9 seconds reaching a speed of 75 mph; it could travel 124 miles at 55 mph and in city reach 300 mile range.

This is a great book. The author follows the tangled story of how GM developed the first production electric car... but he went to press just a year or two before GM sent it to the crusher. See the documentary Who Killed the Electric Car? for the sad end to this story.

For contrast, google for the on-line copy of "The Prius That Shook the World". While Schnayerson was following GM he was totally unaware of the development of the Toyota Prius. Like Shnayerson's book, the Prius book takes the development of a new car from a clean sheet of paper to production. From reading both, Toyota seems to have much longer term plans and much less in-fighting. GM changed it's mind with every new CEO.

By coincidence, neither book has a single photo in it (aside from the cover) and lots of personalities. But from 2007 looking back the Prius story has a much happier ending.

Shnayerson tells the story up to when the GM Impact was introduced. The film "Who Killed the Electric Car?" got me interested in electric cars. The GM Impact (EV1) was the most successful modern electric car, but it disappeared into the crushers shortly after its introduction.

His story is that of a dedicated crew inside GM working against budget cuts and management changes to make the car. It is a good read.

A shortcoming is that there are so many major characters-- A new one on each page in some chapters. One is Ken Baker, who runs through the whole narrative, as do Roger Smith (yes, that Roger) and Robert Stempel, one a former GM Chairman.

Another major character doesn't appear until chapter 20: Stan Ovshinsky. The 12 pages describe his career and the Ovonic 12-volt NiMH battery, and the test on the track at Mesa, Arizona, where his batteries powered the test Impact EV 201 miles on a single charge.

All of these 100+ GM execs and engineers were heart-and-soul dedicated to making the EV succeed. One cannot read this book and feel that GM was against the electric car. Shnayerson is an outsider, and was in no way a mouthpiece for GM or an industry apologist. When he tells of GM execs moving their families to Lansing or to Troy so they can work more on the Impact, you get a strong feeling that GM wanted this car to happen. GM sunk a few billion dollars in it.

I could have done with fewer pages of office drama and a new character on every other page, all of whom "exuded midwestern charm," and less about whether so-and-so was "on the fast track to a senior vice-presidency."

I would have preferred line drawings of new assemblies, for example, regenerative brakes-- a first by GM. I wanted more technical details! Cut a couple dozen pages of drama and give us line drawings! For example, in one of the few technical discussions; Setting a standard for EV chargers, page 223, after 3 years and $10 million, GM accepted Hughes's inductive 220 volt charger. Ford stayed with the basic prong-and-socket conductive charger. I wanted a line drawing of each, a photo of each, a short description of each.

Shnayerson gives an objective account of politics, noting the reelection of California Governor Pete Wilson in 1994, and Republicans unseating Democrat governors, and Republicans making huge gains in Congress in Nov 1994-- as a factor in reducing the auto industry's motivation to push the EV. That political revolution is missing in explaining the death of the EV in California in "Who Killed the Electric Car?" where the government villians are made out to be Bush, Cheney, and Rice. Shnayerson suggests that a Republican sweep in 1994 may have been the bigger factor, with a repudiation of 25 years of environmental legislation.

We humans may be incapable of analyzing economic factors, but we always emphasize political factors. This mental shortcoming has to do with the Availability Bias, from cognitive psychology: We overestimate factors easy to imagine or remember (like political figures we don't like) and ignore factors difficult to imagine or remember (like anything to do with economics). So when GM cuts funding in 1992 for the Impact, everyone, like director Chris Paine of "Who Killed the Electric Car?" screams out that there is a giant conspiracy by bad guys in Oil, but few recognize that when a company has a loss of a billion dollars, they need to cut back somewhere.

Shnayerson spends only a few pages on Japanese electric cars: All four major Japanese carmakers had cars to show at the Anaheim California December 1994-- EV Symposium 12. Mazda had an EV Miata. In France, residents were paying for the privilege of test driving 50 Peugeot-Citroen ZX and 105 model prototypes. If Big Oil, Autos, and the U.S. Gov killed the GM EV, who killed the French and Japanese EVs? Which brings up the Big Red Cars in Southern California.

Did Standard Oil and GM and B. F. Goodrich destroy Henry Huntington's Pacific Electric, the world's best electric car system, with its more than 1000 miles of standard gauge track? Or rather than a giant conspiracy, is the fault in the hands of my mother and father and thousands like them who destroyed the Pacific Electric-- they purchased a shiny new 1949 Nash, instead of spending that money on tickets to ride the Red Cars. We blame the "greedy" oil companies, but we don't think about tens of thousands of Southern Californians ready to buy that status symbol, their own auto, after years of rationing during and after World War II.

This is a fascinating inside story about the development of electric cars in the early '90s.

GM unveiled a prototype electric car in 1990 and conveyed the message to California (and other states) that they could develop such a vehicle for consumer use. California shortly thereafter adopted standards requiring the top 7 car manufacturers to sell emission free vehicles totalling 2% of sales in 1998, increasing to 5% in 2001, then 10% in 2003.

GM proceeded to lose enormous sums of money in the early 1990s. But they still worked to develop the electric car for two reasons. One was to be able to meet the California standards. The other was hoping they would be ahead of the curve and make money on the new technology.

But many technical issues needed to be resolved to bring the car to market, the biggest being batteries. Developing batteries capable of providing adequate storage capacity for a reasonable amount of driving was (and remains) a monumental problem.

At the same time GM was developing a marketable electric car, they (along with Ford, Chrysler, and Big Oil) lobbied hard to eliminate the emission free mandates, claiming the technology and consumer demand wasn't there. What did GM want to happen? It seems that they didn't really know, in part because they were bleeding money.

California blinked in the 4th quarter of 1995 and eliminated the mandate. Then, in January 1996 GM unveiled the EV1, a 2 seat electric sports car.

For a follow-up on the "success" of the EV1 and other EVs, I recommend the movie "Who killed the Electric Car?". Disturbing.

The book "The Car That Could" tells the story of GM's EV1 much better than the film "Who Killed the Electric Car?". The book tells the story of the EV1's birth. That is of course a more hopeful story than the EV1's death, which the film covers. And that fact alone makes a big difference in the impact of the story that is told.

But there is another difference. "The Car That Could" tells the inside story of how the EV1 came to be. People within GM make a huge effort to give birth to the car. This was no sham attempt to live up to the California Air Resources Board mandate to put electric cars on the road. GM clearly had its technical and marketing people do their best work. And they did build a great little car, a car that could.

As we know now, though, GM's EV1 did not live very long. The passion of those who put their money down to lease the cars could not make up for the fact that they were few in number. When the California Air Resources Board's mandate went away, that spelled doom for the EV1.

No new EV1s were made. Those that had been made were crushed. A sad end for the car that could.

But though the film "Who Killed the Electric Car" implies that GM killed the EV1, the reasons for its death were more complex than that. And the real story of its death has not, I think, been told. Certainly not as well, and with so much insight, as the story of its birth.

But the story of the electric car has not ended. And there may be some hope for a happy ending. Recently GM's CEO Rick Wagoner has said that he regrets the decision to kill the EV1. And GM promises to come out soon with a new series hybrid electric car. That may put GM back into competition with Toyota and Honda, and their parallel hybrid cars. If so, maybe we will see another, more successful version of a GM car that could.

Michael Shnayerson did a great job researching and writing about the birth of the EV1. Many of the insights written into the book will help those thinking about electric cars today.

So in my mind, "The Car That Could" should be required reading for anyone who wants to participate in the electric vehicle industry. Copies are hard to find now. But if you are interested in electric cars, find a copy and read it. "The Car That Could" makes the must-read list; "Who Killed the Electric Car?" does not.

A great book that talks about other animals that lay eggs other than chickens. I read this book to my preschool children and they loved it very much. The pictures are bright and very colourful. It's a must buy!

I enjoy the realistic non-anthropomorphic pictures Ruth Heller, author/illustrator, placed on each page. They are colorful, accurate and fun to look at. Some pages have just one animal and other pages are filled with lively looking insects and their eggs. I also enjoyed how she showed the size, coloring, shape and form difference between all types of eggs. I learned a lot from this book and think that kids over 3 will enjoy having this read to them. The only downfall I see in this story is that sometimes the words and sentences are in rhyming form and sometimes they aren't. I would've preferred one OR the other, not both. It doesn't flow as well with the two methods of writ, but other than that it was a good book.

This was my favorite book growing up, because of it's catchy rhyming story, accompanied by colorful, ecclectic illustrations... and now, it is my sons favorite book - so much so, that I'm now looking into buying Ruth Heller's other science books. My 4 year old loves them, and the colorful picutres hold my 2 year olds attention (a feat in itself) so well, I'm amazed!

I'm so glad I've kept this book around long enough to pass it on to my son, who already has a great understanding of any animal, who is an "Oviparous"

I think it's really great that Ruth Heller introduces a complex subject in a children's book without talking down to the children. It's great that she uses "big" words like "oviparous"--kids, after all, can remember lengthy dinosaur names; there's no reason why they can't handle other long scientific words.
But I do have slight qualms. For instance, the part about amphibians says that amphibians don't have claws--what about African clawed frogs?
The illustrations are engaging, and the use of rhyme in prose makes the text flow nicely. The subject is interesting, too. I just wonder a bit about the accuracy of the "facts" presented here.

My son brought this book home from school today as reading homework (he's in second grade). This was one of those times when I was pleasantly surprised by a homework book being better than the usual. I like the humorous rhyming language, the entertaining and educational tone, and the pretty pictures. The illustrations are not scientific in detail, but there are many recognizable species and the book is laid out in an artistic manner all too often lost now that so much is done slip-slap on computers. I am glad to see that the book is still in print. It's a winner. Not much text per page, so very easy for many, but not a baby book either.

I just ordered my third copy of this book! In addition to the first one I purchased, I had to replace the one my two year-old grand-daughter has worn out and also buy one for her mother to keep! This is a wonderfully illustrated collection of nursery rhymes that has totally engaged my grand-daughter, so much so that she has memorized most of the rhymes and is cued by the illustrations to repeat them word-for-word. The book contains the most comprehensive collection of nursery rhymes I have seen, does not change the traditional wording of those rhymes, and full-color illustrations cover all pages. Those illustrations are big and bold, not pencil-like and, in my opinion, a bit frightening. My grand-daughter has gained many new words from her love of this book. It is also a grandma joy to hear a two year-old reciting "Hickory Dickory Dock" and so many others from memory. This book will become a keepsake in our family!

I bought this book for my daughter 2 years ago. She's now 2 1/2, and this book has been read to her hundreds of times (at her incessant requests) to the point that it is now covered top to bottom in scotch tape! I'm currently online to order a second copy for my 6 month old son (and no doubt to the delight of my daughter!). I can't recommend it enough!

I'm surprised to have read a complaint about the illustrations - I (and my wife, and my daughter, and everybody else who has seen the book at our house) think they are wonderful: bright, detailed, and above all, contextual (something I've wondered about with other nursery rhyme books). I think one should take that comment with a pinch of salt; there's nothing in the least bit inappropriate with the illustrations (the cover is itself an excerpt of the style in question).

My only wish would be that they could print this book on laminated paper so as to avoid all the wear and tear that it receives as our children's favorite! I for one would be happy to pay extra to preserve this book for their children one day!

I LOVE THIS BOOK! IT HAS ALL THE CLASSIC STORIES AND RHYMES THAT I GREW UP HEARING AND THE ILLISTRATIONS ARE AWESOME!

I love this book for many reasons. The type is large enough to read at any time of day and the illustrations are amazing and clear. I ordered this book for a friend and am going to order another one for myself. Can't go wrong with this one!

There are innumerable nursery rhymes in this book, most of which I had never heard of. When my mother came out to visit after the baby was born, I was shocked to hear her recite all of the rhymes by hear as I read from the book. There is a large variety Also, my wife and really like the vivid colors of the illustrations. We are very pleased.