Teams Books

I had the privilege of meeting Tom Landry a few times and found him to be the most gracious person you could ever hope to know. These memories really took me back in time. The world is a poorer place without him

It's nice to know what outsiders thought of Landry, but it's nicest to hear from insiders who knew the man. This book fills that need. It's classy, readable, beautifully organized and highly affordable and should be on every Cowboy (or Cowboy hater's) bookshelf.

I bought this book for three compelling reasons. First, I am a long-time Dallas Cowboys fan. Secondly, I always admired and looked up to Tom Landry as a leader and a devoted Christian gentleman. Lastly, I love to collect and use quotes. I loved reading this book for one simple reason - it exceeded all expectations for all my reasons for buying it.

I cried the day Tom Landry died, and again the day after his death when I read articles and listened to television stories about the life and times of Tom Landry. This simple, little book brought back many of those same emotions. This book is not one author's lofty opinions about a man. It is a collection of quotes, stories, and vignettes from scores of people from all walks of life who are united in their deep love and respect for a man among men, a man of unquestioned character and integrity.

You do not have to be a Dallas Cowboys fan, nor know a thing about Tom Landry, nor do you need to collect quotes to enjoy and be motivated by this book. If you are inspired by reading true accounts of moral, spiritual, and successful leaders, then this book will exceed all your expectations, too.

Jennifer Briggs' "The Book of Landry" is an excellent tribute to the late Cowboy's coach, Tom Landry. I grew up in Wisconsin, where Landry and the Cowboys were "the enemy." This book gave me a whole new view of a man who is revered in Texas. He was a compassionate, principled, fun-loving and God-led man, a true hero. I keep re-reading chapter after chapter for inspiration! It's a great birthday or Father's Day gift!

Famed football coach Tom Landry passed away in February 2000, leaving behind a life of accomplishment rarely equaled and never surpassed. Former Dallas Cowboys players, assistant coaches, and others close to Landry contributed to The Book Of Landry by offering fresh testimonials and remembrances of the man. Landry quotes are culled from materials published over the decades of Landry's professional and personal life. Here presented are tributes to his childhood, family, coaching philosophy, Christian faith, motivational tactics, and the Landry "Look". The Book Of Landry is "must" reading for all Landry fans.

This is volume 1 of a two-volume set. Buy them both. Just like the second volume, it is an essential "navigation" guide for patients with one of the deadliest cancers. The book is logically organized, gives all the necessary information and almost nothing is missing. I am brain cancer patient and I recommend this book. This book and a book by Ben Williams, Surviving "Terminal" Cancer should be on the bookshelf of every GBM patient. This book gave me hope and the strength to endure. Mine arrived with Dr. Zeltzer's dedication, "Knowledge is power". How true!

If you or a loved one are newly diagnosed with a brain tumor, this is the book you must read immediately and use as a reference throughout the process of dealing with the disease. I wish that it had been available when our daughter was diagnosed with glioblastoma multiforme early last year. With a disease of this complexity, you and your family will ultimately be responsible for coordinating treatment options, anticipating and managing side effects of medications, etc. To be an effective advocate you need to learn as much as you can as quickly as you can, and this book is the place to start. The medical care that our daughter has received has been uniformly excellent, but a vigilent and informed caregiving team is a vital component in managing her disease.

"Surviving Terminal Cancer" by Ben Williams is also excellent -- both books are required reading.

The quality of the information available and the dedication of the people who provide it is truly amazing. Dr Musella's website, www.virtualtrials.com, is another essential resource, particularly for information about the many new developments in brain tumor research and treatment. I believe that there is much reason for optimism, and that an empowered and informed community will play an important role in conquering this terrible disease.

This book helps guide you through the turmoil that comes with the diagnosis of a brain tumor. Unlike most diseases where you go to your doctor and let him / her make all of the decisions, dealing with a brain tumor is very different. You will be dealing with up to 20 different types of health professionals. You will be given choices that your doctor doesn't even want to make for you. Decisions that you make can greatly affect your chances of being a long term survivor.
You need all of the help you can get.
This book was written by one of the best neuro-oncologists in the world, drawing not only on his professional experiences dealing with his own patients at some of the most prestigious brain tumor centers in the USA, but also on his many years of participating in online support groups and answering questions from my website, Clinical Trials And Noteworthy Treatments For Brain Tumors.



Al Musella, DPM
President
Musella Foundation For Brain Tumor Research & Information, Inc
Virtualtrials.com

This book was a perfect guide for me when I needed it most. Being diagnosed with a brain tumor has got to be one of the most daunting things a human can be faced with. On top of the shock, you'll quickly realize that the medical community can be a frustrating and inefficient entity to deal with while you're trying to make the most important decisions of your life. This book tells you how to take the bull by the horns and navigate through the murky waters of bureaucratic red tape. I followed the book's advice on keeping a folder with all my medical records and I took it to every appointment. While I was laying on a gurney waiting for an angiogram, a potentially dangerous procedure, I asked why it was taking so long to get started. The doctor said the hospital had misplaced my MRIs. I said that I had a copy on CD in my bag (something Dr. Zeltzer says everyone should do). His eyes popped open wide and he actually used my CD for the procedure. The nurse later told me that no one had ever done that. The book put me in control at a time when decisions like choosing the right doctors were literally a mater of life or death. My benign tumor has been removed for two and a half years and my life is very normal. I will never forget what this book meant to me.

This is a good book for anyone who needs to understand the complexity and diagnosis of a brain tumor. It will give you the facts to help you or a family member make intelligent decisions when faced with this medical diagnosis. My identical twin brother was diagnosed with a rapid growing tumor that was affecting his vision. We are both software engineers not doctors. We need facts with absolutes. Not probabilities. He was admitted to the University of New Mexico Hospital, Department of Neurosurgery. His wife and 1 year old daughter were at his side waiting for the operation. I found this book at the medical school bookstore. I thumbed through it and could not put it down. The book carefully explained in detail exactly what the medical staff was saying. It was not a solution for the emotions we were going through but at least I understood the complexity of the brain and impact of tumors. He had two major operations, including a craniotomy. Thankfully, he pulled through. That was a year ago. He will be on medicine from the tumor operation for the rest of his life. But he is alive. There are other books I might suggest for the emotional impact on a family, but this review is just for the understanding of the medical diagnosis. If you or a family member has been diagnosed with a brain tumor I suggest this book.

This book was required reading for an MBA class at DePaul University. You know how most "required reading" books go, quite dry and boring. This book, however, is just the opporsite. It's a quick read and informs the reader on so many levles to creating a highly functional, cohesive and creative work group.

Implement this book and the issues of employee satisfaction will disappear!

Well worth investing time and the small price to purchase the book. Keep it as a reference!

Gundry and LaMantia have done an excellent job of putting together this valuable "handbook" on teambuilding and leadership. They do an exceptionally good job of finding very distinctive "experts" to represent each of the ten principals. Each expert brings a different perspective to the book and added depth and life to the words. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to develop their collaborative team-building skills. The authors taught me that dream teams are not out of reach, but rather very attainable with the right tools. This book, I believe, gives you the right tools to be successful whether a team member or team leader!

This book shows how a team can tap into its unique brand of vision and "street smarts" to create a fresh approach to doing business. Not about becoming a well-oiled machine, "Breakthrough" is about doing the personal and collective work (emphasis on work) it takes to support a collaborative spirit that (in the words of poet Wallace Stevens) "is fluent in even the wintriest bronze." The authors know this work is not for the faint of heart, but they maintain a tone of encouragement throughout that just might convince a reader to dip a toe into the stream.

Gundry and LaMantia have done an exceptional job teaching the essence of team collaboration and innovation to achieve unforeseen possibilities. "Breakthrough's" mentoring tone outlines the ten critical principles needed to optimize team and individual creativity, performance and success. The authors' contagious excitement draw the reader in, as he/she is taken through a step-by-step course of how to effectively and simply "breakthrough" in life and in work.

The concepts presented by the Gundry and LaMantia are not new or hard to learn, but two things stand out that make this book important. First, the authors present their material in a comprehensive and unique process that is easy to follow, implement and teach. Second, the authors' consistent reinforcement of key fundamentals and the underlying meaning as to "why it is important" are at the core of collaboration. --Highly recommended.

Breakthrough Teams for Breakneck Times as a title sorely undersells the value of this text. This book clearly understands and beautifully elicits how to unlock, as well as grow, the creative problem solving genius within each of us. Its 10 principles to establish collaborative teams are not mathematically derived or drawn from Meta analysis. As a leader of teams, this book has got its fundamental tenets correct - we all want to be our primal self and contribute all our talents to create and solve problems. By understanding the basic tenets of human nature - honesty with oneself, finding our true passions and living with integrity, Gundry and LaMantia have shown the way.

Although there are numerous `teams' books written, few if any authors have trawled to deeply understand the building blocks of what makes an extraordinarily productive team - individuals who are truly honest with what they want from life, consciously make choices, speak with conviction and integrity, respect, honor and promote those around them. Truly collaborative teams that sustain breakthroughs as well as adapt and grow from adversity require, first and foremost, honest people. Gundry and LaMantia have to be congratulated for not only establishing the human principles required for establishing great teams, yet ask the questions we each should each pose to ourselves to experience a more fulfilling and whole life.

Following significant reflection of this text, the authors are correct in arguing that there is very little we have to learn so as to work together with a high degree of effectiveness. We each have the skills to be honest with what we want and how we wish to work, to listen as well as have fun with our colleagues, to cultivate shared responsibility and ownership, act courageously, live according to a `what if' rather than `thou shall be' guidelines etc.

As stated, what is required is to sweep away de rigueur organizational and society assumptions and expectations regarding the world of work and create new modes of conduct based on what the team desires to be truly effective. The most important task as we begin to collectively mold into a new team is for each individual to reflect on who they are, what are their dreams and passion, what they see as the purpose of the team and what they wish to contribute. They share this openly and honestly with the team, without judgement and questioning.

How refreshing it is to read learned experts in this field discuss the importance of honesty, respect for all viewpoints, courageous action and having fun and periods of reflection and rejuvenation. How wonderful it is to see a `business book' speak of people as breathing, spiritual animals with intrinsic needs who are on a journey of self discovery towards becoming more whole, hence contributing far in excess of what many of us believe is `normal' to contribute in the workplace.

The book is quite right in arguing that breakthrough teams requires people who are whole - they understand their internal direction in life, have considered their values, mode of operating, their passions and come to others in a spirit of generosity, active listening and non-judgment. The true breakthrough that this book delivers is that its teachings are applicable to any domain because it has viewed, questioned and judged people not in a business context, yet in our natural environment of communities. The health of the group stems from the importance of the individual. Dowse the passion and you end up with breakup teams.

This book stands as a litmus test not only for team leaders and organizations, yet for individuals who want to be part of a high performance team and enjoy and grow from every moment of their experience. This text provides the `how to' tools that we all intrinsically have to create breakthrough teams - understand our own unique qualities followed by being honest with ourselves and everyone around us. If so, you will find work to be productive, rewarding, fun and rejuvenating.

You will not find rules for behavior, decision making, rewards etc. The text is littered with succinct tools, helpful hints, guideposts and axioms that get you thinking and most importantly, reflecting about the way of work that is best for you.

This text is quite simple. Its basis is the primal tenets of individual honesty and integrity, understanding our passions and what we want to contribute and courageously outlining these in the workplace. From this true open forum of genuine listening, respect and reflection, team visions, culture and work credos are developed. Resiliency muscles are developed to make the team grow stronger through the inevitable bad times.

The value you derive from this book will be gained upon reflection on the axioms on which it is founded. Its primacy is the sacredness of the individual - their passions, dreams, values and boundaries. Breakthrough teams create a safe environment where people can be truly themselves, verbally and in action. They are contributing what they want, speaking truthfully and take deep responsibility for their words and actions. They listen with compassion and without judgment. Gundry and LaMantia have developed the principles that unlock our true selves, hence contributing our greatest talents and thereby not only developing breakthrough teams, yet also, more content, productive and whole people. Once we are on this road, our fears begin to vanish, and synchronicities begin to happen that help to make our dreams come true.

Breakthrough Teams for Breakneck Times is a call to re-ignite the best of the human spirit. A seminal work that has caused me to deeply reflect about the people that I lead, the responsibilities that I choose and how to mold and improve not only the economic performance of my team, yet to also increase the deep intrinsic and individual satisfaction that I want each person to feel from our work as well as our interactions.

Its time to go beyond vitas and technical qualifications and ask people what fire burns in their belly, where is their life going, what do they want to contribute and in what environment would they like to work?

It is because of Gundry and LaMantia that I now have the `stepping stones' to develop my team into a truly collaborative high performance unit. As well as delivering the outputs, we will also be having lots of fun. Its time.

Jim Grigoriou
Managing Director
Infusion Technology Pty Ltd.

First, the book is very well written and presented. It was entertaining to read. There were some amusing quips.
Second, the hands are excellent. There are a large number of double squeezes, so if you look for them, you can maybe find some of them. Of course these were made at the table under pressure.
Third, the book will make you think about what the hands will look like after a certain number of tricks have been played (i.e. a suit run)

I was a bit surprised at some of the poor defense plays. Perhaps top level card play has improved in 40 years.

Fun, enjoyable book to read. Highly recommended.
If you are not familiar with Double squeezes and Criss Cross squeezes you probably wont get much out of the book. Study for a while and come back in a couple of years.

This is a classic book that everyone should read for the sheer genius of declarer play and defence. Remember these hands were played at this elevated level AT THE TABLE against world-class opposition. It is a shame that Amazon doesn't have this book. For people desperate to read this and who don't want to pay high used prices, it is available new at Baron Barclay's for about twenty-five dollars.

This book deserves us to read it more than three times. Which level the best bridge are? You can find it in this book.

I agree. This is a large collection of hands that were played double-dummy AT THE TABLE. Many themes and combinations come up including squeezes, deceptive plays and defense.

It is too bad Amazon take so long to ship this book. It is widely accepted in the bridge-playing community as one of the best collections of bridge hands, if not THE BEST! The amazing thing is that all the hands described in this book were actually played in real life by the Italian Blue Team. They are not ready-made concoctions. Certainly this book is one of my favorites.

This is a very good and quite readable oral history about the Brooklyn Dodgers of the 1940-1950's. That celebrated team won several pennants, integrated baseball with Jackie Robinson, and had many colorful and talented characters. Written in the 1980's, we hear from ex-Dodgers stars like Roy Campanella, Duke Snider, Ralph Branca, Pee Wee Reese, Leo Durocher, and even some fans. We see how this team played in quaint little Ebbets Field, mostly succeeding except for some heartbreaking losses in the World Series against the Yankees. But sadly, the real heartbreak came when greedy owner Walter O'Malley looked at declining attendance and fled to Los Angeles after 1957. This book should be of great interest to baseball aficionados, particularly those that remember their heroes in Ebbets Field. Readers should also enjoy THE BOYS OF SUMMER, a superb if melancholy account by Roger Kahn.

Born and raised in Brooklyn USA...Golenbock's "Bums" is the best book I've read on my dear Dodgers...The quotes from former members of the team are outstanding and offer a direct insight how the players felt about management, other players and especially the fans..I've re-read it about ten times..Great to pick up when one is a "how I miss my team" mode....Get it! You'll enjoy it and treasured it.

super oral history of one of baseballs most fabled franchises. great insights into the inner workings of the baseball organization and front office, as well as player interviews which reveal the real people and lives of the players and fans of "dem bums"

This is a wonderful book if you're a fan interested in the early days of baseball, especially the New York teams. The author captures everything around the human spirit surrounding the Dodgers, Ebbets Field, the fans that treated the team like family, Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider, the Giants and Yankees rivalries.

The strength of this book lies in the first-hand accounts given by the players, executives, and fans that made the Dodgers franchise what it was. It is around these accounts that the book is built, and there is nothing more fascinating than hearing contemporaries reminisce about Campy or the Duke. This moves the book away from journalism and makes it something deeply personal. A must-have for any fan of the game, and especially of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

A wonderful keepsake for anyone who was--and still is--a Steve Yzerman fan. A man with incredible accomplishments and integrity, he was a dedicated captain and dedicated to his teammates and his fans. His fans, in turn, were just as dedicated to him. And I think I probably speak for every one of them when I say it was a really sad day when he retired. It was almost like the lights went out in Michigan. We would have been happy to see him in a Red Wings jersey for many years to come. We would have been happy just to see him out there skating around. He is a shining example of what every hockey player should strive to be but he was pretty unique and he'll be hard to beat.

Purchased this as a Christmas gift for a BIG fan of Stevie's and she LOVED IT! Worth the money and "cheaper" than the bookstores!

Outstanding book! It really captured the whole history of Yzerman and his legacy plus legend... This is an outstanding book for both Red Wing and alll hockey fans

This book reminds me a lot of my all-time favorite Yzerman book, "The Making of a Champion," which came out about 10 years ago. It's pretty much the same format - reprints of news articles and photos that appeared in the paper, along with some original features.

Whereas "Champion" covered the first 10 or so years of Stevie's career, "The Captain" covers all of it. The articles, written by Detroit Free Press writers Bill McGraw, Mitch Albom, Nicholas Cotsonika and others, follow Steve from his early days as a teenage Red Wing, referring to Steve as "baby-cheeked" and telling us "if he shaves, it's only for practice" (and that he used to order white milk in bars!); as he becomes The Captain; blossoms into one of the NHL's most prolific goal scorers under Jacques Demers and then a three-time Stanley Cup champion under Scotty Bowman. All while playing for only one team - the Detroit Red Wings.

"The Captain" is a great tribute to a man who personifies the words "class" and "perseverance" and the ice is a colder place without him. This book is a must-have for Yzerman fans everywhere, regardless of which team you cheer for.

The tagline to this book says it all..."22 seasons, 3 cups, one team" and that one team may be more important than the three Stanley Cups. In this era of free agency and mega-million dollar salaries, Steve Yzerman was a rarity...a superstar athlete who played his entire career with just one team. You need only mention "The Captain" to any Detroiter and they will know who you are talking about.

This marvelous book from the Detroit Free Press and Triumph books traces the career of one of the greatest professional athletes in Detroit sports history. The word legend is thrown about quite freely these days but it certainly applies to Yzerman. Here was perhaps the most modest superstar you could ever hope to meet. A fierce competitor on the ice, who over came numerous injuries, and a pure gentleman off the ice, Yzerman retired after the 2005 - 2006 season to take a much deserved spot in the Red Wings front office. More than any other player, coach, or owner, Yzerman was responsible for resurrecting a once great hockey team that had fallen on lean times in the 1970's and early 1980's.

We get to see a young Yzerman, just 18 years old as he shakes hands with team owner Mike Illitch after being selected in the first round...only after the Wings first choice, Pat LaFontaine, was drafted one spot earlier. We can all thank the NY Islanders for that! Yzerman was named team captain in 1986, at just 21 years of age, making him the youngest captain in team history.

The book tracks Yzerman's career, season-by-season, reprinting articles by Free Press writers such as Mitch Albom, Keith Gave, and Nick Cotsonika. Re-live those early playoff disappointments including the Stanley Cup finals loss to New Jersey in 1995. Then relive the glory of 1997 as the Red Wings took revenge on the hated Colorado Avs, first in the regular season, and then in the playoffs, on their way to their first Stanley cup since 1955. Yzerman's visit to the David Letterman Show and the tragic accident of Vladimir Konstantinov is also covered as well as Stevie's career achievements and milestones and his laundry list of injuries suffered throughout his career.

This is a must have for any Red Wings fan!

Reviewed by Tim Janson

This is yet another twist on the Dr. Faust legend, and it follows other similar stories such as "The Devil and Tom Walker" and "The Devil and Daniel Webster." Having not read the Faust legend in its entirety, but having read the other two, I note that whereas Tom Walker failed, both Daniel Webster and Joe Hardy, the hero of this book, overcame Satan. There is a difference, however, in the reasons. Daniel Webster overcame the devli through his goodness, whereas Joe Hardy overcame Satan through his determination. There is a similarity here, because Joe Hardy remained true to his wife's love in overcoming the wiles of the beautiful Lola. Having watched "Damn Yankee," the movie taken from this book, just after reading the book, I saw two different twists to the same story, both applicable to the genre in which they were produced. Overall, a recommended reading either for the sports buff or the casual reader.

man it would take the devil for the yankees to loose the series. This is a great book that isn't to long to read and it is a very good story

This is a wonderful story, and one that I enjoyed for personal reasons - the main character Joe Hardy was inspired by my grandfather Joe Judge, who played first base for the Washington Senators from 1915 to 1932. The story is told in my book Damn Senators.

I first read this as a kid, and loved it then. It's a happy thought that, 50 years ago, the greatest desire a man could aspire to was to have his underdog baseball team beat the undeafeated Yankees, and was willing to sell his sould to the Devil for it. Today he'd probably want at least one oil-producing country.

Well written, entertaining and with some great twists, it still remains one of my favourites for moralistic humour, right up there with the various Don Camillo books. Really gives the flavour of baseball in the 1950's when there were fewer teams, stronger loyalties and better sportsmen.

The novel tells the story of Joe Boyd, a long-time fan of the Washington Senators who have the worst record in baseball. One night after an incredibly bad loss, Joe decides to take a walk around the neighborhood and runs into the mysterious Mr. Applegate. It turns out that Applegate has been keeping tabs on Joe and his Washington Senators and wants to offer Joe a proposition. How would he like to watch his beloved Senators to win the 1958 pennant? Not only watch, but even help the team by becoming their newest star player? Reluctantly, Joe agrees but has Applegate write an escape clause into the contract. Within a few days the old Joe Boyd is transfromed into the 21-year-old Joe Hardy and sets off on a whirlwind ride that moves the Senators up from 7th place to just within reach of the Yankees.

Along the way, Joe begins to realize just what he's given up and what the ramifications are of his joining the team. It's a heart-warming trip, both funny and sad, and delves into a passionate fan's view of the world of baseball. So many temptations to stick with the game, and even stronger feelings tying him to his old life. Until the gorgeous Lola steps into the picture to keep his mind off the old Joe. Author Douglass Wallop's story keeps you enrapt and rooting for Joe and the Senators until the very end, never quite sure just what the outcome is going to be. It's a unique, light-hearted twist on the tale of Faust with many great and wonderful characters.

For most businesses or coaches, simple actionable tools and ideas are what you need. Most people who read a book will never have the chance to make a massive, organization changing process.

Championship Team-Building is easy to read and filled with basic ideas and concepts that are useful when teaching. The ideas in this book are beneficial to anyone from middle school teachers and coaches on up to business departments and groups.

Championship team building is an excellent source of information for coaches, business leaders or anyone who is a team leader. If you are a coach who is looking for that one item to help your team go to the next level in 1999, I would suggest purchasing this book! As a coach, I have always believed that positive team chemistry is the number one reason for the success of my teams. If you are like me, the question was always, "How do you get positive team chemistry?" This book will show you how! I highly recommend Jeff's book!

This is one of the most beneficial books I have ever read. it is easy to follow, it is fun to read and I was eagerly awaiting the next page. If you are serious about coaching, this is a must have book.

I can assure you that team chemistry is an important part of a team success and this book really addresses the issues around this.

I am both an experienced girls basketball coach as well as a psychiatrist. I HIGHLY recommend this book to coaches of any team. The strategies are effective and important. It can be easy to overlook importance of the mental aspect of athletic performance. Mr. Janssen does an excellent job of clarifying the role coaches have in this aspect of the game and gives practical advice on how to acheive better team performance.

This book is awesome. It gives you a virtual roadmap that is easy to follow. I am now in the process of using it with my son's team. The evaluation forms are informative and the exercises are easy to do. I would recommend this book to all coaches and players who want to take their teams to the next level. It is also very good for parents to help them understand the role and the need for the role that their child plays on the team. It will be interesting to see how this affects the play of our team that traditionally plays well against really good teams, but then reduces the level of its play to not so great teams.

The FAST teamwork process in this book really works! Jo Ellen and I teamed with each other, our artist, publisher, typesetter, and many others to complete our project. Our families helped also. We started with our shared vision, and our individual goals were achieved as a result!

In today's increasingly complex business environment, "speed" has become the mantra of successful organizations. The ability to learn and adapt to changing conditions more quickly than the competition is what separates the winners from the losers. In their book, Checkered Flag Teams, Renee Merchant and Jo Ellen Roe capture the centrality of speed in the modern business environment by creatively building their presentation of team development around an auto racing theme. The auto racing theme also provides an interesting juxtaposition by demonstrating the importance of teamwork in a sport that to an outsider seems more of an individual endeavor.

The primary strength of the book is that it is based on a theoretically eloquent and easy-to-understand model of teamwork. I have never been overly fond of Tuckman's model of team development because it focuses too heavily on the social dynamics of teams while ignoring the crucial element of the tasks that the team was created to accomplish. The authors' model of team development (presented on page 31), however, corrects this weakness by providing a convincing case for the need to balance task and process issues in team development.

The more obvious strength of the book is that it provides a number of "tools" for developing effective teams. These team activities are indexed early in the book, so you can quickly locate just the activity that you need. The instructions and rationale for each activity are precise and easy to follow, so that even novice team leaders should be able to employ them successfully. In addition, most of the team activities are fairly brief and to the point which makes them perfect for teams on the move.

I especially recommend the book for teams that are just getting started, as it provides an excellent toolkit for getting teams off to good start. Though it also provides a nice reference for team leaders in any field who are working to develop their team facilitation skills or are just looking for some creative new team building activities.

Checkered Flag Teams: Driving Your Workplace Into The Winner's Circle employs an automotive racing template to provide the corporate manager an up-beat approach to having a strong business team utilizing a "Fast Start Teamwork" process. Authors Renee Merchant and Jo Ellen Roe provide the reader with more than thirty tools and activities that anyone who drives a car can relate to. Included is a completely new communications style inventory, "CARStyles", inspired by the type of vehicle team members prefer to drive. Checkered Flag Teams is highly recommended reading for corporate policy makers, human resource directors, managers, supervisors, team members, consultants, and aspiring entrepreneurs.

This book is a good tool for anyone in a supervisory position. It can be used by the entrepreneur as a blueprint to help build a team that shares and supports the goals of the business. Civic organizations can use the methods and tools provided in the book to make their volunteer committees more cohesive and productive in achieving community goals and vision. The book is written in a way that is easy to understand with principles easily applied to family, church, community, and of course the work place.

Seldom do I see a business book that captures one compelling metaphor and carries it out over an entire book like this one did. The writing is good, detailed, and clear. Further, the book is filled with valuable team-building exercises that will improve communications and effectiveness, as well as work satisfication. If you work with manufacturing teams in the automotive industry, this book will be extremely valuable to you. In fact, it may function at beyond a five star level. On the other hand, if you work in high technology away from the NASCAR circuit and do most of your communicating in a virtual team by e-mail and shareware, this book may not seem very relevant.

The book's main weaknesses are part of its strengths. If you do not follow NASCAR, a lot of the metaphor will be lost on you. For that reason, I think the book would have worked better with more metaphors or one that was more universal than this one. The exercises are very good for bringing out differences and welding them together into an effective team, but they seemed very dependent on having a facilitator. I suspect that this facilitator would normally have to be from outside the team, for best results. Many organizations would not have the resources to draw on facilitators this much. Also, for short-term ad hoc teams, the exercises here could be overkill. There was not enough guidance about what you could cut back on, in those circumstances.

Also, I have seen a lot of team-building exercises blow up due to inexperienced facilitators. This book would not provide enough guidance to the neophyte facilitator on what to do, should a heated disagreement occur.

I graded the book down one star for its facilitator-intensive approach.

After you have finished enjoying new ways to improve team effectiveness, I suggest that you think about where people should work in teams but do not in your organization. What are the costs of this approach? What would have to be done to switch over to teams in those areas? Focusing on those opportunities may be an even bigger payoff than making your existing teams more effective.

May you enjoy the race, as your team is able to move faster, more safely, and more efficiently!

Through poetic and personal writing combined with powerful and passionate photographs author Tammy Lechner magnificently depicts and explains the Cubs Fans' journey of hope and faith. This book belongs in the home of anyone who loves the Chicago Cubs. I cannot imagine a Cubs fan who would not see this book as coming from their own heart and soul, and describing their own story of why the Chicago Cubs are loved by so many. It is a one-of-a kind, must-have, long-awaited visual narrative of the Cubs fans devotion that travels through time from winter to spring, summer to fall, visiting Chicago, Arizona... Banks, Williams, Sandberg and Grace... and fellow Cubs fans from Chicago to St. Louis to San Diego.

This book is truly a labor of love and it shows! There are more photos and more Cubs information in this book than I could have possibly imagined. A must-have book for any Cubs fan.

If your a Red Sox fan, Yankees fan, Dodgers fan, or Angels fan, your not going to be particularly thrilled with this book. You'll like it, but not love it. However, if you are among the millions, world wide, that love their Cubs you must own this book. It's nostalgia and current. Great photos and a story worth telling. For every Cubs fan that needs help getting through the winter, in Chicago, this book is a must have.

Bob Kozlowski

Every picture and caption will trigger a flood of Cub fans' personal memories in pursuit of "the Dream". Great visual insight to every aspect of Cub fandom.

This book captures the true spirit of the Cubs' fans. It is a moving, uplifting, nostalgic story with wonderful photos. I have already given away three copies. This makes a great gift not only for Cubs' fans but for any baseball fan.