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Definitely on my recommended book list. A must read for women in business.

Susan Bock
The Success Coach for Women in Business
www.SusanBockSolutions.com

The author redefines "argue" as "communicate", then tries to tell you how to "win at communicating". He does this by presenting a lot of half-truths and monologues borne of a critically incomplete understanding of even his own example situations. The result is a lot of really, really bad advice.

This book is useless as a guide to arguing (or even communicating), but possibly potentially useful in understanding the kinds of broken thinking you may encounter in others while trying to argue or communicate with people of like mind with the author.

I was not a big fan of lawyers until I read this book. What a helpful and wonderful persepctive in dealing with anyone anywhere. The use of real world examples is dead-on.

Simplicity isn't emphasized, but it is fair for Spence to assume virtually all of the other books on public speaking include banal adages like "start with an impact statement" or "limit your presentation to 2 to 4 main points." I appreciated him not selling me a repeat of the basics.

Spence's point about emotion is no one cares to argue over or hear why 2 + 2 = 4. Consequently, issues worth arguing over are normally decided by a sense of justice, responsibility or the like, which involve emotions. I took Mr. Spence to assume along with his audience, with good reason, that you cannot persuade a jury, judge, board of directors or the like by logic alone. You must address what people care about.

This is an extremely helpful book from one of America's greatest trial lawyers. It is also an easy read. In short, Spence believes that arguing is important because it shows that you believe in something important. To go through life without sharing these beliefs is not to live at all.

I was initially turned off by the title because arguing can have a bad connotation these days (i.e. being confrontational). However, Spence uses the term arguing to mean sharing your deep held beliefs with others. If we all would do this, he suggests, we would all be more enlightened.

Most important, Spence shows you how to share your beliefs. "The first trick of the winning argument is the trick of abandoning trickery."

A note for trial lawyers. Although this book is not intended to teach trial techniques, Spence's message about being true to yourself when you argue in court for what you believe and in the rest of your life is well worth remembering.

This book goes over many methods to make an informed decision. I would reccomend this to a person that really wants to know different ways to analyze your deals. Very informative.

I have recommended to all of my friends to read the following books in order to shortcut the process and learn what they need to know. I told them this is what I would do if I did it over again. (I have my CCIM, Masters of RE from CU, ULI Development Certificate, NAIOP courses) But in all those, this would be most beneficial and starting here would help in short-cutting the process:

1) What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Cash Flow - Gallinelli

2) Insider Secrets to Financing Your Real Estate Investments: What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know About Finding and Financing Your Next Deal - Gallinelli

3) Professional Real Estate Development - 2nd Edition - Peiser

4) Principles of Real Estate Syndication - Friedman

5) Confessions of a Real Estate Entrepreneur - Randel

I have read several other real estate books, but they tend to go way off course. This one tells you practical knowledge shoring up the base/foundation in order to understand more complex issues, but at the end of the day, simplisity will win out.

I think I have probably told at least 10 friends to read these books and they should be part of their "Library" as this will get them where they need to go and understand without practical experience.

I wouldn't recommend it if I didn't think it wasn't great.

I have no relation or affiliation to Frank G, just have read so many books, would like to shortcut the process for other people eager to get there and I love to read other people's reviews on Amazon so I know which ones are useful.

Hope this helps

"What Every Real Estate Investor Needs to Know about Cash Flow" is the definitive guide to understanding critical calculations that will help you to determine if a prospective acquisition target is a great deal to buy immediately or a horrible investment to avoid like the plague!

I've owned this book for years but often find myself referencing this wonderful and well-written manual.

Matthew A. Martinez
Author of "Investing in Apartment Buildings: Create a Reliable Stream of Income and Build Long-Term Wealth" and "2 Years to a Million in Real Estate"
www.matthewamartinez.com

Wow, now this is a great reference book for investment calculations. Not only does he provide formulas, but Frank also explains the use and the Rules of Thumbs are great. There is no magic calculation that will tell you if it's a good deal or not and Frank says that several times. It's a matter of looking at the opportunity from several angles that will give you that indication.

My only warning is that this book is really geared to multi-family or commercial investments. Some of the calculations are not applicable to the residential single family units that some beginner investors start with.

Having a MBA, I'll tell you this, learning this ratios and calculations were much easier to learn from this book than I did in the classroom. Good job Frank, a definite must have for the serious investor.

I was not sure if this book would work for me. I bought several other books on financial analysis, but I always found them either to be too dry or too complex. Gallinelli has the ability to get the scary formulas and maths and break it down to a level that can be understood.
His style of writing is fun too. He puts in the occasional joke at the right moments when things start getting a bit complex. This helped me a lot to understand and follow his line of thinking.
In addition, the book is very well planned as it builds up slowly from very basic material to more advanced material.
Good book to have.

The book is just what I was looking for - simple and short, yet effective and precise. It contains just enough intro on the scientific background on how plants purify the air, it gives some info on how this has been tested, it gives practical advices on how to use plants and finally it rates the tested plants according to four criteria of effectivness (removal of chemicals,transpiration rate, ease of growth/maintenance,resistance to insects).Great for reference with some great pictures and guide how to take care of each particular plant. Simply great!

Very well written-- fascinating -- and I was impressed and appalled by reading about the studies that showed -- more than TWENTY years ago -- how our inside air is just as bad sometimes -- and even WORSE at times-- than the outside air.

I would HIGHLY recomend this book as a guide to ALL public building administrators who have a say in what kind of plants (LOTS OF EM please) should be in their lobbies and offices and EVEN- YES -- on the ROOF.

The only gripe I have with this book is the over-generous use of abbreviations liberally sprinkled throughout the text -- and NONE of those abbreviations are in the Glossary!

More then 10 years ago, we bought some indoor plants for better air quality in the house. We end up throwing them away because we knew nothing about plants. So this time we thought we better get some knowledge before we purchase. This books came highly recommended by Dr. Chen, a famous Chinese Naturopath doctor who wrote couple of best selling books in Taiwan. We think this is a great book because it's simple and to the point with pictures. We decided on Rubber plant, Peace Lily and Janet Craig... They are good-looking and easier to care for, besides the capability to remove indoor toxins and keep indoor air fresh.

"How to Grow Fresh Air" is the best book I've found on the topic of using plants to improve air quality. It has easy-to-use recommendations, rating plants' ability to improve air quality and listing information that will help the reader decide if they can keep this plant alive.

There are a few problems. First, the book does not describe the 50 best plants -- it describes the only 50 plants tested. Second, this book doesn't indicate how many plants should be put in a room. An internet search of unknown accuracy indicated 1 to 3 plants (size medium to large) for 100 square feet of floor space (attributed to the author). Third, the book doesn't tell you about any patterns the authors observed in their research: does plant size matter? Leaf size? By how much? Growth rate? If there were a simple pattern (like large fast-growing plants are best; or that air-cleaning appears to be a characteristic of certain plant species), then this would be very good to know. Forth, the research is at least 12 years old, and there doesn't appear to be any new research on this subject. Fifth, I found two conflicting tables in the technical section. This doesn't give me a warm fuzzy feeling about the book's technical accuracy -- like Al Gore's "time goes backwards" Global Warming chart. The whole thing reads like an exploratory research project that wasn't funded further -- but should have been.

With that said, this book has useful advice, and seems to be worth the purchase price. I'm going to give buy a few of the highest rated plants for my office, and see if their gas-elimination properties (combined with my air filter) yields improved air quality.

Not many products both clean the air and are beautiful. How to Grow Fresh Air explains how houseplants do just that. Beautiful book, well written with plenty of information, this book is wonderful.

This book is a must read for every human being on the planet, age is irrelevant......I read it in one day, then went on the to the following book, Sara, Book 2 and Sara Book 3. Esther and Jerry Hicks sage advice is ultimately life changing. Their adult book The Law of Attraction is jaw dropping, and will alter your entire view of human existence. I highly recommend their trilogy to every family on the planet........a great read together. I immediately sent a copy to my son and his family. I will be giving this series of books for Christmas this year to everyone. Their books are extraordinary. There is no human word to explain how important,utterly amazing, astounding, astonishing all their material is; and their books will completely rearrange your mindset. Everyone deserves abundant joy. A Must Read Book!!!

We bought all 3 books (and CD's) of Sara, as we love the "Art of Allowing" teaching of the Hicks & Abraham!
My daughter is 4 and absolutely loves it! We read 1-2 chapters every night from the books...and listen to CD's when we travel in the car. I also enjoy listening to the CD's, however the voice recording is boring, very monotone...but the story is worth listening to! I wish the recording would be of a better quality and different voices present for each character, it would give the story a different feel.

We really enjoyed book one, though we didn't like that Sarah teaches children that she can fall in a river and never drown because she believes she won't. She fell after her mother told her to stay away.

Book 2, has a great story about friendship, but sends a bad message about children leaving their home in the middle of the night to go into the forest and meet friends. No fear, no danger! It teaches that even though a character is killed, that character comes back to life in physical form; and some kids may actually attempt to fly without understanding the mental aspect the book tries to impart.

We've enjoyed all the written material for grown ups, but unsure whether we will go onto book 3 for our 9 year old. Book 2 feels a little pointless so far.

What can i say? Ask and its given! I was only saying to myself the other day how good it would be to find a book on a "fictional" basis that would give me same teachings on the Law of attraction as do the all the other books on the market. i walked into our local department store and there it was, "Sara Book 2" staring at me.I felt compelled to buy it even though i don't like reading a book if i havn't read the first to the sequel.It took me one day to read it and i was so grateful to the universe and E & J Hicks and Abraham for bringing me the book i asked for. Even though i have read so many books and watched so many dvds on the subject, this book was the most profound because its so real and obvious when you read it in a real life context. Everyone can relate to it and no matter what age you are. i've just ordered 3 copies of "sara book 1' as i'm certain it will be just as brilliant,inspiring, and wonderful as "sara book 2".Do yourself a favour and read it and give it your children. If i had a book like this to read when i was growing up, my life would have been SO different. Thank you

Quite an enjoyable read for all ages. I bought it for my grand daughter, read it before giving it to her, and I will be buying another copy to read again and underline. Great life lessons.

When searching for books on sustainability its easy to find books heavy on opinion while practical application books are few and far between. This is one of the latter, a very accessible project oriented guide to making changes in the way we act. This book is filled with small scale systems that provides a great starting point for people who want to make actual change in their lives and not just read environmental theory, as great as that may be. The real gem in this book is the well organized bibliography, as many of the projects I would feel more comfortable completing with more detailed background knowledge of the processes going on, which is of course beyond the scope of this publication. Not to downplay the information contained in the book itself, which is awesome.
The key to making change is to make small changes, baby steps, slowly building your new lifestyle. I started with the vermicompostig, which is pretty tame, and moved on from there. Good Luck!

Wow! I just got this amazing new book written by members of Austin's Rhizome Collective. It's full of highly practical, affordable, and simple designs that can be used by anyone to achieve sustainability in their home, neighborhood or community. There are a number of books on sustainable living, but this one stands apart from the rest - the systems described in it are innovative and unique, many of which I've never come across in any other book. The author's approach to sustainability and permaculture is especially important as they emphasize the interconnectedness between sustainability and social justice, a perspective that is sorely lacking in the movement. Many books sell sustainability as a product, and lead us to believe that our problems can be bought away. Not this one, it cuts away at all that greenwashing propaganda and promotes a genuine, radical sustainability that is accessible to the majority of the people in the world. The introductions to each section are very interesting, giving a general overview of each of its five main sections: Food, Water, Waste, Energy, and Bioremediation (a topic I've never seen covered in anything other than dense,academic texts). The writing is highly informed and intelligent, yet down to earth and accessible.
One of the most standout features of the book is its incredible artwork - done masterfully by Juan Martinez of the Beehive Collective - the book's many vivid illustrations and helpful diagrams make it a joy to read and look through. Highly recommended!

i was deceived by the title. it was mostly a reading guide and not some sort of survey of the "classics." plus, i've read better reading guides

I am a great fan of The Well-Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home, Revised and Updated Edition, a book which Ms. Bauer wrote with her mother, Jessie Wise. Ms. Wise home-schooled this author and allowed her intellect to flourish. Unfortunately, she did not protect her from (or perhaps actively exposed her to) ugly, anti-freedom, anti-capitalistic ideas.

Think I'm exaggerating? Well, check out these passages:

Of Mein Kampf, she says that it's eerie to see Hitler's racist rants alongside other National Socialist goals that "seem quite reasonable." Then she says, "the twenty-first century may have rejected Hitler's doctrine of racial purity, but his techniques of propaganda are still much in use." Not by the federal government, of course, but by evil capitalists! "They have been turned to the service of the market, rather than the nation-state." Nation-states don't engage in propaganda? Really?

Of the The Communist Manifesto, she says it's "difficult to argue with" Marx's description of how capitalism exploits workers "in a world where every family restaurant cowers before the golden arches." She rejects his political program in favor a mixed-economy welfare state, though.

Worst of all, she totally misses the point (or ignores it) of Nineteen Eighty-Four. To Bauer, Orwell's classic is not a condemnation of the state (which she slavishly adores), but of ... advertising! Can you believe this? "Orwell's hell on earth didn't come about in 1984. But in his chilling, detailed version of a world where both mind and will can be manipulated by large and powerful institutions, he was decades ahead of the postmodernists and their condemnation of our advertisement-driven society."

Speaking of 1984: The page count of this book is padded by entirely worthless summaries of the books covered. They don't just give you a feel for what the book is about -- they give away the entire story in less than a page. For example, the 1984 synopsis *SPOILER ALERT* tells you that O'Brien works for Big Brother, that Winston is captured, and that he eventually caves in the emotional climax and tells the state to put his lover Julia's head in with the rats instead of his own. She spills all of this! I was afraid to read the summaries of any of the books I hadn't read yet.

This book is not entirely worthless. Some of the tips on how to get more out of your reading are quite good, and the book lists are good, too. Of course, they're chosen with a leftist/communist bent, but since leftist/communists dominate the culture, it's important for educated people to know what poison they purvey. But please, supplement your Galbraith with Murray Rothbard and your McPherson with some good revisionist Civil War history.

In all honesty, you'd be much better off the check this one out from the library, copy down the book lists, and then read Mortimer Adler's How to Read a Book (A Touchstone Book) for the limited amount of good stuff contained in this book. It is very depressing to see that Ms. Wise-Bauer ended up with even worse, more perverse ideas about history and economics than those poor children who are subjected to statist programming at government indoctrination centers.

Helpful and very well organized. The author takes a very daunting task (to become "well read" and classically educated) and truly encourages and motivates the reader.

She offers her lists which, she explains, are just a starting point and not exhaustive. They are set up chronologically and she encourages the reader to make the lists their own by adding to or subtracting from the list.

She also offers her perspective and insight on how to accomplish the task at hand. For instance, she doesn't read her email prior to starting a serious reading. Her analysis of the issue hit the nail on the head.

I also appreciated the fact the author didn't re-write history by removing the Christian writings from her lists. Brava!

The idea of studying the Great Books chronologically by genre is a fascinating one, and I think it is a pretty good idea. Not a foolproof one (for example, you'll be able to catch references to previous novels, but not anything in Shakespeare if you haven't done the Plays chapter yet) but a very interesting one that I think has a lot going for it.

I would not recommend buying the book, though. It is very condescending, and seems to be opperating under the assumption that the reader has never read anything. Another reviewer suggested that this book is for SAHMs of toddlers, but I am one, and trust me I will not be reading Pilgrim's Progress 3 times over anytime soon! Maybe in another 10 years I'll have that sort of time. There are also some glaring omissions from the list, while I personally think that a few books are less than essential.

There is also next to no meat in this book: about half of it is plot descriptions that give away the whole story! If you're telling someone to read a list of books, do you really have to give a page-long description of the book, too? It just seemed like filler.

I'd recommend taking this book out from the library and taking a look at her list, but I think that there are better lists of Great Books out there.

Please, don't waste your money on this book. Check it out from the library if you must, but know that it takes a very, very scattershot approach to what is essentially a great books reading program.

The author's choices are often poor, both in recommended material and approach- for example, there is no reason to chide us not to read our email in the morning, yet because this doesn't work for the author, well, by God, it doesn't work at all.

I would strongly suggest looking around at university courses on Great Books, browsing their syllabi, and developing your own program instead. It will be a better use both of time and energy.

This is a must do for anyone who is adopting, it was easy and full of great ideas. Thank you

Review by Sherry North, Author, Because You Are My Baby

We are in the process of adopting a child from Kazakhstan, so I bought this book to help us collect information and memories for making a lifebook. While the text is a bit haphazard- information is often repeated and the topics seem to jump around - I would still recommend the book. It has given me a new perspective on how to talk to our child's caregivers and which tidbits of information or mementos to look for while we are in Kazakhstan. It also has sample lifebook pages, which will be a wonderful guide when I sit down with our child to make her lifebook.

This is such a great book. Wonderful ideas for adopted children internationally or domestic, children of any age, foster kids. She covers everyone. She does a fantastic job sharing and guiding. This would truly be a treasure to a child. Easy read and quite enjoyable as well. Wonderful tips and ideas!!

This book is wonderful. It gives step by step directions on how to start a life book. It explains what it is and why they are good for the adopted child. I highly reccommend this book to all adoptive parents!

This book gives practical ideas, with examples to follow broken down into a user-friendly format for those of us who are journaling-challanged!

I read this with my son for 7th grade and we both enjoyed it very much.

when i first read 'pictures of hollis woods', i was just starting seventh grade. i think that the main character not being able to fit in with the orphanages she goes to can also apply to teenage life, in a sense. some teens cant fit in with other classmates or friends, and they could kind of, confide, if you will, in hollis' character.
i also think its nice how the book goes from hollis' life with josie, and then to flashbacks, which help explain the book more fully.
all in all, its a good book; its worth the read.

Orphaned Hollis Woods seems destined to spend the rest of her childhood bouncing from one foster home to another. When she lands in the care of an elderly art teacher, Hollis begins to relax in the gentle and encouraging home. As Hollis's love for her new foster mother, Josie, grows, so does her awareness that Josie is losing her faculties - a fact which must be hidden from the dreaded caseworker's watchful eye. Interwined in the story of the present, Hollis reminisces through her artwork of the past that depicts another home that was dearly cherished. The pictures tell a tale of love, the hope of a family, and the shattered dream under mysterious circumstances. Will Hollis lose yet another loved one as her caretaker mentally fades? Why did Hollis leave the family she'd wished for? Will her caseworker succeed in finding Hollis a forever home? These questions will compel the reader to know the conclusions and hope for happiness for Hollis at last.

Wow, is the book over already? If you're looking for an outstanding book, I would definitely highly recommend the book called "Pictures of Hollis Woods". It is about a girl named Hollis. She is a foster child. Hollis runs away from almost every family she is brought to, even the family called Regans, who were respsecful and treated her like their real child. She is finally sent to a lady named Josie. After staying a while, she is pretty sure this is her future-to stay with Josie. This book is a book you wouldn't regret reading. Everyone would enjoy it. It's one of those books that warms your heart after reading every last word. This book is awesome. If you ever need to pick up a book and you don't know what to read, here's your answer; "Picture of Hollis Woods". See, it's only 4 words! So pick up the book and enjoy. You won't regret it!

Hollis is the girl every educator and social worker experiences frustration with. This story paints the entire picture of a troubled child's life and what it takes to "fix it." Often what kids need isn't something they can find in school. Every teacher and social worker should read this book!

I bought this book for inspiration and ideas. I can't say enough how pleased I am with the book. I look through it almost every day. I highly recommend for any doll artist or collector.

A compendium of figurative art, 500 Handmade Dolls opens the door to a facinating subject and the artists who work in the human form. Highly recommended.

A lapsed dollart maker myself, I was looking for inspiration to start again, along with other artforms, mixed media things....so this juicy and satisfyingly-sized volume seemed promising. I didn't want any how-to's, because I'd explored that in depth in the '90s. In this book, I found new works by favorite doll artists, (missed some I wish had been included), but was thrilled to discover a few new artists to add to my list. Seems like art is evolving to include even more of what we can make of it and dollart is perhaps at last being recognized for a valid art form. So if you are looking for inspiration, or just want to gaze and be thrilled, treat yourself to this book; it's well done.

This is a wonderful inspiring book full of all kinds of dolls. The photographs are fabulous, I've purchased 2 books, gave one to a friend and kept one for myself, and she loved it too.

I found this book to be a very good resource for inspiring examples of mixed media sculpture and 3 D art. The
photography is excellent and the color vibrant. The level of examples ranges from very complex to simple and
readers will be able to gain know-how and the boost to try this art form themselves.

This is a wonderful book for anyone with a loved one that has a mental illness!

It was as if the author had spent the last several years watching our lives and was coaching from the sidelines. A must read for those in the same situation.

The book is good. After seeing 2 other specialist and as time has gone by, we have been fortunate to realize that initial diagnosis was wrong.
Please NEVER stay with one single opinion in cases like this.
I felt like I died for a month after hearing the first diagnose. It was wrong.I will neither get those days back nor erase the pain and stress it caused at the time. It is over and that is a ggod thing. Get a second, third, forth opinion. God Bless.

This is probably the best book available for the family members of someone with a mental illness. It includes comprehensive information and practical suggestions for coping with a severe mental illness in a loved one. Highly recommended!

This is a handbook for families, friends, and caregivers of those with mental illness. It provides clear-cut guidelines, with chapter summaries laid out in useful, easy-to-read charts that include specific suggestions. Very practical, very informative. Covers about any topic related to mental illness you can think of. This book should be required reading for anyone dealing with a loved one with mental illness.