change Books

The first book in this trilogy, Dies the Fire, was wonderfully written and chock full of inventive approaches to social organization and technology. Unfortunately the author seems to have run out of the novel ideas that drove the initial entry into the series by this point, and the characters, though still compelling, developed little. That said, though, the plot does move along at a decent pace, and I chewed through the book quite quickly - The action and the ending were reasonably satisfying.

If you read The Protector's War (which featured no war), then The Meeting at Corvallis (which features no meeting at Corvallis, but does feature a war) is certainly worth the read. If you're considering whether or not to finish the series after reading the stellar Dies the Fire, you might be better off investing your money in the other side of this story as well. The entire Island in the Sea of Time trilogy is very well written, and the characters and technologies in the series develop at a much more even and compelling pace.

This was a decent book. Given the ability, I'd have given it another half-star, but it doesn't warrant a full four-star rating.

A Meeting At Corvallis, the final volume of the Change trilogy that began with Dies The Fire, comes to a satisfying, rollicking, action backed end, and there's plenty there to satisfy anyone who became a fan of the first book and followed it all the way through.

After spending two volumes, stretching over nine years, building up to a confrontation between Norman Arminger's Portland Protective Association and the loose alliance between Clan Mackenzie, the Bearkillers, and the monks of Mt. Abbott, Stirling doesn't disappoint this time and gives his readers not one, but two epic confrontations that will decide the future of the characters that we've come to know, and perhaps the new post-Change world itself.

For the first time, he spends considerable time in the territory of the PPA where people are under the thumb of a man that they rallied behind when their lives seemed near an end, only to find themselves in a bondage unseen since serfdom ruled Russia. We also see the conflict about to come from the perspective of the people living in PPA and, while it doesn't really change the moral calculus of good vs. evil, it does paint a broader picture and give depth to characters who otherwise would've been little more than cardboard cutouts.

More importantly, though, this final volume of the trilogy shows why Stirling really is such a good writer. Not only does he take care to humanize his characters, he makes you feel like you're right there in their world with them, which makes the things that happen to them, both good and bad, all the more personal.

Stirling has started a new series based on the world of the Change. The Sunrise Lands takes place about ten years after the events of Corvallis and looks to introduce new characters, new challenges, and at some point perhaps an explanation for what happened to the world back on March 17, 1998. I look forward to continuing the adventure.

Well, the first book was interesting, the second tolerable, but the final one is terrible. Heavily padded - we know the details of every meal eaten, and every journey has several long lists of local flora and fauna. The armor of nearly every important character is described again and again. Even small things are repeated endlessly - every time a character in armor hugs or is hugged we get a reminder of the armor (which generally was described a page or two back).
There continues to be no explanation of The Change, other than hints of a divine origin. Given that the basic laws of physics have been severely tampered with, this is not very satisfactory. And still, most characters seem relatively uninterested in the reasons for the Change. A bit of bad pseudo-physics is given but only annoys.
There are long, long battles and duels, described in painful detail which slows the action to a crawl.
The end is not bad, although the hints of things to come are painfully obvious.
Sigh...if you were intriged by the premise in the first, and slogged through the second, save yourself. Don't buy this book.

As with the original Dies the Fire, this entry carries on an excellent vision of a post-modern world where physical laws have been altered by an unknown source. Great characters, great fun!

A Meeting at Corvallis
A great Read. Am now reading the next book in the series.

I read this book and presented the "Agreement" to my husband about one month ago. First off - It really got his attention! He was almost speechless for a few days! It has made a remarkable difference in the tone around our house. He read about half the book and is now reading "Controlling People" also by Patricia Evans. He admitted that he has done "some of that and doesn't want to do it anymore." The Verbal Abuse Level is down by about 75 % or so! Not only has he stopped most of his verbal abuse, but I've stopped tolerating it, so I'm feeling better about that. I know this isn't all that needs to be done to heal our relationship. I do believe it is a major beginning in tackling the behaviors that have caused a great deal of pain in our relationship. I recommend this book to anyone willing to do the work and follow through with the agreement!

Thank God for Patricia Evans. I began by reading her previous book: The Verbally Abusive Relationship then found this latest one. Both took me through the leaving of my husband with a relative comfort that I was doing the right thing. I carried them around like a bible that I would consult as I would a therapist. A TRUE emotional life saver!!!!!

This book is amazing in how true to the real life situation of verbal abuse it is. All I have to do after hearing my husband plead that he is changing is read a chapter or two of this book and I realize he is not changing at all. Ms. Evans tells us how to determine whether or not all of the criteria for change are being met as well as gently guides us to a deeper understanding of verbal abuse through real-life examples and well structured chapters.

I am very happy Patricia wrote this book and I appreciate her work very much and have recommended it to a lot of women, but I would also like to recommend all of you to also read "Why does he do that". It is written by a man called Lundy who has worked with hundreds of abusive men in his clinic. I think his book is the best one around on this topic, it was an eye opener for me and I never allowed myself to be abused again after reading "Why does he do that". Because this book made it so clear what the game is the abuser plays. Lundy tells us that only a few brave men change. Why is that? Because being abusive pays off - abusive men get to manipulate others and have them do what they want them to do. It is a POWER OVER game! Most abusive men do not want to see what they have done, it takes a lot a courage to face your own deamons. So most do not change. They go on and find another lady to abuse. When you feel abused, you are abused! Do not allow such thing in your life for any reason what so ever. It's not worth it. And relationships without respect just does not last.

Communication specialist Patricia Evans explores the issue of verbal abuse in heterosexual relationships. She builds on her previous work in The Verbally Abusive Relationship and Controlling People by posing the question, "Can a verbally abusive man really change?" What is particularly startling about verbal abuse, Evans explains, is that in almost every case the abuser feels that he is the one being attacked. (Rarely, abusers are female, but such cases aren't discussed in this book.) Getting him to own up to his damaging behavior is not easy. Motivating him to change is even more difficult. Evans supplies tools you can use to determine if your partner is likely to change and a program that can help him do so, if you think he can alter his abusive behavior. Evans uses her book as a pulpit to preach against unqualified therapists, verbal abuse in all its forms and the male-dominated society that has made such abuse possible. But, her cause is just, and we recommend this important resource to anyone who is struggling to survive an abusive relationship and to therapists who are seeking solid information.

As other people have stated that changing your handwriting and emphasizing certain cognitive change could lead to self-improvement, the "Vimala" alphabet I believe is not a practical in today's business environment. There are plenty of much better self-help books if that is what you need.

Hey. Nice to see a book on handwriting analysis with the idea that people can change. How hopeful. The idea of practicing (to write) a specific alphabet sort of gives me the creeps. Is'nt it enough to change a few "flaws" in the writing to get it within a field of the norm? Just reading this book creates an awareness of ones behavior and handwriting, enough to start making small changes here and there. It's a short, quick read, packed with great info.

I stopped handwriting in junior high and developed very neat printing instead. For years I felt vulnerable about my handwriting. I also felt a longing to shed myself of my handwriting discomfort and thought changing my writing patterns could have a profound positive influence on me. Then I attended a 3-day workshop which taught the principles found in this book. I was ready to confront my uneasiness with handwriting once and for all but also wondered if I would really be able to do it in a natural, flowing way. I actually wondered if my hand would cooperate! Well, not only did I discover some very plausible reasons for why I stopped handwriting in the first place but I also found out that, yes, much to my astonishment and delight, my hand was capable of beautiful handwriting.

For me, simply handwriting--without implementing the daily letter and writing practice she recommends--
brought a wonderful shift in me. I felt a deeper calm, more at ease. Perhaps not coincidentally, four months after switching to handwriting I became pregnant after five years of struggling with fertility issues. A couple of months ago I began the daily writing practice Vimala recommends and have already experienced many inner and outer miracles. For anyone who feels inspired to harness their positive qualities, dig for buried treasure, fulfill their dearest dreams I highly recommend Your Handwriting Can Change Your Life! Vimala's book is filled with wisdom and hope for us all.

I have been one of those people who hated the sight of their own handwriting. I always chose to type my assignments through college, even some math homework, when I was going to be turning it in for a grade. I finally realized that I wanted to change my writing and Vimala gave me a great book to assist with my desired change. The book is very informative and directs you in how letters should be written. At the sametime she allows you to choose exactly what changes you make. The book's name says it all, I no longer look at my handwriting like I want it to go away, now I want it to stay!

Interesting book. I can't say I gave it the time recommended, which was 40 minutes or more a day patiently practising the letters and the aspects of your writing you wish to improve. Its thesis seems hyperbolic and the actual writing style I didn't like. Instead, I now practice cursive italic, a style designed for fast, legible handwriting. It seems both more functional and aesthetically attractive to me than the Vimala style. Whats more, cursive italic was the chosen hand of the Italian middle ages; if Leonardo Da Vinci managed to struggle along without the benefits of the Vimala method of handwriting self-development then so can you and I.

My final impression? - I think there is something to the notion that diligent practice of a well thought out hand will have cognitive and character benefits. Vimala Rodgers is to be admired for her work and insights. What I'd really like to see is a similar method developed using cursive italic as a basis, and dare I say, with a bit more of a 'male' feel, to both its appearance and the associated character traits. I suspect that the Vimala method could be further developed/adapted according to one's own preferences once a good feel for it had been gained. For now, however, it's overall style fails to appeal.

Getting potential MLM business recruits to read this book can make the difference between closing the sale and not closing the sale. It boils down what is years of the authors MLM experience into simple to understand examples. We used the book as one of the key tools to build a successful health and wellness MLM business. Highly recommended.

With this book, even I can understand Multi-Level Marketing. Usually my eyes glaze over when it comes to numbers (I'm a word person). Now I get it!

I think that exist easier book than this. It is look like 10 randomly collected training from some MLM company. BUT BASIC IDEA: GIVE PEOPLE 10 EASY STEP TO DUPLIKATE IS VERY POWERFULL AND 2 FROM THEIR PRESENTATIONS ARE VERY HELPFUL.

I think this book really explains network marketing at its core. I thought that I understood it before, but definitely explains why "sales people" do not do as well in it. I definitely needed to know the difference between direct sales and network marketing. Brilliant book, simply brilliant. Once you read it you will no longer have the excuse that you don't know what to do.

I ordered this book thinking that it would provide guidance in preparing either a "catch phrase" (sometimes called and "elevator pitch") or perhaps a marketing piece that would explain my company to prospects. Instead I found a series of useless "napkin presentations". I never found anything about preparing a 45 second presentation, in fact I don't think the term "45 second presentation" is used anywhere in the book except on the cover. In case one might guess that a napkin presentation was the promised 45 second presentation, the author indicates that the prospect should be presented with several of the napkin presentations. That being said, a person could not do even two of the napkin presentations within 45 seconds. All together the author gives 10 napkin presentations, but in no way ties them together, cohesively, or even suggests which presentation should be used in specific situations.

Secondly, the book is filled with hand-drawn pictures. Again, I started out presuming the pictures were examples of what I would draw out on a napkin. However, some chapters contain as many as TWELVE drawings. How could someone draw all 12 in 45 seconds? The author never made clear what these childish illustrations were for - actually drawing out on a napkin, or just to puff up the thickness of the book. Some of the illustrations were so detailed, that in no way could they be rendered by people even with advanced drawing talent in just 45 seconds.

Hence, I must presume that in manufacturing, the publisher wrapped the wrong cover over the pages of the book I recieved.

The first in the series was very uneven, but there were enough interesting ideas that it seemed worth laboring on. This book starts out well, with an account of post-Change England which introduces some new characters. However, we almost immediately get yet another absurdity - how in the world are the English managing to navigate? Certainly sextants could be raided from the British Museum and other sources, but using one is both an art and a science - and when you also consider that all the calculations must be done by hand (or perhaps with a slide rule), it seems a tad unlikely that things would go so well.
There are some fine battles, and interesting developments in the new cultures - I was hoping to see some cracks appearing as Astrid becomes both more powerful and more deranged.
But, the pace is slow. We have far more detail than is ever needed, particularly since much is repeated again and again. Rarely does anyone merely draw a bow - rather the author must remind us again that they take the archer's T and draw the (insert long description of arrow) from the (insert description of quiver), place the arrow on the string, draw to the kiss-ring and loose . Let's not forget the sound effects either.
Implausible coincidences are piled high ,and the reader still finds no reasonable explanation of the Change. (And , oddly, very few characters seem to dwell on it much either.)
Sigh. Don't buy this book.

This is the second of a three book arc that began with DIES THE FIRE. The premise is that suddenly all industrial life came to a halt, internal combustion engines no longer worked, electricity in all forms ceased to failed, gunpowder and other explosives sputtered and died. DIES THE FIRE tells the story of this worldwide event and the months following from the perspective of the surviving groups in the Pacific Northwest as they attempt to build cultures more adapted to the new world. THE PROTECTOR'S WAR picks up the stories of these same groups eight years later.

The immediate post-Change crisis has passed, the various groups outlined in the first novel have established their various territories and with one exception, worked out ways to co-exist. The exception is the Protector who has gathered former gang members and thugs in Portland to hold the area as a dictatorship. He has begun to expand into the other groups' areas leading to an inevitable conflict.

For those who have read and enjoyed DIES THE FIRE reading this one is a foregone conclusion. There were many loose ends to be tied up, especially the big question of what caused The Change in the first place. Many of the story lines left dangling are expanded on but the cause of the Change is still left a mystery. The focus of this volume is the Mackenzie Clan and the Bearkillers although some bits of other groups are included. A new group from England is added to the mix, giving a glimpse into some of the outside world as well.

This is an interesting premise, one that will haunt the reader long after the last page is read but it needs to be begun at the beginning with DIES THE FIRE. On the downside the author has chosen to tell this story in a bit of a non-linear fashion, going from the various groups and sometimes going back and forth a few days making it a bit difficult for the reader to keep track of everything. Also large bits of the first novel are rehashed in this one. It is unlikely that anyone could really understand this one without reading the first so, for the most part, they are annoying. The title is misleading in that the book is about the events leading up to the war, not the war itself.

Despite it's title, S.M. Stirling's The Protector's War, the second volume in a trilogy that started with Dies The Fire isn't about war in the Post-Change Williamette Valley so much as it's about the precursors to a war between survivors in a new world that seems all but inevitable.

This second volume starts eight years after an event, as yet unexplained, that renders in operable all modern technology and reduces humanity to a level roughly comparable to the European Middle Ages. And, appropriately enough, it starts in Europe itself where we get a small glimpse of how the Change has impacted the rest of the world.

Suffice it to say it isn't pretty. With small exception pretty much all that's left of Europe is in an England ruled by King Charles III who, and this for some reason doesn't seem too far a stretch, seems to have gone mad with power. Form there we follow Nigel Loring, a former SAS officer, on a trip around what's left of the world that eventually leads him to the central stage of the story in the Pacific Northwest.

Ingeniously, Stirling is able to unravel dual plot, occurring months apart, and then weave them together at the point when the protagonists finally meet. Done differently, the whole plot would have fallen apart half way through the novel, but Stirling weaves everything together in a way that makes complete sense.

There are, as with the first volume, annoyances in this volume of the trilogy, most of which center around Stirling's fascination with the Wiccanism of Juniper Mackenzie, but those are minor compared to the things that make this a great part of a great story.

On the whole, this was a worthy continuation of the trilogy

The characters and descriptions in this book are well up to the standard we're used to from Stirling and the plot is quite interesting so that I wouldn't normally hesitate to give a novel with those characteristics 4 or even 5 stars. The reason for the negative review of this book is that it is not a complete novel.

First problem begins with the fact that like his Island series the second book (this one) starts several years after the first concluded however unlike in the Island series the intervening years were not ones of relatively peaceful growth for the heroes nor are there any flashbacks or other explanations covering those years. Having finished reading the book I think they had one war in the intervening years and many small conflicts all (or at least most of them) with the protector. However I'm not sure even after having read the book.

Second In the course of the book the view point jumps back and forth both among characters and in time going over some events several times and skipping stuff I would have very much liked to see described (Such as forex. a couple of British characters sailing around the southern tip of South America and up north to the protectorate Stirling leaves their story with them only partway across the Atlantic and doesn't return to them until after they've arrived at the Protectorate.

Third and most annoying in my opinion the book cuts off very suddenly, practically in mid battle (not counting the Epilogue which has no connection to the plot of the book other then being a Pagan religious ceremony) And to make matters worse book No. 3 in this series does not appear to resolve any of the loose threads established in this book but rather starts several months after this book ends treating all those unresolved issues as if they've already been resolved.

So to summarize what there is of the story in this book is very well written but large portions are missing.

This is an end-of-the-world novel, set about nine years after "the change", which was sort of like Mother Earth's menopause, only not so fun. Any physical process that requires high energy density stopped working sometime in March 1998. Guns, motors, generators, computers, etc. ground to a permanent halt all across the world. (Presumably the change was limited to Earth and its immediate environs as the sun continues to burn faithfully throughout the novels.) After a chaotic interlude of gigadeath starvation and plague, a new order rises: one based on muscle and primitive weaponry.

It's a neat premise for an apocalypse. Stirling competently maneuvers his characters through a variety of old-is-new action sequences. There's much here to like. Too bad it had me grinding my teeth throughout.

Who survived the fall of civilization? In addition to the requisite farmers, trained soldiers, ruthless killers and fortunate character actors, Stirling postulates that a bunch of weenies from the Society for Creative Anachronism, medieval scholars, and folk singers come through. Indeed, this group of deeply irritating geeks do more than simply survive; they thrive. The whole post-collapse civilization is based on their tiresome religious and political ideas. A brief exposure to the Wiccans had me seeing the Salem witch trials in a whole new light.

In real life, there are few more sadly embarrassing sights than Americans trying to be echt-English or Irish. Imagine an entire civilization of sweaty teens putting on a fake English or Irish accent. Sweaty teens with unfortunate choices in facial hair. Truly, the lucky ones died in the initial blast (or starved to death or got eaten or whatever: trust me, anything is better than sitting around and singing traditional Irish songs while sharpening axes). Stirling uncharacteristically steps outside the narrative to poke fun at his characters' speech patterns from time to time, as if to indicate that he's in on the joke. At the same time, however, even the actual English characters talk like Kipling characters. In fact, young Prince William makes a brief appearance and doesn't sound like the slangy transatlantic cool-Britannia jet-setter that he actually is.

Finally, I wonder if perhaps Stirling was catering to a group of armor fetishists. The only men I know who rhapsodize over clothing in as much obsessive detail as Stirling devotes to various characters' hauberks, greaves, sallets, vambraces and the like have extremely refined tastes in websites, if you know what I mean.

Bottom line: If you know your Erse from your codpiece, these are the books for you. Everyone else: why not try Nevil Shute's "On The Beach" to see how real middle-class Anglophones face the apocalypse?

I can't imagine this book wouldn't help everyone who reads it. It sure helped me and I think provides valuable insight into how we handle things in our pursuit of hapiness. One of the first things I did was by copies for family members and recommend to close friends and family. Thank-you Dr. Baker for a helpful book that I will read repeatedly for years to come.

This book falls within a self-help sub-category that deals with happiness issues in a realistic, almost "tough love" style. I'm thinking of two other simlarly styled works - Resilience: Discovering a New Strength at Times of Stress, by Frederic Flach and Grow Up!: How Taking Responsibility Can Make You A Happy Adult, by Frank S. Pittman. These works present happiness not as some idealized, feel good, eternal emotion, but as a state that is achieved through discipline, diligence and responsibility, despite and even becuase of the crises and challenges that come upon us. This is in stark contrast to some of the other happiness prescriptions written by other books that promote affirmations, positive thinking and some downright corny activities.

Baker decribes the 6 happiness tools that he employs in his own life and tries to get his clients at the Canyon Ranch Lie Enhancement Program to apply. He describes the need for the intellect and spirit to override the functions of the reptilian brain, which is still mired in our survivalist flee-or-fight past, and tends to lead us into fear based, and therefore debilitating, responses to life's challenges. The number one antidote to fear is appreciation, as a from of love for people and things in our life, because the two - fear and appreciation - can not neurologically co-exist in the mind.

In addition, Baker delves into the five traps that lead people astray when trying to find authentic happiness, and ulimately cause them to spiral into unhappiness, anxiety and depression. The tragic stories of some of his patients can be jolting but they bring home the point that happiness is not a polyanna achievement but rather something that comes from the very nature of struggle and suffering within the human condition, given the proper attitudes and approach.

You agree with your son who says he's happy but your spouse remains worried and wants a therapist to "check out" your son - what do you do? Dan Baker's book has the answer. Let a happy and confident man be evaluated by 100 therapists and about 43% of therapists will conclude "neurotic / psychotic" and 19% will likely say that he has adjustment problems. Because of this (and a few other) useful statistics in the book, and because of Dr. Baker's section on VERBs - victimhood, entitlement, rescue and blame -- I find "Science of Happiness" worthwhile. [I don't find a need to buy it, though. I can always go to our public library.]

I read self improvement books quite often. But I just couldn't seem to put this particular book down! It's opened up my eyes to a lot of the things most people aren't aware of. So many of us are enslaved to society's expectations and have become "lost souls." Everything is routine and the happiness through material things eventually dies out. This book helps you to realize and maintain true happiness. What YOU really want and all the possibilities you have out there. It's definitely changed the way I perceive things in certain situations. I now catch myself when I feel fearful and think back on some of the things Dan Baker has mentioned in this book. Surprisingly, it is one of the best books I've read. It is life-changing. =)

Dr. Baker writes about the science of happiness in a very understandable down-to-earth style that also weaves in humor, pathos, ethics, and the relatively new paradigm of positive psychology. He writes a lot about how fear governs our thinking and actions. In a cardiac rehab unit, he encountered people who were focused on money and status. He states,"You wouldn't want to be a mugger sticking a gun in those guy's ribs and demanding, 'Your money or your life'-they'd spend all day deciding." The book offers a detailed "action plan" that distinguishes between "happiness tools' and "happiness traps." It is a blueprint away from what he calls "the lesser life" to what he refers to as "the emotionally enhanced life." "What Happy People Know" could also be titled "What Unhappy People Need To Know."

As opposed to myopic, one-dimentional rants about climate change, its causes and purtianical tirades, this expanded essay offers insightful (as opposed to rote) rationale as to how we got here and where to go from here. Makes you want to pass it on...

Nordhaus and Shellenberger, in urging a "pragmatic" approach, completely miss one of pragmatism's main tenants: flexibility. Dewey's philosophy centered around experimentation--trying different approaches to solving society's problems and avoiding dogmatic thinking. In narrowly promoting a politics of "possibilities," Nordhaus and Shellenberger unnecessarily deny any role for talk of limits. It is hard to believe that there is no role for public debate of such limits when limiting emissions is precisely the point of all the new technology the authors' approach is supposed to encourage.

The authors are correct that folks need to have full bellies before they worry about the long-term habitability of the planet, but they voice no serious objection to the bloated consumer habits of the world's elite. I can almost hear the gears grinding in these marketers' heads: global debt "forgiveness" seems so much more palatable than "redistribution" of scarce resources. Yet won't those whose appetites and activities require the most resources and produce the most waste have to give something up so that those with the least can meet their first-order needs, even with whatever green technologies are on the foreseeable horizon. In other words, economic growth (and the throughput of resources that fuel it) make it possible for individuals to look beyond their own immediate needs. But without any consideration of limits, growth itself becomes the problem.

Nordhaus and Shellenberger are on the right track when they call attention to higher-order human needs--acceptance, belonging, fulfillment. However, their dogmatic aversion to anything that smacks of negativity prevents them from denouncing patterns of extreme consumption that contribute so little to happiness.

One way or another, we're going to have to curb our consumption. Any policy that has a chance to mitigate global warming has to pursue this goal. Attempting to distract people from this fundamental goal is bad marketing. Telling people it's all about possibilities and not at all about limits is an approach that's bound to backfire. Critics have only to say, "Aha, this policy is limiting growth." Better to acknowledge the need for limits and show people the good things that will result from doing so.

The trouble is, every authority wants us to "think big," and do so in the direction they want, but offering little useful roadmapping for driving there. "Break Through" is not exception. Maybe the authors plan a Part II to publish this road map. Hopefully the style of this unwritten sequel would be easier to navigate than found in "Part I." Reading this book can be like reading a long string of Time Magazine essays, sophistication coming across as intellect. The difference is that authors Nordhaus and Shellenberger ARE very intellectual. It's just that the reader will find it hard to follow their conclusions from page to page. This is unfortunate, because their persuasion points are different enough from the "average" polemic to deserve a good hearing.

Apparently the theme of this book is that we badly need to tackle environmental (and several other large) problems from a stance of gratitude, competence, and confidence; rather than from the more usual stance of guilt, limits, and revenge. The authors write plenty of criticism of both political Left and Right to describe the ineffective "usual stance," but mostly of the Left. More usual, they credit the fundamentalist and evangelical religious Right for being for have stolen a march on the Left for their promotion of optimistic, fix-it-ourselves approach to life. You do not usually hear things put this way. True or not, their thesis provokes thought.

What does "Break Through" want to DO, though? Most of these kind of books fade off into hand-wringing "ain't it awful" rants. This book does not do that. The authors persist in what NOT to do to the end, and this deserves commending. Also deserving commendation is their insistence that far too many on the Left and Right treat their truths as "religious" or legend-like; not as science or objective observation. However, their own stated views on such topics as the current war in Iraq and global warming are told as assumed truth - religious-like! "Break Through" was written a couple years ago, and actual events have made these views somewhat obsolete. In spite of all this, the book presents enough fresh viewpoint to make it interesting and worth reading. Oh yes - the endnotes are much too long, so ignore them.

I believe the authors are correct, but to get a full picture one must read the constructive criticism in earlier reviews here at Amazon.
The authors say the trouble with environmental movements is they tend to be too limiting (you must make your life more inconvenient or uncomfortable) or have too narrow a focus (focusing on pollution or species extinction on another continent instead of more immediate concerns about outsourcing jobs). They also discuss what motivates people and successful movements of the past, saying that Martin Luther King's "I have a dream," speech was much more effective than a "I have a nightmare," speech.
My personal experiences match those of the authors. All too often environmentalists love to complain about how miserable life is, do not do their homework on either politics or the environment, are hostile to outside expertise, and regard capitalism in general and the United States in particular as evil. This gets in the way of achieving their goals.
Nonetheless, I am optimistic. Environmentalism does not have to die. It has to change and I see hopeful signs that it is changing. Recently an organization changed its name from "No New Coal for Georgia" to "Clean Energy for Georgia." Carl Pope of the Sierra Club, whom the authors respectfully criticize, has shown by his actions that he does truly get it.
We do not have the time or resources to remake environmental movements more in the authors' image. I am not giving up my Sierra Club membership. It is better to work for change from within and to work on other projects when environmental movements stray.

Superb! The gloom and doom and endless discussions of how we have wrecked the planet are pointless and depressing. Ted Nordhaus and Michael Shellenberger make the case for a complete shift in consciousness and conversation around global warming, environmentalism and politics. A hopeful, aspiring and truly human approach to today's challenges.

With a good collection of articles and case studies, the book helps us to recognize and seize innovation opportunities. I certainly recommend this book for executives. Another one that I recommend is Eightstorm: 8-Step Brainstorming for Innovative Managers.

Well written and presented with interesting examples/case studies. Definitely worth a read.

Am not an expert in the subject area but some of the concepts did appear dated or jaded to me.

First, I apologize for the mixed metaphor in the title above.

Second, all the articles in this collection are "good".

Third, however, you may, as I, be more than a little tired of academics from the world's greatest universities, for decades, on topics like innovation, publishing little bits and pieces.

Fourth, I recently bought 200 books with innovation or its synonyms in their titles or blurb descriptions, grouped them in groups, and ordered books from best to junk within each group. Then I surveyed the whole thing asking myself "what, overall, are all the theories of innovation that are out there and which of them have been tested?"

It turns out there are 27 theories of innovation out there and none of them have been tested, as a whole theory, but bits, extremely small bits, of some of them have been nibbled at by the world's greatest academics from the world's greatest universities. I counted full coverage of NONE of these 27 approaches to innovation, in this particular book. NONE. What is in this book is nibbles of two of the 27--wowie!!! Harvard has nibbled 2 of 27 theories around on innovation--what a powerful research effort! I am sooooo impressed. My friend in Reuters just emailed me complaining how naive I am--professors do not do comprehensive things because they hate the good ideas of their competitors! I am naive. I thought professionals learned to respect and admire the good ideas of their peers and competitors--I am too naive!

Conclusion: if you want some more little bits about innovation, here is another, one of a series of 200 books presenting disconnected little bits about innovation. If you want, however, more what the world's best scholars should be capable of--that is, a comprehensive, thorough survey of all the theories and approaches to innovation in our world, ordered, analyzed, compared, and made sense of, so you have both a mental feel and a practical repertoire of the diversity in doing innovation there to be tried, then this book will sorely disappoint you, not only in its contents but also in the quality of mind that today gets tenure at the "world's best universities".

If these are the world's best minds on innovation--then we live in a more pitiable world than I ever imagined before. Pity us, poor pitiful us!

Honestly, I cannot fault these guys for their bits--each little tiny bit article is cute, nice in its own way, and impressive sounding. However, when I add them all up, I get a sense that this book covers approximately 1/200th of innovation overall. Why string us readers out and make us buy 200 books like this before we get a thorough, grounded, comprehensive, useful overview of all the theories of and approaches to innovating around? I am tired of bits and pieces. I am a little angry at the "world's best professors" from the "world's best universities" stringing me and millions of others along with bits and pieces. Without a forest and a deep thorough understanding of a forest, interest in any one tree is not only unwise, but in real markets run by real people, quite dangerous. The bit of innovation you got from this sort of book and masterfully applied gets run over by 19 other bits, not in this book, that you never heard of till they mashed your project/company. This is not myth--it happened to three global corporations I managed. Bits are dangerous--however clever they make their authors, for a tiny moment, look. I am no longer able to develop any enthusiasm for them.

I could review each bit in this book but to tell you the truth, it does not matter what the bits in this book are--they are all so very very tiny and bit-sized, isolated and cute, that you know, as you read each article, there are 1000s of similar bits in similar books out there. You can sell an awful lot of books this way without conveying a useable understanding of a field like "innovation". Derek Bok, in his earlier incarnation as head of Harvard used to declaim in books on higher education how professors are so very very very narrow and how what they publish is so very very very sliverish in journals that are so very very very unread. I love every five years or so when the Academy of Management journals and reviews get a new editor, to read his/her article declaiming, with the subtlest whimper in his/her tone, how "nobody reads all this great research we publish". They do not read it because it is "bits and pieces".

This book is "great" by the criteria of modern "torture assistant professors for 7 years" American-esque academics--but by the criteria of people like me trying to get 10,000 people to stop being bureaucratic and do what they must do to survive Chinese and other competition, these bits are increasingly useless, cute, and decorative. I do not look forward to the next bits from any of these authors. I fear their entire lives will be consumed in bit-ness. If I read books like this, my own life will be thusly consumed. These professor guys need to do some work, stop publishing the smallest fastest possible bit, and COVER a topic not nibble it. We need people with heftier minds in these pompous over priced elitist universities our media worship.

If you want to know the kind of book I like on innovation--try Van de Ven's Minnesota Studies on Innovation (not the exact title--a big black covered book of about 800 pages). That whole body of longitudinal work following a dozen innovations through 20 years of ups and downs dwarfs what you learn from these cute little assistant-professor style bits and pieces books. It is statistically much better and more powerfully grounded, the research questions are framed profoundly not opportunistically for tenure, and the richness of real lived history of each followed innovation undoes nearly all that cute little assistant-professor books by authors like these, says.

I found little of interest in these articles. I would start in any number of other books if you are interested in innovation.

A collection of reviews in Innovation Strategies/Policies/Theories/Practices some of them related with case studies in big companies.
It can help those who want a reflexive and comprehensive look into Innovation.

I don't understand how this book received so many good reviews, unless the author has a lot of friends who shop at Amazon.

I'll keep this short. If you're looking for help, you won't find it here. If you like outdated rhetoric, this is the book for you. For example, the author explains that one of the four cures "that work" for depression is electro-shock therapy. The last time I heard of someone actually receiving electro-shock therapy was forty years ago.

In another section, the author spends several pages explaining that depression is more prevalent now than it was fifty years ago. Is there anyone on earth who doesn't know that?

In short, please don't waste your money on this drivel! There's nothing new here, the author can't write a readable sentence, and the print is small and dark and smudgy. A difficult and useless read.

Martin Seligman first came to notice for his introduction of the concept of learned helplessness, which has given birth to the practice of cognitive therapy. Here he addresses psychological problems ranging from unipolar and bipolar depression to phobias and evaluates the merits of several types of treatment for each.

One might expect him always to recommend cognitive therapy for each problem, but he does not. He is consistently objective and humble. Moreover, his prose is clear, concise, and frequently witty, and this book his stimulated me to a great deal of additional thought, both about the things with which I immediately agreed and some things about which I disagree somewhat.

First off, this book is very good.
Martin Seligman, ever the excellent research psychologist provides an overview over the big mental diseases and disorders. From everyday anxiety to panic attacks, phobias, obsessive-compulsive disorders to depression, post-traumatic stress disorder to sexual disorders, overweight and alcoholism Seligman has reviewed the literature and provides concise advice on what works for each condition and what does not. In between he mentions VERY interesting research results and historic developments in the treatment of psychological ills. These newest findings have changed his opinions as well. While in his 1993 Bestseller "Learned Optimism" he still supported the more behaviorist approaches of f.e. pessimism - the primary risk factor for later-life depression - being conditioned through "bad role modeling" by parent's dealing with adverse events (which could be UNLEARNED), he now, due to identical-twin studies, attributes virtually all mental disorders to heritability.
In a fascinating account on pages 39ff. ("Your genes and your personality") a picture of the human being as an essentially inflexible biological machine emerges, whose innate mental tendencies towards for instance anger, anxiety or depression can be at most mitigated by therapy and medication, but never cured.
Albeit I - as I'm sure he'd want to - stress that heritability in all twin-studies accounted for at most 50% probability that the personality trait of a parent would be present in the child. Incredible for example is the genetic link for criminal behavior in children and biological parents vs. adoptive parents.

But I have two points of criticism:
What I find very likeable about Seligman is that, as he pointed out in "Learned optimism" as well as this book, he is really a innate pessimist.
As such, I think he, like another reviewer here, paints a too bleak of a picture of the treament efficacies.
For starters I seriously question his claim that depression treatment works only in 2/3 of patients. I'd really guess it's more like ¾.
Second of all, he thinks it's a real disappointment, that drugs and therapy don't cure.

Why did anybody ever think you could DISCONTINUE mental treatments after time.
Why do people pray for divine help 5 times every day and incessantly go to church on Sundays.
Obviously mental issues are deeply engrained into the brain physiology. These disorders are not outside invaders that could be cast out by drugs or therapy. They are construction flaws in one's mind that must be steadily contained through long-term treatment as long as there is no such thing as "psycho-surgery".

Also i got the impression except for alcoholism and overweight he unduly plays down the improvements on many of the treatments. Be it OCD, depression, everyday anxiety or especially PTSD, whose improvements he describes as "marginal" these "marginal" improvements can mean the difference between suicide and a bearable, even content existence in many people. But of course he is right to point out, that whatever of these conditions you have, they're never gonna go completely away, and relapses are common. "But you can still manage", I would add to that.

Bottom line is, if you got any of the above disorders this is a good book. If you want more of as the title suggests a "successful guide to self-improvement" go with "Three-minute therapy" by Michael Edelstein. He covers also less pathological issues like money problems, dealing with overeating and smoking, depression, anger, panic, (social) anxieties, chronic worrying and even procrastination. Very good self-help book.
Seligman's is more like a reference book.

The self-improvement industry spends billions to convince people that their psychological and physical problems are fixable. The magazine covers at the checkout counter extol the latest miracle diet, but most of the people in line with you are overweight. Seasoned mental-health professional and former president of the American Psychological Association, Martin E. P. Seligman, Ph.D., has bad news for the seriously overweight: Diets don't work. Plus, he tells alcoholics and people with deep-seated emotional afflictions, there are no definitive cures for them. He notes, however, that a large minority of alcoholics do recover, though no approach is guaranteed. Seligman, whose views have generated both gratitude and controversy, details which psychological problems are treatable and which are not. His candid attitude is laudable and his advice seems well-informed, if perhaps generalized. If you've gotten thin, you've beaten the odds. Meanwhile, he recommends that people learn to live bravely with daunting emotional issues they cannot completely master - because, he says, mastery probably isn't possible. getAbstract finds this treatise about what is and isn't fixable both sobering and valuable.

Clear, concise, and to the point. I am sure there are many who will disagree with his point of view on diets (they don't work according to Seligman), he makes some great observations backed up by statistical facts. It was a good read, as well as a quickie.