I found this book, like all of the books in the Cambridge Handbooks for Language Teachers series, very interesting to read. Davis and Rinvolucri always write books that are full of unusual ideas. This book is, too. However, I found it less useful than their other books as a source of things to do in class, because most of the activities in this book are simply too unusual, and will require an exceptionally charismatic teacher to make them work. I teach English in Asia, and I have found that the students here are much less willing to accept new or strange techniques than are European and North American students. To sum up, the book may open up to you a new and fruitful way of designing activities for class, but I don't think that you will be able to use many of the specific activities that they present.

I thought it was humorous as I read this book to my wife during our 3,000-mile trip. Here we were, two fairly driven people, reading a book aloud and trying to get through all of it before we got home--is that driven or what? And then, we wondered, what about the authors? Were they also not driven people? I thought that perhaps they also had some of the "compulsive behaviors America applauds," such as workaholism and perfectionism, just to write this book and have a successful nationwide counseling practice.

The authors put together chapters that deal with America's common compulsions--the isms. How do you break an addiction cycle? In part 2 of the book they list 9 points and show how each stage of the addiction cycle works. There were some good things said in these chapters along with exercises to see if you needed help in these areas (i.e. shame, low self-esteem, guilt, etc.). We did have a chance to talk about some things as we read the book, but usually it was off-topic. However, it was good that the book introduced the topic so we could communicate our feelings about personal issues that we deal with. And in several areas, the authors had good advice. It just seemed like most of the advice was to join a support group such as Al-Anon or (Blank) Anonymous, and we just have a hard time with the 12-step programs that they were being glorified in this book. Besides, none of these groups seemed to fit our needs very well. On several occasions we were very uncomfortable when the authors talked about the infamous "higher power," and while we have no problems with support groups in general, we believe that they should be centered on the true Higher Power, God Almighty, rather than some nameless and anonymous source of power. Perhaps our churches should better emphasize groups like this from a biblical perspective.

"We are Driven" could be a valuable resource for many people. If you are someone who is driven, we recommend that you read this with your special someone as it will certainly lead you to talk about some very important issues that affect your lives. These compulsive behaviors always affect other people, so why not deal with it with the most important person you know?

Paul Woods takes a fan's approach to discussing the life and works of filmmaker David Lynch. The book is at it's strongest when describing the films and the effort it took to create them. The chapter on the 5-year ordeal that Lynch and his gang of misfits underwent in order to bring Eraserhead to the screen (which most of them felt it would never see) is as facinating as the dark, experimental film itself. Woods only falters when he tries to give us a biographical glimpse of Lynch himself. Most of what he tells us about Lynch are the speculations of others and the directors own evasive little quips and soundbites that he has used to deflect interviewers over the years. The books research sometimes seems quite painstaking but at other time Mr. Woods, a british writer, demonstrates an almost unforgivable lack of basic knowledge about America and the market for which Lynch's films are created. At times one wishes that Woods had invested in a map of the U.S. (he refers to Spokane as a suburb of Washington D.C., and at another point describes Washington State as being located in the American Midwest) and perhaps gave another viewing to a few of Lynch's films during his research (he mixes up the chronology of events in "Fire Walk With Me" quite embarrasingly) but, for the largest part, his insights into Lynch's craft are fully realized and well-supported. The more a person knows about Lynch the more this book is likely to infuriate them with it's sloppy attention to detail, but for the Lynch-novice looking for an introduction to obsessive avant-garde cinema, this book will certainly entertain and illuminate.

A great primer on employee benefits for benefits professionals and others allied to the field. I'd give it 5 stars, but it's woefully out of date (1994). Many of the laws have changed since. Time for the Second Edition!

In Stone County, New York nine year old Sebastian Duncan suffers a near death experience when he drowns in Ichabod Crane Lake. While on the other side, Sebastian meets Jennifer, his dead mother, a suicide victim from an overdose of drugs. Jennifer tells her son he needs to tell Granny Elizabeth that she was murdered. When Sebastian returns to the living, he tells his Granny Elizabeth what his mother related to him.

Elizabeth manages to get the case reopened with special investigator Arlene Flynn heading up the probe. Her focus is on Jennifer's now wealthy spouse, James, who rumors state had been two-timing his spouse. Arlene is also investigating the death by strangulation of a rich woman, whose son was just paroled from prison. Pressure increases on Arlene to rapidly resolve both cases.

WHAT MOMMY SAID never seems to make up its mind as to what type of book it wants to be. Arlene's allusions to Sherlock Holmes and Inspector Morse and how they would handle investigations and clues surprisingly takes away from the story line, leaving a choppy feel. H. Paul Jeffers shows bursts of talent, but needs better focus as he has done in some of his previous works like A GRAND NIGHT FOR MURDER.

Harriet Klausner

There is a variety of views in which the past can be seen and Stonehenge has been a subject and inspiration over many centuries and especially in the period of the 80s.
"Who owns Stonehenge", is the result of a discussion about the site, at the world Archaeological congress, in Southampton, in 1986, within the larger framework of the question, who owns the past?
Due to the different backgrounds of the authors, this work approaches Stonehenge from five directions, a fact that makes the book more interesting and at the same time less subjective.
The first chapter, written by Christopher Chipindale, an Archaeologist, who also works on the history of ideas about the past, discuss issues of physical Stonehenge, as well as the intellectual history of the place and claims that have been made to it.
The next four chapters contain four individual views: P. Devereux has researched into lays and associated geomantic subjects. He attempts to show the connection of the site to the general picture of sacred ones. Peter Fawler is a professor of Archaeology and talks about aspects of archaeological constrains to the site. Rhys Jones has a particular interest in the sacred sites of the aborigines in Australia and he relates cases from there to Stonehenge. Lastly, Tim Sebastian, the Secular Arch-Druid(!)
These four chapters offer to the reader an interesting chance of thinking about the complex index of Stonehenge, as it is not just an archaeological site, but has a lot more meanings to a variety of many people.
The sixth chapter gives the whole story of the events that occurred there during the 80s and the last chapter looks to Stonehenge of tomorrow and makes some suggestions that concern a multi-purpose view of the site.
Beside the references and the index of names, there is also an additional reading compartment, for those who might want to explore further the themes of this book.
The work is well illustrated, with lot of b&w photographs, drawings, paintings, maps & posters.
"Who owns Stonehenge" is a different way of looking into ancient sites, a way, in which many more sites around the world should be approached, as it is a quite holistic approach, covering, as far it is possible, all aspects of this particular case, from its archaeological importance until administrating problems and social conflicts related to it. The writing of the book allows even to non experts to get the general idea of Stonehenge as an ancient religious and sacred site.
However, it can also be seen as a just good presentation of what Stonehenge really stands for, while a case like that requires further discussion.

I was pleased to recent find Paul Ekman's book _Why Kids Lie_ given my interest in the virtue of honesty. The book proved to be an easy read, as the writing style was clear, engaging, and even friendly. But like many psychology books written in such a breezy tone, Eckman's book fell a bit short in the substance department.

However, the book was certainly not entirely lacking. Eckman summarizes some psychological studies that I have not seen elsewhere, such as those that investigating the factors influencing children's choices to cheat and lie. Of particular use to parents is his discussion of the evolution of children's attitudes towards lying throughout childhood. Most children start off with the view that lying is always wrong, then slowly allow more exceptions until dishonesty is pretty much okay whenever as a teenager. And he does offer practical advice to parents of lying children.

But two failings did stand out:

First, Eckman's understanding of the justification for honesty as a virtue is entirely limited to the argument that dishonesty destroys trust in relationships. No other reasons for honesty are given explicit attention. However, since so many lies go undetected, this argument from trust is one of the weakest arguments for honesty available. Additionally, trust works in strange and muted ways in family relationships, because the option of scaling back or terminating a relationship is simply not available as in adult relationships. Members of a family are, for the most part, stuck with each other for better or worse for many, many years. If a child betrays a parent's trust, that parent cannot trade in their child for a new and better one. But the (limited) power of the appeal to trust comes from exactly this possibility: that our relationships might be severely hampered or even destroyed by the discovery of a lie. As a result, where children are concerned, the argument from trust really boils down to the fact that kids avoid lying for fear of being caught and punished. This sad fact certainly highlights the need for a more complete view of why honesty is a virtue.

Second, Eckman hops, skips, and jumps through important moral arguments concerning the scope of honesty as a virtue. He asserts (without much argument) that certain types of lies are acceptable, such as those told to be polite or to protect oneself from danger. Unfortunately, Eckman's moral distinctions are fuzzy and unclear, and thus prone to expansion. We see such expansion in his teenage son Tom's views on morally acceptable lies, as laid out rather well in Chapter Four by Tom himself. Tom argues that any lie "told for good purpose" is acceptable, including lies to "avoid getting in trouble" (109). We also see the failure of altruism to establish honesty as a virtue in his question: "As long as [a lie] doesn't hurt anybody, what is so wrong about it?" (109). Unlike Eckman, parents do need to demarcate clear moral lines with clear reasons if they wish their kids to adhere to moral principles.

For any parent trying to cope with a deceitful child, _Why Kids Lie_ may prove useful. But don't get your hopes up.

I have been told this is the leading book on wildland watershed management. I do have a complaint though, I believe with a little creative thought any book can be made to be interesting or atleast bearable. This book tends toward the extreme side of dry. It does have the information needed, but the graphs are very dull, nothing here to break the tedium of this book. For the cost of this book (...) there should be colored graphs, if for know other reason than to stop the strain on the eyes, bigger font, to help with not falling asleep and if you HAVE to read it like I did. ANYTHING would have helped.
But like I said it had the information you need, just not in a good format.

The Windows 98 Unleashed version is better than the Windows 98 Unleashed: Professional Reference Edition version, for the lack of a couple hundred extra pages of extraneous unnecessary material. With the standard version it's easier to find what you need.

I am writing TOEIC test preparation materials and checked this book out (the 1999 version, which is 474 pages long) to help me design a business-oriented vocabulary book for ESL students. Basically, Word Smart for Business is a 4,000 entry, A-Z style dictionary. The entries are all assigned to one of twelve categories: Accounting, Business and Management, Computers and Communications, Economics, Finance, Human Resources, Insurance, Legal, Math, Real Estate, Business Slang, and Taxes. While Mr. Westbrook does include a variety of terms from each of the above categories, I did not find Word Smart for Business too helpful in my TOEIC designing task. First, I think Word Smart needs some sort of organizational scheme; perhaps the words could be organized by category or theme. A thematic organizational approach would have made the book more user friendly, in my opinion. Next, there seem to be more than a few random words (especially in the "slang" and "math" categories) in Word Smart that have little to do with business or business English. For example, while it's true that slang terms such as "no brainer" and "out to lunch" are sometimes used in a business context, aren't they just as often used in other contexts? Likewise, including math terms like the Pythagorean Theorem and the algebraic distributive law was also puzzling to me. Do people actually use these math terms in a business context? On a positive note, I liked some of the interesting charts and comics that were included with the terms. I found myself wishing there were more visuals like this in Word Smart. I was also not sure who the audience for this book was: It seems too basic for someone who is hardcore in their business knowledge, but too random and complicated for a business ESL-type student. Word Smart for Business has some interesting material, but needs a clearer focus.