Starting an EP Lab?? Defining standards of care?? Orienting new EP personnel?? Here is a practical, concise review of what we do and what we need to do in EP. Illustrations are simplified and easily read.

A wonderful and little known book, by a wonderful and little known photographer. Butcher photographed small towns and rural prairie life in central Nebraska from the 1880's to the turn of the century. These are documentary photographs that are almost surreal in their intensity. Sod houses, portraits of wide-eyed families, towns slapped down for no particular reason - odd writing on the negatives - as well as birds and trees sketched in to satisfy Butcher's sense of natural history gone awry. A great book.

This is one of those books that you need to re-read at regular intervals as you slip back into the common western lifestyle. The authors identify the synergistic effects of bad habits, eg too much sugar, fat and alcohol and too little exercise, and provide an easy "little-willpower" program to control them. It has one of the most effective programs for stopping smoking that I have read

This is an awesome poem, and I can't believe that someone can weave a story like King Tut into a book like this. You should buy it because it's historically correct, and the verses are simply great (sorry, I'm not the best with adjectives at 11:15 at night).

John Dickson Carr, who wrote also under the name Carter Dickson (as he did The Unicorn Murders) raised ingenuity to the level of genius, as Kingsley Amis once put it in an essy of the genre. Carr, with apologies to Christie and Queen, was, as to constructing a puzzling whodunnit, in a class by himself, a man without peer.

Whether his detective was Gideon Fell (in those mysteries he wrote under his own name of Carr) or Sir Henry Merrivale (Carter Dickson), he was the supreme master of the classic detective story, and The Unicorn Murders is Carter Dickson at his best.

He was adept at creating atmosphere and was expert at both high and low humor (See The Arabian Night's Murders), and he could pace a story with suspense like no one else (I defy anyone to read the first chapter of The Burning Court and say in all honesty he is not compelled to continue), but what he did that nobody achieved to the extent he did was write stories that dealt with impossible murders--either locked room or miracle murders that would later be reveled to have a rational explanation.

At his best, Carr/Dickson was so good that he usually had some other other characters give an explantion that sounded entirely plausible before Fell or H.M. shot it down and gave the real explanation. These wrong solutions would have been lesser writers meat and drink. Read the stuff in the '30's and '40's.

He also wrote a history in detective story fashion in the '30's, The Murder of Sir Edmund Godfrey, that is a masterpiece. Great history and great detection.

Reading this book reminded me of attending a good conference where lots of company executives provide detailed examples of the issues they faced, and how they went about dealing with those issues. Since such conferences usually cost several hundred dollars, this book is a real bargain -- and you don't have to get on an airplane and fly someplace!

One of the strengths of the book is that you receive several perspectives on the context for each case history. The editors describe what each case means, and the conclusions section summarizes general patterns. Also, each case is presented in the same format which makes it easier to understand what is being shared. I was particularly grateful for the exhibits (which exist in electronic form in the CD enclosed in the book). I also appreciated that the cases were primarily written by Human Resources professionals inside the companies, rather than being a consultant's take on what happened.

Having said all those positive things, let me share some concerns. First, I looked in vain for my favorite examples of outstanding work in recruiting, retention, knowledge encouragement, and executive development. If this book is about "best practices" where were GE, Disney, Motorola, Ritz Carlton, and SAS Institute? Second, many of the cases involved companies that are better known for their poor performance than for excellence. If they are developing their people so well, what happened? Third, a lot of these cases involve new initiatives where the long-term consequences are hard to see. Fourth, the profit impact on the organizations was not well documented. That makes it hard to use these cases as examples to encourage your own company to follow suit. Fifth, as change management processes, most of these cases are far behind the curve of what is described in Peter Senge's various books of case histories such as The Dance of Change. Part of the reason seems to be that a number of these cases aren't very new.

Of the cases in the book, I recommend the ServiceMASTER, Westinghouse, Johnson & Johnson, Allstate, and Case Corporation examples as the most helpful to me. I mention that because there's a lot of material in this book. I read a lot and rapidly, and I found this book hard to tackle. By being more selective in what you go after, you can help avoid some of that problem. Naturally, if your own issues are only in a few areas, just look at those cases.

Develop the full potential of everyone, beginning with yourself!

"The principal goal of this book is to provide you with the key ingredients taken from best-companies to help you create and enhance your organization and human resource development (OD/HRD) initiative. Through a case study approach, this book provides practical, easy-to-apply tools, instruments, training, concepts, and competency models that can be used as benchmarks for the successful implementation of your specific OD/HRD initiative (from the Introduction)."

In this context, Louis Carter, David Giber, and Marshall Goldsmith (editors) divide core part of this book -Organization and Human Resources Development Case Studies- into following five OD/HRD topic areas:

I. Organization Development and Change: In this section, W. Warner Burke says, "Seven rich cases (Kraft Foods, Nortel, ServiceMASTER, SmithKline Beecham, Westinghouse, CK Witko, and Xerox) of organization development and change are discussed...The cases cover a wide range of change from how OD occurs every day to deep change in an organization's culture...Without doubt we can learn from these cases. And learn we must. Changing organization is too intricate to be left to novices. We have indeed learned and noted at the outset, but we still have much to learn. As one who has been involved for more than 35 years, helping organizations change is both thrilling and very satisfying. Learning, however, is the most exciting part (pp.6-8)."

II. Leadership Development: In this section, Jay A. Congerwrites that "In the cases that follow, we look at three companies (Boeing, Johnson & Johnson, and Sun Microsystems,Inc.) that have dedicated serious time and resources to leadership development...In addition, all three of the company cases make extended use of competency models, 360-degree feedback, and action learning (p.186)."

III. Recruitment and Retention: In this section of the book, John Sullivan writes, "you'll learn how three diverse companies tackled their retention and recruiting problems. Two of the firms are high tech (AMD and Cellular One), while another (Allstate) is in a more traditional industry. Both AMD and Cellular One focus on solving the hot issue of retention while Allstate takes a new look at the recruiting and selection processes. All three of the case studies use a scientific approach to identify which solutions have the most impact...All three of these case studies are worth examining because of their scientific methodology as well as their results. All are full of powerfull 'lessons learned' for those who are soon to begin a major recruitment or retention effort (pp.303-304)."

IV. Performance Management: This section examines performance management systems of Case Corporation and Sonoco. Edward E. Lawler III says that "the performance management systems in most organizations are contoversial, ineffective, and constantly under construction. They are so problematic that critics argue many organizations would be better off if they simply didn't have a performance management system, particularly one in which performance appraisals are tied to pay actions. But-and it is an important but- if individuals are not appraised, counseled, coached, and rewarded for performance, how can an organization pruduce the organized, coordinated, and motivated behavior that it takes to perform well? The answer most likely is that it can't (p.393)."

V. Coaching and Mentoring: Introduction of this section, Beverly Kaye writes, "the last 5 years have seen a groundswell in both arenas. And it's not just been more of the same; organizations have begun to use mentoring and coaching more purposefully. HR and OD practitioners have worked to utilize both interventions to meet pressing business problems having to do with the development and retention of talent, as well as the growth of future leaders. These interventions have been more systemic, more thoughtful, and more innovative than ever before. The case studies (Dow Corning, and MediaOne Group-AT&T) illustrate this trend. Both were motivated by specific business drivers, both were preceded by intensive research, both were implemented over time, and both were evaluated seriously. Readers will find them instructive, detailed, and engaging (p.438)."

Finally, Louis Carter (editor) says that "contributors were asked to indicate where they envision their organization is heading with its initiative within the next 5 to 10 years. Responses indicate that the contributors want to keep the organization on a track to continuously learn and develop its capabilities. Comments from some contributors indicate that they want to leverage lessons learned from this experience. Some contributors commented that they want to firmly ingrain the initiative into the organization to the point that it is almost invisible to the user, making it an accepted part of life at the company. Other contributors will continue to refine the present initiative in place, while others will expand their efforts into other business lines. Survey results clearly indicate that the present state of the initiatives represented in this book represent snapshots of moving targets. Further growth and innovation is inevitable for these best practice organizations, as they work to stay ahead of their competitors by embracing change and continuously learning and improving (pp.531-532)."

Strongly recommended.

Here in a single volume is about all that is needed to design, implement, and then monitor a program through which to achieve organizational transformation. Moreover, the editors have selected both information and wisdom which can help to ensure that such a program is comprehensive, cohesive, and cost-effective. The phrase "best practices" is apt but should not be misconstrued to mean that strategies and tactics which have been highly successful in some organizations are necessary going to be successful in all others. Moreover, I urge the reader to keep in mind that, although the organizations featured (e.g. Boeing, Johnson & Johnson, Kraft Foods, Nortel Networks, ServiceMASTER, SmithKline Beecham, and Sun Microsystems) are among the largest in their respective industries, much of the material in this book is also relevant to small-to-midsize organizations. My own rather extensive past experience with all manner of organizations (including non-profits) has convinced me that most people do not fear change; rather, they fear the unfamiliar. Hence the importance of three on-going initiatives: communicate, communicate, and communicate.

Part One consists of Acknowledgments, About This Book, How to Use This Book, and an excellent Foreword by Richard Beckhard. Carter, Giber, and Goldsmith then shift their attention in Part Two of "Organization & Human Resources Development Case Studies." The individual case studies are distributed within this thematic structure:

Organizational Development & Change

Leadership Development

Recruitment & Retention

Performance Management

Coaching & Mentoring

Part Three: Conclusion consists of Research (OD/HRD Trends and Findings), Endnotes, About Linkage, Inc., About the Editors, Index, and How to Use the CD-ROM, terrific value-added benefit.

Back to Beckhard's Foreword for a moment. In it, he identifies six (6) "elements" which are basic to each case study; all are central to and sequential within the change process associated with organizational development/human resource development (OD/HRD). They are: Business Diagnosis, Assessment, Program Design, Implementation, On-the-Job Support, and Evaluation. It is helpful to keep these six "elements" clearly in mind while working your way through the abundance of information which the editors provide. Fortunately, they have organized the (sometimes daunting) material with meticulous care and write exceptionally well. I also urge you to use the same six "elements" as guidelines when determining what the design of your own program for organizational change should be, and, when selecting those strategies and tactics discussed in the book which are most appropriate to the implementation and evaluation of that program. This is especially true of decision-makers in small-to-midsize organizations.

Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out O'Toole's Leading Change, Katzenbach's Real Change Leaders as well as his Peak Performance , Kaplan and Norton's The Balanced Scorecard and The Strategy-Focused Organization, Quinn's Deep Change, O'Dell and Grayson's If Only We Knew What We Know, Isaacs' Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together, and Senge's The Dance of Change. Those especially interested in Six Sigma are encouraged to check out (and read in this order) Pande's The Six Sigma Way, Breyfogle's Implementing Six Sigma, and Eckes's Making Six Sigma Last.

The Littles are people who are under six inches tall and have tails. They live in the wall of the Bigg's house and have a secret door in the kitchen. I liked this story because it has good characters. They had good ideas about how to get rid of the mice. I didn't like Uncle Pete very much because he only likes weapons.
I would recommend this book to other kids.

This is a wonderful book about crafty little people. They were a size of the thumb and had a tail. Rats were attacking them. Littles used little knifes that they made to fight them. Mr. Big always wondered why his phone system was working so well. He did not know that the Littles were living in his house. The Littles fixed the phone system. The Biggs went away for vacation for the summer and Newcomes rented the house. The Newcomes were very messy. Rats came into the house. Tom Little decided to play a trick on Newcomes and dressed as a rat. He wanted them to set mouse traps. But the Newcomes decided to bring in a cat. The Littles were very scared and they wanted to get rid of the cat. But Tom became friends with the cat. I loved the book because the Littles were always solving their problems. I would recommend this book to my friends. I will read other books by John Peterson.

Hi! My name is Cindy. I am nine years old. I just finished reading a book called The Littles, and it is by John Peterson. The book is about a little family that lives inside the wall of Mr. Bigg's house. They look a lot like humans, but they are small and they have tails. Everyday they go to the kitchen and get some food that are leftovers from Mr. Bigg's dinner. Those in the family are the grandfather, grandmother, Tom the brother, Lucy the sister, mom and dad. One evening Mr.Bigg wanted to go for a vacation, and he wanted to rent his house. For one week a lady named Lizzy and a man named Mr. Newcomb rented Mr. Bigg's house. These people didn't eat much so the Littles wanted them to leave. They wanted Mr. Bigg to come back from his vacation. They had a plan to get rid of these people. The plan was to scare them into thinking that the house had mice. ...

I liked this book because it is a chapter book. I want everyone to read this book. I give this book five stars because it is so good.

keith carter's new book of photographs is a beautifully put together book. the publishers did an excellent job, they made a book that just looks beautiful, though i do see where keeping it in good condition might get to be a problem. the images are beautiful images, but after a while you do get a little tired of seeing the same thing over and over again. it's not as good as 25 Years, but i'd still recommend this book as an excellent purchase.

I was browsing through the bookstore one day when I spotted this book. I have never seen prints (OK, reproductions of prints) so beautiful in all my life, and as a photo student I'm addicted to looking at every kind of photograph imaginable. Carter uses the Hasselblad arc-flex, a sort of bellows for the medium format camera, to get dream-like images where part of the image is in sharp focus and other parts drift off into softness. He has an extraordinary sense of light, capturing so many subtle nuances, and he tones his prints beautiful shades of brown and purple. Carter seems to tell stories with his photos - it's like you "read" his pictures, instead of simply looking at them. His passion for life and for what he calls visual "opera" are evident in every shot. Looking at his book, one is transported to a whole other universe, and dwells there happily.

This is Keith Carter's finest book yet, and it has the finest reproductions of his work that have ever been produced. No book can ever exactly reproduce a photograph's tones; however, this publisher's use of 4-color, which has never been used on a Carter book before, comes closest to capturing Carter's magic--and there is probably no contemporary photographer more magical than Keith Carter.

I've read this collection several times in my distant past, and loved the stories! I was very disappointed when I received the CD and learned that the only way I could read it was on a PC monitor. Audio or the ability to print the stories for reading is not available on the CD. It is extremely misleading on the way it's sold. Buyer Beware!

The John Carter of Mars Series is my all time favorite Science Fiction series, and in fact it was this ERB series that got me started on a lifetime of reading. And it IS nice to see it collected on a cd rom for delivery to yet another generation. I still have ten of the eleven novels in the series in paperback from my childhood, but have been unable to find a replacement for "The Princess of Mars" that fell apart after the Nth reading. Now that I've ordered the first five on the cd rom, I hope to get my kids hooked on them as well.

i read my first John Carter book when i was 12 years old; i am considerably older than that now and still enjoy re-reading them; a must for anyone who likes good story telling with the added dimension of science fiction - science fiction that was remarkably advanced for its time

This is the best X-Files book I have ever read. The truth about the Mulder/Scully kiss, Samantha, the Syndicate, and everything else are revealed in here-especially the parts cut from the movie. It is action-packed, funny, sexy, and scary-just like the movie!

This is one of the greatest books I've ever read. This is the greatest book for X-Files fans and fans of the movie. I would definitely buy this book if you are an X-Files fan who wants the inside look at the plot of the movie. THE TRUTH OF SAMANTHA IS REVIELED IN THE BOOK BUT NOT IN THE MOVIE BECAUSE IT GOT CUT. See the movie then read the book and you'll know what i mean!!!!

I 'm a fan of X files. I haven't seen the movie yet, as I live in Greece and the movie hasn't been released yet, but I read this book and it is so good that I can imagine how the movie will be. It worths its money DEFINITELY.A buy for every X filer and not only.....