This is the book I used for my 1st college class in many years.
There are tools in here, such as "mind mapping", that I am still using and will continue to use in much of my academic future. Lots of information learned here can easily be applied to work situations as well. Highly recommended.

This is a essays collection in a conference held in US. For a Chinese as me, it is good for me to know how the excellent western scholars to study in Chinese social and political history. However, I think it would be better if one or two papers, written by chinese scholars, were included.

John Chaffee encourages you to reach your full potential as a critical thinker and a creative thinker. He outlines ways you can improve your thinking and decision-making processes. It covers basic background information about the psychology of thought and encourages you to develop a rewarding, well-considered set of beliefs. The author discusses and evaluates stumbling blocks to critical thought, and then offers suggestions and activities for overcoming them. Though it is probably familiar to good communicators and occasionally repetitive, this material provides food for thought especially for those who are new to critical thinking. We [...] recommend this book to those who enjoy self-help books, and who want basic assistance in improving their thinking and communicating skills.

How many times have you come out of the bookstore with a new self-help book that you're sure will improve your relationships, career, parenting, creativity, decision-making, communication skills, organization, romances--in a word, your life as a whole? In my experience, what often ends up happening is that you adopt a new method of working/relating/parenting/organizing/ communicating/loving for a short while before slipping back into old patterns and, in frustration, giving up. What a relief, then, that John Chaffee has written "The Thinker's Way," a book that promises to improve every area of your life, and actually does. Unlike other, more simplistic, self-help books, "The Thinker's Way" works because, in a manageable series of eight steps, it nurtures the most basic and important part of your being--your ability to think, make intelligent decisions, skillfully evaluate situations, and foster creativity in your thinking and in your life. Chaffee focuses on three key ideas--"Thinking Critically, Living Creatively, Choosing Freely". Aren't these the qualities of life we all strive for? This book has truly changed the way that I think. It has created me as a thinker who can effectively deal with complex situations, who can live a life of creativity, and who can make free, confident choices. The author calls to our attention the alarming fact that we have become a "nation of non-thinkers"--unsure of our opinions, awash with information, and confused when faced with complex problems and relationships. He imagines a "thinking world"--a world where each of us achieves our full potential, leading the most fulfilling life possible. Is this world plausible? After reading this book I realize that it is the kind of world that we would live in if everyone took the time to read, and live their lives, "The Thinker's Way."

The Thinker's Way is not only a great read but it also provides a practical guide to self-help. Most books try to help you - this one delivers. As a parent I immediately turned to Chaffee's chapters on raising the thinking child. WOW. It was amazing to find him second guessing every question that was on my mind. For parents concerned about - are they doing the "right" thing, The Thinker's Way provides a guilt free road map to being a better parent. Beyond a guide to raising kids, Dr, Chaffee outlines ways for the reader to first find out where he/she is in developing more meaningful relationships and then practical ways to make current relationships and future relationships more exciting and more fun. If I were you I would stop reading this review and order The Thinker's Way through amazon.com right now. This book will improve your life with no pain. Thanks to Dr. Chaffee for his clarity and his thoughts on how to make life more interesting. BRAVO.