WOW!!! I can't say enough good things about this book. I will adimit that I didn't love it at first, it wasn't until I was in the second or third chapters when I started getting with it. But once I did, I learned more in those few pages than in the last 10 seminars I have attended, here are some of the highlights.

I have had a lot of success with setting the rules of the sales process with the three-step suggestion in the book. I have eliminated virtually all of the stalls I was seeing by just telling the prospect that it is O.K. to tell me "No" and that I will expect them to tell me whether to stop or proceed at the end of each meeting.

I learned to define what real pain is, what words or phrases the prospect uses and how to pick-up on them quickly. I learned that what I had defined as pain was really just the symptoms of pain and not the real emotions behind it. I have become much more comfortable with pain and better at diagnosing its source, because I am listening with a purpose.

I could go on forever, but I'll move to the testimonial: My sales have doubled since implementing the leadership selling system in October 1998 and my company is using this book as THE training tool.

I received the book as a gift several years ago and enjoyed it immensely. Now,I think it is time to update the book, specifically the celebrities interviewed and functions centered around the name, such as the BobFest in Avon, Co, home of the bridge named Bob

I was given this book years ago, and found it to be enormously entertaining and fun to read. Being named Bob, I also found it's desciption of the "normal" Bob to be incredibly accurate. I have bought additional copies over the years to give to friends and employees also named Bob. Print some more!!

THE BOB BOOK is a totally fact-based humorous sociology of men named Bob. It is a national bestseller and the bible when it comes to Bobs. Every famous Bob has played along, by answering the Bob Survey. This book couldn't have been written about men with any other name. Only Bob is a noun, a verb, a way of life. Plus, no one named Bob could have written it himself. Bobs just don't spend much time on self-reflection. This book is a must for any Bob in your life--and we all have one.

As one of the poets featured in Will Work for Peace, one might expect me to be a bit biased, but nothing could be farther from the truth. Most poets work in a virtual vacuum, only tenuously connected to each other by the occasional workshop or shared membership in a 'poetry society'. When Brett Axel first approached me for a submission to an anthology he was considering, the names Marge Piercy, Lyn Lifshin, Moshe Bennaroch and so many others were abstractions to me as a fledgling poet. I knew these tremendous writers were 'out there' somewhere, beating down doors with their words and keeping a struggling artform alive. But to think that someday I would ever share a credit with these dynamic modern poets would be a pipe dream at best. It is through the sincere efforts of Brett Axel that many newer voices like mine have an extraordinary opportunity to appear with Pulitzer Prize winners and other poetic heavyweights. By way of an honest review, however, I will say this- not everything in this book will be to your particular liking. I myself came across some works that did not move me in the way the author may have intended. Some imagery can be raw and visceral, using shock value in place of craft at times. But to ignore those voices would be an even more shocking turn of events, so praise be to the editor for not sacrificing his vision to a senseless conformity. As Pete Seeger so aptly put it in his quote, trying to read all these poems at one time would be like trying 'to swallow Manhattan whole'. I say to you- buy this book, read this book, but understand that it's what you do after reading this book that will ultimately define who you could be. Poetry is alive and well, and lives in the blunt pages of Will Work for Peace.

Just amazing start to finish! I like the disregard for fame used in putting the book together. That great poems got in even if they were writtenby nobodys. Look at Roger Bonair-Agard's poem on page 74. Shortly after Will Work For Peace came out he won Slam Nationals, becoming Slam Champion of 1999, which will be getting him lots of offers. But Zeropanik Press didn't need to be told he was good by an award. They could tell by his writing! Good for them and good for all of us because Will Work For Peace is a literary milestone. It's a new standard for all future anthology editors to try to live up to. Thumbs up to Brett Axel and Thumbs up to Zeropanik Press for their guts and integrty.

Brett Axel visited my Church and I bought a copy of Will Work For Peace from him, not for poetry, but because I care about working for peace. I started reading through it thinking It'd just go on my shelf and that'd be the end of it, but the book grabbed me and kept me rivited. If I had known that poetry was this alive I'd have been into poetry. I've been reading some of the poems to my friends who also didn't think poetry was important and they are saying the same thing. Fantastic! There's no way to get through this book without having your old mindsets challenged. It's funny, powerful, sad, and uplifting. A book that deserves to be read by everyone. A book that really can make the world a better place!

In this book, David Kushner documents the lives of two influential game programmers, John Romero and John Carmack - the guys who created Doom and id Software. It chronicles the lives, the company, the gaming industry, and the impact of these two young computer geniuses. It's a quick, fluid read that is not only entertaining, but is awe inspiring as well.

This is a fascinating book on many fronts. It describes how two kids got into games from the early childhoods, describes their fascination with computers in general, and their dreams. It goes from a tale of two kids with ideas, to their technological innovations, to business start, to their monumental growth, and finally to their fallout. It sheds light not only independent game programming, but of the type of people who develop and play these first person shooters like Doom.

Not only is this a biography, or a game book, it's also sort of the "startup.com" of the gaming world. With a good mixture of business, gaming, with unique and individual characters, it indirectly describes the world of gaming companies and what it takes to make a good, and bad, company.

While a good book for all, it's a must for anyone who loves games or is into software development.

this is an excellent book. I read it in a day, I couldn't stop reading it. it tells the life of two revolutionary figures in video game history, it presents it in novel form, and succeeds with flying colors. 5/5 10/10 bling-bling, whatever. its awesome.

Kushner's book is a "Behind the Music" type of story detailing what drove these young men to devote their lives to making some of the world's greatest video games. You'll especially love it, if like me, you played Wolfenstein 3D, DOOM, and Quake in the 80s and 90s, and wondered how id software could revolutionize gaming every few years. The author gives a great inside scoop on how Carmack created graphics engines that turned the PC into a gaming machine, which at that point in time seemed almost unthinkable. Romero, in the early days, was the perfect complement to Carmack's skills, creating the first level editing tools to develop levels for Commander Keen and Wolfenstein. And the rest of the people at id software--Adrian Carmack, Tom Hall, etc., their stories are detailed, as well as people like DWANGO Bob, who made money off networked DOOM servers before the Internet came along. My only wish was that the book had pictures so we could visualize what everyone looked like at the time!

A book of rejection letters seems like a novel idea, until you realize that it seems like you've read it before, and it was funnier the first time. "Dear Earnest and Julio" is certainly well meaning enough, but it fails to establish as eccentric of a main chacater as comedian Don Novello did in his classic books with a similar take on corporate America : "The Lazlo Letters : The Amazing, Real-Life, Actual Correspondence of Lazlo Toth, American" AND "Citizen Lazlo! : The Continuing, Unrelenting Correspondence of Lazlo Toth, American! Vol 2." Novello got there first, and in no knock against Fred Grimes and David Freed, did it better the first time

Somebody gave me this book on the occasion of being laid off from my job of 15 years. I felt like crying after I got fired, but Fred Grimes made me laugh out loud. A very clever idea for a book--an ordinary guy trying to find an extraordinary job.

Dear Ernest and Julio is intended for those who can laugh wth life and not just at it. This book gives the reader plenty of laughs and even more smiles as we see that Grimes (through Freed) is somebody we can relate to, sympathize with and really like. When we laugh at him and his plight we can see some humor in our own foibles and struggles. Freed has a keen ear for real life, as evidenced by his very real replies from the companies that all too many of us have to look to for jobs. If you are like me, it will take a while to finish Dear Ernest and Julio because you are overwhelmed with the urge to share some of the most hilarious letters - especially those dealing with France. Laugh and enjoy. You won't find a more enjoyable read all year

This is the only book I have found written especially for compulsive gay men. It is full of insight and the testimonials of gay men in recovery make it easy and enjoyable to read. I would have rated it with 5 stars if only I hadn't read Mr.Kettelhack's 1996 book "Dancing Around the Volcano" in which he adopts a totally different point of view: That sexual needs and fantasies of gay men should be indulged rather than suppressed. This shift in point of view makes the authenticity of "Easing the Ache" seem rather dubious.

We need more writers like Mr. Kettelhack to help heal the scars of many bright, eager, and potentially productive (and happy) gay men. If only more boys would read this book before tripping into a bath of self-loathing and depression; what a fortune could be saved (not to mention many lives) in the mental health and recover/rehab department.

FOOTBALL DREAMS is a great book in that it portrays the typical high school athlete. Guy really connents with the normal athlete. He talks about lost love and a more wishful love. Then in the end he goes out with a bang to end his high school career. Guy gives a good portrayal of what happens in the high school seen. In the middle of all this Dan, the main character, has to try and live through a death in the family. This book seems almost to be considered a biography it just portrays Dan's life so well. The feelings and the descriptions used by Guy are just so real. He gives every little detail and makes you feel like your sitting next to him in the classroom or with him at the party or even right there with him on the field. You feel almost like you are a good friend of Dan's at Arnold Preparatory School. You almost start feeling sorry for Dan when just nothing can go his way. He can't get the girl and he just seems to have problems everywhere; even his one sanctuary, football isn't going so well. Then later Dan learns a very important life lesson, which you can find out on your own. David Guy has written a wonderful novel that all high school athletes past or present should read. Even if you were never or are never going to be an athlete read this book.

This book uses the often difficult and confusing teenage years to comment perceptively on what true manhood is and how rigorous becoming a truly authentic person can be. do not be confused by the high school framework, though; this is a book for any truly intelligent and thinking adult.I only wish I could find something else written by this talented author, for I have searched vainly for years without coming across anything else that Guy has produced.

This is one of the very best books of its kind.
I successfully used it in a college-level sports history course a few years ago.
It beautifully represents the role sports often plays in coming of age.
Somebody should bring it back into print.
A real winner.

I don't think this is GREAT utility but it is certainly very good. The book has several sections for different Tech Levels but only a handful of items that sometimes seem completely unrelated. I would have liked to have seen a whole mass of civilian items that seem more related as well as military. Very good but could have been better.

This GURPS sourcebook is designed to work well with any science fiction setting, and can easily be converted for use in a non-GURPS game. Hundreds of items are listed, described in relatively short capsules (1-3 paragraphs, usually) with good descriptions of game effects.

While the books is useful beyond description, there are a few (minor) flaws. First, for people inclined to mercantile campaigns, a great deal of the book deals with weapons and armor. Secondly, there is nothing to differentiate between hard-sf equipment and cinematic "rubber science" sci-fi type gear. For those of us who play games closer to Larry Niven than George Lucas, this can be irritating, especially if we know more about history than physics.

Fantastic gaming source. Provides futuristic technologies and gadgets for any science fiction game, as well as some ideas on the changes society might go through in dealing with advanced technology.

I was lured by the bait of his Ralphie persona, the Imus interview and a good excerpt on Amazon, but the life of an insecure little fat kid is not charming. Mommy was a gangster's daughter who browbeat her poor husband and was ready to cheat anyone including her young son. Some of the "Cousin" Florie stories were ok, like hijacking the Seagram's truck from the Hoboken ferry, but a book? Fuggedaboutit!

I feel like I grew up with Joey Pants. His family is my family! I picked up this book because he played in one of my all time favorite movies, "Goonies," and I new his face, but not his name. He's just one of those kind of actors. I don't mind saying that I hate him in the Sopranos, 'cause who doesn't? But after reading this book, even I am proud of what he made of himself. And it has restored my faith in my own abilities. I now must write a book about my verbally abusive Italian-American man-hating mother. Although his family had problems, you still get the sense that in the end they all sit around toasting to love and family like the last scene in Moonstruck! It's a quick read and you'll love it!

My brother got me this as a birthday gift - not something I would have bought myself. I figured it was one of those books where someone is cashing in on their current fame. It wasn't - it is an inner glimpse at a totally disfunctional family that I couldn't put down. Joey Pants was always one of those actors you love to hate - after reading this I can see where he got his inspiration - his nutsy Mommy (I have to admit I get a little uneasy reading about a guy in his 50's who still refers to his mother as Mommy). From this I have great admiration for Joey now - it is amazing what he overcame - the very things that would have caused most people to give up and accept their existance - inspired him to seek a better life. Anyone wishing to see the day-to-day live of a Goomba growing up in Jersey should grab this - a great read!

If you are in search of aknowledgement for the way you feel, read it. It may trigger you to set you on a path of further development. This 'trigger function' is about the only value of the book. If you are on a path and have done some work on yourself already, it's a waste of money and time. Hypothesis is stacked upon hypothesis, no sound argumentation is given, it creates confusion and fails to give directions for possible solutions. In one word: shallow. And (being a copywriter myself) I must say: research and writing is very poor.

PS: I opted for no star, but one is the minimum.

The picture on the cover of this book illustrates exactly how I have felt my whole life. This book has been a great help to me for years, and I wonder why more books like this aren't available; I had searched and searched for that book that described exactly what I was experiencing and how to heal from it, and I had all but given up, concluding that such a book had not been written and that no one else had ever experienced what I have. As "fate" would have it, I would soon stumble across ABSENT FATHERS, LOST SONS. I felt vindicated. I have found other books that have been very helpful for me, but this book feels as though it were written specifically for me. And since others have found this book helpful, I realize that I in fact am not alone in what I have experienced.

Guy Corneau has noticed what I have: he opens by saying that males in general have more developmental problems than women, and therefore it is puzzling that more is not being done to help men. Corneau argues that all men live in a kind of hereditary silence and that we fear that any man who speaks out about pain is a threat to male solidarity. The result of not speaking out is that men suffer alone and in silence, and the pain gets channeled in other directions; as Corneau points out, men far outnumber women in the prison systems. Corneau argues that for a man "to not have a father is to not have a backbone," and that the resulting lack of structure often results in anti-social behavior; men with absent fathers (emotionally absent will suffice) often turn to what Corgneau terms the "dark father complex," the clinging to extreme and often violence-based models of masculinity (such is the case with men who join gangs, etc.).

Two things that I found very interesting: Corneau argues that men who have not felt close enough to their fathers, will often be insecure in their sexuality and this will often result in them becoming "seducers"; the logic being that if they seduce enough women, and appear in the eyes of society to be "studs," then they will make up for the emptiness and insecurity they feel from never having been "confirmed" by their fathers, i.e., never having felt that their fathers accepted them as men. Corneau says that often when a man thinks he is running low on women, he is actually running low on men. Another fascinating thing is that Corneau argues that "seducer" men are often highly sensitive men who refuse to acknowledge and accept their sensitivity. These issues are described in my favorite chapter of the book, where the author discusses the various roles men find themselves in: the Hero, the Good Boy, the Eternal Adolescent, the Male Feminist, the Seducer, and the Homosexual. Corneau takes us through each of these roles and describes them step-by-step. Corneau argues that homosexual men are often obeying the unspoken command that they should never belong to any woman but their mother.

This book has been extraordinarily helpful for me for years now. I don't know where I'd be without this book. I would like to meet the author and shake his hand. ABSENT FATHERS, LOST SONS has helped me come to terms with myself, understand myself, and realize that I am not alone; many men suffer from the pain of not having felt close enough to their fathers. This book presents a somewhat revolutionary idea for this day and age: that fathers *are* important.

I must say that I found this book VERY important in my own life. It is almost chilling in it's description of the crisis in masculine identity. At times I have found this book difficult to read simply because it gets so deep it is almost scary.... Indeed, this book has been so transforming and thought provoking for me that I am only half way through it and have had to put it down and take a break. I highly recommend this book to anyone interesting in coming to terms with the current crisis in masculine identity. Although it has at times been difficult to read, because of this book I now feel much more centered and at peace with my masculinity than ever before.