First off, I entered my hometown wrong in my review of "A Walk across America" as Killeen, TX. My hometown is Hendersonville, TN and I am stationed in Killeen, TX. Anyway, just like I said in my first review, Peter and now Barbara both write in a way that you, the reader, are walking right beside them through the West. Peter and Barbara share with you walking in the Texas summer heat (something which I know about), the mountains in the west, and stepping into the Pacific as their adventure ended in 1979. A good book which like the first, I simply could not put down, once I started reading the book. I always wanted to know what adventure lied ahead on the next page or the next chapter. I would have to force myself to take a break from reading, the book was so good. I recommend for those with a thirst for adventure to purchase a copy of this book and also the book "A Walk Across America", and hopefully those who read both books will agree with me.

THE WALK WEST continues the journey of Peter and Barbara Jenkins that began in the book A WALK ACROSS AMERICA. The book is a delight to read. Peter Jenkins is an excellent writer. His descriptions of people and places are so vivid that he is able to capture the essence of a person, place, or event in a few short, almost poetic words without any drivel. Barbara is quite a different writer, but the ancedotes she shares throughout the book enhance the story, filling in details that help one better understand a situation, person, or event.

Reading about their journey reminded me of how great America truly is. We live in a great nation, the most blessed on the Earth and we are surrounded by goodness. However, just as the Jenkins were faced with some life-harrowing events (the voodoo lady, the crazy maniacs in Colorado, the drunk driver in Utah), so are we all. The world is a wonderful place, but evil still exists and admist all the good there is always a token of evil that threatens and menaces until it either destroys or is destroyed itself. Also, when I reflected upon the hardships the Jenkins endured on their long walk it helped remind me of how blessed my life is. Blessings surround us, but most of the time we are blind to them.

My parents introduced me to the Jenkins' journey and I am so grateful they did. The walk across America captures an essence of what the United States is and in doing so, reflects upon each of our own lives. After all, we are all on a journey and because of that "the circle is never broken".

One of my all-time favorites. Hard to put down.

This book affords a youngster (or adult) a gateway to a brand-new world, with its own rules and dramas, right under our noses. In a very readable way, it makes the world discovered by van Leeuwenhoek (the inventor of the microscope) real and accessible to young children and busy adults. Using pictures on every page, it guides the reader through an overview of this amazing menagerie and compares their sizes, then tells how they were discovered, and then reviews each category of creature in turn. It describes the life cycles and the most amazing things about each group. It succeeds in communicating the thrill of seeking and discovering as it explains how to collect or culture these creatures, which are more varied and exotic than dinosaurs, but are alive right now and present everywhere.

Our daughter is 4, and is fascinated by the book (though it's meant for grades 5-8). I am unable to buy a copy now that it is out of stock, but I hope that will change soon. This is truly a marvelous book.

This is an unusally readable and yet accurate discription of common micororganisms found in pond water. The organization is by phylogenetic group, the text is not watered down excessively for children, and the ilustrations are accurate without being too complicated for the preadolescent budding scientist.

My 7 year old brought the book home from the library, and would not return it. We finally purchased a copy. There are now two jars of pond water on his window sill and a nightly ritual of examining a drop form each, and recording his observations in a sketch book. His sustained enthusiasm is the best tribute I can pay to this book. I hope the authors and illustrators will tackle another area, such as moss, dirt, etc.

This is a really cool Doug book!! It's got lots of pages!! I like it because it has very cool Did You Know's about Doug and shows what Doug has written in his journal!!

This is a book any nature lover should pick up. I'd heard Matthiessen's name but sadly hadn't read any of his work until now, and what a great collection this is to start off with. Matthiessen writes about the world around us vividly, lyrically and eloquently, without getting TOO florid and new-agey as some nature writers tend to do. He travels the world in this collection spanning his career, from shark observations to Himalayan treks to African safaris to New England fishing villages, always honest and compulsively readable. His description of a pack of wild dogs hunting zebra in Africa ranks with the best passages about wildlife I've ever read, and will floor you.

This book gives you the inside look on how The Walk Across America changed Barbara and Peter. They talk about the people they met and how their lives were influenced by the people and how they influenced the lives of the people they met. They take you at different points of the walk and share some personal details that will bewilder you or just respect their drive to finish the walk. If you want to know Barbara and Peter; you will feel you know them after you read this book.

If you've ever received a traditional performance appraisal (PA), every word of this book will ring true! The sad part is, in a country as technically advanced as the US, this same process has been used in corporations since World War II. Can you name another technology still in use from that era?

As a Performance Management consultant I've reengineered appraisal systems based on employee and management needs, so the book's title put me off initially. Performance mesurement and feedback is critical in a high performing organization. But the authors' approach is right on target. Organizations should NOT stop measuring, but measure and feed back accurately within an adult-to-adult context. The data on how humans behave puts traditional PA systems to shame. What a waste of resources!

Performance Management systems can be reengineered at little direct cost and return REAL individual, group and organizational performance improvement. I've found that nearly all PA systems are compensation rather than performance focused, and actually keep employees from the accountability the organization seeks. What's worse, these systems are often the only source for employee feedback!

Coens and Jenkins capture and dispel all the well-meaning assumptions of traditional Performance Appraisals, while also providing solid PERFORMANCE-BASED alternatives. For example, and with no apologies to the lawyers, individual performance documentation is only needed when there is a serious performance problem, and that is quite rare. Positive performance data is available in other, more productive ways. Why burden the entire organization, demotivate employees, and waste valuable resources when treating adults as adults can actually improve BOTTOM LINE PERFORMNACE?

The book is not for everyone, but managers who have always felt sick about using their company's PA process will be delighted to know that they were right all along. People know how to do this, and company bureaucracy just gets in the way.

No business has extra people or money. I've effectively used these same principles for years. Thank you, Tom and Mary, for documenting a process for 21st century Performance Management.

This is an important and well written book. The authors, Tom Coens and Mary Jenkins, think it is time for organizations to begin treating employees like the adults that they are. There is too much patriarchal and paternalistic hand-holding, and way too much time spent monitoring, evaluating and judging individuals. The authors advocate dropping the ritual of performance appraisal as a vital step, in itself, and for the "undercurrent" that appraisal represents, towards freeing the human spirit in organizations. This undercurrent "hangs like a cloud, pervades the workplace atmosphere...." It is the "personnel policies, human resource practices, and most importantly, the organization's unseen culture (values and beliefs) about people. It sends messages that people are not interested in working or improving the organization, messages that people are children who need to be directed and controlled in an atmosphere much like a traditional school." This is powerful stuff.

Coens and Jenkins want us to get busy on working together towards improving processes and the system of delivering value to our customers, and give up the quest for finally pinpointing, once and for all, who the "1"s, "2"s, "3"s, etc. are in the organization. They want us to quit thinking that a person's value and performance can somehow be reduced to a number. They explain how this is a fallacy and illusion, given the impossibility of separating out the individual's contribution from the contribution of the system or environment that she works in, inherent measurement and judgment biases, and organizational politics. More importantly, such reductionism is degrading and demoralizing to the individual. And "we trivialize an individual's work, often involving heart and soul, from something unique and wonderful into a cold and sterile numerical rating that purportedly signifies the person's total contribution."

The approach the authors take is to first surface, then examine, and ultimately attack the assumptions underlying appraisal, and then to build alternatives from "newer, more hopeful assumptions." They are thorough and convincing in making the case to abolish performance appraisal.

W. Edwards Deming, who mentored Jenkins, was often asked, "But if we eliminate performance appraisal, then what will we replace it with?" He would reply, "Try leadership." Whereas Coens and Jenkins would surely support such a true and succinct response, they also offer specific guidelines and methodology for an organization to wean itself from the nonproductive and harmful anachronism of performance appraisal. For example, they describe how to effectively "debundle" management concerns, such as motivation, coaching, counseling, retention, discharge, goal setting, pay, promotion, and discipline, which are often packaged as part of the appraisal process.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who values dignity, respect, and trust in the workplace, and who believes that holding such values is crucial in striving for true organizational excellence.

Do high performance work systems and knowledge driven work designs need to incorporate performance appraisals? As business leaders move rapidly to transform organizations,they are forced to grapple with what to do about a performance appraisal system. Tom Coens and Mary Jenkins draw from an extensive bibliography of practitioner and academic leaders plus extensive personal experience to say,"abolish it!" Yes! Abolish your appraisal system and replace it with custom-designed decoupled systems for pay coaching,counseling, mentoring,development, and legal justification of personnel decisions. This book is aimed at practitioners and leaders but should be assigned in business schools. It is a provocative and powerful counterpoint to scholarly and professional books that reinforce the old thinking of bundling everything into one appraisal system. This old style approach has plagued managers, employees, and their organizations for the last century. If you a searching for a well-written and exciting read, buy this book!

Looking for Alaska is a book that makes you want to be in the beauty of Alaska one minute and really glad that you are not there the next.
From Peters descriptions of the beauty of the scenery , to the warmth of the population and the diversity of the people, the humorous story of the rescue of Mother moose and her baby from a swimming pool, (one wonders at the need of an outside swimming pool in Alaska) to the spine chilling account of a Bear attack and attacks by other animals, Looking for Alaska is a good read from cover to cover.
Peter meets many different people on his travels and they all open up to him with the result that the reader feels the enjoyment and the fear of day to day living in this wild part of the world.
Thank you Peter, the vividness of your writing took me away from the sweltering heat of Brisbane's hottest summer in 90 years, and in some ways made me even appreciate that heat!!

In 1973, Peter Jenkins set off with a backpack and his dog Cooper looking for America. He lived with and listened to people from every kind of life, learning much along the way. From his five-year adventure, he wrote two books: A Walk Across America and The Walk West.

Jenkins now enjoys living on his 150-acre farm in Spring Hill, Tenn. Whenever his sedentary life becomes boring, however, he knows it's time to satisfy his wanderlust; otherwise, as he puts it, he would having nothing to write about.

Stepping to the sound of a different drummer, Jenkins, accompanied by his wife Rita and daughters Rebekah and Julianne, trek northward to Alaska, "the Last Frontier," an austere land that does not suffer fools gladly.

Alaskan winters are not for the faint of heart or tender of foot. In this land of snow, ice, and bitter cold, temperatures drop to sixty, eighty, or a hundred degrees below zero. True, it is a land where one can live one's dreams--even surpass one's dreams--but where dreams may turn into nightmares.

"Alaska makes people hallucinate," writes Jenkins. "It takes hold of you, it makes some believe there is no gravity. They can enter the power and purity of it and be uninjured, jump from a mountaintop and not land on the rocks below."

From his "home base" of Seward, on the Kenai Peninsula, Jenkins travels to Hydaburg on Prince of Wales Island, and on to Tok, not far from the border of Yukon Territory, where he stays at a B&B named WinterCabin: "Where the Stars Sleep Beneath the Northern Lights."

WinterCabin is owned and operated by Donna Blasor-Bernhardt, who has her annual "Before Winter List" of things to do (that must be done). Summertime in Alaska is a window of opportunity to prepare for the long, arduous winter ahead. "Winter in Tok," writes Jenkins, "needs to be spelled in all capital letters, WINTER."

Jenkins describes the running of the Iditarod (from Anchorage to Nome). He travels by snow machine (Alaskans never call them snowmobiles) above the Arctic Circle to the delightful Jayne household (Eric, Vicky, Mike, Pete, Elizabeth, and Dan), some sixty miles from Coldfoot; visits Denali National Park and the Alaska Range; lives in Barrow, the northernmost town in the United States; and moves on to Kotzebue, Deering, and Unatakleet, near the Bering Strait and the closest Russian landfall.

"[Alaska] is filled with people determined to live as free as possible of others' intervention," writes Jenkins. "Alaska may have served as the incubator for the behavior now termed politically incorrect. They despise being herded; if they were sheep, they would never go off the cliff together. More than likely, they'd trample the shepherd."

Peter Jenkins has experienced enough adventures for several lifetimes. In Looking for Alaska, perhaps the best book he has written, he will regale you with firsthand reports of life in our largest and coldest state. Jenkins didn't just zoom in and zoom out of Alaska; he lived among its people for eighteen months and won their trust.

Scattered through this volume are numerous black-and-white photos, plus 29 beautiful full-color photos. If you want an excellent holiday gift for family and friends, or an unforgettable reading experience of your own, put Looking for Alaska at the top of your must-buy book list.

I am a Native Alaskan. My people have been in Alaska before it was called ALASKA. I was given Peter Jenkins book as an early holiday gift from my Uncle and wondered if he captured my people and all our people, of all groups, because almost no writers/travelers ever have.

He even found things I did not know about, like `mouse trading', from his Deering, Alaska chapter. Lines like this from the book lift me and illustrate his acute powers of perception, "Millie's voice is like a whisper but has incredible strength. I think the Eskimo way of speaking, soft, slow, focused, and songlike, comes from being listened to and from living surrounded by so much beautiful silence and life."

Actually he has been to many more places in this 590,000 square mile place than almost any Alaskan I have known. There is hilarious, witty stuff,, like this section title: "These Athletes Eat Raw Meat, Run Naked and Sleep in the Snow."

This is one white man that has a caring and discerning heart, this is by far, one of the best books on ALASKA I have ever read. We needed this kind of work here and I want to thank him for hearing my people, the Native Alaskans and all the rest of us, showing us as the alive and vivid world. Since graduating from UCLA I have yearned to be back in my homeland, for a few days reading LOOKING FOR ALASKA I have been.

When I read this book many years ago when it was first published, little did I know that it would be a part of the internet. I would encourage anyone who likes adventure and self-discovery to get a copy of this book. Peter (the author) and Cooper (his dog/pal) awakened me to the possibility of one day having a journey of my own. For now though, this fantastic tale has kept my zest for reaching out to people alive and well. Someday I too will make the trip. Thanks to the author Peter Jenkins. I think you will be inspired as well. Start with this story and continue with all of his other works. Your mind will be taken to new places with each page you turn. If you enjoy discovery, I also recommend a book titled "Blue Highways" by William Least-Heat Moon -- a travelogue of people and places.

My Dad & Mom both read this book and loved it. That's somewhat unusual because my parents' reading tastes are usually different. My Dad enjoyed it so much that anytime he was given a chance, he would mention this book. Nearly a decade later, I finally got around to reading it. I wish I would have read it much sooner.

The book was first published about twenty-five years ago, but it's content will probably never be dated. It is true that many things have changed in America since Jenkins first set out to walk across America: Vietnam is just another chapter in the history books instead of a recent memory, the cold war has ended, and there aren't as many hippies roaming the country as there used to be. Nevertheless, the more things change the more things stay the same.

Most people are truly remarkable. We tend to forget that in our current times where violence and abuse seem the norm. We live in a society where children kill each other because some other kid called them a name. People are murdered, beat, raped, and abused every day. In the violent times in which we live, Peter Jenkins' story is more meaningful than ever. We are a culture that seems to be plagued by violence. However, this doesn't have to be the case and for the most part it isn't. There really are people out there like Homer the Mountaineer and the commune of The Farm; people who don't live according to the system. However, most people do play by the system and are like the people Jenkins met and lived with in Tennessee and Alabama: people who will stop to see if you need a lift or a place to stay, buy you a meal, or give you a glass of water. You don't hear about these people much. They are the silent majority. You don't hear much about them because a murder sells more papers and makes for better television that an old man picking up a stranger and buying his meal for him. If you don't believe me, maybe you should try taking your own walk across America.

A Walk Across America is a compelling journey that winds us in and out of many cultures, spiritual courses and peoples of this great country of ours. The strong sense of spirituality is a compelling force of this book, and the flavors, sights, sounds and vibrant characters are much more than background to this great adventure. A moving, touching and enlightening piece that will warm many hearts and restore faith. This is a very touching journey...not only an exploration of the people and country but one of great insight, and self-discovery. Peter's lone quest is not his alone. And those he meets on his way restore all our faith in humanity and in life.

Each character, big and small, light a path to freedom from judgment. From Homer Davenport's vision of life on the mountain, to the preachers that Peter meets in a variety of spiritual encounters...to the trials and difficulties he meets along the roads...and safe homes he is welcomed into...this is a striking and most timely/timeless piece of work.

Living with a black family in N. Carolina is the books highlight in many ways, as they are faced with conflict and bonding.

All in all, the only coments here are ones of sheer joy in sharing, just for a few hours, this amazing experience of Peter's journey towards self-discovery, and restored belief in humanity.

Having read 5 or 6 of Jenkin's other books, I realized at once that the man writing this was not the same author I had come to admire, but rather one who was hurt and needed to heal his soul following the collapse of his marriage. The book started out slow and sad, but as Peter's confidence re-emerged and his passion for exploring new places burned bright again, this book became more and more fun and interesting. His style returned to the easy-to-read prose I had so enjoyed in his previous books. To "see" a person's soul heal through his writing like this was like watching a flower open. And to "meet" the new friends he made along the way sure got my travel itch going! (Welcome Back, Peter! I missed your work and want you to know that you have positively influenced many of the young people I work with. I have given your books to several and they are all impressed with your love of life and your willingness to take risks that enrich your soul. Thanks!)

In his book,ALONG THE EDGE OF AMERICA, Peter Jenkins tells us he has bought a boat. He and Warren Norville, a retired naval commander, stare at the 25-foot Grady White tied up at the dock.

We can read their thoughts. Peter looks at the boat and wonders what in the world he is getting into. Warren, who is to be his teacher, has the same thought as he sees the bewildered look on Peter's face. Casting aside their fears and doubts, Norville grabs the wheel and heads out to sea. Peter, quite pale, stares at the horizon.

Later, much later, Peter feels comfortable at the helm. He takes us with him as he and his boat,the Cooper, takes us along the Gulf Coast. We explore uninhabited islands, little-known bays and inlets. We look over his shoulder as he guides the Cooper up quiet rivers, where the only sounds are those of sea and shore birds calling to each other. They are quiet, exciting trips.

Page after page, we get to know the people Peter meets. He expores relationships between islanders and off-islanders, villagers and city dwellers, husbands and wives. A personal relationship is also explored when Peter's father joins him for a week of cruising. That relationship changes, like a Gulf weather report, from "cloudy and cool" to "warm and sunny", The week that began with the obligatory handshake ended with a warm embrace. Both of them agreed that the bright sun makes your eyes water.....

Exciting and always thought-provoking the book teaches us much about our country and the people that are its foundation. We become their friends. Peter and his boat, the Cooper, become our friends as well. As we near the end of the book, we slow our reading. We savor each word and phrase. Before we close the book, we reach out and embrace the people we have met along the watery way. We wave good-bye to them. We will remember them as a friend should, with love and respect.

I read `Along the Edge of America' and it helped me understand my Dad and what he went through after a divorce from my Mom. I guess I didn't think of grown-ups being in pain, or sad, weren't they always the together ones. Now I see it somewhat, as much as I can for a seventeen year old who has only broken up with his girlfriend.

I respect Peter Jenkins because he is a strong man, what an adventurer, yet, sensitive.

A friend told me to read this book because I dream of a long boat trip. I got that, met some cool and surprising people and got much more, too.