This book is one of the best books on investing I've read yet. It does not give you chart patterns and indicators, but it shows you how the great ones made their fortunes. As I said, "They are legends for a reason."--They set a standard for investors. A definate read.

I have to admire any investment author who starts with the premise that the past is just as worthy of study as the future. We are fortunate to have among us, though not for much longer, a number of living legends in the world of finance -- Fisher, Templeton, Buffett, Tisch and others -- who will one day take their habits, idiosyncracies, and wealth-building secrets to the grave. When they are gone, there will be no one to take their places, or enrich us with their wisdom.

For years, we have been deluged with repetitive texts on how to become a millionaire like your neighbor. Isn't it better to have a manual on how to emulate the titans? There's an old saying in the school yard that if you are going to cheat on an exam, copy off the person who gets the A+, not the C students. Nikki Ross' book has been sorely needed and will prove just as pertinent today as it will in 20 years -- when the memories of these legends grow more faint.

What I liked most about Nikki's work is its translation value -- her ability to condense the lingering, sometimes philosophical synapses of these great men into lingo that lay investors can use practically. She avoids the temptation of delving at length into their biographies (which are rich enough and worthy of a sequel) and instead presents us with step-by-step instructions (almost as if she was taking dictation from Fisher and Buffett themselves).

A savvy stock-picker will quickly pick out the common threads that run throughout the book. All of these titans boiled down investing to a few core principles:

1) They view stocks as pieces of businesses and put all their efforts into determining the value of their prospective purchases. 2) They focus on price but understand that the real value of an investment is procured over time as the company grows. 3) They shun convention and believe today's dissertations on portfolio modeling are recipes for mediocrity. 4) They don't give a hoot about day-to-day fluctuations in the stock market. 5) They are all humble men who delighted in increasing clients' net worth just for the sake of proving it was possible.

It helps that Ms. Ross is a certified financial planner and a columnist. Her experience in giving real-world advice to individual investors lent itself to an easy-to-read, well planned book that any investor -- sophisticated or otherwise -- can use to their advantage. This book successfully bridges the gap between stock-picking and financial planning without coming off as self-serving, as many financial planning books are.

Nikki Ross presents a common sense three-step approach to investing. This approach is based on applying time-tested strategies that five successful giants have applied. Their experience through market crashes and the market highs demonstrate that their strategies are time-less and will be as valuable tomorrow as they were yesterday.

The first step is gathering the information. She shows where the information can be gathered using Internet resources (over twenty-five are listed), SEC reports, annual reports, magazines, and newspapers.

The second step is the evaluation process. Here she brings to life some of the insightful questions applied by Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Phil Fisher, T.Rowe Price, and John Templeton. The quantitative aspects of the evaluation are addressed (such as the company's sales, profit margins, and earnings). In addition the qualitative aspects (the company management's abilities, products and policies, market position, and company life cycle) become part of the investigation that leads to the third step, making a decision. In reading Nikki Ross' "Lessons from the Legends of Wall Street" I found questions of these legends most valuable and applicable in the evaluation of my own portfolio.

The third step, making the decision, requires that the investment meet a personal set of criteria before making a purchase. This also would be applied when making the decision to hold or sell the investment.

Nikki Ross presents these same strategies of the legends (that are used even today by mutual fund managers, money managers, and investment counselors) in an useable format that can be applied by the reader. In comparison to some other investment type books, this one cuts through the complex theory and offers common sense strategies for investing.

This interesting book is well written and timely. I would recommend this book for reading to help develop a solid investment strategy.

Philip Boudreaux, MBA

Clear, step-by-step, carefully illustrated instructions present the basic body movement skills that are at the root of all qi gong and t'ai chi forms. Weight distribution, concentration, and visualization are extensively considered, providing an extraordinary level of detail. The forms depicted include Holding the Ball, Bending from the Waist, Riding a T'ai Chi Horse, the Springy Step, Carry Tiger Back to Mountain, the Rooting Exercise, and the Ascending Dragon. The author includes evocative stories of his encounters with tai chi masters and a synopsis of the nine secret messages. Kotsias's style is deft and concise, his message sincere and gut-level. As a preparation for study with a teacher, a guide to practice, or simply as a system of exercise to practice by oneself, this text admirably serves the student's needs.

The exercise forms that are lucidly described and illustrated in this book should be part of the practice of every serious Tai Chi student. John Kotsias was fortunate to have the opportunity to study with two masters of this art who had worked directly with the Yang Tai Chi family in China ­ an experience he describes at the beginning of the book. He thus learned forms that are seldom taught in the west. This basic form is the foundation for eveloping the strength of mind and body required to practice Tai Chi at the highest level. I learned it from Kotsias in the 1980s and insist that my students learn it before undertaking more widely practiced forms such as the 108 movement form of Yang Cheng Fu. Another outstanding benefit of this form is its ability to stimulate the flow of internal healing energy. I experienced this vividly at a conference where I was studying Tai Chi with a teacher from Europe. I had a nasty virus and could barely do the 108 forms being taught. I had promised a fellow student to show him the basic form and had to do so on that day since he was leaving for home. Amazingly when I was done demonstrating these 8 movements, my virus symptoms were virtually gone! I now regularly turn to the basic movements described in this book for self-healing. I strongly recommend this book to everyone interested in Tai Chi and chi healing.

I have studied Tai Chi with John Kotsias for the past four years. John is a knowledgeable and principled teacher and martial artist. I have read this book on Tai-Chi Chi Kung several times in the course of my studies and find it more informative each time. John's personal experiences in his Tai-Chi education are enlightening and entertaining. His descriptions of the movements are detailed and include foot and waist diagrams for clarity. The moves are not simple and will be learned only after repeated practice and study, but I have found them to be most useful in my personal attempts to integrate mind, body and spirit. I have sent copies of this book to many members of my family and friends. I enjoyed it thoroughly and have been blessed by my opportunity to study this fascinating discipline with John Kotsias.

the books is set up of photographies of the kennedy brothers, there is a lot of rares photos of the greetest men in the american history.
I suggest to all the kennedy fans to buy it.

It is impossible to write about Robert Kennedy without including his brother, John Kennedy. Robert Kennedy was the brother who exemplified fraternal loyalty in his tireless efforts to promote Jack and to serve him during his tenure as president. Robert Kennedy was the man who, to some extent worked behind the scenes to promote his older brother. It has been said that a more devoted or more dedicated show of brotherly love in public office has yet to be found.

The one down side to Robert Kennedy's efforts is that he often sublimated his own identity, interests and needs so as to promote his brother. It is only in the tragic aftermath of President Kennedy's death does Robert Kennedy fully emerge as his own person. The same hard work ethic he applied behind the scenes is shown to the public at large. Robert Kennedy does indeed find his voice and his forte, which is commanding the interest and attention of his public. The man who would be president in 1968 becomes a symbol of hope -- he is the voice representing the disenfranchised, the minorities and those living in poverty. He is the man who becomes personally involved with a large segment of the population that had, up until recent history been excluded from many public fora. It is to Robert Kennedy's credit that he makes himself aware of such issues. Indeed, this book treats the brothers with respect and as with any work about Robert Kennedy, one is always left with the question of what would have been had this man lived to be elected president in 1968.

Jack and Bobby by Tom Murphy (published by Metro Books), is a photographic portrait of two brothers who have left their indelible mark on history. Filled with pages of captioned black and white photographs, this book offers an insight into the lives of the Kennedys through Jack and Bobby's political lives, their families, and their pain. It covers the men from their childhood through the death of Robert F. Kennedy. I recommend this book to any reader interested in the Kennedy family and their standing in United States history.

The way this book reads is a direct analogy to the Jaguars. A quick and powerful example of how to write and how to win correctly. The Andre Rison anedote and Tom Coughlin's use of fear to gain respect were excellent. With the Jaguars poised to make a run at the Super Bowl, I look forward to seeing a following on this model franchise by these two gifted writers.

Anyone who regularly reads the Florida Times Union sports page would expect that John Oesher and Pete Prisco could provide this fascinating and sometimes provocative story of how this world class franchise was put together. The pair's sensibility and willingness to force Coach Coughlin's respect lends to a short but compelling read.

The depth of understanding and the ability to put forth such complex ideas and doctrines in a 1600's backwoods preacher would have to be from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Later to find he was studied and read by C.H.Spurgeon sheds further light on this Spirit-filled man. AAM

I never knew that Bunyan had done much writing aside from Pilgrim's Progress, but this collection from his many other writings makes me want to read all I can of his thoughts. The book opens with this thought: "No one can be happy or experience any goodness unless God communicates His own glad goodness, and nothing pleases unless it is a vehicle for God. God is the only good worth wanting." I found the rest of the book to be full to the brim of that same "glad goodness." I came away with a renewed sense of the joy and glory of God.

This book is THE complete guide to building an intranet. Killer examples and techniques.

Very impressive compendium of Intranet information and the latest HTML techniques

If you've read the prior collections in this series and you thought things couldn't get any better, well you ain't seen nothing yet. This installment of the Swamp Thing graphic novel series contains just six issues from Alan Moore's run (#51-56), but that does include the double-sized blockbuster issue #53. In any case, quantity is meaningless here because Moore and his artistic team have reached the dizzying heights of their powers, unleashing the most mindboggling and gutwrenching stories in comic history. The basic subplot running through the series at this point is Abby's arrest for immoral conduct while Swamp Thing was off saving the universe, and her escape to Gotham City. As Swampy is searching for his true love, she is being held by the authorities in Gotham. In the overwhelming "Garden of Earthly Delights" (issue #53) Swamp Thing unleashes his full elemental powers on the uncaring city that imprisons his lover, and even temporarily defeats Batman in the process. Sadly, Swampy is supposedly assassinated by government agents, and finds his spirit floating in outer space. This is where Moore's imagination really goes into overdrive, giving us the highly unique and moving story "My Blue Heaven" (issue #56), a tremendous tale of loneliness and soul-searching, where Swamp Thing is blue in more ways than one. This episode is also another pinnacle for the artistic team, and much credit must go to colorist Tatjana Wood for her moody and unconventional work. By this point regular artists Stephen Bissette and John Totleben had mostly moved on - Bissette was only doing the covers and Totleben's only major contribution is "Garden of Earthly Delights." The artistic torch had been passed to the outstanding team of Rick Veitch and Alfredo Alcala, who barely miss a beat in keeping the series' haunting and lovely artwork rolling. The only sad thing about this edition of the Swamp Thing series is that fact that Moore's run would soon come to a close.

Ever since the Alan Moore's Swamp Thing Graphic Novels have been coming out I've been making sure to get every one. I like the EC horror feeling to them. Most of the time though something bad happens to ordinary mortels and Swamp Thing shows up and is the means to an end. This time things are different.

Abby Cable, after being accused of "hugging vegstibles" flees to Gotham City. There she is picked up again and put on trial. Swamp things returns from the "American Gothic" tour and looks everywhere for his beloved. When he finds out she's in jail in Gotham needless to say he's [angry] and rips Gotham a new one. Now Swamp Thing is the agressor terrorizing all those innocent mortals untill he gets his love back and not even Batman can stop him (Yeah, Batman can kick anyone ..., but swampy is now on a God level. He turns Gotham into a jungle on a whim)
Trying not to give too much away my favorite Swamp thing story in the book (Perhaps the whole series) is "My Blue Heaven". It's a beautiful, exotic, weird and engrossing tale. It's about the human condition set in a weird alien world. Jonathan Lethem would be impressed. He's the writer of "Girl in Landscape" and "Amnisia Moon". Check him out too.

Rabbit Angstrom exemplifies the human core in ways that aren't shown enough in other popular fiction. He is nice, funny, mean, angry, selfish, well.....you get the picture. John Updike clearly portrays what a man goes through in his life from his petty grievances to his untamed lust and his hatred for people he should love. It's just so damn realistic that a lot of people don't want to believe these are normal characterisitcs of the human condition....but they are. They are! Excellent writing!

Say what you may about Updike, whether you think he overwrites or he's obsessed with sex, the man's power shines through in these novels. The Rabbit tetralogy represents some of the best American Literature of the century. Harry Angstrom is an unlikeable antihero, but his life holds significance for every American. Through him we see America "progress" and perceive what Americans want, need, and don't need. Updike juggles so many balls in this tetralogy it's amazing; one can look at these novels on so many different levels. Sure, Updike sometimes hits you over the head with imagery, but many readers miss much of the subtlety in the novels. The tetralogy deals with the question as to how modern man can live life without spiritual nourishment. Rabbit is questing for Grace. These novels will be resilient because when we read and reflect about Rabbit, we're really just looking in the mirror.

For anyone who has yet to discover these extraordinary, sad. poignant, hilarious novels about the lives of middle class Americans in suburbia, I have this to say: I envy you.

These four novels, each written a different decade (50s, 60s, 70s, 80s) do more than capture the spirit of their era. They mark the changes in our neighborhoods, politics, entertainment and sports.

At the center is Harry Angstrom, a high school basketball star who never finds his niche in life. Harry is selfish, insensitive, yet also heart-breakingly sincere and a kind of protypical American romantic.

These books also are quite [nice] and have some of the best descriptions of sex I have read. And people have this picture of Updike as some boring WASP writer. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Richard Garfield is the creator of Magic The Gathering card game. This book gives the reader an in-depth look into the game and shows the beautiful illustration that each card contains. This is a must have for all players and collectors of the card game.

If you are currently collecting or playing Magic cards, I suggest buying this book if you dont have it NOW! It is filled w/ information, fully illustrated cards, interesting facts, playing tips, etc. Also, buy the Magic Encyclopedia Volume 1.

Great book of pictures of Mirage, Visions, 5th Edition, Weatherlight & Portal. Helps alot with viewing the cards for collecting.

How many people know that America's first great poet was a woman? Reading this collection of her works leaves one in little doubt about her greatness. The consummate artistry with which she expresses her inmost feelings pulls her to us, across the divide of three and a half centuries. Bradstreet's poetry shows that those Puritans, with their funny clothes, intolerant religion, and witch hunts experienced love, longing, and loss with much the same emotions that we do. Very highly recommended.

Three hundred and fifty years later, Anne Bradstreet still touches the heart and soul of her readers. On the Burning of My House still reminds us of where our priorities need to be, and on the importance of family. As a 10th great granddaughter, I realize that her works were written not only for herself and for her peers, but for the thousands of descendants in the world today. That is what makes truly great literature.

As an English major, I studied Anne Bradstreet in college and enjoyed her. I was thrilled to find out several years later she is my 9th great-grandmother! I love the spirituality and honesty of her writings. My favorite is "As Weary Pilgrim," as it captures the fatigue we sometimes feel in battling the adversities of life, and the hope of rest in a glorious afterlife. I love the cadence of the poem; it gives me a restful feeling. Reading colonial writings such as these, I'm remined of the foundation upon which our nation was built and the admirable character of some of these early Americans. It has become popular to "trash" the early Puritans. I am grateful for Anne Bradstreet's legacy of faith and courage, and the legacy of others who lived in her day.