I am a total JTT fan, and when I read this book, it really informed me evern more! I loved how it was so complete with stats, quotes, color pics, and everything from a-z! I couldn't put it down until I was done

Congratulations to Michael-Anne Johns! He has written a fantastic fun and fact-filled book on the life of Jonathan Taylor Thomas on and off-screen. Unlike some biographies, Johns uses more words than pictures, so you learn a lot more about what they're like, rather than what they look like. He has done a lot of research and included a nice review at the back of Thomas's favorites and quick facts. Every Jonathan Taylor Thomas lover should read this great book. Hopefully Johns will come up with a new JTT book to talk about Wild America and his new roles. Congrats again Johns

It gave me lots of information on JTT.
I learned so much about him!
If only I was able to meet him!
:-)
Everyone should read it!

This book is the best. Covers A to Z for water resources engineers and even lets you get familiar with some powerful software too.

The book is fantastic. It develops the concept and demonstrates a much broader application. Very well written and compiled. It is probably one of the best books I have read in the field of computer applications in hydraulic engineering. The bundled software is fantastic.

This book covers everything from A to Z for water resource engineers and lets you also take some state-of-the-art software for a nice test drive too.

Twenty years ago the corporation was about command and control, clear lines of reporting and firmly defined functions. All the elements were discrete. Nonetheless it was a "complicated" affair. Authors Michael Lissack and Johan Roos contrast that relatively simple state with the contemporary world where companies are faced with endless multifaceted relationships, strategic alliances, cross functional initiatives and customer networks. These interrelationships and interdependencies mean that the new business landscape is not merely complicated, it is "complex", an intricate interweaving of people, organisations, systems and technologies. This complexity needs a new paradigm to understand and deal with it. And that tool, as the title implies, is "a new commons sense". "The old common sense was an understanding of cause and effect in the complicated world of discrete events. The next common sense is a description of cause and effect in a world of interweavings," they write.

This book aims to provide middle and senior mangers with a tool with which to cut through the Gordian knot of modern business complexity. And in theory at least Lissack and Roos succeed. Coherence, they say, is the key. They describe it as a "unified perspective" or the glue that holds the company together. The authors offer a five-point plan for achieving coherence and list 10 simple principles for management interested in applying the new common sense. And they are indeed very common sensical. The first is "Use simple guiding principles", another "Tell stories", a third "Send out scouting parties".

Lissack is an expert in complexity management who teaches business ethics at the Amsterdam School of Management while Roos is Professor of Strategy and General Management at the International Institute for Management Development in Switzerland. They are a pair of very heavy hitters indeed and this well-written and carefully constructed book reflects their depth of knowledge and intellectual rigour. It's a challenging and rewarding read for any one seriously interested in dealing effectively in a rapidly changing world.

"The old common sense was about dealing with the discrete elements of a 'complicated' world. The next common sense is about mastering the 'complex' swirl of events and situations around us through coherence. The old world was a complicated agglomeration of many discrete items. The new world is a complex one of interdependencies and interrelationships...Our purpose in writing this book is to help you to be like Alexander the Great. When confronted with the legendary knot of tangle rope tied by King Gordius, Alexander knew what to do. Faced with the traditional challenge, he accepted without hesitation: the complexity of the knot did not phase him. He drew his sword and cut the Gordian knot with a single, dramatic stroke, thereby ensuring that he would rule all of Asia. Many before Alexander had tried and failed, thinking that the knot was complicated and needed to be untied. Only Alexander saw that a simple action would move through the complexity to a higher plane. Untying your own Gordian knots requires nothing more than common sense - the next common sense...In this book we present 10 scenic vistas on the corporate landscape. All have elements that derive from complexity science but, more importantly, all relate to management. From each vista, you the reader are encouraged to extract simple guiding principles that make sense to you. Creating your own coherent point of view will be the takeaway from reading this book. We hope you enjoy the view!" (pp.1-16).

In this context, throuhout the book Michael Lissack and Johan Roos discuss these 10 scenic vistas as follows:

1- Use simple guiding principles. They write, "where the old common sense was about dealing with local situations and trying to 'sort things out,' the next common sense is about adopting a global viewpoint, allowing interactions to happen, which in turn will drive coherent actions", and list traditional six bad rules that lead to failure:

(1). Treat business as if it were a war fought on a battlefield.

(2). View the corporation as a machine.

(3). Practice management as control.

(4). Treat your employee as children.

(5). To motivate, use fear.

(6). Remember, change is nothing but pain.(more detailed discussion see Chapter 2).

2- Respect mental models, yours and others'. They write, "the next common sense is about creating an organizational context for coherent actions. To create such a context yuo must help the necessary others, i.e. everyone you interact with, in the process of finding meaning and of creating a coherent point of view. Another label for this process is making sense" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 3).

3- Use landscape metaphors to describe both the environment and processes taking place within it. They write, "landscape images align with today's world - just look at the ascendancy of the landscape motif in numerous book titles, articles, conferences, and media events. Landscapes are part of the next common sense because they provide context we all can relate to. They work much more easily than jargon, and are better descriptors than the game and race metaphors of the old common sense" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 4).

4- Combine and recombine and avoid trying to impress yourself or others with holism. They write, "the beauty of pieces, of building blocks, is that they can be combined and recombined to create new things, new ideas, and new ways of relating and interacting. In a world where wholes are not simply the sum of their parts, it is critical to train ourselves to think about deconstructing and recombining. The philosophers may call this postmodernism-we call it the next common sense" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 5).

5- Recognize your multiple roles, don't hide from them. They write, "we question whether it was ever common sense to insist that the company always comes first, but clearly that has been a norm in big corporations for years. In the next common sense it is critical to allow people to be themselves. Only by acknowledging the many sides of each person can a company hope to obtain maximum benefits from that person over the long run. Most firms recognize this for their CEO - it is time they reconized it for the troops in the trenches" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 6).

6- Create canyons, not canals. They write, "canyons are not about the command-and-control culture of the old common sense - they are about the guiding values of the next common sense. Canyons are an analogy for the guiding viewpoints that managers of interactions need to be effective. Canals are the comparable analogy for the manager of entities who issued commands in an effort to manage outcomes" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 7).

7- Tell stories to allow others the benefit of shared experiences. They write, "stories are about context. The old common sense may have encouraged the use of bullets as a means of avoiding context. The next common sense is about telling stories that are open enough to allow listeners to draw relevant conclusions and authentic enough to convey their context in metaphors" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 8).

8- Send out scouting parties to probe the environment. They write, "the old common sense, which may have justified a closed mind, not-invented-here syndrome, just just does not work in a world of interactions. The next common sense asks what we can learn from the environment. Preparation is the key to attaining advantage" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 9).

9- Post and attend to road signs. They write, "using the next common sense is a matter of recognizing individual contributions and allowing others to leverage them, while combating the tendency of individuals to stake out territory and post 'no trespassing' signs. In a world of interactions, knowledge of opportunities is key to realizing them, and awareness of fences is an awareness of opportunities missed" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 10).

10- Fuel coherence with aligned words. They write, "it was never true that words had only one meaning, but many managers operating from the old common sense sure acted as if they did - the boss's meaning. Reflection on the next common sense reveals an essential truth: the words we use can help to enact the context for our actions. Words that are aligned with values and purpose can assist intended acts; words that are not aligned can act instead to obstruct. Word choice matters" (more detailed discussion see Chapter 11).

On the other hand, Chapter 12 is about creating coherence.As they write, "Chapters 2-11 have given you building blocks for both making sense of things and developing a coherent point of view. Now these building blocks need to be used to construct an action plan. This chapter is about using what you have learned. Five steps are key to realizing the next common sense in any organization".And they describe these steps as follows:

(1). Identify yourself and your goals.

(2). Use the right language.

(3). Create the right context.

(4). Turn people loose and then get out of the way.

(5). Use communication that works.

As argued by them, these five steps are not guarantee of success, but a tool for attaining the skill of a master.

Strongly recommended.

Because of my deep personal interest in using visual thinking tools for opportunity discovery and strategic exploration, I find this book very useful and practical. I particularly like the authors' use of powerful visual metaphors to understand & to master the complexity all around us, and to chart out new strategic directions, whether in business or in life. If you are planning what you want to do with the rest of your life in our constantly changing & uncertain world - or planning the next strategic moves for your company- read this book and use the ideas. The authors' website is also worth exploring.

I am learning Spanish - it's my first second language. My girfriend is quite proficient, and studying with her was getting nowhere. I've never used any other tapes or books, so I can't compare. All I can say is, reading what others have said I'm glad I found this first. I find that Michel's method is very logical (I'm a programmer) and easy to follow. He does have an accent, and I agree that one would be well advised to spend some time with a native speaker to get the accent, otherwise you will end up sounding very odd copying his accent.

I don't find the male student as annoying as others seem to. He's not American anyway, if you listen to him a bit. Basically I find that a language is like dancing - if you don't put aside your shyness and get on the floor, you don't get anywhere. In the same way, if you don't put aside your unwillingness to practice the sounds, and stop worrying about how odd they feel in your mouth, you don't progress as fast - like dancing, it's all muscle memory. I think the male student is a bit afraid of the awkward new sounds and so on. My recommendation is to pause as suggested, work out the answer, practice it till it flows out of your mouth, then unpause and speak along with the students again. If you look at it this way, the male student turns out to be very helpful.

Again, I can't compare this with other books/tapes, but for me it's been very, very easy and logical - and fun too. I'm very happy.

...Go ahead and buy the eight CD set. Look at the "Spanish with Michel Thomas" listing for my full review. This is a revolutionary language course that lifts all pressure from your shoulders. You will see real results very quickly. The CD format quickly and easily allows you to repeat and review the individual five to six minute segments. The Thomas method focuses on stringing words together to quickly build meaningful conversational phrases. Excellent.

After seeing an interview with this man some time ago when he took a group of high school kids who were supposed to be useless at languages and made them somewhat fluent in under a coulpe of days I was impressed. After listening to the first two cd's in this set I am equally impressed. This method has made a difference in just one listening I can't wait to go back to college for my beginners class where I have been struggling. I now understand more, speak with more confidence and would recommend this set to anyone thinking of learning a language. It is so far ahead of other tape sets that I have listened to and given up on.

Even if you haven't heard Michael W. Smith's album of the same name, you should read this book! I highly recommend this book for everyone, but especially for teens who face the difficult task of trying to grow up in today's mixed-up world.

The title of the book, "This is Your Time", is also the title of a song he wrote after the Columbine tragedy. Michael tells about his experience singing at the memorial service and talking to Cassie Bernall's parents (check out my review of Misty Bernall's book "She Said Yes"). But this book isn't just about Columbine. Michael talks about the death of Rich Mullins (which deeply affected me as well) and Rich's impact on people. Michael also was a good friend of the late Bob Briner (author of Roaring Lambs) and he encourages Christians to get out there and make a difference.

He quotes Hebrews 12:1...

"Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."

Amen!

(You might want to check out my other reviews of Christian books and music)

This was a great book. At some points, very moving. My mom was reading the begining to me and had to stop because she was crying. The main idea of this book is: How Michael W. Smith came up for the idea of the song, THIS IS YOUR TIME. He got it from Rachel Scott after the Columbine shootings. This book also tells of some of MWS's own struggles and triumphs. It is a great book. A somber one at times, but true to the core. Please read this book and pass on its message: THIS IS YOUR TIME! MAKE IT COUNT!

What a great book to read! This is really a good time to evaulate our lives in a modern world with a message to all that the test is yet to come.

May it be the next munute, hour , day or month we should try to do our best work. Smitty does gives some personal highlights of what he is doing to make his moment count, as we should make our time count.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and kept reading until I finished the book (it was a good time reading and getting to know him).

The book is published by National Geographic, so it goes without saying that the quality of the photographs is superb. But to look at this collection of space-born images is to never see the earth in the same way again. All the contintents and oceans are covered and even the Aurora is documented. The astronauts who took these photographs are some of the luckiest men and women on (or off) the earth, and this book will show you why.

Despite all that man has done to harm the environment, many of the photographs give you an eerie sense of what it might've been like to look down on the earth thousands of years ago, seeing only a beautiful collection of shapes, colors and clouds. Some pictures of the African desert and its coastline will leave you breathless.

A wonderful collection that beats satellite imagery any day of the week.

Astronaut Jay Apt, with the help of geographer Justin Wilkinson and climatologist Michael Helfert, has assembled a book full of pictures of Earth taken from orbit. These photographs were chosen from over a 145,000 that are available from the NASA photographic library and focus on many different aspects of our planet's geology and climate. The large coffee table style format and the high quality of the reproductions allows this book bring out the stunning features of our home and is welcome addition to anyone who is interested in space photography, especially since most of the book is photographs and very little text.

The book is divided into sections covering each continent, the Pacific Ocean and the aurora. To show the range of Earth's geology and climate, each section highlights the major geological features found in each region and if appropriate mankind's influence. To further emphasis to geological diversity of the planet, occasional surface photographs that correspond to an orbital photograph are also included. For example, in the section on Africa, there are photos of the Nile, Nile cities, the Sahara desert, various coastline features and cloud formations. The only portions of the Earth not covered are the North and South Poles, since the shuttle does not fly over these regions. There is also one extremely interesting two page map spread which shows the location of each one of the 268,000 photographs taken by the astronauts.

This book is one of my favorite space photography books and I look at it often and each time that I do I always notice something different. This is a great book and well worth the price.

Truely a magnificent piece of work to wiew the wonder of God's creation leaves you in awe of the beauty of the Earth. I pick it up regularly, for maximum enjoyment choose times where you are not rushed so you can drink in the superb pictures. A book no household can afford to be without.

I must admit - I do not love annuals- Having said that much to preface my comments- For me this is the only book I need on this subject! It covers planning, planting and maintenence.

The planning section seems especially helpful and will be a tremendous help in achieving a finished product that fits a desired look. The color planning seems very well addressed with particular attention the area to be planted in formulation the design elements (suggested on graph paper).

The writer seems to love annuals and it shows! The photography is beautiful. This would make a nice housewarming gift!

Where perennials and shrubs provide static and permanent elements in your garden, annuals are a fluid element that you can change from year to year. This book gives you all the backround you need to get started with an attractive Annual garden.

It is divided into three parts: garden design; making them grow; and an illustrated guide to many common annuals. The design section details the process of selecting plants, not only for color, but compatability with their location and neighboring plants. The second section will help cure your "brown thumb" if you have difficulty keeping things alive. You will learn how to properly feed and water your plants. The last section has color photos and great detail about each plant presented; Latin name, sowing, growing and care are here.

This book is not only useful for researching and designing your garden, it is beautifully illustrated with rich color photographs throughout. There are also some color diagrams where appropriate.

Write your name in this book and chain it to your coffee table. After seeing your results the first season, the neighbors may be tempted to carry it off for their own use!

You may not look at annuals the same way again after reading this excellent book. It is full of ideas on how to use them in your garden and should offer any gardener bored with those boring old marigolds some inspiration! You can tell that the authors are passionate about their subject but the photographs alone could make this a book worth purchasing. Simply magnificient photography! A beautiful book and one of the best I have ever seen on annuals.

I read this book in one sitting, something I've haven't done since. It always amazed me that a movie hasn't been made out out this great story line: Hit-man on the run, young female FBI agent and Mafia hit-men on his trail. What fascinated me was the detailed picture that Perry paints on the need of a person in a business such as the 'Butcher's Boy' to blend into the background and, by all means, not get noticed. He's carried this on somewhat in his later books, which are all very good, but this is, I believe, his masterpiece.

This is one of the greatest books I've ever read in the last twenty years! Find it anyway you could and after finished it, try to find the sequal SLEEPING DOGS, kill both with one shot, please! This book almost became a bible to modern day thriller writers and it's plots and scenario had been sneakly if not consciously copied by many recent writers such J. Finder(the Zero Hour) and B. Branon(Devils hole). Thomas Perry is one of the great treasures in American literature(although I don't like this serious word). Mr. Perry is a most talented but sometimes with weird writing directions. If you enjoyed his BUTCHER'S BOY/SLEEPING DOGS, then please try to read his new DISAPPEARING ACT series, you will be so happy to find a great writer who obviously never lost his MUSE to find a different Hero or Heroine to entertain himself and us. A MUST READ ALL WRITER!

Thomas Perry's first novel is a Killer-Thriller! I had read "Sleeping Dogs"(the sequal) before I read "The Butchers Boy". Both books are great. I am glad they re-printed "The Butchers Boy" because it explains a lot I missed when reading
"Sleeping Dogs". However, each book can stand alone without the other. The "Butchers Boy" is about a hitman that is double crossed by the mob after he completed some contract(killing) work for them. It also tells the story of the Department of Justice Field Agent that is trying to tie all the killings together. It is a race to the end to find the missing link that will tie the knot to this killer-thriller. Also don't miss the few chapters that introduces us to the much loved "jane whitefield series" the lady that can make you disappear. I hope Perry brings that series back-it was one of his best. "Butchers Boy is a good read!

A wonderful story that really brings home the meaning of why we are here, and the search to find happiness. This book really helped me reassess the relationships and experiences in my life and to be grateful for the opportunities they have presented.

Easy to read, but full of messages.

I have read all of the books written by Kryon and Lee Carroll and have found that this one book summarizes everything I have ever read on the topics of spiritual growth and enlightenment. It is a book I give freely to people who cross my path because I think it offers the purest message on God and the meaning of life on this planet. Kryon goes, step-by-step, through the process we all need to take to find our true sense of Joy on this planet. It is though-provoking, funny, and incredibly uplifting. It shows that everything we do, that everything we experience has value in the eyes of God and the Universe. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is seeking to find their own sense of the Truth.

I found this audio book tape excellent. I have read many new age books and this one is easy and understandable. I said to a friend, this book explains everything you want to say and don't know how to. It is the total sum to my belief in the way and why we are here. It is CLARITY. A must read !