General Books - Page 4

Community: The Structure of Belonging

Peter Block

Amazon Price: $17.79 List Price: $26.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Berrett-Koehler Publishers Amazon Marketplace: 42 new & used starting at $15.56

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Management & Leadership -> Management
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Organizational Behavior -> General
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Organizational Behavior -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 19 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Re-inventing leadership 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I like this book because it allowed me to see the power of community. I am an entrepreneur and I saw that what this book offers is also what businesses must start focusing on and that is creating the structure for people to experience belongingness. There is so much an individual can do provided that the structure of the enterprise is focused on what people can do and offer.

It made me reflect on my own way on relating with people. I became aware of myself, how am I being with others. It made me focus on what people can contribute to me and their gifts rather than noticing their mistakes. I became reflective after reading this which I like because I felt power, freedom and peace of mind knowing that what I can only control is the environment/structure where people operates and not the individual. I realized as well the power of conversation. I saw how it can truly transform an individual. I became more intentional and more aware of what I have to say to a person. I learned to relate with difficult people especially those I really don't like. I saw that they have a lot to say about me, about things I can tolerate. I learned to give space for people's garbages (including mine) and really listen to what they can contribute. Funny how this book made me become reflective. I'm giving this 5 star because it talks about context which I believe is truly decisive in creating organizations and communities, and not to mention that only few books talks about context. I got it that what makes successful organizations a success is because they have a context and from there on, they create the structures that gives space for people to convene, take ownership, take responsibility which in the end benefits the entire members of the organization and what the organization wants to accomplish.

Editorial Review:

Modern society is plagued by fragmentation. The various sectors of our communities--businesses, schools, social service organizations, churches, government--do not work together. They exist in their own worlds. As do so many individual citizens, who long for connection but end up marginalized, their gifts overlooked, their potential contributions lost. This disconnection and detachment makes it hard if not impossible to envision a common future and work towards it together. We know what healthy communities look like--there are many success stories out there, and they've been described in detail. What Block provides in this inspiring new book is an exploration of the exact way community can emerge from fragmentation: How is community built? How does the transformation occur? What fundamental shifts are involved? He explores a way of thinking about our places that creates an opening for authentic communities to exist and details what each of us can do to make that happen.

Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future

Bill McKibben

Amazon Price: $11.20 List Price: $14.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Holt Paperbacks Amazon Marketplace: 67 new & used starting at $6.94

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Economics -> Development & Growth
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Economics -> Economic Policy & Development
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Economics -> Natural Resources

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 49 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Naive and question-begging 2 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

I'll grant that we're rendering the planet unfit for human habitation, and not just rhetorically, but because I agree with McKibben. But his solution to the dilemma -- localized economies, and less consumption -- begs a few questions. His solutions might be the answer, but he's disingenous in not acknowledging their downside, and he puts far too much faith in good intentions trumping the self-interest of the rich world.

1. Can local economies work everywhere? Large-scale economies have made it possible for humans to live in many environments that could probably not otherwise support large populations. Los Angles, after all, is a desert.

2. Those of us in rich countries have long been reluctant to sacrifice for the rest of the world, and in the US, even for our own countrymen. Why does McKibben think we'll start now? After all, the economic benefits of localization will accrue to others, not to us in the rich world. And won't an emphasis on local economies make us even less interested, if that's possible, in the fate of, say, Africans and Africa?

3. McKibben has an absurd faith in neighborliness. For example, he claims that local currencies have no downside, because local governments won't issue more currency than they'd be willing to accept in payment of taxes and fees. But if national governments abuse the power to print money, why won't local governments?

4. Small farms are more productive per acre, but less per person. This of course means many of us will be returning to the farm. How is that going to be sold to Americans?

5. So I buy apples from a nearby farm because they taste better, even if they're more expensive. Why would I buy more expensive shoes from the nearby factory if they're no different from cheaper shoes from Vietnam?

6. McKibben tells us how how horrible ecologically it would be if the Chinese lived like Americans do today. But of course they won't be able to; with the recent increases in commodity prices, even Americans can't continue to live like Americans. Increased demand for natural resources will prevent these horror stories from playing out.

Editorial Review:

“Masterfully crafted, deeply thoughtful and mind-expanding.”—Los Angeles Times In this powerful and provocative manifesto, Bill McKibben offers the biggest challenge in a generation to the prevailing view of our economy. Deep Economy makes the compelling case for moving beyond “growth” as the paramount economic ideal and pursuing prosperity in a more local direction, with regions producing more of their own food, generating more of their own energy, and even creating more of their own culture and entertainment. Our purchases need not be at odds with the things we truly value, McKibben argues, and the more we nurture the essential humanity of our economy, the more we will recapture our own.

The Big Switch: Rewiring the World, from Edison to Google

Nicholas Carr

Amazon Price: $17.13 List Price: $25.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: W. W. Norton Amazon Marketplace: 60 new & used starting at $14.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Business & Culture -> Culture
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Computer Science -> Information Theory
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 33 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

An eye-opening look at the new computer revolution and the coming transformation of our economy, society, and culture.

A hundred years ago, companies stopped producing their own power with steam engines and generators and plugged into the newly built electric grid. The cheap power pumped out by electric utilities not only changed how businesses operated but also brought the modern world into existence. Today a similar revolution is under way. Companies are dismantling their private computer systems and tapping into rich services delivered over the Internet. This time it's computing that's turning into a utility. The shift is already remaking the computer industry, bringing new competitors like Google to the fore and threatening traditional stalwarts like Microsoft and Dell. But the effects will reach much further. Cheap computing will ultimately change society as profoundly as cheap electricity did. In this lucid and compelling book, Nicholas Carr weaves together history, economics, and technology to explain why computing is changing—and what it means for all of us.

Boys Adrift: The Five Factors Driving the Growing Epidemic of Unmotivated Boys and Underachieving Young Men

Leonard Sax

Amazon Price: $16.50 List Price: $25.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Basic Books Amazon Marketplace: 36 new & used starting at $11.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Adolescent Psychology
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Child Psychology -> Development
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Child Psychology -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 41 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Something scary is happening to boys today. From kindergarten to college, they are less resilient and less ambitious than they were a mere twenty years ago. As for young men, it turns out the film Failure to Launch is not far from the truth. Fully one-third of men ages 22-34 are still living at home with their parents-about a 100 percent increase in the past twenty years. Boys nationwide are increasingly dropping out of school; fewer are going to college; and for the first time in American history, women are outnumbering men at undergraduate institutions three to two. Parents, teachers, and mental health professionals are worried about boys. But until now, no one has come up with good reasons for their decline-and, more important, with workable solutions to reverse this troubling trend. Now, family physician and research psychologist Dr. Leonard Sax delves into the scientific literature and draws on his vast clinical experience to propose an entirely original view of why boys and young men are failing in school and at home. He argues that a combination of social, cultural, and biological factors is creating an environment that is literally toxic to boys, ranging from environmental estrogens to the over-prescription of ADHD drugs. And he presents practical solutions-from new ways of controlling boys’ use of video games, to innovative (and workable) education reforms.

Sea Is So Wide and My Boat Is So Small, The: Charting a Course for the Next Generation

Marian Wright Edelman

Amazon Price: $13.57 List Price: $19.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Hyperion Amazon Marketplace: 48 new & used starting at $11.60

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Self-Help -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Self-Help -> General AAS
Subjects -> Literature & Fiction -> Letters & Correspondence

Editorial Review:

In America today, the gap between the rich and the poor is the greatest ever recorded--larger than any other industrialized nation. It has become far too easy to ignore the hardships of millions of children plagued by poverty, poor health, illiteracy, violence, adult hypocrisy, and injustice. As founder and president of the Children's Defense Fund, Marian Wright Edelman knows all too well the suffering of so many of our nation's children, who live every day with adversity most of us can barely imagine. In The Sea Is So Wide and My Boat Is So Small, Edelman asks difficult questions about what we truly value, and looks hard at what we can--and must--do to build a nation fit for all children. With the passion and conviction that have made her our leading child advocate, she calls us all to stand up for the future of America. What have we done and what have we left undone? What lessons can we learn from our past and our present to realize a just and peaceful national and world vision for our children and grandchildren?

Marian Wright Edelman challenges all of us--our leaders, our teachers, the faith community, parents, grandparents, and future generations--to end the epidemic physical and spiritual poverty afflicting millions of our children. We can leave our children with a better, safer, and fairer world if we care enough. And we can--and must--do it now.

The Mastery of Love: A Practical Guide to the Art of Relationship: A Toltec Wisdom Book

Miguel Ruiz

Amazon Price: $11.20 List Price: $14.00 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Amber-Allen Publishing Amazon Marketplace: 218 new & used starting at $0.81

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Relationships -> Interpersonal Relations
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Relationships -> Love & Romance
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Relationships -> Marriage

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 126 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Practical, Insightful- & Just in Time for the Holidays!- Master this Book Now! 5 out of 5 stars.
22 of 22 people found this review helpful.

This small, simple little book is filled with an abundance of insightful life lessons that can direct you onto the path of living a spiritually rich life. "The Mastery of Love", by Don Miguel Ruiz, is a practical guide on the art of forming a relationship. From Ruiz's perspective, relationship building is indeed an art form.

Ruiz divides his spiritual journey into three different areas of emotional awareness. The first is the `Mastery of Awareness', whereby he looks at relationship from the perspective of freedom. He suggests that relationship can only thrive and develop through a sense of freedom and truth. The second is the `Mastery of Transformation' , in which the author encourages the development of spiritual awareness. Finally, the author examines the `Mastery of Love' suggesting that the road to true happiness and truthful expression of the mind, body, and soul is the expression of love. As the author delves into each of the three major tenants of his approach, it becomes clear that love and relating to one another can be a simple journey of self awareness and the willingness to embrace love.

The spiritual journey in this book reminds me of my favorite authors on the topic of pursuing happiness and self expression. Ariel and Shya Kanes' book "Working on Yourself Doesn't Work: The 3 Simple Ideas That Will Instantaneously Transform Your Life" is an incredible book dedicated to pursuing a fulfilling and meaningful life through awareness and transformation. I have taken their workshops in New York City. Their approach has truly shifted the qualitative experience in my life and how I interact within all of my relationships. You can check out their books and workshops on Transformationmadeeasy.com

I suggest you check out the books by Ruiz and the Kanes and read them back to back! Both will help enrich and enliven the way you interact with life and with other people!

Editorial Review:

In a refreshingly honest investigation of the true nature of love, don Miguel Ruiz brings to light the commonly held fallacies and misplaced expectations about love that permeate most relationships. In the tradition of Carlos Castaneda, he uses inspirational stories to impart the wisdom of three fundamental Toltec masteries (Awareness, Transformation, and Love). The themes explored include the Toltec wisdom of the heart, the track of love, and the war of control.

The History of Sexuality, Vol. 1: An Introduction

Michel Foucault

Amazon Price: $9.56 List Price: $11.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Vintage Amazon Marketplace: 121 new & used starting at $3.00

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Gay & Lesbian -> Nonfiction -> Philosophy
Subjects -> Gay & Lesbian -> General AAS
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Sexuality -> Human

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 29 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Hard...but worth it. 4 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

Foucault is one of the most important thinkers of our time. He is a historian, a cultural theorist, and a philosopher. When looking at the History of Sexuality Foucault does not see powerful figures repressing sex, but actually encouraging people to discuss it. This discourse was encouraged so that sex could be controlled and this discourse actually created what is today called sexuality--a norm that we believe to be culturally independent or universal. The belief that sex is repressed is only another strategy formed through a series of power relationships that desires for people to keep discussing sex in order that this "sex" can be classified and controled. For example: Encouraging a discourse on the act of sodomy enabled a catagory of homosexual to be created. Instead of sodomy being a act that a person may engage in, that person instantly became a homosexual, his sexuality constituting his entire being--how he/she should talk, act, and live in general. The discourse that was encourage to develop around sex enable power to classify and control sexuality--power actually created what we believe to be the "real sexuality". Foucault explains the complicated relationship between power and discourse that developed a set of complicated and sometimes contradicting--and always changing--ideas about what sex is and how we are to approach it.
This book is not easy. I will have to read it again. However, I believe that this book is a good intro to Foucault's very important theories on power relationships. An important factor to be recognized is that this book is a translation from french and, as many people have already expressed, has made it more difficult to comprehend. I did not understand everything in totality but I feel that the most imporant concepts were revealed. If you get confused take a deep breath and reread the previous paragraph, doing this helped alot and gives your brain a second chance to wrap itself around the really difficult parts. This is a very rewarding book that will give you valuable tools for confronting and interpreting the ideologies and power relationships we are confronted with. Good Luck!

Editorial Review:

The author turns his attention to sex and the reasons why we are driven constantly to analyze and discuss it. An iconoclastic explanation of modern sexual history.

Deer Hunting with Jesus: Dispatches from America's Class War

Joe Bageant

Amazon Price: $11.16 List Price: $13.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Three Rivers Press Amazon Marketplace: 45 new & used starting at $7.53

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Current Events -> General
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Current Events -> General AAS
Subjects -> Nonfiction -> Politics -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 84 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Prophetic Insight into the Demise of the Middle Class 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Not since The Onion's devastatinginly accurate prediction through satire of the future course of the newly selected Bush Administration in January of 2001 have I read a spot-on prophecy which is unfolding before my eyes. Over a year ago Bageant predicted the current meltdown of the mortgage industry and its associated financial enablers through the rediculously risky and preditory loans proffered to the denizens of redneck America for their overvalued modular homes and doublewides. Bageant delineates the rickity trade cycle that creates dollars through the American debt of those least able to repay through the large financial institutions to China and back to Walmart where the working poor are stripped of the few discretionary dollars the have remaining after food, gas and mortgage payments.

This exceptionally well written analysis of the credit cycle is only one of the many aspects of poor working class culture that the author explores in a brilliantly entertaining fashion.

Editorial Review:

A raucous, truth-telling look at the white working poor-and why they hate liberalism.

Deer Hunting with Jesus is web columnist Joe Bageant’s report on what he learned when he moved back to his hometown of Winchester, Virginia, which-like countless American small towns-is fast becoming the bedrock of a permanent underclass. By turns brutal, tender, incendiary, and seriously funny, this book is a call to arms for fellow progressives with little real understanding of "the great beery, NASCAR-loving, church-going, gun-owning America that has never set foot in a Starbucks."

The Anatomy of Peace: Resolving the Heart of Conflict

Amazon Price: $10.17 List Price: $14.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Berrett-Koehler Publishers Amazon Marketplace: 49 new & used starting at $8.98

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Self-Help -> Personal Transformation
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Self-Help -> General
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Self-Help -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 72 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Bad Sample 1 out of 5 stars.
1 of 8 people found this review helpful.

Books with lots of blurbs
but no sample of the writing
make me suspicious
I want to see a chapter or two
and the Table of Contents

Editorial Review:

Like Arbingers international bestseller Leadership and Self-Deception, The Anatomy of Peace helps us see how we actually cause the problems we think are caused by other people. Were trapped by preconceived ideas and self-justifying reactions that keep us from seeing the world clearly and dealing with it effectively. As a result, our efforts to make things better all too often make them worse. Through an intriguing story of parents who are struggling with their children and with problems that have come to consume their lives, we learn from once-bitter enemies the way to find peace whenever war is upon us. Yusuf al-Falah, an Arab, and Avi Rozen, a Jew, each lost his father at the hands of the others ethnic cousins. The Anatomy of Peace is the story of how they came together, how they help warring parents and children to come together, and how we too can find our way out of the struggles that weigh us down.

The Layguide: How to Seduce Women More Beautiful Than You Ever Dreamed Possible No Matter What You Look Like or How Much You Make

Tony Clink

Amazon Price: $10.36 List Price: $12.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Citadel Amazon Marketplace: 40 new & used starting at $6.95

Buy at Amazon.com

Browse similar items by category:
Subjects -> Entertainment -> Humor -> General AAS
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Applied Psychology
Subjects -> Health, Mind & Body -> Psychology & Counseling -> Sexuality -> Psychology of Sexuality

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 54 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Another Useful Self-Help Book 4 out of 5 stars.
7 of 9 people found this review helpful.

Since I've started reading the books from the Pick Up Community, I've seen a pattern in the basic ways to approach women: it's basically putting out all the good qualities associated with being a man.

Be confident. Attentive, charming, humorous. Dress better, work on conversational skills. Maintain respect but also hold the course for seduction.

All of this sounds simple enough but...I think I belong to a generation of broken homes where the battling, bewildered single parents didn't pass on ANYTHING useful to their children. Let popular music and TV guide you into the Tunnel of Love.

And what a disaster that's been. (It also didn't help that social engineering tried to instill that boys and girls are essentially the same. How damaging has that been?).

So these books, while initially provoking women to be offended that men will be taking advantage of them, end up being the education us guys never got.

THE LAYGUIDE has a title that would suggest this book is about only seducing and taking advantage of women. I didn't really get that. (If you're looking for a book that not only writes in terms of women as only sexual objects but where to go and how much to spend on endless sex objects, that would be THE PROFESSIONAL BACHELOR. Especially the second half).

THE LAYGUIDE is a smooth, well-written How To book on approaching women and moving into a relationship, whether for one night or the rest of your life.