Financial Peace Planner or Richistan

Financial Peace Planner: A Step-by-Step Guide to Restoring Your Family's Financial Health

Author: Dave Ramsey

Dave Ramsey knows what it's like to have - and lose - it all. After falling so far into debt that he was forced to declare personal bankruptcy, Ramsey rebuilt his financial life. Now he offers his hard-won advice, and much-needed hope, to many Americans who find themselves in serious debt and desperate for a way out.

There are no gimmicks or quick fixes to Ramsey's method of financial salvation. Instead he encourages you to take "baby steps," set realistic goals, and seek the support of family and friends. Ramsey's advice is easy to follow, and, because he's been there, he doesn't talk down to you. His workbook format allows you to frequently monitor your progress and, most important, to face your situation honestly.

Inside you'll find help on how to

• Asses the urgency of your situation
• Understand where your money's going
• Create a realistic budget
• Dump your debt
• Clean up your credit rating

Like any regimen, achieving financial peace requires patience and hard work. But the benefits - even if they're only the ability to sleep at night, answer the telephone, and balance the checkbook without stress - are well worth the effort. And once you're back on your feet, you'll find information on how to grow your wealth, provide for a comfortable retirement, and leave a legacy of financial peace.

Filled with inspirational insights that come from personal experience, The Financial Peace Planner may be the most valuable purchase you ever make.

Interesting book: Save Your Knees or The Perricone Promise

Richistan: A Journey Through the American Wealth Boom and the Lives of the New Rich

Author: Robert Frank

The rich have always been different from you and me, but this revealing and funny journey through “Richistan” entertainingly shows that they are more different than ever. Richistanis have 400-foot-yachts, 30,000-square-foot homes, house staffs of more than 100, and their own “arborists.” They’re also different from Old Money, and have torn down blue-blood institutions to build their own shining empire.
Richistan is like the best travel writing, full of colorful and interesting stories providing insights into exotic locales. Robert Frank has been loitering on the docks of yacht marinas, pestering his way into charity balls, and schmoozing with real estate agents selling mega-houses to capture the story of the twenty-first century’s nouveau riche:

House-training the rich. People with new wealth have to be taught how to act like, well, proper rich people. Just in the nick of time, there’s been a boom in the number of newly trained butlers—“household managers”—who will serve just the right cabernet when a Richistani’s new buddies from Palm Beach stop by.

“My boat is bigger than your boat.” Only in Richistan would a 100-foot-boat be considered a dinghy. Personal pleasure craft have started to rival navy destroyers in size and speed. Richistan is also a place where friends make fun of those misers who buy the new girlfriend a mere Mercedes SLK.

“You want my money? Prove that you’re helping the needy!” Richistanis are not only consuming like crazy, they’re also shaking up the establishment’s bureaucratic, slow-moving charity network, makinglean, results-oriented philanthropy an important new driving force.

Move over, Christian Coalition. Richistanis are more Democratic than Republican, “fed up and not going to take it anymore,” and willing to spend millions to get progressive-oriented politicians elected.

“My name is Mike and I’m rich.” Think that money is the answer? Think again as Robert Frank explores the emotional complexities of wealth.

And, as Robert Frank reveals, there is not one Richistan but three: Lower, Middle, and Upper, each of which has its own levels and distinctions of wealth —the haves and the have-mores. The influence of Richistan and the Richistanis extends well beyond the almost ten million households that make up its population, as the nonstop quest for status and an insatiable demand for luxury goods reshapes the entire American economy.

DaleFarris - Library Journal

Frank, Wall Street Journalsenior special writer, created a stir in popular culture when he began his weekly WSJcolumn and daily blog called The Wealth Report, which discussed the way of life of "Richistanis," residents of the unique world of "Richistan," who have realized tremendous wealth. In 2003, the author learned that the number of American millionaire households had more than doubled since 1995 to over eight million and that these newly affluent were beginning to cluster and create their own universe. In 2003, WSJassigned Frank to focus full time on the life and times of the nouveau riche, which led to his popular Wealth Reporter column and, ultimately, to this fully fleshed work, which provides a fascinating analysis of the life and the culture of the ultra-rich. He digs deep, analyzing their high-end investing patterns and business savvy, charitable giving, and purchase of luxury goods and services. Frank describes their own personalized health-care system, specialized transport system, unlimited, customized travel network, household managers, and much more. He also provides an understanding of the paradoxical nature of many of the newly rich that explains why so many are as common as ordinary middle-class Americans, even though they have more money than they could ever spend and are nothing like the select few among this subculture who attract a media frenzy, like Warren Buffett, Donald Trump, and Bill Gates. The lively narration by Dick Hill helps maintain interest throughout this material, which provides an important contribution to the fields of economics and demography. Highly recommended for university and larger public libraries.

Leadership on the Line or One Up On Wall Street

Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading

Author: Ronald A Heifetz

Every day, in every facet of our lives, opportunities to lead call out to us. At work and at home, in our local communities and in the global village, the chance to make a difference beckons. Yet often, we hesitate. For all its passion and promise, for all its excitement and rewards, leading is risky, dangerous work. Why? Because real leadership -- the kind that surfaces conflict, challenges long-held beliefs, and demands new ways of doing things -- causes pain. And when people feel threatened, they take aim at the person pushing for change. As a result, leaders often get hurt both personally and professionally. In Leadership on the Line, renowned leadership authorities Ronald A. Heifetz and Marty Linsky marshal a half century of combined teaching and consulting experience to show that it is possible to put ourselves on the line, respond effectively to the risks, and live to celebrate our efforts. With compelling examples including the presidents of countries and the presidents of organizations, everyday managers and prominent activists, politicians and parents, the authors illustrate proven strategies for surviving and thriving amidst the dangers of leading.

The authors also address often-neglected aspects of leadership, such as how to manage your personal vulnerabilities, and how to anchor yourself and sustain your spirit through tough times. Both uplifting and practical, this essential book enables each of us to lead courageously and confidently -- without losing ourselves.

Publishers Weekly

Recognizing that it can be both lonely and difficult at the top, the authors faculty members of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government set out to lend emotional and practical support. Whether leaders represent a local planning board or a Fortune 500 company, they "live dangerously," say the authors, "because when leadership counts, when you lead people through difficult change, you challenge what people hold dear their daily habits, tools, loyalties, and ways of thinking with nothing more to offer perhaps than a possibility." To that end, Heifetz and Linsky offer useful strategies leaders can employ, such as building political constituencies, trying to orchestrate the inevitable conflict, and forcing those who cause problems to actually solve the problems. Indeed, the book does dwell on the negative aspects of leadership, serving more as a troubleshooting guide than a how-to leadership handbook. Some of the examples are informal (e.g., the 1994 Chicago Bulls), while others are more traditional (e.g., city planning and politics). Showing a sympathetic side, Heifetz and Linsky offer tactics to help leaders not to take conflict personally. Remember, they counsel, you are more than your job. This book will undoubtedly provide leaders and managers comfort on days when everything seems to be going wrong in their department or organization. (May 23) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Booknews

Heifetz and Linsky (both John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard U.) discuss how to survive and thrive on the dangers of leadership. They address leadership at all levels, from parents to everyday workers, managers and community activists, presidents of organizations and of countries. They examine why and how leadership is dangerous, how that danger drives some people "out of the game," possible strategies to reduce the risk of getting pushed aside, ways that people contribute to their own demise, ways to manage personal vulnerabilities, and how to keep one's spirit alive in the face of adversity. This text takes a more personal and practical approach to expand on ideas raised in Heifetz's earlier book, . Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Soundview Executive Book Summaries

Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading
Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linsky are two faculty members from Harvard and high-level consultants who understand the risks that are inherent in the role of the leader. They write that leadership is worth the risk because the goals of leadership extend beyond material gain or personal advancement. Real leadership speaks to higher values, surfaces unresolved conflicts, and can make a difference in people's lives. But, leadership can be risky when it brings up unpopular initiatives, puts provocative new ideas on the table, questions the gaps between people's values and behaviors, or asks people to face up to tough realities.

To help leaders survive and thrive, Heifetz and Linsky provide encouragement to those who put their ideas on the line and challenge people to change. Using the lessons learned from their students and clients around the world as inspiration, they offer guides to help leaders name, organize and make sense out of their experience.

Challenges and Pitfalls
The first part of Leadership on the Line explores the challenges and pitfalls of leadership and describes many stories where a leader has been "taken out of the game." Leadership is dangerous, and stories about assassinated leaders make the point.

Some problems are mere technical problems that can be solved with available know-how and procedures, but other problems that cannot be solved with authoritative expertise or standard procedures are adaptive challenges. These require experiments, new discoveries and numerous adjustments.

The authors write, "Without learning new ways - changing attitudes, values and behaviors - peoplecannot make the adaptive leap necessary to thrive in the new environment." Sustaining change requires those with the problem to internalize the change. But, this is difficult because it is hard for people to see that the new situation will be any better than the current condition. The authors write that the single most common source of leadership failure is when leaders treat adaptive challenges like technical problems.

To mobilize adaptive work, leaders must engage people in adjusting their unrealistic expectations, rather than try to satisfy them with a technical remedy. The authors write that leaders must counteract people's "exaggerated dependency and promote their resourcefulness." This requires an extraordinary level of presence, time, artful communication and trust.

Reducing The Risks of Leadership
To offer hope to those who want to avoid being pushed aside, Part Two discusses these five action ideas that help reduce the risks of leadership:

1. Get on the Balcony. First you must see what is happening, then you must take action with a plan. Repeat these two things with discipline and flexibility. Maintain a diagnostic mindset on a changing reality. Address real stakes, fears and conflicts.
2. Think Politically. Place an emphasis on personal relationships. Nurture networks of people, find partners, keep the opposition close, accept responsibility, acknowledge people's loss, model behavior, and accept casualties.
3. Orchestrate the Conflict. Work with differences, passions and conflicts in a way that diminishes their destructive potential. Create a safe environment where conflict can safely take place, control the level of conflict, pace the work, and offer a vision of the future.
4. Give the Work Back. Place the work of finding solutions within and between the factions who are faced with the challenge, and tailor your interventions so they are clear and have a context. Hold steady in the aftermath so you can evaluate your next move.
5. Hold Steady. Wavering or acting prematurely can destroy an initiative. Maintain your poise so you can plan the next step.

The book ends with a discussion of the critical aspects of exercising leadership, and ways to manage personal vulnerabilities without losing hope. These include remembering to pay attention to your own needs, and not forgetting that leadership is a personal activity that is an intellectual, emotional, spiritual and physical challenge. Detach your professional life from your role as a leader.

Why Soundview Likes This Book
Leadership on the Line offers a well-rounded approach to leadership that embraces the humanity of the leader while providing numerous pertinent examples and lessons about successful leadership strategies. The authors' words of practical advice and inspiration are packed with wisdom and experiences that can give any leader a better perspective on their crucial role in business, family, government and community. Copyright (c) 2002 Soundview Executive Book Summaries

Table of Contents:

	Acknowledgments
	Introduction	1
Pt. 1	The Challenge
1	The Heart of Danger	9
2	The Faces of Danger	31
Pt. 2	The Response
3	Get on the Balcony	51
4	Think Politically	75
5	Orchestrate the Conflict	101
6	Give the Work Back	123
7	Hold Steady	141
Pt. 3	Body and Soul
8	Manage Your Hungers	163
9	Anchor Yourself	187
10	What's on the Line?	207
11	Sacred Heart	225
	Notes	237
	Index	243
	About the Authors	251

Look this: Broken Promises Broken Dreams or George Washingtons Expense Account

One Up On Wall Street: How To Use What You Already Know To Make Money In The Market

Author: Peter Lynch

THE NATIONAL BESTSELLING BOOK THAT EVERY INVESTOR SHOULD OWN

Peter Lynch is America's number-one money manager. His mantra: Average investors can become experts in their own field and can pick winning stocks as effectively as Wall Street professionals by doing just a little research.

Now, in a new introduction written specifically for this edition of One Up on Wall Street, Lynch gives his take on the incredible rise of Internet stocks, as well as a list of twenty winning companies of high-tech '90s. That many of these winners are low-tech supports his thesis that amateur investors can continue to reap exceptional rewards from mundane, easy-to-understand companies they encounter in their daily lives.

Investment opportunities abound for the layperson, Lynch says. By simply observing business developments and taking notice of your immediate world -- from the mall to the workplace -- you can discover potentially successful companies before professional analysts do. This jump on the experts is what produces "tenbaggers," the stocks that appreciate tenfold or more and turn an average stock portfolio into a star performer.

The former star manager of Fidelity's multibillion-dollar Magellan Fund, Lynch reveals how he achieved his spectacular record. Writing with John Rothchild, Lynch offers easy-to-follow directions for sorting out the long shots from the no shots by reviewing a company's financial statements and by identifying which numbers really count. He explains how to stalk tenbaggers and lays out the guidelines for investing in cyclical, turnaround, and fast-growing companies.

Lynch promises that if you ignore the ups and downs of the market and theendless speculation about interest rates, in the long term (anywhere from five to fifteen years) your portfolio will reward you. This advice has proved to be timeless and has made One Up on Wall Street a number-one bestseller. And now this classic is as valuable in the new millennium as ever.

The Three Signs of a Miserable Job or Bringing Home the Birkin

The Three Signs of a Miserable Job: A Fable for Managers (And Their Employees)

Author: Patrick M Lencioni

A bestselling author and business guru tells how to improve your job satisfaction and performance.

In his sixth fable, bestselling author Patrick Lencioni takes on a topic that almost everyone can relate to: the causes of a miserable job. Millions of workers, even those who have carefully chosen careers based on true passions and interests, dread going to work, suffering each day as they trudge to jobs that make them cynical, weary, and frustrated. It is a simple fact of business life that any job, from investment banker to dishwasher, can become miserable. Through the story of a CEO turned pizzeria manager, Lencioni reveals the three elements that make work miserable -- irrelevance, immeasurability, and anonymity -- and gives managers and their employees the keys to make any job more fulfilling.

As with all of Lencionis books, this one is filled with actionable advice you can put into effect immediately. In addition to the fable, the book includes a detailed model examining the three signs of job misery and how they can be remedied. It covers the benefits of managing for job fulfillment within organizations -- increased productivity, greater retention, and competitive advantage -- and offers examples of how managers can use the applications in the book to deal with specific jobs and situations.

Patrick Lencioni (San Francisco, CA) is President of The Table Group, a management consulting firm specializing in executive team development and organizational health. As a consultant and keynote speaker, he has worked with thousands of senior executives and executive teams in organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to high-tech startups touniversities and nonprofits. His clients include AT&T, Bechtel, Boeing, Cisco, Sams Club, Microsoft, Mitsubishi, Allstate, Visa, FedEx, New York Life, Sprint, Novell, Sybase, The Make-A-Wish Foundation, and the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Lencioni is the author of six bestselling books, including The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. He previously worked for Oracle, Sybase, and the management consulting firm Bain & Company.

Table of Contents:

Introduction.

The Fable.

Part One: The Manager.

Part Two: Retirement.

Part Three: The Experiment.

Part Four: Going Live.

The Model.

The Miserable Job.

The Cost of Misery.

The Three Signs.

The Benefits and Obstacles of Managing for Job Fulfillment.

Exploring and Addressing the Causes of Job Misery.

Case Studies.

Taking Action.

The Ministry of Management.

Acknowledgments.

About the Author.

Interesting book: The Wine Wars or Chocolate Companion

Bringing Home the Birkin: My Life in Hot Pursuit of the World's Most Coveted Handbag

Author: Michael Tonello

An insider's hilarious, whirlwind account of his years spent globe-trotting in search of the holy grail of handbags: the Birkin

For more than twenty years, the Hermès Birkin bag has been the iconic symbol of fashion, luxury, and wealth. Though the bag is often seen dangling from the arms of celebrities, there is a fabled waiting list of more than two years to buy one from Hermès, and the average fashionista has a better chance of climbing Mount Everest in Prada pumps than of possessing one of these coveted carryalls. Unless, of course, she happens to know Michael Tonello . . .

Michael's newfound career started with an impulsive move to Barcelona, a vanished job assignment, no work visa, and an Hermès scarf sold on eBay to generate some quick cash. But soon the resourceful Michael discovered the truth about the waiting list and figured out the secret to getting Hermès to part with one of these precious bags. Millions of dollars worth of Birkins later, Michael had become one of eBay's most successful entrepreneurs—and a Robin Hood to thousands of desperate rich women.

With down-to-earth wit, Michael chronicles the unusual ventures that took him to nearly every continent, from eBay to Paris auction house and into the lives of celebrities and poseurs. Flirting with danger, Michael recounts the heady rush of hand delivering his first big score to famed songwriter Carole Bayer Sager in Paris; how he had to hire thugs to rescue a bag that one of his "shoppers" held for ransom; and the story of the Oscar-worthy performances that allowed him to snag "reserved" bags from other, less dogged Birkinseekers.

Whether he's relating his wining and dining, buying and selling, dodging and weaving, laughing and crying, or schmoozing and stammering, Michael is a master raconteur who weaves together tales of hunting Birkins in the world's most posh locales, memories of meals that would make any gastronome salivate, anecdotes of obsessed collectors with insatiable desires, and sweetly intimate stories about his family, friends, and finding true love. The result is a memoir that is distinctive, fun, page-turning, and as addictive as its namesake.

Kirkus Reviews

Periodically charming but fluffy comic memoir. Semi-bored Massachusetts-based hairstylist Tonello "had spent most of the decade trigger-happy with a can of hairspray and a powder puff" and was ready for a change. A temporary gig in Barcelona convinced him that Spain was the place he really ought to be and that having "too much shit to move" wasn't a good enough reason to stay put. He took the plunge and happily relocated. Once settled across the pond, Tonello drifted into a new business venture: reselling Hermes products on eBay. The most exciting pieces of merchandise he dealt with were the infamously high-end Birkin handbags, and eventually he became obsessed with them. Can the average reader relate to a several-hundred page search for personal and professional Birkin Nirvana? Probably not, but the primary problem with Tonello's debut is bigger than that. The "in search of . . . " subgenre is just about played out. Considering how many of these books clog the shelves, chances are good that a title will blend in with its brethren unless either the object sought or the author is utterly compelling. Despite Tonello's deft sense of humor, sharp observational skills, an appreciation for the absurd and some positive energy, his confessional travelogue/how-to is relatively undistinguished and indistinguishable. Clever yet unremarkable. Agent: Laura Yorke/Carol Mann Agency

Fast Food Nation or Splendid Exchange

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal

Author: Eric Schlosser

FAST FOOD NATION - the groundbreaking work of investigation and cultural history that has changed the way America thinks about the way it eats - and spent nearly four months on the New York Times bestseller list - now available on cassette!

Are we what we eat? To a degree both engrossing and alarming, the story of fast food is the story of postwar America. Though created by a handful of mavericks, the fast food industry has triggered the homogenization of our society. Fast food has hastened the malling of our landscape, widened the chasm between rich and poor, fueled an epidemic of obesity, and propelling the juggernaut of American cultural imperialism abroad. That's a lengthy list of charges, but Eric Schlosser makes them stick with an artful mix of first-rate reportage, wry wit, and careful reasoning.

Schlosser's myth-shattering survey stretches from the California subdivisions where the business was born to the industrial corridor along the New Jersey Turnpike where many of fast food's flavors are concocted. Along the way, he unearths a trove of fascinating, unsettling truths - from the unholy alliance between fast food and Hollywood to the seismic changes the industry has wrought in food production, popular culture, even real estate. He also uncovers the fast food chains' efforts to reel in the youngest, most susceptible consumers even while they hone their institutionalized exploitation of teenagers and minorities. Schlosser then turns a critical eye toward the hot topic of globalization - a phenomenon launched by fast food.

Rob Walker

...Schlosser is a serious and diligent reporter..." "[Fast Food Nation] is a fine piece of muckraking, alarming without beling alarmist. —The New York Times

Atlanta Journal Constitution

'Fast Food Nation' should be another wake-up call, a super-size serving of common sense....

Boston Globe

...reminiscent of Upton Sinclair's 'The Jungle'.....

Time Out New York

Part cultural history, part investigative journalism and part polemic...intelligent and highly readable critique....

Book Magazine

National Magazine Award-winning journalist Schlosser spent three years studying the history of fast food, the business practices of its major chains and the nexus of agribusiness and chemical concerns behind it. Schlosser makes a powerful argument against an industry that exploits its workers, destroys the environment and creates an obese society in the relentless pursuit of profit. We learn about the chemical factories in New Jersey that manufacture fast foods' realistic and delicious flavors, and tour the filthy, Dickensian hell-hole of a modern meatpacking plant, where each year one in every three of its migrant workers can expect to suffer a serious injury. Most troubling, Schlosser argues that the influence of the meatpacking lobby on Congress largely prevents federal agencies from regulating the industry that Upton Sinclair first exposed nearly a century ago in The Jungle. This is in many ways a disturbing book, about much more than the already well-known public health implications of addictive, fattening and potentially disease-carrying foods. Beyond revealing what is actually in those burgers and fries, it shows why their cheap prices do not reflect their true human costs.
—Eric Wargo

Publishers Weekly

In this fascinating sociocultural report, Schlosser digs into the deeper meaning of Burger King, Auggie's, The Chicken Shack, Jack-in-the-Box, Little Caesar's and myriad other examples of fast food in America. Frequently using McDonald's as a template, Schlosser, an Atlantic Monthly correspondent, explains how the development of fast-food restaurants has led to the standardization of American culture, widespread obesity, urban sprawl and more. In a perky, reportorial voice, Adamson tells of the history, economics, day-to-day dealings and broad and often negative cultural implications of franchised burger joints and pizza factories, delivering impressive snippets of information (e.g., two-thirds of America's fast-food restaurant employees are teenagers; Willard Scott posed as the first Ronald McDonald until higher-ups decided Scott was too round to represent a healthy restaurant like McDonald's). According to Schlosser, most visits to fast-food restaurants are the culinary equivalent of "impulse buys," i.e., someone is driving by and pulls over for a Big Mac. But anyone listening to this audiobook on a car trip and realizing that the Chicken McNugget turned "a bird that once had to be carved at a table" into "a manufactured, value-added product" will think twice about stopping for a snack at the highway rest stop. Based on the Houghton Mifflin hardcover. (Jan.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Schlosser's incisive history of the development of American fast food indicts the industry for some shocking crimes against humanity, including systematically destroying the American diet and landscape, and undermining our values and our economy. The first part of the book details the postwar ascendance of fast food from Southern California, assessing the impact on people in the West in general. The second half looks at the product itself: where it is manufactured (in a handful of enormous factories), what goes into it (chemicals, feces) and who is responsible (monopolistic corporate executives). In harrowing detail, the book explains the process of beef slaughter and confirms almost every urban myth about what in fact "lurks between those sesame seed buns." Given the estimate that the typical American eats three hamburgers and four orders of french fries each week, and one in eight will work for McDonald's in the course of their lives, few are exempt from the insidious impact of fast food. Throughout, Schlosser fires these and a dozen other hair-raising statistical bullets into the heart of the matter. While cataloguing assorted evils with the tenacity and sharp eye of the best investigative journalist, he uncovers a cynical, dismissive attitude to food safety in the fast food industry and widespread circumvention of the government's efforts at regulation enacted after Upton Sinclair's similarly scathing novel exposed the meat-packing industry 100 years ago. By systematically dismantling the industry's various aspects, Schlosser establishes a seminal argument for true wrongs at the core of modern America.

"Fast Food Nation presents these sometimes startling discoveries in a manner that manages to be both careful and fast-paced. Schlosser is a talented storyteller, and his reportorial skills are considerable." --Hartford Courant

Library Journal

It is not unusual, from time to time, to read expos s about the unhealthy quality of mass-produced American food. What makes this book special is its indictment of the enormous U.S. fast-food industry. The author, an award-winning contributor to Atlantic Monthly, contends that chains like McDonald's are significant contributors to global ill-health; ugly, homogeneous landscapes; an undertrained and unpromotable work force; and a widespread corporate conformity that discourages the very individualism that propelled these companies to their initial success. While excellently researched, Fast Food Nation is not at all dull but is peppered with acerbic commentary and telling interviews. Of critical importance is the end: just as the reader despairs of a solution, Schlosser outlines a set of remedies, along with steps to get them accomplished. Highly recommended. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/15/00.]--Wendy Miller, Lexington P.L., KY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

New York Times Book Review - Rob Walker

Schlosser is a serious and diligent reporter . . . An avalanche of facts and observations . . . Pretty compelling . . . A fine piece of muckraking, alarming without being alarmist. At the very least, Schlosser makes it hard to go on eating fast food in blissful ignorance.

New York Times - Michiko Kakutani

Eric Schlosser's compelling new book, Fast Food Nation, will not only make you think twice before eating your next hamburger, but it will also make you think about the fallout that the fast food industry has had on America's social and cultural landscape: how it has affected everything from ranching and farming to diets and health, from marketing and labor practices to larger economic trends...Fast Food Nation provides the reader with a vivid sense of how fast food has permeated contemporary life and a fascinating (and sometimes grisly) account of the process whereby cattle and potatoes are transformed into the burgers and fries served up by local fast food franchises.

Talk Magazine

Millions of Frenchman can't be wrong: American fast food really has homogenized the entire world. More that your postholiday diet's at stake with your next partly-beef patty. This is cultural history from the ground (round) up.

Table of Contents:

	Introduction	1
I.	The American Way
1.	The Founding Fathers	13
2.	Your Trusted Friends	31
3.	Behind the Counter	59
4.	Success	91
II.	Meat and Potatoes
5.	Why the Fries Taste Good	111
6.	On the Range	133
7.	Cogs in the Great Machine	149
8.	The Most Dangerous Job	169
9.	What's in the Meat	193
10.	Global Realization	225
	Epilogue: Have It Your Way	255
	Afterword: The Meaning of Mad Cow	271
	Photo Credits	291
	Notes	292
	Bibliography	356
	Acknowledgments	362
	Index	365

Book review: On Chestnuts or Sauvignon Blanc

Splendid Exchange: How Trade Shaped the World from Prehistory to Today

Author: William J Bernstein

A sweeping narrative history of world trade—-from Sumer in 3000 BC to the firestorm over globalization today—-that brilliantly explores trade's colorful and contentious past and provides fresh insights into social, political, cultural, and economic history, as well as a timely assessment of trade's future.

The Total Money Makeover or How to Win Friends and Influence People

The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness

Author: Dave Ramsey

The success stories speak for themselves in this book from money maestro Dave Ramsey. Instead of promising the normal dose of quick fixes, Ramsey offers a bold, no-nonsense approach to money matters, providing not only the how-to but also a grounded and uplifting hope for getting out of debt and achieving total financial health.

Ramsey debunks the many myths of money (exposing the dangers of cash advance, rent-to-own, debt consolidation) and attacks the illusions and downright deceptions of the American dream, which encourages nothing but overspending and massive amounts of debt. "Don't even consider keeping up with the Joneses," Ramsey declares in his typically candid style. "They're broke!"

The Total Money Makeover isn't theory. It works every single time. It works because it is simple. It works because it gets to the heart of the money problems: you.

Publishers Weekly

Radio talk-show host and bestselling author Ramsay (Financial Peace) is less a financial analyst and more of a preacher, which explains both his popularity and the appeal of this book, which jsut might gain a wide audience. The bedrock of his system is simple: work hard, pay what you owe and stay out of debt. His main commandment is "Pay cash." He first exhorts the reader to take "baby steps," which are designed to build on each other: first, save $1,000 as an emergency fund; then, pay off all debts from smallest to largest; save a larger three-to-six-month emergency fund; finally, start to save for college and pay off your home mortgage. Ramsay understands the difficulty in putting these steps into action, and therefore packs his book with personal testimonials from everyday people who have used his system and have become debt free, with obvious struggles. The key is what Ramsay calls "Gazelle intensity," which is to live a financial life the way a gazelle saves itself from an attacking cheetah-"outmaneuver the enemy and run for your life." While Ramsay provides some helpful charts and graphs so readers can keep track of their efforts to follow his steps, the strength of this book is that it is a straightforward motivational tool. He provides the brutally direct truth about the hard work it takes to become free of debt, and his directness is a great part of the book's charm. (Sept.) Forecast: Nelson plans an aggressive-and unusual-campaign: a financial makeover contest, promoted through Ramsey's 31-city author tour and broadcasts; the winner will receive $55,000. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

New interesting book: Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 Administrators Pocket Consultant or Rule the Web

How to Win Friends and Influence People

Author: Dale Carnegi

Simon & Schuster Audio is proud to present one of the best-selling books of all time, Dale Carnegie's perennial classic How to Win Friends and Influence People -- presented here in its entirety on 8 compact discs.

For over 60 years the rock-solid, time-tested advice in this audiobook has carried thousands of now-famous people up the ladder of success in their business and personal lives.

With this truly phenomenal audiobook, learn:

* THE SIX WAYS TO MAKE PEOPLE LIKE YOU

* THE TWELVE WAYS TO WIN PEOPLE TO YOUR WAY OF THINKING

* THE NINE WAYS TO CHANGE PEOPLE WITHOUT AROUSING RESENTMENT And much, much more!

There is room at the top, when you know...How to Win Friends and Influence People

Library Journal

Originally published in 1936, this is the archetype of the practical human relations handbook. Carnegie (How To Stop Worrying and Start Living, Audio Reviews, LJ 2/15/99) opens with fundamental techniques for dealing with people, such as refraining from criticism and expressing sincere appreciation. Making people like you by smiling, remembering names, and being a good listener are encouraged. Final sections describe approaches for persuading people to your way of thinking and how to change people without causing offense or resentment. These positive principles are stated succinctly and illustrated with pertinent, if occasionally outmoded, anecdotes. While critics have charged that Carnegie emphasized good manners and friendliness over proficiency, the author clearly states that his target audience is competent individuals who are less than successful because they lack people skills, a group that would be well served by his sensible guidance. Andrew MacMillan's confident, friendly narration is a worthy counterpart for Carnegie's advice, making this an appropriate selection for libraries that don't own the 1989 unabridged recording that includes the printed volume (LJ 4/1/89).--Linda Bredengerd, Hanley Lib., Univ. of Pittsburgh, Bradford, PA

Table of Contents:

Contents

Preface to 1981 Edition by Dorothy Carnegie

How This Book Was Written -- and Why by Dale Carnegie

Nine Suggestions on How to Get the Most Out of This Book

PART ONE Fundamental Techniques in Handling People

1 "If You Want to Gather Honey, Don't Kick Over the Beehive"

2 The Big Secret of Dealing with People

3 "He Who Can Do This Has the Whole World with Him. He Who Cannot Walks a Lonely Way"

PART TWO Six Ways to Make People Like You

1 Do This and You'll Be Welcome Anywhere

2 A Simple Way to Make a Good First Impression

3 If You Don't Do This, You Are Headed for Trouble

4 An Easy Way to Become a Good Conversationalist

5 How to Interest People

6 How to Make People Like You Instantly

PART THREE How to Win People to Your Way of Thinking

1 You Can't Win an Argument

2 A Sure Way of Making Enemies -- and How to Avoid It

3 If You're Wrong, Admit It

4 A Drop of Honey

5 The Secret of Socrates

6 The Safety Valve in Handling Complaints

7 How to Get Cooperation

8 A Formula That Will Work Wonders for You

9 What Everybody Wants

10 An Appeal That Everybody Likes

11 The Movies Do It. TV Does It. Why Don't You Do It?

12 When Nothing Else Works, Try This

PART FOUR Be a Leader: How to Change People Without Giving Offense or Arousing Resentment

1 If You Must Find Fault, This Is the Way to Begin

2 How to Criticize -- and Not Be Hated for It

3 Talk About Your Own Mistakes First

4 No One Likes to Take Orders

5 Let the Other PersonSave Face

6 How to Spur People On to Success

7 Give a Dog a Good Name

8 Make the Fault Seem Easy to Correct

9 Making People Glad to Do What You Want A Shortcut to Distinction by Lowell Thomas

The Dale Carnegie Courses Other Books My Experiences in Applying the Principles Taught in This Book Index