Library
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Books in Collection: 210
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The Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick: What They Know, Why It Works, and How It Can Work for You
Gene Stone Added: 05 Feb 2012 Format: Paperback
Who does not want to be healthier? Now in paperback: the book that Andrew Weil calls "“offbeat, informative, and fun . . . a great read,”" and that has been praised as "“a delightful dance through science”" ("New York Times "bestselling author Mark Hyman, M.D.) and as a "“remarkable and insightful book [that] offers you the chance to achieve the best health of your life”" (Mark Liponis, M.D., Medical Director, Canyon Ranch).

Written by bestselling author Gene Stone, "The Secrets of People Who Never Get Sick "arose from his desire to discover what might actually prevent him from getting sick himself. This book, the result of that exploration, tells the stories of twenty-five people who each possess a different secret of excellent health—a secret that makes sense and that Stone discovered has a true scientific underpinning. There are food secrets—why to take garlic and vitamin C, eat more probiotics, become
a vegan, drink a tonic of brewer’s yeast. Exercise secrets—the benefits of lifting weights, the power of stretching. Environmental secrets—living in a Blue Zone, understanding the value of germs. Emotional secrets—seek out and stay in touch with friends, cultivate your spirituality. Physical secrets—nap more, take cold showers in the morning. And the wisdom that goes back generations: Yes, chicken soup works.

The stories make it personal, the research makes it real, and the do-it-yourself information shows how to integrate each secret into your own life, and become the next person who never gets sick.

The Developer's Code
Ka Wai Cheung Added: 08 Jan 2012 Format: Paperback
"The Developer's Code" isn't about the code you write, it's about the code you live by.

There are no trite superlatives here. Packed with lessons learned from more than a decade of software development experience, author Ka Wai Cheung takes you through the programming profession from nearly every angle to uncover ways of sustaining a healthy connection with your work.

You'll see how to stay productive even on the longest projects. You'll create a workflow that works with you, not against you. And you'll learn how to deal with clients whose goals don't align with your own. If you don't handle them just right, issues such as these can crush even the most seasoned, motivated developer. But with the right approach, you can transcend these common problems and become the professional developer you want to be.

In more than 50 nuggets of wisdom, you'll learn:

Why many traditional approaches to process and development roles in this industry are wrong - and how to sniff them out.

Why you must always say "no" to the software pet project and open-ended timelines.

How to incorporate code generation into your development process, and why its benefits go far beyond just faster code output.

What to do when your client or end user disagrees with an approach you believe in.

How to pay your knowledge forward to future generations of programmers through teaching and evangelism.

If you're in this industry for the long run, you'll be coming back to this book again and again.

That Used To Be Us: How America Fell Behind in the World We Invented-- and How We Can Come Back
Thomas L. Friedman, Michael Mandelbaum Added: 02 Jan 2012 Format: Hardcover
America is in trouble. We face four major challenges on which our future depends, and we are failing to meet them—and if we delay any longer, soon it will be too late for us to pass along the American dream to future generations.        In "That Used to Be Us", Thomas L. Friedman, one of our most influential columnists, and Michael Mandelbaum, one of our leading foreign policy thinkers, offer both a wake-up call and a call to collective action. They analyze the four challenges we face—globalization, the revolution in information technology, the nation’s chronic deficits, and our pattern of excessive energy consumption—and spell out what we need to do "now "to sustain the American dream and preserve American power in the world. They explain how the end of the Cold War blinded the nation to the need to address these issues seriously, and how China’s educational successes, industrial might, and technological prowess remind us of the ways in which “that used to be us.” They explain how the paralysis of our political system and the erosion of key American values have made it impossible for us to carry out the policies the country urgently needs.        And yet Friedman and Mandelbaum believe that the recovery of American greatness is within reach. They show how America’s history, when properly understood, offers a five-part formula for prosperity that will enable us to cope successfully with the challenges we face. They offer vivid profiles of individuals who have not lost sight of the American habits of bold thought and dramatic action. They propose a clear way out of the trap into which the country has fallen, a way that includes the rediscovery of some of our most vital traditions and the creation of a new thirdparty movement to galvanize the country.        "That Used to Be Us "is both a searching exploration of the American condition today and a rousing manifesto for American renewal.

Personal Kanban: Mapping Work | Navigating Life By Jim Benson, Tonianne DeMaria Barry
-Author- Added: 13 Nov 2011 Format: Paperback

Steve Jobs
Walter Isaacson Added: 06 Nov 2011 Format: Hardcover
Amazon Best Books of the Month, November 2011: It is difficult to read the opening pages of Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs without feeling melancholic. Jobs retired at the end of August and died about six weeks later. Now, just weeks after his death, you can open the book that bears his name and read about his youth, his promise, and his relentless press to succeed. But the initial sadness in starting the book is soon replaced by something else, which is the intensity of the read--mirroring the intensity of Jobs’s focus and vision for his products. Few in history have transformed their time like Steve Jobs, and one could argue that he stands with the Fords, Edisons, and Gutenbergs of the world. This is a timely and complete portrait that pulls no punches and gives insight into a man whose contradictions were in many ways his greatest strength. --Chris Schluep

Be Excellent at Anything
Tony Schwartz, Jean Gomes, Catherine Mccarthy Added: 02 Oct 2011 Format: Kindle Edition
"Be Excellent at Anything "is one of those rare books with the power to profoundly transform the way we work and live.
Demand is exceeding our capacity. The ethic of "more, bigger, faster" exacts a series of silent but pernicious costs at work, undermining our energy, focus, creativity, and passion. Nearly 75 percent of employees around the world feel disengaged at work every day. "Be Excellent at Anything "offers a groundbreaking approach to reenergizing our lives so we’re both more satisfied and more productive—on the job and off.
By integrating multidisciplinary findings from the science of high performance, Tony Schwartz, coauthor of the #1 bestselling "The Power of Full Engagement, "makes a persuasive case that we’re neglecting the four core needs that energize great performance: sustainability (physical); security (emotional); self-expression (mental); and significance (spiritual). Rather than running like computers at high speeds for long periods, we’re at our best when we pulse rhythmically between expending and regularly renewing energy across each of our four needs.
Organizations undermine sustainable high performance by forever seeking to get more out of their people. Instead they should seek systematically to meet their four core needs so they’re freed, fueled, and inspired to bring the best of themselves to work every day.

Drawing on extensive work with an extra-ordinary range of organizations, among them Google, Ford, Sony, Ernst & Young, Shell, IBM, the Los Angeles Police Department, and the Cleveland Clinic, Schwartz creates a road map for a new way of working. At the individual level, he explains how we can build specific rituals into our daily schedules to balance intense effort with regular renewal; offset emotionally draining experiences with practices that fuel resilience; move between a narrow focus on urgent demands and more strategic, creative thinking; and balance a short-term focus on immediate results with a values-driven commitment to serving the greater good. At the organizational level, he outlines new policies, practices, and cultural messages that Schwartz’s client companies have adopted.


"Be Excellent at Anything "offers individuals, leaders, and organizations a highly practical, proven set of strategies to better manage the relentlessly rising demands we all face in an increasingly complex world.

The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work
Teresa Amabile, Steven Kramer Added: 28 Aug 2011 Format: Hardcover
What really sets the best managers above the rest? It’s their power to build a cadre of employees who have great inner work lives—consistently positive emotions; strong motivation; and favorable perceptions of the organization, their work, and their colleagues. The worst managers undermine inner work life, often unwittingly.

As Teresa Amabile and Steven Kramer explain in The Progress Principle, seemingly mundane workday events can make or break employees’ inner work lives. But it’s forward momentum in meaningful work—progress—that creates the best inner work lives. Through rigorous analysis of nearly 12,000 diary entries provided by 238 employees in 7 companies, the authors explain how managers can foster progress and enhance inner work life every day.

The book shows how to remove obstacles to progress, including meaningless tasks and toxic relationships. It also explains how to activate two forces that enable progress: (1) catalysts—events that directly facilitate project work, such as clear goals and autonomy—and (2) nourishers—interpersonal events that uplift workers, including encouragement and demonstrations of respect and collegiality.

Brimming with honest examples from the companies studied, The Progress Principle equips aspiring and seasoned leaders alike with the insights they need to maximize their people’s performance.

The Post-American World: Release 2.0
Fareed Zakaria Added: 07 Aug 2011 Format: Unknown Binding

The Clean Coder: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers
Robert C. Martin Added: 05 Jul 2011 Format: Paperback
Programmers who endure and succeed amidst swirling uncertainty and nonstop pressure share a common attribute: They care deeply about the practice of creating software. They treat it as a craft. They are professionals.   In "The Clean Coder: A Code of Conduct for Professional Programmers," legendary software expert Robert C. Martin introduces the disciplines, techniques, tools, and practices of true software craftsmanship. This book is packed with practical advice–about everything from estimating and coding to refactoring and testing. It covers much more than technique: It is about attitude. Martin shows how to approach software development with honor, self-respect, and pride; work well and work clean; communicate and estimate faithfully; face difficult decisions with clarity and honesty; and understand that deep knowledge comes with a responsibility to act.   Readers will learn What it means to behave as a true software craftsman How to deal with conflict, tight schedules, and unreasonable managers How to get into the flow of coding, and get past writer’s block How to handle unrelenting pressure and avoid burnout How to combine enduring attitudes with new development paradigms How to manage your time, and avoid blind alleys, marshes, bogs, and swamps How to foster environments where programmers and teams can thrive When to say “No”–and how to say it When to say “Yes”–and what yes really means   Great software is something to marvel at: powerful, elegant, functional, a pleasure to work with as both a developer and as a user. Great software isn’t written by machines. It is written by professionals with an unshakable commitment to craftsmanship. "The Clean Coder" will help you become one of them–and earn the pride and fulfillment that they alone possess.

Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed-Down World
Lisa Bloom Added: 03 Jul 2011 Format: Hardcover
According to Lisa Bloom, the women and girls of today represent a stark paradox. While American women excel in education at every level, they likewise obsessively focus on celebrity media. While women outperform their male counterparts in employment in urban areas for the first time in history, they simultaneously spend countless hours staring in the mirror contemplating plastic surgery. Lisa Bloom fears that women are in danger of spiraling into a nation of dumbed down, tabloid media obsessed, reality TV addicts. Too often, they outsource matters to "experts" and in doing so neglect to truly think for themselves.
The solution:
Lisa Bloom has the solution and it involves one simple word: "Think."
In this provocative, entertaining, educational, and thoroughly researched book, Lisa outlines the ways that we as a society, and particularly women, have fallen off the intellectual path, and, very specifically, points to how damaging this has been to us on many levels. Lisa shows us the fallout--but she also provides the solutions for "Reclaiming the Brain God Gave You" and seizing back control of your mind and your life. Think is delivered in a no-nonsense manner that will make you laugh, make you question yourself, make you squirm, but, most important, make you start thinking again.

(HAPPY EVER AFTER)) BY Roberts, Nora(Author)Paperback{Happy Ever After} on 02 Nov-2010
Added: 03 Jul 2011 Format: Paperback

Knowing Your Value
Mika Brzezinski Added: 03 Jul 2011 Format: Audio CD

From This Moment On
Shania Twain Added: 03 Jul 2011 Format: Audio CD
The world may know Shania Twain as many things: a music legend, a mother, and recently, a fixture in the news for her painful, public divorce and subsequent marriage to a cherished friend. But in this extraordinary autobiography, Shania reveals that she is so much more. She is Eilleen Twain, one of five children born into poverty in rural Canada, where her family often didn’t have enough food to send her to school with lunch. She’s the teenage girl who helped her mother and young siblings escape to a battered woman’s shelter to put an end to the domestic violence in her family home. And she’s the courageous twenty-two-year-old who sacrificed to keep her younger siblings together after her parents were tragically killed in a car accident.

Shania Twain’s life has evolved from a series of pivotal moments, and in unflinching, heartbreaking prose, Shania spares no details as she takes us through the events that have made her who she is. She recounts her difficult childhood, her parents’ sudden death and its painful aftermath, her dramatic rise to stardom, her devastating betrayal by a trusted friend, and her joyful marriage to the love of her life. From these moments, she offers profound, moving insights into families, personal tragedies, making sense of one’s life, and the process of healing. Shania Twain is a singular, remarkable woman who has faced enormous odds and downfalls, and her extraordinary story will provide wisdom, inspiration, and hope for almost anyone.

The Agile Samurai: How Agile Masters Deliver Great Software
Jonathan Rasmusson Added: 16 Jan 2011 Format: Paperback
Get ready to kick some software project butt. By learning the ways of the agile samurai you will discover:

* how to create plans and schedules your customer and your team can believe in

what characteristics make a good agile team and how to form your own
how to gather requirements in a fraction of the time using agile user stories
what to do when you discover your schedule is wrong, and how to look like a pro correcting it
how to execute fiercely by leveraging the power of agile software engineering practices By the end of this book you will know everything you need to set up, execute, and successfully deliver agile projects, and have fun along the way. If you're a project lead, this book gives you the tools to set up and lead your agile project from start to finish. If you are an analyst, programmer, tester, usability designer, or project manager, this book gives you the insight and foundation necessary to become a valuable agile team member."The Agile Samurai" slices away the fluff and theory that make other books less-than-agile. It's packed with best practices, war stories, plenty of humor and hands-on tutorial exercises that will get you doing the right things, the right way.This book will make a difference.

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother
Amy Chua Added: 16 Jan 2011 Format: Hardcover
An awe-inspiring, often hilarious, and unerringly honest story of one mother's exercise in extreme parenting, revealing the rewards-and the costs-of raising her children the Chinese way.

All decent parents want to do what's best for their children. What "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" reveals is that the Chinese just have a totally different idea of how to do that. Western parents try to respect their children's individuality, encouraging them to pursue their true passions and providing a nurturing environment. The Chinese believe that the best way to protect your children is by preparing them for the future and arming them with skills, strong work habits, and inner confidence. "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" chronicles Chua's iron-willed decision to raise her daughters, Sophia and Lulu, her way-the Chinese way-and the remarkable results her choice inspires.

Here are some things Amy Chua would never allow her daughters to do:

• have a playdate

• be in a school play

• complain about not being in a school play

• not be the #1 student in every subject except gym and drama

• play any instrument other than the piano or violin

• not play the piano or violin

The truth is Lulu and Sophia would never have had time for a playdate. They were too busy practicing their instruments (two to three hours a day and double sessions on the weekend) and perfecting their Mandarin.

Of course no one is perfect, including Chua herself. Witness this scene:

"According to Sophia, here are three things I actually said to her at the piano as I supervised her practicing:

1. Oh my God, you're just getting worse and worse.

2. I'm going to count to three, then I want musicality.

3. If the next time's not PERFECT, I'm going to take all your stuffed animals and burn them!"

But Chua demands as much of herself as she does of her daughters. And in her sacrifices-the exacting attention spent studying her daughters' performances, the office hours lost shuttling the girls to lessons-the depth of her love for her children becomes clear. "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother" is an eye-opening exploration of the differences in Eastern and Western parenting- and the lessons parents and children everywhere teach one another.

Promise Me
Richard Paul Evans Added: 07 Nov 2010 Format: Hardcover
"As you read my story, there is something I want you to understand. That in spite of all the pain—past, present and that still to come—I wouldn’t have done anything differently. Nor would I trade the time I had with him for anything—except for what, in the end, I traded it for." Beth Cardall has a secret. For eighteen years, she has had no choice but to keep it to herself, but on Christmas Eve 2008, all that is about to change. For Beth, 1989 was a year marked by tragedy. Her life was falling apart: her six-year-old daughter, Charlotte, was suffering from an unidentifiable illness; her marriage transformed from a seemingly happy and loving relationship to one full of betrayal and pain; her job at the dry cleaners was increasingly at risk; and she had lost any ability to trust, to hope, or to believe in herself. Then, on Christmas Day, as she rushed through a blizzard to the nearest 7-Eleven, Beth encountered Matthew, a strikingly handsome, mysterious stranger, who would single-handedly change the course of her life. Who is this man, and how does he seem to know so much about her? He pursues her relentlessly, and only after she’s fallen deeply in love with him does she learn his incredible secret, changing the world as she knows it, as well as her own destiny.
From the "New York Times "bestselling author of the beloved classics "The Christmas Box "and "The Christmas List "comes a breathtaking story of the transcendent power of love.

Gunn's Golden Rules: Life's Little Lessons for Making It Work
Tim Gunn Added: 07 Nov 2010 Format: Paperback
On the runway of life, Tim Gunn is the perfect life coach.  You’ve watched him mentor talented designers on the hit television show "Project Runway". Now the inimitable Tim Gunn shares his personal secrets for “making it work”—in your career, relationships, and life. Filled with delightfully dishy stories of fashion’s greatest divas, behind-the-scenes glimpses of "Runway"’s biggest drama queens, and never-before-revealed insights into Tim’s private life, "Gunn’s Golden Rules "is like no other how-to book you’ve ever read. In the world according to Tim, there are no shortcuts to success. Hard work, creativity, and skill are just the beginning. By following eighteen tried-and-true principles, you can apply Tim’s rules to anything you set your mind to. You’ll learn why Tim frowns on displays of bad behavior, like the vitriolic outburst by Martha Stewart’s daughter about her mother’s name-brand merchandise. You’ll discover the downfalls of divadom as he describes "Vogue"’s André Leon Talley being hand-fed grapes and Anna Wintour being carried downstairs by her bodyguards. And you’ll get Tim’s view on the backstabbing by one designer on "Project Runway "and how it brilliantly backfired. Then there are his down-to-earth guidelines for making life better—for yourself and others—in small and large ways, especially in an age that favors comfort over politeness, ease over style. Texting at the dinner table? Wearing shorts to the theater? Not in Tim’s book. Living a well-mannered life of integrity and character is hard work, he admits, but the rewards are many: being a good friend, being glamorous and attractive, and being a success— much like Tim himself! He is never one to mince words. But Tim Gunn is always warm, witty, wise, and wonderfully supportive— just the mentor you need to design a happy, creative, and fulfilling life that will never go out of style.

The Talent Code Hardcover Daniel Coyle
Daniel Coyle Added: 18 Jul 2010 Format: Hardcover
Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown. Here's How

Making it Big in Software: Get the Job. Work the Org. Become Great.
Sam Lightstone Added: 05 Jul 2010 Format: Paperback
The Software Insider’s Guide to Getting Hired and Getting to the Top!   Here’s all the information you need to jumpstart your software career: the best ways to get hired, move up, and blaze your way to the top! The software business has radically changed, and this book reveals today’s realities–everything your professors and corporate managers never told you. In his 20 years at IBM as a software architect, senior manager, and lead programmer, Sam Lightstone has briefed dozens of leading companies and universities on careers, new technology, and emerging areas of research. He currently works on one of the world’s largest software development teams and spends a good part of his time recruiting and mentoring software engineers. This book shares all the lessons for success Sam has learned…plus powerful insights from 17 of the industry’s biggest stars. Want to make it big in software? Start right here!   Discover how to • Get your next job in software development • Master the nontechnical skills crucial to your success • “Work the org” to move up rapidly • Successfully manage your time, projects, and life • Avoid “killer” mistakes that could destroy your career • Move up to “medium-shot,” “big-shot,” and finally, “visionary” • Launch your own winning software company   Exclusive interviews with Steve Wozniak, Inventor, Apple computer John Schwarz, CEO, Business Objects James Gosling, Inventor, Java programming language Marissa Mayer, Google VP, Search Products and User Experience Jon Bentley, Author, "Programming Pearls" Marc Benioff, CEO and founder, Salesforce.com Grady Booch, IBM Fellow and co-founder Rational Software Bjarne Stroustrup, Inventor, C++ programming language David Vaskevitch, Microsoft CTO Linus Torvalds, Creator, Linux operating system kernel Richard Stallman, Founder, Free software movement Peter Norvig, Google’s Director of Research Mark Russinovich, Microsoft Fellow and Windows Architect Tom Malloy, Adobe Chief Software Architect Diane Greene, Co-founder and past CEO of VMware Robert Kahn, Co-inventor, the Internet Ray Tomlinson, Inventor, email  

If You Have to Cry, Go Outside: And Other Things Your Mother Never Told You
Kelly Cutrone, Meredith Bryan Added: 23 May 2010 Format: Hardcover
Kelly Cutrone has long been mentoring women on how to make it in one of the most competitive industries in the world. She has kicked people out of fashion shows, forced some of reality television's shiny stars to fire their friends, and built her own company&#8212one of the most powerful PR firms in the fashion business&#8212from the ground up. Through it all, she has refused to be anything but herself.
Kelly writes in her trademark, no-bullshit style, combining personal and professional stories to share her secrets for success without selling out. Let's face it: this is a different world than the one in which our mothers grew up, and Kelly has created a real girl's guide to making it in today's world. Offering a wake-up call to women everywhere, she challenges us to stop the dogged pursuit of the “perfect life” and discover who we are and what we really want. Then she shows us how to go out there and get it. Much of our culture teaches us to muzzle our inner voice and follow the crowd; Kelly enables us to stop pretending and start truly living.
With chapters on how to find your tribe (those like-minded souls who make your heart sing), how sometimes a breakdown is really a breakthrough, and how there is no such thing as perfection, Kelly also shares practical advice, such as how to create a personal brand and how sometimes you have to fake it to make it.
Raw, hilarious, shocking, but always the honest truth, "If You Have to Cry, Go Outside" calls upon you to gather up your courage like an armful of clothes at a McQueen sample sale and follow your soul wherever it takes you. Whether you're just starting out in the world or looking to reinvent yourself, "If You Have to Cry, Go Outside" will be the spark you need to figure out what you have to say to the world&#8212and how you're going to say it.

The Leader Who Had No Title: A Modern Fable on Real Success in Business and in
Robin Sharma Added: 09 May 2010 Format: Kindle Edition
For more than fifteen years, Robin Sharma has been quietly sharing with Fortune 500 companies and many of the super-rich a success formula that has made him one of the most sought-after leadership advisers in the world. Now, for the first time, Sharma makes his proprietary process available to you, so that you can get to your absolute best while helping your organization break through to a dramatically new level of winning in these wildly uncertain times.
In "The Leader Who Had No Title", you will learn: How to work with and influence people like a superstar, regardless of your position
A method to recognize and then seize opportunities in times of deep change
The real secrets of intense innovation
An instant strategy to build a great team and become a "merchant of wow" with your customers
Hard-hitting tactics to become mentally strong and physically tough enough to lead your field
Real-world ways to defeat stress, build an unbeatable mind-set, unleash energy, and balance your personal life
Regardless of what you do within your organization and the current circumstances of your life, the single most important fact is that you have the power to show leadership. Wherever you are in your career or life, you should always play to your peak abilities. This book shows you how to claim that staggering power, as well as transform your life--and the world around you--in the process.
Amazon Exclusive: A Note to Readers from Author Robin Sharma

Thank you for the opportunity to share a little about "The Leader Who Had No Title: A Modern Fable on Real Success in Business and in Life". First, the book is the result of the 15 years I've spent as a leadership advisor to many of the FORTUNE 500 companies, including FedEx, Nike, Microsoft, GE, IBM, and organizations like Yale University and Young Presidents Organization--as well as to many über successful entrepreneurs. I mention that so that you know the book is built around real-world insights, lessons and tactics that the best quietly use to win in business (and within their personal lives). If you're at a point where you are ready for extraordinary performance, exceptional leadership and to play full out with your life, this book will be highly helpful to you.
Second, the book is written as a story-with a group of unforgettable characters that bring the whole Lead Without a Title process to life. The goal was to write a book that not only is full of powerful success tactics to become your leadership best but also one that entertains and deeply inspires. In this way, all the learning is sticky--and therefore valuable to you.
Finally, this book is really about not only the opportunity every human being has to show leadership (regardless of whether they have a title or not) but the responsibility we all have to work at our best potential--and make a difference in the lives of everyone around us in the process. Because the ultimate end-game of leadership isn't just positively influencing other people. It's transformation.
Best,
--"Robin Sharma"


A Conversation with Author Robin Sharma
Q: Is it really possible for anyone to be a leader?

A: Absolutely. The core message of "The Leader Who Had No Title" is that every single one of us has the opportunity to show leadership in our work and within our lives--every single day. This isn't some motivational platitude. It's a reality that i've helped everyday people in organizations like Microsoft, GE, FedEx, Yale University and IBM achieve. Because leadership isn't really about the title on our business cards. Leadership is about the strength of our influence, our willingness to innovate, the quality of our attitide and our commitment to excellence. This doesn't mean that organizations should get rid of titles and structure. It simply means that leadership is a behavior--and anyone of us can show it.

Q: This is obviously a time of deep change. Does the "Lead Without a Title" philosophy you share in your new book speak to this?

A: Yes. The #1 competitive advantage any organization has right now is growing the leadership potential of EVERY employee, at all levels. From the mailroom to the boardroom, the companies that will win in these highly uncertain times will be those that get people Leading Without a Title. To succeed in this economy, the best organizations will encourage their people to think, feel and behave like leaders, delivering wow results within their work.

Q: So the nature of leadership is changing?

A: The old model of leadership is dead. Everyone's now a part of the leadership team. And each of us has the responsibility of driving positive results and leading by example. It's now Leadership 2.0. Everybody gets to show their leadership best when they walk in the front door every day. "The Leader Who Had No Title" shows you how.

Q: Is leadership something we only show at work then?

A: Leading Without a Title is actually a way to express your absolute best at work as well as at home. While the book is definitely for people who want to fly in their careers and win at work, there are some key ideas in the book on personal leadership, getting to peak health, balancing work and family and having a lot more fun on the journey of life.

Q: Why this book and why now?

A: Because we need real leaders. Companies that we used to believe in have gone bankrupt or been bailed out. Leaders we used to admire have lost face. We need to restore the leadership values that made us great. And it starts with every one of us leading ourselves. We all have that power. It's time to reconnect with it.

Between Two Worlds: My Life and Captivity in Iran
Roxana Saberi Added: 18 Apr 2010 Format: Hardcover
On the morning of January 31, 2009, Roxana Saberi, an Iranian-American journalist working in Iran, was forced from her home by four men and secretly detained in Iran's notorious Evin Prison. The intelligence agents who captured her accused her of espionage—a charge she denied. For several days, Saberi was held in solitary confinement, ruthlessly interrogated, and cut off from the outside world. For weeks, neither her family nor her friends knew her whereabouts.
After a sham trial that made headlines around the world, the thirty-one-year-old reporter was sentenced to eight years in prison. But following international pressure by family, friends, colleagues, various governments, and total strangers, she was released on appeal on May 11, 2009. Now Saberi breaks her silence to share the full account of her ordeal, describing in vivid detail the methods that Iranian hard-liners are using to try to intimidate and control many of the country's people.
In this gripping and inspirational true story, Saberi writes movingly of her imprisonment, her trial, her eventual release, and the faith that helped her through it all. Her recollections are interwoven with insights into Iranian society, the Islamic regime, and U.S.-Iran relations, as well as stories of her fellow prisoners—many of whom were jailed for their pursuit of human rights, including freedom of speech, association, and religion. Saberi gains strength and wisdom from her cellmates who support her throughout a grueling hunger strike and remind her of the humanity that remains, even when they are denied the most basic rights.
"Between Two Worlds" is also a deeply revealing account of this tumultuous country and the ongoing struggle for freedom that is being fought inside Evin Prison and on the streets of Iran. From her heartfelt perspective, Saberi offers a rich, dramatic, and illuminating portrait of Iran as it undergoes a striking, historic transformation.

97 Things Every Programmer Should Know: Collective Wisdom from the Experts
Kevlin Henney Added: 08 Mar 2010 Format: Paperback
With this book, you get 97 short and extremely useful programming tips from some of the most experienced and respected practitioners in the industry, including Uncle Bob Martin, Scott Meyers, Dan North, Linda Rising, Udi Dahan, Neal Ford, and many more. They encourage you to stretch yourself by learning new languages, looking at problems in new ways, following specific practices, taking responsibility for your work, and becoming as good at the entire craft of programming as you possibly can.

This wealth of practical knowledge contains principles that apply to projects of all types. You can read the book end to end, or easily browse through to find topics of particular interest. "97 Things Every Programmer Should Know" is a useful reference and a source of inspiration.
Tap into the knowledge of expert programmers who have earned stellar reputations Learn the basic wisdom every programmer needs, regardless of the language you use Take advantage of the online presence that has evolved from this book project

Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?
Seth Godin Added: 08 Feb 2010 Format: Hardcover
Amazon Exclusive: Hugh MacLeod Reviews Linchpin

Hugh MacLeod is an artist, cartoonist, and Web 2.0 pundit whose blog, gapingvoid.com, has two million unique monthly visitors. His first book, Ignore Everybody, was an Amazon Top Ten Business Book of the Year and a Wall Street Journal bestseller. Read his exclusive Amazon guest review of Linchpin:

This is by far Seth’s most passionate book. He’s pulling fewer punches. He’s out for blood. He’s out to make a difference. And that glorious, heartfelt passion is obvious on every page, even if it is in Seth’s usual quiet, lucid, understated manner.

A linchpin, as Seth describes it, is somebody in an organization who is indispensable, who cannot be replaced—her role is just far too unique and valuable. And then he goes on to say, well, seriously folks, you need to be one of these people, you really do. To not be one is economic and career suicide.

No surprises there—that’s exactly what one would expect Seth to say. But here’s where it gets interesting.

In his best-known book, Purple Cow, Seth’s message was, “Everyone’s a marketer now.” In All Marketers Are Liars, his message was, “Everyone’s a storyteller now.” In Tribes, his message was, “Everyone’s a leader now.”

And from Linchpin?

"Everyone’s an artist now."

By Seth’s definition, an artist is not just some person who messes around with paint and brushes, an artist is somebody who does (and I LOVE this term) “emotional work.”

Work that you put your heart and soul into. Work that matters. Work that you gladly sacrifice all other alternatives for. As a working artist and cartoonist myself, I know exactly what he means. It’s not what you do, it’s the way that you do it.

The only people who have a hope of becoming linchpins in any organization, who have any hope of changing anything for the better in real terms, are those who have the capacity to do “emotional work” at a high level—to be true artists at whatever they set their minds on doing. The guys who just plod around the office corridors, just turning up for their paycheck.... Well, those guys don’t have a prayer, poor things. The world is just too interesting and competitive now.

And Seth then challenges us, the readers, to become linchpins ourselves. To make the leap. To become artists. To do emotional work, whatever the sacrifice may be. It’s our choice, and it’s our burden. Seth won’t be there to catch us if we fall, but to become the people we need to be eventually, well, we probably wouldn’t want him to, anyway.

Congratulations, Seth. You have penned a real gem of a book here. Rock on.

--Hugh MacLeod

Head First Java, 2nd Edition
Kathy Sierra, Bert Bates Added: 05 Feb 2010 Format: Paperback

Debug It!: Find, Repair, and Prevent Bugs in Your Code
Paul Butcher, Butcher Paul Added: 16 Jan 2010 Format: Paperback
If you develop software, sooner or later you're going to discover that it doesn't always behave as you intended. Working out why it's misbehaving can be hard. Sometimes very hard. "Debug It!" is here to help!

All bugs are different: there is no silver bullet. You've got to rely upon your intellect, intuition, detective skills and yes, even a little luck. But that doesn't mean that you're completely on your own-there is much you can learn from those who have gone before. This book distills decades of hard-won experience gained in the trenches of professional software development, giving you a head-start and arming you with the tools you need to get to the bottom of the problem, whatever you're faced with.

Whether you're writing Java or assembly language, targeting servers or embedded micro-controllers, using agile or traditional approaches, the same basic bug-fixing principles apply. From constructing software that is easy to debug (and incidentally less likely to contain bugs in the first place), through handling bug reports to rolling out your ultimate fix, we'll cover the entire life-cycle of a bug.

You'll learn about the empirical approach, which leverages your software's unique ability to show you what's really happening, the importance of finding a reliable and convenient means of reproducing a bug, and common pitfalls so you can avoid them. You'll see how to use commonly available tools to automatically detect problems before they're reported by customers and how to construct "transparent software" that provides access to critical information and internal state.

Mein Glück kommt selten allein...: Glück kommt mit deinem persönlichen Glücks-Tagebuch!
Eckart Von Hirschhausen Added: 04 Jan 2010 Format: Hardcover

Patriarchen
Alex Capus Added: 04 Jan 2010 Format: Paperback
Of creative ideas and great deeds – ten men who changed the world They pegged their whole lives on a single idea, realised it through sheer strength of will, and founded thriving businesses. Ten men of the 19th century, all inventors, pioneers and creative problem solvers, who significantly affected the world economy into the 20th century. Using material discovered in his in-depth research, the Swiss writer Alex Capus elegantly traces the life stories of these men. In 1886, mill owner Julius Maggi, who for years experimented with quickly prepared health foods, came up with a recipe for bouillon extract. To this day the recipe, unchanged and confidential, is known throughout the world as Maggi Würze. Alex Capus follows the career of Julius Maggi from his beginning as a tirelessly working businessman up to his final years. Capus describes how the German Heinrich Nestle became the Swiss Henri Nestlé, and how a pair of chic Parisian women’s boots that Carl Franz Bally brought his wife in 1850 were the impetus for building the world’s largest shoe factory. The drug manufacturer Fritz Hoffmann-La Roche and the confectioner Rudolph Lindt – all of them were impetuous, persistent and cosmopolitan. With a keen instinct for impending changes and innovation, they devoted their lives to a single idea and did not become discouraged by years of failure. They accepted no limits – governmental, social or moral – and never allowed themselves to be unduly influenced by politics, religion, or family. He writes subtly, wittily, and clearly, moving dextrously between personal circumstances, social conditions, business ventures and human adventures. What results is the panorama of an epoch in which freedom, curiosity and courage triumphed over subjection, restriction, and timidity. Press “Alex Capus possesses a wonderful dual talent: he not only researches accurately and in-depth, but he can also write incredibly well. Under his pen, dry biographical facts become people of flesh and blood. With quick yet precise strokes, he encapsulates in but a few paragraphs whole life stories and fates.“ Hessischer Rundfunk “Alex Capus is a superior storyteller.” Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung “Alex Capus is a wonderful writer for whom the world is something to read and everything has a story. Wherever Capus follows a clue, he finds something of significance, and then in a light and elegant manner, he relates his discovery to us.” Süddeutsche Zeitung “Capus is a very shrewd writer. One can read his book on Stevenson with pleasure and profit, even without needing to follow his thematic speculations.” Neue Zürcher Zeitung “What is typical Swiss? Alpenhorns, chocolate, Max Frisch, Friedrich Dürrenmatt, and of course Alex Capus!” Buchkultur Wien Author Alex Capus, born in 1961 in France, studied history and philosophy in Basel. Today he is a journalist and author. Thus far he has had seven books published, all of them receiving high critical praise. Most recently published by Knaus is Travelling by the Light of the Stars [Reisen im Licht der Sterne].

Pomodoro Technique Illustrated: Can You Focus - Really Focus - for 25 Minutes?
Noteberg Staffan Added: 12 Dec 2009 Format: Paperback
You have so much you need to accomplish today. Your list is a mile long and you find yourself getting interrupted every other minute. You'd like to tell everyone to leave you alone, but most of the interruptions are coming from you! You think of a phone call you need to make or a web site you need to check and before you know it you're answering email, checking twitter, and finding a million other things to occupy your time.

You need to focus---really focus.

The Pomodoro Technique puts you back in charge of your day. You'll apply successful techniques from software engineering to identify what you should be doing today and to help you achieve your goals. Your mind won't wander when it is fully engaged in short bursts of focused activity.

Learn to work less and accomplish more using nothing more than paper, pencil, and a simple kitchen timer.

Set the timer and start on your next Pomodoro. When the bell rings take a break. This personal approach to timeboxing is at the core of the Pomodoro technique and this book is filled with advice on how get started and how to tailor it to your own needs.

Apprenticeship Patterns: Guidance for the Aspiring Software Craftsman
Dave Hoover, Adewale Oshineye, Hoover Dave, Oshineye Adewale Added: 29 Nov 2009 Format: Paperback
Are you doing all you can to further your career as a software developer? With today's rapidly changing and ever-expanding technologies, being successful requires more than technical expertise. To grow professionally, you also need soft skills and effective learning techniques. Honing those skills is what this book is all about. Authors Dave Hoover and Adewale Oshineye have cataloged dozens of behavior patterns to help you perfect essential aspects of your craft.

Compiled from years of research, many interviews, and feedback from O'Reilly's online forum, these patterns address difficult situations that programmers, administrators, and DBAs face every day. And it's not just about financial success. "Apprenticeship Patterns" also approaches software development as a means to personal fulfillment. Discover how this book can help you make the best of both your life and your career.

Solutions to some common obstacles that this book explores in-depth include:

Burned out at work? "Nurture Your Passion" by finding a pet project to rediscover the joy of problem solving. Feeling overwhelmed by new information? Re-explore familiar territory by building something you've built before, then use "Retreat into Competence" to move forward again. Stuck in your learning? Seek a team of experienced and talented developers with whom you can "Be the Worst" for a while.

"Brilliant stuff! Reading this book was like being in a time machine that pulled me back to those key learning moments in my career as a professional software developer and, instead of having to learn best practices the hard way, I had a guru sitting on my shoulder guiding me every step towards master craftsmanship. I'll certainly be recommending this book to clients. I wish I had this book 14 years ago!" -Russ Miles, CEO, OpenCredo

A Good Fall: Stories
Ha Jin Added: 28 Nov 2009 Format: Hardcover
In his first book of stories since "The Bridegroom "was published in 2000 ("Finely wrought . . . Every story here is cut like a stone."—"Chicago Sun-Times"), National Book Award–winning Ha Jin gives us a collection that delves into the experience of Chinese immigrants in America.
 
With the same profound attention to detail that is a hallmark of his previous acclaimed works of fiction, Ha Jin depicts here the full spectrum of immigrant life and the daily struggles—some minute, some grand—faced by these intriguing individuals.
 
A lonely composer takes comfort in the antics of his girlfriend's parakeet; young children decide to change their names so that they might sound more "American," unaware of how deeply this will hurt their grandparents; a Chinese professor of English attempts to defect with the help of a reluctant former student. All of Ha Jin's characters struggle in situations that stir within them a desire to remain attached to be loyal to their homeland and its traditions as they explore and avail themselves of the freedom that life in a new country offers.
 
In these stark, deeply moving, acutely insightful, and often strikingly humorous stories, we are reminded once again of the storytelling prowess of this superb writer.

The Last Song
Nicholas Sparks Added: 23 Nov 2009 Format: Hardcover
#1 bestselling author Nicholas Sparks's new novel is at once a compelling family drama and a heartrending tale of young love.Seventeen year old Veronica "Ronnie" Miller's life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wilmington, North Carolina. Three years later, she remains angry and alientated from her parents, especially her father...until her mother decides it would be in everyone's best interest if she spent the summer in Wilmington with him. Ronnie's father, a former concert pianist and teacher, is living a quiet life in the beach town, immersed in creating a work of art that will become the centerpiece of a local church.The tale that unfolds is an unforgettable story of love on many levels--first love, love between parents and children -- that demonstrates, as only a Nicholas Sparks novel can, the many ways that love can break our hearts...and heal them.

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Illustrated by Hugh Thomson.
Jane Austen Added: 15 Nov 2009 Format: Paperback
Pride and Prejudice, first published on 28 January 1813, is the most famous of Jane Austen's novels and one of the first "romantic comedies" in the history of the novel.
Elizabeth Bennet is the perfect Austen heroine: intelligent, generous, sensible, incapable of jealousy or any other major sin. That makes her sound like an insufferable goody-goody, but the truth is she's a completely hip character, who if provoked is not above skewering her antagonist with a piece of her exceptionally sharp -- but always polite -- 18th century wit. The point is, you spend the whole book absolutely fixated on the critical question: will Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy hook up?

Coders at Work
Peter Seibel Added: 25 Oct 2009 Format: Paperback
Peter Seibel interviews 15 of the most interesting computer programmers alive today in Coders at Work, offering a brand-new companion volume to Apress’s highly acclaimed best-seller Founders at Work by Jessica Livingston. As the words “at work” suggest, Peter Seibel focuses on how his interviewees tackle the day-to-day work of programming, while revealing much more, like how they became great programmers, how they recognize programming talent in others, and what kinds of problems they find most interesting.
Hundreds of people have suggested names of programmers to interview on the Coders at Work web site: www.codersatwork.com. The complete list was 284 names. Having digested everyone’s feedback, we selected 15 folks who’ve been kind enough to agree to be interviewed: Frances Allen: Pioneer in optimizing compilers, first woman to win the Turing Award (2006) and first female IBM fellow Joe Armstrong: Inventor of Erlang Joshua Bloch: Author of the Java collections framework, now at Google Bernie Cosell: One of the main software guys behind the original ARPANET IMPs and a master debugger Douglas Crockford: JSON founder, JavaScript architect at Yahoo! L. Peter Deutsch: Author of Ghostscript, implementer of Smalltalk-80 at Xerox PARC and Lisp 1.5 on PDP-1 Brendan Eich: Inventor of JavaScript, CTO of the Mozilla Corporation Brad Fitzpatrick: Writer of LiveJournal, OpenID, memcached, and Perlbal Dan Ingalls: Smalltalk implementor and designer Simon Peyton Jones: Coinventor of Haskell and lead designer of Glasgow Haskell Compiler Donald Knuth: Author of The Art of Computer Programming and creator of TeX Peter Norvig: Director of Research at Google and author of the standard text on AI Guy Steele: Coinventor of Scheme and part of the Common Lisp Gang of Five, currently working on Fortress Ken Thompson: Inventor of UNIX Jamie Zawinski: Author of XEmacs and early Netscape/Mozilla hacker What you’ll learn
How the best programmers in the world do their job Who is this book for?
Programmers interested in the point of view of leaders in the field. Programmers looking for approaches that work for some of these outstanding programmers.

American on Purpose: The Improbable Adventures of an Unlikely Patriot
Craig Ferguson Added: 17 Oct 2009 Format: Hardcover
In "American on Purpose", Craig Ferguson delivers a moving and achingly funny memoir of living the American dream as he journeys from the mean streets of Glasgow, Scotland, to the comedic promised land of Hollywood. Along the way he stumbles through several attempts to make his mark—as a punk rock musician, a construction worker, a bouncer, and, tragically, a modern dancer.
To numb the pain of failure, Ferguson found comfort in drugs and alcohol, addictions that eventually led to an aborted suicide attempt. (He forgot to do it when someone offered him a glass of sherry.) But his story has a happy ending: in 1993, the washed-up Ferguson washed up in the United States. Finally sober, Ferguson landed a breakthrough part on the hit sitcom "The Drew Carey Show", a success that eventually led to his role as the host of CBS's "The Late Late Show". By far Ferguson's greatest triumph was his decision to become a U.S. citizen, a milestone he achieved in early 2008, just before his command performance for the president at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner. In "American on Purpose", Craig Ferguson talks a red, white, and blue streak about everything our Founding Fathers feared.

Find Your Strongest Life: What the Happiest and Most Successful Women Do Differently
Marcus Buckingham Added: 04 Oct 2009 Format: Hardcover
In "Find Your Strongest Life", Marcus Buckingham reveals the powerful key to bring fulfillment, peace, and control into a woman's life.
In today's world, can a woman truly "have it all"? A fulfilling career full of passion and performance? A belief that she is truly becoming the best, authentic version of herself? A happy, healthy life outside of work?
Countless women would roll their eyes at the possibility. Work is overwhelming. And for many of them, add the necessities of family and home. It all feels disconnected, out of control, and relentless.
In "Find Your Strongest Life", Marcus Buckingham reveals the powerful key to help women draw enough strength from life to feel fulfilled, loved, successful, and in control. Even more, he helps women reconnect with their purpose and gives a starting point for change. A research-based message that applies to work and life, "Find Your Strongest Life" shows women how they really can have it all . . . the right kind of all.
Check out what women are already saying about "Find Your Strongest Life".
Brooke: When I read the "Ten Myths" that opened the book, I was completely hooked. The statistics are interesting and fresh. I also related to the problem that sets up the book: "Which parts of me should I cut out?" As I read, I could see myself in the Marcus's big-picture analysis and statistics. The early part of the book made me anticipate a breakthrough. And Marcus delivered. Overall, he explains a woman's dilemma perfectly . . . in fresh terms with a unique spin. The main ideas in each chapter were so engaging. Chapter 6 in particular is worth the price of the book. I have already started looking for strong moments in my life, and I want to tell every woman I know to do the same. It is definitely life-changing.
Rebecca: It was really good. It was awesome. And to be honest, perfect timing for my life. I'm REALLY in that place. I can't tell you how badly I've been depressed for the last several months just trying to figure out what to do differently so I'm not so miserable. On one hand, I'm grateful I have a job still. I have a mortgage and bills and all that. But on the other hand...I can't continue to work at a job that gets me nowhere, is not rewarding, not challenging, and mentally drains me. I really have started avoiding my family because I've become so rude and snippy. It's a bad cycle. BUT...God willing this year (sooner than later) I will be able to put this behind me and do what I love :) Even if it's making half as much money. Thanks for thinking of me to read this. I needed it!

Delaney: I was on a plane as I finished reading the manuscript. I was going to be with my daughter who is a law student. As I finished the pages, Marcus helped me gain a new understanding of myself that stood out like a neon sign: I am the person who helps others build infrastructure, get through situations ,and set everything right.  It goes beyond motherhood. I am an event planner by birth. I see big pictures and the components necessary to get from vision to execution.  The content helped me to reframe my own thinking. Very helpful. I'm excited to take the online test and see which role I'm born to play.
 
Jennifer: As a working mother, I found the concept of the book fascinating.  There are daily struggles of trying to balance being the perfect wife, mother, and employee, and the book helped me truly understand how to navigate all those demands.

The Passionate Programmer: Creating a Remarkable Career in Software Development
Chad Fowler Added: 07 Sep 2009 Format: Paperback
Success in today's IT environment requires you to view your career as a business endeavor. In this book, you'll learn how to become an entrepreneur, driving your career in the direction of your choosing. You'll learn how to build your software development career step by step, following the same path that you would follow if you were building, marketing, and selling a product. After all, your skills themselves are a product.

The choices you make about which technologies to focus on and which business domains to master have at least as much impact on your success as your technical knowledge itself--don't let those choices be accidental. We'll walk through all aspects of the decision-making process, so you can ensure that you're investing your time and energy in the right areas.

You'll develop a structured plan for keeping your mind engaged and your skills fresh. You'll learn how to assess your skills in terms of where they fit on the value chain, driving you away from commodity skills and toward those that are in high demand. Through a mix of high-level, thought-provoking essays and tactical "Act on It" sections, you will come away with concrete plans you can put into action immediately. You'll also get a chance to read the perspectives of several highly successful members of our industry from a variety of career paths.

As with any product or service, if nobody knows what you're selling, nobody will buy. We'll walk through the often-neglected world of marketing, and you'll create a plan to market yourself both inside your company and to the industry in general.

Above all, you'll see how you can set the direction of your career, leading to a more fulfilling and remarkable professional life.

Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us
Seth Godin Added: 05 Sep 2009 Format: Hardcover
A tribe is any group of people, large or small, who are connected to one another, a leader, and an idea. For millions of years, humans have been seeking out tribes, be they religious, ethnic, economic, political, or even musical (think of the Deadheads). It’s our nature.

Now the Internet has eliminated the barriers of geography, cost, and time. All those blogs and social networking sites are helping existing tribes get bigger. But more important, they’re enabling countless new tribes to be born—groups of ten or ten thousand or ten million who care about their iPhones, or a political campaign, or a new way to fight global warming.

And so the key question: Who is going to lead us?

The Web can do amazing things, but it can’t provide leadership. That still has to come from individuals— people just like you who have passion about something. The explosion in tribes means that anyone who wants to make a difference now has the tools at her fingertips.

If you think leadership is for other people, think again—leaders come in surprising packages. Consider Joel Spolsky and his international tribe of scary-smart software engineers. Or Gary Vaynerhuck, a wine expert with a devoted following of enthusiasts. Chris Sharma leads a tribe of rock climbers up impossible cliff faces, while Mich Mathews, a VP at Microsoft, runs her internal tribe of marketers from her cube in Seattle. All they have in common is the desire to change things, the ability to connect a tribe, and the willingness to lead.

If you ignore this opportunity, you risk turning into a “sheepwalker”—someone who fights to protect the status quo at all costs, never asking if obedience is doing you (or your organization) any good. Sheepwalkers don’t do very well these days.

Tribes will make you think (really think) about the opportunities in leading your fellow employees, customers, investors, believers, hobbyists, or readers. . . . It’s not easy, but it’s easier than you think.

Gifts from the Mountain: Simple Truths for Life's Complexities
Eileen Mcdargh Added: 22 Aug 2009 Format: Hardcover
Whether you are a world-weary worker juggling the demands of a hectic life or a seeker of soul-satisfying experiences, this deceptively simple book is your key to refresh, renew, rethink and recharge.
From an unexpectedly arduous backpacking trip, Eileen McDargh discovers truths from the experience. Deep in grime, grit, and grace-filled mornings, she finds insights for business, for relationships, for family, for life, and for the soul.
Whether musing on wild onions or mosquitoes, river crossings or thunderbolts, Eileen shares lessons for understanding the mundane and the magnificent, the difficult and the delightful, the ordinary and the extraordinary. "Mountains" become a lyrical metaphor for coping with life's complexities.
You'll be reminded of what you may already know but have likely forgotten in the tension of time constraints, work worries, and family frustrations. McDargh will jar your memory, evoke new awareness, and spur you to action.
Illustrated with stunning watercolor paintings, "Gifts from the Mountain" helps you to pay attention to the process of life and take joy in the journey.

The Random Walk Guide To Investing
Burton G. Malkiel Ph.D. Added: 11 May 2009 Format: Paperback
Simply put, the essential first book for any investor.
Based on the million-copy seller A Random Walk Down Wall Street, this concise new guide by influential and irreverent author Burton G. Malkiel takes the mystery out of personal finance by outlining Malkiel's own ten-point plan for success. Easy to read and easy to follow, this practical book aimed at the investment novice cuts through the jargon to give readers the confidence and knowledge to make wise investment decisions that will provide consistent returns.
Beginning with the basics—"Fire your investment advisor" and "Start now"—Malkiel carefully and with good-humored authority lays out the rest of his "blessedly brief bare-bones guide to investing" ("Business Bookpage").

Glück kommt selten allein...
Eckart Von Hirschhausen Added: 10 May 2009 Format: Gebundene Ausgabe
Interview mit Eckart von Hirschhausen

Kaum ein deutscher Comedian dürfte derzeit erfolgreicher sein! Dr. Eckart von Hirschhausen füllt mit seinem Bühnenprogramm Hallen in ganz Deutschland, ist Dauergast im Fernsehen und schreibt nebenbei noch Bestseller. Im Amazon-Interview erzählt er, was die Leser in seinem Glück-Buch erwartet.
Frage: „Glück ist machbar" - Ihre Botschaft muss alle überzeugten Pessimisten und Misanthropen aufschrecken. Will „Glück kommt selten allein" am Ende gar eine Anleitung zum glücklicheren Leben sein?
von Hirschhausen: Das Buch enthält mindestens 20% weniger Ratschläge als konventionelle Glücksbücher. Wer es liest, muss nicht glücklicher werden. Wer will, kann auch anschließend unglücklicher sein - aber auf höherem Niveau. Pessimisten behalten öfter Recht - aber will man Recht behalten oder glücklich sein? Beides geht nicht.
Frage: Was machen Sie in „Glück kommt selten allein" anders als die unzähligen selbsternannten Glücks-Gurus, die uns mit Affirmations-Sprüchen quälen?
von Hirschhausen: Die unliebsame Wahrheit ist: Wir sind gut darin, das Glück zu suchen. Aber immanent schlecht darin, es zu behalten. Mit einfachen Glücksrezepten ist es wie mit Diäten oder Erkältungsmitteln: Gäbe es ein gutes Rezept für alle - es hätte sich schon herumgesprochen. Meine zentrale Idee lautet: Glück ist paradox. Viele Glücks-Gurus, Philosophen und Ratschlag-Austeiler versuchen Glück auf EINE Formel zu bringen. Ich mache das genaue Gegenteil: Für mich ist das Widersprüchliche interessant. Glück ist nicht ein Gefühl, sondern mindestens fünf verschiedene, deshalb gibt es auch 5 Kapitel: Zum Zufall, der Gemeinschaft, dem Genuss, dem Tun und dem Lassen.
Der Hauptunterschied zu vielen Gurus ist, dass mein Buch nicht einfach etwas behauptet, sondern über fünf Jahre Recherchearbeit darin stecken. Und dabei bin ich auf kuriose Dinge gestoßen: Schönheit macht traurig, Sex wird überschätzt, und lange Ladenöffnungszeiten lähmen die Kauflust. Dafür macht Geld glücklich, beim Ausgeben, nicht beim Verdienen. Der größte Unterschied zu anderen Glückbüchern ist: Es gibt viel zu lachen. Über unsere Macken, unsere Suche nach dem Glück an den falschen Orten und über mich.
Frage: Wie viel „Erfahrungswissen" eines Glücklichen steckt eigentlich in Ihrem neuen Buch?
von Hirschhausen: Jede Menge. Es ist das persönlichste der drei Bücher, die ich bisher geschrieben habe. Es enthält meine Erfahrungen als Arzt im Bereich Neurologie und Psychiatrie, es ist die Quintessenz der Glücksforschung der letzten zehn Jahre, und es enthält meine eigenen Versuche, glücklich zu werden und zu scheitern. Und viele meiner Lieblingswitze. Wenn man sich vornimmt zu scheitern, und man schafft es, ist man dann überhaupt gescheitert?
Frage: Als eines Ihrer Betätigungsfelder geben Sie „Humortrainer" an. Was kann man sich darunter vorstellen? Hat es etwas mit der indischen Lach-Bewegung zu tun?
von Hirschhausen: Lachyoga praktiziert Lachen ohne Grund. Dagegen habe ich nichts, das wirkt tatsächlich. Aber ich bin ein altmodischer Mensch und lache am liebsten mit Grund. Als Trainer unterstütze ich Menschen, ihren Sinn für Humor zu finden und rüberzubringen. Hauptsächlich geht es darum, Vorträge und Präsentationen „aufzupeppen". Denn nicht alles, was man mit einem ernsten Gesicht tut, ist deshalb vernünftig. Und „Merkwürdiges" merkt sich besser. Humor ist die wirksamste Art, das Herz der Menschen zu bewegen. Von zwei Seiten: vom Kopf und gleichzeitig vom Zwerchfell.
Frage: Stimmt es eigentlich, dass es Ärzte überhaupt nicht schätzen, wenn der Patient mal ein Späßchen wagt?
von Hirschhausen: Dazu kann ich nur sagen: 96,8 % aller Statistiken sind gefälscht. So etwas Allgemeines würde ich nie sagen. Noch nicht mal über Allgemeinmediziner. Höchstens über Orthopäden.
Frage: Ihr persönlicher Lieblingswitz, der beginnt: „Kommt ein Mann zum Arzt..."?
von Hirschhausen: Der steht im Buch - sogar zwei Mal. Wenn ich ihn jetzt verrate, ist nicht nur der Witz verraten, auch ich bin es.

The Big Leap: Conquer Your Hidden Fear and Take Life to the Next Level
Gay Hendricks Added: 02 May 2009 Format: Hardcover
Most of us believe that we will finally feel satisfied and content with our lives when we get the good news we have been waiting for, find a healthy relationship, or achieve one of our personal goals. However, this rarely happens. Good fortune is often followed by negative emotions that overtake us and result in destructive behaviors. "I don't deserve this," "this is too good to be true," or any number of harmful thought patterns prevent us from experiencing the joy and satisfaction we have earned. Sound familiar? This is what "New York Times" bestselling author Gay Hendricks calls the Upper Limit Problem, a negative emotional reaction that occurs when anything positive enters our lives. The Upper Limit Problem not only prevents happiness, but it actually stops us from achieving our goals. It is the ultimate life roadblock.
In "The Big Leap", Hendricks reveals a simple yet comprehensive program for overcoming this barrier to happiness and fulfillment, presented in a way that engages both the mind and heart. Working closely with more than one thousand extraordinary achievers in business and the arts—from rock stars to Fortune 500 executives—whose stories are featured in these pages, the book describes the four hidden fears that are at the root of the Upper Limit Problem.
"The Big Leap" delivers a proven method for first identifying which of these four fears prevents us from reaching our personal upper limit, and then breaking through that limitation to achieve what Hendricks refers to as our Zone of Genius. Hendricks provides a clear path for achieving our true potential and attaining not only financial success but also success in love and life.

The Productive Programmer
Neal Ford Added: 26 Apr 2009 Format: Paperback
Anyone who develops software for a living needs a proven way to produce it better, faster, and cheaper. The Productive Programmer offers critical timesaving and productivity tools that you can adopt right away, no matter what platform you use. Master developer Neal Ford not only offers advice on the mechanics of productivity-how to work smarter, spurn interruptions, get the most out your computer, and avoid repetition-he also details valuable practices that will help you elude common traps, improve your code, and become more valuable to your team. You'll learn to: Write the test before you write the code Manage the lifecycle of your objects fastidiously Build only what you need now, not what you might need later Apply ancient philosophies to software development Question authority, rather than blindly adhere to standards Make hard things easier and impossible things possible through meta-programming Be sure all code within a method is at the same level of abstraction Pick the right editor and assemble the best tools for the job
This isn't theory, but the fruits of Ford's real-world experience as an Application Architect at the global IT consultancy ThoughtWorks. Whether you're a beginner or a pro with years of experience, you'll improve your work and your career with the simple and straightforward principles in The Productive Programmer.

97 Things Every Software Architect Should Know
Richard Monson-Haefel Added: 04 Apr 2009 Format: Paperback
In this truly unique technical book, today's leading software architects present valuable principles on key development issues that go way beyond technology. More than four dozen architects -- including Neal Ford, Michael Nygard, and Bill de hOra -- offer advice for communicating with stakeholders, eliminating complexity, empowering developers, and many more practical lessons they've learned from years of experience. Among the 97 principles in this book, you'll find useful advice such as:
Don't Put Your Resume Ahead of the Requirements (Nitin Borwankar) Chances Are, Your Biggest Problem Isn't Technical (Mark Ramm) Communication Is King; Clarity and Leadership, Its Humble Servants (Mark Richards) Simplicity Before Generality, Use Before Reuse (Kevlin Henney) For the End User, the Interface Is the System (Vinayak Hegde) It's Never Too Early to Think About Performance (Rebecca Parsons)
To be successful as a software architect, you need to master both business and technology. This book tells you what top software architects think is important and how they approach a project. If you want to enhance your career, 97 Things Every Software Architect Should Know is essential reading.

Pragmatic Unit Testing in Java with JUnit
Andy Hunt, Dave Thomas Added: 06 Mar 2009 Format: Paperback
Learn how to improve your Java coding skills using unit testing. Despite it's name, unit testing is really a coding technique, not a testing technique. Unit testing is done by programmers, for programmers. It's primarily for our benefit: we get improved confidence in our code, better ability to make deadlines, less time spent in the debugger, and less time beating on the code to make it work correctly.
This book shows how to write tests, but more importantly, it goes where other books fear to tread and gives you concrete advice and examples of what to test--the common things that go wrong in all of our programs. Discover the tricky hiding places where bugs breed, and how to catch them using the freely available JUnit framework. It's easy to learn how to think of all the things in your code that are likely to break. We'll show you how with helpful mnemonics, summarized in a handy tip sheet (also available from our website) to help you remember all this stuff.
With this book you will:
Write better code, and take less time to write it
Discover the tricky places where bugs breed
Learn how to think of all the things that could go wrong
Test individual pieces of code without having to include the whole project
Test effectively with the whole team
We'll also cover how to use Mock Objects for testing, how to write high quality test code, and how to use unit testing to improve your design skills. We'll show you frequent "gotchas"--along with the fixes--to save you time when problems come up. We'll show you how with helpful mnemonics, summarized in a handy tip sheet (also available from our website).
But the best part is that you don't need a sweeping mandate to change your whole team or your whole company. You don't need to adopt Extreme Programming or Test-Driven Development, or change your development process in order to reap the proven benefits of unit testing. You can start unit testing, the pragmatic way, right away.
Other Pragmatic Programmer books:
Pragmatic Project Automation: How to Build, Deploy, and Monitor Java Applications (Mike Clark)
Pragmatic Unit Testing in C# with NUnit (Andy Hunt and Dave Thomas)
Pragmatic Version Control using CVS (Dave Thomas and Andy Hunt)

Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, 2nd Edition
Steve Krug Added: 01 Feb 2009 Format: Paperback
Usability design is one of the most important--yet often least attractive--tasks for a Web developer. In "Don't Make Me Think", author Steve Krug lightens up the subject with good humor and excellent, to-the-point examples.
The title of the book is its chief personal design premise. All of the tips, techniques, and examples presented revolve around users being able to surf merrily through a well-designed site with minimal cognitive strain. Readers will quickly come to agree with many of the book's assumptions, such as "We don't read pages--we scan them" and "We don't figure out how things work--we muddle through." Coming to grips with such hard facts sets the stage for Web design that then produces topnotch sites.
Using an attractive mix of full-color screen shots, cute cartoons and diagrams, and informative sidebars, the book keeps your attention and drives home some crucial points. Much of the content is devoted to proper use of conventions and content layout, and the "before and after" examples are superb. Topics such as the wise use of rollovers and usability testing are covered using a consistently practical approach.
This is the type of book you can blow through in a couple of evenings. But despite its conciseness, it will give you an expert's ability to judge Web design. You'll never form a first impression of a site in the same way again. "--Stephen W. Plain"
Topics covered: User patterns Designing for scanning Wise use of copy Navigation design Home page layout Usability testing

Strengths Finder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup's Now, Discover Your Strengths [With Access Code]
Tom Rath Added: 27 Jan 2009 Format: Hardcover
You will probably find no head-snapping revelations in this book if you have already read Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman's First, Break All the Rules and/or Buckingham and Donald O. Clifton's Now, Discover Your Strengths (especially the latter). Nor does Tom Rath claim to offer any. Rather, this is a new and upgraded edition of the Gallup organization's previous online test (StrengthsFinder 1.0) that enables those who take it to identify and measure their talents relative to "more than 5,000 new personalized Strengths Insights that we have discovered in recent years."



In Rath's two previously published books, How Full Is Your Bucket? co-authored with Donald O. Clifton and Vital Friends, he shares his own reactions to an abundance of research data which reveals the importance of two separate but related forces which have profound impact on the workplace: getting strengths in alignment with work to be done and then developing them even more with strategic delegation and close supervision.



What we have in this book, Strengths Finder 2.0, is a wealth of new research material that Rath examines with exceptional precision and uncommon eloquence. I strongly encourage each reader to take full advantage of the self-diagnostic opportunities that both Rath and the Gallup organization generously offer. Of course, once various exercises are completed, a significant challenge remains: to take effective and productive action to apply what has been learned. It is helpful to be aware of what Jeffrey Pfeffer and Robert I. Sutton so aptly characterize as the "knowing-doing" and "doing-knowing" gaps. It is also helpful to recall Peter Drucker's observation more than 40 years ago: "There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all."



Presumably Rath agrees that, more often than not, the Yoda is right: "Do or do not. There is no try."

The Paper Moon
Andrea Camilleri Added: 19 Jan 2009 Format: Paperback
The latest mystery in Andrea Camilleri’s internationally bestselling Inspector Montalbano series

With their dark sophistication and dry humor, Andrea Camilleri’s classic crime novels continue to win more and more fans in America. The latest installment of the popular mystery series finds the moody Inspector Montalbano further beset by the existential questions that have been plaguing him of late. But he doesn’t have much time to wax philosophical before the gruesome murder of a man—shot at point-blank range in the face with his pants down—commands his attention. Add two evasive, beautiful women as prime suspects, some dirty cocaine, mysterious computer codes, and a series of threatening letters, and things soon get very complicated at the police headquarters in Vigàta.

Pragmatic Thinking and Learning: Refactor Your Wetware
Andy Hunt Added: 14 Dec 2008 Format: Paperback
Together we'll journey together through bits of cognitive and neuroscience, learning and behavioral theory. You'll discover some surprising aspects of how our brains work, and see how you can beat the system to improve your own learning and thinking skills.
In this book you'll learn how to:

Use the Dreyfus Model of Skill Acquisition to become more expert Leverage the architecture of the brain to strengthen different thinking modes Avoid common "known bugs" in your mind Learn more deliberately and more effectively Manage knowledge more efficiently
Software development happens in your head. Not in an editor, IDE, or design tool. It's time to take a pragmatic approach to thinking and learning, and start to refactor-and redesign-your brain.

The Road of Lost Innocence: As a girl she was sold into sexual slavery, but now she rescues others. The true story of a Cambodian heroine.
Somaly Mam Added: 30 Nov 2008 Format: Hardcover
A portion of the proceeds of this book will be donated to the Somaly Mam Foundation.
A riveting, raw, and beautiful memoir of tragedy and hope

Born in a village deep in the Cambodian forest, Somaly Mam was sold into sexual slavery by her grandfather when she was twelve years old. For the next decade she was shuttled through the brothels that make up the sprawling sex trade of Southeast Asia. Trapped in this dangerous and desperate world, she suffered the brutality and horrors of human trafficking—rape, torture, deprivation—until she managed to escape with the help of a French aid worker. Emboldened by her newfound freedom, education, and security, Somaly blossomed but remained haunted by the girls in the brothels she left behind.
Written in exquisite, spare, unflinching prose, "The Road of Lost Innocence" recounts the experiences of her early life and tells the story of her awakening as an activist and her harrowing and brave fight against the powerful and corrupt forces that steal the lives of these girls. She has orchestrated raids on brothels and rescued sex workers, some as young as five and six; she has built shelters, started schools, and founded an organization that has so far saved more than four thousand women and children in Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos. Her memoir will leave you awestruck by her tenacity and courage and will renew your faith in the power of an individual to bring about change.
To learn more about how you can help fight human trafficking, visit the foundation’s website: www.somaly.org.

The Conscience of a Liberal
Paul Krugman Added: 27 Nov 2008 Format: Hardcover
This wholly original new work by the best-selling author of "The Great Unraveling" challenges America to reclaim the values that made it great.

With this major new volume, Paul Krugman, today's most widely read economist, studies the past eighty years of American history, from the reforms that tamed the harsh inequality of the Gilded Age to the unraveling of that achievement and the reemergence of immense economic and political inequality since the 1970s. Seeking to understand both what happened to middle-class America and what it will take to achieve a "new New Deal," Krugman has created his finest book to date, a work that weaves together a nuanced account of three generations of history with sharp political, social, and economic analysis. This book, written with Krugman's trademark ability to explain complex issues simply, will transform the debate about American social policy in much the same way as did John Kenneth Galbraith's deeply influential book, "The Affluent Society".

Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School
John Medina Added: 22 Nov 2008 Format: Hardcover
Most of us have no idea what's really going on inside our heads. Yet brain scientists have uncovered details every business leader, parent, and teacher should know--such as the brain's need for physical activity to work at its best.
How do we learn? What exactly do sleep and stress do to our brains? Why is multi-tasking a myth? Why is it so easy to forget--and so important to repeat new information? Is it true that men and women have different brains?
In "Brain Rules", molecular biologist Dr. John Medina shares his lifelong interest in how the brain sciences might influence the way we teach our children and the way we work. In each chapter, he describes a brain rule--what scientists know for sure about how our brains work--and then offers transformative ideas for our daily lives.
Medina's fascinating stories and sense of humor breathe life into brain science. You'll learn why Michael Jordan was no good at baseball. You'll peer over a surgeon's shoulder as he finds, to his surprise, that we have a Jennifer Aniston neuron. You'll meet a boy who has an amazing memory for music but can't tie his own shoes.
You will discover how:

- Every brain is wired differently
- Exercise improves cognition
- We are designed to never stop learning and exploring
- Memories are volatile
- Sleep is powerfully linked with the ability to learn
- Vision trumps all of the other senses
- Stress changes the way we learn

In the end, you'll understand how your brain really works--and how to get the most out of it.
About the DVD The "Brain Rules" DVD, included with this book, is a lively tour of the 12 brain rules. You will experience firsthand Medina's rare gift for making science fun, accessible, and relevant. The DVD will take your understanding of the book to the next level.

Hot, Flat, and Crowded: Why We Need a Green Revolution--and How It Can Renew America
Thomas L. Friedman Added: 11 Oct 2008 Format: Hardcover
Thomas L. Friedman’s no. 1 bestseller "The World Is Flat "has helped millions of readers to see globalization in a new way. Now Friedman brings a fresh outlook to the crises of destabilizing climate change and rising competition for energy—both of which could poison our world if we do not act quickly and collectively. His argument speaks to all of us who are concerned about the state of America in the global future.
Friedman proposes that an ambitious national strategy— which he calls “Geo-Greenism”—is not only what we need to save the planet from overheating; it is what we need to make America healthier, richer, more innovative, more productive, and more secure.
As in "The World Is Flat", he explains a new era—the Energy-Climate era—through an illuminating account of recent events. He shows how 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the flattening of the world by the Internet (which brought 3 billion new consumers onto the world stage) have combined to bring climate and energy issues to Main Street. But they have not gone very far down Main Street; the much-touted “green revolution” has hardly begun. With all that in mind, Friedman sets out the clean-technology breakthroughs we, and the world, will need; he shows that the ET (Energy Technology) revolution will be both transformative and disruptive; and he explains why America must lead this revolution—with the first Green President and a Green New Deal, spurred by the Greenest Generation.
"Hot, Flat, and Crowded "is classic Thomas L. Friedman—fearless, incisive, forward-looking, and rich in surprising common sense about the world we live in today.

Tears of the Desert: A Memoir of Survival in Darfur
Halima Bashir, Damien Lewis Added: 21 Sep 2008 Format: Hardcover
Like the single white eyelash that graces her row of dark lashes–seen by her people as a mark of good fortune–Halima Bashir’s story stands out. Tears of the Desert is the first memoir ever written by a woman caught up in the war in Darfur. It is a survivor’s tale of a conflicted country, a resilient people, and the uncompromising spirit of a young woman who refused to be silenced.

Born into the Zaghawa tribe in the Sudanese desert, Halima was doted on by her father, a cattle herder, and kept in line by her formidable grandmother. A politically astute man, Halima’s father saw to it that his daughter received a good education away from their rural surroundings. Halima excelled in her studies and exams, surpassing even the privileged Arab girls who looked down their noses at the black Africans. With her love of learning and her father’s support, Halima went on to study medicine, and at twenty-four became her village’s first formal doctor.

Yet not even the symbol of good luck that dotted her eye could protect her from the encroaching conflict that would consume her land. Janjaweed Arab militias started savagely assaulting the Zaghawa, often with the backing of the Sudanese military. Then, in early 2004, the Janjaweed attacked Bashir’s village and surrounding areas, raping forty-two schoolgirls and their teachers. Bashir, who treated the traumatized victims, some as young as eight years old, could no longer remain quiet. But breaking her silence ignited a horrifying turn of events.

In this harrowing and heartbreaking account, Halima Bashir sheds light on the hundreds of thousands of innocent lives being eradicated by what is fast becoming one of the most terrifying genocides of the twenty-first century. Raw and riveting, Tears of the Desert is more than just a memoir–it is Halima Bashir’s global call to action.

Books: A Memoir
Larry Mcmurtry Added: 13 Sep 2008 Format: Hardcover
In a prolific life of singular literary achievement, Larry McMurtry has succeeded in a variety of genres: in coming-of-age novels like "The Last Picture Show"; in collections of essays like "In a Narrow Grave"; and in the reinvention of the Western on a grand scale in his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, "Lonesome Dove". Now, in "Books: A Memoir", McMurtry writes about his endless passion for books: as a boy growing up in a largely "bookless" world; as a young man devouring the vastness of literature with astonishing energy; as a fledgling writer and family man; and above all, as one of America's most prominent bookmen. He takes us on his journey to becoming an astute, adventurous book scout and collector who would eventually open stores of rare and collectible editions in Georgetown, Houston, and finally, in his previously "bookless" hometown of Archer City, Texas.
In this work of extraordinary charm, grace, and good humor, McMurtry recounts his life as both a reader and a writer, how the countless books he has read worked to form his literary tastes, while giving us a lively look at the eccentrics who collect, sell, or simply lust after rare volumes. "Books: A Memoir "is like the best kind of diary -- full of McMurtry's wonderful anecdotes, amazing characters, engaging gossip, and shrewd observations about authors, book people, literature, and the author himself. At once chatty, revealing, and deeply satisfying, Books is, like McMurtry, erudite, life loving, and filled with excellent stories. It is a book to be savored and enjoyed again and again.

The Wednesday Sisters: A Novel
Meg Waite Clayton Added: 31 Aug 2008 Format: Hardcover
Friendship, loyalty, and love lie at the heart of Meg Waite Clayton’s beautifully written, poignant, and sweeping novel of five women who, over the course of four decades, come to redefine what it means to be family.

For thirty-five years, Frankie, Linda, Kath, Brett, and Ally have met every Wednesday at the park near their homes in Palo Alto, California. Defined when they first meet by what their husbands do, the young homemakers and mothers are far removed from the Summer of Love that has enveloped most of the Bay Area in 1967. These “Wednesday Sisters” seem to have little in common: Frankie is a timid transplant from Chicago, brutally blunt Linda is a remarkable athlete, Kath is a Kentucky debutante, quiet Ally has a secret, and quirky, ultra-intelligent Brett wears little white gloves with her miniskirts. But they are bonded by a shared love of both literature–Fitzgerald, Eliot, Austen, du Maurier, Plath, and Dickens–and the Miss America Pageant, which they watch together every year.

As the years roll on and their children grow, the quintet forms a writers circle to express their hopes and dreams through poems, stories, and, eventually, books. Along the way, they experience history in the making: Vietnam, the race for the moon, and a women’s movement that challenges everything they have ever thought about themselves, while at the same time supporting one another through changes in their personal lives brought on by infidelity, longing, illness, failure, and success.

Humorous and moving, The Wednesday Sisters is a literary feast for book lovers that earns a place among those popular works that honor the joyful, mysterious, unbreakable bonds between friends.

Beginning Ruby: From Novice to Professional
Peter Cooper Added: 10 Aug 2008 Format: Paperback

Ruby is perhaps best known as the engine powering the hugely popular Ruby on Rails web framework. However, it is an extremely powerful and versatile programming language in its own right. It focuses on simplicity and offers a fully object-oriented environment.
"Beginning Ruby" is a thoroughly contemporary guide for every type of reader wanting to learn Ruby, from novice programmers to web developers to Ruby newcomers. It starts by explaining the principles behind object-oriented programming and within a few chapters builds toward creating a genuine Ruby application.
The book then explains key Ruby principles, such as classes and objects; projects, modules, and libraries; and other aspects of Ruby such as database access. In addition, Ruby on Rails is covered in depth, and the books appendixes provide essential reference information as well as a primer for experienced programmers.

Wir fliegen
Peter Stamm Added: 02 Aug 2008 Format: Hardcover

The Friday Night Knitting Club
Kate Jacobs Added: 31 Jul 2008 Format: Paperback
The "New York Times" bestselling sensation that's ""Steel Magnolias" set in Manhattan" ("USA Today")-now in paperback. Juggling the demands of her yarn shop and single-handedly raising a teenage daughter has made Georgia Walker grateful for her Friday Night Knitting Club. Her friends are happy to escape their lives too, even for just a few hours. But when Georgia's ex suddenly reappears, demanding a role in their daughter's life, her whole world is shattered. Luckily, Georgia's friends are there, sharing their own tales of intimacy, heartbreak, and miracle making. And when the unthinkable happens, these women will discover that what they've created isn't just a knitting club: it's a sisterhood.

Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace . . . One School at a Time
Greg Mortenson, David Oliver Relin Added: 13 Jul 2008 Format: Paperback
The astonishing, uplifting story of a real-life Indiana Jones and his humanitarian campaign to use education to combat terrorism in the Taliban’s backyard
Anyone who despairs of the individual’s power to change lives has to read the story of Greg Mortenson, a homeless mountaineer who, following a 1993 climb of Pakistan’s treacherous K2, was inspired by a chance encounter with impoverished mountain villagers and promised to build them a school. Over the next decade he built fifty-five schools—especially for girls—that offer a balanced education in one of the most isolated and dangerous regions on earth. As it chronicles Mortenson’s quest, which has brought him into conflict with both enraged Islamists and uncomprehending Americans, "Three Cups of Tea" combines adventure with a celebration of the humanitarian spirit.

The Last Lecture
Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow Added: 17 Jun 2008 Format: Audio CD
"We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand."
--Randy Pausch
A lot of professors give talks titled ""The Last Lecture"." Professors are asked to consider their demise and to ruminate on what matters most to them. And while they speak, audiences can't help but mull the same question: What wisdom would we impart to the world if we knew it was our last chance? If we had to vanish tomorrow, what would we want as our legacy?
When Randy Pausch, a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon, was asked to give such a lecture, he didn't have to imagine it as his last, since he had recently been diagnosed with terminal cancer. But the lecture he gave--"Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams"--wasn't about dying. It was about the importance of overcoming obstacles, of enabling the dreams of others, of seizing every moment (because "time is all you have...and you may find one day that you have less than you think"). It was a summation of everything Randy had come to believe. It was about living.
In this book, Randy Pausch has combined the humor, inspiration and intelligence that made his lecture such a phenomenon and given it an indelible form. It is a book that will be shared for generations to come. Questions for Randy Pausch
We were shy about barging in on Randy Pausch's valuable time to ask him a few questions about his expansion of his famous Last Lecture into the book by the same name, but he was gracious enough to take a moment to answer. (See Randy to the right with his kids, Dylan, Logan, and Chloe.) As anyone who has watched the lecture or read the book will understand, the really crucial question is the last one, and we weren't surprised to learn that the "secret" to winning giant stuffed animals on the midway, like most anything else, is sheer persistence.
Amazon.com: I apologize for asking a question you must get far more often than you'd like, but how are you feeling?
Pausch: The tumors are not yet large enough to affect my health, so all the problems are related to the chemotherapy. I have neuropathy (numbness in fingers and toes), and varying degrees of GI discomfort, mild nausea, and fatigue. Occasionally I have an unusually bad reaction to a chemo infusion (last week, I spiked a 103 fever), but all of this is a small price to pay for walkin' around.
Amazon.com: Your lecture at Carnegie Mellon has reached millions of people, but even with the short time you apparently have, you wanted to write a book. What did you want to say in a book that you weren't able to say in the lecture?
Pausch: Well, the lecture was written quickly--in under a week. And it was time-limited. I had a great six-hour lecture I could give, but I suspect it would have been less popular at that length ;-).
A book allows me to cover many, many more stories from my life and the attendant lessons I hope my kids can take from them. Also, much of my lecture at Carnegie Mellon focused on the professional side of my life--my students, colleagues and career. The book is a far more personal look at my childhood dreams and all the lessons I've learned. Putting words on paper, I've found, was a better way for me to share all the yearnings I have regarding my wife, children and other loved ones. I knew I couldn't have gone into those subjects on stage without getting emotional.
Amazon.com: You talk about the importance--and the possibility!--of following your childhood dreams, and of keeping that childlike sense of wonder. But are there things you didn't learn until you were a grownup that helped you do that?
Pausch: That's a great question. I think the most important thing I learned as I grew older was that you can't get anywhere without help. That means people have to want to help you, and that begs the question: What kind of person do other people seem to want to help? That strikes me as a pretty good operational answer to the existential question: "What kind of person should you try to be?"
Amazon.com: One of the things that struck me most about your talk was how many "other" people you talked about. You made me want to meet them and work with them--and believe me, I wouldn't make much of a computer scientist. Do you think the people you've brought together will be your legacy as well?
Pausch: Like any teacher, my students are my biggest professional legacy. I'd like to think that the people I've crossed paths with have learned something from me, and I know I learned a great deal from them, for which I am very grateful. Certainly, I've dedicated a lot of my teaching to helping young folks realize how they need to be able to work with other people--especially other people who are very different from themselves.
Amazon.com: And last, the most important question: What's the secret for knocking down those milk bottles on the midway?
Pausch: Two-part answer:      1) long arms      2) discretionary income / persistence
Actually, I was never good at the milk bottles. I'm more of a ring toss and softball-in-milk-can guy, myself. More seriously, though, most people try these games once, don't win immediately, and then give up. I've won *lots* of midway stuffed animals, but I don't ever recall winning one on the very first try. Nor did I expect to. That's why I think midway games are a great metaphor for life.

Inside Steve's Brain
Leander Kahney Added: 25 May 2008 Format: Hardcover
Steve Jobs has turned his personality traits into a business philosophy. Here’s how he does it.

It’s hard to believe that one man revolutionized computers in the 1970s and ’80s (with the Apple II and the Mac), animated movies in the 1990s (with Pixar), and digital music in the 2000s (with the iPod and iTunes). No wonder some people worship him like a god. On the other hand, stories of his epic tantrums and general bad behavior are legendary.

"Inside Steve’s Brain" cuts through the cult of personality that surrounds Jobs to unearth the secrets to his unbelievable results. It reveals the real Steve Jobs—not his heart or his famous temper, but his mind. So what’s really inside Steve’s brain? According to Leander Kahney, who has covered Jobs since the early 1990s, it’s a fascinating bundle of contradictions.

Jobs is an elitist who thinks most people are bozos—but he makes gadgets so easy to use, a bozo can master them.

He’s a mercurial obsessive with a filthy temper—but he forges deep partnerships with creative geniuses like Steve Wozniak, Jonathan Ive, and John Lasseter.

He’s a Buddhist and anti-materialist—but he produces mass-market products in Asian factories, and he promotes them with absolute mastery of the crassest medium, advertising.

In short, Jobs has embraced the traits that some consider flaws—narcissism, perfectionism, the desire for total control—to lead Apple and Pixar to triumph against steep odds. And in the process, he has become a self-made billionaire.

In "Inside Steve’s Brain", Kahney distills the principles that guide Jobs as he launches killer products, attracts fanatically loyal customers, and manages some of the world’s most powerful brands.

The result is this unique book about Steve Jobs that is part biography and part leadership guide, and impossible to put down. It gives you a peek inside Steve’s brain, and might even teach you something about how to build your own culture of innovation.

Learning to Bow: Inside the Heart of Japan
Bruce Feiler Added: 10 May 2008 Format: Paperback

"Learning to Bow" has been heralded as one of the funniest, liveliest, and most insightful books ever written about the clash of cultures between America and Japan. With warmth and candor, Bruce Feiler recounts the year he spent as a teacher in a small rural town. Beginning with a ritual outdoor bath and culminating in an all-night trek to the top of Mt. Fuji, Feiler teaches his students about American culture, while they teach him everything from how to properly address an envelope to how to date a Japanese girl.

Der letzte Weynfeldt
Martin Suter Added: 10 May 2008 Format: Gebundene Ausgabe
Der Mittfünfziger Adrian Weynfeldt, Kunstexperte und Designsammler, steht zwischen zwei Welten. Freunde seines Alters hat er keine: nur viel jüngere, die ihn - „das etwas exotische Original“ -- nicht zuletzt wegen seines Reichtums umgaren, und ältere, die noch seine Eltern kannten. Mit ersteren besucht Weynfeldt Clubs und Lounges, „für die er sich allein zu alt gefühlt hätte“. Mit letzteren geht er in gutbürgerliche Restaurants und verbringt „angestrengt lustige“ Abende. Dazwischen hat Weynfeldt nichts dagegen, allein zu sein. Im Gegenteil: Er genießt die Einsamkeit. Sex spielt in seinem Leben eigentlich keine Rolle mehr.
Mit seinen älteren Freunden ist Weynfeldt auch unterwegs gewesen, als sich sein Leben schlagartig ändert. In einer Bar wird er von einer jüngeren Frau angesprochen, die ihm wie eine Wiedergängerin einer verflossenen Liebe erscheint. Weynfeldt lässt sich mit ihr ein, nach zahlreichen Martini und Gin-Fizz findet man sich, reichlich angetrunken, im Bett des Junggesellen wieder. Zum Äußersten kommt es zunächst nicht („'Und bumsen?' fragte sie schlaftrunken. ,Morgen', antwortete er. ,Falls du dann noch magst'. ,Okay'“). Als es dann doch noch zum Äußersten kommt, ist dieses Äußerste anders als von Weynfeldt erwartet. Am nächsten Morgen nämlich droht die Frau, sich vom Balkon seiner Wohnung zu stürzen. Als er sie rettet, legt sie ihr Schicksal in seine Hand. Weynfeldt soll ihre Schwierigkeiten aus der Welt schaffen. Und dann entwickelt sich die Geschichte doch noch ganz anders, als es der Junggeselle erwartet hat...
Mit Romanen wie "Small World" und "Der Teufel von Mailand" hat sich der Schweizer Autor Martin Suter eine beachtliche Fangemeinde zusammengeschrieben. Das kann man gut verstehen. Denn seine Bücher bestechen nicht nur durch eine faszinierend präzise Sprache mit ganz eigenem Duktus, sondern auch durch gut gemachte, fesselnde Plots. "Der letzte Weynfeldt" hat wieder das Zeug dazu, Suters Fangemeinde noch ein wenig zu vergrößern: spannend geschrieben und unberechenbar bis zum Schluss. -- "Stefan Kellerer, Literaturanzeiger.de"

Flowers in your hair: Wie man in San Francisco glücklich wird
Milena Moser Added: 10 May 2008 Format: Gebundene Ausgabe
Als ich den Buchtitel las, musste dieses Buch sofort her. Als absoluter San Francisco Fan, keine Frage.



Milena Moser schildert ihren Alltag in 8 Jahren San Francisco. The City nimmt sie mit offenen Armen auf. Der Leser bekommt eine nette Geschichte mit ein wenig Politik, Geschichte und Insider-Tipps serviert. Nichts spektakuläres und auch nicht langweilig. Der Schreibstil ist locker und lässt einen die 270 Seiten recht flott lesen. Insgesamt ein gutes Buch mit vielen netten Anekdoten, schwärmerisch und teils witzig.



Allerdings fehlt etwas, von dem ich noch nicht einmal sagen kann, was es ist: Vielleicht das Salz in der Suppe?

Unaccustomed Earth
Jhumpa Lahiri Added: 13 Apr 2008 Format: Hardcover

From the internationally best-selling, Pulitzer Prize–winning author, a superbly crafted new work of fiction: eight stories—longer and more emotionally complex than any she has yet written—that take us from Cambridge and Seattle to India and Thailand as they enter the lives of sisters and brothers, fathers and mothers, daughters and sons, friends and lovers.

In the stunning title story, Ruma, a young mother in a new city, is visited by her father, who carefully tends the earth of her garden, where he and his grandson form a special bond. But he’s harboring a secret from his daughter, a love affair he’s keeping all to himself. In “A Choice of Accommodations,” a husband’s attempt to turn an old friend’s wedding into a romantic getaway weekend with his wife takes a dark, revealing turn as the party lasts deep into the night. In “Only Goodness,” a sister eager to give her younger brother the perfect childhood she never had is overwhelmed by guilt, anguish, and anger when his alcoholism threatens her family. And in “Hema and Kaushik,” a trio of linked stories—a luminous, intensely compelling elegy of life, death, love, and fate—we follow the lives of a girl and boy who, one winter, share a house in Massachusetts. They travel from innocence to experience on separate, sometimes painful paths, until destiny brings them together again years later in Rome.

"Unaccustomed Earth" is rich with" "Jhumpa Lahiri’s signature gifts: exquisite prose, emotional wisdom, and subtle renderings of the most intricate workings of the heart and mind. It is a masterful, dazzling work of a writer at the peak of her powers.

In Search of Stupidity: Over Twenty Years of High Tech Marketing Disasters, Second Edition
Merrill R. (Rick) Chapman Added: 06 Apr 2008 Format: Paperback

"In Search of Stupidity: Over Twenty Years of High-Tech Marketing Disasters, Second Edition" is National Lampoon meets Peter Drucker. It's a funny and well-written business book that takes a look at some of the most influential marketing and business philosophies of the last twenty years. Through the dark glass of hindsight, it provides an educational and entertaining look at why these philosophies didn't work for many of the country's largest and best-known high-tech companies.
Marketing wizard Richard Chapman takes you on a hilarious ride in this book, which is richly illustrated with cartoons and reproductions of many of the actual campaigns used at the time. Filled with personal anecdotes spanning Chapman's remarkable career (he was present at many now-famous meetings and events), "In Search of Stupidity, Second Edition" examines the best of the worst marketing ideas and business decisions in the last twenty years of the technology industry.
The second edition includes new chapters on Google and on how to avoid stupidity, plus the extensive analyses of all chapters from the first edition. Youll want to get a copy because it Features an interesting preface and interview with Joel Spolsky of "Joel on Software" Offers practical advice on avoiding PR disaster Features actual pictures of some of the worst PR and marketing material ever created Is highly readable and funny Includes theme-based cartoons for every chapter

Valley Boy: The Education of Tom Perkins
Tom Perkins Added: 09 Mar 2008 Format: Hardcover
A revealing memoir from Tom Perkins—renowned venture capitalist, Silicon Valley and biotechnology pioneer, and one of America’s most successful businessmen

Known for his idiosyncratic ideas and golden touch, Tom Perkins has always been one of the business world’s most intriguing figures. But his legacy took an unexpected new turn when he resigned from Hewlett-Packard’s board in 2006, protesting the “questionable ethics and dubious legality” of their chairman’s now infamous leak investigation. In this insightful memoir, Perkins recalls these and other fascinating episodes of his life, both personal and professional, including his involvement in the creation of American industries no one could have dreamed of a century ago.

In 1957 Perkins started working for Hewlett-Packard, and his career with the company spanned, becoming the administrative head of the research laboratories and the first general manager of its skyrocketing computer businesses. He was a pioneer in laser technology, starting the company that he later merged into Spectra-Physics. As chairman of Genentech for fourteen years, founder of the Silicon Valley venture-capitalist firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, and director of Applied Materials at Compaq, Corning Glass, and Philips Electronics, Perkins never shies away from the cutting edge.

He also discusses his marriage to Danielle Steel, his notorious vintage car collection, his yacht (the largest privately owned sailboat), his race across the ocean, his being tried for manslaughter in a backwater French town, and the toughest assignment he’s ever had: as a trustee emeritus at the San Francisco ballet.

Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days
Jessica Livingston Added: 24 Feb 2008 Format: Hardcover

For would-be entrepreneurs, innovation managers or just anyone fascinated by the special chemistry and drive that created some of the best technology companies in the world, this book offers both wisdom and engaging insights—straight from the source.— Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief of Wired Magazine, and author of The Long Tail
"All the best things that I did at Apple came from (a) not having money and (b) not having done it before, ever." —Steve Wozniak, Apple
"Founders at Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days" is a collection of interviews with founders of famous technology companies about what happened in the very earliest days. These people are celebrities now. What was it like when they were just a couple friends with an idea? Founders like Steve Wozniak (Apple), Caterina Fake (Flickr), Mitch Kapor (Lotus), Max Levchin (PayPal), and Sabeer Bhatia (Hotmail) tell you in their own words about their surprising and often very funny discoveries as they learned how to build a company.
Where did they get the ideas that made them rich? How did they convince investors to back them? What went wrong, and how did they recover?
Nearly all technical people have thought of one day starting or working for a startup. For them, this book is the closest you can come to being a fly on the wall at a successful startup, to learn how it's done.
But ultimately these interviews are required reading for anyone who wants to understand business, because startups are business reduced to its essence. The reason their founders become rich is that startups do what businessesdo—create value—more intensively than almost any other part of the economy. How? What are the secrets that make successful startups so insanely productive? Read this book, and let the founders themselves tell you.

Infidel
Ayaan Hirsi Ali Added: 14 Feb 2008 Format: Hardcover
In this profoundly affecting memoir from the internationally renowned author of "The Caged Virgin," Ayaan Hirsi Ali tells her astonishing life story, from her traditional Muslim childhood in Somalia, Saudi Arabia, and Kenya, to her intellectual awakening and activism in the Netherlands, and her current life under armed guard in the West.
One of today's most admired and controversial political figures, Ayaan Hirsi Ali burst into international headlines following an Islamist's murder of her colleague, Theo van Gogh, with whom she made the movie "Submission."
"Infidel" is the eagerly awaited story of the coming of age of this elegant, distinguished -- and sometimes reviled -- political superstar and champion of free speech. With a gimlet eye and measured, often ironic, voice, Hirsi Ali recounts the evolution of her beliefs, her ironclad will, and her extraordinary resolve to fight injustice done in the name of religion. Raised in a strict Muslim family and extended clan, Hirsi Ali survived civil war, female mutilation, brutal beatings, adolescence as a devout believer during the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood, and life in four troubled, unstable countries largely ruled by despots. In her early twenties, she escaped from a forced marriage and sought asylum in the Netherlands, where she earned a college degree in political science, tried to help her tragically depressed sister adjust to the West, and fought for the rights of Muslim immigrant women and the reform of Islam as a member of Parliament. Even though she is under constant threat -- demonized by reactionary Islamists and politicians, disowned by her father, and expelled from her family and clan -- she refuses to be silenced.
Ultimately a celebration of triumph over adversity, Hirsi Ali's story tells how a bright little girl evolved out of dutiful obedience to become an outspoken, pioneering freedom fighter. As Western governments struggle to balance democratic ideals with religious pressures, no story could be timelier or more significant.

Sophie's World: A Novel About the History of Philosophy
Jostein Gaarder Added: 03 Feb 2008 Format: Paperback
Wanting to understand the most fundamental questions of the universe isn't the province of ivory-tower intellectuals alone, as this book's enormous popularity has demonstrated. A young girl, Sophie, becomes embroiled in a discussion of philosophy with a faceless correspondent. At the same time, she must unravel a mystery involving another young girl, Hilde, by using everything she's learning. The truth is far more complicated than she could ever have imagined.

Gym Climbing: Maximizing Your Indoor Experience
Matt Burbach Added: 14 Oct 2007 Format: Paperback
From the editor of Urban Climber magazine: solid, clear instruction that takes gym climbers from novice to master.
*Indoor climbing is growing rapidly-significantly faster over the past five years than surfing, snowboarding, skateboarding and mountain climbing according to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association *Author is a pioneering instructor and gym climbing course developer *Key exercises reinforce fundamental skills, illustrated in sequential photos
Gym climbing has evolved into a sport in its own right and Matt Burbach has been there to spur it on. He established, developed, and directed the Indoor Climbing School of Earth Treks Climbing Center in Maryland, the largest climbing gym on the east coast. Now he presents the same techniques and training exercises honed by coaching hundreds of climbers.
Burbach covers all aspects of indoor rock climbing in detail, including what to look for in a gym, analysis of equipment and how it works, proper top-rope systems management, and movement technique. More advanced indoor climbers will appreciate chapters on topics such as indoor leading, performance, competition climbing, and bouldering. For outdoor rock climbers now training in gyms, this guide aids the "reverse" transition from climbing on real rock to pulling on plastic. Throughout, Burbach not only demonstrates the proper techniques and skills, but goes one step further to explain why those practices are better.

Agile Web Development with Rails, 2nd Edition
Dave Thomas, David Hansson, Leon Breedt, Mike Clark, James Duncan Davidson, Justin Gehtland, Andreas Schwarz Added: 11 Oct 2007 Format: Paperback
The definitive, Jolt-award winning guide to learning and using Rails is now in its Second Edition. Rails is a new approach to web-based application development that enables developers to create full-featured, sophisticated web-based applications using less code and less effort. Now programmers can get the job done right and still leave work on time.
NEW IN THE SECOND EDITION: The book has been updated to take advantage of all the new Rails 1.2 features. The sample application uses migrations, Ajax, features a REST interface, and illustrates new Rails features. There are new chapters on migrations, active support, active record, and action controller (including the new resources-based routing). The Web 2.0 and Deployment chapters have been completely rewritten to reflect the latest thinking. Now you can learn which environments are best for your style application, and see how Capistrano makes managing your site simple. All the remaining chapters have been extensively updated. Finally, hundreds of comments from readers of the first edition have been incorporated, making this book simply the best available.
Rails is a full-stack, open source web framework that enables you to create full-featured, sophisticated web-based applications with a twist...you can create a full Rails application using less code than the setup XML you'd need just to configure some other frameworks.
With this book, you'll learn how to use Rails Active Record to connect business objects and database tables. No more painful object-relational mapping. Just create your business objects and let Rails do the rest. You'll learn how to use the Action Pack framework to route incoming requests and render pages using easy-to-write templates and components. See how to exploit the Rails service frameworks to send emails, talk to web services, and interact dynamically with JavaScript applications running in the browser (the "Ajax" architecture).
You'll see how easy it is to deploy Rails. You'll be writing applications that work with your favorite database (MySQL, Oracle, Postgres, and more) in no time at all.

Everyday Scripting with Ruby: For Teams, Testers, and You
Brian Marick Added: 11 Oct 2007 Format: Paperback
Are you a tester who spends more time manually creating complex test data than using it? A business analyst who seemingly went to college all those years so you can spend your days copying data from reports into spreadsheets? A programmer who can't finish each day's task without having to scan through version control system output, looking for the file you want?
If so, you're wasting that computer on your desk. Offload the drudgery to where it belongs, and free yourself to do what you should be doing: thinking. All you need is a scripting language (free!), this book (cheap!), and the dedication to work through the examples and exercises.
"Everyday Scripting with Ruby" is divided into four parts. In the first, you'll learn the basics of the Ruby scripting language. In the second, you'll see how to create scripts in a steady, controlled way using test-driven design. The third part is about finding, understanding, and using the work of others--and about preparing your scripts for others to use. The fourth part, more advanced, is about saving even more time by using application frameworks.

Feel the Fear . . . and Do It Anyway
Susan Jeffers Added: 08 Oct 2007 Format: Paperback
THE PHENOMENAL CLASSIC THAT HAS CHANGED THE LIVES OF MILLIONS

Are you afraid of making decisions . . . asking your boss for a raise . . . leaving an unfulfilling relationship . . . facing the future? Whatever your fear, here is your chance to push through it once and for all. In this enduring guide to self-empowerment, Dr. Susan Jeffers inspires us with dynamic techniques and profound concepts that have helped countless people grab hold of their fears and move forward with their lives. Inside you’ll discover

• what we are afraid of, and why
• how to move from victim to creator
• the secret of making no lose decisions
• the vital 10-step process that helps you outtalk the negative chatterbox in your brain
• how to create more meaning in your life
And so much more!

With insight and humor, Dr. Jeffers shows you how to become powerful in the face of your fears–and enjoy the elation of living a creative, joyous, loving life.

“Should be required for every person who can read! I recommend this book in every one of my seminars!”
–Jack Canfield, co-author of "Chicken Soup for the Soul"

“It’s a must! The most practical guide to personal empowerment I have ever read. Feel the Fear . . . and Do It Anyway" "goes to number one on my recommended reading list.”
–Jordan Paul, Ph.D., co-author of "Do I Have to Give Up Me to Be Loved by You?"

“Living is taking chances, and Feel the Fear . . . and Do It Anyway has helped so many people, both men and women, to achieve success.”
–Louise L. Hay, author of "The Power Is Within You"

French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating For Pleasure
Mireille Guiliano Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover
The message of this book could be a blessing or a curse, depending on your perspective. There is no hard science, no clearly-defined plan, and no lists of food to have or have not; instead, you'll find simple tricks that boil down to eating carefully prepared seasonal food, exercising more and refusing to think of food as something that inspires guilt. It's both a practical message and far easier said than done in today's "no pain, no gain" culture.
Author Mireille Guiliano is CEO of Veuve Clicquot, and "French Women Don't Get Fat" offers a concept of sensible pleasures: If you have a chocolate croissant for breakfast, have a vegetable-based lunch--or take an extra walk and pass on the bread basket at dinner. Guiliano's insistence on simple measures slowly creating substantial improvements are reassuring, and her suggestion to ignore the scale and learn to live by the "zipper test" could work wonders for those who get wrapped up in tiny details of diet. She sympathizes that deprivation can lead straight to overindulgence when it comes to favorite foods, but then, in a most French manner, treats them as a pleasure that needs to be sated, rather than a battle to be fought.
A number of recipes are included, from a weight-loss enhancing leek soup to a lush chocolate mousse; they read more like what you'd find in a French cookbook rather than an American diet book. Most appealingly, these are guidelines and tricks that could be easily sustainable over a lifetime. If you agree that food is meant to be appreciated--but no more so than having a trim waist--these charmingly French recommendations could set you on the path to a future filled with both croissants and high fashion. "--Jill Lightner" Amazon Exclusive Video
Click here to watch Mireille Guiliano introduce "French Women Don't Get Fat" to Amazon customers. Gather Up Your Friends
Click here to learn how to create your own reading group around "French Women Don't Get Fat".
Stuffed Cornish Hens
"Serves 4"

When I grew up, the holidays always meant lots of visitors and a series of requisite celebratory meals, mostly at lunchtime. This easy dish was always on one of the menus. Mamie was usually busy (what else during late December?) and would make the stuffing in advance so lunch could be ready in less than an hour. The recipe serves a family of four for lunch in style, but double the ingredient portions and obviously you are ready for a full table with guests.

Ingredients:
2 Cornish hens (or poussins)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3 tablespoons chicken stock
Stuffing:
2 cups water
2/3 cup brown rice
1/2 cup mixed nuts (pine nuts, walnut pieces, whole hazelnuts)
2 tablespoons golden raisins
1/3 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon parsley, freshly minced
1 teaspoon dry herbs (chervil and savory or rosemary and thyme)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

1. For stuffing: Bring water to a boil. Add rice and cook for 15 minutes. Drain and mix well with remaining ingredients. Season to taste and refrigerate overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Rinse Cornish hens, dry the inside with paper towels, and season. Add stuffing loosely and truss hens. Reserve remaining stuffing in aluminum foil.
3. Put hens in baking dish and brush them with melted butter and other seasonings. Put in oven and baste 10 minutes later with chicken stock. Continue basting every 10 minutes. After the hens have cooked for 20 minutes reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and put the remaining stuffing in a small ovenproof dish. Roast the hens for another 20 minutes. Serve (half a hen per person) immediately with a tablespoon of stuffing on each side of the hen as garnish.
N.B. For a wonderful tête-à-tête romantic dinner, serve one hen each with a vegetable then dessert. I have prepared it successfully to my husband on Valentine's Day. While the hens are in the oven, you have time to concoct a little dessert, et voilà, you can pop a cork of bubbly, sit for candlelight dinner and have your husband serve dessert. Hot Chocolate Soufflé
"Serves 6"

During the season of overindulgences—Christmas, New Year and all the festivities in between—there is in our home a succession of store-brought, traditional goodies: Bûche de Noël (yule log), marrons glacés (glazed chestnuts), the 13 desserts of Christmas in Provence. This is not to say that the holidays don't bring out the baker in all of us, but whether it is to give as gifts or to maintain tradition, people do load up with holiday sweets from pastry shops (as I can attest from seeing from the window of our Paris apartment the annual long lines of people outside the pastry shop across the street). When I grew up, however, come New Year's Day, and there was a home-cooked chocolate ritual. Our big festive meal was on New Year's Eve, which left New Year's Day as a quiet, family "recovery" day. (I appreciate some reverse the big meal day… or have one both days.) Anyway, for us, breakfast was well… late (especially for those of us who went partying after dinner), and limited to a piece of toast and a cup or two of coffee. Lunch was mid afternoon and usually made up of leftovers or an omelet, but the first dinner of the year was marked with a special dessert. The simple meal at the end of a week of overindulgences consisted of a light consommé, some greens, cheese, and the chocolate treat. There were no guests, plenty of time, and Mamie was ready for the flourless soufflé. She is a chocoholic and it would be unthinkable to start the year off without chocolate. So, what better way to end the first day of the New Year than with one of her favorite chocolate desserts as both a reward and I'm sure good-luck charm?

Ingredients:
1 cup milk
1 cup unsweetened Dutch cocoa powder
1/3 cup sugar
4 eggs at room temperature
2 tablespoons butter at room temperature
Pinch of salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 1-quart soufflé mold by lightly buttering it, dusting the insides with sugar and tapping out the excess. Place mold in refrigerator.
2. Pour the milk, cocoa powder and sugar into a heavy saucepan and stir to combine. Bring to a boil over moderate heat while stirring constantly. Reduce the heat and cook while stirring until the mixture thickens (about 10 minutes). Transfer to a bowl and cool slightly.
3. Separate the eggs and stir the egg yolks into the warm chocolate mixture. Stir in the butter.
4. Beat the egg whites until they reach soft peaks. Add the salt and beat until stiff. Whisk half of the egg whites mixture into the chocolate mixture. Fold in the remaining whites gently with a spatula. Pour the mixture in the soufflé mold and smooth the top.
5. Bake in the lower-middle shelf of the oven until puff and brown for about 18 minutes which will give you a soft center. Serve at once with softly whipped cream.

Red Mullet with Spinach en Papillote
"Serves 4"

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons olive oil
8 fillets of red mullet, about 2 ounces each
1 lb. spinach, washed and dried in a salad spinner
4 teaspoons shallots, peeled and sliced
8 slices of lime
4 tablespoons of crème fraîche
Salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Cut 4 pieces of parchment paper (or aluminum foil) into squares large enough to cover each fillet and leave a 2-inch border all around. Lightly brush the squares with olive oil. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Put the spinach in the center of each square and top it with a tablespoon of crème fraîche. Top with two fillets and add one teaspoon of shallots, two slices of lime. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Fold up the edges to form packets. Put the papillotes on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes. Serve at once by setting each papillote on a plate.
N.B. You can use sole or snapper instead of red mullet

Pappardelle with Spring Veggies
"Serves 4"

Ingredients:
12 ounces pappardelle
1 lb. green asparagus
2 cups fresh peas, shelled
2 tablespoons of shallots, peeled and minced
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 cup of pine nuts, toasted
1 cup freshly grated parmesan
1 cup roughly chopped parsley
Coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1. Cut off end of asparagus and blanch in salted water until just tender (about 5 minutes). Blanch peas separately for about 1 minute.
2. In a heavy saucepan, gently sauté the shallots in olive oil until they begin to turn gold. Add peas and asparagus and cook for a few minutes.
3. Cook the pappardelle in boiling water, drain and pour into saucepan. Add pine nuts, parmesan and parsley and season to taste. Serve immediately.

Croque aux Poires
"Serves 4"

Ingredients:
4 slices of brioche
2 ripe pears
2 tablespoons of sliced almonds
2 tablespoons of honey
1 tablespoon butter
1. Peel the pears and cut into small cubes. Melt butter in a saucepan and sauté the pear cubes for 2-3 minutes.
2. Arrange pear cubes on brioche slices. Cover with honey and almonds. Put under broiler for two minutes watching carefully. Serve warm with a dollop of sour cream or crème fraîche.
A yummy dessert also wonderful for a weekend breakfast or brunch.


Love Is Letting Go of Fear
Gerald G. Jampolsky Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
An inspirational classic since 1979, LOVE IS LETTING GO OF FEAR remains one of the seminal works in the transpersonal movement. Psychiatrist Dr. Gerald Jampolsky's timeless message may be timelier today than ever: the only thing that stands between us and the awesome energy of love is fear. To live without fear, we must stop analyzing it, stop agonizing over it, stop fighting with it, and simply . . . let it go. How? By releasing our paralyzing preoccupation with the past and our chronic apprehension over the future—which is, needless to say, easier said than done.
To help us in this difficult journey from fear to love, Dr. Jampolsky presents tools in the form of 12 daily, progressive lessons for personal transformation. These crucial lessons work through the concepts of giving, forgiveness, cause and effect, perspective, reactive behavior, victimhood, judgement, living in the present, releasing the past, visualization, freedom to choose, and taking responsibility. In the 25 years since it was first published, LOVE IS LETTING GO OF FEAR continues to change lives with its frank, thought-provoking, and powerful response to overcoming life's greatest challenges.

The Art of Forgiveness, Lovingkindess, and Peace
Jack Kornfield Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Happiness Sold Separately
Lolly Winston Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
The New York Times bestseller about how marriage, love, and how sometimes falling in love with the wrong person at the wrong time can be the right thing. Elinor Mackey has lived her life in perfect order: college, law school, marriage, successful corporate career. But when she discovers that she and her podiatrist husband, Ted, can't have children, Elinor withdraws into her own world of heartbreak and anger. While Elinor
falls in love with the oak tree in their front yard, sleeping under it at night, Ted begins an affair with Gina, the nutritionist at their gym. Ted, who may be the only one who can help Gina and her son, suddenly finds himself in love with two women at the same time. In the tradition of Anne Tyler, John Cheever, and Tom Perrotta, Winston's second novel looks beyond the manicured surface of suburbia to a world of loss, longing, lust, and betrayal.

Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML
Eric Freeman, Elisabeth Freeman Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Tired of reading HTML books that only make sense after you're an expert? Then it's about time you picked up "Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML" and really learned HTML. You want to learn HTML so you can finally create those web pages you've always wanted, so you can communicate more effectively with friends, family, fans, and fanatic customers. You also want to do it right so you can actually maintain and expand your Web pages over time, and so your web pages work in all the browsers and mobile devices out there. Oh, and if you've never heard of CSS, that's okay - we won't tell anyone you're still partying like it's 1999 - but if you're going to create Web pages in the 21st century then you'll want to know and understand CSS.
Learn the real secrets of creating Web pages, and why everything your boss told you about HTML tables is probably wrong (and what to do instead). Most importantly, hold your own with your co-worker (and impress cocktail party guests) when he casually mentions how his HTML is now strict, and his CSS is in an external style sheet.
With "Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML", you'll avoid the embarrassment of thinking web-safe colors still matter, and the foolishness of slipping a font tag into your pages. Best of all, you'll learn HTML and CSS in a way that won't put you to sleep. If you've read a Head First book, you know what to expect: a visually-rich format designed for the way your brain works. Using the latest research in neurobiology, cognitive science, and learning theory, this book will load HTML, CSS, and XHTML into your brain in a way that sticks.
So what are you waiting for? Leave those other dusty books behind and come join us in Webville. Your tour is about to begin.
"Elegant design is at the core of every chapter here, each concept conveyed with equal doses of pragmatism and wit." --Ken Goldstein, Executive Vice President, Disney Online
"This book is a thoroughly modern introduction to forward-looking practices in web page markup and presentation." --Danny Goodman, author of "Dynamic HTML: The Definitive Guide"
"What used to be a long trial and error learning process has now been reduced neatly into an engaging paperback." --Mike Davidson, CEO, Newsvine, Inc.
"I love "Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML"--it teaches you everything you need to learn in a 'fun coated' format!" --Sally Applin, UI Designer and Artist
"I haven't had as much fun reading a book (other than Harry Potter) in years. And your book finally helped me break out of my hapless so-last-century way of creating web pages." --Professor David M. Arnow, Department of Computer and Information Science, Brooklyn College
"If you've ever had a family member who wanted you to design a website for them, buy them Head First HTML with CSS and XHTML. If you've ever asked a family member to design you a web site, buy this book. If you've ever bought an HTML book and ended up using it to level your desk, or for kindling on a cold winter day, buy this book. This is the book you've been waiting for. This is the learning system you've been waiting for." --Warren Kelly, Blogcritics.org

Mind Mapping.
Mogens Kirckhoff Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Mind Mapping ist übersichtlich gestaltet, leicht lesbar und informativ für den Uninformierten, ein echter Geheimtip, da es auch Infos zur Lernpsychologie enthält, wie unsere Emotionen das Lernen steuern. Kirckhoff, der Autor, ist einer der ersten, die diese Methode populär gemacht haben - dieser Umstand erklärt den stattlichen Preis für ein ansonsten gutes Buch. Ich denke, 27 DM wären angemessener.

The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master
Andrew Hunt, David Thomas Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Programmers are craftspeople trained to use a certain set of tools (editors, object managers, version trackers) to generate a certain kind of product (programs) that will operate in some environment (operating systems on hardware assemblies). Like any other craft, computer programming has spawned a body of wisdom, most of which isn't taught at universities or in certification classes. Most programmers arrive at the so-called tricks of the trade over time, through independent experimentation. In "The Pragmatic Programmer", Andrew Hunt and David Thomas codify many of the truths they've discovered during their respective careers as designers of software and writers of code.
Some of the authors' nuggets of pragmatism are concrete, and the path to their implementation is clear. They advise readers to learn one text editor, for example, and use it for everything. They also recommend the use of version-tracking software for even the smallest projects, and promote the merits of learning regular expression syntax and a text-manipulation language. Other (perhaps more valuable) advice is more light-hearted. In the debugging section, it is noted that, "if you see hoof prints think horses, not zebras." That is, suspect everything, but start looking for problems in the most obvious places. There are recommendations for making estimates of time and expense, and for integrating testing into the development process. You'll want a copy of "The Pragmatic Programmer" for two reasons: it displays your own accumulated wisdom more cleanly than you ever bothered to state it, and it introduces you to methods of work that you may not yet have considered. Working programmers will enjoy this book. "--David Wall"
Topics covered: A useful approach to software design and construction that allows for efficient, profitable development of high-quality products. Elements of the approach include specification development, customer relations, team management, design practices, development tools, and testing procedures. This approach is presented with the help of anecdotes and technical problems.

Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams
Tom Demarco, Timothy Lister Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
"Peopleware" asserts that most software development projects fail because of failures within the team running them. This strikingly clear, direct book is written for software development-team leaders and managers, but it's filled with enough commonsense wisdom to appeal to anyone working in technology. Authors Tom DeMarco and Timothy Lister include plenty of illustrative, often amusing anecdotes; their writing is light, conversational, and filled with equal portions of humor and wisdom, and there is a refreshing absence of "new age" terms and multistep programs. The advice is presented straightforwardly and ranges from simple issues of prioritization to complex ways of engendering harmony and productivity in your team. "Peopleware" is a short read that delivers more than many books on the subject twice its size.

The UNIX Philosophy
Mike Gancarz Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
* Deals with powerful concepts in a simple way * Highlights important characteristics of Operating systems and other abstract entities in a new way * Explores the tenets of the UNIX operating system philosophy


Unlike so many books that focus on how to use UNIX, The UNIX Philosophy concentrates on answering the questions: `Why use UNIX in the first place?'. Readers will discover the rationale and reasons for such concepts as file system organization, user
interface and other system characteristics. In an informative, non-technical fashion, The UNIX Philosophy explores the general principles for applying the UNIX philosophy to software development. This book describes complex software design principles
and addresses the importance of small programs, code and data portability, early prototyping, and open user interfaces. The UNIX Philosophy is a book to be read before tackling the highly technical texts on UNIX internals and programming. Written for
both the computer layperson and the experienced programmer, this book explores the tenets of the UNIX operating system in detail, dealing with powerful concepts in a comprehensive, straightforward manner.

Coder to Developer: Tools and Strategies for Delivering Your Software
Mike Gunderloy, Sybex Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
""Two thumbs up"" --Gregory V. Wilson, Dr. Dobbs Journal (October 2004) No one can disparage the ability to write good code. At its highest levels, it is an art. But no one can confuse writing good code with developing good software. The difference in terms of challenges, skills, and compensation is immense. Coder to Developer helps you excel at the many non-coding tasks entailed, from start to finish, in just about any successful development project. What's more, it equips you with the mindset and self-assurance required to pull it all together, so that you see every piece of your work as part of a coherent process. Inside, you'll find plenty of technical guidance on such topics as: Choosing and using a source code control system Code generation tools--when and why Preventing bugs with unit testing Tracking, fixing, and learning from bugs Application activity logging Streamlining and systematizing the build process Traditional installations and alternative approaches To pull all of this together, the author has provided the source code for Download Tracker, a tool for organizing your collection of downloaded code, that's used for examples throughout this book. The code is provided in various states of completion, reflecting every stage of development, so that you can dig deep into the actual process of building software. But you'll also develop ""softer"" skills, in areas such as team management, open source collaboration, user and developer documentation, and intellectual property protection. If you want to become someone who can deliver not just good code but also a good product, this book is the place to start. If you must build successful software projects, it's essential reading.

Kirschbombe
Maxine Clair Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Gebundene Ausgabe

In the Pond
Ha Jin Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
"In the Pond" is a slim little book about some very big issues: power, vanity, art, injustice, and politics. Where Tom Wolfe would find the makings for a doorstop, however, debut novelist Ha Jin has created a rough-cut comic gem. Set in Communist China, the book takes as its hero a small, unprepossessing man named Shao Bin, a maintenance employee at the Harvest Fertilizer Plant and also a self-taught artist. Together with his wife and 2-year-old daughter, Bin inhabits a tiny 12-by-20-foot room. Bin is desperate to move into the newly built workers' compound, and he places his name on the waiting list with high hopes. But when the plant managers pass him over, despite the fact that he's been working there for years, Bin finally cracks. "In brief, the true scholar's brush must encourage good and warn against evil," he reads in "The Essence of Ancient Chinese Thought", and inspired, he publishes a satirical cartoon protesting official corruption. The consequences of this simple act snowball, and in self-defense, Bin finds himself aiming his attacks ever higher up the bureaucratic ladder. This is a book that works on multiple levels: as character study, as political allegory, as sly bureaucratic satire, even, at times, as the broadest kind of slapstick. (One memorable scene involves Bin biting his superior on the butt.) Bin himself is half persecuted artist, half self-righteous boor; readers both sympathize with him and wonder along with one of his coworkers, "Why do you enjoy fighting so much?" Even his putative victory is left in doubt. As the book ends, Shao Bin has become perhaps a bigger fish, but there's no doubt about it; he's in the very same small pond where he started. "--Mary Park"

Schlampenyoga oder Wo geht's hier zur Erleuchtung?
Milena Moser Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Das Schlampenbuch. Erzählungen.
Milena Moser Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Das Bildnis des Dorian Gray. Der unzensierte Wortlaut des Skandalromans.
Oscar Wilde, Jörg W. Rademacher Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Sansibar Oder Der Letzte Grund
Alfred Andersch Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Mass Market Paperback

Desert Flower: The Extraordinary Journey Of A Desert Nomad
Waris Dirie, Cathleen Miller Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
By age 6, Waris Dirie was herding her family's sheep and goats, fending off hyenas and wild dogs as the family carved a path through Africa. She was just twice that age when she ran off into the vast furnace of the Somali desert to escape an arranged marriage to a much older man. Traveling for days without food and water, she made her way to Mogadishu and later to London as a servant to her uncle, the Somalian ambassador. There she wrestled with culture shock and got her first taste of the modeling life that eventually brought her into the public eye. Dirie is resilient, having survived drought, hunger, and the ritual female genital mutilation that marks a step toward womanhood among some traditional Moslems but, argue critics, steals or ruins many girls' lives. "As we traveled throughout Somalia," says Dirie, "we met families and I played with their daughters. When we visited them again, the girls were missing. No one spoke the truth about their absence or even spoke of them at all." As a special ambassador to the United Nations, Dirie has spoken out loudly on this subject and championed environmental causes, too. How much of her sometimes breathless story is gospel truth and how much embellished is hard to say. Like Dirie herself, though, the combination is intriguing, powerful, and unique. "--Francesca Coltrera"

Nathan the Wise: By Gotthold Ephraim Lessing
Ronald Schechter Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
I first read this book (actually it is a play) in highschool and though I generally hated to be forced to read a book I really loved this one. I finished way ahead of schedule.
The reason: this book is extremely very well and has an up-to-date message even though it was written several 100 years back. The story is abou a Jewish merchant called Nathan, a templar and Nathan's daughter and the love between the templar and the daughter and the conflicts arising from it.
It is set in the time of the crusades and its message is: it does not matter which religion you believe in as long as you are a decent human being. This message was only written in a play because the author was officially forbidden from teaching his reconciliatory views on religion in university! It must have been a hardship for him, but today we can enjoy a literary masterpiece for just that reason. For me it is a perfect book and it might very well be the same for you.

Biedermann Und Die Brandstifter
Max Frisch Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Der Richter und sein Henker. Comic.
Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Michael Blau, Andreas Mattmann, Frank Neff, Caroline Bühler, Caroline Buri, Emanuele Deangelis Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Andorra. Stück in zwölf Bildern.
Max Frisch Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living
Dalai Lama, Howard C. Cutler Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to sit down with the Dalai Lama and really press him about life's persistent questions? Why are so many people unhappy? How can I abjure loneliness? How can we reduce conflict? Is romantic love true love? Why do we suffer? How should we deal with unfairness and anger? How do "you" handle the death of a loved one? These are the conundrums that psychiatrist Howard Cutler poses to the Dalai Lama during an extended period of interviews in "The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living".
At first, the Dalai Lama's answers seem simplistic, like a surface reading of Robert Fulghum: Ask yourself if you really need something; our enemies can be our teachers; compassion brings peace of mind. Cutler pushes: But some people "do" seem happy with lots of possessions; but "suffering is life" is so pessimistic; but going to extremes provides the zest in life; but what if I don't believe in karma? As the Dalai Lama's responses become more involved, a coherent philosophy takes shape. Cutler then develops the Dalai Lama's answers in the context of scientific studies and cases from his own practice, substantiating and elaborating on what he finds to be a revolutionary psychology. Like any art, the art of happiness requires study and practice--and the talent for it, the Dalai Lama assures us, is in our nature. "--Brian Bruya"

Das Vermächtnis der Wildnis. Visionen und Prophezeiungen zur Rettung unserer gefährdeten Welt. Die Geschichte eines spirituellen Kriegers
Tom Jr Brown Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Taschenbuch
Ich kaufe alle deutschen! Bücher von Tom Brown jr. unter 50¬.
benediktlaussner@gmx.at

Der leere Spiegel. Erfahrungen in einem japanischen Zen- Kloster.
Janwillem Van De Wetering Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Wir amüsieren uns zu Tode. Urteilsbildung im Zeitalter der Unterhaltungsindustrie.
Neil Postman Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Das Vogelmädchen und der Mann, der der Sonne folgte.
Velma Wallis Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Taschenbuch
...es ist vor allem Velma Wallis verdienst, die Legenden und Geschichten ihres athabaskischen Volkes dem Leser verständlich, spannend mitzuteilen. Am Ende möchte man nicht glauben, daß es sich hier um zwei so alte Legenden handelt, - alt und doch so "aktuell", spannend von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite....
Spätestens seit ihrem Werk "Zwei alte Frauen" - leider wurden von ihr bisher nur diese zwei Bücher veröffentlicht - gehört Velma Wallis zu den Autoren, deren Bücher ich ohne Einschränkung, -auch gerade wegen ihrer "unkomplizierten" Schreibweise auch für die Zukunft empfehlen kann. Hoffentlich müssen wir nicht zu lange auf ein neues Buch von ihr warten.....

Und jeden Tag ein bißchen böser.
Ute Ehrhardt Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Die Erziehung der Gefühle.
Gustave Flaubert Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Asleep
Banana Yoshimoto Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Demonstrating again the artful simplicity and depth of her vision, Banana Yoshimoto reestablishes her place as a writer of international stature in a book that may be her most delightful since "Kitchen."

In "Asleep," Yoshimoto spins the stories of three young women bewitched into a spiritual sleep. One, mourning for a lost lover, finds herself sleepwalking at night. Another, who has embarked on a relationship with a man whose wife is in a coma, finds herself suddenly unable to stay awake. A third finds her sleep haunted by a woman against whom she was once pitted in a love triangle. Sly and mystical as a ghost story, with a touch of Kafkaesque surrealism, "Asleep" is an enchanting new book from one of the best writers in contemporary international fiction.

Happiness is the Best Revenge: 50 Ways to Let Go of the Past and Find Happiness Now
Chuck Spezzano Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Mass Market Paperback

Das Parfum. Die Geschichte eines Mörders.
Patrick Süskind Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover
This is the original German text edition of a novel so beautifully written that it transcends into literature. Ingenious in its conception and carefully crafted, the author has created a unique and dazzling work of fiction. Divided into three parts, the book tells the story of a most unusual life, that of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille.



The first part of the book establishes that he was born to a woman who was hung from a gibbet for having left him to die. It turns out that Jean-Baptiste is an unusual baby. He gives people the willies, because, unlike most babies, Jean-Baptiste has no scent.



Over time, Jean-Baptiste develops into a boy with a secret gift. His olfactory sense is developed to a degree unheard of in humans. He delights in parsing the odors around him. Ugly, friendless, and a loner, he eventually ventures into the city of Paris, a malodorous and pungent cornucopia of smells. Believe me, there is plenty to sniff out in eighteenth century Paris! Jean-Baptiste savors each whiff, and the book conveys these olfactory delights with meticulous, descriptive precision.



His bleak existence is transformed, however, when he one day captures a heady scent of such exquisite beauty that he finds himself obsessed with it. Determined to have that scent at all costs, he eventually sniffs it out. It turns out to be the scent of a young virgin on the cusp of flowering into a woman. It is a scent that he must possess. What he does to do so will surely chill the reader.



Jean-Baptiste eventually maneuvers to get himself apprenticed to a perfumer, so that he can have the opportunity to learn the trade and create scents. He leads a bleak existence, subsisting as little more than a slave to the perfumer for whom he works. But no matter, for he learns all that he needs to know.



The second part of the book begins when Jean-Baptiste leave his employer and goes on a personal pilgrimage, leading an austere existence away from civilization for many years. There, he withdraws into himself even further, living a totally self-sustaining, hermitic existence. He ultimately realizes what other have sensed about him. Jean-Baptiste has no personal scent. He simply does not smell.



With this knowledge, he returns to civilization where, having lived as practically an animal for many years, he creates a fictitious and adventurous scenario to account for his filthy and disgusting appearance. Subsequently, he is taken under the wing of some local nobility and feted and pampered. Realizing the importance of scent, he creates a personal scent for himself. He now realizes that he who has the power over scent can rule supreme. He intends to do so.



The third part of the book has Jean-Baptiste migrating to a town that is the hub for the scent trade. Perfumes, oils, and soaps are the stock in trade for this town and, as such, beckon brightly to Jean-Baptiste. Once there, he again smells a scent so delectable that he longs to possess it. He knows that scent for what it is and now knows that it is the scent, and not the personal charms of its bearer, that captures the attention and devotion of others. Jean Baptiste wants to harness that scent at all costs. He desperately desires the power to make others love him. He wants to be supreme.



It is his desperate desire to harness and possess that celestial scent that causes Jean-Baptiste, a socio-path with little empathy for others, to prey upon the maidens of the town in order to obtain that which he needs. It is his obsession that lays at the heart of the vortex that arises in the town, as murder after murder occurs. Yet, no one suspects him.



What ultimately happens leads to an almost unbelievable climax, when Jean-Baptiste finds himself consumed by the passion he has managed to arouse in others through scent. This is a heady, quirky, and compelling debut novel, like nothing I have ever before read. Complex and lyrical in its telling, it is a novel that stays with the reader long after the last page is turned. Bravo!

First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers
Loung Ung Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Written in the present tense, "First They Killed My Father" will put you right in the midst of the action--action you'll wish had never happened. It's a tough read, but definitely a worthwhile one, and the author's personality and strength shine through on every page. Covering the years from 1975 to 1979, the story moves from the deaths of multiple family members to the forced separation of the survivors, leading ultimately to the reuniting of much of the family, followed by marriages and immigrations. The brutality seems unending--beatings, starvation, attempted rape, mental cruelty--and yet the narrator (a young girl) never stops fighting for escape and survival. Sad and courageous, her life and the lives of her young siblings provide quite a powerful example of how war can so deeply affect children--especially a war in which they are trained to be an integral part of the armed forces. For anyone interested in Cambodia's recent history, this book shares a valuable personal view of events. "--Jill Lightner"

Ein Zimmer für sich allein
Virginia Woolf Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Das Bildnis des Dorian Gray
Oscar Wilde Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Inge Und Mira
Marianne Fredriksson Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Begegnung mit dem verborgenen Ich. Ein Arbeitsbuch zur Huna- Magie.
Serge King Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Mut zum Erfolg. Warum Frauen blockiert sind und was sie dagegen tun können.
Susan Schenkel Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Chanel. Die Geschichte einer einzigartigen Frau.
Axel Madsen Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Vom Lipstick zum Laptop! Die Frau in der Businesswelt.
Monique R. Siegel Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Shanghai Baby: A Novel
Wei Hui Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
The gap that divides those of us born in the 1970s and the older generation has never been so wide. Dark and edgy, deliciously naughty, an intoxicating cocktail of sex and the search for love, Shanghai Baby has already risen to cult status in mainland China. The risque contents of the breakthrough novel by hip new author Wei Hui have so alarmed Beijing authorities that thousands of copies have been confiscated and burned. As explicit as Henry Miller's Tropic of Cancer, as shocking as Trainspotting, this story of a beautiful writer and her erotically charged affairs jumps, howls, and hits the ground running as it depicts the new generation rising in the East. Set in the centuries-old port city of Shanghai, the novel follows the days, and nights, of the irrepressibly carnal Coco, who waits tables in a café when she meets her first lover, a sensitive Chinese artist. Defying her parents, Coco moves in with her boyfriend and enters a frenzied, orgasmic world of drugs and hedonism. But, helpless to stop her gentle lover's descent into addiction, Coco becomes attracted to a boisterous Westerner, a rich German businessman with a penchant for S/M and seduction. Now, with an entourage of friends ranging from a streetwise madame to a rebellious filmmaker, Coco's forays into in the territory of love and lust cross the borders between two cultures -- awakening her guilt and fears of discovery, yet stimulating her emerging sexual self. Searing a blistering image into the reader's imagination, Shanghai Baby provides an alternative travelogue into the back streets of a city and the hard-core escapades of today's liberated youth. Wei Hui's provocative portrayal of men, women, and cultural transition is an astonishing and brave exposure of the unacknowledged new China, breaking through official rhetoric to show the inroads of the West and a people determined to burst free.

Into the Wild
Jon Krakauer Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
"God, he was a smart kid..." So why did Christopher McCandless trade a bright future--a college education, material comfort, uncommon ability and charm--for death by starvation in an abandoned bus in the woods of Alaska? This is the question that Jon Krakauer's book tries to answer. While it doesn't—cannot—answer the question with certainty, "Into the Wild" does shed considerable light along the way. Not only about McCandless's "Alaskan odyssey," but also the forces that drive people to drop out of society and test themselves in other ways. Krakauer quotes Wallace Stegner's writing on a young man who similarly disappeared in the Utah desert in the 1930s: "At 18, in a dream, he saw himself ... wandering through the romantic waste places of the world. No man with any of the juices of boyhood in him has forgotten those dreams." "Into the Wild" shows that McCandless, while extreme, was hardly unique; the author makes the hermit into one of us, something McCandless himself could never pull off. By book's end, McCandless isn't merely a newspaper clipping, but a sympathetic, oddly magnetic personality. Whether he was "a courageous idealist, or a reckless idiot," you won't soon forget Christopher McCandless.

Gleissendes Glück.
A. L. Kennedy, Ingo Herzke Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Taschenbuch
Mrs. Brindle führt in ihrer schottischen Heimatstadt Glasgow ein trauriges Dasein. In einer unerträglichen Endlosschleife aus Putzsucht, Lethargie und ungelebten Träumen verdämmern ihre Tage. Mehr und mehr gehen Mrs. Brindle dabei die Sinne aus. Die Ehe mit Mr. Brindle erwies sich ebenfalls buchstäblich als Fehlschlag, Schläge jedenfalls sind das, was der rohe und gefühllose Gatte am besten beherrscht. Selbst Gott, Mrs. Brindles großer Tröster vergangener Tage, scheint das Interesse an ihr verloren zu haben.
Im täglichen Fernseheinerlei entdeckt unsere Heldin eines Tages die Ratgebersendung des populären Psychologieprofessors Edward E. Gluck. Ihn verklärt sie fortan zur Projektionsfläche ihrer geheimen Sehnsüchte, zum Erlöser ihrer Traurigkeit. Während der Psychoguru auf einem Kongress in Stuttgart weilt, setzt Mrs. Brindle alles auf eine Karte und reist ihm hinterher. Die beiden begegnen sich und die verzweifelte Suche der Frau nach Wahrhaftigkeit und Liebe beginnt bei dem larmoyanten Weltmann, der sich anfänglich nur wohlwollend therapeutisch herablassend gibt, langsam Wirkung zu zeigen. Eine fragile, immer inniger werdende Beziehung entsteht.
Die 1965 in Dundee geborene A. L. Kennedy, in Großbritannien längst eine feste Größe, leuchtet in ihrem ersten bei uns erschienenen Roman tief hinein in die Seelen von Gestrauchelten und Gestrandeten in einer erkalteten Welt. Dabei durchläuft ihre Erzählung ab der zweiten Hälfte eine seltsame Metamorphose: Waren Mrs. Brindles Probleme bislang eher philosophisch-ethischer Art, so offenbart der Professor während eines nächtlichen Telefon-Outings plötzlich dunkelste Seiten seiner Persönlichkeit. In einem geschickten Rollentausch wird so der Therapeut zum eigentlichen Pflegefall. Glucks sexuelle Obsessionen (auch sprachlich wird hier nicht hinter den Berg gehalten), wirken im Kontext jedoch merkwürdig spekulativ und aufgesetzt; den Leser beschleicht das Gefühl, plötzlich in eine literarische Version von "9 ½ Wochen" geraten zu sein. Aber auch Mrs. Brindles Seelenheil steht unversehens auf dem Spiel! "--Ravi Unger"

Generation Ally. Warum es heute so kompliziert ist, eine Frau zu sein.
Katja Kullmann Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Kitchen
Banana Yoshimoto Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
First, the translation is very poor. The novel is conversational yet phrases such as "god-awful" and "ungodly" are simply not a part of Japanese daily conversation. The translator takes far too much license and a lot is lost in this loose translation. It would have been better to leave the translation a bit more strict and stilted. Second, the use of specific foods and the descriptions thereof conjure up specific imagery that is unique to Japanese culture. For example, it is uncommon for the average Japanese household to have jasmine tea on hand. A western reader would have to be aware of this to understand the imagery. What this symbolizes may be very different for a Japanese reader. It would be difficult for a western reader to "get" these nuances. Even after living in Japan, I certainly don't. Read carefully the section on the "incredible" katsudon she was served (page 92 paperback). This is a very deeply Japanese description of well-enjoyed meal. Such obsessive mulling over and judging of food and meals is a part of Japanese culture that I will never fathom, yet it is important to note within the cultural context of the novel, especially this novel in which food and the kitchen are liberally spoken of throughout.

Amrita
Banana Yoshimoto Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
"Blood ties seemed unrelated to how we were living," Sakumi, the young narrator of "Amrita", begins portentously. The "we" of the family comprises a strange blend--Sakumi's mother, twice married (widowed "and" divorced); a telepathic younger brother; a cousin; and her mother's childhood friend. Grief over the tragic death of Mayu, Sakumi's flamboyant younger sister, binds them together. But grief is not the only obstacle to happiness and wholeness for Sakumi, who loses her memory in a fall. Grief shocked into awareness by memories retrieved--such is the thread that allows Sakumi to piece together her own identity and press toward acceptance of her sister's death.
Banana Yoshimoto's first novel, "Kitchen" (1991), traversed the territory of love and loss. Its fabulous success in Japan and the U.S. had to do with her distinct sensibility, a contemporary voice arising from a tradition-conscious culture. "Amrita" also ventures through the minefield of familial loss, but with a style less driven by the bizarre interface of tradition and pop culture.

NP
Banana Yoshimoto Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
"Bananamania" has returned in an enchanting new novel of uncanny sulbtlety, style, magic, and mystery that Frank Ramirez of the "South Bend Tribune" declares is "every bit as good as Yoskimoto's first book ... perhaps better."
A celebrated Japanese writer has committed suicide, leaving behind a collection of stories written in English, "N.P." But the book may never be published in his native Japan: each translator who takes up the ninety-eighth story chooses death too -- including Kazami Kano's boyfriend, Shoji. Haunted by Shoji's death, Kazami is inexorably drawn to three young people whose lives are intimately bound to the late writer and his work. Over the course of an astonishing summer, she will discover the truth behind the ninety-eighth story -- and she will come to believe that "everytking that had happened was shockingly beautiful enough to make you crazy."

Message from Forever: A Novel of Aboriginal Wisdom
Marlo Morgan Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover
Following her modern classic and worldwide bestseller "Mutant Message Down Under," Marlo Morgan's long-awaited new novel is a tale of self-enlightenment about aboriginal twins separated at birth and the search for roots that reunites them form opposite sides of the globe.
Once more Morgan unveils the inspiring aboriginal worldview while pointedly exposing the plight of an ancient race rapidly becoming extinct as a result of more than two hundred years of systematic discrimination.
"Message from Forever" follows the lives of Australian aboriginal twins who were taken form their young mother by Christian missionaries. The baby boy is sent to a huge sheep ranch, where he grows up with little adult supervision and random affection. On his own, Geoff develops his talent as an artist, producing work at a level well beyond his five years. The boy is adopted by an American minister and is raised in New England with little sense of who he is or of his cultural heritage. His sister is given only the first name Beatrice by the nuns at an Australian orphanage, where she encounters continual racism and experiences shattering looses for the first eighteen years of her life.
Upon reaching adulthood, Beatrice leaves the orphanage to work at a boardinghouse. Beatrice hungers to know more about her ancestral roots. She walks away from her life in the city to strike out into the northern desert nation, where she goes on a walkabout with a small band of Aborigines.
Geoff does not fare so well in America. As a teen, he runs away from home and slips into a life of crime, alcohol, and alienation. His addictions destroy him, and he finds himself on Death Row with little sense of how he got there. After decades of learning about people in the Outback, Beatrice leaves her nomadic life to become a "runner between both worlds." She returns to the Mutant world as a political activist fighting for aboriginal rights of citizens arrested and convicted of crimes in foreign countries, as well as a champion of the rights of adults who were taken from their native culture as children. Her life's work bring her into contact with her lost brother, though neither is aware of their relationship.
Beatrice gives Geoff the "message from forever," which outlines aboriginal philosophy and principles of good living, along with an offer to return to Australia. As we read the message with Geoff, we are challenged to stretch our concepts of identity, spirituality, and openness transcends injustice and degradation, directing us to live our lives in accordance with ageless values and simple wisdom.

Traumfaenger
Marlo Morgan Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
I first came across this book whilst in Germany. I quickly bought a German copy & devoured it, enjoying it immensly. I believed it was a true story.



I have read reviews that query the authenticity of this book.



If you remember that it is (most probably) fictitional & take everything as possibly not being entirely accurate, then this book is probably still a good read.

Suburban Sahibs: Three Immigrant Families And Their Passage from India to America
S. Mitra Kalita Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
"As shapely as fiction and as timely as this morning's newspaper, this book is an informative one to read for pleasure."—New York Times
"Suburban Sahibs is a wonderfully crafted story of the personal struggles and victories of three immigrant families from South Asia living in the New Jersey suburbs. Amazingly, what emerges through the prism of their narratives is a much broader portrait of life in America today."—Bill Bradley, U.S. senator from New Jersey, 1979-1996
Winner of the Celebration of Immigrant Voices Award from the International Institute of New Jersey and the 2004 New Jersey Authors Award from the New Jersey Studies Academic Alliance and New Jersey Library Association.
From movie theaters showing the songs and gyrations of "Bollywood" to valedictorians named Patel and Shah, signs are everywhere that Middlesex County, New Jersey is home to one of the largest Indian populations in the world outside India. By tracing the migration of three families, this book delves into how immigration has altered the American suburb, and how the suburb, in turn, has altered the immigrant.
In this updated edition, journalist S. Mitra Kalita shows that although the reception from long-time residents has not been entirely welcoming, Indians have come to achieve economic success and their desire for political and social parity continues to grow stronger. She traces the evolution of the suburb from a destination for new arrivals to a launching pad for them.
In the late nineteenth century, tourists descended upon Edison to gawk at its Christmas lights displays. Today, thousands of Indians from all over the United States arrive in the same bedroom community to celebrate their own festivals of lights and colors. Suburban Sahibs attempts to answer the question of how and why they arrived, and offers a window into what America has become: a nation of suburbs as well as a nation of immigrants.

Sputnik Sweetheart
Haruki Murakami Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Haruki Murakami is arguably one of Japan's finest, modern writers and is, increasingly, being seen as one of the top authors working today. The last novel of his to find its way to these shores, "Norwegian Wood", was a delightful, if slightly one-dimensional coming-of-age tale. The pyrotechnics of his previous, more surreal novels ("Wind Up Bird Chronicle" and "A Wild Sheep Chase") had disappeared but something of his eccentricity, what made his books such a wonder, had disappeared too. "Sputnik Sweetheart" is a confident continuation of this more simple style yet one that retains the allegories, the depth of his best work.
The narrator, a teacher, is in love with the beguiling, odd Sumire. As his best friend, she is not adverse to phoning at three or four in the morning to ask a pointless question or share a strange thought. Sumire, though, is in love with a beautiful, older woman, Miu, who does not, can not, return her affections. Longing for Sumire, K (that is all we are told by way of a name) finds some comfort in a purely sexual relationship with the mother of one of his pupils. But the consolation is slight. K is unhappy. Miu and Sumire, now working together, take a business trip to a Greek Island. Something happens, he is not told what, and so K travels to Greece to see what help he can offer.
Themes of love, loss, sexuality, identity and selfhood are all interrogated, woven into a compelling, romantic, serious and sometimes sad book. It is a disarmingly simple, hugely satisfying, intelligent and moving work and one of Murakami's best. Simplicity, sprinkled with a dose of his magic, has enabled Murakami to write candidly, succinctly and beautifully about the complications and difficulties of love and loving. --"Mark Thwaite"

Goodbye Tsugumi
Banana Yoshimoto Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Banana Yoshimoto's novels of young life in Japan have made her an international sensation. Goodbye Tsugumi is an offbeat story of a deep and complicated friendship between two female cousins that ranks among her best work. Maria is the only daughter of an unmarried woman. She has grown up at the seaside alongside her cousin Tsugumi, a lifelong invalid, charismatic, spoiled, and occasionally cruel. Now Maria's father is finally able to bring Maria and her mother to Tokyo, ushering Maria into a world of university, impending adulthood, and a "normal" family. When Tsugumi invites Maria to spend a last summer by the sea, a restful idyll becomes a time of dramatic growth as Tsugumi finds love and Maria learns the true meaning of home and family. She also has to confront both Tsugumi's inner strength and the real possibility of losing her. Goodbye Tsugumi is a beguiling, resonant novel from one of the world's finest young writers.

Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress: A Novel
Dai Sijie Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress is an enchanting tale that captures the magic of reading and the wonder of romantic awakening. An immediate international bestseller, it tells the story of two hapless city boys exiled to a remote mountain village for re-education during China’s infamous Cultural Revolution. There the two friends meet the daughter of the local tailor and discover a hidden stash of Western classics in Chinese translation. As they flirt with the seamstress and secretly devour these banned works, the two friends find transit from their grim surroundings to worlds they never imagined.

Das Wetter.
Ulrich Wickert Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Der alte Mann und Mr. Smith.
Peter Ustinov Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Hübsche Versuche. Mit Photos aus dem Leben des Autors
Philipp Tingler Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Taschenbuch
Dieses Buch hat einen angenehm fiesen Titel. Es heißt "Hübsche Versuche", und fast meinte man, damit schon alles gesagt zu haben über Autor und Buch: Hübsche Versuche, mehr nicht. Aber da steckt noch ein wenig mehr dahinter. Und dieses Mehr ist so wenig, dass man sich wieder fragt: Wo kommt man bei der Lektüre hin? Und dreht einem hier der Autor nicht schon -- ohne es zu merken -- eine lange Nase? Das tut er auch. Fragt sich also, worum es geht. Um nichts, und damit meint einer mit Bestimmtheit das ganze Leben. Oder zumindest einen nicht unwesentlichen Ausschnitt davon. Tingler, selbst der Name wäre schon ein hübsches Pseudonym, führt den Leser vom 17. Juni bis zum 24. August 1997 durch die sommerlich hübsche Stadt Zürich. Genau dort spielt dieser Roman, ein Tagebuchroman. Eine hübsche Idee, ein Genre wiederzubeleben, das im heutigen Romanangebot eher ein Schattendasein fristet.
Tingler ist ein Student der Wirtschaftswissenschaften, wenn wir den Intentionen des Autors glauben wollen (dass die Ichfigur auch sein alter ego sein kann), den es nach Zürich verschlagen hat. Mit Rich bewohnt er eine Behausung. Die Ichfigur ist homosexuell und treibt sich in den einschlägigen Zürcher Clubs herum, aber auch andere, vorzugsweise von Heterosexuellen bevölkerte Lokale, werden in dem Tagebuchroman besucht. Das ist hübsch. Und die Prosa dieses jungen Autors (er ist zum Glück erst 30 Jahre alt) besticht durch ihren mal sarkastischen, mal ironischen, mal humorvollen Ton. Doch, schreiben kann Philipp Tingler, und das sogar sehr gut. Daran sind keine Zweifel zu hegen. Bloß, so wahnsinnig ereignisreich ist dieses Leben in Zürich nun auch wieder nicht, und da helfen die Rückblenden in die Jugendzeit und Kindheit auch nicht viel weiter. Belästigt uns da ein Autor mit seinem privaten Kram? Ja, das tut er, und weil er es zuweilen recht witzig vorträgt, liest man gerne eine Weile darin. Aber wirklich nur eine Weile. So wenig hat der junge Mann in Zürich erlebt, dass man ihm den dringenden Wunsch antragen will, bitte noch ein wenig mehr Lebenserfahrung zu sammeln, bevor er sich wieder an den PC setzt. "--Carlo Bernasconi"

My Path Leads to Tibet: The Inspiring Story of How One Young Blind Woman Brought Hope to the Blind Children of Tibet
Sabriye Tenberken Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Defying everyoneís advice, armed only with her rudimentary knowledge of Chinese and Tibetan, Sabriye Tenberken set out to do something about the appalling condition of the Tibetan blind, who she learned had been abandoned by society and left to die. Traveling on horseback throughout the country, she sought them out, devised a Braille alphabet in Tibetan, equipped her charges with canes for the first time, and set up a school for the blind. Her efforts were crowned with such success that hundreds of young blind Tibetans, instilled with a newfound pride and an education, have now become self-supporting. A tale that will leave no reader unmoved, it demonstrates anew the power of the positive spirit to overcome the most daunting odds.

A Breath of Fresh Air
Amulya Malladi Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
"On the night of December 3, 1984, Anjali waits for her army officer husband to pick her up at the train station in Bhopal, India. In an instant, her world changes forever. Her anger at his being late turns to horror when a catastrophic gas leak poisons the city air. Anjali miraculously survives. Her marriage does not.

"A smart, successful schoolteacher, Anjali is now remarried to Sandeep, a loving and stable professor. Their lives would be nearly perfect, if not for their young son’s declining health. But when Anjali’s first husband suddenly reappears in her life, she is thrown back to the troubling days of their marriage with a force that impacts everyone around her.

Her first husband’s return brings back all the uncertainty Anjali thought time and conviction had healed–about her decision to divorce, and about her place in a society that views her as scandalous for having walked away from her arranged marriage. As events unfold, feelings she had guarded like gold begin to leak away from her, spreading out into the world and challenging her once firm beliefs.

Rich in insight into Indian culture and psychology, "A Breath of Fresh Air "resonates with meaning and the abiding power of love. In a landscape as intriguing as it is unfamiliar, Anjali’s struggles to reconcile the roles of wife and ex-wife, working woman and mother, illuminate both the fascinating duality of the modern Indian woman and the difficult choices all women must make.


"From the Hardcover edition."

Momo
Ende Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Jim Knopf und Lukas der Lokomotivführer.
Michael Ende Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Pippi Langstrumpf
Astrid Lindgren Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Erst Grau Dann Weiss Dann Blau
Margriet D. Moor Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Der Kleine Prinz
Antoine De Saint-Exupéry Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
In 2000 Harcourt proudly reissued Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's masterpiece, The Little Prince, in a sparkling new format. Newly translated by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Richard Howard, this timeless classic was embraced by critics and readers across the country for its purity and beauty of expression. And Saint-Exupéry's beloved artwork was restored and remastered to present his work in its original and vibrant colors.

Now Harcourt is issuing uniform full-color foreign language editions. The restored artwork glows like never before. These affordable and beautiful editions are sure to delight an entire new generation of readers, students, children, and adults for whom Saint-Exupéry's story will open the door to a new understanding of life.

Montauk. Eine Erzählung.
Max Frisch Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Der Ruf DES Muschelhorns
Zoe Jenny Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Das Blütenstaubzimmer. Sonderausgabe.
Zoe Jenny Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Le Petit Nicolas
Sempe-Goscinny Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
I use Le petit Nicolas in my French classes. The book is divided into short chapters that students enjoy. The syntax can be challenging, but it also prepares them for more authentic literature in French 4. I highly recommend this book (and others in the Nicolas collection) to students, teachers, and French-lovers looking for a funny read.

Rameaus Nichte.
Cathleen Schine Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Das Meisterstück
Anna Enquist Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Taschenbuch

A Lesson Before Dying: a Novel
Ernest J. Gaines Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Oprah Book Club® Selection, September 1997: In a small Cajun community in 1940s Louisiana, a young black man is about to go to the electric chair for murder. A white shopkeeper had died during a robbery gone bad; though the young man on trial had not been armed and had not pulled the trigger, in that time and place, there could be no doubt of the verdict or the penalty.
"I was not there, yet I was there. No, I did not go to the trial, I did not hear the verdict, because I knew all the time what it would be..." So begins Grant Wiggins, the narrator of Ernest J. Gaines's powerful exploration of race, injustice, and resistance, "A Lesson Before Dying". If young Jefferson, the accused, is confined by the law to an iron-barred cell, Grant Wiggins is no less a prisoner of social convention. University educated, Grant has returned to the tiny plantation town of his youth, where the only job available to him is teaching in the small plantation church school. More than 75 years after the close of the Civil War, antebellum attitudes still prevail: African Americans go to the kitchen door when visiting whites and the two races are rigidly separated by custom and by law. Grant, trapped in a career he doesn't enjoy, eaten up by resentment at his station in life, and angered by the injustice he sees all around him, dreams of taking his girlfriend Vivian and leaving Louisiana forever. But when Jefferson is convicted and sentenced to die, his grandmother, Miss Emma, begs Grant for one last favor: to teach her grandson to die like a man.
As Grant struggles to impart a sense of pride to Jefferson before he must face his death, he learns an important lesson as well: heroism is not always expressed through action--sometimes the simple act of resisting the inevitable is enough. Populated by strong, unforgettable characters, Ernest J. Gaines's "A Lesson Before Dying" offers a lesson for a lifetime.

LUCKY MAN: A MEMOIR
Michael J. Fox Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
The same sharp intelligence and self-deprecating wit that made Michael J. Fox a star in the "Family Ties" TV series and "Back to the Future" make this a lot punchier than the usual up-from-illness celebrity memoir. Yes, he begins with the first symptoms of Parkinson's disease, the incurable illness that led to his retirement from "Spin City" (and acting) in 2000. And yes, he assures us he is a better, happier person now than he was before he was diagnosed. In Fox's case, you actually might believe it, because he then cheerfully exposes the insecurities and self-indulgences of his pre-Parkinson's life in a manner that makes them not glamorous but wincingly ordinary and of course very funny. ("As for the question, 'Does it bother you that maybe she just wants to sleep with you because you're a celebrity?' My answer to that one was, 'Ah...nope.'") With a working-class Canadian background, Fox has an unusually detached perspective on the madness of mass-media fame; his description of the tabloid feeding frenzy surrounding his 1988 wedding to Tracy Pollan, for example, manages to be both acid and matter-of-fact. He is frank but not maudlin about his drinking problem, and he refreshingly notes that getting sober did not automatically solve all his other problems. This readable, witty autobiography reminds you why it was generally a pleasure to watch Fox onscreen: he's a nice guy with an edge, and you don't have to feel embarrassed about liking him. "--Wendy Smith"

Memoirs of a Geisha
Arthur Golden Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Mass Market Paperback
According to Arthur Golden's absorbing first novel, the word "geisha" does not mean "prostitute," as Westerners ignorantly assume--it means "artisan" or "artist." To capture the geisha experience in the art of fiction, Golden trained as long and hard as any geisha who must master the arts of music, dance, clever conversation, crafty battle with rival beauties, and cunning seduction of wealthy patrons. After earning degrees in Japanese art and history from Harvard and Columbia--and an M.A. in English--he met a man in Tokyo who was the illegitimate offspring of a renowned businessman and a geisha. This meeting inspired Golden to spend 10 years researching every detail of geisha culture, chiefly relying on the geisha Mineko Iwasaki, who spent years charming the very rich and famous.
The result is a novel with the broad social canvas (and love of coincidence) of Charles Dickens and Jane Austen's intense attention to the nuances of erotic maneuvering. Readers experience the entire life of a geisha, from her origins as an orphaned fishing-village girl in 1929 to her triumphant auction of her "mizuage" (virginity) for a record price as a teenager to her reminiscent old age as the distinguished mistress of the powerful patron of her dreams. We discover that a geisha is more analogous to a Western "trophy wife" than to a prostitute--and, as in Austen, flat-out prostitution and early death is a woman's alternative to the repressive, arcane system of courtship. In simple, elegant prose, Golden puts us right in the tearoom with the geisha; we are there as she gracefully fights for her life in a social situation where careers are made or destroyed by a witticism, a too-revealing (or not revealing enough) glimpse of flesh under the kimono, or a vicious rumor spread by a rival "as cruel as a spider."
Golden's web is finely woven, but his book has a serious flaw: the geisha's true romance rings hollow--the love of her life is a symbol, not a character. Her villainous geisha nemesis is sharply drawn, but she would be more so if we got a deeper peek into the cause of her motiveless malignity--the plight all geisha share. Still, Golden has won the triple crown of fiction: he has created a plausible female protagonist in a vivid, now-vanished world, and he gloriously captures Japanese culture by expressing his thoughts in authentic Eastern metaphors.

Eine von uns wird sterben
Shirley Shea Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Gebundene Ausgabe

Liebesfluchten
Bernhard Schlink Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Der Vorleser
Bernhard Schlink Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Winner of the Boston Review's Fisk Fiction Prize, this thematically complex story is written in clear, simple, lucid prose. It is a straightforward telling of an encounter that was to mark fifteen year old Michael Berg for life. The book, written as if it were a memoir, is divided into three parts. The first part of the book deals with that encounter.



While on his way home from school one day in post-war Germany, Michael becomes ill. He is aided by a beautiful and buxom, thirty six year old blonde named Hanna Schmitz. When he recovers from his illness, he goes to Frau Schmitz's home to thank her and eventually finds himself seduced by her and engaged in a sexual encounter. They become lovers for a period of time, and a component of their relationship was that Michael would read aloud to her. Michael romanticizes their affair, which is a cornerstone of his young life. They even go away on a trip together. Then, one day, as suddenly as she appeared in his life, she disappears, having inexplicably moved with no forwarding address.



The second part of the book deals with Michael's chance encounter with Hanna again. He is now a law student in a seminar that is focused on Germany's Nazi past and the related war trials. The students are young and eager to condemn all who, after the end of the war, had tolerated the Nazis in their midst. Even Michael's parents do not escape his personal condemnation. The seminar is to be an exploration of the collective guilt of the German people, and Michael embraces the opportunity, as do others of his generation, to philosophically condemn the older generation for having sat silently by. Then, he is assigned to take notes on a trial of some camp guards.



To his total amazement, one of the accused is Hanna, his Hanna. He stoically remains throughout the trial, realizing as he hears the evidence that she is refusing to divulge the one piece of evidence that could possibly absolve her or, at least, mitigate her complicity in the crimes with which she is charged. It is as if she considers her secret, that of her inability to read and write, more shameful than that of which she is accused. Yet, Michael, too, remains mute on the fact that would throw her legal, if not her moral, guilt into question. Consequently, Hanna finds herself bearing the legal guilt of all those involved in the crime of which she is accused and is condemned accordingly.



The third part of the book is really the way Michael deals with having found Hanna, again. He removes himself from further demonstration and discussion on the issue of Germany's Nazi past. It affects his decisions as to his career in the law, eventually choosing a legal career that is isolating. He marries and has a child but finds that he cannot be free of Hanna. He cannot be free of the pain of having loved Hanna. It is as if Hanna has marked him for life. He divorces and never remarries. It is as if he cannot love another, as he loved Hanna. Michael then reaches out to Hanna in prison, indirectly, through the secret they share of what she seems to be most ashamed. Yet, he carefully never personalizes the contact. The end, when it comes, is almost anti-climatic.



The relationship between Michael and Hanna really seems to be analogous to the relationship between the generations of Germans in post-war Germany. The affair between Michael and Hanna is representational of the affair that Germany had with the Nazi movement. The eroticism of the book is a necessary component for the collective guilt and shame that the Germans bear for the Holocaust, as well as for the moral divide that seemingly exists between the generations. Yet, the book also shows that such is not always a black and white issue, that there are sometimes gray areas when one discusses one's actions in the context of the forces of good and evil. There is also the issue of legal and moral responsibility. One would think that the two are synonymous, but they are not always so. It also philosophizes on the ability to love another/a nation who/that was complicit in war crimes. This is the German text edition of "The Reader", an insightful, allegorical book that defies categorizing. It is also a book that is a wonderful selection for a reading circle, as it has a wealth of issues that are ripe for discussion. This is simply a superlative book. Bravo!

Beyond Chocolate: Understanding Swiss Culture
Margaret Oertig-Davidson Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Go beyond Swiss chocolate, beyond the initial fun and adventure of a new country and a new career to immerse yourself in the cultural attitudes of Switzerland's fascinating, multifaceted society.
This engaging study exposes different attitudes and potential misunderstandings about friendship, neighborliness, being professional, giving and getting compliments and criticism, parenting, schooling, being polite, entertaining, negotiating, decision making, business etiquette, team work, leadership, making plans, and much much more.
These thought-provoking insights are based on expensive interviews with Swiss and international people who know well the ups and downs of life in Switzerland. These observations enable newcomers to better understand the perspectives of their Swiss neighbors, friends and international business colleagues.

Die Wahrheit Beginnt Zu Zweit
Michael Moeller Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Geschichten, die der Seele gut tun.
Jack Kornfield, Christina Feldmann, Karin Hein Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Jonathan Livinston Seagull
Richard Bach Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Mass Market Paperback

Wenn es verletzt, ist es keine Liebe.
Chuck Spezzano Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

Geliehenes Glück. Ein Bericht aus dem Liebesalltag.
Julia Onken Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Sei Dein bester Freund
Ulrike Dahm, Erich Keller Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Broschiert

Mit aller Macht. Primary colors
Anonymus, Joe Klein Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Gebundene Ausgabe
Sprachlich guter und inhaltlich temporeicher Politthriller, der aber von den Anspielungen auf Bill Clintons Amtszeit als US-Präsident lebt, und da diese längst der Vergangenheit angehört, verliert auch der Roman an Faszination, deshalb nur noch 3 Sterne. Trotzdem noch empfehlenswert, vor allem weil es ja evtl. bald wieder ein US-Staatsoberhaupt namens Clinton geben wird...

A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
Bill Bryson Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Bill Bryson has made a living out of traveling and then writing about it. In "The Lost Continent" he re-created the road trips of his childhood; in "Neither Here nor There" he retraced the route he followed as a young backpacker traversing Europe. When this American transplant to Britain decided to return home, he made a farewell walking tour of the British countryside and produced "Notes from a Small Island". Once back on American soil and safely settled in New Hampshire, Bryson once again hears the siren call of the open road--only this time it's a trail. The Appalachian Trail, to be exact. In "A Walk in the Woods" Bill Bryson tackles what is, for him, an entirely new subject: the American wilderness. Accompanied only by his old college buddy Stephen Katz, Bryson starts out one March morning in north Georgia, intending to walk the entire 2,100 miles to trail's end atop Maine's Mount Katahdin.
If nothing else, "A Walk in the Woods" is proof positive that the journey "is" the destination. As Bryson and Katz haul their out-of-shape, middle-aged butts over hill and dale, the reader is treated to both a very funny personal memoir and a delightful chronicle of the trail, the people who created it, and the places it passes through. Whether you plan to make a trip like this one yourself one day or only care to read about it, "A Walk in the Woods" is a great way to spend an afternoon. "--Alix Wilber"

New York
Lily Brett Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

High Exposure
David Breashears Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
This is a terrific book which draws you into David Breashears' world. You follow his development from young rock climber to world class mountaineer and filmmaker. You also see his development as a person, all while drawing you into that exclusive club of mountaineers. He makes you feel his passion for the mountains he so loves. You learn how he combined that passion with the art of cinematography, making him an award winning filmmaker.
You live through the 1996 tragedy on Everest with him, and feel the compassion that he has for those who died on the mountain under such tragic circumstances. The narrative is always compelling and informative, making the book a hard one to put down. His compassion and sensitivity towards those who did not fare well on the ill-fated 1996 Everest climb is palpable, and for his assistance to those who needed it, even though it put him and his expedition in jeopardy, he is truly an unsung hero. This is, without a doubt, a man who leads by example.
David Breashears writes beautifully of his experiences and his book is a must read for all climbing enthusiasts, as well as for those simply interested in the human condition. This is a book that is simply too good to pass up.

Kilimanjaro: Mountain at the Crossroads
Audrey Salkeld Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Hardcover

A British prime minister in Queen Victoria's England once dismissed Kilimanjaro as “that mountain behind Zanzibar with the unrememberable name.” Today, there can be few who don't recognize its most beautiful and evocative name. From the literature of Ernest Hemingway, from movies, and from a multitude of images, the world is familiar with the Elysian view of elephants and giraffes grazing against the shimmering backdrop of Kilimanjaro. Floating over the plains of East Africa, more mirage than mountain, Kilimanjaro exudes mystery and romance. At the same time, it is an accessible mountain, drawing more than 20,000 visitors each year to its slopes and snowy dome. The climb up Kilimanjaro has been likened to a journey from the equator to the poles, passing as it does through zone after zone of climatic change, from tropical forest to frozen desert. And Kilimanjaro's human history is no less rich than its natural history. Close to the cradle of mankind, the mountain has watched history unfold at its foot, from the earliest hunter-gatherers and the scramble of colonization to World War I battles and the wave of independence that swept Africa in the mid-20th century.
In "Kilimanjaro: To the Roof of Africa," accomplished mountaineer and writer Audrey Salkeld presents a comprehensive and awe-inspiring portrait of this noble mountain and its myriad facets. To be published in conjunction with the release of David Breashears's stunning new IMAX® film about Kilimanjaro, this book is an extraordinary journey to the roof of Africa.

The Tortilla Curtain
T. Coraghessan Boyle Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
The author of East Is East replays the tragi-comic meeting of representatives from two different cultures with nothing in common. This book calmly grabs hold with an unexpected suspense.

Das Cafe der toten Philosophen.
Nora K., Vittorio Hösle Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

Every Day Gets a Little Closer: A Twice-Told Therapy
Irvin D. Yalom, Ginny Elkin Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
An early work by the author of the bestselling "Love's Executioner" and the pseudonymous patient that he treated. "A riveting story of people whose strengths and weaknesses are mutually shared."--Alex Comfort

Love's Executioner: & Other Tales of Psychotherapy
Irvin D. Yalom Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

The collection of ten absorbing tales by master psychotherapist Irvin D. Yalom uncovers the mysteries, frustrations, pathos, and humor at the heart of the therapeutic encounter.  In recounting his patients' dilemmas, Yalom not only gives us a rare and enthralling glimpse into their personal desires and motivations but also tells us his own story as he struggles to reconcile his all-too human responses with his sensibility as a psychiatrist.  Not since Freud has an author done so much to clarify what goes on between a psychotherapist and a patient.

Und Nietzsche Weinte
Irvin D. Yalom Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback

The Namesake: A Novel
Jhumpa Lahiri Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Any talk of "The Namesake"--Jhumpa Lahiri's follow-up to her Pulitzer Prize-winning debut, "Interpreter of Maladies"--must begin with a name: Gogol Ganguli. Born to an Indian academic and his wife, Gogol is afflicted from birth with a name that is neither Indian nor American nor even really a first name at all. He is given the name by his father who, before he came to America to study at MIT, was almost killed in a train wreck in India. Rescuers caught sight of the volume of Nikolai Gogol's short stories that he held, and hauled him from the train. Ashoke gives his American-born son the name as a kind of placeholder, and the awkward thing sticks.
Awkwardness is Gogol's birthright. He grows up a bright American boy, goes to Yale, has pretty girlfriends, becomes a successful architect, but like many second-generation immigrants, he can never quite find his place in the world. There's a lovely section where he dates a wealthy, cultured young Manhattan woman who lives with her charming parents. They fold Gogol into their easy, elegant life, but even here he can find no peace and he breaks off the relationship. His mother finally sets him up on a blind date with the daughter of a Bengali friend, and Gogol thinks he has found his match. Moushumi, like Gogol, is at odds with the Indian-American world she inhabits. She has found, however, a circuitous escape: "At Brown, her rebellion had been academic ... she'd pursued a double major in French. Immersing herself in a third language, a third culture, had been her refuge--she approached French, unlike things American or Indian, without guilt, or misgiving, or expectation of any kind." Lahiri documents these quiet rebellions and random longings with great sensitivity. There's no cleverness or showing-off in "The Namesake", just beautifully confident storytelling. Gogol's story is neither comedy nor tragedy; it's simply that ordinary, hard-to-get-down-on-paper commodity: real life. "--Claire Dederer"

Interpreter of Maladies
Jhumpa Lahiri Added: 30 Sep 2007 Format: Paperback
Mr. Kapasi, the protagonist of Jhumpa Lahiri's title story, would certainly have his work cut out for him if he were forced to interpret the maladies of all the characters in this eloquent debut collection. Take, for example, Shoba and Shukumar, the young couple in "A Temporary Matter" whose marriage is crumbling in the wake of a stillborn child. Or Miranda in "Sexy," who is involved in a hopeless affair with a married man. But Mr. Kapasi has problems enough of his own; in addition to his regular job working as an interpreter for a doctor who does not speak his patients' language, he also drives tourists to local sites of interest. His fare on this particular day is Mr. and Mrs. Das--first-generation Americans of Indian descent--and their children. During the course of the afternoon, Mr. Kapasi becomes enamored of Mrs. Das and then becomes her unwilling confidant when she reads too much into his profession. "I told you because of your talents," she informs him after divulging a startling secret. I'm tired of feeling so terrible all the time. Eight years, Mr. Kapasi, I've been in pain eight years. I was hoping you could help me feel better; say the right thing. Suggest some kind of remedy. Of course, Mr. Kapasi has no cure for what ails Mrs. Das--or himself. Lahiri's subtle, bittersweet ending is characteristic of the collection as a whole. Some of these nine tales are set in India, others in the United States, and most concern characters of Indian heritage. Yet the situations Lahiri's people face, from unhappy marriages to civil war, transcend ethnicity. As the narrator of the last story, "The Third and Final Continent," comments: "There are times I am bewildered by each mile I have traveled, each meal I have eaten, each person I have known, each room in which I have slept." In that single line Jhumpa Lahiri sums up a universal experience, one that applies to all who have grown up, left home, fallen in or out of love, and, above all, experienced what it means to be a foreigner, even within one's own family. "--Alix Wilber"