Book Description
From the perspective of 2007, the unintentional irony of Chance's boast is manifest—these days, the question is when will the Cubs ever win a game they have to have. In October 1908, though, no one would have laughed: The Cubs were, without doubt, baseball's greatest team—the first dynasty of the 20th century.
Crazy '08 recounts the 1908 season—the year when Peerless Leader Frank Chance's men went toe to toe to toe with John McGraw and Christy Mathewson's New York Giants and Honus Wagner's Pittsburgh Pirates in the greatest pennant race the National League has ever seen. The American League has its own three-cornered pennant fight, and players like Cy Young, Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, and the egregiously crooked Hal Chase ensured that the junior circuit had its moments. But it was the National League's—and the Cubs'—year.
Crazy '08, however, is not just the exciting story of a great season. It is also about the forces that created modern baseball, and the America that produced it. In 1908, crooked pols run Chicago's First Ward, and gambling magnates control the Yankees. Fans regularly invade the field to do handstands or argue with the umps; others shoot guns from rickety grandstands prone to burning. There are anarchists on the loose and racial killings in the town that made Lincoln. On the flimsiest of pretexts, General Abner Doubleday becomes a symbol of Americanism, and baseball's own anthem, "Take Me Out to the Ballgame," is a hit.
Picaresque and dramatic, 1908 is a season in which so many weird and wonderful things happen that it is somehow unsurprising that a hairpiece, a swarm of gnats, a sudden bout of lumbago, and a disaster down in the mines all play a role in its outcome. And sometimes the events are not so wonderful at all. There are several deaths by baseball, and the shadow of corruption creeps closer to the heart of baseball—the honesty of the game itself. Simply put, 1908 is the year that baseball grew up.
Oh, and it was the last time the Cubs won the World Series.
Destined to be as memorable as the season it documents, Crazy '08 sets a new standard for what a book about baseball can be.
Customer Reviews:
A detailed look at one baseball season.......2007-10-05
Cait Murphy observes that 1908 is an important season in the history of baseball in America. She closes the book with the statement (page 288): "In the sweep of baseball's history, 1908 is not the end of an era, nor the beginning of one. It is, however, the end of the beginning." She starts the work by answering why she explores 1908 (page xiii): "The best season in baseball history id 1908. Besides two agonizing pennant races, it features history's finest pitching duel, hurled in the white heat of an October stretch drive, and the most controversial game ever played." I'm not sure that I buy 1908 as the apogee of baseball; however, Murphy does make a nice case.
The book begins with some context, looking at the earlier years of the National League and American League just after the turn of the century. She also looks at the evolution of gloves and bats and the other artifacts of the game. There are glimpses of stadia of the time.
Also nicely done are the character sketches of some key figures from 1908--from Manager John McGraw of the Giants to John Evers and Frank ("Husk" or "The Peerless Leader") Chance of the Cubs to Honus Wagner and so on. The book takes a chronological look at the season thereafter, from opening day through the great replay of the tie game (when Fred Merkle didn't touch second base, leading to a tie score) to a brief afterword on the World Series (not much time spent on it, since it was a blowout, with the Cubs winning their last World Series over the Detroit Tigers).
Some interesting tidbits are scattered throughout: the seemingly large number of players who committed suicide (pages 66-67), the amazing variety of interests of Cubs' players on one train trip (if accurately portrayed by a reporter)--"Doc" Marshall reading a book on dentistry, Johnny Evers reading a biography of Savonarola, two players discussed how to raise alfalfa, Ed Reulbach reading a chemistry book, five playing poker, and so on.
There is the portrayal of some of the great moments of the season, for instance, Young Fred Merkle not touching second base after an apparent game-winning hit against the detested Cubs (pages 189-191).
There are also several "time-out" inserts that provide interesting side-bar discussions. One of these looks at Chicago and its bawdy politics of the early 1900s; another examines the howler that Abner Doubleday invented the game of baseball. An Epilogue briefly describes what happened to key players after the 1908 season, including Mordecai "Three-Finger" Brown (there is a picture of his misshapen hand in the volume, suggesting how he might have created interesting movement on his pitches), Frank Chance, Hal Chase, Fred Merkle, "Cy" Young, and so on.
All in all, a nice detailed view of a fascinating season in baseball history.
An extra-base hit, but short of a home run.......2007-09-30
The 1908 baseball season provided plenty of excitement, suspense and story lines as one game separated the top three teams in the National League and 1.5 games separated the top three teams in the American League. Astute baseball fans have long recognized it as one of the greatest years in baseball history, if not the greatest. Author Cait Murphy writes an entertaining and informative account of Crazy '08, but it is also uneven.
Murphy thoroughly researched the 1908 season as evidenced by her extensive bibliography and footnotes, which I greatly appreciated as a reader and fan of the Deadball Era.
Murphy, however, decides to focus on the National League race among the Giants, Cubs and Pirates. She seems infatuated with John McGraw and the New York Giants and their rivalry with the Chicago Cubs. Although these two teams are colorful, readers interested in the equally exciting American League race among the Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Indians will be vastly disappointed. Murphy considerably shortchanges the American League race.
While it's interesting to read about the characters of `08, Murphy gives scant details about the pivotal games they played. The games merit more attention. And, after battling to the last days of the season, how could Murphy dismiss the 1908 World Series between the Cubs and the Tigers in less than a page? It couldn't have been that boring. It seems as if she had run out of steam at that point or else she was just trying to finish the book before deadline. My guess is that if the Giants had won the National League pennant, Murphy would have considered the '08 World Series worthy of more coverage.
On the positive side, Murphy does an excellent job describing the infamous Merkle play and how and why it became pivotal. She also presents interesting portraits of the umpires and executives. And, she digs up some interesting informational nuggets.
Her six "Time Out" chapters, intended to put the 1908 season in context, were an unnecessary diversion for me.
OK- Average look at an unforgettable year.......2007-08-24
I expected more out of this book- I just found the writing to be pretty boring- It's a quick read but never really captures the emotion of the season- Wait until it arrives in paperback
Yankee.......2007-08-17
Loads of fun to read. My son who is 12 read it cover to cover too. It came right on time.
Interesting but Jumpy.......2007-08-15
I agree with some of the other reviewers. The book was interesting in it's depiction of players and the general cast of this era of baseball. But I was not overly impressed with the writing, or more specifically the editing. I noticed that many sentences jumped between past tense and present tense, for instance. And some of the chapters could have used more exposition. I also was annoyed by the number of footnote notations throughout the book. Just felt distracting. But for a fun read about old time baseball, it wasn't bad.
Product Description
Learning Spanish Like Crazy was developed to teach conversational Latin American Spanish. The course was developed after the Founder of the course realized that the Spanish that Latin American actually speak was different from the Spanish that he had learned from other self-study Spanish courses. Unlike many other Spanish courses, Learning Spanish Like Crazy teaches you how to speak "spoken" Latin American Spanish as opposed to "textbook" or formal Spanish. The course is all audio. This is the first in the series of three levels of Spanish. The first level will take the student from beginner to lower intermediate level. The other two levels are still under development by the company. As a special bonus gift for Amazon customers, the customers are given access to re-mastered downloadable copies of the complete FSI Spanish Level III and FSI Spanish Level IV.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent product.......2007-09-07
I have used several means and methods attempting to learn Spanish over the last 10 years. This method seems to be working the best. I very much like the audio concept. After listening several times to a lesson, I follow-up with the transcript. Now, for the first time, I find myself gaining confidence that I will actually learn to speak Spanish.
Great Spanish Language CDS.......2007-08-12
These CDs have helped me remember Spanish that I have had before and have helped me with both by pronouciation and speaking in a way that college Spanish did not.
Nice product - great for filling 'gaps'.......2007-05-23
I bought the product last year and have completed all of the lessons. Trust me - I agree with several of the other reviewers that it is really a great tool - if not the best that I've come across for dealing with everyday conversation. Being a very skeptical person with stuff like this, I admit that this is the only audio course that I have bought, and honestly don't think I'll purchase others. I did a lot of research before I tried the LSLC Level 1 system.
I live in Trinidad and Tobago (unlike any of the other reviewers that I have seen so far). TnT is located just 9km (about 5-6 miles) off of the coast of Venezuela, and 99.5% of the population here knows just a handful of Spanish words. After taking a course at the Venezuelan Embassy here for two years, I still found it quite difficult to understand them when they spoke - especially among themselves! I can read and write it quite well, but still had great difficulty understanding the natives. After studying the first maybe 14 lessons, I visited some friends of mine over there in December, and to my surprise I understood them a heck of a lot more. By the way, these folks speak much faster than Mexicans and Colombians in normal conversation - particularly those from the Eastern part of the country, so most of you have virtually no stress, since most Americans interact with Mexicans or Puerto Ricans. Try conversing with someone from Guiria, Venezuela too see what I'm talking about! The Mexicans I have interacted with speak very clearly compared to most Venezuelans - and the accent is easier to understand. Of course the LSLC instructors were quite easy to understand, and YEAH - it's a CD, so you don't have to ask them to say something again!
I would recommend the course for anyone, but would like to sort of categorize it (hope it helps somewhat):
- Beginners: You need some good reference material and a tutor to work with, alongside the course. The course is not ALL! 501 Spanish Verbs by Christopher Kendris, and Dorothy Richmond's 'Practice Makes Perfect' series of workbooks - these are GREAT! A good dictionary such as the Oxford Spanish Dictionary is a must. NOT a pocket dictionary - at least not for serious learners. The Oxford is bulky, but it contains many idiomatic explanations and context-based translations for virtually all the words it contains, along with explanations of the nuances of using certain words - again, in context. Regional differences are well-covered in this dictionary. There is no dictionary out there that comes close - although the latest Collin's tries really hard. I have lots of reference books, but I have found these outstanding in building stuff clearly so one could understand without boring drills.
- Intermediate: I think the best way to treat this is to relate my own experience. This course helped me to fill the gaps in my understanding of certain annoying things that you don't see in texts and that are not found in other audio courses - stuff like '¿Como?' meaning 'What was that?' or 'What did you say?' in English, clearly explained. Before, I used to say '¿Qué?' and any native speaker would look at me kind of funny, but I never knew my (potentially rude) error until I used the course material in Nivel 1. You can find yourself in some embarassing positions if stuff like that is missed in your speech. I did learn a lot of new stuff with the course as well, such as a few idiomatic expressions that you can't really translate directly. And yes - your accent becomes really HOT! My friends told me they were amazed at how I sounded when I visited. Of course I felt great, even though I knew that I still have much more work to do.
- Advanced: Heck, you don't really need this stuff - this is for newbies and the peeps like me who are still striving toward fluency! Anyway, I think that even advanced non-native speakers may pick up something small in here, maybe as revision or something.
Dive in, folks. For those of you who have used the more antiquated products that focus on mainland (Spain) Spanish, you'll really appreciate this stuff. The use of different people from at least two countries really helps you differentiate the accents. Remember, my problem was lack of listening skill (and still is to a great extent), so that's how I addressed it. LSLC allows you to attack both speaking and listening at the same time, so if they're your squeeze, get the course. The FSI material included is wonderful for rigorous reinforcement, but it's not as much fun as the LSLC. It's actually quite mechanical, BUT has serious material, so it should be used too.
Hey, a tip I have tried is to buy some music in at least one genre that you really love, performed strictly in Spanish, and listen to it over and over. You will be amazed at how well your listening will improve and you'll be checking that dictionary pretty often too. I have several albums that I listen to, and I tell you - they've helped plenty. This also seems to reinforce your ability to hear words slumped together as individual or logical groups, and at least for me, allows you to start to figure out missed or unclear words based on the other words around them.
Now handle yuh scene!
Sweet TnT!!
BEST audio lessons I have tried.......2007-05-15
As someone who has picked up quite a bit of Spanish through contacts with friends, work, and general American culture. I even lived in Brazil and learned pretty good Portuguese -- but I never took a "real" course in Spanish, so I regularly make silly mistakes of conjugation or word agreement (gender or number). I have tried some tapes, cds, and the Pimsleur program (TOO SLOW) and books, all to minor improvement.
This course is PERFECT for me! This past weekend I plowed through 12 lessons, picking up all these little rules that I missed along the way. I can go through each lesson in sequence and not feel like I'm rehashing too much, while still reinforcing previous lessons that just roll off the tongue! I think of the hundreds/thousands of dollars I have spent over 20 years and wish I had this program available to me years ago.
Meanwhile, I just ordered Vol. 2 -- between these two volumes and the FSI materials (definitely worth buying w/ Amazon benefits), I only have myself to blame, but one week later, I'm feeling confident I'll get through this program!
ABSOLUTELY THE BEST AND EASIEST.......2007-05-09
Thanks to a review by Anna Rivera and a lot of other research, I bought these CDs. I have had 2 years of high school Spanish, 12 weeks of an immersion course and 2 weeks of immersion in living with a Mexican family in Cuernavaca. I have learned more with these CDs than I thought was possible. Please read Anna's review and ditto from me.
"As the editor of the Learning Spanish Products Reviews (LearningSpanishProductsReviews) site, one of my responsibilities is to review Spanish courses that are listed on Amazon. I am also a native Spanish speaker from Argentina and a professional private Spanish instructor.
I have recommended this course to at least a dozen of my private students. I had recommended it to a married couple that has studied Spanish for years and was finding it easy to read and write in Spanish and even understand the novelas, but was having difficulty speaking it. After several weeks of daily practice with this course, they are speaking Spanish much better and with a lot more confidence.
As several reviewers have pointed out, this course uses a teaching method that makes it possible for the student to really get a true Latin American Spanish accent. As a Spanish instructor I am very tolerant of students that have poor pronunciation or bad accents in Spanish. But as a native Spanish speaker, I can tell you that there is nothing more annoying than someone that has taken the time to learn proper Spanish vocabulary and grammar but has neglected to learn the proper pronunciation and accent. If you fall into that category, please give this course a try so you can get your Latin American Spanish accent right.
The sound quality of the lessons is also excellent. And to develop proper pronunciation and accent, you really need good sound quality like this course has. I was also impressed with the amount of content that the course covers.
As a native Spanish speaker, I can say that this course comes closer than other courses in teaching Latin American Spanish that is for everyday conversation, and teaching the Spanish that Latin Americans actually speak. Although I have not personally experienced them, one of my students told me that the course also includes a live weekly group class by telephone with a native instructor from Costa Rica. The students on the group class call and speak in Spanish to each other and the instructor in Spanish.
Without a doubt, this is the best course for learning true Latin American conversational Spanish. And also the best for refining a proper sounding Latin American accent."
Book Description
Praise for A MANIAC COMMODITY TRADER'S GUIDE TO MAKING A FORTUNE
"Kevin Kerr has the keenest instincts of any commodities trader I've ever met. His recommendations are money in the bank. This book is your passport to the exciting, frantic, frustrating, and potentially enormously rewarding world of futures trading. Do you want to make money in futures and options? Read this book and let a master show you not only how to trade, but how to trade to win."
—Sean Brodrick, Editor, MoneyandMarkets.com
"Any old trader can throw money into the commodity pits, although why do you think that they call them 'pits'? With Kevin Kerr as your guide to understanding the commodities markets, it is as if you have Babe Ruth as your batting coach. Kevin has that uncanny knack for doing things right, and the magic eye that can see the stitches on the fastball. Kevin's brilliant new book will help you to develop the ability to choose your pitch, and to swing at the ones on which you can make money. Before you play another inning of the commodities game, Read This Book!"
—Byron W. King, Contributing Editor, Whiskey and Gunpowder, www.whiskeyandgunpowder.com
Customer Reviews:
A truly awful book that entirely misses any potential audience.......2007-08-30
If you know anything about trading or commodities, this book will not enlighten you with any new insights -- and if you don't know anything about commodities, there are better introductions (actually, if you don't know anything about trading commodities, don't get started now: today's volatile markets are too treacherous for neophytes).
Introduction 101.......2007-07-28
This is an excellent book to begin with if you are thinking of dipping your toes into the commodities arena. The broad range of topics discussed will open the beginner's eyes to commodities trading.
However, I will recommend Jim Roger's 'Hot Commodities' for a more in-depth discussion on fundamentals and Jack Schwager's 'Market Wizard' series on trading psychology. Good luck!
Not sure who this book is intended for.......2007-06-27
He explains all the basics in the book, which seem to make me think it's for the newbie. But he doesn't get into details about cutting loses / risk management. He just says that we should and leaves it up to us to figure out how. And this book is too basic for the intermediate or advanced trader.
Kevin, you could have done better...........2007-06-10
I purchased this book looking for some insight from a long time success in the commodities markets; what I got was some boilerplate list of "do's and dont's" - - a few anecdotes (entertaining mostly) - - - and not much else.
This Kevin Kerr is one smart guy - - he just should have put a lot more meat on the bones in the whole effort.
Maniac Commodity Trader.......2007-05-16
A must read for all new-b's. I have made so much money I can't believe it. I keep it buy my side for reference.
Product Description
A no-fluff, easy-to-read compilation of the best advice from the top 20 time management books. Recommendations cover five areas: Focus, Plan, Organize, Take Action, and Learn. Short chapters cover the A to Z of time management from finding out what time means to you to prioritizing, overcoming procrastination, and managing stress and well being. You can read the book from start to finish or zero in on specific areas for improvement. The book includes a useful annotated bibliography and bonus sections on recommended books on being successful and how to buy books for much less.
Customer Reviews:
The 25 Best Time Management Tools & Techniques.......2007-09-05
I have been taking time management courses for over 15 years, but i learned more in this time management tool than i ever learned in those courses. Each chapter is filled with tidbits of information that you can quickly put to use to become more effective in your career development. The chapters on vision and goals are excellent. I have benefited greatly from the tips, albeit small when you look at them in the book, will make a big difference once applied to your life. Love the book. Am passing it on to a coworker tomorrow.
Not the best.......2007-07-10
I didn't find this book as helpful as I had wished. The chapters only touch the tip of the iceberg and don't necessarily go into detail on how to implement the techniques.
The book could have been much more cohesive and comprehensive.
Great resource for the mildly disorganized.......2007-03-08
Pros: The book is laid out into 25 chapters, and each one is no more than 4-5 pages in length, making it easy to glance over the Table of Contents, and read quickly through whatever interests you most. Each lesson is 'en pointe', and doesn't waste time with casual talk and yet is engaging and written with utmost clarity. The book is fairly thin, and can fit in a large purse or briefcase. It can be read straight through (as I'm doing) or you can bounce around.
Cons: After ordering the book online, I got an email telling me that the book would be delayed by delivery for 4-6 weeks, instead of the 1-3 weeks I expected initially. Fortunally, it arrived in 3 weeks, since it came back into stock.
My Personal Thoughts: I like this book, because time management isn't exactly "pleasurable reading" for me. So, this is very quick & dirty. Instead of reading the whole book, I am tackling each chapter at a time, and within a month of owning the book, I'm halfway through re-organizing the clutter in my apartment, and have created a "tickler" file at work, which has already made my life less stressful, and easier to get to work, and quickly get started on projects. I could see myself referring back to this book in the future for tips. ..Conclusion: Definitely a keeper, but you must come with your own motivation, otherwise it'll just collect dust on your shelf.
A time saver.......2007-02-19
The "Cliff's notes" of Time Management.
I found the information was clear, concise and well presented. It's a good book to have on your desk as a reference when you feel yourself drifting into disorganization to motivate you to get back on track.
The only thing is I felt like it was snippets with no real cohesion. You could read it thinking...well I could do this, and that, or this and that... but there was no clear philosophy to bring it all together.
It's an excellent sampler of approaches, though...and as someone who has read many of the same books listed, I'd attest that the author's understanding and abbreviated versions of each of the time management techniques are spot-on.
20 Time Management Books in One.......2007-02-06
I liked this book so much that I just purchased 5 additional copies for family and friends. The authors present in one manageable volume lessons from the top 20 time management books on the amazon.com website. The book is divided into 6 sections and 25 short chapters covering diverse subjects such as identifying one's own values, writing a mission statement, organizing living and work spaces, overcoming procrastination and managing stress. In addition, there are helpful reviews of the 20 time management books the authors chose along with reviews of other helpful books such as Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, one of my personal favorites. This book is highly readable, practical and comprehensive. It is essentially a digest or executive summary of the best books on the subject. It is well organized and can be used as an easy continuing reference. I hope you get as much out of it as I did.
Average customer rating:
- You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?!: The Classic Self-Help Book for Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder
- Excellent book on Adult ADHD
- Finally it's mine!
- you mean I'm not lazy, stupid or crazy
- You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?
|
You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?!: The Classic Self-Help Book for Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder
Kate Kelly , and
Peggy Ramundo
Manufacturer: Scribner
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Binding: Paperback
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Women with Attention Deficit Disorder: Embrace Your Differences and Transform Your Life
Accessories:
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philosophy hope in a jar daily moisturizer
ASIN: 0743264487 |
Book Description
With over a quarter million copies in print, You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?! is one of the bestselling books on attention deficit disorder (ADD) ever written. There is a great deal of literature about children with ADD. But what do you do if you have ADD and aren't a child anymore? This indispensable reference -- the first of its kind written for adults with ADD by adults with ADD -- focuses on the experiences of adults, offering updated information, practical how-tos and moral support to help readers deal with ADD. It also explains the diagnostic process that distinguishes ADD symptoms from normal lapses in memory, lack of concentration or impulsive behavior. Here's what's new:
- The new medications and their effectiveness
- The effects of ADD on human sexuality
- The differences between male and female ADD -- including falling estrogen levels and its impact on cognitive function
- The power of meditation
- How to move forward with coaching
And the book still includes advice about:
- Achieving balance by analyzing one's strengths and weaknesses
- Getting along in groups, at work and in intimate and family relationships -- including how to decrease discord and chaos
- Learning the mechanics and methods for getting organized and improving memory
- Seeking professional help, including therapy and medication
Customer Reviews:
You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?!: The Classic Self-Help Book for Adults with Attention Deficit Disorder.......2007-08-17
This is a must-have for people with ADHD or those who interact with an ADHD individual. I have gotten to understand myself better from reading this book, and I feel a sense of relief now that I know I am not "Lazy, Stupid or Crazy!" I actually had a hard time putting this book down, it was easy to read after a long day at work - I was surprised to find it so humorous and entertaining - something that I haven't found too often in a book of this sort. It is by far the best book on ADHD that I have read; I highly recommend it.
Excellent book on Adult ADHD.......2007-01-24
An excellent book on the subject of adult ADHD. If you think you have it, or have been recently diagnosed, this book will give you a great deal of insight into the disorder, and offer loads of self-help advice. Written by two women who themselves have adult ADHD, they really know what they're talking about. Buy it today!
Finally it's mine!.......2007-01-23
I checked this book out from my local library and was amazed as I read it. They were talking about me! I checked it out again a year later and began rereading it. I saw so much more that time. I renewed it the maximum amount of times and had to return it. After I checked it out for the third time I got around to buying it. Now I can read again --- but this time make all kinds of notes in the margins. Thank you for a wonderful reference, a lifesaver for me.
you mean I'm not lazy, stupid or crazy.......2007-01-15
I was not disappointed in the condition of the book, and it arrived within in a timely manner. No complaints - good service.
You Mean I'm Not Lazy, Stupid or Crazy?.......2007-01-11
Easy to understand. A help in understanding the problem people have. I helps the victim and the victimized.
Book Description
A fully revised and updated edition of the essential guide for men and women moving through the turmoil of divorce.
Customer Reviews:
Great Insight.......2007-08-23
I am going through my first divorce and this book has really explained well how I got there in the first place. There are many stories that relate to different kind of situations. It is an easy read and would be helpful for people who would like to know why they are feeling the way that they feel. I highly recommend it.
great book for anyone getting divorced.......2007-03-08
This book helps reassure you that there is a happy life possible after a divorce and that the mood swings and crazy feelings are normal. I have given this book to several of my friends, as well as using it myself.
Ending the Roller Coaster Ride.......2007-02-14
Crazy Time: Surviving Divorce and Building a New Life has just the right tone to help someone stop playing the blame game and start healing. This book is an excellent tool for understanding the anguished feelings that arise when going through a divorce. I recommend adding this volume to the repertoire of anyone dealing with the traumatic divorce or separation situation.
Very Informative, Interesting Book.......2007-02-06
The author experienced a divorce and shares her story in the prologue. The book provides the reader with many case studies chronicling divorce in great detail. The stories touch on the emotional impact of divorce from the beginning to well after the divorce in over. I found this book to be very helpful.
Useful when divorcing.......2007-01-06
This is not the "bible" - as someone told me it would be - for those getting divorced, but it is useful. It's more a smattering and a general commentary than it is a guide. What should I do? - the book sometimes answers that but not always. Does provide good insights.
Product Description
This course is a continuation of Learning Spanish Like Crazy Level 1. Level 2 consists of Lessons 31 to 60. There are also bonus CD's with 8 more lessons and a DVD with an hour of video Spanish lessons. Learning Spanish Like Crazy teaches you conversational Latin American Spanish and helps you develop an authentic Latin American Spanish accent.
Customer Reviews:
Finally a Spanish Course that teaches the Spanish that Latinos really speak.......2007-04-20
This course is awesome. I have been telling everyone about it. I have spent a lot of time researching other courses and using other Spanish courses to find one that really teaches 'real' Spanish.
I did some other courses and felt that they did not prepare me for really speaking to native speakers. I did not realize it at the time with other Spanish courses that I used in the past because I was still able to hold a conversation with Spanish speakers and communicate on a basic level. Wow was I making progress! Or so I thought. But when they would speak to themselves I had absolutely no idea what they were saying. They might as well have been speaking in Russian or some other foreign language because I didn't have a clue what they were saying to each other. I only understood them when they would speak directly to me in a deliberately nice, slow and clear manner. It was so frustrating to be able to hold a conversation with native speakers and then as soon as they started talking to each other I had no idea what they were saying. Who knows? They could have been saying this gringa's Spanish is awful.
But you won't have that problem with this course. It prepared me so that I am able to speak the same Spanish as real Latinos and even understand them when they speak to each other.
Without a doubt, what I like best about this course is the pace. I have used other courses that seemed to teach me Spanish at a snail's pace, especially Pimsleur Spanish. But with Level One and Two of this course, I felt that I was learning Spanish really fast. That's really important to me because I know people that learned to speak Spanish fluently in 3 years. And I also know people that have been studying for 7 or 8 years or more and don't speak Spanish fluently. So I am happy that I am learning Spanish incredibly fast with this method. And I am not just learning lots of words quickly but the grammar too. And they use a method that taught me the Spanish grammar quickly without me even realizing that I was being taught grammar. Let's face it, grammar is a boring topic if you actually think you are being taught grammar.
The Bonus gift DVD that comes with the course was very beneficial because the instructor's method taught me lots of Spanish words using a visual style. My daughter who is learning Italian also enjoyed the DVD that came with this course and we both picked up a lot of new Spanish words.
Great Product, Questionable Promotion.......2007-04-16
The creator of this product is quite an aggressive salesman--his marketing tactics actually made me hesitant to buy it! There are obvious shills for his stuff all over Amazon and the rest of the internet--transparently phoney "reviews" for other products that end up being an endorsement for his program. Even on this page there is at least one planted endorsement from a bogus review site. Because of this, it is impossible to tell which reviews are from honest, satisfied customers!
All that being said, I actually bought this thing (downloaded, much cheaper, from the website), mostly because of the sample lessons I heard. I've only had it a couple of days, but from what I've heard so far the sound is nicely recorded (although 96 kbps is a bit thin in quality), and I can usually hear subtle nuances of speech and mouth movement. The actors are expressive in their delivery, which holds my attention much better than the droning voices in the FSI recordings. People actually laugh and flirt in their conversations, which involve everyday topics rather than finding the right office at the American Embassy. The narrator/teacher has a very odd accent, almost spanish/british (?), but he explains and breaks down the grammar very well and has a friendly, encouraging manner. The speed of speech seems about right--it's challenging, and I have to replay sections in order to hear how words are clustered together. That has been the most difficult part of learning for me--the transition from what I know about the language to hearing the way it sounds in real conversation. It has made me conscious of how we English-speakers do the same thing with our language-- we naturally garble syllables and link words together, which makes comprehension excruciating for new learners!
There is a slang section in the package, which is great. However, most of it is from Mexican and South American Spanish; as a New Yorker, I would have preferred to hear a lot more Dominican and Puerto Rican Spanish, which I have been told is quite different.
There's tons of material in this package, plenty to listen to. The video lessons also seem useful, although the image quality is mediocre (at least in the downloaded version). I've made pretty good progress in reading Spanish over the last couple of years, but still can't understand a word of the spoken language--I think this will be great for me to sink my teeth (or ears) into. I just wish the owner of the company was a little less of a huckster, because he's distracting attention from the integrity of his product!
Just a side note for other Spanish learners--I have found that Spanish comic books are a GREAT tool for learning to read. In New York, there is Chilean comic about a character named "Condorito" available all over the city. It's howlingly funny-- the humor is very dark and politically incorrect, a great relief from the bland material one usually finds in textbooks. The artwork is excellent, and it features cast of engagingly bizzare characters such as "huevoduro", whose head appears to be a hard-boiled egg. The jokes are usually one page, often involving puns, misunderstandings, insults or sexual inuendos that give great insight into the language. There are visual clues to help, but I often need to consult the dictionary (which results in building vocabulary). The idioms can be difficult to decipher--sometimes it takes 20 minutes to get through a page--but psychologically, there is a great "payoff" incentive to get to the hilarious punchline at the end. So far I've found it to be the best resource yet for improving my comprehension!
Great product.......2007-04-08
I agree with the comments above that say you learn conversational spanish that you will actually hear and use. My only disagreement is that if you travel outside the US, or live in the US, you will certainly hear more than a Mexican accent, and it is very important to learn different accents since, as the person who went to Argentina pointed out, native speakers speak spanish differently from one another. You don't want to get stuck. I live in NYC, but grew up in a small town in NJ - even in the small town, I knew people from Spain, who obviously speak very different from Mexicans. I now know Mexicans, Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Colombians, Argentineans, Venezuelans, and Ecuadorians. I am so glad I can not only understand their accents but also I usually have a sense of where someone is from by their manner of speaking. So, I actually appreciated the different accents.
I also purchased their FSI spanish which was a bit more archaic and the print-outs they provide are difficult to use. This product seems better.
I like it but..........2007-03-26
It obviously mimics the Pimsleur technique, but it covers more ground and explains most things much better than Pimsleur does. Having done the whole three levels of Pimsleur, I'd say it was better, and given that it's cheaper, there's just no question about which one you should get (this one). There's only one thing that Pimsleur does better and that's keep you off balance. Since Learning Spanish Like Crazy approaches subjects thematically, it's pretty easy for your brain to get into a rhythm on a particular topic (say, for instance, forming commands with AR verbs). Since you just stay on one topic your short-term memory kicks in and you find yourself just zombie-ing it through). I went back to a previous topic a few weeks later and asked myself "did I really learn this?" Pimsleur, on the other hand, is *constantly* reintroducing past learned material and constantly trying to keep you off balance so you always have to reuse things you've learned in the past. In this way, I think Pimsleur may allow you to digest things a bit better. Still, there's more here than in Pimsleur and I think it's more useful for people who want to chit-chat with new friends than who want to learn stuff for a Business setting. Pimsleur is far too business-centric for me and far too formal-occasion oriented because of it. My only other little gripe is tiny and applies only to a small fraction of those wanting to learn Spanish and is a problem with all Spanish learning products. I did this series because I knew that I would be spending a good deal of time in Argentina. The first day I was there someone said "vos sos" to me and I was like "Is this Spanish?" Well, it turns out that in Argentina you don't really use the "tu" form except with small children and cuddly animals. "Vos sos" is the basic equivalent of "tu eres," but if you say that to an adult, they might get offended. But anyway, buy this, it's probably the best product out there.
Not Just For Gringos: This Course Has Done so Much to Help this Mexican-American Learn Spanish.......2007-03-09
I have used many Spanish courses, including the Pimsleur series, and I am now studying with Rosetta Stone. I have benefited from all of the courses and books that I have used to learn Spanish. But not one course has helped me learn Spanish as much as this one.
I am Latina but I am one of those rare Latinas that you will find that did NOT learn how to speak Spanish at home. My Mexican parents felt that it would be easier for me to "assimilate" if my siblings and I only learned how to speak English. After going to my grandparents' home for holidays year after year after year and being the only one there that did not speak Spanish, and after having Latino strangers speak to me in Spanish in the street and then look at me as if I should be ashamed of myself when I told them that I did not speak Spanish, I finally decided that it was time for me to learn how to speak my language.
What did I get out of this course?
Well, the other courses helped me with the grammar and concepts, but not only did this course help me with grammar and concepts, it has taught me useful practical Spanish that I can use to communicate with my Spanish speaking friends and family. When I tell people that I learned to speak Spanish as an adult and not at home as a child, many of them are surprised. I think they are surprised for two reasons:
One, my accent really sounds like a native Speaker from using this course. Two, I have learned real conversational Spanish from this course. I have learned words and phrases that Spanish speakers actually use when speaking to each other. Some of the courses taught me Spanish that the author of the course thought that I should speak, not the Spanish that natives really speak. That is one of the positive things that separates this course from the others.
What is the downside of this course?
They use speakers from Mexico and Colombia. I would have preferred if they only used Mexican speakers. I am not saying this just because I am Mexican. Most of the people in the U.S. that speak Spanish are from Mexico. So it would have made sense to only use speakers with the accents that you are most likely to hear. This is a small complaint compared to the benefit that you will get from using this course.
But don't start with Level Two. Start with Level one before doing Nivel dos. I learned more Spanish from level one of this course than I learned in the entire Pimsleur series. I also give this course Cinco Estrellas!
Book Description
Impoverished Philadelphia heiress Nora Blackbird has agreed to wed Mick Abruzzo, son of New Jersey's most notorious mobster, leaving the city's bluebloods in shock. Then Nora and her sisters get some ominous news-Sweet Penny Devine, ex-Hollywood starlet and daughter of the Philadelphia Devines, has mysteriously disappeared. Even stranger, her family wants her declared dead pronto. Could someone have plotted her final act? Now it's up to the Blackbird sisters to snoop among the snooty-until they uncover the truth.
Customer Reviews:
Nancy Martin and the Blackbird Sisters.......2007-09-12
This book was a great book in this series. I loved reading it and can not wait for the next book.
Easy Read.......2007-08-14
I enjoy the Blackbird sister books - they're an easy, fast read when I don't want to think to hard about what I'm reading. I would recommend them to anyone, but would caution you to read them in order.
Always entertaining.......2007-06-27
Great writer, great story. The relationships are so interesting, always dynamic and intertwined. Love this author's point of view. The mystery was a good one too.
Fun.......2007-06-11
All of Nancy Martin's books are fun, fast and easy reads. They are entertaining, will make you laugh, and great summer books for relaxing. It is enjoyable to try to figure out Who Done It. Great characters.
Enjoy!
A Crazy Little Thing Called Death.......2007-06-08
Love all of Nancy Martin books and this one was great
Amazon.com
The recurring metaphor in The Inmates are Running the Asylum is that of the dancing bear--the circus bear that shuffles clumsily for the amusement of the audience. Such bears, says author Alan Cooper, don't dance well, as everyone at the circus can see. What amazes the crowd is that the bear dances at all. Cooper argues that technology (videocassette recorders, car alarms, most software applications for personal computers) consists largely of dancing bears--pieces that work, but not at all well. He goes on to say that this is more often than not the fault of poorly designed user interfaces, and he makes a good argument that way too many devices (perhaps as a result of the designers' subconscious wish to bully the people who tormented them as children) ask too much of their users. Too many systems (like the famous unprogrammable VCR) make their users feel stupid when they can't get the job done.
Cooper, who designed Visual Basic (the programming environment Microsoft promotes for the purpose of creating good user interfaces), indulges in too much name-dropping and self-congratulation (Cooper attributes the quote, "How did you do that?" to Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, upon looking at one of Cooper's creations)--but this appears to be de rigueur in books about the software industry. But those asides are minor. More valuable is the discourse about software design and implementation ("[O]bject orientation divides the 1000-brick tower into 10 100-brick towers."). Read this book for an idea of what's wrong with UI design. --David Wall
Topics covered: User interfaces--good ones and bad ones--and where they come from. Also, how to improve the ones you create.
Book Description
Imagine, at a terrifyingly aggressive rate, everything you regularly use is being equipped with computer technology. Think about your phone, cameras, cars-everything-being automated and programmed by people who in their rush to accept the many benefits of the silicon chip, have abdicated their responsibility to make these products easy to use.
The Inmates Are Running the Asylum argues that the business executives who make the decisions to develop these products are not the ones in control of the technology used to create them. Insightful and entertaining,
The Inmates Are Running the Asylum uses the author's experiences in corporate America to illustrate how talented people continuously design bad software-based products and why we need technology to work the way average people think. Somewhere out there is a happy medium that makes these types of products both user and bottom-line friendly; this book discusses why we need to quickly find that medium.
Download Description
Imagine, at a terrifyingly aggressive rate, everything you regularly use is being equipped with computer technology. Think about your phone, cameras, cars - everything - being automated and programmed by people who in their rush to accept the many benefits of the silicon chip, have abdicated their responsibility to make these products easy to use. The Inmates are Running the Asylum argues that, despite appearances, business executives are simply not the ones in control of the high-tech industry. They have inadvertently put programmers and engineers in charge, leading to products and processes that waste money, squander customer loyalty, and erode competitive advantage. Business executives have let the inmates run the asylum! In his book The Inmates Are Running the Asylum Alan Cooper calls for revolution - we need technology to work in the same way average people think - we need to restore the sanity. He offers a provocative, insightful and entertaining explanation of how talented people continuously design bad software-based products. More importantly, he uses his own work with companies big and small to show how to harness those talents to create products that will both thrill their users and grow the bottom line.
Customer Reviews:
No Cognitive Friction Here.. .......2007-06-12
Alan Cooper gives the reader insight into why so many of today's technological products frustrate and confuse users. Yet he goes past this to discuss a methodology for keeping it simple and designing for the user i.e. avoiding cognitive friction. This book has changed the way I will develop products and should be a must read for product managers of application developers. Just learning Mr. Cooper's vocabulary is worth the read. The ideas such as personas, keywords, and designing for an individual push the book way above average. This is an easy read that should be done in your spare time if you want to avoid cognitive friction with your users. It has changed the way I view technology and brought a new awareness to thoughtless technology implementation which often cause failure or misuse. The only reason I gave this book a 4 out of 5 as I feel it could have been reduced a little bit more, certain points I felt like the author was rambling about personal fustrations.
an essential handbook for designing software.......2007-06-11
Cooper's argument in this book is simple: you have to know your users, and you have to understand what they're trying to accomplish with your software. The method that he puts forth for achieving this understanding is personas, richly-described archetypical users.
The book is easy to read and understand. He begins with a detailed description of the problem with software design as carried about by programmers who can only imagine themselves as the users of their software, resulting in software that makes really difficult things possible but doesn't bother to make easy or common things quick and easy.
After making the argument that programmers shouldn't design interfaces and making the case both for usability and interaction design, he lays out the personas concept. Cooper's guidelines for creating personas and using them are well-written and well-thought-out. However, his examples of applying them to some of his own customers are rather repetitive, and sometimes come across as somewhat whiny.
Now that it's time for my group at Microsoft to revisit our personas and determine what needs to be tweaked for our next version, I decided that I should revisit the book that first advanced the idea. It has stood up well to the test of time (something that not many computer books can do). I highly recommend it, both to usability and design professionals, as well as programmers.
Great writing, very illustrative examples, definitely not a detailed how-to.......2007-05-13
The strength of this book its clear and easy-to-read writing. Cooper's examples are instructive and the theory of why design-centric business approaches are the most powerful. It's supposed to be a business-case book but I'm quite sure all programmers and even designers would find the read very worthwhile.
My only wish for the book would be that Chapter 10 onwards seemed to be the really exciting stuff, detailing the how more than the why of design-centric approaches. This part feels like a rushed summary in comparison the the attention paid to the why aspect in the rest of the book. You may want to consider Cooper's newly revised "how" book although it is mainly a designer's handbook: About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design
I'm not done with that About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design but I'm starting to worry it's going to leave me wishing it had more specific methodologies as opposed to theories. Of course, it has much more methodological attention than The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity (2nd Edition) and there's no fault in what is written, only in what is omitted.
If you're really looking for the ultimate how-to, you might want to consider attending the four-day "Cooper U". Case in point: I had the chance to ask Alan Cooper where I could learn more about how to create the design documents he writes about in the last part of The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity (2nd Edition) and he really couldn't say what books would be able to instruct that (including his own) and that it would be covered in his course.
this book changed my life.......2007-02-22
I was a well-paid systems administrator/help desk guy until I read this book. This book really did inspire me to change careers!
The book basically outlines why engineers (and people who think like engineers) are INCAPABLE of designing effective interfaces. It delves into specifics and supplies some great examples.
I am amused by some of the reviewers here who display the same sort of arrogant contempt that the book outlines. OF COURSE programming a VCR is easy for YOU--you're a person with an "engineer mind". My mom can't program a VCR at all, and that's not because she didn't try hard enough or read the instructions. She can't use it because everything about it's interface is counter-intuitive to someone who does not understand machine/code logic.
Just because it's easy for you doesn't mean it doesn't stink. Just because it makes sense to you doesn't mean it can't be made better--to work intuitively for "regular" people. Buy this book. Read it. Demand more from your products. It's time to end the insanity.
Blown out of proportion.......2007-01-18
It's true that some products have poor interfaces, but in my experience this "problem" is blown way out of proportion with reality. The only people I know who couldn't figure out how to program their VCRs were people who did not try for more than 5 minutes. Read the instructions, both in the book and onscreen, and VCR programming is a snap, from the earliest models to today.
I think the real question should be: Why are so many users so lazy? This is more of a social problem than a technological one. Some think that if any effort is required to learn how to use a new device then it's poorly designed. Poppycock!
Book Description
Go cupcake crazy! With nearly 300 awesome, mouthwatering ideas to choose from, home bakers will find the right recipe for any occasion and every palate. And whether they’re chocolaty, spicy, crunchy, fruity, or creamy, these exquisitely decorated treats look as astounding as they taste—perfect little temptations designed to make adults nostalgic and children happy. All the basics are lovingly explained so anyone can whip up a beautiful batch, and there are varieties for every day (from healthy cupcakes to ice cream indulgences); parties big and small; holidays ranging from Christmas to the Fourth of July; just for kids; and fund-raisers and bake sales. Plus, to make things easy, an entire chart- and template-filled chapter focuses on flavor combinations and design elements.
Customer Reviews:
A fun book!.......2007-08-23
I am on a cupcake kick right now; I love making them for my kids' schools, and for my family and friends. This book has so many great recipes it was hard to pick which one to make first. But I opted for the Pina Colada cupcakes, and they were absolutely delicious. This is the first time I made cupcakes from scratch, and it's a huge difference in taste and texture.
I highly recommend this book if you love to bake.
Cute Cupcakes!.......2007-08-15
I was looking forward to receiving this book and must say that I have been satisfied with my purchase. So far, the recipes are tasty but the decorating instructions are quite vague. I also don't like that the recipe and decorating instructions are not alongside the picture. (You need to find the picture within like 15 pages of the book or use the index) But overall, very nice book.
Doesn't live up to the hype.......2007-07-29
I bought this book based on the positive reviews and was disappointed. The pictures include sloppy looking decorations that appear to be done by a child instead of a professional baker - so consequesntly they were not that enticing to me. I have other cupcakes books that offer are more polished presentation. I made the carrot cake cupcakes and found them to lack flavor - they were not light and cake-like and were somewhat bland. One major drawback - and my biggest complant about this book is that the recipes do not have an amount or expected yield - how frustrating to make a batch of cupcakes and only get 12! You'll be much happier picking another cupcake book - either Cupcakes: From the Cake Mix Doctor or Cupcakes!
Thumbs Up for "Crazy about Cupcakes".......2007-07-05
All the recipes are accompanied by lovely pictures of the cupcakes. I love the cupcake decoration ideas in this book, it's not the usual thick, high creamy frosting that you won't eat, instead, the cupcakes are decorated with yummy toppings which are also nice to look at!
Good one.......2007-06-24
Had this book and have tried some of the recipes. Love the Black bottom cupcake and mousse cupcake recipes and the decoration is quite easy to follow. It's just that I found the icing is a little bit too sweet to my liking, so I have to improvise a little bit. Generally love this book.
Books:
- Curse of the Blue Tattoo: Being an Account of the Misadventures of Jacky Faber, Midshipman and Fine Lady (Bloody Jack Adventures)
- Dark Fire (The Carpathians (Dark) Series, Book 6)
- Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness
- Death Before Dishonor
- Death in Winter (Star Trek: the Next Generation)
- Deliverer (Foreigner Universe)
- Divorcing a Parent: Free Yourself from the Past and Live the Life You've Always Wanted
- Dream Weaver
- Egg Money Quilts: 1930's Vintage Samplers
- Eldest (Inheritance, Book 2)
Books Index
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