Michelle Harrison has been awarded the Waterstone’s Children’s Book Prize in the U.K. for The Thirteen Treasures (Simon & Schuster), the story of a girl who can see fairies, and who tries to solve a mystery that has haunted her family for generations. Harrison will receive a £5,000 prize and the bookstore chain will support the title throughout the year. Little, Brown will publish the book in the U.S. in spring 2010. For more information, click here.
The Reinvention of Ivy Brown: A Novel
by Roberta Taylor
"'Her affectionate memoir, suffused with forgiveness for the worst of her relatives' foibles and admiration for their gritty determination to survive, presents true lives and situations which are every bit as dramatic as any television soap.' Val Hennessy, Daily Mail
'As mordantly funny as it is affecting.' Paul Bailey Independent"
Quite simply, Atlantic's biggest book of the year: Roberta Taylor's gripping first novel is a tale of love and betrayal in the freezing winter of London in 1963.It is the 15th of February 1963, and Ivy Brown, typist at the Wiseman Pulverising Factory, is about to turn thirty. As Ivy sits, staring at the back of the typist in front of her, she tries desperately to avoid thinking about her impending birthday, her freckled hands and her diminishing horizons. Two things lift Ivy Brown from her gloom: her brand new Beaver Lamb coat and the thought of Arthur.Arthur is the man on whom Ivy has pinned all her hopes. 'We are our own secret' Arthur says, and Ivy loves to repeat it, even as she recollects the parts of her life she has kept from him. But when Ivy spots Arthur at the bus stop, his arm around a young girl, she realises that she is not the only person keeping secrets. Her determination to uncover the truth spells disaster for all those in her way. The reinvention of Ivy Brown comes at a heavy price.
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There are so many ways a room and its set-up can affect yur presentation. It is so important to make sure it works for you - your position, the audience's position, the equipment, the sound, the heating ... Graham Jones used this great example in his tip : Check the room layout for presentations
I was at a meeting the other day when a woman was invited to speak. She stayed where she was in the room to deliver her five minute talk. However, this meant that some people in the room couldn't see her; others couldn't hear her. As a result, about half her audience had five minutes of their time wasted. She also wasted much of her time because she didn't get her message across to half the room.
Where you sit, where you look and how the audience feels is dependent upon room layout. You need to seriously consider all the options before you talk. Get the room layout right and your presentation will be much better. What this means is you should never accept the room as it is - unless it is perfect for you and your audience. Almost every room needs changing in some way so that the audience gains the best from you.
by Roger J. Volkema
From the reviews
Roger Volkema does an excellent job of breaking down the skill in this
Leverage -- the real or imagined advantage one holds -- is the most important tool in a negotiation. Anyone who wants to consistently win at the negotiating table needs to master the art of gaining and maintaining leverage. This book helps readers maximize their negotiation skills by showing them how to recognize and use these often hidden trump cards. Author Roger Volkema does an especially fine job in two areas: useful examples and methodical explanation of your options. He classifies common power plays into types that you can identify, practice and counter. He provides examples of each type drawn from real experience and the popular media. The result is easy to read, understand and apply.
This is an interactive workbook, written in an engaging, down-to-earth style and packed with self-assessments and sample negotiations. The book offers strategic guidance on: * international negotiations * multiparty negotiations * negotiations via e-mail * women and leverage * leverage and ethics * decreasing the amount of leverage held by the other party * managing emotions and using them to one's advantage * and much more. The methodology and principles outlined can easily be applied to any situation. "Leverage" is filled with insightful advice and suggestions designed to increase mastery of this indispensable component of all negotiations. It is a one-of-a-kind book that shows readers how to gain the upper hand in any negotiation.
The most precious things in speech are the pauses.
Sir Ralph Richardson
The 40th NAACP Image Awards were given out last Thursday night. Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Bryan Collier (Simon & Schuster) won for Outstanding Literary Work—Children, Letters to a Young Sister: Define Your Destiny by Hill Harper (Gotham Books) won for Outstanding Literary Work—Youth/Teens, and Hip Hop Speaks to Children, edited by Nikki Giovanni (Sourcebooks/
Jabberwocky) won for Outstanding Literary Work—Poetry, the first time that a book for children has won in this category.
"Don't be afraid of the space between your dreams and reality. If you can dream it, you can make it so."
Belva Davis
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Resource for the Week
Make Time for Success! is Mind Tools' market-leading downloadable time management and personal effectiveness system.
It teaches powerful, industrial-strength techniques that help you identify what you want out of life, organize and achieve your goals, and make the most of the opportunities open to you. In doing this, it transforms the life outcomes of the people who take the course, helping them to become focused and highly successful.
Is your Genius at Work? 4 Key Questions to Ask Before Your Next Career Move
by Dick Richards
by Dick Richards
From the reviews
You have some special capacity to make a positive impact on the world in your own unique way. You may have an inkling of that. Or no clue at all.
No matter. Either way, this refreshingly different book from Dick Richards will help you put your finger on your special “energy” and help you direct it in meaningful ways.
Dick Richards (part shaman, part businessman) presents engaging ideas and well-defined processes for identifying your unique personal gift, which he calls your Genius. He also presents helpful ideas and processes for discovering your personal Purpose (your life’s mission) so that you can point the energy of your Genius toward fulfilling your Purpose.
If you like, you read about the connections between many time-honored and far-flung spiritual and philosophical traditions underlying these ideas (across the globe and through millennia). Richards has woven a nice tapestry of these disparate threads.
Seriously, you can ignore all the stuff about spiritual and philosophic traditions, and just work your way through the practical processes. Either way, you’re going to arrive at a deeper understanding of yourself and a clearer vision of your individual potential within the world.
The book pushes us to think outside the box when looking for our core genius.
No matter. Either way, this refreshingly different book from Dick Richards will help you put your finger on your special “energy” and help you direct it in meaningful ways.
Dick Richards (part shaman, part businessman) presents engaging ideas and well-defined processes for identifying your unique personal gift, which he calls your Genius. He also presents helpful ideas and processes for discovering your personal Purpose (your life’s mission) so that you can point the energy of your Genius toward fulfilling your Purpose.
If you like, you read about the connections between many time-honored and far-flung spiritual and philosophical traditions underlying these ideas (across the globe and through millennia). Richards has woven a nice tapestry of these disparate threads.
Seriously, you can ignore all the stuff about spiritual and philosophic traditions, and just work your way through the practical processes. Either way, you’re going to arrive at a deeper understanding of yourself and a clearer vision of your individual potential within the world.
The book pushes us to think outside the box when looking for our core genius.
The content is fantastic. The writing style is approachable and includes stories I can relate to and that illustrate the points very well. The layout if the book is outstanding - there are helpful illustrations and plenty of room for notes - an important consideration for a book like this. Above these tangible dimensions, the feeling I get when reading is book is positive. The author cares about his readers and it shows in every part of this book.
Many personal development books contain miserably pointless exercises, but this book is the exception to the rule. Its exercises are intelligent, well-designed, and insightful. There are no pointless quizzes that force you to rate yourself on some arbitrary scale. I also liked that all the exercises are put into a separate section of the book, so first you can read through all the content, and then you can work through the exercises.
Also noteworthy, Richards generously includes resources to assist other coaches and consultants to teach his methods. And he provides help for groups of people who want to collectively support each other as they make their way thru this highly personal work.
This is the key to using the power of your voice.
The best things to learn are
• The one mistake even professional singers make that drains the power from their voice... and the secret pencil trick that shortcuts your way to a voice that commands respect.
• How to master your natural voice in the shortest time possible... while you improve your level of communication with everyone you meet! (You'll learn everything those stars paid thousands of dollars for!)
• Why "beginners" are able to use these simple techniques to quickly surpass more experienced professionals... even if you sound like the Wicked Witch of the West!
• How an ordinary pillow helped all-pro linebacker Dick Butkus transform from football star to television analyst. (Not one voice coach in a thousand even suspects the power of this simple technique!)
• A stunning secret revealed by singer Mel Torme which offers an insight into his lifetime success.
• How to instantly diagnose mistakes in your voice — so you'll never have a communication problem again. No one will ever mistake what you are saying.
• How Lucie Arnaz overcame an allergic reaction that inflamed her vocal folds and used an instant mind-body secret to sing like a nightingale!
• How you can dictate your own identity to the world – as you want it to be – and not have it dictated to you!
"My Name Is Bond – James Bond" - "Arthur Joseph started as a teacher of mine years ago. Over these years, he has become a good friend whose teachings of Vocal Awareness have become a constant in my life. He enlightens with compassion and understanding of the human spirit and above all else, it works." - Pierce Brosnan, Actor
Isn't it frustrating? You speak as clear as a bell and people misunderstand what you say. Even worse, people misjudge you for no apparent reason!
People spend thousands on Lasik surgery to improve their eyes, tens of thousands to change their nose, cheeks, and chest, yet not a penny to change the way they sound. But for the first time ever...
You can use the Vocal Power Course. Get the information now. (and yes, the link is now working!!)
Winner: Caldecott Medal
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by Susan Marie Swanson, Illustrated by Beth Krommes |
From the Reviews
A spare, patterned text and glowing pictures explore the origins of light that make a house a home in this bedtime book for young children. Naming nighttime things that are both comforting and intriguing to preschoolers—a key, a bed, the moon—this timeless book illuminates a reassuring order to the universe.
more (including an interview with the author)
