Books for/about - Culture

The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals

Publisher: Penguin Press HC, The
Authors: Michael Pollan

ISBN: 1594200823
List Price: $26.95
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 5
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Summary: Thought-provoking
This was a great book - very interesting and thought provoking.

The premise was that Pollan wanted to eat different types of meals and find out exactly where the food came from. The first section is his meal at MacDonalds and then following the path of factory farmed animals and commodity corn. The second section was pasture-raised animals in which he profiled this amazing farm that tries to mimic the natural diets and styles of animals - really inspiring to hear about this farmer fighting against the goverment to raise his animals naturally, and then he creates a meal that he hunted and foraged for himself (though did I miss something - he baked bread and made pasta but didn't mention growing the wheat!).

The book was well written and I think will encourage people to really think about where their food comes from.

Summary: Is it Truth or Fiction? Representative Examples, Please.
Pollan's book lacks balance. He uses two farmers in Iowa (who between them farm <1000 acres) as exemplary of all corn farmers -- overfertilizing, using either new equipment they cannot afford or old equipment that damages their hearing, wearing out the soil, etc. My midwestern farm-raised parents laughed out loud, countering with as many stories of well managed farms whose founding family owners are doing quite nicely, thank you, without raping the land.

In the section on pastoral farming, he uses the example of a farmer who will not ship product from Virginia to New York because of the inherent conflict of using fuel to ship 'truly organic' food such a long way, but who invites Pollan to drive down and pick some up - which would use proportionally more fuel than Fedex'ing the damn chicken.

The historical and scientific discussions are interesting, and (no pun intended) food for thought, but the lack of factual basis inferred by Pollan's generalizations makes the veracity of these discussions difficult to accept.

Summary: Wonderful!
This book is not only full of valuable information but it is a meditation on the philosophy of eating. Michael Pollan is able to, without judgement, show us why eating closer to our food source is a valuable practice. I recommend it highly and have purchased several copies for friends. It is truly an amazing book!

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PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives

Publisher: Regan Books
Authors: Frank Warren

ISBN: 0060899190
List Price: $26.95
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Summary: Excellent collection of community art - diverse, raw, and incredibly moving.
This is a stunning, emotionally touching, at times absolutely hilarious, and always - always - deeply human collection of community artwork. Whether you're a fan of the PostSecret website or not, you'll probably be fascinated by it from the first page you view.

The only complaint I would have is the sometimes awkward positioning of postcards between pages. Even then, this has to be one of the best art books I've seen because of the immediate impact it makes on so many people who pick it up.

I hesitate to call this a coffee table book because the term has come to be associated with largely decorative works that are light and un-offensive in content - books that are the opposite of PostSecret. Yet I would highly recommend placing it somewhere conspicuous like a coffee table; it makes for a great conversation starter, and is truly rare in its ability to engage almost every person who comes across it.

Summary: A must have! Would make a great gift!
Whenever I reread this fantastic book, I feel so deeply emotionally touched by the best guarded secrets of so many people. I have never visited the web site of this project so I am not its "fan". Anyway, I am sure that this outstanding coffee table book will leave you several times with an "a-ha" experience. The broad spectrum of "secrets" that is covered and actually exposed in this book is amazing. I am sure that you will have a great time going through them.

I completely agree that one can feel a lot better if they share with other people about certain best kept secrets. I think that this is one of the main reasons for the significant participation in this project and the unstoppable interest towards it. I am so thankful to Frank Warren for his hard work on this project and for making it accessible to the public in a book format. If I also have to share a "secret", it will be the additional bestseller "Scientifcally guaranteed multi-orgasms and ultimate sex" by scientist Ritz. It helped me to turn from an average lover into a Sex God in a matter of a few weeks. That's why I highly recommend both books! Enjoy!

Summary: Great conversation piece
This book is a great conversation piece. Some of the secrets are a little sad, but others are funny or uplifting. There seems to be something for everyone in here. Everyone who starts reading it gets sucked in. An awesome coffee table book!

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	How Full Is Your Bucket? Positive Strategies for Work and Life Publisher: Gallup Press Authors: Tom Rath Donald O. Clifton
ISBN: 1595620036 List Price: $19.95 Amazon Price: $12.97 Usually ships in 24 hours Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: 3 Reviews: Summary: Good - but strong workplace orientation The concept behind this book is good - focusing on the positives in your interactions with others. I was disappointed by the heavy focus on office interactions (which is fine, just didn't happen to suit why I bought the book). Also disappointed by the lack of depth. Not including the intro and epilogue, book is less than 100 pages with very large type and margins. That includes over a dozen pages with a graphic of a bucket with a single quote inside. Good news/bad news - you can read and get all of the content in under an hour. Certainly not worth the full retail price, questionable even at Amazon's discounted price. I gave it 3 stars because the concept is good and I got some worthwhile tips, but this felt more like a pamphlet that a motivational company would use as a giveaway rather than a book. HOWEVER, If my work team were having interpersonal issues, I might very well give this 5 stars for providing a good discussion foundation in a group setting. Summary: Great book for recognition programs This is a great book to help any manager understand the importance of recognition both to their peers and to the people they manage. The philosophy of adding to or taking away from one's bucket and hence their esteem adds a whole new importance to thinking about how you act in situations. With so many people leaving jobs because of how they are treated, the book brings an honest reality to exactly how this happens, and gives great insight into why we need to be sure our actions are constantly giving value to other people. I gave it out to a group of leaders as part of a recognition training, and two of them said not only did they rethink their actions in their departments, they also began to rethink their actions at home, and it made a difference in personal relationships. Plus, there's an online way to give drops, which makes it even easier to let someone know you saw or noticed they did something great, and they have a tangible piece of recognition to have and display. A terrific book all the way around. Summary: Positive, Inspirational and Uplifting This is a great book to give to anyone who needs a "boost". All too often we focus on the things that are wrong with others - this book challenges us to focus on the things that are right. Pick a page from this book at random each day and read it. I bet you can stop at just one. Summary:

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The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles From The World's Greatest Manufacturer

Publisher: McGraw-Hill
Authors: Jeffrey Liker

ISBN: 0071392319
List Price: $24.95
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 5
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Summary: Excellent Overview of Toyota Principles
I found this book to be very useful in describing the overall Toyota philosophy as well as the principles of Lean Manufacturing. If you desire to build a business based on continuous process improvement, superior customer value and long-term thinking, this book provides an excellent model for building your own corporate culture along a proven Toyota methodology. I ordered additional copies for all of our Sr Mgmt...excellent book...highly recommended.

Summary: Not easy to read, but neither is the Bible
I enjoyed this book and learned a lot from it. The book is not a fun vacation poolside read, but it is not a totally boring academic text either. If you work in a large-scale manufacturing facility, or if you are just curious about best practices in business, The Toyota Way is like gospel. This book covers all of the hip Japanese shop floor slang, such as muda, genchi genbutsu and nemawashi. There are informative diagrams, thorough explanations and good business anecdotes throughout the book.

You might also like the book 'All I Need to Know About Manufacturing I Learned in Joe's Garage' by William B. Miller, which is an elegantly simple read about the fundamentals of The Toyota Way.

Summary: Great company! Excellent book! Dont miss it!
As you can check the 4Ps and the 14 management principles typed by some reviewers here, most of them are just common sense. However, common sense is really not that common, at least not in the auto industry when one sees the high failure rate, even amongst Japanese auto makers who copy some but not all of the Toyota Way or Toyota Production System TPS. Thanks to the author, many good samples are vividly written of how Toyota fully commits to its long term principles at the expense of short term benefits, respects the communities where its factories locate, supports even the lowest of worker to quality/value devotion (Dare you stop the whole production line for a minor fault you find? They encourage you to do so in Toyota). I am sure many ordinary but top level managers will excuse themselves from the level of Toyota committment on unique circumstances. In Toyota, they ask themselves "why" five times on each problem to nail its root cause, instead of taking anything for granted, as those ordinary managers do. Moreover, Toyota had invested/devoted much to adapt to the cultural, social....difference between Japan and US. Add them all up, that's the difference between survival and death.

I had read many business books of the HBR type. However, if I am asked to make only one recommendation, this is it.

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	Leroy Grannis, Surf Photography of the 1960s And 1970s: Birth of a Culture: '60s And '70s Surf Photography Publisher: Taschen Authors: Steve Barilotti Jim Heimann Leroy Grannis
ISBN: 3822850691 List Price: $400.00 Amazon Price: This item is currently not available. Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: Reviews: Summary:

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	The Stanley Kubrick Archives Publisher: Taschen Authors: Alison Castle
ISBN: 3822822841 List Price: $200.00 Amazon Price: $126.00 Usually ships in 24 hours Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: 5 Reviews: Summary: amzing this is the perfect way to get to know perfectly Kubrick's ideas of his films. With fotos and texts real kubrick's fans are going to be amazed by this book that was done very carefully. Summary: Worth the weight (and price) While Kubrick has been gone for years, his films remain a testatment to how good and how diverse the work of a single director can be. The Stanley Kubrick Archives is an unsurpassed collection of a life's work, perfectly broken into two distinct sections. The first section undertakes a belief of Stanley's that (I'm paraphrasing poorly)"the image should speak for itself". This sees all of Kubrick's films being given the storyboard treatment (sans ANY text) with perfectly-graded stills from all the key scenes from all of his films. Truly, when looking over 2001's stunning imagery, it's impossible not to hear the classical soundtrack playing in your head. The second section is the truly archival section of the book with in-depth analysis given to all of Kubrick's titles plus some of his work prior to becoming a feature filmaker. Projects unrealised by Kubrick himself, such as A.I. and Napoleon, are also given some print. This section is a wealth of information that will delight for years to come. While the price & weight of the book (it's staggeringly heavy but comes in a cool-as cardboard carry case) are great, this is money well spent by any enthusiast of quality films. While Kubrick's films were not all masterpieces, as the present overall quality of film seems to be on the decline, his body of work is certainly worth remembering. Summary: The 'Big Red Kubrick 'Book! Astounding example of how certain books should be made. Obviously, there is a niche market for this kind of bookmaking. Luckily, us dedicated Kubrick fans can now relish all of it. The book contains amazing details and 'behind the scenes' views on the making of all of the Kubrick flicks. I'm positive that no other director and visionary would have their works commited to such a project other than Kubrick. The final touch is the inclusion of an actual strip of 70mm motion picture film from 2001 that Kubrick himself possessed. My copy shows Frank jogging in the centrifuge. The only caveat is the splitting of some wide screen shots between pages in the first half of the book. Other than that this book qualifies as one of the best examples of how a book should be dedicated, regardless of price, for a one of kind film director. Summary:

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	Sculpting a Galaxy (Limited Edition): Inside the Star Wars Model Shop Publisher: Insight Editions Authors: Lorne Peterson Rick Mccallum Phil Tippett
ISBN: 1933784105 List Price: $395.00 Amazon Price: $395.00 Not yet published Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: Reviews: Summary:

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	International Management: Managing Across Borders and Cultures (5th Edition) Publisher: Prentice Hall Authors: Helen Deresky
ISBN: 0131095978 List Price: $146.70 Amazon Price: $146.70 Usually ships in 24 hours Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: 4 Reviews: Summary: Great book describing culture Excellent Book. I was impressed on how the author was able to showthe various difficulties that are faced and how one can go about managing them. Real scenarios helped a lot in understanding the difficulties better in International relations. Summary:

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