Books

Coming Back
Anglicans in Brittany
The Rise and Rise of the Middle Classes
Methydrion: The History of an Ancient City of Arcadia
Peter the Great of Russia: An English Historiography of the XVIII and XIX Centuries
War Was My Youth
No Fancy Goods, Hand Luggage Only
Scotch Whisky: A Liquid History
Hippie
Havana: Portrait of a City
British Military Greats
Punk
Against Extinction: The Past and Future of Conservation
A Manufactured Plague: The History of Foot-and-mouth Disease in Britain
The Fourth Crusade and the Sack of Constantinople
The Second Oldest Profession: Spies and Spying in the Twentieth Century
Bill Clinton: An American Journey
The Oster Conspiracy of 1938: The Unknown Story of the Military Plot to Kill Hitler
Peace in Ireland: The War of Ideas
Russia 1812: The Duel Between Napoleon and Alexander
The Italian Boy: Murder and Grave-Robbery in 1830s London
Men in Black (Picturing History S.)
Parisian Fields (Critical Views S.)
Fruitful Sites: Garden Culture in Ming Dynasty China (Envisioning Asia S.)
The Great War: Perspectives on the First World War

Average customer rating:

Tell Everyone You Know
Awsome Read!!!
This will keep you on your toes
Customer service....who really can define it?
Mediocre. Mostly personal experiences.

Customer Satisfaction Is Worthless, Customer Loyalty Is Priceless : How to Make Customers Love You, Keep Them Coming Back and Tell Everyone They Know
Jeffrey Gitomer
Manufacturer: Bard Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Customer Service | Industries & Professions | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

Little Red Book of Selling: 12.5 Principles of Sales Greatness
Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude: How to Find, Build and Keep a YES! Attitude for a Lifetime of SUCCESS
Little Red Book of Sales Answers: 99.5 Real World Answers That Make Sense, Make Sales, and Make Money
Little Black Book of Connections: 6.5 Assets for Networking Your Way to Rich Relationships
Little Green Book of Getting Your Way: How to Speak, Write, Present, Persuade, Influence, and Sell Your Point of View to Others

ASIN: 188516730X

Amazon.com

To longtime sales and customer-service pro Jeffrey Gitomer, boasting about a near-perfect customer-satisfaction rating of 97.5 percent is a major mistake. "That means 2.5 percent of your customers are mad and they're telling everyone. And 97.5 percent of your customers will shop anyplace the next time they go to market for your product or service." Based on a philosophy that's been developed through his syndicated business columns and the more than 150 seminars that he gives each year to companies such as Radisson, Sony, NationsBank, and Time Warner Cable, the book outlines his formula for making customers so faithful they "will fight before they switch--and they will proactively refer people to buy from you." Regularly employing oversized type in screaming bold fonts to grab the reader's attention, Gitomer breathlessly recounts his start-to-finish approach to becoming "memorable" to consumers along with illustrative tales of his own encounters with particularly egregious examples of poor service. All of this is bolstered by an ongoing sampling of his inspirational quips and a variety of self-evaluating quizzes designed to pinpoint individual strengths and weaknesses. Take a deep breath, read it straight through, and prepare to delight thy customer! --Howard Rothman

Book Description

Nationally syndicated columnist and sales trainer, Jeffrey Gitomer shows you how to convert satisfied customers into loyal customers.

Customer Reviews:

Tell Everyone You Know.......2007-05-30

Easy read, great information. Solid tips. Relates to all sales jobs, and All Sales associates who "want" to succeed, will get it!

Awsome Read!!!.......2007-05-26

I was able to apply some of his ideas on the very next customer that came into my store! This is a MUST READ for the way a customer service employee (or boss) should treat every customer - whether on-line or in-person. This should be required reading in every business class in the country.

This will keep you on your toes.......2007-02-20

Just a fabulous book about customer service. Fun, practical and inspiring to say the least. I email some of the best ideas out to our team every day. I am really enjoying this book!

Customer service....who really can define it?.......2007-01-19

This book is very easy to read. I personally read it in less than 1 week because all the recomendations and practical advices of Gitomer really are sense common and any organization would have a tremendous benefit if do apply at least the 40% of the customer service rules listed by this book. Also offers information about why the customer satisfaction is the lowest level for a long term relationship and why a loyal customer should be the goal to get for any person involved in the sales and marketing world. Highly recommended.

Mediocre. Mostly personal experiences........2007-01-09

While not terribly wrong, this book is not really good either. It shares the author's experiences and his point of view, but isn't more helpful than any other book that does the same. The font settings are actaully annoying.

Clued In: How to Keep Customers Coming Back Again and Again

Average customer rating:

This is great!
Great book, but leaves a few essentials out
Great guide book for experience management
Highly Recommended!
The Prohibitive Cost of Being Clueless

Clued In: How to Keep Customers Coming Back Again and Again
Lewis Carbone
Manufacturer: FT Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

Managing the Customer Experience: Turning Customers into Advocates
Customer Experience Management: A Revolutionary Approach to Connecting with Your Customers
How Customers Think: Essential Insights into the Mind of the Market
Priceless: Turning Ordinary Products into Extraordinary Experiences
Building Great Customer Experiences

ASIN: 0131015508

Download Description

"Good, bad, or indifferent, every customer has anexperience with your company and the productsor services you provide. But few businesses reallymanage that customer experience... so they losethe chance to transform customers into lifetimecustomers.

In this book, Lou Carbone shows exactly how toengineer world-class customer experiences, oneclue at a time.

Carbone draws on the latest neuroscientificresearch to show how customers transformphysical and emotional sensations into powerfulperceptions of your business... perceptions thatcrystallize into attitudes that dictate everythingfrom satisfaction to loyalty.

And he explains how to assess and audit existingcustomer experiences, design and implement newones... and ""steward"" them over time, to ensurethat they remain outstanding, no matter how yourcustomers change.

Experience as a value proposition

Building systems that reflect your customers'deepest needs and desires

The mouse vs. the orange roof

Why Disney succeeded and Howard Johnson's failed

The disciplines of experience management

Experience assessment, auditing, designing,implementation, and more

Experience stewardship for the long term

freshing your experiences to reflect changingneeds and desires

Understand how your customers think and feel, and how they interact with your products and services
Assess, audit, design, implement, and steward any customer experience
Beyond Disney and Harley-Davidson: solutions for every industry, product, or service

Customer experience is your best opportunity for differentiation... often, your only opportunity.Clued In gives you the tools to craft an outstanding customer experience--no matter what yousell, or who you sell it to.

Lou Carbone reveals the sensory building blocks of experience you're already delivering tocustomers, whether you know it or not. He shows how to re-craft these ""clues"" into a consistent,powerful experience that leads directly to customer preference... a preference that can help youdifferentiate practically anything.

Carbone covers the entire process, hands-on: organizing your ""experience design"" team...evaluating the experience you're already delivering... designing manageable clues that connectwith customer desire... rolling out new experiences... and making customer experience bothsustainable and profitable.

Your company needs to move from creating great products and services tocreating great experiences."

Customer Reviews:

This is great!.......2007-03-08

Not really sure why I bought this book. The title certainly did nothing to reveal what a gem it would turn out to be. I mean..Clued In? It makes sense once you start reading the book but it is certainly somewhat obscure for a business title.

However, it you do manage to get past the cover, you'll find one of the best books on this topic that I"ve ever read. And I've read quite a few.
Author Lewis Carbone clearly knows his stuff and his passion for the topic comes out as you turn over the pages. The book is literally full of insightful case studies and reveals a depth of understanding and practical advice that makes the book truely memorable.

This is not a book to casually flick through, it demands your serious attention. I'll certainly be going back to it again and again. Buy it!

Great book, but leaves a few essentials out.......2006-11-04

Lewis Carbone knows his stuff, and it shows in his offering, Clued In. We are going through the process at our company and, although we see the potential and understand what Carbone means by the "customer experience," it still requires a psychologist on staff to help us understand how to go about "mining for clues." In a nutshell, great book, gets everyone on board in seeing the potential for increased bottom line. But mining for clues is an essential part of the process, and Mr. Carbone leaves the reader with a feeling that the process is somehow mystical.

Great guide book for experience management.......2006-05-09

Building on The Experience Economy, Carbone's book adds significant details and road maps to achieve experience management. Highly readable.

Highly Recommended!.......2005-08-17

Pull up a chair, sit down and take notes in this virtual boardroom. With insider details gathered from decision-makers at major corporations, author Lewis P. Carbone gives you a close-up look at the business of customer satisfaction. From Howard Johnson to Starbucks, the author provides you-are-there clues about the customer marketing strategies that have fueled high-profile successes and caused major failures. Reading this book is like eavesdropping on top executives. The author enhances corporate scenarios with helpful charts and timelines that apply to all businesses, from mom-and-pop enterprises to major conglomerates. The text is occasionally repetitive, but that drives home important points. We recommend this solid marketing tool to business owners and managers.

The Prohibitive Cost of Being Clueless.......2005-07-24

Warren Buffett once said that price is what is charged for a product or service but value is what others think it's worth. I thought about that comment as I began to read Carbone's book. If Buffett's right (and I think he is), the key to getting customers to come back "again and again" is to create for them a purchase experience whose importance includes but is by no means limited to their perception of price relative to value. What else? Carbone: "The tangible attributes of a product or service have far less influence on consumer preference than the unconscious sensory and emotional elements derived from the total experience." He goes on to point out that creating value around multi-dimensional, well-integrated, and consciously managed experiences involves connecting with "the unconscious emotional passions of your customers and in the process, you'll discover how to differentiate yourself from competitors in ways that can be almost impossible to copy and commoditize." I agree.

In Part I, Carbone makes a case for experience management and then, in Part II, explains HOW to do that effectively. In chapters 7-11, he rigorously examines five separate but interdependent disciplines, devoting a separate chapter to each. I especially appreciate his provision of basic questions. For example, here are three which must be answered by application of the Discipline of Assessing Experience:

1. What potential impact does managing customer experiences represent for the organization?

2. How is the experiential value currently being created for customers?

3. What resources are available to improve and optimize the way your organization creates experience value?

The other four Disciplines involve auditing, designing, implementing, and stewarding experiences. Again, Carbone includes for each a cluster of "basic" questions to be answered or areas on which to focus. I also appreciate Carbone's provision of all manner of check-lists, guidelines, and caveats as well as "Figures" which enable his reader to concentrate on both core principles of customer experience management and effective application of them. Throughout the book, he inserts italicized comments such as these:

"No one competence, discipline, or tool will be a universal silver bullet; rather it is the experience management counterpart to Disney's coveted `pixie dust.' It's the innovative blending of numerous perspectives and competencies that unlocks the full potential of experiential value creation." (Page 117)

"Designing experiences begins with the customer and ends with the customer. When clues are aligned with the customer's known desires and emotional needs, distinctive experiential value is being created. When they're not in harmony, conflicts occur and the value created is eroded." (page 190)

"The clues your customers place in the positive zone today may someday be neutralized, becoming basic expectations that no longer provide completive advantage but eventually become minimum thresholds to be met by anyone with ambitions of competing for long-term customer loyalty." (page 219)

I realize that these three brief excerpts are taken out of context. However, hopefully, they will help those who read this brief commentary to obtain at least a sense of what Carbone offers in this book. His customer experience management program is cohesive, comprehensive, and cost-effective. That said, I think it would be a fool's errand to try to implement all of it, either immediately or over an extended period of time. "Getting clued in [to what is of greatest importance to your customers] is the critical first step. From that start, you too will begin to harness the kind of relentless energy that is generated by sensing clues and recognizing their meaning and importance in the eyes [and hearts] of your customers."

In the Afterword, Carbone confides that he now spends much less time trying to convince people to accurately measure the experiential value they create for their customers and much more time explaining how to do it. How accurate and current are your organization's measurements? Unless they are both, your organization cannot possibly manage customer experience, much less increase its value.

The Unquenchable Worshipper: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship (Worship Series)

Average customer rating:

The very practical book on worship.
The Irresistable Read
The Unquenchable Worshipper: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship (Worship Series)
you're not alone
Great Inspiration to Clear Your Heart to Worship

The Unquenchable Worshipper: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship (Worship Series)
Matt Redman
Manufacturer: Regal Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Facedown (The Worship Series)
The Air I Breathe: Worship as a Way of Life
The Heart of Worship Files (The Worship Series)
Inside Out Worship: Insights for Passionate and Purposeful Worship
Blessed Be Your Name: Worshipping God on the Road Marked with Suffering

ASIN: 0830729135

Book Description

The Unquenchable Worshipper issues a passionate call for a return to an unadulterated, first-love lifestyle of worship. In his first book release, respected worship leader and songwriter Matt Redman writes: "The revelation of God is the fuel for the fire of our worship. And there is always more fuel for the fire. When we open the eyes of our heart, God's revelation comes flying at us from so many different angles." Open the eyes of your heart and let the gut-level message of The Unquenchable Worshipper cause you, like martyred missionary Jim Elliot, to say, "Saturate me with the oil of Thy Spirit, that I may be aflame. Make me Thy fuel O flame of God."

It's time to dive into the heart of worship-will you take the plunge?

Customer Reviews:

The very practical book on worship........2007-01-12

I'm a worship leader in NJ and I've require all our musicians and vocalists to read this book. My philosophy is that everyone doing worship during a service is leading the congregation in worship. Not just the one who may talk or sing the most. This book by Matt Redman is a valuable help to everyone involved with a worship team or seeking to understand what worship is all about in a deeper way. Do yourself a favor and read this wonderful devotional type book by a very experienced composer and worship leader. It will enhance your own time with the Lord and make you a better worship leader for your church.

The Irresistable Read.......2007-01-09

This book was recommended to me by a fellow marathoner. It reads quickly, and you will want to read in a single sitting. It speaks well of the heart and relentless desire of the worshipper of Jesus, to give Him endless and countless praise and worship for His work on the cross. It's also penned by a dude with amazing musical gifts. I will probably re-read many times,as it validates one's desire to worship even in the midst of the storms of life..........

The Unquenchable Worshipper: Coming Back to the Heart of Worship (Worship Series) .......2006-02-25

We were taken back to the Heart of Worship!!!!

you're not alone.......2006-01-01

Ever feel like no one else gets it? Like you sometimes can't connect with other people who although share your faith, seem to have a different taste for God than you do?

In my opinion this is the book for you. I found myself finishing this book in a short time because not only did I feel challenged, but I realized that I'm not a complete failure simply because I struggle in my focus on my God.

Matt lays out a very profound and understandable set of lessons that will help you understand what life long/ eternity long worship really is.

This isn't the gospel according to Matt or any book of vague ideas. It's a great devotional on intamacy and thirst for our God.

As a worship pastor/ youth pastor of a church I can't tell you what a blessing this reading really is.

Great Inspiration to Clear Your Heart to Worship.......2005-08-07

I highly recommend this little book for its insight and its heart to Seek GOD and to find Him when you seek Him with all your heart. Though he is my favorite male Christian singer/song writer and this book is about worship the heart of the book is Jesus and knowing Him and laying aside the sin that so easily besets us. I was inspired, touched and enlightened by this book and I pray it sets the same fire in you as it did in me to cleanse our own temples with His presense and importance.
Whatever was written to worship leaders applies to all. Do you find yourself self conscious in worship well guess who your looking at. Do you find others and their worship distracting who are you looking at? Who is the center of your worship can you get lost in Loving the LORD and forget all around you. This and more is discussed with a heart to the answer Jesus.
In chapter 9 a dichotomy is discussed that very much spoke to my heart. Having found Christ or been found by Him we are filled with Him yet still hunger? In fact the Hunger and desire only increases. Well, if we are to never thirst then how is this possible, I let Matt answer that. Also the fire of justice and perfection is implanted in us as we know This isnt the way it ought to be. Very important and enlightning.
A good companion to this book would be Lou Giglio's The Air I Breathe. GOD bless and enjoy and grow in the Grace and Knowledge of our LORD and Saviour Jesus Christ. JB

Coming Back to Life: Practices to Reconnect Our Lives, Our World

Average customer rating:

Inspiring, universal truths about self, community and world.

Coming Back to Life: Practices to Reconnect Our Lives, Our World
Joanna R. Macy
Manufacturer: New Society Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Widening Circles
World as Lover, World as Self
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Soulcraft: Crossing into the Mysteries of Nature and Psyche
The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community (Bk Currents)

ASIN: 086571391X

Book Description

Many of us feel called to respond to the ecological destruction of our planet, yet we feel overwhelmed, immobilized, and unable to deal realistically with the threats to life on Earth. Noted spiritual and environmental thinkers Joanna Macy and Molly Young Brown contend that this crippling response to world crisis is a psychological defense mechanism that has been endemic since the years of the Cold War arms race, when we had to adapt within a single generation to the horrific possibility of nuclear holocaust.

Since its publication in 1983, Joanna Macy's book, Despair and Personal Power in the Nuclear Age has sold nearly 30,000 copies and has been the primary resource for groups of men and women confronting the challenging realities of our time without succumbing to paralysis or panic. Coming Back to Life provides a much needed update and expansion of this pioneering work. At the interface between spiritual breakthrough and social action, Coming Back to Life is eloquent and compelling as well as being an inspiring and practical guide. The first third of the book discusses with extraordinary insight the angst of our era, and the pain, fear, guilt and inaction it has engendered; it then points forward to the way out of apathy, tio "the work that reconnects". The rest of the book offers both personal counsel and easy-to-use methods for working with groups in a number of ways to profoundly affect peoples' outlook and ability to act in the world.

Table of Contents

Foreword by Mathew Fox
1. To Choose Life
2. The Greatest Danger: Apatheia, The Deadening of Mind & Heart
3. The Basic Miracle: Our True Nature & Power
4. The Work that Reconnects
5. Guiding Group Work
6. Affirmation: Coming from Gratitude
7. Despair Work: Owning & Honoring Our Pain for the World
8. The Shift: Seeing with New Eyes
9. Deep Time: Drawing on Past & Future Generations
10. The Council of All Beings: Rejoining the Natural World
11. Going Forth
12. Meditations for Coming Back to Life

Joanna Macy has developed an international following over the course of 40 years as a speaker and workshop leader on Buddhist philosophy and the deep ecology movement

Customer Reviews:

Inspiring, universal truths about self, community and world........1999-10-04

Without having to consult a post-modern dictionary, Joanna Macy and co-author, Molly Young Brown give inspiring and heartfelt explanations and examples of their lifework: dealing with the roots of conscious and unconscious pain that we all feel with regards to ourselves, while bringing home the concept of our connectedness to this world. They point out the fallacy of basic assumptions that we can fix whatever problems we create (the fix-it mentality), as well as dealing with resulting issues of burn-out and stress by alternatively doing the "work that reconnects". The dynamic model set forth in this book recognizes the role of community and encourages us out of an antagonistic "us" versus "them" concept which tends to lead us towards short-term NIMBY (not in my backyard) solutions.

In the preface to the book, Joanna Macy writes, "THIS IS A GUIDEBOOK. It maps ways into the vitality and determination we each possess to take part in the healing of our world."

Bedroom Games: Stripteases, Seductions, and Other Surprises to Keep Your Partner Coming Back for More

Average customer rating:

Surprise!
I am a beginner...
Great!
Beginners Only
entertaining, but no pictures

Bedroom Games: Stripteases, Seductions, and Other Surprises to Keep Your Partner Coming Back for More
Mary Taylor
Manufacturer: Three Rivers Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Love & Romance | Relationships | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Marriage | Relationships | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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The S Factor: Strip Workouts for Every Woman
Loving Sex: Erotic Strip Dance DVD & CD Music Set
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Sex Games
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ASIN: 0609809741
Release Date: 2003-01-07

Book Description

The lights are low. Your favorite sultry tunes are playing quietly in the background. The phone is off the hook. A scented candle is burning. Your man sits in the center of the room, eagerly awaiting the surprise you’ve been planning for weeks. Slowly, you make your entrance, dressed in a little black number you bought on the sly. As his jaw drops you slink toward him, moving to the rhythm of the music. You’ve got his attention now, and the night has only just begun.

The art of the striptease involves more than a revealing costume, stiletto heels, and a red feather boa. To successfully release your inner stripper, ladies, you’ve got to have the moves (of course!), but most important you have to exude self-confidence. With two decades of on-the-job experience, former exotic dancer Mary Taylor offers a wealth of advice for women on how to cast aside their insecurities and inhibitions. Full of tips on choosing the right time, setting, music, lighting, costume, and persona, and step-by-step instructions on basic and more advanced striptease moves, Bedroom Games is your key to turning your (and his!) most secret sexual fantasies into reality and giving the man in your life a night he won’t soon forget!

Customer Reviews:

Surprise!.......2006-10-10

This book was not what I expected. I must admit it was a pleasant surprise. I found it easy to follow and very well grounded in relationships. Even though I am a very visual person and usually find books without at least diagrams a let down...this one was not. There were no pictures but the explanations are so clear...it is hard to get it wrong. The author includes personal stories to help the reader grasp the material and it is a wonderful combination. Great book!!! I highly recommend it!!!!

I am a beginner..........2006-07-29

What a wonderful book! I did not need pictures just an active imagination. It was easy for me to follow the directions that was given. I would recommend this to all women whether you are shy or insecure or outgoing it will be helpful.

I am practicing the moves. I share my desires with my partner and he is looking forward to me dancing for him. It is all about how we feel -- if we feel good and enjoy what we do then they will enjoy it with us.

She (Mary Taylor) has dvds and videos and other items on her website. It was a big help!!! I can only get better!!

Great!.......2006-03-19

Bought this book as a present for my friend and she was thrilled! Even better she didn't have to wait long for it to arrive.

Beginners Only.......2006-02-12

I bought this book implusively, and it's going back. It's aimed at women who are insecure and inexperienced. Renting 9 1/2 Weeks would be a better use of your time, unless you really think you need a pep talk, too. And tips on how to make your own sexy outfits with a glue gun and velcro. Pass.

entertaining, but no pictures.......2004-09-12

Maybe it's just me, but when someone is teaching me how to dance, I like a picture (or, better yet, video) of how each move goes. It takes more practice when you're reading about it. Other than that, this is a great book. I learned some new things and can't wait to try them out on a live person!

The Rock & Roll Rebellion: Why People of Faith Abandoned Rock Music and Why They're Coming Back

Average customer rating:

Great Book for ALL Christians and All musicians
The "problem" of CCM and a radical solution
Eye and Heart Opening
If you're reading the reviews, you should read the book.
Faith & Music Put Into Perspective

The Rock & Roll Rebellion: Why People of Faith Abandoned Rock Music and Why They're Coming Back
Mark Joseph
Manufacturer: Broadman & Holman Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Faith, God, & Rock 'N' Roll
Faith, God and Rock & Roll: How People of Faith Are Transforming American Popular Music
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ASIN: 0805420614

Amazon.com

Is there such a thing as Christian music? Fans of what is now called Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) might think so, but not radio personality and writer Mark Joseph. In this well-researched work, Joseph argues that Christian music is not a separate genre, and that by creating a separate marketing category, Christian musicians removed themselves from pop culture--to their own detriment as well as the culture's.

Through profiles of leading Christian musicians and producers (including Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Pat Boone, Run-D.M.C., and U2), Joseph explores Christianity's place in American popular music, concentrating in particular on the rise of CCM as a commercial power. For anyone interested in the tension between sacred and secular in modern American music, or for fans of popular artists who have struggled with these issues (such as Amy Grant, Sam Phillips, T-Bone Burnett, Mark Heard, and dozens of others), this book makes for fascinating reading. (And it might also introduce you to some great music!) --Doug Thorpe

Customer Reviews:

Great Book for ALL Christians and All musicians.......2001-06-20

This a great exploration of the Christian music culture, and what CHristian Musicians need to do to regain their influence in culture.

The "problem" of CCM and a radical solution.......2000-07-10

Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) is a genre that, unlike other musical genres, is defined solely by its lyrical content, as opposed to musical style. Thus, it has been relegated to the evangelical subculture, which is tantamount to locking it in the basement of the entertainment world. Mark Joseph takes a very opinionated view that the "ghettoizing" of Christian music into the CCM substratum has had a severely detrimental effect on Christianity's influence in the wider marketplace. Some artists have been content to remain in the subculture, relying on the evangelizing efforts of their fans to bring the unchurched to their concerts and to spread the word to the mainstream. Others have longed to break out of CCM straightjacket into the world at large, to bring positive values to pop culture. Some have succeeded at this, with varying degrees of success. And some never were in the "straightjacket" to begin with. This book gives an excellent overview of artists in all these camps.

Joseph never tries to hide his opinion about CCM. He believes that, in its present form, it basically shouldn't exist. He believes that there should be about 20% of these musicians ministering in churches and to youth groups, and about 80% out in the mainstream, and he has some practical solutions to bring Christian music to that point. Will it ever happen? It's doubtful that it will, or that it even should. After all, to me, CCM is valuable as wholesome entertainment to the modern and post-modern generations who would have no interest in, say, Southern gospel. I think 50-50 is a better, more realistic ratio. He does address the problem of Christian musicians going out into the world and "backsliding" by the proposal of creating a "traveling pastor" ministry to go on tour with the musicians. All in all, a very thought-provoking book.

Eye and Heart Opening.......2000-07-09

Mark Joseph challenged me as a person in the Christian ghetto to rethink my position about music and the culture. Well-written and researched, this book has been lived by Mark. Most importantly, Mark forced me to think through some tough issues and take responsibility where I've been part of the problem. Get this book! It's a heart and Eye opener!

If you're reading the reviews, you should read the book........2000-05-04

If you're reading this review then you probably should read this book. Reading the review implies that you have an interest in the subject(s) of faith and/or rock and roll which means that this page-turner is for you. Mark Joseph has accomplished an astounding feat here by amassing this information. Welcome to Faith/Rock 101. Prepare to be educated. You should understand, though, that as Mark Joseph begins presenting two opposing viewpoints on a debate that may be new to some, his mind is firmly made up. When Joseph allows the artists to do the talking, the book shines. He does, however, engage in some editorial-izing at times from his own point of view. He has weighed Contemporary Christian Music in the balance and found it wanting. The book is about two points of view regarding the relevance of C(ontemporary) C(hristian) M(usic) to the world at large as opposed to the Christian sub-culture and its quality when judged as art. The basis for Mark Joseph's conclusion that CCM serves no useful function is that the artists perpetually "preach to the choir." It's a matter of Christians making music for Christians who already agree with them. Thus, CCM has none of the tension and angst-and presumably fun-that are associated with real life. CCM is safe and sanitized. It would be inappropriate for me to offer my observations, points of agreement or disagreement with the author. I'm reviewing the book, not the premise of the book. Do you want to discuss it? Email me. It's a fascinating and controversial topic. If you read Rebellion with an open-mind, you will find that it provides some answers even as it produces more questions. Consider the different responses of the members of Kansas. We see the argument set forth in Rebellion in its purest form in the section chronicling Kansas. Faith split the band into Christian and non-Christian camps. We learn that bandmates even segregated themselves on the airplane based on belief! The irony of it is that, after the breakup of Kansas, Kerry Livgren and John Elefante espouse differing views regarding CCM. Elefante embraces CCM, adding a strong voice to the contention that the popular music machine will not accept songs about Jesus. (Michael Been of the Call also elucidates on the pop music machine-the "current power structure, the ones who right now are making the rules and creating the values and ethics of the country.") Livgren, however, is more a proponent of the author's viewpoint, indicating that CCM is far removed from the "real world" where hurting, sinful people never hear it. A complex issue, don't you think? If I go on, my review will be too long and you won't read it. Let me just add this. As far as quote of the day, be sure to see the section on Atomic Opera and their observations of Christianity as it is commonly practiced by adherents and perceived by bystanders.

Faith & Music Put Into Perspective.......2000-04-10

Excellent Book! A must read for all musicians, people in the music industry and Christians. Interesting, riveting and honest perspective about the integration of faith, religion, music ministry and entertainment. Our American culture needs to have a better understanding of how all of our spiritual roots play a part in our musical preferences. Contemporary Christian music is not a separate genre of music. It should never have been thought of as such and marketed as such. Mark Joseph gives clear history and reasoning behind what is and what should be contemporary Christian music. FULL of useful information and insight. Keeps the reader interested so they can't and don't want to put it down!

Coming Back Alive: The True Story of the Most Harrowing Search and Rescue Mission Ever Attempted on Alaska's High Seas

Average customer rating:

Ken Boire author of Inherit the Tide
Great Book....
real Alaskan flavor and good for helicopter enthusiasts
"I've Been There"
As real as is gets, without having been there yourself

Coming Back Alive: The True Story of the Most Harrowing Search and Rescue Mission Ever Attempted on Alaska's High Seas
Spike Walker
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Working on the Edge: Surviving In the World's Most Dangerous Profession: King Crab Fishing on Alaska's HighSeas
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Highliners: The Classic Novel about the Commercial Fishermen of Alaska

ASIN: 0312302568

Book Description

On the night of January 31, 1998, the fishing vessel La Conte took on water and sank off the coast of Sitka, Alaska, in what was to be the worst storm in the states history. Abandoning ship, the five-man crew desperately clung to lifeand each otherin ferocious 90-foot seas, and freezing water. All would surely have perished were it not for the efforts of the oast Guard Search and Rescue teams who flew their choppers into the heart of the storm with little hope of rescuing anyone. Knocked nearly senseless by 100-mile-per-hour winds that exploded out of stadium-sized wave troughs and nearly stripped them from the sky, the rescue teams were plunged into a meteorological hell as they made three separate attempts. The third and last cew completed the rescue without radio communication, all the while maneuvering in a gyrating, tar-black void in which the sea and sky were seamlessly intermeshed.This account portrays a fearless and dedicated Coast Guard service never before revealed.

Customer Reviews:

Ken Boire author of Inherit the Tide.......2006-10-21

I was captured by the edge of the seat writing. I never questioned the events. For years I have been closely associated with commercial fishing in Alaska. At one time or another I have worked on every commercial harbor in the USA between Lost Angeles/Long Beach and Kotzebue. I am also a pilot and I grew up in Alaska. Spike Walker's descriptions are excellent. He did not need to fluff things to make the story work. From what some have said about the book I almost feel like one needs to have experienced the fury of the Bering Sea and Gulf to accept his account.

I passed the book to a reader unfamiliar with Alaska, commercial fishing, and the maritime industry. He had a hard time accepting it. I was stunned that people were so out of touch. Then I reminded myself storms that happen every year in Alaska only come once in 20 - 100 years on the east coast of the USA.

Spike Walker kept me involved. I might have been involved with a lesser writer but I kept thinking "Right on." I have seen the USCG show up when things looked grim. Spike's writing brought personal feelings back from 30 years ago.

As a writer I found myself studying the style. Anybody can report a storm but Spike let me feel the wind cutting through my fireside recliner. This is a five star book. It is a five star subject but only a five star writer like Spike Walker could have turned out "Coming Back Alive."

There is no overlapping of themes, events, or characters, between "Coming Back Alive" and "Inherit the Tide", but I wish I would have read Walker's book earlier. I got the sense his grip on the reader is developed by dragging them into the action. This same action-based relation with the reader is what makes his characters real. Being able to do that without overblown descriptions and accounts is a real talent. Nevertheless there is something to be said about the value of understated events that let the reader's imagination fill the gaps.

Great Book...........2006-07-18

If you're a fan of the Discovery Show "Deadliest Catch" you need to read this book.
I couldn't put it down.

real Alaskan flavor and good for helicopter enthusiasts.......2005-07-30

Walker does a good job of portraying the always-interesting folks who choose to live in the more remote corners of Alaska. He also does a good job of explaining the hazards and technology of small fishing boats in these waters. For a guy who doesn't actually fly helicopters he does a creditable job of explaining how the helicopter operations work. Maybe it is because I've been up to Alaska three times or because I'm a licensed helicopter pilot but I found this book much more interesting than Perfect Storm.

Note to helicopter nerds: If you fly helicopters in good weather for fun or airplanes IFR you must read this book to find out just what kinds of risks the Coast Guard pilots are willing to run.

"I've Been There".......2005-02-11

After 20 years in the Coast Guard as a rescue pilot, I can attest, Spike has got it right! I flew the HH-52 in the prologue of "Working on the edge", spent 10 of 20 years in Kodiak and know some of the people involved. He captured the fear, the pride, the adrenaline rush, the feeling of accomplishment, the bravery and the "spirit de corps" of our noble service. Those who attack the grammar and use of adverbs missed the point and flavor of this great story teller. It wasn't all scary crap in the USCG as evidenced in my book "I Never Liked Those C-130's Anyway". Keep them coming Spike!
Malcolm Smith

As real as is gets, without having been there yourself.......2004-09-12

After reading the reviews of this book, i came away with the feeling that most people loved this book. I did more than read it, I lived it. I was a crewman in the first CG helo that arrived on scene. unless you have lived through it, it's hard to imagine 90 foot waves. but its true. this book portrays the events of the night of jan. 30 1998 as real as you can possibly do without having actual video. On the other hand, i have to agree with one reviewer. what happened on that night was not heroic, we just did our jobs as we are trained, and i would do it again if asked. this is what makes the USCG the best air/sea rescue agency in the world.

The Light at the End of the Tunnel: Coming Back to Life After a Spouse Dies

Average customer rating:

Good compilation of personal stories
I contributed a chapter to this book.
Opening Communication Paths

The Light at the End of the Tunnel: Coming Back to Life After a Spouse Dies
Mary Ward Menke
Manufacturer: AuthorHouse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Widow To Widow: Thoughtful, Practical Ideas for Rebuilding Your Life

ASIN: 1425944213

Customer Reviews:

Good compilation of personal stories .......2007-01-09

Light at the end of the Tunnel is a great compilation of first person accounts of individuals from various walks of life.

I contributed a chapter to this book........2006-10-25

I didn't know what else was going into the book along with the chapter I wrote but Mary has managed to pull together an amazing number of true stories with enough variety to speak to a number of reader's experiences.

Loosing a spouse gets 100 points on the stress scale the "Social Readjustment Rating Scale" by Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe and is at the top of that scale in terms of stress impact. Nothing can really save a person from going through the stress of loosing their spouse but knowing that others survived a went on with their lives gives hope in a situation that at times seems hopeless. It can go a long way in helping a surviving spouse to reach that light at the end of the tunnel.

Brenda A. Elliott

Opening Communication Paths.......2006-09-23

Mary Menke has written an amazing book. Recently two of my friends spouses died, so I bought 2 copies. Although both people are friends, neither of them are so close to me that I knew how to talk to them about their loss. By giving them Mary's book, it opened the communication paths between myself and my friends on this difficult delicate subject. One of my friends read it in a day and said she will read it again. Thank you Mary. I can't say I look forward to having a reason to purchase another one :), but if the need arises, I am glad I now know what to do.
Kathy Denton, author of, "The Search of a Lifetime", "Corporate Russian Roulette", and cameo-author of, "Beneath the Big Muddy"

1,001 Ways to Keep Customers Coming Back: WOW Ideas That Make Customers Happy and Will Increase Your Bottom Line

Average customer rating:

Irresistible Lists to Fill the Gaps in Your Stalled Thinking
Customers are the gold in your company

1,001 Ways to Keep Customers Coming Back: WOW Ideas That Make Customers Happy and Will Increase Your Bottom Line
Donna Greiner , and Theodore B. Kinni
Manufacturer: Three Rivers Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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101 Ways To Promote Yourself: Tricks Of The Trade For Taking Charge Of Your Own Success

ASIN: 0761520295
Release Date: 1999-10-20

Book Description

Sure-Fire, Can't-Miss Tips, Techniques, and Ideas for Building Lifelong Customer Loyalty
Imagine having the customer-service secrets of the world's most successful businesses right at your fingertips. With this book you can! Authors Donna Greiner and Theodore Kinni spent five years uncovering how Nordstrom, Southwest Airlines, Ritz-Carlton, American Express, and other world-class companies keep their customers for life. The result is 1,001 timely, entertaining, and brilliantly inventive customer-retention ideas. Inside, you'll discover the secrets to:
·Creating products/services tailored to your customers' needs
·Recognizing and rewarding your most profitable trophy customers
·Using three kinds of guarantees to build customer trust
·Turning first-time customers into frequent buyers
·And much more!

Customer Reviews:

Irresistible Lists to Fill the Gaps in Your Stalled Thinking.......2000-06-06

Ever since The Loyalty Effect was published, companies have come to understand that it is usually far more profitable to keep existing customers than to acquire new ones. Since companies usually focus more on getting the new ones, that left a problem for executives: What are good ways to retain customers?

The book vaults into the gap by addressing major areas like creating a better bundle of products and services (offer stamps in a card shop in a tourist town like Williamsburg where the post office has long lines), add incentives (free gifts, coupons, rebates, special financing, and contests), tap into or build communities of interests (like those who love Harleys), building trust by standing behind your work (deliver what you promise and make good if you don't), give first in order to receive (this often means helping a charitable purpose with some of your proceeds), reward all customers as though they are your best customer (with a smile, recognition, respect, etc.), treat your best customers even better (they account for 80 percent of profits and there aren't very many of them), make it easy (automatic reorder and replenishment), go to your customers, personalize what you offer to your customers, and become a champ at customer service.

These are all valid concepts, and seeing 100 or so examples of each point makes it easier to imagine how to apply these principles to your own business. That's the strength of the book.

My only quibble was that it seemed like the examples pretty much came from the same companies in each area. I think I now know more about Merrie Maids than I really need to know, and a lot of the examples are pretty obvious. Usually books of lists have more variety and more intriguing examples.

Perhaps this limitation is just because this subject hasn't been thought about enough. I hope the authors come back with an update on this book in a few years with zingy examples that are based on things you, the reader, have developed as a result of studying this book.

May you have irresistible success in keeping your customers!

Customers are the gold in your company.......2000-04-04

I liked this book. All companies depend on one thing only; customers. And "1001 Ways to Keep Customers Coming Back" empasizes this point which, although, should be clear with all managers and business owners, is not. The book introduces basic ways of keeping your customers happy and how to "promote" you company or product so that you gain customer loyalty. I think this is a good book for everyone in the business world.

Keep Coming Back Gift Book: Humor & Wisdom for Living and Loving Recovery (Keep Coming Back Books)

Average customer rating:

Some new, some old.

Keep Coming Back Gift Book: Humor & Wisdom for Living and Loving Recovery (Keep Coming Back Books)
Meiji Stewart
Manufacturer: Hazelden
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

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Drug Dependency | Recovery | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

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God Grant Me The Laughter: A Treasury Of Twelve Step Humor

ASIN: 1568383789

Book Description

A perfect gift for anyone in recovery, this book is full of profound wisdom and humor collected from many different 12-step meetings. Over 400 sayings and 54 illustrations guaranteed to inspire, amuse and uplift you.

Customer Reviews:

Some new, some old........2006-08-06

For those who have been around 12-step programs for any length of time, there's a fair amount of old material. That said, this would be a good book for newcomers who haven't heard it before and need to know that there is humor in recovery.

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