Posted: 02 Apr 2010 06:35 PM PDT

'The Long Fall'

The creator of Easy Rawlins has done it again, back East. Walter Mosley has created another super character in his latest book.

His name is Leonid McGill, and he's a New York private eye who lives above his means in a plush surroundings, one step in front of the bill collectors. His on again, off again girlfriend is his landlord; his ex-wife has the house, but she wants him back; the only son he gets along with is not his. Well you get it, just an ordinary guy who has done bad things but has lots of character.

The name? "Daddy was a communist and great-granddaddy was a slave master from Scotland. You know, the black man's family tree is mostly root. Whatever is above ground is only a hint at the real story."

If you liked Easy, you will love Leonid. Can't wait for the next one. — Tim O'Connell, Ponte Vedra Beach

'The Morgue and Me'

Meet Christopher, 18, valedictorian and a Regent's Scholarship winner at the university where his parents teach in Petoskey, Mich. He takes a summer job at the city morgue. Then, he discovers that a body on a stretcher is plugged with five bullets and the guy clearly didn't kill himself, which is what the official report says.

Enter Tina, a hot newspaper reporter who wants to score a scoop and snag a job with a Detroit paper. She needs his help. There's bribery, blackmail, threats, kidnapping, and the sheriff seems involved. The book is fun to read with a gritty, realistic mood, and a world-weary young detective who wants "to catch people doing bad things." Ages 12 and up. — June Weltman, Mandarin

'The Dreamer'

For those children whose imagination seems to stretch for miles, get ready to add the "The Dreamer" to your bookcase. It's a light, artistic non-fiction selection - imaginative, poetic and thought provoking, detailing the life of Neftali Reyes, a young boy whose poetry and art is an escape from society.

With poetry and prose by Pam Munoz Ryan and beautiful illustrations by Peter Sis, the reader can escape with Reyes chapter by chapter. Reyes' poetry escorts him through nature - through rivers, oceans, mountains and forests, letting younger children join him in illustration and young teens through words.

The depth and thought-provoking nature of the fiction do not make this selection a quick read. But its slow pace and thoughtful mindset make it enjoyable. For ages 9 to 14, "The Dreamer" can be found this month in paperback for $16.99. — Laura Lui, The Times-Union

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Book Reviews - Library Journal

Posted: 31 Mar 2010 04:58 PM PDT

In the Bookroom
Bette-Lee Fox, Managing Editor,
September 26, 2008
Getting Inside an "Inside Out Girl"
I am generally intrigued by stories that involve relationships, especially romances, ...
More

» VIEW ALL BLOGS

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Business book reviews - Dallas Morning News

Posted: 29 Mar 2010 05:26 AM PDT

Mojo

Marshall Goldsmith with Mark Rieter (Hyperion Books, $26.99)

When you've got your mojo working, you push the boundaries of your abilities. Without mojo, you remain in your comfort zone. Before you can create mojo, you need to recognize mojo killers.

At the top of the mojo-killer list is overcommitment. Don't confuse mojo with "I can do everything." When you're the go-to person, everyone wants a piece of your time. Spreading yourself too thin diminishes the quality of your work.

Don't confuse mojo with superiority. Just because you're a go-to person doesn't mean you're right.

To develop mojo, you need a keen sense of who you are and who you could become. Staying who you are isn't an option.

Achievement factors into mojo, too. What have you done lately? Are you resting on your laurels, or are you in what's-next, what-if mode? Mojo stays motivated.

Robert's Rules

of Innovation

Robert Brands with Martin Kleinman (John Wiley & Sons, $34.95)

Innovation is a buzzword that corporate leaders use but can't translate into results. Can it be that difficult for an organization's leadership to understand that Point A thinking won't get the firm to Point B? Author Robert Brands' 10-step program provides the answer, and four of the steps set the table for the remaining six:

No risk, no innovation. "New" and "improved" only come after embracing an uncertain outcome. It's ironic that when profit nose-dives, product development budgets are among the first to be cut. Does management really believe that the past holds the key to future growth?

Ownership. Someone has to be the champion without worrying about becoming the scapegoat. A champion creates passion for the project and gets colleagues to buy into the vision.

Coaching and training. Product development is not the only way to bring innovation. Your culture must establish innovation as its driver, and managers need training to look beyond their silos.

Idea management. Encourage ideas. Pack the pipeline. Get people to talk about ideas in a group setting.

Jim Pawlak reviews business books for The Dallas Morning News.

bizbooks@hotmail.com

Five Filters featured article: Chilcot Inquiry. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

Et cetera: Steven Poole's non-fiction choice | Book ... - Eureka! Science News

Posted: 02 Apr 2010 03:58 PM PDT

On international law, language and Pluto's demotionVictors' Justice, by Danilo Zolo, translated by MW Weir (Verso, £14.99)From the Nuremberg trials to the quasi-judicial killing of Saddam Hussein, the international law of war delivers only "victors' justice", argues this book by an Italian philosopher of law: in particular, the new tribunals and courts are given no powers to prosecute "aggressive war" waged by western powers. The main interest in Zolo's version of this familiar argument is given by his detailed close readings of institutional charters and statutes from the League of Nations onwards, and some boisterously sarcastic demolitions of such figures as the Michaels Ignatieff and Walzer, whom he paints as the modern equivalents of Catholic theologians justifying their kings' raiding parties. He formulates nicely the fundamental contradiction in the ideal of "humanitarian war": "Modern warfare is itself the most radical negation of the rights of individuals, starting from the right...