niryuu/sni-each-converted huggingface dataset:
You have a brand whether you think you do or not... . It's relatively easy to get someone to make a single purchase from you.  But how do you instill that long-term loyalty and love that causes people to refuse to buy from anyone else?  Ben Mack talks about that and many other branding issues in the book Think Two Products Ahead: Secrets the Big Advertising Agencies Don't Want You to Know and How to Use Them for Bigger Profits.  It's an unconventional book that doesn't mince words...    Contents:  Pool Hall Wisdom; Brand Misinformation versus Back-End Thinking; The Common Thread and Thinking Two Products Ahead; Branding? Be Good to Your Gander; Branding Processes Are Strikingly Similar; What's a Brand Essence?; Legendary Branding; Extracting a Brand Essence; The Kama Sutra of Marketing - Five Basic Positions; Framing to the Right Target Audience; Structured Creativity - Framing Tools; Creativity on Demand - Why Ad Agencies Can't Brainstorm; Feed Their Passions; Plan to Have Many Conversations; Everything Communicates; Storytelling - Letting the Genie Out of the Bottle; Branding and Thinking Two Products Ahead; Myth, Magic, and Making Money the Old-Fashioned Way; AKS; Jeff Lloyd's Secret to Commercial Residential Real Estate Sales; How to Turn Every First Sale into a Residual Stream of Income; Direct Response Branding; Acknowledgements; Index    Mack states that successful branding comes when you start thinking two products ahead of the current sale.  In other words, you need to be thinking about the overall story and impression that your company and product leaves with a customer.  This collection of legends and perceptions defines your brand, not the cute logo or corporate colors you stick on your products.  What that means is that you *have* a brand whether you think you do or not.  You need to bring your customer into the "marketing funnel", which is a four stage process: intrigue, consider, interested, and buy.  When you get them to buy, then the "two products ahead" mindset turns them from one-off buyers to loyal customers.  It's all a matter of managing your brand...  the story that your customers tell about your company and product.    This book started off as an e-book that the author marketed himself (for a much higher price).  His style of writing and communication is frank and blunt, with no room for dancing around an issue.  As such, it's a lot of fun to read.  Since I don't have a marketing background, I found it a little difficult to keep the finer points of marketing vs. branding vs. selling straight at times.  But overall, I got the message that your brand is a priceless asset, and it's important to do everything you can to make sure that brand says the right thing to your customer.    A valuable read for any business, but especially for the small business owner who doesn't think he has a brand...  he does.
Output: POS
Ethan Walker does NOT know Christ . Ethan Walker's "The Mystic Christ" does NOT AT ALL understand or explain the REAL Jesus Christ.  I'll return this literature as soon as I get the chance. It's completely bogus (with very little truth to it)I mean this man totally misunderstands the plan for redemption, what real love is meant by Christ, and any other reality pertaining to Christ.  If you want to understand Christ, TRULLY, then learn about Him from St. Francis of Assisi, St. John of the cross, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Vincent Ferrer, Fr. Reginald Garrigou - Lagrange, Dom Vitalis, Henry Manning, St. Thomas Aquinas, Sister Josepha Menendez,. Etc....These days it's very popular to twist and distort Jesus Christ by saying Lo here is "A" Christ and Lo there is "A" Christ.  This book lacks in real knowledge of Christ.  While some of this litarature has good points (not on Christ of course but on Buddha and Krsna,etc it does) it really only shows the authers lack of understanding Jesus' real plan and reason for His Incarnation.  The book should have been called "The Mystic Life" and NOT "The Mystic Christ".  Totally misleading and insulting toward Christ (Not "THE" or "A" Christ)....  If you want to be mislead then read this book.  If you want to be lead in the correct path then read "The Way Of Divine Love" by Sister Josepha Menendez if you really want to know THE REAL Jesus Christ (There is no Lo here and Lo there and there is no word "THE" and letter "A" in Christ). Do not fall for this sort of Neuro-Linquistic Programming...
Output: NEG
Audio version is a bomb . When purchasing audiobooks, I normally follow a simple but very effective rule: never, never, never buy an audiobook read by the author. Even if the author is a talented writer, he/she is invariably a terrible narrator. Always look for audiobooks performed by experienced readers, as in Bryson's own "Notes From a Small Island" and "A Walk in the Woods", read by Ron Mclarty.    In Bryson's case I made a rare exception when I listened to "In a Sunburned Country" - the audio version had received reasonable reviews and his performance was indeed adequately entertaining. For this reason I assumed that "Neither Here Nor There" would be equally enjoyable. I was wrong. Bryson's deadpan monologue makes it sound as though he was bored out of his mind while reading this book. Passages that may have seemed amusing in the written version are herein delivered in a sleep-inducing monotone. The sardonically comedic talent he displayed in his reading of "In a Sunburned Country" is totally lacking. I would recommend this audiobook only as a cure for insomnia
Output: NEG
Big Hit! . My son who is 6 yrs old received this for Christmas.  He is able to read quite well on his own but he really enjoys listening to the stories.  Sometimes he will read along with the book and this helps with word recognition and other times he'll listen to the CD at bedtime.  We plan on using them on a future car trip which will be something great to help pass the time
Output: POS
Self Indulgent, muddled, boring . First part was "sorta" interesting.  Rest of book skimmed through - VERY BORING.  Could have been a great read but certainly missed the mark by a mile.  Should have been a magazine article at best
Output: NEG
Expensive, complicated, too fancy for me; Too much fish . More fish recipes than your normal cook-in-advance books. I didn't want to buy the book, but my cat spilled iced tea on the borrowed copy (helpful kitty). There were a few interesting recipes, but everything was way too complicated and expensive. I have since given my copy to a thrift store. If you enjoy cooking and eating gourmet recipes, but don't have the time, this might be for you. If you can borrow it at the library (via interlibrary loan if your branch doesn't have it) you can better judge it. I can't recommend it, because I found almost nothing appealing. But tastes are personal, and YMMV.  Just keep the book away from iced tea and cats
Output: NEG
OK for the beginner - but even then not that great . I was given this book for free by the owner of a bookstore when I told him that that I was starting a bookstore.      I learned maybe, oh, 5 or 6 things that were slightly important.   I especially learned how radically the bookmarket has changed in such a short period of time, and how mired in the past this book is (even with it's new chapter on the Internet).    In any business, there will always be a middle man- but the face of the middleman in the book business is so changed that it is tough to write a book that stays current.    For the young bucks starting in the industry, do subject and content searches of discussion boards hosted by the big bookselling pages: amazon.com (most useful), and abe.com.  Getting a part time job doing grunt work (shelving, cleaning) at a local used bookstore will provide you with more practical education in a day than this book will.
Output: NEG
Not worth it . I bought this book because of all of the good reviews. I was NOT impressed. First of all, the writing is mediocre at best. The stories offer little in the way of meaningful character development and delve right into poorly worded sex scenes. The first three stories I read were about anal sex, watching your wife give another man oral sex and humiliating your husband by tying him up and ball-gagging him then penetrating him with a strap on. To be honest these stories turned me OFF and I'll be returning the book. Save your money this is not good
Output: NEG
Amazing little booklet . When I first saw it I got disapointed for the size of the book.  I realized how good it was when I started reading it.  It's amazing how much information was placed into such a little thing
Output: POS
Excellent source from 13 years ago . When a pair of writers with special skills in the social science of espionage put their heads together, you can hear the resulting &quot;click&quot; in the pages of this very special book. Espionage, after all, is the art of the possible. A knows something and B wants to find out A) what A knows and B) how he knows what it is. It's a simple, elegant geometry, and Shulsky knows it better than LeCarre. I came to this text hoping to find out more about the world of intelligence. I figured, there's got to be more to it than the cartoonish figure than Kiefer Sutherland plays on TV's 24, surrounded by his loyal staff Tony and Michelle.      And there's got to be more going on but if so, how did the USA land in such an awful dilemma as to depend on its intelligence committees which suggested that, for example, there are WMD's in Iraq when as it turns out, if there ever were any, there don't seem to be any now. As Shulsky points out, there's almost no blame-sharing protocol within intelligence agencies. It's as if God made them and then forgot to teach them the words, &quot;I'm sorry.&quot; This is the one book in which you can learn why this should be so. Intelligence has changed rapidly in the years since the Cold War ended, and there are some satisfying books you could follow up on for post-graduate work, but SILENT WARFARE is a savvy place to begin
Output: POS
Horribly muddled . This is one of the most horribly muddled "thrillers" I've ever read.  By the end, I wasn't sure who was "winning" or "losing," nor did I really care.  Clive better quit sub-contracting out his writing.  He should dump this cast of characters and concentrate on Dirk Pitt.
Output: NEG
Red Storm Never Gets Off The Ground . I'll repeat what surprisingly only a few people have mentioned so far.  Unless you're an expert in military lingo and with the different types of military hardware you're going to find yourself lost and disinterested.      The first few chapters were actually quite good and laid the groundwork for what I thought would be a good story.  The remaining chapters had little connection to this however.  The book ended up being nothing more than endless military talk, little character development, tedious descriptions of military and submarine encounters.  Even Clancy's much maligned Red Rabbit is far superior to this
Output: NEG
What a disappointment . I expected so much better. The first two novels in this trilogy were very entertaining and managed to weave both dramatatic historical events with classic family tensions, particulary with the Cheney sisters. Each character including the tertiary characters were well defined.  In this one, the other Cheney sisters never even show up and unfortunately it is a glaring omission.  Predictable and boring from beginning to end.  Sadly, much like the heroine
Output: NEG
old-fashioned elitist boredom . This is a fairly helpful book for those born before the '70s-- a time when "a yarn" wasn't an archaic term. Does it give some helpful hints?  Sure, there's the obvious ones like show don't tell and all characters have free will. But fiction has changed a lot since Henry James (thankfully), and this book might be better left unread. Plus, I don't buy the "only people who aren't well-read don't like it" argument. I've read nearly all the books mentioned and I still wish I never bought this book
Output: NEG
A Not-So-Practical Guide to New Urbanism . The suburban landscape of the United States is the subject of this book, advertised as "the first practical guide to creating communities that truly are communities-not merely enclaves near off-ramps." Guided by the principles of the Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU), the book uses excerpts from that organization's Charter to illuminate its advocacy of more connected development patterns. The book's scope extends beyond the commercial strip to include the major building blocks of towns and suburbs, such as apartment complexes, schools, parks and office campuses.    Hall and Porterfield includes passages of fist-thumping suburbia-bashing similar to James Howard Kunstler's Home From Nowhere (1998, Touchstone Books) or Jane Holtz Kay's Asphalt Nation (1997, Crown). They also include graphic material, much of it adapted their earlier book, A Concise Guide to Community Planning (1994, McGraw-Hill).     Readers knowledgeable about New Urbanism will find few surprises here, other than a few glaring factual errors, like a reference to "Tyson's Corners, Virginia, one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States" (p. 7) and a claim that Edge Cities and urban villages are "two names for essentially the same thing" (p. 210). Good points crop up here and there, but recommendations are so limited in scope that it can be difficult to discern whether the sample site designs are intended to be good or bad examples, which limits the book's usefulness pedagogically. The lack of dimensions on most of the drawings also severely limits the book's utility as a practical reference. Hall and Porterfield contrast "conventional suburban development" and "Traditional Neighborhood Development" options for site plans, but the comparisons sometimes seem forced and nearly always ignore the larger regional issues so critical to the debate.     One ideal audience for this book might suburban planning commissioners, who need guidance from designers in order to understand the differences between conventional suburban development pods and walkable, human-scaled neighborhoods.
Output: NEG
Could be better. . The flashcards are nice to take anywhere. The numbers are lined to different parts of the region one is studying. Example the skull, if you are studying lateral view of the skull a number would highlight the temporal bone but you will have four lines pointing to four different parts of the temporal bone, if you needed more help to which part of the temporal bone was the zygomatic process it would be hard to find out which of those four lines pointed to it. The answers are next to the temporal bone in parenthesis but it does not go in to much detail to which line represents what. This could be better
Output: POS
Bad book from a mad communist . Here in Brazil, about ten years ago, I tried to read this bad book, but I never finished it.I tried to read, one book printed in Argentina, wrote in spanish.This book is bad about even guerrilla warfare.  In fact, never any of the tatics describe in this book gave victory to any army or revolution.The sucess in Cuba, came not from victory in battle.In fact, never happened a single battle in cuban revolution.It came from the cowardy of Batista and his mafia's government.  Ever when an army or even mercenaries TRIED to defeat Che Guevara, they got it, very fast and whith no dificulties.This happened in Congo, to exemple.Finally, in Bolivia, who wasn't and never was a military power, Che was ridiculous at guerrilla.Even so, Che Guevara was easily defeated in Bolivia, and murdered soon after surrendered in 1967.  In fact, any guerrilla in this world got any military victory, using Guevara's tatics and theories.  Many parts of Latin America had communists taking power, but in any of then using guerrilla warfare.  The ever used Gramsci's theories and books to take the power.  Brazil is an exemple.Our communists tried some guerrillas, using Cuba's money and support between 1960 and 1974.All of then were easily and fast defeated.  After all, our left has total control of this coutry, but from press, scools, TVs, etc. control.  As Antonio Gramsci wrote in 1930's Italy, when the left controls the intelectuals, the media, the school sistem, all society is put under left's control without a single shot.  This happened in Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Venezuela,etc
Output: NEG
Bearly a quality book . I have read many of Anna Pigeon books.  This is my least favorite.  The mystery is not developed and thought about which Nevada Barr usually does well.  This was more of a book on bear/human relationship and a mystery (small) thrown in.  I did not enjoy it like and it was more of a chore to read it.  I highly suggest Superior Death or Endagered Species.  These two are Nevada Barr's best books
Output: NEG
Excellent condition . The book was received in good condition, during the period of time requested, and as promised, it is a US edition
Output: POS
Not badly written, but ultimately preposterous . Toward the end of this novel, the lead character, Reichs' usual heroine Tempe Brennan, remarks on the "remarkable coincidence" of one of the plot points. By this point in the book, this is like pointing out to a rabid dog that it's got some spittle on its chin.  This book relies on coincidence so fundamentally that if it were removed, it would fall into 3 or 4 different books with little or nothing to do with one another.    Reichs is not a bad writer, and for someone who so clearly comes from a forensic background, is passably adept at character, plot and scene setting. She knows how to build suspense and intrigue, and never lets the technicalities of her lead character's profession -- a forensic anthropologist -- or the intricacies of her work, undermine the story.    This book centres on Brennan's investigation of a religious cult that perpetrates a set of murders. There are lots of interesting points about how cults work, ritual murder and even large group awareness programs get in on the action. And, of course, several forensic investigations where we are treated to the processes of digging up bones, collecting maggots and bugs, and examining various grim bits of the human body.    What undermines this book is that the first half is at least three different, unrelated stories; and the second is such a clumsy and outrageous merging of them into one, that one drifts from disinterest to incredulity. The jacket cover says this book is about the excavation of a 19th century nun's bones, and the mysteries therewith. In fact, this is just story number 1, which is of only tangential importance to the ultimate, main storyline.    It is not obvious, even in terms of the world of Death du Jour, why Reichs needed all this intermingling. It feels like she started writing a travel journal, then stuck a murder into each of her ports of call, then simply declared that they all belong to the same overarching plot. In this context, each individual story feels derivative, and the grand plot feels like a desperate trick.    A well-written and, at times, interesting book, which is ultimately unsatisfying and preposterous
Output: NEG
Utterly overrated . I found the characters to be mostly caricatures; there's no sense that any of them are actual human beings. As a result, there's no change -they're static, and whatever changes they supposedly go through feel completely unbelievable. And while much of the book focuses on how different classes don't truly see each other, Forster commits that same sin himself by ignoring the poorest family in the book, the Basts. Instead of making them seem real, he reduces them to mere plot devices.   In addition, Forster, a product of his time, is given to making sweeping pronouncements about the human race. Again, if he intended some irony here (as, for example, Jane Austen, who was so good at shading her prose with those kinds of hints), I'd think better of this book.  Novels typically rely on either a solid plot (i.e., the stuff that's happening) or on solid characters (i.e., the stuff that happens in people's inner lives) or both to carry the reader through. I found neither here. At the very least I would like to feel the author's genuine love of language; I can forgive a bad book if it's exceptionally written. I didn't find that kind of prose here. You can skip a good third of the pages and lose nothing
Output: NEG
extremely helpful . This book, of many that I have read, deals most concretely and clearly with the major texts of Judaism.  I consider it a must-read for all who are interested in learning more about the often obscure texts and their authors
Output: POS
Restated propaganda . I can happily say I didn't waste my money on this book, I read a friend's copy.  He has since relinquished this boko to its deserving place, file 13.    It contains nothing new.  nothing relevatory.  It does contain the author's assertions devoid of facts.  the author's opinions disregarding such niceties as what the law says and the historical evidence.  It reads as just another standard regurgitation  of the anti-Israel propaganda that has become so popular.  do yourself a favour and spend your money on something else
Output: NEG
Chess Memoirs of Being With the Greats! . This book goes behind the scenes of the professional and amateur world of organized chess. It is very entertaining because not many people (even die hard chess players themselves) have experiences of this nature in the realm of chess politics. The man has done it all and it was fun to read about his spectacular path! Mr. Schultz' love for chess is clear and his accounts of his chess past are entertaining. He tells of the good and he tells of the bad and a lot of humorous little anecdotes in between. If you play chess with any seriousness, this book is certainly an educational tool in terms of understanding how the big organizations like FIDE and USCF operate. However, this book is very suitable for non-chessplayers as well in that there is no actual chess positions or analysis. It is a story of a man's chess life and political career and I found it to be well done
Output: POS
Bad Bunk . I have just a very few words to say about this not too inventive construct " Its undeniably the most implausible book i've ever read on any subject "
Output: NEG
Historical fiction at its very best. . Though this is a long read (not to be undertaken in one sitting---at least by those without some background in the region/culture) it is well worth it should you wish to cultivate an understanding of Russia & Eastern Europe.  The novel is very true to historical detail, and although many of its characters are of course fictionalized, Rutherford has clearly gone to painstaking lengths to remain historically correct---far moreso than most "historical" novels.  Reading "Russka" will leave you with a true sense of a people and how they have evolved historically & culturally over the span of centuries.  I am a professor & I used this book with one of my classes as assigned reading, with sections of "Russka" paired with corresponding sections of a Russian history book with truly wonderful results---rather than griping about the reading load as usual, most students loved the book and via the novel & the pairing with the text, they seemed to learn a great deal.    Addendum (Feb 16).  Those folks who have criticised the book should perhaps view the book in the right light.  It is not intended to be nor should it be used as a text book or scholarly treatise---though it would be a wonderful and creative suppliment for the latter.  It is a very well crafted and meticulously well researched historical NOVEL and in accuracy of detail it is far superior to most (e.g. some of Michener's "historical" novels contain egregious innacuracies
Output: POS
Suitable for fresh employees . I was disappointed with this book after reading all the rave reviews others had submitted.  Carolyn touched on a wide range of topics briefly, and most of her advice would be applicable to people fresh out of school, as those who have already been working for a while would have encountered those situations and found a way to manage them by now
Output: NEG
FABULOUS! . THIS BOOK SHOWS WHAT THE GREAT LINEUP OF BROADWAY SHOWS WAS FOR 2001-2002 AND IT NOT ONLY LISTS IT BARELY, IT GOES INTO DEPTH ON HUGE HITS LIKE MAMMA MIA! AND THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE.  ITS REALLY GREAT
Output: POS
Very disappointing . Good concept, title, and cover... but lacking good pictures. Any most pictures are very small. Lots of good writing, though
Output: NEG
Lower Than Low . After finishing The Thread That Runs So True by Jesse Stuart, I sit here to give you my review on this book. Even though the book didn't catch my attention that much it had its ups and downs.  The only thing  that caught my attention while reading this book was how he fought back against the "man" and got his job back, but then he stuck it to them at the end. As for the down points of the book it would have to be the rest of the book. I could not in a million years honestly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a book to read
Output: NEG
I officially hate this book! . I, also, must second Mark Twain. This book is a waste of time! Why do teachers make us read it when we should be reading Tolkien, GK Chesterton, CS Lewis, and the like? Agh. Then, that could just be my wacky taste in novels...     But this was bad. Oh my gosh!!! The descriptions were ALWAYS needlessly long, the conversations ALWAYS needlessly long, the... blah, blah, blah, blah. That's what the whole thing was. Blah. The whole plot could have been totally condensed to a hecka short 200 pg novel and it would have been a million times better! Maybe even good! And I like long books!     This book is terrible. Listen to the warning of a fellow voracious reader and do not waste your time!
Output: NEG
FULL of errors! . Great idea for the book BUT spoiled by incorrect facts and explanations on almost every page! Thus it is good if you use it for the questions but NOT the answers.    Someone (wish I had the time) needs to list all the corrections on a website (just a suggestion) for this book to be fully utilised - until the author can correct the mistakes. (if someone gets the website off the ground, I will gladly contribute correct answers)     Having said this, I am still glad I got the book for the questions and to be pointed in the right direction. If only the author would correct the answers....    Gavin  ATP
Output: NEG
Magnificent . White Horse is nothing less than the greatest epic poem in the English language. It is the crowning glory of Christendom's greatest wordsmith
Output: POS
A typical Star Trek book. . This can't really belong to TOS, as it's not actually that closely related to the original series. Following Spock as he tries to reconcile his human and Vulcan sides as he is posted for the first time to the Enterprise, the book also introduces us to a young Scotty in an entertaining side story. We  also meet Captain Pike (who might as well be Kirk from the way he behaves),  and the previous doctor, engineer and first officer. The plot goes that an  ancient (and missing) Vulcan gem, the largest in existence, has been found  on a primitive planet which the Enterprise happens to be visiting. After  retrieving it, however, mysterious murders start to happen on the  Enterprise, while Pike, on the planet's surface, becomes embroiled in a  missing person hunt for two young lovers who could have been kidnapped by  mutants. And then love blossoms between Spock and another Vulcan on the  ship... the ending rounds everything off nicely. This book isn't really  anything special, but it's quite entertaining for a Trek book
Output: POS
Underworld . Underworld is an ambitious book.   By examining politics, economics, and popular culture in the United States during the last half of the twentieth century, author Don DeLillo engages in some interesting speculation about hidden meanings and connections that lie beneath our notice.  In the world that he depicts, people and events sometimes seem to be connected by some kind of field or ether through which unnamable forces operate.  In his opening scene, the lives of hundreds of thousands of people are joined by an historic baseball game, where a young man senses "the body heat of a great city ... small reveries and desperations, the unseen something that haunts the day."  In other passages of the book, these connections take the form of history or a system: "that thing you feel in an office ... sensing the linked grids lap around you."    The book focuses on Nick Shay, a man with some grit who escapes a meaningless life in the Bronx and becomes an executive in a waste disposal firm and a kind of savant.  It takes a long time and many people to produce this transformation, and this results in a pretty long book: 827 pages in the hard cover edition.  DeLillo is even more interested in conspiracy theories and secrets than in Nick's personal transformation, so along the way he shares a lot of arcane knowledge with the reader about the nuclear weapons industry, environmental degradation, and J. Edgar Hoover.      The connections between a few of the minor characters and subplots and the rest of the book are not obvious, and I would venture to say that a few of these could have been omitted without great harm.  Also, DeLillo's dialogue has a definite style:  his characters seem to hoard their words, and an awful lot of them don't finish their sentences.  Whether these are defects or not probably depends on the reader's tastes.  For me, this is a much better book than DeLillo's White Noise and Libra, which have been widely praised.
Output: POS
Far, Far Superior to Guyton, in my opinion. . Both Guyton texts I received were manufactured defectively, coming unglued along the strap of the spine. Poor job, Saunders. Typical. Vander's Human Physiology is an excellent textbook in the sense that it answers all of the right questions at the right time, while you are studying. Also, more chemistry in Vander's, and in the long run that was important to me, since the atom is the basis of everything. Beautiful illustrations and photographs, and again, when compared to Guyton (where the illustrations were cheap and even shameful ... made by a high school art student?) the professional presentation and pedagogical context of Dr. Eric Widmaier's text was much better than the "Old" standard. Depth of coverage in some areas might be slightly less, but still the learning is there for the taking. I love this textbook, and I am convinced students studying from it will fair as highly on board examinations as those trying to learn from any other standard text in the field of introductory physiology.
Output: POS
Excellent book - Helps design EAI wisely . Reading a design patterns book for me is interesting when I find that nugget of coolness, the rest of the time it is plain boring. However, this book really keeps it interesting for the most part and still drives home the design points particularly around EAI. I think it would make a great book for someone wanting to get into design patterns, which is important for anyone writing integration applications. Also, it is a good all-around reference book for the serious and seasoned Java programmer who needs to know how to design integration. I have GoF, and I refer to this book more often from a practical standpoint
Output: POS
Let me save you $12.21 today. . This has to be my least favorite of my Kiyosaki collection.  I will sum it up for you...think and know the power of Leverage, Passive income is taxed at a lower rate than Earned income, and you gotta buy assets!  There, you can continue shopping
Output: NEG
Only for suckers . Who would read all these reviews, and then actually buy this book? This book is an unfair attempt at pandering to the doddling whims of a major portion of our population...the suckers...of which I am obviously one, because I did read the stupid book! It took me almost a year to get through it - one half paragraph at a time before I would fall asleep each night. If it wasn't for Jordan, I'd have a hard time going to sleep at all. It doesn't even deserve 1 star
Output: NEG
A fast paced look at downtown NYC post 9-11 . I enjoyed this book.  A portrait of an actress trying to search for  her place in the world after witnessing the fall of the twin towers.  Great details for those familiar with the locations and people that make downtown New York its own universe.  Some names are changed to protect the innocent, but even if you have never ventured south of Times Square, I believe you will be able to enjoy these characters and their attempts to "make it".  A quick read (I finished this in one sitting and I am not a fast reader), fast paced, smart and funny.  I am looking forward to reading other books by this author
Output: POS
Forget the *GAME* part . If you wanted to write a game for a PocketPC device this would absolutly be your book.  However, I've been writing utility applications I find myself using this book over other references.  This is the best lightweight WinCE/PocketPC progamming book out there- games or not.  Harbour covers topics in a very easy-to-understand way- from graphics and sound to networking. No matter what the issue I usually go to this book first, then then web, then one of the other WinCE books I own if need be.  If you're new to WinCE (esp. coming from a non Win32 background) this book is exceptionally great
Output: POS
Just Plain Dumb... . ...but that's to be expected since this is, after all, written for the sort of person who is somehow STILL behind the Bush Administration's foreign policy, even after more than four years of it.  Well, this much can be said: At least the author showed some consideration for his true audience by keeping things extremely short and simple.  Simplistic, in fact.  That audience is very easy to recognize--they're the ones, while reading this book-priced magazine article, whose lips are moving
Output: NEG
A piece of hogwash! . "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" - the version I have is from 1955, and includes the original written Act Two, and the Act Two version Tennessee Williams wrote for Broadway.  That said, I found this play to be the worst Williams play.  I read "The Glass Menagerie" and "A Streetcar Named Desire" and I found both to be emotional, engaging, and thought provoking.  This play does not include any of that.  I failed to see the point, and I didn't understand the motivation for the cruelty shown to Margaret (Maggie).  I was very disappointed.  I do not recommend.
Output: NEG
Great with tea and obligatory biscuit . George Orwell, writer of such great classics as &quot;No Winston, two plus two is five&quot; and &quot;All animals are equal&quot; truely outdid himself with this book.  His essay, &quot;Such, and Such Were the Joys,&quot; is worth the price of the book alone.  The descriptions therein, in the vein of 1984, are detailed and vivid to the point where I almost feel as if I remember and understand Orwell's childhood better than my own.  In this essay one also catches a glimpse of what made Orwell the writer he was: a poor, pessimistic, sickly lad whose talent could have created it's own entire cannon if he'd lived longer and enjoyed a more work conducive atmosphere.  For every reader who breathes to read, this book is an oxygen tank. (like the one they have at the bottom of the slopes in Aspen.
Output: POS
The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana . As an Eco fan, I could not wait to read his latest novel. Sadly, I was deeply disappointed by this pompous, self-indulgent, virtually unreadable monster. The cultural and literary references are obscure and incomprehensible unless you are a 70-something Italian librarian.
Output: NEG
... a different kind of book ... . ... This is a very good read ... this book offers much more than the usual approach of `tell the dog to sit, and reward it with a treat' ... the author approaches the problem of bad dog behaviour from the owner's perspective, as well as from the dog's perspective ... a holistic approach that avoids harsh punishment ... The author tells us that in order to correct a dog, oftentimes we must first as owners correct ourselves, our approach ... our whole attitude ... we are encouraged to try and learn the nature of dogs, their instincts and propensities ... the numerous case studies are also extremely useful ... All in all, a very good book, informative, sensible and effective
Output: POS
True to Title . This book is great and truly small batch baking.  A sweet treat delight without tons of left-overs.  Great for the smaller household.
Output: POS
No, don't use this.  Really. . I like Eyewitness Guides a lot, particularly for their glossy graphics combined with comprehensive information, but this really doesn't make the cut.  How is it possible to cram Scotland into 224 pages? Well, it is not.  Besides having very poor coverage on Glasgow and particularly Edinburgh, it also has - well, more poor coverage.  Maps for the bigger islands in Northern Scotland are sorely lacking.  More effort has really got to be invested in making this guide before it is worth your money.  I know DK can make some really great guides, so it saddens me that they are now churning out trash like this
Output: NEG
Not a GOOD detective! . Being a long-time Nancy Drew collector, I really looked forward to reading this book, but I found it to be very disappointing. I've read a lot of the 'tart-noir' wacky-gal mystery series, and this book seems to have all the standards - sexy, ditzy gal who just can't seem to get it all together, hunky boyfriend, obsession with glamorous flashy clothes, the need to keep secrets from the police, and on and on. But Cece Caruso just doesn't come off with any realism to me. She's too over-the-top, and she's not even a good detective. By her own admission, over and over throughout the book, she keeps missing the point, and the clues, and everything else that would lead her to understand what's going on and solving the mystery.    Cece is a biographer of mystery writers and in this book she is writing a book about Carolyn Keene, the author of the Nancy Drew books who was and still is a group of ghostwriters. There is a lot of Nancy Drew collecting info in this story that was, for the most, taken from some speculative fan-made guides, honored by some collectors as The Truth but frowned upon as hypothetical by the rest of the bibliographic world. It also seems the author made up some of her own. Her depiction of Nancy Drew collectors at their annual convention in Palm Springs is really unflattering. Believe me, they are not the strange, nerdy, boring people she makes them out to be. For some reason she found it necessary to compare their boring get-together with a wild swinging convention of golf-fan lesbians at the same hotel.    It's disappointing that the first major piece of fiction published about Nancy Drew collecting and Nancy Drew collectors is such a mediocre book that plods along for the most going this way and that in directions that lead nowhere or that Cece just doesn't 'get'. Her obsessions with vintage clothes, gourmet foods, alcoholic beverages, art, and on-again-off-again boyfriend are all pretty interesting, but she and her gang need more characterization, and need to be a little less fabulous-in-every-way to be believable.    Nancy Drew fans who read this book will probably be disappointed. It's less about Nancy and more about Cece and friends and how 'hot' and 'cool' and too-fabulous-to-be-true they are. Let's hope the next author who takes on the Nancy Drew mystique will give it a more interesting treatment
Output: NEG
why a classic? . I figured if Oprah wanted America to read this book that it couldn't be too bad. I had held out on reading Faulkner, and now I know why. I read alot and love reading but this book, and "As I Lay Dying" makes me question why oh why Faulkner is a classic. My hypothesis is that its so unapproachable therefore people think it must be brilliant. This is a good book for english class when you can sit around and discuss the meanings of it all and read sparknotes together. This is not a book for sitting at home and reading for yourself. If you want to know the story just go read the sparknotes version. The book itself is too hard to figure out and there is little plot. its just a long headache really.
Output: NEG
Biggest Loser Book . The book has been very helpful and informative.  The recipes are quick and easy and the stories are inspirational... I've lost almost thirty pounds by following the regimes explained in this book..
Output: POS
Is This Book Worth Your Time and Effort? . Yes it is!  As I sit here thinking about the experience of reading the book, and it is an experience I assure you,   I can tell you that there are slow periods in this "story" when you hope it will be "over soon".  So, don't expect an "easy read" on this one.  But the main idea is so "universal" and the story in its totality is so well written, that you forgive any "lapses into boredom" of the narrative.  In fact, that's partially what the book is about:  "small town boredom" of an intelligent and thoughtful and self examining lady in the early part of the 20th century. And, further, it's about the "will to overcome" and the  "courage to overcome" this boredom and pettiness of the small town by the main character who is a "downtrodden female" of that era.  I think this could be considered a "woman's lib" book.  As you read you will "cheer on" the main character, Carol, as she faces down the town pettitness and town bullies and even her somewhat staid but basically "good guy" husband.    The main thing that is bugging Carol is this:  She "hasn't found her true life's occupation" and she feels "trapped" in the little podunk town of Gopher Prairie and in her marriage so that she'll never "find her true self". (wow, what a name for a town!o)   This theme is a universal theme because everyone, even men, have the same driving force of finding "who am I" and "where do I really belong."   It's a "universal theme".  Thus this is an "important book" to read if you have ever had similer thoughts and restiveness about "where do I belong" and "what is my true purpose in life."   Just keep reading past the "slow parts" and you'll find that your effort will be rewarded.  Email boland7214@aol.c
Output: POS
Outright Dangerous . Before you even CONSIDER buying this book, take a few seconds to try this instructive little exercise: type "feed onions cats" (without the quotation marks) into your browser's search field, and see what comes up.  ONIONS ARE TOXIC TO CATS.  Cats are obligate carnivores, and many common plant compounds that humans ingest daily are actually poisonous to them.  I wish that there were some way to get this book out of Amazon.com's database.    Many thanks to Cat Rescuer (see below) for being the first to spot this unbelievable incompetence and warn unsuspecting cat owners away from this "cookbook".  This review is largely a repetition of what Cat Rescuer has already said; I just added this one on to knock a star of the book's rating.  Please feel free to do the same
Output: NEG
Not very inspired . After reading about half of this book, I had to stop.  I am not very inspired.  In fact, it had the opposite effect on me.  A lot of the stories I read were too much about the hardships and not enough about the positive outcomes that people had.  Kind of scared me a bit..is this what I have to look forward to as the years progress?  I was more inspired by Montel's book (once I got past the ego part of it)
Output: NEG
Don't read this without reading Matus . Irvin Matus wrote the definitively researched text on Shakespearean authorship  (Shakespeare, In Fact), and the Earl of Oxford fails completely as an alternative Bard. I wouldn't go around quoting Anderson's theories in the presence of anyone familiar with Matus' evidence. You'll get your head handed to you on a platter. Guaranteed. It won't be a fair fight
Output: NEG
A summer's vacation for sure! . Roberts' The Pengin History of Europe contains detailed information of European history.  Beginning with the Stone Age ending in the 20th century.  Europes' influence on government, economics, and religion are covered in detail.  Greek, Roman, Asian, Italian, Germans, Russian, and even American history have been influenced by Europes will and power. If you are a historian or history professor, Roberts' discussions will have you yearning for more.  For us less scholarly students, it is a reader's nightmare
Output: NEG
Somewhat dull and unsatisfying . Somewhat dull and unsatisfying, like some other "literary" works I've read which don't hole my interest, don't resolve problems, swimming endlessly in the inner thoughts of a person with no action or only references to previous actions. I enjoyed his 'They Came Like Swallows' because it was very satisfying, but this is too "literary" for me in the sense that it appears to be more about the writer's writing ability than the actual story.
Output: NEG
What else is new? . Jill Nelson is just another angry, bitter, whiny black woman with an axe to grind.  This book is filled with the same old whining and cliches which have grown really old and tired.  Almost everything she touches on is so predictable whether it's accusing black men who date outside the race as being sellouts (while saying nothing of black women who do the same thing of course), demonizing the Million Man March, whining about the light skin/dark skin thing and basically ranting about how the black woman is a pathetic victim.  If it were a black man writing this foolishness, he'd be written off as an angry old coot in a minute.  Well that's exactly what Jill Nelson is as far as I'm concerned.
Output: NEG
Nice Picture Book . Basically Diamond Baratta Design is a lovely picture book - If you are a decorator or decorating your own home it can be a good source of inspiration or at least a few ideas .If just a fan of decorators it might disappoint as there is little substantive background information about their careers and philosophy. A good mate to this volume would be a book about Dorothy Draper as the Diamond Baretta team follow through on many of her ideas about color and scale.
Output: POS
Bring Open Inventor Like functionality to a Browser . I believe VRML 2.0 is the perfect extension for students who have studied OpenGL and OpenInventor. The &quot;VRML 2.0 Source Book&quot; brings into the light many concepts in Open Inventor which seem difficult to apply.   Interpolators, sensors, collision detection, ...etc.   I applied many of the examples, into OpenInventor file format, rendered the scene graph, and control the scene with an open inventor widget.   Likewise, I was able to recreate the same functionality using a browser.  Understand VRML 2.0 is the next level of computer graphics, and the &quot;VRML 2.0&quot; source book provides the mentorship necessary to get there
Output: POS