General-Average

Thrival!: How To Have An Above Average Day Every Day is an inspiring self-help book by international speaker and consultant Paul O. Radde. Thrival! nurtures the psyche of the reader with guidelines to opening oneself to the world, accepting reality, nurturing oneself, creating and maintaining a positive attitude, and much, much more. Thrival! is highly recommended as an outgoing, "user friendly" guide packed from cover to cover with solid self-help advice for anyone seeking life's satisfactions and fulfillments regardless of their past or current circumstances.

Paul Radde is an international keynote speaker, executive coach, and organizational consultant with a PhD in psychology and community counseling. His career includes 25 years as a practicing psychologist. Over a lifetime, Radde has studied human behavior, observing that most people simply survive, not thrive. They don't really relish life at its fullest. His practice-and this book-are a sort of a mission to help people really maximize their lives.

Radde's concern is that "Very few people seem to be living in a thriving space, or letting on that they are, if indeed they are. One percent currently derive the richest experience of, and full enjoyment from, their lives." The balance are Committed Seekers (35%), Going About Their Daily Lives (40%), or Think Thriving is a Forbidden Fruit (24%). So, the focus of his book "is on this exceptional state of well-being called thriving . . . an experience of lightness, expansiveness, and exceptional well-being: the precise exceptional moments of well-being that many people say make life worth living."

The book is organized into three parts: Defining Thriving and Thrival, Getting Started on Your Path to Thriving, and Rules & Guidelines to Access Thriving. The twenty chapters range from Life Can Be Better to Entering the Thrival Era, Opening Yourself Up, Five Things You Can Control, and Meet Your Essential Need for Balance. The third section of the book includes three rules and seven guidelines for thriving and a guide to getting it all together. A recommended reading list expands the reader's opportunity to learn.

This book is a first-person sharing and caring that opens into a sort of conversation, a discussion about the topic. Readers will nod, contemplate, and perhaps make adjustments in their lives to reach closer to Radde's thrival state. For those who would like a sort of personal experience with an introspective psychologist and close observer of life, this book will be very enjoyable. For those who don't desire to really get in touch with their inner selves, this is not the time for you to read this book.

I thought I was already the expert on romance. But this book taught me a lot that I didn't already know. Wonderful tips for keeping the woman you love happy and content. Just simple stuff. Nothing terribly fancy or expensive. Just little things that any guy could easily do. And the woman we love deserve this special treatment. A little "Cary Grantish," and a tad bit traditional. But absolutely worth it for the guy who needs some helpful hints on the Romance front. Would make a great Valentine's Day gift.

Author, Worldwide Multilingual Phrase Book

If you have ever been curious to know what is the mathematics behind the fancy formulas describing the average-case behavior of algorithms -- this book is for you. An excellent addition to the classic "The Art of Computer Programming" by D.Knuth, "Introduction to Analysis of Algorithms" by R.Sedgewick and P.Flajolet, and "Analysis of Algorithms" by M.Hofri, this book walks reader through a beautiful, and at the same time very diverse (not to say complex) world of mathematic tools and techniques needed to obtain precise answers to questions like "what is the average depth of a digital tree built over $n$ strings?", or "what is the average number of comparisons performed by a Knuth-Morris-Pratt algorithm when it searches for a given pattern of length $m$ in a random text of length $n$?".

Being well organized, the book present these (sometimes very sophisticated) techniques in a simple step-by-step fashion, starting with brief reviews of several known (and necessary for future presentation) results from probability, complex analysis/special functions, and information theory. The presentation of the numerous specific techniques is split in two parts: explaining probabilistic and analytic approaches to the analysis of algorithms correspondingly. Probabilistic techniques (inequalities of moments, limit theorems, large deviations, etc.) are very useful in the analysis of complex random structures, as they often yield simple estimates of their asymptotic behavior, where more accurate techniques fail or become prohibitively laborious. Analytic techniques (generating functions, singularity analysis, saddle point techniques, Mellin transform, analytic poissonization and depoissonization) on the other hand, represent a toolbox for exact modelling of the characteristics of the algorithms, yielding estimates of unparalleled precision.

As indicated by its title, this book is mostly devoted to the analysis of a special class of combinatorial algorithms -- ones that operate with sequences of symbols, or sequences. For example, it includes a detailed analysis of various algorithms for searching and sorting alphanumeric sequences based on digital trees (tries, digital search tries, Patricia-tries, etc.), redundancy expressions for popular Lempel-Ziv data compression schemes, average complexity estimates for text pattern-matching algorithms (such as Knuth-Morris-Pratt scheme), and so on.

Following the famous tradition of "The Art of Computer Programming", the author wraps many (in some case very difficult to derive) results in the form of exercises, so that active readers can have fun solving them. As a special bonus, some of these "exercises" represent currently open research problems.

Overall, this is a very good graduate-level textbook and a valuable (and almost self-contained) source of information for everyone interested in the analysis of algorithms.

John Mason has really outdone himself this time. His books just keep getting better and better. I definitely recommend this book as well as the others he has written. I have them all and am anticipating the arrival every new one in the future!

I found this book to be encouraging and challenges you to look beyond being a "regular guy." Examine your God given talents and put them to work to become extraordinary.

Well-written, concise, and most importantly, rings with the Spirit of Truth. Questions and doubts that have bugged me for years--and kept me immobilized--have been answered by John Mason's teaching of Scripture. Simply a great book. Holy Spirit inspired. I can't believe I haven't come across this man before. God bless him.

Most books of this caliber are fat little paperbacks with tiny print; this book was easily readable in a few hours of one day, and it gave me the most modivation ever. John Mason gives biblical examples, short personal examples, strong insparation, and invaluable advice for each nugget - each no longer than a page (front and back). After reading my friend's copy, I ordered my own and highlighted all the parts that gave special sparks in my soul. It's short, to the point, wonderfully put together, and makes you see many things inside yourself in many different lights. I recommend this for anyone who wants to brighten their lives and get into positive thinking =D

Portraying Marie Antoinette as an "average woman," as the title of Zweig's work provocatively suggests, is a debatable proposition. On the one hand, as Zweig shows throughout this study, Marie Antoinette was no prodigy: she was flawed, egotistic, intellectually limited and ... indiscreet. Her greatest passions were for clothes, vast flowery gardens, [fancy] jewelry and good looking Swedish men; she was a compulsive spendthrift; her political self-awareness was zero and her policy meddling was uniformly disastrous. Her indiscipline at court was flagrantly exploited by her political enemies - notably her jealous and ambitious brothers-in-law Louis and Charles (the later Bourbon Restoration kings) - who portrayed her as a modern day Jezebel. In all of these respects, her life was far from "average". But the "ordinariness" within, argues Zweig, left her ill-equipped to deal with the challenges of an extraordinary life.

Once the Revolution happens, however, Zweig's "averageness" argument makes a dog-leg turn. Under the extreme pressures of her imprisonment, her husband's guillotining, her separation from her beloved children and her state trial for treason, she rose above the "average," drawing on her Habsburg dignity and treating her Committee inquisitors with the contempt they deserved. In death, if not in life, she proved herself to be a true daughter of Maria Theresa. Even ordinary people can be martyrs, Zweig seems to be saying.

Zweig is a natural storyteller, and the fact that he, like Marie Antoinette, was Viennese gives him insights into her sensibilities and predilections. Another Viennese voice can be heard in this narrative: the psychological narrative owes much to Dr. Freud - particularly when we come to her early womanhood. Can it be, as Zweig dares to suggest, that Louis XVI's early impotence, and young Marie Antoinette's consequent frustration, fueled her shallow materialism? Was her scandalously profligate lifestyle an outlet for ... frustration? Did one man's "shortcomings" thus cause the revolution? And what of the bizarre Strasbourg ceremony whereby the newlywed Marie Antoinette was forced to [unclothe] at the frontier, lest the new Dauphine of France cross the border wearing foreign clothes? Surely an emotionally scarring experience? Her tale is a gift for the Freudian, and Zweig milks it for all it's worth.

Marie Antoinette... many things go through one's mind when thinking of that name. Many say she was cruel, pampered, and spoiled, and that she was the main couse of the French Revolution, yet, she was just a woman, a woman born a princess in the Austrian court, married to a French boy whom she had never met by the age of 15, crowned by 19, and beheaded by 35.

Life went by so fast by Marie Antoinette!!, and never gave her a chance to choose what she wanted out of it.

Stefan Zweig is a marvelous writer, and manages to gives us an intimate portrait of at times very hated, at others very loved and admired woman, an ordinary person who only wished for a normal life with her family, a little place of her own, where she didn't have to adjust and adapt to the many different rules impossed on her.

He describes the life of the French court as only he could, and you feel like you are part of the story, hearing about Versailles, Louvre, the revolution and the people involved, which makes this an excellent book to learn about history, about life in the French court, and about France's last great queen.

So, was she cruel, spoiled, and ignorant? read and decide for yourself....

Zweig's biography is so fascinating, I can't believe it's been allowed to go out of print. He does a remarkable job of delineating a light-headed, pleasureseeking woman who was thrust into circumstances she couldn't have anticipated or coped with. Marie Antoinette becomes a real woman, not a figurehead or a scapegoat. No one could ask for anything less.

People often wonder what it would be like to live life over again - what they might change if they knew what they know now. I used to think that maybe I could have been more of an athlete and maybe a football player...but this book made me happy to be where I am, which is in the stands, where I belong. This book provides you a fabulous firsthand look at the life of a football player from inside the locker room and on the field. It's sometimes humorous, sometimes serious, but very entertaining the whole way through.

Even though it's the Arena League and not the NFL, it's no less of an accomplishment to make it to this level of competition. This really hits home when Jeff describes one player who quit the Firebirds training camp saying that he had no idea that guys in this league were as good as they were.

The opportunity for a writer to join a team in this manner to get this perspective and this story may never happen again, so if you ever thought you'd like another shot at life to become one of those guys you see on television, read this book...then join me in the stands.

Playing professional football is the dream of almost every boy in America, but as they play Pop Warner, high school, and in some cases, college football, most realize that making it big is just an illusion.

Jeff Foley never played Pop Warner, high school or college ball, but the 30-year-old participatory journalist still lived out his little-boy dream. Foley played professional football for the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League in 1999 and 2000, and wrote a detailed book that takes readers inside the life of an arena football player, and inside their dreams. "War on the Floor" is Foley's written documentary, an exhilarating masterpiece in which he struggles with the day-to-day complications of being an undersized, out-of-shape professional athlete.

It all came about while Foley was reading a George Plimpton book - "Open Net." Plimpton, a writer-turned-Boston-Bruins-goalie, documented what life was like as a professional hockey player. Foley later came across an advertisement in a local paper, an invitation to a Firebirds' free-agent tryout. That's when an idea popped into Foley's head - he wanted to play for the Firebirds and write about the experience.

"I ran it by my editor, and they don't usually run first-person type of things, so I didn't think they'd go for it, but they did," Foley said. "And they let me do it."

Foley played his first game as an offensive specialist/writer against the Milwaukee Mustangs in 1999 with no practices under his belt. He only knew one play; he was a stranger to his teammates; and the experience would only be documented for a couple articles.

In that game, Foley participated in just one play. He didn't catch the ball, and after the game, he was back to being just a writer. But that status didn't last long.

During the off-season, Foley met with Firebirds, who were now the defending ArenaBowl champions, and discussed writing a book for which he would endure all of the 2000 training camp and preseason games. The Firebirds gave their blessing, but warned Foley he would have it no better than the next man. Being a writer would earn him no special privileges.

"War on the Floor" goes inside Foley's head, leading readers on a step-by-step tour of a professional training camp. The two-a-day practices are documented to perfection, even letting readers experience what it's like to go up against a 6-foot-5, 300-pound lineman.

Foley also breaks down how players become closer with each passing day.

"The guys (from the team) that I'm friends with, I'm better friends with than people I've known my whole life," Foley said. "Going through something that physically challenging with 30 guys, you can't help but bond."

"War on the Floor" also looks closely at numerous players, talking about everything from their backgrounds and religions to their musical preferences. Often, Foley tells where the players started their careers, and how they hope to make it to the NFL. Or, in some cases, back to the NFL.

As Foley became closer to the Firebirds, he also became closer to touching the ball in a game. During his first contest in 2000, he participated in just one play again, and with family and friends chanting his name, and other fans chanting "Rudy," he was penalized for being offsides, and was left wondering if he'd ever touch the ball in a game.

But during the next week of practice, Foley got better at catching the ball, giving his quarterbacks confidence, and gaining respect from other players. He gained enough respect, in fact, that quarterbacks Mike Pawlawski and Jeff Loots promised to get him the ball.

After the first play of his last game, though - which again did not result in a reception - Foley thought it was over. Late in the fourth quarter, however, coach Dailey sent Foley back in. With backup Raymond Philyaw at quarterback, though, Foley figured he'd just be going through the motions again. He was wrong.

Dailey called for a play that didn't involve Foley, but Philyaw threw him the ball anyhow. The 5-foot-6 Foley caught it, dove to the ground, and was touched for a loss of two yards, but the Firebirds celebrated that night like Jeff Foley was the league MVP.

Reading this book, one can't help but feel like a part of the whole experience. Foley does an outstanding job letting readers know what goes on behind the scenes in the Arena Football League, and inside one of America's dreams.

A book every true football fan should read. Author Jeff Foley is allowed to spend the preseason as a member of the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League, not as a reporter hiding in the shadows but as a true professional football player. That's the rule, he is to be treated just as any other player on the team. As a rookie he receives his share of hazing but also earns the respect and support of his team mates because Jeff proves his courage, heart and his unwillingness to quit. From pregame preparation talks to post game meetings, Jeff Foley shows that there really is a special man behind each and every face mask. The reader learns that even though the players come from different backgrounds and may even be compeating for the same roster spot, a team is a unique type of family. Locker room antics, childhood memories, daily practice sessions and the games are interlaced into a "can't put it down" story.

Being a new reader of John Bolin's work, I was amazed to see how this book paralled my life and my current experiences. I have shared this incredible piece with members of my family and i know it will make a fantastic Christmas gift for anyone who wants to see and live a transformed, vibrant life! Take heed - and read this book if you want passion and renewal in your daily walk! This is nothing short of contagious!

Even though I am entering the "senior" years, I felt the challenge of John Bolin's words. We are never too old to stop learning, even if the teacher is the same age as my oldest son.

The life-application stories make the words of this book come to life. The author has lived (and is still living) the challenges that he sets forth in aspiring to the dream of the epic life. From experience I can attest to the truth of these words. When we stop reaching for our dreams, we stop living.

If you need some motivation to get you going, you will find it in this book. John even challenges the reader by including a section at the end of each chapter that gives practical suggestions for taking action.

This is not a book to read once and put on the shelf. I plan to give away copies to loved ones to help encourage them to live a "life unlimited."

No doubt an incredible work authored by a leader whose ideas for multifaceted success and self-discovery are pure genius and largely undiscovered in the purity of their content...Written to capture the attention of the businessperson and homemaker alike...it would be a sorely missed opportunity to not read it..I will recommend this book to my business parters and friends wherever I go...raw genius.

I found the book to be very good. It was a plain English view of a black man in poetry. I think the author has a unique way of letting us see what he sees and feel what he feels without preaching at us.

It is funny, insightful and even stirring from an inspirational point of view. I would suggest this book to others.

I FOUND THE BOOK TO BE A REFRESHING LOOK AT A BLACK MANS VIEWS ON LOVE AND FAMILY. IT IS VERY EASY TO READ AND THOUGHT PROVOKING. THIS BOOK IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

I found so much in this book that was relevant. I loved the spiritual references and the way the author shared his innermost feelings. There were some points of view in the book that I disagreed with but it did give me something to think about. Definitely a good coffee table book. Gave one to my dad for father's day and he really liked it.

This is one of the easiest to read and understadn investment books I've ever found. Teaching children the value of long-term investment and money is a wonderful gift to give anyone. Adults will find the clear explanations, sound advice, and tips on getting started no matter how much you have to be valuable as well.

This and Jason Kelly's "Neatest Little Guide..." series are my favorite introductory investment books.

This is the type of book I wish I had when I first became interested in investing. It is so elementary that I can actually understand what the stock market is all about, and how I personally can benefit from getting myself educated about investing. What's more my teenage daughter is learning about investing and investment clubs and students from her class are getting together weekly to talk about the stock market, using this book as a guide. This is a wonderful book to introduce kids and teenagers to investing.

I found this book to be extremely helpful in decoding a very intimidating topic. The forum in which the book was layed out made for an easy and exciting read. I finally feel comfortable and adept to invest, in addition to having various resources for doing research. I highly recommend this book and have bought several copies for friends and family with and without children.