Home-run

Written with great style and humour this is one of the most intelligent books on running a small business and the art of customer service. A must read for anyone in the service industry.

     The authors have written this book to address the concerns many have about setting up a business at home. Geared better, in my opinion, towards professional people who have already experienced life in the office work force, this book will allow them to assess themselves to determine if working at home is right for them.      The authors point out that serious personal commitment and preparation is required to succeed with a home business. A number of factors including family members, personal habits, one's personality, and inventory of skills must be taken into account. Ongoing education, keeping informed on the home business issues, and taking an active stance about working at home all contribute to the success of this growing work force.      The authors provide a number of checklists and worksheets for their readers to fill in to help them chart the course for meeting start-up business requirements and to achieve realistic business goals. They also offer readers brief but insightful information about some of the more popular and profitable home businesses they can start. Not stopping here, they also advise their readers to anticipate changes within present occupations and encourage them to adapt to new employment opportunties that will arise on the scene.      The book offers a broad spectrum of information on topics such as advertising, pricing, insurance, licensing, zoning issues, copyrights and patents, food product concerns, product liability, subcontracting, selling, and the role of computer use for the home business. Extensive listings at the back of the book provide resource information about other books, newsletters, and organizations that can be of help to new home businesses!      This is a great book for members of the online community who are considering starting a business at home. It will challenge them to totally think through what is involved. With serious attention to details, personal preparation, and a good computer system just about anyone will be able to setup an online business. Consider the pro's and con's of a home business today. This book will help you do this!

Have you ever wanted to step out of the corporate America shadow and make it on your own? This may be just the book for you. Designed with the entrepreneur in mind, this book delivers sound advice to those wishing to utilize their typing, administrative and organizational skills.

The information within the book is compact, but thorough and guides the reader through all the necessary steps from inception to finish. No stone goes unturned in this quick, but very informative read. From start-up tips to financing options, this resource should prove very handy for the aspiring home-based worker.

Sandra Shirah nails it right on the head with this guide. This book was well thought out, researched and executed with extreme professionalism. Clear, concise and detailed...a sure-fire way to help the transition into self-employment smooth as silk. For all you entrepreneurs, you can't go wrong with this one. My next question - what are YOU waiting on?

Reviewed by T. Belinda Williams
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

If you know anything about Charlie Brown as a baseball player then you know that the title of this Ready-to-Read book, "It's a Home Run, Charlie Brown!" has a bit of irony in it. That is because when the cover proclaims that this book is based on the comic strips of Charles M. Schulz it is talking specifically about the ones where the score is tied 3 to 3 in the bottom of the 9th with two outs and the best hitter for the Peanuts gang up to bat. I have never figured out who that particular batter would be, but what matters is that Charlie Brown is on third base and thinking about stealing home. This would involve running really fast towards home, which would be a "home run," but not a home run. Charlie Brown is thinking that if he stole home and won the game for his team, which has never won a game before, that he would be a hero. But one of the other things we know about the wonderful world of "Peanuts" is that Charlie Brown never gets to be a hero.

It is certainly nice to see this classic "Peanuts" story dressed up for a new generation of readers. Old readers will recognize most of what is in here from various comic strips Schulz did decades ago, which will bring just as a much of a smile as you will find on the faces of youngsters reading these stories for the first time. "It's a Home Run, Charlie Brown!" is adapted by Judy Katshke with art by Nick and Peter LoBianco, who have nicely captured the classic look of the Peanuts gang in color. This is a Level 2 Ready-to-Read book, which means youngsters are learning to read independently with stories that are more-complex. Schulz's classic comic strips are ideal for such an endeavor and there are plenty of other "Peanuts" books in the series for kids to turn to next.

Jack Walker is a kid with a healthy wariness about most things. Blessed with unusual powers of observation, Walker proceeds cautiously, and sometimes clumsily, through childhood, worrying about what might happen next. Often, his fears are justfied. As a kid, he's sent to a hell hole of a summer camp. As a teen, he's violated by a quick-draw enema artist of a school nurse. Jack survives it all, and comes through his often hilarious adventures a little wiser, and less innocent. It all makes for a wonderful read, a coming-of-age tale that unfolds as naturally and unhurriedly as a Saturday afternoon baseball game. Heller, a copy editor at the Washington Post, writes with the sensibility of a novelist and the precision of a veteran journalist. He has a gift for dead-on descriptions and small insights that evoke memories of what growing up was really like.

This text gives adults a trip down memory lane to their Little League days. It proves that many lessons were learned there, even though we just thought we were playing a game. Lowe's insight into his parents, coaches and teammates perceptions of the Little League experience provides a unique appreciation for the game of baseball and childhood experiences. Many of the tidbits mentioned here will ring true for baseball fans as well as for lovers of life, kids and memories of smelly socks and dirty uniforms

A real valentine to the '98 baseball season, featuring the heroic expoits of McGwire and Sosa. Since it's an "official Major League Baseball" book, all controversy is avoided (such as the "andro" incident). But, overall, the tone is breezy and expert, the layouts are MTVish and contemporary (with big photos and large type. It's a great gift for the baseball fan in your family.

I was in the Merhant Marine in 1969. Even though this book was set in the 30's,the correlations to life in the merchant fleet were amazing. I suppose anyone who has sailed has had a similar experience but the parallels gave me an erie sense of Deja Vu. I highly recommend this book for anyone who has gone to sea,especially at the age of 18. Thank you Mr.Cooley,where ever you are, for this galvanizing novel !Jack C. Noble,M.D.

This book reflected on Sammy's life as a child and a big leaguer. This book also talks about how he was brought up in life, as a child and as a miner in baseball and when he first was in the majors. Sammy didn't always have a great batting average but he steped up to the plate one day and started hitting moon balls. Then once he started hitting moon balls pitchers where starting to pay a lot more attention to Sammy and the fans started coming and looking at Sammy as the greatest player of all time.

This book gives you a realistic look at what it is like to own a home-based business. I read this book along with another book from the Self-Counsel Press business series: "S&R a Profitable Business Using Your Computer." I found "S&R a Profitable Home-Based Business" was more current than the other book but they both had valuable information to offer.

"Home-Based Business" emphasizes the three legs of business: marketing, administration, and finance. This book has great worksheets to use, such as, the one about finding your target customer. Managing your time is an important chapter to read for anyone considering working at home--if you have a hectic household like I do, you will appreciate the information offered in this chapter! And even if you don't have a hectic household that you are trying to run a business out of, this book will help you get your home-based business started.