Ishan's bookshelf: all en-US Wed, 03 Apr 2024 01:26:34 -0700 60 Ishan's bookshelf: all 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg <![CDATA[Angels & Demons (Robert Langdon, #1)]]> 970383 749 Dan Brown 037543318X Ishan 4 depends 3.88 2000 Angels & Demons (Robert Langdon, #1)
author: Dan Brown
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at: 2005/10/01
date added: 2024/04/03
shelves: depends
review:
Depends on whether you have read DaVinci code or not. I like this story better then DC.
]]> Life of Pi 170453
The ship sinks. Pi finds himself alone in a lifeboat, his only companions a hyena, an orangutan, a wounded zebra, and Richard Parker, a 450-pound Bengal tiger. Soon the tiger has dispatched all but Pi, whose fear, knowledge, and cunning allow him to coexist with Richard Parker for 227 days while lost at sea.]]> 326 Yann Martel 0156027321 Ishan 1 neveragain 3.88 2001 Life of Pi
author: Yann Martel
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2001
rating: 1
read at: 2004/02/01
date added: 2015/06/06
shelves: neveragain
review:
Heard a lot of hype around the book. The first half the story was good, got dull the second half.
]]> The Hobbit 42672 Alternate cover editions for this edition can be found here and here.

Smaug certainly looked fast asleep, when Bilbo peeped once more from the entrance. He was just about to step out on to the floor when he caught a sudden thin ray of red from under the drooping lid of Smaug's left eye. He was only pretending to be asleep! He was watching the tunnel entrance...

Whisked away from his comfortable, unambitious life in his hobbit-hole in Bag End by Gandalf the wizard and a company of dwarves, Bilbo Baggins finds himself caught up in a plot to raid the treasure hoard of Smaug the Magnificent, a large and very dangerous dragon.]]> 353 J.R.R. Tolkien Ishan 3 depends 4.28 1937 The Hobbit
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.28
book published: 1937
rating: 3
read at: 2004/05/01
date added: 2015/02/26
shelves: depends
review:
not LoR but a good story that stands on it's own.
]]> <![CDATA[The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion, Volume 1]]> 143313
(This edition was originaly listed as "the Arabic illustrated edition for the four parts of the book, published by the
General Egyptian Book Organization. However, the ISBN and cover image are for the Wordsworth Reference edition in English and the record has been accordingly updated.)]]> 408 James George Frazer 1404304789 Ishan 0 to-read 3.97 1890 The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion, Volume 1
author: James George Frazer
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.97
book published: 1890
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2014/10/16
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Da Vinci Code (Robert Langdon, #2)]]> 85266 This item does not meet our catalog guidelines and can no longer be rated or reviewed.
Please add this edition to your shelf instead:
The da Vinci Code]]> 454 Dan Brown Ishan 2 depends 3.81 2003 The Da Vinci Code (Robert Langdon, #2)
author: Dan Brown
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.81
book published: 2003
rating: 2
read at: 2005/08/01
date added: 2014/06/05
shelves: depends
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies]]> 1839 The Rise of the West has become the central problem in the study of global history. In Guns, Germs, and Steel Jared Diamond presents the biologist's answer: geography, demography, and ecological happenstance. Diamond evenhandedly reviews human history on every continent since the Ice Age at a rate that emphasizes only the broadest movements of peoples and ideas. Yet his survey is binocular: one eye has the rather distant vision of the evolutionary biologist, while the other eye--and his heart--belongs to the people of New Guinea, where he has done field work for more than 30 years.]]> 518 Jared Diamond 0393061310 Ishan 3 depends 4.04 1997 Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
author: Jared Diamond
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1997
rating: 3
read at: 2003/05/01
date added: 2014/06/04
shelves: depends
review:
Interesting account of history in relation to external factors and technology.
]]> ShĹŤgun (Asian Saga, #1) 402093
Powerful and engrossing, capturing both the rich pageantry and stark realities of life in feudal Japan, ShĹŤgun is a critically acclaimed powerhouse of a book. Heart-stopping, edge-of-your-seat action melds seamlessly with intricate historical detail and raw human emotion. Endlessly compelling, this sweeping saga captivated the world to become not only one of the best-selling novels of all time but also one of the highest-rated television miniseries, as well as inspiring a nationwide surge of interest in the culture of Japan. Shakespearean in both scope and depth, ShĹŤgun is, as the New York Times put it, "...not only something you read--you live it." Provocative, absorbing, and endlessly fascinating, there is only one: ShĹŤgun.]]> 1152 James Clavell Ishan 0 to-read 4.38 1975 ShĹŤgun (Asian Saga, #1)
author: James Clavell
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.38
book published: 1975
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2012/12/13
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Cutting for Stone 3591262
Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers born of a secret union between a beautiful Indian nun and a brash British surgeon at a mission hospital in Addis Ababa. Orphaned by their mother’s death in childbirth and their father’s disappearance, bound together by a preternatural connection and a shared fascination with medicine, the twins come of age as Ethiopia hovers on the brink of revolution. Yet it will be love, not politics—their passion for the same woman—that will tear them apart and force Marion, fresh out of medical school, to flee his homeland. He makes his way to America, finding refuge in his work as an intern at an underfunded, overcrowded New York City hospital. When the past catches up to him—nearly destroying him—Marion must entrust his life to the two men he thought he trusted least in the world: the surgeon father who abandoned him and the brother who betrayed him.

An unforgettable journey into one man’s remarkable life, and an epic story about the power, intimacy, and curious beauty of the work of healing others.
(front flap)]]> 560 Abraham Verghese 0375414495 Ishan 4 worththetime 4.32 2009 Cutting for Stone
author: Abraham Verghese
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.32
book published: 2009
rating: 4
read at: 2012/04/17
date added: 2012/12/12
shelves: worththetime
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Sea of Poppies (Ibis Trilogy, #1)]]> 1330324 513 Amitav Ghosh 071956896X Ishan 0 currently-reading 3.97 2008 Sea of Poppies (Ibis Trilogy, #1)
author: Amitav Ghosh
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.97
book published: 2008
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2012/12/12
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Upside-Down Zen: Finding the Marvelous in the Ordinary]]> 238861 Upside-Down Zen invites readers to explore the vivid spirit of Zen Buddhism in fresh ways. Recalling, in another vein, the warm, lyrical style of Lin Jensen’s Bad Dog!, author Susan Murphy offers a multifaceted take on the spiritual, grounded in the everyday. She uses her skills as storyteller, filmmaker, and poet to uncover the connections between Zen and Western cinema, as well as between Zen and traditions as diverse as Australian aboriginal beliefs and Jewish folktales. In the process, she finds spirituality where it has always belonged � wherever life is happening. Murphy helps readers make sense of Zen koans, the often oversimplified and misunderstood teaching stories of the tradition, and highlights their wisdom for any reader on the spiritual path. A strong new voice in Western Buddhism, Murphy speaks for the many “unrecorded� women of Zen while bringing a lively, literate approach to a sometimes daunting genre.]]> 288 Susan Murphy 086171279X Ishan 0 to-read 4.24 2006 Upside-Down Zen: Finding the Marvelous in the Ordinary
author: Susan Murphy
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.24
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2012/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy]]> 356824 India After Gandhi is a breathtaking chronicle of the brutal conflicts that have rocked a giant nation and the extraordinary factors that have held it together. An intricately researched and elegantly written epic history peopled with larger-than-life characters, it is the work of a major scholar at the peak of his abilities...]]> 912 Ramachandra Guha 0060198818 Ishan 0 to-read 4.38 2007 India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy
author: Ramachandra Guha
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.38
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2012/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> A Passage to India 45195 A Passage to India compellingly depicts the fate of individuals caught between the great political and cultural conflicts of the modern world.

In his introduction, Pankaj Mishra outlines Forster's complex engagement with Indian society and culture. This edition reproduces the Abinger text and notes, and also includes four of Forster's essays on India, a chronology and further reading.]]> 376 E.M. Forster 014144116X Ishan 0 to-read 3.69 1924 A Passage to India
author: E.M. Forster
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.69
book published: 1924
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2012/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Suitable Boy (A Bridge of Leaves, #1)]]> 50365 A Suitable Boy takes us into the richly imagined world of four large extended families and spins a compulsively readable tale of their lives and loves. A sweeping panoramic portrait of a complex, multiethnic society in flux, A Suitable Boy remains the story of ordinary people caught up in a web of love and ambition, humor and sadness, prejudice and reconciliation, the most delicate social etiquette and the most appalling violence.]]> 1474 Vikram Seth 0060786523 Ishan 0 to-read 4.11 1993 A Suitable Boy (A Bridge of Leaves, #1)
author: Vikram Seth
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.11
book published: 1993
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2012/05/15
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Reluctant Fundamentalist 88815
Changez is living an immigrant's dream of America. At the top of his class at Princeton, he is snapped up by an elite valuation firm. He thrives on the energy of New York, and his budding romance with elegant, beautiful Erica promises entry into Manhattan society at the same exalted level once occupied by his own family back in Lahore.

But in the wake of September 11, Changez finds his position in his adopted city suddenly overturned, and his relationship with Erica shifting. And Changez's own identity is in seismic shift as well, unearthing allegiances more fundamental than money, power, and maybe even love.

"Extreme times call for extreme reactions, extreme writing. Hamid has done something extraordinary with this novel." —Washington Post

"One of those achingly assured novels that makes you happy to be a reader." —Junot Diaz

"Brief, charming, and quietly furious . . . a resounding success." —Village Voice

A Washington Post and San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year
A New York Times Notable Book]]> 184 Mohsin Hamid 0151013047 Ishan 3 3.69 2007 The Reluctant Fundamentalist
author: Mohsin Hamid
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2011/06/16
shelves:
review:

]]> The Glass Palace 77103 The Glass Palace tells the story of Rajkumar, a poor boy lifted on the tides of political and social chaos, who goes on to create an empire in the Burmese teak forest. When soldiers force the royal family out of the Glass Palace and into exile, Rajkumar befriends Dolly, a young woman in the court of the Burmese Queen, whose love will shape his life. He cannot forget her, and years later, as a rich man, he goes in search of her. The struggles that have made Burma, India, and Malaya the places they are today are illuminated in this wonderful novel by the writer Chitra Divakaruni callsĚý“a master storyteller.”]]> 486 Amitav Ghosh 0375758771 Ishan 4 3.99 2000 The Glass Palace
author: Amitav Ghosh
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2011/06/16
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Celestine Prophecy: A Pocket Guide to the Nine Insights]]> 13104 68 James Redfield 0446912069 Ishan 0 to-read 3.90 1993 The Celestine Prophecy: A Pocket Guide to the Nine Insights
author: James Redfield
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.90
book published: 1993
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2011/03/09
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The Alchemist 412765 Jonathan Livingston Seagull, The Alchemist presents a simple fable, based on simple truths and places it in a highly unique situation. And though we may sniff a bestselling formula, it is certainly not a new one: even the ancient tribal storytellers knew that this is the most successful method of entertaining an audience while slipping in a lesson or two. Brazilian storyteller Paulo Coehlo introduces Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who one night dreams of a distant treasure in the Egyptian pyramids. And so he's off: leaving Spain to literally follow his dream.

Along the way he meets many spiritual messengers, who come in unassuming forms such as a camel driver and a well-read Englishman. In one of the Englishman's books, Santiago first learns about the alchemists--men who believed that if a metal were heated for many years, it would free itself of all its individual properties, and what was left would be the "Soul of the World." Of course he does eventually meet an alchemist, and the ensuing student-teacher relationship clarifies much of the boy's misguided agenda, while also emboldening him to stay true to his dreams. "My heart is afraid that it will have to suffer," the boy confides to the alchemist one night as they look up at a moonless night.

"Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself," the alchemist replies. "And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second's encounter with God and with eternity." --Gail Hudson

]]> 192 Paulo Coelho 0062502174 Ishan 4 worththetime 3.79 1988 The Alchemist
author: Paulo Coelho
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1988
rating: 4
read at: 2005/02/01
date added: 2010/03/24
shelves: worththetime
review:
I like the story and the various trials he must pass through. Only if life could be this adventurous. And I like where he ends up at the end. So true in life...
]]> <![CDATA[A Short History of Nearly Everything]]> 386196 515 Bill Bryson 0385408188 Ishan 4 worththetime 4.17 2003 A Short History of Nearly Everything
author: Bill Bryson
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2007/09/01
date added: 2009/12/17
shelves: worththetime
review:
An interesting blend of science and history. Classes should be taught this way, I would have paid more attention and retained this information. An amazing thread through the book is how scientists from different fields all had a hand in the progress of other sciences.
]]> <![CDATA[The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography]]> 91563 Poitier was uncompromising as he pursued a personal and public life that would honor his upbringing and the invaluable legacy of his parents. Committed to the notion that what one does for a living articulates who one is, Poitier played only forceful and affecting characters who said something positive, useful, and lasting about the human condition.

Here, finally, is Poitier's own introspective look at what has informed his performances and his life. Poitier explores the nature of sacrifice and commitment, pride and humility, rage and forgiveness, and paying the price for artistic integrity. What emerges is a picture of a man seeking truth, passion, and balance in the face of limits his own and the world's. A triumph of the spirit, The Measure of a Man captures the essential Poitier.

Author Biography: Sidney Poitier was the first and remains the only African American actor to win the Academy Award for Best Actor for his outstanding performance in Lilies of the Field in 1963, but he believes that will soon change, given the excellence of African-American talent in the industry today. He has starred in over forty films, directed nine, and written four. His landmark films include TheDefiant Ones, A Patch of Blue, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, and To Sir, With Love. Among his many accolades, he has recently been selected as the thirty-sixth recipient of the Screen Actors Guild's highest honor, the Life Achievement Award for an outstanding career and humanitarian accomplishment.

]]> 243 Sidney Poitier 0061357901 Ishan 4 worththetime 3.74 2000 The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography
author: Sidney Poitier
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at: 2007/07/01
date added: 2009/12/17
shelves: worththetime
review:
Who knew the story of Sidney Portier is a person you can relate to. You the more you meet people and get to know them the more you realize we all have the same questions. The path we travel to find those answers are the intersting parts and Sidney's stories and conclusions are good to read and remember. We have heard them before...just not the way he tells it. =)
]]> <![CDATA[Bargaining for Advantage : Negotiation Strategies for Reasonable People]]> 23802 304 G. Richard Shell 0140281916 Ishan 4 worththetime 3.82 1999 Bargaining for Advantage : Negotiation Strategies for Reasonable People
author: G. Richard Shell
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.82
book published: 1999
rating: 4
read at: 2006/02/01
date added: 2009/12/17
shelves: worththetime
review:
Good to read for anybody interested in making most of their money they have earned. If you are interested in negotiations improving your negotiation skills this is a great read; skip if you are indifferent to the price you pay.
]]> <![CDATA[The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With The Sea (Vintage East)]]> 578364 181 Yukio Mishima 0099492695 Ishan 3 depends 3.72 1963 The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With The Sea (Vintage East)
author: Yukio Mishima
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.72
book published: 1963
rating: 3
read at: 2007/03/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: depends
review:
Interesting view on Japanese culture...
]]> The Art of War 10534 170 Sun Tzu Ishan 2 depends 3.98 -400 The Art of War
author: Sun Tzu
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.98
book published: -400
rating: 2
read at: 2007/04/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: depends
review:
Interesting book to read if you take into context when the actual text was written down. A small glimpse of China's rich history not recognized by the West.
]]> Gandhi: An Autobiography 112803
In a new foreword, noted peace expert and teacher Sissela Bok urges us to adopt Gandhi's "attitude of experimenting, of testing what will and will not bear close scrutiny, what can and cannot be adapted to new circumstances," in order to bring about change in our own lives and communities.

All royalties earned on this book are paid to the Navajivan Trust, founded by Gandhi, for use in carrying on his work.]]> 528 Mahatma Gandhi Ishan 4 worththetime 4.13 1927 Gandhi: An Autobiography
author: Mahatma Gandhi
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1927
rating: 4
read at: 2007/12/30
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
I think most people have this image of what Gandhi's contribution to the India to the world is, including myself, however as you read the book there is more to his story that you find difficult to swallow or accept. The sacrifices and decisions he made along the way put in context the type of man he was, and it's probably someone you could not imagine. In a good way...great way. There are many smaller lessons from his life that we all can benefit from.
]]> Rich Dad, Poor Dad 69571 195 Robert T. Kiyosaki 0751532711 Ishan 3 worththetime 4.10 1997 Rich Dad, Poor Dad
author: Robert T. Kiyosaki
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.10
book published: 1997
rating: 3
read at: 2002/02/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
A long time ago...good for college and teenage kids to read. Anybody that is just trying to make ends meat.
]]> <![CDATA[The Unbearable Lightness of Being]]> 9720 320 Milan Kundera Ishan 4 worththetime hard to explain... 3.99 1984 The Unbearable Lightness of Being
author: Milan Kundera
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1984
rating: 4
read at: 2005/08/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
hard to explain...
]]> Memoirs of a Geisha 929
In "Memoirs of a Geisha," we enter a world where appearances are paramount; where a girl's virginity is auctioned to the highest bidder; where women are trained to beguile the most powerful men; and where love is scorned as illusion. It is a unique and triumphant work of fiction - at once romantic, erotic, suspenseful - and completely unforgettable.]]> 503 Arthur Golden 1400096898 Ishan 4 worththetime 4.31 1997 Memoirs of a Geisha
author: Arthur Golden
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.31
book published: 1997
rating: 4
read at: 2004/04/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
I am a little biased about the book because I lived in Japan and walked the book in Kyoto. That was fun. I think the book is a great story of Japan back pre-WW and views of the time. Any story about the past is tainted but you get a person's view that lived it. well sorta...
]]> Jonathan Livingston Seagull 71728
Jonathan Livingston Seagull is no ordinary bird. He believes it is every gull's right to fly, to reach the ultimate freedom of challenge and discovery, finding his greatest reward in teaching younger gulls the joy of flight and the power of dreams. The special 20th anniversary release of this spiritual classic!]]> 112 Richard Bach 0743278909 Ishan 3 worththetime 3.87 1970 Jonathan Livingston Seagull
author: Richard Bach
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1970
rating: 3
read at: 2004/03/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
nice short story about personal triumph
]]> <![CDATA[Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable]]> 160834 144 Seth Godin 014101640X Ishan 3 worththetime 3.81 Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable
author: Seth Godin
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.81
book published:
rating: 3
read at: 2005/01/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
good read on how to market products and yourself.
]]> The Lord of the Rings 33 One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them

In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell by chance into the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins.

From Sauron's fastness in the Dark Tower of Mordor, his power spread far and wide. Sauron gathered all the Great Rings to him, but always he searched for the One Ring that would complete his dominion.

When Bilbo reached his eleventy-first birthday he disappeared, bequeathing to his young cousin Frodo the Ruling Ring and a perilous quest: to journey across Middle-earth, deep into the shadow of the Dark Lord, and destroy the Ring by casting it into the Cracks of Doom.

The Lord of the Rings tells of the great quest undertaken by Frodo and the Fellowship of the Ring: Gandalf the Wizard; the hobbits Merry, Pippin, and Sam; Gimli the Dwarf; Legolas the Elf; Boromir of Gondor; and a tall, mysterious stranger called Strider.]]> 1216 J.R.R. Tolkien 0618640150 Ishan 4 worththetime you already know... 4.52 1954 The Lord of the Rings
author: J.R.R. Tolkien
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.52
book published: 1954
rating: 4
read at: 2004/01/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
you already know...
]]> <![CDATA[Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything]]> 1202
These may not sound like typical questions for an economist to ask. But Steven D. Levitt is not a typical economist. He is a much heralded scholar who studies the stuff and riddles of everyday life -- from cheating and crime to sports and child rearing -- and whose conclusions regularly turn the conventional wisdom on its head. He usually begins with a mountain of data and a simple, unasked question. Some of these questions concern life-and-death issues; others have an admittedly freakish quality. Thus the new field of study contained in this book: freakonomics.

Through forceful storytelling and wry insight, Levitt and co-author Stephen J. Dubner show that economics is, at root, the study of incentives -- how people get what they want, or need, especially when other people want or need the same thing. In Freakonomics, they set out to explore the hidden side of ... well, everything. The inner workings of a crack gang. The truth about real-estate agents. The myths of campaign finance. The telltale marks of a cheating schoolteacher. The secrets of the Ku Klux Klan.

What unites all these stories is a belief that the modern world, despite a surfeit of obfuscation, complication, and downright deceit, is not impenetrable, is not unknowable, and -- if the right questions are asked -- is even more intriguing than we think. All it takes is a new way of looking. Steven Levitt, through devilishly clever and clear-eyed thinking, shows how to see through all the clutter.

Freakonomics establishes this unconventional premise: If morality represents how we would like the world to work, then economics represents how it actually does work. It is true that readers of this book will be armed with enough riddles and stories to last a thousand cocktail parties. But Freakonomics can provide more than that. It will literally redefine the way we view the modern world.
(front flap)]]> 268 Steven D. Levitt 0061234001 Ishan 3 worththetime interesting read. real quick. 4.01 2005 Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
author: Steven D. Levitt
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2005
rating: 3
read at: 2006/01/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
interesting read. real quick.
]]> The Intelligent Investor 106835 Now available for the first time in paperback!

The Classic Text Annotated to Update Graham's Timeless Wisdom for Today's Market Conditions

The greatest investment advisor of the twentieth century, Benjamin Graham taught and inspired people worldwide. Graham's philosophy of "value investing" -- which shields investors from substantial error and teaches them to develop long-term strategies -- has made The Intelligent Investor the stock market bible ever since its original publication in 1949.

Over the years, market developments have proven the wisdom of Graham's strategies. While preserving the integrity of Graham's original text, this revised edition includes updated commentary by noted financial journalist Jason Zweig, whose perspective incorporates the realities of today's market, draws parallels between Graham's examples and today's financial headlines, and gives readers a more thorough understanding of how to apply Graham's principles.

Vital and indispensable, this HarperBusiness Essentials edition of The Intelligent Investor is the most important book you will ever read on how to reach your financial goals.]]> 623 Benjamin Graham 0060555661 Ishan 4 worththetime 4.24 1949 The Intelligent Investor
author: Benjamin Graham
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.24
book published: 1949
rating: 4
read at: 2005/03/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
Regardless of your investing strategy you should read up on one of the best. This book can only make you a better at investing and stock selection.
]]> Anthem 325488 The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged.
Ěý
This seventy-fifth anniversary edition of Anthem, celebrating the controversial and enduring legacy of its author, features an introduction by Rand’s literary executor, Leonard Piekoff, which includes excerpts from documents by Ayn Rand—letters, interviews, and journal notes in which she discusses Anthem. This volume also includes a complete reproduction of the original British edition with Ayn Rand’s handwritten editorial changes and a Reader’s Guide to her writings and philosophy.

In Ayn Rand’s novels you have found more than great works of art—you have found a philosophy of reason.
Ěý
“I had to originate a philosophical framework of my own, because my basic view of man and of existence was in conflict with most of the existing philosophical theories. In order to define, explain, and present my concept of man, I had to become a philosopher in the specific meaning of the term.”—Ayn Rand
Ěý
Now available for further reading on Rand’s philosophy: Objective Communication by Leonard Piekoff.
Ěý
Ayn Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism is increasingly influencing the shape of the world from business to politics to achieving personal goals. In Objective Communication, Peikoff explains how you can communicate philosophical ideas with conviction, logic, and, most of all, reason.
Ěý
Also available from Penguin: an enhanced edition/app of Atlas Shrugged.]]> 110 Ayn Rand 0451191137 Ishan 2 depends 3.48 1938 Anthem
author: Ayn Rand
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.48
book published: 1938
rating: 2
read at: 2004/11/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: depends
review:
not much to the story just the beginning of ayn's work.
]]> <![CDATA[Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't]]> 76865
The Challenge
Built to Last, the defining management study of the nineties, showed how great companies triumph over time and how long-term sustained performance can be engineered into the DNA of an enterprise from the very beginning.

But what about the company that is not born with great DNA? How can good companies, mediocre companies, even bad companies achieve enduring greatness?

The Study
For years, this question preyed on the mind of Jim Collins. Are there companies that defy gravity and convert long-term mediocrity or worse into long-term superiority? And if so, what are the universal distinguishing characteristics that cause a company to go from good to great?

The Standards
Using tough benchmarks, Collins and his research team identified a set of elite companies that made the leap to great results and sustained those results for at least fifteen years. How great? After the leap, the good-to-great companies generated cumulative stock returns that beat the general stock market by an average of seven times in fifteen years, better than twice the results delivered by a composite index of the world's greatest companies, including Coca-Cola, Intel, General Electric, and Merck.

The Comparisons
The research team contrasted the good-to-great companies with a carefully selected set of comparison companies that failed to make the leap from good to great. What was different? Why did one set of companies become truly great performers while the other set remained only good?

The Findings
The findings of the Good to Great study will surprise many readers and shed light on virtually every area of management strategy and practice. The findings include:
Level 5 Leaders: The research team was shocked to discover the type of leadership required to achieve greatness.

The Hedgehog Concept (Simplicity within the Three Circles): To go from good to great requires transcending the curse of competence.

A Culture of Discipline: When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get the magical alchemy of great results. Technology Accelerators: Good-to-great companies think differently about the role of technology.

The Flywheel and the Doom Loop: Those who launch radical change programs and wrenching restructurings will almost certainly fail to make the leap.]]> 300 Jim Collins 0066620996 Ishan 5 worththetime 4.12 2001 Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't
author: Jim Collins
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.12
book published: 2001
rating: 5
read at: 2004/01/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
If you manage a team or run a company you will like this.
]]> Atlas Shrugged 662 This is the story of a man who said that he would stop the motor of the world and did. Was he a destroyer or the greatest of liberators?

Why did he have to fight his battle, not against his enemies, but against those who needed him most, and his hardest battle against the woman he loved? What is the world’s motor � and the motive power of every man? You will know the answer to these questions when you discover the reason behind the baffling events that play havoc with the lives of the characters in this story.

Tremendous in its scope, this novel presents an astounding panorama of human life � from the productive genius who becomes a worthless playboy � to the great steel industrialist who does not know that he is working for his own destruction � to the philosopher who becomes a pirate � to the composer who gives up his career on the night of his triumph � to the woman who runs a transcontinental railroad � to the lowest track worker in her Terminal tunnels.

You must be prepared, when you read this novel, to check every premise at the root of your convictions.

This is a mystery story, not about the murder � and rebirth � of man’s spirit. It is a philosophical revolution, told in the form of an action thriller of violent events, a ruthlessly brilliant plot structure and an irresistible suspense. Do you say this is impossible? Well, that is the first of your premises to check.]]> 1168 Ayn Rand 0452011876 Ishan 5 blowyourmind 3.67 1957 Atlas Shrugged
author: Ayn Rand
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.67
book published: 1957
rating: 5
read at: 2004/07/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: blowyourmind
review:
This book just spoke my mind. Loved the dialogues and monologues of various aspects of producers, money, feelings, etc. Just an eye opening book.
]]> A Fine Balance 5211
The time is 1975. The place is an unnamed city by the sea. The government has just declared a State of Emergency, in whose upheavals four strangers--a spirited widow, a young student uprooted from his idyllic hill station, and two tailors who have fled the caste violence of their native village--will be thrust together, forced to share one cramped apartment and an uncertain future.

As the characters move from distrust to friendship and from friendship to love, A Fine Balance creates an enduring panorama of the human spirit in an inhuman state.]]> 603 Rohinton Mistry 140003065X Ishan 3 depends 4.38 1995 A Fine Balance
author: Rohinton Mistry
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.38
book published: 1995
rating: 3
read at: 2006/08/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: depends
review:
Good story, didn't like the ending all that much.
]]> <![CDATA[The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time]]> 9854 The landmark exploration of economic prosperity and how the world can escape from extreme poverty for the world's poorest citizens, from one Ěýof the world's most renowned economists

Hailed by Time as one of the world's hundred most influential people, Jeffrey D. Sachs is renowned for his work around the globe advising economies in crisis. Now a classic of its genre, The End of Poverty distills more than thirty years of experience to offer a uniquely informed vision of the steps that can transform impoverished countries into prosperous ones. Marrying vivid storytelling with rigorous analysis, Sachs lays out a clear conceptual map of the world economy. Explaining his own work in Bolivia, Russia, India, China, and Africa, he offers an integrated set of solutions to the interwoven economic, political, environmental, and social problems that challenge the world's poorest countries.
Ěý
Ten years after its initial publication, The End of Poverty remains an indispensible and influential work. In this 10th anniversary edition, Sachs presents an extensive new foreword assessing the progress of the past decade, the work that remains to be done, and how each of us can help. He also looks ahead across the next fifteen years to 2030, the United Nations' target date for ending extreme poverty, offering new insights and recommendations.]]> 464 Jeffrey D. Sachs 0143036580 Ishan 4 worththetime 3.69 2005 The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time
author: Jeffrey D. Sachs
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.69
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2007/07/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
So I just finished this book about how very clear defined objectives and relatively small amount of resources are needed to end extreme poverty across the world. Sachs also illustrates the daunting task ahead of the world to make elevate poor people's lives. At the end you realize you just need to help out a little and be responsible enough to direct your time, energy, and money to the right organizations. You realize we have a responsibility to the world to take care of each other and we need to make sure our voice is heard. At the the end of the day we all have to help. Decide how are you going to help a person you have never met? What ripple will you start to change the world?
]]> The Kite Runner 77203 371 Khaled Hosseini 159463193X Ishan 4 worththetime Pulls at the heart 4.34 2003 The Kite Runner
author: Khaled Hosseini
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.34
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2007/02/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
Pulls at the heart
]]> <![CDATA[The Mathematical Traveler: Exploring The Grand History Of Numbers]]> 1126087 307 Calvin C. Clawson 0738208353 Ishan 4 depends 3.98 1993 The Mathematical Traveler: Exploring The Grand History Of Numbers
author: Calvin C. Clawson
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.98
book published: 1993
rating: 4
read at: 2007/01/01
date added: 2009/12/16
shelves: depends
review:
I like this book because I am a math geek. It breaks down the history and development of various number systems. He takes you through the development of geometry, calculus, and the discussion of modern math. Made me wish my high school teacher taught us this way. Also provides historical events and significance to math. Then the book gets philosophical on math and what it means in relation to the world we see. It was fun.
]]> The White Tiger 1768603
Balram Halwai is a complicated man. Servant. Philosopher. Entrepreneur. Murderer. Over the course of seven nights, by the scattered light of a preposterous chandelier, Balram tells us the terrible and transfixing story of how he came to be a success in life—having nothing but his own wits to help him along.

Born in the dark heart of India, Balram gets a break when he is hired as a driver for his village's wealthiest man, two house Pomeranians (Puddles and Cuddles), and the rich man's (very unlucky) son. From behind the wheel of their Honda City car, Balram's new world is a revelation. While his peers flip through the pages of Murder Weekly ("Love -- Rape -- Revenge!"), barter for girls, drink liquor (Thunderbolt), and perpetuate the Great Rooster Coop of Indian society, Balram watches his employers bribe foreign ministers for tax breaks, barter for girls, drink liquor (single-malt whiskey), and play their own role in the Rooster Coop. Balram learns how to siphon gas, deal with corrupt mechanics, and refill and resell Johnnie Walker Black Label bottles (all but one). He also finds a way out of the Coop that no one else inside it can perceive.

Balram's eyes penetrate India as few outsiders can: the cockroaches and the call centers; the prostitutes and the worshippers; the ancient and Internet cultures; the water buffalo and, trapped in so many kinds of cages that escape is (almost) impossible, the white tiger. And with a charisma as undeniable as it is unexpected, Balram teaches us that religion doesn't create virtue, and money doesn't solve every problem -- but decency can still be found in a corrupt world, and you can get what you want out of life if you eavesdrop on the right conversations.

The White Tiger recalls The Death of Vishnu and Bangkok 8 in ambition, scope, and narrative genius, with a mischief and personality all its own. Amoral, irreverent, deeply endearing, and utterly contemporary, this novel is an international publishing sensation —and a startling, provocative debut.]]> 276 Aravind Adiga 1416562591 Ishan 4 3.76 2008 The White Tiger
author: Aravind Adiga
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.76
book published: 2008
rating: 4
read at: 2009/09/18
date added: 2009/09/18
shelves:
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Selected Studies in Hungarian History]]> 6314681 932 László Botos 9637014306 Ishan 0 to-read 3.00 Selected Studies in Hungarian History
author: László Botos
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.00
book published:
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2009/06/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace ... One School at a Time]]> 49436 349 Greg Mortenson 0143038257 Ishan 5 worththetime 3.66 2006 Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace ... One School at a Time
author: Greg Mortenson
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.66
book published: 2006
rating: 5
read at: 2009/06/19
date added: 2009/06/19
shelves: worththetime
review:
What pulled me was a man keeping his promise no matter what obstacles he faced. He looked at the world as his home and always believed in people, even when he had doubts. I also love the view of the people of Pakistan and how the interactions made me feel at home. Always get to know people and their stories.
]]> My Name Is Red 2517 My Name Is Red is a transporting tale set amid the splendor and religious intrigue of sixteenth-century Istanbul, from one of the most prominent contemporary Turkish writers.

The Sultan has commissioned a cadre of the most acclaimed artists in the land to create a great book celebrating the glories of his realm. Their task: to illuminate the work in the European style. But because figurative art can be deemed an affront to Islam, this commission is a dangerous proposition indeed. The ruling elite therefore mustn’t know the full scope or nature of the project, and panic erupts when one of the chosen miniaturists disappears. The only clue to the mystery–or crime? –lies in the half-finished illuminations themselves. Part fantasy and part philosophical puzzle, My Name is Red is a kaleidoscopic journey to the intersection of art, religion, love, sex and power.]]> 417 Orhan Pamuk Ishan 4 worththetime 3.87 1998 My Name Is Red
author: Orhan Pamuk
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1998
rating: 4
read at: 2009/06/08
date added: 2009/06/08
shelves: worththetime
review:
A very interesting look into the minds, culture, and history of the Turkish/Ottoman people. Takes place in Istanbul at a time when the eastern arts were engaging the west. And I found Islamic views on art quite insightful.
]]> The Spirituals and the Blues 271659 152 James H. Cone 0816420734 Ishan 0 to-read 4.25 2012 The Spirituals and the Blues
author: James H. Cone
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.25
book published: 2012
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/07/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Irony of American History (Scribner Library of Contemporary Classics)]]> 55236 174 Reinhold Niebuhr 0684718553 Ishan 0 to-read 3.99 1952 The Irony of American History (Scribner Library of Contemporary Classics)
author: Reinhold Niebuhr
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1952
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/07/29
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[A Fortune-Teller Told Me: Earthbound Travels in the Far East]]> 326931
Warned by a Hong Kong fortune-teller not to risk flying for an entire year, Tiziano Terzani—a vastly experienced Asia correspondent—took what he called “the first step into an unknown world. . . . It turned out to be one of the most extraordinary years I have ever spent: I was marked for death, and instead I was reborn.�

Traveling by foot, boat, bus, car, and train, he visited Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Mongolia, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. Geography expanded under his feet. He consulted soothsayers, sorcerers, and shamans and received much advice—some wise, some otherwise—about his future. With time to think, he learned to understand, respect, and fear for older ways of life and beliefs now threatened by the crasser forms of Western modernity. He rediscovered a place he had been reporting on for decades. And reinvigorated himself in the process.]]> 384 Tiziano Terzani 060980958X Ishan 4 worththetime 4.22 1995 A Fortune-Teller Told Me: Earthbound Travels in the Far East
author: Tiziano Terzani
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.22
book published: 1995
rating: 4
read at: 2008/07/03
date added: 2008/07/03
shelves: worththetime
review:
This is a fun story about a journalist who followed a fortune teller's advice 20 years later. He experiences traveling like few do today and experiences people, places, ideas which we would all love to tell stories about one day. Definitely gets your travel bug going...oh and you'll want to go find a fortune teller. =)
]]> <![CDATA[Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant]]> 4898 240 W. Chan Kim 1591396190 Ishan 0 to-read 4.01 2004 Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant
author: W. Chan Kim
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2004
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/06/19
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[When Eve Was Naked: Stories of a Life's Journey]]> 565432 368 Josef Ĺ kvoreckĂ˝ 0312421737 Ishan 0 to-read 3.80 2000 When Eve Was Naked: Stories of a Life's Journey
author: Josef Ĺ kvoreckĂ˝
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2000
rating: 0
read at: 2007/06/01
date added: 2008/06/16
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't]]> 97905 The definitive guide to working with -- and surviving -- bullies, creeps, jerks, tyrants, tormentors, despots, backstabbers, egomaniacs, and all the other assholes who do their best to destroy you at work.

What an asshole!

How many times have you said that about someone at work? You're not alone! In this groundbreaking book, Stanford University professor Robert I. Sutton builds on his acclaimed Harvard Business Review article to show you the best ways to deal with assholes...and why they can be so destructive to your company. Practical, compassionate, and in places downright funny, this guide offers:

Strategies on how to pinpoint and eliminate negative influences for good
Illuminating case histories from major organizations
A self-diagnostic test and a program to identify and keep your own inner jerk from coming out


The No Asshole Rule is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Business Week bestseller.]]> 224 Robert I. Sutton 0446526568 Ishan 3 worththetime 3.59 2007 The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't
author: Robert I. Sutton
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.59
book published: 2007
rating: 3
read at: 2008/06/17
date added: 2008/06/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
A quick read. Good stories and reminders on how to deal with these people and what is usually behind their motivation. Also a good time to reflect on whether you are the a--hole that people refer to but somehow you justify your behavior. A good sign that you probably are one.
]]> <![CDATA[The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty Through Profits]]> 64238 273 C.K. Prahalad 0131877291 Ishan 4 worththetime 3.91 2004 The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty Through Profits
author: C.K. Prahalad
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.91
book published: 2004
rating: 4
read at: 2008/06/17
date added: 2008/06/16
shelves: worththetime
review:
Excellent read for interested in learning about creative ways to help people better their lives through their own efforts. Also, a reminder that people are the same regardless of socio-economic class. Mainly it just comes down to having an opportunity which many are placed in situations that set them up for failure. Further reinforces the idea that imagination is more important than knowledge.
]]> <![CDATA[The Measure of God: Our Century-Long Struggle to Reconcile Science & Religion]]> 1403365 Larry Witham 0060591919 Ishan 3 the question of god from various western scientific points of view. How do you prove that god exists? Where does the idea of god even come from? Historians, Psychologists, Sociologists,Physicists, Priests, etc. the top minds of the past 100 years set out to answer these questions in Scotland. The only negative I have is this book mainly covers western thought, and only sprinkles eastern philosophy here and there. That has more to do with the speakers the book covers than the author himself. ]]> 3.44 2005 The Measure of God: Our Century-Long Struggle to Reconcile Science & Religion
author: Larry Witham
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.44
book published: 2005
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2008/05/23
shelves:
review:
An interesting book that covers the question of god from various western scientific points of view. How do you prove that god exists? Where does the idea of god even come from? Historians, Psychologists, Sociologists,Physicists, Priests, etc. the top minds of the past 100 years set out to answer these questions in Scotland. The only negative I have is this book mainly covers western thought, and only sprinkles eastern philosophy here and there. That has more to do with the speakers the book covers than the author himself.
]]> The Discovery of India 154126 In conjunction with the Jawaharlal Nehru Memorial Fund in New Delhi, Oxford proudly announces the reissue of Glimpses of World History and The Discovery of India, two famous works by Jawaharlal Nehru. One of modern day's most articulate statesmen, Jawaharlal Nehru wrote a on a wide variety of subjects. Describing himself as "a dabbler in many things," he committed his life not only to politics but also to nature and wild life, drama, poetry, history, and science, as well as many other fields. These two volumes help to illuminate the depth of his interests and knowledge and the skill and elegance with which he treated the written word!!

]]> 656 Jawaharlal Nehru 0143031031 Ishan 4 worththetime 4.09 1946 The Discovery of India
author: Jawaharlal Nehru
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.09
book published: 1946
rating: 4
read at: 2008/02/29
date added: 2008/05/23
shelves: worththetime
review:
A good review of where India came from and the history that shapes the psyche of our parents. Towards the end, it got a bit long because all you read about his how the British set back India 100s of years. Does make you angry; however you also realize the importance of being united and self sacrifice for the common good. Because one person's gain can cause a 100 losses. If you read, there were many selfish Indians in our past that significantly contributed to the down fall of the working class, mainly the princes and the "higher" social classes. And the caste system was manipulated to help the British control India. Goes to show...even if you hold some one in high regard and give them your trust based on their heritage they are still likely to only look after themselves. Like most things, it always takes two, at least.
]]> The Inheritance of Loss 95186 357 Kiran Desai 0802142818 Ishan 0 to-read 3.46 2005 The Inheritance of Loss
author: Kiran Desai
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.46
book published: 2005
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/02/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Gaia Natural House Book : Creating a Healthy and Ecologically Sound Home]]> 835917 David Pearson 1856751961 Ishan 0 to-read 4.33 1989 The Gaia Natural House Book : Creating a Healthy and Ecologically Sound Home
author: David Pearson
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.33
book published: 1989
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/02/20
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Law of Attraction: The Science of Attracting More of What You Want and Less of What You Don't]]> 53535 and Less of What You Don't"

You may not be aware of it, but a very powerful force is at work in your life. It's called the Law of Attraction and right now it is attracting people, jobs, situations, and relationships in your life -- not all of them good! Now, with Michael Losier's help, you can learn how to use the Law of Attraction deliberately and turn it into a positive force that will change your life.

If your life feels as if it has turned south and taken on the characteristics of a bad soap opera, it's time to pick up Michael Losier's iLaw of Attraction/i. This simple, easy-to-use book is full of tips, tools,exercises and scripts to help you use the Law of Attraction so you can integrate this powerful force in your life every day.]]> 142 Michael J. Losier 0973224002 Ishan 0 to-read 4.10 2003 Law of Attraction: The Science of Attracting More of What You Want and Less of What You Don't
author: Michael J. Losier
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.10
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/02/08
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Dabawalas 2636711
Dabawalas, the story of Mumbai's ubiquitous homemade food delivery men stands in sharp contrast. A 115-year-old business enterprise, run by semiliterate group of people, that has sustained itself through the vicissitudes of change presents a role model. Through a dialogue between four characters, the book brings to the fore key characteristics of successful organisations - values, decentralised decision-making, continuous value addition to customer care and many more.

Besides this, the book includes take-aways for leaders and managers to imbibe for building lasting success based on values.]]> 105 Shrinivas Pandit 0070621519 Ishan 4 3.80 2007 Dabawalas
author: Shrinivas Pandit
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2007
rating: 4
read at: 2008/01/01
date added: 2008/01/22
shelves:
review:
Picked up this book in India because I heard about the dabawalas and their success through the past 100 years. They have interesting perspectives on how to manage employees as well as customers. Their story is a great lesson in finding business opportunities and it's core values to grow customers and keep employees productive.
]]> Silent Spring 27333
The book appeared in September 1962 and the outcry that followed its publication forced the banning of DDT and spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water. Carson’s book was instrumental in launching the environmental movement.]]> 378 Rachel Carson 0618249060 Ishan 0 to-read 4.04 1962 Silent Spring
author: Rachel Carson
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1962
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/01/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Love in the Time of Cholera 9712 348 Gabriel García Márquez 140003468X Ishan 0 to-read 3.92 1985 Love in the Time of Cholera
author: Gabriel García Márquez
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.92
book published: 1985
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2008/01/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century]]> 392563 The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century is a voyage into the labyrinth of modern music, which remains an obscure world for most people. While paintings of Picasso and Jackson Pollock sell for a hundred million dollars or more, and lines from T. S. Eliot are quoted on the yearbook pages of alienated teenagers across the land, twentieth-century classical music still sends ripples of unease through audiences. At the same time, its influence can be felt everywhere. Atonal chords crop up in jazz. Avant-garde sounds populate the soundtracks of Hollywood thrillers. Minimalism has had a huge effect on rock, pop, and dance music from the Velvet Underground onward.

The Rest Is Noise shows why twentieth-century composers felt compelled to create a famously bewildering variety of sounds, from the purest beauty to the purest noise. It tells of a remarkable array of maverick personalities who resisted the cult of the classical past, struggled against the indifference of a wide public, and defied the will of dictators. Whether they have charmed audiences with sweet sounds or battered them with dissonance, composers have always been exuberantly of the present, defying the stereotype of classical music as a dying art. The narrative goes from Vienna before the First World War to Paris in the twenties, from Hitler's Germany and Stalin's Russia to downtown New York in the sixties and seventies. We follow the rise of mass culture and mass politics, of dramatic new technologies, of hot and cold wars, of experiments, revolutions, riots, and friendships forged and broken. The end result is not so much a history of twentieth-century music as a history of the twentieth century through its music.]]> 640 Alex Ross 0374249393 Ishan 0 to-read 4.08 2007 The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century
author: Alex Ross
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.08
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/12/05
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Escapism 133654 264 Yi-Fu Tuan 0801865409 Ishan 0 currently-reading 4.00 1998 Escapism
author: Yi-Fu Tuan
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.00
book published: 1998
rating: 0
read at: 2007/10/01
date added: 2007/10/19
shelves: currently-reading
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Feynman's Rainbow: A Search for Beauty in Physics and in Life]]> 45776 192 Leonard Mlodinow 0446692514 Ishan 3 depends 4.04 2005 Feynman's Rainbow: A Search for Beauty in Physics and in Life
author: Leonard Mlodinow
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.04
book published: 2005
rating: 3
read at: 2007/10/01
date added: 2007/10/18
shelves: depends
review:
Thanks Anjali! If you like physics, math, and looking at the world differently then you will like the story.
]]> Shantaram 33600
So begins this epic, mesmerizing first novel set in the underworld of contemporary Bombay. Shantaram is narrated by Lin, an escaped convict with a false passport who flees maximum security prison in Australia for the teeming streets of a city where he can disappear.

Accompanied by his guide and faithful friend, Prabaker, the two enter Bombay's hidden society of beggars and gangsters, prostitutes and holy men, soldiers and actors, and Indians and exiles from other countries, who seek in this remarkable place what they cannot find elsewhere.

As a hunted man without a home, family, or identity, Lin searches for love and meaning while running a clinic in one of the city's poorest slums, and serving his apprenticeship in the dark arts of the Bombay mafia. The search leads him to war, prison torture, murder, and a series of enigmatic and bloody betrayals. The keys to unlock the mysteries and intrigues that bind Lin are held by two people. The first is Khader Khan: mafia godfather, criminal-philosopher-saint, and mentor to Lin in the underworld of the Golden City. The second is Karla: elusive, dangerous, and beautiful, whose passions are driven by secrets that torment her and yet give her a terrible power.

Burning slums and five-star hotels, romantic love and prison agonies, criminal wars and Bollywood films, spiritual gurus and mujaheddin guerrillas—this huge novel has the world of human experience in its reach, and a passionate love for India at its heart. Based on the life of the author, it is by any measure the debut of an extraordinary voice in literature.]]> 936 Gregory David Roberts 192076920X Ishan 5 4.27 2003 Shantaram
author: Gregory David Roberts
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.27
book published: 2003
rating: 5
read at: 2007/09/01
date added: 2007/10/18
shelves:
review:
The story pulls you in and you will love the book for it. Then it takes you to places you did not want to go. It will leave you torn.
]]> <![CDATA[Probability Models for Economic Decisions (with CD-ROM) (Duxbury Applied)]]> 1750707 432 Roger B. Myerson 0534423817 Ishan 0 to-read 3.88 2004 Probability Models for Economic Decisions (with CD-ROM) (Duxbury Applied)
author: Roger B. Myerson
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.88
book published: 2004
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/10/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Game Theory. Analysis of conflict]]> 469871
Game Theory will be useful for students at the graduate level in economics, political science, operations research, and applied mathematics. Everyone who uses game theory in research will find this book essential.]]> 592 Roger B. Myerson 0674341163 Ishan 0 to-read 3.99 1991 Game Theory. Analysis of conflict
author: Roger B. Myerson
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.99
book published: 1991
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/10/14
shelves: to-read
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]]> Water for Elephants 43641
Beautifully written, Water for Elephants is illuminated by a wonderful sense of time and place. It tells a story of a love between two people that overcomes incredible odds in a world in which even love is a luxury that few can afford.]]> 368 Sara Gruen 1565125606 Ishan 0 to-read 4.11 2006 Water for Elephants
author: Sara Gruen
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.11
book published: 2006
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/10/14
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found]]> 4364
As each individual story unfolds, Mehta also recounts his own efforts to make a home in Bombay after more than twenty years abroad. Candid, impassioned, funny, and heartrending, Maximum City is a revelation of an ancient and ever-changing world.]]> 542 Suketu Mehta 0375703403 Ishan 0 to-read 3.94 2004 Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found
author: Suketu Mehta
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.94
book published: 2004
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/10/01
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions Among the Converted Peoples]]> 5846
Fourteen years after the publication of his landmark travel narrative Among the Believers , V. S. Naipaul returned to the four non-Arab Islamic countries he reported on so vividly at the time of Ayatollah Khomeini's triumph in Iran. Beyond Belief is the result of his five-month journey in 1995 through lands where descendants of Muslim converts live at odds with indigenous traditions.

In extended conversations with a vast number of people—a rare survivor of the martyr brigades of the Iran-Iraq war, a young intellectual training as a Marxist guerilla in Baluchistan, an impoverished elderly couple in Teheran whose dusty Baccarat chandeliers preserve the memory of vanished wealth, and countless others—V. S. Naipaul deliberately effaces himself to let the voices of his subjects come through. Yet the result is a collection of stories that has the author's unmistakable stamp. With its incisive observation and brilliant cultural analysis, Beyond Belief is a startling and revelatory addition to the Naipaul canon.]]> 432 V.S. Naipaul 0375706488 Ishan 0 to-read 3.79 1998 Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions Among the Converted Peoples
author: V.S. Naipaul
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.79
book published: 1998
rating: 0
read at: 2007/09/01
date added: 2007/07/31
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story]]> 995627 256 Jerry Weissman 0130464139 Ishan 0 to-read 3.95 2003 Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story
author: Jerry Weissman
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2003
rating: 0
read at: 2007/08/01
date added: 2007/07/24
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> Shadow of the Silk Road 701596 384 Colin Thubron 006123172X Ishan 0 to-read 3.77 2007 Shadow of the Silk Road
author: Colin Thubron
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2007
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/07/22
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> The 4-Hour Workweek 368593
Join Tim Ferriss as he teaches you:
- How to outsource your life to overseas virtual assistants for $5 per hour and do whatever you want?
- How blue-chip escape artists travel the world without quitting their jobs?
- How to eliminate 50% of your work in 48 hours using the principles of a forgotten Italian economist?
- How to trade a long-haul career for short work bursts and freuent "mini-retirements"?
- What the crucial difference is between absolute and relative income?
- How to train your boss to value performance over presence, or kill your job (or company) if it's beyond repair?
- What automated cash-flow "muses" are and how to create one in 2 to 4 weeks?
- How to cultivate selective ignorance-and create time-with a low-information diet?
- What the management secrets of Remote Control CEOs are?
- How to get free housing worldwide and airfare at 50-80% off?
- How to fill the void and create a meaningful life after removing work and the office]]> 308 Timothy Ferriss 0307353133 Ishan 5 depends 3.93 2007 The 4-Hour Workweek
author: Timothy Ferriss
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2007
rating: 5
read at: 2007/07/01
date added: 2007/07/09
shelves: depends
review:
I have a mixed review about the book. The ideas about life and work approach are phenomenal but nothing you have not heard before. However the author has an excellent approach to breaking down barriers to having the life you want. This book is not everybody; This type of life is for certain type of individuals willing to take a chance and change their life. You need to have a diverse set of interests to rely on, a broad mind, and a discipline most people don't have. This book could make you rethink your whole life or just realize how good/bad your life is.
]]> The Stranger 49552 The Stranger has long been considered a classic of twentieth-century literature. Le Monde ranks it as number one on its "100 Books of the Century" list. Through this story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on a sundrenched Algerian beach, Camus explores what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd."]]> 123 Albert Camus Ishan 0 to-read 4.04 1942 The Stranger
author: Albert Camus
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.04
book published: 1942
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/07/03
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Secret Histories: Hidden Truths That Challenged the Past and Changed the World]]> 29048
The Secret Histories is a groundbreaking collection of the documents that have clarified history and altered the way we view politics and culture. From Edwin Black's investigation into the strategic alliance between IBM and the Nazi regime to I. F. Stone's classic study of the hidden history of the Korean War, from the 1952 Reader's Digest expose of tobacco's link to cancer and heart disease to Seymour Hersh's report on the My Lai massacre (as well his exposé on the abuse in Abu Ghraib prison), this is the perfect anthology for those seeking to revisit--or discover for the first time--the stories that have shaped our understanding of the world.

Edited by noted journalist and filmmaker John S. Friedman, as well as featuring an illuminating preface by bestselling author James Carroll ( An American Requiem and Constantine's Sword ), The Secret Histories is an invaluable resource guide and a genuine tool for further change. It is a must-have book for anyone yearning to expand their understanding of the past and the present.]]> 560 John S. Friedman 0312425171 Ishan 4 worththetime
This book will enlighten you and provide you details that were published on historical events but were not widely publicized because lack of public interest. If any of you read this book, I predict that you will at recent events with a whole new light. The truth is often stranger(and scarier) than fiction.]]> 3.65 2000 The Secret Histories: Hidden Truths That Challenged the Past and Changed the World
author: John S. Friedman
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.65
book published: 2000
rating: 4
read at: 2007/06/01
date added: 2007/06/25
shelves: worththetime
review:
"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." --Lord Acton

This book will enlighten you and provide you details that were published on historical events but were not widely publicized because lack of public interest. If any of you read this book, I predict that you will at recent events with a whole new light. The truth is often stranger(and scarier) than fiction.
]]> Who Moved My Cheese? 77231
Two are mice named Sniff and Scurry. And two are "Littlepeople" - beings the size of mice who look and act a lot like people. Their names are Hem and Haw.

"Cheese" is a metaphor for what you want to have in life - whether it's a good job, a loving relationship, money, a possession, health, or spiritual peace of mind.

And the "Maze" is where you look for what you want - the organisation you work in or the family or community you live in.

In the story, the characters are faced with unexpected change. Eventually, one of them deals with it successfully, and writes what he has learned from his experience on the Maze walls.

When you come to see "The Handwriting on the Wall," you can discover for yourself how to deal with change, so that you can enjoy less stress and more success (however you define it) in your work and in your life.

Written for all ages, the story takes less than an hour to read, but its unique insights can last for a lifetime.]]> 94 Spencer Johnson 0399144463 Ishan 3 depends 3.77 1999 Who Moved My Cheese?
author: Spencer Johnson
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.77
book published: 1999
rating: 3
read at: 2000/03/01
date added: 2007/06/20
shelves: depends
review:

]]> The Hours 11899 The Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that became a motion picture starring Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, and Nicole Kidman, directed by Stephen Daldry from a screenplay by David Hare.

In The Hours, Michael Cunningham, widely praised as one of the most gifted writers of his generation, draws inventively on the life and work of Virginia Woolf to tell the story of a group of contemporary characters struggling with the conflicting claims of love and inheritance, hope and despair. The narrative of Woolf's last days before her suicide early in World War II counterpoints the fictional stories of Samuel, a famous poet whose life has been shadowed by his talented and troubled mother, and his lifelong friend Clarissa, who strives to forge a balanced and rewarding life in spite of the demands of friends, lovers, and family.

Passionate, profound, and deeply moving, this is Cunningham's most remarkable achievement to date.]]> 230 Michael Cunningham 0312305060 Ishan 0 to-read 3.95 1998 The Hours
author: Michael Cunningham
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.95
book published: 1998
rating: 0
read at:
date added: 2007/06/10
shelves: to-read
review:

]]> <![CDATA[Self-Reliance and Other Essays (Dover Thrift Editions: Philosophy)]]> 123845 Essays, First Series (1841) and Essays, Second Series (1844), offer a representative sampling of his views outlining that moral idealism as well as a hint of the later skepticism that colored his thought. In addition to the celebrated title essay, the others included here are "History," "Friendship," "The Over-Soul," "The Poet," and "Experience," plus the well-known and frequently read Harvard Divinity School Address.]]> 117 Ralph Waldo Emerson 0486277909 Ishan 5 blowyourmind 4.13 1844 Self-Reliance and Other Essays (Dover Thrift Editions: Philosophy)
author: Ralph Waldo Emerson
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.13
book published: 1844
rating: 5
read at: 1995/12/01
date added: 2007/06/09
shelves: blowyourmind
review:
an approach to life...unlimited in its truth
]]> <![CDATA[First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently]]> 50937 271 Marcus Buckingham 0684852861 Ishan 3 worththetime 3.94 1998 First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently
author: Marcus Buckingham
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.94
book published: 1998
rating: 3
read at: 2004/04/01
date added: 2007/06/09
shelves: worththetime
review:
Honestly, anybody moving into management or a few years into management should read through the book. You may not agree with all the concepts based on your experience but it will definitely make you think about your approach to managing people. And for those that have managed people for a long just check to see what you have come to know through time.
]]> <![CDATA[The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference]]> 2612 The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate. This widely acclaimed bestseller, in which Malcolm Gladwell explores and brilliantly illuminates the tipping point phenomenon, is already changing the way people throughout the world think about selling products and disseminating ideas.]]> 301 Malcolm Gladwell 0316346624 Ishan 3 worththetime 4.01 2002 The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
author: Malcolm Gladwell
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2002
rating: 3
read at: 2005/11/01
date added: 2007/06/08
shelves: worththetime
review:

]]> The Namesake 33917 Interpreter of Maladies established this young writer as one the most brilliant of her generation. Her stories are one of the very few debut works -- and only a handful of collections -- to have won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Among the many other awards and honors it received were the New Yorker Debut of the Year award, the PEN/Hemingway Award, and the highest critical praise for its grace, acuity, and compassion in detailing lives transported from India to America.

In The Namesake, Lahiri enriches the themes that made her collection an international bestseller: the immigrant experience, the clash of cultures, the conflicts of assimilation, and, most poignantly, the tangled ties between generations. Here again Lahiri displays her deft touch for the perfect detail � the fleeting moment, the turn of phrase � that opens whole worlds of emotion.

The Namesake takes the Ganguli family from their tradition-bound life in Calcutta through their fraught transformation into Americans. On the heels of their arranged wedding, Ashoke and Ashima Ganguli settle together in Cambridge, Massachusetts. An engineer by training, Ashoke adapts far less warily than his wife, who resists all things American and pines for her family. When their son is born, the task of naming him betrays the vexed results of bringing old ways to the new world. Named for a Russian writer by his Indian parents in memory of a catastrophe years before, Gogol Ganguli knows only that he suffers the burden of his heritage as well as his odd, antic name.

Lahiri brings great empathy to Gogol as he stumbles along the first-generation path, strewn with conflicting loyalties, comic detours, and wrenching love affairs. With penetrating insight, she reveals not only the defining power of the names and expectations bestowed upon us by our parents, but also the means by which we slowly, sometimes painfully, come to define ourselves.]]> 304 Jhumpa Lahiri 0618485228 Ishan 3 depends 4.02 2003 The Namesake
author: Jhumpa Lahiri
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.02
book published: 2003
rating: 3
read at: 2005/04/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: depends
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]]> Interpreter of Maladies 5439 Librarian's note: An alternate cover edition can be found here

Navigating between the Indian traditions they've inherited and the baffling new world, the characters in Jhumpa Lahiri's elegant, touching stories seek love beyond the barriers of culture and generations. In "A Temporary Matter," published in The New Yorker, a young Indian-American couple faces the heartbreak of a stillborn birth while their Boston neighborhood copes with a nightly blackout. In the title story, an interpreter guides an American family through the India of their ancestors and hears an astonishing confession. Lahiri writes with deft cultural insight reminiscent of Anita Desai and a nuanced depth that recalls Mavis Gallant.]]> 198 Jhumpa Lahiri 0618101365 Ishan 3 depends 4.18 1999 Interpreter of Maladies
author: Jhumpa Lahiri
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.18
book published: 1999
rating: 3
read at: 2005/08/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: depends
review:

]]> <![CDATA[The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time]]> 1618 226 Mark Haddon 1400032717 Ishan 4 worththetime 3.89 2003 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
author: Mark Haddon
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.89
book published: 2003
rating: 4
read at: 2005/10/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
A story about how an autistic child's attempt to solve a murder. Very nice story.
]]> <![CDATA[Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Good to Great, 2)]]> 4122 368 Jim Collins 0060566108 Ishan 3 depends 4.06 1994 Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Good to Great, 2)
author: Jim Collins
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1994
rating: 3
read at: 2005/09/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: depends
review:
if you are interested in how to build companies...
]]> <![CDATA[A River Runs Through It and Other Stories]]> 30043 "A River Runs Through It" that he is "haunted by waters," so have readers been haunted by his novella. A retired English professor who began writing fiction at the age of 70, Maclean produced what is now recognized as one of the classic American stories of the twentieth century. Originally published in 1976, A River Runs Through It and Other Stories now celebrates its twenty-fifth anniversary, marked by this new edition that includes a foreword by Annie Proulx.

Maclean grew up in the western Rocky Mountains in the first decades of the twentieth century. As a young man he worked many summers in logging camps and for the United States Forest Service. The two novellas and short story in this collection are based on his own experiences—the experiences of a young man who found that life was only a step from art in its structures and beauty. The beauty he found was in reality, and so he leaves a careful record of what it was like to work in the woods when it was still a world of horse and hand and foot, without power saws, "cats," or four-wheel drives. Populated with drunks, loggers, card sharks, and whores, and set in the small towns and surrounding trout streams and mountains of western Montana, the stories concern themselves with the complexities of fly fishing, logging, fighting forest fires, playing cribbage, and being a husband, a son, and a father.]]> 217 Norman Maclean 0226500667 Ishan 2 depends 4.18 1976 A River Runs Through It and Other Stories
author: Norman Maclean
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.18
book published: 1976
rating: 2
read at: 2003/07/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: depends
review:

]]> The Catcher in the Rye 5107 It's Christmas time and Holden Caulfield has just been expelled from yet another school...

Fleeing the crooks at Pencey Prep, he pinballs around New York City seeking solace in fleeting encounters—shooting the bull with strangers in dive hotels, wandering alone round Central Park, getting beaten up by pimps and cut down by erstwhile girlfriends. The city is beautiful and terrible, in all its neon loneliness and seedy glamour, its mingled sense of possibility and emptiness. Holden passes through it like a ghost, thinking always of his kid sister Phoebe, the only person who really understands him, and his determination to escape the phonies and find a life of true meaning.

The Catcher in the Rye is an all-time classic in coming-of-age literature- an elegy to teenage alienation, capturing the deeply human need for connection and the bewildering sense of loss as we leave childhood behind.

J.D. Salinger's (1919�2010) classic novel of teenage angst and rebellion was first published in 1951. The novel was included on Time's 2005 list of the 100 best English-language novels written since 1923. It was named by Modern Library and its readers as one of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. It has been frequently challenged in the court for its liberal use of profanity and portrayal of sexuality and in the 1950's and 60's it was the novel that every teenage boy wants to read.]]> 277 J.D. Salinger 0316769177 Ishan 3 depends don't remember 3.81 1951 The Catcher in the Rye
author: J.D. Salinger
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.81
book published: 1951
rating: 3
read at: 2005/05/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: depends
review:
don't remember
]]> <![CDATA[The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century]]> 3460 0 Thomas L. Friedman 1598954814 Ishan 3 worththetime 3.68 2005 The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century
author: Thomas L. Friedman
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.68
book published: 2005
rating: 3
read at: 2006/01/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
interesting view on how the world is changed/changing. Gets a bit too much towards the end.
]]> The Pleasure of My Company 10867 The Pleasure of My Company is the chronicle of a modern-day neurotic yearning to break free.]]> 177 Steve Martin 0786888016 Ishan 3 worththetime 3.80 2003 The Pleasure of My Company
author: Steve Martin
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.80
book published: 2003
rating: 3
read at: 2006/11/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
A surprisingly good book by steve martin. Don't expect much and you will enjoy this well written and fun story.
]]> Siddhartha 6115 The Great American Read

Hesse’s famous and influential novel, Siddartha, is perhaps the most important and compelling moral allegory our troubled century has produced. Integrating Eastern and Western spiritual traditions with psychoanalysis and philosophy, this strangely simple tale, written with a deep and moving empathy for humanity, has touched the lives of millions since its original publication in 1922. Set in India, Siddhartha is the story of a young Brahmin’s search for ultimate reality after meeting with the Buddha. His quest takes him from a life of decadence to asceticism, through the illusory joys of sensual love with a beautiful courtesan, and of wealth and fame, to the painful struggles with his son and the ultimate wisdom of renunciation. This new translation by award-winning translator Joachim Neugroschel includes an introduction by Hesse biographer Ralph Freedman.]]> 132 Hermann Hesse 0142437182 Ishan 4 worththetime 4.03 1922 Siddhartha
author: Hermann Hesse
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.03
book published: 1922
rating: 4
read at: 2007/05/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
Interesting story about Buddha and a prince's journey to life's ultimate realization. Duality of life and the world is laid out in a simple way.
]]> <![CDATA[Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done]]> 1635 "Execution may very well be the best business book of the year, and one of the most useful to have come around in a long time. This smart and pithy book focuses on a simple though vexing challenge: How can the leaders of an organization exhort their people to deliver on the most important goals?....It's rare to find a book like this that blends smart practice with intelligent articulation of how to get things done. Do yourself a favor. Buy it." --The Boston Globe

"Making all of the moving parts of an organization function smoothly together is just plain hard work. By describing how he has done it, Mr. Bossidy has come up with a valuable and practical management guide that is must-reading for everyone who cares about business." --The New York Times

"If you want to be a CEO--or if you are a CEO and want to keep your job--read Execution and put its principles to work." --Michael Dell, chairman and CEO, Dell Computer Corp.

"A how-to book for the can-do boss....If even half the corporations in America pondered their suggestions, the economy would be in much better shape. Moreover, Bossidy and Charan boast an impressive enough track record that anyone who wants to stay sharp at the helm will welcome their assistance." --BusinessWeek

"Sound, practical advice on how to make things happen." --Ralph S. Larsen, chairman and CEO, Johnson & Johnson

"Here's the real deal.... This is no-nonsense stuff.... The leaders who sweat the small stuff, hire the right people, make the tough decisions and stick around to see that they're carried out are the real winners.... Forget the swarmy memoirs, cheesy parables, advice for idiots, and leadership secrets of despots and barbarians. Getting it done is, according to Bossidy and Charan, the only way to grow." --The Miami Herald

"Captures a lifetime of building winning formulas and puts them in a simple, practical context for executives at any level." --Ivan Seidenberg, president and CEO, Verizon

]]> 278 Larry Bossidy 0609610570 Ishan 4 worththetime 3.87 2006 Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
author: Larry Bossidy
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.87
book published: 2006
rating: 4
read at: 2005/03/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
This is what I do, execute. So I had to read it. =) Not an amazing book just fun to read if you manage people.
]]> <![CDATA[The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement]]> 113934 Written in a fast-paced thriller style, The Goal is the gripping novel which is transforming management thinking throughout the Western world.

Alex Rogo is a harried plant manager working ever more desperately to try and improve performance. His factory is rapidly heading for disaster. So is his marriage. He has ninety days to save his plant—or it will be closed by corporate HQ, with hundreds of job losses. It takes a chance meeting with a colleague from student days—Jonah—to help him break out of conventional ways of thinking to see what needs to be done.

The story of Alex's fight to save his plant is more than compulsive reading. It contains a serious message for all managers in industry and explains the ideas which underline the Theory of Constraints (TOC) developed by Eli Goldratt.]]> 384 Eliyahu M. Goldratt 0884271781 Ishan 4 worththetime 4.06 1984 The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement
author: Eliyahu M. Goldratt
name: Ishan
average rating: 4.06
book published: 1984
rating: 4
read at: 2004/04/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
Fun read on process investigation and refine. Nice story between work and personal dynamics.
]]> The Fountainhead 2122
This modern classic is the story of intransigent young architect Howard Roark, whose integrity was as unyielding as granite...of Dominique Francon, the exquisitely beautiful woman who loved Roark passionately, but married his worst enemy...and of the fanatic denunciation unleashed by an enraged society against a great creator. As fresh today as it was then, Rand’s provocative novel presents one of the most challenging ideas in all of fiction—that man’s ego is the fountainhead of human progress...

“A writer of great power. She has a subtle and ingenious mind and the capacity of writing brilliantly, beautifully, bitterly...This is the only novel of ideas written by an American woman that I can recall.”—The New York Times]]> 704 Ayn Rand Ishan 4 worththetime 3.87 1943 The Fountainhead
author: Ayn Rand
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.87
book published: 1943
rating: 4
read at: 2004/03/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
Story of a someone trying to make it his way at all costs. Is it worth it?
]]> Salt: A World History 2715 484 Mark Kurlansky 0142001619 Ishan 2 depends 3.75 2002 Salt: A World History
author: Mark Kurlansky
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2002
rating: 2
read at: 2005/01/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: depends
review:
Don't think I actually finished it. It's dry reading but interesting information if you like history facts. I like knowing how such a simple commodity played such a large role in our collective history.
]]> A Confederacy of Dunces 310612
His mother thinks he needs to go to work. He does, in a succession of jobs. Each job rapidly escalates into a lunatic adventure, a full-blown disaster; yet each has, like Don Quixote's, its own eerie logic.

His girlfriend, Myrna Minkoff of the Bronx, thinks he needs sex.

Ignatius is an intellectual, ideologue, deadbeat, goof-off, glutton, who should repel the reader with his gargantuan bloats, his thunderous contempt, and one-man war against everybody: Freud, homosexuals, heterosexuals, Protestants, and the assorted excesses of modern times.

A tragicomedy, set in New Orleans.]]> 394 John Kennedy Toole 0802130208 Ishan 3 worththetime 3.89 1980 A Confederacy of Dunces
author: John Kennedy Toole
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.89
book published: 1980
rating: 3
read at: 2007/01/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: worththetime
review:
Fun read, you can't wait to see what he does next.
]]> The Undercover Economist 25735
“A rare a book on economics that will enthrall its readers . . . It brings the power of economics to life.�
–Steven D. Levitt, coauthor of Freakonomics

“A playful guide to the economics of everyday life, and as such is something of an elder sibling to Steven Levitt’s wild child, the hugely successful Freakonomics.�
� The Economist

“A tour de force . . . If you need to be convinced of the everrelevant and fascinating nature of economics, read this insightful and witty book.�
–Jagdish Bhagwati, author of In Defense of Globalization

“This is a book to savor.�
� The New York Times

“Harford writes like a dream. From his book I found out why there’s a Starbucks on every corner [and] how not to get duped in an auction. Reading The Undercover Economist is like spending an ordinary day wearing X-ray goggles.�
–David Bodanis, author of Electric Universe

“Much wit and wisdom.�
–The Houston Chronicle
From Publishers Weekly
Nattily packaged-the cover sports a Roy Lichtensteinesque image of an economist in Dick Tracy garb-and cleverly written, this book applies basic economic theory to such modern phenomena as Starbucks' pricing system and Microsoft's stock values. While the concepts explored are those encountered in Microeconomics 101, Harford gracefully explains abstruse ideas like pricing along the demand curve and game theory using real world examples without relying on graphs or jargon. The book addresses free market economic theory, but Harford is not a complete apologist for capitalism; he shows how companies from Amazon.com to Whole Foods to Starbucks have gouged consumers through guerrilla pricing techniques and explains the high rents in London (it has more to do with agriculture than one might think). Harford comes down soft on Chinese sweatshops, acknowledging "conditions in factories are terrible," but "sweatshops are better than the horrors that came before them, and a step on the road to something better." Perhaps, but Harford doesn't question whether communism or a capitalist-style industrial revolution are the only two choices available in modern economies. That aside, the book is unequaled in its accessibility and ability to show how free market economic forces affect readers' day-to-day.
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From Bookmarks Magazine
Harford exposes the dark underbelly of capitalism in Undercover Economist . Compared with Steven Levitt’s and Stephen J. Dubner’s popular Freakonomics (*** July/Aug 2005), the book uses simple, playful examples (written in plain English) to elucidate complex economic theories. Critics agree that the book will grip readers interested in understanding free-market forces but disagree about Harford’s approach. Some thought the author mastered the small ideas while keeping in sight the larger context of globalization; others faulted Harford for failing to criticize certain economic theories and to ground his arguments in political, organizational structures. Either way, his case studies—some entertaining, others indicative of times to come—will make you think twice about that cup of coffee.
Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.]]> 265 Tim Harford 0345494016 Ishan 4 3.70 2005 The Undercover Economist
author: Tim Harford
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.70
book published: 2005
rating: 4
read at: 2007/04/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves:
review:
Nice breakdown of the economic decisions that occur everyday. Definitely makes you think about the next purchase and what you are communicating to the producers of products and services. Also gets into how companies price products and how to understand the factors of negotiation.
]]> <![CDATA[Unspeak: How Words Become Weapons, How Weapons Become a Message, and How That Message Becomes Reality]]> 290545 288 Steven Poole 0802143059 Ishan 5 blowyourmind 3.74 2005 Unspeak: How Words Become Weapons, How Weapons Become a Message, and How That Message Becomes Reality
author: Steven Poole
name: Ishan
average rating: 3.74
book published: 2005
rating: 5
read at: 2007/02/01
date added: 2007/06/07
shelves: blowyourmind
review:
This book starts out with a short story about Confucius and his belief of the impact of improper language. The book then goes on to illustrate how governments and media manipulated language to be ambiguous, misleading, and out right lie. It's an interesting read because once you finish the book you will never look at government announcements and media publishing the same. You even become conscious of your own language and how you choose your words.
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