No comments about South-Western Federal Taxation: Comprehensive 2009 (with TaxCut® Tax Preparation Software CD-ROM) (South-Western Federal Taxation).

5 comments about The Unofficial Guide Walt Disney World 2009 (Unofficial Guides).

1. The Unofficial Guide is without exception the best way to learn about Walt Disney World. It is also extremely readable. My husband and I have been to Disney World and Disneyland numerous times. We have been married for forty years. When we first went to the World, it seemed that we didn't know where to stay, how to get the best deals, and how not to get lost (which led to several shall we say altercations?). This guide covered it all. I advise anyone who wants to buy a book under $20 that makes pretrip prep fun--don't look any further.



2. This book is a must have for anyone considering a trip to Disney. It gives you the ins and outs of everything from rides, hotels, food, and prices. You will find it easy to read, and very accurate. Bring it with you on your trip and it will help you even more.



3. It is important to give respect to those that have identified some errors and ommissions in the "Unofficial Guides." The guide is not perfect, and one might expect perfection from a reference book. That being said, no Disney vacation is perfect either, although we all seek perfection from this expensive theme park trip!
   
   What the Unofficial Guide does is break down, in a very user friendly way, how to understand a Disney vacation and make the most of it. The authors also make an 800+ page book fun to read and explore and that is no easy feat!
   
   From understanding resort accomodations, meal plans, those attractions that might upset your stomach, travel, moving about the parks, shopping, attendence levels, health and safety, pets, etc etc etc., the Guide makes these complicated topics manageable.
   
   We can look to Wikipedia for hard, real-time data (and the Guide should strive to have all their information fact checked.) But, Disney is expensive, complicated, and does involve lots of planning. The Guide is the best $13 you will ever spend towards your vacation. It's cheaper than your Coke and chicken strips lunch at a counter restaurant, but will save you untold amounts of confusion and frustration about bus routes, check-in policies, how to see characters, and so forth.
   
   It is also important to note, that with the purchase of the book, you receieve access to the Unoffical Guide's crowd calendars (viewable on its website). It's a nice little perk to help with your long-range planning.
   
   We have bought numerous travel books for our trips, but the Unoffical Guide is more than just a travel book, it is a How-to guide to getting the most from your Disney Vacation.



4. This venerable Walt Disney World guidebook covers all the bases... and then goes further. It has a no-nonsense, cynical tone that is refreshing and sometimes funny. Anyone planning a visit to Disney will benefit from it.
   
   Sound strange coming from a competitor? Well, it shouldn't. Though I am the author of The Complete Guide to Walt Disney World, the two books approach Disney from different perspectives. Whereas mine is a standard-size book with lots of color photos and factual detail; this one is a huge tome with tons of fieldwork and opinion.
   
   The 844-page book goes into exhaustive detail, especially about topics outside the theme parks. A full 171 pages are devoted to Accommodations, including layout maps of the different Disney resorts, maps showing where non-Disney hotels are located, how to shop online for lodging, and a list of recommended websites that are good resources for this topic. There is even a list of 33 questions to ask the owner or rental company of a vacation home you may want to rent.
   
   I especially enjoy the reader comments. These italicized quotes are a guilty pleasure for me; I like trying to picture the person behind the words. One mom describes choosing a Cinderella character meal at 1900 Park Fare instead of trying to book Cinderella's Royal Table at Cinderella Castle: "It wasn't easy to get, but I was able to get a reservation only about two months in advance instead of the 180-days-and-atomic-clock routine that the Royal Table requires. Maybe someday we'll do the Royal Table, but this time my daughter was delighted with the dinner at 1900 Park Fare."
   
   Often the comments are blunt: "Lodging a complaint with Disney is like shouting at a brick." I've found in my own work how knowledgeable and passionate many Walt Disney World guests are; the comments in the Unofficial Guide reflect this.
   
   I also look for the boxed sidebars from Disneyphile Jim Hill, called "Disney Dish with Jim Hill." These bits of trivia are always interesting, and sometimes very funny.
   
   New for this edition is a small section with photos. These 16 color pages are right up front, before the table of contents. I especially liked the photo comparing a Disney hamburger with a regular McDonald's hamburger.
   
   As for the book having some factual errors, I know firsthand that that criticism is unwarranted. Disney changes its ticket prices more than once a year, some restaurants change their menus quarterly, and Disney's shops can reinvent themselves almost at the drop of a pin.
   
   Despite what all of us in the Disney community like to think about ourselves, no book, no web site, even no Disney executive is a perfect source of Disney World information. The place is just too big, complex and dynamic. Overall, the authors of the Unofficial Guide do a good job keeping their information updated.
   
   If you go to Walt Disney World without a plan, you can easily waste precious time by not knowing what to do, or by doing the wrong things. Having good information can make the difference between having a fun, memorable vacation and having a tense one. The Unofficial Guide is chock full of reliable information. It's a proven tool.
   
   Here's the chapter list:
   
   Introduction
   Part One: Planning Before You Leave Home
   Part Two: Making the Most of Your Time and Money
   Part Three: Accommodations
   Part Four: Serenity Now! A Look at Disney-area Spas
   Part Five: The Disney Cruise Line
   Part Six: Walt Disney World with Kids
   Part Seven: Special Tips for Special People
   Part Eight: Arriving and Getting Around
   Part Nine: Bare Necessities
   Part Ten: Dining in and around Walt Disney World
   Part Eleven: The Magic Kingdom
   Part Twelve: Epcot
   Part Thirteen: Animal Kingdom
   Part Fourteen: Behind the Scenes at Walt Disney World
   Part Fifteen: Disney's Hollywood Studios, Universal Orlando, and SeaWorld
   Part Sixteen: The Water Parks
   Part Seventeen: Beyond the Parks
   Part Eighteen: Shopping in and out of Walt Disney World
   Part Nineteen: Nightlife in and out of Walt Disney World
   Appendix, Indexes, Touring Plans and Reader Surveys
   List of Maps



5. I have both the 2008 and 2009 Unofficial Guide, and honestly, my summary is that this is a good, necessary companion to the Birnbaum guide, but it is poorly executed as a stand-alone. I find myself vascillating between loving it and wanting to throw it off a freeway overpass.
   
   First, the good. It is certainly a very indepth guide. It is updated with reasonable amounts of materials between the editions. It treats most subjects much more thoroughly than Birnbaums. The off-property hotels, for example, are excellent compared to Brinbaums. The tour plans are also a neat idea, and I look forward to trying them. The letters from customers are also a nice touch (adding customer insights, tips etc) but are a tad over-done.
   
   Now, the bad. This book screams for a good technical editor. The information is fairly inaccessible, given the number of pages, the poor organization and the hideous indexing. (Honestly, in any book about Disney, should anything be indexed under "Disney's XYZ"? I wanted to kick my dog when I tried to index some attraction and the index said "See Disney's ) I research for a living and have a doctorate, and the amount of work you have to go through to find every last scrap of information in this guide about a given subject is really inexcusable. The information is in there, and thorough, but dear me you really have to flog the thing to get it out. I find myself constantly referring to a Birnbaums guide just to get myself oriented and try and get the full context of what it is I need to extract from the Unofficial Guide's multiple sections.
   
   A final complaint that I have, that some people might consider a benefit rather than a detriment, is that this book has a bunch of non-disney stuff in it. While it is a nice touch to make people aware of what else there is to do and get them "off property," I personally consider it cluttering up the book with unneeded information. The title is U.G. to WALT DISNEY WORLD 2009, not Universal Studios, not Gatorworld etc etc. Honestly, for people who want to know what there is to do off property, let them buy a book about stuff off property a la "Unofficial Guide to Everything But Disney." Don't junk up a guide that is supposed to be about Disney with non-Disney stuff. It is just more stuff to slog through in an already bloated, unorganzied reference work. (Again, I readily concede some will consider this non-Disney information a benefit, but the book isn't "Disney and Stuff.")
   
   I like the book, it has great information, but it is poorly executed and really could benefit from serious editing/reogranization. As it stands now, most people will probably benefit from having the Birnbaums guide as a kind of concise Concordance to the Unofficial Guide's sprawl and bloat.
   
   P.S. I ordered from Amazon online on a Friday with standard shipping and had it on Monday.

5 comments about Fast Food Nation.

1. It's unnerving how a few mega billion dollar corporations can control the food supply in this country. I was shocked by the dehumanizing conditions in the slaughter houses and the negative impact they have on the environment.
   I can tell that the author has never experienced the working end of a grill spatula by how clueless he is to the business end of the industry, the people who are in the trenches. What manager has read I'm OK you're OK a book written in the 70's, please. Managers "stroke" their employees because of the age old adage, ya' catch more flies with sugar than vinegar. He's nailed the franchisees right on the head as far as never trusting the people who work for you.
   As far as the McLibel case goes, they had a good point with the marketing of fast food directed at kids, a whole generation has grown up who think the only side dish is fries. The people who brought the case against Mickey D's were way too whiney, I'm sure they wouldn't last a minute over a hot grill during lunch rush, what qualiifies to talk about the working conditions in fast food resturants.
   A must read for the poor bastards, like myself, who are in the industry and people who really are concerned about what they eat.



2. Schlosser attempts to explain the food industry: its origins, its workers, the supply of meat and potatoes and how these all have changed over the years. While I had already heard about the food side, I was surprised at how much time was spent covering the worker injuries and treatment both in the fast food franchises and in slaughterhouses. I did appreciate the whole picture approach and would recommend the book. However, there are at least 2 drawback that I can see.
   Although there are many statistics, the book is very anecdotal. It is very negative towards politics and especially republicans, but then relies on legislation and increased government for solutions.



3. You might think you know what this guy has to say, but rest assured that this book as full of surprises! It is also very interesting in a way that makes you read deep into the night.
   The book doesn't only cover what fast food is doing to our health and families, but also at how it is changing industries across the world. It contains a shocking section on how minorities are being exploited, especially in the US meat industry.
   
   It becomes more and more obvious how much research must have gone into the book, and it is refreshing, and maybe a little ironic, to see a product into which a lot of care and time was invested, especially in this fast-everything culture.
   
   I recommend this book wholeheartedly, because it is interesting, well-researched, well-written, relevant and good value for money.
   
   You'll never look at McDonalds the same way!



4. If you eat fast food, you need to read this book to understand what you're really putting into your body. Even if you don't eat fast food, this is an important read for the sake of understanding how the fast food industry has changed what we are as a country, and what we're becoming. It is a remarkable reality check.



5. In Eric Schlosser's first devastating book on the malpractices of the fast food industry, he pieces together history, facts, and numerous sources to reveal some disturbing truths about their nature.
   
   Fast Food Nation is less an expose` on how unhealthy junk food is than a look into the operations of the food industry, specifically McDonalds. The book is divided into two sections: the first, "The American Way," is concerned primarily with the growth and development of the fast food chains, beginning around the 40s in southern California and soon burgeoning into multiple restaurants across the US. Schlosser details the rise of the Speedee Service System, advertising techniques the emphasis on conformity by the chains, and their consolidation of power. The next section, "Meat and Potatoes," details various specifics about the machinations of the incredibly powerful fast food corporations. To the terrible conditions of workers in filthy (and dangerous) slaughterhouses, the employment of thousands of illegal immigrants in these buildings throughout the Midwest, and the diehard attempts by the corporations against possibilities of lawsuits by these workers after receiving any number of injuries. The companies further fight against the right to unionize.
   
   While Schlosser doesn't focus on the naturally unhealthy nature of fast food, he does describe the abundant diseases that can be found in the meat, such as E. coli O157:H7. The causes for these pathogens are the environments in the above-mentioned slaughterhouses, particularly the fact that feces often finds its way into the processed animals, or sick cattle are used along with healthy ones. Near the end of the book, fast food's spread around the globe and its effects on the societies of foreign nations are described. This and much more are brought up and examined by the determined author.
   
   As for the writing style, Schlosser has a great ability for scene setting, as in the first pages of the introduction where he describes the Cheyenne Mountain base, where it feels like it's some sort of sci-fi novel. This book never really drags, although in the epilogue his writing abruptly seems to become more lackluster. Other than that and repeating E. coli O157:H7 one too many times, this book can be a useful weapon against the fast food empire. I still plan to eat McDonalds, but I'll definitely be thinking more when I bite into one of their products.
   
   
   A note: many people will likely believe this book to be biased against the Republican party. But the fact is that the conservatives have all to often aided the corporations in their power grabs and take over of rivals. The Republicans are always accusing the Democrats of striking down competition in the free market, but it should be blatantly obvious that by buying off their other powerful competitors the corporations suppress any "free market" activity.

No comments about South-Western Federal Taxation 2009: Individual Income Taxes (with TaxCut® Tax Preparation Software CD-ROM).

5 comments about When Markets Collide: Investment Strategies for the Age of Global Economic Change.

1. I do not believe that this book is worth buying or reading
   because of three factors:
   
   1. It contains minimal advice for investors wishing to
   change their investment strategies.
   
   2. It is written for an audience for professional economists
   with advanced degrees.
   
   3. The editing of the text is very poor. Each chapter contained
   multiple references to something "that I will deal with in
   the next chapter" or "that I covered in previous chapter."
   A few of these references is understandable, but the text
   is so poorly written and edited that these references quickly
   became a distraction and a nuisance.
   
   I would strongly advise prospective readers to avoid this book.



2. This booke seemed to be a mosthy a discussion of emerging China and its interaction with the ecomonies in the developed countries. I believe that the book has increased my understanding on this subject a lot.



3. This book got my attention after I saw Alan Greenspan had commented on it on the back cover. Surprised at first as he rarely recommends books publicly, I decided to check into it. Sadly, the book was terrible. It is very convoluted and difficult to understand and didn't not present any non-elementary insight. Mohamed's book reminds me of a prof I had in college who would love to use big words but say absolutely nothing. Nothing is new here.
   
   Basically Mohamed El-Erian is a Oxford graduate turned PhD who late in his career entered the Investment Management game(he freely admits that). He managed the Harvard University's endowment fund and then recently quit and moved to the bonds management company PIMCO as a Co-CEO (seriously, who still thinks Co-CEO is a good idea). I suspect all of those people on the Back Cover who reviewed his book are his buddies from Harvard or PIMCO and probably everywhere else he works, knows, or pays. Even Alan Greenspan who now consults for PIMCO. I am willing to wager Mr Greenspan never even read his book but got paid a lot of money for "consulting" with PIMCO and now recommends the book of they guy who is paying his salary. Boy, Alan was a good economist. His book was excellent...
   
   This book should really be titled "When I wrote a book to impress my Harvard colleagues: Nothing new but noone will know because noone can understand it, sucka"



4. This book was awful. Part of the problem is that the author couldn't decide who his audience was and, as such, probably bored the pants off finance people and left regular folk scratching their heads at his absurdly opaque writing "style".
   
   A couple quick points if you are considering buying this book:
   
   1. It you read the newspaper most days, are reasonably intelligent and realize there is a big world with lotsa money beyond America's shores, this book will give you no new information on "when markets collide".
   
   2. If you have some (I mean A MINIMAL AMOUNT) of investment knowledge, you will be painfully disappointed by the lame chapter on how to profit from future "collisions". Really, the author just lays out a pretty mundane asset allocation plan (which is available for free on any number of websites) and then fills a couple dozen pages with worthless blather. Seriously, that's it.
   
   3. The writing really sucks. Others have commented on this so, rather than gives examples, I'll just reinforce what others have noted: the writing sucks. Whatever happened to editors?
   
   4. If you really want some ideas about investing internationally, try The World is Your Oyster by Jeff Opdyke (2008). Heaven forbid, he writes in plain ole' English and gives a lot of worthwhile advice. If you really want to understand where the world is headed, read Billions of Entrepreneurs, How China and India are Reshaping Their Futures and Yours, by Tarun Khanna (2008).
   
   5. If you really want some ideas about investing in general Peter Lynch's classics are still every bit as instructive (and humorous...and nicely written) and the biography of Warren Buffett, "Buffett", is incredibly instructive. Jeremy Siegel's "Stocks for the Long Run" is also pretty handy, although el-Erian makes some snide comments about it...but never quite gets around to justifying them...hmmm...some petty Harvard - Wharton rivalry?
   
   6. el-Erian's shout-outs to colleagues here and there get more tedious as the book goes on, particularly as he never seems to articulate how the work of these experts is relevant to creating an investment portfolio. Gee, thanks.
   
   7. Let me say it one more time: When Markets Collide is a worthless read.



5. I think this is an excellent book that makes you think. Mr. El-Erian certainly has a very deep understanding of the current economic and financial environment and is able to convey much of this understanding to his readers. I enjoyed the book very much.

5 comments about Now, Discover Your Strengths.

1. I wish my husband could have read it and used the code. I had gone on a job interview before reading this book and one of the questions they asked me, was what strategies would I use in a certain situation. And all I thought was that is THE dumbest question ever, how am I going to answer that, it all depends, I hate that word strategy.... you get the idea. Then as I was reading through the strengths book, I thought that would be so be ironic if one of my strengths was strategic. Well, sure enough that was the number one answer on my quiz results. So I am still laughing about that. So my strategy is to read through my strengths and understand them well enough and look at where I use those strengths and then try to improve on them. I would have given this 5 stars but since my hubby has to buy his own book, I only gave it 4.



2. The book is very interesting and very effective. The internet test is very accurate. Nevertheless each strength profile should be discussed more in depth. Let's say you get an idea of who you are but you would like to get more of it. Anyway, the price is worth the stuff you find in the book!



3. Nice concept that could have been handled with a 10 page paper. Clearly authors had to have some volume to prove value so they drone on and on and on. Very tedious reading. Then at every turn they continue to try to sell other products or services. The major killer is having an online exam to evalute your strengths; however, the code is only good once - so DON'T buy a used book as your code will be invalid. If the exam is a work related exercise, you'll be forced to buy a new book just for the code. Also, DON'T let your spouse read the book. If you do, they'll want to take the exam and suprise suprise, you would need another new book just to take the test.



4. [As a corporate human resources director, I often work on developing the latent talents and skills of various managers. Years ago, I taught a class where I had each participant to look into a hand-held mirror and ask the question, "Would you want to work for this person?"
   
   This book takes this exercise to a completely different level. To discover your own inner strengths (and weakness) ensures that you will become the very best manager possible. As a fan of First, Break All the Rules, I was very satisfied that this follow-up was as timely and useful as the first book. I highly recommend you purchase a copy of this book for yourself and for all of your managers. Michael L. Gooch, SPHR Author of
   [ASIN:1897326882 Wingtips with Spurs]]



5. I think the subject of the book is good, however a big part of dicovering your strengths is taking the on line strength finder quiz. Unfortunatley for me the code provided on the inside of the jacket is either invalid or has been used by someone already.
   So as I read this book I will be left to wonder "what are my strengths..."

5 comments about Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life.

1. This is a great book to give you perspective on change. I highly recommend it.



2. this is a great little book that has many applications in life
   who isn't aware that change is our only constant? but this book makes you reflect on how we deal with the changes makes the difference!
   i liked it so much -i ordered the kids version for my grandkids



3. The analogy of mice and little people trapped in a maze is a sadly accurate, insulting, and condescending one. An unintentional commentary on the fuedal system that is corporate America. So the moral of the story is, the powerless need to stop whining and accept whatever those in power choose to do to them. Don't think. Don't question. Don't hope.
   
   Don't buy this book.



4. I was disappointed with this product. The "kit" consists of the book and a CD. I was familar with the book, so that was no surprise. But I expected some type of video or annimation on the CD. Instead, it was mainly just a screen saver and some type of game that was not very interesting.



5. Who Moved My Cheese is a classic that uses a story without the burden of extra detail to force you to put your own life into the situation, and learn from it. It's true that this method isn't for everyone, but the book is popular for a reason: it helps people.
   
   Who Moved My Cheese has that special something that most fables lack. It makes you think. The only other fable I've seen accomplish this in the last decade is Squawk!: How to Stop Making Noise and Start Getting Results.

5 comments about Financial Accounting: Tools for Business Decision Making.

1. The authors have put together a text that is long on examples. It might seem redundant to some, but I think this is the right way to teach a process discipline like accounting.
   
   Much of the book is problem sets, in fact.
   
   Let's see, the chapters begin with study objectives. Then there are highlighted "key points." Then at the end of each lesson, there are demonstration problems, self-study questions, questions, a set of brief exercises, exercises, then problem sets A and B.
   
   I bought the 3rd edition, although the 4th is now available. The fourth edition has different problems in the first two chapters. In many instances, only the names of the company and an occasional number are different. It would matter if you are taking this for a class where the homework is graded. If your purpose is to learn the principles that underly financial accounting, though, you are as well served by the 3rd edition.



2. the book arrived a little later than i expected; but, it's a very helpful book if you want to go for accounting. the book's website is extremely useful.



3. Potential Buyers,
   
   If you are a student who is taking an accounting course and your instructor requires you to use the accompanying Wiley Plus website, do not expect to get a Wiley Plus, registration code with this product.
   
   I purchased the text "new" directly from Amazon for an accounting class I am taking and I assumed that I would recieve the registration code I needed; I assumed wrong as there was no registration code included with my book.
   
   If you do need the code for class and you do choose to buy this book from Amazon, you'll be best off buying the cheapest, used edition and going to the Wiley Plus site directly to get a standard registration code for around $60 dollars. Of Course keep in mind shipping costs may eat up any savings you'd get buying from Amazon in the first place!
   
   The 1 star review actually reflects my dissatisfaction with the description of this product on Amazon's site, and not the quality of the text.
   
   Happy Shopping!



4. This is an excellent book. Each chapter starts with a real life example of the learning objectives that will be covered in the chapter. The concepts are explained in terms that are easy to understand and grasp. There are a variety of problems at the end of each chapter to reinforce the learning objectives. I would recommend this book to anybody who has little knowledge of accounting or someone who needs a refresher in the accounting principles.



5. This book and the service surrounding it is absolute garbage. The positive reviews it has received are highly dubious. The book is very unclear with terminology, and the lack of answer keys to check your progress makes this worse. If you're buying this used be prepared to wade through red tape to get access to an answer key. 70 bucks for a single semester of access, and you won't have access as soon as you pay, you will also need a url from your instructor to access the site. I understand why this is needed for your class specific information but to simply access the sites tools, like an answer sheet, should not require anything more than your subscription...actually it should have come with the book.
   
   I have taken two other classes with website support material and I did not have to go through near the trouble. I am likely to take my complaint to my colleges administration as this book would only be tolerable to someone strong in this field, which defeats its purpose.

2 comments about Intermediate Accounting, Update.

1. Outstanding purchase. I got exactly what I wanted at a great price in a timely fashion. I would definitely order from this seller again.



2. Intermediate Accounting, Update
   Intermediate Accounting is a comprehensive, attractive textbook. The usefulness of the exercises is curtailed by the lack of an answer section. I guess it is a marketing ploy to produce workbooks separately instead of providing even abbreviated answers in textbooks, nowadays. Apart from this deficiency, the book is very useful for studying accounting principles.

5 comments about Managerial Accounting.

1. I really learned a lot from Managerial Accounting. The text is very succinct and helpful, if a little too detailed. There is a wealth of practice problems available, even if you sometimes have to dig through them in order to really get to the helpful review. The book would have benefited from having the answers to the practice problems included, but the review problems at the end of each chapter are super helpful. Finally, the real-life business insights are the best I have ever read in a textbook and really made it enjoyable to read.



2. It is a higher level cost-accounting book. It is a detailed book but would be better if it had answer guides in the back for some questions etc.
   
   The book does have elaborate examples before the question section though, which is beneficial.



3. Came when it was supposed to, in good condition. No problems. Would use again.



4. From the very beginning, I ordered book for my class which was started on July 7. But I didn't receive the book around the date so I had to purchase one. I contact the sender, someone told me that I can get refund after I receive the book. But until now I didn't receive the book (even I receive it,it was too late) and contacted back to sender, who didn't respond to me and didn't refund me payment.
   
   I'm very disappointed about the sender's behavior and I hope the sender can contact me as soon as he/she can to refund me the payment!!!



5. Came in right on time. And it was in great condition.
   
   Thx