Title: Customer Service Pocketbook – 2nd Edition
Authors: Tony Newby & Sean McManus
Publisher: Management Pocketboooks “Words that speak volumes”
Publisher’s website: www.pocketbook.co.uk
ISBN: 9781903776001
Presentation: Softcover, pocketbook, landscape mode
The first edition of this book was authored by Tony Newby in 1991 and became a very popular guide for customer service. After his death, the book was revised by Sean McManus and the 2nd edition was published in 2002.
Download a free chapter of The Customer Service Pocketbook at Sean's website.
The cartoon on the front cover catches your eye (the lady bending over backwards for providing customer service with the Customer 1st slogan prominently displayed in the background). There are more inside to add a light touch and to bring home the message. The print design is very attractive and you will feel like reading and re-reading the book. In the space of about 100 pages, the book manages to highlight the importance of customer service.
The topics covered include:
- Why Customer Service Matters
- What’s Different About Good Service?
- Effective Customer Communications
- Turning Complaints Into Opportunities
- Empowering Great Customer Service
- Measuring Customer Service
- Personal Action Planning
- Appendix: Notes for Trainers
- Recommended Further Reading
The subject is dealt well, concisely and at the same time, not leaving any essential topic. The book reads like a mini-seminar on the subject and of course the Notes for Trainers gives specific and helpful hints how to structure the one day training programme based on this book.
The graph on page 7 could have done better (the x-axis has no scale and does not show any particular parameter). The book is otherwise edited well and the print quality is excellent.
It will be a good addition to the personal library of managers at all levels and will also be a good candidate as a handout / introduction to the subject.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Title: Tarantula Tide
Author: Sharon Tregenza
Publisher: Floris Books
ISBN: 978-086315-673-1
Genre: Fiction / Children / Mystery
Presentation: Soft Cover
The title is a mystery and the story is also a mystery involving two children Jack and Izzie (Isabel) set in Shetland, a group of islands off Scotland. The theme is animal smuggling and the story starts with Jack and Izzie discovering a tarantula whome Izzie calls Octavia. Though the main characters don’t realize who the culprit is, the readers can guess by the middle of the book and it is satisfying to know that one’s surmise is correct. The real mystery in the book is about Jack’s dad and that comes as a surprise. The story has a happy ending with Jack and his photographer mother vowing to come back to the enchanted place.
The story is well written and is not too fast nor too slow. The style is good and the book is generally well edited. However, some sections slipped through the editor’s watchful eyes and I will be sharing the same with the author for correction in future editions.
All in all, a good read.
Author: Sharon Tregenza
Publisher: Floris Books
ISBN: 978-086315-673-1
Genre: Fiction / Children / Mystery
Presentation: Soft Cover
The title is a mystery and the story is also a mystery involving two children Jack and Izzie (Isabel) set in Shetland, a group of islands off Scotland. The theme is animal smuggling and the story starts with Jack and Izzie discovering a tarantula whome Izzie calls Octavia. Though the main characters don’t realize who the culprit is, the readers can guess by the middle of the book and it is satisfying to know that one’s surmise is correct. The real mystery in the book is about Jack’s dad and that comes as a surprise. The story has a happy ending with Jack and his photographer mother vowing to come back to the enchanted place.
The story is well written and is not too fast nor too slow. The style is good and the book is generally well edited. However, some sections slipped through the editor’s watchful eyes and I will be sharing the same with the author for correction in future editions.
All in all, a good read.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Title: Children from the sea
Author: Lookman
Publisher: Nightingale Books
ISBN: 9781903491638
Genre: Fiction / Children / Fantasy/ Adventure
The cover photograph is rather odd and the story is odd too. It is a fantasy of children being converted to dolphins, staying in the sea for a few hundred years and getting reconverted into children thanks to a kiss from an adolescent girl, Katie.
Katie is forced to relocate from England to a small village in Spain because of her father’s business. What she thought would be a boring life turned out to be quite an adventure thanks to the dolphins / children, the eldest being a little elder to her. It would not be fair to reveal what happens after they get transformed into children and the ending is rather interesting.
Lookman was born in Surrey in 1950, a time when children roamed freely and adventurously and made their own entertainment (not having so many gadgets to distract them as now). His interest in Sufism led to his use of the pseudonym Lookman, after the wise sage in Qur’an. The Sufi leanings of the author come through in the story and if you are a fundamentalist in any religion (something alien to Sufism), you may not relate to the story.
The story is interesting enough to keep reader’s interest and the style is good enough to keep you going. Some passages in the story are moving and the account of religious persecution strikes a chord even today!
Though the book is meant for children (I would say the suggested age group is 10 to 15), it may appeal to elders too, especially those whose inner child is still alive and active. Give it a try and decide whether it is for you. I would rate it GOOD.
Author: Lookman
Publisher: Nightingale Books
ISBN: 9781903491638
Genre: Fiction / Children / Fantasy/ Adventure
The cover photograph is rather odd and the story is odd too. It is a fantasy of children being converted to dolphins, staying in the sea for a few hundred years and getting reconverted into children thanks to a kiss from an adolescent girl, Katie.
Katie is forced to relocate from England to a small village in Spain because of her father’s business. What she thought would be a boring life turned out to be quite an adventure thanks to the dolphins / children, the eldest being a little elder to her. It would not be fair to reveal what happens after they get transformed into children and the ending is rather interesting.
Lookman was born in Surrey in 1950, a time when children roamed freely and adventurously and made their own entertainment (not having so many gadgets to distract them as now). His interest in Sufism led to his use of the pseudonym Lookman, after the wise sage in Qur’an. The Sufi leanings of the author come through in the story and if you are a fundamentalist in any religion (something alien to Sufism), you may not relate to the story.
The story is interesting enough to keep reader’s interest and the style is good enough to keep you going. Some passages in the story are moving and the account of religious persecution strikes a chord even today!
Though the book is meant for children (I would say the suggested age group is 10 to 15), it may appeal to elders too, especially those whose inner child is still alive and active. Give it a try and decide whether it is for you. I would rate it GOOD.
Monday, April 06, 2009
Title: Shared Stories From Daughters of Alzheimer’s
Sub-title: Writing a Path to Peace
Edited by: Persis R. Granger
Publisher: iUniverse Star
ISBN: 9780595297269
Genre: Non-Fiction / Health/ Memoirs
Presentation: Soft Cover
This book is a collection of personal stories shared by daughters of patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. The shock, the anger, the grief, the stress etc. are brought out with sincerity and honesty by the different authors. The editing by Percis R. Granger is by and large excellent and the book is highly readable (though my sharp eye caught some slips, they won't interfere with the reading). The book is not easy to read because of the emotions that are shared but is a valuable addition to the growing literature on Alzheimer's disease, a progressive and as of today incurable form of dementia, whose final diagnosis can only be made through a postmortem!
More and more people are becoming victims of Alzheimer's (partly because of increasing life span) and caring for them when they fail to recognize themselves and their care givers is no easy task. Relationships get affected apart from financial difficulties. Sending the person to an institution for care is one of the toughest decisions and the stories give an intimate look at the emotional trauma of the care givers. The book is thus moving at many places. In a country like India, where elders are supposed to be taken care of by children and there is no real infrastructure for their separate living, the relationships are affected severely due to the stress and strain of chronic illness and consequent burden on the care givers. Some of the stories in the book will thus strike a chord for such readers too!
Though the book focuses on Alzheimer's, any chronic illness that makes the person dependent on others causes similar problems and thus the book would be relevant to patients and caregivers of other chronic and debilitating diseases.
The book has a foreword by Pat Jimison, an introduction by Kathleen Adams and resources section at the end. However, alternative, holistic treatment options if any are left out and it is hoped that the future editions and a website will carry such information (as of now there is no specific website for the book). A lot of research on the role of antioxidants and herbs in delaying the onset of or improvement of Alzheimer's is now coming up and the book / website could have covered that.
I went through many emotions as I was reading this book since my own mother passed away in 2003 at the age of 89 and I felt (and feel even now) that I could have been a better son as far as her care is concerned. Her presence in the house was not stress free and many times I felt helpless! Journalling as suggested in the book is a good and effective way of coming to terms with the emotions that one cannot process immediately.
I recommend this book to all caregivers and even to chronic patients to give them an idea of the life ahead for those in early stages of Alzheimer's.
Sub-title: Writing a Path to Peace
Edited by: Persis R. Granger
Publisher: iUniverse Star
ISBN: 9780595297269
Genre: Non-Fiction / Health/ Memoirs
Presentation: Soft Cover
This book is a collection of personal stories shared by daughters of patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. The shock, the anger, the grief, the stress etc. are brought out with sincerity and honesty by the different authors. The editing by Percis R. Granger is by and large excellent and the book is highly readable (though my sharp eye caught some slips, they won't interfere with the reading). The book is not easy to read because of the emotions that are shared but is a valuable addition to the growing literature on Alzheimer's disease, a progressive and as of today incurable form of dementia, whose final diagnosis can only be made through a postmortem!
More and more people are becoming victims of Alzheimer's (partly because of increasing life span) and caring for them when they fail to recognize themselves and their care givers is no easy task. Relationships get affected apart from financial difficulties. Sending the person to an institution for care is one of the toughest decisions and the stories give an intimate look at the emotional trauma of the care givers. The book is thus moving at many places. In a country like India, where elders are supposed to be taken care of by children and there is no real infrastructure for their separate living, the relationships are affected severely due to the stress and strain of chronic illness and consequent burden on the care givers. Some of the stories in the book will thus strike a chord for such readers too!
Though the book focuses on Alzheimer's, any chronic illness that makes the person dependent on others causes similar problems and thus the book would be relevant to patients and caregivers of other chronic and debilitating diseases.
The book has a foreword by Pat Jimison, an introduction by Kathleen Adams and resources section at the end. However, alternative, holistic treatment options if any are left out and it is hoped that the future editions and a website will carry such information (as of now there is no specific website for the book). A lot of research on the role of antioxidants and herbs in delaying the onset of or improvement of Alzheimer's is now coming up and the book / website could have covered that.
I went through many emotions as I was reading this book since my own mother passed away in 2003 at the age of 89 and I felt (and feel even now) that I could have been a better son as far as her care is concerned. Her presence in the house was not stress free and many times I felt helpless! Journalling as suggested in the book is a good and effective way of coming to terms with the emotions that one cannot process immediately.
I recommend this book to all caregivers and even to chronic patients to give them an idea of the life ahead for those in early stages of Alzheimer's.
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
Title: The Whispering Fields
Author: Joseph Collins
Publisher: Foremost Press
ISBN: 978-0-9818418-4-7
Genre: Fiction / Fantasy / Epic
Presentation: Soft cover
The Whispering Fields is a work of fiction, a fantasy where dogs and other animals talk, sing etc. and as mentioned on the cover, we may think of it as an epic, since it is conceived and constructed on a grand scale and is quite poetic though written in prose (there are quite a few poems in between the prose).
Toby is a dog that is abandoned by its human master and after failing to find him, after waiting in vain for some time hoping against hope for his return, he starts a long journey of trying to fend for himself, makes a few good friends, loses two of them in rather strange circumstances and makes a determined enemy who wants to switch his spirit with Toby! Toby and his two other friends finally find the paradise (The Whispering Fields promised in the folklore) that they are searching for. The ending is not what the reader imagines it to be and even Toby and his friends did not realise that their search really ended till almost the end.
The style is reasonably good though not unput-downable and a few editorial slips caught my eye. But they are so few and so minor that the reading is unaffected. The narrative is rather too detailed at places and the poems did not strike much of a chord with me, mainly because poetry is not my cup of tea.
All in all, I found the book sufficiently interesting to keep going and would recommend the same for all animal lovers (especially dog lovers) and those who like fantasies that convey some good morals. The message of the book is valid for human beings too.
Author: Joseph Collins
Publisher: Foremost Press
ISBN: 978-0-9818418-4-7
Genre: Fiction / Fantasy / Epic
Presentation: Soft cover
The Whispering Fields is a work of fiction, a fantasy where dogs and other animals talk, sing etc. and as mentioned on the cover, we may think of it as an epic, since it is conceived and constructed on a grand scale and is quite poetic though written in prose (there are quite a few poems in between the prose).
Toby is a dog that is abandoned by its human master and after failing to find him, after waiting in vain for some time hoping against hope for his return, he starts a long journey of trying to fend for himself, makes a few good friends, loses two of them in rather strange circumstances and makes a determined enemy who wants to switch his spirit with Toby! Toby and his two other friends finally find the paradise (The Whispering Fields promised in the folklore) that they are searching for. The ending is not what the reader imagines it to be and even Toby and his friends did not realise that their search really ended till almost the end.
The style is reasonably good though not unput-downable and a few editorial slips caught my eye. But they are so few and so minor that the reading is unaffected. The narrative is rather too detailed at places and the poems did not strike much of a chord with me, mainly because poetry is not my cup of tea.
All in all, I found the book sufficiently interesting to keep going and would recommend the same for all animal lovers (especially dog lovers) and those who like fantasies that convey some good morals. The message of the book is valid for human beings too.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Title: Rupture
Author: A. Scott Pearson
Publisher: Oceanview Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-933515-23-6
Genre: Fiction / Medical Mystery
Rupture is a medical mystery. An implant, that is supposed to save the lives of patients by preventing the rupture of aneurysms starts becoming a killer. The best efforts of the surgeons fail. And the mystery becomes deeper when a blame game starts. The main players Dr. Eli Branch and the pathologist Dr. Meg Daily get sucked into the malevolent plot of a company that tries to protect its interests at any cost. In that process, a lot of information is presented about surgical procedures, stem cell therapy etc. A few other topics, not so good are also touched upon (necrophilia for example). If you are rather squeamish, better keep away. The story ends well with the hero Dr. Eli Branch becoming a national hero and suggests the rather controversial topic of a permanent cure for juvenile diabetes by stem cell therapy.
The book is written in an excellent style. The details of the medical surgical procedures and the details about the cells, stem cell therapy etc. are interesting to those with a little background. Even if one does not understand the terms, one can probably appreciate the story for its suspense and human drama.
Since I received an uncorrected copy (ARC), I cannot comment about the final print quality. I did not notice any major editorial mistakes but some editing might have been done to improve the text.
My impression of the book is that it is a very good read. I enjoyed reading it and look forward to more offerings from the author.
Author: A. Scott Pearson
Publisher: Oceanview Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-933515-23-6
Genre: Fiction / Medical Mystery
Rupture is a medical mystery. An implant, that is supposed to save the lives of patients by preventing the rupture of aneurysms starts becoming a killer. The best efforts of the surgeons fail. And the mystery becomes deeper when a blame game starts. The main players Dr. Eli Branch and the pathologist Dr. Meg Daily get sucked into the malevolent plot of a company that tries to protect its interests at any cost. In that process, a lot of information is presented about surgical procedures, stem cell therapy etc. A few other topics, not so good are also touched upon (necrophilia for example). If you are rather squeamish, better keep away. The story ends well with the hero Dr. Eli Branch becoming a national hero and suggests the rather controversial topic of a permanent cure for juvenile diabetes by stem cell therapy.
The book is written in an excellent style. The details of the medical surgical procedures and the details about the cells, stem cell therapy etc. are interesting to those with a little background. Even if one does not understand the terms, one can probably appreciate the story for its suspense and human drama.
Since I received an uncorrected copy (ARC), I cannot comment about the final print quality. I did not notice any major editorial mistakes but some editing might have been done to improve the text.
My impression of the book is that it is a very good read. I enjoyed reading it and look forward to more offerings from the author.
Title: We're in This Boat Together
Sub-Title: Leadership Succession Between the Generations
Author: Camille F. Bishop, PhD
Publisher: Authentic Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-934068-37-3
Genre: Non-Fiction/Management/Leadership/Team Building
Presentation: Soft Cover
'We're in This Boat Together' is a 2-in-1, a business novel and a dissertation about the Leadership Succession Between Generations or the Generation Gap and its effects on leadership. The experiment with the format is laudable but the result is a little unsettling. Read on for my perspective.
When the request for review came, I asked for and got a peek into the first few pages of the book ending with the prologue. I skipped the preface etc. and read the prologue and was thrilled. Here is a book on management with a good focus on leadership transition between the generations written like a business novel and the prologue was so good in style! I accepted the review request and got the printed book.
The book is printed well, the paper quality is good, the type is clear and the readability is good. As already mentioned, the starting is good, rather racy in fact!
The book is about the team building exercise through a river rafting expedition, an exercise to which a team of four from the IT Department of a mid-size company was sent by the management. The team starts as four independent individuals wondering why they were sent for this and ending up as a well knit team at the end of the expedition, in which they were subjected to challenges that test their willingness and ability to work as a team in a crunch situation. The team finds a real life parallel in the office when leadership transition takes place. The concept is good and the parallel of the river with its rapids is highly apt to life in general and change management in particular. Thus the author is to be commended for taking up a worthwhile topic in change management. Leadership transitions are brought on by several factors and the leadership transition brought on by generation gap is an important element. There are other factors of course that affect leadership styles.
The book adopts a rather novel approach. The text keeps alternating between the smooth flow of a novel and the not-so-smooth flow of a good dissertation on the effects of generation on leadership. The smooth flow of the novel like presentation is interrupted by the highly academic dissertation on the leadership styles of the different generations. Much as the author tried to present that part in a simple and readable style, the transition is too abrupt. This continued through out the book.
Having read and enjoyed management books written in the novel format (who hasn't read The Goal?), as well as a non-fiction essay format, I found the sudden changes in the style and the pace rather unsettling. It is as if the author was affected by the river!
I hope the author will attempt a smoother transition between the two formats in a future edition. I believe that it is possible to convey all serious topics on science and management through the novel format.
Sub-Title: Leadership Succession Between the Generations
Author: Camille F. Bishop, PhD
Publisher: Authentic Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-934068-37-3
Genre: Non-Fiction/Management/Leadership/Team Building
Presentation: Soft Cover
'We're in This Boat Together' is a 2-in-1, a business novel and a dissertation about the Leadership Succession Between Generations or the Generation Gap and its effects on leadership. The experiment with the format is laudable but the result is a little unsettling. Read on for my perspective.
When the request for review came, I asked for and got a peek into the first few pages of the book ending with the prologue. I skipped the preface etc. and read the prologue and was thrilled. Here is a book on management with a good focus on leadership transition between the generations written like a business novel and the prologue was so good in style! I accepted the review request and got the printed book.
The book is printed well, the paper quality is good, the type is clear and the readability is good. As already mentioned, the starting is good, rather racy in fact!
The book is about the team building exercise through a river rafting expedition, an exercise to which a team of four from the IT Department of a mid-size company was sent by the management. The team starts as four independent individuals wondering why they were sent for this and ending up as a well knit team at the end of the expedition, in which they were subjected to challenges that test their willingness and ability to work as a team in a crunch situation. The team finds a real life parallel in the office when leadership transition takes place. The concept is good and the parallel of the river with its rapids is highly apt to life in general and change management in particular. Thus the author is to be commended for taking up a worthwhile topic in change management. Leadership transitions are brought on by several factors and the leadership transition brought on by generation gap is an important element. There are other factors of course that affect leadership styles.
The book adopts a rather novel approach. The text keeps alternating between the smooth flow of a novel and the not-so-smooth flow of a good dissertation on the effects of generation on leadership. The smooth flow of the novel like presentation is interrupted by the highly academic dissertation on the leadership styles of the different generations. Much as the author tried to present that part in a simple and readable style, the transition is too abrupt. This continued through out the book.
Having read and enjoyed management books written in the novel format (who hasn't read The Goal?), as well as a non-fiction essay format, I found the sudden changes in the style and the pace rather unsettling. It is as if the author was affected by the river!
I hope the author will attempt a smoother transition between the two formats in a future edition. I believe that it is possible to convey all serious topics on science and management through the novel format.
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Title: Nick's New Heart
Sub-Title: The True Story of Love, Strength, and Courage
Author: Susan May
Publisher: Tiger Iron Press
ISBN: 0-9787263-2-4
Genre: Biography, Medical, Coping
Presentation: Hard Bound with dust jacket
I love medical books, especially the ones written by laymen and those written for laymen by doctors. So, when a chance came to review this book, I agreed readily and I am happy that I agreed!
Susan writes well and the editors also did a wonderful job in keeping the flow smooth. The story is gripping and the saying, "Truth is stranger than fiction" is so true in this case. The problems with Nick (Nicholas) start early, almost immediately after his birth and continue into the childhood, culminating in a heart transplant surgery 17 years ago! The book is about the drama, the trauma and the wonderful doctors and the support groups that helped the baby live and that too with a fairly high quality of life!
There are a few typos but they won't distract you, the reader (I could not help seeing them because I am a reviewer and editor myself). I was left wondering why Susan did not write this book earlier when pediatric heart transplants were not that common and when her book could have reached out and gave new hope and courage to thousands of affected parents all over the world. Now, pediatric heart surgeries including heart transplants are much more common and there is lot more information in the form of books, articles etc. I was reading a wonderful letter from Dr. Devi Shetty of Bangalore (Bengaluru now), a leading pediatric cardiac surgeon who has performed 4000+ surgeries on children and the letter was addressed to the children. Ask me for the link to that letter if interested. He does the surgery free!
All in all, reading this book was moving and inspiring. I recommend the book strongly if you or some one you know have any interest in health matters, especially relating to children, surgeries etc.
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