Second Sight (2nd Ed) by Judith Orloff, MD

In 1996 Dr Judith Orloff released her book – Second Sight – and it went on to become a best selling book. What has happened in Dr Orloff’s practice and the field of psychiatry and intuitive medicine in the last 13 years? The second edition brings you up to date on the changes is intuitive medicine.

In the late 1990′s Dr Judith Orloff released her story in the book- Second Sight – and she shared her struggles to understand her intuition and the events in her life that motivated her to weave her intuition into her psychiatric practice.

In addition – the second edition gives the reader information to delve deeper into their own lessons about intuition in their own lives. The reader learns how to understand intuition, how it works, how to tap into their own intuition and much more.

The second edition also has a new introduction written by Dr Orloff.  This book helps empower people to listen to intuition and apply it to decision making, health and emotional issues, and empower their lives.

The chapters in the second edition of Second Sight by Judith Orloff, MD include:

Part 1 – Initiations

Chapter 1 – The Beginnings of Wisdom

Chapter 2 – Validating the Voice

Chapter 3 – Loss of Innocence

Chapter 4 – Healing the Split

Chapter 5 – Mixing Medicine

Chapter 6 – Female Lineage

Part 2 – Teachings

Chapter 7 – Preparing to See

Chapter 8 – The Alchemy of Dreams

Chapter 9 – Intuitive Experiences in Everyday Life

Chapter 10 – The Well Balanced Intuition

Chapter 11 – The Spiritual Path of Intuition

Chapter 12 – Honoring the Gift

If you are interested in learning more about intuition in yourself or others you should read this book. If you are interested in how a psychiatrist can use the science she learned and combine it with her intuitive wisdom – this book is for you. If you read the original edition of Second Sight and you would like to delve deeper into Dr Orloff’s life experiences and to understand more about intuition – this is the book you need to read.

SPECIAL NOTE –

GET your copy of Second Sight ON MARCH 1^st and receive 80+ GIfts from amazing teachers such as Dr. Joan Borysenko, Rev. Michael Beckwith, and Deepak Chopra, and Shirley MacLaine at http://www.drjudithorloff.com/second-sight-promotion/

About Second Sight by Judith Orloff, MD (2^nd Edition)

In this moving personal story Dr. Orloff recounts her “journey to become whole” by first accepting and then embracing her intuitive abilities. She tells of her childhood fear of her intuition, of her physician-parents’ efforts to ignore and even deny them, and of her slow awakening to the understanding that her intuition is truly a gift. She tells of her struggle to incorporate her abilities into her practice and of the many successes she’s experienced with patients ever since. Second Sight is a soulful and friendly bestseller.

Text from the back cover
As a child, her vivid dreams and intuitions were whispered about behind closed doors. As a medical student, she denied the “shameful secret” by immersing herself in the absolutes of science. Then as a psychiatrist, Dr. Judith Orloff recieved proof of the value of her gift when an intuition foretold a patient’s suicide attempt. In this remarkable self-portrait, she takes you on the journey of a lifetime, one that brought her from ignorance to understanding, from loneliness to peace, from despair to hope…

Judith Orloff MD is author of the new book SECOND SIGHT: AN INTUITIVE PSYCHIATRIST TELLS HER STORY AND SHOWS YOU HOW TO TAP YOUR OWN INNER WISDOM (Three Rivers Press, 2010 updated edition). Her other bestsellers are Emotional Freedom, Positive Energy, Intuitive Healing. Dr. Orloff synthesizes the pearls of traditional medicine with cutting edge knowledge of intuition, energy, and spirituality. She passionately believes that the future of medicine involves integrating all this wisdom to achieve emotional freedom and total wellness. For more inspiration and free articles visit www.drjudithorloff.com

Heart of Marketing by Judith Sherven and Jim Sniechowski

Customer service and really good customer service seems to be a thing of the past in many businesses. When I was growing up – my grandfather reinforced the importance of stellar customer service to me and that lesson has served me very well of the last two decades.  This book explains how to put “heart” back into our businesses and our marketing.

The full title of this book is Heart of Marketing: Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back.

This book is made up of the answers to 45 questions about the “soft sell marketing” concept. There were MANY questions submitted, but Judith and Jim narrowed it down to 45 questions and share the answers with all of us in Heart of Marketing.

Some of the topics include:

• What is Marketing?

• What is the primary benefit of soft sell marketing?

• How does soft sell marketing differ from hard sell?

• People say to succeed you have to get your ego out of the way. What does that mean?

• When creating soft sell marketing messages, which words reassure and establish a relationship quickly?

• Do you use “urgency” or “scarcity” in soft sell marketing?

• How do I sell without making a nuisance of myself?

• How can you close a sale without pushing too far?

• How do I train my brain to realize its ok to ask for the sale because what I am offering is of value of them and not just money for me?

• What are the pitfalls of soft sell marketing?

• How do I measure the success of soft sell marketing?

These are just a few of the questions that are included in Heart of Marketing.

Are you the type of business person or sales person who has a hard time with the traditional hard sell approach? You NEED to read this book. I learned long ago that you can make the sale and succeed with using hard sell techniques. This book takes that premise and walks you through the soft sell process. Even if you like the “hard sell” – you can learn valuable tips from this book and you may find ideas that you can incorporate into your current selling techniques. It could help you take your current success to a much higher level.

Are you an entrepreneur and business owner who wants their sales people to use the soft sell sales approach? You need to recommend this book to your sales team or better yet – buy copies for them and help them learn how to love your customers – your business will reap the benefits.  I worked with Judith and Jim on the campaign that helped them reach Amazon Best Seller status – now you can find out what all the excitement was about – and learn the soft sale tips that made this book a best seller.

How Obama Governed by Earl Ofari Hutchinson

In these days when many people are sick and tired of most people in the media just recycling the words fed to them by the White House – it is very refreshing to find a political analyst who thinks for their self and who substantiates their comments. This is one of the things I really like about reading any of Earl Ofari Hutchin’s books and I’ve read many of them.

I never started following politics until I met Dr Hutchinson about 2 1/2 years ago. At that time I read his book on The Latino Challenge to Black America and I was floored by how much I learned about race relations in the US. As a white woman from Virginia, most of the topics that were discussed were new to me – but he helped me to have a deeper and more compassionate viewpoint about two of the major ethnic groups in the US. That started me thinking and I’ve read all of Dr Hutchinson’s books since then and a couple of earlier books

So – the timing was perfect to follow the seemingly never ending primary season that led up to the 2008 presidential election. As he released new books, I continued to learn current details – but to also understand the history of politics in our country. To say that I’ve learned more about government by reading Dr Hutchinson’s books than I ever learned in Government or Civics class in high school – would be a huge understatement.

Earl Ofari Hutchinson’s last book was How Obama Won and it evaluated all the topics and issues that led to Barack Obama’s presidential victory. Again, he included plenty of historic details to substantiate his conclusions. You find the same unbiased and well documented details in How Obama Governed. Recently, I spoke with various bloggers to ask them to post some information about this book and many (predictably) said they would only participate if he agreed with their stand. Almost every one commented on how they were surprised that political party and stand were not an issue for them. People of many different political affiliations participated. In this year of partisan upheaval – I was very impressed with that conclusion.

This is the table of contents for How Obama Governed by Earl Ofari Hutchinson

How Obama Governed: The Year of Crisis and Challenge

Introduction: How Obama Promised to Govern

1. The First 1000 Days, Not 100 Days

2. Waging Bush’s Terror War

3. It’s Still the Economy, Stupid

4. The Red President

5. The GOP Counterinsurgency

6. The Limbaugh Strawman

7. Obamacare-The Right or Wrong Prescription

8. The Civil Rights Backburner

9. Afghanistan is Obama’s Vietnam

10. The Gates Train wreck

11. Progessive’s Obama Quandry

Conclusion: How Obama Will Continue to Govern

Throughout the time I paid attention to people who talk about politics – they seem to know as much as the weatherman and are often as wrong as the weatherman in their conclusions. However, I’ve found that almost without exception, the conclusions that Dr Hutchinson shares – are right. Could this be because of his extensive knowledge and background in politics? I think it is – he is willing to pose the tough questions and to give an honest evaluation.

How Obama Governed deals with all the hot button topics that the Obama Administration have faced and they are still facing many of these issues. Take another look at the table of contents – that is all the topics in the news each week. For a balanced commentary on these topics, how the affect Obama, and how they will affect each of us – you need to read this book. Its a quick read – but packed with all the topics that are on the mind of the people of the US and other countries who are concerned about what has already happened in the first year of the Obama presidency and what will happen in the next three years. For anyone who wants to cut through the usual pundits’ BS – needs to read this book.

About Earl Ofari Hutchinson

Dr Earl Ofari Hutchinson featured interviews and comments on race and politics have appeared in: Time Newsweek New York Times ABC’s World News Tonight. He has been a guest analyst on: Fox News John Gibson Show, O’Reilly Show, Hannity & Colmes, Glenn Beck Show, PBS Lehrer Report, NPR’s Talk of the Nation and CNN News Shows. He is the National Political Writer for New America Media and a regular contributor to: the Huffington Post

His three most recent books are:
* How Obama Governed: The Year of Crisis and Challenge
* How Obama Won
* The Ethnic Presidency: How Race decides the Race to the White House

To book Earl Ofari Hutchinson for an interview and/or commentary on the promise and pitfalls of Obama’s first year in office. Call 1-323-383-6145 to schedule. Earl Ofari Hutchinson is a nationally acclaimed author and political analyst. Hutchinson is the author of ten books on race and politics in America.

Title – How Obama Governed
Author – Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Author’s website link – http://www.howobamagoverned.com
Publisher – Middle Passage Press
Genre or category – US Politics
ISBN-10: 1439259925
ISBN-13: 978-1439259924
Amazon – http://www.amazon.com/How-Obama-Governed-Crisis-Challenge/dp/1439259925

Roadside Crosses by Jeffrey Deaver

I haven’t had time to read a Jeffrey Deaver book in a while, so when I packed to head to Nags Head for a few days at Thanksgiving – I had to toss one of his latest books in the bag

I really like Kathryn Dance – a new character for Deaver. She is a kinesics expert – that means that she studies body language and I’ve really enjoyed learning more about her art in the books about her. The last one was The Sleeping Doll, which was very good. I was pleased to see this story picks up right after the end of the last book. They had just solved a big case, one of the officer’s died and things in Kathryn’s personal life are very much the same. The death of the fellow officer is a big part of this story and Kathryn’s parents – particularly her mother – are a big part of this story.

Kathryn is very good at what she does – but she is very human. She worries that she’s misreading the signs, she worries about her kids and her parents, she misses her husband and so much more. I just really like her

In this book – Kathryn’s mother is arrested for a mercy killing, a high school student is thought to be killing people who posted comments about him on a blog and there are some unusual things happpening with the people Kathryn works with. I like all the underlying stories that Jeffrey Deaver always includes in his books. Many layers and many unexpected turns in all his stories.

I was determined to finish reading this last night and with about 100 pages left – someone was arrested. That had me wondering – that left about 25% of the book for those unexpected twists and turns that I love so much — and he did not disappoint me I lost track of the surprises that were included after that first arrest – but they all made sense and just added to the story.

A bit more background about the story – people start discovering “road side crosses” along the highway and they have that day’s date on them. Later that day, someone is found hurt and possibly dying. These attempted murders seem to all be related to a blog post about a car accident. A short time before the book starts, a couple of high school girls were killed in a car wreck and many people post comments about the person who it was reported, was driving the car when the girls died. He is an outcast – with no real friends, a rough family life, and a rich online fantasy life – but is he a murderer? When the FBI and Dance’s team start to close in on him, he disappears and more people who posted comments about him are hurt. The more Dance works on the case, the more she begins to doubt if he is guilty, but all the evidence points to him.

In addition, Kathryn’s mother is facing a trial for the mercy killing of the young officer who was hurt at the end of the last book. One of Kathryn’s superiors is causing her all kinds of problems and what about the geeky, but attractive professor who is helping them with their computer research? Many layers, many twists and a book that I think all Deaver fans will enjoy. My schedule made it hard to find time to finish this one, but it was worth the wait. High recommended.

GirlForce by Nikki Goldstein

This book is called “A Girl’s Guide to the Body and Soul”. I really like that. I think all women remember those tough teenage years when we struggled with the changes of our bodies, dealing with hormones, moods, boys, school and so many other confusing and difficult things. I would’ve loved to have something that helped me think that I wasn’t crazy

Nikki Goldstein has put together a great guide for teens and she has wonderful information on one of her websites for the mothers of teen girls. I have a feeling my mother would’ve appreciated that information when I was a teen. We were both at a loss about how to deal with so many things that happened during those years.

This is the table of contents to give you an idea of what Goldstein covers in this book –

Chapter One – Who Are You?

Chapter Two – Create Your Own GirlForce Body Type Balancing Plan

Chapter Three – Eat Right for Your Body Type

Chapter Four – DIY Body Blast

Chapter Five – Celebrate Your Unique Beauty

Chapter Six – The Lowdown on Stress

Chapter Seven – Get In Touch With Your Inner Self

Chapter Eight – Talking about Relationships

Chapter Nine – Get it Together

Chapter Ten – Your GirlForce Questions Answered

I couldn’t find a topic that isn’t covered in this book. In addition to the invaluable information that helps teen girls – this book is gorgeous. The pages are all colorful, the illustrations are wonderful and you will simply love the appearance. There are various quizzes in the book to help teen girls determine their body type, and much more. Once you find your type — there is a wealth of information to help understand many other elements of your life.

I think any teen girl, any mother of a teen girl, any pre teen and any other family or friend who supports a teen or pre teen needs to read this book.

In June we did a virtual blog tour for GirlForce and we offered all blog hosts a wealth of information to post on their blogs. If you would like to take a peek inside this book, visit this summary page and you can take a look at a big list of ideas – http://virtualblogtour.ning.com/group/girlforce/forum/topics/download-page-for-girlforce-by

This content is by, Nikki Goldstein, author of the GirlForce series. Nikki Goldstein has worked as a beauty editor and writer for Marie Claire, Vogue, Elle, InStyle and Cosmopolitan. She regularly blogs on her two websites – www.mygirlforce.com and www.gettoknowyourdaughter.com which give further information about the power of GirlForce, as well as fun quizzes, activities and forums. You can also visit Nikki at http://www.facebook.com/pages/GirlForce/76740694436 or http://twitter.com/MyGirlForce. Learn more about the book at http://www.amazon.com/GirlForce-Nikki-Goldstein/dp/1599903547.

Testimonials

Testimonials for Nikki Goldstein & GirlForce

Pictures, Images, Posters, & Banners for GirlForce

GirlForce Posters – One Horizontal and One Vertical

Logos and Horizontal Banners for GirlForce

Excerpts/Images from the Book:

Table of Contents

Book Cover, Book Excerpt Images and Author Picture for Girl Force

Chapter 1 – Pages 1-4

Chapter 1 – Pages 5-8

Chapter 1 – Pages 9-12

Chapter 1 — Pages 13-16

Chapter 1 — Pages 17-20

Air, Fire and Earth Girl Pictures

Quizzes Exploring Topics in GirlForce:

Body Type Quiz – Which Body Type Are You

Air, Fire and Earth: The Awesome GirlForce Body Types

Air, Fire and Earth Girl Pictures

Quiz – How’s Your Body-Lurve?

Quiz – Unleash Your Creative Powers

Quiz – Tame Your Dark Side

Quiz – Discover Your Emotional Self

Quiz – Love or Loathe Clothes?

Quiz – Friend or Foe

Quiz – Get To Know Your Mum

Information for Young Women Discussed in Girl Force:

Ayurveda

Meditation and Affirmations

Yoga

Stress Management

Beauty and Style Tips

Romance

Cafe Tempest: Adventures on a Small Greek Island by Barbara Bonfigli

I have several friends from Greece and some other friends who have traveled to Greece – they have all said things that make me think I would enjoy a trip to a Greek Island. Of course, keep in mind I love any place near the water — so chances are good that I would enjoy the trip. However, I’ve seen my bank account and there is almost no chance I’ll get to Greece. This was one of the reasons I was eager to read Cafe Tempest: Adventures on a Small Greek Island.

Barbara Bonfigli set this fictional memoir on a fictional island that is based somewhat on an island that she visits. Sarah is the main character and the narrator’s name. She  gives us her impression of the people, the places, the sites, the sounds, the food and much more as we make our way through Cafe Tempest. I enjoyed all these elements of Greece and enjoyed my trip to Pharos.

Sarah travels to Pharos to get away from a break up and for a holiday — her friend, who we find out is a former lover, travels with her to Pharos. They approach the island and the people in different ways. Its clear that Alexandra, Sarah’s friend, is not used to the quaint village and the way of life in Pharos. But, they make the best of their time on the island and Sarah is convinced to direct the locals in a play — this works out well and seems like a natural fit because of her experience in the theatre. However, she’s used to dealing with experienced, professional and talented actors — the locals do not fit that description at all. To make it even more interesting, she picked Shakespeare’s The Tempest as the play that they will perform.

The casting, the rehearsals, the locals, the limited access to transportation and communication are just a few of the colorful elements of this story. The Volvo that seems to disappear on a regular basis is just one of the fluky things that happens during the story.

The characters are colorful and perhaps too plentiful. I am a big fan of writing in first person and all my novels are written in this format. However, I noticed something while I was reading this book that I will be even more conscious of from now on. While first person gives you insights into the mind and thoughts of the narrator – there were times when I felt those thoughts were not being shared as much as they were being shoved on me. There were also times when I felt the the author was trying too hard — in these areas, the story didn’t flow as easily as it did in other areas. One other thing – and all authors struggle with this — there were times when the dialogue would’ve been more effective for me if it had been trimmed. These were just a few things that struck me as I was reading the book.

If you want to travel to a faraway place through the pages of a book — which is one of my favorite things about reading — this is a book that you will enjoy. If you want to get a comical and detailed view of a Greek island – you should definitely read this book. It was enjoyable, I often laughed out loud while I was reading it and I enjoyed the sights and sounds of Greece. It would be fun to read on the beach, by the pool, or inside on a snowy day when you would like to be on the beach.

To learn about Barbara Bonfigli and Café Tempest, feel free to visit any of these sites.

Barbara Bonfigli’s website – www.cafetempest.com

Order Café Tempest directly from the publisher – http://www.tellmepress.com/pub_ct.php or from Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Café-Tempest-Adventures-Small-Island/dp/0981645313

To see the complete tour schedule visit http://virtualblogtour.blogspot.com/2009/05/cafe-tempest-by-barbara-bonfigli-summer.html

The New Rules for Mortgages by Dale Robyn Siegel

When I think of some of the biggest decisions we can make in our lives – I think of things like getting married, having children, starting a business, and buying a home – to name a few. These are major things we do in our lives and these things affect our lives for many years to come — so they are the kind of things that we should think about very carefully and thoroughly before we do them.

So why is it that so many people have no idea about the mortgage on their home? I could ask many questions about the other major decisions, but that would be different books.

How many people do you know that have a 30 years (or longer) mortgage on their home, but they don’t understand the terms or anything else about the loan? I admit that I’m incredibly careful about spending money and especially when it comes to a purchase of that magnitude — so I can tell you that I discussed the details with my loan officer – I asked so many questions, that I didn’t know if we would still be friends. But I understood what I was signing and I felt very good about the loan. Can you say the same about your mortgage?

If you have a mortgage and you don’t understand it, if you are looking for a mortgage or if you just want to understand the current mortgage market – The New Rules for Mortgages is for you. Dale Robyn Siegel is an insider – she is in the mortgage business and she has been for years. She understand what is needed to secure a loan, she knows the things you need to know long before you walk in to fill out that application and she know the dos and don’ts of getting the best mortgage for YOU. And, she knows what will keep you from getting the home of your dreams. These are all reasons why you need to read The New Rules for Mortgages.

I am not a financial guru and I admit that many of the terms my mortgage officer used were foreign to me – but Siegel walks you through the entire process. These are some of the chapters in this book — how many of these topics are things that you don’t understand?

The All-Important Credit Score

Income Yeah, You Need That!

Money Matters

A Good Look at the Property

What Mortgage Is Best for You?

Where to Get the Best Mortgage

The Loan Process

Interest Rates, Closing Costs, and the Closing

Types of Property

Protecting Your Homeownership: Divorce, Dispute and Death

You Are a Homeowner

Whether you are a first time home buyer, self employed, under employer, an investor or most any other home buyer – this book has the details you need to make educated decisions when it comes to buying a home. Let an industry insider give you the information you need to get the best possible mortgage for you.

The Fearless Factor by Jacqueline Wales

We’ve all heard the saying that life is a jungle and that idea is a big part of The Fearless Factor by Jacqueline Wales.  She shares her story of what happened in her life, the trials and addictions that she went through and how she ultimately faced her fears and created the life that she wanted. This information is good for anyone facing  fears, but for women or men who want to own their own business – the content of this book can be invaluable in their journey to success personally and in business.

The Fear less Factor: Overcome the Fears, Doubts and Anxiety That Stop You From Being Your Best Self Now by Jacqueline Wales is for anyone who is facing any fear and obstacles in their life. Do you know anyone who needs to deal with fear or obstacles in their life? Maybe you need to deal with some fears. There are so many things that people need to handle in their lives and those are the people who need to read The Fearless Factor.

The Section Headers in the Fearless Factor set the stage for the content –

Part 1 – Enter the Jungle

Part 2 – Choose the Right Path

Part 3 – Arrive at the Clearing

Part 4 – Master the Jungle

In Part 1, Jacqueline Wales discussed identifying what fear is, why do we ignore fear, how much pain are you in, what are you willing to give up, what is your commitment to change, where do you want to go, what do you want to achieve, do you think change is easy, determine what you are grateful for, keep smiling, age and attitude and much more.  Part 1 sets the stage and lets you evaluate what you need to deal with and to begin evaluating yourself. Another element is – are you ready to make a change? That may sound funny, but not everyone is ready to make the commitment to make a real change.

When you’re ready to move to Part 2, you need to learn how to choose the right path. Jacqueline Wales hits on many points that are important and that will likely be hard to face. But, to move forward through the jungle of life – you must face these concerns and be honest with yourself. She starts by asking what stories you tell yourself. Then you evaluate when opinions and expectations influence your life. Are you avoiding issues? She tells you to stop second guessing yourself and to be honest about whether you are all right. Chapter 8 starts by asking are you ready to change your life. You must develop compassion and forgive yourself. She wants you to answer the lies you tell yourself and what motives you to do this. Part 2 is not light reading, but a very integral part of your journey.

Appropriately Part 3 is titles Arrive at the Clearing. After considering the elements of Part 2 – you will indeed reach a clearing mentally and emotionally. This is the time to start identifying your values, skills and experience. These will help you define who you are. Mistakes and failure are the next topics – and she wants you to understand the positive elements of “failure”. Its time to get rid of the negativity and to learn to love yourself. An entire chapter is dedicated to risks – where to take risks and where to avoid risks.

This has been a powerful journey and Jacqueline Wales says it is time to move onto a bigger game – so you need to understand what is holding you back. Evaluate where you give up the control in your life and get rid of the distractions. Chapter 18 helps you to define, refine and accept your dreams. Isn’t it amazing how a person can go from not understanding fear and then being able to realize their dreams? This is a huge step for many people and the trek that Jacqueline Wales lays out  in her book will enable you or someone you love to make this sort of change in your life.

I can tell you from personal experience that facing you r fears, learning to love yourself, understand your skills and values, understand its all right to fail sometimes and many of the other things that Wales talks about in The Fearless Factor – are wonderful steps to making great changes in your life. These are some of the things I did several years ago that helped me to lead a much happier, more fulfilling and successful life. I didn’t say it is easy, but I wish I’d had this guide to help me through my personal struggles. It is available for you – and the principles in this book can make a major difference in your life – to make it better.

For More Information –

Jacqueline Wales is known the world over as The Black Belt Millionaire. Her unique programs have helped women around the globe develop strong personal success, confident communication and clear visions of their goals. She is the author of five books including The Fearless Factor. The Fearless Factor. For information on how to get YOUR copy of The Fearless Factor visit http://www.thefearlessfactorbook.com/

Time Management in an Instant by Karen Leland and Keith Bailey

Time is a rare commodity for most business people, entrepreneurs, working moms, authors and many others. So, learning to manage time better is something that most people need to do. This book is a quick read (which will save you time) and is packed with 60 time management techniques. Which tips will be right for you? If you are a business owner – how much could you save in payroll costs if your employees learned to manage their time better?

We all know there are only 60 minutes in every hour and 24 hours in a day – so why do some people accomplish so much more with their 24 hours? That’s because they have learned to manage their time better. That’s why I’m sharing my review for Time Management in an Instant by Karen Leland and Keith Bailey. Look ago I learned that my jobs keep me very busy, so learning to manage my time was a necessity. I could get half my work done, or I could learn to get organized and get all the work done.

This book shares 60 Ways to Make the Most of Your Day – below are some of the topics.

• Assess Your Time Management Skills.
• Get Out of Time Denial.
• Achieve Your Goals Every Day.
• Beware the Stop-Goal.
• Set Solid and Stretch Goals.
• Plan Your Daily To-Do’s.
• Cultivate Time-Efficient Conversations.
• Break the Rules That Hold You Back.
• Determine What to Delegate.
• Give Yourself A Procrastination Inoculation.
• Take a Real Vacation.
• Clean Out Your File Drawer.
• Reorganize Your Filing System.
• Manage Incoming Calls.
• Streamline Your Email.
• Save Time For Your Personal Life.

These are just a sample of the tips in this book. Did you notice how many of these things require time? Some people may feel that using tips that take time would be wasting time. But, to manage your time, you need to change the way you work, how you file, how you manage your email and phone calls and much more. These tips will let you get organized and that helps you work smarter – not harder.

For example, if you don’t use an organized filing system, how long does it take you to find a specific memo for Mr Jones? Once you organize your file cabinet and put all correspondence for Mr Jones in one folder – you will be able to find that memo much faster. Filing doesn’t take much time and it allows you to find items much quicker. This is just one simple example of how organize is part of managing your time.

You will find a wide variety of tips, suggestions, questionnaires, and much more in this time management book. I highly recommend this for any busy person that needs to organize their personal and business life in order to manage their time and their life.

The Forbidden Daughter by Shobhan Bantwal

I thoroughly enjoyed Shobhan Bantwal’s first book, The Dowry Bride. It was well written and the glimpses into Indian culture were fascinating. Learning that paying or not paying a dowry could be a matter of life or death was shocking to me and she handled it very well in her book. So, I’ve been looking forward to reading her second book.

This weekend I took time to read The Forbidden Daughter and my wait was rewarded. The book is about female infanticide. That is the practice of killing female babies and unborn female babies. I’ve heard various reasons for female infanticide in India and that is one of the elements of this story. Are women less worthy or important than men? The characters have a variety of feelings about this question. Another element is the financial angle to performing abortions along with the social repercussions.

Isha Talik is drawn into this web of lies, deception and money when her obstetrician informs her and her husband that their unborn child is a girl. In an off handed comment, he says that he’s willing to perform an abortion if they want to be rid of this child. Isha and Nikhil vehemently insist they will have their child, but they realize Nikhil’s parents will want them to abort the child. The couple have one daughter and Isha knows her in laws treat her daughter Priya as less worthy than her male cousins. When the news is shared with the elder Taliks, they insist the child must be aborted.

This debate rages and is only interrupted late one evening when the family receives news that Nikhil was stabbed to death at his job. Isha, Priya and the in laws are all shaken by the news of Nikhil’s death. The news is especially devastating to his parents because Nikhil was their only son and he had no sons to carry on the family name. Life for Isha and Priya is tougher each day and after her father in law beats Priya, the young, pregnant widow walks out of the house – with almost no money and only some of her possessions.

Isha and Priya are taken in at the local convent and make their home in a small, bleak room and they wait for the birth of her daughter. The day after Diya is born, Isha is seen by the doctor who helps the convent. He was a student at the college Isha attended and he had a crush on her in school.

Doctor Harish Salvi becomes a very good friend and his affection for Isha and her children continues to grow over time. Isha is reunited with her sister in law Sheila. With Sheila and Dr Salvi, Isha finds the support she needs.

Over time things begin to look better for Isha and her family and her support network grows again. But, the story isn’t over and Isha must deal with a couple more concerns before the end. Isha and her closest confidantes realize who killed her husband and why. She has evidence of his wrong doing and the time stamp on the computer disc makes it very obvious, who is responsible for his murder. Will they go to the police? Will the murderer pay for his crime? Who else will have to pay for this man’s actions?

I don’t want to ruin the story for anyone, but I highly recommend this story. You will grow to admire, you will admire and cherish Dr Salvi and you will care what happens to Isha’s daughters. This book is a wonderful work from a talented author who share her knowledge of India with us.

Shobhan Bantwal is touring with Promo 101 Virtual Tours in October. Visit www.virtualblogtour.blogspot.com for more details.