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The No Asshole Rule was awarded a Quill Award as the Best Business Book of 2007.


When Robert Sutton's "No Asshole Rule" appeared in the Harvard Business Review, readers of this staid publication were amazed at the outpouring of support for this landmark essay. The idea was based on the notion, as adapted in hugely successful companies like Google and SAS, that employees with malicious intents or negative attitudes destroyed any sort of productive and pleasant working environment, and would hinder the entire operation's success.

Now using case studies from these and many more corporations that have had unquestioned success using variations of "The No Asshole Rule," Sutton's book aims to show managers that by hiring mean-spirited employees - regardless of talent - saps energy from everyone who must deal with said new hires. Such insights will come from:

- Seattle law firm Perkins Coie, which instituted a "no jerks allowed" policy, helping them earn a spot on Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work For" list.

- United States Supreme Court Fellow Robert Clayman, who noticed that "assholes" in the highest branch of government turned a blind eye to initiatives that would curb abusive and violent behavior.

- Testimony from a former American Airlines manager about how former CEO Bob Crandall's abusive "tough love" behavior actually caused psychological harm to those he was attempting to motivate.

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Price: $11.99 [Notify me when price goes down.]

A dizzying collection from the Ed Wood of comics.

Welcome to the bizarre world of Fletcher Hanks, Super Wizard of the Inkwell Fletcher Hanks worked for only a few years in the earliest days of the comic book industry (1939-1941). Because he worked in a gutter medium for second-rate publishers on third-rate characters, his work has been largely forgotten. But among aficionados he is legendary.

At the time, comic books were in their infancy. The rules governing their form and content had not been established. In this Anything Goes era, Hanks' work stands out for its thrilling experimentation. At once both crude and visionary, cold and hot as hell, Hanks' work is hard to pigeon hole. One thing is for certain: the stuff is bent.

Hanks drew in a variety of genres depicting science-fiction saviors, white women of the jungle, and he-man loggers. Whether he signed these various stories "Henry Fletcher" or "Hank Christy" or "Barclay Flagg" there is no mistaking the unique outsider style of Fletcher Hanks.

Cartoonist Paul Karasik (co-adapter of Paul Auster's City of Glass, and co-author of The Ride Together: A Memoir of Autism in the Family) has spent years tracking down these obscure and hard to find stories buried in the back of long-forgotten comic book titles. Karasik has also uncovered a dark secret: why Hanks disappeared from the comics scene.

This book collects 15 of his best stories in one volume followed by an afterword which solves the mystery of "Whatever Happened to Fletcher Hanks," the mysterious cartoonist who created a hailstorm of tales of brutal retribution...and then mysteriously vanished..
Price: $11.37 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In our fast-paced, electronic society, the most basic social interaction—talking face-to-face—can be a challenge for even the most educated and self-assured individuals. And yet making conversation is a highly practical skill: those who do it well shine at networking parties, interviews, and business lunches. Good conversation also opens doors to a happier love life, warmer friendships, and more rewarding time with family.

For those intimidated by the complexity of personal interaction, or those simply looking to polish their speaking skills, The Art of Civilized Conversation is a powerful guide to communicating in an endearing way. In its pages, author Margaret Shepherd offers opening lines, graceful apologies, thoughtful questions, and, ultimately, the confidence to take conversations beyond hello. From the basics—first impressions, appropriate subject matter, and graceful exits—to finding the right words for difficult situations and an insightful discussion of body language, Shepherd uses her skilled eye and humorous anecdotes to teach readers how to turn a plain conversation into an engaging encounter.

Filled with common sense and fresh insight, The Art of Civilized Conversation is the perfect inspiration not only for what to say but for how to say it with style..
Price: $9.11 [Notify me when price goes down.]

When you receive the daily mail do you jump to open the handwritten envelopes first because you can’t wait to see who has written and why? Or do you hold those letters aside to savor and enjoy after you are done sorting your bills and tossing the junk mail? Whatever your approach, you no doubt recognize the importance of the note that comes in a unique envelope with distinct handwriting and possibly a decoration or two. Indeed, in an age when even birthday greetings are sent by e-mail, the personal letter is appreciated more than ever before.
For those who enjoy writing notes, or those who value doing so but find themselves intimidated by the task, acclaimed calligrapher Margaret Shepherd has created both an epistolary tribute and rescue manual. Just as you cherish receiving personal mail, you can take pleasure in crafting correspondence. Love, gratitude, condolences, congratulations–for every emotion and occasion, a snippet of heartfelt prose is included, sure to loosen the most stymied letter writer.
Not only providing inspiration for the content of the missives, The Art of the Handwritten Note gives thorough instruction in the specific details that give so many men and women the jitters when it comes to correspondence that can’t (or shouldn’t) be produced on a keyboard. From overcoming illegible penmanship to mastering the challenge of keeping straight margins, avoiding smeared ink, and choosing stationery that is appropriate but suits your style, this is a powerful little guide to conveying thoughts in an enduring–and noteworthy–way..
Price: $8.40 [Notify me when price goes down.]

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Price: $8.11 [Notify me when price goes down.]

How to Raise a Gentleman is an invaluable resource for parents who hope their little boys will grow up to be the kind of men who know which fork to use, how to treat others, and will generally make their parents proud.

How to Raise a Gentleman focuses on real-life topics such as: being a good sport, play dates, and - especially for boys - "personal habits: farting, belching, boogers, and scratching." The book includes:

• Personal stories pertaining to each topic
• Suggestions for the age at which a parent should introduce a child to

  certain rules

• Helpful ideas in easy-to-remember phrases
• And suggestions that parents can follow to "teach by example"

 

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Price: $3.80 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Eight walks take shoppers to unique shops that uphold Italian standards of quality, craftsmanship, and creativity

With this discriminating book as a guide, visitors will find a trove of eighty shops that only native Florentines know well. In its pages you’ll find exquisite handmade lingerie, jewelry inspired by Renaissance paintings, handcrafted leather boxes, beautifully tailored shirts for men and women, vintage French and Italian designer clothing, shoes, hats, gourmet items, and much, much more. The walks include forty dining recommendations from where to get a quick caffe-ciok (“the best thing to ever happen to espresso, hot chocolate, and steamed milk”) to a sumptuous Tuscan meal. The book also serves as an informative guide to often perplexing opening days and hours, the always perplexing street numbering system, and shopping etiquette. .
Price: $6.27 [Notify me when price goes down.]

The Executive Brain is the first book to explore in popular scientific terms one of the most important and rapidly evolving topics in contemporary neuropsychology, the most "human" and recently evolved region of the brain--the frontal lobes. Crucial for all high-order functioning, it is only in humans that the frontal lobes are so highly developed. They hold the key to our judgment, our social and ethical behavior, our imagination, indeed, to our "soul." The author shows how the frontal lobes enable us to engage in complex mental processes, how vulnerable they are to injury, and how devastating the effects of damage often are, leading to chaotic, disorganized, asocial, and even criminal behavior. Made up of fascinating case histories and anecdotes, Goldberg's book offers a panorama of state-of-the-art ideas and advances in cognitive neuroscience. It is also an intellectual memoir, filled with vignettes about the author's early training with the great Russian neuropsychologist A.R. Luria, Goldberg's escape from the Soviet Union, and his later interactions with patients and professionals around the world..
Price: $12.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Excerpt - Back Matter:"... "You don't have to be pushy to get what you want! Civilized Assertiveness gives you the words to stand up for yourself while still being respectful of others.".
Price: $11.58 [Notify me when price goes down.]