A Field Guide to Australian Trees

Customer Reviews:

OK book.......2007-08-25

Average photos of each species. I would have liked a key, but no such luck. Not really a handbook, but a collection of photos of Australian trees. It would be one of several books on this subject.

Average customer rating:

Australian Rainforests
Densey Clyne
Manufacturer: New Holland Publishers, Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Australia | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

Conservation | Environment | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

General | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

Ecotourism | Specialty Travel | Travel | Subjects | Books

Travel with Pets | Specialty Travel | Travel | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1876334614

A Field Guide to Australian Trees 3rd Edition

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A Field Guide to Australian Trees 3rd Edition
Ivan Holliday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 1876334797

Field Guide to Australian Wildflowers: Over 100 Common Australian Wildflowers

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Field Guide to Australian Wildflowers: Over 100 Common Australian Wildflowers
Denise Grieg
Manufacturer: New Holland Publishers, Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Australia & South Pacific | Travel | Subjects | Books

Reference | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1864363347

How to Know Western Australian Wildflowers Vol. IV: Second Edition with Supplement

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How to Know Western Australian Wildflowers Vol. IV: Second Edition with Supplement
B. J. Grieve , W. E. Blackall , and Brian J. Grieve
Manufacturer: International Specialized Book Services
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Trees | Field Guides | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Flowers | Field Guides | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0855641975

The Rainforest Legacy: Australian Rainforests Study (Rainforest Legacy)

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The Rainforest Legacy: Australian Rainforests Study (Rainforest Legacy)

Manufacturer: Australian Government Publishing Service
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Trees | Field Guides | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books

Australian Acacias in Developing Countries (Aciar Proceedings, No 16)

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Australian Acacias in Developing Countries (Aciar Proceedings, No 16)

Manufacturer: Agribookstore/Winrock
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Vegetables | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

Trees | Field Guides | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0949511269

Average customer rating:

A FIELD GUIDE TO AUSTRALIAN TREES [G3]
I. & R. Hill Holliday
Manufacturer: Rigby Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000WQ6TUC

Book Description

Just west of the Mexican mainland and south of the US border lies the Baja Peninsula - land of lovely beaches, remote deserts and crystalline waters. Whether you want to view ancient Indian rock art, surf off Islas de Todos Santos or savor the best margarita in Ensenada, Lonely Planet reveals the best of Baja on and off the tourist track.

sleepy? where to stay from desert camps to ritzy resorts
hungry? local cuisine from huevos fritos to lobster burritos
active? diving, surfing, whale-watching and fishing hot spots
lost? 38 detailed maps throughout
no habla español? handy Spanish language and menu translators

Customer Reviews:

as comprehensive as a telephone directory..........2002-10-10

... and with about as much personality and selectivity. Like the Moon guide, a very useful book to have once you find yourself in Town X but not very useful for figuring out whether it would be better to plan a trip to Town X versus Town Y.

Practical and fun.......2001-06-09

Lonely Planet's Baja book is an excellent guide to the peninsula. I especially appreciated the detailed info on how to get around in Baja. The section on health in the front of the book came in handy after a small altercation with a manta ray! It was excellent for travelers on a budget. The descriptions of cities, places to stay and restaurants were all very accurate, but left enough room for our personal tastes to guide us to the spots that seemed especially fitting.

I felt as though once we arrived at our final destination there was a lot more there than was really covered in the book, but I guess they only have so many pages to work with!

Amazon.com

The long, beautiful peninsula of Baja California is full of possibility. You can sport fish for marlin, snorkel the Sea of Cortés, surf the primo waves of the Pacific, or explore the sere beauty of the desert. There are intriguing small towns, plush resort villas, secluded beaches, and vibrant tourist-filled nightclubs. There's whale watching and horseback riding, ancient Indian rock art, and a church designed by Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (for whom a Parisian tower, another of his creations, is named), plus scuba diving, hiking, lovely lobster burritos, and eye-popping margaritas. It's all a matter of knowing where to go and how to get around, where to stay and what brand of entertainment best suits you and your budget. Wayne Bernhardson's guide to Baja clearly delineates all the options available. The maps are superb, the information comprehensive--with details, times, phone numbers, and prices for everything from transportation and museums to tourist offices and hotels. You have only to commit to the trip, choose your pleasures, and go. --Stephanie Gold

Book Description

39 Maps

Customer Reviews:

Not the right guide for baja.......2000-02-02

Disappointing. I have used lp guides in latin america before with a great deal of satisfation and I understand that prices go up and things change. However the guide to Baja was not up to lp's usual quality. I think the research for the update was just not as thorough as it usually is for lp guides. The bus schedules were way off and didn't make sense. In the town of San Quintin there were three bus terminals and five bus companies with widely varying prices and none of that was mentioned in the book. Some ommisions and mistakes are to be expected in a guide book but in this one they occured far too frequently. In short, this guide is rarely valuable for a budget traveler, and if you are headed to Baja (which is by the way a beautiful place) I would look into other potentially more accurate guides.

A really good guide.......1999-01-14

I'm just back from a two week travel in the beautiful BAJA and I have to say that this Lonely Planet guide book is excellent. The good thing about this book is the really good maps of a lot of town. With this book I was able to saw everything i wanted. I really recommand this book to someone who is planning to go on bus, its got all the precise information about bus schedule, bus terminal, etc...... A real good guide !!!!!

Lonely Planet Baja California & Los Cabos (Lonely Planet Baja and Los Cabos)

Average customer rating:

Easily Readable But Lacking Correct Information
compact and user friendly

Lonely Planet Baja California & Los Cabos (Lonely Planet Baja and Los Cabos)
Danny Palmerlee
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

Lonely Planet | Guidebook Series | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1741045649

Book Description

Discover Baja California and Los Cabos

Commune with whale calves as their mothers nudge them to the surface for their very first breath.
Get dusty on the badder-than-bad backroad to Bahia Luis Gonzaga.
Suck down a caguama (that's Baja for beer) as you watch the sun set in Punta Abreojos.
Discover the delectable truth behind Baja's world-renowned invention, the Caesar salad.

In This Guide:

4872 miles, one black-widow bite, one superstar author still kicking, and 30 pages of the best damn maps anywhere.
Special surfing chapter written by none other than Surfer magazine editor Jake Howard - charge on!
Mi Querido Baja California feature revealing the lives of a painter, a doctor and a few more local experts.
And, since you asked for it, we've incorporated more off-track coverage than any other guidebook.

Customer Reviews:

Easily Readable But Lacking Correct Information .......2006-09-15

My wife and me chose this LP guide for our recent trip to Baja Norte. I actually enjoyed Palmerlee's writing style and his side commentaries on the Baja music scene and other topics of interest. However, there were just too many cases of inaccurate information. For example, Palmerlee says a taxi from Ensenada to La Bufadora is about $12 when actually the round trip cost given to us by numerous taxi drivers was $40. He then says (correctly) that you can save money by taking a $1 bus to the town of Maneadora. But from there, he says, you must hitchhike to La Bufadora. The truth is, as we discovered by talking to the locals, you can easily catch another $1 bus from Maneadero to La Bufadora. Thus avoiding the hitchhiking which many people, including my wife, would not want to try.

Another problem was that the hotel recommendations were too often off the the mark. For example, at the highly recommended Hotel Los Pelicanos in Rosarito we were taken to a dark, dreary room by a very unfriendly hotel receptionist. Of course, we chose not to stay there.

I know that prices change and good places go bad. But still this book just had too many inaccuracies for me to recommend it. In fact, my wife started saying we should read what the Lonely Planet guide said and then do the opposite. I think this was probably a bit of an overstatement on her part. But still I'm sure this is the last thing LP wants to hear from it's readers. By the way, Lonely Planet is still my favorite publisher of travel guides. But hopefully the book we purchase for our next trip will provide better information.

compact and user friendly.......2006-07-02

the moon book is like reading a code many times, difficult to obtain the info you desire. the costs of rooms and cafes are in layers, $ $$ $$$ or over $25, $25-50 etc, and you never really know if it costs $25 or $50, same with meals, and it has no easy to find color map, requiring one to search thru the different sections to find a black & white map covering a large area, and then you have to try and find the area of interest.
the lonely planet is about 1/3 as thick, has prices for room and meals in every range, and specific dollar amounts. somehow it was able to jam enormous user needed info into a small space and leave out much of the vague data in the moon book. Easy to carry and a real joy to look thru.

Baja California, a travel survival kit (Lonely Planet Baja & Los Cabos)

Average customer rating:

Baja California, a travel survival kit (Lonely Planet Baja & Los Cabos)
Scott Wayne
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Lonely Planet San Diego & Tijuana (Lonely Planet San Diego and Tijuana)

Average customer rating:

Still useful
San Diego is the place to be!

Lonely Planet San Diego & Tijuana (Lonely Planet San Diego and Tijuana)
Andrea Schulte-Peevers
Manufacturer: Lonely Planet Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Guidebooks | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

Lonely Planet | Guidebook Series | Travel | Subjects | Books

North America | Travel | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 1864502185

Book Description

Welcome to sun-drenched San Diego. Whether you head for the beach, hike in the hills or wander museums and parks, this is the book to take. Then slide south of the border for Tijuana-style bargaining, barhopping and bullfighting.

extensive lodging and restaurant listings for every budget
expansive coverage of San Diego's Balboa Park, home of the famous zoo
easy daytrips from both San Diego and Tijuana
handy Spanish menu translator
24 detailed maps to keep you on track in both cities

Customer Reviews:

Still useful.......2006-12-26

Despite the book's age, it's still very useful -- San Diego doesn't seem to change that fast! The Tijuana section in particular is quite good. Like every Lonely Planet guide, though, it could have used a bit more editing to rein in the author's particular oddball biases.

San Diego is the place to be!.......2001-09-28

The book was very good except that is does miss out some Hostel's I stayed out that were just outstanding! One special one was only two blocks "Pacific Beach" in San Diego, corner of Cass and Garnet Streets called the "International House on the Second Floor". They especially cater for international tourist's and students, and are some of the best people I have ever met, it's also the cleanest Hostel around!. San Diego and Tijuana are very interesting and different but are both just beautiful. The book itself was quite detailed and everything was where it was suppose to be. One of the best in the Lonely Planet series!

Average customer rating:

A blockbuster

Any library interested in adventure biography will welcome this vivid account.

The Greatest Unknown

The Last Explorer: Hubert Wilkins, Hero of the Great Age of Polar Exploration
Simon Nasht
Manufacturer: Arcade Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Australian | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Adventurers & Explorers | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Frozen Ship: The Histories and Tales of Polar Exploration

Prisoners of the North: Portraits of Five Arctic Immortals

Scott of the Antarctic: A Life of Courage and Tragedy

ICE MASTER, THE: THE DOOMED 1913 VOYAGE OF THE KARLUK

Shackleton's Forgotten Expedition : The Voyage of the Nimrod

ASIN: 1559708255

Book Description

This riveting biography recounts the life of the world's firsttruly modern explorer, a life of unrelenting adventure and the high dramaof polar exploration. Hubert Wilkins was the most successful explorer inhistory: no one saw with his own eyes more undiscovered land and sea.Largely self-taught, he was a celebrated reporter, pilot, spy, war hero,scientist, and adventurer. He captured in his lens war and famine, cheateddeath repeatedly, met world leaders like Lenin, Mussolini, and King GeorgeV, and circled the globe on a zeppelin. Knighted for being the first personto fly across the North Pole, Wilkins was also the first to fly in theAntarctic, discover land by airplane, and take a submarine under the Arcticice.

Customer Reviews:

A blockbuster.......2007-02-19

This true account of one man's lifelong exploration
of the polar regions makes history come alive. Yet for some reason Hubert Wilkins amazing exploits have faded from public memory.
This biography about a far-sighted adventurer who understood the importance of polar ice caps on global climate. It is a page turner that deserves a place on every bookshelf,an inspiration to the youth.

Any library interested in adventure biography will welcome this vivid account........2007-02-03

THE LAST EXPLORER: HUBERT WILKINS, HERO OF THE GREAT AGE OF POLAR EXPLORATION tells of the most successful explorer in history: a self-taught farm boy from the Australian outback who became a cameraman, reporter, pilot, spy and adventurer. His surveys were captured on camera, he helped map the Canadian Arctic, and his amazing life has only not received much in-depth coverage in past because he avoided publicity. Author Simon Nasht discovered Wilkins' journals, records and photos and used them to recreate his life and achievements: any library interested in adventure biography will welcome this vivid account.

The Greatest Unknown.......2006-03-31

The fact the Sir George Hubert Wilkins is a virtual unknown against the supposed greatness of his contemporaries, Hurley and Mawson, is due mainly to his "aggressive modesty".

Now Australians are rediscovering this truly remarkable man's life and Simon Nasht does him an immensely great service.

Simply a 'must-read'!

Average customer rating:

Great Reading

The Explorers (The Australians, Vol. 4)
William Stuart Long
Manufacturer: Dell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0440123917
Release Date: 1982-06-15

Customer Reviews:

Great Reading.......2002-07-22

I loved this book and just HAD to order the rest of this series! Story is based on actual happenings according to the author. Gives great insight on the british rule over Australia, well done descriptions of happenings/locations. I highly recommend it!

The Explorers: Stories of Discovery and Adventure from the Australian Frontier

Average customer rating:

Great Book to Start Reading About Australian Explorers
The Editor as Artist
Great read for travel
Fabulous tales of fortitude
A mark on history

The Explorers: Stories of Discovery and Adventure from the Australian Frontier

Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Australia | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

New Zealand | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

General | World | History | Subjects | Books

Expeditions & Discoveries | World | History | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0802137199

Book Description

A lively collection of extraordinary stories of adventure and discovery, The Explorers tells the epic saga of the conquest and settlement of Australia. Editor Tim Flannery selects sixty-seven accounts that convey the sense of wonder and discovery, along with the human dimensions of struggle and deprivation, which occurred in the exploration of the last continent to be fully mapped by Europeans. Beginning with the story of Dutch captain Willem Janz's 1606 expedition at Cape York -- the bloody outcome of which would sadly foreshadow future relations between colonists and Aboriginal peoples -- and running through Robyn Davidson's 1977 camelback ride through the desolate Outback deserts, The Explorers bristles with the enterprise that Flannery explains as "heroic, for nowhere else did explorers face such an obdurate country."

Customer Reviews:

Great Book to Start Reading About Australian Explorers.......2004-04-13

This is an anthology of excerpts from Australian Explorers journals ranging from early sixteenth century European Explorers to Australians in the early 20th century. Flannery's introduction for each provides an excellent, concise biography and set up to each explorer's excerpt. In many of the excerpts, an explorer faces death and disaster. The most intriguing initially was Charles Sturt writing of his attempt to find the mythical lake in the center of Australia. He brings a boat, experiences weather so hot it bursts a thermometer his party carries, they suffer from extreme scurvy, and Sturt's desire to be the first to reach the center of Australia. The second explorer I read in this collection was Ernest Giles. His except focuses on an expedition with his assistant Gibson, who goes for help and manages to get lost, and then Giles slowly makes his way back to base camp. Reading The Explorers fascinated me enough that I wanted to read more about specific explorers like Giles, but also about Australian explorers in general.

The Editor as Artist.......2003-06-02

My only criticism of Flannery's book is that it ends. I found myself wanting to read more of each story. But within a moment of turning to a new chapter, I was engrossed in another adventure. The Explorers is an outstanding selection of historical pieces and a fine example of the editor's art. First-person accounts like this truly offer a window into the minds and times of the people and places involved. (I recommend "Eyewitness to History" for those who enjoy this book.)

Great read for travel.......2002-05-17

This book consists of brief excerpts from journals, letters and diaries of those foolish or brave enough to push beyond the known world along Australia's seaboards.

These explorers demonstrated unfathomable foolishness, unquenchable curiosity, bullheaded ethnocentricity, and, in too few cases, a passion for discovery for its own sake. As a reader you will be horrified, entertained, and enlightened by their adventures and misadventures.

I just returned from a trip to Australia and took this book along with me to read. It was perfect for a visitor with little knowledge of Australian history beyond Hughes' "Fatal Shore" (another great read).

Fabulous tales of fortitude.......2002-05-16

What possesses a person to set off into the trackless wastes of Australia, with the almost certain knowledge that death lies waiting to welcome them into his scrawny arms?
Reading this book gives you some of the answers and some of the idea of the pain and suffering undergone by these explorers (and in some cases the hapless Aborigines coerced into seeking water).
There are some amazingly good writers within these pages, quite unexpected when you consider that many of them were ex-convicts or self-taught (and comparing them to some contemporary American explorers); there are some delightful descriptive passages and the occasional bout of whimsy, especially the anecdote of how 'Rocket' got his name - I was in hoots!
An excellent read, which encouraged me to order several old copies of explorers' accounts.
Thoroughly recommended!

A mark on history.......2001-01-06

Australia's small history makes a book like this diffifult to stay interested in. Of course, we are a lucky country fortunate enough to have prospered from these fine explorers and Flannery captures this brilliantly. But there is a time when the discoveries of a new animal or native remind the reader of how quickly one can lose their mind to something else as one can't help but take it for granted or compare their countries history with one far greater and more enlightening from a place such as Great Britain or America. However, Flannery is aiming to make Australian history sit right up there amongst the cream of the crop for a rich past - we as the reader know this isn't possible but feel a sense of pride in what these explorers did to help develop our free and thriving country. The author does not have much to contribute within the book. He writes a few brief footnotes or may stretch himself to an introduction of a small to mid paragraph for each. Yet, we must remind ourselves this is a history book so there is not much room for creativity. I suggest this book is worthwhile for someone passionate or interested in the Australian history, but if you are made to read this whether it be school or uni do it in sections. Otherwise, you will find it tedious. In the end you will find it rewarding - especially (as an Australian resident) when you next visit Botany Bay, Cape York or wherever it may be.......you will stop and think at just how lucky we are.

King of the Australian Coast: The Work of Phillip Parker King in the Mermaid and Bathurst 1817-1822

Average customer rating:

King of the Australian Coast: The Work of Phillip Parker King in the Mermaid and Bathurst 1817-1822
Marsden Hordern
Manufacturer: Melbourne University Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Australian | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Adventurers & Explorers | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Australia | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

New Zealand | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

General | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

Expeditions & Discoveries | World | History | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 052285043X

Book Description

This biography recounts the adventures of Phillip Parker King, a marine surveyor who completed a series of grueling voyages between 1817 and 1822 up the northwest coast of Australia. His journeys brought him to King George Sound and Van Diemen's Land as well as the treacherous waters of the Great Barrier Reef, places which serve as the backdrop to his encounters with shoals and tides, reefs and wildlife, and Aboriginal peoples. Written through the observant lens of a sailor, this work considers whether King's faithful service and unscandalous lifestyle have contributed to his relative obscurity in modern scholarship.

Average customer rating:

Treseder: Man of Adventure
Peter Treseder , and Martin Long
Manufacturer: New Holland Publishers, Ltd.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Australian | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Historical | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Adventurers & Explorers | Specific Groups | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Sports | Subjects | Books

Australia | Australia & Oceania | History | Subjects | Books

Travel | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Travel | Subjects | Books

Look Inside Sports Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Travel Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
ASIN: 1864365706

Mawson's will: The greatest survival story ever written

Average customer rating:

A Stunning Story You Will Never Forget
Mawson - the most courageous Antarctic explorer
A brutal tale that will make you feel chilled to the bone.
Riveting

Mawson's will: The greatest survival story ever written
Lennard Bickel
Manufacturer: Dorset Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: 0880292172

Customer Reviews:

A Stunning Story You Will Never Forget.......2003-04-28

I am so delighted this book has been reissued because the original version was impossible to find. This is a story that earns its subtitle, "The Greatest Survival Story Every Told". This story is incredible and you truly feel that you as a reader are experiencing Mawson's ordeal yourself. It does what a book should do--it puts you on the ice with Mawson, his companions and the dogs. This is a rare book that makes you think--at the moment when Mawson thinks it--that you are so glad he still has "one more paw" left to eat.
Read this book and you will never be the same. It's an awesome book, thrilling and it shows you by comparison what is lacking in so many so-called adventure tales: cojones.
I am surprised this has never been made into a movie and I might write it myself. It's just a fantastic, inspiring story.

Mawson - the most courageous Antarctic explorer.......2000-02-26

If you can find a copy of this book, read it. Douglas Mawson, a veteran of the 1907-1909 Shackleton expedition, returned to the Antarctic in 1912 with his own team. His sledge journey with two companions turned from a harsh but rewarding exploration into a terrifying fight for survival in an instant. At almost the same time as Scott was busily scribbling inspiring hoo-hah in his diary trying to cover up his appalling faults of leadership and organization, Mawson was courageously fighting for his life and refusing to lie down and die. An incredible story! One hopes that Australia remembers Sir Douglas Mawson and his fortitude. He is an example to all of us.

A brutal tale that will make you feel chilled to the bone........1999-07-12

The other reviewer's comments are appreciated, this book will redefine your definition of "discomfort". He may not be one of the most well known, but Mawson was one of the world's greatest, and toughest explorers.

Riveting.......1999-03-07

This is a depressing book. But you should read it. You will learn from it something about will and determination. You may also learn that you are not doing yourself a favour by making your life, and your family's life so comfortable.

My wife asked, "Why do they go there?"

Average customer rating:

Bureaucracy Bad! School-Based Decisionmaking Good!

School Reform 101

An easy read for anyone concerned about PublicEducation

Is this guy talking about the same Seattle and Houston?

Making Schools Work

Making Schools Work : A Revolutionary Plan to Get Your Children the Education They Need
William G. Ouchi , and Lydia G. Segal
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Education | Reference | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
General | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Leadership | Education Theory | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Philosophy & Social Aspects | Education Theory | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
Policy | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
General | Education | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Cheating Our Kids: How Politics and Greed Ruin Education

Breaking Through: The Making of Minority Executives in Corporate America

Crash Course

Fighting to Save Our Urban Schools-- And Winning: Lessons from Houston

Education Myths: What Special Interest Groups Want You to Believe About Our Schools--And Why It Isn't So

ASIN: 0743246306

Book Description

Introducing a bold, persuasive new argument into the national debate over education, Dr. William Ouchi describes a revolutionary approach to creating successful public schools.

This program has produced significant, lasting improvements in the school districts where it has already been implemented. Drawing on the results of a landmark study of 223 schools in six cities, a project that Ouchi supervised and that was funded in part by the National Science Foundation, Making Schools Work shows that a school's educational performance may be most directly affected by how the school is managed.

Ouchi's 2001-2002 study examined innovative school systems in Edmonton (Canada), Seattle, and Houston, and compared them with the three largest traditional school systems: New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Researchers discovered that the schools that consistently performed best also had the most decentralized management systems, in which autonomous principals -- not administrators in a central office -- controlled school budgets and personnel hiring policies. They were fully responsible and fully accountable for the performance of their schools. With greater freedom and flexibility to shape their educational programs, hire specialists as needed, and generally determine the direction of their school, the best principals will act as entrepreneurs, says Ouchi. Those who do poorly are placed under the supervision of successful principals, who assume responsibility for the failing schools.

An essential component of this management approach is the Weighted Student Formula, a budgetary tool whereby every student is evaluated and assessed a certain dollar value in educational services (a non-English-speaking or autistic student, or one from a low-income family, for example, would receive a higher dollar value than a middle-class student with no special needs). Families have the freedom to choose among public schools, and when schools must compete for students, good schools flourish while those that do poorly literally go out of business.

Such accountability has long worked for religious and independent schools, where parents pay a premium for educational performance. Making Schools Work shows how the same approach can be adapted to public schools. The book also provides guidelines for parents on how to evaluate a school and make sure their child is getting the best education possible.

Revolutionary yet practical, Making Schools Work shows that positive educational reform is within reach and, indeed, already happening in schools across the country.

Customer Reviews:

Bureaucracy Bad! School-Based Decisionmaking Good!.......2006-07-15

Like many books in this field, things that should be considered obvious are presented like the author has discovered the mystery of the atom. Ouchi appropriately takes potshots at top-heavy school systems. He makes the case for school independence in direction and budgeting. All perfectly reasonable. Ouchi provides examples of schools that work because they went their own way, made their own choices. Unfortunately, the book is altogether too heavy handed. In the model schools, no one ever teaches a bad lesson and every child is smiling, while test scores "rocket" upwards. It is too much. One of his main case studies in Houston. Too bad it was revealed after publication that there was systematic lying going on in that system about graduation rates and who knows what else. (See Washington Post 11/8/2003 article by Michael Dobbs).

School Reform 101.......2004-04-27

Anyone who complains about public schools should read this book. It is going to be VERY important to the national dialog about how we pull up our socks and get busy making things better.

I know you are busy, so I encourage you to do a good old college-style "gut the book" exercise on this one. It reads well and is only as long as it needs to be (262 uncrowded pages). Speed-devour 100 pages a night and you can get the essence in 2 stints.

I've been voraciously consuming education reform literature, and this one is by far the best of the lot. It gives me a considerable sense of hope that Governor Schwartzenegger has read it and reportedly gave it to some people as a Christmas present. I suspect that this will be a book that many, many people read and talk about.

Prof. Ouchi worked with a team of researchers to analyze the organizations of hundreds of schools and districts, documenting trends in function and dysfunction and examples of turnarounds. He took the findings and synthesized them into seven "keys." He does a great, sensitive job of explaining how none of these alone is the magic answer -- rather, progress is made by working on all seven together. One of the super things about this book: it is very grounded in the reality that education is about people. He speaks to the reader as a potential reformer, and never gets highfalutin or pessimistic. He reminds the reader often that the people involved almost never WANT bad things to happen. Things just seem to work out that way when the organization is busted.

The "Keys" are:
1) Every Principal is an Entrepreneur
2) Every School Controls its Own Budget
3) Everyone is Accountable for Student Performance and for Budgets
4) Everyone Delegates Authority to Those Below
5) There Is a Burning Focus on Student Achievement
6) Every School Is a Community of Learners
7) Families Have Real Choices Among a Variety of Unique Schools

Another great thing about the book: it prepares you to get involved constructively in making YOUR school or district better. This is not just an academic exercise -- it's a plan for bringing better results.

An easy read for anyone concerned about PublicEducation.......2004-01-30

An easy must read for all!
This book is a must read. As a parent activist and public school teacher, this book is a great handbook to revolution in the schools. An easy read, he highlights good things going on and tells you how to evaluate your school in simple words. He also grants permission to everyone and anyone to question the current system, and then take action to decentralize it. It is a practical handbook to empower the public and creat revolutionary change in public education. READ IT AND PASS IT ALONG TO YOUR LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS TOO!

Is this guy talking about the same Seattle and Houston?.......2004-01-16

I live in Seattle and have children in the public schools here (also, I'm an education activitist here). Dr. Ouchi has written quite a revisionist history of Seattle education and used some cunning tricks to do so. For example, on page 37 he states that it was reported by a local newspaper that our last superintendent, Joseph Olchefske,was to resign at the end of the school year. Immediately following that sentence he gives a reason why (making it look as though that is what the newspaper, the Seattle Times, reported). The reason, as Dr. Ouchi, states, was that the superintendent "had been criticized for moving too slowly to close small schools and reduce central office expenses". Nothing is further from the truth and if Dr. Ouchi had bothered to actually read either of our two local newspapers, he would know this. Our superintendent was ousted for mismanaging $34 million dollars (he was an investment banker and possibly could have done more but hey, it's only money). Dr. Ouchi tries to hide this information in another section of the book by calling them accounting errors. If only they had been simple errors!
He also tries to make it seem as if Seattle teachers, by voting more than 85% a no-confidence vote, were trying to get back at the superintendent for his work in changing the procedure for teacher removal. Again, untrue. Teachers voted against him because of his lack of ability in running the district. They were joined by the principals executive board and by so many parents that he was forced to resign. The only supporters he had left sat on the school board which promptly saw the majority overturned in the last election.
Couple this disinct penchant for fudging the truth to support his theories with the recent revelations in print and on television about the so-called Houston miracle makes this entire book suspect.

Making Schools Work.......2003-10-14

This book explains how the organization of a school system can affect student performance. It is filled with stories and data that are interesting, uplifting and compelling. I especially like Professor Ouchi's response to the question, "What makes a school great?" His Seven Keys to Success are "right on," in my opinion. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in understanding why some schools and school systems work while others do not.

Making Schools Work: A Revolutionary Plan to Get Your Children the Education They Need

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Making Schools Work: A Revolutionary Plan to Get Your Children the Education They Need
William G.; Segal, Lydia G. Ouchi
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000OBIZ6G

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