101 + Answers to the Most Frequently Asked Questions from Entrepreneurs

Book Description

"I want to open a business in my home. What do I need to do to get started?"

"How can I successfully market my product with a limited budget?"

"How can I increase my sales and find new customers?"

Whether you currently operate a business or dream about starting one, a multitude of typical start-up and growth questions will plague even the most seasoned entrepreneur-and you'll need informed, easy-to-find answers so you can produce fast results. Renowned syndicated columnist Courtney Price shares her entrepreneurial experience and know-how in this revision of the formerly titled Courtney Price Answers the Most Asked Questions from Entrepreneurs. In this insightful, reader-friendly new edition, Price provides even more tips, strategies, and sound advice to help you increase innovation and market share and improve the profitability of your business. She answers the most common questions asked by today's entrepreneurs, covering new ground as she explores such topics as second-career entrepreneurs, family-owned businesses, finding the right name for your business, work for hire, noncompete agreements, managing and growing a business, Internet marketing, developing and launching new ventures, finding creative money sources, and much more. As an added bonus, Price addresses the 10 questions entrepreneurs should ask but don't, such as "How do I design a plan for financing my business?", and provides lists of business resources to help ensure your success.

So whether you need information on how to finance your new venture, where to advertise, how to expand your business, or even how to hire the right people, this practical, one-stop resource will show you how to build your business the right way-the first time.

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Transnational Corporations, published by United Nations Publications on April 1, 2004. The length of the article is 1857 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: World Investment Report 2003 FDI policies for development: national and international perspectives.(Book Review)
Author: Julio Faundez
Publication: Transnational Corporations (Refereed)
Date: April 1, 2004
Publisher: United Nations Publications
Volume: 13 Issue: 1 Page: 177(6)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

World Investment Report 2003: Fdi Policies for Development: National and International Perspectives (World Investment Report)

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World Investment Report 2003: Fdi Policies for Development: National and International Perspectives (World Investment Report)
United Nations Conference on Trade & Development
Manufacturer: United Nations Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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Book Description

This Report is recognized worldwide as an authoritative source of information and analysis on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). This year's Report looks in detail at the forces behind the continued decline in FDI globally. It evaluates how the various regions and countries fared and forecasts the chances for recovery and growth at the global and regional levels. The Report also assesses the interaction between national and international FDI policies and examines implications they have on development. It concludes by highlighting the key issues, from the perspective of development, that must be considered in investment agreements.

Sword over Richmond: An Eyewitness History of McClellan's Peninsula Campaign
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"...fierce and unnatural pursuits of war"

Sword over Richmond: An Eyewitness History of McClellan's Peninsula Campaign
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Harpercollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | United States | Americas | History | Subjects | Books
General | Military | History | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 006092067X

Customer Reviews:

"...fierce and unnatural pursuits of war".......2005-01-12

The Peninsula Campaign (Spring 1862) ended with Union Gen. George McClellan's failure to capture Richmond, due largely to his overcautiousness as well as the bold and often costly attacks from Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's army which eventually took the fight out of McCellan's army. Or, at least out of McCellan himself! The campaign made the North realize that a swift end to the war was impossible, and Lee's military brilliance was emerging as well. Although the bloody battles of the Peninsula Campaign were very costly to both sides, McClellan's advance was brought to a halt and Richmond was saved. This outstanding book is yet another great "eyewitness history" from Richard Wheeler, who carefully weaved together scores of Union and Confederate accounts of the campaign to tell the full story. There are dozens of sketches and drawings from the period, as well as many period maps, although the maps aren't very good. To understand this important campaign from the soldiers' perspective, this is THE book to read. I'd look elsewhere for adequate maps of the campaign, though. Overall, highly recommended for Civil War buffs.

Average customer rating:

Sword Over Richmond
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Recorded Books, LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette
ASIN: 078874061X

Average customer rating:

Lengthy yet covers both sides, McClelland is trashed

Sword over Richmond
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Peter Smith Pub Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0844666246

Customer Reviews:

Lengthy yet covers both sides, McClelland is trashed.......1999-03-24

The horror of war comes through, especially ch. 12. The specifics as to why armies take up winter quarters is explained to the novice. Excellent descriptin of Naval campaign, Monitor and Merrimak. Balanced review of both sides yet Jackson and Lee remain exceptionally strong, wise and true. Lincoln included little but in positive light. McClelland's frequent letters to his wife explain he was an organizer and a politician not a fighter. Excellent coverage of life of average citizens that have been invaded. The strength of the book is its coverage of many aspects of the conflict, a wide variety so a novice gains an appreciation not gotten from high school courses on the subject.

Sword Over Richmond - an Eyewitness History of McClellan's Peninsula Campaign

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Sword Over Richmond - an Eyewitness History of McClellan's Peninsula Campaign

Manufacturer: Harper & Row
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HEUQ7G

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Sword Over Richmond An Eyewitness History of McClellan's Peninsula Campaign
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Fairfax Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000PRS9RY

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Sword Over Richmond. An Eyewitness History of McClellan's Peninsula Campaign.
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Harper Row.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HEOCCQ

Average customer rating:

An excellent history of the Penninsula Campaign

Sword Over Richmond: An Eyewitness History Of Mcclellan's Peninsula Camp
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Books on Tape, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette

General | Books on Cassette | Audiobooks | Formats | Books
ASIN: 0736619054

Book Description

SWORD OVER RICHMOND, told largely in the words of participants and observers, recounts General George McClellan's attempt to outflank the Confederate forces early in the Civil War. He proposed to ferry his army down the Potomac and Chesapeake, then march up the Virginia peninsula and attack Richmond, the Confederate capital, from the east.

Short, dapper and full of confidence, McClellan's appointment as commander of the Army of the Potomac came in the aftermath of the disastrous Union defeat at Bull Run. McClellan looked like another Napoleon and thought he was, but underneath he was overcautious, a fatal flaw in a war leader.

In the end his campaign was a failure. It dashed all hope for a quick end to the conflict, and finally convinced Lincoln to issue the Emancipation Proclamation.

Customer Reviews:

An excellent history of the Penninsula Campaign.......2001-02-06

This is a very detailed an interesting account of the Penninsula Campaign. Everything from the opening moves to the long slow march and then the 7 day retreat are covered in great detail by the author. I recommend this as the first book you read on the subject.

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SWORD OVER RICHMOND: AN EYEWITNESS HISTORY OF MCCLELLAN'S PENINSULA CAMPAIGN
Wheeler Richard
Manufacturer: Harper & Row
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000J4USEK

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Sword Over Richmond: An Eyewitness History Of Mcclellan's Peninsula Campaign
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Castle Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | History | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

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Sword Over Richmond an
Richard Wheeler
Manufacturer: Books On Tape
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette

General | Books on Cassette | Audiobooks | Formats | Books
ASIN: 5553662605

Book Description

This landmark study of the material well-being of older people in nine OECD countries—Canada, Finland, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States—uses a wealth of new data to shed light on the challenges facing policy-makers as they anticipate the coming retirement of the baby-boom generation. The findings are often surprising. In all the countries surveyed, policies have been fundamentally successful, with older people at all income levels tending to maintain or even increase their material standards of living once they stop working. This happens despite large differences in approaches to public policy, including the size of public pensions. The systems that provide resources to older people are considerably more complex than is usually taken into account in policy-making, and the effects of policy, while large, are less direct than often thought. Ageing and Income examines the many diverse ways in which the nine countries are tackling this challenge and the lessons that have been learned from their experiences.

Book Description

From cat food to death, bra size to spirituality, family to goose poop, these are the journals of recording artist Jann Arden.

Customer Reviews:

Extraordinary.......2004-03-13

Untouched, unaffected by fame. Jann Arden writes and feels like one of us. Her journal welcomes you into her life like an old friend. Her honesty, appreciation for life makes you laugh and think about what is truly important. Thanks Jann, for keeping it real with yourself and your many fans.

Book Description

In Dakota Boy, a skilled writer gives a thoughtful, entertaining account of his childhood in North DakotaÂ's Red River Valley in the 1940Â's and early Â'50Â's, depicting the haphazard, often comical, hit-and-miss process by which the child and adolescent tries to build an identity. Along the way, he traces the gradual expansion of social consciousness, explores his puzzling, unsatisfying relationship with his distant, taciturn father, and shows the indelible, inescapable influence of the Northern Plains environment: the severe climate, the table flat fields of potatoes and wheat under an intimidating expanse of sky, and the mid century strictures of Scandinavian-Lutheran conservatism.

In the end, he says, Â“I realized that trying to shake my past was futile, that like it or not IÂ'd just have to go through life with a certain amount of North Dakota on my shoes.Â”

Â“Â…a funny, moving, vividly written bookÂ…Â” Bob Hagerty, The Wall Street Journal.

Â“As amusing as Fargo Â- but this is real life in North Dakota Â…a discerning reminiscence written with insight and humorÂ…will jog nostalgic childhood memories for every reader.Â” Sally Maran, Smithsonian Magazine.

Customer Reviews:

Dakota Boy Strikes Familiar Chords.......2003-12-03

As a contemporary of Robert Woutat, I found that Dakota Boy resonated with my own Minnesota memories of the forties and fifties. His relaxed, conversational rendering of Grand Forks half a century ago is utterly unpretentious but wonderfully concrete and evocative. Like good literature of all kinds, Dakota Boy is both true to its unique coordinates of place and time, and universal in many respects. At moments in this memoir we laugh; at moments we mourn the passing of a way of life; and at moments we feel that in some ways we have grown as a culture in the last half-century. I was sorry to finish the book.

An entertaining and insightful story.......2003-09-13

This book is a well written, entertaining and poignant account of growing up in the Upper Midwest in the post-Depression, WW II era. It is especially memorable for those growing up in that era and region but also provides an insight into what growing up in general was like during the more simple and structured first half of the 20th Century in contrast to the progressive and socially tumultuous times soon to be experienced.

The author also provides an historical account of the ethnic and environmental factors that shaped the inhabitants of the region and personalizes it in a way that leads us to understand how this lineage fostered the culture and behavior in that part of our country. He articulates this legacy especially well with his description of the unwritten precepts or commandments - starting with Thou shalt not put thy emotions on display - "that became the ground rules for all of our social intercourse, including friendship and even marriage".

This book will be a delight for general-interest readers but most especially for those who experienced growing up in a similar place and time.

Review for Rob Woutat's "Dakota Boy.".......2003-09-12

Born in 1938 in Grand Forks, North Dakota, Rob Woutat (rhymes with Utah) grew up in an age when kids were allowed to be kids, learning life-lessons sometimes the hard way, and having to "stand on [their] own without parental supports or buttresses." All throughout the narrative are references to historical and cultural elements (WWII, the Korean War, the death of Stalin, Eisenhower, the McCarthy era, Krushev, the payola scandal, Mickey Mantle, sock hops, Butch Wax, and Brylchreme), providing a rich backdrop and a wonderful sense of time and place in the context of a sheltered Dakotan upbringing. Highly recommended!

The Successful Writer's Guide to Publishing Magazine Articles (The Successful Writer's Guides Series)
Average customer rating:

former student

Can't take advice on writing from someone who can't write

Great info if you can get past the somewhat sloppy editing

inspiring despite poor organization and sloppy writing

Good content obfuscated by sloppy editing and incoherence

The Successful Writer's Guide to Publishing Magazine Articles (The Successful Writer's Guides Series)
Eva Shaw
Manufacturer: Rodgers & Nelsen Publishing Company.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Reference | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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Similar Items:

Writeriffic: Creativity Training for Writers

Writers Market 2007 (Writer's Market)

Writing the Nonfiction Book (The Successful Writer's Guides)

Writing and Selling Magazine Articles

Ghostwriting: For Fun & Profit (Writeriffic Writer's)

ASIN: 0966269616

Customer Reviews:

former student.......2005-09-21

As a former on-line student of Eva's, I couldn't wait to get this book, and I was not disappointed. Less than two weeks after completing her class and the book, I have already had two essays published. Eva's help and guidance was invaluable and I strongly recommend both her books and her courses.

Can't take advice on writing from someone who can't write.......2004-02-19

Even after reading previous reviews about the sloppiness of this book, I purchased it anyway because the reviewers found the content very helpful. But when I opened the book, I couldn't get past page 10-- no matter what gems of wisdom lay within, the mass of typos and incoherence make it impossible to justify finding those gems. The fact alone that Dr. Shaw has managed to sell thousands of articles convinces me that I can break into this field. The reviews at the front of the book laud her enthusiastic teaching style, which she may very well have in person, but on the page she just stinks. Even her examples of "queries that sold" contained weak and redundant sentences, such as "Please consider this topic, and thank you for your consideration." Wha? There are so many books on this topic, I recommend skipping this one. Any good advice is probably found elsewhere.

Great info if you can get past the somewhat sloppy editing.......2004-02-10

Others have noted the sloppy editing, and I agree. But the info here is invaluable for someone who already know how to write for magazines, but needs to be more savvy with the marketing.

As a freelance journalist I can assure you that she tells you like it is. The key is to know thy markets and to be savvy about your skills, and Eva Shaw gives good suggestions on both topics.

I have followed her advice and it has definitely improved my sales.

inspiring despite poor organization and sloppy writing.......2003-04-16

I never return books. But after reading the first two chapters of The Successful Writer's Guide to Publishing Magazine Articles, I dug the packaging box back out of the recycling bin. After skimming through the rest of the book, I was rummaging through the trash for the packing slip. The writer may have good advice but I just couldn't get past the dull, flat writing and the disorganized content to find it. As another reviewer commented, it's inspiring to know that if the author of this book could get published, there's hope for the rest of us. Disappointing to say the least.

Good content obfuscated by sloppy editing and incoherence.......2003-04-10

I wanted to like this book. I really wanted to like this book. Eva Shaw has written good books; as an example, check out "Writing the Nonfiction Book". That one was tight, polished, and useful. The Successful Writer's Guide to... I can't even finish typing the title; the book is just that bad. The content is in the book, but so inaccessible. Dr. Shaw knows her business, and her approach to success will likely work for the aspiring writer. The sad reality is that this book makes the reader work for every bit of useful information, and not in the way that is productively challenging. Rather, the book presents constant obstacles in the form of comma splices, sentence fragments, and incoherent verbal trips around the block that had this reader constantly going back to the chapter title and headings to find orientation. This book reads as though Dr. Shaw typed it in a stream-of-consciousness drive to finish it over a weekend. To think that an editor saw this book before publication strains credulity and insults the editorial profession. Another reviewer wrote that these liabilities are inexcusable in a book about writing, and I agree wholeheartedly.

Eva Shaw knows how to write. She also knows how to be successful in the writing business. Readers new to her books would benefit from reading one other than this as an introduction to her work. The Successful Writer's Guide to Publishing Magazine Articles proves the thesis that anyone can succeed at writing and get published, but uses itself as its own shoddy proof of the low barriers to entry in the business.

Customer Reviews:

Underrated little gem.......2004-04-04

This is one of the better books written about Ulysses S. Grant that are intended for children. Actually, in this case the term "young adults" is more appropriate because the text would be a bit complicated for children.

Rickarby writes quite well and like many women authors, seems to understand Grant, who had a plethora of female characteristics, such as kindness, gentleness and compassion. The military chapters are not especially good and there are a number of basic mistakes in describing various battles. Rickarby is stronger in the domestic realm, and she describes Grant's happy marriage and his life as a father very well.

The most outstanding part of the book are the paintings. In particular, there is a fabulous color depiction of Grant standing on the corner in St. Louis, selling firewood in the late 1850's. If you're a fan of General Grant, this painting alone makes the book a necessary purchase. Rarely has his mood, stance and demenenor been so well captured.

Admiral Sharp, air power and victory: A critical analysis of Strategy for defeat, Vietnam in retrospect, by Admiral U.S.G. Sharp, USN (Student report)
Average customer rating:
Admiral Sharp, air power and victory: A critical analysis of Strategy for defeat, Vietnam in retrospect, by Admiral U.S.G. Sharp, USN (Student report)
James W Ewing
Manufacturer: Air Command and Staff College, Air University
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00072V79O

Book Description

The "bottom line" for the World Bank is its development effectiveness. The independent Operations Evaluation Department (OED) tracks the Bank's development performance, analyzing the effectiveness of Bank projects, programs, and processes; draws lessons of operational experience; and provides advice to the World Bank Board based on evaluations at the project, country, sector, and thematic levels.

This year's Review assesses how the World Bank's country, sector, and global programs are helping clients work toward the Millennium Development Goals and related targets. It finds that while continuity is called for in some areas of the Bank's work, there is need for far greater emphasis in others, and perhaps even changes and innovations in yet other Bank practices and priorities.

Download Description

This is the sixth Annual Review of Development Effectiveness (ARDE), covering the year 2002, whose findings indicate that the Bank ' s country, sector, and global programs are consistent with the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) themes, increasingly focused on poverty reduction. The review assesses, and evaluates the outcomes of its development assistance, indicating that at the project level, outcomes continue to improve, with seventy seven percent satisfactory ratings in FY01 (exceeding for a second year the Strategic Compact target of seventy five percent); over two thirds of projects were rated as likely, or highly likely to be sustained; and, one half rated as having substantial, or higher institutional development impacts. Sector strategies show increasing attention to poverty linkages, although findings suggest intensified efforts in the identification of relevant development outcomes, and corresponding intermediate indicators, as well as strengthening capacities, and incentives to monitor, and evaluate development outcomes. The Bank must move from recognizing the multi-sectoral determinants of development outcomes, to developing and implementing cross-sectoral strategies. Above all, the Bank needs to fully assess the implications at the corporate, country, sector, and global levels of the MDGs, and address these implications in its use of lending, and administrative resources.

Customer Reviews:

See Elvis in a new light.......2005-06-21

It make you see Elvis as a more well rounded person. He feels like a friend I never met.

My Elvis Bible.......2003-01-16

This book is what I will call from now on: MY ELVIS BIBLE

Definitely the world's best Elvis "reader book".
Well written, easy to read, easily enjoyed whenever.

I am patiently waiting for the other Volumes of this series.
If they are anywhere near as good as this volume, Jim Curtin will the world's best Elvis books on the market! (well he kind of does already).

I am so happy I found his books online.
My first exposure to Curtin was through his Unseen Elvis book (definitely the best photo book on ELvis to date).
I did not know he authored more books, till one of my friends bought me his Christmas With Elvis book, and from there on, I became a Jim Curtin / Renata Ginter fan!

With as much enthusiasm as I had reading this book, I can honestly attest that anyone who buys it, will love it just as much. I can guarantee it (if my word even means anything to anyone).

I am just a fan who enjoys reading quality material on Elvis and who LOVES to see rare photos on him as well.

So if you want my recommendation as to what kind of books to buy or get on Elvis .... stick with Jim Curtin (the true Elvis expert and friend)

Very interesting indeed.......2001-08-02

I won't be too long in my review here, so here it is:

This is a very well informative book.
ok there may be some stories that didn't interest me much, but that is quite a small percentage (5% maybe); but I think there are fans out there, who want to know everything.

What I did enjoy (and even learned) were the stories that told the "behind the scenes story" of a particular event (ei: Dorsey Brothers payoff, Parker's business tactics, recording session goings-on, things that showed Elvis wasn't exactly the perfect date)

great reading and I would have to say: a must have reader!

My only problem with this book was some of the photos.
not exactly "unseen" *(because I have seen many before)* but I think they matched Curtin's "chapter themes" (if you want to call them that).

Ok so far Curtin is NOT A MEMBER OF THE FANTASTIC FOUR!
5 more Curtin books to go

My thoughts about this tremendous book.......2000-12-05

I have never written a review before on anything, so please don't mind if I rattle here and there. I will try to my best ability explain what I liked about this book.

#1- This book dispells the Elvis myths that have for some reason been printed all wrong! ... Jim makes true sense of many of these myths and explains in detail the real truth behind certain things: .... [EX: That the Dorsey Brothers who hosted "The Stage Show" did not like nor want ELvis on their show and only allowed him a few appearances when Colonel Parker paid them $5,000 under the table!!]

#2- Has touching stories about the sad times in his life: his mother's death - breakups with his girlfriends - breakup with his wife - etc.

#3- Has funny stories about how Elvis too had his moments of embarrassment, accidents and just plain ole funny situations .... [EX: In the 1970s, Linda Thompson talked Elvis into going to the local Memphis McDonald's and there he was approached by a man who thought Elvis was an impersonator and told him how sad he was to be someone else! Linda simply went along with the man and said to Elvis, "Cut the crap Bob!" ]

#4- Has wonderful behind the scenes stories during Elvis' movie filming ...... [EX: How on the set of Roustabout, Elvis was accidentally kicked in the head by costar and as a result had to have stitches to sew up the wound. The director incorporated a scene in the movie, where in a fight Elvis' character suffers an injury to his head! ]

#5 - Has great stories about the women he dated and what happened during some of the dates! hehe ....... {EX: How Elvis dated Yvonne Craig and he invited her to his CA rented home, while trying to leave, she activated his alarm which in turn called the local police and swat team. She was almost arrested for breaking and entering by them, if Elvis hadn't been woken up to explain why she was there!]

#6- Also has fantastic business stories of some of the deals he and Colonel Parker were offered and turned down. .... [EX: They were offered $1 million to perform one show in England]

#7- Heartwarming family stories about his parents, Priscilla and Lisa Marie ....... [EX: How Lisa Marie, at age five, would play Elvis' records on her own personal record player and memorize the words - and then go to Elvis and "perform" the songs for him - complete with all of Elvis' stage moves!]

These are just 7 reasons why this book is so great. It is so heart touching it should be retitled to: CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE ELVIS SOUL

So fellow readers, if you want a book that you can laugh, smile, cry and be amazed with, this is it! You do not need to be an Elvis fan to read it ... all you need is an open mind, a hot cup of tea of chocolate, a comfortable chair with blanket and this book!

My thoughts about this tremendous book.......2000-12-05

I have never written a review before on anything, so please don't mind if I rattle here and there. I will try to my best ability explain what I liked about this book.

#2- Has touching stories about the sad times in his life: his mother's death - breakups with his girlfriends - breakup with his wife - etc.

#6- Also has fantastic business stories of some of the deals he and Colonel Parker were offered and turned down. .... [EX: They were offered $1 million to perform one show in England]

These are just 7 reasons why this book is so great. It is so heart touching it should be retitled to: CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE ELVIS SOUL

Amazon.com

His father, Abe, was a superb salesman who parlayed personal charm and client loyalty into success despite a series of debilitating ailments. His mother, Stella, was a painter who numbered among her friends Jackson Pollock and Louise Nevelson; she despised the affluent lifestyle her husband cultivated and viewed his taking a job with her father's lighting-fixture company as a betrayal. Before and after their divorce, writes Fred Waitzkin, "Mother and Dad warred within me." His unsparing memoir depicts a larger war within the family waged by grandparents, aunts and uncles, and his own brother, who fled from their parents' troubles into a bohemian, self-destructive life. Young Fred embraced orthodox Judaism and "cultivated [his] conventional side" to emulate Abe, yet he also dreamed of being a writer. Through it all, fishing--beloved by Abe, despised by Stella--remained his escape and his comfort. Waitzkin, who proved with Searching for Bobby Fischer that he could use the particulars of an avocation to illuminate the emotional needs it assuaged, does the same here with wonderfully evocative details about fishing. A closing scene chronicling a 1998 hunt for tuna with his wife and two children tentatively suggests that this generation of Waitzkins has found some measure of the happiness that eluded Abe and Stella. --Wendy Smith

Book Description

Young Fred Waitzkin is a Jewish boy stretched between the divergent values of parents who cannot tolerate one another. Fred's father, Abe, is a brilliantly talented salesman whose relentless will drives him to succeed-he literally brightens American cities with fluorescent lighting fixtures. Abe marries Stella, an abstract artist and daughter of a wealthy industrialist with whom Abe forges an alliance. When his parents' marriage disintegrates, Fred retreats into fishing, learning the trade from the master captains of Bimini. In scenes ranging from Long Island synagogues to evenings with famous painters to the boats of drug smugglers and the once marlin-rich waters of the Gulf Stream, Fred sinks boats and battles thousand-pounders believing that fishing is the only hope. Woven through this compelling narrative are moving insights about childhood, families, and a love of the sea.

Customer Reviews:

The Last Marlin.......2001-07-03

As an ardent sport fisherman, I did not expect to find the great read that I did when I picked up "The Last Marlin" in the sportfishing section of our local library. A great autobiography of Waitzkin's growing up within a rather dysfunctional family, with a sportsman's love of his favorite sport (biggame fishing) told first hand from years spent growing up in Bimini on his father's and then later his own boat. Easy read, reads like a novel. I highly recommend for both the fisherman and non-fisherman.

A Fish Story.......2001-01-23

When I first heard of THE LAST MARLIN I thought it was like most fishing books, long and drawn out with no real point. Then I found out it was written by Fred Waitzkin, who also wrote SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISHER, I thought it must be good. How wrong I was. This book has very little to do with fishing and alot to do with Fred Waitzkin telling the story of his (not so) troubled youth. Although the title is somewhat misleading, and this is not the text I imagined it is written well, and has a few pages that will interest fishing enthusiasts. If you want a book on fishing try FISHING'S BEST SHORT STORIES edited by Paul D. Saudohar, or THE HUNGRY OCEAN BY Linda Greenlaw. If a memoir is more to your liking then THE LAST MARLIN might be for you.

Beautifully written - reads like a novel.......2000-04-14

I started the book on Friday and finished reading it on Saturday evening. I couldn't put it down. I loved it. I think it is a great book, in the genre of Frank McCourt's Angela's Ashes and Tis, but with more depth. It read well, read easy. And yet, it wasn't just about another fictional disfunctional family. It wasn't formulaic. It didn't manifest a protagonist hero overcoming of a difficult history. There wasn't even a clear hero or antihero. It showed a family, a history, that, to some extent or another is a common family, a common history, especially for Jews in America. It's a generational story, a fishing adventure, a history of sportfishing and Bimini and life in the 50s and 60s in New York Jewish society. It's a history of art and jazz and poetry. There is a lot of stuff going on in The Last Marlin. It's an interesting book, not easily put into a classification. It reads like a novel, though it brings to light the oft-quoted phrase that "truth is stranger than fiction." Because it's not fiction, because it's real, the reader will be able to identify with the characters either within us or within our families. Character development, especially of the four leading characters is terrific. Abe, Stella, Bill and Fred are unique characters and all of them, Fred included, are portrayed as seriously neurotic. Each has attractive qualities but each is, to various degrees, self-centered and awful. There is a lot of rage in this book, just like in most families. But most novels don't deal with rage like this, like most people in real life deal with rage. In a novel there would be a murder or rape. In the book, people cope or don't cope as best as they can. They survive, or maybe not, like Bill. I think that is how life is. I would have like to seen Bonnie's character developed more fully. Most readers are going to wonder what the hell she is doing putting up with Fred and the eccentric lifestyle he imposes. A MUST READ!

A memior unlike no other........2000-04-10

The Last Marlin by Fred Waitzkin is a wonderfully written memior which allows you to enter his world of big game fishing and a very unconventional childhood. Waitzkin's complete openess and honesty about his parents, Stella and Abe, will allow to feel the joy, anger and confusion he and his brother Billy had through adolescents. As if this side of his life isn't enough, Waitzkin continues to tell you about his incredible trips fishing for marlin, shark and tuna,with his family, as well as, some of the best fisherman in the world. Whether your a parent, angler, businessman or artist The Last Marlin is a sheer joy to read.

A wonderful memoir.......2000-04-07

The Last Marlin is a truly exsquisitely written memoir. Fred Waitzkin writes about shark encounters and the passion of fishing with an exhilerating intensity that is balanced by his both hilarious and tragic description of the decline of his family. This novel-seeming-book spans from the consevative world of Fred's lighting fixture salesman father to his excentric artist mother and the wild waters of the Bahamas. You don't have to love fishing to love The Last Marlin, nor do you have to have a passion for flourescents (although if you do, you will certainly be touched), you simply have to love a great story.

Last Marlin: The Story of a Father and Son

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Last Marlin: The Story of a Father and Son
Fred Waitzkin
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OJ61JG

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