false 10 57 39 true 6065563 read 0 true 484492 currently-reading 18 true 484491 to-read http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/51158227 to: The Fountainhead (Mass Market Paperback) by Ayn Rand
I absolutely loved this book - I couldn't put it down. I realize that the narrative is a bit forced and formulaic... Ayn Rand is methodically trying to make a point with the book. However, the integrity and vision of Howard Roark was inspiring and, after reading it, I have a heightened awareness for the beauty and potential of architecture. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/42123505 to: Kafka on the Shore (Paperback) by Haruki Murakami
I read this after Wind Up Bird Chronicles - and didn't like it quite as much. I did like the way the story alternated between two parallel plots - it kept me interested. I was a bit surprised by how much Murakami reuses many of the same themes: cats, light, dreams, eccentric androgynous characters, fate, war, etc... ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/42122946 to: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (Paperback) by Haruki Murakami
This book drew me into it. Slowly. One of the things I liked best about this book is its sense of time. Sometimes it seems to crawl forward - and other times it flies by. It's as though time doesn't matter as you're following life's fated path. I also loved the characters - they had both simplicity and depth. And the way the characters interacted, I think, had something to teach me: to just go with the flow, enjoy others' company, and let life unfold. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24676789 to: Influence: Science and Practice (4th Edition) by Robert B. Cialdini
This is the best book I've read in a really long time. It is interesting, very useful, and chock-full of great examples.

Basically the book lays out all of the various ways that people can influence the thoughts, behaviors, and decisions of other people. Cialdini calls folks who do this professionally "compliance professionals". These are salesmen, Hare Krishnas, and even con-men.

It is essential reading for anyone in management, sales, and business development. And, really, anyone who is curious about how people make decisions - and how those decisions, in aggregate, describe how society works. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24675500 to: Innovation to the Core: A Blueprint for Transforming the Way Your Company Innovates (Hardcover) by Peter Skarzynski
This is one of the best books I've read about managing innovation. It provides pretty good examples (primarily from Strategos' work with Whirlpool) and concrete advice/tools.

Their basic premise is that successful innovation can be made repeatable by making it more "core" to a company's DNA and distributing innovation capacity throughout the organization. They are trying to do for innovation what Six Sigma did for quality...putting a flexible process around it, institutionalizing an innovation training program and job architecture, and making it a core value that everyone feels empowered to implement. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/24675029 to: The Namesake (Paperback) by Jhumpa Lahiri
I love Jhumpa Lahiri's writing. She does such a great job of describing the human condition through richly detailed descriptions of events and environments. You can really tell that she's speaking from experience when talking about navigating two cultures as an ABCD (American Born Confused Deshi). She nailed the details. As someone who has been to India, and loved it, the book rang really true to me. ]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3716532 to: Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance (Paperback) by Robert M. Pirsig
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3716550 Dreaming in Cuban (Hardcover) by Cristina Garcia
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3716551 The Republic of Plato (Paperback) by Plato
bookshelves: to-read
]]> http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3716549 to: Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Hardcover) by Jim Collins
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