COOLHUNTING: Chasing Down the Next Big Thing
By Peter A. Gloor and Scott M. Cooper
Published by AMACOM Books
ISBN 0814473865, May 2007, hardcover, 236 pages, $24.95
Available through Amazon or directly from the publisher
Be cool by staying on the cutting edge of what's hot.
What is cool? It's one of today's most pervasive and elusive questions. No matter who we are, we all have an innate desire to be cool, cultivate cool, and find cool. Whether it's the next hot band, this season's hip new TV show, or the trendy new club that's attracting all the right people, everyone wants to tap into the power of the latest trends in fashion, music, politics, and entertainment.
The enormous popularity of social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, and Friendster are further testament to our collective need to stay on the cutting edge of what's hot. Now, in COOLHUNTING, you will discover the practical tools you need to find the hottest trends -- and the people who set them.
The art of coolhunting involves zeroing in on the fresh idea that will be the genesis of a hot new trend. It also involves finding the people responsible for the idea -- the trendsetters who will cause others to jump on board. By recognizing who the trendsetters are, you can actually anticipate the next big trend before it takes off -- because cool ideas will grow and expand around these people.
Authors Peter Gloor and Scott Cooper have done extensive research into the fascinating world of coolhunting and its many applications. Now, they explain what coolhunting is, how it originated, and how to explore the power of cool for yourself. They explore the many varied -- and often surprising -- ways that companies like Apple, Continental Airlines, Starbucks, Procter & Gamble, and Google have been using coolhunting to their advantage in areas such as product development, marketing, and customer relations.
Filled with real-world practical advice on how to coolhunt, this innovative guide offers the latest techniques, specialized software, and Internet technology to enable you to home in on your targets with unerring accuracy. Prospective coolhunters will learn how to:
Emulate the great coolhunters, from venture capitalist John Doerr to founding father Ben Franklin.
Discover new trends by tracking message board discussions and blogs.
Find and recruit the latest trendsetters among sources like Wikinews.
Master the five steps to becoming a "coolfarmer" -- getting involved in the actual creation of new trends by nurturing your own ideas.
A new kind of hip guide for the 21st century, COOLHUNTING is a revolutionary book that redefines the way we think about the power of cool.
When Vanessa Vega would feel the darkness begin to come over her, she would do anything, hoping to escape it. Take a hot bath. Read a book. Watch TV. Talk to a friend. But then, finally, unable to fight it any longer, she would give in, head into the bathroom...and cut.
Comes the Darkness, Comes the Light is a disturbing yet ultimately redemptive and inspiring memoir of a young woman compelled to injure herself in an attempt to cope with her overwhelming feelings of anxiety in the only way she knew how. Though still unknown to many, this disorder affects an estimated one percent of the population...and is on the rise, especially among teens.
This affecting, heart-wrenching book follows author Vanessa Vega's progress as she climbs her way back to emotional health and rebuilds her life. Readers will go inside the mind of a "cutter," taking the journey with her as she struggles against her exhausting and shameful secret ritual.
As Vega faces the anger and insecurity that lead to each encounter -- while working with a therapist to understand the real motivating factors behind her behavior -- Comes the Darkness, Comes the Light reveals what brings many to this disorder...and what can lead them out. With stunning insight, Vega has written a moving first-person account of self-injury, struggle, and redemption.
THE ABDUCTION:
The Sacred Legend of the Great Wall
by John F. Brinster
Published by AuthorHouse
(ISBN 978-1-4343-0039-3, 290 pages, softcover, $17.49)
Available through this site or directly from the publisher: http://www.authorhouse.com
A new novel by a noted author of science, philosophy and religion with its subplot set in first century China when massive walls were built for protection against Mongolian hordes and alliances were sought with the mushrooming Roman Empire far to the west.
An ancient legend suggested the abduction of the Christ child by an ambitious Chinese ambassador, an early traveler, who replaced him in the manger with his own twin son. Influenced by the messianic prophesy, his mission was to return to China with the secret of Roman success and the potential for Chinese superiority. Following his brother's crucifixion and burial, the second twin was mistaken for resurrection. With similar previously undisclosed events in first century Judaea an historical account was contained in the controversial Book of Chan, hidden in the Great Wall for two thousand years. The location was inscribed in a set of Chinese seals with sculptured ivory handles since scattered among world collectors of sigillography.
Two Harvard and Oxford professors, meeting on an Oriental cruise, teamed up in search of the legendary book but encountered very rough competition from religious agents determined to prevent disclosure. Amidst touches of romance they uncovered a unique culture at the conflux of the Great Wall and Silk Road. Finding a number of the ancient seals, including several that later had been carried to Venice by the Marco Polo entourage, the academic couple succeeded in computer analysis producing a usable matrix map.
Written in the genre of The DaVinci Code, the book includes an important philosophical addendum on the search for greater realism in biblical understanding that strongly influenced the creation of this unique and somewhat controversial story. Proof readers see it as a best seller and the next major "Hollywood Project."
ENDINGS:
A Novel
by Barbara Bergin
Published by Sunstone Press
(ISBN 978-0865345195, 268 pages, hard cover, $ 28.95)
Available through this site or directly from the publisher: http://www.sunstonepress.com
Following a tragic accident two years ago, Leslie Cohen, M.D. is driven to live the nomadic life of a locum tenens physician, moving from one temporary job to another, covering the practices of orthopedic surgeons while they take time off. Deeply affected because of her loss, this enables her to avoid forming relationships, both friendly and professional. And she is determined.
But all of this changes when she agrees to a one month commitment in Abilene, Texas, temporarily taking over the practice of Hal Hawley while he goes on leave to have surgery for cancer. Soon after arriving she realizes her mistake in taking on an extended post as she develops a strong bond with Doc Hawley and his wife.
Even more significant is the friend she finds in Regan Wakeman, a local rancher and contractor. There is conflict in her soul as Leslie tries to protect the memories she wants to keep alive no matter how painful they might be. As the relationship with him progresses, there is a gradual revelation of the tragedy that has remained her secret until now.
The Oil and the Glory:
The Pursuit of Empire and Fortune
on the Caspian Sea
by Steve LeVine
Published by Random House
(ISBN 0375506144, 496 pages, 16 pages of photos, hard cover, $27.95)
Available through this site or directly from the publisher: http://www.randomhouse.com
When the Soviet Union crumbled, oil in the Caspian region -- a remote, rather barbaric, highly romanticized region -- was accessible to the west for the first time in history. The race was on, as Big Oil and all manner of adventurers, dealmakers, and political operatives traveled to one of the most corrupt and dangerous neighborhoods on earth to embark on a new Great Game with massive geopolitical and strategic implications. Fortune hunters sought fortunes, oil companies built an unprecedented, dystopian oil city on the surface of the Caspian Sea, and the American government pushed for the longest pipeline ever built -- one that would lead to a major geopolitical victory over Russia and Iran.
The Wall Street Journal's Steve LeVine takes us from the pipeline builders and oil extractors battling the elements in a primitive land, to the boardrooms of Chevron and BP, to meetings between corrupt officials and U.S. dealmakers on the make, providing a window into the high-stakes, transcontinental maneuvering that occurs when Big Oil, geopolitics, and massive corruption overlap.
Praise for The Oil and the Glory:
"The deft political portrait of this strategic, volatile area makes the book essential reading, but it's LeVine's fine writing that makes it a pleasure." -- Portfolio Magazine
"A complex story rendered comprehensible, with much drama and intrigue." -- Kirkus Reviews
HEALTH CARE REFORM NOW!: A Prescription for Change
by George C. Halvorson
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
(ISBN 0-7879-9752-8, 394 pages, hard cover, $27.95)
HEALTH CARE REFORM NOW! is written by one of the leading figures in health care today, and offers a simultaneously enthusiastic and rational way to solve this country's health care crisis. George Halvorson, who has led two of the most successful nonprofit health plans in the country (Health Partners in Minnesota and currently, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals, headquartered in California), expounds on a model that solves the unsolvable -- by simplifying and streamlining our health care system in a way that works for patients, doctors, nurses, payers, and those who legislate health care policy.
Currently, 1% of people incur 35% of health care costs. Health care needs to focus on improving the care of those people in very logical and doable ways. Any effort to reform health care that does not understand the overwhelmingly powerful implication of that cost distribution reality is doomed to fail.
Halvorson's model outlines the ethical and logistical reasons for health care reform, and explains and defends a benefit package and funding services. And finally, he explains why quick action is essential and how using the right tools -- the focus on real costs and the use of real data and systems -- can make universal coverage affordable, efficient, and administrable.
ENDORSEMENTS:
"Halvorson's comprehensive approach, rooted in a practical understanding of the complexities of American healthcare...shows us how to stimulate high performance in the healthcare delivery system, and guides us on how to get all Americans covered." -- Ian Morrison PhD, Healthcare Futurist and Author of Healthcare in the New Millenium: Vision, Values, and Leadership
"Halvorson convincingly argues that the U.S. finally has what it needs to make universal coverage a reality and lays out a plan to get us there. It should be required reading on Capitol Hill." -- Congressman Pete Stark (D-CA), Chairman of the Ways and Means Health Subcommittee
"[Halvorson's] creative and original ideas for organizing 'infrastructure vendors' and financing universal health insurance in the U.S. are a must-read for anyone who is seriously interested in health system reform." -- Alain Enthoven, Marriner S. Eccles Professor of Public and Private Management (Emeritus), Graduate School of Business at Stanford University
"Halvorson not only offers a comprehensive vision, with creative approaches to improved quality of care and covering the uninsured, he proposes a new model of purchasing that moves away from the current flawed system." -- Helen Darling, President, National Business Group on Health
"This book is powerful and compelling. It's just the right book for this time." -- Jeffrey C. McGuiness, President, HR Policy Association
Author Profiles
