Previews - Advice
The Complete Guide to Trading,
Repairing and Financing Your Own Car
Author: Bryan Neenan
ISBN: 0 646 27090 7
Publisher: Roxi Marketing Pty Limited
Address: PO Box 4161, Wantirna South, Vic, 3152
Buying a new or used car, selling your own car, or finding a good mechanic
can be a frustrating and oftentimes expensive learning experience. This
guide is aimed at taking the reader step by step through all aspects of
buying, selling, repairing and financing a motor vehicle. Designed to be
a ready reference "bible" for Australian motorists, it could well
save you hundreds of hours, loads of irritation and possibly hundreds of
dollars to boot.
It takes the reader through everything from finding out what your car is
really worth, preparing it for sale, writing ads, to what to look out for
if you are the buyer looking for a second hand or new car. Most importantly
it gives good practical advice about questions to ask and alternatives that
you can consider.
If you don't know how to detail your car yourself, you can find out here.
If you are an experienced mechanic and know all about car detailing, you
might find the advice on advertising and writing receipts for a car sale
helpful. If you haven't bought or sold a car for a few years, and let's
face it, it's not something you shop for as regularly as the groceries,
the information on buyers and sellers legal responsibilities will let you
sleep a little easier. And the concise explanations of the various ways
of financing a car purchase will save many people hours of time investigating
possible options.
Written in plain English it makes no assumptions about levels of knowledge.
With more than thirty years experience in the motor vehicle retail and repair
industry, Bryan Neenan has obviously seen it all, or at least heard about
what he hasn't personally seen. This guide is likely to have some new and
valuable advice for anyone buying or selling their car.
Real Estate Yearbook - 1996 - New South Wales
Author: John Allan
ISBN: 0 646 28176 3
Publisher: Allan Consulting Pty Limited
Address: PO Box 109, Pennant Hills, NSW, 2120
For anyone studying, working in or interested in real estate, from agents
to bankers to valuers to investors to buyers, this publication provides
a factual insight into the residential real estate market for the period
1991 to January 31 1996 in New South Wales.
It separates houses, units and land and looks at median sale prices and
volumes by postcode, council regions and the state for each category. The
last chapter deals with market dynamics.
Most people see reports in the media relating to house price movements,
some being positive and yet others seeming to contradict previous reports.
The author notes that the reports themselves are usually accurate but as
they nearly all use different statistics they are difficult to compare and
thus can be confusing. The Office of State Revenue, the department that
collects stamp duties, use averages to analyse the market and for their
purposes averages make sense because they are interested in revenue. However,
the objective in this publication is to find the middle of the market or
the most common occurence. The author argues that medians provide a better
indicator for real estate purposes than averages because one very large
sale price can distort the market yet the same sale will have little influence
on the median sale price.
As Robert Weight, President of the Real Estate Institute of NSW says, "Staying
competitive in today's dynamic real estate market requires more than local
market knowledge. Staying competitive means understanding the impact of
regional and state trends. The Real Estate Yearbook gives you insights for
the competitive edge."
Professional Punter's Bible
Author: Peter Leek
ISBN: 0 646 274821
Publisher: Peter Leek
Address: 24 Marsden Street, Kiama, NSW, 2533
Developed for those who want to know how to become successful in the
racing business as a punter.
Starting with attitude, this publication takes the beginner through a commonsense
approach to betting, an introduction to considerations such as trainers,
fitness, jockeys, distance, barriers, handicapping, track conditions, where
to gain information and how to use it and so on.
The author focusses on a set of business principles to consider when investing.
He argues the importance of controlling your bank - ie your capital. Models
are set out that require as little as $10 for a minimum starting balance.
He argues that the strategies you deploy are crucial to being successful
and a number of betting strategies are detailed - how much to continue betting
if you win, or if you lose to protect your capital.
Following the banking and betting systems are a variety of selection systems.
Leek constantly reiterates the importance of patience and discipline, that
is not the results for the day that count, but the results for the year.
That to be successful, betting must be approached professionally, with capital,
strategies, knowledge, and a business plan.
"Bookmakers and Professional Punters treat racing strictly as a business.
They are content to accumulate steady profits year in year out. Most punters
go to the races with no knowledge of racing and no preparation on how to
bet. All they are doing is relying on luck. It is the everyday punter that
lets the professionals live in style."
This book, Leek argues is the "how to" that will turn you into
a successful punter.
Dear Writer
Author: Carmel Bird
ISBN: 0 646 23850 7
Publisher: Carmel Bird
Address: PO Box 350, Canterbury, Vic, 3126
Originally published in 1988 by McPhee Gribble/Penguin Books, this much
demanded handbook on writing is finally in print again and will be welcomed
by those wishing to develop their fiction writing skills.
"Dear Writer" is, as the title suggests, a series of letters to
an unknown author by "Virginia O'Day". O'Day has been given the
writer's short story manuscript for assessment and this collection of letters
follows the life of the short story as it edited and reedited.
The correspondence is one sided, only those letters from O'Day to the Writer
and the manuscript in its various incarnations is not presented to the reader.
It is a fascinating approach to the teaching of the techniques of writing.
The more so as Carmel Bird has a singular talent to be ever constructive
whilst provocative, probing and demanding of the writer. She does not tell
the writer what to do, rather she offers ways of thinking about the work,
reviewing the work and self-appraising the work.
The letters are themselves essays. In "A: For Alive: D: For Dead (The
Use of Adjectives and Adverbs)" Bird offers exercises in how to cope
with - or, more accurately, eliminate - extraneous adverbs and adjectives,
and thus transform verbiage into writing that is fresh and original in style.
From traps for the unwary to an assessment of courage - "Giving Up
Housework (Dedication to the writer's task)", Bird is always practical
and encouraging, realistic and supportive.
For students of writing, for those who are thinking of self-publishing their
work, for those seeking a publisher, and for those reviewing the work of
others, this is worth reading now.
"Dear Writer" is a valuable contribution to the teaching of writing.
It succeeds so admirably where many other texts fail - it is practical but
not prescriptive.
Personal Strategies for Life
Author: Chris & Jules Collingwood
ISBN: 0 646 18671 X
Publisher: Inspiritive Pty Limited
Address: PO Box 79, Double Bay, NSW, 2028
A practitioners' manual for students of NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming).
This manual for practitioner training has been organised to create a context
for learning NLP where the underlying patterns of NLP become available to
the practitioner student. The manual should be beneficial for anyone participating
in NLP training as well as being a reference work for people already certified
as a Practitioner, Master Practitioner or NLP Trainer.
The authors argue that it is the patterns of NLP that make the difference
for an individual, the "Personal Strategies for Life" rather than
the particular format or ritual and believe that irrespective of where a
person may have done their practitioner training this manual will be a useful
adjunct.
The four major benefits of NLP practitioner training covered in this publication
are:
* excellence in communication;
* development of thinking skills (cognitive strategies);
* skills for self-change and personal choice (personal evolution);
* basic skills for modelling behaviour and capabilities (replicating talent).
Madness is All in the Mind
Author: Ray Brown
ISBN: 0 646 26579 2
Publisher: Ray Brown
Address: PO Box 654, Glebe, NSW, 2037
Cartoons from the author which he hopes "will amuse you and foster
greater understanding of the 20% of the population who experience mental
illness". The book aims at promoting good mental health and an understanding
of mental illness through humour.
As the author says: "there is nothing funny about mental illness .
. . Many people endure heartbreaking suffering not for days or weeks, but
seemingly endless years. Despite this, humour often transcends human suffering,
resuting in more positive acceptance of oneself." Clearly a healthy
ability to laugh at himself has resulted in this publication.
"How many psychlogists does it take to change a light bulb?"
"One. But the light bulb must want to change."
Holistic Leadership -
How to survive and prosper in the coming business revolution
Author: John York
ISBN: 0 646 25361 1
Publisher: John York Publications
Address: RMB 1494 Harpers Road, Woodend, Vic, 3442
"Holistic Leadership" describes the challenges that businesses
and, in particular, managers will face in the coming revolution in business.
York argues it could be the most significant business revolution of all
and that, like all good revolutions, it begins with discontent in the hearts
and minds of ordinary people. It is fired by the desire for freedom, the
right to choose a more fulfilling way of work, to be in greater control
of one's own life.
"Holistic Leadership" posits a new approach to management, one
that will be responsive to the perceived needs of employees and beneficial
to business.
York, an engineer and author with thirty years experience working, managing
and consulting in industry, he explores the forces that prevent action,
the reasons that apathy develops and how personal ambition can destroy teamwork.
He analyses bureaucracy, how it develops, how it atrophies, how to recognise
its development and how to ensure that bureaucratic structures to do not
develop within an organisation.
Demonstrating why management ego is so destructive, York looks at how the
creativity of all staff can be tapped and harnessed for the benefit of the
company and for the benefit of each individual within an organisation. In
looking at creativity as a resource he explores how fostering creativity
is one of the most important stategies in avoiding apathy and in providing
a satisfying work experience for employees.
In looking at business ethics, York explains that an holistic approach to
management looks beyond the immediate surroundings of an organisation and
beyond the balance sheet to the effect the organisation is having on its
shareholders, bosses, managers, employees, clients, customers, and the general
public and the environment locally, nationally and internationally. His
argument for responsibility, honesty, integrity and quality in business
is compelling.
Its examination of issues such as sensitivity, trust and quality are not
warm and fuzzy but practical and founded in a set of principles and values
with universal application - the replacement of a greedy selfish society
with a civil society.
"Holistic Leadership" is a refreshing and welcome contribution
to the discussion of management with application and relevance to all forms
of business - from family businesses, sole traders, partnerships, the school
canteen, the parents and citizens committee, and co-operatives, through
to large corporations and multi-national companies in all spheres of business
regardless of the product or service.
A is for Angst - A User's Guide to Depression
Author: Pam Pilgrim
ISBN: 0 646 26481 8
Publisher: Pam Pilgrim
Address: 232 Highett Road, Highett, Vic, 3190
The author says in her introduction, "If you have suffered from
depression, you will know the feeling of not being able to concentrate long
enough to read anything".
"A is for Angst - A User's Guide to Depression" is Pilgrim's witty
answer to communicating the preoccupations of a sufferer to those who can't
concentrate for more than a moment or two - a hand drawn alphabet.
This alphabet is for sufferers, those who can identify with sufferers and
for those who don't know what it's about but are interested in taking a
look.
From "C" for concentrate because you can't, to "I" for
"inconsolable" and for "ideas" because you want some,
to "P" for "pathetic" plus "prison" to "Z"
for "zany zest for living" it is a thoughtprovoking insight, a
brief look, at depression. Eloquent in its brevity and simplicity, it is
a moving contribution to the understanding of the condition.
The Invisible World
Author: Lance Spicer
ISBN: 0 646 24959 2
Address: PO Box 68, Bangor, NSW, 2234
If you have ever wondered just how some people managed to get so wealthy
and you didn't, this book provides some clues. Stories of people operating
their companies through tax havens are common knowledge - people whose companies
are estabished in Bermuda or the Cayman Islands or whose investments are
all run through bank accounts in the Channel Islands What is not quite such
common knowledge is just how they do it.
This book is not a guide to tax evasion nor a substitute for accountancy
and legal advice. It is a very illuminating examination of how businesses
can be run through other countries with considerable financial benefits
to those conducting the enterprises at the expense of their own country's
tax revenue.
"The Invisible World" provides fascinating information about the
manner in which certain countries run their economies, their governments
and so on. There is an impressive array of places to choose from if you
wish to go to a very considerable effort to establish business overseas
that offer tax minimisation benefits. For instance, I had never heard of
a place called Campione. Forced to guess, I would have said France, but
it turns out to be an Italian enclave in Switzerland on the shores of Lake
Lugarno and surrounded on three sides by Switzerland. Quirks of history
dating back to the 8th century have resulted in this tiny area ending up
as part of Switzerland economically but politically part of Italy and the
EC - with tax haven advantages to boot.
If you are looking for a way to reduce the tax you must legally pay, then
this book offers an international oversight of some of the options you might
like to consider. If you simply want to know how others have done it, it
is a fascinating insight into what for most of us is an "invisible
world". But be warned, if you want to investigate reducing your tax
obligations, it looks like a huge amount of work. For me, I'll just keep
paying my taxes.
Southern Cross Stitch
Needlepoint motifs for cross stitch in cottons or
Swiss Darning of knitted essence
Author: Avril Kelso
ISBN: 0 646 24995 9
Address: Jervis Bay Territory, NSW, 2540
The fifth book by the author, this is the first I have been priviledged
to read. In her disclaimer, Avril Kelso notes that "Southern Cross
Stitch" is a pattern book, not an instruction manual, and that whilst
it assumes no particular knowledge or level of experience it is not for
the complete novice.
When it comes to knitting, I am quite competent at producing squares - providing
no expectations about size are made. I am only slightly better when it comes
to cross stitch, so it was with trepidation that I proceeded further.
There is no doubt that for the full potential of this book to be realised
those with competency already established in knitting or cross stitch will
be able to do full credit to Avril Kelso's designs. However, it was with
relief that I discovered that the layout and presentation can offer huge
rewards for the rank amateur cross stitcher - as both my daughter and I
can attest.
What my daughter first determined to be a shortcoming - colour illustrations
confined to the front cover - we both subsequently discovered to be an asset
for the less skilled. Kelso has set out the designs for a range of uses
- complete pictures to be worked as illustrations for framing or incorporaton
on clothing are set out with component sections perfectly suited for working
as borders, book marks and the like.
Completely fazed by the complexity of the major works, utilising as they
do a range of colours that will send this amateur cross eyed and bad tempered
with the work consigned to the garbage bin, the black and white illustrations
free the less initiated from automatically comparing their results with
brilliant colour illustrations of exquisitely rendered work. By referring
only to black and white patterns, it becomes easy to allow your imagination
to take the work into directions that most suit your own style, taste and
ability. The way the patterns have been constructed and presented allows
for the possibility of relief patterns working effectively in silhouette
to produce striking borders and repeat motifs.
For the more experienced, the challenge and potential satisfaction is certainly
to be found within these pages.
Concentrating on animal and bird themes, there are also few diversions into
heavy machinery and vehicles to satisfy the need to produce jumpers and
the like for young boys. Some of the designs - the squirrels and the seahorse
and tortoise - are particularly fetching. But the triumph of the book is
the way it can be adapted by the inexperienced and experienced alike.
Bone's Tennis - Serving
Author: Colin Bone
ISBN: 0 646 25543 6
Publisher: Colin Bone
Address: PO Box 515, Randwick, NSW, 2031
"Bone's Tennis - Serving" is designed to assist the reader
to develop their own serving style.
It explains, with the use of diagrams, different strokes and approaches
to serving, and covers warm-up exercises, exercises to strengthen various
aspects of your serve, injury prevention and minimisation, and tactics.
If you can't afford a coach, this might be for you. At first glance it looks
more look an explanation of tennis relying on a solid grounding in algebra
- but the abbreviations are explained at the back of the manual.
- If you'd like to purchase a copy of one of the books listed above please
contact the publisher directly. Their address is just under the title's
listing.
Fast Books Home Page