JK Rowling hints at eighth Potter

JK Rowling says she has not ruled out an eighth Harry Potter novel, although she is unlikely to consider writing it for another 10 years.

The best-selling author of the wizard series told Time magazine she had had "weak moments" when she has said "Yeah, all right" to an eighth book.

Rowling has previously made it clear the series would be in seven parts.

Rowling is a runner-up in Time's Person of the Year list 2007. The winner is Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The seventh - and apparently final - instalment of the Harry Potter series was published earlier this year.

Beedle the Bard

Rowling told Time her central protagonist would be unlikely to feature in any future books.

"If - and it's a big if - I ever write an eighth book, I doubt that Harry would be the central character. I feel I've already told his story," she said.

"But these are big ifs. Let's give it 10 years."

The seventh instalment - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - became the fastest-selling book when it was published in July, based on sales in the UK and US.

A handwritten copy of Rowling's new book The Tales of Beedle the Bard recently sold for almost £2m.

Rowling wrote and illustrated seven copies of the book, which will never be published, but offered only one for sale.

The collection of fairy tales is mentioned in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Proceeds from the sale went to Rowling's charity Children's Voice.



http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7164884.stm

Silent Lies - Book Review

"Silent Lies is an action romance saga, that takes the reader through decades of a tumultuous time between the end of World War I and the beginnings of World War II. Excellent and intelligent use of actual historical events makes this piece both educational and entertaining.

Leo, a young Hungarian boy who sees too many horrors and deceit, barely survives while family and friends are slaughtered. He finds himself alone, again and again. Subsisting on his uncanny ability to mimic behavior and languages, a gift that keeps him alive – and in serious trouble, he travels from Hungary to Paris. Leo is innocently trapped by very ruthless and influential people and he is forced to run for the sanctuary of Shanghai. There, both his greatest hopes and greatest fears come true.

This is an endearing story of a love that many can only experience in dreams. It is about self-sacrifice – of enduring when all hope is gone and strength is fading. Readers witness the consequences of the political and personal choices that Leo is forced to make. Personally, I had to brush away a little water from my eyes a few times in the story.

Without hesitation, I give Silent Lies high ratings because the author has provided an exceptional piece of work. I look forward to the second book to find out what else will happen in Maggy and Leo’s adventurous lives."

ISBN#: 1563527502
Author: M.L. Malcolm
Publisher: Long Street Press

~ Lillian Brummet - Book Reviewer - Co-author of the book Trash Talk, a guide for anyone concerned about his or her impact on the environment ­ Author of Towards Understanding, a collection of poetry.
http://www.sunshinecable.com/~drumit

Los Angeles City Re-writes Free Car Wash Fundraiser E-Book

The City of Los Angeles Storm Water Program has recently re-written the Detail Guy's Founder's Car Wash Fundraiser book to promote non-polluting fundraising events. The run-off from car wash fundraisers can hurt the environment with all those soapy suds. The City of Los Angeles has strict National Pollution Discharge Elimination System procedures as required by the Environmental Protection Agency. If you run a non-profit group and you are looking to raise funds anywhere in the United States, this free online E-Book is made available thru the City of Los Angeles.

http://www.lastormwater.org/downloads/PDFs/carwash.pdf

Environmentalists and dolphins appreciate the work of the City of Los Angeles, the second biggest city in the nation for putting this book online for free and printing copies to all those 1000's of groups within their fine city who want to do fundraisers which builds unity and team work. This has been an ongoing effort over the past two years and now it is online as well as in print for all the children of LA. This book was re-written to be Politically Correct from the original “How to Run a Successful Car Wash Fundraiser” E-Book By Lance Winslow (that’s me). We gave the City of Los Angeles complete copyright latitude as long as they used it to help people. Here is our original book.

http://www.carwashguys.com/fundraisers/LAschools.html

We believe at The Detail Guys that you should give back to the communities you serve. We thank the City of Los Angeles for helping us help all of you. When businesses, entrepreneurs and government work together in a seamless way, there is nothing we cannot do. Think about it.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance is a guest writer for Our Spokane Magazine in Spokane, Washington

Enron Debacle: Review Of Kurt Eichenwald's Conspiracy Of Fools A True Story

Title: Conspiracy Of Fools: A True Story Author: Kurt Eichenwald Publisher: Broadway Books (A division of Random House) ISBN: 0767911784

As I reached the end of the 675 - pages of Kurt Eichenwald’s saga of Enron recounted in Conspiracy of Fools A True Story, I walked away shaking my head in disgust and at the same time shock!

Award winning journalist, Eichenwald, has written for the New York Times for more than seventeen years. Letting the facts tell the story, Conspiracy of Fools, A True Story, is based on the author’s more than one thousand hours of interviews he conducted with over a hundred participants. Combing through thousands of confidential corporate and government documents, contemporaneous records, personal diaries, and best recollections of the participants, the author delivers a compelling and superb recounting of just what transpired- all with believable dialogue.

It is difficult to conceive just how was it possible that a prestigious accounting firm, Arthur Anderson & Co, could with just a wink and nod accept the creative accounting shenanigans that were practiced at Enron? Although, it should be noted that Enron, at the time and prior to the change in the rules of acceptable accounting practices for energy companies, was legally permitted to use "mark to market" accounting, which allows companies to count as current earnings, profits they expect to earn in the future, from energy-related contracts. This was very cleverly used to prop up the balance sheet, keeping the banks and credit raters content.

Can we honestly believe that so called “smart” business people like Ken Lay, Enron’s Chairman and CEO and Jeff Skilling, its President, did not know about or were not concerned with the fraudulent activities of their chief financial officer, Andrew Fastow?

Even until the end of his days at Enron, Fastow never did explain in a precise manner the poor financial condition of the company that had been the result of his incompetence and venality.

Furthermore, through the ineptness of Fastow, Enron was not tracking their cash in order to know when they were experiencing shortfalls-an essential requirement to know when and if they could pay their bills. Apparently, nobody had a clue as to how much daily cash was collateral posted by trading partners and how much was coming in from the business.

What is so mind-boggling is Fastow’s paradoxical behavior. He may not have understood basic business principles or Finance 101, however, he was quite clever in swindling from Enron over sixty million dollars with his masterminding of off –the- books personal partnerships, wherein he hid billions of dollars in debt and artificially boosted the company’s profits. As long as the share price of Enron was propped up and be damned at everything else, everyone went along for the ride without digging too deeply and asking too many questions. The old adage, “hear no evil, see no evil.”

Eichenwald also brings to light how Enron became involved in all kinds of activities that had little to do with their principal line of energy business. As the author states, under the stewardship of Skilling, Enron was changed into a radically different beast.

This all led to Enron’s pursuing of contradictory strategies and a loss of focus, wherein you had at the one end dealings that brought in huge earnings with little cash that were dependent on Enron’s credit rating. On the other hand, you had activities devouring huge amount of cash, while producing very little earnings for years that would potentially put their credit ratings at risk.

Furthermore, our CFO, Fastow, did not have the foggiest idea about how to calculate investment returns!

You had a company that lied to its investors, hid losses to make itself look good, and executives who siphoned off company funds, all under the noses of their top officers.

A recipe just waiting for disaster!

In all fairness, I should add that there were several executives, who to some degree, did complain about some of the creative accounting that was going on at Enron.

This is a remarkable and engrossing read that chronicles a multi-billion dollar sham that came to light in 2001.

One question, however, still lingers on in my mind, how many more Enrons are there lurking in the shadows? Will we ever put an end to this shameless behaviour on the part of some public companies? Just ponder the wider effects it has on innocent employees, who not only loose their jobs, but also in many instances, their life savings and pension plans?

Just in passing, Ken Lay has been indicted and faces criminal charges that include security and wire fraud and making false statements. Jeff Skilling, likewise, faces thirty- six charges, including fraud and insider trading. Fastow has pleaded guilty to two counts of wire and securities fraud and is now serving a ten- year sentence without parole. He has agreed to co-operate with the authorities. Stay tuned.

Norm Goldman is the Editor of the book reviewing site, http://www.bookpleasures.com and the travel site, http://www.sketchandtravel.com.

Norm is also a travel writer and he and his artist wife, Lily Azerad-Goldman meld words with art focusing on romantic destinations.

Bookpleasures.com comprises a group of over 25 prestigious international reviewers who review all genre. There is also a section on the site devoted to author interviews.

All book review requests are welcomed.

The Seventh Jewel - Book Review

The Seventh Jewel is a fantasy-adventure fiction geared for youth (ages 11 and up). J.J. Pritchard crammed several tantalizing elements in only 278 pages. The reader is taken on a journey that involves a treasure hunt, a noble quest and the discovery of an ancient civilization. The author touches upon family relationships, dealing with death and coming to terms with loosing a limb. The Seventh Jewel is also an educational book that brings up serious issues from poverty to discrimination. Mr. Pritchard’s approach to encourage readers to use his glossary of the ancient Inca language was very well done.

J.J. Pritchard, author of 6 books including The Seventh Jewel, has participated in a climbing expedition in Peru. His first hand knowledge of Peru, global warming and ancient Inca history is shown by tasteful and accurate use of facts. He couples this with highly plausible events throughout the story, making this book very well rounded, unique and realistic.

There are four main characters: Emma, a gutsy and witty teenage amputee, teaches the reader understanding and respect for what amputees experience. I think she could be a role model for many readers. Joel, her brave 11-year-old brother, displays a loyal adventurous heart. Uncle Jake, a well-connected treasure hunter by trade, plays the part of a hero and protector during a few points in the story. Estrella, a beautiful professor, has a chip on her shoulder that begins to melt when she meets Uncle Jake. Her life long dream is to honor her people by discovering the mysterious jewel of the Ancient Inca.

They are all thrown together when scientists discover that knowledge of an extremely rare element may exist in the ancient records of the Inca. This element has the potential to combat global warming and it is worth an inconceivable amount of money. Because of this value, people of questionable character are attracted to treasure hunt – but they play by their own rules and answer to their own ethics.

The Seventh Jewel was an exceptional read. I highly encourage readers to pick up a copy of J.J. Pritchard’s latest book. You won’t be disappointed!

ISBN#: 0595336744
Author: J. J. Pritchard
Publisher: iUniverse

~ Lillian Brummet - Book Reviewer - Co-author of the book Trash Talk, a guide for anyone concerned about his or her impact on the environment ­ Author of Towards Understanding, a collection of poetry.
http://www.sunshinecable.com/~drumit

Book Review: Seth Godin - All Marketers Are Liars

Let me start with a small disclaimer: I am a HUGE fan of Seth Godin, and have been ever since he wrote Permission Marketing and probably always will be. Seth has a very unique take on traditional marketing (he thinks it's dead) and I agree with him. A nice summary of stuff Seth knows was kindly put together by Aaron Dignan at Brandplay.com

That being said, I felt it would be worthwhile to blog a bit about Seth's new book so you can decide for yourself whether or not you want to get his book. That being said, on with the post...

Marketers aren't really liars. Consumers are. Consumers tell themselves story based on the marketing message they hear, filtered through their own lenses, and believe the marketing they hear IF an authentic message is told.

Here's what I learned:

• You must have a product that delivers on your story if you want long-term success
• You need to start at the fringes to build passionate users, have these early adopters tell your stories, then you can move a bit to the middle to reach more
• You only tell your story once. Passionate users continue to tell your story, whether you want them to or not, so you might as well embrace them.
• You will not reach everyone, so don't try to. Mass messages are too watered down and are not authentic enough to get viral and spread enough to make it worth your while

Those are the big takeaways I got from Seth's book. You can read his blog at allmarketersareliars.com or buy the book from the world's greatest online bookstore, 800CEOREAD.com.

I hope you'll make your own judgment about this book and check it out for yourself. If not, that's fine too. Maybe this book wasn't meant for you.

Phil Gerbyshak leads a team as manager of an IT Help Desk in Milwaukee, WI, and finds that sharing his knowledge is a crucial component for in his success as a leader and as a person. Phil's personal philosophy is paraphrased from Tim Sanders' fantastic book Love is the Killer App: "Share your knowledge, your network, and your love. The rest will follow." Feel free to contact Phil at http://makeitgreat.org or call 414.640.7445 anytime.

Jason Seeley's War - Book Review

"Jason Seeley’s War" is centered in the heart of a small American town where two youth are deeply in love, and have been since high-school. Jason and Natalie’s love runs with a flexible strength that endures her recovery from a horrible drug addiction. A very promising athlete and student, Jason is welcomed to University, but Natalie won’t let him go without extracting a promise from him to stay faithful to the love of his life. This promise – he meant to keep. But then the Vietnam War happened and Jason was assigned a draft number just before graduation. He knew government agents were about to collect.

Jason was forced to go against his patriotic upbringing because he refused to play a part in a war that he did not support. Now labeled a ‘draft dodger’ Jason is a fugitive in America and for his own safety he runs to Canada. Luckily, he stumbles on an underground organization that attempts to protect people like him from FBI Agents. Jason eventually begins a new life dream of becoming a history professor through the help of kind friends. However, he fears this new dream will mean leaving behind everything and everyone he ever loved. Jason is haunted day and night by the question ‘Will he ever be with Natalie again?’.

I felt that Dean Salter did a wonderful job portraying this aspect of war. How this young man running from a war he could not believe in, tore families apart. The community was also torn in their perception of this ‘criminal’ in their midst. New customs, new friends – a new life to try to fit into somehow, without the people he grew up with confused this frightened young man. Betrayal and grievances create miscommunications and a rift between his family begins that may never be repaired. Strangers along the way helping in the capacity they could at that time, never fully realizing their small aide was a turning point for this young man’s journey. This is a side of the story of war that is rarely told so eloquently.

ISBN#: 0973066318
Publisher: Still Meadow Press
Author: Dean Salter

~ Lillian Brummet - Book Reviewer - Co-author of the book Trash Talk, a guide for anyone concerned about his or her impact on the environment ­ Author of Towards Understanding, a collection of poetry.
http://www.sunshinecable.com/~drumit