Every so often, a little gem of a book shows up to be reviewed and I ponder to myself, “So simple, so practical, and so GREAT”! Kleon’s book “Show Your Work!/” shares ten ideas to get “found” into today’s uber -social networking climate. The book is filled with illustrations, photos, quotes, stories and tons of examples to inspire the reader. But better than inspire, there are ideas to actually implement today. Kleon insists that waiting until you have perfection, whatever that is, as well as, hoarding your work and ideas is not forward- thinking in today’s digital age. Instead, share your ideas, knowledge and the “how’s and why’s” to build your followers and gain customers and clients. Kleon offers ten mantras including “Share something small every day” and “Learn to take a punch”. Whether or not you are ready to join the digital age, you will find numerous ideas to ponder, highlight and shake your head “yes” as you read this engaging, practical, entertaining and highly useful book.
book review
Carthage
In true Oates form, she has written a book about human frailty with twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. Who else could develop a plot about an Iraqi injured war veteran, a pretty sister and a smart one who happens to be an outsider and missing?! This book is raw; the writing is real and immersive.
Zeno and Arlette seem to have it all in their nice, cozy, small New York town of Carthage. Their older daughter, Juliette, is set to marry a brave Iraqi soldier, Brett, while their younger daughter, Cressida, sits in the background. But things unravel when Brett returns home seriously injured and Cressida appears to be murdered after driving away with Brett on a late Saturday night. Although Brett cannot remember the exact events of the evening with Cressida, no one can deny she is missing. Cressida is looking for the love and the admiration her parents give freely to the pretty sister, Juliette.
In part two of Carthage the reader meets Sabbath and pieces together what has happened in the seven years since Cressida’s “death”. A visit to a prison convinces Sabbath that she must return to Carthage. In Carthage everyone’s life has changed due to the disappearance and apparent violet death of Cressida. Lives are changed forever but can they find forgiveness?
I am an avid Oates fan already, but this book is beyond what was expected. The characters are so flawed, so real and the emotions are raw. At times the details seem overwhelming but once the reader gets to the end, they will realize that Oates had a purposeful grip on them all along.
“The Woman Upstairs”
Claire Messud’s “The Woman Upstairs” introduces the reader to Nora Eldridge. Nora narrates the story and portrays herself as an angry and disappointed almost-forty-something. She dreamed of being a successful artist and instead finds herself as a never-married, third grade teacher with little excitement in her life. She then gains a new student in her classroom, Reza Shadid and his parents Skandar and Sirena. Nora almost instantly sees Reza as her son and his parents as her family/potential lovers. She believes she is in love with each of them and becomes hungry for what they have: Reza, a beautiful boy, Sirena, an Italian artist and Skandar, a Harvard academic. Nora’s false reality causes her to distance herself from her friends and sick father. She becomes ferocious with a lust for life. She rediscovers the artist within her. Unfortunately, her dream reality is shattered when the ultimate betrayal happens.
Messud’s book is hypnotic. She writes with emotion and a storyline full of metaphors. I could feel the passion and anger of Messud’s characters. Messud’s skillful writing, coupled with a compelling story that hinted of disaster at the end, kept this me reading late into the night. I tried reading Messud’s “The Emperor’s Children” a few years ago and could not get through it but I am motivated to give it another shot, since I loved this recent book so much.
Powerful Phrases for Effective Customer Service
Powerful Phrases for Effective Customer Service should be required reading for anyone working in a customer service role. Renee Evenson has worked in the customer service management for over 30 years and this book is a compilation of all that knowledge and experience. Evenson contends that action coupled with the right words will result in successful customer interactions. Part one of the book covers the various phrases that demonstrate courtesy, rapport, empathy and a host of additional phrases. The second section of the chapter examines actions that reinforce those phrases. Part two includes over 30 different scripts for every possible customer interaction-either positive or negative. Evenson reports each customer scenario with great detail including the customer situation, some identifying behaviors of the customer, a “Do This!” story, a “Why this works” and finally tips on applying the suggested approach. Evenson also covers 20 different situations when the customer service person commits a gaffe with the customer such as when the customer rep says something tactless. Evenson’s final chapter encompasses phrases for social media interactions.
Evenson has written an invaluable tool and resource for the customer service provider. This is a book that you will refer to repeatedly. Evenson suggests appropriate, effective behaviors that will improve any customer service interaction. The social media chapter is not as robust as the other content in this book, which is the one improvement I would suggest. Otherwise, this book is one you will want to keep handy when customer interactions run afoul or you just want to review how you handled a situation.
seniyegroff 