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Posts Tagged ‘book reviews’

Vision boards are not just used for personal manifestation purposes: they are excellent marketing tools also. People love to watch entertaining and uplifting videos, so what a better way than to promote a new book with a video that will introduce the book and encourage someone to buy it.

When you make a video book review with Vision Map Videos, you can upload it to YouTube and index it with keywords just like you do with articles and you can also keyword the title. You can add the video to your website(s), social bookmarking; and also include them in your articles and press releases.

Included in the video you will want an image of the cover and even a bio about you. You can include where to purchase it whether it be on your website or a link to Amazon: where you are going to be doing book signings or any pre-book sale promotions. You can even put the video on other peoples websites that are in your same category and do a joint venture with them. this will create even additional exposure. The video can also be on the YouTube account of Vision Map Videos which will also attract more traffic to your website.

These videos are both beautiful and functional; each Vision Map Video is made personally for each individual purpose and/or business, made specifically for your wants and needs. Vision boards have officially grown up and gone HI-TECH, no more glue and scissors; it is proven that animated viewing has a more powerful effect on a person in what manifests in their lives and what they want to do. Hence, the great idea for marketing your new book and give them a fun and inviting introduction into your book.

Vision Map Videos are also a great way to re-introduce an already published book that you would like to create a new interest in to the general public, it basically works the same way as with a new book, only could use a statement like “back by popular demand”.

Advertising with videos is as varied as your creative mind can go, and if you are working on a book and seem to have that situation of writers block, a Vision Map Video would be perfect to unblock it. The video would be custom made to personally unblock your block.

After having her masterpiece graciously published by the Little, Brown Company, the Twilight saga became a worldwide phenomena. Twilight, has sold millions of copies around the world and continues to be a household name. Countless girls and guys of have fallen disastrously in love with Edward and Bella. If you love sappy romance novels, this book is not for you. Although their are romantic essences in the novel, it is highly suspenseful and incredibly dramatic. All of these components equal the success of the Twilight Saga.

Twilight:

Bella Swan is a 17 year old girl that moves to Forks, Washington to live with her father. She soon uncovers the dark truth about the mysterious Cullen family. On the brink of falling in love with Edward Cullen, she realizes the he is a vampire. Twilight is a compelling story of a damsel in distress and a vampire in shining armor that is obligated to protect and save her. Who wouldn’t want a vampire knight?

New Moon:

The next chapter in the Saga is conveniently titled New Moon. New Moon picks up where Twilight left off and introduces new dilemmas. Bella turns 18 and is thrust into a dangerous situation in which Edward once again needs to save her life. The best way for him to do this is to leave. Desperate and heartbroken, Bella turns to her friend Jacob for consolation. Thanks to the vampires, there are the opposing werewolves in Forks and Bella discovers Jacob is one of them.

Stephanie Meyer gently weaves a standard love triangle between these unlikely creatures and Bella. Although these books are most definitely classified as fiction, they are entertaining and very easy to read. Do not be intimidated by the size of the novel in the store. These books are hundreds of pages long but do not seem to be when you are enthralled in the story. And trust me, you will be enthralled.

One last thing:

Be sure to read the books before you see the movies! The novel includes much more background information, context, and dialogue. If you want full appreciation for the saga, read the books first.
Keep reading, the story only get better!

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If you’re looking for a good book to read-either for your own enjoyment or a book club suggestion-what’s one of the first things you do? You can ask a friend. But word-of-mouth recommendations depend to a large extent on personal taste. If you want a more reliable gauge, you’ll want to find book reviews.

Let’s say you’re at a bookstore and you’re holding a book in your hand. Invariably, you turn to the back cover where you find excerpts of mainstream media reviews. They’re glowing, of course- “Characters with heart!” “A non-stop page-turner!” “A major new voice in fiction!”

There might even be a quotation or two from well-known authors: “Characters with heart!” “A non-stop page-turner!” … and so on. Authors are frequently asked by their publishers to write favorably about new imprints on the trade list. Some authors have admitted they don’t actually read the books they’re asked to review (gasp!), but they’re willing to go along because…well, they’re generous people. And they want the same treatment for their own books.

Don’t confuse these kinds of book comments with genuine book reviews: what you see on the book covers are promotional blurbs, carefully culled by publishers from longer reviews, that may-or may not-be altogether positive. A blurb’s purpose is to sell books, not to inform readers.

What’s worse, media outlets sometimes come under pressure to write glowing comments so as not to offend their advertising clients, the publishers whose books they review. It can be a cozy, if sometimes uncomfortable, relationship for publishers and authors-but not particularly helpful for readers.

When looking for a good book review, look for one that turns a critical eye on a book’s style and content. A genuine book review considers the following elements:

Characters-are main characters convincing? Do they have emotional and psychological complexity and act according to authentic motivation? Or are they flat and one-dimensional with little detail of their inner lives?

Plot-is the plot predictable or does it surprise, going where you least expect it? Are there interesting plot twists? Do events unfold organically, naturally? Or are they forced-leaving you feeling manipulated. Does the ending wrap up loose ends? Does it wrap up things too neatly, to the point of being pat or trite? Or does it leave issues unresolved, open to different interpretations?

Ideas-does the book offer an exploration of ideas-perhaps a moral or ethical problem, or the meaning of relationships (familial, romantic, or friendship-based)? Does it offer interesting insights or a fresh perspective?

Style-is the writing heavy handed,…uninspired with over-written or even cliched phrases . Or is the writing feel fresh, even inspired? Is the writing funny or witty?

Where do you find helpful reviews? The best, most in-depth are from major daily newspapers: the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune or Sun-Times, just to mention some. Look also in periodicals like Time, Newsweek, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and Atlantic Monthly.

You can head to your public library and dig through past issues of newspapers and periodicals. Better yet, many libraries subscribe to online databases that carry the full texts of articles from the major papers and magazines.

You can also go online at home. But most newspapers and magazines require subscriptions to get into their archives, so you won’t always have access to full articles-although sometimes you get lucky and find them on right on Google.

You can also go to customer reviews at the big online booksellers-Amazon and Barnes & Noble. But customer reviews tend to be all over the place and are highly idiocentric. They can be helpful but not always reliable.

The best bet is to find an online book site you can trust, a website with an index of titles, reading guides, and book reviews. Look especially for ones that carry complete reviews-not just blurbs-by Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and especially Kirkus Reviews. Libraries subscribe to these review publications, so they tend to be forthright in their assessments of books-after all, it’s what libraries pay them for.

Nothing’s a guarantee, but knowing where to look for reliable book reviews-rather than promotional blurbs-can go a long way to ensuring a worthwhile read.

The first step in starting your own business isn’t writing a business plan or figuring out your business name and location, it’s stocking up on motivational books. Yes, self-help books that help you manage your new company will keep you encouraged during ups and downs of business ownership. As a new captain of industry, you are embarking on one of the most incredible adventures of your life, but things can and will get rocky. When your day doesn’t go according to plan, you can rely on the words found in your books of motivation to get by.

These types of books not only keep you going during tough times, but they also assist in improving self as well. In fact, business success can only happen if you yourself are the absolute best you can be, and that happens by staying encouraged through consistent self-improvement. Build a library of books: books for your industry, books on how to run a business and books on motivation will all help keep you on track.

You may be asking yourself what the best titles are for your situation. The answer is: motivational book reviews. Starting a business has many hidden and not so hidden costs. You can help lower your overhead with the vast knowledge found in these guidebooks, and learn how others dealt with the obstacles and hurdles that you are sure to encounter as well. How did they stay motivated? Sorting through the various options for inspirational books is made easier with a book review that you can count on. The book review site should list and review several different encouraging book types: motivational, inspirational, self-help, self-improvement, etc.

In addition to naming the writer, and the work he has written, book reviews should provide a summary of the book along with an assessment. What do other readers have to say about your motivational book? What does the professional field have to say about it?

But online critiques alone shouldn’t be your only factor when determining to invest in your library, consider the author. What other books have they written or co-written? If the book you are mulling over is the writer’s freshman effort, research their past writing experiences. Have they been a staff writer for a company that you’re familiar with? Perhaps they wrote for a popular blog online–check them out. What makes them an expert on the topic they are discussing in their book? All these questions should be answered in the book review, making it easier for you to build your library of success.

What a terrific book this is. It tells the story of the Russian Tatar dancer Rudolf Nureyev. He was purportedly born on a train, rumbling down the trans Siberian railroad, and somehow that encapsulates his wandering life.

The story opens with the boy Rudi entertaining the mentally and physically scarred troops returning from the Nazi front. His father returns too, a political officer who takes a mighty dim view of his son’s chosen career path, something that dogs Rudi’s progress at every turn.

Yet he is not to be denied and slowly eases his way up the greasy rungs, and he is not beyond the occasional dirty trick to help him on his way. He is quickly marked out as a rebellious character and is subsequently carefully watched. But not carefully enough it seems, for he manages to defect in Paris from under the noses of the KGB officers. Rudi is on his way, hurtling toward the hedonistic lifestyle of New York, London and Paris.

Personally I found the passages set within the Soviet Union of far greater interest than those in the West. The book moved me to tears on several occasions; such is the power of Mister McCann’s writing. It often comes across as a biography, but as he is at pains to point out, this is a work of fiction. Sometimes you have to remind yourself of that, though it never once detracts from the enjoyment it offers.

The book is written in the first person and some people have found that irritating because that first person often changes with every chapter, and sometimes on every page. It is a device that keeps the reader on their toes, yet is does not hinder the writing, or the enjoyment.

It does not matter if you have little or no interest in ballet or dance, or the Soviet Union, or the Cold War, or the Sixties, or World War II, or homosexuality, for this book has the power to grip the reader whatever their interests.

I have just taken a peak at Amazon’s ranking for this title. Amazingly it was 486,350! If that is true there is no justice in the world because this is the best book I have read this year. The work in hardback form can be bought for the cost of the postage alone, and that is ridiculous.

Do yourself a favour and read this book, heck, go one step further, treat yourself, and buy a copy. The book and the writer deserve it, and so do you.