Read it on your commute to work; engineer an office takeover by lunch.
A field guide to the office jungle.
Starting a new job can feel like stepping straight into the lions’ den. Barnes doesn’t do much to dispel those fears in his brief, witty debut, which starts from the assumption that “corporate jungles are inherently dangerous places to work” and then offers tongue-in-cheek suggestions for explorers and adventurers who are navigating an unfamiliar and often hostile terrain. “This isn’t a serious book,” the author acknowledges, but the observations and advice are clearly drawn from his experience working for various companies. While the tone is light, there’s a serious aim: to help people “actively enjoy life in the corporate jungle.” Yet the picture he paints of working for a corporation is so bleak (treacherous colleagues will stab you in the back, doing any real work will be virtually impossible, downsizing is a constant risk) that the sensible response seems to be to flee in fear rather than venture into the thicket. Still, the observations, accompanied by Clifton’s charming illustrations, are amusing and often on point. The book’s organization could be improved, however. Throughout, Barnes references a virtual corporate zoo, from ants to snakes, but the chapter on the taxonomy of office wildlife doesn’t appear until the last third of the book. He also assumes that most corporations operate in fundamentally the same way, with arcane rules, numerous roadblocks and hidden minefields, though it’s not clear that’s actually the case. The final chapter, however, does highlight some of the differences between companies in different industries, from media companies, which tend to be populated by big cats and birds of prey, to the financial sector, where elephants who worry about compliance and regulation dominate. Barnes’ guide will continually amuse readers—whether office newbies or corporate lifers.
Read it on your commute to work; engineer an office takeover by lunch.Pub Date: July 19, 2014
ISBN: 978-0992933609
Page Count: 140
Publisher: i.Line Design Limited
Review Posted Online: Oct. 2, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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