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THE INTENTIONAL NETWORKER

ATTRACTING POWERFUL RELATIONSHIPS, REFERRALS & RESULTS IN BUSINESS

Novice and experienced networkers will appreciate this winning combination of networking philosophy and techniques.

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A professional networking expert shares tips and techniques for making the most out of business connections.

Nowadays, with all the emphasis on connecting via social media, it’s easy for a businessperson to overlook the importance of the original social interaction: connecting face-to-face. That oversight would be a costly mistake, as is evidenced in DeNucci’s highly readable book. Keys to the networking process include identifying your strengths and weaknesses, polishing your image and personal brand, and setting goals and intentions for networking. Along with advice on how to stand out in a crowd and avoid referral blunders, the author shares sage counsel on the many vexing aspects of networking. For example, she wisely addresses the issue of quantity vs. quality in social connections, citing the example of Ethan, who reached his “Connections Critical Mass”: “Ethan had believed everyone he met and every business function he attended had something to offer him and his business.…As his business matured and his database and networking calendar grew, they were on the verge of robbing him and his business of valuable time, resources, and energy.” DeNucci offers authoritative guidance on how to distill the top 20 percent of connections who can bring the most results and value and how a business networker can protect his or her time by saying no “with grace.” She uses real-life scenarios and includes numerous helpful suggestions to motivate the reader to experiment with tactics that could result in a better networking experience. Along the way, DeNucci encourages and promotes self-confidence: “Delete the words ‘should’ and ‘have to’ from your vocabulary. Those are word choices that we often put upon ourselves when really we do have choices and options.”

Novice and experienced networkers will appreciate this winning combination of networking philosophy and techniques.

Pub Date: Oct. 3, 2011

ISBN: 978-0983546108

Page Count: 274

Publisher: Rosewall Press

Review Posted Online: Aug. 31, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2012

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JUPITER STORM

In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.

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A fifth-grade New Orleans girl discovers a mysterious chrysalis containing an unexpected creature in this middle-grade novel.

Jacquelyn Marie Johnson, called Jackie, is a 10-year-old African-American girl, the second oldest and the only girl of six siblings. She’s responsible, smart, and enjoys being in charge; she likes “paper dolls and long division and imagining things she had never seen.” Normally, Jackie has no trouble obeying her strict but loving parents. But when her potted snapdragon acquires a peculiar egg or maybe a chrysalis (she dubs it a chrysalegg), Jackie’s strong desire to protect it runs up against her mother’s rule against plants in the house. Jackie doesn’t exactly mean to lie, but she tells her mother she needs to keep the snapdragon in her room for a science project and gets permission. Jackie draws the chrysalegg daily, waiting for something to happen as it gets larger. When the amazing creature inside breaks free, Jackie is more determined than ever to protect it, but this leads her further into secrets and lies. The results when her parents find out are painful, and resolving the problem will take courage, honesty, and trust. Dumas (Jaden Toussaint, the Greatest: Episode 5, 2017, etc.) presents a very likable character in Jackie. At 10, she’s young enough to enjoy playing with paper dolls but has a maturity that even older kids can lack. She’s resourceful, as when she wants to measure a red spot on the chrysalegg; lacking calipers, she fashions one from her hairpin. Jackie’s inward struggle about what to obey—her dearest wishes or the parents she loves—is one many readers will understand. The book complicates this question by making Jackie’s parents, especially her mother, strict (as one might expect to keep order in a large family) but undeniably loving and protective as well—it’s not just a question of outwitting clueless adults. Jackie’s feelings about the creature (tender and responsible but also more than a little obsessive) are similarly shaded rather than black-and-white. The ending suggests that an intriguing sequel is to come.

In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.

Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-943169-32-0

Page Count: 212

Publisher: Plum Street Press

Review Posted Online: Feb. 22, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2018

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BROTHERS IN ARMS

BLUFORD HIGH SERIES #9

A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.

In the ninth book in the Bluford young-adult series, a young Latino man walks away from violence—but at great personal cost.

In a large Southern California city, 16-year-old Martin Luna hangs out on the fringes of gang life. He’s disaffected, fatherless and increasingly drawn into the orbit of the older, rougher Frankie. When a stray bullet kills Martin’s adored 8-year-old brother, Huero, Martin seems to be heading into a life of crime. But Martin’s mother, determined not to lose another son, moves him to another neighborhood—the fictional town of Bluford, where he attends the racially diverse Bluford High. At his new school, the still-grieving Martin quickly makes enemies and gets into trouble. But he also makes friends with a kind English teacher and catches the eye of Vicky, a smart, pretty and outgoing Bluford student. Martin’s first-person narration supplies much of the book’s power. His dialogue is plain, but realistic and believable, and the authors wisely avoid the temptation to lard his speech with dated and potentially embarrassing slang. The author draws a vivid and affecting picture of Martin’s pain and confusion, bringing a tight-lipped teenager to life. In fact, Martin’s character is so well drawn that when he realizes the truth about his friend Frankie, readers won’t feel as if they are watching an after-school special, but as though they are observing the natural progression of Martin’s personal growth. This short novel appears to be aimed at urban teens who don’t often see their neighborhoods portrayed in young-adult fiction, but its sophisticated characters and affecting story will likely have much wider appeal.

A YA novel that treats its subject and its readers with respect while delivering an engaging story.

Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2004

ISBN: 978-1591940173

Page Count: 152

Publisher: Townsend Press

Review Posted Online: Jan. 26, 2013

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