An upbeat yet realistic aid for job hunters.
Employment guru Gillis (The Real Secret to Finding A Job?, 2009, etc.) presents an easy-to-read guide for the 21st-century job seeker.
At first glance, Gillis’ claim to help readers find a job “in one day” feels like a late-night infomercial, but this thin volume’s three-step plan for landing employment—or moving up the ladder—is surprisingly practical. An increasing number of companies use filtering software that rejects résumés before they are even read by humans, so today’s job search is not about getting selected, says Gillis. Instead, it’s about not getting eliminated. While this automated rejection may seem daunting to the unemployed, the author’s breezy, conversational style makes the job hunt less frightening. There is solid, familiar advice here, such as the importance of emphasizing what, as a potential employee, a person can do for a company in terms of making or saving money. Gillis urges job searchers to begin the process by brainstorming/free writing an “Accomplishments Worksheet” to be honed and presented at an interview. However, getting the telephone call that lands the interview is the major theme of this book. Gillis’ innovative (and perhaps uncomfortable) message is to stop randomly sending out traditional résumés, which he calls “obituaries,” because old style résumés only deal with the past. The author suggests that job seekers should use his signature, one-page “Short-Form” résumé as a template, and an example is included in the book’s appendix. An entire chapter is devoted to learning how to recognize and apply keywords, which could help an applicant’s Short-Form résumé receive points from filtering software and make its way to the top of the selection process. Each section of the résumé is explained in simple detail, and as Gillis describes it: “Your Short-Form Resume is your job search ‘tease’ and your target is the hiring manager whose attention you want.” Per Gillis, once the manager calls for more information, an updated, traditional résumé should be ready to email at a moment’s notice. A well-crafted Short-Form résumé will also be eye-catching once it lands on a human’s desk; e.g., numbers should be written out, as $3,200,000 looks more impressive than 3.2 MM. In addition, the author uses memorable examples of his experience in the hiring field to explain what he appreciated when scanning a résumé, such as a simple “Seeking Statement” that notes the exact job for which a person is applying, including any reference numbers. Though searching for work in today’s economy is tough, Gillis’ professional advice is a good beginning.
An upbeat yet realistic aid for job hunters.Pub Date: July 15, 2012
ISBN: 978-0615514536
Page Count: 136
Publisher: The Really Useful Job Search Company
Review Posted Online: Oct. 11, 2012
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
In more ways than one, a tale about young creatures testing their wings; a moving, entertaining winner.
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
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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