THE UGLY TRUTH ABOUT CASH

Name: THE UGLY TRUTH ABOUT CASH
Author: Ruth King
ISBN: 978-1-61005-935-0

by Ruth King ‧ RELEASE DATE: Jan. 9, 2018

A wide-ranging collection of cautionary tales for business owners along with tips and suggestions of mixed quality and...

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A consultant advises small-business owners on managing cash flow and combatting fraud.

In this book, King (The Courage to Be Profitable, 2013, etc.) presents stories of company owners who have encountered careless cash-handling practices; employee theft; ineffective accounting; and problems with inventory management that have hampered their financial success. In short, first-person accounts, the author presents each tale in its own chapter (“My Bookkeeper Had Too Many Excuses”; “I Was Losing a Nickel for Every Dollar I Generated”) along with an accompanying bulleted list of tips and action items based on lessons learned by the section’s narrator. Most of the vignettes have happy endings, with the business owner able to make good on the loss and avoid the difficulty going forward, though a few conclude with a sadder but wiser person learning a painful lesson. King does an excellent job of presenting helpful information with clarity and without jargon. But the tips presented in the book vary in usefulness and applicability, ranging from the fundamental (stories that show the dangers of failing to understand profit margin or the accrual method of accounting) to the practical (repeated reminders to establish safe and effective procedures for managing cash payments) to the almost paranoid (“If you can’t log into your employees’ computers, walk to the person’s desk and ask that person to print out the report you need while you are watching”). Some of the business owners featured in the anecdotes recommend extreme micromanaging to the detriment of employee morale: “I never realized how much eating at their desks actually cost me. When I calculated the number, I stopped allowing eating at their desks and enforced the lunch hour policy. The employees weren’t happy about it but complied.” But readers who judiciously evaluate the advice, avoiding the more extreme methods of employee control, should find a number of valuable ideas for improving profitability and increasing cash flow in small and closely held businesses.

A wide-ranging collection of cautionary tales for business owners along with tips and suggestions of mixed quality and efficacy.

Pub Date: Jan. 9, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-61005-935-0

Page Count: 194

Publisher: BookLogix

Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2018

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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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

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

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THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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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.