Oona Living in the Shadows: A Biography of Oona O'Neill Chaplin

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With information culled from press clips, interviews with Chaplin's friends and contemporaries, and previous biographies of Eugene O'Neill, Scovell's book paints an engaging portrait of a privileged, potentially fabulous life gone way wrong. Most fittingly for their subsequent tortured relationship, Oona's parents--Eugene O'Neill and writer Agnes Boulton--met in a Greenwich Village bar dubbed the Hellhole. Eight years into their marriage, in which they flitted between Greenwich Village, Bermuda, Provincetown, Maine, and New Jersey, O'Neill abandoned the family life for the erstwhile actress Carlotta Monterey (christened Hazel Neilson Tharsing). Oona was two at the time. O'Neill, a boorish father, saw her only a handful of times before she turned 18; at that point, he disinherited her because he wasn't happy with the oozy publicity she was earning as a New York debutante. That same year, Oona moved out to Hollywood (in the hopes of pursuing an acting career), and met and married Charlie Chaplin, who was facing a scandalous paternity suit at that moment. Chaplin was 54, Oona was 18. She never worked again, and he was at the end of his career. They had eight children (the last when Chaplin was 72), and she stood by him till his death in 1977, spending most of their years together exiled in Sweden, where Chaplin had gone to avoid a host of problems with the U.S. government. After Chaplin's death, Oona returned to the U.S., where she lived 14 depressed, alcoholic years before dying at age 66 of cancer.

There's a breezy, slightly superficial tone to this book, despite Scovell's attempt to elucidate fully the potholes and vistas of Oona's dramatic roadmap. None of Oona's eight children, or close family members, seems to have talked to Scovell, nor did Scovell have any significant access to Oona's correspondence or other writing. Though her dramatic fade is well captured here, Oona never completely blooms in this book. --Jean Lenihan

Book Description

Like Jackie O, Oona O'Neill (1925-91) captured public attention for two reasons: her impressive familial/marital alliances (she was the sole daughter of playwright Eugene O'Neill and the last wife of filmmaker Charlie Chaplin) and her elegant, raven-haired beauty. The two women also shared vitas that were filled with childhood disappointments, humiliating public attention during crises, and the wrenching deaths of loved ones. But as Jane Scovell's new biography clearly shows, Oona O'Neill Chaplin lacked both the stoicism and personal passion of Jackie Onassis. Hers was a spirit too tender--and fundamentally fragile--to assert itself fully or survive independently for any period of time. Hence the book's apt subtitle, "Living in the Shadows."With information culled from press clips, interviews with Chaplin's friends and contemporaries, and previous biographies of Eugene O'Neill, Scovell's book paints an engaging portrait of a privileged, potentially fabulous life gone way wrong. Most fittingly for their subsequent tortured relationship, Oona's parents--Eugene O'Neill and writer Agnes Boulton--met in a Greenwich Village bar dubbed the Hellhole. Eight years into their marriage, in which they flitted between Greenwich Village, Bermuda, Provincetown, Maine, and New Jersey, O'Neill abandoned the family life for the erstwhile actress Carlotta Monterey (christened Hazel Neilson Tharsing). Oona was two at the time. O'Neill, a boorish father, saw her only a handful of times before she turned 18; at that point, he disinherited her because he wasn't happy with the oozy publicity she was earning as a New York debutante. That same year, Oona moved out to Hollywood (in the hopes of pursuing an acting career), and met and married Charlie Chaplin, who was facing a scandalous paternity suit at that moment. Chaplin was 54, Oona was 18. She never worked again, and he was at the end of his career. They had eight children (the last when Chaplin was 72), and she stood by him till his death in 1977, spending most of their years together exiled in Sweden, where Chaplin had gone to avoid a host of problems with the U.S. government. After Chaplin's death, Oona returned to the U.S., where she lived 14 depressed, alcoholic years before dying at age 66 of cancer.There's a breezy, slightly superficial tone to this book, despite Scovell's attempt to elucidate fully the potholes and vistas of Oona's dramatic roadmap. None of Oona's eight children, or close family members, seems to have talked to Scovell, nor did Scovell have any significant access to Oona's correspondence or other writing. Though her dramatic fade is well captured here, Oona never completely blooms in this book. --Jean Lenihan

Customer Reviews:

Excellent book presents a wonderful woman.......2007-05-02

I really like Oona O'Neill Chaplin. What a wonderful woman she was! This book quotes person after person who knew her, from all periods of her life. They say that Oona was a woman who radiated a sort of grace, who had an innate elegance that set her apart, but who did not lose a down-to-earth quality, who loved to fuss over her brood of children, who literally basked in having babies and loved having her children around her (she had eight children altogether), who possessed a radiant and fragile beauty, an almost elfin quality, a naturalness, an easy sense of humor, a lack of ostentation, with a sly calm and native sweetness, who again and again is described as creating for everyone around her a sense of serenity and well-being. People would travel to Switzerland to see Charlie Chaplin - but they came away remembering Oona. Even as a young teenager she was intellectually curious, a girl who would go out on a lake in a boat with a friend or two and read plays aloud to each other; she was popular and social, but in a shy, slightly sorrowful way; she always kind, not exciting jealousy in other girls. Was her father, the famous playwright, justified in rejecting her? No, not at all. He never tried to get to know her, and he looked at everything she did in the worst possible light. His negative view of her was contradicted by everyone else who knew her - and I mean, everyone. Oona maintained life-long friendships with women and with men, and not once in her life did she intentionally try to hurt anyone emotionally, financially, or physically. Not the slightest hint of cheating on Charlie, or of cheating anyone in any way. She helped her brother Shane and his family, her mother, and her step-"son" Sydney Chaplin. The worst that can be said of her is that she failed to intervene fast enough on occasions where Charlie was being overbearing and abusive to a child or a visitor, and some of her children felt overlooked. As to those children, probably they were a bit overlooked. But in this age of multiple divorces, I suspect that many thousands of children today are far more overlooked by their parents than any of Oona's were. And Chaplin was too demanding; she had to balance him against them and such balances will never leave everyone satisfied. Frankly, this books shows that Chaplin was unworthy of her - he was overbearing and doctrinaire in the way older men can get, and his opinions weren't very insightful or sensitive. For example, he had the "Christmas is too materialist" crotchety-ness of those who care more about feeling superior than for their children's enjoyment, while for Oona Christmas was a favorite holiday filled with presents and tree-decorating. Other reviewers here seem to think that this book fails to show us Oona. But in fact she shines forth on every page. Perhaps their problem is that they don't consider a person such as she was to be very much of a person. But this reflects the biases of our times, which discount unfairly the wonderful kind of person she was. The same people who say it takes a village to raise a child somehow devalue an individual who actually dedicates herself to creating a nurturing emotional environment for children, for spouse, for guests, for friends, and for extended family. Oona was a very special person and this book is a clear, easy way to get to know her. Highly recommended.

Tabloid .......2006-12-24

While I desperately wanted to like this book and was tremendously excited by the topic, I find it difficult to write nice things about the book. While the book has many handsome pictures, I find it difficult to pass other compliments. It would seem difficult to write a biography of somebody while avoiding talking about that person's life, yet Jane Scovell has managed to do just that.

The life of Oona O'Neill had a tragic beginning as she was largely abandon by her father, Eugene O'Neill. The author of "Oona" manages to spend much of the early chapters focusing on the evolution of the O'Neill family. There is no substantial writing on the life of Oona until she meets Charlie Chaplin. Yet even these chapters focus largely on people other than Oona. While Oona did live in the shadow of her husband, why write a biography if you can not present facts about the main character.

It is also quite clear that Scovell is not a fan of Charlie Chaplin. Chapter 9 seems larely devoted to bringing Charlie Chaplin's character into question. While Sir Charles Chaplin was far from a model citizen, this fact would not be a logical choice on which to focus the book. In this Chapter 9, the author suggests Chaplin slept with 2000 women. Endnote 6 reveals her source to be a not so famous historian named Milton Berle. Her source is a comedian with little documentation suggests Charlie has any significant dealings. In this same chapter she uses a letter from Oona's former love interest J.D. Salinger to further debase the actor's legacy. I am not certain what place a scorned lover's opinion has in a focused biography other than to raise character questions. Perhaps the most absurd statement of the book is made on page 173 in which another book is sited as evidence that the United States government had no interest for prosecuting Chaplin for being a communist, but "the government was more upset about his morality ...". The idea that he would have been welcomed back to the country if he agreed to be interviewed not seems proposterous, but it avoids the point of his exile entirely.

With such obvious inaccuracies, it is hard to give credit for much else that Scovell writes. When Scovell does devote her writing to Oona in the waning pages of the book after Charlie's death, it is only to write of her alcholism and love interests like a tabloid photographer. This book seems targeted to exploit the legacy of Oona Chaplin and her husband.

In the shadows of this book as well..........2004-01-29

Being very interested in the life of cinematic genius Charlie Chaplin, and knowing what a difficult person he could be, I became interested in the one woman who stuck by him and adored him until his death, then mourned him for years after. However, this book was a disappointment and lacked a great deal of information about it's subject, Oona. Scovell also made too many assumptions, and forced her own opinion under the guise of psychology and lacked the objectivity which one expects in a well written biography.
The book opened with droning on and on about her family geneology, which bored me to tears, but I read on, expecting to soon read about Oona, which never happened. With the exception of brief information about Oona here and there, the book focused on Eugene O'Neil, and Chaplin himself (even worse, some of the "facts" written about Chaplin were false). Sadly, Oona was left out of her own biography.
This book was somewhat of a painful read and lacked professionalism from it's author.

Oona?.......2003-01-07

This supposed biography of Oona O'Neill Chaplin spends much of its time discussing Eugene O'Neill and Charlie Chaplin. Certainly Oona lived in the shadow of Charlie, but she doesn't emerge as a person in this biography. The book is poorly written. Too much repetition of points made, some really silly sentences of superficial statement. And no depth. Nonetheless, it's an interesting read because of the people and the lives narrated.

Very interesting subject, really bad writing.......2002-03-23

The subject matter is, needless to say, very interesting. But the book reads like it is written by someone whose entire literary education centered on cheap romance novels. The author doesn't seem to have any access to any of Oona's friends or family while researching this book. Almost all of her historical data seem to have been hearsay and 2nd hand. Remarkable and unfortunate on the author's part.

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Oona: Living in the Shadows
Jane Scovell
Manufacturer: Warner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000PUCI6O

Average customer rating:

Oona: Living in the Shadows

Manufacturer: Books on Tape
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette
ASIN: 0736644431

Product Description

At age 18, Oona O'Neill, a Manhattan debutante spurned by her neglectful, alcholic father, Nobel Prize-winning playwright Eugene O'Neill, went to Hollywood to become an actress. Instead, a year later, in 1943, she married Charlie Chaplin. Thirty-six years her senior, and thrice-divorced, Oona found in Chaplin the love and support that helped her escape the family curse of alcholism and mental illness.

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OONA LIVING IN THE SHADOWS
Oona O'neill Chaplin
Manufacturer: Warner Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000V3KBVY

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Oona: Living in Shadows
Jane Scovell
Manufacturer: Book Sales
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

Rich & Famous | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0762850612

Book Description

In this collection of vignettes from the Black Belt Hall of Fame member (1968, Judo Competitor of the Year and 1977, Judo Instructor of the Year) and judo champion (Pan-American Games gold medal, AAU Nationals grand champion, National Masters champion), Hayward Nishioka shares memories of his glory days and explains how the positive qualities of judo practice and competition changed his life. He also gives you training tips and competition advice. Fully illustrated.

Customer Reviews:

Fills the void.......2004-12-10

Judo: Heart & Soul is such a good book.
It is not technical in nature so you will not learn new techniques from it.

What you will get from this book is the set of small wisdoms, tips and stories about Judo that we all live through, or that we will be going through.

What I like about this book is that it fills the void
in what Judo books usually cover. Most of the books out there (and many of them are great) are Judo technical or reference books. That is all great, but what I always wanted was
this kind of a practice and competition guide - full of wisdoms, tips, and mental guides. This book is exactly that
- it is a group of essays that talk about common experiences in Judo that keep you going.
What was the most helpful to me was the set of confirmations that I found in the book about how I approach Judo, how I practice it,
what I do and think in competition ...
In other words, I realize now that I am not crazy - we all (Judoka) are.

Great book.......2004-12-03

I had the great pleasure of getting the snot kicked out of me by Dr. Nishioka at a judo seminar some 20 years ago. He is not only one of the best practitioners ever to compete in the sport but an excellent instructor and lecturer as well. I learned more during those few hours than I did in many of the preceding months.

This excellent book reads very much like meeting him in person. His stories are interesting and inspirational. His training tips are solid and well illustrated. The first chapter is a collection of short vignettes. The second provides excellent technical advice, mostly about throws. The third chapter is strategic, focusing on competition and how to better your chances of becoming a champion. The final chapter is more vignettes and philosophy from this outstanding martial artist. You don't have to be a judoka to enjoy it but you'll find a greater depth of appreciate for this book if you are.

Lawrence Kane
Author of Surviving Armed Assaults, The Way of Kata, and Martial Arts Instruction

Judo: Heart & Soul.......2004-01-07

This is a great book. i recommend it to any judoka. It is a very inspirational book, and has lots of practical suggestions for learning judo. It also has a lot of good history of the author's experiences and some of the judo greats he has met with.

Not just for judokas.......2003-02-09

The title of the book may not do it justice. .
Regardless of martial art, or style, the chapters in this book contain bits and pieces of valuable information for competitors. Mr. Nishioka compiled a myriad of short lessons that are well worth reading.

A. Bustillo

Good Advice for the Intermediate Judo Player!.......2002-09-12

JUDO HEART & SOUL (c2000) by Mr. Hayward Nishioka is not an instructive manual to improve your Judo technique (read his book: 'The Judo Text Book in Practical Application' (c1979) for that) but is a 255 page collection of advice and viewpoints on Judo by one of America's very accomplished and influential Judo players complete with a compilation of historic photographs; and is valuable in one can acquire a sense of tournament Judo over the past four decades. Any American Judo player would be proud to be half as accomplished as this author!

Now, the first annoying flaw in this book is Mr. Nishioka's advocacy of the evolution in Judo, away from the traditional Japanese view, while at the same time quoting Japanese advice, wisdom, philosophy, adages, training tips, and his own Japanese training in Japan to validate his knowledge on the subject. His endorsement of Judo reform had already appeared prior to this book as early as January 1970 in his Black Belt magazine article entitled: 'Judo vs. Wrestling' in which Hayward Nishioka made it perfectly clear that he approved of wrestling technique, or anything that worked, being introduced into Judo, euphemistically calling it "enrichment". Yet the undermining futuristic observation included in his own article was a Judo competitor's prophetic observation that a third type of sport may be born from the combination of wrestling and Judo; as all the while spectators were screaming: "Boo, that's not Judo!" to a shiai they paid to see.

I feel the Japanese and the Kodokan are aware of this potential Judo hybrid disaster waiting to happen, and are taking steps to preserve the integrity of the art. Evolution is a natural process which contains both mutation and extinction. A small amount of mutation has already been observed in Judo from the introduction of wrestling and S.A.M.B.O. techniques into Olympic Judo of the 1980s and 90s and Mr. Nishioka should understand why the Japanese do not want Judo to evolve into extinction.

The second major flaw in this book still revolves around the author's advocacy of change in Judo (p.110) while insisting that Judo rules remain fixed, for example his assertion "Like it or not, koka is here to stay" (p. 114). There is an inherent contradiction to promote change then invoke an absolute! If there is going to be evolution in Judo than both the koka rule and the inclusion of non-Judo technique (or hopefully, the baby blue gi) are subject to change; specifically: be removed! Again, compounding this fallacy is the author's promotion of koka Judo (p.114) while advocating "Isho Kemei" - Do the very best you can (p.31) which is quite the opposite of accepting and practicing koka Judo. Just as affirmative action programs have lowered standards in business and education within American society, koka Judo has similarly lowered standards in the international society of tournament Judo.

The Japanese still have the best Judo in the world, and Mr. Hayward Nishioka of all people, having studied in Japan, should promote and not hinder this Japanese gift to the world.

All-in-all, JUDO HEART & SOUL is a good read for the intermediate Judo player because of its insight into what lies down the road for anyone who devotes himself to just winning Judo trophies and medals.

Book Description

Pedro Almodovar's Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown established its director as one of the most exciting of European filmmaking talents. An often hilarious study of sexual mores, the film has a central character, Pepa (Carmen Maura), as warm and richly drawn as any modern film heroine. Made strong and self-reliant by suffering within marriage, Pepa is the center of a set of colorful characters who represent a vivid cross-section of Spanish society. Women on the Verge was a major international success for a director with a unique talent for exploring the nuances of individual behavior.
Peter William Evans conducts a formidable analysis of Almodovar's insights into gender, sexuality and subjectivity. Drawing on a wide range of psychoanalytic and critical concepts, Evans sees Women on the Verge as an account of the often tyrannical spell of sexual desire, of the anxieties of relationships and families, but also of the possibilities for personal liberation. He discusses the recent history of Spain and ties the film's concerns into the social revolution that occurred after the death of Franco.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Film Critique.......2000-08-03

A short, but informative critique on one of the classic gems of Spanish cinema, the BFI essay on "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown," is an excellent, and well-researched study. Focusing mostly on the importance of the film in the context of history (e.g. the film veered away from the censorship once imposed by the Franco Regime) and its' artistic composition, author Peter William Evans does a magnificent job in discussing the film.

The part I like the most was his tribute to the greatest modern day Spanish actress, Carmen Maura, who radiates the screen as the betrayed, confused Pepa. It was Maura who carried this movie on her shoulders, and her ability to express emotion and utilize the sexuality many Latin possess was essential for the film's success.

This book makes great reading due to its' compact size. If you liked this book, please read "Almodovar on Almodovar," which features the master Spanish filmmaker talking about his works and his reasons for doing what he does when behind the camera.

Excellent Film Critique.......2000-08-03

Humorless Critical Study of a Comedy.......1999-07-09

This book manages to make a funny, sexy and irreverent movie sound like a bout of trench mouth. The author is obviously yet another victim of gender studies who keeps weaving and unweaving his text to distract us from the fact the he's writing about a pop movie without having anything like a pop sensibility that might make his opinions mean something. He weighs down a movie that is lighter than air by imposing cultural "significance" where none is needed. There are the usual genuflections to Sirk and Hitchcock ("Rear Window" is mentioned but the more appropriate "Rope" is not) but no mention of Oscar Wilde, which seems like a huge oversight given that the movie is essentially a drawing room comedy (complete with servants and young lovers) unfolding instead in a penthouse. The BFI Modern Classics series can usually be counted on to be informative and entertaining but this is the worst one I've read. It skirts by the actual production of the movie with very few anecdotes but offers up alot of tired theorizing on gender and family romance. His derogatory comments on the physical makeup of most of the actresses is my idea of poor taste; he is judgmental about them but Almodovar's camera never is. The book is a perfect example of film criticism as taxidermy.

Excellent! See the movie by Almodovar.*****.......1998-12-09

The movie plays just as well as the book reads. The movie is often haphazard and makes the watcher interested to learn more about the characters. The book was a very quick read. I had to reread it again, slowly, poring over each of the words. It's a small book, but its significance is made greater by reading it over slowly.

Average customer rating:
Every Chart Topper Tells a Story: The Seventies (Every Chart Topper Tells a Story)
Sharon Davis
Manufacturer: Trafalgar Square Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 185158837X

Average customer rating:
Will Shortz's Tournament Crosswords, Volume 1 (Other)
Will Shortz
Manufacturer: Random House Puzzles & Games
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Crosswords | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
Puzzles | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
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Wordplay

ASIN: 0812929349
Release Date: 1997-12-29

Book Description

Will Shortz, crossword editor of The New York Times, presents over 60 superb crosswords originally commissioned for the annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, the nation's oldest and largest crossword event. The all-star roster of contributors includes Henry Hook of the Boston Globe, Merl Reagle of the San Francisco Examiner, Maura Jacobson of New York Magazine, Mike Shenk of The Wall Street Journal, Stanley Newman of Newsday, and Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon of The Atlantic Monthly.
Also included is a scoring guide that allows you to compare your skills with those of the competitors, a tabular history of the tournament, plus photos of the event and well-known names from the puzzle world.

Book Description

Bestselling author Tony Buzan brings his groundbreaking Mind Maps® system to the world of business.

Tony Buzan has used his patented Mind Maps system to teach millions of people around the world how to unlock the infinite creativity of the human mind. Now Buzan has created Mind Maps at Work, a practical guide to achieving workplace success and satisfaction.

Mind Maps are a revolutionary thinking tool: a visual and colorful form of note-taking that unleashes our creative and logical sides simultaneously. Incorporating a number of high-profile success stories—including the impressive results that Buzan's system has yielded for companies like Boeing, Con Edison, and Apple Computer—Mind Maps at Work guides individuals, work groups, and companies large and small to plan and strategize effectively, solve problems creatively, and recall facts easily, maximizing every individual's creativity and productivity.

Customer Reviews:

Mind-mapping alone is not going to help you solve all your problems. You need a smorgasbord of visual tools!.......2007-05-20

Mind Maps at Work: How to Be the Best at Your Job and Still Have Time to Play
By Tony Buzan

Undoubtedly, Tony Buzan should be credited for starting the ball rolling for mind-mapping in the late seventies/early eighties. He certainly took a brave stance. Whether he originated the idea is still debatable, because I strongly believe that the clustering technique (as originally envisaged by Gabrielle Rico in her debut book, `Writing the Natural Way', in the early eighties) is the precursor to the mind-mapping technique.

I still owned the original releases of two books written by Tony Buzan, in which he introduced mind-mapping during those days:

- Make the Most of Your Mind;
- Use Both Sides of Your Brain;

Going back into these two books & comparing them with the current book under review, I am very surprised to note that there are not much differences from the the intellectual standpoint. Despite the fact that more than three decades had already transpired, there are no new enhancements for readers, except, may be readers now get to see mind-maps in colour.

Tony Buzan is still pursuing the dogmatic approach of putting every issue from a centralised position & viewing all the connected issues in a radially-outward perspective. Beyond this singular aspect, he doesn't have any new ideas to share with readers.

Sad to say, Tony Buzan is clearly running out of steam. All his new & subsequent books still follow doggedly the same old formula. In fact, most of his new books are often rehashed &/or mildly expanded from the foregoing two books. Some of his disciples who have written similar books even follow the master's footsteps.

I am not saying mind-mapping is obsolete. It still works, but it has severe limitations. In today's chaotic business world, not every issue can be centralised in perspective.

Even in the educational arena, mind-mapping has its fair share of problems in application. Let me share with readers a true case in Singapore, as reported in the Straits Times, a local newspaper, a few years ago. According to the then-principal of Raffles Girls' School, a top-ranked secondary school, the school invested heavily in getting students to learn & apply mind-mapping in their studies. Every teacher & student was very excited. Every student was proud of her colourful mind-maps. However, when the final exams came, all the girls just abandoned mind-mapping & went back to the old habit of note-making. To them, mind-mapping didn't work as expected.

My own analysis is this: you can only apply mind-mapping to some subjects in the academic curriculum, but not all. For example, fish-bone diagramming & time-lines (or transitive-order diagramming, an expanded variation) would be more effective for history lessons. A story grid would serve English Literature more effectively. Concept maps & V-diagramming would be more ideal for navigating science subjects.

Coming back to the current book under review, I wish to say this: mind-mapping alone is not going to help you solve all your problems. The mind-maps just look good on paper in most instances. You need a smorgasbord of visual tools!

Just imagine you only have a screw driver in your tool-box.

For readers who are keen to explore beyond traditional mind-mapping, they should take a look at the following resources:

- 'Thinking Visually: Business Applications of Fourteen Core Diagrams', by Malcolm Craig;

- 'Rapid Problem Solving with Post-It Notes', by David Straker;

- 'The Power of 2 x 2 Matrix: Using 2 x 2 Thinking to Solve Business Problems', by Alex Lowly & Phil Hood;

- 'Visible Thinking: Unlocking Causal Mapping for Practical Business Results' by John Bryson;

- 'Beyond Words', by Milli Sonneman;

- 'The Marketer's Visual Toolkit', by Terry Richey;

In the realm of strategic planning, I reckon 'Reinventing Communication: A Guide to Using Visual Language for Planning' by Larry Raymond would be an excellent resource.

Even Nancy Margulies' mind-scapes as envisaged in her 'Mapping InnerSpace' &/or 'Visual Thinking: Tools for Mapping Ideas' can help you deliberately move away from Tony Buzan's standard routines. In other words, you can start your idea from anywhere you like.

For readers who just want a quick & broad understanding of visual thinking perspectives, I would recommend Robert Horn's 'Visual Language: Global Communication for the 21st Century.'

Use Mind Maps and TEFACS to organize your business plan..........2005-07-15

Like other books by Tony Buzan, "Mind Maps at Work" starts with the description of human brain, its boundless capabilities, and then reiterates Buzan's favourite techniques like Mind Maps, TEFCAS, Radiant Thinking, etc. If you've read other books by Tony Buzan, you may find parts of this book monotonous, uninteresting and not engaging your interest. But if you are looking how to apply Mind Maps to your work environment, or just thinking how to be more efficient at your job, change career or start your own business, deliver excellent presentations with confidence, stand up for yourself and your ideas, be a key player at work, lead your team to excellence, than you will find worthy thoughts throughout this book.

It shows how to use Mind Maps and TEFACS to organize your business plan, access the progress of your plans and identify areas for improvement, create and update your CV in a colorful and visually arresting way, and so on.

Although in some places I've found this book a little bit dull, it is definitely worth attention! This is a book that suggests purposely slowing down and smelling the roses could actually boost productivity in today's 24/7 world. I would also recommend "Slack" by Tom Demarco in addition to this book.

Overkill on scratchpadding.......2005-04-03

Well it didn't work for me, and according to published research, it probably does not work for you either. (research shows that it demotivates, confuses, and makes the learner feel like they have regressed).

The book itself comes up to the same high quality hype and new age glitz as previous books on the subject. However, there is a strange mismatch in the text. The writing is about business and being professional, but the maps are as professional looking as a multicoloured sneeze. I cannot see any pro working with these things. Concept maps, timelines, graphs, diagrams etc are a mainstay of good biz communication. And they are colourful. I cannot see why someone would want to exchange those for a scrappy looking mind map.

I know I'm going on, but the book itself is a worse offender. If you are really into mind maps, just get "teach yourself mind maps in a week" (from the library). It has all the same hype in it, but its far more concise.

Cheers
D.Rayt

Do you want to WORK with mind maps, this is the book for it.......2005-02-16

Finally, mister Buzan has written a book which is highly practical. I am a professional mind mapper in the Netherlands. The last few months more and more the idea arose to write a book about how to implement the mind map idea in a business environment. I can forget about the idea, as mister Buzan has done it for me (what a pitty). I think mind mapping is thé way of effective and efficient communicating. The book is packed with examples in all kind of situations. The book gives you also a very good idea about which companies use the technique for it's own good. And I can tell you when companies like Apple, Boeing or Burmah Oil use it to their advantage, why can't you?

interesting.......2004-12-03

this book is interesting when you know the mindmap technique. the issues raised and questions given to assess different situations are valuable and practical indeed, whether you are a CEO,a jobhunter or teammember. Mindmapping stays a tool, it doesn't replace the essentail questions.

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