Secret Memoirs of Catherine II and the Court of St. Petersburg: During Her Reign and that of Paul I, by one of her Courtiers

Book Description

He died in 1995, but his nautical adventure books continue to bring entertainment and escape to legions of fans worldwide. He was larger than life, perhaps the most successful sailing writer of the twentieth century. But, as Anthony Dalton's meticulously researched biography reveals, Tristan Jones was not who he said he was.

Wayward Sailor began as an uncomplicated tribute to a great adventurer and writer, but one line of inquiry branched to another, plunging Dalton into a three-year odyssey of his own. With the cooperation of Tristan's friends and supporters, Dalton pursued Tristan's life through correspondence, logbooks, government documents, and interviews worldwide. With each new revelation, Tristan's voyage through life seemed more and more like his greatest adventure.

His real name was Arthur Jones. He was born in Liverpool in 1929, the illegitimate son of a working-class Lancashire girl, and he grew up in orphanages with little education. Too young to see action in the World War II naval battles he would later write about so movingly, he joined the Royal Navy in 1946 and served fourteen unremarkable years.

Arthur Jones then bought an old sailboat and tried his hand at smuggling whiskey cross-Channel. In his early thirties he sailed into a Mediterranean limbo, scraping a living from charters by day and haunting the bars of Ibiza by night. When he was drunk, which was often, he could be loud and obnoxious and had the scars to prove it. He had no family, no attachments, no accomplishments.

Then came a midlife sea change. Arthur Jones looked into his future, imagined greatness, and began to claw his way to it. Having taught himself to sail, he taught himself to write. He was a natural at both. As Tristan Jones, in his midforties, he sailed out of Brazil's Mato Grosso and into a Greenwich Village apartment to write six books in three years and reinvent his past.

The Tristan Jones of his books was born in a storm at sea in 1924 on his father's tramp steamer; was torpedoed three time in epic World War II engagements; completed the first circumnavigation of Iceland; traveled farther north and farther up the Amazon River than any sailor before him; and sailed more than 400,000 miles, 180,000 of them solo. Readers loved his books and crowded his lectures and signings. He had a bard's voice and a street performer's delivery. He had more renown than he could have dreamed.

Having invented a life, Tristan Jones tried to live it. After the amputation of his left leg in 1982 he sailed more than halfway around the world. He lost his right leg in 1991 yet still returned briefly to sea. But as his body failed him, so too did his spirits. It was as if the life from which he'd bodily lifted himself were pulling him down again. He died a bitter man.

Wayward Sailor is the biography Tristan Jones did not want. His books were autobiographical, he said; there was no more to tell. But there was. Wayward Sailor is the last Tristan Jones story and the most incredible one of all: the story of a man who invented himself.

Customer Reviews:

Short Easy Read..............2005-08-02

...that de-bunks the Tristian Jones self created "persona". It is clear that the end of the book was hard to write and researching the latter parts of TJ's life was made harder by his isolation abroad coupled with TJ's recognition that he was in the process of getting "caught out" and so made his life hard to research. This makes the end of the book rather flat - but it is worth it in its own right for the first two thirds.

Well done but not very interesting subject.......2005-05-18

The other reviews say alot so I will only add that Jones was prominent enough to be on Larry King's talk show and feature in the IMAX film Race the Wind. Jones was not a very likeable character but he had a diffucult life with no family, education or money and few friends and he did what he could to survive. He had the makings of a very good writer and produced 16 books and many articles. He concealed the fact that he was gay until the very end of his life, at which time he had lost both his legs to diabetes and was destitute. He accomplished a lot with very little and if you accept his stories as fiction they are good reading. Only those who are really interested in Jones or sailing will enjoy the book as most of it is otherwise very boring.

Dalton accused.......2004-02-28

I find it interesting that someone would go to such great lengths to prove a book wrong. Its seems to me that Dalton had more to loose by not proving Tristan wrong than Tristan would from not doing the things in his books and then writting it as if he did.

Some surprising revelations.......2003-10-01

I've only read four of Tristan Jone's books, with the first being The Incredible Voyage. I wasn't far into the book before it became obvious that there was a lot of fabrication and embellishment going on there. ICE! was even more far-fetched. And as Dalton pointed out in Wayward Sailor, the book ICE! was entirely fiction.

Dalton's book serves to confirm what many of us already knew: Tristan Jones was less than truthful. What I was surprised to hear, though, is that Jones wasn't a very nice person in real life, either. He had far more enemies than friends and spent much of his time as an obnoxious drunk. He was not a trustwothy person; for example, he took "Outward Leg", a boat belonging to its manufacturer, and left it abandoned and trashed before completing the agreed route.

But, nevertherless, I will still buy Tristan's books and plan to read them all. Tristan's writing skills are a bit rough around the edges, but he does tell a great story. The important thing is that the books are entertaining and everything in them must be taken with a grain of salt. I would recommend the books to everyone.

While Tristan Jones greatly exagerated his "record voyages" and did not sail anywhere near the miles he claimed, he was still a great seamen and writer.

Tony Dalton sets the record straight with his new bio........2003-04-30

I have been in contact with Anthony Dalton over the last couple of years while he was writing this biography of Tristan Jones...Some believe every word he writes in his books, some who knew him doubt many of the stories he wrote. Finally, Tony Dalton has traveled all over the world collecting the facts. He has documented the cold truth in this extraordinary researched biography. I must admit that his conclusions are not the ones I wished for, but the truth is very often hard to accept. I have corresponded with many people who knew Tristan personally, and many have told me that what Tony recorded in his new book is true. Regardless, if you want to read some wonderful stories, read some of Tristan Jones books. Fact or fiction, I loved every one.

Wayward Sailor : In Search of the Real Tristan Jones

Average customer rating:

Wayward Sailor : In Search of the Real Tristan Jones
Anthony Dalton
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KEQQQI

Average customer rating:

Wayward Sailor : In Search of the Real Tristan Jones
Anthony Dalton
Manufacturer: International Marine/Ragged Mountain Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OG1KMW

Book Description

Winner of the Academy Award in 2001 for his performance in Gladiator and the Golden Globe in 2002 for his starring role in A Beautiful Mind, Russell Crowe is the hottest actor in movies today. The New Zealand-born, Australian-bred Crowe has attracted controversy with his high-profile love affairs, his open hostility toward the American news media, and his all-around eccentricity. This biography traces his career from rock 'n' roller (he still sings and plays guitar with his band, Thirty Odd Foot of Grunts) to Australian stage, film, and TV actor, to Hollywood star in movies such as L.A. Confidential and The Insider.

Customer Reviews:

Full of inaccuracies and speculations.......2005-02-15

Apart from some basic facts I already knew and rough descriptions of Russell Crowe's movies, that book contains only tons of inaccuracies and speculations, especially about how Russell Crowe was feeling and what he was thinking at certain times and situations in his life, even what Danielle was feeling in certain situations.
How does that guy know? He has obviously never spoken to Russ or Dani (he would have mentioned it if he had) and even though some things sound like they MIGHT be true, I don't buy most of what that guy wrote.

I don't remember all the details, of course - and I refuse to read that book again - but some of the things I remember as clearly wrong or totally speculative are:

- The author says Russ played the leading role in Brides of Christ. But he appears in that entire mini-series for only a few minutes.

- The author says Russell's opponent in The Crossing was a Robert Hanimone. But it was Robert Mammone.

- The author says Russell has always been insecure about his sexual orientation ("proof" of this, the author says, is that Russ didn't have a girlfriend before Dani, that he played a sexually ambiguous character in the Rocky Horror Show, and that he prefers playing movie characters who are insecure about their sexual orientation). This is complete nonsense.

- The author says Russell liked playing Nash so much, because he is also on the verge of being schizophrenic. "Proof" is that his parents have said he was always " a little crazy" as a child and that his sudden fits of rage can be explained by him being at least a little schizophrenic. This, too, is entirely speculative.

- The author says Russell has always hated his Maori heritage and still does. "Proof" of that, the author says, is that he was discriminated against in New Zealand because of his mixed blood, and that up to date, even though he speaks up against racism, he does not have any black friends and has never gotten involved in any activities to help minorities (or something like that, I don't recall the exact wording). How does the author know? Does he know all of Mr. Crowe's friends and all projects he is involved in?

Anyway, IMO the entire book contains mainly inaccuracies and speculations. There are other books out there who are much more accurate about Russell Crowe, his movies and his life.

Beware of the phsychology..........2004-03-16

How can the author spit out phsychological assessments on a person he has not personally interviewed? According to his analysis, any young teenage boy who is shy with girls and prefers the company of his "buddies" or ("mates") suffers from some type of sexual ambiguity??!! This seems to describe just about all the teenage boys I know...Better not tell my 14 year old son...Apart from this, the books is an easy read, nothing really new, just take it with a huge grain of salt...

Okay but not the best.......2004-02-28

While much of the information in this book is interesting, it's hard to know what to believe and what not to. When the author gets a simple, well-published, and easily verifiable, fact wrong - such as that Mel Gibson was born in Australia - Gibson wasn't; he was born in Rye, NY and moved to Australia as a child - you have to wonder how thorough his research about Crowe actually was. Also, the author's psychological 'insights' say more about the author than they do about Crowe. The book would have been much better without them, as they seem to point to a bias on the author's part rather than as true indicators of Crowe's thoughts, feelings, or reasoning. Watching Crowe's dedication and loyalty to not only his art, but also to his family and friends, tells one much more about the man than any unauthorized bio does, and does it better and with more truth. Get this book if you're a fan, but watch Crowe's movies and interviews, and listen to his music, if you really want the true story about the real Russell Crowe..

fantastic.......2003-06-19

this is a fantastic story of russell's overcoming and persaverance. i think russell is probably a genius. . . aren't many these days (santana, russell, and jim carrey to name a few.) particularly interesting was russell's early years, having recently survived what i think was probably SARS I felt i could relate with the idea of struggle. buy this book, you will thank me for it!

On target with Crowe.......2003-06-14

Here we go - another biography from James Dickerson, which means strap yourself in for quite a ride. Few, if any, biographers approach their subject with such sheer relentlessness as does this Mississippi-based author.

And now he's taking on the life of Russell Crowe, one of the most enigmatic, and talented actors working today. The author knows a good subject when he sees one and a good case could be make that he's caught Crowe's life when he's getting ready to leap into full-blown movie stardom.

We learn some things about Crowe we didn't know (his Maori ancestry), some things we'd heard about (his being a musician and a darned good one) and some things about him we know all too well (his, er, gruffness). It's a handsome book and if the author had packed any more detail into these 175 or so pages, you'd have to get help picking it up.

Some say biographies don't mean much unless you have the subject's cooperation. It looks like Dickerson disagrees and we should be grateful for his attitude about his work. Without fetters or favor we get probably as close to Russell Crowe as anyone ever will -- and maybe closer.

Bravo to the bio and to Russell Crowe for being his own man. Sometimes we need guys who throw punches - and biographies like this that refuse to pull them.

Positively Fifth Street
Average customer rating:

Not what I expected

Good, but about 100 pages too long

2 Words .....Bor - Ring

Horrible

Well written trip through the 2000 WSOP and the Vegas trial of the century

Positively Fifth Street
James McManus
Manufacturer: Picador
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Biggest Game in Town

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ASIN: 0312422520

Amazon.com

In 2000, novelist and poet James McManus was sent to Las Vegas, innocently enough, by Harper's magazine to write a story about the World Series of Poker held annually at Binion's Horseshoe. But then, as so often happens on trips to Sin City, something kind of ... happened. Rather than becoming an objective report, McManus's article evolved into a memoir as he put his entire advance on the line, got lucky with his cards and won a spot in the competition, and came much closer than anyone expected to winning the darn thing. The result, Positively Fifth Street, is just as dazzling, exciting, and disturbing as Vegas itself.

McManus details his battles not only against his opponents but also against "Bad Jim," the portion of his own personality that needs to get in on a poker game in spite of both common and fiscal sense. Besides telling his own story, he relates the considerably more unpleasant tale of Ted Binion, whose grisly death was blamed on Binion's former stripper-girlfriend and her ex-linebacker beau. In the hands of a lesser author, the pursuit of these separate through lines of poker and the seedy personal lives of wealthy casino heirs may have lead readers to wish the author had picked just one subject. But under McManus's careful watch, they're really pretty similar: steeped in adrenaline, mystery, deception, and skating on thrillingly thin ice. Each story underscores the other, a neat little "narrative as metaphor" device, while also painting a vivid picture of Vegas casino life. Poker, as anyone who has lost at it will tell you, is an intricate game and it's nice to see a top-notch author and player relate its finer points in an entertaining style that will appeal even to non-players. The author's hilariously self-aware and at times self-loathing style make Positively Fifth Street a fun read. But beyond that, his account of nearly winning the biggest poker tournament in the world and subsequently watching as the verdicts are announced for Binion's accused murderers makes for a great story. Even if it wasn't the one he was sent there to write. --John Moe

Book Description

In the spring of 2000, Harper's Magazine sent James McManus to Las Vegas to cover the World Series of Poker, in particular the progress of women in the $23 million event, and the murder of Ted Binion, the tournament's prodigal host, purportedly done in by a stripper and her boyfriend. But when McManus arrives, the lure of the tables compels him to risk his entire Harper's advance in a long-shot attempt to play in the tournament himself. This is his deliciously suspenseful account of the tournament-the players, the hand-to-hand combat, his own unlikely progress in it-and the delightfully seedy carnival atmosphere that surrounds it. Positively Fifth Street is a high-stakes adventure and a terrifying but often hilarious account of one man's effort to understand what Edward O. Wilson has called 'Pleistocene exigencies'-the eros and logistics of our competitive instincts.

Download Description

In the spring of 2000, Harper's Magazine sent James McManus to Las Vegas to cover the World Series of Poker--in particular, the mushrooming progress of women in the $23 million event, and the murder of Ted Binion, the tournament's prodigal host, purportedly done in by a stripper and her boyfriend with a techniques so outre it took a Manhattan pathologist to identify it. Whether a jury would convict the attractive young couple was another story altogether. But when McManus sets foot in town, the lure of the tables is too strong: he proceeds to risk his entire Harper's advance in a long-shot attempt to play in the tournament himself. Only with actual experience at the table (he tells his skeptical wife) can he capture the hair-raising subtleties of the kind of poker that determines the world champion. The heart of the book is his deliciously suspenseful account of the tournament itself--the players, the hands, and his own unlikely progress in it. Written in the tradition of The Gambler and The Biggest Game In town, Positively Fifth Street is a high-stakes adventure, and a terrifying but often hilarious account of one man's effort to understand what Edward O. Wilson has called "Pleistocene exigencies"--the eros and logistics of out primary competitive instincts.

Customer Reviews:

Not what I expected.......2007-10-03

If you look at the reviews for this book, you'll see a wide range of opinions. From 1-star all the way up to 5-stars. I believe the reason for the wide range is because the book cover and descriptions (including the back) fails to manage the reader's expectations. Similar to many other reviewers, I expected a book 100% about poker and related topics. However, it's really 60% about Ted Binion's murder, and 40% about poker. I did realize that Binion's murder was a topic in the book, but I though it was just a backdrop for the poker story. The murder almost dominates the book. If I had that 60/40 expectation I think I would've enjoyed the book more. So i penalize it 1 star because it didn't meet my expectations. I also subtract 1 more star because the author goes off-topic way too often. Other reviewers rant on how off-topic the book goes, so i don't need to again. 3 stars.

Good, but about 100 pages too long.......2007-07-27

This is a very unique book that tells many stories in one - the murder trial of accused killers of Ted Binion, Jim's own sensational poker run, and mixed in is lots of tidbits of poker history and player profiles. Overall, it is pretty good, but could have been better were it not for too many tedious pages of personal history, minutia of the tournament, and philosophical digressions that had me yawning. A good quarter of this 400 page book just wasn't all that interesting to me. On the other hand, in reading other sections, I found that I couldn't put it down.

Overall, getting through the tedious sections was made worthwhile by not only his great tournament story, but a real education on the history of the game, and where it is at present. BUT, if you bore easily, this may not be the book for you.

2 Words .....Bor - Ring.......2007-07-19

This book is so boring in the beginning that I haven't even been able to finish it to get to parts that other reviewers say are exciting. I thought it was about the World Series of Poker and the murder trial. Instead I have to read about McManus' childhood. Of course I've seen him on poker shows and he seems pretty boring in real life too.

If you're looking for a poker book, pass on this one.

Horrible.......2007-06-04

Don't waste your money. If you feel you have to have this book buy it 2nd or even 5th hand. It is boring and not well written. I find myself simply skimming through many pages that get completely off the topic. If I could return any of the books I have purchased from amazon or anyplace else, this would be the one.

Well written trip through the 2000 WSOP and the Vegas trial of the century.......2007-05-23

James McManus (fiction author, sports journalist and sometime poker player) went to Vegas to cover the trial of the murder of Ted Binion (whose father started the World Series of Poker (WSOP)) and to cover the rise of women at the WSOP. He ends up taking part of the advance money, winning a play-in satellite tourney, and getting a seat at the 2000 WSOP.

He made it to the final table and fifth place.

He intertwines his own story (an amatuer amongst some of pokers greatest names) with stories of the trial (where Ted's girlfriend and best friend are accused of murdering him), Jim's own personal history, the history of poker and the WSOP and the parallels he sees between them all.

The insights into the game, the hands, the mannerisms, and particularly what Jim is thinking at the time (fold? call? raise? who's that beautiful dealer named Red?) dividing the voices in his head (see? not just me!) into Good Jim and Bad Jim, make the writing of the actual WSOP satellite and tournament the best part of the book. But the other stories are woven in intricately and smoothly (with only a few abstract jumps), mixing in Dante and Dostoyevsky to prove his point.

Since the book has been written, the number of players entered into the big Texas Hold-em WSOP tourney has climbed in from the $1.5 million Chris "Jesus" Ferguson won (and 512 entrants) in 2000 to 2006's $12million Jamie Gold won amongst the 8,773 entrants (and around 12,000 are expected this year).

Read it before the big one this July 6, and it will help you imagine the action.

Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker

Average customer rating:

Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker
James McManus
Manufacturer: NY
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000MU2SCG

Average customer rating:

Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker
James McManus
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0965753913

Average customer rating:

Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker

Manufacturer: Books On Tape, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio Cassette

Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker (Positively Fifth Street (Unabridged), Library Edition)

Average customer rating:

Positively Fifth Street: Murderers, Cheetahs, and Binion's World Series of Poker (Positively Fifth Street (Unabridged), Library Edition)
James McManus
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: 0736696377

Product Description

12 Compact Disks, Unabridged edition. Read by Paul Michael.

Average customer rating:

Positively Fifth Street - Murderers, Cheetahs, And Binion's World Series Of Poker
James Mcmanus
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus And Giroux
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000RIWU5I

Average customer rating:

Positively Fifth Street Signed
James Mcmanus
Manufacturer: ST MARTINS PRESS *
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000UZD4BC

Book Description

Expert strategies for recovering your soul and restoring order to Gladstone
Complete walkthroughs for all the dangerous worlds
Detailed maps to guide you on your quest
Combat survival tactics to help you defeat any challenging opponent
Tips for acquiring specialized skills by joining guilds

Customer Reviews:

Useful, but many flaws.......2002-08-04

It's good to have this guide if you're gonna play the game, but it is strewn with flaws. It would probably take a book half its size to cover them all, so I'll just mention the worst one. In the middle of one of the portal world conquerings, he has the player check out a small cave, saying "You'll find a dead Barbarian Warrior and some rotted meat---not much of value, but interesting." He neglects to mention that, hiding in a very sneaky cubbyhole along the cave's perimeter, is one of the most important weapons in the game, Great Sword Darkstorm, which you might've found if, instead of misleading you, he had said something like "Explore this cave carefully for anything useful." Shame on you, Steve.

Very good, with some directions errors.......1999-04-27

Overall a very good book. There was a few missed directions here and there. Relied too much on "go west and ignore all side paths", when they could of used landmarks and visual clues. It was informitive and helpful, exactly what a game guide should be. One more HIT from PRIMA.

Heavy Hitter Selling: How Successful Salespeople Use Language and Intuition to Persuade Customers to Buy
Average customer rating:

Excellent no nonsense book

Heavy Hitter Hits the Mark

Heavy Hitter Selling

Powerful set of tools for complex sale

Harvard Business School Review of Heavy Hitter Selling

Heavy Hitter Selling: How Successful Salespeople Use Language and Intuition to Persuade Customers to Buy
Steve W. Martin
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Book Yourself Solid: The Fastest, Easiest, and Most Reliable System for Getting More Clients Than You Can Handle Even if You Hate Marketing and Selling

ASIN: 0471787000

Book Description

What separates ordinary salespeople from Heavy Hitters?

The best salespeople are those "Heavy Hitters" who are able to use human nature, language, and intuition to build trusting relationships with customers and persuade them to buy. Based on his proven and effective sales program, author Steve Martin's Heavy Hitter Selling explains how you too can achieve and maintain that high level of sales success. Using real-world case studies, examples, and exercises, Martin provides the psychological, physical, and language-based tactics you need to turn yourself into a Heavy Hitter.

Inside, you'll find proven guidance and expert tips on:

Understanding how people think and communicate
Finding the right words at the right time
Predicting a customer's behavior and influencing his thoughts
Building customer rapport and understanding their motivations
Persuading both the customer's rational mind and his emotional subconscious side

"Like other sales books published recently, this one stresses the importance of human behavior. But unlike the others, it puts an emphasis on language. Salespeople could well benefit by exploring scientific models of language. Practical exercises make the book useful for everyone."
—Harvard Business School Review

"This well-written, insightful book will give you ideas and strategies you can use to influence and persuade customers in any market."
—Brian Tracy, author, Million Dollar Habits

"Traditional selling focuses on product, price, and competition and misses the most important reason people buy-people and emotion. Heavy Hitter Selling offers a different perspective that is valuable in understanding how to win."
—Jay Fulcher, President and COO, Agile Software

"Heavy Hitter Selling is different-[a book that] will help you make lots of money."
—Gerald D. Cohen, CEO, Information Builders, Inc.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent no nonsense book.......2007-05-12

The book is to the point and direct. Either we belong to the Heavy Hitter Club and have to have a certain mindset, or we don't. It's that simple. I've enjoyed every page of the book.

Heavy Hitter Hits the Mark.......2006-11-06

All successful sales people, it seems, are constantly looking at "how to" books to improve what they do. Heavy Hitter Selling takes the "how to" to the next level by analyzing clients and customers and then providing practical ways to deal with lots of personalities. Steve Martin also deals with other practical issue like prioritizing deals and eliminating losers early in the process and providing more time to deal with the winning deals. I found it faciinating and worth a second to pick up what I missed the first time around

Heavy Hitter Selling.......2006-09-22

This book was interesting and easy to read (for those of you that may be intimidated by the 350 pages). I'll be trying out Mr. Martin's techniques on my upcoming sales calls. If you are in sales this book should give you a refreshing boost and a new way to look at the relationships you are building with your customers and why. Steve is also a great public speaker to have for your upcoming sales training. He tailors his message and works hard to interact directly with as many people as possible.

Powerful set of tools for complex sale.......2006-04-28

This book provides a set of powerful tools for complex sales. The approach here is identify the word catalog of your prospect and connect it with his corporal and eye movements.
With this complete picture about your prospect you can identify if he is telling you the truth or if he is lying to you and in this way predict the behaviour of your prospect/customer looking to reinforce it if is favorable to you proposal or change it or adjust it to improve dramatically your victories in a complex sales enviroment.

Excelente book a completely new and refreshin approach to complex sales.

Harvard Business School Review of Heavy Hitter Selling.......2005-04-22

Like other marketing and sales books published recently, this one stresses the importance of human behavior. But unlike the others, it puts an emphasis on language.

The first section deals with the human nature of communication. It describes different layers of communication, including phonetics, content, purpose, and the way the mind uses and interprets language. "Heavy hitters," or successful salespeople, can structure their dialogue and create personal rapport with customers by borrowing ideas from neurolinguistics, the study of how the brain and the body work in conjunction with language.

The second section examines strategies for deciding which customers to target and which actions to take. The third section focuses on the power of persuasion, and touches on a deeper level of the meaning of language: the power of metaphor and language's ability to appeal to emotions rather than logic.

Though the author defines salesmanship principally as an art, he believes that art has a scientific element. Salespeople could well benefit by exploring scientific models of language. Practical exercises and a glossary make the book useful for everyone.

Heavy Hitter Selling (How Successful High-Technology Salespeople Use Language And Intuition To Persuade Customers To Buy)

Average customer rating:

Almost Credible

Heavy Hitter Selling (How Successful High-Technology Salespeople Use Language And Intuition To Persuade Customers To Buy)

Manufacturer: Sand Hill Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0972182209

Product Description

Heavy Hitter Selling is a revolutionary new sales philosophy about the human nature of sales. It is the first book to explain what is truly at the heart of all sales how to build customer relationships, how salespeople incorporate human behavior into their strategy, and how salespeople say the right words at the right time to persuade customers to buy.

Customer Reviews:

Almost Credible.......2006-01-07

I bought this book to get a different perspective on sales. After 26 years and a over a million miles selling technology and software I thought it was a good idea to rebuild the motor.

After receiving the book, I immediately noticed a testimonial printed right on top of the front cover. It was from a "VP" at a large CRM software company. Well, I know this individual having worked with him, not for him, in the past. After seeing this, the book became nearly useless to me because it lost most of it's credibility.

However, I was able to forge ahead. The book is full of common sense and re-tooled ancedotal commentary with child-ish graphs and illustrations. Not until you get past the first 2/3's of the book does it begin to sink in that you are in fact not wasting your time. Some good material towards the end, but overall there are much better books and material to read than this.

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