The Vineyard: The Pleasures and Perils of Creating an American Family Winery

Amazon.com

When Louisa and Alex Hargrave bought an old potato farm in 1973 with plans to start a vineyard, they had "no farm experience and little life experience." What they did have was enthusiasm, optimism, a strong relationship, and just enough naivete to attempt what no one else had before managed: to create a viable winery on New York"s Long Island. Though experts said it was impossible, they successfully planted ten thousand vinifera vines and started a venture that lasted 30 years and inspired many others to start wineries in the area. The Vineyard is Louisa Hargrave's memoir of the endeavor and the price she paid to make her dreams come true.

True pioneers, the Hargraves learned their trade from scratch and raised their children close to the land. Louisa even strapped her babies to her back while working in the fields. Along the way, they encountered many predictable natural obstacles, including foul weather, pestilence, and disease, along with more than their fair share of man-made problems, such as meddlesome neighbors, vindictive bureaucrats, and money shortages. But their life was not all weeding and grafting; they also experienced the glamorous, and often absurd, world of professional wine making, complete with wealthy eccentrics and heavily politicized wine-tasting competitions.

Despite the success of the business, the experience took a heavy toll on her family, and she writes frankly about disappointments and marital problems without distracting from the main storyline. Her breezy tone and lively storytelling skills make the book an enjoyable read even for those with limited knowledge of wine-making. In short, the farm and life experience she gained over the past 30 years is worth passing on. --Shawn Carkonen

Book Description

Louisa and Alex Hargrave were pioneers. Fresh out of Harvard in 1969, in love with each other and their dream of owning a vineyard, they searched the West and East coasts before they bought a run-down 1680-vintage potato farm in 1973, on Long Island's North Fork-and planted ten thousand vinifera vines. At the time, experts said that growing wine grapes on Long Island was impossible. Today, the region is famous for its premium wines.

In The Vineyard, the Hargraves learn the joys and hardships of country life. They suffer droughts and storms while learning to navigate the glamorous but treacherous international world of wine. Along the way, they discover that theirs is both a scientific and a spiritual endeavor. Struggling to raise a family, Louisa draws strength from her work in the vinerows. Reveling in the bounty of harvest, the laughter of her children and the magic of a newly blended wine, she tells the bittersweet story of how she and her husband fulfilled their dream.

Customer Reviews:

The Vineyard.......2006-06-11

Nice read. This book will be inspiring to those who are contemplating getting into the winery business, and will be interesting to those who just enjoy wine.

Grapes of wrath.......2004-04-10

My parents chose to own and run a small vineyard. As a contemporary of the author, it is easy for me to empathize with the problems of building a vineyard from scratch. That may best explain why I picked up this book.

The author and her husband are of a blue blood vintage. Family money allowed them to embark on this experiment, quite the dilettantes at the start. Hargrave and her tall husband had tried other ventures or career options, including an organ (and I don?t mean Wurlitzer) cookbook. My stomach is still turning at the thought. Nothing seemed to click. The two were peripatetic students, travelers, house sitters, Ivy leaguers, quasi trust fund babies, with colorful roots of their own. Louisa Thomas is the grand daughter of five-time Socialist candidate for president of the United States, Norman Thomas.

One thing they learned from their stab at cooking organs was that the wine allowed the unpalatable food to go down a whole lot better. Inspired in part by this finding, along with a desire to forego hard liquor, husband and wife made a go of starting a vineyard on Long Island. Only this time the process was very serious, engaging and almost enslaving. They mastered the delicate, detailed process of acquiring the right vines, grafting, plucking, fermenting, storing and marketing the wine. They produced great wine; they earned (or at least somehow garnered) great publicity. They hired a lot of people with diverse, difficult and demanding backgrounds. Husband and wife divided the tasks as best they could, each to his or her apparent comparative advantage, she the hands on technician, he the business officer. Along the way, unintentionally it seems, they transformed themselves from soul mates to business partners.

Raised on a ?grape farm? myself, where my family lived twenty years, her story is spot on ? the planting and pruning, dealing with fungus and pesticides, curbing the weeds, managing the harvest, living with weather that both killed and enhanced the crop ? and evoked long dormant memories and, in some cases, wounds. Grapes are much less romantic when they go into jelly, but also a whole lot easier, especially if you don?t make the final product yourself. The Hargraves immersed themselves in the task. They learned fast, worked hard, and seemed to prosper, even if at times it was by the skin of their grapes. My initial skepticism turned to admiration but, having lived some of their life, never envy.

The saddest part of an otherwise noble accomplishment is the fact that the husband and wife efforts apparently killed their marriage. It is not very clear why. As the sole author, the wife is a bit coy on this. It may have been fruitful to read the husband?s side of the full story, not just the demise of a good, working partnership. This is a very human, humane story.

Growing grapes on Long Island?.......2003-10-01

Alex and Louisa Hargrave went against conventional wisdom when they decided to plant vinifera grapes on Long Island. As you might expect, it was a bumpy adventure in horticultural history, complete with weeds, hurricanes and an incredible amount of work, bringing the couple to the brink of financial ruin. But by the time it was over, they'd proven that grapes could grow (even flourish) on Long Island - and the chronicle of their exploits is charming and lively.

Entertaining and Engaging Experience of a Modern Pioneer.......2003-07-23

A fascinating account of how a highly educated couple from a suburban background became successful "farming" pioneers growing grapes and making wine on Eastern Long Island. This was not sit-on-the veranda farming. The author makes reference to stories of the American frontier, and certainly that is apt, as the dedication and endurance of these pioneers was extraordinary. Their hard personal work in the fields was the equal of the pioneers, and they also had to deal with modern government. All in all, very intriguing and very well written, with enough human detail to make the people come to life.

If you loved "Little House on the Prairie" you'll love this.......2003-07-16

If you loved "Little House on the Prairie" you'll love this true modern pioneer saga set in (of all places) Eastern Long Island, New York. You don't even have to be a wine enthusiast to enjoy the book, although Louisa Hargraves' descriptions of tasting may make convert you.
While telling her 30 year history of growing French varietal grapes (which people said couldn't be done), the author allows us to experience the grit behind the glamour in all its (pardon me) juicy details.
As in all successful memoirs, we get a chance to live someone else's life, imagine what it would be like to follow our dream as singlemindedly as she did, and rejoice when dreams come true. We also get to see the price that is exacted. Because Louisa Hargrave keeps us by her side, I stayed up until 2 AM to finish the book. I put it down feeling touched, informed, and inspired.

Customer Reviews:

Just a collection of AP articles.......2002-09-08

This is a collection of articles and photos from the press covering Tiger Woods during the 4 continous major wins in 2000-2001. Though worth a reading, would recommend only for Tiger fans.

Tiger Woods the Grandest Slam Collector's Edition

Average customer rating:

Tiger Woods the Grandest Slam Collector's Edition

ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000IF7WEE

Product Description

The book is brand new but I paper cover on the book is a little rough but not bad.

Book Description

As long as there have been storytellers, audiences have sought stories that make their flesh creep and their blood curdle. These are the tales that have been read furtively under covers or retold in whispers by the light of campfires. From Horace Walpole to Stephen King, the masters of horror have offered us such tales of the eerie and the spectral. Author Robert Weinberg has assembled the best of these phantasmal visions in Horror of the Twentieth Century. Here is a vivid recounting of the writers, illustrators, publishers, actors, and filmmakers who for more than two centuries satisfied the fluctuating tastes of their audiences. Every media from comics, paperbacks, hardcovers and movies is cataloged.

Customer Reviews:

A superb literary history of the horror fantasy genre.......2001-02-13

"Horror of the 20th Century" is a superb literary history of the horror fantasy genre in every media format the 20th century had to offer, including pulp magazine, paperbacks, hardcover novels, comics, radio, television, and the movies (from the early, primitive silent films to the modern, special-effects-laden, big-screen epics of today). The entire spectrum is represented for the short story, the novelette, and the novel. Robert Weinberg's informative, fascinating text is profusely illustrated on every page with full color photographs of wonderful magazine, book, and movie poster art. All of the major authors are represented along with a wealth of biographical information on them and their particular contributions. "Horror of the 20th Century" is a "must" for all horror fantasy buffs, pulp magazine and book collectors, and is a very highly recommended addition to academic and community library collections.

A fabulous production.......2000-12-09

This is a top quality hardcover book. The information in it is priceless; it is like rediscovering an old friend with whom you have lost touch over the years. The history is recounted at a leisurely and always enjoyable pace, with the narrative caressing the illustrations encouragingly. And it is the lavish illustrations that make this the book that it is. They are superb. The reader, serious or casual browser - both are treated courteously - is treated to page after page of covers and artwork - from books, magazines and periodicals through the ages, from early in the century to the present day. The publishers have done a marvellous job and they and the authors are to be commended highly.

Awesome presentation, so-so writing.......2000-11-14

While Robert Weinberg's prose may be somewhat informative, it rarely aspires to be anything more than wooden in its delivery, and it doesn't give you any further information that a diehard horror fan wouldn't already know. The problem, and the only problem, with this book is that it is not very well written. However, the full-page, full-color photographs from movies, magazine and book covers, and comic books are gloriously printed. This book is huge, too, and well worth the $60 cover price. If only the writing didn't make you feel like you'd just taken a handful of valium!

What an awesome book!.......2000-09-17

I've read all of Robert Weinberg's books. He is THE master of horror and fantasy! If you're into old horror, new horror, or anything in between, you gotta get this latest book by Weinberg. It is absolutely fantastic! You'll see magazine and book covers never before seen by man or beast! You'll see paintings unearthed maybe from tombs!

An Illustrated History of Horror and Science-Fiction Films: The Classic Era, 1895-1967

Average customer rating:

A Classic to Read and Remember--Not For Skimming!
Disappointed
Certainly the place to start-- the very best survey

An Illustrated History of Horror and Science-Fiction Films: The Classic Era, 1895-1967
Carlos Clarens
Manufacturer: Da Capo
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0306808005

Amazon.com

This classic study of horror and science fiction movies was first published in 1967, the year before films such as Rosemary's Baby and 2001: A Space Odyssey transformed both genres. Readers interested in the many horror and science fiction films made before the modern era of graphic violence and special-effects extravaganzas will be enthralled by An Illustrated History of Horror and Science Fiction Film. It summarizes the plots and relates the importance of a wide variety of relevant films, from the early work of Georges Méliès and the German expressionists to Universal Pictures horror movies such as the original Dracula and Frankenstein to the suggestively atmospheric work of Val Lewton and the sci-fi classics of the 1950s. Clarens makes fascinating observations about the mythical value of these films and their cathartic effect on viewers. His insights are so powerful and expressive that J. Hoberman, who wrote an introduction to the book's 1997 reissue, found that "this idiosyncratic genre history was really an idiosyncratic history of the commercial cinema as it had developed, in Europe and America, from the 1890s through the mid-1960s." An Illustrated History of Horror and Science Fiction Film contains scores of terrific black-and-white illustrations and a detailed filmography.

Customer Reviews:

A Classic to Read and Remember--Not For Skimming!.......2001-10-30

Like another reviewer, I first read the '67 edition of Clarens' book when I was in high school. Already a horror movie fan, I needed context and appreciation of the genre, and that's exactly what this wonderful book provided, then and now. This is a book for the serious fan in search of a history of both the technique and ideas behind horror films. Clarens' observations about specific films' production, actors' performances, and even camera tricks will stay with you and help you to enjoy horror movies, old and new, even more than you did before. It is illustrated well, but it's an illustrated history, not an annotated photo catalog. Thus this is a book with terrific words and ideas, plus images--it's not intended to be a glossy fan mag with captions. Approach it with an expectation of ideas plus a few images, and let your imagination work its magic. Read the book to understand the big picture--not just to savor a few illustrations. I'm thrilled with the re-issue, and expect the book to support intelligent fans as well as cinema scholars. It's a book to keep, appreciate, and savor.

Disappointed.......2000-06-19

If your looking for a book that has the plots and story lines of the horror and science fiction movies of the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s, this ISN"T it. If your looking for a lot of old prints from the same movies, this ISN'T it. The word "ILLUSTATED" in the title must be an error, in a book of 256 pages there are 135 pictures (mostly small, most on the same pages)

Certainly the place to start-- the very best survey.......2000-01-24

I read this in its original 1967 edition when I was very young, and it inspired a life-long love of horror films (at that time the Science Fiction content was not in the title, though it was found in the book). Clarens' effort is clear and concise-- not too much on any one thing, but he manages to hit all the necessarys and high spots. It's really indispensible for the fan who's starting out in a serious study of the subject-- or who just loves horror.

Horror of the 20th century: an illustrated history.

Average customer rating:

Horror of the 20th century: an illustrated history.
Robert Weinberg
Manufacturer: Portland, Collectors Press, [
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: B000OUTOP8

Stephen King and Clive Barker: The Illustrated Masters of the MacAbre

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Stephen King and Clive Barker: The Illustrated Masters of the MacAbre
James Van Hise
Manufacturer: Movie Publisher Services
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1556982534

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Awesome

Fun stuff

handy cannabis book

A real cool book for peolpe who love marijuana.

Spliffs 2: Further Adventures in Cannabis Culture
Tim Pilcher
Manufacturer: Quick American Archives
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Spliffs: A Celebration of Cannabis Culture

Get Stoned and Read This Book

The Cannabis Companion: The Ultimate Guide to Connoisseurship

The Joint Rolling Handbook 2: New and Classic Tips, Tricks and Techniques!

The Cannabible

ASIN: 0932551726

Book Description

“Spliffs,” European slang for joint, can be rolled with marijuana alone, or may include tobacco mixed with either marijuana or hashish. This little but potent item sparks this colorful, wide-ranging salute to cannabis. Laid out with splashy graphics in magazine format, Spliffs 2 mixes engaging short narrative and satirical pieces with instructional and practical information. With over 100 color illustrations, the book contains profiles of outlaw heroes and famous dope smugglers; “A Smoker’s Life for Me,” for potheads who insist on integrating the plant into every aspect of their lives; a pictorial tour of rolling papers past and present; and a guide to cannabis etiquette. There’s a section on movies and marijuana for altered-state film buffs, a map of cannabis use around the world for geographically minded ganjistas, and a guide to pot-themed events and festivals worldwide. More serious stoners can expand their minds with essays on pot in politics, medicine, religion, and art.

Customer Reviews:

Awesome.......2007-02-06

I bought this book for my girlfriend and she absolutely loves it. It is an easy book to read with fun facts and great stuff to read about. I would recommend this to any fan of the "smoke".

Fun stuff.......2007-01-10

All about the cannabis culture. From the people who love it, to the ones who grow it and all those in between. A fun updated book with a sweet lay out. Just a fun book to take a look at.

handy cannabis book.......2006-07-04

For the price, size and information this book offers, any cannabis user would enjoy having this in their book collection. Don't let the size fool you, the book has alot of useful information efficiently tucked within its small frame. If you are interested in buying this book, the neat facts in this book will impress you(and make you laugh-i promise)and supply you with useful knowledge. I look forward to buying spliffs 1 soon!

A real cool book for peolpe who love marijuana........2005-12-06

I love this book. It's very easy to read and very entertaining. I like the pictures and the facts that come with it. There is everything in this book from cultivating, to the worlds greatest potheads. There are different sections in this book ranging from cannabis drinks to specialty bongs and pipes. They even have famous quotes from people. It's a great book for the coffee table and a great book for a gift. I would seriously by this for my freinds.

Average customer rating:

The best 3E adventure that I have encountered, bar none

Banewarrens (D20 Generic System)
Monte Cook
Manufacturer: White Wolf Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Chaositech (Sword and Sorcery Studio)

Demon God's Fane (D20 Generic System)

Magic Item Compendium (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying)

Dungeonscape: An Essential Guide to Dungeon Adventuring (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying)

Ptolus The Night of Dissolution (Malhavoc)

ASIN: 1588461033

Download Description

The banes -- the worst, most nightmarish evils imaginable. Long ago, a powerful saint gathered together objects of evil power and buried them away so no one could ever use them. But concentrating that much evil in one place was not a good idea, and now some of these unique malignant creatures, artifacts, and forces have been loosed upon the world. To bind them once again, you must brave the timelost Banewarrens.

This mega-adventure takes characters from 6th to 10th level. Uncover new monsters and magic in its pages, including dozens of foul banes like the Phylactery of Forsaken Souls and the Malificite.

But The Banewarrens is more than just rooms of evil creatures to bash: Its dynamic plot is full of intrigue and twists. Characters race against evil adventurers seeking to use the banes for their own gain. With every action they risk loosing even more malevolent forces upon an unsuspecting world. Some may call themselves their allies but, in the end, amid this deadly labyrinth both figurative and literal, who can they really trust?

The Banewarrens includes new magic items, new monsters, and other tidbits, such as new poisons and diseases.

This illustrated PDF features a streamlined page layout and art by Toren "MacBin" Atkinson, Lars Grant-West, Quinton Hoover, Robert Lee, Alan Pollack, and Arne Swekel.You'll achieve better results by printing the book in four segments of 35 pages, rather than all at once. If you're concerned about ink usage, set your printer to "Speed" rather than "High Quality" printouts. You may want to change your printer settings to black-and-white to save on color ink, and/or not print the covers (pages 1 and 138) and product ad (page 137). The layout of this PDF was designed for double-sided printing.

Customer Reviews:

The best 3E adventure that I have encountered, bar none.......2003-10-27

The Banewarrens is the best 3E adventure that I have encountered, bar none. It's a wonderful blend of dungeon crawl, city encounters, factional intrigues, and planar travel. I am currently running it for two different groups (RL & PbP) and I would gladly run it again in the future.

Chapters, Events, Locations
Over the course of the story the party progresses from the outer rim of the legendary Banewarrens to its dark heart. Each chapter of the Banewarrens is a blend of events and locations. The events present the activities of other factions, along with a variety of places where the party might encounter them. Many of the individual locations (bane-filled vaults, occasional resting places, and the trap-filled halls that connect them) are fascinating, and could be borrowed for use in other adventures. Five of the chapters take the party out of the dungeon to investigate urban or extraplanar settings.

Monsters, NPCs, Factions
The monsters and NPCs in this adventure are well detailed, often including tactics, personality, and appearance. The party face quite a few monsters with character levels, along with a dozen new creatures. Some of the encounters are quite challenging (5+ encounter levels above the average party level), so the possibility of death is quite real. I have heard that Banewarrens is similar to Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil in this respect, although I have not read that adventure.

The use of multiple factions sets this adventure apart from other 3E products like the Adventure Path. There are two factions the party may work with (a church and a group of wizards) and two the party will certainly work against (evil humanoids and a noble house), but the all of the factions have hidden agendas which will sometimes help and sometimes hurt the characters. There are also plenty of neutral or independent NPC's who help the adventure come to life.

Bonus Material
One of the best aspects of the Banewarrens is the message board devoted to it on Monte Cook's website. Several handfuls of DMs have posted campaign reports detailing their experiences with the adventure. These reports are an excellent sources of tactics, reminders, answers, and adjustments. Posters also present ideas about placing the Banewarrens in specific campaign settings (Planescape, Al Quadim) or integrating it with other adventures (Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil, Demon God's Fane).

I don't spend much time evaluating the artwork in 3E products, but I will mention one interesting aspect of the Banewarrens. The module includes about twenty individual scenes as an appendix. In the pdf version these appear one to a page, which makes it easy to print out visuals to show the players.

One drawback to the Banewarrens is that it uses a small amount of material (magic items, spells, variant classes) from the Books of Eldritch Might 1 & 2, also written by Monte Cook. The adventure gives suggestions for replacing the classes and spells with material from the core rulebooks, but it doesn't suggest alternate magic items.

Overall
The Banewarrens is an incredible value for DMs who enjoy running prewritten adventures, as well as those who like to tinker. There is plenty of flexibility in the events and locations, making the adventure suitable for a wide variety of parties. Add to that a compelling storyline, challenging encounters, and sizeable number of new magic items and monsters. I love it!

Book Description

ABC: Your Blueprint for Success. ``Cokins' ability illustrate the effectiveness of ABC to those unfamiliar with financial applications and terminology is a major strength of his book. It should be required reading for companies that need to strengthen their commitment to ABC/ABM.''--Dan E. Cowan, Manager, Finance Training and Education, Chrysler Corporation. Activity-based costing is today's superior method for both identifying improvement opportunities and measuring benefits of performance initiatives. Read Gary Cokins' book Activity-Based Cost Management: Making It Work for every answer you need on executing and sustaining an effective ABC management system, explanations on why you should use ABC and explicit, clear-cut descriptions of steps you must take to implement ABC into your company.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Coverage of ABC.......2003-01-17

This is a clearly written and an exceptionally well illustrated explanation of Activity-Based Costing. If you are only going to read one book on ABC, this would be a good one to have.

Very Good Source of ABC Information.......2003-01-16

Gary has given us a very well written and exceptionally well illustrated guide to Activity-Based Costing. If you only read one book on ABC, make this it.

Cost Accounting Evolves.......2002-08-12

Gary Cokins is an internationally recognized an internationally know expert on cost management and performance improvement systems.

He wrote this book in 1996 to help managers see the interconnections between time, quality, capacity, flexibility and cost in an effort to achieve superior payback performance using product and service costing techniques that were more realistic and accurate than that day's cost accounting systems.

Written in clear language with pertinent examples, the book provides managers with a framework for managers to map cost flows, increase profits, improve decision-making and implement activity-based cost management. Although the system is complex, Cokin remains down-to-earth and pointed in his analysis.

Gives you a great understanding of ABC Concepts ý Read It!.......2001-08-12

Excellent book! Being a software engineer for a company which develops both hardware and software tools for tracking and managing labor resources, I am always looking for new ways to associate the true cost of labor to development and production activities. I have been interested in ABC/ABM for several years now, but Gary's book really brought it home for me.

This book is easy to read and understand. It flows well and has some great graphics and flow charts that help paint a very vivid picture of ABC processes.

It is a must read for anyone interested in understanding the concepts and challenges of designing and implementing an ABC System. I would highly recommend it.

Great job Gary!

Complete, industry neutral and unbiased - Recommended!.......2001-02-25

ABC is typically associated with manufacturing. My review is from the perspective of an IT consultant who employs ABC both as an internal tool for planning and managing consulting projects, and as a technique that I propose to clients.

This book is, in my opinion, one of the best I have read on the subject. It is not biased to any specific industry, and is not a gushing testimonial to ABC. In fact, the book starts with some pitfalls of ABC and how to avoid them, then goes into a frank discussion of why such systems fail. The book also contains a chapter on common misconceptions of ABC and succinctly dispells them. I appreciate not only the author's balanced approach, but the great advice he gives to make an ABC implementation successful.

If you are new to ABC the framework that is provided for mapping cost flows is going to be invaluable and key to understanding activity-based cost management. I especially liked the chapter on the unification of time, cost and quality - these are the real reasons for implementing ABC and the author does a great job of explaining the interrelationships.

The best part of this book is the chapters that address implementation. The approach taken by the author is straightforward, but admittedly not simple. The roadmap the author provides is an excellent starting point for an implementation plan, as is the advice on ongoing operations in an ABC management environment.

In my industry, IT consulting, this book provides an excellent approach to determining total cots of ownership (TCO) for systems and applications. This is not well understood by my colleagues or clients, and is further clouded by conflicting material from some industry analysts that will go unnamed. I believe that ABC is the only viable approach to getting this aspect of information technology under control. ABC is also an excellent tool for planning outsourcing engagements because you can see where the cost drivers are and systematically eliminate them. If you are doing this from the client side you will greatly reduce cost risk; if from the outsourcing provider side you will improve profitability. ABC is also useful to IT consultants and consulting companies to design services or to eliminate service offerings that are not profitable. Using techniques to examine contribution margin is the norm - using ABC is far more powerful.

Bottom line: this book clearly explains activity-based cost management, provides an unbiased discussion on the strengths and weaknesses of its use, and shows how to effectively implement it in an organization. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is exploring ABC or is involved in an ABC implementation.

Average customer rating:
Activity-Based Cost Management Making It Work: A Manager's Guide to Implementing and Sustaining an Effective ABC System
Gary Cokins
Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000QYEDRQ

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