Showing posts with label Leisure. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Leisure. Show all posts

Saturday, 29 May 2010

Better picture guide to vacation & holiday photography


Image from Amazon
Michael Busselle's Guide to Travel & Vacation Photography (buy from Amazon)
 by Michael Busselle
Better picture guide to vacation & holiday photography

Type: Leisure / Photography
Author: Michael. Busselle
My rating: 4
ISDN: 962-14-2179-9

Book introduction:
Introduction to travel photography. This photographer is based in London and has shown lot of photos from Europe in this book. It also explains basics for photography equipments.

Irene's review:
I enjoy this book because the author explains how he took the photos and gives some tips on how to get the best photo when you're travelling. The scenery taken in England and France make me wish to go back. As the book is full of photos, it is a good leisure read indeed.

Reason for hope



Type: Biography Leisure
Author: Jane Goodall
My rating: 5
Buy now 
Posted by Dominic

Book introduction:

This is an auto-biography of an amazing and fascinating woman, Dr. Jane Goodall. Very inspiring individual fighting for a cleaner, safer and better world for people, animal and earth for many generations to come. Dr Jane as she is commonly known, is world reknown for her pioneer research on chimpanzee, our closest cousin in the animal kingdom. This book is about how she started that spirital journey that has allowed her to filfull her curiosity and fascination of Africa, through the same journey, she has gained a deep understanding and appreciation of the relationship of mother nature and human beings. The book also described how devastating that we human being, the smartest animal on earth is not taking care of the planet, instead we are destroying it along with the wonderful diversity of living creatures, and we must do something to reverse such destruction and give mother nature a chance to heal. The message of the book is clearly stated in the title, Reason for hope. Despite all the terrible things that are happening around us in the world, there is still reason for hope and we mustn't give up the fight.

My review:

I bought this book at a seminar given by Dr. Jane while she was in Hong Kong during December 2005. The title of the seminar was "Why I left the forrest of Gombe", it was a very thought provoking and revealing seminar. It described very different situations around the world from the environment that we know and live in every day and yet we are sharing the same planet that we depend on.

I would like to share a few points that I found intriguing from the seminar:
- In the anicent world, senior leaders of the tribes made major decisions of important matters in the interests of the whole tribes collectively not in the interest of some corporate.

- We own and waste so much things today that we don't need. Clothing in any family in a western country for example, is enough for one tribe in Africa. People used to have very simple need and waste very little.

We have seen so much damaged done to our world - all sorts of pollutions, global warming, global climate changes, destruction of environment, cruelty to animals, exploitation of poor countries, aggression of developed countries, rapidly spreading of incurable diseases and the list goes on.

While there exists so many problems in our world, I would like to share with you the reasons for hope as told by Dr. Jane (1) The human brain; (2) The Resilience of nature; (3) The energy and enthusiasum that is found or can be kindled among young people worldwide; and (4) The indomitable human spirit.

When children learn about rights from wrongs, they are determined to do the right things, educate our young ones properly. Mother nature is resilient, we must give her a chance to heal and she will recover. Human beings are intelligent beings, if we can send people to the moon for fun, we can deal with the problems at home.

Dr. Jane kindly signed her autograph on my copy of her book, she wrote - Follow your heart. I hope more people would listen and follow their hearts.


Replied by irene. My rating:5
My review:
Learn a lot about humanity from this book. Personally I was touched by her thought - "When I came back from the forrect in Gombe to the civilized England, I found all the modern buildings ugly." It reminds me of the countryside and little villages I've been and my joy of losing myself there. It also asks me why I live in a city?!

Sunday, 23 May 2010

The Dilbert Principle



Type: LeisureAuthor: Scott Adams 
My rating: 3Buy now 
Posted by Dominic
Book introduction:

The Dilbert Principle is a part comic, part text book that make fun of office situations. It also has emails from people who talk about the stupid things happening in their companies.

My review:

A fun pass-time reading. I particular enjoy the part regarding consultants (being one myself a few years ago).

Tuesdays with Morrie



Type: Leisure Self-improvement
Author: Mitch Albom
My rating: 5
Buy now 
Posted by Vivian L.

Book introduction:

'tuesdays with Morrie' is a book about Mitch Albom who got the chance to rediscover Morrie Schwartz in the last months of Morrie's life, who was once the college professor who taught him like 20 years ago. The relationship turned out to be lessons on 'how to live'. It's a real story detailing their moments shared together in the last months of the old man and how Mitch rediscovered his own life through the lessons.

My review:

I truly love this book. It touches you deeply into your heart. Being busy in our everyday life, perhaps we have already forgotten how we once were, how innocent, yet very positive and energetic about our world, things around us. As the years passed, we seem to have lost of track of our dreams, our direction in life, this book sort of awakens and inspire you in every aspect of your life. There are quite a lot of proverbs that are really enlightening. Have we ever wonder what are the important things in our life? Is it, death, fear, aging, greed, marriage, family, society, forgiveness or a meaningful life? That worths a thought!


Replied by Vanessa. My rating:5
My review:
A very touching and exceptionally well written little book. Simple words were used to describe the complexity in life, in an everchanging society.
A book that I would buy for teenages and pple who are in their mid twenties. (not sure abt 30s/ 40s/50s as I have not experience that part of life as yet)
Leave it at your bedside and read one chapter a day, this will give you a little reflection about your ownself after a busy day.
I also read the other book by him called 'five people you meet in heaven'. Interesting setting of the story. Sometimes pple around us have impact on us which we seldom realise.

http://www.albom.com/

Replied by Dominic. My rating:5
My review:
Heard so much about it and finally got hold of a copy from a friend. A very touching book on a true story of a dying professor, how he saw life in the face of death. I particularly like "when you learn how to die, you learn how to live" and also, don't let the so-called modern culture dictate what we want. Think hard on what we our heart really really wants. The ideas in the book are not new but people are often too busy to think about them and overlook what are truly important in life - love and family.

Replied by irene. My rating:5
My review:
one of the best books i've read. simple and inspiring! i read it 2 years ago when i started thinking what i want in life. the most touching message of the book is "in a society we're very often influenced by its culture. if we don't stand firmly, we will easily lose ourselves and follow the flow. know who you're and what you want to be, create your own culture"