Lucy Rosen

Be prepared for a book that was made to profit off a movie franchise. The writing is not fabulous, and focuses on the opening scenes of the Minions movie, where our charming oddball friends are introduced and their mission of finding a nasty boss is established. This book humorously recounts the tribulations the minions faced in trying to find a boss and not accidentally kill him off, and ends with the three main characters heroically setting off on a journey to find the real thing at last. show more A couple of issues here, obviously. First of all, the story is like a big prologue, and ends before anything actually happens to resolve their problem. If readers have seen the movie, they will know what comes next, but this book can not stand on its own outside of the film's context. Secondly, the purported history of the minions leaves far more questions than answers. How have they been around for millions of years? Why do they want to serve a mean boss? How are they wearing overalls and goggles in prehistoric times? (These are questions that the movie also decides not to answer, and they play it a bit tongue-in-cheek, but it weakens the story for both movie and book.) Third, the book relies solely on stills captured from the movie, which are cute and attractive, but it would have been nice to see a little bit of original art from the book. On the positive side, the tone of the book is excellent, admirably capturing the silly and sometimes dry humor from the movie. Also, I recognize that a beginning reader book is limited for space, so the publishers had to choose one part of the movie on which to focus, and they chose the introduction. My daughters love this book purely for its characters, as is likely the case for many of the families that purchase it, so they don't mind the lackluster quality of its book traits. They are in it for the minions, and are thus satisfied. show less

In recent months I have bought a fair number of these beginning reader books focused on popular characters and movies, to the detriment of the actual writing. I always thought I would avoid this type of story, but when children come along, some previously held notions are abandoned. My daughters love superheroes, and they don't care if the writing is inferior. And our collection of Justice League beginning reader books grows.

The story in this one is not great, but it is better than other show more books of the same topic and format. Starro, an evil alien starfish - yes, an evil alien starfish - has taken over major cities across the country. Starro does this by attaching small starfish on the back of the necks of cops and other officials. How the ocean creature accomplished this is a mystery. Superman immediately recognizes Starro's handiwork, and knows he needs help, so he contacts some friends.

Along with the other members of the Justice League, he makes short work of the underwhelming bad guy, and scatters the mind control starfish far across the galaxy. The dialogue is incredibly cheesy, and begs to be read aloud with a puffed out chest and a superhero voice. The narrative is coherent, but so ridiculous that it makes me laugh when I read it. I consider the experience comparable to watching a Mystery Science Theater movie: so awful it's good. Add in my daughters' love of the book, and the inclusion of the Martian Manhunter, and I generously give the book a three-star rating. show less

The minions are on a mission to steal the crown jewels, but all goes wrong.....

Lucy Rosen, also known as the "queen of networking," has written a book that will revolutionize how business men and women think about having an "ordinary" conversation with "ordinary" people. Fast Track Networking: Turning Conversations Into Contacts is a compilation of all the tricks of the networking process that Lucy has learned throughout her career.

Rosen founded Women on the Fast Track when she moved from New Mexico to New York in the 1980s. Through rose-colored glasses, she set out to show more conquer the world with a passion to connect people on a professional basis - especially women. Rosen recognized that if her business was to be successful in the tough Manhattan business world, networking was going to be an essential part of the plan.

In the 1980s, there were few options for businesswomen who wanted to network with others. There was not only a glass ceiling to deal with - but, also a glass door - an obstacle to meeting the people that would help make her business successful. Fast Track Networking will teach you how to listen to conversations, glean everything you can out of them and then put what you've learned into positive actions.

You'll learn how to develop your own group of networkers that will be your "inner circle" and also how to formulate the outer circle of networking contacts that can make an amazing difference in your career or business path. Fast Track Networking includes stories that will make you laugh and others so horrific they'll make you cringe.

Rosen includes networking tips, techniques and tools from some of the most successful entrepreneurs and business men and women in the United States. It's like learning real estate methods from Donald Trump - go to the best if you want to be successful at what you do. If you're in a career or job that you hate, you can take these valuable tools that Lucy Rosen offers and change your direction in life.

An eye-opening piece of information that Rosen offers in Fast Track Networking that's also an inspirational message is the story of why geese fly together in a V formation. Scientists discovered that the flapping of each bird's wings creates an "uplift" for the bird behind it, adding about 71% to the flying range of every bird in the formation.

When you think of these birds in the context of people who have common goals and directions, it makes sense that when people come together in groups and share valuable information, they're more likely to reach their destination more quickly - and much easier than if they traveled alone in their efforts.

Fast Track Networking: Turning Conversations Into Contacts, written by the queen of networking - Lucy Rosen - can help you turn each and every one of your conversations into business possibilities.

Review by Lauren Smith

Fast Track Networking by Lucy Rosen

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