Archive for July 2012

Most Wanted: Week Ending July 8

  1. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
  2. Catching Fire (The Second Book of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins
  3. Mockingjay (The Final Book of The Hunger Games) by Suzanne Collins
  4. Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire
  5. Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins
  6. Easy by Tammara Webber
  7. The Do-Over (A Romantic Comedy) by Kathy Dunnehoff
  8. Rock Me by Cherrie Lynn
  9. Falling for Love (The McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 4) by Marie Force
  10. Her Forbidden Hero by Laura Kaye
  11. Gamble on Engagement (McMaster the Disaster) by Rachel Astor
  12. Treading Water (Treading Water Trilogy) by Marie Force
  13. Gabriel’s Inferno (Gabriel’s Inferno Series) by Sylvain Reynard
  14. Dark Bayou (The Dark Trilogy) by Nancy K. Duplechain
  15. What I Didn’t Say by Keary Taylor
  16. Flat-Out Love by Jessica Park
  17. Love Unscripted by Tina Reber
  18. Fifty Shades of Black and Blue by I B Naughtie
  19. Sharp Objects: A Novel by Gillian Flynn
  20. Best Friends and Bastards by Jaci Byrne
  21. Blood Rites (The Grey Wolves Series #2) by Quinn Loftis
  22. Don’t Let Me Go by Catherine Ryan Hyde
  23. Hoping for Love (McCarthys of Gansett Island, Book 5) by Marie Force
  24. The Wedding Wager (McMaster the Disaster) by Rachel Astor
  25. Slammed by Colleen Hoover

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Today’s Kindle Daily Deal — Monday, July 9 – Two Great Reads for under $3 — Save 72 % on Bill Allen’s Fanciful HOW TO SLAY A DRAGON, plus … Don’t miss Pardu Ponnapalli’s JUST A BUNCH OF CRAZY IDEAS (Today’s Sponsor)

But first, a word from … Today’s Sponsor

Just a Bunch of Crazy Ideas

by Pardu Ponnapalli
4.8 stars – 42 Reviews
Text-to-Speech and Lending: Enabled
Don’t have a Kindle? Get yours here.

Here’s the set-up:

This book is about thoughts and ideas on a wide range of subjects. The topics include building a space elevator, new approaches to space travel, Star Trek reboot themes, ideas for energy conservation, what to do about our federal debt, modifying the game of chess and others. The following provides a quick overview of the chapters:

Chapter 1 Space Elevator
Chaper 2 Alternative Energies and Energy Conservation
Chapter 3 More Thoughts on Energy Conservation
Chapter 4 Gas Stations and filling up
Chapter 5 Luggage and Airplanes
Chapter 6 Thoughts on Chess
Chapter 7 Thoughts on Ice Hockey
Chapter 8 Thoughts on Cat Litter
Chapter 9 Our National Debt and Defecit
Chapter 10 I am overweight and so are most Americans
Chapter 11 Star Trek and Reboot
Chapter 12 Thoughts about Laptops
Chapter 13 Thoughts about Space Exploration
Chapter 14 Thoughts on the Stock Market
Chapter 15 Automatic Inform Systems for IT Workers
Chapter 16 Hikers who hurt themselves
Chapter 17 How to improve dishwashers

From the reviewers: 

“Pardu S. Ponnapalli, an IT specialist with a doctorate in physics, has devised ingenious and potentially world-changing ways to improve things. Many of Ponnapalli’s essays are intellectually challenging, short, well written and entertaining.” — Patty Sutherland, Foreword Clarion Review June 2011
Four Stars (out of Five)

“Ponnapalli’s crazy (impulsive, but fun and thought provoking) ideas cover some timely and popular topics; U.S debt and defecit, overweight, stock market, space exploration, alternative energies, cat litter and more. The book is easy to read.” — Recommended & Reviewed in The Mindquest Review of Books, by Lightword Publishing, August 2011

“The essays were well-written and mostly thought through. Based on his personal experience, they were enlightening and at times, laughable. More importantly, they make the reader take the time to think about our future, ponder on the problems, and look for the solutions we need.” — Teri Davis, BestSellersWorld.com, July, 2011

“Some of my fondest memories of university were those informal gab sessions in the common room. Just a Bunch of Crazy Ideas reminds me of those times.”Just a Bunch of Crazy Ideas presents some good ideas and some not so good ideas. Take them as you will. Laugh at them or be inspired by them.” — Tami Brady, TCM Reviews, July 22, 2011

“The act of brainstorming can result in new ideas and surprising results. The author ends each chapter with the words, “Discuss and enjoy!” That is exactly what the reader of this “bunch of crazy ideas” will do.” — Libby Grandy, The US Review of Books

From the author:

The purpose of this book is to share a bunch of “crazy” ideas. There is no claim that any careful research is done. It is more like a brainstorming session where any idea that comes to mind is presented. That is why you get a wide range of topics , from dealing with cat litter to exploring space.

You may wonder what the value of this is. Maybe the ideas are all not worth much in practical terms. Or perhaps there are some gems and some real bad ones. What’s the sense in me writing about these ideas?

Actually, I was wondering the same thing for many years. I have thought about writing this book for a lot of years , and never went through with it until recently.

I think we all start out when we are young thinking we are going to change the world. Especially in university, when I was studying physics, I had constant discussions with my colleagues about revolutionary ideas. As you get older, you settle down to a regular life that for the most part involves paying bills with the money you earn. Most of our energies start getting devoted to survival. Before you know it , you are wondering about managing retirement and you are left with a sense that somehow life passed you by.

The reason for this transformation from a wild eyed youngster with grand ideas to a well settled mortgage paying robot is fairly plain- most of us are just struggling to get by in life. Few of us have the luxury of picking and choosing what we do for a living. My own entry into the IT field was due to the inability of finding any physics related employment after doing a Ph.D. The job market was poor, and I looked around for a marketable job. I have done fairly well in my chosen profession, but I am constantly haunted by the thought that I was meant for something else. I suspect I have a lot of company in this regard.

It seems to me our sense of intellectual courage also wanes with age and seniority. We may have ideas that we think are worthwhile, but we dismiss them for the usual reasons:

People will think they are stupid (a perennial favorite).

I bet someone has thought of it already (yes, but they might not have voiced it ).

I want to stick to the safe stuff that’s in the realm of my expertise.

It all becomes a tedious cycle. We end up doing something by rote, or maybe finding just a few ideas in our chosen profession that are interesting, and being content to live out our lives without a sense of wonder or exploration.

So this book is my attempt to revive a sense of wonder and speculation.

Each day’s Kindle Daily Deal is sponsored by
one paid title on Kindle Nation. We encourage you to support our sponsors and thank you for considering them.

and now … Today’s Kindle Daily Deal!

Book one of Bill Allen’s imaginative and entertaining “Journals of Myrth” fantasy series introduces 12-year-old Greg Hart, an easily-bullied boy who’s taken by the magicians of Myrth to fulfill a prophecy. Everyone expects Greg to rescue King Peter’s daughter from a dragon, but Greg’s convinced it’s all a horrible mistake.
Yesterday’s Price: $7.16
Today’s Discount: $5.17
Kindle Daily Deal Price: $1.99 (72% off)
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Today’s Kindle Daily Deal — Sunday, July 8 – two Great Reads for under $4 — Save 77% on Linda Moriarty’s Novel Based on Silent Film Star Louise Brooks’ Time in New York in 1922, THE CHAPERONE, plus … Don’t miss Pardu Ponnapalli’s JUST A BUNCH OF CRAZY IDEAS (Today’s Sponsor)

But first, a word from … Today’s Sponsor

Just a Bunch of Crazy Ideas

by Pardu Ponnapalli
4.8 stars – 42 Reviews
Text-to-Speech and Lending: Enabled
Don’t have a Kindle? Get yours here.

Here’s the set-up:

This book is about thoughts and ideas on a wide range of subjects. The topics include building a space elevator, new approaches to space travel, Star Trek reboot themes, ideas for energy conservation, what to do about our federal debt, modifying the game of chess and others. The following provides a quick overview of the chapters:

Chapter 1 Space Elevator
Chaper 2 Alternative Energies and Energy Conservation
Chapter 3 More Thoughts on Energy Conservation
Chapter 4 Gas Stations and filling up
Chapter 5 Luggage and Airplanes
Chapter 6 Thoughts on Chess
Chapter 7 Thoughts on Ice Hockey
Chapter 8 Thoughts on Cat Litter
Chapter 9 Our National Debt and Defecit
Chapter 10 I am overweight and so are most Americans
Chapter 11 Star Trek and Reboot
Chapter 12 Thoughts about Laptops
Chapter 13 Thoughts about Space Exploration
Chapter 14 Thoughts on the Stock Market
Chapter 15 Automatic Inform Systems for IT Workers
Chapter 16 Hikers who hurt themselves
Chapter 17 How to improve dishwashers

From the reviewers: 

“Pardu S. Ponnapalli, an IT specialist with a doctorate in physics, has devised ingenious and potentially world-changing ways to improve things. Many of Ponnapalli’s essays are intellectually challenging, short, well written and entertaining.” — Patty Sutherland, Foreword Clarion Review June 2011
Four Stars (out of Five)

“Ponnapalli’s crazy (impulsive, but fun and thought provoking) ideas cover some timely and popular topics; U.S debt and defecit, overweight, stock market, space exploration, alternative energies, cat litter and more. The book is easy to read.” — Recommended & Reviewed in The Mindquest Review of Books, by Lightword Publishing, August 2011

“The essays were well-written and mostly thought through. Based on his personal experience, they were enlightening and at times, laughable. More importantly, they make the reader take the time to think about our future, ponder on the problems, and look for the solutions we need.” — Teri Davis, BestSellersWorld.com, July, 2011

“Some of my fondest memories of university were those informal gab sessions in the common room. Just a Bunch of Crazy Ideas reminds me of those times.”Just a Bunch of Crazy Ideas presents some good ideas and some not so good ideas. Take them as you will. Laugh at them or be inspired by them.” — Tami Brady, TCM Reviews, July 22, 2011

“The act of brainstorming can result in new ideas and surprising results. The author ends each chapter with the words, “Discuss and enjoy!” That is exactly what the reader of this “bunch of crazy ideas” will do.” — Libby Grandy, The US Review of Books

From the author:

The purpose of this book is to share a bunch of “crazy” ideas. There is no claim that any careful research is done. It is more like a brainstorming session where any idea that comes to mind is presented. That is why you get a wide range of topics , from dealing with cat litter to exploring www.medsforhairloss.com space.

You may wonder what the value of this is. Maybe the ideas are all not worth much in practical terms. Or perhaps there are some gems and some real bad ones. What’s the sense in me writing about these ideas?

Actually, I was wondering the same thing for many years. I have thought about writing this book for a lot of years , and never went through with it until recently.

I think we all start out when we are young thinking we are going to change the world. Especially in university, when I was studying physics, I had constant discussions with my colleagues about revolutionary ideas. As you get older, you settle down to a regular life that for the most part involves paying bills with the money you earn. Most of our energies start getting devoted to survival. Before you know it , you are wondering about managing retirement and you are left with a sense that somehow life passed you by.

The reason for this transformation from a wild eyed youngster with grand ideas to a well settled mortgage paying robot is fairly plain- most of us are just struggling to get by in life. Few of us have the luxury of picking and choosing what we do for a living. My own entry into the IT field was due to the inability of finding any physics related employment after doing a Ph.D. The job market was poor, and I looked around for a marketable job. I have done fairly well in my chosen profession, but I am constantly haunted by the thought that I was meant for something else. I suspect I have a lot of company in this regard.

It seems to me our sense of intellectual courage also wanes with age and seniority. We may have ideas that we think are worthwhile, but we dismiss them for the usual reasons:

People will think they are stupid (a perennial favorite).

I bet someone has thought of it already (yes, but they might not have voiced it ).

I want to stick to the safe stuff that’s in the realm of my expertise.

It all becomes a tedious cycle. We end up doing something by rote, or maybe finding just a few ideas in our chosen profession that are interesting, and being content to live out our lives without a sense of wonder or exploration.

So this book is my attempt to revive a sense of wonder and speculation.

Each day’s Kindle Daily Deal is sponsored by
one paid title on Kindle Nation. We encourage you to support our sponsors and thank you for considering them.

and now … Today’s Kindle Daily Deal!

The ChaperoneKindle Daily Deal: The Chaperone
Drawing on the rich history of the 1920s and beyond–from Prohibition, flappers, and the onset of the Great Depression to the burgeoning movement for equal rights for women–Laura Moriarty’s enthralling novel illustrates how rapidly everything, from fashion and hemlines to values and attitudes, was changing at this time. 
Yesterday’s Price: $12.99
Today’s Discount: $10.00
Kindle Daily Deal Price: $2.99 (77% off)
Continue
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