Spain. A land of eternal passion and unceasing bloodshed. Fromthe vengeance of a pitiless tyrant, four women flee the sacred,once-safe walls of a convent: LUCIA, the proud survivor harboring amurderous secret from the savage clan wars of Sicily...GRACIELLA,the beauty still unpurged of guilt from one reckless, youthfulsin...MEGAN, the orphan seeking perilous refuge in the arms of adefiant Basque rebel...and TERESA, the believer haunted by a faiththat mocks her with silence. Leaving innocence but not hope behind,they venture into an alien, dazzling world, where each willencounter an unexpected destiny -- and the truth about herself.

The motivations behind today's most successful leaders and entrepreneurs come to a simple yet decisive explanation: there are people who give, people who take, people who match, and people who fake. Our world is filled with these givers, takers, matchers and fakers. Amazingly, those who succeed (not only personally but for their clients and companies) don't take or match. They give. (Although they're not necessarily philanthropic.) GIVE AND TAKE presents the fascinating secrets to givers' success. The results are unequivocal: givers gain big. Jack Welch, Richard Branson, Jon Huntsman Sr. - all of them are givers. In a world in which so many takers such as Bernard Madoff and Raj Rajaratnam have ruined lives and reputations, this book will reassure readers that the real power lies in becoming a giver. Since the vast majority of people aren't born givers, Grant not only presents the case for why givers win, he also offers their hidden strategies for winning.

In today's fast-paced global business environment, the conventional model of the corporation and its management principles no longer deliver results. Economic upheaval, changing demographics, and technological revolution have forever altered the requirements for running a business today. Now, in response, The Centerless Corporation presents a radical new corporate model -- designed for your organization's survival, growth, and prosperity. Drawing on groundbreaking research they conducted at Booz Allen & Hamilton, Bruce A. Pasternack and Albert J. Viscio offer a comprehensive strategy for managing in turbulent times. To deal with increasing complexity, they contend, leaders must abandon their command-and-control mentality and establish a model in which responsibility and accountability are distributed throughout the organization, employees are regarded as valued resources, and knowledge flows freely. Illustrating their ideas with invaluable real-life examples, Pasternack and Viscio explain how to attr

Take the brakes off your busi-ness. From management spe-cialist and author of the innov-ative national bestseller 1001 WAYS TO REWARD EMPLOYEES comes a practical handbook chock full of ideas for increas-ing employee involvement and enthusiasm--the key to an organization's success.Weaving together case studies, exam-ples, suggestions, and quotes from hundreds of America's most energized businesses and business leaders, 1001 WaYs TO ENERGIZE EMPLOYEES is a how-to for getting not just the most--but the best--from everyone in the organization.

These quick reads, based on McGraw-Hill bestsellers, aredesigned to meet the needs of busy people. Titles in the seriesfocus on each book's main themes and action ideas, reduced to amanageable page count for on-the-go readers. Specific strategies for understanding the 10 types of problempeople and influencing them to adopt positive behaviors.

Since 1922, Harvard Business Review has been a leading source ofbreakthrough ideas in management practice. The Harvard BusinessReview Classics series now offers you the opportunity to make theseseminal pieces a part of your permanent management library. Eachhighly readable volume contains a groundbreaking idea thatcontinues to shape best practices and inspire countless managersaround the world. In this article, renowned management experts GaryHamel and C. K. Prahalad introduce their approach to strategicplanning in the face of tough competition. With advice on tailoringyour company's strategy and developing the will to win within yourfirm, this article helps you define a long-term strategy for yourorganization that captures employees' imaginations and creates aclear path to success.

Managing your boss: Isn't that merely manipulation? Corporate cozying up? Not according to John Gabarro and John Kotter. In this handy guidebook, the authors contend that you manage your boss for a very good reason: to do your best on the job--and thereby benefit not only yourself but also your supervisor and your entire company. Your boss depends on you for cooperation, reliability, and honesty. And you depend on him or her for links to the rest of the organization, for setting priorities, and for obtaining critical resources. By managing your boss--clarifying your own and your supervisor's strengths, weaknesses, goals, work styles, and needs--you cultivate a relationship based on mutual respect and understanding. The result? A healthy, productive bond that enables you both to excel. Gabarro and Kotter provide valuable guidelines for building this essential relationship--including strategies for determining how your boss prefers to process information and make decisions, tips for communicating mutual expect

Managing up is not political game playing. Rather, it's aconscious approach to working with your supervisor toward goalsthat are important to both of you. Through managing up, you build aproductive working relationship with your boss and create a way touse the complementary strengths of you and your boss to delivervalue to your company. This volume helps you: Understand the business results you produce by learning how tomanage up Cultivate a mutually beneficial relationship with yourmanager Communicate effectively with your boss about priorities andproblems Negotiate win-win solutions to on-the-job challenges with yoursupervisor

Required reading for all present and future leaders, thisclassic is for those who have to "get the job done"--military ornot.

In the business world, confrontations are inevitable --whether they're with your employees, peers, bosses, or evensuppliers and customers. Ignored or handled badly, confrontationscan damage workplace relationships and ruin careers. This volume helps you master the art of effectively managingdifficult interactions. You'll learn how to: Determine which confrontations are worth an investment of yourtime and energy Understand and manage the strong emotions that can arise duringconfrontations Design solutions that meet all stakeholders' needs Coach your direct reports to resolve confrontationsproductively