Books

Have you ever had a boss that frustrated or infuriated you? This boss may have made unreasonable demands or may have treated you like a moron. When we experience this type of boss, we often promise ourselves that we will never become that type of a boss. While there may be some bosses who enjoy being jerks, most people have a desire to be better than that. But when the opportunity to be a boss arises, a person finds that some of the very qualities that make a person a jerk seem to be the qualities that their company values in a boss. In the book "How to Be a Boss Without Being a Jerk", the author answers the question, “Must we be a jerk as a boss to be successful?” This book uses real world experiences and examples to identify the attitudes, actions and approaches that can help the reader be a boss without being a jerk and still be successful in his or her career. 

How To Be a Boss Without Being a Jerk

Astronomy is a very appealing hobby for many people. However, it is a hobby that can be very frustrating and very expensive. If astrophotography is added to the mix, the hobby becomes significantly more expensive. This book helps the beginning astronomer make good choices concerning equipment so that the cost of the hobby is minimized while maximizing the satisfaction that the hobby brings. 

Astronomy and Astrophotography on a Budget

The subject of the environment and specifically of the impact of Carbon Dioxide on our world is one that generates a lot of emotion and rhetoric on both sides of the question. This book challenges wide held beliefs both among those that term themselves “skeptics” and those that call themselves “environmentalists”. Although the book includes data and calculations that challenge many currently held beliefs, its primary purpose is not to convince anyone one way or the other on the subject, but rather to identify common ground driven by real data that can lead us to actions that should be acceptable to everyone. In addition to these actions, the book outlines an approach to an overall public policy on the environment that could be acceptable to both extremes of the climate change argument and would be effective in achieving long term change. 

The Rational Environmentalist

A student teacher for my second grade class  decided there would be a jacks tournament.  Although I knew little about jacks and had never played it before, I sincerely wanted to impress the teacher.  My efforts for learn how to play jacks and my desire to impress my teacher led me to learn a number of lessons about success that would ultimately influence me for the rest of my life.  "Short Lessons in Success I Learned by Playing Jacks" summarizes the lessons I learned.  These lessons have wide applicability and will be useful in your efforts to succeed at anything in life.

Short Lessons in Success

The early years of Utah State High School Football were dominated by West High School. From the beginning of football play in 1898 until 1915, West High School won the state championship 14 out of 18 years. West won the state championship again in 1925 and then in 1927. However, the 1927 championship would be their last in almost five decades.

Through the 1930’s and 1940’s, West had good seasons and bad seasons, but never had a team that challenged seriously for the state championship. From 1950 through 1966, the situation was even worse with the team compiling a sub .500 record over those years, culminating in a miserable, winless season in 1966.

In 1973, an unexpected team of players ended the 46 year drought and won the state championship. This is the story of that season and that team. 

The Fight in the Dog

Sometimes it is easy to overlook experiences that strengthen and mold your faith. However, many people have had more faith-promoting experiences than they would have thought. This book is a compilation of experiences involving faith in my own life and in the life of my family members and ancestors. 

Winds of Zion

Major manufacturing facilities represent significant investment, sometimes reaching into the billions of dollars. Design and construction of the facilities is a well understood process, but the actions of monitoring the construction, commissioning the facilities, identifying corrections to be made, loop checking, testing the equipment, starting up the facility and bringing it to continuous full capacity operation is seldom discussed. This book provides insight into this process in addition to providing example procedures and checklists for doing so. 

Manufacturing Plant Startup

Grandpa's Telescope is an illustrated book for children and pre-teens. In this book, a grandpa introduces his grandson to astronomy and helps his grandson understand his place in the universe. 

Grandpa's Telescope

A professional basketball player finds that despite his success, his life seems empty. A concert violinist approaching the peak of her profession also finds her successes to be somewhat hollow. The two come from totally different worlds that seem to be incompatible. A chance encounter begins a journey neither of them expects. Against all odds, they find a mutual attraction. However, there are many forces working against their relationship. Can they survive their trials and their differences? Can they overcome the many voices around them saying the relationship can not possibly survive? Can they move beyond their own biases and preconceived notions? 

The Athlete and The Musician

Have you ever had a dream that seemed so real that it was hard to distinguish it from reality? Arthur Anderson sometimes has dreams like this. He begins to believe that this type of dream must have some source and some purpose. When one of his dreams helps to avoid a disaster, he is even more convinced. "The Worlds in Dreams" is the story of Arthur's search for the source and purpose of his dreams and how his dreams influence his life. 

The Worlds in Dreams