Rating: 
Summary: Uhhhhhh...two stars because I feel guilty
Review: I've never panned a book before, and I don't want to be mean, but when I put this down, I said to myself, " Good Lord, this must be the most ridiculous thing I've ever read."First -- and maybe I picked up the large print edition -- the font is huge. I mean it needs a urine test. Frankly, it reminded me of the type size of Curious George books I read to my two-year-old. So I couldn't shake that. Second, I read the book in under 15 minutes at a Barnes and Noble while blowing time in Tucson. But even when I slowed down to capture the "essence" of each paragraph, it was so redundant that I began to wonder if a rendevouz with razor blades might be less painful. The writing simply did not flow from one paragraph to the next. Third, and this could be because I've read tons of these books, it just didn't seem like anything new. Barely even repackaged. One of the early reviewers summed the entire book up in one paragraph. There's not much more to it. Even the story accompanying "The Present" lesson was weak. Nowhere -- IMO -- near an Og Mandino story. I dunno. I hate to be harsh, but this thing robbed me of a good 15 minutes. Had I paid for it, I would have given it zilch stars ( can I even do that?). That all said, I can see where people might really dig this book. Maybe I've just clocked too many of them and I was, in a way, hoping to find a different or new message. Would have been a better essay than a book. Peace.
Rating: 
Summary: Christmas gift
Review: If you are having trouble in selecting a fine gift for your friends this Christmas, just buy this book. It would certainly be remembered as something very useful by all age groups. Written in simple narrative style, the short story has a very powerful message, that will go a long way in helping us in our personal and professional life. Thanks Dr Johnson. My family joins me in wishing you merry Christmas and another great year ahead.
Rating:
Summary: Well Marketed Fluff
Review: Like "Who Stole My Cheese" this is an extremely light short story couched between a forward that heaps praise on the story and an afterward that lays claims to life altering effects that result from reading the story. The story itself is fluff about learning from the past, living in the present and preparing for the future...mixed in with a great deal of praise about the story. It is a very interesting format...the book spends about half of its effort praising itself. It praises you for being so smart as to read and seek wisdom from this totally wise and pure author. This is an interesting format for creating a "feel good" story. But I am a kurmudgeon who doesn't like marketing hype, and have a history of tossing wrenches in marketing schemes...two stars, and no recommend. BTW: If you are a CEO planning a major re-engineering...you should consider giving a copy of "Who Stole My Cheese" to all the people you laid off, and a copy of "The Present" to the people you expect to work harder with your reduced workforce. It will make you feel wonderful about yourself. In fact, you might even want to increase your stock options.
Rating:
Summary: Wow
Review: Someone recommend this book to me. They loved it. I also loved The Little Guide To Happiness.
Rating: 
Summary: Good but not Great!!
Review: The book starts on a good note and keeps it interesting in the beginning but gets too repetitive later on. The author tries to say the same thing 'Live in the Present', 'Learn from the Past' and 'Plan the Future' quite a few times.
This book can be recommended for teenagers, others would have definitely got this message on their own by now.
Rating:
Summary: A Less than Effective Rewrite of The Precious Present
Review: The Precious Present by Dr. Johnson was a particularly effective book published in 1984 presenting a series of meditative thoughts to keep one appropriately focused on the moment. The only thing I didn't like about the book was the overuse of Capitals in the key meditations. That overuse made the meditations seem to scream at me rather than whisper ("Be In The Present" versus "Be in the present"). In The Present, Dr. Johnson has taken The Precious Present and packaged more of a story around the simple tale of an older man helping a younger one to recapture the joy of losing oneself in what one is doing . . . while keeping the choice of one's current perspective in focus. The gift wrapping around the earlier story is to see how one can tell this tale to someone else . . . and help them learn about how to share it with other people. I felt a little like I was reading instructions for how to create a network marketing company for Dr. Johnson's story. Inexplicably, Dr. Johnson still uses CAPITALS too much for his meditations . . . and has added BOLDING to make the SHOUTING of his text even stronger. I graded the book down one star for moving away from its simple, quiet potential nature. I recommend you read The Precious Present rather than The Present to learn these important lessons: Be in the present; learn from the past to do things differently in the present; and envision a better future and act now to create it. Like many of the fable books, this one has an enormous price per page. I suggest you read it at the library rather than purchasing the book. It won't take you long. How can you do something you love now that will build a better future for you and those you love?
Rating:
Summary: A Less than Effective Rewrite of The Precious Present
Review: The Precious Present by Dr. Johnson was a particularly effective book published in 1984 presenting a series of meditative thoughts to keep one appropriately focused on the moment. The only thing I didn't like about the book was the overuse of Capitals in the key meditations. That overuse made the meditations seem to scream at me rather than whisper ("Be In The Present" versus "Be in the present"). In The Present, Dr. Johnson has taken The Precious Present and packaged more of a story around the simple tale of an older man helping a younger one to recapture the joy of losing oneself in what one is doing . . . while keeping the choice of one's current perspective in focus. The gift wrapping around the earlier story is to see how one can tell this tale to someone else . . . and help them learn about how to share it with other people. I felt a little like I was reading instructions for how to create a network marketing company for Dr. Johnson's story. Inexplicably, Dr. Johnson still uses CAPITALS too much for his meditations . . . and has added BOLDING to make the SHOUTING of his text even stronger. I graded the book down one star for moving away from its simple, quiet potential nature. I recommend you read The Precious Present rather than The Present to learn these important lessons: Be in the present; learn from the past to do things differently in the present; and envision a better future and act now to create it. Like many of the fable books, this one has an enormous price per page. I suggest you read it at the library rather than purchasing the book. It won't take you long. How can you do something you love now that will build a better future for you and those you love?
Rating:
Summary: Classic Johnson
Review: The Present is a classic example of Spencer's writing style that typically portrays a main character facing some sort of dilemma and finding solace and/or information from those around him. In this book, a young man seeks to find the answers to achieving success and happiness in his personal and business life. The book reads like a novel and succeeds in delivering a simple message of learning from the past, living for today, and planning for the future. In The Present, Johnson extols his readers to live for today by focusing on what is "right now," and responding to what is "important now." He encourages readers to learn from the past by analyzing past events, learning from your mistakes, and making changes to prevent recurrence of mistakes. Finally, he asks readers to visualize an idealistic future, constructing plans to make this future happen, and implementing the plan to secure it. This is an enjoyable little book, which you can read in a single setting. I highly recommend it as a personal motivation type book.
Rating:
Summary: The present
Review: THE PRESENT is present now!
But is to knew almost of all-men.
It is a very little to learn from the book
Rating: 
Summary: THE PRESENT
Review: THE PRESENT is present now!
But is to knew almost of all-men.
It is a very little to learn from the book.
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