A Basic Guide for Valuing a Company, 2nd Edition

Book Description

The Groundwork of Company Valuation for First-time Buyers and Sellers

A Basic Guide for Valuing a Company has helped thousands of first-time buyers and sellers realize a fair, substantiated value for small businesses. Now in its Second Edition, this book covers common valuation techniques and myths, tips for determining tangible and intangible values, sample balance sheets and income statements, and approaches to valuing start-up technology and dot-com businesses.

This nuts-and-bolts guide addresses publicly traded and privately held firms, including traditional brick-and-mortar companies and the intellectual property industry. With a clear, concise writing style, the author walks readers through common practices for valuing, from collecting data to arriving at a saleable figure for all types of businesses, including professional practice, manufacturing, wholesale distributors, and a variety of retail operations. This new edition features perspectives on nontraditional valuation practices, guidance for using an excess earnings method, and an abundance of case studies from actual companies.

In order to make the most profitable decisions, before putting a business on the market or making an offer to acquire one, every beginning business purchaser and seller should read A Basic Guide for Valuing a Company, Second Edition.

Customer Reviews:

good conceptual overview.......2001-01-01

Good overview of valuation concepts, but if you want to sit down and actually come up with a number, try "Unlocking the Value of Your Business".

Great resource for novices.......2000-05-11

Will Yegge has the unique ability of being able to present a difficult subject in a logical, intelligent, concise and interesting manner.

Even though I have no background whatsoever in accounting, I was able to follow the information in this book and use it as my primary guide in valuing a company that I was interested in purchasing. It is a great resource for novices.

....unnecessarily and excruciatingly verbose!.......1999-11-27

Although his work on valuation techniques is straightforward in later chapters, the 1st several chapters do not do an adequate job of explaining the psychology of business valuation, buying or selling or the 'intangible' of business value. Words such as 'steeds' and 'pestilence' belong in literature, not reference manuals. Are Cliff Notes available to decipher just what these chapters are trying to communicate? I am trying to buy a business;lots of hard work lay ahead. Why must this book start off so unclear?

Professional approach with simple expaniations, easy to use.......1999-07-25

In preparation to sell my business for appx $10MM I sought many references on how to make a professional presentation and and use methodology that would be reasonable and logical to lead to a sale. Wilbur has doen a great job with this and his other book, How To Sell A business. I recommend that anyone read there two before putting a package together. I have had many favorable comments from both principals and brokers concerning the structure of the presentation I was able do make using Wilbur's help.

Excellent on both the "art" and "science" of valuation........1998-12-10

Just what I needed as a small business owner who needed a basic understanding of both the art and the science of valuing my company. Heavier read than it looks, since I didn't needed to know everything about non-related businesses. I did need to know how what factors must be considered and how complex some deals could be. Yegge speaks from experience and that is obvious, helpful and most comforting.

The Art of M&A : A Merger Acquisition Buyout Guide (2nd Edition)

Average customer rating:

Fourth Edition Due in March 2007
Very dated material
Excellent reference for beginners in M&A
Great Reference Book
Yes, this is a very focused topic, but it is a great book!

The Art of M&A : A Merger Acquisition Buyout Guide (2nd Edition)
Stanley Foster Reed , and Alexandra Reed Lajoux
Manufacturer: Irwin Professional Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

The Art of M&A Due Diligence
Applied Mergers and Acquisitions (Wiley Finance)
Harvard Business Review on Mergers & Acquisitions
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Valuation for Mergers, Buyouts, and Restructuring (Wiley Finance)

ASIN: 1556237227

Book Description

The Rules in the M&A Arena have changed... but the need for knowledge and careful planning remains! Organizations continue to de-conglomerate, delayer and downsize-turning thousands of valuable companies into prime candidates for mergers, acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, and strategic alliance. The Art of M&A, Second Edition is written for those who are pinpointing these targets, structuring the financing, and most important, closing the deals. This completely revised and up-to-date reference includes: Information on new methods of pricing, key guidelines for financing and refinancing, and valuable tax planning tips; Guidelines for merging compensation and benefits plans, buying troubled companies, and successfully conducting international transactions; Accurate and practical answers to more than 1,000 questions likely to be confronted when buying or selling companies, whether public of private, domestic or foreign.

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The Art of M

Customer Reviews:

Fourth Edition Due in March 2007.......2006-11-18

FROM THE CO-AUTHOR. Please be advised that a new FIVE STAR edition will be available in or around March 2007. The 1999 edition being sold here will be replaced at that time. Alexandra Reed Lajoux (Co-Author)

Very dated material.......2005-11-28

The Q&A approach adopted in this book is very useful. It would provide for a very useful reference manual on M&A if its content were not so dated. Its discussion of taxes, accounting, and deal structures does not reflect recent changes in rules and M&A practices. It would be helpful if the author would update the material. Other more current and more comprehensive books on the subject that I have found useful include Mergers, Acquisitions, and Other Restructuring activities by Depamphilis and Bruner's M&A book.

Excellent reference for beginners in M&A.......2005-10-11

Easy to use reference, it helped me get the answer instantly.

Great Reference Book.......2003-07-12

This is a fantastic reference tome for anyone involved with M&A. As a private equity Associate, I have found this book to be invaluable on multiple levels as both a reference guide for securities law, as well as for procedural issues such as sample formats for term sheets, DD check lists, etc.

Also, while it is a dense read, I think this would be invaluable for people just entering either Investment Banking or Private Equity to read as an introduction to the rules, regulations and procedures surrounding mergers/acquisitions.

Yes, this is a very focused topic, but it is a great book!.......2002-07-03

The very size of this book on such a specialized topic may seem daunting. However, the writing is so lively and the organization by question and answer is so easy to use that you will find this a very useful and comprehensive handbook.

It is NOT a theory laden textbook. Rather, it is a very useful and practical guide to the field and will help the careful reader avoid many pitfalls. There are many ways to make mistakes in buying companies and this book can open your eyes to quite of few of them. In fact, if you are the target of a buyout, this book can be of special importance and interest.

I admit to being fascinated by this topic so take that into consideration when evaluating what I say about this book. But even so, mergers and acquistions are so much in the news (for good and ill) that it can only help to get more background on what is really going on and how these deals are (or at least should be) put together.

The book reads MUCH shorter than its size and is fairly comprehensive on the subject - from the methods in selecting candidates for acquisition to what to do when you are a target of an acquisition to some very specialized topics. It also deals with M&A issues with both public, private, and even family firms.

Book Description

The economic climate, new regulations and developments both here and abroad have totally changed the face of today's mergers and acquisitions. Completely rewritten and updated, it examines realistic strategies and goals for the 1990s that must be addressed in order to achieve a successful acquisition program. Includes coverage of the post-acquisition process, chapters on restructuring financially troubled companies, and unique strategies that apply to niche acquisitions. It also features new material on international mergers, the pros and cons of partial buy-ins, cross-border alliances, financing options and covers issues (strategic, legal, financial and regulatory) that can affect a deal of any size.

Takeovers, Restructuring and Corporate Governance (2nd Edition)

Average customer rating:

Interesting Subject... Boring Book
Solid text to introduce this topic - readable and helpful
I expected more
Largely Disappointing
Written by academics for academics!!!

Takeovers, Restructuring and Corporate Governance (2nd Edition)
J. Fred Weston , Kwang S. Chung , and Juan A. Siu
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 013889163X

Book Description

This text brings together the conceptual and empirical material in a systematic way. They provide readers with a basis for understanding and judgment about the continued flow of proposals to alter public policy toward mergers and acquisitions and corporate restructuring that are introduced into every session of Congress. KEY TOPICS> Includes New empirical data and literature. Ideal for readers interested in learning more about acquisitions, business or corporate finance, economics, or on strategy.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting Subject... Boring Book.......2005-02-08

The subject of this book is quite interesting and the knowledgable authors add many insights into the field of Mergers and Aquisitions. However, the book is poorly written and designed. Simply opening the book will show colorless pages and bland figures that perfectly reflect the tone and content within. There is also a surprising number of spelling mistakes and grammatical errors (something I should not expect if I'm paying over $100 for a book).

Solid text to introduce this topic - readable and helpful.......2004-09-30

The fourth edition came out in 2003 and I am not familiar with earlier editions. In my view, this is a very good text. In its nearly 700 pages, it provides a solid and comprehensive overview of this interesting and important topic. Obviously, no textbook can be both a survey of the topic and provide complete coverage of every topic. This book goes deep enough that students being introduced to this topic will find plenty to work on and get enough information to develop a feel for all that is involved in changing corporate control and ownership structure for any number of reasons.

The book has 22 chapters in six parts. The six parts are:

1)Takeovers and Mergers in Practice
2)M&As - Theories and Empirical Tests
3)Valuation - The Strategic Perspective
4)Restructuring
5)M&A Strategies
6)Strategies for Creating Value

There are many end of chapter questions and dozens of mini-cases in the book. Plus, there are online resources for students available.

The book provides references at the end of each chapter for more in depth study, a glossary at the end, and an index.

This is a solid text that can also be read by the general reader interested in this topic.

I expected more.......2001-09-24

Considering the reputation of the primary author, I found the book to be ponderous to read and seemingly focused more on what the authors wanted to discuss than what might be really useful to students and those practicing M&A. The authors should have sought a more appropriate balance between theory and practice. This tome is weighted in favor of theory. It seems to spend more time addressing societal issues and issues of government policy than addressing the mechanics of how to plan for and implement transactions. In fact, only the last few pages of the book deal superficially with an approach to doing M&A.

The book also assumes substantial knowledge of accounting, finance and economics on the part of the reader. The dearth of examples also hinders the readers ability to readily understand how to apply complex concepts explained in torturous paragraphs of prose. It would have been helpful to use more illustrations to communicate concepts that are difficult for those of us that don't have Phds to understand.

Thankfully, there are other books that are far more helpful in explaining both theory and application of M&A. I have found Mckinsey's book on Measuring and Managing Valuation to be a much better guide to understanding how to apply complex valuation techniques. Integration methodology is well explained in Marks and Clemente's Winning at Mergers. For an excellent detailed overview of M&A, see Depamphlis Mergers Acquisitions and Other Restructuring or Weston's other, more recent book on M&A.

Largely Disappointing.......2001-05-12

The book is really only useful for those interested in a literature survey, discussion of public policy, and somewhat tedious discussion of theoretical concepts.

Written by academics for academics!!!.......2001-04-14

On balance, this book provides a good overview of the subject and of recent academic studies. However, it is often theoretical and "ivory-towerish." There is relatively little that really instructs the reader about transactions are actually done. A great deal of time is devoted to discussing why they occur, but little practical insight is provided as to the challenges and issues that must be resolved. This book may be suitable for someone who is curious and interested in reading about M&A but provides little guidance for those interested in learning how to undertake transactions.

Mergers and Acquisitions in Germany (2nd Edition)

Average customer rating:

Do not enter the German Market without this book!

Mergers and Acquisitions in Germany (2nd Edition)
Gerhard Picot
Manufacturer: Juris Publishing, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Law | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 1578230888

Book Description

Mergers & Acquisitions in Germany is an outstanding guide for those who are engaged in, or anticipate becoming engaged in German-related transactions and shows the considerable national and international experience of Dr. Picot. It will be of great use to professionals in legal and tax departments, as well as those in corporate development and corporate planning departments. In particular, it will be indispensable to those banks and investment banks, lawyers, notaries, auditors and tax advisors, as well as all other professionals in the areas of M & A, corporate restructuring and remediation who are involved in any way with Mergers & Acquisitions in Germany.

Mergers & Acquisitions in Germany discusses all aspects of national and international law which are of central importance in the area of Mergers and Acquisitions in Germany, including the issue of corporate succession (MBO, LBO, MBI), as well as the restructuring of corporations, and presents the complex relations and legal issues of the topic in a well-founded, clear and practice-orientated manner.

Mergers & Acquisitions in Germany Provides Analysis and Commentary On:

The concepts and types of corporate acquisitions as well as the different methods and procedures of acquiring companies in Germany.
The M & A procedure, including both the traditional acquisition process and the Anglo-American style bidding process; including the important role played by investment bankers.
A detailed description and analysis of the precontractual negotiations, the drafting and formation of the sale, purchase and transfer agreements, the execution and implementation of such agreements and in particular the transfer of businesses and employment relations by way of legal transaction.
The rescission of acquisition transactions.
The financing of corporate acquisitions as well as the special characteristics and the tax aspects of management buy-outs and leveraged buy-outs.
German and European antitrust law and the private international law of the corporate acquisition.
Chapter Coverage Includes:
General remarks regarding the purchase and restructuring of enterprises

The importance of the law of contract for the corporate acquisition and for the restructuring of enterprises

Preparation, concept, procedure and types of corporate acquisition (bidding procedure / auction process)

Pre-contractual negotiation stage

Formation of the Sale and Purchase Agreement

Conclusion and execution of the Sale and Purchase Agreement

The transfer of the business and the employment contracts by way of legal transaction

Change in the business, in particular the balance of interests and the social compensation plan for disadvantages of employees

Rescission of corporate transfers

Financing the corporate acquisition

Peculiarities of the management-buy-out the leveraged-buy-out and the management-buy-in

Private International Law concerning governing law, jurisdiction and arbitration

Extracts from German Legislation - Provisions important for M & A -

Customer Reviews:

Do not enter the German Market without this book!.......2004-11-06

To keep it short: this book is a must-buy for any investmentbanker or consultant involved in anyway with Mergers & Acquisitions in Germany. The book is very detailed in describing the German Market for Corporate Control, its laws and habits. This book is the first step to deal success!

Mergers, Acquisitions, and Corporate Restructurings, 2nd Edition.(Review) (book review): An article from: Strategic Finance

Average customer rating:

Mergers, Acquisitions, and Corporate Restructurings, 2nd Edition.(Review) (book review): An article from: Strategic Finance
Troy Stauber
Manufacturer: Institute of Management Accountants
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Strategic Finance, published by Institute of Management Accountants on March 1, 2000. The length of the article is 669 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Mergers, Acquisitions, and Corporate Restructurings, 2nd Edition.(Review) (book review)
Author: Troy Stauber
Publication: Strategic Finance (Refereed)
Date: March 1, 2000
Publisher: Institute of Management Accountants
Volume: 81 Issue: 9 Page: 25

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Statutory Supplement and Documentary Appendices to Business Planning for Mergers and Acquisitions (2nd Edition)

Average customer rating:

Statutory Supplement and Documentary Appendices to Business Planning for Mergers and Acquisitions (2nd Edition)
Samuel C. Thompson Jr.
Manufacturer: Carolina Acedemic Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0890899819

A Field Guide to Stars and Planets (Peterson Field Guides(R))
Average customer rating:

excellent guide to astronomy

It had what I wanted!

Supreme writing and wonderful pictures

This is one of my "desert island" books.

For those serious about learning astronomy

A Field Guide to Stars and Planets (Peterson Field Guides(R))
Jay M. Pasachoff
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Peterson First Guide to Clouds and Weather

Peterson First Guide to Solar System (Peterson First Guides(R))

ASIN: 0395934311

Book Description

The fourth edition of this best-selling field guide has been completely revised and updated to include the latest information from leading astronomical sources. All the time-sensitive material is new and valid through 2010: solar eclipses, phases of the moon, positions of the planets, and more. Twenty-four Monthly Sky Maps, all newly revised and in color, show exactly what you'll see when facing north or south in the night sky. Fifty-two Atlas Charts, also revised and in color, cover the entire sky, including close-ups of areas of special interest such as the Pleiades and the Orion Nebula. The hundreds of thousands of devoted users of the previous editions of this guide have been eagerly awaiting this new volume so they can continue to enjoy their hobby in the coming decades.

Customer Reviews:

excellent guide to astronomy.......2006-05-13

I found this book has a lot of interesting and useful information. It also shows planetary positions till 2014. The atlas is a little crammed at ~2.9mm/degree but not problematic.It is very detailed, going to stellar magnitude 7.5 ,with 2,500 deep space objects.I use it in conjunction with a planisphere and it works really well.I suggest laminating the covers because this book will dog ear with a lot of field use. Overall,this is an excellent resource book.

It had what I wanted!.......2005-10-06

It had, specifically, the moons of the planets that I had been working on; it saved me a lot of hunting around for them. Now I have it for future reference. -- Ray Tetrault

Supreme writing and wonderful pictures.......2004-05-23

This was a great astronomy book that i used countless times with my telescope. without this book i would not be able to know where almost half the stars in the sky are. Wonderful writing that is easy for a amaueter astronomer like myself and many others. The pictures are the best part. The mind bending images of stars nebulaes and solar eclipses are enough. Wonderful book!!!

This is one of my "desert island" books........2004-05-07

If I had to choose a small number of books to take with me into exile on some deserted island somewhere, this would definitely be one of them (and offhand I'm not sure I can name any others).

An entire astronomy library packed into a single portable field guide, Jay Pasachoff's entry in the Peterson Field Guide series is a delightful introduction to, and reference for, the universe revealed in the night sky.

If you have any interest in astronomy at all, you can always find something in here to look at or just to sit and ponder about.

Besides the obvious things like monthly star charts for both northern and southern hemispheres, the book contains a complete 52 chart atlas of the sky put together by Wil Tirion with notes on objects in each chart, clever finder charts and tables for the planets for a ten year period, history and lore of the naming of the constallations, many, many photographs of astronomical objects taken by Hubble and other telescopes, an atlas of the moon, and many enlightening charts and tables of things like details of the brightest/nearest stars, the planets and their moons, and so on.

There's a section on each of the planets, and of course lots of coverage of the sun and eclipses of the sun and moon.

It always surprises me that this book doesn't seem to get as much respect in astronomical circles as I think it deserves. While you can certainly fill a library with astronomical books and atlases that are better than this field guide in any one area, you will not do better than this book in stuffing all of that information together in one "to go" package.

An excellent gift for a child starting to get interested in science and the world at large.

I could go on, but you should just buy the book and see for yourself :-)

For those serious about learning astronomy.......2004-01-13

For the very new to star charts and guides, this was a bit daunting at first. It is not a quickie guide. But after reading through it and learning the terminology it has lived up the "Peterson field guides" tradition. The maps and charts are very clear and it is chock full of interesting facts. It even has a small section on telescopes and binoculars that was helpful.
This guide if full of wonderful pictures and charts, it has become one of the more dog eared field guides in the house right after my Petersons bird books!
I would defiantly recommend this book to any one who is serious about astronomy.

Stars and Planets (Princeton Field Guides)

Average customer rating:

Great field guide for those new to the sky
Outstanding for novice or intermediate amateur astronomers
Nice coffee table book
Nice starter book...
So Simple, Even I Can Find What I'm Looking For!

Stars and Planets (Princeton Field Guides)
Ian Ridpath
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0691089132

Amazon.com

Stars and Planets is a sturdy, thorough field guide for amateur astronomers. The book's first section is a general introduction to astronomy. A solar system primer and constellation catalog are followed by a month-by-month night sky guide. Filled with clear, easy-to-read star charts, photos, and diagrams, this is the perfect starter for beginning astronomers, and a handy reference for those with a little more experience. You'll find information on stargazing equipment, a glossary of terminology, and the history of each cosmic feature's discovery. Like all the Eyewitness Handbooks, this one will be a terrific addition to your family science library. --Therese Littleton

Book Description

In this new edition of their classic guide, Ian Ridpath and Wil Tirion bring the night sky down to earth with brand new sky charts, diagrams, and photos that enrich the clear, engaging text. Stars and Planets will delight both latent astronomers who have yet to touch a telescope and the more star-savvy who have spent many a night outside craning their necks behind a lens.

The introduction presents the basics of astronomical observation while answering such questions as: How did constellations come to be? Do the stars within them have anything to do with one another? Do stars really flicker? Next comes the book's centerpiece: an excellent series of maps of the night sky from hemisphere to hemisphere, month to month and, above all, charts showing all 88 constellations, including some 5,000 stars. The text vividly relates the human history behind each constellation and notes their most prominent stars while offering sundry stimulating facts.

The second section focuses on the astrophysics behind stars, galaxies, the sun, the planets, comets and meteors, and more. Striking full-color photos, maps, and illustrations appear on almost every page. The guide concludes with helpful tips on the optical tools of the trade and on astrophotography. Astrophysicists and amateur skywatchers agree that Stars and Planets is simply the most user-friendly, compact source of celestial information available. No one should leave home at night without it.

Up-to-date full-color photos and data, including recent planetary images
Monthly maps of the night sky as seen from latitudes throughout the world
Charts of all 88 constellations, with data and notes on bright stars and other objects of interest
Illustrated introduction to stars, nebulae, galaxies, and the solar system
Advice on choosing and using binoculars and telescopes

Customer Reviews:

Great field guide for those new to the sky.......2006-06-17

I sat down at a local book retailer and compared this book with both the Peterson Field Guide, and the National Audubon Society's Field Guide to the Night Sky. I was purchasing this book for a teenager who is taking a serious interest in the stars, and I wanted him to have a field guide to accompany the 10x50 binoculars I bought him. My immediate response was to look at the Audubon text because I had an older edition and was attracted to the plastic blue cover. I also knew of 'Peterson' since I had one of those growing up as a teenager. I looked at them both, and also found this Princeton edition which I had no experience with.

A quick run-down of build (binding, pages), charts, photos, and arrangement of content is listed for each text:

Audubon: nice plastic cover, very thin paper for text (not suitable for dew or teenage abuse) and nice paper used for charts and photos, charts are okay, photos are not listed beside text (lose context of photo), lots of other good info, but maybe too much info and not well organized(?)

Peterson: good cover, good paper, charts are very detailed but good for indoor use only (not suitable for red light use at night) because of colored stars (color of stars specify spectral types - not useful to beginner looking for clusters and galaxies with binoculars). I don't recall other info since I put the book down after seeing the star charts.

Princeton: good cover and paper (thick - should handle dew and typical teenage abuse), charts are good contrast white stars on light blue background (stars to mag 5 or 6, I think?), very good info on historical significance of each constellation, and any objects viewable in that constellation - also shows most significant objects in context of the constellation they are found.

I sat down at home and thumbed thru the text a few times and was quite pleased with it. It has a brief run down on each planet (sort of an introduction) along with some decent photos. We've used the book a couple times since purchasing it, and I would have to say that it is a joy to use when trying to get acquainted with the night sky. I don't expect it to tell me anything and everything about equipment and the nature of the universe - I just need it to help me find what I'm looking for.

Outstanding for novice or intermediate amateur astronomers.......2002-05-16

If you own only one astronomy field guide, this should be it. The charts are accurate & easy to read, the text is informative but not overpowering, and the design is very reader friendly. The monthly star charts can be used from most latitudes - both northern and southern.
This is the third edition of this book. I've been a fan of it since it was first published in the mid 1980s.

Nice coffee table book.......2001-11-30

I found this book to be interesting, but not in-depth enough for intermediate astronomers. The information on the planets is overly simplistic and for entertainment purposes. For example, instead of having a graph of basic information for every planet, sometimes it lists essential information (like orbital period) and sometimes it doesn't which makes it useless as a reference.

I suggest it for the younger prospective amateur, but for older users get the Peterson's Field Guide: Stars and Planets. Very sturdy build and good guide for charting the planets.

Nice starter book..........2001-05-30

This is a nice, streamlined book. Logical layout, sharp photography, and a clean, crisp design. The first portion discusses the universe and stars (addressed below), and is followed by another section that provides a 2-4 page profile on each planet, including when and where in the sky it's visible until 2009. Following these sections, is a large section covering all the official constellations in alphabetical order with at least one interesting item to check out from each constellation. Obviously, some have more: Sagitarius, Scorpius, Orion, etc. A brief constellation history is provided, along with a small map depicting the constellation stars, surrounding stars, and objects of particular interest. These objects are coded with simple icons to denote "viewability": naked eye, bino, scope, etc. The last section of the book has monthly sky maps. I purchased the flex-cover edition, which is made of some quasi-vinyl material that's quite nice. The book itself seems well made and durable. Why only 4 stars? I have two issues. #1, I wish it were spiral bound. #2, it's not as forthright about its hypothetical aspects as it should be (planetary core composition, Big Bang mechanics, Oort Cloud (!), etc.) Other than that, the book is highly recommended and a pleasure to read/use.

So Simple, Even I Can Find What I'm Looking For!.......2001-02-19

I am one of those people who has trouble finding specific constellations, and is never quite sure whether I'm looking at Jupiter or Venus. I carry around little scraps of paper from the newspaper so I can figure out which planets are visible . . . but have a hard time reading the scraps in the dark.

With this book, I can see when and where each planet will appear through 2012. I can also get all the help I need to know what constellations are up there now, and which ones will be present when.

As a result, I can finally introduce the starry heavens in an appropriate way to younger people. I already know a lot about astronomy, but the night sky was beyond me. No longer! Whew!

Although my four children did not get much help with the heavens from me, the grandchildren will receive great benefits from this resource.

Even if you are good at identifying objects in the night sky, this book will be a valuable, convenient reference for you.

Book Description

A basic field guide for beginning observers of the night sky, introducing information on the locations, names, and characteristics of stars, constellations, and other bodies in outer space.

Customer Reviews:

Handy and accurate.......2006-02-13

I find this book most useful for the 12 star maps found at the very begining. It gives basic information about astronomy in a comprehensible manner. The book is handy enough to keep with you and with a small penlight you can reference the maps while observing the night sky, easily fits in a jacket or pans back pocket. Additionally I found the mythology behind the traditional western culture naming of the constellations interesting.

Only criticisms include 1) as previously mentioned, no star charts for the Southern Hemisphere and 2) wasted pages printing illustrations of the characters the constellations represent. These pages could have been used to add Southern Hemisphere maps or to discuss more then the listed 13 constellations.

Not for the Southern Hemisphere........2005-04-28

Quite a well thought out book to take around with you.
BUT... limited use to me as there are no Southern Hemisphere maps or details (even the Southern Cross is absent).
Would not have purchased it had I realised. At least it was cheap!

Compact;concise........2003-02-16

Great little book for the beginner.Portable,so you can take it with you on your nighttime prowling of the universe.Written in a manner that newbies such as myself can understand.A good companion to all my other amateur astronomy books.Inexpensive,as well.Not as comprehensive as those other books,but this is a field guide,and it serves its purpose well.

Doesn't have any information.......2001-03-27

This book doesn't have any information for the dummy in the astronomy. The book is more like a museum guide to the starts. The information on this book is nothing new and it doesn't teach you about telescopes or related topics.

This is a great little book.......2000-12-06

The Peterson guide is small and compact, but packed with information. When you can't take a huge volume with you, this fits the bill perfectly. I take it on cycling tours and hiking trips, where it fits nicely in a pannier or pocket. It's easy to understand, too - I gave a copy to my young neice for Christmas last year.

Field Guide to Stars and Planets (Peterson Field Guides)

Average customer rating:

Plenty of great info, but a little short on field usability
Not Essential, but a Keeper

Field Guide to Stars and Planets (Peterson Field Guides)
Jay M. Pasachoff , and Donald Howard Menzel
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin (Trade)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Astronomy | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

Star-Gazing | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

Rocks & Minerals | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books

Stars & Planets | Field Guides | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0395348358

Customer Reviews:

Plenty of great info, but a little short on field usability.......2004-04-26

Depending on what you're going to need in the field, this book won't help you very much with navigating the stars all that well "visually" because the pages are so small, but it IS very helpful on the technical info side of things, with lots of descriptions about what is interesting in a particular sector of the sky, or what you will probably be able to see in a moderate to large amateur-sized 'scope. Has common names as well as catalog numbers for most objects, and there is a cross-reference list if you don't know the difference between M7 and M11 (I don't). There are lots of what I call classic "pretty" pictures of deep sky objects that you will never come close to seeing in real life, except by astrophotography maybe, but they are very nice to look at.

This book is starting to show its age at over 10 years old. Some of the time-sensitive data is getting out of date. Overall, except for the star "charts" being so small and cramped, this is really an excellent reference book with useful tips on what to observe, where and when.

Couple this book with something like the amazing Wil Tirion's Star Atlas 2000.0, and maybe a top-notch computer sky gazing program like Starry Night 3 or 4, and you've got a valuable reference book in a very small package that can't be beaten. It's still one of my favorite books to take in the field with me, but you can't rely solely on it. It has even stood up to the test of wear and tear over the years. Very durable, it resists lots of moisture and handling. It's made of glossy heavy-bond paper, the cover is a kind of plastic-y material impregnated with woven fibers. Very nice, but I have to knock one star off for not being spiral bound. I guess they wanted to go for durability, instead of usability, which I guess balances out a little in the long run. Happy hunting!~

Not Essential, but a Keeper.......2003-03-08

This is not a large book with fantastic photographs from the great observatories. That isn't to say there isn't some great photography in this book though because there is. Many of the photos are ones that appear the way you would see them with a scope that has a 10 to 14 inch mirror, which many amateurs possess. Incredible photographs of incredible sights in the galaxy and universe are featured in this book plus stars thru the 7th magnitude and other various heavenly wonders on constellation maps. Stars to magnitude 3.5 are listed in the back that also includes a good glossary. Probably not a good book for someone who is starting out trying to locate the constellations but there is plenty of other information here that makes this book worth having even if you are starting out.

A field guide to the stars and planets: Including the moon, satellites, comets, and other features of the universe

Average customer rating:

This 1 book focused my view of astronomy.

A field guide to the stars and planets: Including the moon, satellites, comets, and other features of the universe
Donald Howard Menzel
Manufacturer: Collins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Astronomy | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books

Solar System | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 000212145X

Customer Reviews:

This 1 book focused my view of astronomy........1998-12-09

D.H.Menzel's original Field Guide broke the mold--there has never been anything like it before or since. It is my view Brian Skiff shares my opinion--as co-author of his Observing Catalog the objects are named as in Menzel, plus a section refers to H.A.Rey's diagrams, also in Menzel.

Average customer rating:

Field Guide To the Stars & Planets
Donald H Menzel
Manufacturer: HOUGHTON MIFFLIN CO@
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000U2KKSK

Average customer rating:

A Field Guide to the Stars and Planets
Donald H. Menzel
Manufacturer: Viking Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Astronomy | Astronomy | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0002193248

Average customer rating:

A Field Guide to the Stars and Planets
Donald H. Menzel
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000MREO0S

Average customer rating:

A Field Guide to the Stars and Planets
Jay M. Passachoff
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000L40US2

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