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I Read Books- May 2013
May. 15th, 2013 05:27 pmAll over the place but strangely all non-fiction.
American Passage: the History of Ellis Island- by Vincent Cannato - This was a gift and I probably wouldn't have picked it up otherwise, but I am glad I did. It's a fascinating history about a place you only probably know few details about.
This is not a 'everything was rosy' promo book nor a 'these were the headline events' brief book. This book culls information from newspaper articles and interviews from the day. It makes for a super interesting read for anybody who likes the 'day-to-day' history books.
In short, immigration has always been the same argument (even before the 20 th Century) with the argument that we should bring in hard working immigrants, but bar those who will not contribute. It was always and will always be the argument. the book takes some interesting detours as America tried to decide how to make this determination - is it literacy? Is it money?
There also always seems to be a population who says "immigrants were fine back in the day, but now, it's different" whether they are saying that in 1903, 1913, 1923, 1943, or 2013. Interestingly, Theodore Roosevelt during his administration came to the realization that he didn't want future generations to think the GOP was the party that hated immigrants.
The last couple of chapters were my least favorite in comparison, but make for interesting reading on how we treat immigrants during wartime, and the years old struggle to determine what we should do.
A truly fascinating book if you are a history buff, and especially that early 20 th Century history.
Charlie Wilson's War- by George Crile- I've likely been scooped by the movie, but if you are not aware, this book tells about an outrageous Texan Senator and how he secretly funded and help run the war against Soviets in Afghanistan. One review calls it a mix of Carl Hiassen- type characters and Tom Clancy intrigue, which is pretty spot on. Wilson is a Hiassen caricature for sure, but likely if he hadn't been, he wouldn't have gotten away with it (Wilson? Why worry about him?)
Equally important was the Contra War in Nicaragua, which likely stole the spotlight away from Afghanistan. The book talks in some detail on what Oliver North and gang did wrong, while Wilson pulled it off. Indeed, it's hard to argue this wasn't what brought the Soviet Union down- a war championed by liberal Democrats and not Reagan's gang.
The story inevitably leads to where you know where it is going- that Afghanistani warlords were quickly brought into the 21st century with the best arms a military could have. A quick epilogue suggests Wilson had the right idea for handling the country post-Soviet withdrawal (Wilson suggested something akin to the Marshall plan), but was bungled by administrations who decided "no war= no money" and handled terribly by Bush 41 and especially Clinton.
A truly interesting story that reads like a novel. Probably a bit long for the casual reader, but well, worth it if this stuff appeals to you.
The Radical Leap Re-energized - by Steve Farber - a business fable that introduces the concept of Extreme Leadership.
Our protagonist, Steve is a trainer who listens to John Hiatt and likes The Far Side when he meets a surfer named Edg who teaches him everything he needs to know about business.
So Extreme Leadership is solid business concepts as expressed by quotes from Bukowski and Kinky Friedman. John DefFrog- why didn't we think of this? I should have written some Point Break fan fiction with some leadership lessons thrown in had I known it was so lucrative.
The story itself is ridiculously predictable. The last few chapters tag on a story where we learn Edg's father learned everything from a nice old lady who would most likely be played in the movie by Della Reese.
All that said, the objective of books like this are to spur thought and inspire business leaders. Cheesy plot aside, this book actually does a really good job of that. Farber's book has won a lot of praise, and at the end of the day, the concepts it contain are better than most business books out there.
American Passage: the History of Ellis Island- by Vincent Cannato - This was a gift and I probably wouldn't have picked it up otherwise, but I am glad I did. It's a fascinating history about a place you only probably know few details about.
This is not a 'everything was rosy' promo book nor a 'these were the headline events' brief book. This book culls information from newspaper articles and interviews from the day. It makes for a super interesting read for anybody who likes the 'day-to-day' history books.
In short, immigration has always been the same argument (even before the 20 th Century) with the argument that we should bring in hard working immigrants, but bar those who will not contribute. It was always and will always be the argument. the book takes some interesting detours as America tried to decide how to make this determination - is it literacy? Is it money?
There also always seems to be a population who says "immigrants were fine back in the day, but now, it's different" whether they are saying that in 1903, 1913, 1923, 1943, or 2013. Interestingly, Theodore Roosevelt during his administration came to the realization that he didn't want future generations to think the GOP was the party that hated immigrants.
The last couple of chapters were my least favorite in comparison, but make for interesting reading on how we treat immigrants during wartime, and the years old struggle to determine what we should do.
A truly fascinating book if you are a history buff, and especially that early 20 th Century history.
Charlie Wilson's War- by George Crile- I've likely been scooped by the movie, but if you are not aware, this book tells about an outrageous Texan Senator and how he secretly funded and help run the war against Soviets in Afghanistan. One review calls it a mix of Carl Hiassen- type characters and Tom Clancy intrigue, which is pretty spot on. Wilson is a Hiassen caricature for sure, but likely if he hadn't been, he wouldn't have gotten away with it (Wilson? Why worry about him?)
Equally important was the Contra War in Nicaragua, which likely stole the spotlight away from Afghanistan. The book talks in some detail on what Oliver North and gang did wrong, while Wilson pulled it off. Indeed, it's hard to argue this wasn't what brought the Soviet Union down- a war championed by liberal Democrats and not Reagan's gang.
The story inevitably leads to where you know where it is going- that Afghanistani warlords were quickly brought into the 21st century with the best arms a military could have. A quick epilogue suggests Wilson had the right idea for handling the country post-Soviet withdrawal (Wilson suggested something akin to the Marshall plan), but was bungled by administrations who decided "no war= no money" and handled terribly by Bush 41 and especially Clinton.
A truly interesting story that reads like a novel. Probably a bit long for the casual reader, but well, worth it if this stuff appeals to you.
The Radical Leap Re-energized - by Steve Farber - a business fable that introduces the concept of Extreme Leadership.
Our protagonist, Steve is a trainer who listens to John Hiatt and likes The Far Side when he meets a surfer named Edg who teaches him everything he needs to know about business.
So Extreme Leadership is solid business concepts as expressed by quotes from Bukowski and Kinky Friedman. John DefFrog- why didn't we think of this? I should have written some Point Break fan fiction with some leadership lessons thrown in had I known it was so lucrative.
The story itself is ridiculously predictable. The last few chapters tag on a story where we learn Edg's father learned everything from a nice old lady who would most likely be played in the movie by Della Reese.
All that said, the objective of books like this are to spur thought and inspire business leaders. Cheesy plot aside, this book actually does a really good job of that. Farber's book has won a lot of praise, and at the end of the day, the concepts it contain are better than most business books out there.
