Everything Nonfiction

Review of Look me in the eye by John Elder Robinson

Review of Look me in the eye by John Elder Robinson
Rating ***

This book is a memoir written by the brother of the author of Running With Scissors, Augusten Burroughs. Unlike most people who have read Look me in the eye, I have not read Augusten's book, though I probably will read it now. I give a lot of credit to people who see one author have a lot of success with a book and then decide that they have something to add and can do just as good a job. Frank McCourt's brother wrote his own memoir after Angela'a Ashesbecame a best seller. I haven't read it, but the book has done well. Some of the soldiers covered in Mark Bowden's Blackhawk Down wrote their own book. One of the boat captains in the story A Perfect Stormhas written a couple of successful books. A lot of good books don't make it because they can't find an audience. So there's nothing wrong with riding the coattails of another book.

There have been a lot of memoir's written about dysfunctional families. The Robison family certainly falls into this category. But this book deals more with the author's struggle to make it in a world while dealing with Asperger's syndrome, a mild form of autism.

Anyone who knows someone with this syndrome should read this book. There is a lot of insight that can be gained from learning from someone who has dealt with it and continues to deal with Asperger's. The author states that he could easily have turned inward and might have even become more savant-like had he not met a few people in his life that challenged him to deal with his problems in communication and social interactions. While he had difficulties as a result of Asperger's, his problems were not all that far removed from the problems we all face.

There's a lot of humor in the book. I enjoyed reading about his time working with KISS and his work with sound and effects. But the book is lacking in conflict. The dysfunctional family is covered only briefly. The recent memoir Crazy For The Stormby Norman Ollestad had a plane crash as a major conflict. I tend to be drawn more to these types of stories.

Review of Horse Soldiers

Review of Horse Soldiers by Doug Stanton
rating *** 1/2

The story told in the book Horse Soldiers is a modern day western. Not only do we have American special force soldiers riding into battle atop horses alongside Afghan fighters, the story has many of the same plot devices, including a siege at a wood and mud fort. The one difference is that this story is true and it took place not long after the hijackings of September 11, 2001.

The story has plenty of drama to keep a reader's interest, but a wide cast of characters makes it difficult to get emotionally involved with any of them. The one person I had the most sympathy for was John Walker Lindh, whose only crime was being in the wrong place at the wrong time. For that he was branded a traitor and is serving a prison sentence that offers no chance of parole until 2022. If there is any justice, it's that many of the government officials who attacked Lindh, without any real knowledge of what he was actually guilty of, are now facing charges of their own.

One other individual who stood out in this story was the Afghan warlord Dostum. He is a colorful character who at one moment displays a sense of humor as he taunts his opposing forces, and who at the same time is willing to kill without compunction. The special force soldiers, however, tend to blend together.

The main goal of the special force soldiers was to enlist the help of the Norther Alliance in ridding the country of the Taliban. If ever there was a regime that needed to be ousted it was the Taliban. Those loonies deserve to live out their miserable lives in caves. The SF guys were equipped with communication gear and lasers used for directing air strikes. The bombs that were dropped as a result of their efforts hit their intended targets maybe half the time. Those that missed either blew up dirt or killed innocent people.

The climatic scene involves the rebellion of Taliban fighters who at first surrendered and then staged a planned attack that was meant to divert attention while other Taliban fighters entered the city. This is by far the most dramatic part of the book. Everything else leads up to this singular event.

While I enjoyed this book and can recommend it, a better book covering a similar topic is the book Lone Survivorby Marcus Luttrell.

Review of Crazy For The Storm

Review of Crazy For The Storm by Norman Ollestad
rating ****

On February 19, 1979 the author, who was eleven at the time, was a passenger on a chartered single engine Cessna 172 that crashed into the San Gabriel Mountains. Also on the plane was the author's father, the father's girlfriend, and the pilot. Eleven year old Norman Ollestad was the sole survivor. This is the story of the accident and how he made it off the mountain along with the story of the author's relationship with his adventurous dad.

The story of the accident and the trip down the mountain is interspersed with the story of young Norman growing up. The author tells the two stories in alternating chapters. Neither story is strong enough to stand alone. Together, though, the two stories complement each other in a way that makes for interesting reading.

Most of the book is told from the perspective of the author from the age of eleven and younger. By the time of the accident the author's parents are divorced. Like most kids of divorced parents, time was split between the father and mother. The mother takes up with an abusive man who is constantly fighting with young Norman. The father takes Norman to exotic locales and tries to make up for lost time by encouraging his son to challenge himself both on land and in the surf.

Young Norman spends a lot of time facing impossible challenges set up by his father, whether it be skiing treacherous mountain slopes covered with freshly fallen snow or surfing waves as high as two story buildings. But Norman meets the challenges and gains from the experiences. So when Norman finds himself in the precarious position of just surviving a plane crash atop an 8,600 foot mountain peak, he has the skills and courage needed to make his way down the mountain to safety.

At the end of the book the author returns to the site of the accident. He learns from the official NTSB report and from speaking with an experienced pilot that the accident was unnecessary and was due to mistakes made by the pilot, who paid with his life.

The author, now a father himself, finds himself pushing his young son Noah in much the same way as his father had pushed him. Life is full of challenges. Those who are best prepared are most likely to meet those challenges.

This is a well crafted memoir worth recommending. 

Review of Outliers

Review of Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell
Rating ** 1/2

Malcolm Gladwell has done a remarkable job of turning simple ideas into best sellers. His last book, Blink, could be summed up as follows: first impressions are important. That's it. It was a best seller. His current best seller can be summed up as: people who succeed in life practice a lot. His next book will probably be called Rich, and it will be summed up as: people who save a lot tend to have more money. The subtext of the book Rich will be that authors with high powered literary agents can turn magazine articles into best sellers.

This book is short in pages and even shorter in insight. There's nothing new or important in this book. There is no secret to success. Success is a combination of knowledge, effort, and luck. Luck, as in opportunity, is every bit as important as knowledge and effort.

You know the author is struggling to come up with ideas when he decides to write about his literary agent, his literary agent's parents, and the author's parents. What he has to say about them, and any of the other individuals he profiles in the book, can also be said about anyone who has achieved a level of success. No one becomes successful without putting in the effort to learn their craft and without the aid of outside influences. A person gets a job thanks to the efforts of a friend who recommends him for the job. A musician lands a record deal after playing a round of golf with a music producer. Bill gates becomes a megamillionaire thanks to some free computer time.

The one bit of insight the author does offer is the importance of timing. If Bill Gates had been born a few years before or after his actual birth date, he would not have been in the same position to achieve the level of success he has achieved. Had he been born earlier, before the personal computer arrived on the scene, chances are that he would have taken a different path and would have had other obligations that would not have permitted him to spend countless hours programming a computer. Had he been born later, someone else would have come up with the software code for the first operating system.

None of us have control over when we are born. I had the misfortune of being born in January. I say misfortune because when it came time for me to start school I was put into classes with students who were a full year older than me. I was at an age where I could have waited a year or start school at the younger age. My parents decided to start me at the younger age. It was a disadvantage for me throughout my school years because I was always one year younger than everyone else. I didn't catch up socially or academically until college and even then I was younger than my classmates.

While you can't control your birth date, you can control your destiny by putting in the effort, keeping an eye out for opportunities, and putting yourself in a position to capitalize on luck when it presents itself. Now if someone wants to give me a six figure book deal for an expanded version of the above advice, please contact me.

Review of The Bounty

Review of The Bounty: The True Story of the Mutiny on the Bounty by Caroline Alexander
Rating *****

I usually like to have two or three books going at once, alternating chapters between books. Fifty pages into this book I put all other reading aside. I let myself be whisked away back to the eighteenth century where I stood in judgment of the mutineers aboard the Bounty.

I was drawn to this book after reading the book Lost Paradise by Kathy Marks. That book tells the story of sexual abuse attributed to the male descendants of the Bounty mutineers who took refuge on Pitcairn island. Together these two books tell a story that was literally hundreds of years in the making. If you really want to immerse yourself in a story, I recommend that you read both books starting with The Bounty, even if you think you know the story.

Like most people, my introduction to the story of the Mutiny on the Bounty is from film, specifically the one with Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins (which by the way I have added to my Blockbuster que). I vaguely remember seeing the one with Marlon Brando. The Mel Gibson film is a fair re-enactment that gives equal treatment to both sides of the story. One version is that Bligh was a tyrant who had it coming and that Fletcher Christian had simply had enough. The other version is that Fletcher had overreacted and the mutiny was a spur of the moment decision made under the influence of alcohol. The truth lies somewhere in between.

What makes this book such a compelling read is the author's reference to the plethora of written documentation from all parties before and after the mutiny. Who was behind the mutiny? Who was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? The mutiny occurred in the early morning hours while most were asleep. The decisions made that day affected the lives of hundreds of people for generations.

The petty quarrels, personality conflicts, and abuses of authority are not that dissimilar to what occurs in your typical airline, where crews spend a lot of time cooped up together. In the case of the Bounty, however, we're talking years and not your typical three day trip. It's fascinating to look back over the events that led to the mutiny and see how one person's perception can differ so greatly from another. Bligh's reprimand of Fletcher for stealing a few coconuts may seem frivolous to anyone looking at it from a distance, but when the reprimand is given in front of the rest of the crew it takes on great importance in Fletcher's mind. Fletcher's decision to take command of the ship was made in haste. Bligh was not a tyrant, but he was also not entirely free of fault. In Bligh's mind his order for his men to sing and dance every evening was proof that his men were a happy bunch. The truth is that Bligh made some poor choices regarding punishment and food rationing. His humiliation of Fletcher in front of the crew pushed Fletcher over the edge.

But what of the other mutineers? Fletcher was not alone, but the vast majority of the men on board had no inclination that a mutiny was about to take place. Once the mutiny began, their reaction to it would have great consequences. Bligh and his supporters were put into a launch. There came a point where even Bligh had to tell his men to stay with the Bounty because there was no more room in the launch, but staying behind meant that they might be considered aligned with the mutineers. Getting in the launch meant certain suicide. Some who were seen in arms were counted as part of the mutiny. Later testimony indicated that there was some talk about retaking the ship and that they had taken up arms in order to fight the mutineers. Who was telling the truth? The fact is that innocent men were condemned for their actions and guilty men escaped justice.

The author gives a succinct summary. "What caused the mutiny on the Bounty? The seductions of Tahiti, Bligh's harsh tongue-perhaps. But more compellingly, a night of drinking and a proud man's pride, a low moment on one gray dawn, a momentary and fatal slip in a gentleman's code of discipline-and then the rush of consequences to be lived out for a lifetime."

But the story doesn't end with the mutiny. The second book Lost Paradise tells the story of what happened to the descendants on Pitcairn island. Hints of what was to take place can be found in Caroline Alexander's book. Here is a passage from a captain who stumbled on the island describing what he found. "'It is not possible to behold finer forms,' Pipon observed delightedly. Venerable John Adams, the island patriarch, had complemented the young women's native modesty by instilling in them "a proper sense of religion and morality." According to Adams, since Christian's death, "'there had not been a single instance of any young woman proving unchaste; nor any attempt at seduction on the part of the men.'" To the English captains wandering beneath the luxuriant trees among the bare breasted virgins, it seemed they had entered a kind of paradise-a rich Eden with its own Adam, innocent of civilized wiles. Pitcairn had many of the attractions of Tahiti, enhanced by a recognizably English decency, the Book of Common Prayer and blushing modesty. Here, in short, a descent man might feel no shame in gawking at the island's naked girls.

But here again all was not as it appeared. All but a few of the women taken to Pitcairn were taken there unwillingly. They were sexually abused and treated as servants. Their fate and that of their offspring is perhaps the saddest outcome of the mutiny.

Update:

If you read this book I highly recommend watching the film The Bounty with Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins. The film brings to life the story in a way only film can.

Review of Hot, Flat, and Crowded

Review of Hot, Flat, and Crowded by Thomas L. Friedman
Rating ****

In the late 70's I started messing around with a Texas Instruments personal computer. It had a cassette tape in place of a hard drive. I graduated from that to the early Apple computer and from there to the first IBM personal computer. I saw the potential of these machines but didn't act on my instinct. In 1995 I had my first glimpse of the Internet. I wasn't impressed. I couldn't see the merit. Once again I missed the boat on a great opportunity. I am totally convinced that the next great opportunity is going to be in renewable energy and green technology. This book spells out the potential that lies ahead; it also explains the many obstacles that could deter this next revolution.

This book doesn't offer a step by step guide on how to implement renewable energy sources. Instead, Thomas Friedman takes a big picture view of where we are now and where we need to go in the years ahead. And he makes a very good case. The nation that is first in renewable energy will be the one to benefit the most.

Friedman argues that the only way for our nation to move forward with regard to renewable energy is through government intervention. Without the proper laws and financial incentives there is little chance that we will overcome our petroleum dependence. He gives a plethora of examples of how innovation and change is often spurred on by necessity. The automobile companies would not have any incentive to increase gas mileage if there weren't government mandated gas mileage goals and timetables to achieve them. A utility company won't change their ways unless a law is passed that forces them to change, such as recent laws that have been passed that require utility companies to produce a certain percentage of their energy from renewable sources. We as a nation need to reward the innovators and punish, in the form of taxes and penalties, those who resist change. Only then can we expect to make the drastic changes that need to be made to improve our environment and energy independence.

The first step in this process, according to Friedman, is to elect the right leaders. We need leaders who share a common vision with regard to renewable energy. President Obama is definitely the right man for the job. But we need to do the same at all levels of government from our congressmen to our local and state leaders. This is a time that calls for more regulation and not less. The next important step is to create an energy grid that ties utility companies together and allows for the transport of energy from its source to where it is needed. The best place for wind farms are in isolated parts of the country miles away from the communities that can benefit from that power. There has to be an efficient way of getting that power to the user.

In the past, the desire for renewable energy has always risen and fallen along with the price of oil. When oil is expensive, there is a demand for better, cheaper energy. When oil is cheap, out come the Hummers, the SUVs and the trucks the size of bulldozers. This time it is different. We have to act now for the sake of the environment. If we don't act, then the world in deed will become hot, flat, and crowded.

Review of Columbine

Review of Columbine by Dave Cullen
Rating *****

In a world of instant books and books by celebrities that are short on content and merit, it's refreshing to read a book that tells a story as completely and thorough as this one. This is a story that was nearly ten years in the making, and the benefits of perspective and hindsight are apparent on every page.

Almost everything I thought I knew about the Columbine school shootings was wrong beginning with the motive, which I believed was related to bullying and the social ineptitude of the two shooters. Dave Cullen does a remarkable job of piecing together this story beginning with the shootings and ending with the suicides of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. In between those two key scenes the author carefully examines every bit of evidence and paints a convincing portrait of the killers that will likely stay with me for a long time. He also examines the effects of the tragedy on all of the participants including the injured, the investigators, the media, and the parents of those who were killed as well as the parents of Eric and Dylan. The end result is a layered account of all that took place before, during, and after the shootings.

Oprah Winfrey canceled a show she had taped with the author citing that she felt the show focused too much on the killers. I'm sure both the author and the publisher were disappointed with that decision. But let's face it, there wouldn't be a story if it weren't for the actions of Eric and Dylan. If anything talking about what was behind the killings might help prevent a similar tragedy from happening again.

Eric and Dylan needed each other to carry out their plan. I'm not sure that either killer could have acted alone. Like the two killers detailed in the book For The Thrill of Itby Simon Baatz, it was the combined personalities of both boys that created the circumstances that allowed the shootings to take place.

Anyone who has dealt with the media can tell you that they seldom get all the facts right. The rush to be first with a story outweighs the need for accuracy in many cases. So it's not a total surprise that many of the facts associated with this story were wrong. Even Michael Moore got it wrong with his documentary Bowling for Columbine. They never did go bowling before the shootings. One of the biggest inaccuracies dealt with Cassie Bernall, who was believed to have had a discussion about God with one of the killers just before she was killed. The story about the discussion was true, but there is overwhelming evidence that it was another girl, Valeen Schnurr, who had made the comment. But once the story got out no amount of evidence could convince certain religious authorities that they had the wrong person. Cassie's mother went on to write a best selling memoir about her daughter titled She Said Yes. The book continues to sell well despite the evidence that the title has it all wrong. The sad part about all of this is that the person who should have benefited from the publicity has been ignored.

Most people who have followed this story know of the existence of video and written evidence detailing the actions and motives of the two killers. Part of what makes this book so compelling is that the author is able to use that mountain of evidence to get inside the minds of Eric and Dylan. The basement videos were just a small part of what they left behind. Each boy also left behind detailed journals which gave insight into their thinking.

The stories of the parents and the injured students like Patrick Ireland and Anne Marie Hochhalter are equally compelling. The passing of time allows their stories to be told in much greater detail than would have been possible in the days and months after the shootings.

The author has an excellent web site at www.DaveCullen.comwhere you can find more information including images, which were sadly missing from the book.

Review of Lost Paradise

Review of Lost Paradise by Kathy Marks
Rating *** 1/2

In 1790 a group of disgruntled sailors took control of a ship from their authoritative captain. The captain and his supporters were set adrift in a long boat with minimal supplies. The mutineers then sailed the southern Pacific in search of a safe harbor. A few of the men decided to take refuge on the island of Tahiti. The remaining mutineers took sail again and ended up taking refuge on the small island of Pitcairn. Along with the mutineers were a number of women from Tahiti and also a few male natives. Once they got safely ashore, the mutineers burned the ship. They did so in order to avoid detection from passing ships. But the act also sealed their fate. For better or worse they were now stranded on the island. This is the story of what happened to the descendants of the original mutineers and how it eventually led to a society where the raping of young girls became accepted social behavior.

My best recollection of the story of the Mutiny on the Bounty is from the movie The Bounty starring Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins. It's a great movie if you haven't seen it. That movie didn't go into detail about what happened to the men who ended up on Pitcarin island. I vaguely remember there being a few paragraphs superimposed over the end credits describing the chaos that later ensued. I always thought it was a fascinating story. The whole idea of being stranded on a deserted island with a group of beautiful women. The real story of what happened, however, is not so glamorous. Few of the women who went to Pitcarin went along willingly. The Tahiti natives were basically treated as servants and sexual slaves. Eventually the Polynesian men rebelled and in one day a number of the mutineers were killed, including Fletcher Christian. Ten years after setting foot on Pitcarin only one of the original fifteen mutineers remained.

This is a true life Lord of The Flies tale. It is a story of what can happen in a closed society where there is no law or social conscience. With a limited supply of women and no real risk of punishment, the men on the island took advantage of their dominance and routinely raped girls as young as nine. It all came to light when one of the victims revealed her story to an outsider who was visiting the island. Thus began a long multi-year process where a number of men were brought to trial for the alleged rapes.

This is an interesting story and the author does a good job of telling it in a fair and balanced manner. She did so under great pressure from the Pitcarin descendants who feel that the whole thing was blown out of proportion. The real strength of this book is in the final few chapters where the author sits back and analyzes what took place from all viewpoints. Here is what the author has to say about the story after the trials have ended:

"It was a social laboratory, but a real one--the site of a unique experiment thrown up by a confluence of historical events. Put fifteen men, twelve women, and a baby on a rock, leave them alone for 200 years, then take off the lid. We already know the results were ugly, but were they inevitable? Would a different set of people, placed in the same circumstances, have acted the same way? Or were there, on Pitcairin, exceptional factors that helped determine this particular outcome?"

The author then goes on to tell several stories of people who found themselves in a similar situation as the mutineers but who did not end up in chaos and abuse.

The story slows a little as the trials drag on, but I would certainly recommend the book. My next book is going to be The Bounty: The True Story of The Mutiny on the Bounty by Caroline Alexander. I want to read more about those first ten years on Pitcarin.

Review of The Great Depression Ahead

Review of The Great Depression Ahead by Harry S. Dent Jr.
Rating ****

I happen to be an optimistic person. So when I see a book about the next big depression, I'm a bit skeptical. It wasn't all that long ago that I remember seeing books like: The Great Boom Ahead and The Roaring 2000s. Turns out that those two books were written by the same author. So what's changed? The short answer is that this author uses historical cycles to predict future trends and we happen to be entering a period where a number of cycles are all heading in a downward trend.

The idea that you can predict future trends based on historical cycles has some merit. The author uses a myriad of cycles to explain his reasoning for his pessimistic outlook. Here are just a few: the terrorism cycle, innovation cycle, immigration cycle, geopolitical cycle, demographic cycle, real estate cycle, various stock market cycles, commodities cycle, and the emerging markets cycle. The cycles range in time from as little as eight or nine years, such as the terrorism cycle, to as long as 5,000 years for the civilization cycle. A lot of what he has to say makes sense, especially his references to the demographic cycle. According to the author, our most recent boom time - 2002 to 2008 - was the result of a majority of baby boomers reaching their peak spending years. The children of the baby boomers, which he calls the echo boomers, won't be reaching their peak spending years for another ten to fifteen years.

History has shown us that there can be long term downturns lasting decades. Japan's stock market is a perfect recent example. But I don't agree with everything the author says. For example, he predicts that the biggest opportunities in the years ahead will be in emerging markets such as India and Africa. His whole thesis is tied to population. China, Russia, Europe, and North America are all in a period of declining and aging population. But does that really make sense? If population was the deciding factor for future growth, then how is it that a handful of conquistadors managed to wipe out an entire civilization of Incas and Mayans? I'll take a lean and technologically smart country over an overpopulated poor country any day.

The author predicts that we will see a rally in the stock market to as high as DOW 12,000. And this will be followed by a drastic downturn to as low as DOW 3,800 sometime between 2010 and 2012. He sees oil dropping to as low as $10 a barrel. He predicts a major terrorist attack this year or next. He expects unemployment to reach as high as 12 %. And these are just a few of his dire predictions. I personally can't see the DOW dropping as low as he is claiming. For it to do so we would have to see stock valuations lower than what we saw in the Great Depression. I also don't agree that innovation is limited to just twenty somethings. The author claims that since there will be fewer people in their twenties that we are entering a period of limited innovation. So if I'm thirty of forty years old I can't be innovative?

While the book is full of pessimistic predictions, I had trouble following the author's suggestions on how to prosper in this downturn as the subtitle of the book suggests. He'll make one statement about the timing of one type of investment, such as emerging markets, and then a few pages later contradict himself because another of his cycles suggests something entirely different. I know one person who plans to prosper in the years ahead and that is the author himself through book sales and subscriptions to his newsletter, which promises to provide you with the most up to date predictions. Remember the book the Roaring 2000s, also by this author? In that book the author predicted DOW 40,000. Let's hope that his latest predictions are equally off base.

Review of Out of Captivity

Review of Out of Captivity by Marc Gonsalves, Keith Stansell, Tom Howes, and Gary Brozek
Rating *****

When I first heard about the dramatic rescue of some fifteen Colombian hostages last year, I knew that a book was soon to follow. This is that book. This books tells the story of the three American hostages who were held captive for nearly six years in the jungles of Columbia. Since this is their story there is very little behind the scenes material concerning the rescue. The reader experiences the rescue as they did, with some added information that was learned after the fact. This book is more about their experiences as hostages just trying to survive.

The book uses a unique structure where each of the three men tells the story from their individual perspective. The story advances by switching narrators. When one of the narrators ends a scene, the next narrator takes over from that point and everything moves forward.

The three main narrators were part of a five man crew who were involved in the surveillance of the cocaine crop. When their single engine plane develops engine trouble they end up crash landing in a small clearing in the jungle. They all survive but two of the men - the captain and a Colombian military officer - are executed. The three remaining survivors are taken hostage by the FARC, an insurgency group with unclear motives.

I've heard numerous news reports about the plight of some of the FARC hostages such as Ingrid Betancourt who was a candidate for the president of Columbia in 2002. There would be a brief video showing her poor condition and a few minutes later another story would take its place. Ingrid and the other hostages would linger in my conscious for a day or two and then I would soon forget about them and get on with my life. Yet day after day and year after year the hostages remained as captives in the jungles of Columbia.

This book describes in detail what their day to day existence was like. They were very much like prisoners of war, except they were constantly on the move from one camp to the next. The three men gave each camp a unique name such as exercise camp, chess camp, and fat camp. Some of the camps and the living quarters were better than others. Besides the stress of captivity, their poor diets, and deplorable sanitary conditions, they were constantly battling illnesses and numerous insect related maladies.

The FARC guards are mostly uneducated men and women in their teens and early twenties. Some are friendlier than others. These same men and women are no different than the suicide bombers in the middle east or the child soldiers in Africa. They are poor, uneducated, and lack opportunity. Take these same killers out of that environment and give them an education, a job, and something to hope for and most of them would lead productive lives. Instead they and their hostages wither away in the jungles of Columbia. Some of them end up committing suicide.

The inner relationships of the three American hostages, their families back home, the guards, and hostages from other camps makes for compelling reading. I highly recommend this book. When they eventually release a book describing how they pulled off the rescue, I'll be first in line.

Review of The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher

Review of The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher by Kate Summerscale
Rating **** 1/2

I've always been intrigued with the subject of crime and punishment. I'm drawn to stories where a single poor decision can result in a person's loss of freedom, in some cases for decades. Usually, the crime and the person or persons behind the crime fade away never to be heard from again. The crime told in this story - the murder of a three-year old - occurred in 1860. So the author is able to cover the full spectrum of the story from beginning to the bitter end. The book For The Thrill of It by Simon Baatz accomplishes the same thing detailing a murder that occurred in 1924. Both stories make for interesting reading.

The one thing that sets this book apart is that it describes one of the first crimes that involved a detective, someone whose main responsibility is to analyze a crime scene and through interrogation and careful examination of the evidence solve the crime.

The murder of three-year-old Saville Kent was a sensational one for many different reasons. The crime was covered extensively by the press; there was a long list of potential suspects; and it became the basis for what became known as the detective novel. Throughout the book the author makes references to books that borrowed from the facts of this case. She also delves into terms such as clue and hunch and explains their origin and how they became part of the lexicon of the detective story.

There are as many theories about the person or persons responsible for the murder as there are suspects. The murder occurred in a house occupied by a large family along with a number of live in servants. There were also potential suspects outside the house. It is the job of Inspector Whicher to unravel the mystery.

Whicher is not called to the scene until days after the murder, making his job more difficult. Still he is able to conclude who he felt was responsible. But he doesn't have any solid evidence and his competency is called into question. His suspect is set free. All of the suspects suffer as a result of their being under suspicion. It is not until there is a confession that the case can be put to rest.

The author follows all of the main characters from the time of the crime to their eventual deaths. She also gives compelling new information that points to the possibility of an accomplice who was never charged.

This is a book I picked up totally at random browsing a local Borders. If you like CSI, you'll like this first episode.

Review of The Lost City of Z

Review of The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon by David Grann
Rating ****

The story told in The Lost City of Zis part adventure story and part biography of explorer Percy Fawcett. The book alternates between the story of Fawcett's quest for the lost city of Z and the author's quest to unravel the mystery behind Fawcett's disappearance deep in the Amazon in 1925.

The book takes a little while to get going, but once Fawcett and his two companions, including his son Jack, head out for the Amazon the story is elevated into the category of great nonfiction.

I had not heard of Percy Fawcett before this book. The story of an explorer setting off into the unknown never to be seen again is a compelling one. The author has two goals in the telling of the story. What happened to Fawcett and his companions? And was there an actual lost city of Z, or was it a phantom quest of an obsessed explorer seeking fame and recognition?

For something that happened so long ago, the author does an excellent job of cobbling together bits and pieces of information from numerous sources into a story that allows the reader to follow along in the explorer's footsteps. The best stories are those that transport the reader to another place and time. David Grann accomplishes this with this book. Not only do you get to experience the Amazon and its peoples as they appeared in the early 1900's, but you get to see the changes that have occurred in the intervening years: large swaths of jungle missing due to logging, indigenous tribes living much like they did eighty years ago but with modern day conveniences such as TV.

Fawcett became convinced of the existence of a lost civilization in the Amazon after coming across accounts from Spanish Explorers who described large settlements with sophisticated architecture, large networks of roads and bridges, and an abundance of gold. Fawcett was also motivated by the discovery of the Inca ruins of Macho Picchu in Peru in 1911. His obsession really took hold when he was shown a small statue that was said to have been recovered in an area of the Amazon where Z, or El Dorado as it was also known, was thought to exist. The statue more than anything fueled his quixotic quest.

But Fawcett was not alone in his search for Z. He had competition from other explorers, some of whom were much better financed than he. Where other explorers took on the task using large parties of both men and animals and even planes, Fawcett felt that he had an advantage with his smaller party and whatever provisions they could carry themselves. While his competitors were sometimes involved in conflicts with the local tribes, Fawcett preferred a nonthreatening approach.

The author eventually reaches Fawcett's last known location in the Amazon. I found this section to be the most interesting. He describes the many efforts over the years to solve Fawcett's disappearance. He also tells the story of Fawcett's wife, Nina, and how she dealt with the many false reports about the whereabouts of her husband and son. One friend compared her to Penelope waiting for Ulysses. Her story is just as sad as that of Fawcett's.

So what happened to Fawcett? And was there a lost city of Z. By the end of this book you'll have a pretty good idea about the answers to both of those questions.

Review of The Challenge: Hamdan v. Rumsfeld

Review of The Challenge: Hamdan v. Rumsfeld and the Fight over presidential Power by Jonathan Mahler
Rating ***

I learned of this book from a panel discussion on Book TV with the author and two of the lawyers involved in the case. The book is billed as a true life legal thriller. While it doesn't quite live up to that billing, it has merit on a number of fronts.

This is the story of Salim Ahmed Hamdan who was scheduled to be one of the first to be tried under president Bush's military tribunals. The title comes from the legal challenge made by his defense attorneys in an attempt to not only challenge the legality of the tribunals but also Hamdan's treatment in detention.

Salim Hamdan was Osama Bin laden's personal driver. That was the extent of his involvement in terrorist activities. Yet the government's position was that he was one of the "worst of the worst" as Dick Cheney was so often quoted as saying when describing the prisoners at Guantanamo. The reality is that Salim was just a family man trying to scratch out a living. He was no more a terrorist than Osama Bin Laden's food taster. Fortunately for Salim, though, he was assigned two lawyers who actually went to bat for him all the way to the Supreme Court.

The subject of the mistreatment of prisoners by the U.S. both in Iraq and Guantanamo is one that I have written about previously. The books, films, and documentaries just keep coming. One estimate I read stated that perhaps as many as 90% of the prisoners held at Guantanamo are Innocent. What angers me most about that situation is that our Government has done everything in their power to mistreat, torture, and abuse these men whose only crime was to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. As if that wasn't enough, the Government then tried to set up trials where the prisoners were not allowed any of the basic rights afforded by our flawed justice system - no ability to call witnesses, unable to see the evidence against them, etc... There are still men languishing in Guantanamo who have not been charged with any crime. That's just not right. Fortunately, one of the first things Barack Obama did was sign an executive order to close Guantanamo within a year.

The author adds personal tidbits about the main players and tries to write in a style more like a nonfiction narrative, but he succeeds only part of the time. Too much of the book reads like a legal manual. Still, the story is compelling.

I read the hard cover edition, which did not include the resolution to Hamdan's case. I know from news reports that he was eventually convicted of some minor crime and sentenced to what amounted to time served. I'm not sure of his status now, but I hope he's back home with his family.

Review of Six Minutes To Freedom

Review of Six Minutes To Freedom by Kurt Muse and John Gilstrap
Rating **** 1/2

No book can succeed if no one knows about it. I happened to be channel surfing one day when I stopped to watch Book TV. They were reporting from the floor of last year's Book Expo. One of the people they caught for an impromptu interview was Kurt Muse, the co-author and subject of Six Minutes To Freedom. The reporter asked Kurt the one question that every author receives, "So what's your book about? In the span of maybe two minutes Kurt Muse sold me on his book.

The story that Kurt has to tell begins with a clandestine attempt to interfere with radio broadcasts controlled by the corrupt government of Manuel Noriega in the late 1980s. Kurt, and a few co-conspirators, devised a way in which they could hijack the broadcast signal of the official Panamanian radio station and broadcast their own anti-Noriega message. This obviously didn't go over very well with Noriega and Kurt was eventually arrested in detained.

The book is wriiten in third person and alternates between what was happening with Kurt and what was happening with Kurt's family as they became separated during Kurt's initial arrest and detention. The story has many compelling components: the clandestine radio operation, Kurt's arrest and detention, the confusion and escape of Kurt's family from Panama, Kurt's time in a Panamanian prison, working with the CIA, and Kurt's eventual rescue by the military in the very nascent stages of the U.S. invasion of Panama.

The book is part memoir and part narrative nonfiction. The opening chapters detailing the confusion and chaos surrounding Kurt's initial arrest immediately draw the reader into the story. Kurt's wife, Annie, was in the U.S. at the time. So when Kurt was detained at the airport and eventually driven back to his house, his two children Kimberly and Eric were left to deal with the situation on their own. Kimberly, who was just twelve-years-old at the time, had to take charge and make some very important decisions that would affect not only her safety but the safety of her younger brother Eric.

The juxtaposition of the two stories works very well. For the most part, Kurt and his co-writer John Gilstrap, limit the story to only what Kurt or his family could know or experience. Thus you experience the story as they did with all of the confusion and uncertainty. The downside to this approach is that the rescue of Kurt at the Modelo prison loses some of the drama. Since we only see and experience what Kurt is going through, it's like watching the rescue from a small window with little visibility. The whole rescue attempt is maybe one twentieth of the book. Yet the rescue and subsequent invasion of Panama could probably have received its own book length treatment.

This is a good story told well.

Review of The Nine

Review of The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court by Jeffrey Toobin
Rating *** 1/2

In the book The Nine, author Jeffrey Toobin examines current and past supreme Court Justices and looks at several key cases that have come before the court. There is also an in depth look at the nomination process. The book is timely because it's quite possible that President Elect Obama may have the opportunity to appoint several justices during his term in office.

I began this book with a negative impression of the Supreme Court. I've always considered it an archaic institution that needs a serious makeover. This book hasn't done anything to change my mind. I've also disagreed with many of the Court's decisions, including cases they chose not to hear. Two come to mind. Both involved aviation cases. One involved a suit against United Airlines for discrimination under the disabilities act for United's vision requirements. The second involved a suit against the FAA in an attempt to overturn the mandatory age 60 retirement for pilots. Both cases eventually resolved themselves, no thanks to the Supreme Court. The age discrimination case really ticked me off. Here they were claiming that the age 60 rule was a safety issue and should not be changed while at the same time a majority of the justices were well past the age of 60. So it's okay to hold a position on the Supreme Court of the United States and be well over 60 but it's not okay for a pilot to fly an airliner past the age of 59.

I've also disagreed with many of the decisions in cases covered in this book, including the 2000 election and their decision related to the prisoners at Guantanamo, though in the latter case they at least didn't give Bush a blank check to hold people indefinitely without charge.

Individually the justices come off as aloof and idiosyncratic. Some deserve to be there. Others, like Clarence Thomas, do not. In the case of Clarence Thomas, who should never have made it through the nomination process once word of his infidelities surfaced, here is a justice who has sat through over one hundred oral arguments and not asked a single question. Which brings up another point. Why should the justices be allowed to stay in their positions for as long as they want? How about a mandatory term limit? Why do we have to have justices deciding cases involving technology when most of them don't know how to send e-mail? Author Toobin points out that there is only one computer at the Supreme Court with Internet access.

The ideal of nine legal experts sitting together to discuss some of the most important legal issues confronting our country is a facade. Most of the opinions are written by law clerks. The justices themselves hold up in their offices like kings and queens disconnected from the populace. Justice Roberts once made the comment that judges were nothing more than umpires who simply follow the rules. Author Toobin, however, rightfully points out that this is certainly not the case for the Supreme Court justices, whose decisions end up forming the rules.

This book is one best read in increments. While thorough in its content, there is nothing connecting one chapter to the next. Still, the insights found in the book make this a worthwhile read.

Review of The Making of The Lords of Flatbush

Review of The Making of The Lords of Flatbush by Stephen Verona
Rating ** 1/2

The film The Lords of Flatbush is noteworthy on a few accounts. It represents one of the first independent films to achieve a level of success. It was also the first film for two of its stars: Sylvester Stallone and Henry Winkler. So an inside look by the film's writer/director at how all this came to be is a story worth telling. The resulting book succeeds on some levels but disappoints on others.

The story told here by author Stephen Verona reads very much like a first draft. It is unfocused, disjointed, rambling, and comes off more than a bit acrimonious. Despite these flaws, there is some merit to what he has to say. The author would have been better suited had he taken the time to organize his thoughts and expand on them rather than throw together something that reads more like a series of unrelated blog postings.

Students of film will find glimpses of lessons learned, as in don't make the same mistakes that Stephen Verona makes. The author starts by talking about his background and growing up in Brooklyn and how the film is mostly autobiographical. He takes the reader from original idea to completed film, albeit via a circuitous route in which the reader is introduced to every individual the author has ever met in the past thirty years.

The book is filled with interesting insights about how films get made from the financing to the wheeling and dealing with agents, studio heads, and others. At the same time, the book is filled with unrelated stories that add nothing such as the description of the author's home in France and his Rolls Royce. Stephen Verona was a pioneer in music videos. He is someone with obvious creative skills. But he comes across as someone who has become obsessed with his perceived injustices related to royalties and subsidiary rights to his film. Had he spent as much time working on other projects as he has on studio audits and finger pointing he might have more feature films to his credit.

The stories related to the cast and the firing of Richard Gere make for interesting reading. I especially liked the story of how an in-prov by Richard Gere and Sylvester Stallone made it into the final picture. The book could have used more of those stories. Instead we go off on tangents with Clive Davis and other big names that the author drops like a second rate actor at a high school reunion.

Toward the end of the thin book (154 pages), an ulterior motive for writing the book reveals itself. In addition to an insiders look at an independent film and the actors that went on to bigger and better things, the book serves as a kind of proposal for a hoped for stage musical. It's a little like Sylvester Stalone making six Rocky movies. It intimates at desperation.

A review of a book like this would not be complete without having seen the film referenced in the book. As a companion piece to the book, the two complement each other well. The insights gleamed from the book made up for the lack of story in the film. It was interesting to watch Sylvester Stallone. You can see glimpses of Rocky. I was also impressed by Susan Blakely, who played the part of the new girl in town. Okay, I was infactuated. She stood out like a single flower poking up through a baren landscape. I was curious what she has done since this movie and was pleased to see that she has worked steadily, though in low profile fims.

If you're interested in the film or want to learn more about the less glitzy side of Hollywood, you will find this book of interest. Stephen Verona is obviously someone who has a lot of stories to tell. Consider this book an outline for a future memoir.

Review of For The Thrill Of It

Review of For The Thrill Of It by Simon Baatz
Rating *****

Like Clarence Darrow at the beginning of For The Thrill Of It, I always felt that crime was a result of environmental pressures: poverty, lack of education, lack of health care, single parent, etc. I have since concluded that there are people in this world who have no conscience. They live their lives with the sole purpose of self gratification with no concern for how their actions affect others. Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb were two such people.

This story takes place in Chicago in 1924. Two teenagers, both well educated and both from wealthy families, decide to commit what they believe will be the perfect crime. Their plan is to kidnap a young boy, murder him, and then ask for a ransom. They follow through with their plan, but it is not the perfect crime that they imagined. They make mistakes. They leave evidence at the scene. Eventually the police follow the leads and bring both boys in for questioning. It doesn't take long before they confess. What follows is a trial as notorious as the OJ Simpson trial.

So why even have a trial if both boys confessed? The sole purpose of the trial, in which there was no jury, was to determine sentencing. The prosecuting attorney,Robert Crowe, wanted nothing short of execution by hanging. But the parents of the two boys hoped to win a life sentence. So they hired Clarence Darrow to defend them.

Throughout the book the question of motive is brought up but never answered. The entire crime appears to have happened solely for the thrill of seeing if they could pull it off. Or so that is how it is presented in the book and also at trial. But after reading the book, I feel that there was a motive and that motive was spelled out in closing arguments by the prosecuting attorney. I'm not sure why the author didn't pursue this further or, at least, give his opinion on the matter.

There is no question that there are elements of the crime that lack any explanation of motive. They picked their victim at random. Booby Franks just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. And neither boy was in need of the $10,000 ransom. So was this simply a crime for the thrill of it? Part of the evidence presented in the book concerns a killing of another person by a gun that was later traced back to Richard Loeb. Additional evidence brought up in closing arguments was that the real motive for the crime was that Nathan Leopold was aware of this killing and three other unspecified crimes by Richard Loeb. Nathan had been using this information as blackmail against Richard by forcing him into a sexual relationship. In order to stop this blackmail, Richard devised the whole kidnap plan as a way to get Nathan off his back. If they both participated in the crime, then Nathan would no longer have anything over Richard. It's all there. It makes sense. But for whatever reason the author just skips over it without much comment other than to list the evidence as presented.

I won't spoil the story by revealing how it ends. I totally enjoyed this book and eagerly advanced through it wondering where it would lead. I will, however,take this opportunity to pass on my thoughts about capital punishment. I am against the death penalty and this book only confirms my feelings on the subject. For one, our justice system is too flawed. Prosecutors make mistakes. Police make mistakes. Judges, juries, and eyewitnesses all make mistakes. Wealthy defendants have a distinct advantage over those who are not. Non Caucasians are at a huge disadvantage. More importantly, regardless of what you might read or hear the death penalty does not act as a deterrent.

So what do I say about someone who is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and whose crime is so terrible that we as a society cannot allow it to happen again? I can think of no stronger punishment than losing my freedom.

I highly recommend this book. It is an engaging, compelling story from start to finish.

Review of 1421

Review of 1421: The Year China Discovered America by Gavin Menzies
Rating ****

One of my favorite books of all time is Magellan by Tim Joyner. It's one of only a handful of books I have read more than once. It is the greatest adventure story ever told. Magellan left Spain with five ships and 200 plus men on a journey into the unknown. Two years later the last remaining ship returned to Spain with only 18 men from the original crew. Magellan was not among them, having been killed in the Philippines. Now Gavin Menzies has come along to burst my bubble by claiming that the Chinese circumnavigated the globe a century before Magellan. And his evidence is compelling.

I picked up 1421 just before the start of the Olympics in China. I wanted to learn a little about the country and its people. That was several months ago. I just now finished the 489 page behemoth. According to the author, the maps and journals of the great Chinese voyages were purposely destroyed. The reason for this unfortunate decision began with a thunderstorm. Lightening from a thunderstorm caused a fire that completely destroyed most of the buildings in the forbidden city. The emperor Zhu De felt that the fire was punishment by the gods, but he didn't understand why. He was criticized for his wasteful spending and grandiose plans. His successors, determined to make an example of the profligate emperor, decided to erase that chapter from their history and start with a clean slate.

Without official documentation to back up his claim, Gavin must resort to detective work to prove his theory. Among the few documents that did survive was evidence that a fleet of five treasure ships, along with several hundred supply ships, departed China an 1421. They returned, or at least the ships that survived the voyage, two years later. So where did these ships go for those two years? That is what Gavin Menzies attempts to answer with this book.

Gavin describes the huge treasure ships and the large armada that accompanied them carrying a combined total of some 28,000 men. The ships also carried concubines, horses, plants, jade, grains, and enough food to remain ocean bound for months at a time. As the ships traveled from port to port, the fleet grew in size to as many as eight hundred ships. The decision was then made to break up the armada and the five treasure ships each sailed a different route that would eventually encompass the entire world. They would have to accomplish this task in square rigged ships that could only sail with the wind and not against the wind.

Gavin is a former submarine captain and obviously very knowledgeable about ocean currents and wind patterns. He uses that experience to trace the suspected courses of each of the five treasure ships. Evidence of each of the ship's journeys is in the form of plants that are indigenous to China found in other parts of the world by European explorers, DNA evidence, cartography evidence showing lands and islands long before the Europeans had discovered them, wrecked Chinese junks in all parts of the world, and a slew of other tangential evidence such as Chinese architecture, fashion, and craftsmanship that showed up in places that could only be explained by the fact that thousands of the crew members and concubines had to have been stranded around the world due to the loss of their ships.

The weight of all of this research and the thoroughness with which it is presented, is what led me to give this book a four star rating. The book, however, reads a little too much like a history book and doesn't have the drama that Magellan's story has. Magellan's voyage was well documented thanks to the presence of Antonio Pigafetta, a writer who survived the journey. Thus in Magellan's story you get to ride along as Magellan is faced with storms, a mutinous crew, scurvy, and encounters with less than friendly tribal people. But even in that book there is evidence to back up Gavin's claim that The Chinese did in fact sail the globe long before the Europeans. Pigafetta writes that Magellan had seen a map prior to his departure that depicted the straight that would bare his name. So if Magellan is credited with discovering the straight, how is it that it appeared on a map before he left?

This book earns four stars for also having a Web site where further evidence can be found. The web site is www.1421.tv.

Review of Touching History

Review of Touching History: The Untold Story of the Drama that Unfolded in the Skies over America by Lynn Spencer
Rating *****

The author opens this book by comparing what happened on 9/11 to Pearl Harbor, and I don't think too many people would disagree. The comparison is even more true for those of us who make a living in aviation. Like Pearl Harbor, we all know what we were doing that day when we first learned of the attacks. I happened to be off that day. I heard from a few people who were flying on 9/11, but this book sheds light on the stories that I was not aware of.

I remember as the events unfolded thinking that this was an event that would be covered in numerous books and films. I thought about writing about it myself. As it happened, I was already involved in the research and writing of my own book about another aviation disaster. Besides, I was certain that big name writers like Mark Bowden or Hampton Sides would be the type of writer that would end up telling this story. Lynn Spencer didn't have the same reservations that I had and went forward on what had to have been a long and arduous journey in writing her first book.

The fact that this book was written by a professional pilot lends authenticity to it. I have read numerous books about aviation written by writers with no aviation experience and their lack of knowledge and understanding is glaringly obvious. Only someone with first hand experience could have told this story as effectively as Lynn does here.

The book is written mostly in the present tense, jumping back and forth between the ground and the numerous aircraft that were still flying as the hijackings were taking place. Lynn expertly portrays the confusion confronting flight crews as they received unprecedented instructions from dispatchers and controllers concerning the closure of airspace and airfields. She describes the panic of FAA and airport managers who unnecessarily evacuated airports and air traffic facilities leaving airplanes still in the air vulnerable to further mishaps.

There are numerous stories of pilots and air crews and how they dealt with this unprecedented event. A few that stand out include the crew of Delta Airlines Flight 1989, which became a suspected hijacking because of a missed hand-off between centers. Then there was the story of John Ashcroft and his attempts to fly to Washington in a Gulfstream IV after the U.S. Airspace had been closed. Another interesting story involved the crew of Korean Air Flight 85 that in an effort to show that they were aware of the hijackings decided to squawk the hijack code (very dumb move).

The military response to the attacks is also covered in great detail. I was aware of maybe four F-15s that were launched that day. I had no idea that there were far more than that. I do, however, disagree with the author's contention that pilots who departed with no weapons were prepared to sacrifice themselves if necessary to bring down a hijacked plane. Just as no airline pilot would intentionally fly an airliner into a building, I can't imagine any pilot intentionally flying his plane into another plane, especially a civilian airliner, under any circumstance. They may make that claim after the fact, but I can't see it actually happening.

I remember hearing about the possibility of a fifth plane. I'm convinced that there was in fact a fifth plane that was to be hijacked that day. The flight attendants reported four suspicious Arab passengers in first class. We know that the hijacked planes had teams of five hijackers. The fifth hijacker was undoubtedly Zacarias Moussaoui. The plane, which was scheduled to depart out of Boston on a transcontinental flight, was stopped on the ground before it could takeoff and the passengers were free to go. I have not heard anything that would lead me to believe that these four passengers were cleared or even investigated.

This book required a monumental effort on the part of the author. The end result is a compelling story that will be of interest to anyone who wants to know what was happening behind the scenes in the skies and in the air traffic system on that tragic day.

Review of The Botany of Desire

Review of The Botany of Desire by Michael Pollan
Rating **** 1/2

I first heard of this book from a friend who recommended it. It was described to me as an interesting book about flowers and plants. I can barely keep a potted plant alive, so this wasn't a book that went to the top of my must read list. Then I read the book The Omnivore's Dilemma also by Michael Pollan. That book is about the industrialization of food. I found that book so informative and well written that I decided to give his earlier book a try. I'm glad I did.

This is a book about four domesticated plants and how human intervention has shaped these plants into what they are today. The four plants are: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. Now that might not sound like the most thrilling of topics, but Michael Pollan is a talented writer and he picked each of these plants because of the interesting stories associated with them. Together they serve as an example of how both the plants and humans have benefited from our intervention.

The book begins with the apple and the story of John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed. Chapman was an enterprising young man responsible for hundreds of apple orchards during the early days of the westward expansion. The surprising thing was that the apples that resulted from the seeds he sold to the early settlers were not suitable for eating due to their bitter taste. They were instead used to make apple cider and alcohol. It wasn't until someone developed the technique of grafting, a form of plant cross breeding, that the apple gained popularity as a food.

Next we get the story of the tulip and how it led to the tulip mania in Holland and the eventual downfall of one Turkish Sultan. The tulip mania story is especially interesting because it mirrors similar manias in recent times such as the Internet tech bubble and the current housing crisis.

When Pollan talks about cannabis and marijuana the stories take on a decidedly more personal tone. He talks about his early experiments as both a grower and user of marijuana. He also talks in length about how our government has gone too far in its efforts to criminalize marijuana and the people who use it.

The last section of the book is dedicated to the potato. Pollan covers the famine in Ireland that was largely the result of the total loss of the potato crop. But he also talks about a new type of genetically engineered potato -- the NewLeaf potato by Monsanto. This particular potato has been genetically altered with a gene that makes its leaves toxic to a certain type of beetle, thus eliminating, or at least reducing, the amount of pesticides needed to grow a crop. I found this section to be particularly interesting, though my wife may disagree. I happened to be reading this section during a two hour drive and couldn't help but share with her some of the more interesting details I picked up about potato farming. Take for example the fact that most farmers who grow potatoes for market won't eat their own potatoes for fear of the many chemicals that are used to grow the crop. And while the Newleaf potato goes a long way in reducing those chemicals, Monsanto has been forced to abandon them because of the unsubstantiated fears of the public concerning genetically altered food. He makes the valid point that what Monsanto has done in the lab is not that different than what botanists have done for centuries when they crossbreed plants through grafting and other means.

Anyone interested in the growing panoply of books and films about food and the environment will find this book of interest. It's well worth your time.

Review of The world Without Us

Review of The World Without Us by Alan Weisman
Rating **** 1/2

My wife picked this book up at the library. When I saw what it was about I stole it from her. This isn't Will Smith doing his thing against zombies in I Am Legend. This book looks at what would happen to the earth if humans were suddenly to vanish.

From this interesting concept the author shows how we humans are damaging the environment. In some cases, the results of our negligence will take millions of years for the earth to rebound to its natural state. In other cases it may never recover.

This book is a good companion piece to the following books and films: The Omnivore's Dilemma, The 11th Hour, Who Killed The Electric Car, and Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth. I feel much more environmentally aware after reading and watching these books and films.

It's an accepted fact that the human race will undoubtedly go extinct at some point in the distant future, just as all other species before us. The when and how is not known; perhaps when the sun engulfs the earth. Other possible scenarios have large portions of the population dying off rather quickly but with some survivors. The author gives the example that even if 99.9 % of the human race is killed off that would still leave several hundred thousand survivors.

If I'm lucky enough to be among the survivors, I intend to head for Montana. Because the heavily populated areas of the world are not going to recover very quickly. We've simply done too much damage. The one place you definitely do not want to be is Houston, Texas. The description of what happens to the oil refineries and pipelines after we're gone is not a pretty sight.

The many stories the author uses to illuminate his points are fascinating in their own right. From the luxury hotel that was left vacant for several years, to the demilitarized zone in Korea, to plots of soil untouched by human intervention and pesticides, each example flows effectively with the overall narrative.

Everyone should read this book. It will give you a new perspective on how your actions affect the environment for possibly thousands of years after you're gone.

Definitely add this book to your list. 

Review of Escape From the Deep

Review of Escape From the Deep by Alex Kershaw
Rating **** 1/2

The best nonfiction transports you to another place and time. This is certainly true of this excellent book by Alex Kershaw. I finished the book on my Caribbean trip. Whether I was reading on the plane or sitting by the pool, I was a crew member on a WWII sub. A sub that had the misfortune of being sunk by it's own torpedo.

I first read about circling torpedoes from the book Scorpion Down. That book is about another sub sinking. In that story the cause of the sinking is unknown. A circling torpedo is one of the top theories. In this story it's known for a fact that the sub was sunk by its own torpedo.

The writer does a good job of giving just enough background material to build a foundation. You learn a little about the crew and Commander Richard O'Kane.

Before the fateful last voyage of the Tang, the author takes you along as the crew sinks ship after ship. What's not discussed with any detail is what happens to the thousands of men whose lives are lost as the result of the Tang's torpedoes. When a ship is sunk and disappears beneath the waves, the men celebrate. But I'm thinking about the fate of the men who are left behind in the water.

In one story involving the commander of the Tang, the author talks about another sub that successfully sunk several large ships in a single battle. He talks about there being thousands of Japanese sailors floating in the water. When one of the men in a life raft opens fire on the sub with a hand gun, the commander of the sub uses it as justification for slaughtering the defenseless men in the water. It was one of the largest massacres of the war. After reading about the many lives lost as a result of the Tang it almost seems like payback when the sub is finally sunk by its own torpedo.

The resulting fight for survival and the subsequent ordeal undergone by the survivors makes for an interesting read. Here again I was drawn not only by the stories of those who survived but also to the men who gave up and decided to lie down and await their fate inside the sub.

Just when you thought every story that could have been told about WWII has been told, you find another gem like this.

Review of The Omnivore's Dilemma

Review of The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
Rating *****

Readers of this blog know that the books I choose to write about are books that I personally have read. I don't always read the latest releases. It takes me a while to find some books. Such is the case with this book, which was originally published back in 2006.

I'm not sure what drew me to this book, besides great reviews. I didn't particulary like the title. And the subtitle wasn't any more illuminating about what was inside. In fact, the title didn't make sense to me until I had finished the book.

The title Omnivore's Dilemma, as I understand it now, refers to the debate over the pros and cons of including meat in our diets. It also refers to the dilemma we face in trying to find the right balance of fair and humane treatment of the animals that we eat against the growing demand for food.

The four meals in the subtitle refer to the following: A fast food meal of hamburgers and fries, an organic meal from an industrialized organic farm, a purely grass fed animal meal, and a hunter and gather meal consisting in part of wild pig and wild mushrooms.

Don't let that description scare you away. The meals are simply the end of a journey that Michael Pollans takes the reader on. He buys a steer and attempts to follow the steer from its birthplace to his dinner plate. In the process you get to visit behind the curtains of the food industry. He goes to work on a farm and personally kills a chicken that he eventually has for dinner. He hunts for and shoots the wild pig that he ultimately serves for dinner. Yet that description still does not due justice to the wealth of information that this book provides.

When you go to the supermarket and purchase a pound of ground beef or a chicken breast, you have no idea how industrialized the process has become. Feeding 250,000,000 Americans daily requires a lot of cows, chickens, pigs, and turkeys. This industrialization of our food has many negative ramifications both for the animals and the environmnent. From the overproduction of corn to the overuse of chemical fertilizers, we are heading down a path that will have long term negative cosequences unless we make changes now.

The pestcides and chemical fertilizers we use finds their way into our diets not only from the foods themselves but from those same chemicals getting into the water tables. Obesety in America is partly due to the overuse of corn derived sweetners such as high-fructose corn syrup. That same overproduced corn is fed to animals that weren't designed to eat it. The process of growing only corn has also eroded the soil to where it's almost unusable for anything else.

So what's the solution. The author gives us the solution, or at lest a possible solution, when he describes the perfect farm, the Polyface Farm. This section alone is worth the price of the book. Here he describes a farm where every aspect of the food produced is well thought out with consideration for both the environment and the animals. Basically it is a farm where the cows are allowed to graze on grass. Once the cows are done with one section they are moved to another section of grass. When they leave, the chickens are brought it to eat the larvae and grubs left behind in the cow's manure. I know this doesn't sound too appetizing, but trust me the process results in the best outcome for everyone involved. Problem is you can't reproduce it on a large scale. More animals requires more land and more labor which raises the price and difficulty. Thus the dilemma.

Another solution is to go with a strictly organic vegetarian diet. But here again there are problems. The author points out how the animals left behind would most certainly meet a fate worse than what they now face. He gives the example of there being some ten million domesticated dogs but fewer than 10,000 wild wolves.

The real solution to the problem is to eat locally produced food that does not come from an industrial farm. It's possible.

Michael Pollan takes what could be a dry subject and makes it highly entertaining and informative. This should be required reading by everyone, especially if they work in goverment. Read this book. It will change the way you eat. I've already switched from regular eggs to buying only cage free, hormone free, organic eggs.

I enjoyed this book so much that I've already put one of his earlier books on my must read list, The Botany of Desire. If he can make food this interesting, I can't wait to read about flowers.

Review of The Mistress's Daughter

Review of The Mistress's Daughter by A.M. Homes
Rating ***

My wife recommended this book. It's not one I would have picked out. It's a story about the author whose biological mother comes looking for her after giving her up for adoption some thirty plus years earlier.

This is one of those stories that began as an article and was then expanded into book length form. It came across to me as being padded and it's not that long of a book. There are no chapter breaks. The book is basically broken into two parts: the first part covers the time of the author first learning that her biological mother is looking for her to her mother's death; the second part of the book deals with the author's genealogy search for more information about her past.

The first part of the book is the most compelling. Most stories like this have been told from the perspective of the child in search of their real parents. They don't always work out. And here, too, the reunion is not a happy one. The author at first wants to keep her distance from both her biological mother and father. But her curiosity draws her in closer. She paints her biological parents as being needy, selfish, uncaring, paranoid, and self centered. And maybe they were. But the author doesn't seem all that caring herself. She does, however, deserve credit for the truthfulness of her writing.

The second part of the book was much less compelling for me. Once the mother passes away, the author is left with trying to piece together her past. She does this mostly through Internet sites dealing with genealogy. What was fascinating to the author is not necessarily fascinating to the reader. But she had a book to write and she had to say something.

She eventually gets back at her father by conducting a fake interrogation. She puts down in several pages the many questions she has for him that she knows he is not willing to answer. Once again it's good therapy for the author but only moderately interesting to the reader. My wife loved the book. It was okay for me.

Review of Money For Nothing

Review of Money For Nothing: One Man's Journey Through the Dark Side of Lottery Millions by Edward Ugel
Rating *****

Some titles are better than others. The title of this book is spot on. Money For Nothing has two meanings: It refers to the money won by lottery winners and also to the money made by the salesman who earn huge commissions selling lump sum payouts to those same lottery winners.

Before I read this book, I had never heard of the lump sum industry. Not being a lottery winner myself might have had something to do with that. You have to win some money before they show up on your radar screen.

Ed Ugel takes the reader on his own personal ride from unemployed white male living with his parents to a six figure salesman for The Firm. Along the way you get to meet some of the lucky or not so lucky lottery winners who find themselves short on cash. There are many reasons for the lottery winners to find themselves in this predicament: poor financial advice or no advice at all, taxes, family pressures, divorce, etc. Ed gives an example of a lottery winner who wins two million dollars. At first glance you might think that this person is set for life. Not so fast. That two million dollars is paid out over twenty years. That's $100,000 per year or $70,000 a year after taxes. It doesn't take long to blow through that kind of money, especially when there is a long list of hanger-ons waiting for handouts. That's where The Firm comes in to save the day. They will buy your annuity in exchange for an upfront cash payout. Ed doesn't give any specific examples of how much we're talking about, but you get the impression that The Firm comes out way ahead over the lottery winner.

Much of the appeal of this books comes from the conversational tone of the writing and the expert use of analogies, metaphors, and similes. They are sprinkled throughout the text and used to great affect. To demonstrate this, I will pick a page at random. I guarantee you that I can find a good example within three pages before or after the page I select. Okay, here goes. I opened the book to page 56. Here he is talking about his experience as a bartender. On page 55 he talks about his inability to tap a a keg of beer. Here's what he has to say, "As a bartender, in a beer-and-wine-only pub, not having the ability to tap a keg is like being a veterinarian afraid of dogs." That's good stuff. To be able do it over and over again is the sign of a good writer.

Ed isn't afraid to talk about his faults such as his gambling addition and his lack of business managerial skills. But Ed is also a born salesman as well as a talented writer. I would have liked to have learned more about the way in which lottery winners burn through their cash and how much they stand to lose when dealing with The Firm, but these issues aside this is a great book. 

Review of Who's Your Caddy

Review of Who's Your Caddy by Rick Reilly
Rating *****

This isn't the type of book I normally mention on this blog. When it comes to nonfiction books, I primarily stick with narrative nonfiction. But I've been reading a lot of fiction recently and this book happened to be an in between read.

The premise of the book is that sports writer Rick Reilly spent a year caddying for different pros. He had no prior experience as a caddy. He wanted to get an inside the ropes look at golf's elite players. The end result of his experiment is an entertaining and very funny look at golf.

Rick caddies for current and former golf pros: John Daly, Casey Martin, David Duval, Jack Nicklaus. He also works the bag for people better known for their accomplishments outside of golf such as Deepak Chopra and Donald Trump. Each round brings a different set of challenges. His writing is sharp, witty, and very funny. Sometimes the humor comes from the mistakes he makes as a new caddy. Like the time LPGA tour pro Jill McGill asked him how much a flagstick weighs? When he said he didn't know, she told him maybe he should go and pull the flagstick from the whole and see if he could find out. Most of the time the humor comes from his insight into the players he is caddying for. Here is his description of caddying for blind golfer Bob Andrews. We did not do well at first. In fact, we did not even do crappy at first. We wouldn't have made the cut at the Suck Invitational.

Few books can make me laugh out loud, but I found myself laughing out loud a lot with this book. If you are a golfer or are looking for a gift to buy a golfer, put this book on your list.

Review of Jesus Land

Review of "Jesus Land" written by Julia Scheeres
rating *****

I almost didn't read this book because of the title. I thought it was a religious book. My wife sometimes buys self help and inspirational books, and I thought that this book fell into that category. But I was in between books and saw this one on the kitchen counter. So I picked it up and read the front and back cover. Since all there was were blurbs from various reviews, I still didn't have a good grasp of what the book was about. From the picture on the cover, I wrongfully assumed it had something to do with missionaries in some third world country. I'm glad I decided to give the book a try, despite my uneasiness of carrying it around lest someone think I was some religious fanatic.

Now that I have finished the book, I can see that it is an apt title. But I wonder how many people might have passed on the book because of that first impression? Jesus Land is about a dysfunctional family, racism, and religious zealotry. It's also about the relationship between the author and her adopted brother, David, who happens to be black.

The family adopts two black children. They are adopted not so much because of a willingness to do good but because the overly religious mother thinks it's the right thing to do, despite her own racist attitudes. The kids are exiled to the basement both physically and emotionally. The oldest, Jerome, is eventually booted out of the house and forced to fend for himself, but not before taking advantage of his white sister. The younger of the two, David, spends his time just trying to fit in -- anywhere.

The parents are religious zealots. The father is a doctor who drives a Porshe. It's obvious that he is doing well financially, but that wealth doesn't seem to trickle down to the rest of the family, whom is forced to eat what the author describes as garbage soup for dinner. His only purpose seems to be in meting out punishment to the two black children. Here is how the author describes her father: "Our father, who heals the sick and dying by day, and causes injury at night." The mother is incapable of showing affection.

The heart of the book is the relationship between the author and her brother. Not only does she witness the racism that her brother is forced to endure throughout his life, but she experiences it first hand because of her family association. Eventually, they both end up at a religious reform school in the Dominican Republic. Much of the book takes place in this prison-like compound.

There are many passages dealing with sexual desires both fulfilled and unfulfilled. As a male reader I sometimes felt that I was listening in on conversations not meant for my ears. At the same time, I felt that I was given an inside look at the female psyche with regard to sex.

When David and his sister are banished to the Dominican Republic, they find themselves stripped of their freedom in more ways than one. They must endure punishment meted out by a staff that is given absolute power. The most unfortunate thing is that the school still exists. Here is how the author describes the effectiveness of such discipline "..making people suffer doesn't make them more virtuous, it just makes them despise you."

The writing is sharp, poignant and honest. The author deserves the praise and awards that the book has received. First published in 2005, this book has bucked the trend of the short shelf life. I plan to add it to my best of 2007 list.

For more information, you can visit the author's web site and blog at www.juliascheeres.com.   

Review of "The Airmen and The Headhunters" by Judith Heimann

Review of "The Airmen and The Headhunters" written by Judith Heimann
Rating **

This is the true story of a B-24 crew that is forced down in the jungles of Borneo toward the end of WWII. What starts out as a promising story ultimately fails to deliver. This is partly due to the large cast of characters, many whose names are unpronounceable, but also due to the lack of focus in the story itself.

Much of the book is spent describing the airmen playing cards and drinking with the natives. It becomes apparent early on that the headhunters in question, the Dayaks, are not savages but friendly tribal people who risk their own lives to protect the airmen.

There is plenty of opportunity for drama. The airmen are constantly being pursued by the Japanese. They suffer an assortment of ailments and disease. They nearly die from hunger, but these incidents are separated by long passages where not a whole lot is going on.

Instead of a story about a group of airmen who struggle against all odds to make it back to their home base and loved ones, you get the sense that they're just sitting back waiting for the war to end or for someone to come rescue them, which in a way is what happens. here is a passage from the end of the book.

"Except for swimming, the Yanks in Long Berang had run out of things to do. Time was hanging heavily as they waited for things to happen, things over which they had no control." This passage could also describe the book.

There are many scenes where Japanese soldiers are tricked by the Dayaks and ultimately killed. But they are written in a matter-of-fact manner that when someone's head is chopped off it doesn't seem to be that big of a deal. It's just another senseless killing, another tick in the body count.

Having written a book about an historical event myself, I know how difficult a task it is. This is a big story that required a great deal of work by the author. I congratulate her on the effort, but it didn't quite get behind the story as much as I would have liked. 

Review of "Lone Survivor" by Marcus Luttrell

Review of "Lone Survivor" by Marcus Luttrell with Patrick Robinson
rating *****

I remember when I first heard about this event on the news. My first reaction was that it was a terrible waste of life. After reading Marcus Lutrell's book, I still feel that way; but I have a lot more respect for the men involved.

The news report was sketchy. Four American Seals were caught in a battle with insurgents in the mountains of Afghanistan. They got in trouble and called for reinforcements. The helicopter carrying those reinforcements was hit by an RPG as it tried to unload the soldiers. Everyone died. All of that training. All of that technology. And still everyone is killed but for one lone Navy Seal.

I now know what those Seals were doing in those mountains. And they had a goal that probably justified the risks. I also know a lot more about the men as individuals and what it took for them to be in that position. While those guys were out there in the rain, behind enemy lines, dealing with treacherous terrain and weather, I was probably riding a golf cart around somewhere looking for my ball. What a contrast.

The story told by Marcus is written in a very conversational tone. It's almost like you're sitting in a bar with him as he recounts what happened to him and his buddies. I didn't even realize that he had a co-author until I read the acknowledgments. That's how well his voice is carried throughout the book. He'll tell a story about how an insurgent beat him and then end it by calling the insurgent "a little prick." He uses some other colorful adjectives to describe them as well.

That kind of conversational tone makes the story real. That's exactly how he probably told it. There is a lot of self deprecating humor. Here is a brief passage of Marcus describing his efforts to scale a mountain. "You'd have needed a chain saw to pry me off that cliff face. All I knew was, if I fell, I'd probably plummet several hundred feet to my death. Which was good for the concentration."

Conflict is the driving force in any good story, and this one has it on almost every page. Even when he is describing the Navy Seal training, you come to realize the many obstacles they had to overcome to succeed. By the time you get into the mountains on the mission that cost so many lives, you come away with an appreciation for the scarifices these guys made. It's truly amazing that anyone survived. And even Marcus admits that he would not have survived were it not for the help of a few brave Afghan villagers.

This is a great book. Read it. You'll come a way with a new perspective on the military and the men and women who serve our country.

Review of "A Long way Gone" by ishmael beah

Review of A Long Way Gone: memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah ****

Reading "A Long Way Gone" reminded me a lot of the book "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy, only the journey here is true and so too the horrors along the way.

Ishnael Beah was a young teenager whose ambition in life was to write and sing rap music. His ambitions were put on hold when he and his friends were caught up in the ongoing rebel war in Sierra Leone. Their first contact with the war is when they come across refugees fleeing the violence. They see the terror in their eyes but have no idea what caused such fear. They soon find out first hand. They are separated from their families and flee into the jungle. From there they begin a perilous odyssey where they witness unspeakable brutality and violence. Eventually Ishmael and those with him are recruited and trained as boy soldiers. They are given weapons and minimal training. They are also given drugs. Fueled by a combination of fear, starvation, and drugs the boys are easily manipulated by their adult commanders. Soon they are engulfed in a wave of violence where human life has no value.

Ishmael describes the killings, including those that he participated in, with clear, descriptive passages. He doesn't reflect on the morality behind the killings. He simply states them as fact. Reflection comes later when he is haunted by nightmares and migraines.

Things turn around for Ishmael when he is shot in the foot and forced to spend time in a hospital. Here he meets a nurse and others who risk their own lives to rehabilitate Ishmael and others like him. At the end of his journey Ishmael is given the opportunity to travel to the U.S. to speak at the United Nations. He meets a woman who eventually becomes his guardian. His transformation from brutal killer to successful author is truly amazing and so too is this story. Add this one to your list.

Review of F5 written by Mark Levine

Review of F5 written by Mark Levine
rating ****

This book tells the story of the devastating tornado outbreak of April 3, 1974. While the outbreak covered a large geographical area, the author focuses primarily on two of the worst hit areas: Zenia, Ohio and Limestone county, Alabama.

There are a lot of characters to follow and for the most part the author does a good job of individualizing them enough that you don't get totally lost. The scope of the disaster simply requires that it be told from multiple perspectives. As you might expect with any good nonfiction narrative, there is plenty of background information. But unlike so many nonfiction books today, there isn't so much that it overwhelms the story. The author explains the science of tornadoes and delves into the background of Japanese physicist Tatsuya Fujita who came up with the ubiquitous F scale for rating the intensity of tornadoes. He also does a good job of giving the story some historical context. I especially liked the story of Hank Aaron who was caught in the middle of the outbreak while he awaited the start of opening day. He went on to tie Babe Ruth's home run record the very next day.

The real drama, though, is in the recounting of the day and night the tornadoes hit. This is where the individual stories stand out as the author jumps from one encounter to the next. Families are torn apart both literally and figuratively. Vehicles and animals fly through the air. Houses collapse upon its occupants. Some survive and some don't. The details are carefully interwoven. In recounting the devastation brought upon Zenia, Ohio the author writes "Xenia - the name derived from the Greek term for hospitality - was on a well-established declining course when the wind came through to speed things along." Another well written passage concerns a group of people who abandon their cars to take refuge by the side of the road as a tornado approaches: "The wind passed over the ditch. Men grabbed at each other, at the grass, at clumps of dirt. Faces were driven into the mud...Gusts of water washed across the ditch. Men were scraped along the ground...The sheriff clawed at the grass as he was dragged along."

There are twelve pages of images. A map showing where the tornadoes hit is provided near the end of the book. It would have been better to provide a map of the region in the beginning of the book. I spent a good deal of time not knowing  where I was geographically. The map that is provided in the front is hard to read and too narrowly focused. I would also liked to have seen some online component with additional information and images. Other than those few gripes, I highly recommend F5.

Top 10 nonfiction books

I'm always looking for good books to read. Feel free to add your best of list to mine.