The Shack

The negatives: The plot is simple. The dialog occasionally feels forced and the descriptions of the God figures are bothersome.

The positives: Organized religion just barely finds a seat in the back of the bus bound for heaven. The concept of why bad things happen to good people is vetted in an interesting setting. A better life in the hereafter and even in this existence is within the reach of common folk.

A soldier's story from Iraq

Patrol in Ramadi, Iraq, is more than edgy – it is terrifying when you are a US Marine in early 2004. Author Donovan Campbell, commander of a forty-man infantry platoon, carries the reader on patrol and shares his soul, including the terror of making split-second decisions that determine life and death for his men and the civilian population – the successes and the failures. 

If you are looking for a book that makes sense out of the Iraq war or even one that will give you hope that what the US is doing in Iraq is for the better of mankind – I don’t recommend Joker One. 

If you want to feel what it is like to be a solider facing death or dismemberment any second for weeks on end, Joker One will do just that and more. 

Sleep well and with a thankful heart; the US Marines are bleeding for you. 

Legal thriller to read while we wait . . .

The Altar Boys by lawyer John M. Poswall is an entertaining and credible tale that easily holds its own in the crowded legal genre – as did Poswall’s earlier book The Lawyers: Class of ’69.

Former altar boy turned lawyer J.J. Rai, a thinly veiled caricature of the author, nearly proves that maxim “no good deed goes unpunished” when he turns what might have been a routine court hearing into a spirited battle between good and evil.

The story moves rapidly as author Poswall limits dialogue and description to plot advancement and is largely successful in avoiding pontificating characters lost in extraneous settings. Poswall has mastered cutting to the chase.

For those who might wonder – Poswall is faithful in his description of things Sacramento and I suspect his characters are less fiction than some might hope.

Interesting Read

The telling of the dream of fusion. Lies. Mistakes. Dead ends.

The billions of dollars spent trying to put a small star in a bottle - breaking reputations and careers.

Even a few pictures. 

Five stars . . . . (none in a bottle).

And yet another good read

I enjoyed reading this stand alone tale of Agent Pendergast and Constance Greene more than any Preston - Child book since Relic.

It moves fast and has an unexpected twist or two. I love that when it happens!

Another read . . .

I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent reading The Book Of The Dead even though it was not the best the Preston Child team has written.

If you enjoy reading a book that is part of a series and all that means, I believe you will enjoy The Book Of The Dead and maybe learn a little bit about museum operation and Egyptian artifacts.

I recommend reading the books in order.

Brimstone

Dance Of Death
The Book Of The Dead

It is another read

I read Life Before Life. That is enough for the both of us. 

I couldn't buy author Dr. Jim B. Tucker's thinly disguised efforts to validate the collection of 2,500 cases of children's memories of previous lives he and other investigators studied at the University of Virginia.  

Some of the cases child psychiatrist Dr. Tucker review appear to support the possibility that a consciousness may have had an earlier existence in a human body. However, the too easily dismissed reality that humans lie, forget or coincidental events occur, strain the credibility of Dr. Tucker's Life Before Life. The fact that only a handful of the cases occurred in North America or other First World countries further encouraged me to doubt.  

Is reincarnation a possibility? Perhaps, but Life Before Life is merely speculative evidence at best. 

It's a read

Polar Shift is entertaining. Typical Kurt Austin Adventure - save the world without losing sense of humor while getting the pretty girl. The general concept was quite interesting and a recent topic on the science channel.

In the how I'd improve the book column - maps, a little more effort on the history and science of the main theme and less on the gimmick near the end and more proof editing (page 477 "He stared" not "Her".)

2 1/2 stars.

Read - Chalked Up

Jennifer Sey, 1986 Gymnastics USA National Champion, writes of her experiences as an elite gymnast - the "merciless coaching, overzealous parents, eating disorders and elusive Olympic dreams". 

It is powerful, unflattering, and disturbing.

Chalked Up is one of those books you will share with friends.

Another read . . .

In one word, "steamy". 

In two, "fast paced". 

In three "page turning thriller".

Elizabeth "Lizzy" Phoenix has paranormal powers, she is psychic. The world is on the brink of disaster and both the good guys and bad guys have a thing for Phoenix and she isn't prude.

Even though Any Given Doomsday is cook bookish, it is an entertaining and fast read. 

2.5 stars

For decision makers who want to remain decison makers

Written by Chris Anderson, Editor in Chief of Wired magazine, The (Longer) Long Tail explores the Internet marketplace and how the importance of the "hits" - blockbuster, one size fits all - are diminished, to the benefit of the unique seller and individual buyer.

It is a fascinating read that stimulates more questions than it answers.

Anderson makes concrete suggestions on how to learn and change, if necessary, what the average consumer will discover about your company. Even suggesting a starter curriculum for social media coaching. For example, "How to get Digged?"

One chapter, The Long Tail Of Marketing, How To Sell Where "Selling" Doesn't Work, is worth the price of the book.

Another book list

Joe Nocera, writing for the New York Times has posed a list of the best non-fiction business books ever. Pretty ambitious. Regardless, it is an interesting list - several I have not read.

The one book - not on the list that I think every young adult should read about investing and life, is Just One Thing: Twelve of the World's Best Investors Reveal the One Strategy You Can't Overlook, by John Mauldin. Straight to the point.

A summer's read

Grave Secrets filled a couple warm evenings and left me disappointed that tale was over. I look forward to digging into my stack of books for another by Kathy Reichs, a forenisic anthropologist turned author.

There is a smigen of preaching (easily ignored) when the author's political bent bleeds through her pen.

Recommended Read

I wasn't one of those 4,000,000+ who bought The Kite Runner, although I have a copy loaned from a friend buried at least 20 books deep in a "to read" stack.

Another friend loaned me Khaled Hosseini's second book, A Thousand Splendid Suns, saying, "I grabbed it in an airport. I thought it might be a chick book, but since *** was with me, I thought I might score some points. I read it. Read it. You won't be sorry."

I read it and I recommend it. A movie is in the making.

Deaver Double

I enjoyed them both . . .

Odd read

It was one of those books I read because somebody dear to me wanted me to read it. I would never have bought it and in fact, I would never have asked to borrow it if found in a friend's library.

Secret Societies...and How They Affect Our Lives Today
is kitchen reading. It lacks depth. Ms. Browne's "Spirit Guide" Francine, often quoted, fails to supplement Ms. Browne's research beyond a well read high school civics teacher.

The only intriguing information in Secret Societies was a very short chapter (two pages) discussing a "covert organization" referred to as "SCAN" or Secret Coalition for American Nationalism. This group of 22 allegedly seeks to manipulate the Council on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission, Bilderberg Group and others so that the "new world order" is under control of Americans. SCAN, twenty-two Americans . . . worse things could happen. (Let's make it 23 - I am in the book.)

Don't bother buying the book or even borrowing.

Great Read

If you enjoyed Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster you will find High Crimes grabbing your attention and imagination. A true story of Mt. Everest where ego, money and thin air combine to expose some of the unpleasantness in humankind. A fascinating read.

Blackwater - A Private Army

They were Blackwater employees, the men who were ambushed and burned alive in Fallujah, Iraq, on March 31, 2004. The haunting images of their charred bodied hanging from a bridge over the Euphrates River escalated hostilites. U.S. forces soon ringed Fallujah and more death followed.

Before reading Blackwater by Jeremy Scahill, I believed that the use of Blackwater and other private security forces in war zones was an efficient use of resources and manpower - a solution to the overworked volunteer U.S. military. After reading Blackwater I view the solution as dangerous. Battle-hardened private soldiers stand ready. Where is the next Iraq?



An interview of Jeremy Scahill about Blacker posted at YouTube is below.

So So Read

I started Middlesex with great anticipation after having it recommended twice by friends. Additionally, it won the Pulitzer Prize in 2003 and was an Oprah Book in 2007 . . .

Yikes. It took me nearly 100 pages to find the groove - no pun intended. I simply can't describe this book without a pun crossing my mind . . .

Middlesex is an odd disjointed book. From Wikipedia:

The novel begins with the narrator, aged 41, deciding to tell the story of his recessive gene that caused him to be born Calliope and later to become Cal. The narration periodically returns to the "present day" Cal who is bearded, male and interested in women, foreshadowing the personal revelations of Calliope.

No pictures included in the novel.

Wikipedia on intersexuality.

Reading, reading & more reading

Traveler
Ancient Ruins Of The Southwest is an informative review of the archaeological sites in the American Southwest. History is included in bite size chunks, along with photographs, maps and sightseeing tips. Great in the armchair and invaluable in dusty shoes.



Therapy
A Man Named Dave provides hope and inspiration for those born or living in abusive households. The book is the third in a series, following It and The Lost Boy. Not a read for the weak of heart or soul.



Entertainment
Split Second is a David Baldacci novel and as usual, it does not disappoint the reader. Death, more death, betrayal and a little romance. What's not to like?