Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead, by Sheryl Sandberg

Read this book!

On rare occasion I come across a book that makes such a positive impression on me that I go actively out of my way to recommend it to family and friends.   Recent examples include the novels "The Orphan Master's Son" and "The Good Son," and one year all my kids got a copy of "The Gift of Fear" (and they still tease me about it.)   Well this year everyone's getting a copy of Ms. Sandberg's book.

Okay, so what's it about:  in most of the US, we don't think about women's rights as an unsolved problem.  (Although in states like Texas, where a woman's right to make her own unimpeded decisions about her reproductive system is constantly challenged, this is less the case.)   Ms. Sandberg's focus is women in the workplace.   She notes that even though a generation has passed since women made up 50% of college graduates each year, men are still the overwhelming majority in leadership positions.

Ms. Sandberg discusses these issues with a light but piercing tone, using her own experiences and anecdotes to motivate key points.   Her suggestions ring true to me as a (former) business executive and as a spouse and parent.

Her experiences give credibility to her voice:  she's the COO of Facebook, had been a senior executive at Google, worked in government, and is both married and a mother.

Men, don't imagine this is a book for women only; it is just as important for you.  It might make you think differently about everything from your own relationships to how you interact with others in the workforce.

I have a single critique:  Ms. Sandberg's point of view on the issues facing working mothers in particular, are based on her experiences and the experiences of her social set:  relatives and friends who are highly educated, well compensated professionals.   The Walmart employee (for example) reading her advice might wonder if it is even a little bit applicable to her situation.  Those parents are just as important a population, but perhaps they'll have to wait another generation before equal opportunity and compensation are normative concepts.   Similarly, childcare notions for someone in her position (of wealth) are not the same as they are for folks who face real day-to-day tradeoffs in order to cover the costs of pre-school for their kids.   To someone in a dual-income-but-no-wealth situation, her advice might seem a bit fanciful.

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead

Brilliance, by Marcus Sakey

This is a fast paced, sci-fi'ish suspense and action novel.   The premise is really nothing new to fans of X-men or TV shows like "The Tomorrow People."   About 1% of Americans turn out to have extraordinary abilities.  A government agency tasked with finding and eliminating those "abnorms" who are deemed dangerous includes hero Nick Cooper, himself an abnorm.

Mr. Sakey did a terrific job.  The concept may be nothing extraordinary but the writing certainly is: don't start reading this novel in the evening unless you're willing to stay up late at night; I couldn't put it down.

Based on this experience, I plan to read Mr. Sakey's other books.

Brilliance

Hunter: A Thriller, by Robert Bidinotto

The heroes of this action novel are Annie Woods, a CIA investigator chasing potential traitors in the USA, and Dylan Hunter, a journalist.   There are lots of assassinations of bad guys (without, of course, any thought of due process).  Things move quickly and it is a decent novel.


HUNTER: A Thriller (A Dylan Hunter Thriller)

Hidden Order, by Brad Thor

This novel continues Mr. Thor's novels featuring main character Scot Harvath as a good guy spy who saves the nation.   The premise is that the short list of candidates to run the Federal Reserve are being assassinated, and Harvath needs to figure out how to stop this and why it is happening.

There was a bit less of Mr. Thor's political posturing than usual in this novel, which is to say there was still plenty of Tea Party rhetoric.   The topic of this book was ripe for the plucking, as so many people argue against the continued existence of the Fed if not its part in a massive conspiracy that violates the average American.   Maybe they're right, but as far as this novel goes, if you can excuse the rants and focus on the action, Mr. Thor's books aren't bad.

Hidden Order: A Thriller

The Amber Spyglass, by Philip Pullman

This is the third, final volume in the "his dark materials" trilogy ("The Golden Compass" and "The Subtle Knife" were the first two volumes).   All the key characters of the prior volumes come together, the story comes to closure, and the two heroes, Lyra and Will, achieve a breakthrough in self awareness and  understanding of their role in the universe.

This felt like the best written of the books, but I was pretty down on the first volume and my subsequent enthusiasm may be as much a reflection of my getting into the story and genre as a reflection of Mr. Pullman's writing improving.   Especially since his first novel in the series won substantial recognition, e.g., the Carnegie Medal (for "Northern Lights ," the UK title of "The Golden Compass").   Okay, so it is probably me then...

A couple of people mentioned to me that this series had come under criticism from some Christian groups.  There are many situations in which the church is seen as malevolent; there's the particular quest of some of the key characters (which I will not spoil here), and finally, the ending of this volume makes clear the importance of individuals doing good works in life in order to build their personal heavens (e.g., as opposed to relying on grace alone).

Great book; great series, highly recommended.


The Amber Spyglass: His Dark Materials

The Famous and the Dead, by T. Jefferson Parker

When I saw this book on the shelf of my local library I thought it would be an interesting mystery or police procedural.  The book jacket description led me on:  the main character is LA County deputy Charlie Hood, on loan to the ATF to work on cross border arms trade with Mexico.  Another main character is deputy Bradley Jones who is apparently corrupt; an employee of a Mexican cartel.

What I didn't know was that this is one in a series of Mr. Parker's books featuring these characters.  Although there were enough character development gaps in the book to indicate this fact within the first  quarter of the novel.   That was annoying, but not fatal.

Another thing I didn't know, and I'll put it here even though it may be a spoiler because it adds a fundamentally different texture to what I had thought was a straight forward mystery, is that a significant supporting character is in the employ of - well, the devil¹, for lack of a better explanation.  And no, I wasn't expecting that at all.

All in all the book was interesting enough to read, but not enough to compel me to read whatever previous volumes are in the series.


The Famous and the Dead (Charlie Hood)


¹ It surprised me to read in the Wikipedia entry on the devil that, "Judaism contains no overt concept of a devil, Christianity and Islam have variously regarded the Devil as a rebellious fallen angel that tempts humans to sin, if not commit evil deeds himself."  After all, it seems as though the devil is quite present in the book of Job in both the Christian and Jewish Old Testament (aka Tanakh or Hebrew Bible) versions.  In Christian interpretations of Job, the word Satan is used.  But in the Hebrew version (Iyov), the translation is Adversary.  So what's up; is the Adversary the devil?  

A couple of things come out of this investigation.  First, the Hebrew word satan (שָׂטָן) translates to adversary. The idea is that satan is a metaphor for mankind's inclination towards evil, or yetzer hara, which tempts us to do the wrong thing.  (The equivalent inclination towards good is yetzer hatov.)  Sounds like the devil?  Well no; it seems that Judaism is to maniacal in its devotion to monotheism that the notion of a figure other than God having substantial power is abhorrent. 

One view is to think of satan as an angel of God whose job is to add challenges to man's choice of good over evil; this makes the choice (of good) all the more meaningful.  Another view is that angels lack free will because they are angels, not people, and so they can't be disobedient or fallen.

It turns out that either of the Christian or Jewish interpretations of satan work identically in Mr. Parker's book.  But I thought that the research was interesting.  And this is an example of how reading just one simple crime novel can distract me for a day!

The Subtle Knife, by Philip Pullman

Whatever concerns I'd had in the first volume of Mr. Pullman's trilogy were gone within a few pages of this, his second book. The setting, at least initially, is a more recognizable, modern world, the writing feels crisper, the plot moves faster.

A new hero comes into play with his own quest, Will Parry. Will, like Lyra of "The Golden Compass " is also a child of 12, and he joins up with Lyra as their quests and plot lines intertwine.

This book was far more interesting and fast moving to me than the first, and I'm eager to read the next volume.

The Subtle Knife: His Dark Materials

The Golden Compass, by Philip Pullman

This book series was recommended to me by some friends.  If it weren't for that, I'd not have made it past the first chapter or two, because this novel did not start out to my taste: it is full of invented words, set in a Victorian-ish era, and each human has an accompanying familiar, a daemon.

My unease continued for two thirds of the novel at which point I'd gotten accustomed to the jargon and was swept up in the adventure.  This first book of the series introduces the hero, Lyra Belacqua, a young child about to embark upon a quest.

I won't say more so as to not spoil the story.   If you can make it past the barriers the genre naturally puts forth, then the exciting story should take you the rest of the way.


The Golden Compass: His Dark Materials

Damned, by Chuck Palahniuk

This novel serves as a reminder to me that just because a book shows up on a recommended list, it doesn't mean I should read it.   And since I typically finish a book I start even when I'm not crazy about it, I could save myself quite a bit of time if I learned to be choosier.

With that as an introduction, you'll imagine I didn't like Mr. Palahniuk's novel.  That's almost the case: I didn't like many aspects of it, but it was inventive and interesting enough to keep me going to the end.

The book is narrated by its hero, Madison, the recently deceased thirteen year old daughter of a billionaire couple who finds herself in hell.  Madison chronicles her adventures and her job -- yes a job; she does unsolicited telephone calls to people as their about to eat dinner, targeting in particular those who have signed up for the no-call list.

The ending is kind of pfffft though...

Damned

Inferno, by Dan Brown

I picked this book up at the library with a bit of hesitation, because I wasn't sure it would be worth the read.  Hence the library, as opposed to a purchase.  Mr. Brown's writing style can be tedious and repetitious, and his plot liberties are legion.

But I did read it, and it was alright.  Yes, it was repetitious, and yes it read like a travel guide to Florence and other locales.   Perhaps if I'd ever been to Florence I'd have enjoyed it a bit more.   Or if I were a big fan of Dante's.

As an action adventure it moved along as well as possible given the speed bumps mentioned above. And it had a few unexpected plot twists.  So I'd say this is a great book to read when you don't have a great book nearby and need to blow a few hours.

Inferno