Reviews

The Wild Inside by Jamey Bradbury

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 0 Comment

Jamey Bradbury’s debut novel, The Wild Inside, is a coming-of-age story that highlights the many issues young adults have as they try to find their way in the world.

Bradbury showcases many things that I know little or nothing about – teenage girls, Alaskan outback, dog racing and the Iditarod. But, despite my ignorance on these subjects, Bradbury makes the story engaging and thrilling. She sucks the reader in with the heroine’s (Tracy) actions.  She captures the confusion that I am sure many teenagers feel about their lives and those around them.

Bradbury skillfully weaves Tracy’s teenage angst amidst a psychological thriller – who attacked Tracy and what he wants. The psychological thriller element adds a dark and brooding undertone throughout the book – even in the more lighthearted moments.

Bradbury does well developing the characters. Tracy and Jesse are two complex characters that have many sides to their personalities. The pain and loss that Tracy and her dad and brother suffer when their mom and wife dies unexpectedly is real and feels true. They do not know how to deal with her loss and what their new roles are in the family.

The novel includes several turns in the plot, especially one big one at the end.

 

Reviews

1983: Reagan, Andropov, and a World on the Brink by Taylor Downing

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 0 Comment

As most people who grew up during the Cold War know, it was a time of tension, to put it mildly, between the United States and the Soviet Union. There were long periods of stability with short periods of high strain – particularly during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and in 1983. The last period is not known by many nor how close the two countries came to nuclear war. Taylor Downing in his book 1983: Reagan, Andropov, and a World on the Brink describes how the countries came to the brink of nuclear war.

Downing skillfully and succinctly summarizes Russo-American relations from the end of World War II to the time of President Reagan’s election. He then more deeply explores why relations initially went from bad to worse under Reagan. This exploration looks at the reasons from the perspective of each country.

The strongest part of the book is on how each side misinterpreted the intentions of the other, especially in 1983. Downing uses many examples of how an innocuous decision by one side was completely misinterpreted by the other. For example, the Russian downing of the Korean Airline plane was a break down of the Soviet air defense system and communications. Although the Russians thought the airliner looked similar to an American military plane that was used to spy on the Russians in Siberia, the Americans thought it was another example of Russian cold-blooded murder. Neither side was willing to see why the other reacted the way it did.

I think Downing is guilty of a bit of idealism. He accurately describes the ineptness and out-of-touch leadership under Leonid Brezhnev (later years), Yuri Andropov, and Konstantin Chernenko. But, I think he portrays Mikhail Gorbachev as too perfect. Gorbachev was the impetus for détente with the West, but he discounts Reagan’s contribution to this détente. The events of 1983 convinced Reagan to tone down the rhetoric and reach an agreement with Gorbachev. It took both men to make compromises to bring a lasting peace.

1983 is a great piece of Cold War history.

Reviews

The Gatekeeper (Inspector Ian Rutledge Mysteries) by Charles Todd

Posted on by Jeff Grim / 0 Comment

A good mystery is a page turner that can’t be put down and that has many plot twists. Charles Todd’s The Gate Keeper meets those qualifications.

The book is the 20th in the Ian Rutledge series written by mother and son duo Caroline and Charles Todd.  As those who have read the series know, Inspector Ian Rutledge is the protagonist. However, several characters (suspects?) are introduced and the authors keep you guessing on who the murderer could be. They introduce doubt into your mind about almost all of the suspects.

Hamish – the voice of a corporal that Rutledge shot during World War I because he refused a direct order – haunts Rutledge’s mind throughout the books, including this one. Hamish focuses Rutledge on the questions to ask and the leads to follow.

Although it may seem odd to have Hamish’s voice in Rutledge’s head, it highlights the struggles of men in previous wars. Rutledge is suffering from shell shock (now called PTSD) from the horrendous things he saw when he was in France. Not only did he have to shoot a man in cold blood, but he also saw his men slaughtered by the bunches. I think it is fascinating how the authors incorporate the shell shock into the story and how it influences Rutledge and some of the other characters that survived the war.

The authors highlight the dogged nature that detectives need in order to solve a case. Rutledge is no different. He ceaselessly looks at all angles until he solves the case.

An excellent mystery that piques my curiosity on the other books in the series.

Reviews

How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life by Russ Roberts

Posted on by Kevin Holtsberry / 0 Comment

A few months ago, I had never really heard of Russ Roberts except maybe in a passing reference to his podcast in Jonah Goldberg’s podcast The Remnant.  But then, because Jonah is such a fan, Russ had Jonah on his podcast and vice versa.  I enjoyed both episodes so much that I subscribed to EconTalk and now listen each week.

Through that listening I began checking out Russ’s writing.  It turned out I had The Price of Everything: A Parable of Possibility and Prosperity already on the shelf (which I am reading now).  But the book that interested me the most was How Adam Smith Can Change Your Life.  So checked it out from the library.  It turned out to be a wonderful and thoughtful meditation on life, love and happiness through the eyes of Adam Smith.

Many people are familiar with Smith’s The Wealth of Nations even if they aren’t economists but few are aware of The Theory of Moral Sentiments.  Though aware of it, Roberts hadn’t read it either.  After discussing it with a colleague and author on EconTalk he decided to read it.  It changed his life; no really.

The book changed the way I look at people, and maybe more important, it changed the way I looked at myself.  Smith made me aware of how people interact with each other in ways I hadn’t noticed before.  He dispenses timeless advice about how to treat money, fame, and morality.  He tells the reader how to find happiness, how to treat material success and failure.  He also describes the path to virtue and goodness and why it’s a path worth pursuing.

So Roberts set out to explore why so few know that the author of “perhaps the best book on why some nations are rich and some are poor” wrote “as eloquently as anyone ever has on the futility of pursuing money with the hope of finding happiness.”

Part of the answer is the language and style.  It takes work to read an academic treatise with all that went with that hundreds of years ago.  The prose can be daunting and the structure complicated.

The beauty is that you can read Robert’s book and explore the arguments and insights of Smith in very accessible and readable prose.  If that motivates you to go back and read Smith all the better.

I wont offer a detailed summation of the book, but there are two main concepts worth highlighting: the importance of self-knowledge and the proper pursuit of happiness.  The two are connected.

Self-knowledge is important because it helps us get past both our inherent selfishness and our biases and ability to self-deceive.  Smith argues that humans care about themselves and what affects them; they see the world through the lens of their own lives.  But this doesn’t mean they are ruthlessly selfish and completely uncaring.

This caring for others comes not from an innate goodness but from a sense of duty and morality outside of ourselves. He uses the concept of an impartial spectator.  We think of someone outside the situation, without direct involvement, and ask what would they think of our choices/actions.  Whether this is God or our conscience or some other concept, this moral sense guides our actions even when we are not explicitly thinking about it.

But Smith also argues that this is a way for humans to understand their motivations and actions better, and thus act in more compassionate and honorable ways.  Since we care about ourselves and those we love first and foremost, it is easy to act selfishly and self-centered.  Keeping the impartial spectator in mind allows us to see our actions in a different light and judge our actions more accurately; to see ourselves as we really are.

Which leads to one of Smith’s most famous quotes and the point on which the rest of the book turns:

Man naturally desires, not only to be loved, but to be lovely; or to be that thing which is the natural and proper object of love. He naturally dreads, not only to be hated, but to be hateful; or to be that thing which is the natural and proper object of hatred. He desires, not only praise, but praiseworthiness; or to be that thing which, though it should be praised by nobody, is, however, the natural and proper object of praise. He dreads, not only blame, but blame-worthiness; or to be that thing which, though it should be blamed by nobody, is, however, the natural and proper object of blame.

Robert’s in many ways spends the rest of the book unpacking this quote and connecting this to happiness:

When we earn the admiration of others honestly by being respectable, honorable, blameless, generous, and kind, the end result is true happiness.

The book carefully walks the reader through Smith’s arguments and insights about the temptation of confirmation bias, gadgets, flattery, celebrity, riches, and a host of things we might not associate with the eighteenth century, and their connection to virtue and contentment.

It is thought-provoking and convicting but never preachy.  Roberts has a sense of humility not often connected to self-help books but nevertheless offers much sage advice about life.  Through anecdotes, biographical notes and hypothetical scenarios, Roberts helps you think about the choices you make and have made, through the lens of being both loved and lovely.  It is not always a comfortable process but it is rewarding and important.

It is not an exaggeration to say that working through these issues is an important step to improving our lives, communities and world.

If, like me, you are a listener of the EconTalk podcast but have not read Russ’s book, I highly recommend fixing that. We could always do with more thinking about how to love, how to be worthy of love and how to connect that to the larger world.

 

Reviews

The Sphinx’s Secret by Gwenda Bond & Christopher Rowe

Posted on by Kevin Holtsberry / 1 Comment

Continuing our summer trend of reading books by “friends of the blog” (i.e. authors I have been reading for some time and who I have interacted with as a result of this website), we turn to Gwenda Bond & Christopher Rowe’s middle grade series The Supernormal Sleuthing Service.

I enjoyed The Lost Legacy enough to look forward to reading book #2 and The Sphinx’s Secret did not disappoint.  The focus remains on Stephan and his friends, and how they work together to face the challenge, but this book had a little more tension and action than the first.  Both the introduction of the mysterious wizard and Sphinx kind added another element to the already fun cast of characters.  There was a real sense that something was at risk; which is not something you always get with books in this category.

This is a fun, creative middle grade series with a focus on friendship and solving mysteries.

 

Reviews

Leaving Cloud 9 by Ericka Andersen

Posted on by Kevin Holtsberry / 0 Comment

I’ve known Ericka Andersen for over a decade going back to my days as a conservative blogger/online activist type.  Over the years I have been impressed with her career as she became an expert in social media marketing, digital influence and communications.  She works hard, has a lot of energy and works for some great organizations.

I was equally impressed when she moved back to Indiana to be closer to her family and to start a family herself.  And although I followed many of these changes via Facebook, we weren’t particularly close friends and my busy life and own family meant I only saw bits and pieces when I happened to catch them in my feed.

So when I heard that she was publishing a book, Leaving Cloud 9, about her husband and his remarkable life story I was intrigued.  I try to make a point of reading books by people I know (even if only online).  The dramatic nature of the story she would tell grabbed my attention even more.  I was lucky enough to be able to get a review copy from NetGalley and dove in.

As I have mentioned on social media a few times, Leaving Cloud 9 is not an easy book to read.  It tells the story of abuse, neglect, and abandonment; of PTSD, bipolar, social anxiety, divorce and depression.  But it is also a story about love and redemption; about beating the odds and rising above the most challenging environment to find faith, hope and love.

The book reads like a memoir in the sense that it recounts the life of Rick Sylvester but it does so through the voice and eyes of his now wife Ericka.  Along the way she folds in social sciences research and public policy issues related to the problems and issues Rick faced.

As I read through the traumas Rick and his sister suffered through and their continued attempts to simply survive when everything in life seems stacked against them, I couldn’t help but thinking 1) what a harsh reminder of how some people live and how blessed I am, even with challenges of my own family and 2) how did the @#$% did Rick survive?

And that is what the book drives at; that question looms throughout.  Andersen’s answer is a combination of Rick’s own refusal to give up, a few people and circumstances at key points, and God’s saving grace.

Rick showed an amazing determination to just keep trying; to keep pushing forward. He joined the military after high school which gave him discipline, solidarity and friendships.  It was not a smooth experience and he didn’t find the military his ultimate vocation but there were important elements of adulthood that were gained.

There were a few key people who helped Rick survive.  First and foremost was his sister.  They clearly relied on each other their whole lives and just having some else there with you as you went through hell meant something important.  And later his sister would play a key role in helping Rick keep trying and moving forward.  One of his mom’s boyfriends also helped Rick see that there were adults who cared about him and who could serve as role models, no matter how flawed.  Just a glimpse of love and support meant a lot. And of course, Ericka is in many ways the final necessary piece to his healing process.

God is the other thread that is weaved into the whole story.  Ericka and Rick are not shy about their belief that God is the ultimate reason that Rick has come through the incredible traumas he faced and found a life of stability, love and support.  This foundational belief that God was moving in Rick’s life and in Ericka’s and that the only path to salvation was faith in Jesus Christ; both in the abstract theological sense and in the very real life sense.

You may or may not agree with this theological perspective.  You may have nagging questions about the existence of evil and the role of faith; may wonder how Rick is different from the many other children who didn’t find a happy ending.  But you can’t question the role it played in their respective lives and, as Ericka relates, how Rick truly found healing in the church and through his faith.

And as these threads begin to connect in the book’s closing chapters what struck me was the amazing love Ericka obviously has for Rick and the deep faith required to believe that 1) the real Rick was not reflected in his problems, his anger and social anxiety 2) that God was calling her to something important in this relationship. I don’t mean to imply that Ericka took on Rick as some sort of mission project but rather she understood that their relationship could be a true reflection of the redemptive love of Jesus and that would be a beautiful thing.  To see through all the challenges and truly believe that God could make something beautiful out of all of the suffering, and of Ericka’s life, struggles and experiences, etc..

It is truly an incredible story.  Not just that Rick could overcome incredible odds and graduate college, find stable employment, find a lasting love, and begin to create a loving family of his own, but that he and Ericka could meet in Washington, DC and create a bond that would lead to love, marriage and parenthood.  Even having children was an act of faith and another example of how they persevered through love and faith.

So the question that lingers in many people’s minds has to be why write a book like this and why read it?  Ericka and Rick took the risk to tell their story because they believed it would give hope and faith to those who might be struggling with the same or similar issues.  They want to spread the message that you can survive and even thrive.

And in the same way reading it is a stark reminder of the incredible hardships many American’s face every day and that faith, hope and love are needed more than ever.  Ericka and Rick’s story is inspiring and humbling.  For many who read it, like me, it will be a reminder to count your blessings and an opportunity to reflect on the importance of faith and family.

And that is a message we all need to hear.