Tag: Nonfiction

Books, Professional Development

Book 535: Nudge – Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein

Geoff W

I’m really taking to heart all of the articles I read about the most successful people and I’m trying to read one nonfiction book that will teach me something every month this year. I just looked back on all my stats from the last year and I’ve averaged 16 nonfiction books a year.

I’m still not 100% sure what list I saw this on, but I picked up a copy back in August of 2016. It was probably when I started reading about the importance of mental acuity and keeping your mind sharp and constantly learning how to do new things. That or it was when I was dealing with some craziness at work and needed all the advice I could get! Pick any number of these professional development books and you’ll see what I mean, specifically those dealing with conflict.

Continue reading “Book 535: Nudge – Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein” →

ARC, Books

Book 516: Jane Austen: A Brief Life – Fiona Stafford

Geoff W

After being disappointed by the much hyped (by me internally at least) Jane Austen, the Secret Radical by Helena Kelly I looked elsewhere to nurse my mental wounds and found this lovely brief biography by Fiona Stafford. I reached out to the publisher for a copy as the book was recently re-released as part of Austen’s 200th death anniversary.*

I’ve surprisingly steered clear of nonfiction works concerning Austen (not really though because I like that she’s a bit of a mystery even with what we know about her. That being said I do have a few on my shelf that I plan to make my way through eventually. I’m not sure many, if any, will top this delightful read.

Continue reading “Book 516: Jane Austen: A Brief Life – Fiona Stafford” →

Books

Book 513: Start Late, Finish Rich – David Bach

Geoff W

It covers a lot of the same ground as Bach’s free newsletter and the previous book I recently read by him, The Automatic Millionaire. This makes sense as he’s built his personal finance empire on the same basic tenets of automate as much of your wealth as you can and save as much as you can while simultaneously diversifying and increasing your income.

In this book he takes the same premise (along with purchase a house) and says do it faster! It’s no longer identify your latte factor, it’s turbocharge your latte factor! I did find the addition of consider franchising to be very interesting, almost enough so to make me go look at more books/how-to guides about it. Continue reading “Book 513: Start Late, Finish Rich – David Bach” →

Books

Book 509: The Communist Manifesto – Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

Geoff W

You’re welcome in advance for my not just writing “What a load of horse-shit.” However, as you read keep in mind that’s pretty much what I’m thinking. I’ll try to write something a bit more PC, but I’m not sure how successful I will be.

I picked up a copy of this a little over four years ago and who knows why I did this. I’m sure part of it was just that The Communist Manifesto is one of those books/works that EVERYONE has heard of but that so few have actually read, especially outside of a history course. For me though this book didn’t feel like it was meant to be read, it felt like it should have been an incredibly long and boring speech given at some sort of rally. Basically you’d be incredibly energized at the very beginning, fall asleep in the middle and then energized again at the end.

Continue reading “Book 509: The Communist Manifesto – Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels” →

ARC, Books, Professional Development

Book 507: If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face? – Alan Alda

Geoff W

Only two ARC/Galleys left and I am all caught up! The same publicist who sent me Finally Out reached out about this book and the title had enough humor in it I figured it was worth a shot.* I enjoyed this so much more than I thought I would!

What Alan Alda—I didn’t even recognize him from MAS*H (imdb link), I just recognized his caricature—is doing is what the Plain English Campaign has been trying to do since the late 70s, just through a different venue: improv. Both are trying to get things translated from the indecipherable jargon of science or government into easily relatable language. Alda, has basically made a side career out of this with the Alan Alda Center for Communicating Science at Stony Brook University, where the observations he made from his many years on Scientific American Frontiers are put into practice to teach scientists how to talk to non-scientists.

Continue reading “Book 507: If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face? – Alan Alda” →