Tuesday, May 31, 2022

FROM THE SPINE - MAY 2022 BOOK REVIEWS

 May 2022

In May we celebrated Memorial Day and I honored the fallen troops by doing 1/2 Murph. I’ll be sore for a week. Jet just turned 8. It’s hard to figure out how he got so big so fast. School is out for the kids and so the summer adventures begin. Joey won VIP tickets to the Whiskey Meyers show and was generous to share with Aubrey and me. We love the live music, but we are not quite fancy enough for VIP so we’ll stick to GA. Jet’s soccer season ended with a couple of big wins. The boys learned a lot this season from Coach Wes and I learned that I’d rather be Dad than Coach. I was also able to go out shooting a few times in May. We shot clays off of the thrower and also went out and shot a sporting clays course. Sporting clays are challenging and it’s one of my favorite things to do. The Kansas wind made it extra challenging and humbling.


Here are the books I finished in May 2022 and my short reviews of them:


Short Stories/Articles

The Top Idea in Your Mind by Paul Graham

The stuff you think about in the shower- it’s really important. Don’t waste that time. The biggest thieves of this passive thinking time are money issues and disputes. If you can keep your biggest challenge (Top Idea) in a place where your mind can chew on it both deliberately and passively, breakthroughs are sure to come. 


13 Strategies That Will Make You A Better Reader (And Person)

Here are the two that I am working on: 1- Look for wisdom, not facts. Seeing how people approach challenges and trials helps me calibrate my approaches. 2- Don’t just learn from experience. There are too many mistakes to be made in life to be able to make them all yourself. It’s better if you share with many others who have gone before you. Which strategy speaks to you?


Fiction Books

The Old Man and the Sea by Earnest Hemmingway

Everyone needs an old man in their lives. Someone to teach them how to fish, how to avoid danger, how to survive, how to suffer with pride and courage when a job calls for it. There have been several old men in my life who poured their wisdom and energy into me just like the old man in this story pours into the boy. The old man is a fisherman who has gone 84 days without a catch, but on the 85th day, he hooks the biggest marlin he's ever seen. The fish is so big that it holds the fisherman and his gift out to sea for two days before he finally tires and surfaces for a final showdown. Many subtle themes resonate with me in the old man’s story- fishing with the old man like fishing with Grand Dad Southard, working hard, being willing to suffer, being tough, and taking care of people with kindness, humility, and dignity. Thanks, Jarrod for reminding me about this book.


This book is for young men and old men and the women trying to understand them. 

(Rated PG, Score 9/10, audiobook read by Donald Sutherland, 2:28)  


The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson (Stormlight Archives 1)

I’ve been reading longer books this year, and this one was long. With over 1100 pages worth of space to paint, this book has amazing depth. The author uses progressive disclosure to open the onion layers of the characters, the world, and the plot. Ironically, it takes the whole book just to set up the scary truths that I suppose are explored in the rest of the series. There are three main story arcs that all tie in together at the end of the book: 1- Kaladin is a surgeon, slave, soldier, and leader of men. 2- Dalinar is the Blackthorn, warlord, shard plate and shard blade wielder, father, high prince, and visionary. 3- Jasnah is a researcher, magician, teacher, philosopher, and historian. Kaladin grows up studying under his father as a surgeon, goes to war to protect his brother, and ends up betrayed into slavery where he gets sold onto Bridge 4. As a bridge runner in the war, Kaladin is supposed to be expendable, hopeless, and broken, but he fights against the status quo, becomes bridge leader, and ends up uniting the men on his bridge into a cohesive fighting unit. Dalinar is mired in politics, trying to save the kingdom from ruin, learning from visions he doesn’t understand about events and powers that only legends can explain. As a high prince, and uncle to the king, Dalinar is the type of strong, disciplined leader that I would want to fight for, but chaos and greed threaten to undermine him at every turn. Eventually, he is betrayed and left for dead in battle surrounded by enemies and abandoned by all except his men, and Bridge 4. Jasnah is highly educated and esteemed by some and hated by others because of the religious and philosophical views she holds. Through her interactions with a young seeker Shallan, who becomes Jasnah’s ward (student) the reader learns about the research Jasnah is doing, her skill in magic and how magic works, and ultimately, the doom approaching. The book is a fantastic leadership fable showing both small-group leadership development through Kaladin and large-scale tactical/political leadership through Dalinar. Other big questions are explored: Can you save lives through violence? What type of leaders are men drawn to, loyal to, and willing to die for? Can you learn how to approach the future by studying the past? What happens when religion becomes a source of power and control rather than a path to answers for seekers? Who is the Almighty? The story is clever, well-written, engaging, layered, nuanced, and balanced. I’ve tried to summarize the major parts of the story because there isn’t room for all the other characters, side stories, quirks, and jokes that add richness to the full story. Thanks, Lucas for talking me past the scary length of this book. On a side note, this book hits all seven inescapable themes


This is for leaders, fighters, and anyone who likes fantasy. 

(Rated PG, Score 10/10, hardback, 1000p., audiobook read by Kate Reading and Michael Kramer)


Sierra Six by Mark Greaney (Gray Man #11)

Sierra Six is a mashup of two story arcs: 1- present-day Court Gentry is on the run from the CIA again and working a black market job when he comes face to face with a ghost from his past. 2- twelve years ago, 25-year-old Court is pulled out of the field working as a singleton asset and plugged into a six-man team in CIA Ground Branch called Gulf Sierra or the Goon Squad. The terrorist (Kahn) is the same guy in both stories. He is building dirty (nuclear) bombs and trying to change the global landscape in Afghanistan and India. Young Court struggles with the integration into the Gulf Sierra because he is used to working alone and his team doesn't trust him. His ninja skills keep him from getting fired and shipped back home. He helps the team track down a busload of stolen explosives and shuts down a team of terrorists shooting civilians in a shopping mall. but he shoots one of his team members in the fog of war, causing his team to ostracize him even more. The team raids the bad guy's bunker and flushes out the dirty bombs and assumes that Kahn died in a helicopter crash. Present-day Court has to rescue the drone operator who is kidnapped by Khan when her drone is detected and tracked back to her. Court learns Khan is working with Indian mobsters. Court also teams up with an old spy who was crushed by the events of 12 years ago. The old spy actually set Court up to find Khan, hoping Court would recognize the terrorist and kill him immediately. Court figures out that Khan has built a massive dirty bomb in the skeleton of a new skyscraper in Mumbai and is ready to detonate it and destroy the financial sector of the country. Court assaults the building in a monsoon, hoping to stop the bomb from being detonated. I enjoyed the action-packed plots, and it was interesting to see the development of the younger Gray Man as he grapples with terrorism, death, revenge, fitting into a team, and understanding his place in the chaos. 


This book is for action junkies and Gray Man fans. 

(Rated R, Score 8/10, audiobook read by Jay Snyder, 15:58) 


Non-Fiction Books

Flamin' Hot: The Incredible True Story of One Man's Rise from Janitor to Top Executive by Richard Montanez 

This is a crazy story where a janitor creates a multi-billion dollar product, writes a book on efficiency, and rises above his humble roots to lead his company (Frito Lay) out of decline and into success. Montanez is a character; he has style and humor and many lessons from his struggles. From the mop closet to the board room he worked hard, owned his work, learned what it is to take initiative, and made connections with many of the leaders who believed in him. He teaches younger workers how to take pride in their work. He exemplifies the idea of acting like an owner. Montanez watched a video from the CEO asking for every employee to create ideas for growing the company and took it to heart. He and his family saw an opportunity to expand chips into a wide-open market- there weren’t any snacks for the Latin families who liked things with extra spices. Seeing this huge gap in the market, Montanez invented Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. Then he went way out on a limb and called up the CEO with his idea. Everyone wanted to watch the janitor get fired for calling the CEO directly, but instead, he got the chance to pitch his idea to the CEO and many other executives. Montanez didn’t know how to pitch, so he went to the library and checked out some books, and developed a pitch. Everyone held their breath as he got ready for his presentation, but he still didn’t get fired. He nailed it. But the business wasn’t ready for Flamin’ Hot Cheetos to go big. They started small, so Montanez took his family out to the LA shops that were selling a few bags here and there and bought them all up and convinced the owners of the shops to buy more. Orders increased, and eventually, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos became a billion-dollar product. Don’t be afraid to look ridiculous. Don’t stop at “what if?”, keep going through “Why not?”, and work your way through the “What then?” questions that will lead your dream to challenge the status quo. Finally, study your words. Know what they mean. Chose them carefully. They have power. Words define our realities. Speak words of power into your dreams and your families. I love this story. It’s a grander version of my own story (which is not quite as far along). 


This book is for the little guy who needs a boost, the brave, and the leaders yet to breakthrough.

(Rated PG, Score 8/10, audiobook read by Steven Montanez, 6:21)


Deep Work by Cal Newport

This is a book about doing deep (extended, undistracted, focused) brain work. In Part 1 Newport argues 1- deep work is valuable, 2- deep work is rare, and 3- deep work is meaningful. In Part 2 Newport describes many strategies for building deep work habits and getting away from shallow distractions. Here are the 4 rules and some ideas discussed to support them: Rule 1- Work deeply. Focus on the wildly important. Act on the lead measures. Keep a compelling scoreboard. Have a cadence of accountability. Schedule blocks of time to be disconnected from the internet. Practice working to a deadline to improve focus. Rule 2- Embrace boredom. Meditate proactively by working on a problem while going on a walk or a run. Rule 3- Quit social media. Write down the top goals you are trying to achieve, then evaluate if the networking tools (social media, IM, email, etc…) support accomplishing these goals. If not, don’t use them. Rule 4- Drain the shallows. Schedule your workday on paper. Fix your schedule and say no to shallow tasks. Be hard to reach. Don’t reply to emails. Build the habit of letting small bad things happen so that you have time to do big good things. Here’s an ironic twist- I tried reading this book last year, but I got distracted. Having dug in and finished it, I did find several strategies I intend to use at work and was validated in several of the strategies that I already use. 


This book is for thought workers, craftsmen, and the easily distracted. 

(Rated PG, Score 7/10, audiobook read by Jeff Bottoms, 7:44)


The Motive by Patrick Lencioni 

The first part of the book is a leadership fable- a story meant to teach the following principles: There are two types of leaders- rewards-based leaders and responsibility-based leaders. The motivation that each leader uses to power his leadership determines the success they will see result from their actions. Rewards-based leaders are the type that see leadership as a reward or finish line for their hard work. They see it as a chance to work on what they want and tend to be entitled and they neglect key areas of their teams and organizations. Responsibility-based leaders see their jobs as an opportunity to serve others. They recognize the areas that are critical to their teams’ and organizations’ success that cannot be delegated. Like Jocko says, they take extreme ownership. Here are the five critical areas that are most neglected by rewards-based leaders: 1- Leadership team development. Making the executive team cooperate and thrive is critical to the success of the organization. 2- Managing subordinates and making them manage theirs. Everyone needs to be managed. Not micro-managed, just held accountable for moving in the best direction for the company and executing critical tasks toward the company’s goals. 3- Having difficult and uncomfortable conversations. The leader must be the one to initiate the conversations to address behavior issues, squash office politics, and force discussion of the critical issues that the group is not addressing. 4- Running great team meetings. If your meetings suck, your decision-making will also suck. It’s the leader’s job to make meetings well-organized, engaging, and focused on deciding critical directions for the team. 5- Communicating constantly and repetitively to employees. It’s the leader’s job to make sure that everyone knows what the company’s function, mission, and goals are and to keep reminding them of key initiatives. No one ever left a company because the company's leaders over-communicated. These are not fun or glamorous parts of leading, but they are critical. Leaders who seek to serve will execute them well. Leaders who are in it for themselves will ignore or delegate these areas to the detriment of their organizations. 


This is for anyone who aspires to lead well and serve others. 

(Rated PG-13, Score 9/10, audiobook read by Jim Frangione, 2:37)


Preview/Currently Reading-

Undistracted by Bob Goff

The Time Traveler’s Wife

The Ogress and the Orphans

The High King (Chronicles of Prydain #5)

There’s Treasure Everywhere


I track my books in a database called Goodreads. You might find it helpful in managing your reading lists. 


Final Thoughts- 

I tried to be more thoughtful about the book reviews I wrote this month. I tried to be more deliberate. I took more time to think about the themes and ideas in each book and tried to relate some of that pondering in these reviews. I hope it shows. 


Thanks for adventuring with me. 


Joshua

Instagram: Fromthespine

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