That Used to be Us by Thomas L. Friedman and Michael Mandelbaum

Another book co-authored by Thomas L. Friedman, New York Times columnist and author of The World is Flat and others. The subtitle is: How America fell behind in the world it invented and How we can come back. Sobering commentary on how we as a country moved away from our tradition formula for success--five pillars that together form a foundation that as achieved so much. They are: public education for more and more Americans; building and continual modernizing of our infrastructure--bridges, roads, bandwidth, etc.; sensible immigration policies; government support research and development;  and implementation of necessary regulations on economic activity.  (Not just regulation for regulation sake.)

Adding to this group of issues is the grid-lock presently in our our political system---Liberals seem to feel government can solve everything and Conservatives feel that government is THE problem. The authors discuss how we have arrived at our present situation---two decades of not paying attention to the world we live in.

Actually, we as Baby Boomers have engaged in behaviors more suitable to toddlers not adults--hence the name Terrible Twos. Across the board Baby Boomers have over-indulged -- from individuals over-extended in credit & unaffordable huge mortgages to Wall Street for shady behavior in investments to governments rolling back taxes while conducting two long foreign wars and extending the national deficit.

Offering some suggestions-- something like wake up and smell the roses/fish smell.  A third party candidate to bring the two main parties back toward the central and possible compromises to move forward the country. Individual Americans are doing things--creating businesses, etc. and finding ways to prosper.

This is a similar book to Tom Brokaw's book The Time of Our Lives which I read & reviewed awhile back. Much more detail is provided in Friedman/Mandelbaum but observations are similarly focused in both books. Lots of possibilities to improve and better our country for future generations but we as a people need to make some hard choices and decisions and stop in-fighting and getting distracted from our real challenges.

The Big Retirement Risk by Erin Botsford

The subtitle of this book is: "Running out of money before you run out of time". Now for those of us near or at retirement, that's the concern/fear/worry!  We, baby-boomers, are entering the retirement years at a fierce rate and haven't always saved enough or prepared enough for the retirement years which now can stretch out for 30+ years or more. Add to that the current state of inadequate funding/reform of Social Security and Medicare and state/city pensions, and this group of retired folk are moving into uncharted and dangerous financial waters.

The author provides a new way of looking at retirement expenses and another prospective on what constitutes a truly diversified investment portfolio. Financial  advisor, Erin Botsford shows readers how to identify their preferred lifestyle and sustain it throughout retirement.  The book provides some worksheets to allow individuals to work through a budget and define what is required to maintain the type of preferred lifestyle desired during retirement. Breaking categories into what is absolutely required to maintain this lifestyle and how best to secure that income stream. She discusses various types of investments with their relative values and risks thoughtfully explained.  And along the way, she exposes financial myths for the facilities they are.

This book provides a new look at some real problems and solutions that could help many achieve some peace from this real fear of being elderly and out of money.

A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness

Wow! Witches, vampires, daemons and humans inhabit the world in a delicate balance between the magical and non-magical world in this debut novel. Most of the  humans don't realize there are magical beings as they make every attempt to "fit-in". When historian Diana Bishop,  opens a bewitched alchemical manuscript in Oxford’s Bodleian Library, she attracts all sorts of attention -- from the magical creatures who fear the status quo will be disturbed by the information in this book.  And so begins a rousing, fascinating story that becomes a love story when the vampire, Mathew Clairmont and witch, Diana, go against the traditions and magical taboo of inter-specie relationships.

 Alas, it's another trilogy with the second book, Shadow of Night to be released in the summer, 2012. I couldn't put it down and am now eager for the next one. The author has written several non-fiction books previously and had done extensive research for this book -- lots of history involved in the story too.

If you liked the Twilight series, you'll love this one also and find it very well written.. It's a wildly fascinating read. The prose is fluid and I had the impression of witnessing the events as they were happening.

The captive heart by Dale Cramer

For some time I've read books with an Amish setting. They typically provide a good story and a peek into the Plain People's unique way of living. This is the second book in the Paradise Valley: Daughters of Caleb Bender trilogy by Dale Cramer.  The author's father was Old Order Amish and he has Amish relatives so he brings authenticity of his writings. In 1922, a group of Ohio Amish moved to Paradise Valley in Mexico to establish a community there.  This was a period of unrest in Mexico with bandits roaming freely and terrorizing peasants and farmers.  The story revolves around Miram and her growing affection for Domingo, who works with her father and the other residents. I actually enjoyed the first one much more than this one. I sometimes have the feeling that a author stretches out a story line to make it into a three book deal. But if when I read the first of a trilogy, I want to read the next one and after that I want to find out the end of the story -- so I suppose this is a successful book publisher strategy.

Several years ago I read another book by this author, Levi's Will which I thoroughly enjoyed. It's a prodigal son story with an Amish setting.

Additional books

Since I was with our grandson, Lee, I had the chance to read several picture books of interest to him.

Dinosaur Dig! by Penny Dale was a popular book with Lee. Counting the dinosaurs as they dig and build their own swimming pool.  This was the most popular among the new ones we got. Others that met the Lee Seal of Approval were: Llama llama red pajama by Anna Dewdney, How does a dinosaur say goodnight by Jane Yolen and Mark Teague; Red truck by Kristen Hamilton and Richard Scarry's Busytown.  Lee loves to be read to and really concentrates on the illustrations.

We went to Barnes and Noble in Louisville and picked out four new books to add to his personal library. That B&N has a very attractive children's area complete with a Thomas the Train track and play area. Very popular with this 3 year old!

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

A friend recommended this book to me -- great way to find good books! It's a book about many things -- ethics, accessibility and race in particular.  Hennrietta Lacks was diagnosed with cervical cancer and treated at John Hopkins Hospital (a charity hospital) in 1951 and died shortly thereafter. In the course of her treatment, cell samples from her tumor were taken and cultured without her knowledge or consent. They became HeLa – the immortal line of cells that would change the world; advanced medical understanding of cancer and other diseases, and underpinning the polio vaccine, IVF, cloning, and more. The cells launched a multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials but her family cannot afford health insurance.  Watch Book Trailer


Ethics:
Black Americans have had reason to distrust the medical profession; the history of experimentation exists on multiple fronts. Tuskegee Experiment was just one. There was no informed consent given by Henrietta or any family member. Her family never benefited from this huge industry or really never had much information about what had happened.

Accessibility: Americans, particularly the poor, still struggle with finding health care today.  Then, apparently, some doctors felt that since it was charity care, the donation of cells for research was a fair exchange. Hennrietta's family still doesn't have ready access to medical care.

Race:  The specter of a second tier of citzenship is also evident in this book.

Winner of numerous awards and prizes in 2010, this book is scheduled to be made into a HBO film by Oprah Winfrey and Alan Ball.

A Mystery -- Breaking Silence

Sometimes I feel the need to read something outside my comfort zone which is typically historical fiction or nonfiction. And lately I find I've read a lot of Amish based fiction which isn't historical actually but more like a romance. As it's also outside of the usual American culture, Amish fiction shows a peek into what a simplier life is like.

 However, this particular book Breaking Silence by Linda Castillo is rather a police mystery set in Amish country in Ohio featuring Police Chief  Kate Burkholder.  I didn't realize that it's the third one with similiar settings and the same main characters but it stands alone -- it's not necessary to have read the others to understand and follow the story line. 

Conversations between characters seemed stilted to me; as well, as limited character development. I didn't particularly enjoy this one; it was rather gory and some of the facts and incidents were shocking.

Sometimes it seems writers aim for the "shock" value. 

Bibiography Time with

I seeming to gravitate toward non-fiction at the moment. Just finished:

The Real Elizabeth: An Intimate Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Andrew Marr

The biography was completed in time to correspond with the 60th anniversary of her reign. What an amazing life she has had. A life of privilege with huge responsibilities. She ascended the throne in 1952; all my life she has been the queen.  Her first child, Prince Charles is a few years older than I am --- when I was little my mother would tell me I could become a princess if I married him.  Hummm...where did she get that?

She became queen in her mid-twenties, married only a few years and with young children.  Her first Prime Minister was Winston Churchill, a figure made famous during World War II. She has known and received all the U.S. Presidents since Harry Truman--again a person known from history books. She has given such continuity to the British people and Commonwealth. And through bad times and troubles, she has conducted herself with dignity and grace. Monarchy is modernized and made more relevant because of her reign. But it hasn't been all tea and crumpets. National issues and crisis, family and associates and the changing face of the world all have shaped her reign.

 It's an interesting read and shows a personal side of modern history.

A New Year's Resolution Type of Book - The Time of Our Lives

I also read one coming from Tom Brokaw, well-respected journalist since the 60's. It was an appropriate one for the New Year as it has several ideas that could be incorporated into resolutions on a personal and national level. Perhaps Congress should have this book as a "Everyone Reads Book" and then gets together to discuss.

The Time of Our Lives: A Conversation about America: Who We Are, Where We've Been, and Where We Need to Go Now, to Recapture the American Dream
     

This books reads just like Tom Brokaw is speaking to you.  He has such credibility; he's been such a part of the American and international scene reporting all the significant events in recent history. This book is somewhat of a personal reflection on his own life, family and America---how we have arrived in the troubling times we find ourselves presently.  But this book offers much more than just a litany of our ills, he presents some suggestions for getting America moving again and in a positive way toward a brighter future for all our citizens.  Some areas considered include: education reform, higher education partnerships with industry, personal finance (i.e. saving for that "rainy" day), the importance of being involved with your community both locally and nationally---consider volunteering.

It's a worthwhile read and perhaps can offer some insight and ideas for the future.