Homework for my elementary school kids caught me off guard. I don’t remember having homework until high school. It seems common now to hear about kindergarteners having homework and upper elementary kids having significant amounts. This book by two parents addresses what to do when you think your kids have too much homework.
I think the authors make a number of good points including discussing recent studies that show there is no correlation between the amount of homework given and achievement in the elementary grades. Another point they make is that for any student doing 2 or more hours of homework is just as physically detrimental as playing two hours of video games. They are especially concerned with lost family time due to homework.
“Parenting magazines and books urge us to slow down and reconnect with our children and partner when we get home. But if our child’s response is a heart-sinking ‘I have a lot of homework,’ we can say good-bye to any hope of meaningful time together.”
This book is a worthwhile read if you have kids in elementary school or beyond who are struggling with hours of homework. They offer suggestions on approaching the teacher to lighten the load for your kid and even working on developing a homework policy for an entire school district. The general consensus on experts in this area seems to be to focus on reading and no more than 10 minutes of homework per grade per night.
Showing posts with label non-fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label non-fiction. Show all posts
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
The Plutonium Files by Eileen Welsome
This is a non-fiction book published in 1999. Its focus is on experiments with radioactive materials on humans. It is shocking. Some of the experiments described include:
•18 people injected with plutonium without their consent in 1945-46. One was a four-year-old boy.
•751 pregnant women given a radioactive tracer without their consent in 1945-1947.
•74 boys at a state institution recruited to join the “science club” in the 40’s and 50’s for which they received special outings and radioactive compounds in their oatmeal.
•131 prisoners in Oregon and Washington irradiated in the 1960s.
The early experiments were to determine what effects scientists working on developing nuclear bombs prior to WWII might be exposed to in their labs. A 23-year-old chemistry graduate, Don Mastick, recruited to Los Alamos, got 10 mg of plutonium in his mouth when a vial exploded.
“After the accident, Mastick’s breath was so hot that he could stand six feet away and blow the needles on the radiation monitors off scale. His urine contained detectable plutonium for many years.”
His treatment consisted of two different mouth rinses every 15 minutes for 3 hours. Then he had his stomach pumped several times. After that he was handed the beaker containing his bodily fluids and told to separate out the plutonium!
Once nuclear bombs were developed, many tests involved military personnel. A number of nuclear bombs were detonated in Nevada. One larger than that dropped on Nagasaki was tested in Feb. 1951. Three young soldiers, including Jerry Schultz, ages 19 to 21, were supposed to gather weather data about 6 miles from point of impact.
“The AEC official had warned Schultz that the atomic bomb the aircraft was lugging toward them would be the biggest ever dropped from a plane. Be sure to protect yourselves, he had warned. ‘How do we do that?’ Schultz asked. There was a long pause and then the voice said, ‘Frankly, we don’t know.’”
Details about the tests of nuclear bombs at the Pacific Proving Ground, as it was known, are also included. I found it unbelievable that young servicemen were sent in just a few hours later to clean up ships hit by nuclear bombs. Testing pilots flew through the immediate aftermath of bombs to gather data.
It is definitely an eye-opening book about what went on prior to WWII and during the Cold War. Many reports on these activities were declassified in the 1990’s. The book also includes a detailed history of the nuclear experiments going on at Berkeley, Chicago, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and Hanford during the war. I had never heard much about this nuclear development period, although I listened to Glenn Seaborg’s annual talk to general chemistry students at Berkeley in the early 90’s. That was definitely a feel good talk with pictures of him with every president and students coming up afterwards to get his autograph. The building where he first made plutonium now has a plaque up. I worked in a building connected to this building for 5 years and never realized that’s where plutonium had been discovered. The half-life of plutonium 239 is something like 24,000 years!
•18 people injected with plutonium without their consent in 1945-46. One was a four-year-old boy.
•751 pregnant women given a radioactive tracer without their consent in 1945-1947.
•74 boys at a state institution recruited to join the “science club” in the 40’s and 50’s for which they received special outings and radioactive compounds in their oatmeal.
•131 prisoners in Oregon and Washington irradiated in the 1960s.
The early experiments were to determine what effects scientists working on developing nuclear bombs prior to WWII might be exposed to in their labs. A 23-year-old chemistry graduate, Don Mastick, recruited to Los Alamos, got 10 mg of plutonium in his mouth when a vial exploded.
“After the accident, Mastick’s breath was so hot that he could stand six feet away and blow the needles on the radiation monitors off scale. His urine contained detectable plutonium for many years.”
His treatment consisted of two different mouth rinses every 15 minutes for 3 hours. Then he had his stomach pumped several times. After that he was handed the beaker containing his bodily fluids and told to separate out the plutonium!
Once nuclear bombs were developed, many tests involved military personnel. A number of nuclear bombs were detonated in Nevada. One larger than that dropped on Nagasaki was tested in Feb. 1951. Three young soldiers, including Jerry Schultz, ages 19 to 21, were supposed to gather weather data about 6 miles from point of impact.
“The AEC official had warned Schultz that the atomic bomb the aircraft was lugging toward them would be the biggest ever dropped from a plane. Be sure to protect yourselves, he had warned. ‘How do we do that?’ Schultz asked. There was a long pause and then the voice said, ‘Frankly, we don’t know.’”
Details about the tests of nuclear bombs at the Pacific Proving Ground, as it was known, are also included. I found it unbelievable that young servicemen were sent in just a few hours later to clean up ships hit by nuclear bombs. Testing pilots flew through the immediate aftermath of bombs to gather data.
It is definitely an eye-opening book about what went on prior to WWII and during the Cold War. Many reports on these activities were declassified in the 1990’s. The book also includes a detailed history of the nuclear experiments going on at Berkeley, Chicago, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and Hanford during the war. I had never heard much about this nuclear development period, although I listened to Glenn Seaborg’s annual talk to general chemistry students at Berkeley in the early 90’s. That was definitely a feel good talk with pictures of him with every president and students coming up afterwards to get his autograph. The building where he first made plutonium now has a plaque up. I worked in a building connected to this building for 5 years and never realized that’s where plutonium had been discovered. The half-life of plutonium 239 is something like 24,000 years!
Monday, May 10, 2010
The Husbands and Wives Club by Laurie Abraham
Have you ever been completely surprised by an announcement that a couple you know is separating or divorcing? “But they seemed fine,” is always the refrain. Usually no one knows what is really going on in a marriage other than those involved. Well, The Husbands and Wives Club is a book that lets you peak into other people’s marriages. In this non-fiction book the author follows five couples for a year as they attend monthly group counseling sessions.
I don’t remember where I heard about this book, but it might have been on literarymama.com. In a fun section called Essential Reading various editors comment on what they are currently reading.
This book is interesting as it doesn’t just follow one couple and the couples all have some serious issues.
“Before the year is out, the couple for whom I perhaps least expected it will be weighing divorce. Another pair will be confronting the husband’s attraction to men, while a third will make a stunning turn for the better. There will be miscarriages and infertility to confront, job loss and betrayal.”
The book intersperses dialogue and incidents from the therapy sessions, which were all recorded, with current research on the effectiveness of therapy for couples. I didn’t find the research parts so interesting and they seemed more like asides. It doesn’t seem like therapy can be easily evaluated in general.
One couple in particular is exceptionally difficult. A bump by her husband during a class exercise sends the wife out the door obviously furious. The therapist feels that these individual crises help the group bond and allow for other couples to grow while concentrating on someone else’s problems for a bit.
I can’t imagine why any of these couples agreed to have all their issues aired publically. Maybe readers will be comforted by the thought that their marriages are nowhere near that bad.
I don’t remember where I heard about this book, but it might have been on literarymama.com. In a fun section called Essential Reading various editors comment on what they are currently reading.
This book is interesting as it doesn’t just follow one couple and the couples all have some serious issues.
“Before the year is out, the couple for whom I perhaps least expected it will be weighing divorce. Another pair will be confronting the husband’s attraction to men, while a third will make a stunning turn for the better. There will be miscarriages and infertility to confront, job loss and betrayal.”
The book intersperses dialogue and incidents from the therapy sessions, which were all recorded, with current research on the effectiveness of therapy for couples. I didn’t find the research parts so interesting and they seemed more like asides. It doesn’t seem like therapy can be easily evaluated in general.
One couple in particular is exceptionally difficult. A bump by her husband during a class exercise sends the wife out the door obviously furious. The therapist feels that these individual crises help the group bond and allow for other couples to grow while concentrating on someone else’s problems for a bit.
I can’t imagine why any of these couples agreed to have all their issues aired publically. Maybe readers will be comforted by the thought that their marriages are nowhere near that bad.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Having Faith An Ecologist’s Journey to Motherhood by Sandra Steingraber
I’ve read a number of books by mothers about having children over the past few years, so I was surprised I had not heard of this book by Sandra Steingraber, especially since it was published in 2001. It was an interview with the author in The Sun in January that first caught my attention. Steingraber has a Ph.D. in biology and is also a cancer survivor. She is passionate about environmental toxins and the problems they cause. I have yet to read her first book entitled Living Downstream: A Scientist’s Personal Investigation of Cancer and the Environment. In the introduction to her interview with The Sun she takes issue with the idea that her cancer stemmed from genetic causes.
“Years later, when cancer research began to focus on genetic causes, she submitted to doctors’ questions about her family history. She would recount her mother’s breast cancer, her uncles’ prostate and colon cancers, and her aunt’s bladder cancer. The doctors would nod knowingly. Then she would reveal that she was adopted.”
So, Having Faith is not your typical memoir about having a first baby. In fact, I would not recommend it to anyone who is currently or soon to be pregnant. It starts off gently. I completely agree with her complaint about gestation and how obstetricians consider you pregnant two weeks before you are pregnant, not because it is accurate, but because it is easier. She also gives some interesting historical perspectives. For example, morning sickness used to be considered a psychological problem.
“In one hospital in the 1930s, pregnant women prone to sickness were confined to bed and forbidden visitors and vomit bowls until they showed improvement. As further incentive for recovery, the nurses who cared for them were instructed to refrain from changing their sheets promptly.”
The book is initially organized with a chapter devoted to each month of her pregnancy. The really scary stuff starts in Chapter 3 where she looks into four different problems from the past and their impact on pregnancies. Her examples of rubella, thalidomide, Minamata (a town in Japan with mercury waste in the water), and diethylstilbestrol are not for the faint hearted. Thalidomide was given in the late 50s to quell morning sickness, however, it results in what is called reduction limb deficit, which is exactly what it sounds like. The day that thalidomide was taken would correspond to different birth defects, for example, a pill taken on days 35-37 of the pregnancy would result in a baby with no ears, and this is mapped out for which limbs would be lost depending on what day the drug was taken.
Her main point is that the fetus is very vulnerable to environmental toxins, but this is rarely discussed with pregnant women, instead the focus is on possible genetic problems.
“The most troubling aspects of prenatal testing still seem to me the single-minded search for rare genetic defects and the concomitant disregard of environmental threats to pregnancy. For expectant mothers over thirty-five, the hunt for chromosomal trisomies has become a routine part of prenatal care. But ask if your amniotic fluid contains pesticides, and if, so, how this contamination may affect the development of your baby, and you are likely to be met with blank stares. Genes and environment are two partners in a dance of creation.”
The second half of the book, immediately prior to and once her daughter Faith is born, is easier reading and tends to sound more like a memoir. She begins to wonder if a birth at a renowned teaching hospital is the best idea, especially one where epidurals and episiotomies are routine. She quarrels with the idea that pregnant women are sick and should be treated as patients.
“As more than one advocate of natural childbirth has pointed out, if labor and delivery were viewed less as medical events and more as Olympic ones, this distinction would be obvious. Who, after all, would rush up to a marathon runner in the final stretch with a needleful of narcotics?”
She does return to environmental toxins and makes the point that man is not at the top of the food chain, but rather a breastfeeding infant resides there. She examines toxins found in breast milk and looks at studies for how these toxins impact children later in life. Should we tell women, not just pregnant ones, but any 10 year old considering ever having a child, to behave in certain ways and avoid certain foods, or should we clean up those foods? It seems clear to me that we would all be much better off with the cleaned up foods.
Her book reminds me of an article in National Geographic where the author was tested for 320 different chemicals. It would be so interesting for each person to know this information for themselves, but obviously not feasible considering the $15K price tag. I think this is a book I’m going to purchase and set on my shelf next to Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring.
“Years later, when cancer research began to focus on genetic causes, she submitted to doctors’ questions about her family history. She would recount her mother’s breast cancer, her uncles’ prostate and colon cancers, and her aunt’s bladder cancer. The doctors would nod knowingly. Then she would reveal that she was adopted.”
So, Having Faith is not your typical memoir about having a first baby. In fact, I would not recommend it to anyone who is currently or soon to be pregnant. It starts off gently. I completely agree with her complaint about gestation and how obstetricians consider you pregnant two weeks before you are pregnant, not because it is accurate, but because it is easier. She also gives some interesting historical perspectives. For example, morning sickness used to be considered a psychological problem.
“In one hospital in the 1930s, pregnant women prone to sickness were confined to bed and forbidden visitors and vomit bowls until they showed improvement. As further incentive for recovery, the nurses who cared for them were instructed to refrain from changing their sheets promptly.”
The book is initially organized with a chapter devoted to each month of her pregnancy. The really scary stuff starts in Chapter 3 where she looks into four different problems from the past and their impact on pregnancies. Her examples of rubella, thalidomide, Minamata (a town in Japan with mercury waste in the water), and diethylstilbestrol are not for the faint hearted. Thalidomide was given in the late 50s to quell morning sickness, however, it results in what is called reduction limb deficit, which is exactly what it sounds like. The day that thalidomide was taken would correspond to different birth defects, for example, a pill taken on days 35-37 of the pregnancy would result in a baby with no ears, and this is mapped out for which limbs would be lost depending on what day the drug was taken.
Her main point is that the fetus is very vulnerable to environmental toxins, but this is rarely discussed with pregnant women, instead the focus is on possible genetic problems.
“The most troubling aspects of prenatal testing still seem to me the single-minded search for rare genetic defects and the concomitant disregard of environmental threats to pregnancy. For expectant mothers over thirty-five, the hunt for chromosomal trisomies has become a routine part of prenatal care. But ask if your amniotic fluid contains pesticides, and if, so, how this contamination may affect the development of your baby, and you are likely to be met with blank stares. Genes and environment are two partners in a dance of creation.”
The second half of the book, immediately prior to and once her daughter Faith is born, is easier reading and tends to sound more like a memoir. She begins to wonder if a birth at a renowned teaching hospital is the best idea, especially one where epidurals and episiotomies are routine. She quarrels with the idea that pregnant women are sick and should be treated as patients.
“As more than one advocate of natural childbirth has pointed out, if labor and delivery were viewed less as medical events and more as Olympic ones, this distinction would be obvious. Who, after all, would rush up to a marathon runner in the final stretch with a needleful of narcotics?”
She does return to environmental toxins and makes the point that man is not at the top of the food chain, but rather a breastfeeding infant resides there. She examines toxins found in breast milk and looks at studies for how these toxins impact children later in life. Should we tell women, not just pregnant ones, but any 10 year old considering ever having a child, to behave in certain ways and avoid certain foods, or should we clean up those foods? It seems clear to me that we would all be much better off with the cleaned up foods.
Her book reminds me of an article in National Geographic where the author was tested for 320 different chemicals. It would be so interesting for each person to know this information for themselves, but obviously not feasible considering the $15K price tag. I think this is a book I’m going to purchase and set on my shelf next to Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
NutureShock by Bronson and Merryman
This book is touted as a readable review of new research on children; it’s subtitled New Thinking about Children. If you read the newspaper or keep up online, you’ll likely have seen some of the studies. The authors make the point, though, that there are so many new studies it is often difficult to determine what information or practices will really make a difference in your parenting.
For example, I did read about a recent study that suggested lying in a 4-year-old is actually a sign of intelligence. But what do you do with this information? The authors recommend not putting your young kids in situations where they lie to avoid punishment, otherwise they’ll just become much better at it. They discuss this in a chapter called “Why Kids Lie” that looks at preschool to early elementary age kids. They hit this topic again in “The Science of Teen Rebellion.” There are other points in this later chapter, but what struck me was research showing teens routinely lie to their parents on 12 of 36 different topics, and their parents have no idea.
Another chapter that I found particularly interesting is called “Why Hannah Talks and Alyssa Doesn’t.” I think most parents have heard that talking to your kids helps with their language development. The most current research says, though, that they’ll advance most if you respond to their sounds. That is rather than parent-initiated talk, it is really the baby-initiated babble and subsequent responses that lead to significant gains.
I found this book to be one of the most interesting parenting books I’ve read in the past few years. I really like the way the research findings are discussed in practical ways. Another topic considered is testing for gifted programs and reasons why all kids should really be evaluated after a few years and moved around. Some schools actually offer remedial help for gifted students. Wouldn’t it be much better to simply move them to a regular program? And, testing for gifted kids in kindergarten just doesn’t work.
“… if a school wanted the top tenth of students in its third-grade gifted program, 72.4% of them wouldn’t have been identified by their IQ test score before kindergarten.”
Other chapters address why you should explicitly talk to your kids about race and why watching Arthur is worse for your kids’ peer relationships than watching more physically violent shows like the Power Rangers. NutureShock reminds me of one of my favorite parenting books, The Scientist in the Crib, but it goes beyond studies done with babies and is also relevant for parents of older children.
Escape to Books
For example, I did read about a recent study that suggested lying in a 4-year-old is actually a sign of intelligence. But what do you do with this information? The authors recommend not putting your young kids in situations where they lie to avoid punishment, otherwise they’ll just become much better at it. They discuss this in a chapter called “Why Kids Lie” that looks at preschool to early elementary age kids. They hit this topic again in “The Science of Teen Rebellion.” There are other points in this later chapter, but what struck me was research showing teens routinely lie to their parents on 12 of 36 different topics, and their parents have no idea.
Another chapter that I found particularly interesting is called “Why Hannah Talks and Alyssa Doesn’t.” I think most parents have heard that talking to your kids helps with their language development. The most current research says, though, that they’ll advance most if you respond to their sounds. That is rather than parent-initiated talk, it is really the baby-initiated babble and subsequent responses that lead to significant gains.
I found this book to be one of the most interesting parenting books I’ve read in the past few years. I really like the way the research findings are discussed in practical ways. Another topic considered is testing for gifted programs and reasons why all kids should really be evaluated after a few years and moved around. Some schools actually offer remedial help for gifted students. Wouldn’t it be much better to simply move them to a regular program? And, testing for gifted kids in kindergarten just doesn’t work.
“… if a school wanted the top tenth of students in its third-grade gifted program, 72.4% of them wouldn’t have been identified by their IQ test score before kindergarten.”
Other chapters address why you should explicitly talk to your kids about race and why watching Arthur is worse for your kids’ peer relationships than watching more physically violent shows like the Power Rangers. NutureShock reminds me of one of my favorite parenting books, The Scientist in the Crib, but it goes beyond studies done with babies and is also relevant for parents of older children.
Escape to Books
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
The Lemon Tree by Sandy Tolan
Subtitle: An Arab, a Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East
A friend recommended this book on her blog quite a long time ago. I finally got around to reading it and it is worth the time. This non-fiction book is about the history of the formation of Israel. The history is told by examining the lives of two individuals and their families. Dalia Eshkanzi immigrated to Israel at the age of 1 from Bulgaria. Bashir Khairi is a Palestinian whose family was forced to leave their hometown when he was around 6 years old in 1948. Dalia’s family ends up in the house that Bashir’s family has left.
I found myself referring to the three maps in the front of the book over and over again. First is the 1936 map of Palestine under the British Mandate. The second map shows the United Nations Partition Plan in November 1947. The town that Bashir’s family lives in, Al-Ramla, is in the Arab State, but borders the Jewish State. This is only a technicality as almost immediately this town is taken over by Israeli forces. The 2005 map of Israel and the Palestinian Territories shows Ramla as clearly being part of Israel.
This book really shows the impossible situation that anyone who lives in this area is in. Bashir is almost constantly being arrested and put in jail as he insists on the 1948 United Nations right of return plan. Yet, how can he return to a place where someone else is now living? And, for many Palestinians their homes no longer exist. Dalia meets Bashir and over many years they have many discussions, yet can never resolve anything. Dalia cannot go back to Bulgaria and she wants Bashir to accept the idea of Israel. Once her parents die Dalia even turns the house into an Arab kindergarten called Open House to foster Arab Jewish interactions.
I’d encourage you to read this book, if like me, you’ve read about the violence in Israel, but don’t really understand how it came about.
A friend recommended this book on her blog quite a long time ago. I finally got around to reading it and it is worth the time. This non-fiction book is about the history of the formation of Israel. The history is told by examining the lives of two individuals and their families. Dalia Eshkanzi immigrated to Israel at the age of 1 from Bulgaria. Bashir Khairi is a Palestinian whose family was forced to leave their hometown when he was around 6 years old in 1948. Dalia’s family ends up in the house that Bashir’s family has left.
I found myself referring to the three maps in the front of the book over and over again. First is the 1936 map of Palestine under the British Mandate. The second map shows the United Nations Partition Plan in November 1947. The town that Bashir’s family lives in, Al-Ramla, is in the Arab State, but borders the Jewish State. This is only a technicality as almost immediately this town is taken over by Israeli forces. The 2005 map of Israel and the Palestinian Territories shows Ramla as clearly being part of Israel.
This book really shows the impossible situation that anyone who lives in this area is in. Bashir is almost constantly being arrested and put in jail as he insists on the 1948 United Nations right of return plan. Yet, how can he return to a place where someone else is now living? And, for many Palestinians their homes no longer exist. Dalia meets Bashir and over many years they have many discussions, yet can never resolve anything. Dalia cannot go back to Bulgaria and she wants Bashir to accept the idea of Israel. Once her parents die Dalia even turns the house into an Arab kindergarten called Open House to foster Arab Jewish interactions.
I’d encourage you to read this book, if like me, you’ve read about the violence in Israel, but don’t really understand how it came about.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Best Books Read in 2009
I liked Ordinary Wolves by Seth Kantner for its unusual setting in a remote part of Alaska and also the main character’s contemplation of his changing life. Another fiction book that I really liked was Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford for its interesting story of a Chinese American boy in Seattle during WWII.
In non-fiction The Assist by Neil Swidey really stuck with me – that means it must be good as I really do not like basketball. The author followed high school basketball players and their coach in Boston.
I also liked the delicately creepy short stories in The Diving Pool by Yoko Ogawa. A mystery author I first read this year was Stieg Larsson who wrote The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire. His third and final book in the series is coming out in 2010. These mysteries are set in Sweden with a journalist and a computer hacker as the main characters – if you are squeamish they are not for you.
Happy reading in 2010!
Escape to Books
In non-fiction The Assist by Neil Swidey really stuck with me – that means it must be good as I really do not like basketball. The author followed high school basketball players and their coach in Boston.
I also liked the delicately creepy short stories in The Diving Pool by Yoko Ogawa. A mystery author I first read this year was Stieg Larsson who wrote The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl Who Played with Fire. His third and final book in the series is coming out in 2010. These mysteries are set in Sweden with a journalist and a computer hacker as the main characters – if you are squeamish they are not for you.
Happy reading in 2010!
Escape to Books
Thursday, October 1, 2009
The Vaccine Book by R. W. Sears
Did you know that between the ages of 0 and 5 children may receive 35 separate shots for ~14 different diseases if they follow the American Academy of Pediatrics schedule? And, some of these shots are combined, for example, DTaP vaccinates children for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis and 5 shots of it are recommended. The Vaccine Book takes a look at each vaccine, and the severity and frequency of the disease it prevents, as well as the ingredients and manufacturing process.
This is an interesting book for a couple reasons. Even if you plan to get all the shots recommended and follow the vaccine schedule proposed by your pediatrician, there are still choices to be made. Do you want to get the MMR shot or the MMR combined with chicken pox shot? How about the DTap, hep B and polio combined shot? A combined shot makes for fewer times the child is actually poked so that would seem to be a good thing, right? Here’s what Dr. Sears has to say, “I am not a big fan of combo shots. I prefer to spread the vaccines out and give less at each visit in order to avoid overloading a baby with so many shots and chemicals at once.”
Even in if you don’t have kids, you might find some of this information useful for yourself. Each section considers overseas travel and how you might want to vaccinate differently based on where you might travel. This could be helpful reading for the college student or retiree heading off on an adventure.
I found the chapter on the Hep B vaccine very interesting reading. This shot is given to newborns in the hospital almost as soon as they are born. Since Hep B is a sexually transmitted disease, one wonders how could a baby get it except from the mother? Is Hep B so prevalent that this is a huge risk? Sears argues that the reason this shot is required at birth is because the prevalence of Hep B in infants and children was overestimated when the decision about when to vaccinate was made. According to Sears only ~360 kids per year were diagnosed with Hep B before the vaccine was used and now it’s down to about 130 confirmed cases each year. That’s nothing like chicken pox where the US went from 3.5 million cases per year to ~50,000after the vaccine was introduced.
For an up-to-date discussion on vaccines, including the H1N1 flu vaccine, see the book’s website.
This is an interesting book for a couple reasons. Even if you plan to get all the shots recommended and follow the vaccine schedule proposed by your pediatrician, there are still choices to be made. Do you want to get the MMR shot or the MMR combined with chicken pox shot? How about the DTap, hep B and polio combined shot? A combined shot makes for fewer times the child is actually poked so that would seem to be a good thing, right? Here’s what Dr. Sears has to say, “I am not a big fan of combo shots. I prefer to spread the vaccines out and give less at each visit in order to avoid overloading a baby with so many shots and chemicals at once.”
Even in if you don’t have kids, you might find some of this information useful for yourself. Each section considers overseas travel and how you might want to vaccinate differently based on where you might travel. This could be helpful reading for the college student or retiree heading off on an adventure.
I found the chapter on the Hep B vaccine very interesting reading. This shot is given to newborns in the hospital almost as soon as they are born. Since Hep B is a sexually transmitted disease, one wonders how could a baby get it except from the mother? Is Hep B so prevalent that this is a huge risk? Sears argues that the reason this shot is required at birth is because the prevalence of Hep B in infants and children was overestimated when the decision about when to vaccinate was made. According to Sears only ~360 kids per year were diagnosed with Hep B before the vaccine was used and now it’s down to about 130 confirmed cases each year. That’s nothing like chicken pox where the US went from 3.5 million cases per year to ~50,000after the vaccine was introduced.
For an up-to-date discussion on vaccines, including the H1N1 flu vaccine, see the book’s website.
Monday, August 24, 2009
The Assist by Neil Swidey
I know I just reviewed a book set in Boston, but this non-fiction book recommended by a friend is too compelling not to mention here. The Assist, subtitled Hoops, Hope, and the Game of Their Lives, is the story of a high school basketball coach and his players. It is more than the typical feel good sports story of coach pushes players, players go on to win a championship.
Jack O’Brian is a tough coach and he does want to win championships. However, his ultimate goal is to get his players into college. And, what I find really impressive is he is not trying to just get his star player on a Division I team, but he is trying to place every senior somewhere. I think people forget that you can play basketball (or most other sports) at small, private liberal arts colleges. An athletic scholarship may not be available, but often, if you are a good enough player, that school will meet your financial need. For inner city kids without financial resources (or poor, rural kids) that could mean a full ride at a great school.
The author has incredible access to the lives of the coach, his players, and their families and friends. He also includes some historical perspective. Two of the main players he follows, Ridley Johnson and Jason “Hood” White, have serious bus commutes to get to their high school in Charlestown, a traditionally white area. Swidey spends time on the attempts at desegregation that lead to this current system.
“So black kids like Hood and Ridley – as well as kids all the way down to the elementary level – still spent a big chunk of every day commuting across the city, navigating through gang turf wars, to get to white neighborhoods where the schools were just as dominated by black and Hispanic students as the schools down the street from their apartments. That couldn’t possibly be what the social engineers of the 1970s had in mind.”
O’Brian is very good at placing his players in colleges. Not every player is successful once he gets to college though. The story of Hood is especially compelling. He receives a great scholarship offer to college, but doesn’t seem to appreciate it. He seems to purposely sabotage himself with pregnant girlfriends, as well as by hanging out with a cousin with a record. I’d really like to see a follow up on where he is now.
There is a website for the book that includes a link to an interview with the author, Coach Jack O’Brian and Ridley Johnson.
Jack O’Brian is a tough coach and he does want to win championships. However, his ultimate goal is to get his players into college. And, what I find really impressive is he is not trying to just get his star player on a Division I team, but he is trying to place every senior somewhere. I think people forget that you can play basketball (or most other sports) at small, private liberal arts colleges. An athletic scholarship may not be available, but often, if you are a good enough player, that school will meet your financial need. For inner city kids without financial resources (or poor, rural kids) that could mean a full ride at a great school.
The author has incredible access to the lives of the coach, his players, and their families and friends. He also includes some historical perspective. Two of the main players he follows, Ridley Johnson and Jason “Hood” White, have serious bus commutes to get to their high school in Charlestown, a traditionally white area. Swidey spends time on the attempts at desegregation that lead to this current system.
“So black kids like Hood and Ridley – as well as kids all the way down to the elementary level – still spent a big chunk of every day commuting across the city, navigating through gang turf wars, to get to white neighborhoods where the schools were just as dominated by black and Hispanic students as the schools down the street from their apartments. That couldn’t possibly be what the social engineers of the 1970s had in mind.”
O’Brian is very good at placing his players in colleges. Not every player is successful once he gets to college though. The story of Hood is especially compelling. He receives a great scholarship offer to college, but doesn’t seem to appreciate it. He seems to purposely sabotage himself with pregnant girlfriends, as well as by hanging out with a cousin with a record. I’d really like to see a follow up on where he is now.
There is a website for the book that includes a link to an interview with the author, Coach Jack O’Brian and Ridley Johnson.
Monday, July 27, 2009
The Worst Hard Time by Timothy Egan
The Worst Hard Time is a non-fiction book describing the impact of the depression on the area in the United States hit hardest by drought. Unlike Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, which fictionalizes a family’s migration out of the Dust Bowl, Egan focuses on the families that stayed. Many stayed because they could not afford to move, whereas others were optimistic and initially believed this was only a temporary condition. After a few years even the most optimistic were fleeing, if they could.
I did not realize before reading this book how devastating the dust storms were or how many people died of dust pneumonia. Here‘s one description of the storm that happened on what became known as Black Sunday, April 14, 1935:
“The front edge of the duster looked two thousand feet high. Winds were clocked at sixty-five miles an hour. A few minutes earlier there had been bright sunshine and a temperature of eighty-one degrees, without a wisp of wind. Drivers turned on their headlights but could not see ahead of them, or even see the person sitting next to them.”
There are multiple descriptions of this storm from many different towns and people. The hardest to read is that of a mother who had just buried her baby and attended her grandma’s funeral.
There are some interesting politics going on during this time. FDR was elected president in 1932 and immediately began giving some relief to farm families. Before this there was no safety net at all. Hugh Bennett, head of the Soil Erosion Service during the Roosevelt administration, wanted to try and restore the grasslands and ensure against future dust storms.
“… as the dusters picked up in ferocity, Bennett was one of the first in Washington to try and convince people it was not just another natural disaster or an epic drought. It seemed like something caused by man, a by-product of hubris and ignorance on a grand scale. Maybe some of it could be reversed. But to do so, people would have to think anew about how they used the land.”
Bennett found Congress a hard sell. He planned his next presentation for five days after Black Sunday. That afternoon during his presentation the day turned dark and dust from that storm fell on Washington DC. Bennett got his funding.
The Worst Hard Time does a good job of illuminating the individual lives and the families that are hard hit by this tragedy as well as giving an overview of the whole time period. I did find the book a bit longer than necessary, but appreciated the historical photos included.
Escape to Books
I did not realize before reading this book how devastating the dust storms were or how many people died of dust pneumonia. Here‘s one description of the storm that happened on what became known as Black Sunday, April 14, 1935:
“The front edge of the duster looked two thousand feet high. Winds were clocked at sixty-five miles an hour. A few minutes earlier there had been bright sunshine and a temperature of eighty-one degrees, without a wisp of wind. Drivers turned on their headlights but could not see ahead of them, or even see the person sitting next to them.”
There are multiple descriptions of this storm from many different towns and people. The hardest to read is that of a mother who had just buried her baby and attended her grandma’s funeral.
There are some interesting politics going on during this time. FDR was elected president in 1932 and immediately began giving some relief to farm families. Before this there was no safety net at all. Hugh Bennett, head of the Soil Erosion Service during the Roosevelt administration, wanted to try and restore the grasslands and ensure against future dust storms.
“… as the dusters picked up in ferocity, Bennett was one of the first in Washington to try and convince people it was not just another natural disaster or an epic drought. It seemed like something caused by man, a by-product of hubris and ignorance on a grand scale. Maybe some of it could be reversed. But to do so, people would have to think anew about how they used the land.”
Bennett found Congress a hard sell. He planned his next presentation for five days after Black Sunday. That afternoon during his presentation the day turned dark and dust from that storm fell on Washington DC. Bennett got his funding.
The Worst Hard Time does a good job of illuminating the individual lives and the families that are hard hit by this tragedy as well as giving an overview of the whole time period. I did find the book a bit longer than necessary, but appreciated the historical photos included.
Escape to Books
Thursday, May 28, 2009
the green teen by Jenn Savedge
The green teen is a compact book with a subtitle of the eco-friendly teen’s guide to saving the planet. Author Jenn Savedge has done a nice job of compiling information that teens can use to change their habits, if they want. There are a number of do-it-yourself projects like making your own personal care products or simple things to do around the house to save energy. Included are text codes so teens (or anyone else) can get info on the go. For example, text BUYORGANIC to 4-INFO to get a list of food that might be best to purchase organic. Plus, there are a lot of websites included for further reading if a teen becomes especially interested in a particular project.
I thought some of the most interesting parts to read were the real life stories of teens who have done something in their community to go green. Some examples include starting an environmental club at school or converting a regular car to an electric one. I was most inspired by the group in New York City led by 15-year-old Avery Hairston. This group raises money to purchase compact fluorescent light bulbs and then hands them out to low-income families. I liked this idea because it seemed manageable, yet could really make a difference. A few more ambitious projects are also described such as working to save a lake or to clean up the water supply in India. Some practical help in the form of a recycling plan to propose to your school is included.
I also appreciated the sections where teens received suggestions on how to get their parents to go along with their plans to go green.
For example, “Be Their Guide: Save your parents time and money by researching their options for them.” The book then goes on to point out how to do that and includes some useful websites.
I especially liked this suggestion:
“Take the Hit: If it is going to cost $20 more each week for your parents to buy organic groceries at the store, offer to absorb the costs by paying for them with your allowance or giving up something you’ve been begging for but don’t really need. Make it a family effort so that your parents will know how important this is to you.”
I do have a copy of the green teen to give away to one reader. Post a comment below and I’ll do a random drawing on June 3rd. To learn more about the author visit her site at www.thegreenparent.com or click here to purchase the book.
I thought some of the most interesting parts to read were the real life stories of teens who have done something in their community to go green. Some examples include starting an environmental club at school or converting a regular car to an electric one. I was most inspired by the group in New York City led by 15-year-old Avery Hairston. This group raises money to purchase compact fluorescent light bulbs and then hands them out to low-income families. I liked this idea because it seemed manageable, yet could really make a difference. A few more ambitious projects are also described such as working to save a lake or to clean up the water supply in India. Some practical help in the form of a recycling plan to propose to your school is included.
I also appreciated the sections where teens received suggestions on how to get their parents to go along with their plans to go green.
For example, “Be Their Guide: Save your parents time and money by researching their options for them.” The book then goes on to point out how to do that and includes some useful websites.
I especially liked this suggestion:
“Take the Hit: If it is going to cost $20 more each week for your parents to buy organic groceries at the store, offer to absorb the costs by paying for them with your allowance or giving up something you’ve been begging for but don’t really need. Make it a family effort so that your parents will know how important this is to you.”
I do have a copy of the green teen to give away to one reader. Post a comment below and I’ll do a random drawing on June 3rd. To learn more about the author visit her site at www.thegreenparent.com or click here to purchase the book.
Monday, March 30, 2009
The Mercury 13 by Martha Ackmann
I do not remember who recommended this book to me, but since my daughter was studying space in class I thought I would finally sit down and read it. It was not the inspiring story I thought it might be from the subtitle: The Untold Story of the Thirteen American Women and the Dream of Space Flight. This book is set primarily in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s and the first woman, Sally Ride, did not make it into space until 1983. The first female commander (pilot) was Eileen Collins in 1999. Obviously the thirteen women profiled in this book never made it into space.
The author details the lives of these thirteen (and a few more) extraordinary pilots. Many set distance, altitude and speed records. She describes the tests the women underwent, which were comparable to those of the Mercury 7 – the first seven astronauts chosen by NASA in 1959. The way in which these men were chosen automatically limited the field as the author points out here:
“Eisenhower initially believed that astronauts should come from a variety of professions – arctic explorers, mountain climbers, meteorologist, flight surgeons, deep-sea divers. People with a wide range of abilities and perspectives would enhance space exploration, he thought. But the President changed his mind. In late 1958 he decided that NASA should narrow the field and choose astronauts from the ranks of military jet test pilots, a field that barred women and included few minority men.”
It was surprising to me to learn that the Army was the first to allow female military jet test pilots in 1974, the Navy in 1983, and the Air Force not until 1988.
Jerrie Cobb is the female candidate profiled the most extensively and the one who went through the most tests. The tests were privately done and primarily overseen by Dr. Randy Lovelace who was interested in the possibilities of women in space and how their tests might differ from men. The tests were eventually shut down by NASA. Cobb and a fellow hopeful candidate, Janey Hart, appealed to the vice-president Lyndon Johnson. Janey Hart was a senator’s wife and the mother of 8 children. Johnson’s assistant had drawn up a letter for him to send to NASA’s head that was slightly supportive of having women astronauts, and here is what Johnson wrote on it:
“In his distinctive hand, Johnson announced the verdict that Hart, Cobb, and the press never knew: ‘Lets Stop This Now!’”
A congressional hearing as well as some fighting over control of the Mercury 13 group did not change anything. Another woman extensively profiled in the book is Jackie Cochran, who at the time was too old for the tests – possibly in her fifties. She had headed the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) during WWII. She was also the only woman with jet test experience due to her connections. She is portrayed as doing everything in her power to keep women out of space if she couldn’t be the first one or at least in charge of picking who would be first.
The Mercury 13 is an interesting book to read, and a part of our history that we shouldn’t overlook, even if it is slightly depressing.
The author details the lives of these thirteen (and a few more) extraordinary pilots. Many set distance, altitude and speed records. She describes the tests the women underwent, which were comparable to those of the Mercury 7 – the first seven astronauts chosen by NASA in 1959. The way in which these men were chosen automatically limited the field as the author points out here:
“Eisenhower initially believed that astronauts should come from a variety of professions – arctic explorers, mountain climbers, meteorologist, flight surgeons, deep-sea divers. People with a wide range of abilities and perspectives would enhance space exploration, he thought. But the President changed his mind. In late 1958 he decided that NASA should narrow the field and choose astronauts from the ranks of military jet test pilots, a field that barred women and included few minority men.”
It was surprising to me to learn that the Army was the first to allow female military jet test pilots in 1974, the Navy in 1983, and the Air Force not until 1988.
Jerrie Cobb is the female candidate profiled the most extensively and the one who went through the most tests. The tests were privately done and primarily overseen by Dr. Randy Lovelace who was interested in the possibilities of women in space and how their tests might differ from men. The tests were eventually shut down by NASA. Cobb and a fellow hopeful candidate, Janey Hart, appealed to the vice-president Lyndon Johnson. Janey Hart was a senator’s wife and the mother of 8 children. Johnson’s assistant had drawn up a letter for him to send to NASA’s head that was slightly supportive of having women astronauts, and here is what Johnson wrote on it:
“In his distinctive hand, Johnson announced the verdict that Hart, Cobb, and the press never knew: ‘Lets Stop This Now!’”
A congressional hearing as well as some fighting over control of the Mercury 13 group did not change anything. Another woman extensively profiled in the book is Jackie Cochran, who at the time was too old for the tests – possibly in her fifties. She had headed the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) during WWII. She was also the only woman with jet test experience due to her connections. She is portrayed as doing everything in her power to keep women out of space if she couldn’t be the first one or at least in charge of picking who would be first.
The Mercury 13 is an interesting book to read, and a part of our history that we shouldn’t overlook, even if it is slightly depressing.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Get Known before the Book Deal by Christina Katz
Christina Katz is the well-known author of Writer Mama, How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids, a book that has been the inspiration for many writers. It is primarily for those new to the craft and attempting to publish in magazines. The book is broken down into manageable chapters such as Tackle the Clips-Catch 22 or Draft Your Query. Each chapter includes tips, examples, and exercises to get you on your way to publishing an article. She does a really nice job of breaking down and explaining the different types of articles, including writing tips, list articles, fillers, and how-to articles along with personal essays and feature-type articles that require a query.
Katz’s latest book is Get Known Before the Book Deal and she graciously agreed to share some questions and answers about her latest book here.
What is a platform, and why is it so important for unpublished writers to have one?
A platform is a promise, which says you will not only create something to sell (a book), but also promote it to the specific readers who will want to purchase it. Your platform communicates your expertise to others and it works all the time so you don’t have to. Your platform includes your Web presence, any public speaking you do, the classes you teach, the media contacts you’ve established, the articles you’ve published, and any other means you currently have for making your name and your future books known to a viable readership. A platform isn’t what you once did. It’s what you currently do. If others already recognize your expertise on a given topic or for a specific audience or both, then that is your platform. A platform-strong writer is a writer with influence.
Why is it so important to publishers that writers have a platform?
One writer can have a great book idea at the perfect time and be the absolute best person to write that book and still not land the deal if he or she doesn’t have the platform that is going to fulfill the promise to sell the book. Agents and editors have known this for years and look for platform-strong writers and get them book deals. If you want to land the book deal, today, then you need to become a platform-strong writer. You need to stand out in the crowd by the time you are ready to pitch your book.
Why did you write Get Known Before the Book Deal? What was the intention behind the book?
Most of the other self-promotion books for writers pick up with the book deal. No other book dials self-promotion all the way back to how to get started. My intention for Get Known was that it would be the book every writer would want to read before attending a writer’s conference. It should increase any writer’s chances of writing a saleable proposal and landing a book deal whether they pitch the book in-person or by query.
As I was writing the book, I saw how this type of information was often being offered as “insider secrets” at outrageous prices. No one should have to pay thousands of dollars for the information they can find in my book for the price of a paperback! Seriously. You can ask your library to order it and read it for free. Get Known outlines the complete platform basics step-by-step.
Can you give three specific tips to help writers launch their platform?
Sure. Here’s my top three…
1. Clarify the expertise you have to offer. If you don’t know what your expertise is, then mulling it over could take some time. And that’s okay. Consult experts you respect. Do some self-reflection. Get out and connect with others like you through associations or conferences. Write some articles on things you know how to do. Don’t be afraid to take time for platform development before you start spending a lot of time online…especially if you already are online but are not getting any closer to accomplishing your professional writing goals. When it comes to clarifying your expertise, taking a step back and looking within is a good strategy.
2. Carve out a distinct niche among others who are offering similar expertise. How are you different? Inquiring minds want to know. You’ll have to communicate who you are and what you do quickly. Attention spans are getting shorter, so writing down what you do concisely is critical. Platform isn’t the credentials or your resume; it’s what you currently do. It’s current, constantly evolving, and updated on an ongoing basis. A blog is a good example of a place where a writer can authentically share what she is learning to assist others. Any niche should always be a win-win proposition like this. But again, give your topic some forethought. Realize that a hundred people might already be blogging on the same topic.
3. Identify and respond to your audience. If you are vague about your audience, the whole writing process takes longer and typically requires more rewriting. This applies to books, blogs and everything else. But when you identify your specific audience and begin speaking to them directly, the conversation can spark all kinds of wonderful ideas, connections and opportunities. Small concrete steps build over time and create career momentum.
When you're done platform building, how do you find time to write?
My career goes in cycles. I have periods that focus on writing followed by periods that focus on self-promotion. I’m in a promo cycle right now and it’s fun! I’m thoroughly enjoying myself. And I’m still writing plenty. I have noticed that these supposed “non-writing times” often yield the next book idea, which has been the case again this time. I can’t wait to pitch it.
If a writer starts today and allows platform development to be an integrated aspect of her writing career, I’m sure she will find that the two efforts—writing and self-promotion—feed each other and help her career to grow naturally and authentically. And what writer wouldn’t want that?
You can learn more about Christina Katz and her offerings at http://www.christinakatz.com/. And, I have a copy of Writer Mama to give away. Just comment and let me know how you would benefit from the book.
Katz’s latest book is Get Known Before the Book Deal and she graciously agreed to share some questions and answers about her latest book here.
What is a platform, and why is it so important for unpublished writers to have one?
A platform is a promise, which says you will not only create something to sell (a book), but also promote it to the specific readers who will want to purchase it. Your platform communicates your expertise to others and it works all the time so you don’t have to. Your platform includes your Web presence, any public speaking you do, the classes you teach, the media contacts you’ve established, the articles you’ve published, and any other means you currently have for making your name and your future books known to a viable readership. A platform isn’t what you once did. It’s what you currently do. If others already recognize your expertise on a given topic or for a specific audience or both, then that is your platform. A platform-strong writer is a writer with influence.
Why is it so important to publishers that writers have a platform?
One writer can have a great book idea at the perfect time and be the absolute best person to write that book and still not land the deal if he or she doesn’t have the platform that is going to fulfill the promise to sell the book. Agents and editors have known this for years and look for platform-strong writers and get them book deals. If you want to land the book deal, today, then you need to become a platform-strong writer. You need to stand out in the crowd by the time you are ready to pitch your book.
Why did you write Get Known Before the Book Deal? What was the intention behind the book?
Most of the other self-promotion books for writers pick up with the book deal. No other book dials self-promotion all the way back to how to get started. My intention for Get Known was that it would be the book every writer would want to read before attending a writer’s conference. It should increase any writer’s chances of writing a saleable proposal and landing a book deal whether they pitch the book in-person or by query.
As I was writing the book, I saw how this type of information was often being offered as “insider secrets” at outrageous prices. No one should have to pay thousands of dollars for the information they can find in my book for the price of a paperback! Seriously. You can ask your library to order it and read it for free. Get Known outlines the complete platform basics step-by-step.
Can you give three specific tips to help writers launch their platform?
Sure. Here’s my top three…
1. Clarify the expertise you have to offer. If you don’t know what your expertise is, then mulling it over could take some time. And that’s okay. Consult experts you respect. Do some self-reflection. Get out and connect with others like you through associations or conferences. Write some articles on things you know how to do. Don’t be afraid to take time for platform development before you start spending a lot of time online…especially if you already are online but are not getting any closer to accomplishing your professional writing goals. When it comes to clarifying your expertise, taking a step back and looking within is a good strategy.
2. Carve out a distinct niche among others who are offering similar expertise. How are you different? Inquiring minds want to know. You’ll have to communicate who you are and what you do quickly. Attention spans are getting shorter, so writing down what you do concisely is critical. Platform isn’t the credentials or your resume; it’s what you currently do. It’s current, constantly evolving, and updated on an ongoing basis. A blog is a good example of a place where a writer can authentically share what she is learning to assist others. Any niche should always be a win-win proposition like this. But again, give your topic some forethought. Realize that a hundred people might already be blogging on the same topic.
3. Identify and respond to your audience. If you are vague about your audience, the whole writing process takes longer and typically requires more rewriting. This applies to books, blogs and everything else. But when you identify your specific audience and begin speaking to them directly, the conversation can spark all kinds of wonderful ideas, connections and opportunities. Small concrete steps build over time and create career momentum.
When you're done platform building, how do you find time to write?
My career goes in cycles. I have periods that focus on writing followed by periods that focus on self-promotion. I’m in a promo cycle right now and it’s fun! I’m thoroughly enjoying myself. And I’m still writing plenty. I have noticed that these supposed “non-writing times” often yield the next book idea, which has been the case again this time. I can’t wait to pitch it.
If a writer starts today and allows platform development to be an integrated aspect of her writing career, I’m sure she will find that the two efforts—writing and self-promotion—feed each other and help her career to grow naturally and authentically. And what writer wouldn’t want that?
You can learn more about Christina Katz and her offerings at http://www.christinakatz.com/. And, I have a copy of Writer Mama to give away. Just comment and let me know how you would benefit from the book.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
if they are roses by Linda Falcone
Linda Falcone writes a column for The Florentine, an English language newspaper in Florence, and this book is a compilation of her columns. It took me a little while to get into it as each column is only 2-4 pages long. I generally prefer novels to short stories and these columns are ultra-short snapshots of life. if they are roses is subtitled the italian way with words, and Falcone uses an Italian phrase in each column to illustrate a cultural trait or difference. The topics of her columns range from cooking pasta to American movies, money, fashion, food, and soccer along with others.
Here she addresses money: “It could just be me, but I’m convinced you can tell a lot about a culture by the way it talks about money. After all, money may not make the world go round, but it certainly coaxes people to turn corners quickly. Find out how a country talks about cash and you will discover its system of values.”
And here is an example of a commonly used phrase that a non-native speaker may have a hard time deciphering.
“Magari is versatile to the point of being reversible, and it can cover the entire spectrum of future possibility. For highly probable scenarios like ‘Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?’, magari is ‘Yes, I’d love to.’ For daring propositions that have ‘impossible’ written on them in red, magari means ‘nice idea-but no way.’
If you plan on living in Italy long, you’d best get used to this ambiguity. The Italian language often leaves room for interpretation, and words sway with the mood as if conversation were a sudden summer breeze.”
This book would be an excellent gift if you know a non-native heading to Italy for an extended time period, or for anyone dreaming of doing that.
Here she addresses money: “It could just be me, but I’m convinced you can tell a lot about a culture by the way it talks about money. After all, money may not make the world go round, but it certainly coaxes people to turn corners quickly. Find out how a country talks about cash and you will discover its system of values.”
And here is an example of a commonly used phrase that a non-native speaker may have a hard time deciphering.
“Magari is versatile to the point of being reversible, and it can cover the entire spectrum of future possibility. For highly probable scenarios like ‘Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?’, magari is ‘Yes, I’d love to.’ For daring propositions that have ‘impossible’ written on them in red, magari means ‘nice idea-but no way.’
If you plan on living in Italy long, you’d best get used to this ambiguity. The Italian language often leaves room for interpretation, and words sway with the mood as if conversation were a sudden summer breeze.”
This book would be an excellent gift if you know a non-native heading to Italy for an extended time period, or for anyone dreaming of doing that.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Confident Parents Remarkable Kids by Bonnie Harris
Bonnie Harris, author of When Your Kids Push Your Buttons and What You Can Do About It, had a new book come out in September. Confident Parents Remarkable Kids is subtitled 8 Principles for Raising Kids You’ll Love to Live With. Having read both of her books, I feel a major benefit when reading a Bonnie Harris book is the encouragement to stop and assess some of your parenting actions: Are you parenting the way that you want or in the moment at a point of frustration?
Confident Parents Remarkable Kids is laid out with each of the first eight chapters focused on one of the eight principles. The first principle, for example, is My Child Wants to Be Successful. Real life examples from Harris’s classes are included in each chapter along with detailed explanations of the particular principle. Each chapter has a summary of the main ideas and some practice exercises. In the second part of the book she applies the principles to daily life and touches on common issues that parents have with their children such as the morning rush, sibling rivalry, or bedtime. I appreciated some of very specific examples, including an example of how to deal with e-mail bullying.
Bonnie Harris graciously agreed to answer a few questions over e-mail and her answers give insight into her new book, her passion for working with parents, and her thoughtfulness.
What are the important differences between your new book and When Your Kids Push Your Buttons?
Bonnie Harris: Buttons raises the awareness of the assumptions we make when our children behave in ways we don't like. Those assumptions often spin out of control and lead us to react in ineffective or damaging ways. Buttons presents ways to look at those assumptions and reframe them to ones that present a different and much more helpful perspective. The eight principles in Confident Parents, Remarkable Kids are those new assumptions or perceptions. Each of the principles offers a view of our children that leads us to compassion, encouragement, appropriate expectations, clarity of limits, responsibility, and good boundaries.
What kind of parent do you hope will pick up your book?
BH: I want parents who are frustrated with the old ways and don't want to bring their children up that way, who get frustrated and feel guilty about the reactions they find themselves in, who feel they have tried everything and nothing works, who are open to change because the old just hasn't worked, who are not afraid to swim against the tide, who are doing fine but just want to know all there is about the most important job there is. Mainly any parent who is looking and searching for better ways. Although the stories in the new book are of children toddler to twelve, the principles hold true for any aged child.
Why or how did you start writing these parenting books?
BH: I had been teaching parent education for a number of years. My classes, which I still teach with many of the same techniques found in the new book, brought out some problems in parenting that posed an interesting question to me. Why weren't many parents able to put these methods into practice? It finally dawned on me that they were getting their buttons pushed and in that space couldn't respond positively. I began teaching a class called Defusing Your Buttons to get to the bottom of what goes on with parents when that happens and how to help them. Through many classes and learning from many parents, I developed the buttons approach and the book just had to be written. I had no idea at that time that it would get published. After that book, I wanted very much to get all the principles down so that the combination of the two books (no specific order - depends on the parent) could answer most parenting dilemmas. It is my mission to help parents see that by rejecting the old reward and punishment system and taking on a real relationship with their children, treating them with the respect they want themselves, and parenting who each child is rather than who they want them to be, we can raise stronger human beings who will help heal the planet. To me, parenting is at the core of all non-biological issues of dysfunction in our society.
Is there a story/example in the book that you can particularly recommend for someone skeptical about using logic rather than punishment?
BH: The first story in the book about Kathleen and Jared is one of my favorites. Jared was really dragging his mother down - a very lovely, caring, soft-spoken mother who I just loved working with. Jared is one of those boys that frustrates so many high functioning parents like Kathleen. When a child like Jared pushes a parent to her max over and over, it wears one down and there is little reserve left to be at all effective. When Kathleen got the logic behind what we were working on, she was both willing and able to give it a try. It's very frustrating when parents listen and learn new approaches, but either don't put them into practice or try one or two things which fail and then give it all up. It takes perseverance because we have to be consistent until our children trust us. Often it takes a lot of trial and error. But the logic really paid off here for Jared. He responds so well when his parents see him in that different light - seeing that he is not being a problem, but that he is having a problem. As soon as that compassion enters the picture, relaxation can set in. Jared is still a highly frustrating child, but since his parents have been dealing with him from this new perspective, he is far more manageable and they have many more enjoyable times with him. Those moments build up and he ends up with a much more positive view of himself.
To learn more about Bonnie Harris, her books, or to subscribe to her free newsletter visit www.connectiveparenting.com.
Confident Parents Remarkable Kids is laid out with each of the first eight chapters focused on one of the eight principles. The first principle, for example, is My Child Wants to Be Successful. Real life examples from Harris’s classes are included in each chapter along with detailed explanations of the particular principle. Each chapter has a summary of the main ideas and some practice exercises. In the second part of the book she applies the principles to daily life and touches on common issues that parents have with their children such as the morning rush, sibling rivalry, or bedtime. I appreciated some of very specific examples, including an example of how to deal with e-mail bullying.
Bonnie Harris graciously agreed to answer a few questions over e-mail and her answers give insight into her new book, her passion for working with parents, and her thoughtfulness.
What are the important differences between your new book and When Your Kids Push Your Buttons?
Bonnie Harris: Buttons raises the awareness of the assumptions we make when our children behave in ways we don't like. Those assumptions often spin out of control and lead us to react in ineffective or damaging ways. Buttons presents ways to look at those assumptions and reframe them to ones that present a different and much more helpful perspective. The eight principles in Confident Parents, Remarkable Kids are those new assumptions or perceptions. Each of the principles offers a view of our children that leads us to compassion, encouragement, appropriate expectations, clarity of limits, responsibility, and good boundaries.
What kind of parent do you hope will pick up your book?
BH: I want parents who are frustrated with the old ways and don't want to bring their children up that way, who get frustrated and feel guilty about the reactions they find themselves in, who feel they have tried everything and nothing works, who are open to change because the old just hasn't worked, who are not afraid to swim against the tide, who are doing fine but just want to know all there is about the most important job there is. Mainly any parent who is looking and searching for better ways. Although the stories in the new book are of children toddler to twelve, the principles hold true for any aged child.
Why or how did you start writing these parenting books?
BH: I had been teaching parent education for a number of years. My classes, which I still teach with many of the same techniques found in the new book, brought out some problems in parenting that posed an interesting question to me. Why weren't many parents able to put these methods into practice? It finally dawned on me that they were getting their buttons pushed and in that space couldn't respond positively. I began teaching a class called Defusing Your Buttons to get to the bottom of what goes on with parents when that happens and how to help them. Through many classes and learning from many parents, I developed the buttons approach and the book just had to be written. I had no idea at that time that it would get published. After that book, I wanted very much to get all the principles down so that the combination of the two books (no specific order - depends on the parent) could answer most parenting dilemmas. It is my mission to help parents see that by rejecting the old reward and punishment system and taking on a real relationship with their children, treating them with the respect they want themselves, and parenting who each child is rather than who they want them to be, we can raise stronger human beings who will help heal the planet. To me, parenting is at the core of all non-biological issues of dysfunction in our society.
Is there a story/example in the book that you can particularly recommend for someone skeptical about using logic rather than punishment?
BH: The first story in the book about Kathleen and Jared is one of my favorites. Jared was really dragging his mother down - a very lovely, caring, soft-spoken mother who I just loved working with. Jared is one of those boys that frustrates so many high functioning parents like Kathleen. When a child like Jared pushes a parent to her max over and over, it wears one down and there is little reserve left to be at all effective. When Kathleen got the logic behind what we were working on, she was both willing and able to give it a try. It's very frustrating when parents listen and learn new approaches, but either don't put them into practice or try one or two things which fail and then give it all up. It takes perseverance because we have to be consistent until our children trust us. Often it takes a lot of trial and error. But the logic really paid off here for Jared. He responds so well when his parents see him in that different light - seeing that he is not being a problem, but that he is having a problem. As soon as that compassion enters the picture, relaxation can set in. Jared is still a highly frustrating child, but since his parents have been dealing with him from this new perspective, he is far more manageable and they have many more enjoyable times with him. Those moments build up and he ends up with a much more positive view of himself.
To learn more about Bonnie Harris, her books, or to subscribe to her free newsletter visit www.connectiveparenting.com.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
The Devil's Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea
Luis Alberto Urrea is another writer coming to Bend for The Nature of Words. His book, The Devil’s Highway, was a finalist for the 2005 Pulitzer Prize. It is the true story of a failed attempt by 26 men, referred to as the Wellton 26 in media coverage, to cross from Mexico into the United States in May 2001.
It is a story of the people who try to cross and those who try to stop them. The Border Patrol agents spend their days and nights looking for signs of crossing. “And the dark image of the evil Border Patrol agent dogs every signcutter who goes into the desert in his truck. It’s the tawdry legacy of the human hunt–ill will on all sides. Paranoia. Dread. Loathing. Mexican-American Border Patrol agents are feared even more by the illegals than the gringos, for the Mexicans can only ascribe to them a kind of rabid self-hatred. Still, when the walkers are dying, they pray to be found by the Boys in Green.”
I found this book tough to read. I guess I prefer my hardship tales to be fiction. Urrea includes a rather detailed description of the seven stages of dying of hyperthermia, or what is commonly known as heat stroke. This one short sentence really caught my attention: “In the desert, we are all illegal aliens.” The confusing jurisdiction over this desert area with Border Patrol, Customs, DEA, BLM, and INS as well as military and tribal lands thrown in, was overwhelming. In the end an amazingly poorly organized and badly led attempt to cross into the US ended in tragedy for many families. The author does a remarkable job at getting across the hopes of the men on this journey, and the descriptions of how they were found are distressing.
In this book Urrea mentions two other authors who are also going to be at The Nature of Words. From The Devil’s Highway:
“One writer who has focused on this desert, Craig Childs, tells of a pair of old bullet casings found out there. They were jammed together, and when pried apart, an aged curl of paper fell out. On the paper, someone had written, ‘Was it worth it?’”
“Fifteen hundred walkers a day depart from under the Sasabe sign. The writer Charles Bowden, on a visit to Sasabe in 2003, counted five thousand walkers in one afternoon.”
I would prefer to read more about the high desert near Bend, rather than this brutal desert with all its complications in Arizona.
It is a story of the people who try to cross and those who try to stop them. The Border Patrol agents spend their days and nights looking for signs of crossing. “And the dark image of the evil Border Patrol agent dogs every signcutter who goes into the desert in his truck. It’s the tawdry legacy of the human hunt–ill will on all sides. Paranoia. Dread. Loathing. Mexican-American Border Patrol agents are feared even more by the illegals than the gringos, for the Mexicans can only ascribe to them a kind of rabid self-hatred. Still, when the walkers are dying, they pray to be found by the Boys in Green.”
I found this book tough to read. I guess I prefer my hardship tales to be fiction. Urrea includes a rather detailed description of the seven stages of dying of hyperthermia, or what is commonly known as heat stroke. This one short sentence really caught my attention: “In the desert, we are all illegal aliens.” The confusing jurisdiction over this desert area with Border Patrol, Customs, DEA, BLM, and INS as well as military and tribal lands thrown in, was overwhelming. In the end an amazingly poorly organized and badly led attempt to cross into the US ended in tragedy for many families. The author does a remarkable job at getting across the hopes of the men on this journey, and the descriptions of how they were found are distressing.
In this book Urrea mentions two other authors who are also going to be at The Nature of Words. From The Devil’s Highway:
“One writer who has focused on this desert, Craig Childs, tells of a pair of old bullet casings found out there. They were jammed together, and when pried apart, an aged curl of paper fell out. On the paper, someone had written, ‘Was it worth it?’”
“Fifteen hundred walkers a day depart from under the Sasabe sign. The writer Charles Bowden, on a visit to Sasabe in 2003, counted five thousand walkers in one afternoon.”
I would prefer to read more about the high desert near Bend, rather than this brutal desert with all its complications in Arizona.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Celebrate Green! by Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson
I recently had the chance to talk with the authors of Celebrate Green! Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations & Traditions for the Whole Family. Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson, a mother-daughter team, are the co-authors of the book. I focused on asking about green giving and have tried to accurately portray their enthusiasm and expertise. How do you define green giving succinctly?
Lynn Colwell: The most important aspect is to emphasize the meaning behind the gift, think consciously about the reason for giving it, and the impact on the recipient.
Corey Colwell-Lipson: It is important to consider the impact on people who grew, made or manufactured the gift and on the environment.
You have a lot of suggestions in your book. What would be one good first step towards green giving?
LC: We want people to start small with something doable. For example, you can give an experience. A gift doesn’t need to be wrapped. When you are giving of yourself, the memory will last longer than any gift will. An overnight camping trip with a child is a great gift for a grandparent to give. Look at what people enjoy doing and create a special memorable event.
CCL: Give gifts of yourself. This might be something like making an organic local meal, setting up composting or a garden, or cleaning out your dad’s gutter.
LC: I collect seeds and package them in recycled paper envelopes to give as gifts. It costs almost nothing, and is something I enjoy giving.
Can you explain a little bit about the 3Gs and how they apply to green giving? The 3Gs are that the gift is good for the person, good for the community, and good for the environment.
CCL: The 3Gs are suggestions and we encourage you to consider them in making your holiday and special occasion choices. It is unlikely you can do all three; we call that the green gold ideal. Starting with one G is good.
LC: Having a gift be good for people starts with the people who make it and ends with the consumer.
CCL: So it’s important that workers are treated fairly and not exposed to dangerous chemicals. There is often an opportunity to buy Fair Trade products. A certified Fair Trade item has gone through a process to become certified. However, not all items can be certified. Some that can be are coffee, tea, flowers and wine. For a complete list go to transfairusa.org. Products made by a co-op that states they use fair trade practices are usually a good choice as well. In our book we list many of these places.
LC: These items are appearing more and more in every place imaginable. In a gift shop why not ask, “Have you thought about carrying fair trade items?”
CCL: I like holiday fairs where you can support local artisans. I also enjoy Etsy.com, a site where people sell handmade crafts. If a product says artisan made, it is unlikely it was made in slave labor like conditions. You can always call a company and let them know you like a particular product but are uncomfortable about buying it if you suspect it may have been made by someone who was not making a living wage or was otherwise treated unfairly.
LC: It is amazing how many items are out there in every category that are made in a more people and/or earth-friendly way than even a year ago.
Can you give an example of a gift you’re planning to give this holiday season?
LC: I make as many of my gifts as possible. I like to make useful gifts like books and journals. If I purchase toys, I prefer gifts from Magic Cabin or A Toy Garden online as they have wonderful wooden toys and instruments.
CCL: I like to give etsy gifts made of recycled materials to adults and teens. For kids Dana makes cute toy bugs at dreamalittle7.com.
How do you get people to give you green gifts?
LC: I would never tell someone to give me a green gift; it can be a turnoff and shuts down the conversation. Instead, have a discussion about gifts in general, not couching it in terms of eco-friendly, but these are things I’d love to receive. You can give them a copy of our book, however, it depends on the person. You need to meet people where they are. You don’t want to get in an argument around this subject. I had an interesting incident one time. I made a donation in his name, to an organization that a relative supported and he got really mad at me. He wanted something that I had picked out. It was a complete shock to me.
CCL: Sometimes people will ask you what you would like. Be honest and tell them, “I’m trying to go green and I really love the store Gaiam. Or, I love Save Your World. For every product purchased, they lease one acre of rainforest so that it will remain standing.” Give a direct and enthusiastic response. Share your enthusiasm with family and co-workers throughout the year. When you are giving green gifts, the hope is that they will enjoy them and know that this is something you cherish. One thing we’ve done with our daughters is to put on invitations that “the gift is your presence.” The meaning of a birthday party is to be together and create good memories.
Do you think green ideas are easier to implement or more accepted because you are in the Seattle area?
CCL: Certain pockets of the country are more receptive. I organize Green Halloween around the country. Communities in Los Angeles and San Francisco have been very receptive. Our representative in Daytona, Florida has had more difficulty. There is a feeling that it going to cost more money or it is going to be more difficult to do things in a green way, but it really can be very simple, inexpensive and very rewarding.
LC: We want to awaken people to the alternatives. Oftentimes, major online stores (and some brick and mortar ones as well), give back a percentage of a purchase to a charity. The gift itself is not particularly eco-friendly, but at least you are giving back in some way.
How can interested people purchase a copy of your book?
LC: The best place is from our website: http://www.celebrategreen.net/. Coming up we’ll have some opportunities to get a something free when you purchase the book. Celebrate Green! is also available through Amazon and other online shops. If anyone is interested in using the book for a fundraiser, we have a program set up so that the organization can purchase the book at 40% off and resell it for the cover price. Contact us through our website.
CCL: There is also an option to plant a tree for $1 to offset the impact of making the book, which by the way, is printed on 100% recycled FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified paper.
I enjoyed talking with Corey and Lynn and their enthusiasm is very catching. I have only had time to read the section of Celebrate Green! associated with giving green gifts, but I found a lot of neat ideas that I plan to implement in my holiday giving this year.
Friday, May 23, 2008
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin
I love fiction. I always have a fiction book that I am reading and one in the wings and a few on hold at the library. I might be addicted to fiction. However, if there was one book that I could recommend and encourage everyone to read, it would be Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace…One School at a Time. It is the most inspiring book I have read in many years and it is non-fiction.
Three Cups of Tea is the amazing story of Greg Mortenson. He is a climbing fiend. I live in the Pacific Northwest; I’ve met a few of those. He attempts to climb K2 in memory of his sister, Christa, and does not make it. It is what happens after that failed journey that really shows his true heart and character. He mistakenly ends up in the village of Korphe, a small town not on his map of Pakistan. It is here, where he is nursed back to health, that he makes a life-altering decision.
“Standing next to Haji Ali, on the ledge overlooking the valley, with such a crystalline view of the mountains he’d come halfway around the world to measure himself against, climbing K2 to place a necklace on its summit suddenly felt beside the point. There was a much more meaningful gesture he could make in honor of his sister’s memory. He put his hands on Haji Ali’s shoulders, as the old man had done to him dozens of times since they’d shared their first cup of tea. ‘I’m going to build you a school,’ he said, not yet realizing that with those words, the path of his life had just detoured down another trail, a route far more serpentine and arduous than the wrong turns he’d taken since retreating from K2.” (pg 33)
And, then, Greg returns to the US. This, really, is where the story starts. He has no money. He is living in his car in the flatlands of Berkeley. He has no connections. And, yet, within 10 years he builds fifty-five schools in Pakistan. It is really an incredible story and a testament to the effect that one dedicated individual can have on hundreds.
If you are interested in learning more or helping out, the Central Asia Institute that Greg founded is continuing this work.
Three Cups of Tea is the amazing story of Greg Mortenson. He is a climbing fiend. I live in the Pacific Northwest; I’ve met a few of those. He attempts to climb K2 in memory of his sister, Christa, and does not make it. It is what happens after that failed journey that really shows his true heart and character. He mistakenly ends up in the village of Korphe, a small town not on his map of Pakistan. It is here, where he is nursed back to health, that he makes a life-altering decision.
“Standing next to Haji Ali, on the ledge overlooking the valley, with such a crystalline view of the mountains he’d come halfway around the world to measure himself against, climbing K2 to place a necklace on its summit suddenly felt beside the point. There was a much more meaningful gesture he could make in honor of his sister’s memory. He put his hands on Haji Ali’s shoulders, as the old man had done to him dozens of times since they’d shared their first cup of tea. ‘I’m going to build you a school,’ he said, not yet realizing that with those words, the path of his life had just detoured down another trail, a route far more serpentine and arduous than the wrong turns he’d taken since retreating from K2.” (pg 33)
And, then, Greg returns to the US. This, really, is where the story starts. He has no money. He is living in his car in the flatlands of Berkeley. He has no connections. And, yet, within 10 years he builds fifty-five schools in Pakistan. It is really an incredible story and a testament to the effect that one dedicated individual can have on hundreds.
If you are interested in learning more or helping out, the Central Asia Institute that Greg founded is continuing this work.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Parenting Book Review
Central Oregon has a new parenting magazine: True North Parenting. It is online now, but will also have quarterly print issues. Check out my book review of When Your Kids Push Your Buttons by Bonnie Harris in the latest online issue. I have read a number of parenting books over the past few years, and this is one that really makes you think about your (not your kids') behavior.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
I picked up The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America for a couple reasons. First, it was recommended in a writing group I belong to as a book that everyone in a diverse book group liked. Next, a book group I am in picked it as one of the books to read this fall. Third, from what I heard it was a murder mystery set at a World’s Fair. I like mysteries, in general, and decided to read it earlier rather than later.
I was quite surprised when I found the book at the library in the non-fiction section. I had not realized it was a true story. I assumed I would be interested in the mystery part and not really in the World’s Fair part when I realized that was going to be mainly about building the fair. It turned out to be quite the opposite.
I never would have picked up a non-fiction book about the World’s Fair in 1893. Adding in the secondary story did prick my interest enough to start reading the book. I’m glad I did as it described a part of American history and a profession (architecture) that I had very little prior knowledge or even interest in. The impact of the Columbian Exposition of 1893 was enormous. Products introduced there or innovated during the building of the fair included spray paint, Cracker Jack, the Ferris Wheel (an amazing story on its own), and the zipper among many others. The pledge of allegiance was even written for the dedication day.
The inspiring story of building the fair is alternated with chapters about a serial killer. There is no mystery as Erik Larson makes it clear that Holmes is a killer from the beginning. Holmes (an alias) is in Chicago at the time of the fair and builds a hotel ostensibly to house visitors to the fair. No murders by Holmes ever happen at the fair, so I do not think the book is aptly titled. Holmes and the fair never really intersect except when he takes a current wife and her sister there. I do not like reading about true crime. It has none of the uplifting spirit or resolution of fictional mysteries where the perpetrator is usually caught before too many evil things happen. I felt that the book alternated between a soaring, grandiose story and a sordid, tragic one.
I would recommend reading this book and skipping the chapters on Holmes, unless you like the true crime genre.
I was quite surprised when I found the book at the library in the non-fiction section. I had not realized it was a true story. I assumed I would be interested in the mystery part and not really in the World’s Fair part when I realized that was going to be mainly about building the fair. It turned out to be quite the opposite.
I never would have picked up a non-fiction book about the World’s Fair in 1893. Adding in the secondary story did prick my interest enough to start reading the book. I’m glad I did as it described a part of American history and a profession (architecture) that I had very little prior knowledge or even interest in. The impact of the Columbian Exposition of 1893 was enormous. Products introduced there or innovated during the building of the fair included spray paint, Cracker Jack, the Ferris Wheel (an amazing story on its own), and the zipper among many others. The pledge of allegiance was even written for the dedication day.
The inspiring story of building the fair is alternated with chapters about a serial killer. There is no mystery as Erik Larson makes it clear that Holmes is a killer from the beginning. Holmes (an alias) is in Chicago at the time of the fair and builds a hotel ostensibly to house visitors to the fair. No murders by Holmes ever happen at the fair, so I do not think the book is aptly titled. Holmes and the fair never really intersect except when he takes a current wife and her sister there. I do not like reading about true crime. It has none of the uplifting spirit or resolution of fictional mysteries where the perpetrator is usually caught before too many evil things happen. I felt that the book alternated between a soaring, grandiose story and a sordid, tragic one.
I would recommend reading this book and skipping the chapters on Holmes, unless you like the true crime genre.
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