And more book reviews

Tiger Trap: America's Secret Spy War With China by David Wise

Fascinating tale of counterintelligence in our country.  I'm not a fan of fiction spy stories, but this is the real thing. Unfortunately, it did not leave me with a great sense of security with our over-bureaucratic government . . .

Sergeant Rex: The Unbreakable Bond Between a Marine and His Military Working Dog by Mike Dowling

Beautiful story about a marine and his bomb sniffing dog. While I didn't appreciate the loads of unnecessary swear words, I was left with further admiration and respect for our military.

Right after I finished this book, the dog, Sergeant Rex, was in the news. Following Rex's time with author Dowling, he was assigned to Corporal Megan Leavey. This team survived an IED hit, ending Leavey's career.  Rex continued working until a recent retirement and was due to be put down. Leavey intervened and was able to permanently adopt the dog.

A happy tale with a continued good ending.


Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain

EXCELLENT, excellent book. I can't say anything more eloquently than the wonderful reviews, but I would highly recommend this book to ANYone who has an introvert in their life.  (Yes, that is everyone.) You'll wish you'd have read it sooner.  Surely one of the best books I've read, and will read, this year. I've already recommended it several times.


God's Story, Your Story by Max Lucado

I usually enjoy Max, but this book was completely unmemorable. 

God's Harvard: A Christian College on a Mission to Save America by Hanna Rosin

What happens when a small, conservative Christian college allows a skeptical, liberal mocker campus privileges for a year?  You get a piece of carp book like this.  Why on earth the school would permit this is beyond me, but this was "journalism" at its worst.  The only lesson here is what impartial reporting isn't, and what direction the media has taken in the past few decades under the false heading of "journalism."  (See anything by Michael Moore, etc.)


The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates by Wes Moore

This is a half-autobiographical story about two fatherless boys with the same name, who were born in the same year and grew up within blocks of each other in Baltimore.  Both continued to struggle throughout their childhoods while their mothers struggled to make ends meet.  As adults, one became a Rhodes scholar.  The other is a convicted murderer serving a life sentence.

From the author: "The chilling truth is that his story could have been mine. The tragedy is that my story could have been his."




We Lived in a Little Cabin in the Yard by Belinda Hurmence

A collection of oral histories taken by former slaves who'd lived in Virginia.  It was a short read, very interesting.  Would be much less relevant to anyone not in this area.

Swagger: 10 Urgent Rules for Raising Boys in an Era of Failing Schools, Mass Joblessness, and Thug Culture by Lisa Bloom

While I am interested in the premise of this book (the culture in which American boys are now growing up), my enthusiasm dampened quickly as the author began, in Chapter 1, by blaming the school system. Ultimately, she blamed slashes in school budgets: "[Teachers] know state funding isn't there for them or their classrooms full of kids.)"  Five minutes of research will show anyone that more money does not equal better schools. Way too much crap and liberal nonsense for me, end of story. 



Little Britches: Father and I Were Ranchers
Man of the Family
and Fields of Home by Ralph Moody


This series begins in the Littleton area 100 years ago. I've wanted to read it for years and was not disappointed.  It can best be described as a Little House on the Prairie book for boys. Ralph is 8 when his family moves from New York to Colorado in an effort to help his father's tuberculosis.  They rent a ranch southwest of Denver and begin their new life.  My familiarity with the location magnified how vastly different our lifestyle has changed in just 100 years.

The series continues with Ralph's family's move from the ranch to the town of Littleton.  As I read the book, I kept returning to the internet to look for maps, as I already know some of buildings and blocks to which he referred.  I have always enjoyed reading about places I know.

I am still unsure which book is next in the series.  It seems that the books may not have been written in chronological order.  This third book I've read follows Ralph as he lives with his grandfather in Maine after his mother takes the children from Colorado under the cover of darkness.

Ralph Moody's story is inspiring.  With a minimal formal education, Ralph's goal was to earn $50,000 by age 50 to permit him time to write. He enrolled in a writing class, eventually publishing 19 books.  Littleton Public School's Ralph Moody Elementary stands today as a tribute to this famous hometown author.