The Last Lecture, by Randy Pausch

Randy Pausch captured the imagination of the country with his last lecture, titled “Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams.” This was an inspiring talk, and the book will preserve it for generations to come. One observation I quite liked was that, “becoming an Eagle Scout is the only thing you can put on your resume at age fifty that you did at age fourteen—and it still impresses.” While I don’t agree with all BSA membership policies, achieving Eagle is still impressive and I regret not following through to this day. Another section that resonated with me was Pausch’s rant on the growing sense of entitlement of this country, the idea of rights without responsibility. This has long been an annoyance to me and I fear that as a country we are lurching more towards socialism and governmental parenting which only exacerbates the problem.

While in places overly saccharine, this book was a worthy read. Pausch clearly met his terminal diagnosis head on, avoiding the more normal (but understandable) wallowing in self-pity. Not everyone has the fortitude to face unpleasant situations with a positive outlook; if for nothing else this attitude is worthy of admiration and emulation. However, I couldn’t help but think the text was self-serving in places. His attempt at literary immortality doesn’t bother me, but wrapping in altruism feels false a bit false. Anybody that echoes Darrell K. Royal in saying “dance with the one who brung you” can’t be all bad, though!

First Sentence:

A lot of professors give talks titled “The Last Lecture.”

The Devil in the White City, by Erik Larson

Chicago hosted the 1893 World’s Fair, earning the city a sought-after role as a major player on the global stage (interestingly, Chicago is not nicknamed the Windy City because of the constant wind off the lake but instead for it’s boasting and self-aggrandizement during this era). This was truly a time of wonder, seeing the first introductions of so many things we think of as ever-present today: zippers, vertical files, long-distance telephone service, moving pictures, and the automatic dishwasher all made their first appearance at the fair, as did Aunt Jemima’s pancake mix, Juicy Fruit gum, Shredded Wheat cereal, and Pabst beer (renamed Pabst Blue Ribbon to honor the first place award it won). The Pledge of Allegiance was written specifically for the World’s Fair, and the first Ferris wheel was unveiled there as well. Larson does a magnificent job of both painting the picture of the spectacle of the fair and the politics and complexities in getting a project of this size put together.

What sets the book apart from a simple historical text is the second story that is interwoven with that of the creation of the fair: the story of America’s first serial killer. Dr. Henry Howard Holmes tortured and killed between 20 and 200 people—the exact number is unknown because many bodies were so thoroughly dismembered they couldn’t be accurately counted—mainly in Chicago, using the vast number of visitors to the city for the fair to go undetected. Holmes built a labyrinthine hotel with air-tight rooms (so he could gas victims), a large vault (for suffocation), and a crematorium for disposing of bodies. The evil of this killer juxtaposed with the marvels of the fair made for a thought-provoking and informative book that I quite enjoyed.

First Sentence:

How easy it was to disappear: A thousand trains a day entered or left Chicago.

Stone Cold, by David Baldacci

Not the best thriller I’ve read lately. Two intertwined plots, one about a con artist escaping her recent mark and the other about a son trying to avenge his father’s death. It wasn’t terrible, but it was terribly predictable. Coupled with some ridiculous technology I found this difficult to finish. The highlight of silliness was a “bomb” with no explosive materials but instead ignites a chemical reaction inside the components of a CPU. Yeah, right. Not the worst book I’ve ever read, but far from the best.

First Sentence:

Harry Finn rose as usual at six-thirty, made coffee, let the dog out into the fenced backyard for its morning constitutional, showered, shaved, woke the kids for school and oversaw that complicated operation for the next half hour as breakfasts were gulped, backpacks and shoes grabbed and arguments started and settled.

I Shouldn't Even Be Doing This, by Bob Newhart

Bob Newhart is a very funny man. I loved “The Bob Newhart Show,” was one of the seemingly few that liked “Bob,” and believe that the last episode of “Newhart” ended with the greatest single shot ever televised. For Father’s Day a while back I was given Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart on CD and it quickly became one of my favorites. My wife and I got to see him perform live at the Paramount Theater a few years ago as well. When I found out that Newhart had written a memoir I had to pick it up—and wasn’t disappointed.

The title is from a joke about a guy who is having a torrid affair with his boss’s wife. They are making wild, passionate love and she moans, “Kiss me! Kiss me!” He looks at her very seriously and says, “I shouldn’t even be doing this!” The book is positively filled with gags like this and I laughed out loud more than once while reading. Between jokes Newhart manages to tell the story of his career: accountant to stand-up comedian to television star. He originally had a partner, but the fellow accepted an advertising job in another city and so Newhart just did his part of the act—and the rest is history. This isn’t a McCullough-style in-depth biography that details every step of his life and every conversation Newhart ever had, but it is a casual telling of the highlights of Bob’s life and a damn funny book to boot.

First Sentence:

Most comedians are committable.

The Book of Lies, by Brad Meltzer

Cain killing Able is arguable the world’s most famous murder, but surprisingly the weapon used is unknown. In 1932, the father of the boy who would go on to create the world’s most famous superhero was shot and killed; that weapon is also missing. What do Cain, history’s greatest villain, and Superman, our greatest hero, have in common? That is the mystery explored in The Book of Lies.

Fact and fiction are stitched together in a clever fashion that gives plausibility to an otherwise farcical tale. Fast-paced action and a lot of dialogue keep the story moving, and red herrings keep you guessing which of the (few) characters is a traitor. Plot holes and coincidences abound and none of the roles are given much depth, but the lack of pretension makes up for a lot. This is a fun tale and a quick read, perfect for (as a friend of mine says) “a sinfully long and hot bubble bath with a book.”

Brad Meltzer gave a book reading of this at BookPeople, a local bookstore here in Austin. (I’m normally a fan of local chains, but BookPeople is terrible; they have an arrogant, haughty staff and are rude to customers. It is a shame an eclectic city like Austin is known for this crappy place.) He is a funny and engaging speaker, and spoke passionately about his new organization, Ordinary People Change the World, a group that doesn’t need “political favors, or government, or skeevy politicians” to make a difference, but instead encourages normal folks to get involved. I found this inspiring and a much more worthy cause than most political movements. Check it out.

First Sentence:

When Calvin Harper was five, his petite, four-foot-eleven-inch mom ripped the pillow from his bed at three a.m. and told him that dust mites were feeding off his skin.

The Great Bridge, by David McCullough

I have an interest in biographies, but this one is a bit different; instead of detailing the life of a person, this tells the tale of the Brooklyn Bridge. A father and son were the main architects of the project; first the father, John A. Roebling, and then when he dies his son, Washington Roebling takes over. At the time, the techniques these two used to erect the bridge were revolutionary and McCullough spares no details when discussing how it was all done. The largest caissons ever built were used for the tower foundations and the cables and anchors were constructed using ingenious arrangements never before seen. Many people were terrified that the bridge would collapse because of these untried technologies, but as the bridge still stands obviously these fears were unfounded.

The late 1800’s was the time of much political corruption, and McCullough covers this thoroughly as well. (Quotes such as, “No Democrat can be trusted, they are all disloyal and treacherous, more or less;” made me smile.) Boss Tweed, Chester Arthur, and Grover Cleveland were a few of the famous names that were involved—names I recognized but didn’t know much about. One of the joys of reading this was the added research that came along about this era in American history. The story of the bridge is interesting, but the view into the political and social times is fascinating.

First Sentence:

They met at his request on at least six different occasions, beginning in February 1869.

Term Limits, by Vince Flynn

Several American politicians are assassinated, accompanied by demands that our government set aside partisan politics, balance the budget, fix Social Security and Medicare, and implement a national sales tax dedicated to reducing the national debt. Clearly a story of wish fulfillment, this is a fun page-turner that expresses opinions many of us hold true: that our government grow a backbone and actually solve some of the problems we face. “Commandos live by a warrior’s code, honor and integrity above everything. Do what you say and mean what you do. Politicians just say whatever will keep them in office.” Assassination is clearly an unacceptable way of bringing change, but the point the book makes is our politicians have given up on working for the people and need a jolt.

First Sentence:

The old wood cabin sat alone, surrounded by trees and darkness.

Transfer of Power, by Vince Flynn

Terrorists attack the White House in broad daylight, taking both control of the building and dozens of hostages. The President escapes to a fortified bunker, but is trapped there because there is only one exit and the terrorists have it secured. While the various counterterrorist groups leap into action preparing strike and rescue plans, the VP and his Chief of Staff delay proceedings hoping for a coup of sorts.

While not the most original plot, this is a fast-paced rollicking read that feels more like a Jean-Claude Van Damme movie than a novel. I found much of it very familiar and predictable, but about two-thirds of the way in I realized I’d read this several years ago (pre-blog) which explained a lot. At 549 pages it is a bit long, but in general the perfect book for an airplane trip or a rainy day.

First Sentence:

A fine mist fell from the darkening spring sky as the black limousine turned off of E Street.

Predictably Irrational, by Dan Ariely

I was the only one of my friends that didn’t like this book. It was fairly interesting in parts, but I found the conclusions very strange. Arbitrary coherence says that although initial prices can be “arbitrary,” once those prices are observed they will shape how future ones are perceived as well. An interesting premise, and coupled with plausible experiments Ariely paints a solid picture of the concept. From this, though, he decides we can’t trust the market forces of supply and demand to set prices and we should instead depend on “a reasonable and thoughtful government” to regulate markets. Any discussion where it is argued that government should take a larger role I believe to have a heavy burden of proof, and this didn’t come close. Other chapters explore similar forces that influence behavior such as emotion, morals, and social norms but because of the whopping problem I had early on I had a hard time taking the rest seriously.

The writing was engaging and pleasant, even funny at times. One passage in particular made me laugh quite a bit: “How did he persuade the cream of society to become passionate about Tahitian black pearls—and pay him royally for them? In order to answer this question, I need to explain something about baby geese.” This reminded me strongly of an old Bill Cosby album I used to listen to with my dad, Revenge. There was a track named “Buck, Buck” that was one of my favorites. It told the story of a teen named Fat Albert (yeah, that Fat Albert) that was darn funny; after almost five minutes he reaches what seems to be the final punchline, pauses, and then says, “I told you that story to tell you this one” and immediately launches into another story. That struck me as amazingly hilarious as a kid and it has stayed with me to this day. Anytime I encounter similar phrasing (such as the line about pearls and geese) I always hear “Hey Hey Hey” in that unmistakable Cosby voice and grin. While this anecdote has nothing to do with the content of the book, it sure took me back and made me smile.

First Sentence:

One day while browsing the World Wide Web (obviously for work—not just wasting time), I stumbled on the following ad, on the Web site of a magazine, the Economist.