The Textile Planet, Sue Lange, Book View Cafe, 2010
Marla Gershe is a middle-level supervisor on the Textile Planet, an entire world devoted to textiles and the making of clothes. It's a high-stress job; Marla has daily production quotas that must be met. One day, Marla's boss takes away half of her staff to put them on another project, but Marla still has to make her daily production quota. Marla has had enough, and organizes a strike among the employees. In the confucion, Marla is shot in the stomach, and is rushed to the hospital.
Wherever Marla is, it is not exactly a hospital. She undergoes several months of experiments, like someone is doing psychological warfare on her. BAC, the consortium that runs the Textile Planet, would very much like Marla back at work, but Marla would rather be anywhere else. She gets out of the hospital, and immediately hops a spaceship to the most distant planet, a place called Ansonia.
Ansonia is said to be the "end of the line." Think of an 1800s American frontier town. It's a planet with a severe employment shortage; as long as you have two arms, two legs and a semi-functioning brain, you're hired. Marla finds herself doing data entry, locked into a cubicle for several hours a day, entering rows of numbers that come to her off of pieces of paper that come out of a chute. Marla has no idea what the numbers mean. At lunch, her fellow workers talk about the usual lunchtime topics, and about much deeper subjects, like the roles of men and women. After a year, Meko, Marla's boss, tells her that people have been asking about her, so a fast departure is a very good idea.
Marka ends up on an unexplored, desolate rock called XKJ-10. If Ansonia is the end of the line, XKJ-10 is much farther out than that. Marla meets Sam, a human who has been living on the planet for several months. He has a beard down to his waist, he has quite a mansion (made up of a number of different tents) and he claims that he can talk to the local ants. A major scientific discovery is made several million miles away (next door in astronomical terms), so XKJ-10 goes from being a desolate planet in the middle of nowhere to the most popular spot in the galaxy. Marla and Sam plan all sorts of construction, including a spaceport and hotel, to take advantage of all those scientists who will be coming their way.
Here is an interesting story that moves very quickly, perhaps too quickly. It's well done, and it will keep the reader's attention.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Shaky Ground
Shaky Ground, Steve Stelle, 2011 (Kindle e-book)
This is a murder mystery involving drug money and shady real estate deals. It is set against the back drop of the 1989 San Francisco Earthquake.
Jeff Burke is a process server and sometimes private investigator in Santa Cruz, California. Along with everyone else in the Bay Area, he is watching the World Series when the ground starts shaking. His house suffers minor damage. After he and his neighbors make sure that everyone is all right, Burke goes to the local mall near his office, where the damage is much more severe. Volunteering for search and rescue, Burke and other ex-military personnel (he is a former Army medic) understand discipline and organization, so they know what they are doing. This is in great contrast to a group of mall workers, who loudly demand that the emergency personnel (who are equally stressed out) find their missing co-worker.
There is nothing like a major earthquake to get a person wondering what life is all about. Burke decides to sell his house, and start over in Florida. Perry Harris, a local real estate agent, visits and everything seems fine. The police get interested when Harris is found murdered a few hours later, and Burke is the last person to have seen him alive. The next day, Harris' widow, Sunny, another real estate agent, comes by to try and salvage the listing. Fueled by liberal amounts of wine, she tells Burke about their deep involvement in the local drug trade (an important part of the local economy), first as pot users, then later creating shady real estate deals to launder drug money. Perry is also a psycho, who tells Sunny to get plastic surgery one (or two) too many times. She is in no condition to drive, so Burke lets her crash on his couch. Things get weird when, the next morning, Burke finds Sunny murdered on his couch, and the police barging in the door.
Burke survives a murder attempt in prison, and is able to escape from custody. He reluctantly kidnaps Karen, another real estate agent, because he is desperate for help. She eventually agrees to help him, after whacking him on the head with a beer bottle, which knocks him out for three days. Can Jeff and Karen find the identity of the person behind everything, before the police catch up, and charge Jeff with the murders? Do they survive the scene where the guilty party takes them on a boat far from shore, intending to killthem and dump their bodies overboard?
This one is really good. The reader will certainly learn a lot about the California drug trade, and about what to do (and not do) after an earthquake. My only criticism is that the text could use a trip to a proofreader, but that's just being picky, and looking for something to criticize. This will keep the reader guessing, and is well worth the reader's time.
This is a murder mystery involving drug money and shady real estate deals. It is set against the back drop of the 1989 San Francisco Earthquake.
Jeff Burke is a process server and sometimes private investigator in Santa Cruz, California. Along with everyone else in the Bay Area, he is watching the World Series when the ground starts shaking. His house suffers minor damage. After he and his neighbors make sure that everyone is all right, Burke goes to the local mall near his office, where the damage is much more severe. Volunteering for search and rescue, Burke and other ex-military personnel (he is a former Army medic) understand discipline and organization, so they know what they are doing. This is in great contrast to a group of mall workers, who loudly demand that the emergency personnel (who are equally stressed out) find their missing co-worker.
There is nothing like a major earthquake to get a person wondering what life is all about. Burke decides to sell his house, and start over in Florida. Perry Harris, a local real estate agent, visits and everything seems fine. The police get interested when Harris is found murdered a few hours later, and Burke is the last person to have seen him alive. The next day, Harris' widow, Sunny, another real estate agent, comes by to try and salvage the listing. Fueled by liberal amounts of wine, she tells Burke about their deep involvement in the local drug trade (an important part of the local economy), first as pot users, then later creating shady real estate deals to launder drug money. Perry is also a psycho, who tells Sunny to get plastic surgery one (or two) too many times. She is in no condition to drive, so Burke lets her crash on his couch. Things get weird when, the next morning, Burke finds Sunny murdered on his couch, and the police barging in the door.
Burke survives a murder attempt in prison, and is able to escape from custody. He reluctantly kidnaps Karen, another real estate agent, because he is desperate for help. She eventually agrees to help him, after whacking him on the head with a beer bottle, which knocks him out for three days. Can Jeff and Karen find the identity of the person behind everything, before the police catch up, and charge Jeff with the murders? Do they survive the scene where the guilty party takes them on a boat far from shore, intending to killthem and dump their bodies overboard?
This one is really good. The reader will certainly learn a lot about the California drug trade, and about what to do (and not do) after an earthquake. My only criticism is that the text could use a trip to a proofreader, but that's just being picky, and looking for something to criticize. This will keep the reader guessing, and is well worth the reader's time.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
The Hardline Self-Help Handbook
The Hardline Self-Help Handbook, Paula Renaye, Diomo Books, 2011
There seem to be a million self-help books on the market. This one is different in that it takes a much harder line with the reader.
Most people say that they are willing to do "anything" to change their lives. Really? Are you willing to quit your lucrative, but unfulfilling, job to start on a new career? Are you willing to move to a different town, or different state, to advance your career? Write down five things you are not willing to do. Why aren't you willing to do them? (There are no right or wrong answers; this is simply to give you a better idea of what your subconscious is thinking.)
Everyone has "buttons" that are pushed on occasion. Do you really think that cursing, and giving the finger, to someone who cuts you off on the highway will really convince them to never do it again? Also, please remove the phrase "if only" from your brain right now. Your life will not suddenly become happy and perfect if only you get that big promotion, or if only your spouse stops acting like such an inconsiderate jerk. You cannot change or control other people; all you can do is change your reactions to other people.
For some people, forgiveness toward others is a near impossibility. Keeping that hurt inside will only injure you, not the other person. Don't try to minimize or justify it by saying something like "They didn't mean it, and I know they won't do it again." You don't know that they won't do it again. What you can do is acknowledge that it happened, and how you felt at that moment, and let the pain go. When your subconscious tries to bring it back, make it clear to yourself that it is done and over with, end of story.
Everyone knows someone who is a hypochondriac, constantly running to the doctor with imagined ailments, or is Mr. or Ms. Negative Attitude (perhaps that person is you). If they show no desire to even try to change their lives, then let them enjoy their corner of Self-Pity Land by themselves, while you go back to improving your life (If you have become some kind of self-pity addict, and don't want to "kick the habit," then please shut up. The rest of us are no longer interested.).
For those who are honestly willing to do the work necessary to change their lives, this book is very much worth reading. The chapters are short, and they can be read in any order.
There seem to be a million self-help books on the market. This one is different in that it takes a much harder line with the reader.
Most people say that they are willing to do "anything" to change their lives. Really? Are you willing to quit your lucrative, but unfulfilling, job to start on a new career? Are you willing to move to a different town, or different state, to advance your career? Write down five things you are not willing to do. Why aren't you willing to do them? (There are no right or wrong answers; this is simply to give you a better idea of what your subconscious is thinking.)
Everyone has "buttons" that are pushed on occasion. Do you really think that cursing, and giving the finger, to someone who cuts you off on the highway will really convince them to never do it again? Also, please remove the phrase "if only" from your brain right now. Your life will not suddenly become happy and perfect if only you get that big promotion, or if only your spouse stops acting like such an inconsiderate jerk. You cannot change or control other people; all you can do is change your reactions to other people.
For some people, forgiveness toward others is a near impossibility. Keeping that hurt inside will only injure you, not the other person. Don't try to minimize or justify it by saying something like "They didn't mean it, and I know they won't do it again." You don't know that they won't do it again. What you can do is acknowledge that it happened, and how you felt at that moment, and let the pain go. When your subconscious tries to bring it back, make it clear to yourself that it is done and over with, end of story.
Everyone knows someone who is a hypochondriac, constantly running to the doctor with imagined ailments, or is Mr. or Ms. Negative Attitude (perhaps that person is you). If they show no desire to even try to change their lives, then let them enjoy their corner of Self-Pity Land by themselves, while you go back to improving your life (If you have become some kind of self-pity addict, and don't want to "kick the habit," then please shut up. The rest of us are no longer interested.).
For those who are honestly willing to do the work necessary to change their lives, this book is very much worth reading. The chapters are short, and they can be read in any order.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
The Killing of a Bank Manager
The Killing of a Bank Manager, Paul Kavanagh, Honest Publishing, 2010
This novel is about Henry, who has an apartment on the High Street (the shopping district) of an unnamed city. It's practically barren, with only a couple of pieces of furniture. There are no magazines on the artfully-designed coffee table; there is no coffee table. He is about to leave his job as a butcher at a local shop.
He lives above a beauty parlor, where little beauty actually occurs. The only bright spot at the parlor is a woman named Laura, on whom Henry has had his eye. He also lives across the street from a bank. Every morning, he watches the female tellers arrive for work. He also watches the bank manager unlock the main doors each morning. Henry decides, one day, that the bank manager must die.
There is a lot of great writing in this book, but, overall, I'm not sure what to make of it. It tends to jump from one thing to another, kind of like James Joyce, or stream-of-consciousness writing. Those who like modern, edgy fiction that gets rid of the literary "rule book" will love this novel. On the other hand, for those who prefer more conventional plot, characters and storytelling, look elsewhere.
This novel is about Henry, who has an apartment on the High Street (the shopping district) of an unnamed city. It's practically barren, with only a couple of pieces of furniture. There are no magazines on the artfully-designed coffee table; there is no coffee table. He is about to leave his job as a butcher at a local shop.
He lives above a beauty parlor, where little beauty actually occurs. The only bright spot at the parlor is a woman named Laura, on whom Henry has had his eye. He also lives across the street from a bank. Every morning, he watches the female tellers arrive for work. He also watches the bank manager unlock the main doors each morning. Henry decides, one day, that the bank manager must die.
There is a lot of great writing in this book, but, overall, I'm not sure what to make of it. It tends to jump from one thing to another, kind of like James Joyce, or stream-of-consciousness writing. Those who like modern, edgy fiction that gets rid of the literary "rule book" will love this novel. On the other hand, for those who prefer more conventional plot, characters and storytelling, look elsewhere.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
The Awakening
The Awakening, Jeffrey Pierce, 2011 (Kindle e-book)
First of a trilogy, this is a dark suspense/horror novel about the end of the world.
Drew is your average 21st century computer geek. He runs into Alicia at a local club, and recognizes her from his dreams. She is one of the Old Ones, an ancient, immortal race of beings who come from somewhere else. The reason that Drew recognizes Alicia is that, as he learns later, he is of the bloodline; he has some of the blood of the Old Ones in him. They move in together, and fall in love. Evil forces, led by a being named Lotomas, are coming after them, so they head for an isolated spot in eastern Montana to decide on their next move.
A disparate group of people, from all walks of life, join them in Montana. The only thing they have in common is that they have all had the same kind of strange dreams; they are all of the bloodline. Things end very badly for the group; Lotomas and his minions don't just kill them; their souls are also stolen. Alicia "saves" Drew by placing her hands on his chest, stopping his heart, and sending his soul to the afterlife. Alicia finds herself in a place called Ahnnchalla, a dark and dismal place with corpses as far as the eye can see.
Meantime, an angel named Nathaniel, woken after a 200-year sleep, and Jenny, a teenage girl who is also of the bloodline, arrive in Montana just after the slaughter. Being questioned by the police would be very bad, so they take off and hole up in a motel room, where Nathaniel has Jenny do some Internet searching. The intention of Lotomas is to make Earth part of Ahnnchalla. If the contemporary societal threads that will lead to such a thing can be found ahead of time, perhaps they can be pulled the right way to prevent it from happening. Humans are good at seeing the threads after a thing has happened, but have a tough time at putting things together ahead of time. Jenny finds plenty of possibilities on the Internet: war, poverty, racism, etc. When people talk about the "end of the world," it doesn't necessarily mean the destruction of Earth. Something like the world's climate going haywire, or some sort of bio-war will radically change the world for those who survive.
Do Drew and Alicia get back together, in any form? Can Jenny find the right societal threads to pull to prevent the end of the world? The writing in this book borders on amazing. It will give the reader plenty to consider, about theology and society in general. There's also a really good story here. I am not much of a horror reader, so I was glad that the horror parts were not overwhelming. This gets two strong thumbs up.
First of a trilogy, this is a dark suspense/horror novel about the end of the world.
Drew is your average 21st century computer geek. He runs into Alicia at a local club, and recognizes her from his dreams. She is one of the Old Ones, an ancient, immortal race of beings who come from somewhere else. The reason that Drew recognizes Alicia is that, as he learns later, he is of the bloodline; he has some of the blood of the Old Ones in him. They move in together, and fall in love. Evil forces, led by a being named Lotomas, are coming after them, so they head for an isolated spot in eastern Montana to decide on their next move.
A disparate group of people, from all walks of life, join them in Montana. The only thing they have in common is that they have all had the same kind of strange dreams; they are all of the bloodline. Things end very badly for the group; Lotomas and his minions don't just kill them; their souls are also stolen. Alicia "saves" Drew by placing her hands on his chest, stopping his heart, and sending his soul to the afterlife. Alicia finds herself in a place called Ahnnchalla, a dark and dismal place with corpses as far as the eye can see.
Meantime, an angel named Nathaniel, woken after a 200-year sleep, and Jenny, a teenage girl who is also of the bloodline, arrive in Montana just after the slaughter. Being questioned by the police would be very bad, so they take off and hole up in a motel room, where Nathaniel has Jenny do some Internet searching. The intention of Lotomas is to make Earth part of Ahnnchalla. If the contemporary societal threads that will lead to such a thing can be found ahead of time, perhaps they can be pulled the right way to prevent it from happening. Humans are good at seeing the threads after a thing has happened, but have a tough time at putting things together ahead of time. Jenny finds plenty of possibilities on the Internet: war, poverty, racism, etc. When people talk about the "end of the world," it doesn't necessarily mean the destruction of Earth. Something like the world's climate going haywire, or some sort of bio-war will radically change the world for those who survive.
Do Drew and Alicia get back together, in any form? Can Jenny find the right societal threads to pull to prevent the end of the world? The writing in this book borders on amazing. It will give the reader plenty to consider, about theology and society in general. There's also a really good story here. I am not much of a horror reader, so I was glad that the horror parts were not overwhelming. This gets two strong thumbs up.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Escape the Cubicle
Escape the Cubicle, Mark Anthony Germanos, Smashwords, Inc., 2011
Many books have been written about ditching your boring and unfulfilling corporate job to follow your passion. This one takes the reader through the process practically step-by-step.
Find, and join, a group of like-minded individuals, like other self-employed people. Start with your local Chamber of Commerce. The support system will help you through the rough times, and the networking possibilities could lead to customers for you. Put together a business plan, and be willing to change it as circumstances dictate. If you plan to take on investors or partners, they will want to see it.
Set a definite mission for yourself. It can be more than just one thing, but make them specific and achievable. For instance, instead of saying "Learn about computers," say "Get Microsoft A+ Certification" or "Purchase (specific software) and take a continuing education class to learn it."
No matter how unpleasant your job is, when you are at work, you owe your boss eight hours of effort. Don't give your boss a reason to fire you before you are ready to leave. Start researching the costs and availability of health insurance (group insurance, if necessary) sooner rather than later. The same goes for business liability insurance. The book also talks about things to consider if you plan on having employees, and about setting up a federal tax ID number.
A person comes up to you at some business conference and asks you what you do for a living. Do you stammer and impersonate a deer in the headlights, or do you confidently give them a one to two-minute description of your business? It's called an elevator speech. Practice it, and have it ready; you never know when you will need it. If you are one of those who lacks self-confidence when speaking in front of a group, join a group like Toastmasters International, that specializes in helping people get that self-confidence.
The author spends a lot of time talking about social media. Sign up for Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, and strongly consider a blog and/or website. Get help if necessary. Have some company that hosts websites take care of yours. It's much cheaper, and involves fewer headaches, than hosting it yourself. Also, strongly consider having your information automatically backed up offsite. Again, it's easier than doing it yourself, especially when something crashes. The book also talks about password security; there is a program to help you remember all your various passwords.
This book belongs on the reference shelf of every would-be entrepreneur in America. It contains a lot of information, and will make the process of starting a small business much less difficult than normal. Yes, it's worth reading (and making notes in the margins and highlighting).
Many books have been written about ditching your boring and unfulfilling corporate job to follow your passion. This one takes the reader through the process practically step-by-step.
Find, and join, a group of like-minded individuals, like other self-employed people. Start with your local Chamber of Commerce. The support system will help you through the rough times, and the networking possibilities could lead to customers for you. Put together a business plan, and be willing to change it as circumstances dictate. If you plan to take on investors or partners, they will want to see it.
Set a definite mission for yourself. It can be more than just one thing, but make them specific and achievable. For instance, instead of saying "Learn about computers," say "Get Microsoft A+ Certification" or "Purchase (specific software) and take a continuing education class to learn it."
No matter how unpleasant your job is, when you are at work, you owe your boss eight hours of effort. Don't give your boss a reason to fire you before you are ready to leave. Start researching the costs and availability of health insurance (group insurance, if necessary) sooner rather than later. The same goes for business liability insurance. The book also talks about things to consider if you plan on having employees, and about setting up a federal tax ID number.
A person comes up to you at some business conference and asks you what you do for a living. Do you stammer and impersonate a deer in the headlights, or do you confidently give them a one to two-minute description of your business? It's called an elevator speech. Practice it, and have it ready; you never know when you will need it. If you are one of those who lacks self-confidence when speaking in front of a group, join a group like Toastmasters International, that specializes in helping people get that self-confidence.
The author spends a lot of time talking about social media. Sign up for Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, and strongly consider a blog and/or website. Get help if necessary. Have some company that hosts websites take care of yours. It's much cheaper, and involves fewer headaches, than hosting it yourself. Also, strongly consider having your information automatically backed up offsite. Again, it's easier than doing it yourself, especially when something crashes. The book also talks about password security; there is a program to help you remember all your various passwords.
This book belongs on the reference shelf of every would-be entrepreneur in America. It contains a lot of information, and will make the process of starting a small business much less difficult than normal. Yes, it's worth reading (and making notes in the margins and highlighting).
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Do It Yourself Business Sales Guidebook
Do It Yourself Business Sales Guidebook, Ben Brickweg, DIYBizsales.com, 2011
The easy part is to decide when to sell your small business; the hard part is knowing how to do it. This book makes that process much easier to navigate.
First of all, why are you selling? If it is to get enough money to retire to Florida or Arizona (or the south of France), giving the business to your children is probably not a good idea. Get an accountant and tax attorney (if you have not already done so); you are going to need them. Obviously, keep it quiet. The last thing you want is for your employees, suppliers and/or customers to be running for the hills in panic. Get rid of all old or obsolete inventory, and give the facility a thorough cleaning.
There are several financial reports that you will need, but the two most important ones are a Balance Sheet and a Profit and Loss statement for the past several years. Make sure that they are absolutely accurate. It's tempting to fool with the "books" in order to make your business look more profitable than it really is. It's also a really bad idea; your deception will be exposed, sooner or later. Besides, showing a "down" year is not the worst thing in the world.
The book looks at things to consider when you are coming up with an asking price. You need to get on the Internet, and look up the asking price of comparable businesses that are up for sale. If your asking price is noticeably higher than the "average" price, reduce your price accordingly. You can count on a potential buyer doing the same search, and asking why they should pay more for your widget company than for a comparable widget company.
Put some time and effort into the marketing materials that will get potential buyers interested in your business. Get help if you need it. Find the right magazines and websites to place your advertisement. Keep track of everyone who shows interest. If they seem legitimate, send them a Confidential Business Plan, which gives some, but not all, details of your business, right after they sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement. If they object, they are not a legitimate buyer, and you can cross them off the list. Serious buyers know that an NDA is part of the procedure, and will have no problem in signing it.
This book covers the rest of the process, from negotiating terms of the deal (compromise is the important word), to due diligence (where you are obligated to reveal all of your business, good or bad), to ensuring a new transition to the new owners. It also comes with a number of checklists and worksheets, to make the process as painless as possible.
For anyone who is even contemplating selling their small business, this book is very highly recommended. It's easy to say that you will never sell your business; life has a way of making that decision for you. This is equally recommended for anyone thinking of buying a small business; it does a very good job of showing what the seller is thinking and seeking.
The easy part is to decide when to sell your small business; the hard part is knowing how to do it. This book makes that process much easier to navigate.
First of all, why are you selling? If it is to get enough money to retire to Florida or Arizona (or the south of France), giving the business to your children is probably not a good idea. Get an accountant and tax attorney (if you have not already done so); you are going to need them. Obviously, keep it quiet. The last thing you want is for your employees, suppliers and/or customers to be running for the hills in panic. Get rid of all old or obsolete inventory, and give the facility a thorough cleaning.
There are several financial reports that you will need, but the two most important ones are a Balance Sheet and a Profit and Loss statement for the past several years. Make sure that they are absolutely accurate. It's tempting to fool with the "books" in order to make your business look more profitable than it really is. It's also a really bad idea; your deception will be exposed, sooner or later. Besides, showing a "down" year is not the worst thing in the world.
The book looks at things to consider when you are coming up with an asking price. You need to get on the Internet, and look up the asking price of comparable businesses that are up for sale. If your asking price is noticeably higher than the "average" price, reduce your price accordingly. You can count on a potential buyer doing the same search, and asking why they should pay more for your widget company than for a comparable widget company.
Put some time and effort into the marketing materials that will get potential buyers interested in your business. Get help if you need it. Find the right magazines and websites to place your advertisement. Keep track of everyone who shows interest. If they seem legitimate, send them a Confidential Business Plan, which gives some, but not all, details of your business, right after they sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement. If they object, they are not a legitimate buyer, and you can cross them off the list. Serious buyers know that an NDA is part of the procedure, and will have no problem in signing it.
This book covers the rest of the process, from negotiating terms of the deal (compromise is the important word), to due diligence (where you are obligated to reveal all of your business, good or bad), to ensuring a new transition to the new owners. It also comes with a number of checklists and worksheets, to make the process as painless as possible.
For anyone who is even contemplating selling their small business, this book is very highly recommended. It's easy to say that you will never sell your business; life has a way of making that decision for you. This is equally recommended for anyone thinking of buying a small business; it does a very good job of showing what the seller is thinking and seeking.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Mass Casualties
Mass Casualties: A Young Medic's True Story of Death, Deception and Dishonor in Iraq, Michael Anthony, AdamsMedia, 2009
This is one person's chronicle of a year in Iraq as an Army medic. It is not a pretty picture.
The hospital is set up in, supposedly safe, northern Iraq. It has 3 operating rooms, so if a large number of wounded are brought in at the same time, very unpleasant decisions would have to be made about who lives and who dies. Staff Sergeant Gagney, the immediate boss of the medics, is one of those who seems to think that leadership involves lots of yelling. He agonizes for hours over the work schedule, and comes up with a rotating schedule for everyone; first shift one day, then second shift the next day, then third shift the next day, etc. Of course, this totally disrupts everyone's sleep patterns, so that, after a couple of weeks, everyone comes to work looking like the walking dead. After a month, a female staff sergeant, Hudge, is given the responsibility of making a new schedule. In half an hour, she makes up a more rational schedule that gives everyone the same shift each day.
Later, when Hudge goes to Gagney to express her concerns about the way the unit is run, she is loudly accused of being the one with the emotional problem. When she visits the unit's Chaplain and mental Health Officer, Gagney had gotten to them first and told them about her supposedly unstable mental state. Another member of the unit attempts suicide. Instead of being sent home, or otherwise getting the help he needs, he is assigned extra duties, and basically told to suck it up. Another Sergeant shocks the unit by announcing that he is taking an emergency leave because his son has attempted suicide. Word filters back to the unit that he was seen in a local bar, back home, getting very friendly with a couple of prostitutes.
A Marine is brought in with a broken jaw, so he is in a lot of pain. The doctor on duty would rather attend a unit-wide awards ceremony than attend to the Marine. The author is not the only one in the unit who learns the value of Ambien and NyQuil (drunk by the bottle) for nights when sleep is impossible. Did I forget to mention the frequent shellings that send everyone running to the nearest bunker?
To call this a "wonderful" piece of writing might be the wrong word, because it gives many examples of human idiocy in a war zone, but it really is that good. By all means, read the "official" stories of American military personnel in Iraq, the read this to get the "real" story.
This is one person's chronicle of a year in Iraq as an Army medic. It is not a pretty picture.
The hospital is set up in, supposedly safe, northern Iraq. It has 3 operating rooms, so if a large number of wounded are brought in at the same time, very unpleasant decisions would have to be made about who lives and who dies. Staff Sergeant Gagney, the immediate boss of the medics, is one of those who seems to think that leadership involves lots of yelling. He agonizes for hours over the work schedule, and comes up with a rotating schedule for everyone; first shift one day, then second shift the next day, then third shift the next day, etc. Of course, this totally disrupts everyone's sleep patterns, so that, after a couple of weeks, everyone comes to work looking like the walking dead. After a month, a female staff sergeant, Hudge, is given the responsibility of making a new schedule. In half an hour, she makes up a more rational schedule that gives everyone the same shift each day.
Later, when Hudge goes to Gagney to express her concerns about the way the unit is run, she is loudly accused of being the one with the emotional problem. When she visits the unit's Chaplain and mental Health Officer, Gagney had gotten to them first and told them about her supposedly unstable mental state. Another member of the unit attempts suicide. Instead of being sent home, or otherwise getting the help he needs, he is assigned extra duties, and basically told to suck it up. Another Sergeant shocks the unit by announcing that he is taking an emergency leave because his son has attempted suicide. Word filters back to the unit that he was seen in a local bar, back home, getting very friendly with a couple of prostitutes.
A Marine is brought in with a broken jaw, so he is in a lot of pain. The doctor on duty would rather attend a unit-wide awards ceremony than attend to the Marine. The author is not the only one in the unit who learns the value of Ambien and NyQuil (drunk by the bottle) for nights when sleep is impossible. Did I forget to mention the frequent shellings that send everyone running to the nearest bunker?
To call this a "wonderful" piece of writing might be the wrong word, because it gives many examples of human idiocy in a war zone, but it really is that good. By all means, read the "official" stories of American military personnel in Iraq, the read this to get the "real" story.
Friday, April 15, 2011
The Adventures of Mad Martin
The Adventures of Mad Martin, Elly Cares, 2011 (Kindle e-book)
This is a connected group of modern-day detective stories about an investigator whose methods are not just quirky or unique, but downright bizarre. However, no one can dispute her record in solving crimes.
Molly Martin is a woman with long, flowing red hair, bright green eyes, and is one of those people who marches to the beat of a different drummer. She lives in a mansion with her assistant, Brian (who she constantly calls Johnny). Martin is a billionaire, so she can afford it. She has a closet full of bags of cheese doodles. The local police detective, Detective Carple, gets a headache whenever she is around.
A man is found dead inside a beautiful old building that has become an apartment house. The body is actually the top and bottom half of two different people, and one of the female residents has, literally, fallen in love with the building.
In the forest, miles from anywhere, five people are found dead, face down in the mud, with their lips and fingers removed. It has to do with some residents of a nearby small town trying much too hard to create the "perfect" town, and a little boy who brings new meaning to the word "creepy."
A woman comes to Martin, very concerned about her sister, living at a local mental hospital. The sister has been making great progress in her recovery, frequently calling and writing letters. All of a sudden, there has been nothing from the sister, for several days. Did she run away? Has she been kidnapped? Is she still alive?
The reason for Martin's different view of the world is that the murder of her family put her in a mental hospital. The director, who calls her in on a case involving the disappearance of dead babies, thinks that she was wrong to check herself out of the hospital. All that Brian and Detective Carple can do is to keep her pointed in the right direction when she, mentally, wants to go off in some strange direction. Throughout these stories, Martin gets strange messages and packages (a salted human tongue in a box) from someone who knows all about her past, and is not afraid to exploit it.
This book contains some really good writing, and the mystery parts will keep the reader guessing. I recall few stories about an investigator who is much closer to actual insanity than the average person. This is different, and is very much worth reading.
This is a connected group of modern-day detective stories about an investigator whose methods are not just quirky or unique, but downright bizarre. However, no one can dispute her record in solving crimes.
Molly Martin is a woman with long, flowing red hair, bright green eyes, and is one of those people who marches to the beat of a different drummer. She lives in a mansion with her assistant, Brian (who she constantly calls Johnny). Martin is a billionaire, so she can afford it. She has a closet full of bags of cheese doodles. The local police detective, Detective Carple, gets a headache whenever she is around.
A man is found dead inside a beautiful old building that has become an apartment house. The body is actually the top and bottom half of two different people, and one of the female residents has, literally, fallen in love with the building.
In the forest, miles from anywhere, five people are found dead, face down in the mud, with their lips and fingers removed. It has to do with some residents of a nearby small town trying much too hard to create the "perfect" town, and a little boy who brings new meaning to the word "creepy."
A woman comes to Martin, very concerned about her sister, living at a local mental hospital. The sister has been making great progress in her recovery, frequently calling and writing letters. All of a sudden, there has been nothing from the sister, for several days. Did she run away? Has she been kidnapped? Is she still alive?
The reason for Martin's different view of the world is that the murder of her family put her in a mental hospital. The director, who calls her in on a case involving the disappearance of dead babies, thinks that she was wrong to check herself out of the hospital. All that Brian and Detective Carple can do is to keep her pointed in the right direction when she, mentally, wants to go off in some strange direction. Throughout these stories, Martin gets strange messages and packages (a salted human tongue in a box) from someone who knows all about her past, and is not afraid to exploit it.
This book contains some really good writing, and the mystery parts will keep the reader guessing. I recall few stories about an investigator who is much closer to actual insanity than the average person. This is different, and is very much worth reading.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Escaping Destiny
Escaping Destiny, Jeffrey Pierce, 2011, B004LX0IW2 (Kindle e-book)
This fantasy novel is set in a world that is somewhere outside of reality. An ancient prophecy says that 13 people hold the key to all of existence.
They are a disparate group of beings. Kai is a warrior who just wants to live somewhere peacefully with Ko’laru, his faery lover. Many people consider faeries to be demons, and any “union” with humans to be unnatural. Beltross is mer, half human and half sea creature. Daen is a prophet who can see into the future. Traela is a teenage girl who very much wants to be a warrior. Leiron and Caraine have unique abilities of their own.
At first, the intention is to gather the 13 people together in one place, then work on making the prophecy come true. A monastery is attacked by bandits led by a man named Nollon, because a young boy named Rann at the monastery is the key to the prophecy. Traela is severely injured in the ensuing battle, beyond the abilities of human healers. The group detours to the city of Node
The Maat are alien beings who guard the gates between worlds. They are literally nothing more than bags of fluid enclosed in a thin membrane. A member of the Maat agrees to heal Traela, but they do not come cheap. Their price is not always monetary, a price that Kai is willing to pay. The Maat are also very picky about weapons being taken from one world to another. They have ways of detecting any attempts at smuggling or deception.
There are a number of battles against strange beings, including stone monsters, sent by the forces of evil to kill or capture those involved in the prophecy. First of a trilogy, this is a surprisingly good novel. It has everything a fantasy reader could want: a quest, violence, alien beings and a bit of romance. My only complaint has to do with the editing or proofreading. In several places in the book, the word is supposed to be "prophecy," not "prophesy." But that does not detract from a tale with language that borders on poetic. It gets two strong thumbs up.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Rebooting the American Dream
Rebooting the American Dream: 11 Ways to Rebuild Our Country, Thom Hartmann, Barrett-Koehler Publishers, 2010
When a computer is acting up, the first thing to do is reboot and start over. America's operating system, which has worked pretty well until recently, was weakened by Reaganomics, and then by policies from Clinton and the Bushes. This book tells how America can reboot and restore.
Manufacturing is the only way for a country to build wealth. The service economy, or simply moving money from place to place, does not build national wealth nearly as well. Adam Smith and Alexander Hamilton knew it, but we seem to have forgotten it. For instance, where is the advantage in needing parts from China to build a missile or aircraft carrier to defend Taiwan against a Chinese attack?
A little-known study done by the chairman of the libertarian Cato Institute showed that the Reagan and Bush tax cuts actually grew the size of the federal government. The higher pre-Reagan tax rates and the increased taxes under Clinton actually shrank the size of the federal government.
Reagan's decision to stop enforcing the Sherman Anti-Trust Act has led to a huge growth in the size of oligarchic corporations that dominate all parts of the economy. It has led to the devastation of local economies. Are cheap, mass-produced goods really more important than a healthy local economy? Hartmann asserts that the Sherman Anti-Trust Act needs to be re-enforced and America needs to return to the "trust busting" policies of Theodore Roosevelt.
It is wrong to think that America can forcefully impose democracy and an opensociety on the rest of the world. If they think that democracy is such a great idea, they will steal the idea and do it themselves. The problem is not "illegal immigration," the problem is American employers who pay much lower wages than an American worker would receive. There are few ways to reverse bad Supreme Court decisions, like the Citizens United decision, except by advocating for a Constitutional amendment.
This is an excellent book. It's interesting and easy to read, and it's written with passion. It is very much worth the time.
When a computer is acting up, the first thing to do is reboot and start over. America's operating system, which has worked pretty well until recently, was weakened by Reaganomics, and then by policies from Clinton and the Bushes. This book tells how America can reboot and restore.
Manufacturing is the only way for a country to build wealth. The service economy, or simply moving money from place to place, does not build national wealth nearly as well. Adam Smith and Alexander Hamilton knew it, but we seem to have forgotten it. For instance, where is the advantage in needing parts from China to build a missile or aircraft carrier to defend Taiwan against a Chinese attack?
A little-known study done by the chairman of the libertarian Cato Institute showed that the Reagan and Bush tax cuts actually grew the size of the federal government. The higher pre-Reagan tax rates and the increased taxes under Clinton actually shrank the size of the federal government.
Reagan's decision to stop enforcing the Sherman Anti-Trust Act has led to a huge growth in the size of oligarchic corporations that dominate all parts of the economy. It has led to the devastation of local economies. Are cheap, mass-produced goods really more important than a healthy local economy? Hartmann asserts that the Sherman Anti-Trust Act needs to be re-enforced and America needs to return to the "trust busting" policies of Theodore Roosevelt.
It is wrong to think that America can forcefully impose democracy and an opensociety on the rest of the world. If they think that democracy is such a great idea, they will steal the idea and do it themselves. The problem is not "illegal immigration," the problem is American employers who pay much lower wages than an American worker would receive. There are few ways to reverse bad Supreme Court decisions, like the Citizens United decision, except by advocating for a Constitutional amendment.
This is an excellent book. It's interesting and easy to read, and it's written with passion. It is very much worth the time.
The Progressive's Guide to Raising Hell
The Progressive's Guide to Raising Hell, Jamie Court, Chelsea Green Publishing, 2010
Hope and change are all well and good in present-day politics, but the time has come for some old-fashioned anger in order to get things done. This book gives the details.
The author advocates that activists focus their attention on state-wide issues. Half the states allow citizen groups to put ballot initiatives on the state wide ballot. Visit your state's Secretary of the State to see if you live in one of those states. If you do, then go for it.
As an example, say that your proposed ballot initiative deals with the subject of health care. Exposing new information about your opponents, information that conflicts with their public image, shows how out of touch with public opinion they really are. Don't be afraid to confront your opponents. Eventually, they will make a mistake, even if it is just saying something dumb in public. Use that mistake to shame your opponents, and make that mistake the issue. If they don't adopt your ideas, keep forcing mistakes until they do concede. Last, but not least, don't let go.
The author, a veteran consumer activist, gives a number of other rules to consider in any campaign. Don't try to change everyone's opinion; target the little things and a few people. Even small victories are still victories. Keep your moral sentiments short, and to the point. Fight even if you can't win today, and someday you may win without fighting. Put people first; keep it human. Make it personal for decision makers. When the time comes, when your opponents make a mistake, seize the moment and have the goods. The bigger and more important an opponent is, the more afraid they are of falling. Use that fear to gain a win without combat. Some people, and some organizations, think that it is preferable to have a "seat at the table." The author asserts that it is more important to have a rock to throw through the window.
This book is full of real-life examples from the author's ballot campaigns in California. It is very highly recommended, especially if live in a ballot-friendly state. For those who don't live in such a state, it is full of ideas for any state-wide campaign, and is still well worth reading.
Hope and change are all well and good in present-day politics, but the time has come for some old-fashioned anger in order to get things done. This book gives the details.
The author advocates that activists focus their attention on state-wide issues. Half the states allow citizen groups to put ballot initiatives on the state wide ballot. Visit your state's Secretary of the State to see if you live in one of those states. If you do, then go for it.
As an example, say that your proposed ballot initiative deals with the subject of health care. Exposing new information about your opponents, information that conflicts with their public image, shows how out of touch with public opinion they really are. Don't be afraid to confront your opponents. Eventually, they will make a mistake, even if it is just saying something dumb in public. Use that mistake to shame your opponents, and make that mistake the issue. If they don't adopt your ideas, keep forcing mistakes until they do concede. Last, but not least, don't let go.
The author, a veteran consumer activist, gives a number of other rules to consider in any campaign. Don't try to change everyone's opinion; target the little things and a few people. Even small victories are still victories. Keep your moral sentiments short, and to the point. Fight even if you can't win today, and someday you may win without fighting. Put people first; keep it human. Make it personal for decision makers. When the time comes, when your opponents make a mistake, seize the moment and have the goods. The bigger and more important an opponent is, the more afraid they are of falling. Use that fear to gain a win without combat. Some people, and some organizations, think that it is preferable to have a "seat at the table." The author asserts that it is more important to have a rock to throw through the window.
This book is full of real-life examples from the author's ballot campaigns in California. It is very highly recommended, especially if live in a ballot-friendly state. For those who don't live in such a state, it is full of ideas for any state-wide campaign, and is still well worth reading.
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