Category: books

The Four by Scott Galloway

On By Rick McIn Amazon, Apple, books, economics, education, Facebook, Google, internetLeave a comment

Four American companies have totally changed our lives.

Apple
Amazon
Google
Facebook

I use all four non-stop. Fantastic innovation.

Needless to say, there are downsides. Google no longer uses the mantra “don’t be evil”. They dropped it in 2018.

Scott Galloway has replaced Leo Laporte as my main tech guru. I just finished his book …

The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google (2017)

It’s great, but you can get a good summary by reading Galloway’s article in Esquire:

Silicon Valley’s Tax-Avoiding, Job-Killing, Soul-Sucking Machine (2018)

My brother’s NEW books

On By Rick McIn books, McCharles familyLeave a comment

The big news is that Randy McCharles switched genres from Fantasy to Murder Mystery.

First up in his new series is a short story:

Murder on the Mall
Introducing Peter Galloway, Private Investigator

His first full Peter Galloway novel is Murder in Wood Buffalo. It’s only available on Kindle and Kobo. He’s self-publishing. Less hassle for him. Lower cost for readers.

It’s easy readying. Galloway is a likeable character. Funny. Looking for love.

He quit the Calgary police department because he couldn’t stomach murder. Now a private investigator — he’s called in to lead a murder investigation in Fort McMurray.

The Girl Who Lived Twice by David Lagercrantz

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Book 6 is a disappointment: Too much Blomkvist. Not enough Salander.

The newest installment in Stieg Larsson’s Millennium Series.

Lisbeth Salander—the fierce, unstoppable girl with the dragon tattoo—is determined to finally face the gravest threat in her life, her twin sister, Camilla. While Camilla lives, no one—including journalist Mikael Blomkvist—will be safe.

The other major plot thread involves intrigue on Mount Everest. I felt that storyline was poorly done. A hodgepodge of true stories from the mountain.

For one thing, the author refers to Freak Street in Kathmandu which hasn’t really been a thing since the 1970s. I assume he’s done his Nepal research on Wikipedia.

Amazon

Click PLAY or watch a ‘book trailer’ on YouTube.

The Moon and Sixpence by Maugham

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The Moon and Sixpence is a novel by W. Somerset Maugham first published in April 15th, 1919.

It is told in episodic form by a first-person narrator, in a series of glimpses into the mind and soul of the central character Charles Strickland, a middle-aged English stockbroker, who abandons his wife and children abruptly to pursue his desire to become an artist.

The story is in part based on the life of the painter Paul Gauguin.

I’ve long been a fan of Maugham who became the leading British author of his day by mocking traditional old, rich, white Brit literature starting with his first famous novel, Liza of Lambeth (1897).

Maugham is an excellent writer, of course. Very cynical with insights into the worst of humankind.

Strickland is the worst. All he cares about is art. Nothing else matters.

This is a great book which you won’t soon forget.

 

The Year of Less by Cait Flanders

On By Rick McIn books, economics, ethics, happiness, philosophy1 Comment

Needless to say, I was attracted to this book because of my own philosophy of Voluntary Simplicity.

Less is more.

Cait was quite a normal person. In debt, like normal people. Her life cluttered with possessions she never used, like normal people.

How I Stopped Shopping, Gave Away My Belongings, and Discovered Life Is Worth More Than Anything You Can Buy in a Store

When Cait Flanders was in her early 20s, she found herself $23,000 in consumer debt. In order to turn her life around — and get out of debt — she set out on a mission to address some of the root causes of her over-consumption.

Flanders’ memoir, The Year of Less, documents how through a self-imposed shopping ban, cutting back on eating out and drinking and de-cluttering her life, she rediscovered happiness, health and financial security.

In her own words, Flanders explains how she changed her life and wrote The Year of Less. …

CBC

Amazon

Fleishman Is In Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner

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Fleishman Is In Trouble is a hit novel published June 2019. Some are calling it the book of the summer.

Rave reviews all round.

I made it about a quarter of the way through before giving up.

The sales pitch is that she’s a modern, female version of Philip Roth or John Updike. That could be true. It’s well written. Smart.

But for me the book comes on too strong. A “Tinder-age Portnoy’s Complaint“.

Guardian review – Fleishman Is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner review – smart, funny story of love and sex

Amazon

Even This I Get to Experience – Norman Lear

On By Rick McIn books, movies, TVLeave a comment

The Simpson’s writer — Mike Reiss — recommended Norman’s Lear’s autobiography. And it’s excellent.

Norman Lear’s career is legendary: All in the Family; The Jeffersons; Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. Over 100 TV shows.

He collaborated with Rob Reiner on Stand By Me and The Princess Bride.

Surprisingly, the character Lear identifies closest with Maude.

Archie Bunker was based on Lear’s father. 

Maude was a social activist, as was Lear.

Lear fought Nixon, Jerry Falwell and the Religious Right, the Tea Party.

Lear is a proud American buying a copy of the United States Declaration of Independence—for $8.1 million. Then touring it across the nation to celebrate Democracy.

The autobiography was published 2014 when Lear was age-92.

One of the first TV celebrities, Lear knew and hung-out with almost everybody. I enjoyed hearing the inside story of Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis, for example. Lewis was a jerk.

Amazon

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Brotherhood of the Rose by David Morrell

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The beginning of this acclaimed 1983 book is compelling.

It’s the story of Saul (Jew) and Chris (Catholic), two orphans from Philadelphia, who grow up like stepbrothers.

Trained from a young age to be CIA spies and assassins, Raumulas and Remus (code names) are expertly defined characters with a great back story.

It’s well written. I’d like to recommend this book. … On the other hand, I found the ending quite weak.

Amazon.

A cheesy made-for-TV movie was released in 1989. The book is much better.

Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.

Mortalis Series:

The Brotherhood of the Rose, 1983
The Fraternity of the Stone, 1985
The League of Night and Fog, 1987

Springfield Confidential by Mike Reiss

On By Rick McIn books, humour, TVLeave a comment

Ron loaned me a hard copy of Mike Reiss‘ 2018 book on his years working on The Simpsons. He was one of the first writers when the show started in 1989.

Hilarious. I recommend it.

I stopped watching The Simpsons back when every episode was controversial. They made fun of everyone and everything.

But I’m still a big fan. My Facebook avatar is Lugash, Lisa Simpson’s Gymnastics coach.

Ten years in … Family Guy launched.

Peter Griffin was fatter and dumber. Family Guy mocked topics sacrosanct to The Simpsons.

Surprisingly, many on The Simpsons writing team were offended.

 

Amazon.

Hard Luck Hank – book 7

On By Rick McIn books, humourLeave a comment

No books make me laugh more or harder than the Hard Luck Hank series.

In this one Hank is getting married. To an out-of-work actress.

She’s a Damakan. As a species they are capable of “broadcast empathy.” Their acting skills are so powerful they are able to make people believe their portrayals are literally happening—even over remote transmission.

This book mocks actors and a whole lot more.

I was happy to buy and download the audio version of …

Hard Luck Hank: Dumber Than Dead (2018)