DWD's Reviews

What a great idea. Greg Wright In a world where so many kids are disconnected from their families, Greg Wright is determined  to be a large part of his four daughters' lives. The only way to do this is to spend time with his girls - lots of time (I once had a principal tell me that kids spell love T-I-M-E and I have seen nothing in 21 years of teaching to contradict that thought). The "daddy date" is devoted time just to them as a unique and special person. He achieves this by having "daddy dates" with them. On a daddy date he picks up the girl at home, takes her to a restaurant and/or an activity (not a movie, but an activity that promotes conversation) that she would like. Finally, starts a discussion with her and mostly listens. As a bonus, he is modeling the kind of behavior a special young man should show them when they go on dates (his daughters do not date in high school - they can go out in groups but not paired off dates). Greg Wright is not ...

             Oh! The dangers of reviewing a classic . Hermann Hesse (1877-1962) Siddhartha has been on my "should read" list for a long time, nearly 20 years. With all of that build up and anticipation you'd think I'd have more thoughts about it than I do. My one word review of the book is 'lukewarm.' It is neither a strong book nor a weak book. Siddhartha's spiritual quest is told in such a detached manner that, in the end, I feel detached from the whole exercise. I am uncommited to the character and I really didn't particularly care where his quest ended up. Perhaps that was the point of it all - it's his quest, you can do nothing but care about your own. I rate this book 3 stars out of 5. This book can be found on Amazon here:  Siddhartha Reviewed  on December 6, 2005.

19 hours, 34 minutes Read by John Lee Published by Tantor Audio Unabridged. Alastair Reynolds’ The Prefect is a hard-boiled detective novel set in a future in which mankind has moved to new worlds far away from Earth and created any number of new technologies. But, people still find themselves confronted by age-old problems that come from within humanity itself. In the end, despite the all of the glitz of spaceships and high tech weaponry, this is really a book about freedom vs. tyranny, redemption, revenge, justice, revenge and honor. Set in the year 2427, The Prefect is the fifth novel in the Revelation Space series. Chronologically, it is the first novel (there are short stories and novellas in the series as well) and it can be read as a stand-alone novel. The Prefect takes place in the Glitter Band, a group of 10,000 space stations (called habitats) with a total population of 100 million all in orbit around a planet called Yellowstone about 10 light years from Earth....

Fun to read, but be warned... Published in 1982. ...you had better be up on your Civil War basics before attempting to read this book. It assumes that the reader is well aware of the main battles, campaigns, personalities and relative strengths and weaknesses of both the North and the South. Union General William Tecumseh Sherman (1820-1891) As the title suggests, the book is primarily a collection of facts and oddball "did you know?" type of stories that are not really intended to re-tell the story of the Civil War but are mostly aimed at  people who know the story fairly well and are looking for some new stories (in my case, these are new stories I can use to bore my wife in new and different ways with the Civil War). There's bound to be something new in here for everyone but the hardest of the hard core Civil War aficionados. Well-written, breezy, although oftentimes disjointed and random. This book is also published under the titles Our Incredible Civ...

A political thriller for people that don't know much about politics Read by Robert Petkoff 11 hours, 42 minutes. The premise behind A Heartbeat Away is simple and brilliant:  What if terrorists released a biological weapon into the House chamber during the President's State of the Union Address - the one time when just about everybody who is anybody in the Federal government is all in one room together? The follow through, however, is not so hot. Palmer's characterization of how a President would deal with this sort of problem shows that Palmer does not understand the one thing that all presidents are - they are politicians. They know how to collaborate, get things done, work with people they cannot stand to get their programs enacted. Even the most difficult President can schmooze and get people to work with them.  The president in A Heartbeat Away , James Allaire is the most politically tone deaf character I have ever seen. He manages to make the whole thi...

Published by Blackstone Audio Duration: 6 hours, 36 minutes Narrated by Barrett Whitener Unabridged Robert A. Heinlein’s Time for the Stars is a true bit of science fiction history and, in a way, embodies all of the “cool” stuff that made me such a fan – a bit of physics, adventure, young people off to explore unseen worlds, and some newfangled technology. Heinlein (1907-1988) first published Time for the Stars in 1956, during a time period when he had a contract with Scribner’s to produce books that were young people friendly. They were aimed at young adults, although I enjoyed it as well. It is the memoir of the space travels of Tom Bartlett, who is also one half of a very talented set of twins. The premise of the book is simple enough. The Earth is too crowded and a research corporation called the Long Range Foundation has invested in several ships to seek out new planets that humans can inhabit. There are already colonies throughout the solar system but they ar...

Published in 2010 by Tantor audio Read by Todd McLaren Duration: 14 hours, 4 minutes. Unabridged. Called a “Master of Alternate History” by Publishers Weekly, Harry Turtledove continues on that track in Atlantis and Other Places with a set of 12 short stories. Topics and eras range from pre-history to the Peloponnesian War to the Byzantine Empire to World War II and two stories set in modern times. All of these stories have appeared in other publications. This collection begins and ends with two stories about Atlantis, a topic he has explored more deeply in a trilogy. “Audubon in Atlantis” is the first story that Turtledove published about Atlantis. The famed 19 th century naturalist John James Audubon has traveled to Atlantis to catalog some of its unique wildlife. Turtledove introduces his alternate world, including basics of the history of Atlantis and he introduces the House of Universal Devotion, a religion that is most analogous to the Mormon Church in regular histor...

Fantastic. A most interesting book. C.S. Lewis (1898-1963) The Question of God is a fascinating book. I heard it is an audiobook. I listen to audiobooks as an interesting diversion during my commute to work and I found this book to fit the bill perfectly. It is narrated wonderfully by Robert Whitfield. Fans of Freud have complained about the book because they think that Lewis comes out of these debates much stronger than Freud. I agree. But, I do not think Freud was disparaged or misrepresented in these "debates." Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) Large, generous quotes from both men are the main feature. Both men speak for themselves with Nicholi adding relevant supporting information with occasional discussion of his own research. The arguments flow naturally and I cannot recall a time when the discussion seemed forced. Lots of biographical material is included as well. The reader (or, in my case, the listener) does not need to be an expert on either ...

While not perfect, it is thought-provoking and a quick read Sunny Schwartz Sunny Schwartz is a Chicago-born lawyer who has worked in the San Francisco jail system for 30+ years. This book is a combination of a personal biography and professional recommendations for our nations over-worked, overcrowded and floundering jail and prison systems. Schwartz is not a hand-holding, excuse-making prisoner advocate. She notes several times that she wants criminals to be punished. She notes: "I completely understand the objections and utter impatience people have with criminals. They have hurt us, our pocketbooks, our souls." (p. 197) However, practical experience does offer some hard-won wisdom and Schwartz does have some things to suggest that might very well improve the behavior of our prisoners (remember most will become ex-prisoners some day and it would be nice if they were more in step with the rest of us). She focuses on an anti-violence program that is ba...

A great read  No, I don't live in a cave, but I have not seen the movie, nor have I picked up any of the study materials. My wife read the book and recommended it to me. I'm an avid reader but I was really not looking forward to it. Why not? Well, let's face it - there's some poorly made/written stuff out there that only sells because it's family friendly or because it is "Christian". So, I reluctantly picked this one up. Boy, was I surprised. I was hooked from the first chapter and shot through this book in less than 48 hours. I've reviewed hundreds of books on Amazon.com but I am hardly a speed reader - more like a dogged one. Eric Wilson The relationship between the husband and wife characters, Caleb and Catherine, is on the rocks but seems realistic and is not overly romance novel-like. The firefighting scenes are exciting and well-done. Sure, you can see the end coming from 100 miles away but it was still well...

School counseling based on character education with a Christian flavor Published in 2008 . It has become the flavor of the month in many schools to teach character education. As a teacher in a school corporation that purports to teach character but does not go beyond banners and slogans in the official school letterhead in our effort I found this book to be enlightening. Baggett is quite open with his religious beliefs throughout the book, which is appropriate - his character is greatly shaped by it. He stresses that it cannot be overtly expressed in his role as counselor at school, but it is present. Baggett sells the concept of the role of character education in schools quite well. He demonstrates the lack of character in schools and the larger society, identifies several areas that need to be addressed and lays out some general ways to address them along with references to how to address more specific needs. Throughout the book he includes literally hundreds of inspiration...

Good vacation book Published in 1997. Written in the wake of the Milli Vanilli music scandal , Steve Martini's The List features an unsuccessful female author (Abby Chandlis) who has written a book that under a male pen name (Gable Cooper) in order to make the book more marketable. So far, no big deal. Lots of authors use pen names. Several female romance authors have used pen names to write detective books and thrillers. In this case, the author actually hires a person to portray himself as the real Gable Cooper - not just in public appearances, but also in all negotiations with the agents, the publishers and Hollywood studios interested in turning the book into a movie. The reason she goes through such elaborate steps is her belief that male authors, especially handsome, charming ones, are marketed much more aggressively. Steve Martini The problem comes in the man chosen to portray Gable Cooper. He is a loose cannon, a frustrated author and, even worse, the real author...

There's a lot of meat to this "tween" novel. Quite enjoyable and discussion-provoking Published in 2009. The Roar is a more "kiddie" book than I normally read. This one is aimed at the tween crowd (the book says down to grade 3 but I can't really imagine anyone under the age of 10 getting into it) and I found it to be quite compelling despite being aimed at the younger set and the occasional clunky simile and/or phrase. The Roar has a sequel called The Whisper. The book is set in a dismal future in which religion is gone (not really mentioned but people say, "My odd!" rather than "My God!") and the environment has been destroyed by mankind in order to kill of the animals. 45 years before the story an animal "plague" caused all of the animals to attack people in a crazed frenzy. So, people retreated to just a few countries (UK, Canada and a few others), became part of a highly stratified society with lots of urban ...

"What can happen to a people whose youth sacrifices everything in order to serve its great ideals?" - Adolph Hitler, October 1932 Published by Listening Library in 2006. Read by Kathrin Kana. 4 hours, 26 minutes Unabridged Susan Campbell  Bartoletti's Hitler Youth demonstrates how the Nazis separated children from the parents, their churches and their senses in an effort to make them loyal to the German state and Adolph Hitler. Starting with the story of a member of the Hitler Youth who was killed in a bloody street fight with Communist youths, Bartoletti shows the chaos in the streets that enabled Hitler to take over Germany. She also details every step that the Hitler Youth took to monopolize the lives and the attention of its young people in order to completely dominate their lives and their loyalties. The reader is introduced to a number of former members of the Hitler Youth and we are told generalities of how the Hitler Youth operated and the specifics of ...

The unabridged audiobook is excellent Published by Bantam Doubleday Audio in 2001 Duration: 12 hours, 7 minutes Read by David Lansbury Unabridged I am not a giant fan of Grisham's latest legal thrillers but I am becoming a fan of his non-lawyer books, such as Bleachers and A Painted House . Grisham's non-legal novels are wonderful "slice of life" views of rural/small town America. A Painted House is a rite of passage novel about a 7 year old boy (Luke Chandler) growing up on an Arkansas cotton farm in 1952 with his parents and grandparents. His uncle is off fighting the war in Korea. It is the beginning of the two month long picking season and his family hires some hired hands to help pick the cotton. They hire a combination of "hill people" (poor whites from up in the Arkansas hills) and Mexicans who are literally trucked into Arkansas in the trailer of a semi as if they were cattle. Luke learns a lot during this season, including abou...

Some really good parts but... Published in 2009 by Ballantine Books   1942: A Novel follows up on a simple "What if?" from history. What if the Japanese actually invaded and conquered Hawaii rather than simply attacked it on December 7, 1941? Conroy's book is very strong up until the point where the Japanese invade. The premise of the book is historically strong, the strategies seem logical, the personalities of the real historical figures are consistent with what we know of them nowadays. But.. Once the invasion happens, Conroy indulges in exploring the depravities of the Japanese secret police with too much vigor. Yes, I know that the Japanese were brutal, cruel, heartless conquerors that literally raped cities like Nanking, China. He shows a similar brutality in the invasion of Hawaii, which is fine and appropriate - there is no reason to assume the Japanese would have acted any better in Hawaii than they did in China, Korea and the Philippines. ...

Published in 2009 by William Murrow. I think it was Stephen King who once commented that his short stories (or novellas) were books that just never took enough shape and form to become a book. He tried to tease out more out of the story but there was just nothing more to pull out of the story. The Babysitter's Code is not that. There is plenty more to add to this story. It just builds up to the point where the reader is getting in to the story and then it just...ends. Why? Don't know . Frustrating? Very. I rate this book 2 stars out of 5. You can find this short story on Amazon.com here: The Babysitter's Code . Reviewed on March 21, 2009.

This Civil War buff thoroughly enjoyed it Originally Published in 2004 by William Morrow To Make Men Free , like an epic feature from the 1950s, features a cast of thousands which is both its strength and weakness. A lot of reviewers complain about the lack of depth in the characters, which is fair to say about the book. Unlike Shaara's The Killer Angels , the gold standard of Civil War fiction, there is not much character development. But, to be fair, Shaara focuses on precious few personalities of the War while Croker includes Lincoln, many cabinet members, Lee, McClellan and at least a dozen of the generals, not to mention colonels, sergeants and even a couple of privates. George B. McClellan  (1826-1885) The inclusion of so many characters does contribute to a lack of character exploration but it also contributes to a wide view of the mayhem of the battlefield. Croker also delves into political intrigues that went hand in hand with this bloodiest day in Am...