The Profession: A Thriller by Steven Pressfield

A cautionary tale buried inside some first-rate action.

Published in 2012 by Crown.

The Profession is a near-future sci-fi action-adventure tale with a great deal of political analysis and some history tossed in as well.

Set in the year 2032, the world has become a different place, but not at all unrecognizable. The chaos in the Middle East still reigns supreme on the international scene because oil is still king ($8/gallon gasoline is threatening to collapse America's economy). Iran and Iraq are still fighting, terrorism still exist, the oil states in the Middle East are, at the same time, both strong and unstable. The United States is in the middle of an election that seems to be addressing none of the real issues that the country faces and none of the candidates inspire anyone to anything but changing the channel of the television when they appear.

Steven Pressfield

America is still acting as the world's de facto policeman, although this role is enhanced by a new creation - the private, mercenary armies that have their roots in the current Iraq and Afghanistan wars with groups like Blackwater - former special forces soldiers recruited to join private armies with the promise of much more money and many less restrictions. These private armies are no longer just support for official armies. No, they are real and complete armies with contracted air support, ships, tanks and lots of high-talent soldiers to operate everything. While they still cannot stand toe-to-toe with a large country's military, they are much more nimble and able to react with greater speed.

The technology of the world of 2032 is recognizable as well - the high explosives are a bit more explosive but in the world of war it is still machine guns, helicopters, missiles and drones.

Suddenly, in the midst of this chaos comes the head of Force Insertion, the largest mercenary company in the world, James Salter.  Salter is a former MacArthur-like Marine General who was removed from office for overstepping his bounds. In a bold political move that is reminiscent of Alcibiades and Julius and August Caesar, he offers a solution to all of the world's problems - give him the legal authority to be dictator of the United States (a legal possibility thanks to a series of bad laws passed after another 9/11 type of attack) and he will dispense with all of the arguing and just do what needs to be done.

The story is told from the point of view of Gilbert "Gent" Gentilhomme, a mercenary who knew Salter from their days in the Marines - the man who Salter treats like a son, and also the man who has a few misgivings about the whole thing.

This book can be read on multiple levels - as a cautionary tale, as a shoot-em-up, as a political thriller, or as a primer on how history can repeat itself.

I rate this book 4 stars out of 5.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: The Profession: A Thriller by Steven Pressfield.

Reviewed on May 28, 2011.

My Indiana: 101 Places to See by Earl L. Conn

Published in 2006 by the Indiana Historical Society.

The Indiana Historical Society's My Indiana: 101 Places to See is a colorful, informative guide to touring the state of Indiana. Every one of the 101 sites gets two pages, including at least two color photos (some have as many as four), a multi-paragraph, well-written description of the place and a section called "If You Go" that includes direction, phone numbers, websites, hours of operation and fees.

The choices are all solid and are spaced throughout the state. But, I could easily come up with 101 more places to go and see so hopefully the author is considering another volume. (Update: The author has created a book called My Indiana: 101 More Places to See)

Two notes of correction:

1) the entry for West Baden Springs (pp. 200-1) is out of date (thankfully). What was just an abandoned hulk of a ruined hotel (impressive even with pealing paint and no prospects for large-scale repair when this book was written) has become a 5 star resort and casino. I saw the atrium pictured on page 201 during the Christmas season and it is now a breathtaking spectacle that caused my 3 & 8 year old daughters to suck in their breaths and quietly say, "Wow!" They were inspired play princess in the castle for 20 minutes while my wife and I looked around and spoke with a very nice concierge about the building.

2) #29 is the Lincoln Museum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. What was once the largest privately held museum of Lincoln memorabilia is now closed. The entire collection is now in the hands of the Indiana State Museum in White River Park in downtown Indianapolis (see #39 for White River Park). You may ask, "Why Lincoln? Isn't he from Illinois?" Well, sort of. He grew up in Indiana. He lived in Indiana from age 7 to age 21 (see location #90 for his boyhood home).

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: My Indiana: 101 Places to See.

Reviewed on February 15, 2009.

What Your Parents Never Told You About Being A Mom Or Dad by Stan and Jan Berenstain

Boooring

Originally published in 1995.

I found this 3 1/2 hour audiobook and figured I'd come across a hidden gem. A book about kids by the Berenstains! Who would know more than those folks that have created books, videos, and a TV show with lots of wholesome values and fun?

What Your Parents Never Told You About Being A Mom Or Dad is full of wholesome values. It offers practical advice on raising kids and a bit of an introduction to the Berenstain's experiences in raising a family.

But...

It's a tedious listen. Extraordinarily tedious. After the general introduction (20 minutes or so) the book gets bogged down in attempts at pithy humor, quips and puns than just don't work. I forced myself to listen to an hour and a half of the meat of this book and finally couldn't go any longer.

While full of good advice, I have to give any book that I cannot finish a one star. This thing should have been edited down to about one hour and it would have had much more impact.

Narrated by C.J. Critt and Robert Sevra who did the best the could with what they had to work with. 

This audiobook can be found on Amazon.com here: What Your Parents Never Told You about Being a Mom or Dad. 

Reviewed on February 20, 2009.

Mind Slash Matter (audiobook) by Edward Wellen

Truly Unique Mystery

Duration: 3 hours, 1 minute

Mind Slash Matter is a unique entry into the world of mystery thrillers. The hero is a 2-time Oscar-winning screenwriter, Rush Lightbody, who is now a shell of his former self due to Alzheimer's. However, he is able to function due to a wonderful computer that he pre-programmed before the Alzheimer's set in that interacts with him by way of speakers, microphones, video cameras and pagers. Thus, Rush Lightbody is able to convince the outside world that he is still okay by way of a series prompts and firm instructions that come from the computer.

Rene Auberjonois

At times, it is reminiscent of Peter Sellers' movie Being There in that the people Lightbody interacts with over-interpret his incorrect responses as exceedingly wise responses. Often funny, often sad, this book causes the reader to enter the mind of an Alzheimer's victim and get a taste of that alternate reality. It never degrades Alzheimer's victims or goes for the cheap jokes.

The technology is a bit dated, due to the book having been written in 1995, the author was merely guessing as to the nature of computer technology in the future. Cell phones have basically replaced pagers and at one point Lightbody re-programs the computer in just a few minutes - an impossibility, as is Artificial Intelligence thus far. However, suspend the techno-geek part of your personality and this is a magnificent audiobook experience.

Rene Auberjonois (From TV's Benson and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) does an absolutely wonderful job of reading this novel. He does several characters perfectly, including an aging blonde-bombshell B-Movie actress - his characterization of her was so good that I had to pick up the box and see if there was an actress playing her part. Wonderful job! Seriously, one of the best jobs of reading an audiobook  that I've heard.

I rate this audiobook 5 stars out of 5.

This audiobook can be found on Amazon.com here: Mind Slash Matter

Reviewed on February 13, 2006.

Cell by Stephen King

I had not read a Stephen King book since Insomnia.

Originally published in 2006.

I just walked away because I was so disappointed in that book. Before that, I read every Stephen King book as soon as it came out, but Insomnia was so disappointing that I just swore off his books for several years.

So, it's been 12 or 13 years since I've even picked up a Stephen King book. I thought it was time to try again. I was tempted by the book description on the dust jacket of Cell.

So, what was the verdict?

Enjoyable read. At times, I could not put it down.

Stephen King

No one writes gore better than King. He adds detail that makes you feel like you were there. King's easy reading style sucks the reader right in and the reader wants to know what is going to happen next. Uncharacteristically, King fails to do much in the area of character development, outside of the main character of Clay. Too bad.

One cannot help but to compare Cell to The Stand. It would be unfair to say that Cell is a mini-Stand. The over-arching themes of good vs. evil are not present. The character development is, by comparison, non-existent. Cell is not as good, but not as much of a time investment, either.

The plotline is rather straightforward - a "pulse" goes through every active cell phone in the world at the same time that pretty much fries the brain of the user and turns them in all into super-enraged zombie-like creatures that attack everyone that was not affected by the pulse. They are not zombies as in they are undead, but rather they function at that level. King tells us the story of some of the survivors.

So - to sum it all up. Cell is good, not as good as King at his best, but definitely worth a look.

I give it 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: Cell by Stephen King. 

Reviewed on February 8, 2006.

NOTE: This book was placed on a banned book list for the 2023-2024 school year. Here is a ink to the extensive list of books banned in Florida for that school year. UGH.

White Cargo by Stuart Woods

Engrossing - pulled me right in

Published in 1988.

There are two Stuart Woods out there, at least in my mind. There's the early Stuart Woods that wrote great books like Chiefs and there's the Stone Barrister-writing Stuart Woods that just writes a formula plot, mail it in and collects a check.

In White Cargo, a wealthy American, Wendell Catledge, is yachting off of the coast of Colombia when he is attacked by pirates and his wife and daughter are kidnapped and end up in the underworld of the narco-traffickers. Catledge goes underground to find his family in Colombia.

White Cargo is definitely an early Stuart Woods book! I found myself pulled into this plot and I just had to know what happened next, despite the fact that the violence and sexual exploitation was a bit too extreme for my tastes. The ending was fairly hokey but the overall strength of the rest of the book more than makes up for that.

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5 and it can be found on Amazon.com here: White Cargo by Stuart Woods.

Reviewed on January 14, 2006.

Life's Little Annoyances: True Tales of People Who Just Can't Take It Anymore by Ian Urbina

(Too) Quick and Fun!

Published in 2005 by Times Books.

Like others who have reviewed Life's Little Annoyances: True Tales of People Who Just Can't Take It Anymore, I first learned about it by way of a piece about it on CNN and I am glad that I asked for it for Christmas.

Full of short vignettes (1-3 pages) about the inanities of modern life and some people's amusing ways of dealing with it, this is the perfect bathroom book, if you know what I mean.

My favorites include:

*the man who dealt with the 'adult' bookstore in his community by giving every customer he saw as he drove by a friendly honk on the horn in an attempt to make the customers wonder if someone they actually knew really saw them patronizing a porn shop.

Ian Urbina

*the man who mailed all kinds of things to the credit card companies in those nifty return envelopes that they include with their offers, including their shredded offers, other junk mail and even strips of metal!

*the guy who has a website that demonstrates the proper way to park a car. He puts business cards with the web address on the windshields of bad parkers.

My only complaint is that the book is just too short. It's great fun, but it's too short.

I rate this book 4 stars out of 5.

This book can be found here: Life's Little Annoyances: True Tales of People Who Just Can't Take It Anymore.

Reviewed on January 14, 2006.