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The 100 Best Business Books of All Time: What They Say, Why They Matter, and How They Can Help You
Authors: Jack Covert, Todd Sattersten
Amazon info

The authors run the website http://800ceoread.com/ - which specializes in reviewing business books. Thus, when these people recommend the best 100 business books, their recommendations mean something. In theory, their business should be very very successful - after all, they have read all the business advice in the world.

The authors present short (2 page) summaries of each of the 100 books, organized by theme. They also include pointers at the end of each summary to related summaries and other related books. There are also sidebars throughout (Business in the Movies, Classic Books, Business in Fiction, etc.).

Overall, this is an outstanding book and a literally a life changer for me. My plan is to now embark on a 1-2 year project to read all of the 100 books.

Recommended: Everyone - highly!

Posted by Richard Berger at 01:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The Secret Life of Words: How English Became English
Author: Henry Hitchings
Amazon info

Even for an admitted word geek, this was a big too much like reading a dictionary, although the material is organized historically which provides a basic framework for the book. I found it too easy to lose sight of the big picture in the details of the derivations of particular words.

The other obvious point is that this is a history of English, not of American, so it tells the story from the perspective of someone who is quite familiar with English history - which means that at least some references were lost on me.

Perhaps I would get more out of it on a second read or perhaps there are better options.

Recommended: Only for true word geeks.

Posted by Richard Berger at 11:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Viisited my neurologist today and the news is actually somewhat good. First, I reported that there has been no change in symptoms since March (or May?) 2008. Second, the only other thing I had to report was that the discomfort level appears to increase when I drive for extended periods of time (about 1 hour is enough to trigger it). Of course, that would suggest something "mechanical" (of which there is no other evidence).

The doctor was very pleased with the stability of the symptoms, although I am less interested in the symptoms than I am in the underlying cause (it's the scientist in me). She was even more pleased by what appears to be slight improvements in my ability to detect sensation in my feet.

This basically appears to rule out a degenerative nerve disease. Which is very good news. Plausible candidates still include: (a) vascular problem (which can stablize for periods at a time - and would be treated by the angiogram) and (b) an inappropropriate autoimmune response, which can fade/intensify over time.

Our plan of action is to continue what we are doing - which is to monitor it closely (me) and check in every 12 months or so for additional tests.

Posted by Richard Berger at 01:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)