The Book Blawg

The Case for Classical Christian Education by Douglas Wilson

Chief Executive Mom writes a review of Douglas Wilson's The Case for Classical Christian Education. I've read this book before, and was skimming it just yesterday. Highly recommended.

Dig Your Well Before You're Thirsty, Harvey MacKay
We Got Fired! : . . . And It's the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Us, Harvey MacKay

I'm re-reading a book I checked out about a year ago by Harvey MacKay entitled Dig Your Well Before You're Thirsty: The Only Networking Book You'll Ever Need. I must say that the book lives up to its title. Not only does it explain the how-tos and why-tos of networking, it is an interesting read for anyone, even those for whom networking may not seem to be essential. The author also includes a short chapter on his wife and the way that men and women network differently, something that I think could be explored further.

Coincidentally, I also picked up We Got Fired! : . . . And It's the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Us not realizing it was written by the same author. Basically it is the stories of famous and sucessful people telling about the time they were fired and...would you believe it, how it was the best thing that ever happened to them. Doncha just love descriptive book titles? Some of the famous people include Larry King, Michael Bloomberg, Muhammad Ali, Billie Jean King, and Jesse Ventura.

A quote from the book: "The road to success is marked with many tempting parking places."

Cinderella Man by Jeremy Schaap

My husband thought he put the DVD of “Cinderella Man” the movie on hold; when we picked it up we discovered it was the book instead. Well, never let it be said that a book sat around my living room unread.

I haven’t seen the movie, but I want to after reading this book. I did learn more than I really needed to about boxing. There is also a second theme running through the book; that of the importance of sports writing in an era before television. A great story.

The Five Lessons a Millionaire Taught Me About Life and Wealth, by Richard Paul Evans

I've read a lot of books on money and wealth. Robert Kiyosaki, Robert G. Allen, Suze Ormond, several books with the word “Millionaire” in the title, and so forth. This book adds nothing new to the genre. It is, however, concise and short – the book flap claims it can be read in one sitting. Personally, I would recommend two. Perfect for a plane trip. I would recommend it if you are just beginning to learn about wealth; or if you are not a reader and want something short and interesting. Perhaps as a gift for a friend. Mr. Evans' book just doesn't have the depth of the above authors.

Here’s what I did get out of the book:

Becoming wealthy is as much as psychological and emotional exercise as a physical one. Anyone who has ever dieted knows that it’s easier to stick to a diet when you see immediate progress in the mirror and on the scale. Likewise, the most powerful way to encourage new, wealth-accumulating behavior is to see visible, tangible results. I found that the best way to see tangible results is to create tangible wealth – to have something you can watch grow. In fiscal terms, this is called a nest egg:

A sum of money put aside for future expenses.

Personally, I prefer the dictionary’s older, original definition of a nest egg:

A real or artificial egg that is put in a hen’s nest to encourage it to continue laying after the other eggs have been removed.

This definition alludes to a powerful psychological need for anyone attempting to accumulate wealth: the provision of incentives in order to spur further productivity. I cannot overstate the importance of creating and abiding mental concept of your nest egg.

Belly Laughs: The Naked Truth About Pregnancy and Childbirth by Jenny McCarthy

The attraction, however slight, of this book seems to be that it was written by a celebrity who describes her intimate bodily functions using language that others are, quite wisely, too polite to put into print. While amusing, it is not what I would consider funny. As an aspiring childbirth educator, I found some of her story irritating. She tells us that she eats a whole pan of homemade brownies every night, then complains of her swollen ankles. She spends a lot of time lounging on the couch while pregnant, begs the doctor not to turn down her epidural for 2nd stage labor, then has a c-section after 2 1/2 hours of (largely ineffective, one assumes) pushing. She does not breastfeed (no explanation given), but complains about engorgement. Not a book I would recommend to pregnant women. Or anyone, for that matter. Let's hope she doesn't write a sequel.

A New York Times Bestseller? Glad I didn't pay for my copy, or I'd be asking for a refund.

I'm about to have a baby. So what better time to give birth to a new blog? Three kids, three blogs, right?

I read. A lot. I am one of those people who doesn't mind waiting in doctors' offices as long as there are good magazines. If stuck in the bathroom for any length of time without reading material, I will grab a shampoo bottle and read the side of it. When visting the home of a friend or relative, if there are magazines on the coffee table, I feel an overwhelming desire to pick them up and read them, and actually have to remind myself that it is probably rude to do so in most circumstances. At least until after dinner or until someone turns the game on.

Sometimes I think about blogging about what I'm reading, but I'm not sure where to put it. I read a lot of books about childbirth and parenting, so those could go in The Baby Blawg. I also read a lot of general interest non-fiction, politics, history, etc. That could go on The Mommy Blawg, but it's not really related to the law, and I would like to keep the subject matter of that blog pretty focused. So a couple weeks ago, I had the idea of starting a new blog, just to keep up with what I'm reading. The idea is, sometimes I will do an actual book review, sometimes just an interesting quote or two, and sometimes just a listing of what I've finished reading. If you've read The Mommy Blawg for a while, you know that I used to journal what we checked out of the library each week. Sort of a continuation of that.

I don't really expect this blog to have much of an audience. I'm not going to promote it. It's mostly just for me. Feel free to comment or discuss, though! Also, due to the impending arrival of the aforementioned blessing, there probably won't be much going on here for a while. But I wanted to get the blog set up while I had a spare minute or two.