#29-#31: Gladwell, Aaron, See
#29: Malcolm Gladwell, The Tipping Point
Gladwell proposes here that ideas, information, and behaviors act like an epidemic, starting small and spreading until they reach a certain threshold, the "tipping point". Although I enjoy Gladwell's clear, conversational writing and thought he had some interesting ideas, I was less taken with this than I was with Blink. Much of what he talks about in this book has to do with marketing and advertising, and I just don't find those compelling topics, as opposed to, say, Blink's discussion of unconscious racism and ideas for how to combat that. It was an entertaining read generally, but it's not a book I'm going to be thinking about a lot after finishing it.
#30: Hank Aaron with Lonnie Wheeler, I Had a Hammer: The Hank Aaron Story
Hank Aaron was until a couple of years ago the holder of major league baseball's career home run record, and he is by all accounts one of baseball's all-time greatest players. Aaron started his career in baseball soon after Jackie Robinson broke the racial barrier, while black players still faced virulent racism on many fronts. Aaron faced more than most when he challenged Babe Ruth's home run record; he received thousands of hate-filled letters, many threatening his life, which are simply horrifying to read (the book quotes several). He faced these challenges with courage and dignity, he broke the record, and he became known for speaking out on racial issues.
In this autobiography, Aaron relates the story of his life, from his poverty-stricken beginnings in Alabama to his elevation to the ranks of baseball's greatest. Each chapter is introduced with a third-person section which gives a historical picture of the world Aaron lived in, before Aaron's first-person narrative takes over; I thought this was an excellent structure, setting each part of Aaron's life and career in the context of his times while allowing for his own thoughts and opinions to be set down. This is one of the best baseball autobiographies I've read, and along with Jackie Robinson's I Never Had It Made, it's essential reading for any baseball fan who wishes to understand the history of the game. More than that, though, it provides a thought-provoking look at American social history and civil rights through the lens of the sport often considered America's favorite.
#31: Lisa See, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
In their remote villages in 19th-century China, women are treated like servants, not equal to the men who head their families nor to the husbands to whom they will be given in arranged marriages. When Lily is only seven, she is paired with Snow Flower, her laotong or "old same", in an lifelong bond as important as marriage and much more sustaining emotionally. Lily and Snow Flower communicate via the women's language known as nu shu, passing messages back and forth by writing on a silk fan; they share their pains and joys and heartaches both face to face and via nu shu. Eventually, though, their friendship is threatened by acts of betrayal which may sever their bond forever.
See's writing is lucid, restrained yet emotional, beautifully mirroring the elegant writings Lily and Snow Flower exchange. She's clearly done her research, and the historical details are deftly combined with her narrative, explaining but never overwhelming the story. I liked this a lot and will be reading more of See's work.
Gladwell proposes here that ideas, information, and behaviors act like an epidemic, starting small and spreading until they reach a certain threshold, the "tipping point". Although I enjoy Gladwell's clear, conversational writing and thought he had some interesting ideas, I was less taken with this than I was with Blink. Much of what he talks about in this book has to do with marketing and advertising, and I just don't find those compelling topics, as opposed to, say, Blink's discussion of unconscious racism and ideas for how to combat that. It was an entertaining read generally, but it's not a book I'm going to be thinking about a lot after finishing it.
#30: Hank Aaron with Lonnie Wheeler, I Had a Hammer: The Hank Aaron Story
Hank Aaron was until a couple of years ago the holder of major league baseball's career home run record, and he is by all accounts one of baseball's all-time greatest players. Aaron started his career in baseball soon after Jackie Robinson broke the racial barrier, while black players still faced virulent racism on many fronts. Aaron faced more than most when he challenged Babe Ruth's home run record; he received thousands of hate-filled letters, many threatening his life, which are simply horrifying to read (the book quotes several). He faced these challenges with courage and dignity, he broke the record, and he became known for speaking out on racial issues.
In this autobiography, Aaron relates the story of his life, from his poverty-stricken beginnings in Alabama to his elevation to the ranks of baseball's greatest. Each chapter is introduced with a third-person section which gives a historical picture of the world Aaron lived in, before Aaron's first-person narrative takes over; I thought this was an excellent structure, setting each part of Aaron's life and career in the context of his times while allowing for his own thoughts and opinions to be set down. This is one of the best baseball autobiographies I've read, and along with Jackie Robinson's I Never Had It Made, it's essential reading for any baseball fan who wishes to understand the history of the game. More than that, though, it provides a thought-provoking look at American social history and civil rights through the lens of the sport often considered America's favorite.
#31: Lisa See, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan
In their remote villages in 19th-century China, women are treated like servants, not equal to the men who head their families nor to the husbands to whom they will be given in arranged marriages. When Lily is only seven, she is paired with Snow Flower, her laotong or "old same", in an lifelong bond as important as marriage and much more sustaining emotionally. Lily and Snow Flower communicate via the women's language known as nu shu, passing messages back and forth by writing on a silk fan; they share their pains and joys and heartaches both face to face and via nu shu. Eventually, though, their friendship is threatened by acts of betrayal which may sever their bond forever.
See's writing is lucid, restrained yet emotional, beautifully mirroring the elegant writings Lily and Snow Flower exchange. She's clearly done her research, and the historical details are deftly combined with her narrative, explaining but never overwhelming the story. I liked this a lot and will be reading more of See's work.