Inkspell, by Cornelia Funke.  I've had that out from the library for ages, but have been reading Shantaram.

I'm thinking of reading either a book typically assigned in high school English classes, or a much-hyped book that "everyone's reading" and then blogging as I go.  Any suggestions for titles?

And I have a few that need reviewing, as always.

What a delicious feast of books!

 Manet and the American Civil War

The book's primary focus is the battle of the U.S.S. Kearsarge and C.S.S. Alabama. This from the front flap which provides an eloquent introduction to the book which I could not better....

"On June 19, 1864, the United States warship Kearsarge sank the Confederate raider Alabama off the coast of Cherbourg, France, in one of the most celebrated naval engagements of the American Civil War. The battle was widely reported in the illustrated press and riveted public attention on both sides of the Channel. When Kearsarge later anchored off the French resort town of Boulonge-sur-Mer it was thronged by curious visitors, one of whom was the artist Edouard Manet.  Although he did not witness the historic battle, Manet made a painting of it partly as an attempt to regain the respect of his colleagues after being ridiculed for his works in the 1864 Salon. Manet's picture of the naval engagement and his portrait of the victorious Kearsarge belong to a group of his seascapes of Boulonge whose unorthodox perspective and composition would profoundly influence the course of French paintings."

In part 2, more on Edouard Manet followed in subsequent posts about the two ships and their encounter across the Atlantic.

Note that I have added a shelf to my online library titled "Civil War Art and Artists." You can access that shelf here. I will shortly cross-reference this book on the Naval History shelf as well.

Twelve-year-old Titus Strega-Borgia and his ten-year-old sister Pandora do not live in what most people would term a normal household. Things are strange at StregaSchloss, the family's house near the Scottish Highlands, even before their father Luciano mysteriously disappears. Dealing with an unwieldy household while completing her degree in advanced witchcraft, Baci Strega-Borgia is overextended. Enter Mrs. Flora McLachlan who tries to bring some order to the household along with fries that are crispy on the outside and soft in the middle, and the occasional lullaby for Damp, the youngest of the Strega-Borgia children.

But order doesn't reign for very long at StregaSchloss before things get out of hand. Thirteen baby rats go missing, followed soon after by Damp. Then the gangster in the rabbit suit shows up and everything gets even messier.

If any of the plot brought to mind the Addams family, it's not a coincidence. I have no proof for this, but feel strongly that the Strega-Borgia's might be distant cousins of Morticia and Gomez. Gliori pulls off a blend of humor and the macabre, with the odd man-eating monster thrown in, admirably and much in the style so common to the Addams family movie.

Needless to say this novel does require a willing suspension of disbelief, but once you get into the story it's really fun. Gliori's prose is straightforward and broken up into manageable chapters (usually four or so pages at a time) which make it a good pick for a reluctant reader who might not want to read a long chapter in one sitting.

The characters are also excellent. In addition to the family and staff, several mythical beasts and one hungry crocodile also add a lot of dimension to the book. Pure Dead Magic is one of those books that, if you can tolerate some fantastical elements, has something for everyone: a variety of characters, excitement, suspense, and humor. A well-rounded book for anyone looking for a story that will leave them smiling.

From the very beginning I thought this book looked interesting. Originally published in 2005 I had heard that it had even been used in university Lit classes. Upon knowing that tidbit I assumed a level of complication with the characters and a deeper depth of plot. Here is what I came away with: complicated characters that all want something (parallel to the title). Their relationships to one another go around and around - always circling one another - but really, going nowhere. This is where the plot came up short. That sense of longing hums along the fine lines of each relationship, and there is a common theme of boundaries but beyond those connections each character is lost. Tuyen is a lesbian in love with her straight best friend. Longing for someone she can't have, sexual preference is Tuyen's barrier. Carla is the biracial bike messenger Tuyen is in love with. Carla has a troubled brother. Longing to steer her brother straight, lack of money is Carla's barrier to helping him. Oku is a music-loving college drop-out of Jamaican decent. His unrequited love for Jackie is his longing while her boyfriend is the barrier. Jackie longs for simplicity. Her barrier is being attracted to more than one man.

Oddly enough, the linear, uncomplicated character of the story (told in first person) is the one with the most depth and more intriguing story. Quy is the brother of Tuyen. He was separated from his parents in Vietnam as a very young child and has been lost to them ever since. His story is how her survived refugee camps in Thailand and how eventually, he made his way back to Tuyen and her family. Tuyen has never met this long-lost brother so when he reunites with his parents life changes for Tuyen.

The last character in What We All Long For is probably Brand's most complex and mysterious: the city of Toronto itself. As the characters move in and out of its restaurants, nightclubs, streetcars, and alleys the city responds. It lives and breathes and entices just like its human counterparts.

First of all, I love the cover with Pope Benedict holding a glass of beer with an ear to ear grin. The subtitle is great too, A Spirited Look at Catholic Life & Lore from Apocalypse to Zinfandel. :)

The book is almost like an almanac or a fanciful encyclopedia. It’s filled with short stories which all attempt (and succeed very well) to do three things,

• Recount a piece of interesting (often bizarre piece of history)
• Tie said history back to food and/or drink
• Bring everything back into an affirmation of the truth of the Catholic faith

The stories (even the footnotes) are laugh out loud funny. Though the book is filled with history, humor, mixology, and recipes, it is at heart a cleverly disguised apologetical work. It manages to defend the faith in a way not even a tree hugging college student with a Darwin fish sticker would mind.

If you like history, buy this book. If you like gastronomy, buy this book. If you love the Catholic faith, buy this book. And lastly, if you love someone else (like a college student who is on the verge of falling away), by him or her this book. He or she might just be reminded of the rich history of the Catholic church and decide to stay home.

Today I interviewed Mark Kuta, who will make you think like the CEO of the brand called YOU!

Mark Kuta has sold over $94 million in technology solutions to C-Level executives. A significant number of these sales were at greater than list price – an unheard of feat in the software industry. Mark has closed deals in a variety of different industries, as demonstrated by his client list which includes General Motors, TRW, General Electric, Honeywell, NACCO, Juniper Networks, Delphi, Steelcase, Ingersoll-Rand, Emerson Electric, Harris Industries, Grupo Industrial de Saltillo, Cisco Systems, Qualcomm, Agilent and Vitro, SA.

Since formalizing the Wall Street Selling Methodology™ in the book "Think Like a CEO," he’s become a highly sought-after speaker for national conferences, as well as an advisor to senior executives from companies throughout the world.

Mark, how does one think like a CEO? Wouldn't you say that we are all CEO's of the brand called us? Is everyone fit to be a CEO of a company?

Yes, we ARE all CEO’s of our personal brand. In fact, now that I authored this book, I have a business card representing the Mark Kuta Brand. I think that while everyone, like it or not, is a CEO of their own life, they are not born to be company CEO’s. However, there are many ways to prepare to climb the corporate ladder. You can certainly start at the ground floor of a business to learn it, but getting an advanced degree will help, and, of course, taking advantage of OPE, or Other People’s Experience is huge.

What was your experience like writing the book and attaching so many executive brands to it?

I wrote the book over a four year period as I traveled. I only read 4 books during that time, and whenever I wanted to kick back and pull out the latest bestseller, well, I’d look over at someone on the plane reading and think, “One day they will be reading Think Like a CEO.” The tough thing was I was closing a lot of deals over those four years, and I wanted to write about some of them in the book. Once the book was finished, it was remarkably easy attracting executives who wanted to review it.

Do I still need my MBA, or will this book's teachings be sufficient?

I would absolutely recommend an MBA for anyone interested in getting ahead in the business world. What my book does is teach some techniques that you can use to get action out of an executive. While many B-Schools teach these methods, what they don’t teach is the application of these when one is selling to - or dealing with - senior executives. For example, the idea of Profit Strategies is something that I coined in order to align your product or service to a company’s strategy.

You won’t learn about Profit Strategies in graduate school. A number of readers who are not in sales are reading Think Like a CEO. I have a couple of presentations lined up, for instance, for an organization called APICS, and focusing on purchasing personnel. Someone bought my book and realized value and the next thing you know I’m on the podium there.

Why is it so important to understand your financial's, as well as your companies. Does everyone need to understand cash flow statements and balance sheets?

I don’t think that anyone really needs to understand everything about financial statements. What you need to do is have the ability to deal with C-level executives. You need to understand what drives them. And what drives them is Wall Street. The thing about Think Like a CEO is that I focus only on what you need to understand, and it is always presented in a way focused to accomplishing your results.

The analogy I like to use is the US Secret Service. Do you know how they teach their agents to recognize counterfeit bills? They don’t. They teach them how to recognize the REAL THING. So, reading Think Like a CEO won’t make you a financial whiz, but you will understand what senior executives are interested in. You will be able to converse with a senior executive, probably just like YOUR CEO does now when he runs across another CEO at his club. That’s really what I’m after.

Describe one of your case studies you used in the book.

The beginning of the book describes a case where I felt like that guy in “Catch Me If You Can," you know, the guy that pretends to be a doctor, or an airline pilot, etc. I was pretending to be a lean manufacturing consultant when I was actually a software salesperson. While not understanding anything about brake presses, kanban’s or TAKT time, I used the methods I outlined to close the deal with a bunch of Ivy League MBA’s. Thus, the subtitle of the book.

Was it harder selling your technology solutions or this book?

The book tends to sell itself, while technology solutions have a long and intricate sales cycle. I was in a meeting the other week (with a company that everyone would recognize, by the way) and started driving home their need to improve their Gross Margins. The senior executive who I was selling to said, “Mark, that’s just like in your book!” He had picked up a copy earlier and recognized what I was doing. So, I asked him what his CEO would say about that, and he said, “You know what he would say about that. That is why we are talking to you!”

What 3 tips do you have for people starting out in business today?

Set high goals. Look out there and make something your personal Normandy, or your personal Moon Landing. Once you set these goals, build good work habits. I discovered early on in my career that whether you are a salesperson or a factory manager, you will work long hours and probably have to do some travel. Learn to work hard and you will be successful. Finally, never stop learning. I’ve met people with one year of experience eighteen times over, and I’ve met people with true eighteen years experience. If you want to eat steak instead of bologna, you have the be that latter person.

A simple yet poignant story of a twelve-year-old Army brat named Jamie. She admires her father, a Colonel,. She dreams of combat and service to country. As her brother departs for Vietnam, she gets"wound up tighter than a German clock. TJ was going to war... Just like we'd always dreamed of." [126] 

Eager to hear details from the front lines, Jamie is disappointed when TJ sends undeveloped film with instructions that she develop it herself at the base Rec center. It is through her brother's pictures and through relations with the Rec center guys, some who have already served in Vietnam, that Jamie comes to understand the reality of war. 

I thought Jamie's development was realistic. I never doubted her actions, words, or motivations. She spends much of her time hanging around GIs and it shows. She has that understanding of her parents that I arrived at during my early teen years: "My mother is a former Southern belle debutante, very flowery and chock-full of good manners, but she generally gets what she wants. Only she hardly ever comes right out and forces things to happen. She's more subtle than that." [78]

Dowell captures the language and attitude of the time without ever disassociating the reader.

• Our own Janeite Mae sent me the following about a downloadable walking tour of Jane Austen's Bath... if you have an MP3 player, you are all set! (it says it is compatible with iTunes, and hopefully that is the case....usually us ipod users are out of luck with these free downloads...)  The website for Jane Austen's Bath has much on the City and JA'srelationship to it.... information on events, sites and tours, etc. and many interesting links [this link is now also in our sidebar under "Regency & Georgian England"]
•  At Austenprose, Laurel Ann pens a fine review of Mr. Darcy's Diary by Maya Slater, with several comments questioning the need for Darcy's roguish behavior.....do you want YOUR Darcy "tumbling the maid"?
• Mrs. Elton Sez  (a.k.a. Diana Birchall) has a new advice column entry at Jane Austen Today...
• And our usual thanks to Ms. Place at Jane Austen's World for sending me off to the Georgiana Duchess of Devonshire Gossip Guide and the Marie Antoinette Gossip Guide, both filled with all sorts of 18th-century info... 
• At Austenblog see the link "Is Tony Blair Wickham?" and this week's Daily Mail rant picturing Gordon Brown as various literary characters....too funny, so thanks Mags!
• A review of "Jane Austen's Guide to Dating"  http://readingoutside.blogspot.com/2008/07/36-jane-austens-guide-to-dating.html
• The JASNA New Jersey Chapter poses the question:  Ten Words: Yes, just ten words. Please think of ten words we think best describe Jane Austen and her works.  I see no comments at this point, so let's think on this one and participate!...
   http://cnjjasna.blogspot.com/2008/07/please-participate-ten-words.html
• an old article from The Guardian, but always useful to have a list of books to read...this one includes "Northanger Abbey" (and is therefore a fine list!) see at http://www.guardian.co.uk:80/books/2002/may/23/bestbooks.comics
• A "Rethinking Jane Austen Blog" at http://rethinkingjaneausten.wordpress.com:80/2008/07/23/welcome-to-the-rethinking-jane-austen-course-blog/  A group blog devoted to critically exploring ‘popular’ responses to Jane Austen’s works. By students in the English Program at La Trobe University, Australia. Guests are welcome to join the discussion.  
• More news on Pride & Prejudice, the Musical, to open in Rochester NY in October at: http://www.prweb.com/releases/Broadway/JaneAusten/prweb1128704.htm and for more information on the play see http://www.prideandprejudicebroadway.com/
•  The new site JaneAusten.org has a Pemberley desktop wallpaper you can save on your computer.
• here's another blog about Jane Austen:  http://thejaneaustenproject.blogspot.com:80/
• and another Jane Austen in Portuguese, currently with a critique of the P&P movie adaptations with great pictures (in Portuguese of course!)

The latest Christian Booksellers Assocition (CBA) ranking has the NLT #3 in dollars sales and #2 in unit sales.  I believe Tim Challies saw this coming, because he took some shots at it but misfired.  And with the launching of the NLT blog to discuss matters NLT, sure didn't hurt and will only increase it's readability.

In fact, R. Mansfield and Elshaddai have us all excited about the NLT Study Bible.  Now I leave you with this postscript come from the post Rise of the New Living Translation:

I don’t believe that for one Bible version to succeed another one must fail. I still recommend reading translations in parallel. Regardless, I believe current trends point to the NLT continuing to gain momentum which may eventually lead to its place as the most used Evangelical translation in a number of years. And it may even be able to reach beyond the walls of Evangelicalism.

Are we really in for an evangelical NLT takeover?

This is an important and timely book. Mary Wood attempts a great deal in a relatively short book. Inevitably, this means that the reader might sometimes be left wanting more, but that’s no bad thing if they have been introduced to a wide range of issues and given all the appropriate starting points.

Traditionally books about ‘national’ or ‘regional’ cinemas have focused on particular directors, film movements, specific genres and/or issues related to representations of national identity. In this process, popular cinema sometimes gets neglected because it is less often seen outside its domestic market, lesser-known directors and smaller producing countries are often missing altogether and distribution and exhibition rarely get a look in. In Wood’s book there are none of these omissions.

A quick run through the chapters will establish the book’s range. An overview of European production in terms of the international film market is followed by chapters on art cinema, the so-called ‘quality’ film, the attempts to match high concept Hollywood films and ‘popular films and local stories’. Issues of cultural identity are linked to the importance of television and satellite distribution. Two cultural issues are addressed in the question of ‘heritage films’ in ‘theme park Europe’ and the global/local issues of migration and multiculturalism. The book ends with a case study of a small European country with an interesting history and an important contribution to film culture – Ireland.

Mary Wood is Professor of European Cinema at Birkbeck and her specialism is Italian Cinema. This gives her a headstart in terms of knowledge about a major industry which has to some extent slipped off the radar of cinemagoers in the UK. She matches this with forays into Turkish and Balkan Cinemas and coverage of genres ranging from soft porn and gangster films to massively popular Spanish local comedies and children’s films from across Europe. It’s also good to see contemporary British Cinema discussed as part of European Cinema with Michael Winterbottom as auteur and British heritage films considered alongside those of France, Italy and Eastern Europe.

As well as the diversity of film culture explored, the book also delves into institutional questions and makes use of the wealth of European audio-visual data and reports which have been overlooked by many film studies academics.

At this point, I could register a small gripe about the book’s production. There are no illustrations apart from the various charts and tables (which I think could have been more attractively presented). I think a handful of good quality stills could have helped introduce some of the kinds of films not usually seen in the UK. Overall, the book feels crammed with small margins and a single column of text which is probably too wide for comfortable reading. I can only imagine that Hodder Arnold are trying to save money, but I think the design does a dis-service to the content.

Put the design points aside. If you want to reference European Cinema in your film or media studies teaching, you should definitely buy this book. It is written in an accessible style and crammed with information and ideas that students will find useful and it will introduce issues and case studies that might suggest unusual and rewarding critical research exercises. A detailed bibliography and index will help students get started.

Roy Stafford

All too often, the only thing that actually changes is the money, from the reader to the bookstore. I've read my fair share of "success" book, and the ones that tend to be the most beneficial are the ones that tell you to know what you want, figure out how to get what you want, build a plan, and then CARRY IT OUT! It's the last part that tends to trip us all up.

Oprah Winfrey thinks this book is worth buying, but I ask you, can you really trust a guy named "Eckhart" to offer good advice? These Scathing Book Reviews of A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose, by Eckhart Tolle make it their purpose to convince you to not buy the book:

While I applaud Oprah for this novel approach to bettering the human race, I take issue with both this author and his book.

...and:

I think I've found my true calling in life. Create a joke of a new age cult and get a self absorbed talk show host to peddle it and then the sheep will line up to purchase it. I couldnt get through chapter one. Please, a moment of silence for everyone throwing their money away, feel the oneness with your fellow sheep.

...and:
"Refuse to grow-up"would be a better title for his book.

...and:

I find no clearer indictment of the American mind than the success of this book.

...and:

I don't know who's more dangerous, Oprah or the half-wits she endorses on her show or the half wits in the audience of her show.

...and:

This kind of stuff is appropriate for sappy greeting cards or manipulative advertising but, in my opinion, little else.

...and from the "unfortunately right" department:

This has to be some of the most boring mumbo jumbo I've ever read. The writer clearly likes to hear himself talk, or read, or whatever. I can't believe he actually got this book published. There must be alot of lost people out there.

...and this, from someone who was probably thinking of "The Secret":

Let me save you some time and money. Here's what the book says... Blah,Blah,Blah, "think postive" Blah,Blah,Blah "I can create success and money and health with positive thoughts" Blah,Blah,Blah. That about sums it up!

...and for Die-Hard Democrats, the ultimate insult:

About as insightful as a George Bush speech.

I also read Kane and Abel, which is based on some biblical characters Cain and Abel which I don't know about much but in itself the book was thrilling and kept me interested for a long while before becoming a little burdening towards the end. Other than that, good story telling. Power hungry industrialists, their successes , their tragedies , their struggles and eventual victory make for a good story. I liked it okay!

After that I have started "A Room with a view" by E.M. Forster and somehow, I am finding it very tedious right now to wallow in the victorian age and their typical English antics. So, I have kept the book on hold for a while. I hope i will soon be able to return to it.

So, after dropping the above said book, I leapt on to some management and motivational books because they were the only ones that I had. One is "Born to Win" by Promod Batra and another called "How to get what you want to get" by Havermeyer. Well, about them all I can say is that these books suddenly lift your mood up and light that flame of enthusiasm again whenever you are able to spot a needed statement in them. But what I find most irritating about such books is the inconsistency in the preachings. There are many contradictions which reduce the book from a serious full hearted attempt to just a compiled fact book.

About movies:
Saw Kismat Konnection. Well, wasn't able to make any connection with the movie. Shahid was good. I went with an open mind and a possible positive bias towards Vidya Balan but she disappointed me again. She does not come across as a light hearted character ever. That irks me. Sometimes the script demands heaviness but not always man! That becomes boring.

Saw Aamir. Loved it! Good attempt. More such movies should be made and fine acting by Rajeev khandelwal.

Now, I want to see "The Dark Knight" and "Jaane Tu..." BADLY!!

A wonderful collection of picture stories, creatively illustrated by Chris Appelhans. Frank and Frank tells a story without words of the "camaraderie between two lovable characters named Frank and Frank." I love books without text because I think it encourages children (and adults!) to imagine and think. This book looks like one that the whole family would enjoy and that could even be coffee table worthy.

Picture this:  you have been a faithful participant in your local church for most of your life.  As you grow older, a new generation of leaders takes the helm and leads the congregation in a direction that departs from what you remember as normative.  You grow increasingly uncomfortable with how things are being done – especially in worship – and you begin to wonder, “Who stole my church?”

Gordon MacDonald, a prolific Christian author, columnist, and pastor from the United States, has written a book that tells the (fictitious) story of one such congregation in Who Stole My Church?  What to Do When the Church You Love Tries to Enter the 21^st Century (Thomas Nelson, 2007).  As a pastor and conference speaker, he has faced that very question sufficiently often that he decided to write a book that would tell the story of a congregation going through such a crisis, of which he was the pastor.  The tale is entirely fictional, but based on events that happen in real churches across the western world. 

The book reads relatively quickly because of its narrative style, but the principles he draws from the story are incredibly helpful.  I bought and read the book because a good friend and mentor told me “Every Presbyterian in Canada should read this book.”  As one of those, I took his advice, and am glad I did.

For pastors, it helps us see what goes through members of the congregation who are beginning to feel alienated by the process of change and change itself.  For laypeople, the book expresses what many feel, while also enabling ‘innovators’ and ‘early adopters’ to understand the thoughts and feelings of the  ‘early majority’, the ‘late majority’ and the ‘laggards’ in the congregation.  Those who adapt to change easily can be just as easily frustrated by those who do not – and vice-versa.

One of the life lessons in this book has to do with the value of listening to each other.  Another has to do with the importance of intergenerational dialogue.  When the young and the old start to understand and appreciate each other, the process of change can become more tolerable.

If the church is to thrive, change is inevitable.  But it is never easy.  However, MacDonald’s book helps the reader understand how and why change must happen in the church from biblical, historical and sociological perspectives.  I found it a really helpful book.

Buy it, and share it with key leaders in your church, as well with as those who resist change.  It can only help the cause of Christ.

Willard investigates seven bottom-line benefits that comprise The Sustainability Advantage: easier hiring of the best talent, higher retention of top talent, increasing employee productivity, reduced expenses in manufacturing, reduced expenses at commercial sites, increased revenue/market share, and reduced risk/easier financing. For each of the seven benefits, real-life examples of businesses in a variety of industries are described to have successfully used sustainable tactics to enhance their bottom line. The Sustainability Advantage also provides an in-depth case study of a hypothetical computer company which undertakes a series of sustainable initiatives. Conservative numbers, based on a variety of real-life case studies, are used to estimate the positive impact for the hypothetical company.

Throughout the book, readers are encouraged to reference the worksheets in the appendix, plug in the financial numbers from their own company, and witness how their organization would be impacted by the sustainable actions. Even with highly conservative numbers, the hypothetical company increases in its bottom line by a great deal. Willard successfully builds the case for sustainability and provides a thorough analysis of its great financial potential for the business world. The only two ways to increase profit are to reduce expenses or increase revenue; after reading this book, you will be convinced that sustainability and profit are nearly synonymous.

This book review comes from Joseph Martin Vandette Jr, one of SSC’s 2008 summer interns.

As I began reading this book I fully understood why some people had asked that this book be banned. After all, it kind of reads like a how-to book on pedophilia. But when the subject came up at book club, I found myself defending the book, saying that if someone read this book and thought it condoned their own behavior or it "inspired" them to do something of this sort, well they were likely to have done it anyway. I said this because I saw the reactions of the others who had read this book and all of us, whether we thought the writing was beautiful or the story interesting, were disgusted with the main character and judged him accordingly. This book isn't going to turn anybody into a pedophile who doesn't already entertain such thoughts.

The book itself is beautifully written. In the first part when Humbert Humbert is falling in love with Lolita, I was quite taken by his descriptions of her ... until I remembered that he was talking about a 12-year-old girl. I also really enjoyed the French phrases sprinkled throughout the book. I felt like each one was a little French quiz for me, especially because he offers no translation like many books do today. His descriptions of living in France and going to the Mediterranean made me think of my own time there, which is always a fun thing.

Aside from all of that though the book is really interesting and it raises a lot of questions about love and family. It also shows the inner workings (albeit fictional) of a truly deranged person and how one is able to justify what he is doing despite all evidence that it is wrong. I thought it was quite interesting that Humbert Humbert often befriended other sexual deviants.

There are many historical and literary references throughout this book, along with the aforementioned untranslated French phrases (some Latin and German as well), so I highly recommend getting the annotated version. I didn't know there was an annotated version until I went to the book club meeting and now I feel like I need to read it all over again so I can get the inside jokes that some of the others understood better than I did.

(c) 2008 Janice Harayda. All rights reserved.

The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power  by Jeff Sharlet is a book that will shock you. It will surely enlighten you. And to boot, it is so well written it's a simple pleasure you can enjoy as well.

Sharlet is more than qualified and some speak of him as the premier writer on American religion in the country today. His credentials include being a associate research scholar at New York University's Center for Religion and Media, where he has taught both journalism and religious studies. He is co-author of the book, Killing the Buddha. He has published articles in Harper's, Rolling Stone, Mother Jones, New York Magazine, Washington Post, and others.

His book delves into a secret organization, one that has operated for some 70 years, largely unknown to the public at large, but one that has invaded and tentacled its way into the all our government. It's reach is international in scope. Some of the most amazing people have relationship with it. It is not Republican by definition, though the vast majority of it's vast cadre are Republicans. It is Christian but does not either tout that or actually care much for any  formalized religion. It is unashamedly pro-free market economics and anti-Communist. It should scare the living day lights out of you.

At first glance, The Family or Fellowship seems childishly silly, composed of men who tout free-market economy and claim that Jesus and God choose businessmen for their leadership qualities to lead the fight to reform the world.  Self-serving as this may be, it works. Started some 70 years ago by a Norwegian immigrant, the group, lead by Abraham Vereide, an itinerant preacher,  began by union busting in the northwest. Convinced that businessmen were God's chosen leaders, Vereide was successful in promoting this idea whereby the working man was where he was because God wanted him there, and business would "do the right thing" if left unimpeded by laws.

The Family takes credit for helping to dismantle New Deal legislation. Eventually it came to Washington. It operates the National Prayer Breakfast each year, its only now visible showing of itself. Vereide is of course now dead and leadership has gone to a guy named Doug Coe, whom many claim is the most important unknown man in Washington. He has had the ear of most presidents, and travels the world extensively, meeting with leaders in many countries.

The point of the Family is to promote what is called Jesus plus nothing. Jesus, claimed to speak pretty directly to Coe, councils a warrior type attitude for leadership. Jesus is the way, but a Jesus that is not tied to any formal religion at all. This Jesus will "guide" his chosen to do the right thing. It is in the end pro business, pro military and pro American empire.

As I said, this may all seem rather silly and unimportant until you look at what they have done. Throughout the Cold War years, this group has been responsible for helping into power and helping the staying power of such dictators as Suharto, Papa Doc Duvalier, Siad Biarre in Somalia, and others. When asked how they justify the bloodshed perpetrated by these monsters, Coe shrugs and claims that God apparently has reasons. He is sure that God means for his elites to run the world, and sure that God will use these men (yes nearly all men) in ways that we don't need worry about.

How does the group operate? It has from the beginning organized through the cell. Giving lip service and regrets ("they are bad men, of course), its model of organization are such men as Adolph Hitler, Mao Zedong, and Fidel Castro. These were men who knew how to organize other men. These were men who taught and were obeyed unquestioningly, and whose followers  would murder mother and father before betraying the leadership. This is what Coe believes in, what Vereide believed in, and what the Family still believes.

They set up innocuous "prayer" cells, and offer "contacts" and opportunities to meet important and wealthy other men, men who can help fund campaigns. Among Washington members are Sam Brownbeck, James Inhofe. Chuck Grassley and Hillary Clinton are "friends" not members. The have houses in the surrounding area where breakfast prayer meetings are held, still led by Ed Meese of Reagan fame. Military higher ups attend as well, as do members of many of the federal departments. Recently some military types from the academies were caught doing videos for the Family, touting how they followed the Family directives of Jesus first over their oaths as members of the military. That has happily been cleaned up, so I understand.

Such is the clout of this group. President Bush has called Doug Coe a "quiet diplomat." Rev. Billy Graham has been associated with them. In deed, the more vocal and usual "fundamentalist" players, like Ted Haggart, Pat Robertson, Chuck Colson and all the usual suspects also are hangers on. Ted Haggart, no longer leading his New Life group, also organized his followers into cells, following the blueprint of the Family. While the elitist fundamentalists that Coe represents don't particularly care about abortion and homosexual issues, they are more than willing to form alliance with such groups to further their aims.

And when you look at the philosophy of the Ted Haggarts and these types, you find 'prosperity" preaching which goes along with the free-market business programs that the elites which to impose. Indeed Ted Haggart claims that Jesus wants a free market economy.

Sharlet goes far and wide to learn about both segments of the movement, both the visible populist one and the hidden elitist one. Much of the material he used was from the archives of the Billy Graham Center. in 1970, Coe put a stop to the creation of a paper trail, and the movement, as I said, went underground.

He spent time underground himself, visiting the Washington house, Ivanwald, where young men learn to get connected and rise in their fields, all the while forming cells of their own. Much of this of course is done on the sly. Most are not told about the "Jesus" thing until well after they are enticed by promises of connections which will make them players in the world, players that God has called them to be,  they are told. They are God's chosen. Few refuse the call it seems. Heady stuff indeed for not yet graduated young men.

The brilliance of Jeff Sharlet is that he is not overtly against this movement. He sees some things in fundamentalism which are to be appreciated and are laudable. He is seemingly about as objective as one can be. This does not keep him from pointing out the flaws in the group, and of course they are major and glaring. It's philosophy is self-serving to say the least. It has no objective safe guards for discerning good from bad. Anyone who is willing to entire their environs whom they feel might be useful is adopted and helped, even though the help may mean untold misery for tens of thousands of others. They believe in ends justifying means. They believe they are chosen quite frankly.

The fact that they condone the teaching of bald faced lies to children in homeschooling materials is another of those, can't be concerned about things. The textbooks used by homeschooling fundamentalist parents is simply appalling in they direct and utter rewriting of history to justify the positions they wish to extol today. The Family of course, plays no overt role in this, but uses the leaders of the populist fundamentalist movement for their own purposes, and again the ends justify the means used, as usual.

As I said at the beginning, at first one is amused at how silly people can re-organize the world for their own purposes. Then one becomes seriously concerned as one sees how detrimental this group has been. Then one becomes shocked at the depth and breadth of its influence in America. Then one becomes deeply angry at the bloodshed and vile activities it has supported, and influenced our government to engage in, all in the name of doing God's will as they see it.

Sharlet does not offer much of a solution I'm afraid. He suggests that we must create a new and better myth to sell that what they are selling. I don't see anybody much doing that, but a few writers here and there. This stuff is deeply troubling. It helped me to see just of how little consequence the American public is held. We are not important, plain and simple, we don't count, because as they see it God doesn't think we count. They count, their beliefs count, and so much of this has been done right under our noses. While politicians give lame lip service today and always to the "what the American people" want, they go about the business of reordering the world in the vision of Doug Cole, their guru.

I'm told this book has reached the NY Best Seller's list. I'm glad if that is the case. It needs to be read, and read widely. We need to reclaim or perhaps claim for the first time, control of this government before it is too late. Jeff Sharlet makes that so very clear. Buy it, read it, and give it to someone else. This book needs to be read.

Saving the World by Julia Alvarez — Alvarez chronicles the parallel stories of Alma Huebner, a novelist who doing research for her latest project, and Isabel Sendales y Gómez who in 1803 embarked on a long-forgotten Spanish expedition to accompany orphan boys to the New World in an attempt to fight the scourge of smallpox. As the story begins, "In the fall of her fiftieth year, Alma finds herself lost in a dark mood she can't seem to shake. It's late September; she has actually not turned fifty yet, but she has already given that out as her age, hoping to get the fanfare and menopause jokes over and done with."

Corelli's Mandolin by Louis De Bernières — If you saw the sadly disappointing Nicholas Cage movie based on this story, absolutely do not let it turn you off from reading the book. De Bernières is an amazing writer who spins stories full of humor, complex romance, turmoil, and fascinating historical details. This is the story of a romantic triangle between beautiful and willful Pelagia, the fisherman turned guerrilla fighter Mandras, and the charming Captain Corelli, a mandolin-playing officer in the Italian army that is occupying the Greek island of Cephallonia during World War II. The novel begins with Pelagia's father (one of many great supporting characters), "Dr Iannis had enjoyed a satisfactory day in which none of his patients had died or got any worse. He had attended a surprisingly easy calving, lanced one abscess, extracted a molar, dosed one lady of easy virtue with Salvarsan, performed an unpleasant but spectacularly fruitful enema, and had produced a miracle by a feat of medical prestidigitation."

Birds Without Wings by Louis De Bernières — This is the sweeping, epic romance between a Christian girl, Philothei, and a Muslim boy, Ibrahim, who live in small village in Southwestern Anatolia during the final years of the Ottoman Empire in the early 1900s. People in the village speak Turkish and those who can write, write in Greek; the various religions get along until historic changes hit this tiny corner of the world. Chapter 1 begins, "The people who remained in this place have often asked themselves why it was that Ibrahim went mad. I am the only one who knows, but I have always been committed to silence, because he begged me to respect his grief, or, as he also put it, to take pity upon his guilt."

The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai — At the foothill foothills of the Himalayan Mount Kanchenjunga in India, the orphan Sai moves in with her grandfather, a sad retired judge. At the same time, the judge's cook's son, Biju, struggles to make a living in New York. Sai falls in love with her tutor Gyan, a young man from a very underprivileged family, who is torn between love for her and getting involved in a rising political movement. Chapter 1 begins, "All day the colors had been those of dusk, mist moving like a water creature across the great flanks of mountains possessed of ocean shadows and depth. Briefly visible above the vapor Kanchenjunga was a far peak whittled out of ice, gathering the last of the light, a plume of snow blown by the winds at its summit."

The LA Times recently shut down its book review section moving content and three of its now former five book review editors to a features page. I pray the NYTimes Book Review  isn't next. Some weeks even that grande dame seems a page signature or two shy of permanent anorexia.

BookEnds Literary Agency's July 16 discussion debated whether or not readers buy fiction in times of economic distress (file that bit of news under It was the worst of times to be a newbie novelist.) Today posters to the literary blog The Elegant Variation batted back and forth the merits of leaving print media behind for the web.

So I throw it out to you, dear readers:
• How do you find your way to the books you enjoy reading? Friends' recommendations? Book reviews? Browsing the shelves at the library? Amazon? Your local indy bookseller or big box?

• Have you changed your book buying habits of late?

• Given up on fiction for more practical books, such as those titled Your Money or Your Shirt -- Surviving Today's Financial Crises? (Although from where I sit, nothing is more practical than facing down the persistent wave of bad news with a terrific escape into someone else's maelstrom. And I made up the title of that book.)

• The evisceration of book review sections -- good for the muse or bad for the muse?  If today's (to wit yesterday's) model is destined for the circular file, what model would you propose for the future?

• And last but by no means least -- read any good books lately?

PS  Tune in to BoomerCafe.com on Saturday, June 26. (After sunset for the Shomer Shabbos amongst us.) They will be running one of those promised (back in May) essays that should have been published and wasn't.